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Title: The Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri: or, Memoirs of Jahangir
Author: Nuru-d-din Jahangir Padshah
Editor: Henry Beveridge
Translator: Alexander Roger
Release Date: December 6, 2016 [EBook #53674]
Language: English
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THE
TUZUK-I-JAHANGIRI
Or
Memoirs of Jahangir
Translated by
Alexander Rogers
I.C.S. (Retired)
Edited by
Henry Beveridge
I.C.S. (Retired)
PREFACE.
Mr. Rogers translated the Memoirs of Jahangir several years ago from
the edition which Sayyid Ahmad printed at Ghazipur in 1863 and at
Allyghur in 1864. Orientalists are greatly indebted to the Sayyid for
his disinterested labours, but his text seems to have been made from
a single and defective MS. and is often incorrect, especially in the
case of proper names. I have collated it with the excellent MSS. in the
India Office and the British Museum, and have thus been able to make
numerous corrections. I have also consulted the MS. in the Library
of the R.A.S., but it is not a good one. I have, with Mr. Rogers's
permission, revised the translation, and I have added many notes.
There is an account of the Memoirs in the sixth volume of Elliot &
Dowson's "History of India," and there the subject of the various
recensions is discussed. There is also a valuable note by Dr. Rieu
in his "Catalogue of Persian MSS.," i, 253. It is there pointed out
that there is a manuscript translation of the first nine years of the
Memoirs by William Erskine in the British Museum. I have consulted this
translation and found it helpful. The MS. is numbered Add. 26,611. The
translation is, of course, excellent, and it was made from a good MS.
A translation of what Dr. Rieu calls the garbled Memoirs of Jahangir
was made by Major David Price and published by the Oriental Translation
Committee of the Royal Asiatic Society in 1829. The author of this
work is unknown, and its history is an unsolved problem. It is
occasionally fuller than the genuine Memoirs, and it contains some
picturesque touches, such as the account of Akbar's deathbed. But it
is certain that it is, in part at least, a fabrication, and that it
contains statements which Jahangir could never have made. Compare, for
instance, the account of the death of Sohrab, the son of Mirza Rustam,
near the end of Price's translation, pp. 138-9, with that given in the
genuine Memoirs in the narrative of the fifteenth year of the reign,
p. 293, and also in the Iqbal-nama, p. 139. Besides being inaccurate,
the garbled or spurious Memoirs are much shorter than the genuine
work, and do not go beyond the fifteenth year. Price's translation,
too, was made from a single and badly written MS. [1] which is now in
the R.A.S. library. Dr. Rieu remarks that it is to be regretted that
so poor a fabrication as the garbled Memoirs should have been given
to the world as a genuine production of Jahangir. This being so, it
is appropriate that the present translation of the genuine Memoirs
should be published by the Royal Asiatic Society.
When Jahangir had written his Memoirs for the first twelve years
of his reign he made them into a volume, and had a number of copies
made and distributed (Elliot, vi, 360). The first of these he gave to
Shah Jahan, who was then in high favour. The present publication is a
translation of the first volume of the Memoirs, but the translation
of the whole Memoirs, together with the additions of Mu`tamad Khan
and Muhammad Hadi, has been completed, and it is to be hoped that
its publication will follow in due course.
Jahangir reigned for twenty-two years, but ill-health and sorrow
made him give up the writing of his Memoirs in the seventeenth
year of his reign (see Elliot, vi, 280). He then entrusted the task
to Mu`tamad Khan, the author of the Iqbal-nama, who continued the
Memoirs to the beginning of the nineteenth year. He then dropped
writing the Memoirs in the name of the emperor, but he continued
the narrative of the reign, to Jahangir's death, in his own work,
the Iqbal-nama. Muhammad Hadi afterwards continued the Memoirs down
to Jahangir's death, but his work is little more than an abridgment
of the Iqbal-nama. Sayyid Ahmad's edition contains the continuations
of the Memoirs by Mu`tamad and Muhammad Hadi, and also Muhammad
Hadi's preface and introduction. But this preface and introduction
have not been translated by Mr. Rogers, and I do not think that a
translation is necessary. Muhammad Hadi is a late writer (see Elliot,
vi, 392), his date being the first quarter of the eighteenth century,
and his introduction seems to be almost wholly derived from the
Ma'asir-i-Jahangiri of Kamgar Husaini (Elliot, vi, 257). It consists
mainly of an account of Jahangir's life from his birth up to his
accession.
It is perhaps unnecessary to say anything about the importance of
Jahangir's Memoirs. They give a lively picture of India in the early
decades of the seventeenth century, and are a valuable supplement to
the Akbar-nama. I may be allowed, however, to end this preface with
the following remarks which I contributed to the Indian Magazine for
May, 1907:--
"The Royal authors of the East had more blood in them than those kings
whose works have been catalogued by Horace Walpole. To find a parallel
to them we must go back to Julius Cæsar, and even then the advantage
is not upon the side of Europe. After all, the commentaries of the
famous Roman are a little disappointing, and certainly the Memoirs of
Babar and Jahangir are far more human and fuller of matter than the
story of the Gallic Wars. All Muhammadans have a fancy for writing
chronicles and autobiographies, and several Muhammadan kings have
yielded to the common impulse. Central Asia has given us the Memoirs
of Tamarlane, Babar, and Haidar, and the chronicle of Abu-l-ghazi;
Persia has given us the Memoirs of Shah Tahmasp, and India the Memoirs
of the Princess Gulbadan and Jahangir. In modern times we see the
same impulse at work, for we have the biography of the late Ameer of
Afghanistan and the diary of the Shah of Persia.
"The contributions to literature by Royal authors which come to
us from the East form a department by themselves, and one which
is of great value. Nearly all Eastern histories are disfigured
by adulation. Even when the author has had no special reason for
flattery and for suppression of truth, he has been dazzled by the
greatness of his subject, and gives us a picture which no more
reveals the real king than does a telescope the real constitution
of the Morning Star. But when Eastern monarchs give us chronicles,
the case is different. They have no occasion for fear or favour,
and mercilessly expose the failings of their contemporaries. Not that
they are to be trusted any more than other Orientals when speaking of
themselves. Babar has suppressed the story of his vassalage to Shah
Isma`il, of his defeat at Ghajdawan, and his treatment of `Alam Lodi;
and Jahangir has glossed over his rebellion against his father, and
the circumstances of Shir-afgan's death. But when they have to speak
of others--whether kings or nobles--they give us the whole truth, and
perhaps a little more. An amiable Princess like Gulbadan Begam may
veil the faults and weaknesses of her brothers Humayun and Hindal;
but Babar strips the gilt off nearly every one whom he mentions,
and spares no one--not even his own father.
"The Memoirs of Babar, Haidar, and Gulbadan have been translated
into English, and those of Tahmasp have been translated into German;
but unfortunately Jahangir's have never been fully translated, [2]
though there are extracts in Elliot & Dowson's History, and Major
Price many years ago gave us from an imperfect manuscript a garbled
account of a few years of his Memoirs. Yet in reality Jahangir's
Memoirs are not inferior in interest to those of Babar. Indeed, we
may go further and say there is twice as much matter in them as in
Babar's Memoirs, and that they are by far the most entertaining of
the two works. Not that Jahangir was by any means as remarkable a man
as his great-grandfather. He was a most faulty human being, and his
own account of himself often excites our disgust and contempt. But he
had the sense not to confine his narrative to an account of himself,
and he has given us a picture of his father, the great Akbar,
which is a bigger 'plum' than anything in Babar's Memoirs. But his
account of himself has also its charm, for it reveals the real man,
and so he lives for us in his Memoirs just as James VI--to whom,
and to the Emperor Claudius, he bears a strange and even ludicrous
resemblance--lives in the 'Fortunes of Nigel' or Claudius in Suetonius
and Tacitus. Jahangir was indeed a strange mixture. The man who could
stand by and see men flayed alive, and who, as he himself tells us,
put one man to death and had two others hamstrung because they showed
themselves inopportunely and frightened away his game, could yet be a
lover of justice and could spend his Thursday evenings in holding high
converse. He could quote Firdusi's verse against cruelty to animals--
'Ah! spare yon emmet, rich in hoarded grain--
He lives with pleasure, and he dies with pain';
and be soft-hearted enough to wish that his father were alive to
share with him the delicious mangoes of India. He could procure the
murder of Abu-l-fazl and avow the fact without remorse, and also
pity the royal elephants because they shivered in winter when they
sprinkled themselves with cold water. 'I observed this,' he says,
'and so I ordered that the water should be heated to the temperature
of luke-warm milk.' And he adds: 'This was entirely my own idea;
nobody had ever thought of it before.' One good trait in Jahangir
was his hearty enjoyment of Nature and his love for flowers. Babar
had this also, but he was old, or at least worn out, when he came to
India, and he was disgusted by an Indian attempt to poison him, and
so his description of India is meagre and splenetic. Jahangir, on the
other hand, is a true Indian, and dwells delightedly on the charms of
Indian flowers, particularises the palas, the bokul, and the champa,
and avows that no fruit of Afghanistan or Central Asia is equal to the
mango. He loved, too, to converse with pandits and Hindu ascetics,
though he is contemptuous of their avatars, and causes the image of
Vishnu as the boar avatar to be broken and flung into the Pushkar lake.
"It is a remark of Hallam's that the best attribute of Muhammadan
princes is a rigorous justice in chastising the offences of others. Of
this quality Jahangir, in spite of all his weaknesses, had a large
share, and even to this day he is spoken of with respect by Muhammadans
on account of his love of justice. It is a pathetic circumstance that
it was this princely quality which was to some extent the cause of the
great affront put upon him by Mahabat Khan. Many complaints had been
made to Jahangir of the oppressions of Mahabat in Bengal, and crowds
of suppliants had come to Jahangir's camp. It was his desire to give
them redress and to punish Mahabat for his exactions, together with
his physical and mental weakness, which led to his capture on the
banks of the Jhilam.
"One of the many interesting observations in his Memoirs is his account
of an inscription he saw at Hindaun. He says that in the thirteenth
year of his reign, as he was marching back to Agra, he found a verse
by someone inscribed on the pillar of a pleasure-house on an islet
in the lake at Hindaun. He then proceeds to quote it, and it turns
out to be one of Omar Khayyam's! This is FitzGerald's paraphrase:--
'For some we loved, the loveliest and the best
That from his vintage Time hath prest,
Have drunk their Cup a Round or two before,
And one by one crept silently to rest.'
"The same quatrain has also been quoted by Badayuni in his history,
and the interesting thing about Jahangir's quotation of it is that
he could see the beauty of the verse and at the same time did not
know who was the author. There is also an interest in the fact
that the third line contains a different reading from that given in
Whinfield's edition of the text. Hindaun is in the Jaipur territory,
and one would like to know if the inscription still exists.
"Among other things in Jahangir's Memoirs there is the description
of the outbreak of the Plague, given to him by a lady of his court
[which has been quoted by Dr. Simpson in his book upon Plague], and
there is a very full account of Kashmir, which is considerably superior
to that in the Ayin Akbari, which Sir Walter Lawrence has praised."
With reference to the portrait of Jahangir prefixed to this volume,
it may be interesting to note that it appears from Mr. E. B. Havell's
"Indian Sculpture," p. 203, that the British Museum possesses a
drawing by Rembrandt which was copied from a Moghul miniature,
and which has been pronounced by Mr. Rouffaer to be a portrait
of Jahangir. Coryat (Purchas, reprint, iv, 473) thus describes
Jahangir's personal appearance:--"He is fifty and three years of
age, his nativity-day having been celebrated with wonderful pomp
since my arrival here. On that day he weighed himself in a pair of
golden scales, which by great chance I saw the same day; a custom he
observes most inviolably every year. He is of complexion neither white
nor black, but of a middle betwixt them. I know not how to express
it with a more expressive and significant epitheton than olive. An
olive colour his face presenteth. He is of a seemly composition of
body, of a stature little unequal (as I guess not without grounds of
probability) to mine, but much more corpulent than myself."
As regards the bibliography of the Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri, I have to
note that there is an Urdu translation by Munshi Ahmad `Ali Simab of
Rampura, that is, Aligarh in Tonk. It was made from Muhammad Hadi's
edition under the patronage of Muhammad Ibrahim `Ali Khan Nawab of
Tonk, and was published by Newal Kishor in 1291 (1874). There is also
a Hindi translation by Munshi Debi Prasad which was published in 1905
at Calcutta by the Bharat Mitra Press. The Urdu translation referred
to by Mr. Blumhardt in his Catalogue of Hindustani MSS., p. 61, and
noticed by Elliot, vi, 401, and Garcin de Tassy, iii, 301, is, as the
two latter writers have remarked, a translation of the Iqbal-nama. The
MS. referred to by Elliot vi, 277, as having been in the possession
of General Thomas Paterson Smith, and which is described in Ethé's
Catalogue of the India Office MSS., No. 2833, p. 1533, was made by
Sayyid Muhammad, the elder brother of Sayyid Ahmad. At the end of the
MS. the copyist gives some account of himself and of his family. He
made the copy from copies in the Royal Library and in the possession
of Rajah Roghu Nath Singh alias Lal Singh Jalpur. He finished it in
October, 1843. Sayyid Muhammad was Munsif of Hutgam in the Fathpur
district. He died young in 1845. My friend Mr. T. W. Arnold, of the
India Office, informs me that Sayyid Ahmad told him that he found
a valuable illustrated MS of the Tuzuk in the débris of the Delhi
Royal Library, and took it home, but that it was lost when his house
was plundered by the mutineers. There is in the Bodleian a copy in
Sayyid Ahmad's own handwriting. He states that he made use of ten
good MSS. The Englishman at whose request he made the copy was John
Panton Gubbins, who was once Sessions Judge of Delhi. This copy is
described in the Bodleian Catalogue, p. 117, No. 221. The MS. No. 220
described on the same page was brought home by Fraser, and is a good
one, but only goes down to the end of the 14th year.
H. Beveridge.
March, 1909.
Postscript.--Since writing this Preface I have been enabled by the
kindness of Mr. Irvine to examine the Hindi Jahangir-nama of Debi
Prasad. It is not a translation, but an abstract, and I do not think
it is of much value. Being a Jodhpur man he has been able, perhaps,
to correct some spellings of places, but he does not seem to have
consulted any MSS., and when he comes to a difficulty he shirks
it. The most valuable adjunct to the Tuzuk, after the Iqbal-nama,
is the Ma'asir-i-Jahangiri of Kamgar Husaini. It is important as
giving the early history of Jahangir, that is, of the time when he
was Prince Selim. There are three copies of his work in the British
Museum, but the so-called Maathir-i-Jahangiri of the India Office
Library, No. 3098, or 324 of the new Catalogue, is only a copy of
the Iqbal-nama.
I regret that the number of Errata and Addenda is so large, but when
I began the revision I did not know that Sayyid Ahmad's text was so
incorrect. It will be seen that at pp. 158 and 162 I have made two
erroneous notes.
H. B.
CONTENTS
Page
Jahangir's Memoirs. 1
Feast of the Second New Year 85
The Third New Year's Feast from my Accession. 138
The Fourth New Year's Feast after the Auspicious Accession. 154
The Fifth New Year's Feast from the Auspicious Accession. 165
The Sixth New Year's Feast after my auspicious Accession. 191
The Seventh New Year's Festival after the auspicious Accession. 206
The Eighth New Year after the auspicious Accession. 235
The Ninth New Year's Feast after my auspicious Accession. 259
The Tenth New Year's Festival after my auspicious Accession. 280
The Eleventh New Year's Feast after the auspicious Accession. 317
The Twelfth New Year's Feast after my auspicious accession. 370
Errata and Addenda. 447
JAHANGIR'S MEMOIRS.
IN THE NAME OF GOD, THE MERCIFUL, THE CLEMENT.
CHAPTER I.
By the boundless favour of Allah, when one sidereal hour of Thursday,
Jumada-s-sani 20th, A.H. 1014 (October 24th, 1605), had passed, I
ascended the royal throne in the capital of Agra, in the 38th year
of my age. [3]
Till he was 28 years old, no child of my father had lived, and
he was continually praying for the survival of a son to dervishes
and recluses, by whom spiritual approach to the throne of Allah is
obtained. As the great master, Khwaja Mu`inu-d-din Chishti, was the
fountain-head of most of the saints of India, he considered that in
order to obtain this object he should have recourse to his blessed
threshold, and resolved within himself that if Almighty God should
bestow a son on him he would, by way of complete humility, go on
foot from Agra to his blessed mausoleum, a distance of 140 kos. In
A.H. 977, on Wednesday, 17th Rabi`u-l-awwal (August 31st, 1569), when
seven ghari of the aforesaid day had passed, when Libra (Mizan) had
risen to the 24th degree, God Almighty brought me into existence from
the hiding-place of nothingness. At the time when my venerated father
was on the outlook for a son, a dervish of the name of Shaikh Salim,
a man of ecstatic condition, who had traversed many of the stages of
life, had his abode on a hill near Sikri, one of the villages of Agra,
and the people of that neighbourhood had complete trust in him. As my
father was very submissive to dervishes, he also visited him. One day,
when waiting on him and in a state of distraction, he asked him how
many sons he should have. The Shaikh replied, "The Giver who gives
without being asked will bestow three sons on you." My father said,
"I have made a vow that, casting my first son on the skirt of your
favour, I will make your friendship and kindness his protector and
preserver." The Shaikh accepted this idea, and said, "I congratulate
you, and I will give him my own name." When my mother came near the
time of her delivery, he (Akbar) sent her to the Shaikh's house
that I might be born there. After my birth they gave me the name
of Sultan Salim, but I never heard my father, whether in his cups
or in his sober moments, call me Muhammad Salim or Sultan Salim,
but always Shaikhu Baba. My revered father, considering the village
of Sikri, which was the place of my birth, lucky for him, made it
his capital. In the course of fourteen or fifteen years that hill,
full of wild beasts, became a city containing all kinds of gardens and
buildings, and lofty, elegant edifices and pleasant places, attractive
to the heart. After the conquest of Gujarat this village was named
Fathpur. When I became king it occurred to me to change my name,
because this resembled that of the Emperor of Rum. An inspiration
from the hidden world brought it into my mind that, inasmuch as
the business of kings is the controlling of the world, I should give
myself the name of Jahangir (World-seizer) and make my title of honour
(laqab) Nuru-d-din, inasmuch as my sitting on the throne coincided with
the rising and shining on the earth of the great light (the Sun). I
had also heard, in the days when I was a prince, from Indian sages,
that after the expiration of the reign and life of King Jalalu-d-din
Akbar one named Nuru-d-din would be administrator of the affairs
of the State. Therefore I gave myself the name and appellation of
Nuru-d-din Jahangir Padshah. As this great event took place in Agra,
it is necessary that some account of that city should be given.
Agra is one of the grand old cities of Hindustan. It had formerly
an old fort on the bank of the Jumna, but this my father threw down
before my birth, and he founded a fort of cut red stone, the like of
which those who have travelled over the world cannot point out. It
was completed in the space of fifteen or sixteen years. It had four
gates and two sally-ports, and its cost was 35 lakhs of rupees, equal
to 115,000 toman of current Persian coinage and to 10,500,000 khani
according to the Turan reckoning. The habitable part of the city
extends on both sides of the river. On its west side, which has the
greater population, its circumference is seven kos and its breadth is
one kos. The circumference of the inhabited part on the other side of
the water, the side towards the east, is 2 1/2 kos, its length being
one kos and its breadth half a kos. But in the number of its buildings
it is equal to several cities of `Iraq, Khurasan, and Mawara'a-n-nahr
(Transoxiana) put together. Many persons have erected buildings
of three or four storeys in it. The mass of people is so great,
that moving about in the lanes and bazars is difficult. It is on the
boundary of the second climate. On its east is the province of Qanauj;
on the west, Nagor; on the north, Sambhal; and on the south, Chanderi.
It is written in the books of the Hindus that the source of the Jumna
is in a hill of the name of Kalind, [4] which men cannot reach because
of the excessive cold. The apparent source is a hill near the pargana
of Khizrabad.
The air of Agra is warm and dry; physicians say that it depresses
the spirits (ruhra ba tahlil mibarad) and induces weakness. It is
unsuited to most temperaments, except to the phlegmatic and melancholy,
which are safe from its bad effects. For this reason animals of this
constitution and temperament, such as the elephant, the buffalo,
and others, thrive in its climate.
Before the rule of the Lodi Afghans, Agra was a great and populous
place, and had a castle described by Mas`ud b. Sa`d b. Salman in
the ode (qasida) which he wrote in praise of Mahmud, son of Sultan
Ibrahim, son of Mas`ud, son of Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni, on the capture
of the castle--
"The fort of Agra appeared in the midst of the dust
Like a mountain, and its battlements like peaks." [5]
When Sikandar Lodi designed to take Gwalior he came to Agra from
Delhi, which was the capital of the Sultans of India, and settled down
there. From that date the population and prosperity of Agra increased,
and it became the capital of the Sultans of Delhi. When God Almighty
bestowed the rule of India on this illustrious family, the late king,
Babar, after the defeat of Ibrahim, the son of Sikandar Lodi, and
his being killed, and after his victory over Rana Sanga, who was the
chief of the Rajas of Hindustan, established on the east side of the
Jumna, on improved land, a garden (charbagh) which few places equal
in beauty. He gave it the name of Gul-afshan (Flower-scatterer), and
erected in it a small building of cut red stone, and having completed
a mosque on one side of it he intended to make a lofty building,
but time failed him and his design was never carried into execution.
In these Memoirs, whenever Sahib qirani is written it refers to
Amir Timur Gurgan; and whenever Firdus-makani is mentioned, to Babar
Padshah; when Jannat-ashyani is used, to Humayun Padshah; and when
`Arsh-ashyani is employed, to my revered father, Jalalu-d-din Muhammad
Akbar Padshah Ghazi.
Melons, mangoes, and other fruits grow well in Agra and its
neighbourhood. Of all fruits I am very fond of mangoes. In the reign of
my father (`Arsh-ashyani) many fruits of other countries, which till
then were not to be had in India, were obtained there. Several sorts
of grapes, such as the sahibi and the habshi [6] and the kishmishi,
became common in several towns; for instance, in the bazars of Lahore
every kind and variety that may be desired can be had in the grape
season. Among fruits, one which they call ananas (pineapple), which
is grown in the Frank ports, [7] is of excessive fragrance and fine
flavour. Many thousands are produced every year now in the Gul-afshan
garden at Agra.
From the excellencies of its sweet-scented flowers one may prefer the
fragrances of India to those of the flowers of the whole world. It
has many such that nothing in the whole world can be compared to
them. The first is the champa (Michelia champaca), which is a flower of
exceedingly sweet fragrance; it has the shape of the saffron-flower,
but is yellow inclining to white. The tree is very symmetrical and
large, full of branches and leaves, and is shady. When in flower one
tree will perfume a garden. Surpassing this is the keora [8] flower
(Pandanus odoratissimus). Its shape and appearance are singular, and
its scent is so strong and penetrating that it does not yield to the
odour of musk. Another is the rae bel, [9] which in scent resembles
white jessamine. Its flowers are double and treble (?). Another is
the mulsari [10] (Mimusops Elengi). This tree, too, is very graceful
and symmetrical, and is shady. The scent of its flowers is very
pleasant. Another is the ketaki [11] (Pandanus ?), which is of the
nature of the keora, but the latter is thorny, whereas the ketki
has no thorns. Moreover, the ketki is yellowish, whereas the keora
is white. From these two flowers and also from the chambeli [12]
(Jasminum grandiflorum), which is the white jessamine of wilayat
(Persia or Afghanistan), they extract sweet-scented oils. There are
other flowers too numerous to mention. Of trees there are the cypress
(sarw), the pine (sanubar), the chanar (Platanus orientalis), the
white poplar (safidar, Populus alba), and the bid mulla (willow),
which they had formerly never thought of in Hindustan, but are now
plentiful. The sandal-tree, which once was peculiar to the islands
(i.e., Java, Sumatra, etc.), also flourishes in the gardens.
The inhabitants of Agra exert themselves greatly in the acquirement
of crafts and the search after learning. Various professors of every
religion and creed have taken up their abode in the city.
After my accession, the first order that I gave was for the
fastening up of the Chain of Justice, so that if those engaged in the
administration of justice should delay or practise hypocrisy in the
matter of those seeking justice, the oppressed might come to this
chain and shake it so that its noise might attract attention. Its
fashion was this: I ordered them to make a chain of pure gold, [13]
30 gaz in length and containing 60 bells. Its weight was 4 Indian
maunds, equal to 42 `Iraqi maunds. One end of it they made fast to the
battlements of the Shah Burj of the fort at Agra and the other to a
stone post fixed on the bank of the river. I also gave twelve orders to
be observed as rules of conduct (dasturu-l-`amal) in all my dominions--
(1) Forbidding the levy of cesses under the names of tamgha and mir
bahri (river tolls), and other burdens which the jagirdars of every
province and district had imposed for their own profit.
(2) On roads where thefts and robberies took place, which roads
might be at a little distance from habitations, the jagirdars of the
neighbourhood should build sara'is (public rest-houses), mosques,
and dig wells, which might stimulate population, and people might
settle down in those sara'is. If these should be near a khalisa estate
(under direct State management), the administrator (mutasaddi) of
that place should execute the work.
[14](3) The bales of merchants should not be opened on the roads
without informing them and obtaining their leave.
(4) In my dominions if anyone, whether unbeliever or Musalman,
should die, his property and effects should be left for his heirs,
and no one should interfere with them. If he should have no heir,
they should appoint inspectors and separate guardians to guard the
property, so that its value might be expended in lawful expenditure,
such as the building of mosques and sara'is, the repair of broken
bridges, and the digging of tanks and wells.
(5) They should not make wine or rice-spirit (darbahra) [15] or any
kind of intoxicating drug, or sell them; although I myself drink wine,
and from the age of 18 years up till now, when I am 38, have persisted
in it. When I first took a liking to drinking I sometimes took as much
as twenty cups of double-distilled spirit; when by degrees it acquired
a great influence over me I endeavoured to lessen the quantity, and in
the period of seven years I have brought myself from fifteen cups to
five or six. My times for drinking were varied; sometimes when three
or four sidereal hours of the day remained I would begin to drink,
and sometimes at night and partly by day. This went on till I was
30 years old. After that I took to drinking always at night. Now I
drink only to digest my food.
[16](6) They should not take possession of any person's house.
(7) I forbade the cutting off the nose or ears of any person, and
I myself made a vow by the throne of God that I would not blemish
anyone by this punishment.
(8) I gave an order that the officials of the Crown lands and the
jagirdars should not forcibly take the ryots' lands and cultivate
them on their own account.
(9) A government collector or a jagirdar should not without permission
intermarry with the people of the pargana in which he might be.
(10) They should found hospitals in the great cities, and appoint
physicians for the healing of the sick; whatever the expenditure
might be, should be given from the khalisa establishment.
(11) In accordance with the regulations of my revered father, I
ordered that each year from the 18th [17] of Rabi`u-l-awwal, which
is my birthday, for a number of days corresponding to the years of
my life, they should not slaughter animals (for food). Two days in
each week were also forbidden, one of them Thursday, the day of my
accession, and the other Sunday, the day of my father's birth. He
held this day in great esteem on this account, and because it was
dedicated to the Sun, and also because it was the day on which the
Creation began. Therefore it was one of the days on which there was
no killing in his dominions. [18]
(12) I gave a general order that the offices and jagirs of my father's
servants should remain as they were. Later, the mansabs (ranks or
offices) were increased according to each one's circumstances by not
less than 20 per cent. to 300 or 400 per cent. The subsistence money
of the ahadis was increased by 50 per cent., and I raised the pay of
all domestics by 20 per cent. I increased the allowances of all the
veiled ladies of my father's harem from 20 per cent. to 100 per cent.,
according to their condition and relationship. By one stroke of the
pen I confirmed the subsistence lands [19] of the holders of aimas
(charity lands) within the dominions, who form the army of prayer,
according to the deeds in their possession. I gave an order to Miran
Sadr Jahan, who is one of the genuine Sayyids of India, and who for
a long time held the high office of sadr (ecclesiastical officer)
under my father, that he should every day produce before me deserving
people (worthy of charity). [20]I released all criminals who had been
confined and imprisoned for a long time in the forts and prisons. [21]
At a propitious hour I ordered that they should coin gold and silver
of different weights. To each coin I gave a separate name, viz.,
to the muhr of 100 tola, that of nur-shahi; to that of 50 tola,
that of nur-sultani; to that of 20 tola, nur-daulat; to that of
10 tola, nur-karam; to that of 5 tola, nur-mihr; and to that of 1
tola, nur-jahani. The half of this I called nurani, and the quarter,
rawaji. With regard to the silver coins (sikkas). I gave to the coin
of 100 tola the name of kaukab-i-tali` (star of horoscope); to that
of 50 tola, the name of kaukab-i-iqbal (star of fortune); to that of
20 tola, the name of kaukab-i-murad (star of desire); to that of 10
tola, the name of kaukab-i-bakht (star of good luck); to that of 5
tola, the name of kaukab-i-sa`d (star of auspiciousness); to that of
1 tola, the name of jahangiri. The half jahangiri I called sultani;
the quarter, nisari [22] (showering money); the dime, khair-i-qabul
(the acceptable). Copper, also, I coined in the same proportions,
and gave each division a particular name. I ordered that on the gold
muhr of 100, 50, 20, and 10 tola the following verse by Asaf Khan
[23] should be impressed--namely, on the obverse was this couplet:--
"Fate's pen wrote on the coin in letters of light,
The Shah Nuru-d-din Jahangir";
and between the lines of the verse the Creed (Kalima) was impressed. On
the reverse was this couplet, in which the date of coinage was
signified:--
"Through this coin is the world brightened as by the sun,
And the date thereof is 'Sun of Dominion' (Aftab-i-Mamlakat)." [24]
Between the lines of the verse, the mint, the Hijra year, and the
regnal year were impressed. On the nur-jahani, which is in the place
of the ordinary gold muhr and exceeds it in weight by 20 per cent. (as
12 to 10), is impressed this couplet of the Amiru-l-umara:--
"Shah Nuru-d-din Jahangir ibn Akbar Padshah
Made gold's face bright with the sheen of sun and moon."
