by Talal Raza (c/o talalraza.wordpress.com)
Saman Burj is a small suburban town located in the northern end of the Punjabi city of Wazirabad. It is believed to be the place where Jehangir often used to reside with his wife Noor Jehan while travelling to Kashmir. According to Irfanullah Raja, a resident, “It used to be the Royal Serai built during Emperor Jehangir’s time in 1601 AD. While travelling to Kashmir from Lahore every year, Emperor Jehangir and Empress Noor Jehan used to spend some days here when River Chenab had strong water current.”
Irfanullah also told that Saman Burj was later seized by Charat Singh, grandfather of Maharaja Ranjit Singh when Mughal Empire was in decline , who after renovation added some new structures and started living here. Then his son Mahan Singh occupied it who was the father of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Most present buildings date from late 18 and 19 centuries, except for part of the ruined old building where the Mughals once stayed which is older.
At present, it is interesting to note that neither Sikhs nor Mughals live in Saman Burj. In fact, the present residents claim to be the relatives of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb Alamgir’s second wife Begum Bai, a Jarral Rajput hailing from Rajauri in Indian Occupied Kashmir. Begum Bai was also the mother of Emperor Shah Alam.
Historians note that Jarral Rajas ruled Kalanaur (a place in Indian Punjab close to Gurdaspur) for 350 years as Hindu Rajas. In 1192, when Shahab-ud-din Ghauri moved in, Jarral Rajas accepted his suzerainty and embraced Islam as well.
In 1194, Jarral Rajas occupied Rajauri (in the Jammu and Kashmir state) and they dwelt here for next 650 years and built a number of forts, mosques, 'sarais' (inns), 'havelis'(mansions) and 'baradaris' (pavilions).
When Mughal empire went into decline, Sikh power under Ranjit Singh was established in parts of Punjab and Kashmir and Rajauri also came under them. Later when the British defeated the Sikhs in the First Anglo-Sikh War, in 1846, they sold Kashmir to Raja Gulab Singh Dogra and the Jarral Rajas were thus forced to leave homes. Thus, dejected, engulfed in sorrow over the loss of the land they had ruled for 6 centuries, these Rajas left Rajauri and moved towards Kangra Valley, Punjab, and then owing to a family dispute one of the members named Raja Fakirullah moved to Wazirabad's Saman Burj after buying land there. It is said that Faikirullah chose to stay in Wazirabad with the hope of eventually returning to Rajauri one day. That is how the Jarral Rajputs moved into Saman Burj in Wazirabad.
The Saman Burj today comprises a number of buildings enclosed by gates and wall. You enter through a wooden sky-blue door in one big gate. Walking on a footpath few furlongs, I soon found myself among the old buildings within.
As I moved around, I was shown the bricks that were used. Explaining the structural and area details, Irfanullah Raja notes that, “It is comprised of approximately 7 acres enclosed by a huge wall with access through two huge gates. There are 'havelis' (mansions) and a Baradari (pavilion) for use as residences and 4 acres of garden lies in the center with walkways to reach the residences. On the northern end of Saman Burj flows a tributary of River Chenab known as Pulkhu.”
I got a chance to see what I was told the oldest structure of Saman Burj. The building had three floors, the basement, the ground floor and the top floor. I roamed around different parts of the building, fascinated by the paintings on the wall but at the same time saddened by the way the glorious art was, in its present state of negligence. From the pillars on which the building rested to the paintings on the wall, everything highlighted an art that is never seen in the construction of houses nowadays. On the top floor was the room where Jehangir and his wife once lived.
While looking at different structures, I came to know that the buildings were constructed differently than the way it’s done today. “Instead of cement, crushed limestone mixed with lentils and cotton was used in the construction. “ However Irfanullah pointed out that owing to a lot of renovations and new constructions even within the house, the originality has been lost. While looking at the faint colored paintings on the wall, architecture being ignored, in wonder I asked Irfanullah, “Who do you blame for this present state ?” He replied, “We blame ourselves for we have ignored it.”
A room at the top floor was full of paintings. The paintings depict pictures of Guru Nanak preaching and Maharaja Ranjit Singh celebrating Holi Festival. Rest of the paintings are of flowers and horsemen.
Whether the government or any other organization should help them in restoring the sites or not, one has to admit that the structures standing in the north of Wazirabad speak for themselves even when they are in shambles. Sites like Saman Burj are not just a bunch of old structures. Each brick on the wall, each grain of the soil and every painting has a story to narrate, has intriguing things to offer to those who love the Indo-Pak subcontinent's history.
