Located On A Far-Flung Corner Of The Humayun's Tomb Complex Lies Bu Halima's Tomb

Located on the Western side of the beautifully well-maintained Humayun’s Tomb Complex is a rectangular enclosure which is usually ignored by tourists and visitors as they pass by to see the more famous Humayun’s tomb. This rectangular enclosure contains a green, well-trimmed garden with a broad, neat pathway leading you in and out of it and another path (perpendicular to the main one) taking you to the structure on one end which contains the tomb of Bu Halima.

The architecture of this structure dates back to the early Mughal period. The tomb, rectangular in shape, seems to have been built with brightly coloured stones which appear to have faded over time. Each of the four sides has two entrances carved out in them. You can take a look, but be careful as it’s pretty dark in there and you might just find an injured animal lurking inside! 

Held In High Regard

There’s a staircase in front of this structure that leads up to its top. These stairs are not smooth so be careful whilst climbing. As you reach the top, you’ll see an octagonal platform and at the centre of this platform is where Bu Halima is buried.

Bu Halima occupied an important place in Humayun’s harem and was a part of Babur’s (Humayun’s father) entourage to India. The exact identity of Bu Halima is a mystery but it’s said that she was Humayun’s wet nurse and also a Mughal noble woman. It’s evident that she must have held an important position to have a garden named after her and to have her tomb placed barely 100 metres away from Humayun’s. 

The Unusual Placement

The tomb, however, is not placed in the centre of the garden, as is usually the case with most other tombs built during that period. This has led to the popular belief that the garden must have been developed before and the tomb added later on (in other garden-tombs, it’s the other way round). 

Remains Of Past Wars And Art

Behind the tomb, on both corners of this side, are small rectangular bastions having dark entrances. These miniature entrances may ignite your curiosity but there isn’t anything inside. On both sides of each entrance is a flight of tiny stairs leading up to a dome. Some of the original tile work can be seen on these domes in the form of blue, green and yellow broken tiles.

Today, the main entrance to Humayun’s Tomb is through Bu Halima’s garden. The garden is simple and well-kept. 

One usually just passes by without giving it a second glance, but as part of the Humayun’s Tomb Complex, it definitely deserves more attention, so keep an eye out when you land up here!

Location | Bharat Scouts And Guides Marg, Nizamuddin, Sundar Nagar