Every now and again, someone’s fanciful imaginings that have no basis in truth start to do the rounds on social media and netizens merrily forward these without the slightest compunction as to veracity, reliability or truth. However usually these fanciful imaginings also die a natural death. The story of Taj Mahal or Tejo Mahalaya however is a little different; a story that periodically dies only to resurface again, unexpectedly. Here’s how:
“Was the Taj Mahal originally an ancient Hindu temple?” This question has been asked for a long time now only in order to answer in the affirmative and to present “proof” of such claims. There are those who hold the view that one of the seven wonders of the world and India’s pride, the Taj Mahal, easily the most famous mausoleum ever built, is actually a Shiva temple.
In an interesting suit filed by 6 advocates in the Agra District Court, a Hindu deity is named as the main plaintiff and the following reliefs are asked for: that the Taj Mahal be transferred to Hindus for worship, that Muslim religious activity there be blocked (the Taj Mahal is also a functioning masjid with Friday prayers offered every week) and onsite graves be removed. The suit was admitted and is now pending before the court.
Now the Central Information Commission has asked the Union Culture ministry to clarify whether the Taj Mahal is a Shiva Temple or Mausoleum. This was based on an RTI query that sought such a clarification.
The claims about the Taj actually being a Hindu temple are based on the theories of P N Oak and advocate Yogesh Saxena. According to P N Oak’s book Taj Mahal: The True Story, the Taj was originally a Shiva temple and a Rajput palace built by King Jai Singh I. It is his contention that this structure was then seized by Shah Jahan who transformed it into a tomb. He then proceeds to ‘substantiate’ his claims with ‘proof’
Oak pointed out that the shape of the Taj, the ornaments and symbols point to it being a Hindu temple. According to him, there are sealed chambers that include the ‘Lingam’ from the original temple. He also claims that Shah Jahan’s construction orders and all financial records relating to the construction of the edifice are actually an elaborate fraud.
Some refer to him as a ‘historian’, however P N Oak is most commonly described as a writer known for his “Hindu-centric brand of historical revisionism”; many academicians describe him less charitably as a “crackpot”.
He had filed a petition in the Supreme Court in 2000, seeking a declaration that a Hindu king had built the Taj. The petition was dismissed with a reprimand for bringing such a frivolous action.
If anyone wants to place the slightest faith in Oak’s creative proliferation of “delusional etymologies”, one has but to glance at his other theories: he believed that the Vatican has a Vedic origin and was originally called ‘Vatika’. The origin of Christianity, according to Oak, is “Krishna Neeti” and that the word Islam comes from “ishalayam” meaning temple of God; based on this the man insisted that both religions originated out of Vedic belief. Oak was also of the view that the Kaaba was originally a Hindu temple, that all the historic buildings in India and in Vatican City are of Hindu origin. Even Stonehenge, the prehistoric structure on Salisbury Plain in the UK is of Vedic origin. So should it be Taj Mahal or Tejo Mahalaya? You decide.
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