Important secrets of Taj Mahal
TAJ MAHAL is 400-year-old building. It is used to be the most significant and magnificent of its time. Now, It is also the seventh wonder of the world. Twenty thousand laborers put in their blood and sweat to build this magnificent structure for 22 years. this marble-cladding tomb is worth $1 billion or more than Rs 7.5 crore. Today's top engineers are praising of incredible skills of the Mughal architects. This building was designed in a way that it is seen from behind the main gate. It looks pretty big. It was not the first time when Mughal architects used such mind-boggling tricks. The four pillars at the four corners are not standing vertically straight but slightly leaning outwards. Because if they were kept vertically straight, then from a distance, they would look like leaning inwards, There was another reason for leaning these pillars outwards.
DO you want to know secrets of the Taj Mahal were concealed 400 years ago? At that era, when there was no concrete or steel, how were this magnificent tomb and 40m high Dome built?
In this blog i want to tell you about it. All this started in 1607 when Mughal Empire ruled this region. On that day, son of the Mughal emperor, Shahab-ul-din Muhammad Khurram, turned 15 years old. And to celebrate this occasion, a splendid party was held at the Agra Fort. Khurram was Emperor's favorite child. That's why he used to be weighted with diamonds and gold are in his every birthday, i.e., Khurram was as his weight. gifted an equal amount of treasure to Khurram as his weight. But something more special was about to happen on this birthday. Emperor arranged Khurram's marriage with the daughter of one of his lawyers. Her name was Mumtaz Mahal. Mumtaz and Khurram fell in love on the very first day. No one knew at the time that this love would become immoral. The prince fought numerous battles for the next ten years and got victorious. That's why the Emperor gave him the title Shah Jahan which means Emperor of the world. Shah Jahan had six wives who used to live in the harem of Agra fort. Out of six, Shah Jahan loved Mumtaz the most. And this was the reason that he spent most of his time with Mumtaz Mahal. Time passed fast, and four years later, in 1621 Mughal emperor died. Shah Jahan, quite famous in the Mughal Empire and the favorite son of the Emperor succeeded the throne seven years later, in 1628. The entire Mughal Empire was quite happy with their new Emperor. This was the time when Mughal Empire was at its peak. The Mughal Empire was spread across India, Pakistan, and many parts of Afghanistan. Shah Jahan took all the decisions, whereas Mumtaz Mahal gave him suggestions behind the curtains. But no one knew that this happy phase would soon turn into mourning. Within just one year of succeeding the throne, the Mughal Empire finds itself in a war situation. The war continued for the next two years, and Shah Jahan became victorious here too. But before he could celebrate his victory, A bad news given to him. Mumtaz Mahal, while delivering their 14th child, became ill, and , she died on 17th June 1631. The entire Mughal Empire plunged into sorrow. This news hit Shah Jahan like an arrow, It completely shattered his world. Shah Jahan's first love and his most beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal, was no more. It is heard that this sorrow pushed Shah Jahan into darkness. He didn't eat anything for the next eight days, and for the next two years, he neither listened to music nor used perfume. Before dying, Mumtaz Mahal wished for one thing. She wanted her grave to be made inside the most beautiful tomb in the world. It was Mumtaz mahal's last wish.
Shah Jahan decided to dedicate his whole life and wealth. Six months after the death of Mumtaz Mahal, the construction work of the Taj Mahal began. Around 20,000 laborers, sculpturer and artisans were brought from the entire empire. Brought Armies of men to Agra on Shah Jahan's order. Because Mumtaz Mahal's Grave was on the bank of the Yamuna River, It was a challenging task to construct the most beautiful building in the world here. The land beside the river is soft, and if the place is excavated, the flow of water could harm the foundation of the Taj Mahal. To solve this problem, Mughal engineers started digging many wells. Laborers used to dig the well until they found dry soil. These wells were then filled with rocks and rubble. Used An army of elephants along with the laborers to execute this work. This trick of Mughal engineers worked, and now a rock-solid foundation was ready upon a soft land. After the foundation, now it was time to design a building that no one had ever seen. This is a design that would break all the records. Shah Jahan took inspiration from his ancestors' tombs for the Taj Mahal's design. Took the idea of the pillars from his father's tomb and building core from grandfather's tomb. The idea of the Dome from his uncle's tomb. And when combined with all these things, a beautiful design surfaced. Baked Millions of bricks at the location to construct the building structure. This was not easy, and an enormous amount of money on it. Every passing day the royal treasure was getting empty. Shah Jahan was not worried about anything; he just wanted to complete this work. It is said that the construction of the Taj Mahal brought so many people. Food supplies ran short in the surrounding areas because of them. To take care of the labourer, Shah Jahan brought food supplies from the surrounding areas to Agra. After years of hard work, the main structure of the building was completed, and now it was time to decorate it with marble. This marble was brought from Rajasthan, 400 km away from Agra. Because the Makrana marble of this place is still believed to be the world's finest marble. Shah Jahan had reserved a lot of Makrana marble for the Taj Mahal. That means no one was allowed to purchase this marble until did not the demand for the Taj Mahal was not completed. Thousands of tones of marble were brought from Rajasthan to Agra with the help of thousands of elephants. Taj Mahal's Dome is so big that, come by seeing it, one can feel its generous size. 400 years ago, they had only the stones to build a 40m high Dome. The stress calculation that the Mughal engineers did to build this Dome is still praised by present-day engineers.
We see Pietra Dura's decoration in Taj Mahal work. Marble is very skilfully cut and sculpted according to the shape of the valuable stone. And then, with the help of glue, it is attached to the stone. The glue used inside the Taj Mahal was not ordinary. After a lot of research and laboratory tests, this glue was made of mixing Sheera, lemon juice, and marble powder. The same glue is used for the renovation work of the Taj Mahal. Among the unique things about the Taj Mahal is that it changes color four times a day Before sunrise, it gives a black shade. After sunrise, it has a light yellow and pink shade. And in the afternoon, it looks spectacularly white. The entire building looks golden during the sunset. After 22 years, in 1654, completed the construction work of the Taj Mahal Shah Jahan completed the world's most beautiful tomb for his beloved wife. Shah Jahan kept the name of this magnificent building in his wife's name. Inspired by Mumtaz Mahal, the building was named the Taj Mahal. Shah Jahan visited the Taj Mahal via Yamuna River every year on Mumtaz Mahal's death anniversary. This entrance to the Taj Mahal was built only for the Royal family members. The wall of the entrance building has the finest sculpture work, which pleased the Royals' eyes. Despite the success of completion of this project, it had brought Mughal Empire to the edge of ruination.
Four years later, in 1658, his son overturned the throne and became the Emperor of the Mughal Empire. Shah Jahan was made prisoner and kept inside the Agra fort. Gave One facility to Shah Jahan so he could see the Taj Mahal through the window. After eight years at the age of 74 years he was died. It was time for Shah Jahan to meet Mumtaz Mahal, and he was buried inside the Taj Mahal.
