Taj Mahal Story

Male Protagonist: Shah Jahan (Prince Khurram)Female Protagonist: Mumtaz Mahal (Arjumand Banu Begum)Shah Jahan met Mumtaz Mahal and fell in love. He married her after five years and they were leading a very happy life. While giving birth to their last child, Mumtaz Mahal died due to some complications. A few years later Shah Jahan built the world's most beautiful monument "Taj Mahal" in the memory of his wife.One of the wonders of the world "Taj Mahal" has a beautiful love story behind its construction. Taj Mahal love story is about Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal. Shah Jahan, initially named Prince Khurram, took birth in the year 1592. The son of Jehangir, the fourth Mughal emperor of India, he fell in love in Arjumand Banu Begum at first time. At that time he was 14 years old and she, a Muslim Persian princess, was 15. After meeting her, Shah Jahan went back to his father and declared that he wanted to marry her. Read on to know more about the love story behind Taj Mahal of Agra…The match got solemnized after five years i.e., in the year 1612. Shah Jahan became the Emperor in the year 1628 and entrusted Arjumand Banu with the royal seal. He also bestowed her with the tile of Mumtaz Mahal, meaning the "Jewel of the Palace". Though Shah Jahan had other wives also, but, Mumtaz Mahal was his favorite and accompanied him everywhere, even on military campaigns. In the year 1631, when Mumtaz Mahal was giving birth to their 14th child, she died due to some complications.It is said that Shah Mahal was so heartbroken after her death that he ordered the court into morning for two years. Some time after her death, Shah Jahan undertook the task of erecting the world's most beautiful monument in the memory of his beloved. It took 22 years and the labor of 22,000 workers to construct the monument, which is also said to be the last wish of Mumtaz Mahal. This magnificent monument came to be known as "Taj Mahal" and now counts amongst the Seven Wonders of the World.This is the true story of the Taj Mahal of India, which has mesmerized many people with its bewitching beauty.

The history of the Taj Mahal tells us "why was the Taj Mahal built" and many other myths and facts associated with this wonderful structure. Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan erected the Taj Mahal in the memory of his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal. Shah Jahan (then Prince Khurram) met Mumtaz Mahal (then Arjumand Banu Begum) at the age of fourteen and fell in love at the first sight. She was a Muslim Persian princess and Shah Jahan was the son of the Mughal Emperor, Jehangir. Five years later, in 1612, they got married. As you read further you will come to know more about the history of the Taj Mahal at Agra…Mumtaz Mahal, an inseparable companion of Shah Jahan, died in 1631, while giving birth to their 14th child. It is believed that during her last moments, Mumtaz Mahal obtained a promise from Shah Jahan that he will build world's most beautiful monument in her memory. But this has not been proven to be true, till date. However, Shah Jahan did indeed build a magnificent monument as a tribute to her wife, which we today know as the "Taj Mahal". Shah Jahan, himself also, lies entombed in this mausoleum along with his wife.The construction of Taj Mahal started in the year 1631 and it took approximately 22 years to build it. An epitome of love, it made use of the services of 22,000 laborers and 1,000 elephants. It was built entirely out of white marble, which was brought in from all over India and central Asia. After an expenditure of approximately 32 million rupees (approx US $68000), Taj Mahal was finally completed in the year 1653. However, the history of Taj Mahal of India still has some gaps. For example, there are many theories regarding the architect of this magnificent monument.

The History Of Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal History
The history of Taj Mahal is as legendary as the monument itself is. If you look into the Taj Mahal history, it will take you back into the royal grandeur of Mughal era when the art, culture and architecture in India were at its zenith. An architectural masterpiece of a kind of its own in the world, The Taj Mahal was built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jehan in memory of his beloved queen Arjumand Bano Begum, popularly known as Mumtaz Mahal, who died in 1630 while giving birth to their 14th child at a young age of 38. According to history of Taj Mahal, it's said that Mumtaz took three promises from her husband Shah Jehan on death bed, and one was that "he would build a tomb in her memory such as the world had never seen before". And keeping his promises Shah Jehan build Taj Mahal as an architectural wonder that never fails to enchant its visitors. You too can visit the beautiful Taj Mahal and appreciate its architectural greatness on your Agra Travel with Hotels Agra India.

