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QUAID-E-AZAM`S
MAUSOLEUM
 This white marble
Mausoleum with its curved Moorish arches and copper grills resets on an
elevated 54 sq. meters platform. The cool inner sanctum reflects the green
of a four-tiered crystal chandelier gifted by the peoples Republic of
China. The memorial slab framed with silver rallings dawas people from far
and wide who come to pay their respects to the father of the Nation and to
watch the impressive changing of guards cermony that takes place everyday.
Today the Quaid-e-Azam`s Mausoleum is a prominent and impressive landmark
of Karachi. Nearby are the graves of the “Quaid-e-Millat”. Liaqat Ali
Khan, the first Prime Minister of Pakistan and the Quaid`s sister,
Mohtarma Fatima Jinnah.
ALLAMA IQBAL'S
TOMB
Outside the Badshahi Mosque, near its steps, lies the tomb of
Allama Iqbal, the poet- philosopher of the East. The mausoleum is a
mixture of Afghan and Moonsh styles of architecture and is constructed
entirely of red sandstone.
BADSHAHI
MOSQUE
 The Royal or the Badshahi Mosque is
across the courtyard from Alamgiri Gate of the Lahore Fort. The Mosque,
which is made up entirely of red sand-stone was built by Emperor
Aurangzeb, the last of the great Mughals, in a record time of two
and-a-half years. Its construction was completed by 1674 A.D. It has a
beautiful gate-way which measures 21.33 metres in length and a courtyard
that measures 161.5 x 160.6 metres and is said to be the largest mosque
courtyard in the world for outdoor prayers.
 The marble domes cover
seven prayer chambers. Four lofty minarets stand at the four corners of
the mosque, each with an outer circumference of 20 metres, soaring up to
54 metres. In the chambers above the Gate of the mosque, are housed relics
attributed to the Holy Prophet of Islam Peace be upon him, His Daughter
and His son-in-law and are said to have been brought to the South Asia by
Amir Taimur. Within the Mosque almost all the colours have been used for
painting the floral designs but the overall effect remains one of
sobriety, piousness and simplicity
THE GOLDEN
MOSQUE
 Golden Mosque is situated in the Kashmiri Bazaar
inside the old city. It was built in 1753 A.D. by Nawab Syed Bhikari Khan,
who was Deputy Governor of Lahore. It is a remarkably beautiful mosque
with three golden domes.
MAUSOLEUM OF EMPEROR
JEHANGIR
 The tomb of the fourth great Mughal
Emperor, Jehangir, lies 5 km north-west of Lahore across the River Ravi.
It has a majestic structure made of red sand-stone and marble. The outer
entrance to the tomb opens out into a court-yard which was used as a
caravan Serai during Mughal times. An entrance to the right leads into a
Mughal garden with exact geometrical patterns balancing each side. The
marble tomb is approached from four corridors leading from the garden.
Three of these corridors are closed by intricate marble screens. The
marble grave is elaborately inlaid with floral designs and the 99
Attributes of Allah are inscribed on its two sides. On the top is a verse
from the Holy Quran. The tomb was built by Queen Noor Jehan and the
Emperor’s son Shah-Jehan, around 1637 A.D.
NOOR JEHAN'S
TOMB
The Empress Noor Jehan, "Light of the world" was the only
Empress whose name appeared on the coins of the Mughal empire. She was
buried in 1645 A.D. at Shahdara (Lahore) outside Jehangir’s mausoleum
across the railway line.
Her tomb once had a
marble cenotaph which she had built herself during her life time. After
the decline of Mughal rule, the tomb suffered extensive damages along with
her husband’s tomb at the hands of Sikh marauders when they gained power
during the early part of nineteenth century. Both were stripped of most of
its original beauty and splendour. All treasures and tiles, it is said,
were carted off to decorate the Golden Temple at Amritsar
India.
ANARKALI'S
TOMB
The tomb of Nadira Begum, alias Anarkali, is situated in a
corner of the Civil Secretariat of Punjab Government at Lahore.
The tomb is circular in
shape and rooted with a vast and lofty dome supported from inside by eight
massive arches 12 feet 3 inches thick. It is a masterpiece of solid
masonry work of early Mughal period and is neatly and beautifully fitted
up.
The tombs of the
ex-rulers of Bahawalpur and their families are located in Derawar
Fort:. The tombs have nice glazed blue tile work. Prior permission of the
senior Amir of Bahawalpur is required to enter the fort.
Shrines of Channan
Pir
The Shrine of Channan Pir is located 45 Km from Derawar Fort.
Channan Pir was a disciple of Makhdoom Jahanian Jahangasht. The annual Urs
is held at the beginning of March. A colourful fair known as 'Mela Channan
Pir' is held here. Devotees gather on the night of full moon to offer
"Fateha" at the tomb of the saint.
