I think digital cameras were made for days like today, days when you would never have had enough rolls of film to capture the great sites of the world—and we saw three today, all associated with the Moghul dynasty, seven rulers that brought much of India, especially northern India, under the rule of this Persian-based Islamic group that brought India to the height of fame and wealth, only to become shadow rulers under the British, who abolished the dynasty following what the British call the “Sepoy Rebellion” and the Indians call the first war for Indian Independence in 1857. The seventh and last Mughal emperor (see the book by William Dalrymple—any of his on India, in fact), more a poet than a ruler, died, exiled to the Indian then-province of Burma, his offspring murdered to prevent a successor.
The heyday of monuments were the three who ruled in the 16th and 17th centuries—Akbar (the Great; Akbar means the Great. It’s part of Muslim prayers), Jahangir, and Shah Jahan, who built the Taj.
Akbar moved the capital to Agra, and built the red fort that has housed successive armies, culminating in the Indian army barracks that are there today. He has probably the best reputation because, among other things, he tried to resolve the multi-religion problem that still troubles India today. He synthesized the main religions and created his own, attempting to facilitate discussion among his subjects—including his three wives. One Muslim, one Hindu, and one Christian—and our astounded guide said, “He did not make them change their names or their religion”. The red fort was his palace, and remained at least one of them during the Moghul Empire, but Akbar to build a new capital, Fatepur Sikri, about 20 miles away. Sparing no expense, he moved everyone to the new city, which had massive water problems, but was abandoned largely because of pressures on the Moghul state from the Northeast (read Persia/Afghanistan). The Persians would eventually sack the Red Fort in Delhi, and take the famed Peacock throne away. The stone buildings of Fatepur Sikri remain, architecturally wondrous, and a visual treat.
The Jewel in the Crown, though, is the Taj Mahal. It’s the fourth time I’ve seen it, and I feel truly blessed to have seen it at least once. Marketers usually overhype something, but as magnificent as the prose for it is, it’s even better in person The scale (about 300 feet high) and the setting (stressing symmetry) and the marble work, the paired mosque like buildings that surround it, its prominence on the river bank—are impossible to capture even if you have a 16 gigabite card, but at least with a digital camera you can keep taking pictures!
Shah Jahan, you may know, built the Taj in memory of his favorite wife, who died giving birth to their 14th child at the age of 39. The ruler himself spent 22 years and used 20,000 artisans to construct the tomb. Ironically, he pondered building a black marble tomb for himself, and actually started to raise taxes to start the construction, but the taxes were so onerous that his son, Aurangzeb, overthrew his dad, and imprisoned him in the Red Fort in a room with a beautiful view of the Taj.
Agra is only about 120 miles from New Delhi, but getting there and back demonstrates one of the major challenges of India— our guide mentioned, distribution. The 615 am Shabadti express was smooth, on time, complete with a free newspaper and a (mediocre) meal, and took two hours. It’s no wonder that India Railways employs 1% of the workforce.
Coming home, however, was a different story. It took us about 5 hours, which included a dinner, and a 20 minute breakdown in Delhi, which ended with cars taking us back to the hotel around 10 o’clock, on a spectacular day that began at 5 a.m.
The point of the 3 edifices might well be a reminder that, “What was, isn’t, and what is, might not be.” Isn’t that a nice yoga-like note to end this long day on!