India, Aug. 7 -- Apart from being a thing of beauty, how did the Taj assume a newsy version of itself? Is it because it is stated to be a monument of love by a husband for one of his many wives? Some critics argue that it is nothing but a monument to the powers and wonders of Islamic architecture, which Shah Jahan was aware of. In reality, the Taj was planned not just as a monument of love but as a symbol of Shajahani architecture and the power of Mughal rule. In the words of Shah Jahan's early historian Muhammad Amin Qazwini, writing in the 1630s:

"And a dome of high foundation and a building of great magnificence was founded - a similar and equal to it the eye of the Age has not seen under these nine vaults of the enamel-blue sky, and ...