Love, Indian Style

The Taj Mahal has long been a symbol of true love. Built by Shah Jahan to honor the love between he and his favorite wife, it was started in 1632 and took 17 years and 20,000 laborers to complete. It is stunningly beautiful. The white translucent marble is covered in beautiful carvings and inlays of red carnelian and lapis lazuli. The color of the building slowly changes through the course of the day from pale pink in the morning, to lemon white and then saffron as the day wears on. Built in the traditional Moghul aesthetic it is set in a wide four-quartered garden symbolizing paradise where four sandstone temple gates obscure the view of the mausoleum until the last moment so that when you step through them, the whole impact of its presence is felt at one time.

A few days after traveling to Agra to see this wonder, a beautiful bit of history replayed itself one morning at the hotel in Delhi. During breakfast a young couple came in. The groom was a Sikh and it appeared they were fresh from their wedding night. The bride, dressed in beautiful Indian silk with a pashmina cloud around her shoulders, carried a bouquet of red roses with her into breakfast as she talked softly into her cell phone-- I suspect to her mother. Her nails were gold and her hands were ornately covered in henna. As they put their heads together and talked softly over their tea and toast they were the picture of wedded bliss. Some things, no matter where they occur, will always be the same.

To see more of the beautiful 'Palace of Love', please visit the link to my India Photo Journal..