Chashme Shahi

Chashme Shahi, the royal spring, is a terraced Mughal garden in the Zabarwan hills near Raj Bhavan, overlooking Dal Lake in Srinagar. Ali Mardan Khan, Shah Jahan's governor, laid it out in 1632 on the emperor's orders as a gift for Prince Dara Shikoh. The spring is said to have been found by the Kashmiri saint Rupa Bhawani, and its name may come from her family name, Sahib. At about 108 by 38 metres it is the smallest of the three Mughal gardens of Srinagar, after Shalimar and Nishat.

The design follows the Persian garden tradition. The spring emerges beneath a two-storey Kashmiri pavilion on the top terrace, slides down a stone water chute to a pool with a large central fountain, then drops again to a square pool of five fountains by the entrance. Stairs on both sides lead visitors up to the source. The water is believed to have healing properties, and Nehru had it sent to Delhi. The Pari Mahal lies just to the east.