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Traveler’s Facts
Whats this: Largest Stone Astronomical Observatory in the World and a World Heritage Site
Should I Visit: Yes, its a must visit tourist place
Location: Just next to the entrance of City Palace of Jaipur
Built by: Maharaja Jai Sawai Singh
Built in: Between 1727 and 1733
Ok, how to reach: One can easily reach Jantar Mantar from the city by taking local Buses, Rickshaws and Taxis
Jantar Mantar is the biggest stone observatory in the world, which is still in a running condition and stands witness to the wisdom of the former age. Jantar Mantar is one of the five astronomical observatories built by Maharaja Jai Singh, the founder of Jaipur of Rajasthan and is located close to the gate of the famous City Palace of Jaipur of Rajasthan. The Jantar Mantar at Jaipur of Rajasthan was conceived as a quest for discovering the mysteries of the Cosmos. It was built not only to verify astronomical observations made at Jaipur of Rajasthan, but also to stimulate interest in astronomy, which had become enmeshed in theory, superstition and religious jargon. During the period between 1727 and 1733, Jantar Mantar of Rajasthan took its form and structure.
Jantar Mantar Observatory, The World Heritage Site
The Man has always been fascinated by the Universe and the Cosmos. With every passing year we think we have come closer to unfolding the secrets of the dark skies. But just as we think we are close to discovering the key or the knowledge, we realize we haven’t even crossed the threshold yet. Even our ancestors and the people before us, could not resist the temptation and made attempts to learn more about the mysteries of Time and Space.
Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the Rajput ruler of Amber of Rajasthan and the founder of Jaipur in Rajasthan was a learned man and an astronomer who was deeply interested in the workings of the celestial bodies and so built the Observatory, known as Jantar Mantar of Rajasthan. It is modeled after the one that he had built for him at the then Mughal capital of Delhi. He had constructed a total of five such labs at different locations, including the ones at Delhi and Jaipur of Rajasthan. The Jaipur of Rajasthan observatory is the largest of these. The name is derived from yantra, instrument, and mantra, for chanting; hence the ‘the chanting instrument’. It is sometimes said to have been originally yantra mantra, mantra being translated as formula, although there is limited justification for this since in traditional spoken Jaipur language, the locals obfuscate the written ‘Y’ syllable as ‘J’.
Legend and History of Jantar Mantar
India, in the early decades of the 18th century was a land to turmoil, the Mughal empire was collapsing, its chiefs were busy in internal quarrels, and the Marathas, Portuguese, British, French and Dutch were fighting for the over lordship of India’s trade and political fortunes. In this age arose a brilliant star on India’s political and intellectual horizon – Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, Rajput ruler of Amber, founder of Jaipur, a great builder and ruler and an exceptional astronomer.
Sawai Jai Singh II was commissioned by Emperor Muhammad Shah, to make corrections in the astronomical tables and to confirm the data, already available on the planetary positions. Sawai Jai Singh II took seven years to finish the task. He built the first stone observatory in 1724 in Delhi. The Jaipur observatory of Rajasthan was built in 1728. There is actually a fascinating story in relation to the construction of the Observatory. According to the story, Sawai Jai Singh II sent his envoys to various parts of the world. The emissaries came back with manuals and astronomical tables besides tons of data on the advances made in the fields of astronomy. La Hire’s “Tables” was one of these manuals, and impressed by it, Sawai Jai Sing II ordered the observatory to be constructed according to the data available in this manual. Amazingly, after Jantar Mantar of Rajasthan was built, it was discovered that the Observatory was more accurate than the Table itself. Apart from being a permanent memorial to his genius, it secured for him a place along with such distinguished observatory builders like Prince Ulugh Beg, Tycho Brahe and John Flam Steed.