Shrines of Bahawalpur
Division are that of Khawaja Noor Muhammad known as Qibla-e-Alam at
Chishtian, Shrine of another saint at Chachran and the shrine of Hazrat
Mohkam Din known as 'Sahib-us-Sair' (great traveller) at Khanqah Sharif,
20 Km from Bahawalpur.
Mosque at Bhong:
Bhong is in Rahim Yar Khan district, about 200 Km from Bahawalpur. Rais
Ghazzi, a local landlord of Bhong, built this mosque. Gold leaves have
been used for the intricate decorative work and stylish calligraphic work
in the mosque, which has made it famous for its beauty.
Hasan Abdal &
Gurudwara Panja Sahib
Hasan Abdal is 48 km
from Rawalpindi. It is a beautiful, quiet place and a convenient halting
point on G.T. Road enroute to Peshawar or Abbottabad.
This town has a
particular association with Mughals and Sikhs. It was mentioned by Emperor
Jehangir in his memoirs and frequently visited by successive Mughal Kings,
on their way to Kashmir. It remained a holy place for various religious
groups through the ages. It has a Sikh Gurdwara (temple) known as Panja
Sahib having a scared rock with the hand print of their religious leader,
Guru Nanak. Twice a year, Sikh pilgrims visit this Gurdwara from all over
the world.
On the nearby hill, at
an altitude of 714 meters, there is a meditation chamber related to a 15th
century Muslim Saint, Baba Wali Qandhari, popularly known as Baba Hasan
Abdal. The saint stayed in Hasan Abdal from c.1406 - 1416 AD but died and
buried in village Baba Wali near Qandhar (Afghanistan). The devotees and
visitors climb over the steps leading to the hill, for offerings and to
have a panoramic view of Hasan Abdal.
Just opposite the
eastern gate of Gurudwara Panja Sahib, there is a small mosque and ‘chilla
gah’ (meditation cell) of Baba Wali Qandhari. Behind the mosque is a fresh
water pond with big Mahasheer fish. Adjacent to the pond is a building
called Maqbara Hakeeman. Two Royal Hakeem (doctor) brothers namely, Abual
Fateh Gilani (died 1589 AD) and Hamam Gilani (died 1595 AD) are buried
here on the orders of the Mughal emperor Akbar. Both, the fish pond and
the tomb, were built by Khawaja Shamsuddin Khawafi, Akbar’s minister,
between 1581 - 1583 AD. A paved path leads from the fish pond to a small,
walled garden. The garden has two graves, one in the centre and the other
in a corner. The central grave is wrongly attributed to a so-called Mughal
Princess, Lala Rukh. However, it is not known that who is buried
here.
Shrines in
Multan
The devastation of
Khorasan and Western Iran was to the benefit of this part of Pakistan, for
it led to the settling in this city of a large number of pious and learned
men and noble families like Gardezi Syeds and Qureshis from
Khwarizm, amongst whom Sheikh Bahauddin Zakarai is a famous saint.
About the same time Pir Shams Sabzawari from Sabzwar and Kazi
Qutbuddin from Kashan came to Multan. Baba Farid Shakar Ganj
was born in a village of Multan, and settled in Pakpattan. Khawaja
Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki passed through Multan to Delhi and Syed Jalal, the
spiritual leader of many families in Multan, Muzaffargarh and Bahawalpur
came to Uch. Sultan Sakhi Sarwar's father also emigrated from
Bukhara to Sarwar Shah Kot in Multan district. These venerable men
contributed greatly to spreading Islam in this area. The saints and
shrines of Multan have been attracting a large number of devotees all the
year round.
One of the foremost
scholars of Islam, Shaikh Baha-ud-din Zakria's shrine is located in
the fort. He was born in 1170 A.D., Studied in Turan and Iran and received
instructions from Shaikh Shahab-ud-Din Suharwardi at Baghdad. The saint
built himself his Mausoleum himself. It has a unique style of architecture
of that period. It also houses the graves of most of the eminent members
of the Qureshi family, including that of Nawab Muzaffar Khan.
The Mausoleum of Shah
Rukn-e-Alam, the grandson of Shaikh Bahauddin Zakaria, is also located
near the main gate of the Multan fort. He was also a man of great
religious and political influence during the Tuhglaq reign and was in
Multan when it was visited by Ibn-e-Batuta. The Mausoleum was
originally built by Emperor Ghayasud Din Tughlaq but was given up
by his son Muhammad Tughlaq in favour of Shah Rukn-e-Alam. Besides
its religious importance, the Mausoleum has a unique architectural value.
