Vikrant Vyas

The Scourge of God      Temujin was a petty tribal leader indulged in skirmishes with other tribes in the vast steppe landscapes of Mongolia. The quarrels amongst tribes were common owing to the remarkably low annual rainfall and scanty resources. It was in 1206 that Temujin, having grown sufficiently powerful, gathered an assembly of all the Mongolian tribes and announced himself the supreme leader of them all, adopting the name Genghis Khan.          Under the leadership of this Great Khan and his successors, Mongols became a force to be reckoned with, expanding out of their homelands and conquering vast territories.      The Mongol Empire was a thundercloud that  covered an area of 24 million sq.km stretching from Korea to Europe in length and Russia to Persia in width. In 13th century around 25-30 percent of the global population lived under the rule of the Great Khan of Mongolia.  The Art and The Artist The Fugitive p...

The Golden Pillar          Sultan Firoz Shah Tughlaq(1351-88) was on a hunting expedition in the Topra region of modern day Haryana. While searching for game, his hunting party came upon a huge monolithic pillar. The Sultan was highly impressed by its fine polishing and lusture. He called it "Minar-i-Zarin" i.e. the golden pillar.  Topra pillar          One similar pillar was also discovered in Meerut(UP). Curious Sultan when inquired about the pillars, was informed by the locals that these giant structures were infact "walking sticks" of Bhim, the strongest of the Pandavs from Mahabharat times. Firoz Shah finding them to be valuable,ordered his men to transport the pillars which stood 42 feet in height and weighing almost 27 tons each to his capital.  Meerut pillar  The Enigma Code      Firoz Shah was restless even after bringing the pillars to Delhi, he had noticed some strange engraving on both the pillar...