Accordingly, a hemistich was impressed on each face, and also the mint,
and the Hijra and regnal year. The jahangiri sikka, also, which is
greater in weight by 20 per cent., was reckoned as equal to a rupee,
its weight being fixed in the same manner as that of the nur-jahani
(each was a tola in weight, but one was in gold and the other was
in silver). The weight of a tola is 2 1/2 misqals of Persia and
Turan. [25]
It would not be good to give all the versified chronograms which were
made for my accession. I therefore content myself with the one which
Maktub Khan, the superintendent of the library and picture gallery,
and one of my old servants, composed--
"The second lord of conjunction, Shahinshah Jahangir,
With justice and equity sat on the throne of happiness.
Prosperity, Good Fortune, Wealth, Dignity, and Victory,
With loins girt in his service, stood rejoicing before him.
It became the date of the accession when Prosperity
Placed his head at the feet of the Sahib-Qiran-i-Sani." [26]
To my son Khusrau a lakh of rupees was presented that he might build
up for himself the house of Mun`im Khan, [27] the (former) Khankhanan,
outside the fort. The administration and government of the Panjab was
bestowed on Sa`id Khan, [28] who was one of the confidential nobles and
connected with my father by marriage. His origin was from the Moghul
tribe, and his ancestors were in the service of my forefathers. At the
time of his taking leave, as it was said that his eunuchs oppressed and
tyrannized over the weak and the poor, I sent a message to him that
my justice would not put up with oppression from anyone, and that in
the scales of equity neither smallness nor greatness was regarded. If
after this any cruelty or harshness should be observed on the part
of his people, he would receive punishment without favour. [29]
Again, having previously bestowed on Shaikh Farid Bukhari, who
had been Mir Bakhshi in my father's service, a dress of honour, a
jewelled sword, a jewelled inkstand and pen, I confirmed him in the
same post, and in order to exalt him I said to him, "I regard thee as
Sahibu-s-saif-wa-l-qalam" ("Captain Sword and Captain Pen"). Muqim,
[30] to whom my father had given at the end of his reign the title of
Wazir Khan and the viziership of his dominions, I selected for the same
title, rank, and service. I also gave Khwajagi Fathu-llah a dress of
honour, and made him a bakhshi, as formerly `Abdu-r-Razzaq Ma`muri,
although when I was prince he had left my service without cause or
reason and had gone over to my father, I made bakhshi as formerly,
and I gave him a dress of honour. To Aminu-d-daula, who when I was
prince had the post of bakhshi, and without my leave had run away and
taken service with my revered father, not looking to his offences I
gave the office of Atish-i-begi [31] (Head of the Artillery), which
he had held under my father. I left all those who were in possession
of posts, both inside and outside, in the positions which they had
with my father. Sharif Khan [32] had lived with me from his early
years. When I was prince I had given him the title of khan, and when
I left Allahabad to wait upon my honoured father I presented him
with a drum and the tuman-togh (standard of yak tails). I had also
promoted him to the rank of 2,500 and given him the government of the
province of Bihar. I gave him complete control over the province, and
sent him off there. On the 4th of Rajab, being fifteen days after my
accession, he waited upon me. I was exceedingly pleased at his coming,
for his connection with me is such that I look upon him as a brother,
a son, a friend, and a companion. As I had perfect confidence in his
friendship, intelligence, learning, and acquaintance with affairs,
having made him Grand Vizier, I promoted him to the rank of 5,000 with
5,000 horse and the lofty title of Amiru-l-umara, to which no title
of my servants is superior. Though his position might have warranted
a higher rank, he himself represented to me that until some notable
service on his part had become perceptible to me he would not accept
a higher grade than that mentioned (5,000).
As the reality of the loyalty of my father's servants had not
yet become apparent, and certain faults and errors and unbecoming
intentions which were not approved at the throne of the Creator or
pleasing to His creatures had shown themselves, they of themselves
became ashamed. Though on the day of my accession I had forgiven all
offences and determined with myself that I would exact no retribution
for past deeds, yet on account of the suspicion that had been aroused
in my mind about them I considered the Amiru-l-umara my guardian and
protector; although God Almighty is the guardian of all His servants,
and is especially so of kings, because their existence is the cause
of the contentment of the world. His father, `Abdu-s-Samad, who
in the art of painting had no equal in the age, had obtained from
the late king (Jannat-ashyani) Humayun the title of Shirin-qalam
(Sweet pen), and in his council had attained a great dignity and was
on intimate terms with him (the king). He was one of the chief men
of Shiraz. My honoured father, on account of his former services,
paid him great honour and reverence. I made Raja Man Singh--who was
one of the greatest and most trusted noblemen of my father, and had
obtained alliances with this illustrious family, inasmuch as his aunt
had been in my father's house (i.e. was his wife), [33] and I had
married his sister, and Khusrau and his sister Sultanu-n-nisa Begam,
the latter of whom is my eldest child, were born of her--as before,
ruler of the province of Bengal. Though as in consequence of certain
of his acts he had no expectation of this favour towards himself,
I dignified him with a charqab (vest without sleeves) as a robe of
honour, a jewelled sword, and one of my own horses, and sent him off to
his province, which is a place of (or can keep up) 50,000 horse. His
father was Raja Bhagwan Das. His grandfather, Raja Bihari Mal, was
the first of the Kachwaha Rajputs to have the honour of entering my
father's service, and he excelled his tribe in truth and sincerity
of friendship, and in the quality of valour. After my accession, when
all the nobles with their retinues presented themselves at my palace,
it came into my mind that I should send this body of retainers under
my son, Sultan Parwiz, to make a holy war against the Rana, who was
one of evil deeds, and a foul infidel of the country of Hindustan,
and in my father's time had had troops sent constantly against him,
but had not been driven off. In a fortunate hour I invested my said
son with gorgeous robes of honour, a jewelled waist-sword, a jewelled
waist-dagger, and a rosary of pearls intermixed with rubies of great
price of the value of 72,000 rupees, `Iraq and Turkman horses and
famous elephants, and dismissed him. About 20,000 horsemen with nobles
and chief leaders were appointed to this service. The first was Asaf
Khan, who in my father's time was one of his confidential servants,
and for a long time had been confirmed in the post of bakhshi and
afterwards became diwan ba istiqlal (Chancellor with full powers);
him I advanced from the rank of an Amir to that of Vizier, and
promoting him from the command of 2,500 horse to that of 5,000 made
him guardian to Parwiz. Having honoured him with a robe of honour,
jewelled waist-sword, a horse and an elephant, I ordered that all
the mansabdars (commanders), small and great, should not depart from
such orders as he thought proper to give them. I made `Abdu-r-Razzaq
Ma`muri his bakhshi and Mukhtar Beg, Asaf Khan's paternal uncle, diwan
to Parwiz. I also presented to Raja Jagannath, son of Raja Bihari Mal,
who had the rank of 5,000, a robe of honour and a jewelled waist-sword.
Again, I gave Rana Shankar, cousin of the Rana--to whom my father had
given the title of Rana, proposing to send him with Khusrau against the
Rana, but at that time he (Akbar) became a shanqar (a falcon, i.e. he
died)--a robe of honour and a jewelled sword, and sent him with him.
I presented Madho Singh, brother's son of Raja Man Singh, and Rawal
Sal Darbari with flags, from this consideration, that they were
always present at Court and belonged to the Sekhawat [34] Rajputs,
and were confidential servants of my father. Each received also the
rank of 3,000.
I promoted Shaikh Ruknu-d-din the Afghan, to whom when I was
prince I had given the title of Shir Khan, from the grade of 500 to
that of 3,500 Shir Khan is the head of his clan and a very valiant
man. He lost his arm by the sword in service against the Uzbegs. [35]
`Abdu-r-Rahman, son of Shaikh Abu-l-fazl, Maha Singh, grandson of Raja
Man Singh, Zahid Khan, son of Sadiq Khan, Wazir Jamil, and Qara Khan
Turkman were exalted to the rank of 2,000; all these obtained robes of
honour and horses, and were dismissed. Manohar also obtained leave to
join the expedition. He is of the tribe of the Sekhawat Kachhwahas,
and on him in his young days my father bestowed many favours. He had
learned the Persian language, and, although from him up to Adam the
power of understanding cannot be attributed to any one of his tribe,
he is not without intelligence. He makes Persian verses, and the
following is one of his couplets:--
"The object of shade in Creation is this:
That no one place his foot on the light of my Lord, the Sun." [36]
If the details were to be described of all the commanders and servants
appointed by me, with the conditions and connections and rank of each,
it would be a long business. Many of my immediate attendants and
personal followers and nobles' sons, house-born ones (khanazadan) and
zealous Rajputs, petitioned to accompany this expedition. A thousand
ahadis, the meaning of which is single ones (Blochmann, p. 20),
were also appointed. In short, a force was collected together such
that if reliance on the Friend (God) were vouchsafed, it could have
embarked on enmity and conflict with any one of the monarchs of power.
"Soldiers came up from all sides,
Seizing life from heroes of the world in battle;
They had no fear of death from the sharp sword,
No terror of water [37] and no flight from fire;
In valour singular, in vigour a crowd,
Anvils in endurance, rocks in attack."
When I was prince I had entrusted, in consequence of my extreme
confidence [38] in him, my own uzuk seal [39] to the Amiru-l-umara
(Sharif), but when he was sent off to the province of Bihar I made
it over to Parwiz. Now that Parwiz went off against the Rana, I made
it over, according to the former arrangement, to the Amiru-l-umara.
Parwiz was born of Sahib-Jamal (Mistress of Beauty), the cousin [40]
of Zain Khan Koka, who, in point of affinity, was on the same footing
[41] as Mirza `Aziz Koka, in the 34th year of my father's reign,
in the city of Kabul, two years and two months after the birth of
Khusrau. After several other children had been born to me and had been
received into God's mercy, a daughter was born of Karamsi, [42] who
belonged to the Rathor clan, and the child received the name of Bihar
Banu Begam. To Jagat Gosa'in, [43] daughter of the Mota Raja (the fat
raja), was born Sultan Khurram, in the 36th year of my father's reign,
corresponding to A.H. 999, [44] in the city of Lahore. His advent
made the world joyous (khurram), [45] and gradually, as his years
increased, so did his excellencies, and he was more attentive to my
father than all (my) other children, who was exceedingly pleased with
and grateful for his services, and always recommended him to me and
frequently told me there was no comparison between him and my other
children. He recognised him as his real child.
After that (Khurram's birth) some other children were born who
died in infancy, and then within one month two sons were borne by
concubines. One of these I called Jahandar and the other Shahryar. [46]
About this time there came a petition from Sa`id Khan with regard
to granting leave to Mirza Ghazi, who was a son of the ruler of the
province of Thathah (Tattah in Sind). [47] I said that as my father
had betrothed his sister to my son Khusrau, please God, when this
alliance came into force, I would give him leave to return to Sind.
A year before I became king I had determined that I would drink no
wine on Friday eve, and I hope at the throne of God that He will keep
me firm in this resolve as long as I live.
Twenty thousand rupees were given to Mirza Muhammad Riza Sabzwari to
divide amongst the faqirs and the needy of Delhi. The viziership of
my dominions I gave in the proportions of half and half to Khan Beg,
[48] to whom when I was prince I had given the title of Waziru-l-mulk,
and to Wazir Khan [49] (Muqim), and I gave to Shaikh Farid Bukhari,
who held the rank of 4,000, that of 5,000. I promoted Ram Das
Kachhwaha, whom my father had favoured, and who held the rank of
2,000, to that of 3,000. I sent dresses of honour to Mirza Rustam,
son of Mirza Sultan Husain and grandson of Shah Isma`il, the ruler of
Qandahar, and to `Abdu-r-Rahim Khankhanan, son of Bairam Khan, and to
Iraj and Darab, his sons, and to other nobles attached to the Deccan
(command). Barkhurdar, son of `Abdu-r-Rahman, son of Mu'ayyid Beg, as
he had come to court without a summons, I ordered back to his jagir.
[50]It is not according to good manners to go to the king's banquet
without a summons, otherwise there would be no forbidding of the
doors and walls to the foot of desire.
A month had elapsed after my auspicious accession when Lala Beg, who
while I was prince had obtained the title of Baz Bahadur, obtained
the blessing of waiting on me. His rank, which had been 1,500, was
raised to 4,000. I promoted him to the Subah of Bihar and gave him
2,000 rupees. Baz Bahadur is of the lineage of the special attendants
of our family; his father's name was Nizam, and he was librarian to
Humayun. Kesho Das Maru, who is a Rajput of the province of Mairtha
and is greater in loyalty than his contemporaries, I promoted to the
rank of 1,500. I directed the `ulama and the learned men of Islam
to collect those of the distinctive appellations of God which were
easy to remember, in order that I might make them into my rosary [51]
(ward). On Friday eves [52] I associate with learned and pious men, and
with dervishes and recluses. When Qilij Khan, who was one of the old
retainers of the State in my revered father's reign, was appointed to
the government of the province of Gujarat, I presented him with a lakh
of rupees for his expenses. I raised Miran Sadr Jahan from the rank
of 2,000 to that of 4,000. I knew him in my childhood when I read the
"Forty Sayings" with Shaikh `Abdu-n-Nabi, [53] whose history is given
in detail in the Akbarnama. From these early days till now Miran Sadr
Jahan has acted towards me with single-minded loyalty, and I regard him
as my preceptor in religions matters (khalifa). Whilst I was prince
and before my revered father's illness, and during that time, when
the ministers (pillars of the State) and the high nobles had become
agitated, and each had conceived some idea of gain for himself and
wished to become the originator of some act which could only bring
ruin on the State, he had not failed in the activity of his service
and devotedness. Having made `Inayat Beg, [54] who for a long period
in the reign of my father had been Master of Works (Diwan-i-buyutat)
and held the rank of 700, half-vizier of my dominions in the place
of Wazir Khan, I gave him the high title of I`timadu-d-daula with
the rank of 1,500, and I appointed Wazir Khan to the Diwani of the
province of Bengal, and assigned to him the settlement of the revenues
thereof. To Patr Das, who in the time of my father had the title of
Ray Rayan, I gave the title of Raja Bikramajit. The latter was one of
the great Rajas of India, and it was in his reign that astronomical
observatories were established in India. I made Patr Das Master of
Ordnance, and ordered that he should always have light artillery
[55] in the arsenal, 50,000 light guns [56] and 3,000 gun-carriages,
ready and in efficient order. He was a khatri by caste, and rose in
my father's service from being accountant of the elephants' stables
to be diwan and an amir. He is not wanting in military qualities
and in administrative skill. I made Khurram, the son of Khan A`zam
(`Aziz Koka), who had had the rank of 2,000, an officer of 2,500.
As it was my desire that many of the Akbari and Jahangiri officers
should obtain the fruition of their wishes, I informed the bakhshis
that whoever wished to have his birthplace made into his jagir should
make a representation to that effect, so that in accordance with the
Chingiz canon (tura) the estate might be conveyed to him by al tamgha
and become his property, and he might be secured from apprehension of
change. Our ancestors and forefathers were in the habit of granting
jagirs to everyone under proprietary title, and adorned the farmans
for these with the al tamgha seal, which is an impressed seal made in
vermilion (i.e. red ink). I ordered that they should cover the place
for the seal, with gold-leaf (tilaposh) and impress the seal thereon,
and I called this the altun [57] tamgha.
I had selected from the other sons of Shahrukh, Mirza Sultan, [58] son
of Mirza Shahrukh the grandson of Mirza Sulaiman, who was a descendant
(great-grandson) of Mirza Sultan Abu Sa`id and for a long time ruler
of Badakhshan, and with consent of my [59] revered father brought
him into my service. I count him as a son, and have promoted him to
the rank of 1,000. I also promoted Bhao Singh, son of Raja Man Singh
and the most capable of his sons, from his original rank to that of
1,500. I raised Zamana Beg, [60] son of Ghayur Beg of Kabul, who has
served me personally from his childhood, and who, when I was prince,
rose from the grade of an ahadi to that of 500, giving him the title
of Mahabat Khan and the rank of 1,500. He was confirmed as bakhshi
of my private establishment (shagird-pisha).
I promoted Raja Bir Singh Deo, a Bandela Rajput, who had obtained my
favour, and who excels his equals and relatives in valour, personal
goodness, and simple-heartedness, to the rank of 3,000. The reason
for his advancement and for the regard shown to him was that near the
end of my revered father's time, Shaikh Abu-l-fazl, who excelled the
Shaikhzadas of Hindustan in wisdom and learning, had adorned himself
outwardly with the jewel of sincerity, and sold it to my father at
a heavy price. He had been summoned from the Deccan, and, since his
feelings towards me were not honest, he both publicly and privately
spoke against me. At this period when, through strife-exciting
intriguers, the august feelings of my royal father were entirely
embittered against me, it was certain that if he obtained the honour
of waiting on him (Akbar) it would be the cause of more confusion, and
would preclude me from the favour of union with him (my father). It
became necessary to prevent him from coming to Court. As Bir Singh
Deo's country was exactly on his route and he was then a rebel, I
sent him a message that if he would stop that sedition-monger and
kill him he would receive every kindness from me. By God's grace,
when Shaikh Abu-l-fazl was passing through Bir Singh Deo's country,
the Raja blocked his road, and after a little contest scattered his
men and killed him. He sent his head to me in Allahabad. Although this
event was a cause of anger in the mind of the late king (Akbar), in
the end it enabled me to proceed without disturbance of mind to kiss
the threshold of my father's palace, and by degrees the resentment
of the king was cleared away.
I made Mir Ziya'u-d-din of Qazwin, who had done me service in
the days of my princehood and had shown loyalty, commander of
1,000 and accountant of the stables. An order was given that every
day thirty horses should be produced before me for the purpose of
making presents. I honoured Mirza `Ali Akbarshahi, who is one of the
distinguished braves of this family, [61] with the rank of 4,000,
and gave him the sarkar of Sambhal as his jagir.
One day the Amiru-l-umara (Sharif Khan) greatly pleased me by an
incidental remark. It was this: "Honesty and dishonesty are not
confined to matters of cash and goods; to represent qualities as
existing in acquaintances which do not exist, and to conceal the
meritorious qualities of strangers, is dishonesty. In truth, honesty
of speech consists in making no distinction between intimates and
strangers and in describing each man as he really is."
When I sent off Parwiz I had said to him, "If the Rana himself, and
his eldest son who is called Karan, should come to wait upon you and
proffer service and obedience, you should not do any injury to his
territory." My intention in this recommendation was of two kinds;
one, that inasmuch as the conquest of Transoxiana was always in the
pure mind of my revered father, though every time he determined on it
things occurred to prevent it, if this business could be settled, and
this danger dismissed from my mind, I would leave Parwiz in Hindustan,
and in reliance on Allah, myself start for my hereditary territories,
especially as at this time there was no permanent ruler in that
region. Baqi Khan, who, after `Abdu-llah Khan and `Abdu-l-Mu'min
Khan, his son, had acquired complete independence, had died, and the
affairs of Wali Muhammad Khan, his brother, who is now the ruler of
that region, had not as yet been brought into proper order. Secondly,
to bring about the termination of the war in the Deccan, of which a
part in the time of my revered father had been acquired, so that it
might come into possession, and be incorporated with the Imperial
dominions. My hope is that through the favour of Allah both these
undertakings will be accomplished.
"Though a king should seize the seven climes, [62]
He still would labour to take others."
I promoted Mirza Shahrukh, [63] grandson of Mirza Sulaiman, (once)
the ruler of Badakhshan, who was nearly related to my family, and held
the rank of 5,000 in my father's service, to the rank of 7,000. The
Mirza is a true Turk in disposition and simple-minded. My father
conferred great honour on him, and whenever he bade his own sons
sit he gratified him also with this distinction. Notwithstanding the
mischievous propensities of the people of Badakhshan, the Mirza in
this familiarity never left the right road, or undertook anything
that might lead to unpleasantness. I confirmed him in the Subah of
Malwa just as my father had kindly conferred it on him.
I conferred on Khwaja `Abdu-llah, who is of the Naqshbandi family,
and in the commencement of his service was an ahadi, and who had
risen by degrees to the command of 1,000, but without reason had gone
into my father's service, the rank and jagir my father had conferred
on him. Although I considered it best for my own prosperity that my
attendants and people should go into his (Akbar's) service, yet this
had occurred without my leave, and I was rather annoyed at it. But the
fact is that he is a manly and zealous man; if he had not committed
this fault he would have been a faultless hero (jawan).
Abu-n-nabi, [64] the Uzbeg, who is one of the distinguished inhabitants
of Mawara'a-n-nahr and in the time of `Abdu-l-Mu'min Khan was governor
of Mashhad, obtained the rank of 1,500.
Shaikh Hasan is the son of Shaikh Baha. [65] From the days of
his childhood to this day he has always been in my service and in
attendance on me, and when I was prince was distinguished by the
title of Muqarrab Khan. He was very active and alert in his service,
and in hunting would often traverse long distances by my side. He
is skilful with the arrow and the gun, and in surgery is the most
skilful of his time. His ancestors also had been well practised
in this profession. After my accession, in consequence of the
perfect confidence I had in him, I sent him to Burhanpur to bring
the children and dependants of my brother Daniyal to wait on me,
and sent a message to the Khankhanan in low and high words [66]
and profitable admonitions. Muqarrab Khan performed this service
correctly and in a short time, and, clearing off the suspicions which
had entered the minds of the Khankhanan and the nobles of that place,
brought those who had been left behind by my brother in safety and
security, together with his establishment and property and effects,
to Lahore, and there presented them before me.
I promoted Naqib Khan, [67] who is one of the genuine Sayyids of
Qazwin and is called Ghiyasu-d-din `Ali, to the rank of 1,500. My
father had distinguished him with the title of Naqib Khan, and in
his service he had complete intimacy and consideration. Shortly after
his accession he (Akbar) had discussed several matters with him, and
from this familiarity he called him akhund. He has no equal or rival
in the science of history and in biographies. There is in this day
no chronologist like him in the inhabited world. From the beginning
of Creation till the present time, he has by heart the tale of the
four quarters of the world. Has Allah granted to any other person
such faculty of memory?
Shaikh Kabir, who was of the family of the venerable Shaikh Salim,
I had honoured with the title of Shaja`at Khan when I was prince,
on account of his manliness and bravery. I now selected him for the
rank of 1,000.
On Sha`ban 27th (28th December, 1605) a strange thing was done by
the sons of Akhayraj, son of Bhagwan Das, the paternal uncle [68] of
Raja Man Singh. These unlucky ones, who bore the names of Abhay Ram,
Bijay Ram, and Shyam Ram, were exceedingly immoderate. Notwithstanding
that the aforesaid Abhay Ram had done improper (disproportioned) acts,
I had winked at his faults. When at this date it was represented to me
that this wretch was desirous of despatching his wives and children
without leave to his own country and afterwards of himself running
away to the Rana, who is not loyal to this family, I referred to
Ram Das and other Rajput nobles, and said to them that if any one
of them would become security for them, I would confirm the rank
and jagir of those wretches, and passing over their offences would
forgive them. In consequence of their excessive turbulence and bad
disposition no one became security. I told the Amiru-l-umara that
as no one would be bound for them, they must be handed over to
the charge of one of the servants of the Court until security was
forthcoming. The Amiru-l-umara gave them over to Ibrahim Khan Kakar,
who was afterwards dignified with the title of Dilawar Khan, and Hatim,
[69] second son of Mangli, who held the title of Shahnawaz Khan. [70]
When these wished to disarm these foolish people, they refused,
and, not observing the dues of good manners, began, together with
their servants, to quarrel and fight. The Amiru-l-umara reported the
circumstance to me, and I ordered them to be punished according to
their deeds. He betook himself to driving them off, and I sent Shaikh
Farid also after him. One Rajput armed with a sword, and another with
a dagger stood up to the Amiru-l-umara. One of his attendants named
Qutb engaged the man with the dagger and was killed. The Rajput also
was cut to pieces. One of the Afghan attendants of the Amiru-l-umara
attacked the one who had the sword and killed him. Dilawar Khan drew
his dagger and turned towards Abhay Ram, who with two others was
holding his ground, and after wounding one of these fell down after
receiving wounds from the three. Some of the ahadis and the men of
the Amiru-l-umara opposed and slew these doomed men. A Rajput drew
his sword and turned to Shaikh Farid; he was met by a Habshi slave,
who brought him down. This disturbance took place in the courtyard
of the public palace. That punishment served as a warning to many
who had not looked to consequences. Abu-n-nabi [71] represented that
if such a deed had been done in the Uzbeg country the whole family
and connections of that band of men would have been destroyed. I
replied that as these people had been treated kindly and educated
by my revered father I carried on the same benevolence to them, and
justice demands that many shall not be chastised for the fault of one.
Shaikh Husain Jami, who now sits on the cushion of darwishi and is
one of the disciples of the dervish of Shiraz, [72] had written to
me from Lahore six months before my accession that he had seen in a
dream that saints and pious men had delivered over the affairs of
the kingdom to that chosen one of the Court of Allah (Jahangir),
and that, rejoicing in this good news, he should await the event,
and that he hoped that when it had occurred, the faults of Khwaja
Zakariyya, who was one of the Ahrariyya, [73] would be pardoned. [74]
I conferred on Tash Beg Furji, [75] who was one of the old servants of
the State, and whom my father had honoured with the title of Taj Khan,
and who had the rank of 2,000, that of 3,000, and I raised Tukhta [76]
Beg Kabuli from the rank of 2,500 to that of 3,000. He is a brave
and active man, and was greatly trusted in the service of my uncle,
Mirza Muhammad Hakim. I promoted Abu-l-Qasim Tamkin, [77] who was
one of my father's old servants, to the rank of 1,500. There are
few men such as he for abundance of children; he has thirty sons,
and if his daughters do not number so many they must be half that
number. I dignified Shaikh `Ala'u-d-din, grandson of Shaikh Salim,
who had strong connections with me, with the title of Islam Khan,
and promoted him to the rank of 2,000. He had grown up with me from
his childhood, and may be a year younger than I. He is a brave and
well-dispositioned youth, and is distinguished in every way above
his family. Till now he has never drunk intoxicating drinks, and his
sincerity towards me is such that I have honoured him with the title
of son.
I have bestowed on `Ali Asghar Barha, who has not a rival in bravery
and zeal, and is the son of Sayyid Mahmud Khan Barha, one of my
father's old nobles, the title of Saif Khan, and thus distinguished him
amongst his equals and connections. He is evidently a brave youth. He
was always one of the confidential men who went with me to hunt and to
other places. He has never in his life drunk anything intoxicating,
and as he has abstained in his youth he probably will attain high
dignities. I granted him the rank of 3,000.
I promoted Faridun, son of Muhammad Quli Khan Barlas, who held the rank
of 1,000, to that of 2,000. Faridun is one of the tribe of Chaghatay,
and is not devoid of manliness and courage.
I promoted Shaikh Bayazid, grandson of Shaikh Salim, who held the
rank of 2,000, to that of 3,000. The first person who gave me milk,
but for not more than a day, was the mother of Shaikh Bayazid.
[78]One day I observed to the Pandits, that is, the wise men of
the Hindus, "If the doctrines of your religion are based on the
incarnation of the Holy Person of God Almighty in ten different forms
by the process of metempsychosis, they are virtually rejected by the
intelligent. This pernicious idea requires that the Sublime Cause,
who is void of all limitations, should be possessed of length,
breadth, and thickness. If the purpose is the manifestation of the
Light of God in these bodies, that of itself is existent equally in
all created things, and is not peculiar to these ten forms. If the
idea is to establish some one of God's attributes, even then there
is no right notion, for in every faith and code there are masters
of wonders and miracles distinguished beyond the other men of their
age for wisdom and eloquence." [79] After much argument and endless
controversy, they acknowledged a God of Gods, devoid of a body or
accidents, [80] and said, "As our imagination fails to conceive a
formless personality (zat-i-mujarrad), we do not find any way to
know Him without the aid of a form. We have therefore made these
ten forms the means of conceiving of and knowing Him." Then said I,
"How can these forms be a means of your approaching the Deity?"
My father always associated with the learned of every creed and
religion, especially with Pandits and the learned of India, and
although he was illiterate, so much became clear to him through
constant intercourse with the learned and wise, in his conversations
with them, that no one knew him to be illiterate, and he was so
acquainted with the niceties of verse and prose compositions that
his deficiency was not thought of.
