A "tear on the face of eternity", described the Indian classical poet Tagore about the Taj Mahal, which is undoubtedly the zenith of perfection in Mughal architecture and simply it is one of the world's most marvelous buildings. Volumes have been written on its perfection, and its image adorns countless glossy brochures and guidebooks but the reality never fails to overwhelm all who see it.

The Taj is at its most alluring in the early morning, shrouded by mists and bathed in a soft red glow. As its vast marble surfaces fall into shadow or reflect the sun, its color changes, from soft gray and yellow to pearly cream and dazzling white. It's well worth visiting at different times. The play of the light is an important decorative device, symbolically implying the presence of Allah, who is never represented in anthropomorphic form.

By the banks of the river Yamuna, the Taj Mahal stands at the northern end of vast gardens enclosed by walls. Its layout follows a distinctly Islamic theme, representing Paradise. Shah Jehan built the Taj to enshrine the body of his favorite wife, Arjumand Baan, better known as Mumtaz Mahal (elect of palace) who met untimely death, and set out to create an unsurpassable, eternal monument to her memory. 

Of all the Mughal rulers only Shah Jehan, who had been designing palaces and forts since the age of sixteen, could have come up with such a magnificent design. The name of the chief architect is still unknown, Amanat Khan, who had previously worked on Akbar's tomb, was responsible for the calligraphic inscriptions that adorn the gateways, mosque and tomb. About 20,000 men from all over Asia commenced in 1632, and the tomb was completed in 1653. Marble was brought from Makrana, near Jodhpur in Rajasthan. The precious stones for decoration - onyx, amethyst, malachite, lapis lazuli, turquoise, jade, crystal, coral and mother of pearl - were carried to Agra from Persia, Russia, Afghanistan, Tibet, China and Indian Ocean.

The story is given an exquisite poignancy by the fate of Shah Jehan himself, who became tragic and inconsolable figure. Eventually his devout and austere son Aurangzeb seized power, and Shah Jehan was interned in Agra fort, where he lived out his final years gazing wistfully at the Taj Mahal in the distance. He died there in January 1666, with his daughter Jahanara begum at his side. His body was carried across the river to lie alongside his beloved wife in his peerless mausoleum.

The walled complex is approached from the south through a red sandstone fore court, Chowk-I Jilo Khana, whose wide paths and arched kiosks, run to high gates in the east and west. The original entrance, a massive arched gateway topped with domes and adorned with Koranic verses, stands at the northern edge of the Chowk-I Jilo Khana, directly aligned with the Taj, shielding it from the view of those who wait outside. Today's entrance, complete with security checks, is through a narrow archway in the southern wall to the right of the gate.

The mighty marble tomb is at the end of superb gardens designed in the charbagh style so fashionable among Mughal, Arabic and Persian architects. Dissected by four quadrants by waterways, they evoke the Islamic image of the gardens of Paradise, where rivers flow with water, milk wine and honey. The rivers converge at a marble tank in the center that corresponds to al-Kawthar, the Celestial pool of abundance mentioned in the Koran. Today only the watercourse running from north to south is full. Views from the paths lining from the east west canal lined with lofty trees, ferns and deep red and pink flowers, are amazing. To the west of the tomb is a domed red-sandstone mosque, and to the east a replica (jawab), probably built to house visitors, and necessary to achieve perfect symmetry.

The Taj Mahal, that surmounts a square marble platform marked at each corner by a high minaret Essentially square in shape, with peaked arches cut in to its sides. It is topped with a huge central dome and rises over 55 meters, and its height is accentuated by a crowning brass spire, itself almost 17 meters high. Steps lead to the platform, and visitors must remove their shoes before entering to the tomb. On progress to the tomb it looms over larger and grander, and when you are very close you appreciate both its awesome magnitude and the extraordinarily fine detail of carving, highlighted by the floral patterns of precious stones. Carved vases of flowers of roses, narcissi and tulips, rise out of the marble base, a pattern repeated more colorfully and inlaid with precious stones around the four great arched recesses (pishtaqs) on each side. Arabic verses praising the glory of Paradise are inscribed on the fringes the archways, proportioned exactly so that each letter appears to be the same size when viewed from the ground.

The main entrance to the interior is in the south face of the tomb-a high echoing octagonal chamber flushed with pallid light reflected by yellowing marble surfaces. A marble screen, cut so finely that it seems almost translucent and decorated with precious stones, scatters dappled light over the cenotaph of Mumtaz Mahal in the center of the tomb, and that of Shah Jehan next to it. The inlay work - each petal or leaf may comprise up to separate stone fragments is a work of perfection. The top of Mumtaz's tomb is adorned with ninety-nine names of Allah and a pen box is set into Shah Jehan's tomb, the hallmark of a male ruler. These cenotaphs, in accordance with the Mughal tradition, are only representations of the real coffins, which lie in the same positions in an unadorned and humid crypt below that's heavy with the scent of incense and rose petals. 

The museum in the western wall of the enclosure contains exquisite miniatures, two marble pillars believed to have come from the fort, and portraits of Mughal rulers including Shah Jehan and Mumtaz Mahal. A gallery, further in to the building, shelters seventeenth century coins and examples of stone inlay work, architectural drawings of Taj Mahal, a display of elaborate porcelains etc.

Top