From a Dirty Motel to a Palace of Marble

"Rahul had wondered how someone could love their beloved so much that their dedication 

to them became one of the wonders of the world." 

- Faraaz Kazi from Truly, Madly, Deeply

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History has always been my thing.

Along with science, it has always been the subject I gravitated towards the most.  I was actually a History major in college for a semester before I discovered Psychology because of how much I loved the subject.  While it’s difficult to pinpoint when my love of the subject started, there are certainly events in my life that have clearly exemplified this passion from a young age.

At first, it’s hard to pinpoint why I enjoy History, but now with my love of Psychology, it makes sense… I’m interested in people, places, and how they interact to create humanity.  While I’ve primarily chosen to focus on ‘people’ instead of ‘places/the past’ in my career, it’s projects like the one I’m embarking on in India that afford me the opportunity to enjoy both.

There are tales of me as a young boy asking, complaining, pleading with my parents for the chance to go to Europe as I was incredibly interested in the Roman and British Empires, but it was just not in the family budget.  There was the 8^th grade trip I took to Washington D.C. to which I was deeply saddened upon my homecoming as the journey had concluded (trust me, my Mother can attest to this).  I’ve trekked through the entire Boston Freedom Trail in heavy snow without complaint, explored and photographed nooks and crannies of major cities across the U.S. and consider my visit to Gettysburg at the age of 14 to be one of the most vivid and harrowing experiences of my life.  Hell, I even kinda like “National Treasure” regardless of Nicolas Cage’s terrible acting… all because of my passion for learning about places and the past.

While I’ve always had more interest in American History, World History has always been fascinating to me as well.  Obviously older and most intricate, I’ve always found different aspects of world history intriguing but sometimes difficult to comprehend.  It most likely lies in the fact that I am an American, thus the history is simply more salient to me.  However, there are several times as a child I would spin a globe and just blindly place my finger somewhere… Brazil, Russia, Italy, and would want to know more the country and try to learn something about each place .  At one point or another, especially considering it’s giant land mass, my finger landed on India.  I don’t remember what I learned about India the day that happened, but up until a year ago, all I knew about the country was that it had the second largest population in the world, was mainly a vegetarian culture, had terrible poverty, and that it was the location of the Taj Mahal.

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It’s 6:00 AM on a Sunday.  I receive a call from our driver.

“Hello?”

“Hi Sir? Good morning… no rain… we go now?”

“Yeah, yeah, we’ll meet you downstairs at 6:30”

“Ok!”

The hotel room was the worst I have ever stayed in.  The lock on the door to gain entry from the outside was simply a latch with a knockoff of a Master Lock holding the latch shut.  The place appeared to be relatively unclean from the previous occupant, save the made beds.  There was only one towel, no toilet paper, and the shower and toilet shared the same space aka no separating wall or curtain.  I was 80% sure I was going to get bed bugs.  While the digs weren’t pleasant, they were a means to an end on a student budget.

Surviving the night, Gail and I headed down at 6:30 and met with our driver and our guide.  We had arrived in Agra the night before at 6:00, after a five hour drive from Jaipur, the city we had stayed in the night before.  Longing for coffee and a bite to eat, we forwent both and eagerly headed to what is now considered a “Wonder of the World” along with the likes of the Colosseum, Great Wall of China, and Machu Picchu.

Our driver dropped us off with the guide at a trail leading toward the West gate.  We walked along the 700 meters, with merchants on each side asking us to buy something, and several of these guys hanging out on the park benches:

After purchasing our entry tickets, we headed in and let me just say, it was not overhyped...

The front courtyard heading into the main area... this building is the entry gate to where the Taj is located.
You can see the dome poking out to the left.

Looking through the front gate.  Perfect symmetry in line with the Taj Mausoleum Gate. 

Some handsome guy.

Front view of the Taj

Close up of the front.

Border around parts of the Taj.  Each piece was made from a
separate stone that was then hand carved into shape.

Hand carved marble flowers in marble.

Side view of the Taj

Some blokes enjoying the side view of the Taj.  Notice it looks exactly like the front.

Resting against a pillar with the Yamuna in the background.

We spent a little over two hours at the monument.  Unfortunately photos weren't allowed inside, but capturing the beauty on the outside was enough for me.  Another trek completed in my quest for learning and experiencing more about places and history... one that I will surely never forget.

Tolerance and New Hope

Red Fort at Night

“And now I want you to picture your God, whatever or whoever that God is…” 

– Meditation Teacher at a Catholic School

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Like most people, religion in one way or another has been a part of my life.