In his august personal appearance he was of middle height, but
inclining to be tall; he was of the hue of wheat; his eyes and
eyebrows were black, and his complexion rather dark than fair;
he was lion-bodied, [81] with a broad chest, and his hands and
arms long. On the left side of his nose he had a fleshy mole, very
agreeable in appearance, of the size of half a pea. Those skilled
in the science of physiognomy considered this mole a sign of great
prosperity and exceeding good fortune. His august voice was very
loud, and in speaking and explaining had a peculiar richness. In
his actions and movements he was not like the people of the world,
and the glory of God manifested itself in him.
"Greatness in his manner, kingship in his lineage,
As if Solomon would have put the ring on his finger." [82]
Three months after my birth my sister, Shahzada Khanam, was born to one
of the royal concubines; they gave her over to his (Akbar's) mother,
Maryam Makani. After her a son was born to one of the concubines,
and received the name of Shah Murad. As his birth occurred in the
hill country of Fathpur, he was nicknamed Pahari. When my revered
father sent him to conquer the Deccan, he had taken to excessive
drinking through associating with unworthy persons, so that he died
in his 30th year, in the neighbourhood of Jalnapur, in the province
of Berar. His personal appearance was fresh-coloured; he was thin
in body and tall of stature. Dignity and authority were evident in
his movements, and manliness and bravery manifested themselves in
his ways. On the night of Jumada-l-awwal 10th, A.H. 979 (September,
1572), another son was born to one of the concubines. As his birth
took place at Ajmir in the house of one of the attendants of the
blessed shrine of the reverend Khwaja Mu`inu-d-din Chishti, whose
name was Shaikh Daniyal, this child was called Daniyal.
After the death of my brother Shah Murad, he (Akbar), towards the
end of his reign, sent Daniyal to conquer the Deccan and followed
him himself. When my revered father was besieging Asir (Asirgarh) he,
with a large body of nobles such as the Khankhanan and his sons and
Mirza Yusuf Khan, invested the fort of Ahmadnagar, and it came into
the possession of the victorious officers about the time that Asir
was taken. After my father `Arsh-ashyani had returned in prosperity
and victory from Burhanpur towards his capital, he gave the province
to Daniyal and left him in possession of that territory. Daniyal took
to improper ways, like his brother Shah Murad, and soon died from
excessive drinking, in the 33rd year of his age. His death occurred
in a peculiar way. He was very fond of guns and of hunting with the
gun. He named one of his guns yaka u janaza, 'the same as the bier,'
and himself composed this couplet and had it engraved on the gun:--
"From the joy of the chase with thee, life is fresh and new;
To everyone whom thy dart strikes, 'tis the same as his bier." [83]
When his drinking of wine was carried to excess, and the circumstance
was reported to my father, farmans of reproach were sent to the
Khankhanan. Of course he forbade it, and placed cautious people to look
after him properly. When the road to bring wine was completely closed,
he began to weep and to importune some of his servants, and said:
"Let them bring me wine in any possible way." He said to Murshid
Quli Khan, a musketeer who was in his immediate service: "Pour some
wine into this yaka u janaza, and bring it to me." That wretch, in
hope of favour, undertook to do this, and poured double-distilled
spirit into the gun, which had long been nourished on gunpowder and
the scent thereof, and brought it. The rust of the iron was dissolved
by the strength of the spirit and mingled with it, and the prince no
sooner drank of it than he fell down.
"No one should draw a bad omen: [84]
If he does, he draws it for himself."
Daniyal was of pleasing figure, of exceedingly agreeable manners and
appearance; he was very fond of elephants and horses. It was impossible
for him to hear of anyone as having a good horse or elephant and not
take it from him. He was fond of Hindi songs, and would occasionally
compose verses with correct idiom in the language of the people of
India, which were not bad.
After the birth of Daniyal a daughter was born to Bibi Daulat-Shad
whom they named Shakaru-n-nisa Begam. [85] As she was brought
up in the skirt of my revered father's care, she turned out very
well. She is of good disposition and naturally compassionate towards
all people. From infancy and childhood she has been extremely fond
of me, and there can be few such relationships between brother and
sister. The first time when, according to the custom of pressing the
breast of a child and a drop of milk is perceptible, they pressed
my sister's breast and milk appeared, my revered father said to me:
"Baba! drink this milk, that in truth this sister may be to thee as a
mother." God, the knower of secrets, knows that from that day forward,
after I drank that drop of milk, I have felt love for my sister such
as children have for their mothers.
After some time another girl was born to this same Bibi Daulat-Shad,
and he (Akbar) called her Aram Banu Begam. [86] Her disposition was on
the whole inclined to excitement and heat. My father was very fond of
her, so much so that he described her impolitenesses as politenesses,
and in his august sight they, from his great love, did not appear
bad. Repeatedly he honoured me by addressing me, and said: "Baba! for
my sake be as kind as I am, after me, to this sister, who in Hindi
phrase is my darling (that is, dearly cherished). Be affectionate to
her and pass over her little impolitenesses and impudences."
The good qualities of my revered father are beyond the limit of
approval and the bounds of praise. If books were composed with regard
to his commendable dispositions, without suspicion of extravagance,
and he be not looked at as a father would be by his son, even then
but a little out of much could be said.
Notwithstanding his kingship and his treasures and his buried
wealth, which were beyond the scope of counting and imagination,
his fighting elephants and Arab horses, he never by a hair's breadth
placed his foot beyond the base of humility before the throne of God,
but considered himself the lowest of created beings, and never for
one moment forgot God.
"Always, everywhere, with everyone, and in every circumstance,
Keep the eye of thy heart secretly fixed on the Beloved."
The professors of various faiths had room in the broad expanse of
his incomparable sway. This was different from the practice in other
realms, for in Persia [87] there is room for Shias only, and in Turkey,
India, and Turan there is room for Sunnis only.
As in the wide expanse of the Divine compassion there is room for
all classes and the followers of all creeds, so, on the principle
that the Shadow [88] must have the same properties as the Light,
in his dominions, which on all sides were limited only by the salt
sea, there was room for the professors of opposite religions, and for
beliefs good and bad, and the road to altercation was closed. Sunnis
and Shias met in one mosque, and Franks and Jews in one church,
and observed their own forms of worship.
He associated with the good of every race and creed and persuasion,
and was gracious to all in accordance with their condition and
understanding. He passed his nights in wakefulness, and slept little
in the day; the length of his sleep during a whole night and day
(nycthemeron) was not more than a watch and a half. He counted his
wakefulness at night as so much added to his life. His courage and
boldness were such that he could mount raging, rutting elephants, and
subdue to obedience murderous elephants which would not allow their own
females near them--although even when an elephant is bad-tempered he
does no harm to the female or his driver--and which were in a state
in which they might have killed their drivers or the females, or not
have allowed their approach. He would place himself on a wall or tree
near which an elephant was passing that had killed its mahout and
broken loose from restraint, and, putting his trust in God's favour,
would throw himself on its back and thus by merely mounting, would
bring it under control and tame it. This was repeatedly seen.
He ascended the throne in his 14th year. Hemu, the infidel whom the
Afghan ruler had raised to high station, collected a wonderful force
after King Humayun's death with a stud of elephants such as no ruler
of Hindustan had at that time, and he went towards Delhi. Humayun had
appointed Akbar to drive off some of the Afghans from the foot-hills
of the Panjab, but just then he exemplified the hemistich which is
a description of the accident and the chronogram of his death--
"The august monarch (Humayun) fell from the roof. The news (of
the death) was conveyed to my father by Nazar-jivi." [89]
Bairam Khan, who was then his tutor, having collected the nobles who
were in the province, chose an auspicious hour and seated him on the
throne of rule in pargana Kalanur, near Lahore.
When Hemu reached the neighbourhood of Delhi, Tardi Beg Khan and
a large force that was in the city drew up to oppose him. When the
preparations for the combat had been made the armies attacked one
another, and, after considerable endeavours and strife, defeat fell
on Tardi Beg Khan and the Moguls, and the army of darkness overcame
the army of light.
"All things and battles and fights are of God,
He knows whose will be the victory.
From the blood of the brave and the dust of the troops,
The earth grew red and the heavens black."
Tardi Beg Khan and the other defeated ones took the road to my revered
father's camp. As Bairam Khan disliked Tardi Beg, he made this defeat
an excuse to put him to death.
A second time, through the pride engendered in the mind of this
accursed infidel by his victory, he came out of Delhi with his force
and elephants and advanced, while the glorious standards of His
Majesty (Akbar) proceeded from Kalanur for the purpose of driving
him away. The armies of darkness and light met in the neighbourhood
of Panipat, and on Thursday, Muharram 2nd, A.H. 964 (November 5th,
1556), a fight took place. In the army of Hemu were 30,000 brave
fighting horsemen, while the ghazis of the victorious army were not
more than 4,000 or 5,000. On that day Hemu was riding an elephant
named Hawa'i. Suddenly an arrow struck the eye of that infidel and
came out at the back of his head. His army, on seeing this, took to
flight. By chance Shah Quli Khan Mahram with a few brave men came up
to the elephant on which was the wounded Hemu, and would have shot an
arrow at the driver, but he cried "Do not kill me; Hemu is on this
elephant." A number of men immediately conveyed Hemu as he was to
the king (Akbar). Bairam Khan represented that it would be proper if
the king with his own hand should strike the infidel with a sword,
so that obtaining the reward of a ghazi (warrior of the Faith) he
might use this title on the imperial farmans. The king answered,
"I have cut him in pieces before this," and explained: "One day,
in Kabul, I was copying a picture in presence of Khwaja`Abdu-s-Samad
Shirin Qalam, when a form appeared from my brush, the parts of which
were separate and divided from each other. One of those near asked,
'Whose picture is this?' It came to my tongue to say that it was the
likeness of Hemu." Not defiling his hand with his (Hemu's) blood,
he told one of his servants to cut off his head. Those killed in the
defeated army numbered 5,000 in addition to those who fell in various
places round about.
Another of the well-known deeds of Akbar was the victorious expedition
against Gujarat, and his rapid march there, at the time when Mirza
Ibrahim Husain, Muhammad Husain Mirza, and Shah Mirza revolted from
this State and went towards Gujarat, and all the nobles of that
province, combining with the turbulent of those parts, besieged
the fort of Ahmadabad in which was Mirza `Aziz Koka with the royal
army. His Majesty, in consequence of the distracted state of Jiji Anga,
the mother of the last-named Mirza, started for Gujarat with a body
of royal troops without delay from the capital of Fathpur. Having
covered in the space of nine days the long road which it should take
two months to accomplish, sometimes on horseback, sometimes on a
camel or in a bullock-cart, he arrived at Sarnal.
When, on 5th Jumada-l-awwal, 980 (September 15th, 1572), he reached
the neighbourhood of the enemy's camp, he consulted with those who
were loyal to him. Some said he should make a night attack on the
camp. His Majesty, however, said that a night attack was the resort
of the faint-hearted and the way of the deceitful, and immediately
gave orders to beat the drums and set the horsemen at them. When
the river Sabar Mahi (Sabarmati) was reached, he ordered his men to
cross it in order. Muhammad Husain Mirza was agitated by the noise of
the army of victory, and himself came forward to reconnoitre. Subhan
Quli Turk, also with a troop of brave men, went to the river's bank
to enquire into the enemy's position. The Mirza asked what troops
these were. Subhan Quli replied that they were of the army of King
Jalalu-d-din Akbar. That ill-fated one would not believe this, and said
his spies had seen the king fourteen days before in Fathpur, and that
it was clear Subhan Quli was lying. To this Subhan Quli rejoined, "Nine
days ago the king with this expedition started from Fathpur." "How
could elephants have come?" [90] asked the Mirza. "What need was there
of elephants?" answered Subhan Quli. "Young men and heroes who cleave
rocks, and are better than famous and raging elephants, have come;
the difference between loyalty and sedition will now become known." The
Mirza, after this conversation, turned aside and began to marshal his
troops. The king waited until his advanced guard sent word that the
enemy had put on their armour. He then moved forward, and although
he sent several times to order the Khan A`zam to advance, the latter
stood still. It was said to Akbar that, as the enemy was in force,
it would be well to remain on his side of the river until the army of
Gujarat arrived from within the fort. His Majesty answered: "Always,
and especially in this affair, I have put my trust in God. If I had
considered routine, I should not have come in this rapid manner. Now
that our foe is ready for the fight, we ought not to delay." With
these words, and with his innate reliance on God as his shield,
he put his horse into the river with a few chosen men whom he had
appointed to ride with him. Though it was not supposed that there was
a ford, he crossed in safety. He had called for his helmet, but in
the agitation of bringing it his armour-bearer dropped the face-guard
(buffe). His comrades did not regard this as a good omen, but he said
at once, "It is an excellent omen, for it has revealed my face." [91]
Meantime the wretched Mirza arrayed his ranks to fight his benefactor.
"If thou come out (to fight) with thy benefactor,
If thou wert the sphere, thou wouldest be reversed."
The Khan A`zam had had no idea that the king would cast the shadow
of his compassion on these regions with such speed and eagerness,
and he believed no one who gave him news of that arrival, until
convinced by visible proof. Then, arraying the army of Gujarat, he
prepared to march. Meanwhile Asaf Khan also sent news to him. Before
his army issued from the fort the enemy had appeared from amongst the
trees. The king, taking the Divine aid as the security of his courage,
started off. Muhammad Quli Khan Turk and Tardi Khan Diwana came
forward with a band of brave followers, and after a little fighting
turned rein. On this His Majesty said to Bhagwan Das, "The enemy are
unnumbered and we are few; we must attack with one face and one heart;
for a clenched fist is more useful than an open hand." With these
words he drew his sword, and with shout of Allahu-akbar and Ya Mu`in
[92] charged with those devoted to him.
"The sense of the age evaporated with the clamour,
The ear of the heavens was split with the shouts."
The royal right and left wings and a band of brave men in the centre
fought with valour. Stars (kaukaba'i), which are a kind of firework,
were lighted by the enemy; they twisted about among the thorn-bushes,
and created such confusion that a noted elephant of the enemy began
to move and threw their troops into disarray. With this the royal
centre came up and dispersed Muhammad Husain and his force. Man
Singh Darbari overcame his foe under the king's eyes, and Ragho
Das Kachhwaha sacrificed his life. Muhammad Wafa, who was of the
house-born of the State, behaving very bravely, fell wounded from
his horse. By the favour of the Creator who cherishes His servants,
and simply through the courage and good fortune of the exalted king,
the enemy were scattered and defeated. In gratitude for this great
victory the king turned his face in supplication to the throne of
his merciful Maker, and poured forth his thanks.
One of the kalawants (musicians) represented to His Majesty that Saif
Khan Kokaltash had offered the coin of his life in loyalty to the
State, and on enquiry it appeared that when Muhammad Husain Mirza with
some of his riffraff was attacking the centre Saif Khan met him and
fighting valiantly became a martyr. The Mirza himself was wounded by
the hands of the brave men of the main body. The Kokaltash mentioned
is the elder brother of Zain Khan Koka.
A strange circumstance was this: on the day before the battle,
when the king was eating, he asked Hazara, who was learned in the
science of looking at the shoulder-blades (a kind of divination),
to see on whose side the victory would be. Hazara said: "The victory
will be on your side, but one of the chiefs of your army will become
a martyr." Whereupon Saif Khan Koka said "Would that this blessing
might fall to my lot!"
"Many an omen that we have treated as jest [93]
Became true when the star passed by."
In short, Mirza Muhammad Husain turned his reins, but his horse's feet
became entangled in the thorn-brake and he fell. An ahadi of the king,
Gada `Ali by name, found him, and having mounted him before him on
his horse took him to the king. As two or three claimed a share in
his capture, His Majesty asked who had made him prisoner. "The king's
salt," he answered. The king ordered his hands, that had been fastened
behind him, to be tied in front. Meanwhile he asked for water. Farhat
Khan, who was one of the confidential slaves, struck him on the head,
but the king, disapproving of this, sent for his private drinking
water and satisfied his thirst. Up to this time Mirza `Aziz Koka
and the garrison of the fort had not come out. After the capture of
the Mirza, His Majesty was proceeding slowly towards Ahmadabad. He
had delivered the Mirza to Ray Ray Singh Rathor, one of the Rajput
chiefs, to be put on an elephant and brought with him. Meanwhile
Ikhtiyaru-l-mulk, who was one of the influential Gujarati leaders,
made his appearance with an army of nearly 5,000 men. Complete
confusion fell upon the royal troops. The king, as his natural valour
and lofty disposition required, ordered the drums to be beaten, and
Shaja'at Khan, Raja Bhagwan Das, and some others charged on in front
to fight this force. Fearing that the enemy might get possession of
Mirza Muhammad Husain, Ray Ray Singh's men, by the advice and plan of
the aforesaid Raja (Bhagwan Das), cut off his head. My father did not
want to kill him. The forces of Ikhtiyaru-l-mulk also were dispersed,
and he was thrown from his horse into the thorn thicket. Suhrab Beg
Turkman cut off his head and brought it in. It was only by the grace
and power of God that such a victory was won by a small number of men.
In the same way are beyond all reckoning the conquest of the province
of Bengal, the capture of well-known and celebrated forts in Hindustan
such as Chitor and Rantambhor, the subjection of the province of
Khandesh, and the taking of the fort of Asir and of other provinces
which by the exertions of the royal armies came into the possession
of the servants of the State. If these were related in detail it
would be a long story.
In the fight at Chitor, the king with his own hand killed Jitmal,
the leader of the men in the fort. He had no rival in shooting with
a gun, and with the one with which he killed Jitmal, and which was
called Sangram, he killed some 3,000 or 4,000 birds and beasts. [94]
I may be reckoned a true pupil of his. Of all sports I am most disposed
to that with the gun, and in one day have shot eighteen deer.
Of the austerities practised by my revered father, one was the not
eating the flesh of animals. During three months of the year he ate
meat, and for the remaining nine contented himself with Sufi food,
and was no way pleased with the slaughter of animals. On many days
and in many months this was forbidden to the people. The days and
months on which he did not eat flesh are detailed in the Akbarnama.
On the day I made I`timadu-l-mulk diwan, I put Mu`izzu-l-mulk in
charge of the diwani-i-buyutat (care of buildings). The latter is a
Sayyid of Bakharz, [95] and under my revered father was accountant
of the kurkaraq department. [96]
On one of my accession days, a hundred of the Akbari and Jahangiri
servants were promoted to higher rank and jagirs. At the commencement
of the Ramazan `Id, as it was the first after my accession, I came
down to the `Idgah from my auspicious throne. There was a great crowd,
and having performed the dues of thanksgiving and praise I returned
to the palace, where according to the verse "From the table of kings
favours come to beggars," I commanded a sum of money to be spent
in alms and charity. Some lakhs of dams of this were entrusted to
Dust Muhammad (afterwards Khwaja Jahan), who divided them amongst
faqirs and those who were in want, and a lakh of dams each was given
to Jamalu-d-din Husain Anju (the lexicographer), Mirza Sadr Jahan,
and Mir Muhammad Riza Sabzawari to dispose of in charity in different
quarters of the city. I sent 5,000 rupees to the dervishes of Shaikh
Muhammad Husain Jami, and gave directions that each day one of the
officers of the watch [97] should give 50,000 dams to faqirs. I sent a
jewelled sword to the Khankhanan, and promoted Jamalu-d-din Anju to the
rank of 3,000. The office of Sadr was entrusted to Miran Sadr Jahan,
and I ordered Haji Koka, who was one of my father's foster-sisters,
[98] to bring before me in the palace such women as were worthy to be
presented with land and money. I promoted Zahid Khan, son of Muhammad
Sadiq Khan, from the rank of 1,500 to that of 2,000.
It had been the custom [99] that when the gift of an elephant or
horse was made to anyone, the naqibs and the Masters of the Horse (Mir
Akhuran) took from him a sum of money as jilawana (bridle-money). I
gave orders that this money should be paid by the government, so that
people might be freed from the importunities and demands of that set
of men.
At this time Salbahan arrived from Burhanpur and produced before me the
horses and elephants of my deceased brother Daniyal. Of the elephants,
one male named Mast Alast appeared to me the best, and I gave him the
name of Nur Gaj. A wonderful thing showed itself in this elephant; on
the sides of his ears small lumps had grown about the size of melons,
and from them came fluid such as drops from an elephant in the rutting
season; moreover, the top of his forehead was more prominent than in
other elephants. It was a splendid and imposing animal. [100]
I gave to my son Khurram (Shah-Jahan) a rosary of jewels, with the
hope that he might obtain fulfilment of all his desires, both in
visible and in spiritual things.
As I had remitted in my dominions customs duties amounting to krors,
I abolished also all the transit dues (sa'ir-jihat) in Kabul, which is
one of the noted towns on the road to Hindustan. These brought in 1
kror and 23 lakhs of dams. From the provinces of Kabul and Qandahar
large sums used to be derived every year from customs (zaka't),
which were in fact the chief revenue of those places. I remitted
these ancient dues, a proceeding that greatly benefited the people
of Iran and Turan.
Asaf Khan's jagir in the subah of Bihar had been given to Baz Bahadur;
I therefore ordered that a jagir in the Panjab should be given to
him. As it was represented to me that a large sum was in arrears
in his jagir, and now that the order for exchange had been given
its collection would be difficult, I directed that a lakh of rupees
should be given to him from the Treasury and the arrears recovered
from Baz Bahadur for the royal revenues.
I promoted Sharif Amuli to the rank of 2,500, original and increase. He
is a pure-hearted, lively-spirited man. Though he has no tincture of
current sciences, lofty words and exalted knowledge often manifest
themselves in him. In the dress of a faqir he made many journeys, and
he has friendship with many saints and recites the maxims of those
who profess mysticism. This is his conversation, not his practice
(qali-u ast na hali). In the time of my revered father he relinquished
the garments of poverty and asceticism, and attained to amirship and
chiefship. His utterance is exceedingly powerful, and his conversation
is remarkably eloquent and pure, although he is without Arabic. His
compositions also are not devoid of verve. [101]
A garden in Agra had been left by Shah Quli Khan Mahram, and as he
had no heirs I handed it over to Ruqayya Sultan Begam, the daughter
of Hindal Mirza, who had been the honoured wife of my father. [102]
My father had given my son Khurram into her charge, and she loved
him a thousand times more than if he had been her own.
THE GREAT FEAST OF NAURUZ.
On the night of Tuesday, Zi-l-qa`da 11th, A.H. 1014 (March 11th or
12th, 1606), in the morning, which is the time of the blessing of
light, his Eminence the Great Luminary passed from the constellation of
the Fish to the House of Honour in the constellation of the Ram. As
this was the first New Year's Day after my auspicious accession
I ordered them to decorate the porticoes of the private and public
halls of the palace, as in the time of my revered father, with delicate
stuffs, and to adorn them handsomely. From the first day of the Nauruz
to the 19th degree of the Ram (Aries), which is the day of culmination,
the people gave themselves over to enjoyment and happiness. Players
and singers of all bands and castes were gathered together. Dancing
lulis and charmers of India whose caresses would captivate the hearts
of angels kept up the excitement of the assemblies. I gave orders
that whoever might wish for intoxicating drinks and exhilarating
drugs should not be debarred from using them.
"Cupbearer! brighten my cup with the light of wine;
Sing, minstrel, for the world has ordered itself as I desire." [103]
In my father's time it had become established that one of the great
nobles should prepare an entertainment on each of the 17 or 18 days
of the festival, and should present His Majesty the king with choice
gifts of all kinds of jewels and jewelled things, precious stuffs,
and elephants and horses, and should invite him to take the trouble
to come to his assembly. By way of exalting his servants, he would
deign to be present, and having looked at the presents would take
what he approved of and bestow the remainder on the giver of the
entertainment. As my mind was inclined to the comfort and ease of
the army and subjects, I this year let them off their gifts with the
exception of a few from my immediate retainers, which I accepted
in order to gratify them. In those same days many servants of the
State obtained higher rank. Amongst them I raised Dilawar Khan Afghan
to 1,500, and I raised Raja Baso, who was a landholder of the hill
country of the Panjab, and who from the time I was prince till now
has kept the way of service and sincerity towards me and held the
rank of 1,500, to 3,500. Shah Beg Khan, the governor of Qandahar,
I promoted to 5,000, and Ray Ray Singh, a Rajput noble, obtained the
same rank. I gave 12,000 rupees for expenses to Rana Shankar.
At the beginning of my reign, a son of that Muzaffar Gujarati who
claimed to be descended from the rulers of that country lifted up
the head of disturbance and attacked and plundered the environs of
the city of Ahmadabad. Some sardars such as Pim [104] Bahadur Uzbeg
and Ray `Ali Bhati, who were amongst the distinguished and brave men
there, became martyrs in that outbreak. At length Raja Bikramajit
and many mansabdars were provided by me with 6,000 or 7,000 horse,
and appointed to assist the army of Gujarat. It was decided that when
things had quieted down, by the driving off of those seditious people,
Raja Bikramajit should be Subahdar of Gujarat. Qilij Khan, who had
been previously nominated to this office, should come to Court. After
the arrival of the royal troops the thread of the rebels' union was
severed; they took refuge in different jungles, and the country was
reduced to order. The news of this victory reached the ear of my
state and dignity in the most acceptable of hours (New Year time).
About this time there came a representation from my son Parwiz that
the Rana had left thana Mandal, which is about 30 [105] or 40 kos
from Ajmir, and had run away, and that a force had been appointed to
pursue him; and that it was to be hoped the good fortune of Jahangir
would cause him to become non-existent.
On the last day of the feast of the New Year, many servants of
the State were honoured with favours and increase of rank. Pishrau
Khan was an old retainer and had come from Persia (wilayat) with
Humayun; indeed, he was one of the men whom Shah Tahmasp had sent
with Humayun. His name was Mihtar Sa`adat. As under my father he
was superintendent (darogha) and head (mihtar) of the farrash-khana
(store department), and had no equal in this service, he had given
him the title of Pishrau Khan (the active Khan). Though he was a
subordinate(?) servant and had an artificer's disposition (qalaqchi
mashrab), I looked to his claims of service and gave him the rank of
2,000. [106]
THE FLIGHT OF KHUSRAU IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FIRST YEAR OF MY REIGN.
Futile [107] ideas had entered the mind of Khusrau in consequence
of his youth and the pride youths have, and the lack of experience
and the lack of foresight of worthless companions, especially at the
time of my revered father's illness. Some of these short-sighted ones,
through the multitude of their crimes and offences, had become hopeless
of pardon and indulgence, and imagined that by making Khusrau a tool
they might conduct the affairs of State through him. They overlooked
the truth that acts of sovereignty and world rule are not things to be
arranged by the worthless endeavours of defective intellects. The just
Creator bestows them on him whom he considers fit for this glorious
and exalted duty, and on such a person doth He fit the robe of honour.
"He who is seized of Fortune cannot be deprived of it;
Throne and diadem are not things of purchase;
It is not right to wrest crown and dominion
From the head which God, the Crown-cherisher, has indicated."
As the futile imaginations of the seditious and short-sighted had
no result but disgrace and regret, the affairs of the kingdom were
confirmed in the hands of this suppliant at the throne of Allah. I
invariably found Khusrau preoccupied and distracted. However much,
in favour and affection for him, I wished to drive from his mind
some of his fears and alarms, nothing was gained until, at last,
by the advice of those whose fortune was reversed, on the night of
Sunday, Zi-l-hijja 8th, of the year mentioned (April 6th, 1605), when
two gharis had passed, he made a pretence [108] of going to visit the
tomb of His Majesty (Akbar), and went off with 350 horsemen, who were
his adherents, from within the fort of Agra. Shortly after, one of the
lamp attendants who was acquainted with the Waziru-l-mulk gave him the
news of Khusrau's flight. The Vizier took him to the Amiru-l-umara,
who, as the news seemed true, came in a distracted state of mind to
the door of the private apartments and said to one of the eunuchs,
"Take in my request and say that I have a necessary representation to
make, and let the king honour me by coming out." As such an affair
had not entered my thoughts I supposed that news had come from the
Deccan or Gujarat. When I came out and heard what the news was,
I asked, "What must be done? Shall I mount myself, or shall I send
Khurram?" The Amiru-l-umara submitted that he would go if I ordered
it. "Let it be so," I said. Afterwards he said, "If he will not turn
back on my advice, and takes up arms, what must be done?" Then I said,
"If he will go in no way on the right road, do not consider a crime
anything that results from your action. Kingship regards neither son
nor son-in-law. No one is a relation to a king."
When I had said these words and other things, and had dismissed
him, it occurred to me that Khusrau was very much annoyed with him,
and that in consequence of the dignity and nearness (to me) which
he (the Amir) enjoyed, he was an object of envy to his equals and
contemporaries. [109] Perhaps they might devise treachery and destroy
him. I therefore ordered Mu`izzu-l-mulk to recall him, and selecting
in his place Shaikh Farid Bakhshi-begi commanded him to start off
at once, and to take with him the mansabdars and ahadis who were
on guard. Ihtimam Khan the kotwal was made scout and intelligence
officer. I determined, God willing, to start off myself when it was
day. Mu`izzu-l-mulk brought back the Amiru-l-umara.
