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When the Obamas visit Taj Mahal, whose monument will be in the photo-op?

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Kaveree Bamzai
Kaveree BamzaiJan 19, 2015 | 15:25

When the Obamas visit Taj Mahal, whose monument will be in the photo-op?

When Barack and Michelle Obama go to the Taj Mahal in Agra for their selfie moment and sit on the famous bench where Princess Diana perched herself strategically alone in 1992 to proclaim to the world that she was heartbroken, chances are they will think of it merely as a symbol of love or as Rabindranath Tagore described it, a teardrop on the cheek of time. That's how the world sees it, never mind Uttar Pradesh minority affairs minister Azam Khan's exertions to reclaim it for the Muslim community because it is on Waqf board land. But we may as well tell POTUS and FLOTUS the truth. Like all things Indian, the history of the Taj Mahal is contentious and convoluted and when they choose to visit it, they should know what they're getting into. So here are the theories about the Taj Mahal, with some ideas on what Michelle and Barack could do there.

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The Taj Mahal: Quite a bit of history packed in one monument.

#1. It's a monument to maternal mortality: After all, Mumtaz Mahal died in childbirth at 39 from post-partum haemorrhage. In India, maternal mortality is still a big issue with one woman dying in childbirth every ten minutes. Anant Kumar of Xavier Insititute of Social Service at Ranchi has written about this at great length. Perhaps if Prime Minister Narendra Modi is accompanying the US President and First Lady, he can launch a maternal mortality mission from the Taj Mahal. After all, he launched two schemes to reduce Maternal Mortality Rate and Infant Mortality Rate in Gujarat, the Chiranjeevi (2006) and e-Mamata (2010) schemes. From all accounts, both have been effective.

#2. It's a monument to India's cultural diversity: Mumtaz Mahal's son, the tragic Dara Shikoh, translated 50 Upanishads from Sankrit to Persian, which according to Sanskrit scholar Sheldon Pollock, is the best such translation. Since we are all about honouring forgotten icons, the HRD ministry can launch an essay competition on Dara Shikoh and restore him to his rightful place in history. Even if it means acknowledging a Mughal prince.

#3. It's the throne of God: This enrages many and is referenced by Mughal specialist Wayne E Begley and mentioned in the Taj Mahal by Giles Tillotson. That the Taj Mahal is the sybolic replica of the throne of God on which God will sit in judgement. In Islamic cosmology, this is called Arsh, says Begley, referencing a treatise by 13th century Sufi mystic Ibn al-Arabi. But it's contentious because its visual depiction was not part of the collective Mughal imagination.

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#4. It's built on the ruins of a Hindu temple: Of course, where there is a Mughal monument, there has to be a conspiracy theory. This one is floated recently by the UP BJP chief Laxmi Kant Bajpai, that the Taj Mahal is built on property purchased from Raja Jai Singh and that it was part of Tejo Mahalaya temple land. But it was first propounded forcefully by PN Oak who claimed it was a Shiva temple and even petitioned the Supreme Court on it.

#5. It's a testament to Lord Curzon: This is not something historians of the Hindutva persuasion like to acknowledge. Curzon was perhaps the finest viceroy of India, and spent considerable time and energy on the restoration of the Taj Mahal. A brass lamp he dedicated to the Taj Mahal in 1908 still hangs in the tomb. It is a replica of the lamp in the mosque of Sultan Beybars II of Egypt and was crafted by Egypt's leading artist then Todros Badir on Curzon's behalf. As Curzon put it: "'If I'd never done anything else in India, I have written my name there and the letters are a living joy.'"

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Mughal princes, English imperialists, Hindutva conspiracy theorists, social science revisionists - that's quite a bit of history packed in one monument.

Last updated: January 19, 2015 | 15:25
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