From Zakki Gate to Yakki Gate

Out of the thirteen gates of the Walled City of Lahore the Zakki Gate, on the eastern side,  has a history of its own that is bit astonishing and unusual as well. So far, I haven’t come across such an attention-grabbing reason for naming a gate. The historians record that the gate was named after a martyr saint, “Pir Zakki” and there are two grave of the same saint inside this gate. The legend goes on like this that Pir Zaki and his followers or disciples died fighting against the Mongol invaders who wanted to take over the area. The interesting part of the story is that even after Pir Zaki was beheaded, while fighting with them, his headless body kept on struggling and fought with Mongols for a few meters or so. Therefore, the head and body were buried in different graves and both are venerated to this day. His burial chamber is a few steps from the city and in front of it there is a famous “Madina Mosque”.  So if you plan to visit this place you can ask for this Mosque and it will direct you to this gate.

Now coming to how the name changed, with the passage of time and like few other gates, the name of this gate was also distorted. As the sound of letter “z” (zee) is interchangeable with the letter “Y” (Ya) in local language of the region, it became Yakki Gate instead of Zakki Gate over a certain period of time. As the generations passed, among the Lahoris and historians it became known as Yakki Gate, and I too am using the same name in my writings.

The gate was constructed during the third Mughal Emperor Akbar’s reign when he built the thirty feet high defense wall around the city with thirteen gates. This gate was demolished during the British Raj and was not reconstructed but the graves of Pir Zakki along with some other graves still exist there. This gate was built next to Delhi Gate and till now, any street inside the Yakki Gate can lead you to the Royal Trail of Delhi Gate in just few turns. One can also reach the huge monuments like 17^th century Shahi Hammam and Wazir Khan Mosque by entering the Yakki Gate and walking through the narrowest streets. It is an astounding tangled network of streets and one is awe stunned while sauntering through them. A direct path from Yakki Gate will also chauffeur you to Sheranwala Ghatti (slope), the famous Bangla Ayub Shah, Kashmiri Ghatti (slope), Haveli of Jamadaar Khush’hal Singh, Mariam Zamani Mosque and Akbari Gate of Lahore Fort. This is one of the interesting tourist routes but not much exposed. This one trail links you with the Sheranwala and Kashmiri and Masti Gate. It’s an amazing experience for any tourist and trust me it’s mesmerizing.

From Yakki Gate if you take a left turn towards Koocha Kundrawan and go straight to Chohatta Qazi Allah Dad, you will land right in front of the Wazir Khan Mosque.  From Gali Beeja Ram, which is a little ahead from Koocha Kundrawan, you take left and effortlessly go to Pakistan Cloth Market, one of the biggest cloth markets in Asia. Interesting sites are the Katri Mian Ghous and Gali Aalo wali Haveli. You will come across the relics of impressive architecture in all these streets inside Yakki Gate. While wandering inside these streets you will also spot heritage homes and havelis, some of which have been left abandoned and some are still in use by the residents.

If by any chance you are inside Delhi Gate on the Royal Trail, you can take a route to Yakki Gate. From Chowk Wazir Khan, near Chitta Gate, if you take a turning to your right (east) which takes you through Chauhatta Wasti Wagat and Chauhatta Qazi you will go past Koocha Kundrawan, which takes you unswervingly to Yakki Gate Bazaar. You will find many foods and tea stalls in this route.

The Yakki Gate is so far protected from the shackles of commercialization. The area inside the gate is residential and you will find an interesting life, rather a true Lahori street. I hope that this place remains the same and commercialization does not stretch to this part.  There is school for blinds situated nearby the gate. A number of temples are also located in and around Yakki Gate. Outside the gate you have the option to shop from the fruit and vegetables Mandi (a huge market).

If this gate is reconstructed by the concerned authorities, it can be an interesting route for the tourists. Just rambling through the streets one can be linked with all the world class monuments and streets. There should be some activity in this area, so that it gets well-known among the public at large. This will also enable the authorities to save it from commercialization, which is so far eating up the precious Walled City of Lahore.