Autobiography of a historical monument
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Last summer we visited Delhi and its neighbouring historic place, Agra. On May 2, at about 4 p.m., we started for Delhi by Rajdhani Express from Howrah. The very next morning we reached Delhi. After taking some rest, we started visiting the places of historical interest-the Red Fort, the Jama Masjid, and the Qutub Minar. On the following day, we went to Agra. The Taj Mahal looks like a dream in marble on a moonlit night. The abandoned fort of Fatehpur Sikri at the outskirt of Agra city is a place where history breathes and sighs before our eyes and ears. This visit to Delhi and Agra will forever remain imprinted on my mind.
I am very happy today as I am able to write an autobiography on my own self. I always wanted to do that. First of all let me introduce myself to you all. I am Taj Mahal, one of the greatest architectures of the world of all time. I am widely recognized as "the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage". I am a white marble mausoleum located in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. I was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. Behind my creation there was a history. On June 17, 1631 Shah Jahan’s wife and beloved Mumtaz Mahal died after delivering her fourteenth child Gauharar. Shah Jahan stood dazed, unable to comprehend the situation. She had died leaving all her children, her mother, and relations to his care. But he had promised her never to remarry and to build the grandest mausoleum over her grave. Her body received a temporary burial in the from different parts of the world like turquoise from Tibet, jade and crystal from China, chrysolite from Egypt, lapis from Afghanistan, coral from Arabia, amethyst from Persia, quartz from the Himalayas, malachite from Russia and diamonds from Hyderabad in India. The water that used in my construction was drawn from the river by a series of purs, an animal-powered rope and bucket mechanism. Over 1000 elephants were used to transport my building materials. It took the labour of 22,000 workers to construct my monument. A board of architects supervised the construction. Lahori is treated as my main designer. About 50 million rupees were spent to build up me.
I was nearly completed within ten years around 1643. Tavernier claimed to have seen the commencement of my work. I had been started in 1632. It did not take 22 years and twenty thousand men for workers in my construction. In fact, Tavernier first arrived in Agra in 1641 when I was nearly finished. Later on the tomb of Satti-ul-Nisa, chief maid of Mumtaz and later on of Jahanara and the mosques built by Sirhindi Begam and Fatehpuri Begam were added to my complex.
In 1648 Shahjahan had shifted capital to Shahjahanabad. He already had the Peacock Throne and the Kohinoor. He never remarried but his lust for life continued unabated. Bernier, Tavernier, and Niccola Mannuci provide salacious details about the Mughal Emperors private indulgences. As prisoner in the Agra fort during his last days, Shahjahan fell terribly ill. His parched throat could hardly swallow a few drops of ‘sherbat’. Nicola Manucci relates a tale that a faqir in Bijapur had warned Shahjahan that the day his hands stopped smelling of apples he would die. Shahjahan recalled the words and smelt his hands. A sigh escaped his dry lips. He casted his last lingering glance at me from his bed in the Musamman Burj. His tired eyelids closed on a shattered heart forever. And so died on January 31,1666.
Tme.
Moving further down the history, it was at the end of the 19th century that British Viceroy Lord Curzon ordered a sweeping restoration project, which was completed in 1908, as a measure to restore what was lost during the Indian rebellion of 1857: I being blemished by British soldiers and government officials who also deprived the monument of my immaculate beauty by chiseling out precious stones and lapis lazuli from my walls. Also, the British style lawns that people see today adding on to my beauty is remodeled around the same time. Despite prevailing controversies, past and present threats from Indo-Pak war and environmental pollution, this epitome of love continuous to shine and attract people from all over the world.
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The End