Surrounding the Taj Mahal and the ‘story of love’ is a surprising amount of conspiracies and conflicting facts, it’s hard to know the truth about some information, but it’s been a very fascinating journey reading it all. A journey that doesn't diminish the memory of our visit to the Taj Mahal or question it's present day beauty in any way. It just creates an aura of mystery and unknown, how many secrets does this building hold ?
While most marriages of royalty are arranged for political advantages, there are a lot of conspiracies about whether the Taj Mahal can be called a ‘monument of love’ when Shah Jahan had more than 1 wife. Some sources say he had 3 wives; Mumtaz Mahal, Akbarabadi Mahal & Kandahari Mahal, other sources say he had 7 wives, though I am yet to find all their names and many sources say he had a harem of 5000 women on call and had intimate relations with female family members. While this is not unheard of from that time period, it does put some doubt on the love he had for Mumtaz Mahal if compared to modern day love. We were also told by some American architect/historians that Shah Jahan died of a sexually transmitted infection or disease, I haven’t been able to find any credibility to this, with all the records I can find simply stating he was sick with a recurring illness. Another interesting fact I was given by a local Indian who had been to the Taj Mahal 17 times, is that after the Taj Mahal's completion Shah Jahan had the hands cut off all 22,000 workers that were involved with the monuments creation.
If you dig deeper a lot of sources claim that the monument is not a sign of love but of guilt. It was well known that Mumtaz was very smart, perhaps smarter than her husband the Emperor. This is demonstrated by her ability to beat him in chess and help him plan political and military advancements, in this regard she was known as ambitious and ruthless. She went with him on nearly all of his military campaigns, even while heavily pregnant & was away with him on a military campaign when she died shortly after giving birth to their 14th child. Mumtaz had significant political power, with plenty of documents that prove this and Shah Jahan's own imperial seal which he gave to her. Historian’s agree that woman of royalty in the Mughal period were known for political authority & exercised some independence. The theory goes that Mumtaz secretly ascends the throne and release’s her ambitions and far sighted political schemes. The Emperor becomes jealous & makes successful efforts to regain the throne and Mumtaz then dies shortly after this incident, from postpartum haemorrhage. I can’t find any sources that say murder… but there is a lot of insinuation.
There is an even deeper theory that bypass’s the question of love or guilt & instead points the finger of fraudulence & destruction which claims the Taj Mahal was actually a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Shiva. It was called the Tejo Mahalaya built by a Rajput King, which Shah Jahan modified to make it Muslim & to suit his own purposes as the Taj Mahal. There is a book that was written by a famous historian, journalist & Indian National Freedom Fighter called P.N Oak, which proves this theory with images and original texts, however the book was banned by the Indira Gandhi Government for fear it would spark conflict between Hindu and Muslim communities. I think this historians book would be an interesting read & could provide credibility to this theory. Other historical books published by him have created several court cases which have found the need to correct the history of India based on his theories & evidence. His book’s publish evidence that uncovers “biased and distorted versions of Indians history produced by the invaders and colonizers” which he is determined to rectify. Sadly this brilliant mind passed away in 2007 but his work will carry on with his founding of the Rewriting Indian History society. While a lot of his theories are rejected, he is still considered a trustworthy academic. A lot of his published work & theories have been suppressed by the Indian government, including the book about the Taj Mahal which was banned and another book ‘Some Blunders In Indian Historical Research’ has been banned from libraries, particularly parliament libraries, though not considered anti government.
For me the biggest argument that would prove this to be true or false is the sealed rooms that are inside the Taj Mahal that are said to contain proof of it’s original construction & Hindu origins. P.N Oak already has proof in the form of radiocarbon dating from the results of a wooden doorway to the Taj, European travellers accounts and the obvious Hindu architectural symbolism which is backed up by multiple famous western architects. He claims that the construction orders, plans and the financial documents are all fraudulent. P.N Oak petitioned the Indian government to give him access to the sealed off rooms within the Taj Mahal to determine if the proof of it's origins lay within & to make it known as a Hindu monument. He & everybody else who has petitioned for this has been rejected on the ground's that it is disrespectful to the dead that lay buried here.
Is there a government suppression stopping the truth about India’s past & present relationship with Hinduism or is P.N Oak anti-Muslim, determined to see some stolen Hinduism in everything, as some people claim? I think based on his proof and previous success’s in the court room correcting the wrong's recorded in India’s history, this could be another one of those wrong's. Until all the evidence can be studied, the world will never know the truth behind the Taj Mahal and who is the real conspirator.
While we travel through India and speak to the locals about current tensions involving the government's political agenda's, the Hindu community and the Muslim community, I can't help but think the truth behind such a revelation could cause years of conflict & unrest to India. Is such a truth worth being known if it will cause so much pain, death & destruction in it's wake ?
The truth will set you free, but first it will make you miserable. James A. Garfield
- Alli
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