The Taj Mahal

Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Jan 4, 2004 by Carma Wadley Deseret Morning News

AGRA, India -- To the Western world, the Mughal empire that ruled India in the 16th and 17th centuries always seemed to have a bit of a fairy tale quality. Tales of exotic wealth and artistry, of turbaned princes and veiled princesses, of elephants and other unusual beasts tantalized the senses and fueled the imaginations of outsiders.

So, it is not surprising that remnants of that dynasty still have a fairy tale appeal that transcends time and place. And nowhere is that more true than at Agra, once the Mughal capital and home to one of the greatest monuments ever built.

The Taj Mahal is legendary, and for good reason. Clearly, most that has been written or said about it is true. It is, if not the world's most beautiful building, at least very, very high on the list. It is, indeed, the embodiment of a great love story. And it is the symbol of India, the one image that everyone recognizes.

But we found that it is even more than all that. It is also a place that whispers of life's mysteries, a place that is conducive to ponderings on some of life's inner workings.

For our group of eight, which traveled to the Indian continent in November, Agra is one of several stops in India and Nepal. But it is our big splurge as far as accommodations go. We stay at the five- star Amar Vilas hotel, the only hotel "overlooking" the Taj Mahal. (That means we can see the monument in the distance from the gardens and terraces as well as from the private balconies of our rooms.)

From the deluxe architecture to the lavish gardens, from the large, well-appointed rooms, to the colorfully costumed staff, we are surrounded by luxury and pampering from the moment we arrive. We dine in elegant comfort, swim under marble terraces, sleep in dreamy softness.

And we can't help but wonder: Are we getting just a taste of what it might have been like to be nobles of the Mughal empire?

It's a feeling that returns the next morning, as we are transported to the Taj Mahal in golf carts. As we slowly make our way through the hustle and bustle of Agra's busy streets, past bicycle rickshaws and three-wheeled pedicabs piled with passengers, past sacred cows and busy street-side vendors, we feel part -- and yet apart -- from it all.

And we wonder: Is this what it would have been like for Mughal princesses who were carried through the streets in curtained palanquin chairs? So near, and yet so distant?

The entrance to the Taj is through an imposing red sandstone gateway inlaid with black-and-white-marble calligraphy. At any other place, it would deserve more than the quick glance it gets here as our eyes are immediately drawn to the view through the arch -- the dazzling white monument itself, revealed at last in its full glory.

The story behind the building, of course, is bittersweet.

Shah Jahan came to the Mughal throne in 1628, head of a colossal empire and heir to immense wealth. At his side was his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. But the happiness of the emperor was short-lived. Four years into his reign, the Shah's beloved Mumtaz died in childbirth (delivering his 14th child) leaving him heartbroken, but determined that she -- and their love -- would not be forgotten.

Construction began almost immediately on a mausoleum made of white marble inlaid with precious jewels. Work continued for 22 years. Some 22,000 workers, artists and engineers labored on the project before it was complete. Mumtaz Mahal's body was placed in the tomb in 1653; Shah Jahan's body would be laid beside it in 1666. And from that time to this, the Taj Mahal has been a place of pilgrimage and honor.

As we enter the courtyard, with its elegant gardens, we are immediately approached by one of the many photographers who make their living taking pictures of the tourists, and we stop to pose for pictures. Group shots, single sessions; we kneel and stretch and cheesecake for the camera -- as are other groups all around us.

And we can't help but think of one of the most famous pictures ever taken here. It was a picture of Princess Di, who had come alone to the Taj while her then-husband Prince Charles was too busy in Delhi. People looked back at the poignant shot of her alone on what has now come to be informally called Princess Di's bench in front of the world's greatest monument to love and said that was the beginning of the end of her marriage.

Having seen this location and heard these stories, can we now understand a bit better how some love lasts forever, cast in eternal stone, but some love doesn't?

Our photo session finished, we are allowed to see the magnificent building up close, to walk around and inside. The actual tombs have been sealed off in the lower level, but replicas have been built for the visitors. We see the marble inlaid with precious stones and the flowers carved in bas relief. We marvel at the filigree work that gives the marble a delicate touch.

We learn that the minaret towers were built to flow slightly outward so that should an earthquake happen they would not tumble into the mausoleum. We see the mosque, built in red sandstone on the left, and a matching "guest house" on the right, erected only for symmetry's sake.