Badshahi Masjid Lahore
The Badshahi Mosque in Lahore, Pakistan, is considered to be one of the finest mosques in the world. It is also known as the ‘Crown Mosque’ because it crowns the city’s skyline. The mosque is named after Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb; he was the one who built the mosque. However, several believed that it was also built to honor his father, Shah Jahan. In any case, thousands have visited this mosque over the centuries to admire its beauty and magnificence.
In the fifhur century, the Mughal Emperor Babur built a mosque in Lahore. After defeating lakh nath at the city’s gates in 1526, he successfully expanded his kingdom to include Lahore. Because of this new territory, Babur decided to build a mosque where his courtiers could pray without conflicting with other pilgrims. He began construction on this mosque in 1527 and completed it two years later. Later on, Emperor Humayun expanded the mosque’s tomb further- creating a larger prayer space for Muslims to pray.
Over time, the Badshahi Mosque has become one of the largest mosques in Asia and is known as one of the grandest mosques in the world. Many consider it to be one of the biggest mosques in Asia and even the world. The sheer size of this mosque is impressive- especially when you consider that it can hold up to 3 million people. The tomb inside this mosque is even larger than its prayer space and can hold up to 100 thousand people. It is said that if you put all of humanity into this one mosque, there would still be enough room for them all.
The Mughal Emperors rule in Badshahi Masjid
The Mughal emperors built this mosque so they could remember their fathers’ devotion to Islam. Each emperor wanted to build a tomb for their father so they could have a place to go and pray without conflict. The emperor who built this mosque was Aurangzeb; he was known as ‘the Handsome.’ Many believe he was also responsible for building Muhammad Ali’s tomb inside this mosque as well .
A part of the mosque is considered to be the burial site of Muhammad Ali- or ‘the father of Arabia.’ When he died at age 69, Muhammad Ali gave away all his possessions so he could devote himself completely to Islam and prayer. He died just 2 years after arriving in Lahore from his home country of Greece. Many pilgrims visit Muhammad Ali’s tomb at the Badshahi Mosque each year. They do this both inside and outside of Ramadan so they can ask God for guidance- which they believe will help them with their spiritual development.
Old History of Badshahi Masjid
The history surrounding this mosque is rich with tradition and culture- both from a historical and cultural perspective as well as an Islamic perspective. Thousands have visited this place over the centuries because it houses such famous people as Muhammad Ali and Aurangzeb- two great Mughal emperors who built tombs here for their fathers’ devotion to Islam. While some people have negative opinions about Aurangzeb, most pilgrims praise his devotion to building this mosque and tomb for his father’s grave site.
