Shalimar Bagh: When a Mughal Garden’s Sights and Scents Became the Muse

Nestled at the foothills of the Zabarwan Range, Shalimar Gardens is located on the eastern shore of Dal Lake in Srinagar. The garden spans across a rectangular layout of about 31 acres, with the scenic lake on one side and the mountains rising in the backdrop.

C. M. Villiers Stuart, in his book, Gardens of the Great Mughals (1913), writes:
A subtle air of leisure and repose, a romantic indefinable spell, pervades the royal Shalimar: this leafy garden of dim vistas, shallow terraces, smooth sheets of falling water, and wide canals with calm reflections broken only by the stepping stones across the stream.

Built by Mughal Emperor Jahangir in 1619 for his wife Nur Jahan, the garden follows the classical Persian Charbagh design, featuring terraced lawns, cascading fountains, and a central water canal. The location was selected for its naturally flowing stream, which could be ingeniously directed to create a cascading waterfall.

Shalimar Bagh is laid out in a series of terraces, each with a distinct function; the lower levels serving as public gardens, the middle reserved for the Emperor, and the uppermost for the women of the court. Elegant marble pavilions and vibrant fountain squares add to the visual richness of the space.

A section designated for public gatherings hints that Shalimar was more than just a leisurely retreat. It functioned as an open-air palace for the Emperor's public appearances and political matters.

The beauty of Kashmir and its gardens not only attracted the Mughal royalty but also the foreign travellers and colonial officers who visited Kashmir. The Shalimar Garden found its place in the Western literature in the early 1900s, specially by featuring in Laurence Hope's first collection of poems, The Garden of Kama (1901), also known as India's Love Lyrics.

The poem was titled 'Pale Hands I Loved Beside the Shalimar' and was popularly known as 'Kashmiri Song', a 1902 song by Amy Woodforde-Finden based on Hope's poem.

The poem is a romantic lyric where the narrator remembers a past love affair one that took place in the beautiful, tranquil surroundings of the Shalimar Gardens. The poem begins with the following lines:
Pale hands I loved beside the Shalimar,
Where are you now? Who lies beneath your spell?

The poet goes onto depict a vivid picture of the channels and water spaces of the garden through these lines:
Pale hands, pink tipped, like Lotus buds that float
On those cool waters where we used to dwell

Choosing Shalimar as the backdrop draws the contrast between the eternal garden of Kashmir and the transient love of the narrator, lending the poem its poignant power.

A decade after the poem was written, Shalimar features in the French perfumery industry when the famous perfumer Jacques Guerlain decided to make a perfume dedicated to the heady notes of the Shalimar Gardens. Created in 1921, with Roaring Twenties at the peak, the French bourgeoise had developed a strong palette and preference for the exotic East, drawing fashion and scents of the lands unknown to them.

The Shalimar perfume consisted of powerful eastern notes such as vanilla, opopanax, sandalwood, iris, benzoin, patchouli, incense and Tonka beans.

Not only the notes, even the bottle drew inspiration from the Mughal garden - with its wide basin-like bottle shape inspired from the design of Mughal garden pools and topped with the sapphire-hued stopper, mimicking the beauty of oriental water features. The bottle itself was a breakthrough in the perfumery world, marking the first time a perfume bottle featured a colored stopper. It also earned top honors, winning first prize at the 1925 Exhibition of Decorative Arts and Modern Industry.

When we consider the wide-ranging influence of Shalimar Garden on the European world, it's clear that the blend of Mughal architecture and Kashmir's natural beauty left a lasting impression. Those who experienced it were inspired to carry its essence into their own cultures and reimagine it through their art and design.

Written by Tanya Sujan