Whether you’re visiting or just learning about one of India’s most beloved tourist attractions , here are 7 amazing facts about the Taj Mahal , Agra, Uttar Pradesh.

Taj Mahal under the photo angle of American Instagrammer Alyssa Ramos.

The Taj Mahal is named after love
Emperor Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal for his third wife Arjumand Banu Begum, also known as Mumtaz Mahal, upon her death. Their marriage lasted 19 years and resulted in 14 children.
Taj Mahal as a love dream. Photo: Murad Osmann
After Mumtaz Mahal died of birth complications, Shah Jahan broke down. After the greatest pain of his life, he decided to commemorate her with a monumental tomb that later became the Taj Mahal .

The tomb is the only place that is not decorated and asymmetrical

According to Islamic law, tombs cannot be lavishly decorated. That is why the tomb where Mahal’s body is located is simple compared to the surrounding area.

The graveyard is the only place that is not symmetrical. Photo: bigseventravel
The Indian Taj Mahal is full of perfect symmetry and mesmerizing geometric art. However, while the Mahal coffin sits perfectly in the center of the Taj Mahal complex, the king’s coffin breaks symmetry, being a little smaller and off-center.

“Written by a mediocre person”

The Taj Mahal is filled with breathtaking calligraphy. Some of which include several Quranic passages. Calligrapher Abd-al Haqq who oversaw the project marked the Taj Mahal with a unique and unassuming message: “Written by an ordinary man, Amanat Khan Shirazi.”

The Taj Mahal is filled with breathtaking calligraphs of the “mediocre”. Photo: Twitter

India once tried to hide the Taj Mahal
With its status as a global monument and symbol of Indian tourism , the Taj Mahal was a major target in wartime.

Indian engineers once made the Taj Mahal “disappear”. Photo: bigseventravel
During World War II, the government came up with innovative ways to protect the landmark. For example, the architects added scaffolding to hide the Taj Mahal from aerial attacks so that from above, it looks like a bamboo forest instead of a palace.

Cars and buses are not welcome

Yes, the Taj Mahal bans cars. To prevent the wear and tear of the sparkling white marble, any exhausting vehicle must be at least 500 meters away.

You cannot ride a smoke truck near the Taj Mahal. Photo: @travelshocks

Emperor Shah Jahan is not allowed to visit the Taj Mahal
In the years before his death, Shah Jahan became seriously ill. During this time, his two sons Dara Shikoh and Aurangzeb engaged in a war for the throne.

As the builder of the Taj Mahal, at the end of his life, Emperor Shah Jahan could only see “his love” from afar. Photo: @agracityblog
Shah Jahan sided with Dara Shikoh, but sadly, it was Aurangzeb who won, killing Dara and imprisoning Shah Jahan.

During the last years of his life, Shah Kahan could only view the beloved Taj Mahal from the residential area where he was held.

The Taj Mahal is designed in case of a “fall”

With that said, the Taj Mahal has perfect geometry and symmetry. The chief architect, Ustad Ahmad Lahauri, had a unique idea to protect the Mahal’s crypt in the event of a collapse.

The Taj Mahal was designed so that the collapse would not affect the central tomb. Photo: @saltinourface
He did this by slightly tilting the 4 spiers (the surrounding spiers). So in the event of a disaster, the palace would collapse around the crypt, instead of straight on top.