About this time, Ahmad Beg Khan and Dust Muhammad Khan had been
sent off to Kabul, [110] and had got as far as Sikandra, which was
on Khusrau's route. On his arrival they came out of their tents with
some of their people, and returned and waited on me with the news that
Khusrau had taken the Panjab road and was hastening on. It occurred
to me that he might change his route and go somewhere else. As his
maternal uncle, Man Singh, was in Bengal, it occurred to many of the
servants of the State that he might go in that direction. I sent out on
every side, and ascertained that he was making for the Panjab. Meantime
day dawned, and in reliance on the grace and favour of God Almighty,
and with clear resolve, I mounted, withheld by nothing and no one.
"In truth, he who is pursued by sorrow.
Knows not how the road is or how he may travel it.
This he knows, that horror drives him on:
He knows not with whom he goes nor whom he leaves behind."
When I reached the venerable mausoleum of my revered father, which
is three kos from the city, I begged for aid to my courage from
the spirit of that honoured one. About this time they captured and
brought in [111] Mirza Hasan, son of Mirza Shahrukh, who had proposed
to accompany Khusrau. He could not deny it when I questioned him, and I
ordered them to tie his hands and mount him on an elephant. [112] This
was the first good omen manifested through the kindness and blessing
of that venerable one. At midday, as it had become exceedingly hot,
having rested awhile under the shade of a tree, I said to the Khan
A`zam that we, with all our composure, were in such a state that we
had not taken till now our regular allowance of opium, which it was
the practice to take the first thing in the morning, and no one had
reminded us of the omission. We might imagine from this what was now
the condition of that graceless one (Khusrau). [113]
My trouble was this, that my son without any cause or reason should
become an opponent and an enemy. If I should make no endeavour to
capture him, the fractious or rebellious would have an instrument,
or else he would take his own way and go for an asylum to the Uzbegs
or the Persians, and contempt would fall upon my government. On this
account, having made a special point of capturing him, I went on
after a short rest two or three kos beyond pargana Mathura, which
is 20 kos from Agra, and I alighted at one of the villages of that
pargana where there is a tank.
When Khusrau arrived at Mathura, he met Husain Beg Badakhshi, who
was of those who had received favours from my revered father and
was coming from Kabul to wait on me. As it is the temperament of
the Badakhshis to be seditious and turbulent, Khusrau regarded [114]
this meeting as a godsend, and made Husain Beg the captain and guide
of 200 or 300 Badakhshan Aimaqs, who were with him.
Anyone whom they met, they plundered of horses and goods. Merchants and
conveyers of goods were plundered by these rascals, and wheresoever
they went men's wives and children were not safe from the calamity
of these wretches. With his own eyes Khusrau was witnessing the
oppression practised in the hereditary dominions of his ancestors,
and after being a witness of the improper deeds of these rascals he
a thousand times every moment wished death for himself. Finally, he
had no remedy but to temporize with and support those dogs. If good
luck and fortune had assisted him in his affairs, he would have made
repentance and regret his voucher, and come without any deceit to
wait on me. God, who knows the world of secrets, knows that I should
have passed over his offences entirely and shown him such favour
and affection that to the extent of a hair's point no estrangement
or fear would have remained upon his mind. Inasmuch as during the
lifetime of the late king (Akbar) an intention of joining in the
sedition of some of the rebels had manifested itself in his mind, and
he knew that this had come to my knowledge, he placed no reliance on
my kindness and affection. His mother, while I was prince, in grief at
his ways and behaviour and the misconduct of her brother Madho Singh,
[115] killed herself by swallowing opium (tiryaq). [116] What shall I
write of her excellences and goodness? She had perfect intelligence,
and her devotion to me was such that she would have sacrificed a
thousand sons and brothers for one hair of mine. She constantly wrote
to Khusrau and urged him to be sincere and affectionate to me. When
she saw that it was of no use and that it was unknown how far he
would be led away, she from the indignation and high spirit which are
inherent in the Rajput character determined upon death. Her mind was
several times disturbed, for such feelings were hereditary, and her
ancestors and her brothers had occasionally showed signs of madness,
but after a time had recovered. At a time when I had gone hunting,
on Zi-l-hijja 26th, 1013 [117] (May 6th, 1605), she in her agitation
swallowed a quantity of opium, and quickly passed away. It was as if
she had foreseen this behaviour of her unworthy son.
My first marriage and that at the commencement of my adolescence
was with her. After Khusrau's birth I gave her the title of Shah
Begam. When she could not endure the bad conduct of her son and
brother towards me she became disgusted with life and died, thereby
escaping the present grief and sorrow. In consequence of her death,
from the attachment I had for her, I passed some days without any kind
of pleasure in life or existence, and for four days, which amount
to 32 watches, I took nothing in the shape of food or drink. When
this tale was told to my revered father, a letter of condolence of
excessive kindness and affection reached this devoted disciple, and
he sent me a robe of honour and the auspicious turban tied just as
he had taken it off his head. This favour threw water on the flame
of my grief and afforded complete quiet and repose to my unquietude
and disturbance. My intention in relating these circumstances is to
point out that no evil fortune is greater than when a son, through the
impropriety of his conduct and his unapproved methods of behaviour,
causes the death of his mother and becomes contumacious and rebellious
to his father, without cause or reason, but simply through his own
imaginations and futile ideas, and chooses to avoid the blessing
of waiting upon him. Inasmuch as the Almighty Avenger lays a proper
punishment on each action, of necessity his condition finally came to
this, that he was caught under the worst circumstances, and falling
from a position of trust became captive to perpetual incarceration.
"When the man of sense behaves as if drunk,
He puts his foot in a snare, his head in a noose."
To sum up, on Tuesday, Zi-l-hijja 10th, I alighted at the station
of Hodal. [118] Shaikh Farid Bakhshi and a band of valiant men were
chosen to pursue Khusrau and became the vanguard of the victorious
army. I sent back Dust Muhammad, who was in attendance on me,
on account of his previous service and his white beard, to take
charge of the fort of Agra and of the zanana and the treasuries. When
leaving Agra, I had placed the city in the charge of I`timadu-d-daula
and Waziru-l-mulk. I now said to Dust Muhammad, "As we are going to
the Panjab, and that province is in the diwani of I`timadu-d-daula,
you will despatch him to us, and will imprison and keep watch over
the sons [119] of Mirza Muhammad Hakim who are in Agra; as when such
proceedings manifest themselves in the son of one's loins what may one
expect from nephews and cousins?" After the dispatch of Dust Muhammad,
Mu`izzu-l-mulk became bakhshi.
On Wednesday I alighted at Palwal, and on Thursday at Faridabad;
on Friday, the 13th, I reached Delhi. From the dust of the road
(i.e. immediately) I hastened to the venerated tomb of Humayun, and
there besought help in my purpose, and with my own hand distributed
money to poor persons and dervishes. Thence turning to the shrine
of the venerable saint Shaikh Nizamu-d-din Auliya, I performed the
dues of pilgrimage. After this I gave a portion [120] of money to
Jamalu-d-din Husain Anju and another portion to Hakim Muzaffar that
they might divide it amongst the poor and dervishes. On Saturday
the 14th I stayed in Saray Narela. [121] This rest-house (saray)
Khusrau had burned as he went.
The rank of Aqa Mulla, brother of Asaf Khan, who had been exalted by
becoming my servant, was fixed in original and increase at 1,000 with
300 horse. He was in close attendance during this journey. Considering
that some of the Aimaqs attached to the royal army were in league
with Khusrau, and fearing that consequently some fraud or sedition
might enter their minds, 2,000 rupees were given to their leaders to
distribute amongst their men and make them hopeful of the Jahangiri
favour. I gave money to Shaikh Fazlu-llah and Raja Dhirdhar to
distribute to faqirs and brahmans on the road. I gave orders that
to Rana Shankar in Ajmir should be given 30,000 rupees by way of
assistance for his expenditure.
On Monday, the 16th, I reached the pargana of Panipat. [122] This
station and place used to be very propitious to my gracious father
and honoured ancestors, and two great victories had been gained in
it. One was the defeat of Ibrahim Lodi, which was won by the might of
the victorious hosts of His Majesty Firdus-makani. The story of this
has been written in the histories of the time. The second victory was
over the wicked Hemu, and was manifested from the world of fortune in
the beginning of the reign of my revered father, as has been described
by me in detail.
At the time that Khusrau had left Delhi and was proceeding to Panipat,
it happened that Dilawar Khan had arrived there. When shortly before
Khusrau's arrival he heard of this affair, he sent his children across
the Jumna and bravely determined to hasten on and throw himself into
the fort of Lahore before Khusrau should arrive. About this time
`Abdu-r-Rahim also reached Panipat from Lahore, and Dilawar Khan
suggested to him that he too should send his children across the
river, and should stand aside and await the victorious standards of
Jahangir. As he was lethargic and timid, he could not make up his mind
to do this, and delayed so much that Khusrau arrived. He went out and
waited on him, and either voluntarily or in a state of agitation agreed
to accompany him. He obtained the title of Malik Anwar and the position
of vizier. Dilawar Khan, like a brave man, turned towards Lahore,
and on his road informed everyone and everybody of the servants of
the court and the karoriyan, and the merchants whom he came across,
of the exodus of Khusrau. Some he took with him, and others he told
to stand aside out of the way. After that, the servants of God were
relieved of the plundering by robbers and oppressors. Most probably,
if Sayyid Kamal in Delhi, and Dilawar Khan at Panipat, had shown
courage and determination, and had blocked Khusrau's path, his
disorderly force would not have been able to resist and would have
scattered, and he himself would have been captured. The fact is that
their talents (himmat) were not equal to this, but afterwards each
made amends for his fault, viz., Dilawar Khan, by his rapid march,
entered the fort of Lahore before Khusrau reached it, and by this
notable service made amends for his earlier shortcoming, and Sayyid
Kamal manfully exerted himself in the engagement with Khusrau, as
will be described in its own place.
On Zi-l-hijja 17th the royal standards were set up in the pargana of
Karnal. Here I raised `Abidin Khwaja, son of Khwaja Kalan Juybari and
pirzada (spiritual adviser), son of `Abdu-llah Khan Uzbeg, who had
come in the time of my revered father, to the rank of 1,000. Shaikh
Nizam Thaneswari, who was one of the notorious impostors (shayyadan)
of the age, waited on Khusrau, and having gratified him with pleasant
news, again [123] led him out of the (right) path, and then came to
wait on me. As I had heard of these transactions, I gave him his road
expenses and told him to depart for the auspicious place of pilgrimage
(Mecca). On the 19th the halt was in pargana Shahabad. Here there was
very little water, but it happened that heavy rain fell, so that all
were rejoiced.
I promoted Shaikh Ahmad Lahori, who from my princehood had filled
the relationship of service and discipleship and the position of
a house-born one (khanazada) to the office of Mir-i-`Adl (Chief
Justice). Disciples [124] and sincere followers were presented on his
introduction, and to each it was necessary to give the token [125] and
the likeness (shast u shabah). They were given on his recommendation
(?). At the time of initiation some words of advice were given to
the disciple: he must not confuse or darken his years with sectarian
quarrels, but must follow the rule of universal peace with regard to
religions; he must not kill any living creature with his own hand,
and must not flay anything. The only exceptions are in battle and
the chase.
"Be not the practiser of making lifeless any living thing.
Save in the battlefield or in the time of hunting."
Honour the luminaries (the Sun, Moon, etc.), which are manifesters of
God's light, according to the degree of each, and recognize the power
and existence of Almighty God at all times and seasons. Be careful
indeed that whether in private or in public you never for a moment
forget Him.
"Lame or low [126] or crooked or unrefined,
Be amorous of Him and seek after Him."
My revered father became possessed of these principles, and was rarely
void of such thoughts.
At the stage of Aluwa(?) [127] I appointed Abu-n-nabi(?) [128] Uzbeg
with fifty-seven other mansabdars to assist Shaikh Farid, and gave
the force 40,000 rupees for its expenses. To Jamil Beg were given
7,000 rupees to divide among the Aimaqs (cavalry). I also presented
Mir Sharif Amuli [129] with 2,000 rupees.
On Tuesday the 24th of the same month they captured five of the
attendants and comrades of Khusrau. Two of these, who confessed to
his service, I ordered to be thrown under the feet of elephants,
and three who denied were placed in custody that enquiry might be
made. On Farwardin 12th of the first year of my reign, Mirza Husain
and Nuru-d-din Quli the kotwal entered Lahore, and on the 24th of
the same month a messenger of Dilawar Khan arrived (there) with news
that Khusrau was moving on Lahore and that they should be on their
guard. On the same day the city gates were guarded and strengthened,
and two days later Dilawar Khan entered the fort with a few men and
began to strengthen the towers and walls. Wherever these were broken
and thrown down he repaired them, and, placing cannon and swivel guns
on the citadel, he prepared for battle. Assembling the small number
of the royal servants who were in the fort, they were assigned their
several duties, and the people of the city also with loyalty gave their
assistance. Two days later, and when all was ready, Khusrau arrived,
and, having fixed a place for his camp, gave orders to invest [130]
the city and to prepare for battle, and to burn one of the gates on
any side where one could be got at. "After taking the fort," he said
to his wicked crew, "I will give orders to plunder the city for seven
days and to make captive the women and children."
This doomed lot set fire to a gate, and Dilawar Beg Khan, Husain Beg
the diwan, and Nuru-d-din Quli the kotwal built a wall inside opposite
the gateway.
Meantime Sa`id Khan, who was one of those appointed to Kashmir and was
now encamped on the Chenab, having heard the news, started rapidly for
Lahore. When he reached the Ravi he sent word to the garrison of the
fort that he came with a loyal intention and that they should admit
him. They sent someone at night and conducted him and some of his
men inside. When the siege had lasted nine days, news of the approach
of the royal army came repeatedly to Khusrau and his adherents. They
became helpless (bi pa), and made up their minds that they must face
the victorious army.
As Lahore is one of the greatest places in Hindustan, a great number of
people gathered in six or seven days. It was reported on good authority
that 10,000 or 12,000 horse were collected, and had left the city with
the view of making a night attack on the royal vanguard. This news
was brought to me at the saray of Qazi `Ali on the night of Thursday
the 16th. Although it rained heavily in the night I beat the drum of
march and mounted. Arriving in Sultanpur at dawn I remained there till
noon. By chance, at this place and hour the victorious army encountered
that ill-fated band. Mu`izzu-l-mulk had brought a dish of roast meat,
[131] and I was turning towards it with zest when the news of the
battle was brought to me. Though I had a longing to eat the roast
meat, I immediately took a mouthful by way of augury and mounted,
and without waiting for the coming up of men and without regard to
the smallness of my force I went off in all haste. However much I
demanded my chiltah (wadded coat), they did not produce it. My only
arms were a spear and sword, but I committed myself to the favour of
God and started off without hesitation. At first my escort did not
number more than fifty horsemen; no one had expected a fight that
day. In fine, when I reached the head of the bridge of Gobindwal,
[132] 400 or 500 horse, good and bad, had come together. When I
had crossed the bridge the news of a victory was brought to me. The
bearer of the good news was Shamsi, tushakchi (wardrobe man), and
for his good news he obtained the title of Khush-khabar Khan. Mir
Jamalu-d-din Husain, whom I had sent previously to advise Khusrau,
came up at the same time and said such things about the number and
bravery of Khusrau's men as frightened his hearers. Though news
of the victory came continuously, this simple-minded Sayyid would
not believe it, and expressed incredulity that such an army as he
had seen could be defeated by Shaikh Farid's force, which was small
and not properly equipped. When they brought Khusrau's litter [133]
with two of his eunuchs, the Mir admitted what had happened. Then,
alighting from his horse, he placed his head at my feet and professed
every kind of humility and submission, and said that there could be
no higher or more lofty fortune than this.
In this command Shaikh Farid behaved with sincerity and devotion. The
Sayyids of Barha, who are of the brave ones of the age, and who
have held this place in every fight in which they have been, formed
the van. Saif Khan, son of Sayyid Mahmud Khan Barha, the head
of the tribe, had shown great bravery and had received seventeen
wounds. Sayyid Jalal, also of the brethren of this band, received an
arrow in his temple and died a few days later. At the time when the
Sayyids of Barha, who were not more than fifty or sixty in number,
having received wounds from 1,500 Badakhshi horsemen, had been cut
to pieces, Sayyid Kamal, who, with his brothers, had been appointed
to support the van, came up on the flank and fought with wondrous
bravery and manliness. After that the men of the right wing raised
the cry of Padshah salamat ("Long live the King") and charged,
and the rebels hearing the words, gave up and scattered abroad to
various hiding-places. About 400 Aimaqs became crushed on the plain
of anger and overcome by the victorious army. Khusrau's box of jewels
and precious things which he had always with him, fell into our hands.
"Who thought that this boy of few years
Would behave so badly to his sire?
At the first taste of the cup he brings up the lees.
He melts away my glory and his own modesty.
He sets on fire [134] the throne of Khurshid,
He longs for the place of Jamshid."
Short-sighted men in Allahabad had urged me also to rebel against my
father. Their words were extremely unacceptable and disapproved by
me. I know what sort of endurance a kingdom would have, the foundations
of which were laid on hostility to a father, and was not moved by
the evil counsels of such worthless men, but acting according to the
dictates of reason and knowledge I waited on my father, my guide,
my qibla, [135] and my visible God, and as a result of this good
purpose it went well with me.
In the evening of the day of Khusrau's flight I gave Raja Baso, who
is a trusty zamindar of the hill-country of Lahore, leave to go to
that frontier, and, wherever he heard news or trace of Khusrau, to
make every effort to capture him. I also appointed Mahabat Khan and
Mirza `Ali Akbarshahi to a large force, which was to pursue Khusrau
in whatever direction he might go. I resolved with myself that if
Khusrau went to Kabul, I would follow him and not turn back till he
was captured. If not delaying in Kabul he should go on to Badakhshan
and those regions, I would leave Mahabat Khan in Kabul and return
myself (to India). My reason for not going to Badakhshan was that that
wretch would (in that case) certainly ally himself with the Uzbegs,
and the disgrace would attach to this State.
On the day on which the royal troops were ordered to pursue Khusrau,
15,000 rupees were given to Mahabat Khan and 20,000 to the ahadis,
and 10,000 more were sent with the army to be given to whom it might
be necessary to give it on the way.
On Saturday, the 28th, the victorious camp was pitched at Jaipal,
[136] which lies seven kos from Lahore. On the same day Khusrau
arrived with a few men on the bank of the Chenab. The brief account
of what had happened is that after his defeat those who had escaped
with him from the battle became divided in opinion. The Afghans and
Indians, who were mostly his old retainers, wished to double back
like foxes into Hindustan, and to become a source of rebellion and
trouble there. Husain Beg, whose people and family and treasure were
in the direction of Kabul, suggested going to Kabul. In the end, as
action was taken according to the wish of Husain Beg, the Hindustanis
and the Afghans decided to separate themselves from him. On arriving
at the Chenab, he proposed to cross at the ferry of Shahpur, which
is one of the recognized crossings, but as he could find no boats
there he made for the ferry of Sodharah, where his people got one
boat without boatmen and another full of firewood and grass.
The ferries over the rivers had been stopped because before
Khusrau's defeat orders had been given to all the jagirdars and the
superintendents of roads and crossings in the subah of the Panjab
that as this kind of dispute had arisen they must all be on the
alert. Husain Beg wished to transfer the men from the boat with
firewood and grass to the other, so that they might convey Khusrau
across. At this juncture arrived Kilan, [137] son-in-law of Kamal
Chaudhari of Sodharah, and saw a body of men about to cross in the
night. He cried out to the boatmen that there was an order from the
king Jahangir forbidding unknown men from crossing in the night,
and that they must be careful. Owing to the noise and uproar,
the people of the neighbourhood gathered together, and Kamal's
son-in-law took from the boatmen the pole with which they propel the
boat, and which in Hindustani is called balli, and thus made the boat
unmanageable. Although money was offered to the boatmen, not one would
ferry them over. News went to Abu-l-Qasim Namakin, who was at Gujarat,
near the Chenab, that a body of men were wanting to cross the river
by night, and he at once came to the ferry in the night with his
sons and some horsemen. Things went to such a length that Husain Beg
shot arrows at the boatmen, [138] and Kamal's son-in-law also took to
shooting arrows from the river-bank. For four kos the boat took its
own way down the river, until at the end of the night it grounded,
and try as they would they could not get it off. Meantime it became
day. Abu-l-Qasim and Khwaja Khizr Khan, who by the efforts of Hilal
Khan had assembled on this (? the west) side of the river, fortified
its west bank, and the zamindars fortified it on the east.
Before this affair of Khusrau's, I had sent Hilal Khan as sazawal
to the army appointed for Kashmir under Sa`id Khan, and by chance
he arrived in the neighbourhood (of the ferry) that same night;
he came in the nick of time, and his efforts had great effect in
bringing together Abu-l-Qasim Khan Namakin, and Khwaja Khizr Khan in
the capture of Khusrau.
On the morning of Sunday, the 24th of the aforesaid month, people on
elephants and in boats captured Khusrau, and on Monday, the last day
of the month, news of this reached me in the garden of Mirza Kamran. I
immediately ordered the Amiru-l-umara to go to Gujarat and to bring
Khusrau to wait on me.
In counsels on State affairs and government it often happens that I
act according to my own judgment and prefer my own counsel to that
of others. In the first instance I had elected to wait on my revered
father from Allahabad in opposition to the advice of my faithful
servants, and I obtained the blessing of serving him, and this was
for my spiritual and temporal good. By the same course of conduct I
had become king. The second instance was the pursuit of Khusrau, from
which I was not held back by taking time to ascertain the (auspicious)
hour, etc., and from which I took no rest until I captured him. It
is a strange thing that after I had started I asked Hakim `Ali, who
is learned in mathematics, how the hour of my departure had been
(i.e. whether propitious or not), and he replied that in order to
obtain my object if I had wished to select an hour, there could not
have been for years one selected better than that in which I mounted.
On Thursday, Muharram 3rd, 1015, in Mirza Kamran's garden, they brought
Khusrau before me with his hands tied and chains on his legs from the
left side [139] after the manner and custom of Chingiz Khan. They
made Husain Beg stand on his right hand and `Abdu-r-Rahim on his
left. Khusrau stood weeping and trembling between them. Husain Beg,
with the idea that it might profit him, began to speak wildly. When
his purport became apparent to me I did not allow him to continue
talking, but handed over Khusrau in chains, and ordered these two
villains to be put in the skins of an ox and an ass, and that they
should be mounted on asses with their faces to the tail [140] and
thus taken round the city. As the ox-hide dried more quickly than
that of the ass, Husain Beg remained alive for four watches and died
from suffocation. `Abdu-r-Rahim, who was in the ass's skin and to
whom they gave some refreshment from outside, remained alive.
From Monday, the last day of Zi-l-hijja, until the 9th of Muharram
of the aforesaid year, I remained in Mirza Kamran's garden because
the time was unpropitious. [141] I bestowed Bhairawal, [142] where
the battle had taken place, on Shaikh Farid, and rewarded him with
the high title of Murtaza Khan. For the sake of good government I
ordered posts to be set up on both sides of the road from the garden
to the city, and ordered them to hang up and impale the seditious
Aimaqs and others who had taken part in the rebellion. Thus each one
of them received an extraordinary punishment. I gave headship to those
landholders who had shown loyalty, and to every one of the Chaudharis
between the Jhelam and the Chenab I gave lands for their support.
Of Husain Beg's property there were obtained from the house of Mir
Muhammad Baqi nearly seven lakhs of rupees. This was exclusive of what
he had made over to other places and of what he had with him. After
this, whenever his name is mentioned, the words [143] gawan u kharan
(bullocks and asses) will be used. When he came to this Court in
company with Mirza Shahrukh he had one horse. By degrees his affairs
flourished so that he became possessed of treasure both visible and
buried, and projects of this kind entered his mind.
While Khusrau's affair was still in the will of God, as there was no
actual governor between Afghanistan and Agra, which is a source of
sedition and mischief, and, fearing that Khusrau's affair might be
prolonged, I ordered my son Parwiz to leave some of the sardars to
look after the Rana and to come to Agra with Asaf Khan and a body of
those nearly connected with him in the service. He was to consider
the protection and management of that region his special charge. But
by the blessed favour of Allah, Khusrau's affair was settled before
Parwiz arrived in Agra; I accordingly ordered my aforesaid son to
come and wait on me.
On Wednesday, Muharram 8th, I auspiciously entered the fort of
Lahore. A number of loyalists represented to me that my return to
Agra would be for the good of the State at this time when much was
going amiss in Gujarat, in the Deccan, and in Bengal. This counsel
did not meet with my approval, for the reports of Shah Beg Khan, the
governor of Qandahar, showed that the officers of the Persian border
were meditating an attack on that fortress. They had been moved thereto
by the machinations of the residuum of the Mirzas of Qandahar's army,
which was always shaking the chain of contention. The Persian officers
had written letters to these malcontents, and there was likelihood of
a disturbance. It occurred to me that the death of His Majesty Akbar
and the unreasonable outbreak of Khusrau might put an edge on their
design, and that they might attack Qandahar. What had occurred to
my mind became a realized fact. The governor of Farah, the Malik of
Sistan, and the jagirdars of that neighbourhood, with the assistance
of Husain Khan, the governor of Herat, invaded Qandahar. Praise is
due to the manliness and courage of Shah Beg Khan, who planted his
foot firmly like a man, and strengthened the fort, and seated himself
on the top of the third(?) citadel of the aforesaid fort in such a
manner that outsiders could see his entertainments. During the siege
he girded not his loins, but with bare head and feet arranged parties
of pleasure; yet no day passed that he did not send a force from the
fort to meet the foe and did not make manly efforts. This went on as
long as he was in the fort. The Qizilbash army had invested on three
sides. When news of this reached Lahore it was clearly advisable to
remain in that neighbourhood. A large force was immediately appointed
under the leadership of Mirza Ghazi, who was accompanied by a number of
men of rank and servants of the Court, such as Qara Beg and Tukhta Beg,
who had been promoted with the titles of Qara Khan and Sardar Khan. I
appointed Mirza Ghazi to a mansab of 5,000 personal, and horsemen,
and bestowed drums on him. Mirza Ghazi was the son of Mirza Jani
Tarkhan, king of Thathah (Sind), and by the efforts of `Abdu-r-Rahim
Khankhanan that country had been conquered in the reign of the late
king. The country of Thathah was included in his jagir, and he held
the rank with personality and horsemen of 5,000. After his death his
son Mirza Ghazi was raised to his rank and service. Their ancestors
were among the amirs of Sultan Husain Mirza Bay-qara, the ruler of
Khurasan, and they were originally descended from the amirs of Timur
(Sahib-qirani). Khwaja `Aqil was appointed bakhshi of this army; 43,000
rupees were given to Qara Khan for road expenses, and 15,000 to Naqdi
Beg and Qilij Beg, who were to accompany Mirza Ghazi. I determined to
stay at Lahore in order to settle this matter and with the intention
of a tour to Kabul. About this time the rank of Hakim Fathu-llah was
fixed, original and increased, at 1,000 personality and 300 horse. As
Shaikh Husain Jami had had dreams about me which had come true, I
gave him twenty lakhs of dams, equivalent to 30,000 or 40,000 rupees,
for the expenses of himself and his monastery and the dervishes who
were with him. On the 22nd I promoted `Abdu-llah Khan to the rank of
2,500 personal and 500 horse, original and increased. I ordered to
be given to the ahadis two lakhs of rupees to be paid in advance and
deducted by degrees from their monthly pay. I bestowed 6,000 rupees
on Qasim Beg Khan, the son-in-law of Shah Beg Khan, and 3,000 rupees
on Sayyid Bahadur Khan.
In Gobindwal, which is on the river Biyah (Beas), there was a Hindu
named Arjun, [144] in the garments of sainthood and sanctity, so much
so that he had captured many of the simple-hearted of the Hindus, and
even of the ignorant and foolish followers of Islam, by his ways and
manners, and they had loudly sounded the drum of his holiness. They
called him Guru, and from all sides stupid people crowded to worship
and manifest complete faith in him. For three or four generations
(of spiritual successors) they had kept this shop warm. Many times
it occurred to me to put a stop to this vain affair or to bring him
into the assembly of the people of Islam.
At last when Khusrau passed along this road this insignificant fellow
proposed to wait upon him. Khusrau happened to halt at the place where
he was, and he came out and did homage to him. He behaved to Khusrau
in certain special ways, and made on his forehead a finger-mark
in saffron, which the Indians (Hinduwan) call qashqa, [145] and
is considered propitious. When this came to my ears and I clearly
understood his folly, I ordered them to produce him and handed over
his houses, dwelling-places, and children to Murtaza Khan, and having
confiscated his property commanded that he should be put to death.
There were two men named Raju and Amba, who, under the shadow of
the protection of the eunuch Daulat Khan, made their livelihood by
oppression and tyranny, and had done many acts of oppression in the
few days that Khusrau was before Lahore. I ordered Raju to the gallows
and a fine to be taken from Amba, who was reputed to be wealthy. In
short, 15,000 rupees were collected from him, which sum I ordered
them to expend on bulghur-khanas (refectories) and in charity.
Sa`du-llah Khan, son of Sa`d Khan, was promoted to the rank of 2,000
personal and 1,000 horse.
In his great desire to wait upon me, Parwiz traversed long distances in
a short time, in the rainy season and incessant rain, and on Thursday,
the 29th, when two watches and three ghari of day had passed, obtained
the blessing of seeing me. With exceeding kindness and affection,
I took him into the embrace of favour and kissed his forehead.
