December 25, 2003

The Wah garden remains symbolic of the Mughal patronage of horticulture, writes Amjad Iqbal

Like the Arabs who had created gardens in Europe, the Mughal emperors developed gardens as a tradition in South Asia. The reign of emperor Shah Jahan, in particular, marks the development of garden architecture which exemplifies the typical Mughal style.

The institution of gardens was magnificently developed during the Mughal period, and today, we hardly find a Mughal structure without a garden. The residential palaces, forts and even mausoleums were invariably constructed around gardens during the Mughal era. The mausoleum of emperor Jahangir was originally a pleasure resort constructed by empress Noor Jahan, and was known as Bagh-i-Dilkusha.

The gardens during this period were planned in such a manner so as to bring relief to the emperors and the nobility from the oppressive heat of the subcontinent. The Mughal rulers’ empress, princesses and the nobles were great patrons of gardens.

The Mughal emperors’ love for aesthetic splendour, landscaping, fountains, water falls, refreshing environments and a invigorating atmosphere gave birth to the traditions of garden architecture. Though most of these gardens have been destroyed over time, a few still survive and tell the tale of their glorious past.

The Mughal garden at Wah is located about 12 kilometres west of Taxila near Wah village. It is bordered on the north by the Tamra Nala, and on the south by a mountain, while cultivated land and the present village of Wah lies to its west and the eastern side is covered by a hillock. Its present condition is only a shadow of its past glory.

It is not clear which emperor took the first initiative for the planning and construction of this garden as there is no mention of any settlement with the name of Wah. The location of this garden is en route to Kabul and Kashmir, thus Hassan Abdal and its present village of Wah must have been of considerable importance, because Mughal emperors used to stop here during their marches towards Kashmir and the northwestern regions.

The word ‘wah’ is an exclamatory expression of happiness and amazement, and has been assigned to three emperors, namely, Babar, Akbar and Jahangir, although there is no authentic proof to substantiate this. However, on the basis of the architectural features it may be said that the Wah garden was constructed by Akbar.

In its present form this garden consists of a palace named Farudgah-i-Mughalia which is surrounded by a boundary wall, a central tank, a central canal, two pavilions in symmetrical formation on either side of the central canal, a water cascade and a complex of structural remains representing a Turkish Bath, in addition to this there is a western pavilion which previously served as the original entrance to the garden.

Further west is the disposal channel dropping into the Tamra Nala for draining out water from the central canal and side channels. In accordance with typical Mughal garden style, it is also divided into three terraces with the help of screen-walls. Currently only two terraces are visible while the third is buried under debris.

The interior is in the form of stucco-tracery representing flower vases with cypress trees, floral patterns with designs of creepers and geometric patterns. In certain cases interior panels are decorated with cups, dishes and flower vases.

The ceilings are decorated in a honeycomb pattern. A portion of the central canal still retains the original decoration of the chevron pattern and stone inlay work. The water cascade of the central canal drops into a small tank with an internal decoration of yellow stone. It was originally studded with fountains at regular intervals.

Architecturally the Wah garden is a compact unit like the Shalimar garden and the gardens attached to the different mausoleums of the Mughal period. Despite vandalism and the ravages of time it still retains some of the typical features characteristic of Mughal gardens.

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