So, here is the Taj Mahal ... everything is white marble with inlaid semi-precious stones as well as inlaid with black marble.
My guide asked if I was with anyone ... no ... my wife is back home ... "Oh. Then that's too bad," he says. "The Taj is for couples ... for lovers ... that's what the Taj is all about."
This first photo is of the entrance to the Taj as you get close to it. Before you can climb the steps to get inside, you have to put on little booties over your shoes. I did see people going barefoot; however, I can't imagine doing that because the marble gets awfully hot as it bakes in the Agra sun.
As I mentioned in the last post, the Taj Mahal is actually a complex of buildings. On either side of the Taj are red stone buildings. The one to the west is actually a mosque (here is a photo of the mosque taken from the 'back door' of the Taj. This was actually the first building to be completed in the complex. The builders realized that so much time was being wasted with all the artisans having to leave to go to prayers each day ... so they built this mosque in order to keep the workers and artisans close by. 
Approaching the Taj Mahal ..... It is by far the most amazing building I've ever seen. Inside the Taj are four coffins ... two are in the lower level (the basement) where the two lovers are buried. You can't go downstairs ... not allowed. The two coffins on the upper floor (the main level) are empty ... they are placed in the exact same locations as the actual tombs below. The central tomb is of Taj Mahal herself. No photos are allowed inside the building ... they're very strict about that! ... Inside is circular with the tombs right in the center of the area, surrounded by a carved marble screen ... so you can look through the screen to see the coffins - which are also made of the same white marble as the rest of the building.
My guide took this photo ... the sun was just not playing fair and the shadows were all over the place ... but here's proof that I was actually there!
The tomb of the Taj was originally built just for Shar Jahan's wife - Taj Mahal (yep! that's her name ... well, title really). And it was she who requested that a mausoleum be built by him. She died after giving birth to their 14th child. And when she died, Shar Jahan spent the next four years locked away in his room at the palace filled with grief. Some say that he went a little bit crazy.
The original inlaid stones were all precious stones ... diamond, sapphires, rubies, etc. But those were removed by the British and have been replaced with semi-precious stones instead ...
Shar Jahan is buried in the Taj as well ... although that was never part of the original design. So, his coffin is off to the side of the central circle inside. The focal point being the tomb of his wife, Taj Mahal.
No comments:
Post a Comment