Taj Machal Essay

354 Words2 Pages
Taj Mahal is the magnificent monument that stands at the heart of India. It has a story that has been melting the hearts of millions of listeners . A story, that although ended back in 1631, continues to live and is considered a living example of eternal love. It's the love story of Shah Jahan (Šach Džachan) and Mumtaz Mahal (Mumutadz Mahal). An English poet, Sir Edwin Arnold best describes it as "Not a piece of architecture, as other buildings are, but the proud passion of an emperor's (em-peh-rez) love wrought in living stones." Shah Jahan was born in the year 1592. He was the son of the fourth emperor of India. In 1607 when strolling down the mart, Shah Jahan caught a glimpse of a girl. She was a 15 years old Muslim Persian princess better known as Mumtaz Mahal. At that time he was 14 but after meeting her, the boy went back to his father and declared that he wanted to marry her. His wish became true five years later. It was in the year 1628 that Shah Jahan became the Emperor of India. Though the emperor had other wives also, but, Mumtaz Mahal was his favorite and accompanied him everywhere, even on military campaigns. In the year 1631, when Mumtaz Mahal was giving birth to their 14th child, she died due to some complications. While Mumtaz was on her deathbed, her husband promised that he would never remarry and will build the richest mausoleum (mo-so-leum) over her grave. It took 22 years and the labor of 22,000 workers to construct the monument. More than 1000 elephants were employed to transport the raw materials. It is said that thousands of workers had their hands amputated after the completion of the palace – this was to ensure that they would construct no other building similar to the Mahal. When Shah Jahan died, his body was placed in a tomb next to the tomb of Mumtaz Mahal. This magnificent monument came to be known as "Taj Mahal“ and in 1983, the
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