Broadly speaking, Taj Mahal can be seen as comprising of four distinct parts to understand its design and architecture, namely, The Taj Gateway, The Taj Garden, The Taj Mausoleum, The Tomb and Pietra Dura. The beautifully laid out gardens holding out the Taj almost a thousand feet away from the entrance gate are modeled along the Persian Char Bagh style. Paved inroads divide the patches of green and little fountains and mark the two halves of the garden. Standing elegantly on a raised platform, Taj has two sets of staircases at the entrance leading the way to the real tomb and the monumental counterparts, respectively. Four minarets rise on all four sides and in the centerlies the grand dome over the central hall. The dome is crucial to Islamic architecture as it unites heaven and earth cosmologically. The square edifice represents the material universe while the dome symbolizes the vault of heaven.