When this disgraceful conduct showed itself in Khusrau, I had
resolved not to delay in any place till I had captured him. There
was a probability that he might turn back towards Hindustan, so
it appeared impolitic to leave Agra empty, as it was the centre
of the State, the abode of the ladies of the holy harem, and the
depository of the world's treasures. On these accounts I had written
when leaving Agra to Parwiz, saying that his loyalty had had this
result, that Khusrau had fled and that Fortune had turned her face
toward himself; that I had started in pursuit of Khusrau, and that he
should consequently dispose of the affairs of the Rana in some way
according to the necessity of the time, and for the benefit of the
kingdom should himself come quickly to Agra. I had delivered into
his charge the capital and treasury, which was equal to the wealth
of Qarun, [146] and I had commended him to the God of power. Before
this letter reached Parwiz, the Rana had been so humbled that he
had sent to Asaf Khan to say that as by his own acts he had come
to shame and disgrace, he hoped that he would intercede for him in
such a way that the prince would be content with his sending Bagha,
[147] who was one of his sons. Parwiz had not agreed to this, and
said that either the Rana himself should come or that he should send
Karan. Meantime the news of Khusrau's disturbance arrived, and on its
account Asaf Khan and other loyalists agreed to the coming of Bagha,
who obtained the blessing of waiting on the prince near Mandalgarh.
Parwiz, leaving Raja Jagannath and most of the chiefs of his army,
started for Agra with Asaf Khan and some of those near to him and
his own attendants, and with him brought Bagha to the Court. When
he came near Agra he heard the news of the victory over Khusrau and
his capture, and after resting two days an order reached him that
as matters appeared settled in all quarters he should betake himself
to me, in order that on the prescribed date he might obtain the good
fortune of waiting on me. I bestowed on him the parasol (aftab-gir),
[148] which is one of the signs of royalty, and I gave him the rank
of 10,000 and sent an order to the officials to grant him a tankhwah
jagir. At this time I sent Mirza `Ali Beg to Kashmir; 10,000 rupees
were delivered to Qazi `Izzatu-llah to divide amongst faqirs and
the poor of Kabul. Ahmad Beg Khan was promoted to the rank of 2,000
personal and 1,250 horse, original and extra. At the same time Muqarrab
Khan, who had been sent to Burhanpur to bring the children of Daniyal,
returned after an absence of 6 months 22 days and had the honour of
an audience, and related in detail what had occurred in those regions.
Saif Khan was promoted to the rank of 2,000 personal and 1,000
horse. Shaikh `Abdu-l-Wahhab [149] of the Bukhara sayyids, who was
governor of Delhi under the late king, was dismissed from the post
(by me) for certain ill-deeds done by his men, and was entered amongst
the holders of subsistence lands and the arbab-i-sa`adat.
In the whole of the hereditary dominions, both the crown lands
and the jagirs, I ordered the preparation of bulghur-khanas (free
eating-houses), where cooked food might be provided for the poor
according to their condition, and so that residents and travellers
both might reap the benefit.
Amba [150] Khan Kashmiri, who was of the stock of the rulers
of Kashmir, was selected for the rank of 1,000 personal and 300
horse. On Monday, Rabi`u-l-akhir 9th, I gave Parwiz a special sword;
and jewelled swords were presented also to Qutbu-d-din Khan Koka and
the Amiru-l-umara. I saw Daniyal's children, whom Muqarrab Khan had
brought; there were three sons and four daughters. The boys bore
the names Tahmuras, [151] Baysunghar, and Hushang. Such kindness
and affection were shown by me to these children as no one thought
possible. I resolved that Tahmuras, who was the eldest, should always
be in waiting on me, and the others were handed over to the charge
of my own sisters.
A special dress of honour was sent to Raja Man Singh in Bengal. I
ordered a reward of 30 lakhs of dams to Mirza Ghazi. I bestowed
on Shaikh Ibrahim, son of Qutbu-d-din Khan Koka, the rank of 1,000
personal and 300 horse, and dignified him with the title of Kishwar
Khan.
As when I started in pursuit of Khusrau I had left my son Khurram in
charge of the palaces and treasury, I now, when that affair had been
settled, ordered the said son to attend upon Hazrat Maryam-zamani
and the other ladies, and to escort them to me. When they reached the
neighbourhood of Lahore, on Friday the 12th of the month mentioned,
I embarked in a boat and went to a village named Dahr to meet my
mother, and I had the good fortune to be received by her. After the
performance of obeisance and prostration and greeting which is due
from the young to the old according to the custom of Chingiz, the rules
of Timur and common usage, and after worship of the King of the World
(God), and after finishing this business, I obtained leave to return,
and re-entered the fort of Lahore.
On the 17th, having appointed Mu`izzu-l-mulk bakhshi of the army
against the Rana, I dismissed him to it. As news had come of the
rebellion of Ray Ray Singh and his son, Dulip, in the neighbourhood of
Nagor, I ordered Raja Jagannath to proceed against them with others
of the servants of the State and Mu`izzu-l-mulk, and to put a stop
to this disturbance. I gave 50,000 rupees to Sardar Khan, who had
been appointed to the place of Shah Beg Khan as Governor of Qandahar,
and I promoted him to the rank of 3,000 personal and 2,500 horse. To
Khizr Khan, the late ruler of Khandesh, were given 3,000 rupees, and
to his brother, Ahmad Khan, [152] who is one of the khanazadas of the
State. Hashim Khan, son of Qasim Khan, who is one of the house-born of
the State, and worthy of advancement, I promoted to the rank of 2,500
personal and 1,500 horse. I gave him also one of my own horses. I sent
robes of honour to eight individuals amongst the nobles of the army of
the Deccan. [153] Five thousand rupees were given to Nizam of Shiraz,
the story-teller. Three thousand rupees were given for the expenses
of the bulghur-khana of Kashmir to the wakil of Mirza `Ali Beg, the
governor of that place, to send to Srinagar. I presented a jewelled
dagger of the value of 6,000 rupees to Qutbu-d-din Khan.
News reached me that Shaikh Ibrahim Baba, the Afghan, had opened
a religious establishment (lit. one of being a shaikh and having
disciples) in one of the parganas [154] of Lahore, and as his doings
were disreputable and foolish a considerable number of Afghans had
collected round him. I ordered him to be brought and handed over to
Parwiz to be kept in the fort of Chunar; so this vain disturbance
was put an end to.
On Sunday, 7th Jumada-l-awwal, many of the mansabdars and ahadis
were promoted: Mahabat Khan obtained the rank of 2,000 personal
and 1,300 horse, Dilawar Khan 2,000 personal and 1,400 horse,
Waziru-l-mulk 1,300 personal and 550 horse, Qayyam Khan 1,000
personal and horse, Shyam Singh 1,500 personal and 1,200 horse;
in the same way forty-two mansabdars were promoted. On most days
the same observances occur. I presented Parwiz with a ruby of the
value of 25,000 rupees. On Wednesday the 9th of the aforesaid month,
the 21st of Shahriwar, [155] after three watches and four gharis,
the feast for my solar weighing, which is the commencement of the
38th year of my age, took place. According to custom they got ready
the weighing apparatus and the scales in the house of Maryam-zamani
(his mother). At the moment appointed blessings were invoked and I sate
in the scales. Each suspending rope was held by an elderly person who
offered up prayers. The first time the weight in gold came to three
Hindustani maunds and ten seers. After this I was weighed against
several metals, perfumes, and essences, up to twelve weighings, the
details of which will be given hereafter. Twice a year I weigh myself
against gold and silver and other metals, and against all sorts of
silks and cloths, and various grains, etc., once at the beginning
of the solar year and once at that of the lunar. The weight of the
money of the two weighings I hand over to the different treasurers
for faqirs and those in want. On the same auspicious day I promoted
Qutbu-d-din Khan Koka, who for many years had expected such a day,
[156] with various favours. First, I gave him the rank of 5,000
personal and horse, and with this a special robe of honour, a jewelled
sword, and one of my own horses, with a jewelled saddle, and I gave
him leave to go to the subahdarship of the province of Bengal and
Orissa, which is a place for 50,000 horse. As a mark of honour he
set off accompanied by a large force, and two lakhs of rupees were
given him as a sumptuary allowance. My connection with his mother is
such that as in my childhood I was under her guardianship and care,
I have not so much affection for my own mother as for her. She is to
me my gracious mother, and I do not hold him less dear than my own
brothers and children. Qutbu-d-din is the foster-brother who is most
fit for fosterage. I gave 300,000 rupees to his auxiliaries. On this
day I sent 130,000 as a marriage present (sachiq) for the daughter
of Pahari (his brother Murad), who had been betrothed to Parwiz.
On the 22nd, Baz Bahadur Qalmaq, who had long been guilty of evil
practices in Bengal, by the guidance of fortune obtained the honour
of kissing my threshold. I gave him a jewelled dagger, 8,000 rupees,
and promoted him to the rank of 1,000 personal and horse. One lakh of
rupees and cash and jewels were bestowed on Parwiz. Kesho Das Maru
was promoted to the grade of 1,500 personal and horse. Abu-l-hasan,
who had been the diwan and factotum of my brother Daniyal, together
with his children, [157] had the honour of an audience, and was
raised to the rank of 1,000 personal and 500 horse. On the 1st of the
second Jumada Shaikh Bayazid, [158] who was one of the shaikhzadas
of Sikri, well known for brilliance of understanding and knowledge,
and the connection of old service, [159] was honoured with the title
of Mu`azzam Khan, and to him I gave the government of Delhi. On the
21st of the same month I presented Parwiz with a necklace composed
of four rubies and one hundred pearls. The rank of Hakim Muzaffar
was fixed at 3,000 personal and 1,000 horse, original and extra. I
gave 5,000 rupees to Nathu Mal (?), Raja of Manjholi. [160]
A remarkable occurrence was the discovery of a letter from Mirza `Aziz
Koka to `Ali Khan, the ruler of Khandesh. I had had an impression
that he had a particular enmity to me on Khusrau's account, who was
his son-in-law. From the discovery of this writing it became clear
that he had never given up his innate treachery, and had adopted
this unbecoming attitude towards my revered father also. In short,
this letter which he had written at some time to Raja `Ali Khan was
from beginning to end full of abuse and disapprobation, and said
things which no enemy even could have written and such as could
not be attributed to anyone, and far less to one like His Majesty,
`Arsh-ashyani, a king and an appreciative sovereign, who from childhood
had educated him and brought him up because of what was due for
services rendered by his mother, and raised the standard of reliance
on him to such a high degree as no other person possessed. This letter
fell into the hands of Khwaja Abu-l-hasan in Burhanpur amongst the
property of Raja `Ali Khan. He brought and laid it before me. In
reading and seeing it the hair on my limbs stood on end. But for
the consideration and due recognition of the fact that his mother
had given her milk to my father I could have killed him with my own
hand. Having procured his attendance I gave the letter into his hand
and told him to read it with a loud voice to those present. When he
saw the letter I thought his body would have parted from his soul,
but with shamelessness and impudence he read it as though he had
not written it and was reading it by order. Those present in that
paradise-like assembly of the servants of Akbar and Jahangir and heard
the letter read, loosened the tongue of reproach and of curses and
abuse. I put the question to him, "Leaving aside the treacheries which
in reliance on your worthless self you contrived against my fortune,
what was done to you by my father, who raised you and your family
from the dust of the road to such wealth and dignity as to make you
the envy of your contemporaries, that you should write these things
to the enemies of his Empire? Why did you enrol yourself amongst the
wicked and disloyal? Truly, what can one make of an original nature and
innate disposition? Since your temperament has been nourished by the
water of treachery, what else can spring up but such actions? Passing
over what you did to myself, I gave you the rank you had held before,
thinking that your treachery was directed against me only. Since it
has become known that you behaved in a similar way to your benefactor
and visible Deity, I leave you to the thoughts and actions which you
formerly had and still have." After these remarks his lips closed,
and he was unable to make any reply. What could he have said in the
presence of such disgrace? I gave an order to deprive him of his
jagir. Although what this ingrate had done was unpardonable, yet in
the end, from certain considerations, I passed it over.
On Sunday the 26th of the above-mentioned month was held the marriage
feast of Parwiz and the daughter of Prince Murad. The ceremony was
performed in the house of Her Highness Maryam-zamani. The entertainment
was arranged in the house of Parwiz, and all who were present were
exalted with all kinds of honour and civilities. Nine thousand rupees
were handed over to Sharif Amuli and other nobles, to be given in
alms to faqirs and other poor people.
On Sunday the 10th Rajab I left the city to hunt in Girjhak and
Nandana, [161] and took up my quarters in the garden of Ram Das,
where I remained four days.
On Wednesday the 13th the solar weighing of Parwiz took place. They
weighed him twelve times against various metals and other things,
and each weighing came to two maunds and eighteen seers. I ordered
the whole to be distributed amongst faqirs. At this time the rank
of Shaja`at Khan was fixed at 1,500 personal and 700 horse, original
and extra.
After the march of Mirza Ghazi and his force it occurred to me to send
a second contingent after him. Having bestowed on Bahadur [162] Khan
Qurbegi the rank of 1,500 personal and 800 horse, original and extra,
I started off a body of cavalry, [163] which came to about 3,000,
with him under the leadership of Shah Beg and Muhammad Amin. For the
expenses of this force 200,000 rupees were given and 1,000 musketeers
were also appointed.
I left Asaf Khan to guard Khusrau and defend Lahore. The Amiru-l-umara
was deprived of the honour of waiting on me, as he had a severe illness
and remained in the city. `Abdu-r-Razzaq Ma`muri, who had been summoned
from the Rana's country, was promoted to be bakhshi at headquarters,
and it was ordered that in company with `Abu-l-hasan he should perform
this service permanently. Following my father's rule, I appoint two
men in association in the discharge of the chief offices, not from
want of confidence in them, but because, as they are mortal and no
man is safe from accidents or illness, if any confusion or obstacle
should present itself to one the other is there so that the affairs
of the servants of God may not come to ruin.
At this time also news came that at the Dasahra, which is one of the
fixed feast days of the Hindus, `Abdu-llah Khan had made an incursion
from Kalpi, which is his jagir, into the province of Bandilah, and
displaying great valour made prisoner Ram Chand, son of Madhukar, who
for a long time had made a centre of disturbance in that difficult
country and taken him to Kalpi. For this service he was presented
with a standard and raised to 3,000 personal and 2,000 horse.
Petitions from the subah of Bihar represented that Jahangir Quli Khan
had had a battle with Sangram, one of the chief zamindars of Bihar,
who had about 4,000 horse and innumerable foot, on account of certain
opposition and disloyalty on rough land, and that on the field the
aforesaid Khan had exerted himself manfully. In the end Sangram died
of a gunshot wound; many of his men fell in the battle, and those
saved from the sword took to flight. Since this distinguished affair
had been brought about by Jahangir Quli Khan, I promoted him to the
rank of 4,500 personal and 3,500 horse.
Three months and six days passed by in hunting; 581 animals were
captured with the gun, hunting leopards and nets, and a qamargah;
of these 158 were killed by my own gun. The qamargah was held twice;
on one occasion in Girjhak, when the ladies were present, 155 animals
were killed; and the second time, in Nandina, 110. [164] The details
of the animals killed are as follows: mountain sheep, 180; mountain
goats, 29; wild asses, 10; Nilgai, 9; antelope, etc., 348.
On Wednesday the 16th Shawwal I returned safe from my hunting, and
when one watch and six gharis of day had passed I entered Lahore on
the day named. During this hunting a strange affair was witnessed. At
Chandwalah, where a minaret had been erected, I had wounded in the
belly a black antelope. When wounded, a sound proceeded from him
such as I have never heard from any antelope, except in the rutting
season. Old hunters and those with me were astonished, and said they
never remembered nor had they heard from their fathers that such a
voice issued from an antelope except at rutting time. This has been
written down because it is not void of strangeness. I found the flesh
of the mountain goat more delicious than that of all wild animals,
although its skin is exceedingly ill-odoured, so much so that even
when tanned the scent is not destroyed. I ordered one of the largest
of the he-goats to be weighed; it was 2 maunds and 24 seers, equal
to 21 foreign maunds (Persian). I ordered a large ram to be weighed,
and it came to 2 maunds and 3 seers Akbari, equal to 17 Persian
(wilayati) maunds. The largest and strongest of the wild asses weighed
9 maunds and 16 seers, equal to 76 Persian (wilayati) maunds. I have
frequently heard from hunters and those fond of the chase that at
a certain regular time a worm develops in the horns of the mountain
ram, and that this worm causes an irritation which induces the ram
to fight with his hind, and that if he finds no rival he strikes his
head against a tree or a rock to allay the irritation. After enquiry it
seems that the same worm appears in the horn of the female sheep, and
since the female does not fight the statement is clearly untrue. Though
the flesh of the wild ass is lawful food and most men like to eat it,
it was in no way suited to my taste.
Inasmuch as before this time the punishment of Dulip and of his
father, Ray Ray Singh, had been ordered, there now came news that
Zahid Khan, the son of Sadiq Khan, and `Abdu-r-Rahim, son of Shaikh
Abu-l-fazl, and Rana Shankar and Mu`izzu-l-mulk, with another force
of mansabdars and followers of the Court, had heard news of Dulip
in the neighbourhood of Nagor, which is in the subah of Ajmir, and
having moved against him had found him. As he could find no way of
escape, of necessity he planted a firm foot and came to blows with
the royal army. After a short encounter he was badly beaten and gave
over many to slaughter, and himself, taking with him his own effects,
fled into the vale of ruin.
"With broken arms and loosened belt,
No power to fight and no care for head."
In spite of his old age, I continued Qilij Khan in his mansab because
of his service under my father, and I ordered that he should get a
jagir in the sarkar of Kalpi.
In the month Zi-l-qa`da the mother of Qutbu-d-din Khan Koka, who had
given me her milk and was as a mother to me or even kinder than my
own kind mother, and in whose lap I had been brought up from infancy,
was committed to the mercy of God. I placed the feet of her corpse on
my shoulders and carried her a part of the way (to her grave). Through
extreme grief and sorrow I had no inclination for some days to eat,
and I did not change my clothes.
FEAST OF THE SECOND NEW YEAR.
On Wednesday the 22nd Zi-l-qa`da, 1015 (10th March, 1607), when
3 1/2 gharis of the day had passed, the sun rose to his House of
Honour. They decorated the palace after the usual fashion: a great
entertainment was prepared, and having seated myself at an auspicious
hour on the throne of accession I exalted the nobles and courtiers
with kindness and favour. On this same auspicious day it was learned
from the reports sent from Qandahar that the army sent under Mirza
Ghazi, son of Mirza Jani, to succour (which had been appointed to
assist) Shah Beg Khan, had entered the city of Qandahar on the 12th
of Shawwal. When the Persians heard of the arrival of the victorious
army at the last stage before the aforesaid city, [165] they became
surprised and wretched and repentant, and did not draw rein until
they had reached the Helmand, fifty or sixty kos distant.
In the second place it became known that the governor of Farah
and a number of the officers of that neighbourhood had taken it
into their heads, after the death of the late king, that in this
confusion Qandahar might easily fall into their hands, and without
waiting for an order from Shah `Abbas had collected together and won
over the Chief of Sewistan (Sistan). Sending someone to Husain Khan,
the governor of Herat they asked for support from him. He also sent a
force. After that they turned to attack Qandahar. Shah Beg Khan, the
governor of that place, seeing that battle has two heads, and that if
(which God forbid!) he should be defeated he would lose possession
of Qandahar, thought that to confine himself in a fort would be
better than to fight. He therefore determined to hold the fort, and
sent quick messengers to the Court. It happened that at this time
the royal standards had started from Agra in pursuit of Khusrau,
and had arrived at Lahore. Immediately on hearing this news (from
Shah Beg Khan), a large force was sent off of amirs and mansabdars
under Mirza Ghazi. Before the Mirza reached Qandahar the news had
been carried to the Shah (of Persia) that the governor of Farah, with
some of the jagirdars of that neighbourhood, had proceeded towards
the province of Qandahar. Considering this an improper proceeding,
he sent Husain Beg, a well-known man and one of his own intimates to
make enquiries. He also sent a farman in their names that they should
move away from the vicinity of Qandahar and go to their own places
and abodes, because the friendship and amity of his ancestors with the
dignified family of Jahangir Padshah were of old standing. That body,
before the arrival of Husain Beg and the King's order, not being able
to oppose the royal army, considered the opportunity of returning a
favourable one. The said Husain Beg censured the men and started off
to wait on me, which he had the honour to do at Lahore. He explained
that the ill-fated army which had attacked Qandahar had acted without
the order of Shah `Abbas. God forbid (he said) that in consequence
of this any unpleasantness should remain in my mind. In short, after
the victorious troops reached Qandahar, they, according to orders,
delivered the fort over to Sardar Khan, and Shah Beg Khan returned
to Court with the relieving force.
On the 27th Zi-l-qa`da, `Abdu-llah Khan, having brought Ram Chand
Bandilah into captivity and chains, brought him before me. I ordered
them to take the fetters from his legs, and bestowed on him a robe of
honour, and handed him over to Raja Baso that he might take security
and release him and a number of his relations who had been captured
with him. This through my clemency and kindness came to pass. He had
never imagined such clemency and kindness as I showed to him.
On the 2nd Zi-l-hijja I gave my son Khurram a tuman u tugh, a
flag and drums, and bestowed on him the rank of 8,000 personal
and 5,000 horse, and gave an order for a jagir. On the same day,
having exalted Pir Khan, [166] son of Daulat Khan Lodi, who had
come from Khandesh with the children of Daniyal, with the title of
Salabat Khan and honoured him with the rank of 3,000 personal and
1,500 horse, and presented him with a standard and drums, I promoted
him to the distinction of sonship (farzandi) beyond his fellows and
equals. The ancestors and uncles of Salabat Khan's grandfather had
been great and honourable among the tribe of Lodi. An earlier Daulat
Khan, uncle of Salabat Khan's grandfather, when Ibrahim after his
father Sikandar's death, began to behave ill to his father's amirs
and destroyed many, became apprehensive, and sent his younger son,
Dilawar Khan, to wait upon H.M. Babar in Kabul, and suggested to him
the acquisition of Hindustan. As Babar also had this enterprise in
mind, he at once proceeded in that direction, and did not turn his
rein till he reached the neighbourhood of Lahore. Daulat Khan with his
followers obtained the good fortune to wait upon him, and performed
loyal service. As he was an old man, adorned with inward and outward
excellencies, he did much good service. He (Babar) generally called him
"father," and entrusting to him as before [167] the government of the
Panjab placed its amirs and jagirdars under his jurisdiction. Taking
Dilawar Khan with him he (Babar) returned to Kabul. When he (Babar)
came a second time into the Panjab with intent to invade Hindustan,
Daulat Khan waited on him, and about the same time died. Dilawar Khan
was honoured with the title of Khankhanan and was with Babar in the
battle he had with Ibrahim. In the same way he was permanently in
waiting on the late king Humayun. In the thana of Mungir, at the time
of his (Humayun's) return from Bengal, he fought bravely against Shir
Khan Afghan, and was made prisoner on the field of battle. Although
Shir Khan urged him to take service with him, he refused and said,
"Thy ancestors were always the servants of mine: how, then, could I
do this?" Shir Khan was enraged, and ordered him to be shut up in a
wall. [168]
`Umar Khan, the grandfather of Salabat Khan Farzand, who was cousin
of Dilawar Khan, had been treated with respect in the time of Salim
Khan. After Salim Khan's death and the slaughter of Firuz, his son,
at the hand of Muhammad Khan, `Umar Khan and his brethren became
suspicious of Muhammad Khan and went to Gujarat, where `Umar Khan
died. Daulat Khan, his son, who was a brave young man of pleasant
appearance, and good at all things, chose the companionship of
`Abdu-r-Rahim, son of Bairam Khan, who had been dignified with the
title of Khankhanan in the reign of Akbar, and performed excellent
service. The Khankhanan regarded him as his own brother, or even
a thousand times better than his brother, and dearer. Most of the
Khankhanan's victories were gained through Daulat Khan's valour and
manliness. [169] When my revered father, having taken the province
of Khandesh and the fort of Asir, returned to Agra, he left Daniyal
in charge of that province and of all the provinces acquired from the
rulers of the Deccan. At this time Daniyal had separated Daulat Khan
from the Khankhanan, and was keeping him in attendance on himself and
handing over to him for disposal all the business of the State. He
showed him much favour and perfect affection until he died in his
service. He left two sons, one Muhammad Khan, and the other Pir
Khan; Muhammad Khan, who was the elder, died a short time after
his father. Daniyal, too, wore himself out with drinking. After my
accession I summoned Pir Khan to Court. As I discovered in him a good
disposition and natural abilities, I raised the pedestal of regard for
him to the point that has been described. To-day there is not in my
government any person of greater influence than he, so much so that
on his representation I pass over faults which are not pardoned at
the intercession of any of the other servants of the Court. In short,
he is a young man of good disposition, brave, and worthy of favour,
and what I have done for him has been done rightly, and he will be
exalted by further favours. [170]
As I had made up my exalted mind to the conquest of Mawara'a-n-nahr
(Transoxiana), which was the hereditary kingdom of my ancestors, I
desired to free the face of Hindustan from the rubbish of the factious
and rebellious, and leaving one of my sons in that country, to go
myself with a valiant army in due array, with elephants of mountainous
dignity and of lightning speed, and taking ample treasure with me,
to undertake the conquest of my ancestral dominions. In accordance
with this idea, I despatched Parwiz to drive back the Rana, and
intended to go myself to the Deccan, when just at that moment the
improper action of Khusrau took place, and it became necessary to
pursue him and put an end to that disturbance. For the same reason,
the undertaking of Parwiz did not assume a promising appearance,
and regarding the exigency of the time he gave a respite to the
Rana. Bringing with him one of the Rana's sons, he came to wait on
me, and had the bliss of attending me in Lahore. When I was at ease
about Khusrau's disturbance, and the repulse of the Qizilbashes,
who had invested Qandahar, had been brought about in a facile way,
it came into my mind to make a hunting tour to Kabul, which is like my
native land. After that I would return to Hindustan, when the purposes
of my mind would pass from design to action. In pursuance of these
steps, on the 7th Zi-l-hijja, at an auspicious hour, I left the fort
of Lahore and took up my quarters in the Dil-amiz Garden, which is
on the other side of the Ravi, and stayed there four days. Sunday,
the 19th Farwardin, which is the culmination of His Majesty the Sun,
I passed in the garden, and some of the servants of the Court were
favourably and kindly honoured with increased rank. Ten thousand
rupees were bestowed on Hasan Beg, the envoy of the ruler of Persia
(Shah `Abbas). Leaving Qilij Khan, Miran Sadr Jahan, and Mir Sharif
Amuli in Lahore, I ordered them to settle in consultation any matters
that might present themselves. On Monday I marched from the garden
mentioned, and encamped at the village of Harhar, 3 1/2 kos distant
from the city. On Tuesday the royal standards alighted at Jahangirpur,
which is one of my fixed hunting-places. In this neighbourhood had been
erected by my order a manar at the head of the grave of an antelope
called Mansaraj, [171] which was without equal in fights with tame
antelopes and in hunting wild ones. On a stone of that manar was
carved this prose composition, written by Mulla Muhammad Husain of
Kashmir, who was the chief of the elegant writers of the day: "In this
enchanting place an antelope came into the world-holding (jahan-giri)
net of the God-knowing ruler Nuru-d-din Jahangir Padshah. In the
space of one month, having overcome his desert fierceness, he became
the head of the special antelopes." On account of the rare quality of
this antelope, I commanded that no person should hunt the deer of this
plain, and that their flesh should be to Hindus and Muhammadans as is
the flesh of cows and pigs. They made the gravestone in the shape of
an antelope. I ordered Sikandar Mu`in, the jagirdar of the aforesaid
pargana, to build a strong fort in the village of Jahangirpur.
