Orchcha is a small historical town in Tikamgarh district of Madhya Pradesh and was capital of Bundela kings. From Jhansi it is 15 km, from Khajuraho 175 km & from Gwalior 124 km. First Bundela King Rudra Pratap Singh who ruled from 1501 to 1531, made Orchcha his capital & got the fort construction started. There were several additions & modifications subsequently by later kings Bharati Chandra, Madhukar Shah and Veer Singh Dev.
You can click & see Orchcha Fort - 1 / 2.
2. About the origin of Suryavanshi Rajput Bundelas a poet named Lal Kavi has in 1700, given a mythical & poetical account. His poems inter-alia state that Bundelas are descendents from gods ( with gaps of several generations between some of them ) as under:
Vishnu > Brahma > Vihagaraja > Kiratdeva > Virbhadra > Jagdas > Arjunpal > Sohanpal > Rudra Pratap Singh.
3. Jagdas was son of Virbhadra from a junior queen and was denied share in Kashi kingdom by sons from chief queen. He came to the shrine of Vindhyavasini and sat down in Tapasya. After a long while nothing happened & out of desperation he decided to sacrifice his head to Vindhyavasini. As soon as a drop of his blood fell on ground Vindhyavasini appeared and said that his son shall be born from this drop - 'बूँद of his blood to become future ruler. Future rulers were thus called Bundelas - बुन्देला. Bundelas worship Vindhyavasini as their family deity or Kuldevi.
4. Bundelas ruled the area named Bundelkhand with Orchcha as capital for over 250 years. Some of the famous Bundela kings are Rudra Pratap Singh, Bharati Chandra, Madhukar Shah who ruled during 1594-1591 & built Raja Mahal and Chatrasal. King Veer Singh Dev who ruled during 1605-1627 built Jahangir Mahal. Within Bundelkhand area there were several smaller states such as Orchcha, Datia, Panna, Ajaigarh, Bijawar, Charkhari. They fought with Mughals & at times there were fights within these smaller states which were taken advantage of by Mughals.
5. Forts, palaces, memorials & temples in & around Orchcha have beautiful and distinct style. River Betwa passing through the rocks adds to the beauty of the place. Boating & rafting can be enjoyed in Betwa. Noons are hot here with bare rocks getting roasted in the sun, take care. With a little better tourist infra and maintanance of monuments tourism can improve. All the monuments are within walking distance otherewise conveyance is also easily available. Some snaps:
You can click & see Orchcha Fort - 1 / 2.
2. About the origin of Suryavanshi Rajput Bundelas a poet named Lal Kavi has in 1700, given a mythical & poetical account. His poems inter-alia state that Bundelas are descendents from gods ( with gaps of several generations between some of them ) as under:
Vishnu > Brahma > Vihagaraja > Kiratdeva > Virbhadra > Jagdas > Arjunpal > Sohanpal > Rudra Pratap Singh.
3. Jagdas was son of Virbhadra from a junior queen and was denied share in Kashi kingdom by sons from chief queen. He came to the shrine of Vindhyavasini and sat down in Tapasya. After a long while nothing happened & out of desperation he decided to sacrifice his head to Vindhyavasini. As soon as a drop of his blood fell on ground Vindhyavasini appeared and said that his son shall be born from this drop - 'बूँद of his blood to become future ruler. Future rulers were thus called Bundelas - बुन्देला. Bundelas worship Vindhyavasini as their family deity or Kuldevi.
4. Bundelas ruled the area named Bundelkhand with Orchcha as capital for over 250 years. Some of the famous Bundela kings are Rudra Pratap Singh, Bharati Chandra, Madhukar Shah who ruled during 1594-1591 & built Raja Mahal and Chatrasal. King Veer Singh Dev who ruled during 1605-1627 built Jahangir Mahal. Within Bundelkhand area there were several smaller states such as Orchcha, Datia, Panna, Ajaigarh, Bijawar, Charkhari. They fought with Mughals & at times there were fights within these smaller states which were taken advantage of by Mughals.
5. Forts, palaces, memorials & temples in & around Orchcha have beautiful and distinct style. River Betwa passing through the rocks adds to the beauty of the place. Boating & rafting can be enjoyed in Betwa. Noons are hot here with bare rocks getting roasted in the sun, take care. With a little better tourist infra and maintanance of monuments tourism can improve. All the monuments are within walking distance otherewise conveyance is also easily available. Some snaps:
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| 1. Orchcha Fort Complex & river Betwa |
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| 2.Entry bridge to Sheesh Mahal, Jahangir Mahal , Raja Mahal |
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| 3. You may come across many sadhus looking for alms |
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| 4. Security measures |
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| 5. Welcome in |
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| 6. Beautiful carvings on pillars, ceiling & walls |
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| The place has a small museum also. Stone sculpture in museum - Ram, Janaki and Lakshman |
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| Eleventh century sand stone sculpture in museum - Sheshashai Vishnu |
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| Latticed windows served as air inlets & to keep eye on visitors |
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| Well constructed balconies & parapets |
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| View from the first floor balcony |
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| Rai Praveen Palace. Constructed in 1618 by King Indrajit Singh in honour of a courtesan Rai Praveen who was a beautiful singer. Her fame reached Emperor Akbar who summoned her in 1602. It was clear that she won't ever come back. Rai Praveen wriggled out of the situation and came back by telling Akbar "विनति राय प्रवीण की, सुनिए शाह सुजान, जूठी पातर भकत हैं बारी, बायस, स्वान ". that is a 'used one' is not meant for an Emporer |
8 comments:
https://jogharshwardhan.blogspot.com/2019/03/orchcha-fort-2-2.html
Link to Orchcha Fort - 1/2:
https://jogharshwardhan.blogspot.com/2019/03/orchcha-fort-complex-12.html
We tour the unseen places of the country as your photography is marvelous. You are a good writer too. Appreciable.
Thank you Deepak Dang.
Wah ji Wah
Superb uncle Jii
Great Jii..
Thanks for the sequel, in your previous post i first time came to know about this place, its really very beautiful.
Thank you Babalu Sa.
Thank you Jyotirmoy Sarkar.
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