Achalgarh Fort Mount Abu

Achalgarh Fort Mount Abu

Mount Abu in Rajasthan is one of the major tourist spots for being the only hill station in a state which is otherwise famous for having the Thar Desert. The various attractions of Mount Abu make it one of the most visited tourist spot in Rajasthan. The pleasant weather further acts in favor of the tourist spot as a number of tourists visit this place in order to enjoy its various tourist spots in the midst of a pleasant weather. Hence, the particular place is visited by a large number of tourists especially during the summer to avoid the scorching heat of Rajasthan. However, the pleasant weather is not the only attraction of Mount Abu.

Achalgarh Fort Mount Abu

There are a number of other attractions in Mount Abu as well. The forts and palaces of Mount Abu are a great attraction for tourists. Each of the forts and palaces is an architectural marvel and bears a lot of historical significance. The Achalgarh Fort is one of the most visited forts in Mount Abu. Achalgarh is a fort situated eleven kilometers north of Mount Abu, a hill station in Rajasthan, India.

It was commissioned by Rana Kumbha, the esteemed designer who was responsible for many huge fortresses in Southern Rajasthan. Achalgarh Fort was built in the year 1452 by Rana Kumbha. He was well known for his artistic tastes and this fort truly is a beauty to behold. Achalgarh Fort is situated atop a mountain peak. Its position makes it inaccessible to the foes.

With massive walls and an imposing look it is worth a visit. The fort is surrounded by huge walls and has a very imposing look. And within the fortified walls there are many temples. These temples are well known for their beautiful sculptures. A 10 minute climb from AchalGarh brings you to the beautiful and historic Jain Temples. These temples are a must visit for more great views and the beautiful sculpture. One of them is Kantinath Jain Temple which is in the best condition and boasts of a gold plated image.

These facts reflect the devotion and prosperity of the Rajput rulers. These were built in 1513 CE. Another temple is there in the fort which is dedicated to Lord Shiva, The Achleshwar Mahadev Temple which is famous for the statue of Nandi. This massive statue weighs around 4 tonnes. It is said to be built with panchdhaatu namely silver, gold, copper, bronze and zinc. There is a natural Shivalinga as well. Many sculpted idols are to be sighted within the interiors of the temple.

The striking part about the sculpted idols is that they are made of a crystal like stone which generally looks opaque. However amazingly as soon as a candle is placed behind them they start sparkling like a crystal. If legends are to be believed then the temple was built around the footmarks of Lord Shiva in the 9th century. Achalgarh Fort is easily reachable by a motorable road, it surely deserves to be a part of your sight seeing trip to the various Tourist Attractions in Mount Abu.

Achleshwar also contains a natural Shivalinga. (A Shivalinga is phallus-shaped and fixed on a base, which is shaped like a yoni. The structure symbolises the supreme creative energy. It is usually made of stone but can also be of wood, metal, crystal, and soapstone.) There are also many other sculpted idols which are made of a crystal like stone.

In natural light, this stone looks opaque, but if you place a candle behind the idols they take on a beautiful crystal-like sparkle, the stone is called the crystal stone or sfatik in hindi. nearby the temple, we find the scenic looking Mandakini Lake. This lake is surrounded by rocky hills, and rock walls covered with images of a Rajput king and buffaloes.

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Arts and Crafts of Rajasthan

Arts and Crafts of Rajasthan

Rajasthani Art is famous all over India for its exquisite design and intricate pattern woven ob them. Rajasthan is among the richest states in the country as far as the field of arts and crafts is concerned. Stone, clay, leather, wood, ivory, lac, glass, brass, silver, gold and textiles are given the most brilliant forms. Some of the popular crafts are :

Rajasthan Jewellery and Shopping

Carpets and Dhurries in Rajasthan

Leatherware in Rajasthan

The hides of dead animals have never been put to better use than in Rajasthan whether as juttees, the embroidered footwear the people wear, or as saddles, bags and pouches. It is even used as backs for chairs after it has been embroidered with woollen motifs. Jaipur and Jodhpur are the traditional centres for jutis.

Metal Crafts in Rajasthan

In later years the art of enamelling became merely decorative and, in Rajasthan, has been used for everything from tabletops to wall plates, flasks, and for crafting objets d`art. Brassware, enamelled, engraved and filigree cut work on silver are available in Rajasthan. Jaipur, Alwar and Jodhpur are prime centres for metalware. Jaipur, Alwar and Jodhpur are famous for their metal wares such as brassware and enameled, engraved and filigree cutwork on silver.

