Taj-ul-Masajid
Encyclopedia
Taj-ul-Masajid is a mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...

 situated in Bhopal, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. The mosque is also used as a madrasah
Madrasah
Madrasah is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, whether secular or religious...

 (Islamic school) during the day time.

History

"Taj-ul-Masajid" literally means "The Crown of Mosques". The construction of the mosque was started by Sultan Shah Jahan, Begum of Bhopal
Sultan Shah Jahan, Begum of Bhopal
Sultan Shahjahan Begum GCSI CI KIH was the Begum of Bhopal for two times: 1844–60, and secondly during 1868–1901....

 (1868-1901). However, the mosque was not completed due to lack of funds, and after a long lay-off, construction was resumed in 1971 by great efforts of Allama Mohammad Imran Khan Nadwi Azhari of Bhopal.

Architecture

The mosque has a pink facade topped by two 18-storey high octagonal minaret
Minaret
A minaret مناره , sometimes مئذنه) is a distinctive architectural feature of Islamic mosques, generally a tall spire with an onion-shaped or conical crown, usually either free standing or taller than any associated support structure. The basic form of a minaret includes a base, shaft, and gallery....

s with marble domes. The mosque also has three huge bulbous domes, an impressive main hallway with attractive pillars and marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...

 flooring resembling Mughal architecture
Mughal architecture
Mughal architecture, an amalgam of Islamic, Persian, Turkish and Indian architecture, is the distinctive style developed by the Mughals in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries in what is now India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. It is symmetrical and decorative in style.The Mughal dynasty was...

 the likes of Jama Masjid in Delhi and the huge Badshahi Mosque
Badshahi Mosque
The Badshahi Mosque or the 'King's Mosque' in Lahore, commissioned by the sixth Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in 1671 and completed in 1673, is the second largest mosque in Pakistan and South Asia and the fifth largest mosque in the world...

 of Lahore. It has a courtyard with a large tank in the centre. It has a double-storeyed gateway with four recessed archways and nine cusped multifold openings in the main prayer hall. The Quibla wall in the prayer hall is carved with eleven recessed arches and has fine screens of trellis work. The massive pillars in the hall hold 27 ceilings through squinted arches of which 16 ceilings are decorated with ornate petaled designs.

Dhai Seedi Ki Masjid

Dhai Seedi Ki Masjid ("The Mosque of Two and a Half Steps"), one of the smallest mosques in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

, is right across the road from Taj-ul-Masajid. It is on the campus of Gandhi Medical College (next to Hamidia Hospital). Dhai Seedi Ki Masjid is in one of the watchtowers. It is the oldest mosque in Bhopal city, initially built as a makeshift mosque during the construction of the Fatehgarh fort started by Dost Mohammad Khan
Dost Mohammad Khan, Nawab of Bhopal
Dost Mohammad Khan was the founder of the Bhopal State in central India. He laid out the modern city of Bhopal, the capital of the Madhya Pradesh state....

. It was built so that the guards deployed at Fatehgarh Fort could perform Namaaz.

Annual Congregation

Aalmi Tablighi Ijtima, (an annual three-day congregation) that draws people from all over the world was held at Taj-ul-Masajid. But due to the shortage of space, it has been to shifted Ghazi pura, a place outside the city.
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