Question

An inscription in Shah Jahan's diwan-i khas in Delhi stated, "If there is Paradise on Earth it is here, it is here, it is here". How was this image created?

Answer 1

Shah Jahan's diwan-i khas was designed in such a way that it fused together in a grand harmonious synthesis. It was carefully planned. It was placed within a large courtyard. Behind the emperors throne there were a series of pietra-dura inlays. It depicted the legendry god Orpheus playing the lute. The diwan-e khas was aimed to communicate that the king's justice would treat the high and the low as equals, creating a world where all could live together in harmony. The diwan-i khas reflected the image of a paradise in itself.