This instrument is made in the shape of a peacock and the word 'taus' is in fact a Persian word meaning peacock. It has 28-30 strings and the instrument is played with a bow. The taus is very similar to the dilruba in construction and in playing technique. However, the taus has a bigger sound box and therefore produces a much more resonant and mellow sound. It has a sound hole at the ‘tail’ portion of the instrument and stands on bird-feet carved in wood. Guru Hargobind Sahib created this instrument, which is probably why it is so big, given his own physical size.