ROMANCING THE CANVAS: May 14, 2010 - ORIGINS AND INSPIRATIONS...

THE TAJ MAHAL

taken from Wikapedia

My 12 year old Taylor and I were talking and he came up with the fact that Jordan, Ayla and Taylor = TAJ. This lead us to the topic of The Taj Mahal, which my older two have visited (pictured above.) Taylor and I researched the internet before he went to school, because we each knew bits and pieces of the story, and this is a synopsis of what we found. The research articles elaborate on these basic points, for those who are interested (just type Taj Mahal into your Google Search Engine.)

Shah Jahan, who commissioned the Taj Mahal -"Shah jahan on a globe" from the Smithsonian Institution Artistic depiction of Mumtaz Mahal.

In 1631, Shah Jahan, emperor during the Mughal empire's period of greatest prosperity, was grief stricken when his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal, died during the birth of their fourteenth child, Gauhara Begum. Construction of the Taj Mahal began in 1632, one year after her death. The court chronicles of Shah Jahan's grief, illustrates the love story traditionally held as an inspiration for Taj Mahal. The principal mausoleum was completed in 1648 and the surrounding buildings and garden were finished five years later. Emperor Shah Jahan himself described the Taj in these words:

Should guilty seek asylum here,

Like one pardoned, he becomes free from sin.

Should a sinner make his way to this mansion,

All his past sins are to be washed away.

The sight of this mansion creates sorrowing sighs;

And the sun and the moon shed tears from their eyes.

In this world this edifice has been made;

To display thereby the creator's glory.

I found this story, this dedication to love and grieving the loss of love so reassuring. I hope it touches your heart in someway...