You knew, Emperor of India, Shah-Jahan,
That life, youth, wealth, renown
Float away down the stream of time.
Your only dream
Was to preserve forever your heart’s pain.
The harsh thunder of imperial power
Would fade into sleep
Like a sunset’s crimson splendour,
But it was your hope
That at least a single, eternally-heaved sigh would stay
To grieve the sky.
Though emeralds, rubies, pearls are all
But as the glitter of a rainbow tricking out empty air
And must pass away,
Yet still one solitary tear
Would hang on the cheek of time
In the form
Of this white and gleaming Taj Mahal.
O human heart,
You have no time
To look back at anyone again,
No time.
You are driven by life’s quick spate
On and on from landing to landing…
Rabindranath Tagore
