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Among the innumerable historical attractions across India that have an aura of mystery around them that become a subject of debate discussion, the Shaking Minarets of Ahmedabad are intriguing ones. They continue to take the visitors by surprise. Part of the monument is in ruin, particularly the arched connecting passage and restoration or atleast major repair with professional approach is a necessity so that the posterity will be benefited.
The Shaking Minarets also known as ''Jhulta Minara'' near the Ahmedabad railway station (outside Sarangpur gate) is believed to have been built in 1461 with shaking minarets. The three story high ornate minarets have independent balconies that go round the tower. The builder was Sidi Bashir, a slave of Sultan Ahmed Shah, the ruler at that time. Other version has it the structure came up through the efforts of a noble named Malik Sarang in the court of Muhammed Begada, another Sultan of Gujarat. The design of this strange mosque is that it can withstand and survive any seismic events and aftershocks.
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| Shaking minarets,Sidi Bashir mosque,Ahmedabad, GJ .sahapedia.org |
The shaking mysterious minarets with ingenious design have left lots of architects and structural engineers bewildered. The mystery still remains unsolved. The architects have never come closer to solve the puzzle. Quite baffling is when one minaret is shaken the other begins to vibrate, but the connecting passage between the two remains vibration-free. The cause of vibration is unclear and nobody knows what causes the vibration. One minaret is 100 feet tall and has three levels and the other one is just 84 feet tall.
The city of Ahmedabad has two well-known pairs of Shaking Minarets one across the Sarangpur Darwaja and the other being near the Kalupur Railway Station Area. The one near Sarangpur Darwaja is within the vicinity of the Sidi Bashir Mosque built in 1452 AD by Sidi Bashir, a slave .The top of the three storey tall minarets with carved balconies could be accessed in the past but visitors are not allowed now. The one near the railway station has a set of taller minarets but they are not in good condition. Reason: The British had dismantled them to solve the mystery - the cause of vibrations. Having made a futile attempt to find out what caused the vibration' and the engineering aspects, they could not put them back in their original condition. The minarets near the Sarangpur gate (darwaza) were damaged by the British experts. These minarets are an architectural marvel and so far no one has replicated them.
