The Human Experience
HUM205 World Culture & the Arts
May 9, 2010

Love and Death
A basic understanding in life is that almost everything changes except the human observation and analysis of everything changing. Seeds will always grow into plants, trees, or food; days will always give way to nights; and whatever is born must eventually die. Death is inevitable in life and different cultures have different perceptions of what death actually means. Some cultures celebrate death as it signifies a transfer to the preferred life beyond. Some cultures memorialize those loved ones that are lost because the survivors believe the deceased were taken too soon from the living realm. Either way, art seems to be the basis of expression when sorting through the emotions associated with losing a loved one.
The Human Experience of Love and Death
The work of art at the center of discussion in this paper is the Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal relates to the human experiences of love and death. Losing a loved one is never easy and people will find various ways of coping with such a situation. One such way of coping with the loss of a loved one is through artistic expression, as Shah Jahan did when he commissioned Taj Mahal to be built in memory of his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal (Benton & DiYanni, 2008).
A Personal Connection
Love and death are very meaningful in my life. I love and I have been loved for as long as I can remember. I found myself lucky enough to avoid the concept of death until I was at an age of understanding the finality associated with death. I believe a person does not fully comprehend death until he or she has lost someone he or she loved deeply.
The Beauty of the Mausoleum
The Taj Mahal was constructed as a way to pay tribute to the deceased. The silhouette of the building is magnificent with towers and domes of various sizes, which seem to represent the various stages in life. The building is constructed of the finest materials from various countries, including jade, crystal, coral, and mother of pearl (Benton & DiYanni, 2008). The mausoleum is made of pure white marble along with some of the finest materials of the era as a means of producing a level of elegance worthy enough for Shah Jahan’s wife. This architectural work of art relates to my personal human experience of death. I recently lost my mother and I constantly find myself writing poems, writing songs, or creating slideshows as a way to honor her memory. While some of my methods are more technologically advanced, the reason behind them is the same as Shah Jahan’s.
Values
The Taj Mahal expresses the moral value of respecting the deceased because the building was erected in honor of Shah Jahan’s late wife (Benton & DiYanni, 2008). The work also expresses the cultural value of religion. The building walls are inscribed with scriptures from the Quran (Ahmed, 1993). Jahan used the scripture as a way to ensure paradise in the next world for his wife, though some may say that he provided a version of paradise to society by leaving behind such a luxuriously beautiful work of art.
Conclusion
Artistic expressions can convey many thoughts and feelings in a variety of people who have the pleasure of viewing such artistic expressions. The works of art that have survived the test of time are sure to invoke similar feelings for centuries to come. As long as there is life on this planet, there will continue to be death and creative means of expressing one’s feelings of death and love. The Taj Mahal is no exception to this rule of expressing feelings of death and love, and will surely continue to be magnificent for generations to come.

References
Ahmed, A. (1993). The Taj Mahal. History Today, 43(5), 62. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=9305190399&site=ehost-live
Benton, J., & DiYanni, R. (2008). Arts and culture: An introduction to the humanities (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.