Love in marble - Rabindranath Tagore called the Taj 'a tear drop upon the cheek of time.

What can be said about the Taj Mahal that hasn't already been said? Ever since it was unveiled to the world, almost four centuries ago, praise for the marbled wonder has never ceased.

Shah Jahan, himself, in his Badshahnama, wrote that the sight of its beauty 'creates sorrowing sighs and makes the sun and moon shed tears from their eyes.'

Other poets, writers and artists too outdid themselves, when it came to speaking about the Taj. Rabindranath Tagore, for instance called it 'a tear drop upon the cheek of time.'

The British painter Hodges compared it to 'a perfect pearl on an azure ground - with an effect so dazzling that no other work of art can ever produce.' Even the otherwise reticent Rudyard Kipling found it to be 'an embodiment of all things pure.'

So, what makes the Taj so universally appealing? When Shah Jahan conceptualised it, he wanted his monument to be unique. And, his architects did not let him down. The main marble tomb stands on a square plinth, with four minarets on each corner of the plinth, giving it a symmetrical design.

The minarets, in fact, have been so designed that in an earthquake, they will fall away from the tomb and not on it. The surface of the tomb has been extensively decorated with exquisite calligraphs.

However, what adds to Taj's beauty, many feel, is not just its physical perfectness but also the story behind it - of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz, which gives that extra touch of romance to the monument. Maybe it is this diversity, in which lies the beauty of Taj — to be different things to different people, yet still be beautiful to all.