Mum Taj Mahal

Mum Taj Mahal

This is by far my most difficult post yet. How do I describe how it feels to visit the Taj Mahal? It's truly inexplicable. Some words that come to mind:

Awestruck

Amazed

Blessed

Fortunate

Peaceful

Inspired

Loved

As you probably know, the Taj Mahal is a mausoleum that a husband built to honor his favorite (third) wife. (She died after giving birth to their fourteenth child.) He gave his first two wives the gates to enter the monument, but reserved the rest for his favorite wife, whom he called "Mum Taj" (Beautiful Crown). 

I was not prepared for the way the building made me feel. It is the most extraordinary demonstration of love that I have ever seen. The entire structure, surrounding buildings and gardens were designed with a singular focus on grace and care. The Taj simply radiates love and devotion. 

We traveled to Agra by bus on Saturday. A Fresh Chapter Alliance Foundation partnered with G Adventures to provide us with an unforgettable experience. G Adventures' India CEO "Shazz" - aka Happy - was our phenomenal host for the weekend. (We miss him!) G Adventures hired Sanjay - aka Wisdom - an incredibly knowledgeable guide whose enthusiasm for all of the Agra sites was obvious and infectious.

After lunch at our hotel Saturday we visited Agra Fort, which was built by Akbar the Great, and which still serves as an Indian army post. The fort is a large, red, beautiful structure that has several beautiful gardens. As with the Taj (built by Akbar's grandson), every single aspect was carefully planned. Sanjay told us that in several places the gardens are divided in quarters. Each quarter is intended to represent the four liquids: water, wine, milk & honey.

We then traveled to a beach across the river from the Taj to watch the sunset. The Taj is so beautiful & the air here is often so misty that it didn't seem real. A short distance from the Taj is a crematorium. Fires were burning the entire time we were there. Sanjay cremated his father there last year, and he said a silent prayer. He said there's another location on the other side of the Taj where families scatter their loved ones' ashes in the river. (Although it isn't the Ganges, it is a tributary of that great river, so people view it the same as scattering ashes in the Ganges.)

After a buffet dinner at a five-star resort, we returned to our hotel for a short night's sleep. We all met in the lobby at 6 AM Sunday to head over to the Taj. After a quick bus ride we boarded beautifully decorated horse-drawn carriages to take us up to the Taj. (G Adventures thinks of EVERYTHING.) As for the Taj, I can't add more to what I said above. It's just so difficult to convey.

After the Taj we ate a big breakfast, cleaned up, then drove through an incredibly colorful Sunday market to Fatehpur Sukri - an abandoned city that Akbar the Great inhabited for several years. As Sanjay said, the Agra Fort is about power, the Taj Mahal is about love, and Fatehpur Sukri is about happiness. That was evident throughout the grounds (except the area around the mosque, which was difficult to enjoy due to the aggressive hawkers).

If you ever plan a trip to Delhi, I highly recommend a side trip to Agra. It took us three hours (with one stop) on a well developed highway. I hear it's easy to get there on the train.

I feel like I'm not doing this experience much justice, but I have an excuse: as of tomorrow I will have been sick for an entire week. All of the CCS volunteers are sick - as well as many locals - everyone is coughing wherever I go. That said, it's time for bed!