Mumtaz Mahal 
The
story of Taj Mahal is inseparable from the life of Mumtaz Mahal who was the chief
queen of Shahjahan. Prince Khurram, as Shahjahan was known before he became the
Mughal emperor, was a handsome twenty-year-old man, when he was betrothed to Mumtaz.
It is said that the imperial capital of Agra was agog with the description
of her beauty at the time of the betrothal. The maiden name of Mumtaz Mahal was
Arjumand Banu Begum.
Prince Khurram had been married twice before he
met and married Mumtaz Mahal. Mumtaz bore him 13 children and accompanied him
wherever he went.
On June 17, 1631 Mumtaz Mahal breathed her last after
delivering her 14th child, at the age of 39. Saddened by her sudden demise, Shahjahan
resolved to immortalize their love.
It is said that Mumtaz Mahal on
her deathbed had herself asked her husband to create a symbol of their love for
posterity. Shahjahan is said to have accepted her proposal and resolved to do
so.
According to another school of thought however, no such conversation
transpired between the two and the grief stricken emperor decided to build the
Taj Mahal to immortalize the memory of his beloved queen, on his own.
Either,
way the Taj remains as whimsical in conception as it is majestic in construction.
Before the construction of Taj Mahal began, Mumtaz Mahal was given a temporary
burial in the Zainabadi garden in Burhanpur for a period of six months, before
the body was exhumed and brought to Agra, for the final burial.
Taj
Mahal is a monument of love. Taj is the pride of India. The story behind Taj Mahal
is also as beautiful as the monument. It is the love story of a prince and a beauty
girl that turned into a legend.
—›
MORE ABOUT MUMTAZ MAHAL
··»
Taj Mahal Agra
—› Taj Mahal Location —›
Taj Mahal Story —›
History of Taj Mahal —›
Taj Mahal Architecture —›
Garden of Taj Mahal —›
Mumtaz Mahal —›
Building of Taj Mahal —›
Actual Tomb of Taj Mahal —›
Excursions of Taj Mahal —›
How to Reach Taj Mahal —›
Mosque of Taj Mahal —›
Inside The Taj Mahal —›
Pictures of Taj Mahal