(c) Copyright, Talal Raza 2014, used with thanks--view of an old haveli at Saman Burj
Saman Burj is a small suburban town located in the northern end of the Punjabi city of Wazirabad. It is believed to be the place where Jehangir often used to reside with his wife Noor Jehan while travelling to Kashmir. According to Irfanullah Raja, a resident, “It used to be the Royal Serai built during Emperor Jehangir’s time in 1601 AD. While travelling to Kashmir from Lahore every year, Emperor Jehangir and Empress Noor Jehan used to spend some days here when River Chenab had strong water current.”
Irfanullah also told that Saman Burj was later seized by Charat Singh, grandfather of Maharaja Ranjit Singh when Mughal Empire was in decline , who after renovation added some new structures and started living here. Then his son Mahan Singh occupied it who was the father of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Most present buildings date from late 18 and 19 centuries, except for part of the ruined old building where the Mughals once stayed which is older.
At present, it is interesting to note that neither Sikhs nor Mughals live in Saman Burj. In fact, the present residents claim to be the relatives of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb Alamgir’s second wife Begum Bai, a Jarral Rajput hailing from Rajauri in Indian Occupied Kashmir. Begum Bai was also the mother of Emperor Shah Alam.
Historians note that Jarral Rajas ruled Kalanaur (a place in Indian Punjab close to Gurdaspur) for 350 years as Hindu Rajas. In 1192, when Shahab-ud-din Ghauri moved in, Jarral Rajas accepted his suzerainty and embraced Islam as well.
In 1194, Jarral Rajas occupied Rajauri (in the Jammu and Kashmir state) and they dwelt here for next 650 years and built a number of forts, mosques, 'sarais' (inns), 'havelis'(mansions) and 'baradaris' (pavilions).
When Mughal empire went into decline, Sikh power under Ranjit Singh was established in parts of Punjab and Kashmir and Rajauri also came under them. Later when the British defeated the Sikhs in the First Anglo-Sikh War, in 1846, they sold Kashmir to Raja Gulab Singh Dogra and the Jarral Rajas were thus forced to leave homes. Thus, dejected, engulfed in sorrow over the loss of the land they had ruled for 6 centuries, these Rajas left Rajauri and moved towards Kangra Valley, Punjab, and then owing to a family dispute one of the members named Raja Fakirullah moved to Wazirabad's Saman Burj after buying land there. It is said that Faikirullah chose to stay in Wazirabad with the hope of eventually returning to Rajauri one day. That is how the Jarral Rajputs moved into Saman Burj in Wazirabad.
The Saman Burj today comprises a number of buildings enclosed by gates and wall. You enter through a wooden sky-blue door in one big gate. Walking on a footpath few furlongs, I soon found myself among the old buildings within.
As I moved around, I was shown the bricks that were used. Explaining the structural and area details, Irfanullah Raja notes that, “It is comprised of approximately 7 acres enclosed by a huge wall with access through two huge gates. There are 'havelis' (mansions) and a Baradari (pavilion) for use as residences and 4 acres of garden lies in the center with walkways to reach the residences. On the northern end of Saman Burj flows a tributary of River Chenab known as Pulkhu.”
I got a chance to see what I was told the oldest structure of Saman Burj. The building had three floors, the basement, the ground floor and the top floor. I roamed around different parts of the building, fascinated by the paintings on the wall but at the same time saddened by the way the glorious art was, in its present state of negligence. From the pillars on which the building rested to the paintings on the wall, everything highlighted an art that is never seen in the construction of houses nowadays. On the top floor was the room where Jehangir and his wife once lived.
While looking at different structures, I came to know that the buildings were constructed differently than the way it’s done today. “Instead of cement, crushed limestone mixed with lentils and cotton was used in the construction. “ However Irfanullah pointed out that owing to a lot of renovations and new constructions even within the house, the originality has been lost. While looking at the faint colored paintings on the wall, architecture being ignored, in wonder I asked Irfanullah, “Who do you blame for this present state ?” He replied, “We blame ourselves for we have ignored it.”
A room at the top floor was full of paintings. The paintings depict pictures of Guru Nanak preaching and Maharaja Ranjit Singh celebrating Holi Festival. Rest of the paintings are of flowers and horsemen.
Whether the government or any other organization should help them in restoring the sites or not, one has to admit that the structures standing in the north of Wazirabad speak for themselves even when they are in shambles. Sites like Saman Burj are not just a bunch of old structures. Each brick on the wall, each grain of the soil and every painting has a story to narrate, has intriguing things to offer to those who love the Indo-Pak subcontinent's history.
(c) Copyright, Talal Raza 2014, used with thanks--view of an old haveli at Saman Burj
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