We completed the walk around the tomb and then moved to its entrance
and joined a long line. When our turn came, we entered the mausoleum
and inched toward the grave. Thick green curtains blocked the path of
the sun's rays, which were struggling to peep in through the door. The
room was dimly lit with oil lamps near the grave, and the smoke from
the flickering wicks created curly, ghastly figures on the walls. The
smell of the burning oil and incense saturated the area. People, struck
by the serenity of the resting place of the powerful emperor and his
wife, talked in whispers. We made our offering to the caretaker, who
was wearing a dark green robe, which hugged the floor.
The guide whispered to us, "The mighty Emperor and his favorite
queen are resting under the marble slab."
I flashed my camera twice and moved with the cascading crowd.
We came out in the fresh air and stood facing the river which meandered
along its western edge. I said, "The river doesn't have much water
in it."
"Jumna used to be a mighty river; you can see that from the old
banks. A dam blocked the water, and the city started dumping its untreated
sewage. And this poor river became just a stinking channel. Foreign
tourists complained, and our government released more water and curtailed
the pollution. And the river is slowly recovering."
I asked him, "How could the builders lift these heavy stones to
such great heights?"
"Ingenious scaffolding, pulleys, ropes, and thousands of hands
could accomplish this task, which was believed to be impossible in those
days. The builders were great designers and knew how to stabilize the
foundation and build a structure which could withstand any earthquake,"
he said. "Look at Taj Mahal. You won't find a single crack in it.
All other buildings in the town and Agra Fort have suffered huge damage
due to settlement and earthquakes."
Doris and I examined the building and didn't notice any cracks.
The visit to the shrine ended, and we started ambling back toward the
entrance gate. I turned my neck and saw the tomb shivering in the fountain
pools. I felt it was waving its farewell.
We came to the taxi and the guide conversed with the driver in the
local language and then said, "Now I'll take you to the Agra Fort,
where Emperor Shah Jahan was imprisoned by his son, Aurengzeb."
"Why did Aurengzeb do this?"
"To get the throne. Aurengzeb was the third son. He murdered his
two elder brothers and then chained and imprisoned his father at Red
Fort in Delhi. Shah Jahan begged Aurengzeb to jail him in Agra Fort
so he could watch Taj Mahal from his prison window. Aurengzeb's mother
also pleaded for her husband, and in the end Shah Jahan was caged here."
Our honking taxi managed to snake through the crowds, and we reached
the fort. The guide took us through a structure which was made with
small red-colored bricks, and we entered a cell, eight by five, with
a barred window facing Taj Mahal. He pointed to a brick platform and
said, "The Emperor slept here on a thin jute mat."
My heart cried as I tried to fathom the feelings of the poor emperor
as he slept in chains on the hard floor and daily watched his wife's
tomb, without any chance of visiting it.
A sigh escaped my lips, and I moaned, "Poor fellow."
He adjusted his cap and said, "It was all written in his karma.
His torture didn't end here. Soon Aurengzeb eliminated all men loyal
to his father, consolidated his power, and removed his father's eyes.
Now Shah Jahan couldn't even see Taj Mahal, and this broke his heart.
He lost the desire to live, but his spirit refused to leave his body.
Aurengzeb undertook all the needed steps to prevent Shah Jahan from
taking his own life and made sure that he suffered a lingering, painful
death. Finally, Shah Jahan's soul felt happy as it escaped the ravaged
body with a broken heart, and he could rest near his favorite wife."
"How many wives did Shah Jahan have?" Doris asked.
"He had a harem, but loved only Mumtaz and kept her busy in giving
him one child every year. After producing thirteen children, she died
in childbirth."
"Poor woman, a baby producing machine," Doris murmured with
a sigh.
The tour ended and before paying the guide, I asked, "Can you
explain how Aurengzeb could secure the throne?"
"Please come and sit on the bench, and I'll complete it there;
my legs are tired."
We occupied a wooden bench in the garden. He removed his sandals, sat
cross-legged in front of us on the grassy lawn, took a deep breath,
exhaled it slowly with a sigh, and said, "Shah Jahan was a tolerant,
liberal king, like his grandfather, Emperor Akbar. Both had Hindu mothers
and wanted to bridge the gap between Hindus and Muslims.
"Shah Jahan was also a patron of music and fine arts. He loved
Mujra and hired the best dancing and singing girls in India. His eldest
son, Dara, was a tall, muscular, handsome, gregarious person, and he
was admired and worshipped by Hindus and Muslims. The third son, Aurengzeb,
was thin, short with pockmarks on his dark face. He was an introvert
and spent most of his time reading the Koran and praying in the mosque
with his mother's father, who was a powerful mullah. Aurengzeb knew
that he couldn't defeat his elder brothers in a battle. So he started
a conspiracy with the help of the religious fanatics and enticed his
younger brother, Murad, to join forces with him. He told him that he
had no intentions for the throne, and when Murad became the emperor,
he'd leave for Mecca and settle there. Shah Jahan learned of Aurengzeb's
sedition, but being a kindhearted father, he posted Aurengzeb in a distant
southern province, hoping his son would grow out of this craziness.
Aurengzeb, however, had groups of mullahs working for him, and they
began pushing their roots everywhere."
The guide spewed on the grass and placed a betel leaf in his mouth.
After chewing for a minute he continued, "Aurengzeb played a dirty
trick upon his elder brother."
"How?" I questioned.
"Noor, the chief dancer in Shah Jahan's court, was a beautiful,
young girl with milky skin. When she sang, the birds stopped chirping,
the air stood still, and the flies became mute. Dara was madly in love
with her and planned to marry her after he got the throne. They kept
their meetings secret, but Aurengzeb got the scent of it, and schemed
to move one step closer to the throne, so he bribed Noor's lady attendant."
