Andal or Godadevi is the only female among 12 Alvar saints. She was active in 8th century and is credited for great Tamil works Thiruppavai and Nachiar Tirumozhi. A women’s group of South India called Goda Mandali is inspired from Andal. Andal herself is known as a beloved of lord Vishnu.
Mughal emperor Akbar is against sati. He had allowed Sati to take place only if the wife willingly wanted to follow it. But many times woman were forced to commit Sati or pushed into funeral pyre by her own relatives and this was against the law. Akbar banned “forced” Sati after the incident with his wife’s cousin Rani Damayenti.
The Mosque was built by Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan’s daughter in 1648 A.D. It was constructed by more than 5000 workers. It was originally called Masjid-i-Jahan Numa, meaning ‘mosque commanding view of the world’.