Mughlai Biophilia

It is interesting to note what one observes and absorbs while traveling. During my recent trip to Agra, in India, I saw it in a new light altogether. Agra and its surroundings are home to many world-famous monuments built by the Mughal emperors e.g., Taj Mahal, Fatehpur Sikri etc. Many decades back, as a 10-year-old, I just ran in the open spaces next to the Mughal monuments. In my late teens I saw it as a student of architecture, so the emphasis was on architectural style, scale, proportion, materials, details and discussing reasons behind Taj Mahal ‘s greatness. I remember our teacher Prof. Satish Grover telling us that the greatness of Taj lies in the four minarets framing it. If you remove them, then it is like just any other mosque.

But now as a world-wise empty nester, I saw the monument in a new light. The guide told us that emperor Shahjahan married Mumtaz Mahal when she was 19. In 20 years, she produced 14 children out of which six survived. Two were girls and four were boys. She died at the age of 39 and made the king promise her that he would build a great tomb in her memory. When I heard this, in my mind, I remembered the famous line from Mad Men:

Well, there is a price for everything!

Hope you get the humor in this juxtaposition. Shahjahan got Taj Mahal built in 20 years, remained to be king for five more years and then he was imprisoned for eight years by his own son after which he died. The rest is history. Today at least 20,000 tourists see it each day.

This time I saw Taj Mahal as a botanical artist and what caught my attention was all the flowers and leaves on its walls. According to the guide, the ones carved out of white marble were made by Hindu artisans. The ones made with colorful precious stones inlaid into white marble were crafted by Muslim artisans. The binding agent between marble and precious stones was a paste made from legumes and beans. Three centuries later the majesty of Taj remains.

Besides this I revisited Fatehpur Sikri, built in the reign of emperor Akbar. The primary material is red sandstone, and I was delighted to notice flowers and leaves on various elements of this monument as well.

Recently I shared many images from this trip on Instagram and titled the exhibition Mughlai Biophilia. Mughlai means from the Mughal era and biophilia is the love of life or living things. To share this joy, here is a screen shot from my Instagram account. You can see more images on Instagram.

Some wise person has said that: You become the people you meet, the books you read and the places you visit. Someday I hope to make paintings of these beautiful carvings of flowers and leaves and then format them on products to be sold worldwide. A novel way of spreading the Mughal charm!

Ratna