Arts and Crafts of Rajasthan

Paintings in Rajasthan

Rajasthan Textiles

Puppets in Rajasthan

Stone Carving in Rajasthan

Gesso Work in Rajasthan

One of the finest crafts to emerge from Bikaner, the inner hide of the camel is used for the purpose. The hide is scraped till it is paper thin and transluscent.

It is then moulded into various forms of lamp shades, hip flasks, perfume phials or vases. It is then painted over with fine gesso work using gold to lend richness to the otherwise bright reds and greens used in the work.

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Archaeology of Rajasthan

Archaeology of Rajasthan

Rajasthan has been a place of interest to both the archeologists and the geologists. Kalibanga and Akal Wood Fossil Park are two such places that attracts them most.

Archaeology of Rajasthan

Kalibanga

The small town of Kalibanga is located in Hanumangarh district and lies 205-km away from Bikaner. Archeologists have proved the existence of Indus Valley civilization in desert of Thar and the remnants of the pre-Harappan and Harappan settlements that have been unearthed here have played a big role in their supposition.

The archaeological evidences found at Kalibanga shows that Rajasthan had once been an important centre of the ceramic industry as the paintings on the ancient pottery found at this place bears close resemblance to the Harappan designs. Even the contemporary pottery of Rajasthan has a distinct influence of the Indus Valley ceramic industry and the related handicrafts.

Akal Wood Fossil Park

17 km from Jaisalmer, Aakal Wood Fossil Park that houses fossils, which are 180 million years old! Considered to be geological landmarks, these fossils recreate the world of Jurassic period before us when the entire Thar Desert lay under the sea, just as indicated by a legend in Ramayana (the great epic of Hindu religion).

The park sprawls over the area of 10 sq km and boasts of 25 petrified trunks, the largest being 13 m long. It is believed that the area was once covered with thick forests of non-flowering trees, mainly comprising of Chir and Deodar.

It is believed that the sea retreated about 36 million years ago and left behind a fossiled forest in this area and the wood fossils of the place, has given ample evidence to the geologists to believe that a possibly hot and humid climate existed in the region 180 million years ago as well as the area has been under the sea on four different occasions.

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Sand Dunes of Rajasthan

Sand Dunes of Rajasthan

In Rajasthan, the wind shaped dunes glow beneath the rugged backdrop of the beautiful sky. Wind and sand create majestic dunes that are constant but ever-changing. The accumulation of windblown sand marks is the beginning of one of nature's most interesting and beautiful phenomena.

Sand Dunes of Rajasthan

The remarkable structure and patterns of sand dunes in Rajasthan provide habitats for a variety of life which is marvelously adapted to this unique environment. The picturesque dunes against a sky of blue or a full moon, with perfectly contoured shadows of ripples and undulating crests, have always been a favorite subject of photographers.

Explore the undisturbed beauty, the rich culture and the picturesque sand dunes of the Thar Desert, the land of Sam Sand Dunes. Any trip to Jaisalmer is indeed, incomplete, without a trip to the most panoramic dunes of Sam where the wind is unceasingly carving out scenic patterns, on the sand.

Depending upon one's particular situation, these sand dunes can be one of the most incredibly beautiful, thrilling, eerie, treacherous or just plain inhospitable places on earth. 42 kms west of Jiasalmer are proper sand dunes and popular with camel safaris.

This Jaisalmer's nearest real Sahara like desert. The sand shimmers under the glow of hot sun highlighting what actually a desert stands for. Various cultural programmes are organized against the backdrop of these fascinating dunes.

Adventure freaks can go out on a Camel Safari-getting the real feel the desert on the camel. Of course, the sunset at Sam was out-of-this-world. The sand dunes keep changing colour, shadows shifting by the minute.

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Languages of Rajasthan

Languages of Rajasthan

India is a land of a variety of linguistic communities, each of which share a common language and culture. Though there could be fifteen principal languages there are hundreds of thousands dialects that add to the vividness of the country. 18 languages are officially recognized in India of which Sanskrit and Tamil share a long history of more than 5,000 and 3,000 years respectively.

Languages of Rajasthan

The population of people speaking each language varies drastically. Rajasthani contains a vast literature written in different genres dating back to 1000 AD. The modern Rajasthani literature started with the works of Suryamal Misran. His most important works include the Vir Satsai and the Vansa Bhaskara. The Vir Satsai contains a collection of hundreds of couples.

