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| Heaven on Earth!- The Taj in all its glory |
The first glimpse of the Taj Mahal makes one's heart melt. Truly a great Wonder of the World, I finally got a chance to visit Agra this May and see it with my own eyes. And boy, did I fall in love with it! Just the first view from the entrance took my breath away. One sees it in pictures, hears about its beauty, but the Taj truly has to be seen in person, for one to 'feel the love' within it.
Walking around the Taj Complex, taking in all the sights of beautiful Mughal designs and architecture, one really wishes that one was alive during the 16th century to experience the grandeur of the Mughal Era!
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| View of the main gateway from a window of the Taj Mahal |
The guide that took my cousin and me around was very knowledgeable- he told us probably each and every detail one would like to know about the Taj- how and why it was built, the significance of all the designs, the site of the Black Taj (if only Aurangzeb had allowed it to be made, we'd have one more beauty in Agra!) and the most fascinating of all-that the Taj is not a perfectly made monument. In Islam, the belief is that only God is perfect, so artists make a deliberate error in whatever they create. The Taj Mahal has one pillar that is squarish, as opposed to the rest that are rounded-proof that not even one of the most beautiful monuments made by man is totally perfect.
Each and every place in the Taj complex is a treat to the eyes-there wasn't a single moment when I took my eyes off the Taj or its surrounding monuments. The beautiful pietra dura work on every wall-whether just the decorative designs or the Quranic Aayats- were done upto the tiniest detail, making one's jaw drop in awe.
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| Pietra Dura work at the entrance to the tomb hallway |
Mumtaz was a very lucky woman even in death-to have a husband who left his worldly duties to make a tomb that millions over the world would love and admire even centuries after its foundation. As my 18 year old cousin exclaimed as soon as we climbed the staircase leading to the main mausoleum-"I think I'm in love!" I'm sure people from far and wide have similar sentiments towards this mammoth beauty-this Perfect Resting Place.
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| The magnificent Taj Mahal Complex |
"You knew Shah Jahan,
life and youth, wealth and glory,
they all drift
away in the current of time.
You strove, therefore,
to perpetuate only
the sorrows of your heart.
Let the splendour of diamond, pearl and ruby vanish
like the magic
shimmer of the rainbow.
Only let this one teardrop,
this Taj Mahal,
glisten spotlessly bright on the cheek of time,
forever and ever".
-Rabindranath Tagore
