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 Jantar
Mantar, or astronomical observatory was
established in 1728 by Jai Singh who himself was a
great astronomer and warrior He realized that
there were some discrepancies in calculating the
movements of celestial bodies. He studied hard and
even sent delegations to Europe to muster books
and instruments. French Jesuit, du Bois has
written that Jai Singh designed the observatory
and built their wax models with his own hands. In
order to have observations from different
locations to decimate discrepancies he built for
other observatories at Delhi, Ujjain, Varanasi and
Mathura but the one at Jaipur is the largest and
well maintained. Even now the calculations of the
celestial bodies, made trough 13 different
instruments here, are fairly accurate. The
observatory has instruments like Samrat Yantra,
Sasthanmsa, Daksinottra Bhitti Yantra, Jaya
Prakasha and kapala, Nadivalaya, Digmasa Yantra,
Rama Yantra and Rashivalaya's. Even the Monsoon
rains are predicted here with help of studying the
air currents known as “Vayu Prikshan” by the “Pandits.”
The Man has always been fascinated by the Universe
and the Cosmos. With every passing year we think
we have come closer to unfolding the secrets of
the dark skies. But just as we think we are close
to discovering the key or the knowledge, we
realize we haven't even crossed the threshold yet.
Even our ancestors and the people before us, could
not resist the temptation and made attempts to
learn more about the mysteries of Time and Space. 
Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the Rajput ruler of
Amber and the founder of Jaipur was a learned man
and an astronomer who was deeply interested in the
workings of the celestial bodies and so built the
Observatory, known as Jantar Mantar. The name 'Jantar
Mantar' comes from Sanskrit's 'Yantra Mantra'
meaning instruments and formulae.
You can visit this very Jantar Mantar
(Observatory) in Jaipur, Rajasthan and see with
your own eyes the wonderful masonry instruments.
The observatory has the Jaiprakash Yantra, Samrat
Yantra, Ram Yantra and the Composite instrument,
which comprises of a sundial and a massive
hemisphere.
 The
Jantar mantar in Jaipur is the most famous one
among the five observatories built by Sawai Jai
Singh and is located close to the gate of the
famous City Palace of Jaipur. So when you are in
Jaipur, do not miss the opportunity to check out
the biggest stone observatory in the world, which
is still in a running condition and stands witness
to the wisdom of the former age.
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