Hin: असीरगढ़ asīragaṛh
‘Asa Ahir’s Fort’ Fort, Madhya Pradesh (MP)
From Aswatthama (Giri); or Asa Ahir; and Hin: gaṛh, ‘fort’, ‘citadel’
There is a legend that Ashwatthama, the son of the guru Drona in the Mahābhārata, used to come to the Shiva temple here, and that the Astamba-giri shrine is dedicated to him.
The fort itself was built in the 14thC by Asa Ahir and this is a more likely derivation.
The fort occupied a strategic location in the Satpura Hills which earned it the name ‘Key to the Deccan’.
It is also a fort which has never been captured by assault and is rumoured to be haunted! [Article: Does the impregnable Asirgarh Fort turn haunted at night?]
