Hari Parbat in Srinagar

If you are in a trip to Srinagar then the sightseeing in Srinagar that you should not miss is the Mughal fort, at Hari Parbat in Srinagar that is situated over the Sharika Hill on the banks of the Dal Lake. It is also known as Predemna Peet or Kohi Maran. According to the history of Hari Parbat in Srinagar, the Mughal fort was built during Akbar’s reign but it owes its present form to an 18th century Afghan governor of Kashmir. At Hari Parbat in Srinagar you will find a Parvati temple on the western slope and the shrines of Khwaja Makhdoom Sahib and Akhund Mullah Shah on the southern slope. There is a Gurudwara, in memory of Guru Hargobind Singh, also at the southern side of the outer wall of the Hari Parbat Fort in Srinagar.

According to a legend, the Hari Parbat in Srinagar was once a lake and inhabited by the deomon Jalobhava. To protect themselves from the demon the local inhabitants prayed to Goddess Sati and she answered the prayer by taking the form of a bird and dropped a pebble on the head of the demon which crushed it by becoming huge in size. Hari Parbat of Srinagar is regarded as ‘that pebble’ which is now the home of all the 33 crore gods of the Hindu mythology.

Another myth associated with the hill is that two demons Tsand and Mond once occupied Srinagar. Tsand was hiding in the water near the modern day location of the Hari Parbat in Srinagar and Mond was hidden at a place above the Dal Gate. To kill them, Goddess Parvati took the form of a myna and flew to Sumer. She brought a pebble from there and killed Tsand with that. This pebble grew to be the Hari Parbat in Srinagar. Thus Parvati is worshipped as Sharika in Shri Tsakra in the western slope of Hari Parbat at Srinagar.

In 1590, Akbar had built the outer wall of the fort for a worth of one crore and ten lakh of rupees. You can read about it in the Persian inscription at the Kathi Darwaza. His plan was to make a new capital inside the fort by the name of Nagar Nagor. On your visit there you can find the ruins of many buildings on the side of the Pokhiri Bal. You can also get spectacular views of the Dal Lake and the part of the Srinagar valley from the Hari Parbat in Srinagar.