Becky, David, and Raphael, searching for the Taj Mahal
gotta be around here somewhere...)
I'm sitting in the gardens that front the Taj Mahal.
When you see it for the first time it is breathtaking. In some respects it is not that elaborate in design - the simplicity works. Don't get me wrong, it is majestic, awesome and, yes, elaborate - I just mean there are other examples of Mogul architecture with more intricate detailed artistry. We saw one today - Itimad ud-Daulah, nicknamed the Baby Taj, a mausoleum built by Shah Jahan's father, Jahangir, for his father-in-law. More detailed art in the tile work than the Taj.
Itimad ud-Daulah (Baby Taj) - actually built earlier than the Taj Mahal.
Also in Agra, a few miles from the Taj Mahal.
Closer view of the Itimad ud-Daulah - across the river from the Taj.
Still - the Taj Mahal is magical.
The whiteness helps - the way the white marble plays with the light, and reflects - as if it has a surreal glow.
Of course, it is a tourist scene, but I can block all that out and focus on its serene beauty as hawks silently glide over and around it.
It is set on a platform - about 3 stories high - so you are always looking up at it and the backrop is only sky, it is the singular image - behind it the earth drops down to the bank of the Yamuna River.
On an aesthetic level - it is magnificent; architecturally, it is glorious.
Shah Jahan built the Taj as a mausoleum and memorial to his wife Arjumand Banu Begum - known as mumtaz mahal (chosen one or ornament of the palace).
She was his 3rd wife but his clear favorite - he took little interest in his other wives once she joined the harum. She was 19 when they wed and 38 when she died - so half her life was with him. She died giving birth to their 14th child.
It is said that his grief was so severe, he hair turned gray overnight (another story has him going into seclusion for a year and when he returned his hair was gray).
Legend has it that her dying wish was for him to build something beautiful to memorialize their love.
22 years, 20,000 workers and 5 million rupees later - he did.
The romance is countervailed by the brutality, vanity, and wastefulness its construction necessitated. Legend has it that he had the hands of the builders cut off when it was done, so they would not be able to replicate their work. Takes a bit of an edge off the romance (though some historians dispute this story).
The Taj Mahal is not just the building. It is surrounded by gardens, pools and fountains, and a mosque and a guest house - architectural beauties in their own right, along with an impressive entry gate to the gardens. Outside that gate a courtyard/public square, surrounded by walls and 3 gates.
Gate to Taj Mahal courtyard
Outside of THAT - every vendor one can imagine, hawking every possible cheap artifact or postcard, or guide service. See Slumdog Millionaire to get a sense of the scene outside the gates.
We spent most of the afternoon there. Late in the afternoon, we crossed the river and watched it from the other side of the river, as dusk fell.
When you see it for the first time it is breathtaking. In some respects it is not that elaborate in design - the simplicity works. Don't get me wrong, it is majestic, awesome and, yes, elaborate - I just mean there are other examples of Mogul architecture with more intricate detailed artistry. We saw one today - Itimad ud-Daulah, nicknamed the Baby Taj, a mausoleum built by Shah Jahan's father, Jahangir, for his father-in-law. More detailed art in the tile work than the Taj.
Itimad ud-Daulah (Baby Taj) - actually built earlier than the Taj Mahal.
Also in Agra, a few miles from the Taj Mahal.
Closer view of the Itimad ud-Daulah - across the river from the Taj.
Still - the Taj Mahal is magical.
The whiteness helps - the way the white marble plays with the light, and reflects - as if it has a surreal glow.
Of course, it is a tourist scene, but I can block all that out and focus on its serene beauty as hawks silently glide over and around it.
It is set on a platform - about 3 stories high - so you are always looking up at it and the backrop is only sky, it is the singular image - behind it the earth drops down to the bank of the Yamuna River.
On an aesthetic level - it is magnificent; architecturally, it is glorious.
Shah Jahan built the Taj as a mausoleum and memorial to his wife Arjumand Banu Begum - known as mumtaz mahal (chosen one or ornament of the palace).
She was his 3rd wife but his clear favorite - he took little interest in his other wives once she joined the harum. She was 19 when they wed and 38 when she died - so half her life was with him. She died giving birth to their 14th child.
It is said that his grief was so severe, he hair turned gray overnight (another story has him going into seclusion for a year and when he returned his hair was gray).
Legend has it that her dying wish was for him to build something beautiful to memorialize their love.
22 years, 20,000 workers and 5 million rupees later - he did.
The romance is countervailed by the brutality, vanity, and wastefulness its construction necessitated. Legend has it that he had the hands of the builders cut off when it was done, so they would not be able to replicate their work. Takes a bit of an edge off the romance (though some historians dispute this story).
The Taj Mahal is not just the building. It is surrounded by gardens, pools and fountains, and a mosque and a guest house - architectural beauties in their own right, along with an impressive entry gate to the gardens. Outside that gate a courtyard/public square, surrounded by walls and 3 gates.
Gate to Taj Mahal courtyard
Outside of THAT - every vendor one can imagine, hawking every possible cheap artifact or postcard, or guide service. See Slumdog Millionaire to get a sense of the scene outside the gates.
We spent most of the afternoon there. Late in the afternoon, we crossed the river and watched it from the other side of the river, as dusk fell.
No comments:
Post a Comment