About Taj Mahal in
India
Lovers die, but love shall not and death shall have no dominion...
In the year 1607 when a prince of the
royal Mughal household strolled down the Meena Bazaar, accompanied
by a string of fawning courtiers, he caught a glimpse of a girl
hawking silk and glass beads. Five years and a wife later (in
those days princes did not marry for love alone) the regal
20-yr-old went to wed his 19-yr-old bride. It was a fairytale
union from the start, one that withstood court intrigues, battles
for succession and finally, the grand coronation. And when she
died on the 19th year of their marriage, he etched her story in
stone. The Taj Mahal is the living symbol of the monumental
passion of Shah Jahan and Arjumand Banu. Which other love story
has so grand a memorial?
Agra, The Chosen City for Taj Mahal
 Agra
was the chosen city of the Mughal emperors during the early years.
It was here that the founder of the dynasty, Babur, laid out the
first formal Persian garden on the banks of the River Yamuna.
Here, Akbar, his grandson, raised the towering ramparts of the
great Red Fort. Within its walls, Jehangir built rose-red palaces,
courts and gardens. Shahjahan embellished it with marbled mosques,
palaces and pavillions of gem-inlaid white marble. Agra is
globally renown as the city of the Taj Mahal, a monument of love
and imagination, that represents India to the world.
History of Taj Mahal India
The origin of the name the "Taj Mahal" is not clear. Court
histories from Shah Jehan's reign only call it the rauza (tomb) of
Mumtaz Mahal. It is generally believed that "Taj Mahal" (usually
translated as either "Crown Palace" or "Crown of the Palace") is
an abbreviated version of her name, Mumtaz Mahal (Exalted One of
the Palace).
The Taj Mahal is a deserving resting palace for an Emperor's
Empress. It stands on the banks of the river Yamuna, which
otherwise serves as a wide moat defending the Great Red Fort of
Agra, the center of the Mughal emperors until they moved their
capital to Delhi in 1637. It was built by the fifth Mughal
emperor, Shah Jahan in 1631 in memory of his second wife, Mumtaz
Mahal, a Muslim Persian princess. She died while accompanying her
husband in Burhanpur in a campaign to crush a rebellion after
giving birth to their 14th child.
MUMTAZ MAHAL - "Build me a Taj"
 As
Mumtaz Mahal lay dying, she asked four promises from the emperor:
first, that he build the Taj; second, that he should marry again;
third, that he be kind to their children; and fourth, that he
visit the tomb on her death anniversary. He kept the first and
second promises. Construction began in 1631 and was completed in
22 years. Twenty thousand people were deployed to work on it. The
principal architect was the Iranian architect Istad Usa; it is
possible that the pietra dura work was coordinated by an Italian
artist.
TAJ MAHAL - Wonder of the World
To people the world over, the Taj Mahal, mausoleum of Mughal
Emperor shah Jana's chief wife, Mumtaz Mahal, is synonymous with
India. Its curving, gently swelling dome and the square base upon
which its rests so lightly is a familiar image from hundreds of
brochures and travel books. The Taj is undoubtedly one of the most
spectacular buildings of the world. Renowned for its architectural
magnificence and aesthetic beauty, it counts among man's proudest
creations and is invariably included in the list of the world's
foremost wonders. As a tomb, it has no match upon earth, for
mortal remains have never been housed in greater grandeur.
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