Shah Jahan was particularly fond of constructing extravagant monuments. He also built the city of Shah Jahanabad, which today, is known as old Delhi. It was therefore in character that he chose to build the monumental Taj Mahal, to express immortal love for his lovely wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth to their fourteenth child He compared her beauty with the ‘Light of Heaven’, and so shocked was he by her death, that according to legend, his hair turned grey overnight.
The construction of this masterpiece is believed to have taken 21 years to complete with over 20,000 craftsmen working round the clock, starting from 1632 and ending in 1653 Shah Jahan is said to have employed the services of Muhammad Isa Khan, who hailed from Shiraz in Iran., and the architecture of this grand monument is in the true spirit of the Indo-Persian style, which prevailed during the medieval period.
A perfect piece of architecture, the Taj Mahal is built according to a predefined plan. It is built according to the Islamic concept of Paradise, where an enormous, shimmering pearl white dome stands supported by four corner pillars, from which flow the rivers of grace.. Situated on the banks of the River Yamuna, the Taj Mahal stands on a massive plinth, which, its symbolic significance is supposed to be representative of the material world, while the octagonal main structure signifies the transitional phase. Finally the dome is symbolic of being the vault of the heaven. Four tapering minarets stand at each corner, in perfect symmetry. To complete the illusion of the paradise, the tomb has been ornamented with splendidly calligraphy of verses from the holy Koran, in flowing Arabic There are four elegant tapering minarets, one on each corner of the plinth. Each of the minarets is 41.6 m (136.48 ft) high and is capped by a small cupola. The minarets, not only balance the main structure of the mausoleum, but are also placed in such a way that in case of a mishap, they do not fall on the main structure.
The Taj is marked by perfect symmetry and harmony, be it the shape of the four towering minarets; the cupolas (chhatris); the central arch in the façade; or the perfectly arranged arched recesses on both the story’s; Artisans made delicate lattice work on marble windows and carved exquisite Persian floral motifs on its walls, known as pietra dura work, inlaid with precious and semi-precious stones, which, of course, were easy plunder for subsequent invaders.
The tombs of Mumtaz Mahal and Shahjahan are actually located in the basement, while their replicas are placed directly above in the upper hall. The beauty of the Taj Mahal is accentuated by the garden laid out in the Persian Charbagh (four garden plan )Shahjahan built the mausoleum at the far end of the garden, with the back wall falling straight down to the bed of Yamuna River.The garden, according to the holy Koran is symbolic of paradise. As Islam was born in the arid region of Arabia, the vision of a lush green, well-laid out and watered garden came to be associated with life and paradise.
Today, after hundreds of years, Agra still basks in its glory, by virtue of this grand monument of epic love, as a must-see tourist destination. |
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