According to Taj Mahal history, its construction was started in 1631 and completed at the end of 1648 AD. A large number of craftsmen, sculptors and calligraphers from Persia, Baghdad, and Europe were employed to build the Taj Mahal, an architectural marvel in white marble. The history of Taj Mahal tells us that over 20,000 workmen toiled day and night for seventeen years to build this architectural extravaganza. A small town called Mumtazabad, named after the deceased empress Mumtaz Mahal, was built first to accommodate such a large number of laborers, craftsmen, sculptors and calligraphers.

According to history of the Taj Mahal, it's believed that Ustad Ahmad Lahori, a master architect of the age, designed this wonderful architecture. Amanat Khan Shirazi was the calligrapher of Taj Mahal, and his name occurs at the end of an inscription on one of the gates of this beautiful monument. Muhammad Hanif was the superintendent of Masons, while Ismail Khan Afridi of Turkey designed the giant dome. For the construction of the Taj Mahal, the materials were brought in from all over India and central Asia. While white marble was brought from Makrana Rajasthan, Red sandstone was brought from the nearby Fatehpur Sikri; Jasper from Punjab; Jade and Crystal from China; Turquoise from Tibet; Lapis Lazuli and Sapphire from Sri Lanka; Coal and Cornelian from Arabia; and diamonds from Panna. It's believed that it took a fleet of 1,000 elephants to transport the building material of Taj Mahal to the site. According to Taj Mahal history, in all 28 kinds of rare, semi precious and precious stones were used for inlay work in the Taj Mahal. Visit Taj Mahal and discover the fascinating details about this wonderful architecture in white marble.

A Quick History of Bicycles

The Walking Machine

In 1817 Baron von Drais invented a walking machine that would help him get around the royal gardens faster: two same-size in-line wheels, the front one steerable, mounted in a frame which you straddled. The device was propelled by pushing your feet against the ground, thus rolling yourself and the device forward in a sort of gliding walk. The machine became known as the Draisienne or hobby horse. It was made entirely of wood. This enjoyed a short lived popularity as a fad, not being practical for transportation in any other place than a well maintained pathway such as in a park or garden.

The Velocipede or Boneshaker

The next appearance of a two-wheeled riding machine was in 1865, when pedals were applied directly to the front wheel. This machine was known as the velocipede ("fast foot"), but was popularly known as the bone shaker, since it was also made entirely of wood, then later with metal tires, and the combination of these with the cobblestone roads of the day made for an extremely uncomfortable ride. They also became a fad, and indoor riding academies, similar to roller rinks, could be found in large cities.

The High Wheel Bicycle

In 1870 the first all metal machine appeared. (Previous to this metallurgy was not advanced enough to provide metal which was strong enough to make small, light parts out of.) The pedals were still atttached directly to the front wheel with no freewheeling mechanism. Solid rubber tires and the long spokes of the large front wheel provided a much smoother ride than its predecessor. The front wheels became larger and larger as makers realized that the larger the wheel, the farther you could travel with one rotation of the pedals. You would purchase a wheel as large as your leg length would allow. This machine was the first one to be called a bicycle ("two wheel"). These bicycles enjoyed a great popularity among young men of means (they cost an average worker six month's pay), with the hey-day being the decade of the 1880s.




Because the rider sat so high above the center of gravity, if the front wheel was stopped by a stone or rut in the road, or the sudden emergence of a dog, the entire apparatus rotated forward on its front axle, and the rider, with his legs trapped under the handlebars, was dropped unceremoniously on his head. Thus the term "taking a header" came into being.

The High Wheel Tricycle

While the men were risking their necks on the high wheels, ladies, confined to their long skirts and corsets, could take a spin around the park on an adult tricycle. These machines also afforded more dignity to gentlemen such as doctors and clergymen. Many mechanical innovations now associated with the automobile were originally invented for tricycles. Rack and pinion steering, the differential, and band brakes, to name a few!

The High Wheel Safety

Improvements to the design began to be seen, many with the small wheel in the front to eliminate the tipping-forward problem. One model was promoted by its manufacturer by being ridden down the front steps of the capitol building in Washington, DC. These designs became known as high-wheel safety bicycles. Since the older high-wheel designs had been known simply as bicycles, they were now referred to as "ordinary bicycles" in comparison with the new-fangled designs, and then simply as "ordinaries."

