Is Taj Mahal Skewered?
Taj Mahal- The monument of love has enthralled people for generations. Indeed very few people have managed to remain untouched by this symbol of amour. From the erstwhile rulers of the British Raj to the wealthy Princes of India along with the common man in the street, absolutely none could turn their face away from the magic woven by this enormous mausoleum in pristine white.
More recently, it was President Nicolas Sarkozy who married his lady love Carla Bruni well in advance simply because he wanted to keep his date with the Taj Mahal. Lady Diana too found enormous solace by sitting besides the epitome of love while her marriage to Prince Charles had begun to unravel.
Legend has it that this exquisite monument built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan is an ode of love to his beloved, Queen Mumtaz Mahal. The beauty of the Taj Mahal lies in its symmetry believes the historians and the scientists were inclined to agree with them too. The Mughals were fastidious about absolute symmetry as they believed the identical measurements to be a source of harmony as well as balance of their greatest Empire.
However, Dr. Dilip Ahuja, a scientist, visiting Agra in 1980, was startled to find that the central dome of the Taj Mahal is not quite symmetric. One of its sides was a bit more longer than the others. Strange but true! A study was undertaken to measure the domes after the year 2010 and the scientific community along with the historians were astounded to find that such a flaw existed in the structure of the monument.
A question that has been plaguing the historians since then is the purpose behind this obvious asymmetry. Had it been a genuine mistake committed by the workers building Taj Mahal or had the asymmetry been commissioned by Shah Jahan himself? The world sat and took notice but had no idea of arriving at the truth that seemed so far away, lost in obscurity by the passage of time. Yet truth is often stranger than fiction. The central dome of the Jama Masjid in Delhi was also built by Shah Jahan, is asymmetrical too. Looks like the great Mughal Emperor knew the truth about Taj Mahal!
