The Taj Mahal was built by the fifth Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in
the memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal. She died in childbirth
while accompanying her husband to Burhanpur to control a rebellion.
The Taj Mahal was the outcome of the one of the four promises that
Mumtaz Mahal extracted from Shah Jahan while she was alive. Taj
Mahal symbolizes eternal love of a man for his wife. The body of
the queen was buried temporarily in the Zainabadi Garden in Burhanpur
and moved to Agra after six months.
The
land on which the Taj Mahal was built was acquired from Raja Jai
Singh. The construction began in 1631 AD and completed in 22 years.
20,000 labors and artisans were employed for the work. The material
for the mausoleum was brought from all over India and central Asia.
The Iranian architect Ustad Isa designed the structure.
The
Taj is situated 900 ft away from the entrance gate at the opposite
end of the garden. The tomb is built over a marble plinth, which
rests over a high sandstone base. Four tapering minarets on the
four corners of the marble plinth flank the tomb. The minarets rise
to a height of 138 ft and are crowned by with eight windowed cupolas
over the marble plinth.
The
main building is built of marble and is square in plan with chamfered
corners. Each side of the corner has an iwan adorned with calligraphy.
There are small rectangular double arches one over the other on
both sides of the iwan. The arched alcoves of equal sizes at the
angles of the tomb are semi-octagonal. The pilasters demark each
section of the façade on both side, which rises from plinth
of the tomb up to the frieze and are topped by beautiful pinnacles
with lotus buds and finials.
The
central chamber is octagonal in shape. The height of the hall is
80 ft from the pavement to the side of the interior dome. The crowning
glory of the mausoleum is the bulbous onion-shaped double dome.
The height from the base of the drum to the top of the finial is
145 ft. The dome provides a desirable and harmonious ceiling to
the inner hall and present a majestic and stately effect from outside
by giving the desired height. Four small kiosks around the dome
reduce the severity of the perpendicular stress.
A
green carpet of garden runs from the main gateway to the foot of
the Taj laid in the Persian Char Bagh concept. Two marble canals
studded with fountains and lined with cypress trees symbolizing
death cross in the center of the garden dividing it into four equal
squares. The fountains and canals provide the reflection of the
Taj. The mausoleum, instead of occupying the central point unlike
other Mughal mausoleums, stands majestically at the far end just
above the river.
On
either side of the Taj Mahal are buildings of red sandstone. The
one to the west is a mosque, which faces towards Mecca and is used
for prayer. There is a small stone enclosure along the western boundary
wall of the Mosque. The structure, measuring 19 ft by 6.5 ft is
the site where the remains of Mumtaz Mahal were buried when first
brought to Agra. On the east side of the Taj stands the twin of
the Mosque, a parallel structure also made of red sandstone, referred
to as the jawed, or "answer". It was built to counterbalance
the mosque and preserve the symmetry of the entire design on the
platform.
The Taj Mahal is immortalized as the 'Monument
of Love'. It is one of the most photographed monuments in India.
It is in the list of UNESCO's World Heritage Site. Tourists from
world over come to have the glimpse of this monument.
»How
to reach Taj Mahal
By
Air : Indian Airlines (Domestic Airline in India) runs daily flights
from Delhi to Agra. Kheria Airport (Airport of Agra) is about 6
km from the Agra city centre and is easily
accessible by taxis and auto-rickshaws at nominal rates.
By Rail : Agra is well connected
by excellent train services to Delhi such as The Shatabdi Express
(2 hrs), Taj Express (2.5 hrs), Intercity Express (3 hrs).
By Road : Express bus services (a/c
and non-a/c) are available from Delhi, Jaipur, Lucknow, Gwalior,
and Jhansi. For those driving to Agra,
