The Qadam Rasul Mosque () built in 1530-1531 by Sultan

Nusrat Shah Nāṣir ad-Dīn Naṣrat Shāh (r. 1519–1533), also known as Nusrat Shah, was the second Sultan of Bengal belonging to the Hussain Shahi dynasty. He continued with his father's expansionist policies but by 1526, had to contend with the Mughal ...

() in the ancient city of

Gaur The gaur (''Bos gaurus''; ) is a large bovine native to the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia, and has been listed as Vulnerable species, Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 1986. The global population was estimated at a maximum of 21,000 ...

, is a historic single-

dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

d mosque known for housing a stone tablet bearing the footprint of Prophet Muhammad. The mosque, set amidst a lush garden, is a significant heritage and cultural site, maintained by the

Archaeological Survey of India The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexander ...

History

According to local tradition, the footprint of prophet

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

came from the

Khanqah A Sufi lodge is a building designed specifically for gatherings of a Sufi brotherhood or ''tariqa'' and is a place for spiritual practice and religious education. They include structures also known as ''khānaqāh'', ''zāwiya'', ''ribāṭ'' ...

of the 13th century saint

Jalaluddin Tabrizi Abū al-Qāsim Jalāl ad-Dīn Tabrīzī () was a celebrated Sufi saint of South Asia. He arrived in Bengal shortly after the start of its Muslim rule, where he propagated Islam to the local populace and spent the rest of his life. The Jaliliyyah O ...

Pandua Pandua may refer to: * Pandu (actor) (1947–2021), a Tamil film actor * Pandua (community development block), Hooghly District, West Bengal * Pandua (Vidhan Sabha constituency), Hooghly District, West Bengal * Pandua, Malda, now known as Adina, ru ...

. It was moved to Lakhnauti (Gaur) by Sultan

Alauddin Husain Shah Ala-ud-din Husain Shah (; ; ) was an independent late medieval Sultan of the Bengal Sultanate, who founded the Hussain Shahi dynasty. He became the ruler of Bengal after assassinating the People of Ethiopia, Abyssinian Sultan, Shamsuddin Muzaff ...

(). Husain Shah's successor Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah built the mosque to preserve the tablet in (937 AH) 1530/1531 AD.

Architecture

Qadam Rasul Mosque

The Qadam Rasul Mosque is a rectangular

brick A brick is a type of construction material used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a unit primarily composed of clay. But is now also used informally to denote building un ...

structure with a highly embellished east

façade A façade or facade (; ) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loanword from the French language, French (), which means "frontage" or "face". In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important asp ...

featuring three

arch An arch is a curved vertical structure spanning an open space underneath it. Arches may support the load above them, or they may perform a purely decorative role. As a decorative element, the arch dates back to the 4th millennium BC, but stru ...

ed entrances on octagonal piers and four rows of panels with cusped-arch and hanging-bell motifs, similar to the

Bagha Mosque The Bagha Mosque () is a mosque located at Bagha, southeast of Rajshahi in the Rajshahi Division of Bangladesh. History The mosque was built in by Sultan Nusrat Shah, son of Alauddin Shah, the founder of the Husain Shahi dynasty. Later, the ...

(930 AH 1523/1524) in

Rajshahi Rajshahi (, ) is a metropolis, metropolitan city and a major Urban area, urban, administrative, commercial and educational centre of Bangladesh. It is also the administrative seat of the eponymous Rajshahi Division, division and Rajshahi Distr ...

also built under Nusrat Shah. It has vaulted

veranda A veranda (also spelled verandah in Australian and New Zealand English) is a roofed, open-air hallway or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front an ...

hs on the north, east, and south sides, each opening to a central square room containing a relic. The north and south exterior walls have simple recessed panels. Likely the earliest structure in its compound, it predates the guesthouses, gateway, and other buildings, which are attributed to the

Mughal Mughal or Moghul may refer to: Related to the Mughal Empire * Mughal Empire of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries * Mughal dynasty * Mughal emperors * Mughal people, a social group of Central and South Asia * Mughal architecture * Mug ...

period and linked to the Lukochori Darwaza. The mosque compound also holds the tomb of Mughal general Fateh Khan.

Tomb of Fateh Khan

Beside the mosque, lies the tomb of Fateh Khan, son of

Diler Khan Diler Khan Daudzai was a Mughal general who served under Aurangzeb and was the governor of Awadh. He is known for engaging in battle and killing Murarbaji, the military general of Shivaji and the in-charge of Purandar Forts. His brother's name wa ...

and a general of Mughal emperor

Aurangzeb Alamgir I (Muhi al-Din Muhammad; 3 November 1618 – 3 March 1707), commonly known by the title Aurangzeb, also called Aurangzeb the Conqueror, was the sixth Mughal emperors, Mughal emperor, reigning from 1658 until his death in 1707, becomi ...

(). The tomb measures externally and has three doorways on the west, north, and southern side. The tomb is constructed of

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and ...

over brick, the tomb features a ''do-chala'' roof style.

Gallery

File:Qadam Rasul Mosque-Gaur.jpg, General view of the mosque complex File:Full view of Qadam Rasul Mosque.jpg, Side view File:Qudam Rasul Mosque.. Gaur.. Malda.jpg, Corner view File:Qadam Rasul Mosque 17.jpg, The mosque complex and entrance File:Gate of Qudam Rasul Mosque.jpg, Main entrance File:Qadam Rasool Mosque 19.jpg, Corner pillars File:Qadam Rasul Mosque 11.jpg, The mosque and the tomb of Fateh Khan File:Qadam Rasul Mosque 3.jpg, The wall of the compound File:Qadam Rasul Mosque 7.jpg, Mosque inscription File:Qadam Rasul Mosque through an arch.jpg, Semi ached entrances File:Qudam Rasul Mosque... Gaur.. Malda.. WB.jpg, Stone pillars

References

Bibliography

External links

{{Commons category, Qadam Rasul Mosque Bengal Sultanate mosques Monuments of National Importance in West Bengal Mosque buildings with domes in India Mosques in West Bengal Religious buildings and structures completed in 1530 Religious buildings and structures completed in 1500