Its some is considered to be the second largest in the world. The
Mausoleum has recently been given the Agha Khan award for the best Muslim
architecture. Some of the interesting statistics of its architecture
are:
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(a) Total
height above the road level is 150 ft |
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(b) Total
height of building is 100 ft |
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(c)
Octagonal upper structure diameter is 26 ft |
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(d)
Octagonal lower structure diameter is 52 ft |
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(e) The
dome on top has a diameter of 58 ft |
The Mausoleum has very
rich geometrical patterns, calligraphy and colourful floral, mosaic and
glazed tile work. Devotees visit the shrine all the year round.
The shrine of Hazrat
Shams Sabzwari is located near Aam-Khas Garden. A descendant of Imam
Jaffar, he was born in 1165 A.D. The saint died in 1276 A.D. and his
shrine was built by his grandson in 130 A.D.
Other Shrines: Other
Shrines in Multan include those of Mohammad Yousaf Gardezi near Bohar
Gate, Musa Pak Shaheed inside the Pak Gate, Totla Mai near Haram Gate,
Shah Ali Akbar, a descendant of Shah Shams Sabzwari, in Suraj Miani and
Baba Safra near Eidgah.
The famous mosques of
Multan are Wali Mohammad Mosque in Chowk Bazar built by Ali Muhammad
Khakwani in 1758 A.D., Mosque Phulhatt in Chowk Bazar built by Emperor
Farrukh Siyar, Baqarabadi Mosque built by Baqar Khan in 1720 A.D. and the
beautiful Eidgah Mosque built by Nawab Abdul Samad Khan in 1735
A.D.
Shrines of Channan
Pir: The Shrine of Channan Pir is located 45 Km from Derawar Fort.
Channan Pir was a disciple of Makhdoom Jahanian Jahangasht. The annual Urs
is held at the beginning of March. A colourful fair known as 'Mela Channan
Pir' is held here. Devotees gather on the night of full moon to offer
"Fateha" at the tomb of the saint.
Shah Faisal Mosque,
Islamabad
 This beautiful mosque
was designed by a renowned Turkish Architect, Vedat Dalokay and named
after the late King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. It is spread over 1,89,705
sq.metres with 88 meters high minarets and 40 meters high main prayer
hall. The main prayer hall can accommodate 10,000 persons while the
covered porticos and verandahs can take over 24,000 worshipers. The main
courtyard has space for 40,000 people.
Shrine of Shah Abdul
Latif (Bari Imam)
Noorpur Shahan, a
village situated at the foot of Margallah Hills, near Qaid-e-Azam
University, Islamabad, is famous for the mirror-studded shrine of Hazrat
Shah Abdul Latif Kazmi, popularly known as Bari Imam. The shrine was
originally built on the orders of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. The death
anniversary (Urs) of Bari Imam is observed in the first week of May
beginning Monday through Thursday with lot of festivities representing the
Potohar culture and attracts people from all over the country.
There is a cave in the
Margallah Hills on the back of the shrine where Bari Imam used to sit for
meditation. A mosque, where he preached and acted as Imam, is located on
Hill Road. The tomb of his father is located on the Shahrah-e-Kashmir
opposite the Aabpara Market. Bari Imam is said to have predicted that a
new city would be built near his tomb, which will greatly serve the cause
of Islam.
Shrine of Syed Meher
Ali Shah
The shrine of Syed Meher
Ali Shah of Golra Sharif is located 18 km from Rawalpindi, in sector E-11
of Islamabad. He was descendant of a Syed family and had links with Syed
Abdul Qadir Gilani of Baghdad. He was born in 1859, preached and spread
the message of Islam during the turbulent times in South Asia. He also
wrote beautiful prose and poetry in Persian, Arabic and Punjabi languages,
mostly in praise of God and Muhammad (peace be upon him). He died on May
11, 1937. His mausoleum was recently reconstructed comprising of a dome,
and a high minaret built with marble. Devotees assemble here on the
occasion of annual Urs.
Shrine of Data
Sahib
Close to the junction of
the Lower Mall and the Circular Road, Lahore is the shrine of Data Sahib.
Data Sahib was a great sufi saint whose well-known work, "Kashf-ul-Mahjub"
has been translated from the original Persian into several European
languages and is considered a classic. Attached to the Shrine is a
beautiful mosque
Qutbuddin Aibak's
Tomb
He was appointed
Governor of India in 1191 AD by Muhammad Ghauri. He established the Slave
Dynasty on the death of Muhammad Ghauri in 1206 when he assumed
independence of his reign and was followed by nine other slave kings. He
was a patron of the building art and is known to have erected some
monumental stone buildings in Delhi and elsewhere. A very avid player of
polo, he died in Lahore in 1210 AD while playing the game. His tomb can be
visited in Anarkali Bazaar.
Asif Khan's
Mausoleum
In the courtyard near
Jehangir tomb lies buried his brother-in-law, Asif Khan, father of Shah
Jehan's beloved Queen Arjumand Bano. He lies in a tomb today shows little
of its former splendour. | 
