The imposing 18th-century Hari Parbat Fort is visible from virtually anywhere in Srinagar but closed to the public, for military use. It crowns a prominent hill that Hindus believe was originally the island from which Vishnu and Sharika (Durga) defeated Jalodbhava, Kashmir’s mythical lake demon. On the hill’s mid-slopes, Muslims pay homage at the large Makhdoom Sahib Shrine , reached by beggar-lined steps that pass the ruined 1649 stone mosque of Akhund Mullah Shah. The steps start a few hundred metres beyond the scant remains of Srinagar’s Old City walls (built by Akbar in the 1590s) and the large Chetipacha Gurdwara .
