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| JALORE
SIGHT SEEING |
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| Jalore
Fort -The Main Attraction |
|  The
main attraction of Jalore is its fort, which was
one of the 'nine castles of Maru', under the Parmaras
in the 10th century.
Jalore retains an impressive fort which has been
known over history as the Sonagir or the 'golden
mount'. It commands the town from a rocky outcrop
336m (1,200 ft) high fortified with a wall and
bastions with cannon mounted upon them.
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| The
Main Poles or Fort Gateway |
Built into the fort wall are pols or gateways.
TheSuraj Pol, Dhruv Pol, Bal Pol and the Siroh
Pol are the mighty gateways that lead into this
fortress. The Suraj pol or the sun gate from
the town is so built that the first rays of
the morning sun enter through this gateway.
It is an impressive gate with a small watch
tower built over it. The Dhruv pol is rather
simple looking compared to Suraj pol.
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| The
Stepwell Attractions of Fort |
| The
mahal ‘or the residential palace’
inside the fort is now desolated, and what is
left of it are the ruined symmetrical walls with
huge rock formations around it. Two considerable
bauris including Jalar Bauri (step well), chatris
(cenotaph), Charan Paluka and the Bhairon Dev
Ki Chowki within the fort are the other structures
that have survived the brunt of time. |
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| Topekhana |
|  One
of the most important structures within the fort
is the Topekhana or the cannon foundry. The building
is not in the best of conditions now, but the
telling architecture indicates that this structure
must have been awesome in the old days. The colonnade
and the ceiling are tastefully carved.
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| The
Fort Mosques |
| Topekhana
Masjid(Arsenal Mosque) and the Kila Masjid (Fort
Mosque) within the fort are also noteworthy as
they demonstrate the widespread influence of the
architectural decorations associated with the
Gujarati styles of this period (i.e. late 16th
century). The latter recalled the architecture
of Ahmedabad which is characterized by a general
effect of lightness, with a colonnaded hall on
either side of the main structure, stone screens,
stone beams. While the former has arcades of honeycombed
stone screens, which was a distinctive hallmark
of Gujarati style. |
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| The
Jain Temples Attractions inside Forts |
 The
structure that stands out the most among the dark
fort walls and rocky surrounding is the Jain temple.
Built in white marble this imposing structure
in quite a sight. Other Jain temples in the fort
are the Chaumukhi temple, the Shwetambara Jain
temple (built by the Shwetambara sect) and a shrine
dedicated to Parasnath (a Jain fordmaker) built
near the Bal Pol, which is situated north west
of the fort. A triple temple dedicated to Amba
mata, Ashapuri and Hanuman (the monkey god) is
also located within the fort premises.
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| Saint
Jalindernath Maharaj Shrine |
| West of the fort
is the shrine of Saint Jalindernath Maharaj. The
name Jalore has been derived from his. The origin
of this ‘divinity of Jalindernath’
is unpredictable, it might have been imported
from the Ganges or left behind by the Chauhanas.
Some others believe that it is a "remnant
of the foes of Alexander, driven by him from Multan"
and use the caves of Jalinder in the vicinity
as a proof of this. What ever the origin it is
now been incorporated into the ally of indigenous
deities.
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| Shiva
Temple |
| Next to it is the
Shiva temple, which is an old temple devoted to
Lord Shiva. Another shrine in the fort is that
of Saint Rehmad Ali Baba.
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