We had already booked online tickets from the ASI website and entered the premises of the Maan Mandir  . Folklore suggests that Raja Suraj Sen who suffered from leprosy was healed by the sage Gwalipa . Out of gratitude he decided to guard the hill top to protect the sage from the wild animals and named the place gwalior after the sage Gwalipa. Rani Laxmi Bai of Jhansi once defeated the Gwalior king Jayaji Rao Scindia and occupied the Gwalior fort temporarily .The fort is a witness to the fierce battle of 1857 fought between the British and the Jhansi ki Rani Laxmi Bai .  Raja Maan Singh's palace is the most beautiful of the buildings present in the Gwalior fort . It is believed the walls of his room were adorned with beautiful gems and precious stones , which were later looted by the Mughals . There were underground passages which connected the nearby Kingdoms of Jhansi and Orchha to this Gwalior fort . Many people in search of hidden treasures had gone inside these passages and went missing and that is why the government has blocked and cemented the hidden passages. There are underground chambers in the palace of Raja Maan Singh , which were used by the Mughals as prisons.  Karan mahal  Plenty of dilapidated palaces and structures are there inside the fort . To visit those we collected separate tickets and went to the Karan mahal at first. Karan Mahal is attributed to the second king of Tomar dynasty Kirti Singh whose other name was Karan and hence the name Karan Mahal. Kirti Singh is the same person under whose patronage the rock cut Jain sculptures were carved in the Urvai valley which we saw while entering the Gwalior fort .  Just opposite to the Karan mahal lies the Vikram Mahal . Vikramaditya was the son of Raja Maan Singh . He was a devotee of lord Shiva and had built a Shiva temple in his palace .   Next on the line we came across the Jauhar kund  , the water of which once supplied the different palaces of the fort campus . The neglected water tank reminded us of the horror of  mass immolation of Rajput women to protect their dignity from the forces of Iltutmish .  To distract ourselves from the disturbing thoughts of jauhar we left the place in haste and arrived at the Jehangir Mahal .  Ruled by different kings from different dynasties,this building was constructed by Sher Shah . Later on Jehangir came here and did some restoration work , and renamed the building as Jehangir Mahal  From the balconies of the Jehangir Mahal the beautiful courtyard of the Gujari Mahal is visible . It was built by Raja Maan Singh Tomar for his beloved wife Mriganayani who was Gujari by caste  , hence the name Gujari Mahal . Right now the Gujari Mahal is used as a museum  which displays numerous regional artefacts, and can be explored by booking separate tickets.  Though the massive area of the Gwalior fort made us tired under the hot sun , it never failed to disappoint us with surprises in its every nook and corner . Passing by the bright shades of hued tiles , we started descending to only get stunned by some more treasures of our rich cultural heritage . We came across some more rock cut sculptures and finally the Chaturbhuj temple where one of the first written symbols of zero has been discovered.  The age old script and the intricate finesse on a small and simple temple made it extraordinarily beautiful  .   At a stone's throw distance from the Gwalior fort lies the tombs of the famed tutor and pupil duo of Muhammad Ghuas and Tansen . Revered by Mughal emperors Babur  Humayun and Akbar , Md. Ghaus acquired a considerable influential position during the Mughal rule in Gwalior. He had the knack in cultivating art  , and one such student was the great Tansen who by his own talent became one of the navratnas in Akbar badhshahs court . The perforated stone designs in the Makbara reminds us of the jaali designs of the Sidi Sayid mosque of Ahmedabad . Prominent influences from Gujarat mixed with Mughal imprints makes it a unique Indo Islamic architecture .  Starting with the Jain sculptures, followed by Saas Bahu temple , a functional Gurudwara and concluding with a Makbara , gwalior represents a perfect picture of India's unity in diversity. A lot was explored in a day and a lot left behind to only promise myself to visit this powerhouse of ancient India once again .

 The Gwalior fort is around two kms from the Gwalior railway station. We went there by  reserved auto rickshaw and  got down at the western entrance of the fort .  From the Urvai gate,  shared Jeep is available till the main entrance of the fort .  But we chose to walk uphill , to see the  massive, age old  sculptures of Jain tirthankaras along the way.   The Tomar kings of Gwalior were feudatories of the Tughlaq dynasty . They left their touch of cultural brilliance ,in these  Gopachal and Siddhachal Jain sculptures tracing back to the fifteenth century .   The Gwalior fort complex is quite big and houses a number of temples . We booked online tickets from asi website and reserved an e rickshaw to visit the surya kund , teli ka Mandir, Saas Bahu temple and the Gurudwara . Controlled by multiple rulers over a vast span of history, the Gwalior fort is a treasure of some spell Bound architectural  Marvels of different dynasties .  After seeing the Gurjar Pratihar styled Teli ka Mandir we went to the thousand years old Saas Bahu temple. Such detailed artwork left us awestruck, and infact in loss of words to appreciate the ancient marvel . But unfortunately  the intricate carvings showing human figures were defaced and  the overall temple was  brutally vandalised by the Muslim rulers.  Our last stop of the e rickshaw ride was the Gurudwara. Lined with colourful Bougainville , the calm and clean site ,  was an abode of peace in the truest sense . Photography was prohibited  over there, and we had delicious halwa Prasad at the temple .