The Hard-Tired Safety


The further improvement of metallurgy sparked the next innovation, or rather return to previous design. With metal that was now strong enough to make a fine chain and sprocket small and light enough for a human being to power, the next design was a return to the original configuration of two same-size wheels, only now, instead of just one wheel circumference for every pedal turn, you could, through the gear ratios, have a speed the same as the huge high-wheel. The bicycles still had the hard rubber tires, and in the absence of the long, shock-absorbing spokes, the ride they provided was much more uncomfortable than any of the high-wheel designs. Many of these bicycles of 100 years ago had front and/or rear suspensions. These designs competed with each other, your choice being the high-wheel's comfort or the safety's safety, but the next innovation tolled the death of the high-wheel design.



The Pnuematic-Tired Safety



The pnuematic tire was first applied to the bicycle by an Irish veterinarian who was trying to give his young son a more comfortable ride on his tricycle. This inventive young doctor's name was Dunlop. Sound familar? Now that comfort and safety could be had in the same package, and that package was getting cheaper as manufacturing methods improved, everyone clamored to ride the bicycle. This 1898 Yale uses a shaft drive to dispense with the dirty chain.The bicycle was what made the Gay Ninties gay. It was a practical investment for the working man as transportation, and gave him a much greater flexibility for leisure. Ladies, heretofore consigned to riding the heavy adult size tricycles that were only practical for taking a turn around the park, now could ride a much more versatile machine and still keep their legs covered with long skirts. The bicycle craze killed the bustle and the corset, instituted "common-sense dressing" for women and increased their mobility considerably. In 1896 Susan B. Anthony said that "the bicycle has done more for the emancipation of women than anything else in the world."Bicycling was so popular in the 1880s and 1890s that cyclists formed the League of American Wheelman (still in existence and now called the League of American Bicyclists). The League lobbied for better roads, literally paving the road for the automobile.

The Kid's Bike

Introduced just after the First World War by several manufacturers, such as Mead, Sears Roebuck, and Montgomery Ward, to revitalize the bike industry (Schwinn made its big splash slightly later), these designs, now called "classic", featured automobile and motorcyle elements to appeal to kids who, presumably, would rather have a motor. If ever a bike needed a motor, this was it. These bikes evolved into the most glamorous, fabulous, ostentatious, heavy designs ever. It is unbelievable today that 14-year-old kids could do the tricks that we did on these 65 pound machines! They were built into the middle '50s, by which time they had taken on design elements of jet aircraft and even rockets. By the '60s, they were becoming leaner and simpler.

The Current Scene

Pedaling History has on display even the recent history of the bicycle in America that we are more familiar with: the "English 3-speed" of the '50s through the '70s, the 10-speed derailleur bikes which were popular in the '70s (the derailleur had been invented before the turn of the century and had been in more-or-less common use in Europe since), and of course the mountain bike of right now. There are also many oddball designs that never quite made it, including the Ingo (you have to see it to believe it!)

The fastest motorcycle in the world.

A machine that captivates the gaze. I've long been fascinated by the the Suzuki Hayabusa. I think it will be only a short time until I own one.
Each trip to the dealer to check out this bike is like a pilgrimage to Mecca. To those of us who saw the sportbike evolve over the last 15 years. From the '86 GSXR750 to where we stand today, this bike is by far the pinnacle of progress.

When I look at it- it seem huge. But once I'm riding, it feels like a toy.
The Hayabusa in unlike anything I have ever ridden before. It's more refined than my ZX-11. When you rev the motor and accelerate off into the distance, it feels designed for this. As if it's sole purpose were entrenched in allowing the ride to travel at any velocity in relative safety and ease.

I realize now the level of discipline and restraint it requires to own this bike. Well, maybe I wouldn't call it restraint, but just plain discipline. The whole package takes some readjusting as to what you might think of as normal. You're headed down the freeway, the speedometer indicates 70 mph, yet it barely seems to have risen around it's circular path.
One of the most interesting things I ever read about the Hayabusa is instead of pulling wheelies when you grab a fistful of throttle, instead the bike will rocket forward and slowly pull the front tire off the ground.

When you sit upon this bike, it has a wondrous feel that occurs when your hands contact the handlebars. It's a tingle that flows through your wrists, arms, shoulders and causes a sensation of warmth to flow across your chest.
Torque is a wonderful thing.
Horsepower, is a very wonderful thing.