1920s Street Scene at Lohari Gate – Lahore

1920s Street Scene at Lohari Gate – Lahore



The Lahori Gate is located within Walled City of Lahore in (Lahore, Punjab) Pakistan. Lahori Gate is one of the 13 gates of the Walled City of Lahore. Being one of the oldest gates of the old city, Lahori Gate is also known as Lohari gate. According to some historians, the original (old) city of Lahore was originally located near Ichhra, and this gate opened towards that side. Hence the name, Lahori gate. The name also traces back its roots to the language of Urdu, in which, “Lohar” means Blacksmith. This could also be another reason behind naming it this way. However, there are no concrete evidences available that blacksmiths used to live or work here.
Lahori Market
The bazar inside Lohari gate is known as Lohari Mandi (Lohari Market) which is one of the oldest markets of South Asia. In the distant past, caravans and travelers coming from Multan used to enter the city from this gate. According to historians, behind Lohari Gate once stood a brick fort called Kacha Kot which was probably the first fortified city of Lahore founded by Malik Ayaz.
During the Mughal rule, the two famous divisions of the Walled City, namely Guzar Bahar Khan and Guzar Machhi Hatta, were connected by this Gate. Unfortunately, during the anarchic rule of the 18th century, all the city gates, except Lohari Gate along with two other gates were walled up. The current building of Lohari gate was rebuilt in 1864 by Sir Robert Montgomery, the then Governor of Punjab. Gates of Lahore. Walled City of Lahore had 13 gates (Akbari Gate, Bhati Gate, Delhi Gate, Kashmiri Gate, Lohari Gate, Masti Gate, Mochi Gate, Mori Gate, Roshnai Gate, Shahalmi Gate, Shairanwala Gate, Taxali Gate, and Yakki Gate). Today, out of 13, only Bhati Gate, Delhi Gate, Kashmiri Gate, Lohari Gate, Roshnai Gate, and Shairanwala Gate survive, yet many are in urgent need of repairs and restoration.Gates of Lahore; Bhati Gate. The entrance to the “Bhati Gate” is located on the western wall of the old city. Just outside of “Bhati Gate” is the Data Durbar, the mausoleum of the Sufi saint Ali Hajweri (also known as Data Sahib Ganjbaksh).
A mythological legend, based on oral traditions, states that Lahore was named after Lava, son of the Hindu god Rama, who supposedly founded the city. Lahore Fort has a vacant temple dedicated in honour of Lava. Likewise, the Ravi River that flows through northern Lahore was said to be named in honour of the Hindu goddess Durga.[1]
Ptolemy, the celebrated astronomer and geographer, mentions in his Geographia a city called Labokla[2] situated on the route between the Indus river in a region described as extending along the rivers Bidastes or Vitasta (Jhelum), Sandabal or Chandra Bhaga (Chenab), and Adris or Iravati (Ravi).
The oldest authentic document about Lahore was written anonymously in 982 and is called Hudud-i-Alam.[3] It was translated into English by Vladimir Fedorovich Minorsky and published in Lahore in 1927. In this document, Lahore is referred to as a small shahr (city) with "impressive temples, large markets and huge orchards." It refers to "two major markets around which dwellings exist," and it also mentions "the mud walls that enclose these two dwellings to make it one." The original document is currently held in the British Museum.[4]
Jain Heritage
Plutarch as well as many other scholars suggest that Jainism was the most ancient and original religion in Punjab. Lahore was the cultural centre of Jainism. A book written by Plutarch, Life of Alexander talks about the encounters between Alexander the Great and digambara Jain saints called gymnosophists.[5] Bhabra or Bhabhra is an ancient merchant community from Punjab region which mainly follows Jainism. It is believed to be connected with the Bhavadar or Bhavada Gachchha to which the Jain Acharya Kalakacharya belonged to. They may have originated from the Bhabra town (32° 13' 30": 73° 13').[6] Inscriptions suggest that Bhavada Gachchha had survived until the 17th century. There were Jain temples at localities still called Thari Bhabrian and Gali Bhabrian.
Hindu heritage
Main article: Hindu period in Lahore
An 1876 engraving of Rajputs, from the Illustrated London News.
The city of Lahore has a Gurjara origin. The earliest princes were said to be traditional Gurjar. Hieun Tsang, the Chinese traveller, who visited the Punjab in 630 AD, speaks of a large city, containing many thousands of families, chiefly Brahmans, situated on the eastern frontier of the kingdom of Cheka, which he says, extended from the Indus to the Beas river.
Around 580 BC., when king Bimbisara ruled South Asia, the society came to be divided into different communities based on their occupation.[dubious – discuss][citation needed] One of their communities was called Kshatriyas and King Luv's descendants were classed with them and came to be known as Luvanam, which was also referred to as Luvana.[7] The Luvanas from Loharghat became known as Loharana (masters of swords;[dubious – discuss][citation needed] or iron ("Loha") chiefs ("Rana")), which later became Lohana.[dubious – discuss]
Chinese traveller Faxian, who visited South Asia between 337 and 472 CE, calls Lohana a brave community ruling the northwest territory of South Asia, in his diary.[citation needed] Another Chinese traveler, Kurmang who came in the eleventh century A.D. speaks of a Lohrana kingdom as a mighty power.[citation needed][dubious – discuss] Historian Burton writes Lohanas were brave people and says they were spread over today's Baluchistan (Pakistan), Afghanistan and eastern fringes of Central Asia.[citation needed] Col. Todd, who delved into history of Rajasthan, describes Lohanas as one of the oldest Kshatriya community. #fastitlinks.com