On Thursday, the 14th, I encamped in the pargana of Chandala. [172]
Thence on Saturday, the 16th, making one stage in the middle, I came
to Hafizabad. [173] I stayed in the station which had been erected by
the exertions of the karori of that place, Mir Qiyamu-d-din. Having
reached the Chenab in two marches on Thursday, the 21st Zi-l-hijja,
I crossed the river by a bridge which had been built there and my
camp was pitched in the neighbourhood of the pargana of Gujrat. At
the time when His Majesty Akbar went to Kashmir, a fort had been
built on that bank of the river. Having brought to this fort a body
of Gujars who had passed their time in the neighbourhood in thieving
and highway robbery, he established them here. As it had become the
abode of Gujars, he made it a separate pargana, and gave it the name
of Gujrat. They call Gujars a caste which does little manual work
and subsists on milk and curds. On Friday I pitched at Khawasspur,
five kos from Gujrat, founded by Khawass Khan, a slave of Shir Khan
Afghan. Thence, with two halts in the middle, I pitched on the bank of
the Bihat (Jhelam). On that night a great wind blew and a black cloud
hid the face of the sky. The rain was of such violence that old men
remembered none such. It turned to hail, and every hailstone was the
size of a hen's egg. From the flooding of the river and the force of
the wind and rain, the bridge broke. I, with the inmates of the harem,
crossed in a boat. As there were few boats, I ordered the men not
[174] to cross in these, but to rebuild the bridge. It was finished
in a week, and the whole army crossed with ease. The source of the
Bihat is a spring in Kashmir called the Vir-nag; in the language
of India a snake is vir-nag. Clearly there had been a large snake
at that place. I went twice to the spring in my father's lifetime;
it is 20 kos from the city of Kashmir. It is an octagonal reservoir
about 20 yards by 20. Near it are the remains of a place of worship
for recluses; cells cut out of the rock and numerous caves. The water
is exceedingly pure. Although I could not guess its depth, a grain of
poppy-seed is visible until it touches the bottom. There were many
fish to be seen in it. As I had heard that it was unfathomable, I
ordered them to throw in a cord with a stone attached, and when this
cord was measured in gaz it became evident that the depth was not
more than once and a half the height of a man. After my accession I
ordered them to build the sides of the spring round with stone, and
they made a garden round it with a canal; and built halls and houses
about it, and made a place such that travellers over the world can
point out few like it. When the river reaches the village of Pampur,
at a distance of ten kos from the city, it increases, and all the
saffron of Kashmir is obtained in this village. I do not know if there
is so much saffron in any other place in the world. The annual crop
is 500 maunds by Hindustan weight, equal to 5,000 wilayat (Persian)
maunds. In attendance on my revered father, I went to this place at
the season when the saffron was in flower. On other plants of the
world, first the branches (stems) shoot out and then the leaves and
flowers. On the contrary, when the saffron stem is four fingers breadth
from the dry ground, its flowers shoot out, of the colour of the iris,
[175] with four petals, and in the middle are four threads (risha)
of an orange colour like that of the flower, and of the length
of a finger-joint. This is the saffron. The land is not ploughed
[176] or irrigated, the plant springs up amongst the clods. In some
places its cultivation extends for a kos, and in others for half a
kos. It looks better from a distance. At the time of plucking, all
my attendants got headache from its sharp scent. Though I drank wine
and took a cup, I too got headache. I asked the animal-like Kashmiris,
who were employed in picking the flowers how they felt. I ascertained
that they had never experienced headache in their lives.
The waters from the spring Vir-nag and of other streams and nullahs
that join from right and left form the river Bihat, which passes
through the heart of the city. Its breadth in most places is not
more than a bowshot. [177] No one drinks its water, because of its
heaviness and indigestibility. All the people of Kashmir drink the
water of a lake that is near the city, and is called Dall. The river
Bihat enters this lake and flows through to the Panjab by the Baramula
Pass, Pakli, and Dantur.
In Kashmir there is plenty of water from streams and springs. By
far the best is that of the Lar valley, which joins the Bihat in the
village of Shihabu-d-din-pur. This village is one of the celebrated
places of Kashmir, and is on the Bihat. About a hundred plane-trees
(chanar) of graceful form clustered [178] together on one plot of
ground, pleasant and green, join each other so as to shade the whole
plot, and the whole surface of the ground is grass and trefoil [179];
so much so that to lay a carpet on it would be superfluous and in
bad taste. The village was founded by Sultan Zainu-l-`abidin, who for
52 years ruled Kashmir with absolute sway. They speak of him as the
great Padshah. They tell many strange customs of his. There are many
remains and traces of buildings of his in Kashmir. One of these is in
the midst of a lake called Wulur, and of which the length and breadth
are more than three or four kos. It is called Zain-lanka, and in making
it they have exerted themselves greatly. The springs of this lake are
very deep. The first time they brought a large quantity of stone in
boats and poured it on the place where now the building stands it had
no result. At last they sank some thousands of boats with stones, and
with great labour recovered a piece of ground 100 gaz by 100 gaz out
of the water, and made a terrace, and on one side thereof the Sultan
erected a temple for the worship of his supreme God. Than this there
is no finer place. [180] He often came to the spot by boat and engaged
in worship of the King of Wisdom. They say he spent many "forty days"
in that place. One day a wicked son of his came to that place to
kill him, and finding him alone, drew a sword and went in. When his
eye fell on the Sultan, however, on account of his venerable dignity
and the might of his virtues, he became confused and bewildered and
turned away. The Sultan shortly after came out and seated himself in
the boat with this same son, and started for the city. On the way
he said to his son, "I have forgotten my rosary; get into a canoe
and fetch it for me." The son having gone into the temple sees his
father in the same place, and the graceless man with complete shame of
face falls at his father's feet and asks pardon for his fault. They
have told many tales of such miracles as this of him, and they say
also that he had well practised the science of khala`. [181] When,
from the ways and methods of his sons, he perceived in them signs
of haste in seeking for rule and government, he would say to them,
"To me it is very easy to abandon rule, and even to pass away from
life, but when I am gone you will do nothing and the time of your
prosperity will not endure long, but in a short time you will obtain
the recompense of your evil deeds and your own dispositions." Having
spoken thus, he gave up eating and drinking, and passed forty days in
this manner. He made not his eye acquainted with sleep, and employed
himself after the manner of men of piety and austerity in the worship
of God Almighty. On the fortieth day he gave up the deposit of his
existence, and entered into the mercy of God. He left three sons--Adam
Khan, Haji Khan, and Bahram Khan. They quarrelled with each other, and
all three were ruined. The government of Kashmir was transferred to the
tribe of the Chaks, who belonged to the class of the common soldiers
of the country. During their dynasty three of the rulers constructed
buildings on three sides of the terrace formed by Zainu-l-`abidin in
the Wulur Lake, but none of these is as strong as his.
Autumn and Spring in Kashmir are things worthy to be seen. I witnessed
the Autumn season, and it appeared to me to be better than what I had
heard of it. I have never seen Spring in that province, but hope to
do so some day. On Saturday the 1st of Muharram (18th April, 1607)
I left the bank of the Bihat, and with one day between reached the
fort of Rohtas, which was built by Shir Khan Afghan. This fort was
founded in a cleft of the ground, and the strength of it cannot be
imagined. As the place is near the Ghakhar territory, and they are a
proud and rebellious people, he had looked to this fort specially as a
means of punishing and defeating them. When a little of the building
had been done Shir Khan died and his son, Salim Khan, obtained the
grace to complete it. On each of the gates [182] they have carved on
a stone the cost of erecting the fort; 16 krors, 10 lakhs of dams,
and more were expended, equal in Hindustan reckoning to 4,025,000
rupees, and according to the currency of Iran to 120,000 tuman,
and in the currency of Turan to 1 arb, 21 lakhs and 75,000 khani,
that are now current. [183]
On Tuesday the 4th of the month, having travelled four kos and
three-quarters, I encamped at Tila. [184] Thence I came down to the
village of Bhakra. In the Ghakhar tongue bhakra [185] is a jungle. The
jungle was composed of clusters of flowers, white and scentless. I
came the whole way from Tila to Bhakra in the middle of the river-bed,
[186] which had running water in it, with oleander flowers of the
colour of peach-blossom. In Hindustan this plant is always in full
bloom (purbar). There was much of it on the banks of this river. The
horsemen and men on foot who were with me were told to put bunches of
the flower on their heads, and whoever did not do so had his turban
taken off; a wonderful flower-bed was produced.
On Thursday the 6th of the month the halting-place was at Hatya. On
this road many palas-trees (Butea frondosa) were in blossom. This
flower, too, is peculiar to the jungles of Hindustan; it has no scent,
but its colour is flaming orange. The base of the flower is black;
the flower itself is as big as a red rose. It is so beautiful that one
cannot take one's eyes off it. As the air was very sweet and clouds
had hidden the sun, and rain was gently sprinkled about, I felt an
inclination to drink wine. In short this road was traversed with
great enjoyment and pleasure. They call the place Hatya because it
was founded by a Ghakkar named Hathi (elephant). From Margala to Hatya
the country is called Pothuwar. [187] In these regions there are few
crows. From Rohtas to Hatya is the place and abode of the Bhugyals,
[188] who are related to and of the same ancestry as the Ghakkars.
Marching on Friday the 7th, I travelled 4 1/2 kos and alighted at the
station of Pakka. [189] This place is called Pakka because the saray
is of burnt brick, and in the Hindi language what is ripe (that is,
not raw material) is called pakka. The station was strangely full of
dust and earth. The carts reached it with great difficulty owing to
the badness of the road. They had brought from Kabul to this place
riwaj (rhubarb), which was mostly spoiled.
On Saturday the 8th we marched 4 1/2 kos and encamped at the
village of Khar. [190] Khar in the Ghakkar language is a rent and
breakage. There are few trees in this country. On Sunday the 9th I
halted beyond Rawalpindi. This place was founded by a Hindu named
Rawal, and pindi in the Ghakkar tongue means a village. In the valley
near this station there was a stream flowing, the waters of which
were collected in a pool. As this halting-place was not devoid of
freshness I alighted there for a time, and I asked the Ghakkars the
depth of the pool. They gave me no precise answer, but said they had
heard from their fathers that there were alligators in the pool which
wounded animals that came there, and on that account no one had the
boldness to go in. I ordered them to throw in a sheep. It swam across
the pool and came out. I then ordered a farrash to go in, and he also
came out safe. It thus became clear that there was no foundation for
what the Ghakkars had said. The pool was an arrow's flight in width.
On Monday the 10th the village of Kharbuza [191] was our stage. The
Ghakkars in earlier times had built a dome here and taken tolls
from travellers. As the dome was shaped like a melon it became
known by that name. On Tuesday the 11th I halted at Kala-pani,
which in Hindi means black water. There is a mountain pass (kotal)
at this place called Margalla; in Hindi mar means to beat and galla
is a caravan, the name therefore means the place of the plundering of
the caravan. The boundary of the Ghakkar country is here. This tribe
are wonderfully like animals; they are always squabbling and fighting
with one another. Although I wished to put an end to this fighting,
I was unable to do so.
"The soul of the fool is doomed to trouble." [192]
On Wednesday the 12th the camp was at Baba Hasan Abdal. One kos to
the east of this station there is a waterfall over which the stream
rushes with great force. There is no fall like it on the way to
Kabul. On the road to Kashmir there are two or three like it. [193]
In the middle of the basin, in which is the source of the stream,
Raja Man Singh has erected a small building. There are many fish in
the basin of the length of half a gaz and a quarter gaz. I halted
three days at this enchanting place, drinking wine with those who were
intimate with me and employing myself in catching fish. Until now I had
never thrown a sufra net, which is a famous kind of net, and which in
Hindi they call bhanwar [194] jal. It is not easy to throw. I threw
it with my own hand and caught twelve fish, and putting pearls into
their noses, [195] let them loose in the water. I enquired into the
story of Baba Hasan from the story-tellers and from the inhabitants of
the place, but no one could tell me any particulars. The celebrated
place at that station is a spring which flows from the foot of a
little hill, exceedingly clear, sweet, and nice, as witness this
couplet of Amir Khusrau:--
"In the bottom of the water, from its clearness, a blind man
Can count the sand-grains in the heart of the night."
Khwaja Shamsu-d-din Muhammad Khwafi, who was for long employed as
Vizier by my revered father, had made a platform and a reservoir there,
into which is led the water from the spring, and thence is used in
cultivation and in gardens. On the edge of this terrace he had built
a dome for his own burial. By chance his destiny was not there, and
(the bodies of) Hakim Abu-l-fath Gilani and his brother Hakim Humam,
who were close to the person and had the complete confidence of my
revered father, were placed in that dome in accordance with his order.
On the 15th the halt was at Amrohi. [196] It is a wonderfully green
place, in which no ups and downs were visible. In this village and
its neighbourhood there are 7,000 or 8,000 households of Khaturs and
Dalazaks. All kinds of mischief and oppression and highway robbery
take place through this tribe. I ordered the government of this
region and Attock to be given to Zafar Khan, son of Zain Khan Koka,
and that by the time of the return of the royal standards from Kabul
they should march all the Dalazaks to Lahore and capture the head
men of the Khaturs and keep them in prison.
On Monday, the 17th, a march was made, and, with one stage in between,
the royal standards alighted near the fort of Attock on the bank of
the river Nilab (Indus). At this stage Mahabat Khan was promoted to
the rank of 2,500. This fort was built by the late king Akbar, and
was completed by the labours of Khwaja Shamsu-d-din Khwafi. It is a
strong fort. At this time the water of the Nilab was low, [197] and
accordingly a bridge had been made with eighteen boats, and the people
crossed over easily. I left the Amiru-l-umara at Attock on account of
weakness of body and illness. An order was given to the bakhshis that,
as the province of Kabul could not support a large army, they should
only allow the immediate attendants of the Court to cross the river,
and until the return of the royal standards the royal camp should
remain at Attock. On Wednesday, the 19th, with the princes and some of
the private servants, having mounted on to a raft (with inflated skins
underneath), and having crossed the river Nilab safely, I alighted on
the bank of the river Kama. The Kama is a river that flows by the qasba
(fortified town) of Jalalabad. The jala is a structure they make of
bamboos and grass and place underneath it skins full of air. In this
province they call them shal (or sal). In rivers and streams in which
there are rocks they are safer than boats. 12,000 rupees were given
to Mir Sharif Amuli and to a number of men, who had been appointed
to perform services at Lahore, to divide amongst the faqirs. An
order was given to `Abdu-r-Razzaq Ma`muri [198] and to Bihari Das,
bakhshi of the Ahadis, to complete the force that had been appointed
to accompany Zafar Khan and send them away. With one stage in between,
the camp halted at the saray of Bara. On the other side of the river
Kama there is a fort which Zain Khan Koka built at the time when he
was appointed to subjugate the Yusufza'e Afghans, and called Naushahr
(Newcastle). About 50,000 rupees were spent upon it. They say that
Humayun used to hunt rhinoceros in this region. I also heard from my
father that he had twice or thrice witnessed such a hunt in the company
of his father. On Thursday, the 25th, I alighted at the saray of
Daulatabad. Ahmad Beg of Kabul, jagirdar of Peshawar, with the Maliks
of the Yusufza'es and the Ghoriya-khel, came and waited on me. As the
service of Ahmad Beg was not approved, I transferred him from that
territory (wilayat) and conferred it on Shir Khan, the Afghan. On
Wednesday, the 26th, I encamped in the garden of Sardar Khan, which he
had made in the neighbourhood of Peshawar. I walked round Ghorkhatri,
which is the worshipping-place of the jogis in this neighbourhood,
with the idea that I might see some faqirs from association with
whom I might obtain grace. But that was like looking for the phoenix
or the philosopher's stone. A herd without any religious knowledge
came to my view, from seeing whom I derived nothing but obscurity of
mind. On Thursday, the 27th, I arrived at the halting-place of Jamrud,
and on Friday, 28th, at the Khaibar Kotal (Khyber Pass) and encamped
at `Ali Masjid, and on Saturday I traversed the tortuous (marpich,
i.e. snake-twisting) Pass, and alighted at Gharib-khana. At this stage
Abu-l-qasim Namakin, Jagirdar of Jalalabad, brought an apricot, which
was not inferior in beauty to good Kashmir apricots. At the stage
of Daka they brought from Kabul gilas (cherries), which my revered
father had entitled Shah-alu. As I was much inclined to eat them,
inasmuch as I had not (hitherto?) obtained them, I ate them with
great zest as a relish to wine. On Tuesday, 2nd Safar, I encamped
at Basawal, which is on the bank of the river. On the other side of
the river there is a mountain which has no trees or grass on it,
and on that account they call this mountain the hill of Bidaulat
(unfortunate). I heard from my father that in mountains like this
there are mines of gold. On the mountain of Ala Bughan, at the time
when my revered father went to Kabul, I had had a qamargah hunt, and
killed several [199] red deer. As I had handed over the administration
of all civil affairs to the Amiru-l-umara, and his illness increased
greatly, and forgetfulness came over his faculties to such an extent
that what was settled in one hour he forgot in the next, and his
forgetfulness was increasing day by day, on Wednesday, the 3rd Safar,
I entrusted the duties of the viziership to Asaf Khan, presenting him
with a special robe of honour, and inkstand and a jewelled pen. It
was a remarkable coincidence that twenty-eight years previously to
this, at the same halting-place, my revered father had promoted him
[200] to the rank of Mir Bakhshi (chief paymaster). A ruby which his
brother [201] Abu-l-qasim had bought for 40,000 rupees and sent him,
he presented as an offering on obtaining the viziership. He petitioned
that Khwaja Abu-l-hasan, who held the offices of bakhshi and the Qur,
etc., might go with him. Jalalabad was transferred from Abu-l-qasim
Namakin to Arab Khan. A white rock was present in the river-bed; I
ordered them to carve it in the form of an elephant and cut upon its
breast this hemistich, which agrees with the date of the Hijra year:
"The white stone elephant of Jahangir Padshah," that is, 1016.
On the same day Kalyan, son of Raja Bikramajit, came from
Gujarat. Certain extraordinary proceedings on the part of this
rebellious rascal had been reported to me. Amongst these was this. He
had kept a Musulman luli woman in his house, and for fear this affair
should become known had killed her father and mother and buried
them in his house. I ordered that he should be imprisoned until
I could enquire into his proceedings, and after ascertaining the
truth I ordered first that they should cut out his tongue and place
him in perpetual confinement, and that he should eat his food with
dog-keepers and outcasts. On Wednesday I encamped at Surkhab. Thence
I alighted at Jagdalak. At this stage I saw many ballut [202]-trees
(oak or chestnut), which are the best wood for burning. Although
this stage had neither passes nor declivities there were plenty of
rocks. On Friday, the 12th, I encamped at Ab-i-barik, and Saturday,
the 13th, at Yurt-i-padshah. On Sunday, the 14th, I alighted at Khurd
Kabul (little Kabul). At this stage I entrusted the Chief Justiceship
and Qaziship of the city of Kabul to Qazi `Arif, son of Mulla Sadiq
Halwa'i. They brought some ripe shah-alu (cherries) from the village
of Gulbahar to this place; of these I ate with much enjoyment nearly
a hundred. Daulat, the head of the village of Jigri [203](?), brought
some uncommon flowers, such as I had never seen in my life. Thence I
alighted at Bikrami. At this place they brought to show me a piebald
[204] animal, like the flying (i.e. jumping) mouse, which in the
Hindi tongue they call galahri (squirrel), and said that mice would
not frequent any house in which this animal was. On this account
they call this animal the master of mice. As I had never seen one
before, I ordered my painters to draw a likeness of it. It is larger
than a mongoose. On the whole it is very like a civet cat. Having
appointed Ahmad Beg Khan to punish the Afghans of Bangash, I ordered
`Abdu-r-Razzaq Ma`muri, who was in Attock, to take 2,000,000 rupees
under the charge of Mohan Das, son of Raja Bikramajit, with him, and
divide it among the auxiliaries of the aforesaid army. One thousand
musketeers were also ordered to accompany this army.
Shaikh `Abdu-r-Rahman, son of Shaikh Abu-l-fazl, was promoted to
the rank of 2,000 personal and 1,500 horse, and obtained the title
of Afzal Khan. 15,000 rupees were presented to `Arab Khan, and 20,000
rupees more for the repair of the fort of Pesh Bulagh. [205] I bestowed
Sarkar Khanpur [206] in fief on Dilawar Khan Afghan. On Thursday, the
17th, from the Mastan bridge as far as the Shahr-ara garden, which
was the encamping place for the royal standards, scattering rupees,
half-rupees, and quarter-rupees to faqirs and indigent persons on both
sides of the road, I entered the aforesaid garden. It appeared to be
very green and fresh. As it was a Thursday I gave a wine entertainment
to my intimates, and on account of hilarity and excitement ordered
those who were of equal age to myself and had been my playfellows to
jump over the stream that flowed through the middle of the garden and
was about four gaz in width. Most of them could not jump it, and fell
on the bank or into the stream. Although I jumped it, yet now that I
was 40 years of age I could not jump it with the activity that I had
shown in the presence of my revered father when I was 30. On this day
I perambulated seven of the famous gardens of Kabul. I do not think
that I ever walked so far before.
First of all I walked round the Shahr-ara (city-adorning), then the
Mahtab (moonlight) garden, then the garden that Bika Begam, grandmother
of my father, had made, then passed through the Urta-bagh (middle
garden), then a garden that Maryam-makani, my own grandmother, had
prepared, then the Surat-khana garden, which has a large chanar-tree,
the like of which there is not in the other gardens of Kabul. Then,
having seen the Charbagh, which is the largest of the city gardens,
I returned to my own abode. There were abundance of cherries on the
trees, each of which looked as it were a round ruby, hanging like
globes on the branches. The Shahr-ara garden was made by Shahr-banu
[207] Begam, daughter of Mirza Abu Sa`id, who was own aunt to the late
king Babar. From time to time it has been added to, and there is not
a garden like it for sweetness in Kabul. It has all sorts of fruits
and grapes, and its softness is such that to put one's sandalled
[208] feet on it would be far from propriety or good manners. In the
neighbourhood of this garden an excellent plot of land came to view,
which I ordered to be bought from the owners. I ordered a stream
that flows from the guzargah (ferry, also bleaching green) to be
diverted into the middle of the ground so that a garden might be
made such that in beauty and sweetness there should not be in the
inhabited world another like it. I gave it the name of Jahan-ara
(world-adorning). Whilst I was at Kabul I had several entertainments
in the Shahr-ara garden, sometimes with my intimates and courtiers and
sometimes with the ladies of the harem. At nights I ordered the learned
and the students of Kabul to hold the cooking entertainment, [209]
bughra, and the throwing of bughra, together with arghushtak dances.
To each of the band of Bughra'iyan I gave a dress of honour, and
also gave 1,000 rupees to divide amongst themselves. To twelve of
the trustworthy courtiers I ordered 12,000 rupees to be given, to
be bestowed every Thursday, as long as I was in Kabul, on the poor
and needy. I gave an order that between two plane-trees that were
on the canal bank in the middle of the garden--to one of which I had
given the name of Farah-bakhsh (joy-giver) and the other Saya-bakhsh
(shade-giver)--they should set up a piece of white stone (marble?) one
gaz in length and three-quarters of a gaz in breadth, and engrave
my name thereon (and those of my ancestors) up to Timur. It was set
forth on the other side that I had done away with the whole of the
customs dues and charges of Kabul, and whichever of my descendants
and successors should do anything contrary to this would be involved
in the wrath and displeasure of God. Up to the time of my accession
these were fixed and settled, and every year they took large sums
on this account from the servants of God (the Muhammadan people in
general). The abolition of this oppression was brought about during my
reign. On this journey to Kabul complete relief and contentment were
brought about in the circumstances of my subjects and the people of
that place. The good and leading men of Ghaznin and that neighbourhood
were presented with robes of honour and dealt kindly with, and had
their desires excellently gratified.
It is a strange coincidence that (the words) ruz-i-panjshanba
hizhdaham-i-Safar, [210] Thursday, 18th Safar, which is the date of
my entry into Kabul, give the Hijra date thereof.
I ordered them to inscribe this date on the stone. Near a seat
(takht) on the slope of a hill to the south of the city of Kabul,
and which is known as Takht-i-shah, they have made a stone terrace
where Firdus-makani (Babar) used to sit and drink wine. In one corner
of this rock they have excavated a round basin which could contain
about two Hindustani maunds of wine. He caused his own blessed name
with the date to be carved on the wall of the terrace which is next
to the hill. The wording is, "The seat of the king, the asylum of
the world, Zahiru-d-din Muhammad Babar, son of `Umar Shaikh Gurgan,
may God perpetuate his kingdom, 914 (1508-9)." I also ordered them
to cut out of stone another throne parallel to this, and dig another
basin of the same fashion on its side, and engrave my name there,
together with that of Sahib-qirani (Timur). Every day that I sat on
that throne I ordered them to fill both of the basins with wine and
give it to the servants who were present there. One of the poets of
Ghaznin found the date of my coming to Kabul in this chronogram--"The
king of the cities of the seven climes" (1016). I gave him a dress of
honour and a present, and ordered them to engrave this date on the wall
near the aforesaid seat. Fifty thousand rupees were given to Parwiz;
Wazir-al-mulk was made Mir Bakhshi. A firman was sent to Qilij Khan
to despatch 170,000 rupees from the Lahore treasury for expenses of
the army at Qandahar. After visiting the Khiyaban (avenue) of Kabul
and the Bibi Mah-ru, I ordered the governor of that city to plant
other trees in the place of those cut down by Husain Beg Ru-siyah
(the black-faced). I also visited the Ulang-yurt of Chalak and found
it a very pleasant place. The Ra'is of Chikri (Jigri?) shot with an
arrow a rang [211] and brought it to me. Up to this time I had never
seen a rang. It is like a mountain goat, and there is a difference
only in its horns. The horns of the rang are bent, and those of the
goat are straight and convoluted.
In connection with the account of Kabul the commentaries of Babar
[212] passed in view before me. These were in his own handwriting,
except four sections (juz' [213]) that I wrote myself. At the end
of the said sections a sentence was written by me also in the Turki
character, so that it might be known that these four sections were
written by me in my own hand. Notwithstanding that I grew up in
Hindustan, I am not ignorant of Turki speech and writing. [214]
On the 25th Safar I with the people of the harem visited the julgah
(plain) of Safid-sang, a very bright and enjoyable place. On Friday,
the 26th, I enjoyed the blessing of a pilgrimage to (the tomb of)
H.M. Firdus-makani (Babar). I ordered much money and food, bread,
and sweetmeats for the souls of the departed to be distributed to
faqirs. Ruqayya Sultan Begam, daughter of Mirza Hindal, had not
performed a pilgrimage to her father's tomb, and on that day had the
honour to do so. On Thursday, 3rd Rabi`u-l-awwal, I ordered them to
bring my racehorses (aspan-i-dawanda) to the Khiyaban (avenue). The
princes and the Amirs raced them. A bay Arab horse, which `Adil Khan,
the ruler of the Deccan, had sent to me, ran better than all the other
horses. At this time the son of Mirza Sanjar Hazara and the son of
Mirza Mashi, who were the chief leaders of the Hazaras, came to wait on
me. The Hazaras of the village of Mirdad produced before me two rangs
[215] that they had killed with arrows. I had never seen a rang of
this size; it was larger by 20 per cent. than a large markhur (?).
