This is the Baha'i House of Worship, completed in 1985 and designed by the Iranian architect Fariburz Sahba. (The Baha'i faith originated in Persia.) Visitors must remove their shoes, maintain silence and not take any photographs inside. The result is a peaceful, sacred space.

Our next stop was the Qutb complex. It was built in 1193 after the invasion of Muslim Turkic rulers from the northwest, and new structures were added in later years. It was built in a space which already had historic significance. Unfortunately, many of the beautiful decorative Hindu carvings in the mosque and on the Minar (above, right) were taken from Hindu temples razed when the Qutb was built.

The iron pillar in the background, erected in honor of the Hindu god Vishnu in the 4th century, still stands uncorroded - a sign of the excellence of early metallurgy in India.