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Towards the north of Thanesar and over looking the sarai
built by Sher Shah Suri is the marble tomb of Sheikh Chehli. This
beautiful tomb and the attached madrasa are associated with the Sufi Saint
Abdu'r Rahim alias Abd-ul-Karim alias Abd-ul-Razak, popularly known as
Sheikh Chehli, also called Chilli believed to be the spiritual teacher to
the Mughal prince, Dara Shikoh.
The
Saint
Sheikh Chehli was an Iranian Sufi Saint. He came to Thanesar to meet
Hazrat Kutub Jalaluddin in the 16th century. He breathed his last here. He
was laid to rest in this tomb which had originally been built for Hazrat
Kutub, Jalaluddin under orders of Shahjahan, out of his great respect and
regard for Hazrat Sahib.
The tomb, overlooking the madrasa and standing on an artificial terrace,
is octagonal on plan having its entrance on the south. It is built of buff
sandstone crowned by a pear shaped dome of white marble, sitting on a high
circular drum. The sides of the octagonal tomb are provided with arched
recesses, similar in style to those of the entrance and the windows along
with the openings are closed with pierced tracery screens in white marble.
The centre of the chamber is occupied by the cenotaph of the saint while
the grave is located in the lower chamber to which a narrow gallery leads
from the 'madarsa'. The 'madarsa' is a building with a deep arcade of nine
arched openings on each side of a central courtyard, which has in the
centre a stone masonry or tank.
John Dawkins repaired the tomb of the Saint Sheikh Chilli in A.D. 1854.
It is now a protected monument and is being looked after by the Government
of India.
How to get there
Air: The nearest airport is at
Chandigarh .
Rail: The nearest rail junction is at Kurukshetra.
Road: Kurukshetra has a bus stand of its own.