News came that Shah Beg Khan, the governor of Qandahar, had reached the
parganah of Shor, [216] which is his jagir. I determined to give Kabul
to him and return to Hindustan. A petition came from Raja Birsing-deo
that he had made a prisoner of his nephew, who had been creating a
disturbance and had killed many of his men. I ordered him to send him
to the fort of Gwalior to be imprisoned there. The parganah of Gujrat
[217] in the Panjab Sarkar I bestowed on Shir Khan, the Afghan. I
promoted Chin Qilij, son of Qilij Khan, to the rank of 800 personal
and 500 horse. On the 12th I sent for Khusrau and ordered them to
take the chains off his legs that he might walk in the Shahr-ara
garden. My fatherly affection would not permit me to exclude him from
walking in the aforesaid garden. I transferred the fort of Attock
and that neighbourhood from Ahmad Beg to Zafar Khan. To Taj Khan,
who was nominated to beat back the Afghans of Bangash, I gave 50,000
rupees. On the 14th I gave `Ali Khan Karori, [218] who was one of my
revered father's old servants and was the darogha of the Naqarakhana
(drum-house), the title of Naubat Khan, and promoted him to the rank
of 500 personal and 200 horse. I made Ram Das ataliq to Maha Singh,
grandson of Raja Man Singh, who had also been nominated to drive
back the rebels of Bangash. On Friday, the 18th, the wazn-i-qamari
(the weighing according to the lunar year) for my 40th year took
place. On that day the assembly was held when two watches of the day
had passed. I gave 10,000 rupees of the money of the weighing to ten
of my confidential servants to divide amongst those who deserved it
and the needy. On this day a petition came from Sardar Khan, governor
of Qandahar, by way of Hazara and Ghaznin, in twelve days; its purport
was that the ambassador of Shah `Abbas, who had started for the Court,
had entered the Hazara [219] (country). The Shah had written to his
own people: "What seeker of occasion and raiser of strife has come
against Qandahar without my order? Perhaps he does not know what is our
connection with H.M. Sultan Timur, and especially with Humayun and his
glorious descendants. If they by chance should have taken the country
into their possession they should hand it to the friends and servants
of my brother Jahangir Padshah and return to their own abodes." I
determined to tell Shah Beg Khan to secure the Ghaznin road in such a
way that travellers from Qandahar might reach Kabul with ease. At the
same time I appointed Qazi Nuru-d-din to the Sadarat of the province
of Malwah and Ujjain. The son of Mirza Shadman Hazara and grandson
of Qaracha Khan, who was one of the influential Amirs of Humayun,
waited on me. Qaracha Khan had married a woman from the Hazara tribe,
and this son [220] had been born by her. On Saturday, the 19th, Rana
Shankar, son of Rana Uday Singh, was promoted to the rank of 2,500
personal and 1,000 horse. An order was given for the rank of 1,000
personal and 600 horse for Ray Manohar. The Shinwari Afghans brought
a mountain ram the two horns of which had become one and had become
like a rang's horns. The same Afghans killed and brought a markhur
(Erskine translates this 'a serpent-eating goat'), the like of which
I had never seen or imagined. I ordered my artists to paint him. He
weighed four Hindustani maunds; the length of his horns was 1 1/2
gaz. [221] On Sunday, the 27th, I gave the rank of 1,500 personal and
1,000 horse to Shaja`at Khan, and the hawili (district surrounding)
of Gwalior was placed in the jagir of I`tibar Khan. I appointed
Qazi `Izzatu-llah with his brothers to the Bangash duty. At the end
of the same day a petition came to me from Islam Khan from Agra,
together with a letter which Jahangir Quli Khan had written to him
from Bihar. Its purport was that on the 3rd Safar (30th May, 1607),
after the first watch, `Ali Quli Istajlu had wounded Qutbu-d-din
Khan at Bardwan, in the province of Bengal, and that he had died
when two watches of the same night had passed. The details of this
matter are that the aforesaid `Ali Quli was sufrachi (table servant)
to Shah Isma`il (the 2nd), ruler of Iran; after his death he took to
flight through his natural wickedness and habit of making mischief,
and came to Qandahar, and having met at Multan the Khankhanan, who
had been appointed to the charge of the province of Tulamba, [222]
started with him for that province. The Khankhanan in the field
[223] placed him among the servants of the late king (Akbar), and
he having performed services in that campaign was promoted to a rank
in accordance with his condition, and was a long time in the service
of my revered father. At the time when he (Akbar) went in prosperity
to the provinces of the Deccan, and I was ordered against the Rana,
he came and became servant to me. I gave him the title of Shir-afgan
(tiger-throwing). When I came from Allahabad to wait on my revered
father, on account of the unfriendliness that was shown me, most of
my attendants and people were scattered abroad, and he also at that
time chose to leave my service. After my accession, out of generosity
I overlooked his offences, and gave an order for a jagir for him in
the Subah of Bengal. Thence came news that it was not right to leave
such mischievous persons there, and an order went to Qutbu-d-din Khan
to send him to Court, and if he showed any futile, seditious ideas, to
punish him. The aforesaid Khan had reason to know him (his character),
and with the men he had present, immediately the order arrived, went
hastily to Bardwan, which was his jagir. When he (Shir-afgan) became
aware of the arrival of Qutbu-d-din Khan, he went out to receive him
alone with two grooms. After he arrived and entered into the midst
of his army (his camp) the aforesaid Khan surrounded him. When from
this proceeding on the part of Qutbu-d-din Khan a doubt arose in his
mind, he by way of deceiving him said: "What proceeding is this of
thine?" [224] The aforesaid Khan, keeping back his own men, joined him
alone in order to explain the purport of the order to him. Seeing his
opportunity he immediately drew his sword and inflicted two or three
severe wounds upon him. Amba Khan Kashmiri, who was descended from the
rulers of Kashmir and was connected (by marriage?) with the aforesaid
Khan, and had a great regard for him by way of loyalty and manliness,
rushed forward and struck a heavy blow on `Ali Quli's head, and that
vicious fellow inflicted a severe wound on Amba Khan with the point
of his sword. [225] When they saw Qutbu-d-din Khan in this state, his
men attacked him (Shir-afgan), and cut him in pieces and sent him to
hell. It is to be hoped that the place of this black-faced scoundrel
will always be there. Amba Khan obtained martyrdom on the spot, and
Qutbu-d-din Khan Koka after four watches attained the mercy of God in
his quarters. What can I write of this unpleasantness? How grieved
and troubled I became! Qutbu-d-din Khan Koka was to me in the place
of a dear son, a kind brother, and a congenial friend. What can one
do with the decrees of God? Bowing to destiny I adopted an attitude
of resignation. After the departure of the late King and the death
of that honoured one, no two misfortunes had happened to me like the
death of the mother of Qutbu-d-din Khan Koka and his own martyrdom.
On Friday, the 6th Rabi`u-l-akhir, I came to the quarters of Khurram
(Shah-Jahan), which had been made in the Urta Garden. In truth,
the building is a delightful and well-proportioned one. Whereas it
was the rule of my father to have himself weighed twice every year,
(once) according to the solar and (once according to the) lunar year,
and to have the princes weighed according to the solar year, and
moreover in this year, which was the commencement of my son Khurram's
16th lunar year, the astrologers and astronomers [226] represented
that a most important epoch according to his horoscope would occur,
as the prince's health [227] had not been good, I gave an order that
they should weigh him according to the prescribed rule, against gold,
silver, and other metals, which should be divided among faqirs and
the needy. The whole of that day was passed in enjoyment and pleasure
in the house of Baba Khurram, and many of his presents were approved.
As I had experienced the excellencies of Kabul, and had eaten
most of its fruits, in consequence of important considerations and
the distance from the capital, on Sunday, the 4th Jumada-l-awwal,
I gave an order that they should send out the advance camp in the
direction of Hindustan. After some days I left the city, and the
royal standards proceeded to the meadow of Safid-sang. Although the
grapes were not yet fully ripe, I had often before this eaten Kabul
grapes. There are many good sorts of grapes, especially the Sahibi
and Kishmishi. The cherry also is a fruit of pleasant flavour, and
one can eat more of it than of other fruits; I have in a day eaten
up to 150 of them. The term shah-alu means gilas [228] (cherry),
which are obtainable in most places of the country, but since gilas
is like gilas, which is one of the names of the chalpasa (lizard),
my revered father called it shah-alu. The zard-alu paywandi [229] is
good, and is abundant. There is especially a tree in the Shahr-ara
garden, that Mirza Muhammad Hakim, my uncle, planted, and is known
as the Mirza'i. The apricots of this tree are quite unlike the
apricots of other trees. The peaches also are very delicious and
plentiful. They had brought some peaches from Istalif. I had them
weighed in my presence, and they came exactly in weight to 25 rupees,
which is 68 current misqal. Notwithstanding the sweetness of the Kabul
fruits, not one of them has, to my taste, the flavour of the mango. The
parganah of Mahaban was given as jagir to Mahabat Khan. `Abdu-r-Rahim,
paymaster of the Ahadis, was promoted to the rank of 700 personal and
200 horse. Mubarak Khan Sarwani was appointed to the faujdarship of
the sarkar of Hisar. I ordered that Mirza Faridun Barlas should have
a jagir in the Subah of Allahabad. On the 14th of the aforesaid month
I gave Iradat Khan, brother of Asaf Khan, the rank of 1,000 personal
and 500 horse, and presenting him with a special robe of honour and
a horse, bestowed on him the paymastership of the Subah of Patna and
Hajipur. As he was my qurbegi, I sent by his hand a jewelled sword for
my son (farzand) Islam Khan, the governor of the aforesaid Subah. As
we were going along I saw near `Ali Masjid and Gharib-khana a large
spider of the size of a crab that had seized by the throat a snake
of one and a half gaz in length and half strangled it. I delayed a
minute to look on at this, and after a moment it died (the snake).
I heard at Kabul that in the time of Mahmud of Ghazni a person of
the name of Khwaja Tabut [230] had died in the neighbourhood of
Zuhak and Bamiyan, and was buried in a cave, whose limbs had not yet
rotted asunder. This appeared very strange, and I sent one of my
confidential record writers with a surgeon to go to the cave and,
having seen the state of affairs as they were, to make a special
report. He represented that half of the body which was next the
ground had most of it come asunder, and the other half which had
not touched the ground remained in its own condition. The nails of
the hands and feet and the hair of the head had not been shed, but
the hair of the beard and moustache as far as one side of the nose
had been shed. From the date that had been engraved on the door of
the cave it appeared that his death had occurred before the time of
Sultan Mahmud. No one knows the exact state of the case.
On Thursday, the 15th Arslan Bi, governor of the fort of Kahmard,
who was one of the servants of middle rank (?) of Wali Muhammad Khan,
ruler of Turan, came and waited on me. [231] I had always heard that
Mirza Husain, son of Shahrukh Mirza, had been killed by the Uzbegs. At
this time a certain person came and presented a petition in his name,
and brought a ruby of the colour of an onion, which was worth 100
rupees, as an offering. He prayed that an army might be appointed
to assist him, so that he might take Badakhshan out of the Uzbegs'
hands. A jewelled dagger-belt was sent him, and an order given that,
as the royal standards had alighted in those regions, if he really was
Mirza Husain, son of Mirza Shahrukh, he should first hasten into my
presence, so that having examined his petitions and claims I might
send him to Badakhshan. Two hundred thousand rupees were sent for
the army that had been sent with Maha Singh and Ram Das against the
rebels of Bangash.
On Thursday, the 22nd, having gone to the Bala Hisar, I inspected the
buildings in that place. As the place was not fit for me I ordered
them to destroy these buildings and to prepare a palace and a royal
hall of audience. On the same day they brought a peach from Istalif,
barabar sar-i-buh bakalani, "as big as an owl's head" (?). [232]
I had not seen a peach of such a size, and ordered it to be weighed,
and it came to 63 Akbari rupees, or 60 tolas. When I cut it in half
its stone also came into two pieces, and its substance was sweet. I
had in Kabul never eaten better fruit from any tree. On the 25th news
came from Malwa that Mirza Shahrukh had bid farewell to this transitory
world, and God Almighty had submerged him in His mercy. From the day
on which he entered the service of my revered father till the time
of his departure, from no act of his could dust be brought into the
royal mind. He always did his duty with sincerity. The aforesaid
Mirza apparently had four sons: Hasan and Husain were born of the
same womb (i.e. they were twins). Husain fled from Burhanpur and went
by sea to Iraq, and thence to Badakhshan, where they say he now is,
as has been written about his message and his sending some one to
me. No one knows for certain whether it is the same Mirza Husain,
or the people of Badakhshan have raised up this one like other false
Mirzas and given him the name of Mirza Husain. From the time when
Mirza Shahrukh came from Badakhshan and had the good fortune to wait
on my father until now, nearly 25 years have passed. For some time the
people of Badakhshan, on account of the oppression and injury they have
to undergo from the Uzbegs, have given notoriety to a Badakhshan boy,
who had on his face the marks of nobility, as really the son of Mirza
Shahrukh and of the race of Mirza Sulaiman. A large number of the
scattered Uymaqs, and the hill-people of Badakhshan, whom they call
Gharchal (Georgians?), collected round him, and showing enmity and
disputing with the Uzbegs, took some of the districts of Badakhshan
out of their possession. The Uzbegs attacked that false Mirza and
captured him, and placing his head on a spear sent it round to the
whole country of Badakhshan. Again the seditious people of Badakhshan
quickly produced another Mirza. Up to now several Mirzas have been
killed. It appears to me that as long as there is any trace of the
people of Badakhshan they will keep up this disturbance. The third son
of the Mirza is Mirza Sultan, who excels in appearance and disposition
all the other sons of the Mirza. I begged him from his revered father,
and have kept him in my own service, and having taken great pains with
him reckon him as my own child. In disposition and manners he has no
likeness to his brothers. After my accession I gave him the rank of
2,000 personal and 1,000 horse, and sent him to the Subah of Malwa,
which was his father's place. The fourth son is Badi`u-z-zaman, whom
he always had in attendance on himself; he obtained the rank of 1,000
personal and 500 horse.
While I was at Kabul, no qamargah hunt had taken place. As the time
for returning to Hindustan had come near, and I was very desirous of
hunting red deer, I ordered them to go forward as soon as possible
and surround the hill Faraq, [233] which is seven kos from Kabul. On
Tuesday, the 4th Jumada-l-awwal, I went to hunt. Nearly 100 deer had
come into the enclosure (qamargah). About a half of these were taken,
and a very hot hunt took place. I gave 5,000 rupees in rewards to the
ryots who were present at the hunt. On the same day an increase of
500 horse was ordered to the rank of Shaikh `Abdu-r-Rahman, son of
Shaikh Abu-l-fazl, so as to bring it to 2,000 personal and (2,000)
horse. On Thursday, the 6th, I went to the throne-place of the late
king Babar. As I was to leave Kabul on the next day I looked on that
day as a feast day, and ordered them to arrange a wine-party on the
spot, and fill with wine the little reservoir they had cut in the
rock. Cups were given to all the courtiers and servants who were
present, and few days have passed in such enjoyment and pleasure. On
Friday, the 7th, when a watch of day had passed, leaving the city
auspiciously and with pleasure, a halt was made at the julgah
(meadow) of the Safid-sang. From the Shahr-ara as far as the julgah
I scattered to faqirs and poor people darb and charan, that is, half
and quarter rupees. [234] On that day, when I mounted my elephant
for the purpose of leaving Kabul, the news arrived of the recovery
of the Amiru-l-umara and Shah Beg Khan. The news of the good health
of these two chief servants of mine I took as an auspicious omen for
myself. From the julgah of the Safid-sang, marching one kos on Tuesday,
the 11th, I halted at Bikram. I left Tash Beg Khan at Kabul to take
proper care of Kabul and neighbourhood until the coming of Shah Beg
Khan. On Tuesday, the 18th, I marched two and a half kos from the
halting-place of Butkhak by the road Du'aba, [235] and encamped
at a spring on the bank of which there are four plane-trees. No
one till now had looked to the preparation of this halting-place,
and they were ignorant of its condition and suitability. It is in
truth a most excellent spot, and one fit to have a building erected
in it. At this halting-place another qamargah hunt took place, when
about 112 deer, etc., were taken. Twenty-four rang antelope and 50
red antelope and 16 mountain goats were taken. I had never till now
seen a rang antelope alive. [236] It is in truth a wonderful animal
of a beautiful shape. Although the black buck of Hindustan looks very
finely made, the shape and fashion and appearance of this antelope is
quite a different thing. They weighed a ram and a rang; the ram came to
a maund and 33 seers and the rang to two maunds and 10 seers. The rang,
although of this size, ran so that ten or twelve swift dogs were worn
out and seized it with a hundred thousand difficulties. The flesh of
the sheep of the Barbary goat in flavour does not surpass that of the
rang. In the same village kulangs (demoiselle crane) were also caught.
Although Khusrau had repeatedly done evil actions and deserved a
thousand kinds of punishment, my fatherly affection did not permit me
to take his life. Although in the laws of government and the ways of
empire one should take notice of such disapproved deeds, I averted my
eyes from his faults, and kept him in excessive comfort and ease. It
became known that he was in the habit of sending men to scoundrels who
did not consider consequences, and of inciting them to give trouble
and attempt my life, and making them hopeful with promises. A band
of these ill-fated ones of little foresight having joined together,
desired to attack me in the hunts that took place in Kabul and those
parts. As the grace and protection of God Almighty are the guardians
and keepers of this sublime dynasty, they did not attain to their
end. On the day when the halt was at the Surkhab, one of that band
went at the risk of his life to Khwaja Waisi, the Diwan of my son
Khurram, and revealed that nearly 500 men at Khusrau's instigation had
conspired with Fathu-llah, son of Hakim Abu-l-fath, Nuru-d-din, son of
Ghiyasu-d-din `Ali Asaf-khan, and Sharif, son of I`timadu-d-daulah
(Nur-Jahan's father), and were awaiting an opportunity to carry
out the designs of the enemies and evil-wishers of the king. Khwaja
Waisi told this to Khurram, and he in great perturbation immediately
told me. I gave Khurram the blessing of felicity, and prepared to
get hold of the whole set of those short-sighted ones and punish
them with various kinds of punishment. Again, it came to my mind,
as I was on the march, and the seizure of these people would create
a disturbance and confusion in the camp, [237] to order the leaders
of the disturbance and mischief to be apprehended. I handed over
Fathu-llah in confinement to certain trusty men, and ordered capital
punishment for the other two wretches, with three or four of the
chief among the black-faced (conspirators). I had dignified Qasim
`Ali, who was one of the servants of the late king Akbar, after my
accession with the title of Dayanat Khan. He always accused Fathu-llah
of a want of loyalty, and said things about him. One day he said to
Fathu-llah: "At the time when Khusrau fled and the king pursued him,
you said to me: 'The Panjab should be given to Khusrau and this
quarrel cut short.'" Fathu-llah denied this, and both resorted to
oaths and curses (on themselves). Ten or fifteen days had not passed
after this altercation when that hypocritical wretch was arrested,
and his false oath did its business.
On Saturday, the 22nd Jumada-l-awwal, the news came of the death
of the Hakim Jalalu-d-din Muzaffar Ardistani, who was of a family
of skill and medicine and claimed to be a descendant of Galen. At
all events he was an unequalled healer. His experience added to his
knowledge. [238] As he was very handsome and well-made in the days
of his youth (sada-ru'iha) [239] he frequented the assemblies of Shah
Tahmasp, and the king recited this hemistich about him:--
"We have a pleasant physician: come, let as all be ill."
Hakim `Ali, who was his contemporary, exceeded him in skill. In short,
in medical skill and auspiciousness and rectitude and purity of method
and disposition he was perfect. Other physicians of the age could
not compare with him. In addition to his medical skill he had many
excellencies. He had perfect loyalty towards me. He built at Lahore
a house of great pleasantness and purity, and repeatedly asked me to
honour it (with my presence). As I was very fond of pleasing him I
consented. In short, the aforesaid Hakim, from his connection with me
and being my physician, had great skill in the management of affairs
and business of the world, so that for some time at Allahabad I made
him Diwan of my establishment. On account of his great honesty he was
very exacting in important business, and people were vexed at this
method of proceeding. For about twenty years he had ulcerated lungs,
and by his wisdom preserved in some measure his health. When he was
talking he mostly coughed so much that his cheek and eyes became red,
and by degrees his colour became blue. I often said to him: "Thou
art a learned physician; why dost thou not cure thy own wounds?" He
represented that wounds in the lungs were not of such a nature that
they could be cured. During his illness one of his confidential
servants put poison into some medicine he was in the habit of
taking every day and gave it to him. When he perceived this he took
remedies for it. He objected very much to be bled, although this was
necessary. It happened that he was going to the privy when his cough
overcame him and opened the wounds in his lungs. So much blood poured
out of his mouth and brain that he became insensible and fell, and made
a fearful cry. An aftabachi (ewer-bearer) becoming aware of this, came
into the assembly-room, and seeing him smeared with blood cried out:
"They have killed the hakim." After examining him it was seen that
there was no sign of wounds on his body, and that it was the same
wound in the lungs that had begun to flow. They informed Qilij Khan,
who was the Governor of Lahore, and he, having ascertained the true
state of the affair, buried him. He left no capable son.
On the 24th, between the garden of Wafa and Nimlah, a hunt took place,
and nearly forty red antelope were killed. A female panther (yuz) fell
into our hands in this hunt. The zamindars of that place, Laghmanis,
Shali, and Afghans, came and said that they did not remember nor had
they heard from their fathers that a panther had been seen in that
region for 120 years. A halt was made on the 2nd Jumada-l-akhir, at
the Wafa Garden, and the assembly for the solar weighing was held. On
the same day Arslan Bi, an Uzbeg who was one of the Sardars and nobles
of `Abdu-l-Mumin Khan, and was at that time governor of the fort of
Kahmard, having left his fort, had the blessing of waiting on me. As he
had come from friendship and sincerity, I exalted him with a special
robe of honour. He is a simple Uzbeg, and is fit to be educated and
honoured. On the 4th of the month an order was given that `Izzat Khan,
the governor [240] of Jalalabad, should make the hunting-ground of
the Arzina plain into a qamargah (ring-hunting ground). Nearly 300
animals were captured, namely, 35 quch (rams?), 25 qushqi (?), 90
arghali (wild sheep), 55 tughli (yaks?), 95 antelope (safida).
As it was the middle of the day when I arrived at the hunting-place and
the air was very hot, the (tazi) Arabian dogs had been exhausted. [241]
The time for running dogs is in the morning or at the end of the
day. On Saturday, the 12th, the halt was at Akura Saray (?). At
this stage Shah Beg Khan, [242] with a good force, came and waited
on me. He was one who had been brought up by my father, the late king
Akbar. In himself he is a very brave man and energetic, so much so that
constantly in the time of my father he fought several single combats,
and in my own reign defended the fort of Qandahar from the hosts of the
ruler of Iran. It was besieged for a year before the royal army arrived
to his assistance. His manners towards his soldiers are those of an
Amir (nobleman, umarayana), and not according to discipline (qudrat),
especially towards those who have helped him in battles or are with
him in campaigns. He jokes much with his servants, and this gives him
an undignified appearance. [243] I have repeatedly warned him about
this, but as it is in his nature my remonstrances have had no effect.
On Monday, the 14th, I promoted Hashim Khan, who is one of the
household, born ones of our dynasty, to the rank of 3,000 with 2,000
horse, and I made him governor of the province of Orissa. On the
same day news came that Badi`u-z-zaman, son of Mirza Shahrukh, who
was in the province of Malwa, through folly and youth had started
with a body of rebels to go to the province of the Rana and join
him. `Abdu-llah Khan, the governor of that place, being informed of
this event went after him, and having made him prisoner on the way,
slew several of the wretches who had joined with him. An order was
given that Ihtimam Khan should start from Agra and bring the Mirza to
the court. On the 25th of the aforesaid month news came that Imam Quli
Khan, nephew of Wali Khan, ruler of Mawara'a-n-nahr, had killed him
who was called Mirza Husain, who had been reported to be the son of
Mirza Shahrukh. In truth, the killing of the sons of Mirza Shahrukh
is like the killing of the demons, as they say that from every drop
of their blood demons are produced. In the station of Dhaka, Shir
Khan, the Afghan, whom when I left I had placed at Peshawar to guard
the Khaibar Pass, came and waited on me. He had made no default in
preserving and guarding the road. Zafar Khan, son of Zain Khan Koka,
had been appointed to move on the Dalazak Afghans and the tribe of
Khatur, who had perpetrated all kinds of misdeeds in the neighbourhood
of Attock and the Beas and that vicinity. After performing that service
and the conquest of those rebels, who numbered about 100,000 houses,
and sending them off towards Lahore, he came and waited upon me at
the same halting-place, and it was evident that he had performed
that service as it ought to have been done. As the month of Rajab,
corresponding with the Ilahi month of Aban, had arrived, [244] and
it was known that this was one of the months fixed for the lunar
weighing (wazn-i-qamari) of my father, I determined that the value of
all the articles which he used to order for his own weighing in the
solar and lunar years should be estimated, and that what this came
to should be sent to the large cities for the repose of the soul of
that enlightened one, and be divided amongst the necessitous and the
faqirs. The total came to 100,000 rupees, equal to 300 Iraq tumans,
and 300,000 of the currency of the people of Mawara'a-n-nahr.
Trustworthy men divided that sum among the twelve chief cities,
such as Agra, Delhi, Lahore, Gujarat (Ahmadabad), etc. On Thursday,
the 3rd Rajab, I favoured with the title of Khan-jahan my son
(farzand) Salabat Khan, who is not less to me than my own sons,
and ordered that they should in all firmans and orders write of him
as Khan-jahan. A special robe of honour and a jewelled sword were
also given him. Also, having entitled Shah Beg Khan Khan-dauran,
I presented him with a jewelled waist-dagger, a male elephant, and
a special horse. The whole of the sarkars of Tirah, Kabul, Bangash,
and the province of Sawad (Swat) Bajaur, with the (task of) beating
back the Afghans of those regions, and a jagir and the faujdarship
were confirmed to him. He took leave from Baba Hasan Abdal. I also
ordered Ram Das Kachhwaha to receive a jagir in this province and to
be enrolled among the auxiliaries of this Subah. I conferred on Kishan
Chand, son of the Mota (fat) Raja, the rank of 1,000 personal and 500
horse. A firman was written to Murtaza Khan (Sayyid Farid), governor
of Gujarat, that as the good conduct and excellence and abstemiousness
of the son of Miyan Wajihu-d-din [245] had been reported to me, he
should hand over to him from me a sum of money, and that he should
write and send me some of the names of God which had been tested. If
the grace of God should be with me I would continually repeat [246]
them. Before this I had given leave to Zafar Khan to go to Baba Hasan
Abdal to collect together game for sport. He had made a shakhband
(literally a tying together of horns or branches). Twenty-seven red
deer and 68 white ones came into the shakhband. I myself struck with
arrows 29 antelope, and Parwiz and Khurram also killed some others with
arrows. Afterwards orders were given to the servants and courtiers
to shoot. Khan Jahan was the best shot, and in every case of his
striking an antelope the arrow penetrated through and through. [247]
Again, on the 14th of the month of Rajab, Zafar Khan had arranged a
qamargah at Rawalpindi. I struck with an arrow a red deer at a long
distance, and was highly delighted at the arrow striking him and his
falling down. Thirty-four red deer and 35 qara-quyrugh (black-tailed)
antelope, which in the Hindi language they call chikara, and two pigs
were also killed. On the 21st another qamargah had been arranged within
three kos of the fort of Rohtas by the efforts and exertions of Hilal
Khan. I had taken with me to this hunt those who were screened by the
curtains of honour (the members of the zananah). The hunt was a good
one and came off with great éclat. Two hundred red and white antelope
were killed. Passing on from Rohtas, the hills of which contain these
antelope, there are in no place in the whole of Hindustan, with the
exception of Girjhak and Nandanah, red deer of this description. I
ordered them to catch and keep some of them alive, in order that
possibly some of them might reach Hindustan for breeding purposes. On
the 25th another hunt took place in the neighbourhood of Rohtas. In
this hunt also my sisters and the other ladies were with me, and
nearly 100 red deer were killed. It was told me that Shams Khan,
uncle of Jalal Khan [248] Gakkhar who was in that neighbourhood,
notwithstanding his great age took much delight in hunting, such
that young men had not so much enjoyment in it. When I heard that he
was well-disposed towards faqirs and dervishes I went to his house,
and his disposition and manners pleased me. I bestowed on him 2,000
rupees, and the same sum on his wives and children, with five other
villages with large receipts by way of livelihood for them, that they
might pass their days in comfort and contentment. On the 6th Sha`ban,
at the halting-place of Chandalah, the Amiru-l-umara came and waited on
me. I was greatly pleased at obtaining his society again, for all the
physicians, Hindu and Musulman, had made up their minds that he would
die. Almighty God in His grace and mercy granted him the honour of
recovery, in order that it might be known to such as do not recognize
His will that for every difficult ill, which those who look on the
outside of causes only may have given up as hopeless, there is One
who is powerful to provide a cure and remedy out of His own kindness
and compassion. On the same day Ray Ray Singh, [249] one of the most
considerable of the Rajput Amirs, ashamed on account of the fault he
had committed in the matter of Khusrau, and who was living at his home,
came, and under the patronage of the Amiru-l-umara obtained the good
fortune of waiting on me; his offences were pardoned. At the time that
I left Agra in pursuit of Khusrau I had in full confidence left him
in charge of Agra, so that when the ladies (mahalha) [250] should be
sent for he might come with them. After the ladies were sent for he
went for two or three stages with them, and in the village of Mathura,
on merely hearing foolish tales, separated from them, and went to his
native place (Bikanir). He thought that as a commotion had arisen he
would see where the right road was. The merciful God, who cherishes
His servants, in a short time having arranged that affair broke the
rope of the alliance of those rebels, and this betrayal of his salt
remained a burden on his neck. In order to please the Amiru-l-umara
I ordered the rank which he formerly held to be confirmed to him,
and his jagir to remain as it was. I promoted Sulaiman Beg, who was
one of my attendants from the time when I was prince, to the title
of Fida'i Khan. On Monday, the 12th, a halt was made at the garden
of Dil-amiz, which is on the bank of the river Ravi. I waited on my
mother in this garden. Mirza Ghazi, who had done approved service in
command of the army at Qandahar, waited on me, and I bestowed great
favour on him.
On Tuesday, the 13th, I auspiciously entered Lahore. The next day
Mir Khalilu-llah, son of Ghiyasu-d-din Muhammad, Mirmiran, who was of
the descendants of Shah Ni`matu-llah Wali, paid his respects. [251]
In the reign of Shah Tahmasp there was no family of such greatness in
the whole country, for the sister of the Shah, by name Janish Begam,
was in the house of (married to) Mir Ni`matu-llah, the father of the
Mirmiran. A daughter who was born to them, the Shah gave in marriage
to his own son Isma`il Mirza, and making the sons of that Mirmiran
sons-in-law, gave his younger daughter to his eldest son, who had the
same name as his grandfather, and connected (in marriage) the daughter
of Isma`il Mirza, who was born of the niece of the Shah, to another
son, Mir Khalilu-llah. After the death of the Shah, by degrees the
family went to decay, until in the reign of Shah `Abbas they became all
at once extirpated, and they lost the property and effects that they
had and could no longer remain in their own place. Mir Khalilu-llah
came to wait upon me. As he had undergone trouble on the road, and
the signs of sincerity were apparent from his circumstances, having
made him a sharer of my unstinted favours I gave him 12,000 rupees in
cash, and promoted him to the rank of 1,000 personal and 200 horse,
and gave an order for a jagir.
An order was given to the civil department (diwaniyan) to confer
the rank of 8,000 personal and 5,000 horse on my son Khurram, and
to provide a jagir for him in the neighbourhood of Ujjain, and to
assign the Sarkar of Hisar Firuza to him. On Thursday, the 22nd, on
the invitation of Asaf Khan, I went with my ladies to his house and
passed the night there. The next day he presented before me his own
offerings, of the value of ten lacs of rupees, in jewels and jewelled
things, robes, elephants, and horses. Some single rubies and jacinths
and some pearls, also silk cloths with some pieces of porcelain from
China and Tartary, were accepted, and I made a present of the rest to
him. Murtaza Khan from Gujarat sent by way of offering a ring made
of a single ruby of good colour, substance, and water, the stone,
the socket, and the ring being all of one piece. They weighed 1 1/2
tanks and one surkh, which is equal to one misqal and 15 surkh. This
was sent to me and much approved. Till that day no one had ever
heard of such a ring having come to the hands of any sovereign. A
single ruby weighing six surkhs or two tanks and 15 surkhs, [252]
and of which the value was stated to be £25,000, was also sent. The
ring was valued at the same figure.
