Aysha Taryam, a United Arab Emirates born author and first Middle Eastern female Editor-in-Chief of an English language newspaper once remarked: “The world believes it was built by love but reading Shah Jahan’s own words on the Taj, one could say it was grief that built the Taj Mahal and it was sorrow that saw it through sixteen years till completion.” 1 Corinthians 16:14 reminds us: “Let all that you do be done in love.”
The Taj Mahal is located in Agra, a city in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It sits on the right bank of the Yamuna River and is widely considered as a “symphony of love.” It is a mausoleum built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal. The Taj Mahal is not just a building; it's a testament to enduring love and is often described as an embodiment of Shah Jahan's grief and devotion.
It has been said to symbolize a "teardrop on the cheek of time," and a masterpiece of Muslim art. It's been called a "proud passion of an emperor's love wrought in living stones" and a "love poem written in marble". These quotes highlight its beauty, its romantic significance, and its enduring legacy. It is believed by many to represent spiritual significance, and certain people even consider it as holy. However, some historians and perspectives suggest the monument also represents power, wealth, and imperial ambition.
Symphonies of love include God in its heart. The notion of God as a "symphony of love" is a metaphor used to describe the multifaceted nature of God's love, drawing parallels to the way different instruments in a symphony orchestra combine to create a beautiful, harmonious whole. This concept emphasizes that God's love also encompasses the symphonies of life in various aspects, each contributing to the overall experience of divine love. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 reminds us: “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.”
While the Taj Mahal is not one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, it is included in the more modern list of the New Seven Wonders. Some people relate the Taj Mahal to God, viewing it as a symbol of divine love and paradise. However, the two are fundamentally different in nature, with the Taj Mahal being a physical structure and God being a spiritual concept. While the Taj Mahal is a powerful symbol of love and devotion, it is a man-made monument, whereas God is considered the ultimate creator and source of all things.
The Taj Mahal is a representation of love, but God and His love are considered real. In simple terms, a representation is a statement or description that aims to convey a particular understanding, while real refers to something that exists independently of any representation and possesses objective existence.
Representations are suggestive of a theme. They are interpretations or symbolic versions of reality, whereas reality itself is the actual, objective state of things. The Taj Mahal is a building primarily made of marble and other materials, and may in its entirety enhance the possibility of love, but it can’t physically produce it. Only God has that power. Neither can the Taj Mahal sustain life, as it is primarily a tribute to both love and death. 1 John 4:7-14 reminds us: “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.”
The concept of a "Symphony of life" is a metaphor that describes life as a complex and beautiful composition made up of diverse experiences, emotions, and relationships, similar to a musical symphony with its various movements and melodies. Just as a symphony has highs and lows, moments of joy and sorrow, the concept of the symphony of life emphasizes that all experiences, both positive and negative, contribute to the richness and meaning of our individual journeys. It equates to instruments in an orchestra combining and playing together to create a beautiful piece of music. This idea can be interpreted through different lenses, including a religious perspective where God is viewed as the principal conductor orchestrating this symphony.
Symphonies create beautiful music. In addition to melody, great and beautiful classical symphonies usually display a mastery of structure and orchestration, a command of tone color and harmony, and an expertise in developing musical ideas. The symphony of life is often said to be created by God. The concept of life as a symphony conducted by God is a metaphor used to describe the complexity, beauty, and interconnectedness of life, often with a focus on God's orchestration and purpose. It suggests that while life may involve various experiences, both positive and challenging, God is ultimately in control, weaving these experiences into a meaningful whole. However, God is not only the conductor in the symphony of life, He is also often considered the composer. William Bradford Wilcox, an American sociologist once remarked: “In this symphony that is my life, God is not content to be a member of the audience or stage crew. He is not even content to be the conductor. He wants to be the composer.”
Humanity could be said to be part of a larger orchestra, with each individual given a specific instrument to play. If we live in harmony with others and play the instrument as we have been taught, then we are each contributing to a perfect symphony with pleasing melodic sounds. 1 Corinthians 12:12-27 reminds us: “For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body - Jews or Greeks, slaves or free - and all were made to drink of one Spirit. For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.
The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.”
Amen.
