Taj Mahal: An execution of God’s will

The dragging of marble and precious stones from various corners of the world was an exhausting mission. A colossal expense that went behind the making of this monument was partly born by the taxes charged from the locals in Agra–the city of the Taj. As the king’s treasure gradually emptied, the burden of bearing the expenses of this exotic monument spilled over to the neighbouring cities. Locals endured shortage of food grains which were diverted to feed the massive teams of workers. An artificial famine in Agra resulted in huge supplies of food grains being brought from the cities nearby. It was a devout sacrifice made by the people of a kingdom for their king.

Such sacrifices that went behind building the finest of structures served as a thread connecting cities, countries, religions and cultures. Ideas shared by Italian and Persian merchants travelling to the king’s Mughal durbar were delicately woven into the Hindu artistic techniques. Pietra dura work from Italy, the Persian charbagh or the Mughal-Persian hasht bihisht, all concepts amalgamated into this 17^th century Indo-Islamic monument. Taj Mahal exemplifies the peak of religious tolerance that the Mughal Empire attained during the time.

A spiritual unison

It was a yearning desire of the Emperor Shah Jahan to build a mausoleum with a garden that would serve as a home for the late Mumtaz Mahal. Every facet of the monument, including the choice of stone and its colour was planned to create a replica of ‘paradise’ as envisaged in the Quran.

According to Islamic beliefs, every individual after death is destined to arrive at paradise or hell based on their deeds. The paradise has been portrayed in the Quran as a white heavenly body with a garden full of fruits and streams of milk, honey and water gushing through. It is said that Charbagh at the Taj Mahal alludes to this garden of paradise. The mausoleum built in white makhrana marble is a chamber where the queen lies in rest. It resembles hasht bihisht, a Persian translation of eight paradises in the cradle of God’s home. It is believed that the unison of Charbagh and the mausoleum alludes to that blissful moment when the deceased unites with the paradise.

An embodiment of this life and the next, the Taj Mahal carries within the quintessence of spiritual love. It is as if an earnest offering to God was made by the king to bless his beloved queen with enlightenment in paradise.