Ever wondered how the time was measured and calculated at the times when there were no watches, clocks, mobile phones, and internet facilities. This post takes you to the scientific beauties of the medieval world where the time was calculated by keeping a record of the motion and position of the sun, moon, earth, and various other planets. Jantar Mantar is one of such observatories used in astronomy to study the position and movement of the sun, moon, earth, and various other planets.

History of Jantar Mantar-

Jantar Mantar at Delhi was constructed by the founder of Jaipur, Maharaja Jai Singh II in the year 1724, the date being researched after the wrong date of 1710 was mistakenly written on a plate in the complex in 1910. It got massively destructed in the 1857 rebellions.

During the span of thirteen years from 1724 to 1737, Jai Singh made five such observatories or Jantar Mantars throughout the country in five cities namely Delhi, Jaipur, Mathura, Varanasi, and Ujjain. The largest one is the Jantar Mantar at Jaipur.

The name Jantar Mantar was taken from two words of Hindi namely Yantra and Mantra respectively. Yantra or Jantra means instruments and the complementary word Mantra means formulations and calculations, thus the resulting combination signifies a place for calculations with the help of instruments.

The architecture of Jantar Mantar-

Jantar Mantar has various instrumental building constructed in the entire complex which are unique in their architecture and function. There are around 13 instruments present, out of which these four stated here are of main importance-

Samrat Yantra-

It is a giant triangular instrument also known as Supreme Instrument and measures 114 feet at its base and 70 feet height, with a thickness of 10 feet. It made the work of already existing sundials more precised by adding a feature of declination and coordinates to it. The main functioning part of this instrument is the hypotenuse which is parallel to the earth’s imaginary axis, whose shadow on the two quadrants beside it gives exact measurements up to 2 seconds.

Jaya Prakash Yantra-

Probably the most typical instrument made by Jai Singh at the Delhi Jantar Mantar, the Jai Prakash Yantra is a hemispherical bowl-shaped structure, built below ground level, with a diameter of 27 feet at its rim, and is used to describe a planet’s position. The measurements are done with the help of a stretched wire over the rim’s diameter with a hanging metal at its center.

Rama Yantra-

Another majestic instrument at the Jantar Mantar complex, the Ram Yantra consists of two huge cylindrical structures with height equal to the radius, that is used to determine the position of a celestial body in the sky. These instruments are an exclusive feature of Jaipur and Delhi Jantar Mantars only.

Misra Yantra-

The Misra Yantra is a mixture of 5 astronomical structures and is the most beautiful looking structure in the Jantar Mantar complex. It is used to find a year’s longest and shortest days along with another specialty to determine the exact time of noon in various cities.

Location of Jantar Mantar-

Jantar Mantar is located in the prime city of New Delhi which is said to be the heartbeat of the nation and a large number of tourists interested in astronomy and science head towards this complex every year. Further, its location in Connaught Place, the city’s shopping paradise, adds to the number of visitors to it.

New Delhi is the National Capital and thus is were efficiently connected with each and every part of the country with different modes, be it air, rail, or by road. Distances of major cities from New Delhi are-Mumbai-1333 km, Chennai-2006 km, Bengaluru-2016 km, Kolkata-1402 km, Jaipur-266 km, Lucknow-460 km, Agra-211 km, Indore-774 km, and Amritsar-450 km.

How to Reach Jantar Mantar-

ADDRESS- Connaught Place, Sansad Marg, New Delhi

PIN Code-110001

Contact No. 011 2336 5358

• From Indira Gandhi International Airport, the place is about 15 kilometers away and one can reach via Sardar Patel Marg within 40 to 45 minutes by taxis on a day with normal traffic.
• From New Delhi Railway Station, the distance of Jantar Mantar is about 2.5 kilometers and can be covered within 15 minutes.
• The nearest metro station to the Jantar Mantar is Patel Chowk, about 550 meters of walking distance. It lies on the Yellow Line of Delhi Metro. Another nearest metro station is Rajiv Chowk Metro Station on the intersection of Blue and Yellow lines.
• Another popular way to reach the place from various spots in the city are the rickshaws, autos, and DTC buses that run daily.
• The nearest bus stand is the Palika Kendra bus stand and is only 2 kilometers from Jantar Mantar.

Timings-

• The timings of the place are from 6 am to 6 pm or broadly the time from the sunrise to the sunset. This is the time when one can use all the instruments for time calculations.
• The observatory remains open on all the days of a week.
• It takes about 1-2 hours on an average to explore the observatory at Jantar Mantar.

Entry Fee-

• The entry fee is INR 20 for Indian, SAARC and BIMSTEC visitors.
• The fee is INR 250 for all other foreign visitors.
• There are no extra charges for Photography and an extra charge of INR 25 is taken for Videography.

Travel Tip-

You should not forget to take your photo ID to the place for security and identification processes. The place should be visited during the sunny day in winters to avoid exhausting and hot summers and to see the working of instruments in sunlight. Make sure to make proper arrangements of drinking water to avoid dehydration during exploring the monument. If you are keen to know the working methodology of each instrument then it is advisable to hire a local guide.

Location on Map-