I was baptized Christian, attended a Lutheran school for Kindergarten and First Grade, and periodically attended church with my parents during that period.  My parents were both raised in some form of Christianity (Catholic for my Mom and Protestant for my Dad, I believe), a situation that is common for most American children. 

However, as I grew older, Christianity became less and less a priority in the household and I naturally began to look for meaning and direction.  I can remember being as young as 7 or 8, asking questions about different philosophies and inquiring why we weren’t going to church.  And the answer I received from my parents was essentially: “We believe in being good people and doing good things, regardless of church attendance.”

After hearing that, I went on to explore Christianity quite a bit on my own.  I periodically attended services, joined a youth group for awhile in middle school, and had many conversations with friends about God.  However, as I got older, I learned more about religion in general, and decided it was something that would not be a part of my life.

Since prescribing to this point of view about ten years ago, I’ve rarely waned in my attitudes.  Granted, I haven’t explored much outside of Christianity, and definitely need to look into other faiths more before coming to absolute conclusions.  However, I still feel strongly about these thoughts, and base the majority of my decision on history.  History that reveals many religious groups have been violent in some fashion, and overall have (in my opinion) done more harm than good.  Additionally, this harm almost always seems to stem out of one seemingly ubiquitous characteristic.

Whether it be the Crusades or the Holocaust, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict or anything the Westboro Baptist Church partakes in, all of these horrendous acts boil down to the one common thread: the intolerance of others. 

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Sunset from my Flat

I’ll admit, I knew very little about India as a country when I first embarked on this journey.  I blame myself for not being educated before leaving, however do attribute some of it to my tumultuous graduate student lifestyle.  Regardless, I dropped the ball, and while it has made this journey more challenging, it has made it more eye-opening.  There was a lot I prepared myself for mentally on this trip: poverty at depths unimaginable in the U.S., the complete dilapidation of certain neighborhoods, and an intense, unforgiving climate.  However, it has been a change I did not see coming that has had the greatest impact on me.  The omnipresence of religion and faith have been most interesting, especially with regards to the religious history of the land and overall treatment of faith in this particular part of the world.

The religious roots of India start with Hinduism, which dates back 5,000 years, and is considered by many experts to not only be the oldest religion in India, but the world.  In the last 500 years though, as world travel and colonialism developed, India has been exposed to other ideologies.  The famous Red Fort that I visited is actually the creation of a Muslim emperor (remember Shah Jahan?) when the Mughal Empire ruled India.  No more than 100 years after Shah’s rule, the British (with whatever form of Christianity they were rocking at the time) took over India and ruled it until India was partitioned and ultimately gained its independence from the English in 1947.  Today, approximately 80% of Indians practice the original religion, Hinduism.  But the other religions remain, and continue to have an impact on not just the individuals that ascribe to the faith, but the rest of the country as well.

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Bahai Lotus Temple

America is a melting pot of ethnicities and races.  In most large cities, there are populations with descendants from all over the world, thus many believe the U.S. to be the most diverse country in the world.  However, even with this diversity, the large majority of the country follows some form of Christianity.  The history of this country is steeped in Christianity, as every President has followed some form of the religion, our money is printed with “In God We Trust,” and the only national holidays that are religiously based are so with regards to Christianity.

This is very similar to India in many ways.  As stated before, 80% of the country follows Hinduism.  The language everybody speaks is aptly named “Hindi,” and Ghandi's portrait isn’t just the focus of one denomination of Rupees (India’s currency) but is adorned across every bill produced.  Rickshaw drivers often have Hindu religious mantras plastered on their three-wheeled vessels and the majority of restaurants are primarily vegetarian, another staple of Hinduism.

However, it’s different.  The acceptance of other religions isn’t just ok, it’s the norm.  This really became apparent to me a few weeks back when a meditation teacher at a Catholic school proclaimed to the students: “I want you to picture your God, whatever or whoever that God is.”  This thought was again cemented no more than a week later, in a different school, where the students would occasionally recite a prayer/poem at a school without a religious affiliation.  In one particular instance, I witnessed the prayer/poem being chanted by a girl adorned with a bindi, a boy wearing a cross necklace, and another boy with a rishi knot, standing side by side.

Thank you God for the words so sweet.

Thank you God for the food we eat.

Thank you God for the birds that sing.

Thank you God for everything.

The U.S. may be ahead in economy, infrastructure, education, and technology, all while proclaiming to be the land of “religious freedom.” 

But if you ask me, we have a hell of a lot to learn from the Indians on this matter.  

I know I’ve learned quite a bit in my six weeks here… and actually think I’m ready to start giving faith, in some capacity, another shot.