“There’s a reason why this prison is the worst hell on Earth. Hope. Every man who has rotted here over the centuries has looked up to the light and imagined climbing to freedom. So easy, so simple. And like shipwrecked men turning to sea water from uncontrollable thirst, many have died trying. I learned here that there can be no true despair without hope.”
– Bane
Located in an ancient part of the world, the Pit is a prison which is commonly referred to as “the worst Hell on Earth”. Why? Because it gives people hope to attain freedom, freedom from the worst of tortures and at the same time, destroys every hope of becoming free. It destroys every hope of becoming the master of your life! It is a hell-hole where men are thrown to suffer and die.
The Pit features an empty well, which the prisoners can use in order to attempt their escape. Many have tried, many have failed. Nobody has ever managed to escape from this hell-hole. But the Pit did send someone back to this free world we live in. A survivor, an agent of chaos. The legend is a child, a mercenary’s child, had managed to escape from the prison. While the other inmates normally used a rope, while making the jump, in order to keep themselves safe, the child, on the other hand, made the jump without using the rope, causing the fear of dying to give her the adrenaline, beyond the capabilities of a human being, she needed to make the jump.
Then make the climb. How? As the child did. Without the rope. Then fear will find you again.
Relax! The prison is not real. The so-called “worst hell on Earth” that you saw in the movie, The Dark Knight Rises, is Mehrangarh Fort. Located in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, Mehrangarh Fort is one of the oldest forts in India. The foundation of the fort was laid in 1460 by Jodha of Mysore, Rao Jodha, on a rocky hill 9 kilometres to the south of Mandore. This hill was popularly known as Bhaurcheeria, the mountain of birds.
The legend is Rao Jodha, in order to build the fort, had to displace the hill’s sole occupant, a hermit called Cheeria Nathji, the Lord of Birds. Upset at being forced to move, Cheeria Nathji cursed Rao Jodha with “Jodha! May your citadel ever suffer a scarcity of water!”. Rao Jodha managed to appease the hermit by building a house and a temple in the fort very near the cave the hermit had used for meditation, though only to the extent that even today the area is plagued by a drought every 3 to 4 years.
Jodha then took an extreme measure to ensure that the new site proved propitious; he buried a man called “Raja Ram Meghwal” alive in the foundations. “Raja Ram Meghwal” was promised that in return his family would be looked after by the Rathores. To this day his descendants still live in Raj Bagh, “Raja Ram Meghwal’s” Garden, an estate bequeathed them by Jodha. Rao Jodha then invited the famous female Hindu warrior sage of Charan caste, Shri Karni Mata, to lay down the foundation stone of the Mehrangarh Fort and the same was carried out by her.
Today only the forts of Bikaner and Jodhpur remain in the hands of Rathores, both had their foundation stone laid by Shri Karni Mata. All other Rajput forts of Rajasthan were abandoned for some or the other reasons by the respective clans. Only the Rathores of Jodhpur and Bikaner have their forts with them till date. This fact is considered a miracle by the local population and is attributed to Shri Karni Mata.
Amazing, isn’t it? A fictional place which was shown in a movie and the actual location of that place, both have such wonderful history! If you ever get the chance to come to India, make sure Mehrangarh Fort is in your list of the places that you would visit! It is one hell of a tourist attraction.
Uncharted Course of Vision 