The Vans Bhaskar describes about the Rajput princes who ruled over Rajputana during the lifetime of the poet. The world of Rajasthani language is colorful and varied. English is also widely spoken in this region. The translators and tourist guides are also available in Japanese, French, German and Spanish.

Rajasthani is the widely spoken language in Rajasthan and the total number of speakers are 36 million as per Census of India, 2001 in Rajasthan. It is spoken by around 80 million persons in Rajasthan and other states of India and in some adjacent areas of Pakistan. The Rajasthani language is a part of the Central Indo-Aryan family, although some classify it as a Western Indo-Aryan language.

The script of the Rajasthani language is Hindi and the four most important dialects are

Marwari: The ancient name of Marwari is Maru. Nearly thirteen million speakers in western Rajasthan comprising Churu, Bikaner, Nagaur, Ajmer, Jodhpur, Pali, Jalore, Jaisalmer, Barmer districts of Rajasthan and also in eastern parts of upper Sindh province of Pakistan. Marwari Literature includes the specialty of Sanskrit, Prakrit , Apbransh.

Bagri: Nearly five million speakers in Hanumangarh and Sriganganagar districts of Rajasthan, Sirsa and Hissar districts of Haryana, Firozepur and Muktsar districts of Punjab of India and Bahawalpur and Bahawalnagar areas of Punjab of Pakistan.

Shekhawati: Nearly three million speakers in Churu, Jhunjhunu and Sikar districts of Rajasthan.

Dhundhari: Dhundhari is spoken in Jaipur , Dausa , Tonk , Ajmer, Karauli and Sawai Madhopur by nearly nine million person. It was first surveyed upon by G. Macliester who published specimens of fifteen varieties of Dhundhari spoken in the territory of the former state of Jaipur in 1898

Harauti: The sublanguage of Dhundhari called Hadoati is spoken in Kota , Bundi, Baran and Jhalawar . It is equally influenced by Gujrati and Marwari and about four million speakers of this dilect.

Mewari: about five million speakers in Rajsamand, Bhilwara, Udaipur, and Chittorgarh districts of Rajasthan state of India.

Malvi: Malvi is widely spoken in Malva region . Apart from Malva it is spoken in some parts of Mewar and MadhyaPradesh . It includes the specialities of Marwari and Malvi is very soothing and soft language . One special form of Malvi called Rangari is very famous in Rajputs of Malva.

Mewati: Mewati is widely spoken in North-West part of Alwar-Bharatpur and Gurgaon . It is highly influenced by Brig Language.

Vagari: It is widely spoken in southern part of Mewar. It is highly influenced by Gujarati.

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Desert of Rajasthan

Desert of Rajasthan

Rajasthan is the largest state of India by area. Jaipur is the largest city and capital of this state. Rajasthan is the main attraction of tourism in India. The tourists come here to feel Rajput Heritage. Rajasthan has a lot to serve to its visitors. Vast Desert of Thar and one of the oldest mountain ranges in the world make this state most popular and famous.

Thar Desert is known as the Great Indian Desert. Thar Desert extends into two states of north west India (Rajasthan and Gujarat) and in the eastern region of the neighbouring country, Pakistan. The arid region extends in an area which is 800 km long and 400 km wide. The desert is bordered by Indus and Sutlej river in the west and the Aravalli ranges in the east.

Desert of Rajasthan

The alluvial plains of Haryana and Punjab occupy the northern region. Nearly three fifth of the total Thar area is under farming while more than one fourth has been developed into pasture land. The annual average rainfall is less than 25 cm and there is only one river, Luni, that flows from between the region.

This river flows out to merge with the Arabian Sea. Farming in this region, as evident from the amount of rainfall, is not at all easy. Infact four out of ten years suffer a situation of severe drought. And then, there is strong winds that blow for nearly half the year in this region. As many as 700 species of plants exist in this area of which 107 are grass alone.

These plants have the capacity to survive in the driest of conditions and are usually edible, especially the grass variety. The animal species of the desert region is also noteworthy. Actually, The Thar Desert houses some of the best breed of livestock in the country and thereby contributes to production of wool in Rajasthan which is half the total wool production in the country.

The land of shifting sand dunes, broken rocks and scrub vegetation has the visitors in a state of great excitement because it is completely different from what they have been used to. Though the region is arid, there is no dearth of attractions.

Three of the most attractive cities of Rajasthan, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur and Bikaner are a part of the Great Indian Desert

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