On the same day the envoy of the Sharif of Mecca came to wait on
me with a letter and the curtain of the door of the Ka`bah. He
showed great friendship towards me. The said envoy had bestowed on
him 500,000 dam, equal to 7,000 or 8,000 rupees, and I resolved to
send the Sharif the equivalent of 100,000 rupees of the precious
things of Hindustan. On Thursday, the 10th of the month, a piece
of the Subah of Multan was added to the jagir of Mirza Ghazi,
though the whole of the province of Thattah had been given to him in
jagir. He was also promoted to the rank of 5,000 personalty and 5,000
horse. The government of Qandahar and the protection of that region,
which is the frontier of Hindustan, were assigned to his excellent
administration. Conferring on him a robe of honour and a jewelled
sword I gave him his leave. In fine, Mirza Ghazi possessed perfection,
[253] and he made also good verses. He used Waqari as his takhallus, or
poetic name (Ruz-i-rushan, Bhopal 1297, p. 455; also Ma'asiru-l-umara,
vol. iii, p. 347). This is one of his couplets:--
"If my weeping should cause her to smile, what wonder?
Though the cloud weep, the cheek of the rose-bush smiles."
On the 15th the offering of the Khankhanan was presented to me: 40
elephants, some jewelled and decorated vessels, some Persian robes, and
cloth that they make in the Deccan and those parts, had been sent by
him, altogether of the value of 150,000 rupees. Mirza Rustam and most
of the office-holders of that Subah had also sent good offerings. Some
of the elephants were approved. News of the death of Ray Durga, [254]
who was one of those who had been brought up by my revered father,
arrived on the 18th of the month. He had been in attendance for forty
years and more in the position of an Amir on my revered father, until,
by degrees, he had risen in rank to 4,000. Before he obtained the good
fortune of waiting on my father he was one of the trusted servants
of Rana Uday Singh. He died on the 29th. He was a good military
man. Sultan Shah, the Afghan, whose disposition was turbulent and
mischievous, passed his time in the service of Khusrau, and had his
complete intimacy, so much so that this rebel was the cause of the
running away of that unfortunate one. After the defeat and capture
of Khusrau he went off alone(?) [255] into the skirts of the hills of
Khizrabad and that region. At last he was made prisoner by Mir Mughal,
the karori of that place. As he had been the cause of the destruction
and ruin of such a son, I ordered them to shoot him with arrows on
the plain of Lahore. The aforesaid karori was promoted to higher rank,
and was dignified with a grand dress of honour. On the 29th Shir Khan,
the Afghan, who was one of my old servants, died. One might say that
he took his own life, because he was continually drinking wine, to
the extent that in every watch he used to drink four brimming cups
of arrack of double strength. He had broken the fast of the Ramazan
of the past year, and took it into his head this year that he would
fast in the month of Sha`ban on account of his having broken the fast
of Ramazan, and would fast for two months together. In abandoning
his usual custom, which is a second nature, he became weak and his
appetite left him, and becoming very weak he passed away in his
57th year. Patronising his children and brothers according to their
circumstances, I bestowed on them a portion of his rank and jagir.
On the 1st of the month of Shawwal I went to visit Maulana Muhammad
Amin, who was one of the disciples of Shaikh Mahmud Kamangar (the
bow-maker). The Shaikh Mahmud [256] mentioned was one of the great men
of his age, and H.M. Humayun had entire reliance on him, so much so
that he once poured water on his hands. The aforesaid Maulana is a man
of good disposition, and is free, notwithstanding the attachments and
accidents (of the world), a faqir in manner and ways, and acquainted
with brokenness of spirit. His company pleased me exceedingly. I
explained to him some of the griefs that had entangled themselves
in my mind and heard from him good advice and agreeable words, and
found myself greatly consoled at heart. Having presented him with
1,000 bigha and 1,000 rupees in cash by way of maintenance, I took
leave. One watch of day had passed on Sunday when I left Lahore on
my way to the capital of Agra. Having made Qilij Khan governor, Mir
Qawamu-d-din diwan, Shaikh Yusuf bakhshi, and Jamalu-d-din kotwal,
and presented each according to his circumstances with dresses of
honour, I turned towards my desired way. On the 25th, having passed
over the river at Sultanpur, I proceeded two kos and halted at
Nakodar. My revered father had given Shaikh Abu-l-fazl [257] gold of
the weight of 20,000 rupees to build an embankment between these two
parganahs and prepare a waterfall, and in truth I found a halting-place
exceedingly pleasant and fresh. I ordered Mu`izzu-l-mulk, the jagirdar
of Nakodar, to erect a building and prepare a garden on one side of
this embankment, so that wayfarers seeing it might be pleased. On
Saturday, 10th Zi-l-qa`da, Waziru-l-mulk, who before my ascension
had the good fortune to serve me, and was Diwan of my establishment,
died of diarrhoea. At the end of his life a son of evil fortune (lit
footsteps) had been born in his house, who in the space of forty days
ruined [258] (Erskine has 'ate') both his father and mother, and who
himself died when he was two or three years old. It occurred to me
that the house of Waziru-l-mulk must not all at once be ruined, and
patronising Mansur, his brother's son, I gave him rank. Indeed, [259]
he showed no love to me (the scent of love did not come from him). On
Monday, the 14th, I heard on the road that between Panipat and Karnal
there were two tigers that were giving much trouble to wayfarers. I
collected the elephants and sent them off. When I arrived at their
(the tigers') place I mounted a female elephant, and ordered them
to place the elephants round them after the manner of a qamargah
(enclosure), and by the favour of Allah killed both with a gun,
and thus got rid of the raging tigers that had closed the road to
the servants of God. On Thursday, the 18th, [260] I halted at Delhi
and alighted at the residence which Salim Khan, the Afghan, had made
in the days of his rule in the middle of the river Jumna and called
Salimgadh. My revered father had given the place to Murtaza Khan, who
was originally an inhabitant of Delhi. The aforesaid Khan had built
on the margin of the river a terrace of stone excessively pleasant
and bright. Below that building [261] near the water there was made a
square chaukandi with glazed tiles by the order of H.M. Humayun, and
there are few places with such air. In the days when the late king
Humayun honoured Delhi with his presence, he often sat there with
his intimates, and associated with the members of his assemblies. I
passed four days in that place, and with my courtiers and intimates
enjoyed myself with wine parties. Mu`azzam Khan, who was governor
of Delhi, presented offerings. The jagirdars and citizens also made
offerings and presents, each according to his circumstances. I was
desirous to employ some days in a qamargah hunt in the parganah of
Palam, which is one of the places near the aforesaid city and one
of the fixed hunting-grounds. As it was represented to me that the
(fortunate) hour for approaching Agra had come very near, and another
proper hour was not to be obtained at all near that time, I gave up
the intention, and embarking on board a boat went on by water. On
the 20th of the month of Zi-l-qa`da four boys and three girls,
children of Mirza Shahrukh, whom he had not mentioned to my father,
were brought. I placed the boys among my confidential servants, and
made over the girls to the attendants of the ladies of the harem in
order that they might look after them. On the 21st of the same month
Raja Man Singh came and waited on me from the fort of Rohtas, which
is in the province of Patna and Behar, after orders had been sent
to him six or seven times. He also, like Khan A`zam, is one of the
hypocrites and old wolves of this State. What they have done to me,
and what has happened to them from me, God the knower of secrets knows;
possibly no one could mention such another case(?). The aforesaid
Raja produced as offerings 100 elephants, male and female, not one
of which was fit to be included among my private elephants. As he was
one of those who had been favoured by my father, I did not parade his
offences before his face, but with royal condescension promoted him.
On this day they brought a talking jal (lark) which distinctly said
"Miyan Tuti." It was very strange and wonderful. In Turki they call
this bird turghai. [262]
THE THIRD NEW YEAR'S FEAST FROM MY ACCESSION.
On Thursday, the 2nd Zi-l-hijja, corresponding with the 1st Farwardin
(19th March, 1608), the Sun, which enlightens and heats the world with
its splendour, changed from the constellation of Pisces to the joyful
mansion of Aries, the abode of pleasure and rejoicing. It gave the
world fresh brightness, and being aided by the Spring clothed those
who had been plundered by the cold season, and tyrannised over by the
Autumn, with the robes of honour of the New Year and the garments of
emerald green, and gave them compensation and recuperation.
"Again to Not-Being came the world's lord's order,
'Restore what thou hast devoured.'"
The feast of the New Year was held in the village of Rankatta, [263]
which is five kos off (from Agra), and at the time of transit (of
the sun) I seated myself on the throne with glory and gladness. The
nobles and courtiers and all the servants came forward with their
congratulations. In the same assembly I bestowed on Khanjahan the rank
of 5,000 personal and horse. I selected Khwaja Jahan for the post of
bakhshi. Dismissing Wazir Khan from the Viziership of the province of
Bengal, I sent in his place Abu-l-hasan Shihabkhani; and Nuru-d-din
Quli became kotwal of Agra. As the glorious mausoleum of the late
king Akbar was on the road, it entered my mind that if in passing by I
should have the good fortune of a pilgrimage to it, it might occur to
those who were short-sighted that I visited it because it was the place
where my road crossed. I accordingly had determined that this time I
would enter Agra, and after that would go on foot on this pilgrimage
to the shrine, which is two and a half kos off, in the same way that
the Hazrat (my father), on account of my birth, had gone from Agra to
Ajmir. Would that I might also traverse the same on my head! When two
watches of day had passed of Saturday, the 5th [264] of the month,
at an auspicious hour, I returned towards Agra, and scattering with
two hands 5000 rupees in small coins on the way, entered the august
palace which was inside the fort. On this day Raja Bir Singh Deo
brought a white cheeta to show me. Although other sorts of creatures,
both birds and beasts, have white varieties, which they call tuyghan,
[265] I had never seen a white cheeta. Its spots, which are (usually)
black, were of a blue colour, and the whiteness of the body was also
inclined to bluishness. Of the albino animals that I have seen there
are falcons, sparrow-hawks, hawks (shikara) that they call bigu [266]
in the Persian language, sparrows, crows, partridges, florican, podna
[267] (Sylvia olivacea), and peacocks. Many hawks in aviaries are
albinos. I have also seen white flying mice (flying squirrels) and
some albinos among the black antelope, which is a species found only
in Hindustan. Among the chikara (gazelle), which they call safida in
Persia, I have frequently seen albinos. At this time Ratan, son of
Bhoj-hara, who is one of the chief Rajput nobles, came to the camp
and waited on me, bringing three elephants as an offering. One of
these was much approved, and they valued it in the office at 15,000
rupees. It was entered among my private elephants, and I gave it the
name of Ratangaj. The value of elephants of the former great Rajas of
India was not more than 25,000 rupees, but they have now become very
dear. I dignified Ratan with the title of Sarbuland Ray. I promoted
Miran Sadr Jahan to the rank of 5,000 personal and 1,500 horse and
Mu`azzam Khan to 4,000 personal and 2,000 horse. `Abdu-llah Khan was
promoted to 3,000 and 500 horse. Muzaffar Khan and Bhao Singh each
obtained the rank of 2,000 personal and 1,000 horse. Abu-l-hasan diwan
had 1,000 and 500 horse. I`timadu-d-daulah that of 1,000 personal and
250 horse. On the 25th Raja Suraj Singh, the maternal uncle of my son
Khurram, came and paid his respects to me. He brought with him Shyam,
the cousin of the turbulent Umra. In truth he possesses some skill and
understands well how to ride elephants. Raja Suraj Singh had brought
with him a poet who wrote verse in the Hindi tongue. He laid before me
a poem in my praise to the purport that if the Sun had a son it would
be always day and never would be night, because after his setting that
son would sit in his place and keep the world in light. Praise and
thanksgiving to God that God gave your father such a son that after
his death men should not wear mourning which is like the night. The Sun
had envy on this account, saying, "Would I might also have a son who,
taking my place, should not allow night to approach the world, for
from the light of your rising and the illumination of your justice,
notwithstanding such a misfortune, the spheres are so bright that
one might say 'night had neither name nor sign.'" Few Hindi verses of
such freshness of purport have ever reached my ear. As a reward for
this eulogy I gave him an elephant. The Rajputs call a poet Charan
(name of a caste who are many of them poets). One of the poets of
the age has turned [268] these sentiments into (Persian) verse--
"If the world-illuminator had a son,
There would be no night; it would be always day;
For when his gold-crowned head was hidden
His son would display his tiara peak.
Thanks that after such a father
Such a son sits in his place.
For from the demise of that king
No one made black robes for mourning."
On Thursday, the 8th Muharram, 1017 [269] (24th April, 1608),
Jalalu-d-din Mas`ud, who held the rank of 400 personal and was
not wanting in bravery, and who in several battles had done great
deeds, died at about the age of 50 or 60 years of diarrhoea. He was
an opium-eater, and used to eat opium after breaking it in pieces,
like cheese, and it is notorious that he frequently ate opium from the
hand of his own mother. When his disease became violent and there was
a prospect of his death, his mother from excessive love for him ate
more opium than was right out of that which she used to give her son,
and two or three hours after his death she also died. I have never
heard of such affection on the part of a mother for her son. It is
the custom among the Hindus that after the death of their husbands
women burn themselves, whether from love, or to save the honour
of their fathers, or from being ashamed before their sons-in-law,
but nothing like this was ever manifested on the part of mothers,
Musulman or Hindu. On the 15th of the same month I presented my best
horse by way of favour to Raja Man Singh. Shah `Abbas had sent this
horse with some other horses and fitting gifts by Minuchihr, one of
his confidential slaves, to the late king Akbar. From being presented
with this horse the Raja was so delighted that if I had given him
a kingdom I do not think he would have shown such joy. At the time
they brought the horse it was three or four years old. It grew up
in Hindustan. The whole of the servants of the Court, Moghul and
Rajput together, represented that no horse like this had ever come
from Iraq to Hindustan. When my revered father gave the province of
Khandesh and the Subah of the Deccan to my brother Daniyal, and was
returning to Agra, he by way of kindness told Daniyal to ask of him
whatever he desired. Seizing the opportunity, he asked for this horse,
and he accordingly gave it to him. On Tuesday, the 20th, a report came
from Islam Khan with the news of the death of Jahangir Quli Khan, the
governor of the Subah of Bengal, who was my special slave. On account
of his natural excellence and innate merit he had been enrolled in the
list of the great Amirs. I was much grieved at his death. I bestowed
the rule of Bengal and the tutorship to Prince Jahandar on my farzand
[270] Islam Khan, and in his place gave the government of the Subah
of Behar to Afzal Khan (son of Abu-l-fazl). The son of Hakim `Ali,
whom I had sent on some duties to Burhanpur, came and brought with him
some Karnatic jugglers who had no rivals or equals; for instance, one
of them played with ten balls, each of which was equal to an orange
and one to a citron, and one to a surkh, [271] in such a way that
notwithstanding some were small and some large he never missed one,
and did so many kinds of tricks that one's wits became bewildered. At
the same time a dervish from Ceylon came and brought a strange animal
called a deonak [272] (or devang). Its face was exactly like a large
bat, and the whole shape was like that of a monkey, but it had no
tail. Its movements were like those of the black tailless monkey which
they call ban manush (jungle man) in the Hindi language. Its body was
like that of a young monkey two or three months old. It had been with
the dervish for five years. [273] It appeared that the animal would
never grow larger. Its food is milk and it also eats plantains. As
the creature appeared very strange, I ordered the artists to take a
likeness of it in various kinds of movement. It looked very ugly.
On the same day Mirza Faridun Barlas was promoted to the rank of 1,500
personal and 1,300 horse. An order was given that Payanda [274] Khan
Moghul, as he had reached old age after exerting himself as a soldier,
should receive a jagir equal to 2,000 personal. Ilf Khan was promoted
to the rank of 700 personal and 500 horse. The rank of Islam Khan, my
son (farzand), the governor of the Subah of Bengal, was fixed at 4,000
personal and 3,000 horse. The guardianship of the fort of Rohtas was
bestowed on Kishwar Khan, son of Qutbu-d-din Khan Koka. Ihtimam Khan
was raised to the rank of 1,000 personal and 300 horse, and made mir
bahr (admiral) and was appointed to the charge of the nawara (fleet)
of Bengal. On the 1st Safar Shamsu-d-din Khan, son of Khan A`zam,
made an offering of ten elephants, and, receiving the rank of 2,000
personal and 1,500 horse, was selected for the title of Jahangir Quli
Khan, and Zafar Khan received the rank of 2,000 personal and 1,000
horse. As I had demanded in marriage the daughter of Jagat Singh,
eldest son of Raja Man Singh, I on the 16th sent 80,000 rupees for
the sachaq (a marriage present) to the house of the aforesaid Raja
in order to dignify him. Muqarrab Khan sent from the port of Cambay
a European curtain (tapestry), the like of which in beauty no other
work of the Frank painters had ever been seen. On the same day my
aunt, Najibu-n-nisa Begam, [275] died in the 61st year of her age
of the disease of consumption and hectic fever. I promoted her son,
Mirza Wali, to the rank of 1,000 personal and 200 horse. A man of
Mawara'a-n-nahr, of the name of Aqam Haji, who for a long time had been
in Turkey and was not without reasonableness and religious knowledge,
and who called himself the ambassador of the Turkish Emperor,
waited upon me at Agra. He had an unknown writing (? illegible
letter). Looking to his circumstances and his proceedings none of
the servants of the Court believed in his being an ambassador. When
Timur conquered Turkey, and Yildirim Bayazid, the ruler of that place,
fell alive into his hands, he, after levying tribute and taking one
year's revenue, determined to hand back into his possession the whole
of the country of Turkey. Just at that time Yildirim Bayazid died,
and (Timur), having handed over the kingdom to his son Musa Chelebi,
returned. From that time until now, notwithstanding such favours,
no one had come on the part of the emperors, nor has any ambassador
been sent: how, then, can it now be believed that this person from
Mawara'a-n-nahr should have been sent by the emperor? I could in
no way understand the affair, and no one could bear witness to the
accuracy of his claim: I therefore told him to go wherever he might
wish. On the 4th Rabi`u-1-awwal the daughter of Jagat Singh entered
the harem, and the marriage ceremony was performed in the house of
Her Highness Maryam-zamani. Amongst the things sent with her by Raja
Man Singh were 60 elephants.
As I had determined to conquer the Rana, it occurred to me that I
should send Mahabat Khan. I appointed 12,000 fully armed cavalry
under able officers to go with him, and in addition 500 ahadis,
2,000 musketeers on foot, with artillery made up of 70 to 80 guns
mounted on elephants and camels; 60 elephants were appointed to this
duty. Two million rupees of treasure were ordered to be sent with this
army. On the 16th of the said month Mir Khalilu-llah, grandson of Mir
Ni`matu-llah Yazdi, the whole of whose circumstances and family history
has already been written, died of diarrhoea. In his appearance the
traces of sincerity and dervishhood were manifest. If he had lived
and passed a long time in my service he would have risen to high
rank. The bakhshi of Burhanpur had sent some mangoes, one of which
I ordered to be weighed; it came to 52 1/2 tolas. On Wednesday, the
18th, in the house of Maryam-zamani, the feast of the lunar weighing
of my 40th year was held. I ordered the money used in weighing to
be divided amongst women and needy persons. On Thursday, the 4th
Rabi`u-l-akhir, Tahir Beg, the bakhshi of the Ahadis, was given the
title of Mukhlis Khan, and Mulla-i-Taqiyya Shustari, [276] who was
adorned with excellencies and perfections, and was well acquainted
with the science of history and genealogy, that of Mu'arrikh Khan. On
the 10th of the same month, having given Barkhurdar, the brother of
`Abdu-llah Khan, the title of Bahadur Khan, I dignified him among his
fellows. Munis Khan, son of Mihtar Khan, presented me with a jug of
jasper (jade), which had been made in the reign of Mirza Ulugh Beg
Gurgan, in the honoured name of that prince. It was a very delicate
rarity and of a beautiful shape. Its stone was exceedingly white and
pure. Around the neck of the jar they had carved the auspicious name
of the Mirza and the Hijra year in riqa` [277] characters. I ordered
them to inscribe my name and the auspicious name of Akbar on the edge
of the lip of the jar. Mihtar [278] Khan was one of the ancient slaves
of this State. He had the honour of serving the late king Humayun,
and during the reign of my revered father had attained the rank of
nobility. He regarded him as one of his confidential servants. On
the 16th a firman was issued that the country of Sangram, [279]
which had been given for a year by way of reward to my son (farzand)
Islam Khan, should be handed over for the same purpose for a year
to Afzal Khan, the governor of the Subah of Behar. On this day I
promoted Mahabat Khan to the rank of 3,000 personal and 2,500 horse,
and Yusuf Khan, son of Husain Khan Tukriyah, obtained that of 2,000
personal and 800 horse. On the 24th I gave leave to Mahabat Khan
and the Amirs and men who had been appointed to subdue the Rana. The
aforesaid Khan was honoured with a robe of honour, a horse, a special
elephant, and a jewelled sword. Zafar Khan, having been honoured
with a standard, was presented with a private robe of honour and a
jewelled dagger. Shaja`at Khan also was presented with a standard,
and I gave him a robe of honour and a special elephant. Raja Bir
Singh Deo received a robe of honour and a special horse, and Mangli
Khan a horse and jewelled dagger. Narayan Das Kachhwahah, `Ali Quli
Darman, and Hizabr Khan Tahamtan obtained leave. On Bahadur Khan and
Mu`izzu-l-mulk the bakhshi jewelled daggers were conferred, and in
the same manner all the Amirs and leaders, each one according to his
degree, were honoured with royal gifts. A watch of the day had passed
when the Khankhanan, who had been selected for the high honour of my
Ataliq (guardian), came from Burhanpur and waited on me. Delight and
happiness had so overpowered him that he did not know whether he came
on his head or his feet. He threw himself bewildered at my feet. By way
of favour and kindness I lifted up his head and held it in an embrace
of kindliness and affection, and kissed his face. He brought me as
offerings two strings of pearls and some rubies and emeralds. The
value of the jewels was 300,000 rupees. Besides these he laid before
me many valuable things. On the 17th Jumada-l-awwal Wazir Khan, the
Diwan of Bengal, came and waited on me, and offered 60 elephants,
male and female, and one Egyptian [280] ruby. As he was one of the
old servants and he performed every duty, I ordered him to remain in
attendance on me. As Qasim Khan and his elder brother, Islam Khan,
could in no way keep the peace together, I had sent for the former to
my own presence, and he yesterday came and waited on me. On the 22nd,
Asaf Khan, made me an offering of a ruby of the weight of seven tank,
which Abu-l-qasim, his brother, had bought in the port of Cambay
for 75,000 rupees. It is of a beautiful colour and well-shaped,
but to my belief is not worth more than 60,000 rupees. Great faults
had been committed by Dulip Ray, son of Ray Ray Singh, but as he
took refuge with my farzand Khan Jahan his offences were pardoned,
and I knowingly and purposely passed over his delinquencies. On the
24th the sons of Khankhanan, who had followed after him, arrived and
waited on me and produced as an offering the sum of 25,000 rupees. On
the same day the said Khan offered 90 elephants. On Thursday, the
1st Jumada-s-sani, the feast of my solar year was celebrated in the
house of Maryam-zamani. Some of the money I divided among the women,
and an order was given that the balance should be distributed to the
poor of the hereditary kingdoms. On the 4th of the month I ordered
the Diwans to give a jagir, according to his rank, of 7,000 rupees
to Khan A`zam.
On this day a female antelope in milk was brought that allowed itself
to be milked with ease, and gave every day four seers of milk. I
had never seen or heard of anything of the kind before. The milk of
the antelope, of the cow, and the buffalo in no way differs. They
say it is of great use in asthma. On the 11th of the month Raja Man
Singh asked for leave to complete the army of the Deccan to which he
had been appointed, as well as to visit Amber, his native place. I
gave him a male elephant of my own called Hushyar-mast, and gave him
leave. On Monday, the 12th, as it was the anniversary of the death of
the late king Akbar, in addition to the expenses of that entertainment,
which are fixed separately, I sent 4,000 rupees more to be divided
among the faqirs and dervishes who are present in the enlightened
mausoleum of the venerated one. On that day I exalted `Abdu-llah, the
son of Khan A`zam, with the title of Sarfaraz Khan, and `Abdu-r-Rahim,
son of Qasim Khan, with that of Tarbiyat Khan. On Tuesday, the 13th,
I sent for Khusrau's daughter, and saw a child so like her father as
no one can remember to have seen. The astrologers used to say that her
advent would not be auspicious to her father, but would be auspicious
to me. At last it became known that they had augured rightly. They
said that I should see her after three years. I saw her when she had
passed this age. On the 21st of the month Khankhanan determined to
clear out the province of the Nizamu-l-mulk, into which, after the
death of the late king Akbar, some disturbances had found their way,
and stated in writing that "If I do not complete this service in the
course of two years, I shall be guilty (of a fault), on the condition
that in addition to the force that had been allotted to that Subah
12,000 more horse with 1,000,000 rupees should be sent with me." I
ordered that materials for the army and the treasure should be quickly
prepared, and he should be despatched. On the 26th Mukhlis Khan,
bakhshi of the ahadis, was appointed bakhshi of the Subah of the
Deccan, and I bestowed his place on Ibrahim Husain Khan, the Mir
Bahr. On the 1st Rajab, Pishrau Khan and Kamal Khan, who belonged
to the servants who were in constant attendance on me (ru-shinas),
died. Shah Tahmasp had given Pishrau Khan as a slave to my grandfather,
and he was called Sa`adat. When he was promoted in the service of
the late king Akbar to the daroghahship and superintendence of the
farrashkhana (carpet department), he obtained the title of Pishrau. He
was so well acquainted with this service that one might say it was a
garment they had sewn on the stature of his capacity. When he was 90
years old he was quicker than lads of 14. He had the good fortune to
serve my grandfather, my father, and me. Until he breathed his last
he was never for a moment without the intoxication of wine.
"Besmeared with wine Fighani [281] went to the dust.
Alas! if the angels [282] smelt his fresh shroud!"
He left 1,500,000 rupees. He has one very stupid son, called
Ri`ayat. On account of his father's claims for services performed,
I gave the superintendence of half the farrashkhana to him and the
other half to Tukhmaq Khan. Kamal Khan was one of the slaves sincerely
devoted to my service; he is of the caste of the Kalals of Delhi. On
account of the great honesty and trustworthiness that he had shown
I made him bakawal-begi (chief of the kitchen). Few such servants
are ever met with. He had two sons, to both of whom I showed great
kindness, but where are there others like him? On the 2nd of the said
month La`l [283] Kalawant, who from his childhood had grown up in my
father's service, who had taught him every breathing and sound that
appertains to the Hindi language, died in the 65th or 70th year of his
age. One of his girls (concubines) ate opium on this event and killed
herself. Few women among the Musulmans have ever shown such fidelity.
In Hindustan, especially in the province of Sylhet, [284] which is a
dependency of Bengal, it was the custom for the people of those parts
to make eunuchs of some of their sons and give them to the governor in
place of revenue (mal-wajibi). This custom by degrees has been adopted
in other provinces, and every year some children are thus ruined and
cut off from procreation. This practice has become common. At this
time I issued an order that hereafter no one should follow this
abominable custom, and that the traffic in young eunuchs should
be completely done away with. Islam Khan and the other governors
of the Subah of Bengal received firmans that whoever should commit
such acts should be capitally punished, and that they should seize
eunuchs of tender years who might be in anyone's possession. No one
of the former kings had obtained this success. Please Almighty God,
in a short time this objectionable practice will be completely done
away with, and the traffic in eunuchs being forbidden, no one shall
venture on this unpleasant and unprofitable proceeding. I presented
the Khankhanan with a bay horse out of those sent me by Shah `Abbas;
it was the head of the stable of my private horses. He was so
rejoiced over it that it would be difficult to describe. In truth a
horse of this great size and beauty has hardly come to Hindustan. I
also gave him the elephant Futuh, that is unrivalled in fighting,
with twenty other elephants. As Kishan Singh, who was accompanying
Mahabat Khan, performed laudable service, and was wounded in the leg
by a spear in the fight with the Rana's men, so that about twenty
noblemen of his were killed and about 3,000 made captive, he was
promoted to the rank of 2,000 personal and 1,000 horse. On the 14th
of the same month I gave an order for Mirza Ghazi to betake himself
to Qandahar. A strange occurrence was that as soon as the aforesaid
Mirza started from Bakhar for that province the news of the death of
Sardar Khan, the governor of that place, came. Sardar Khan was one of
the permanent and intimate attendants of my uncle Muhammad Hakim, and
was known as Tukhta [285] Beg. I gave half his rank (the pay of it)
to his sons. On Monday, the 17th, I went on foot on my pilgrimage to
the enlightened mausoleum of the late king. If it had been possible,
I would have traversed this road with my eyelashes and head. My revered
father, on account of my birth, had gone on foot on a pilgrimage to
the shrine of Khwaja Mu`inu-d-din Sanjari Chishti, from Fathpur to
Ajmir, a distance of 120 kos: if I should traverse this road with my
head and eyes, what should I have done? When I was dignified with the
good fortune of making this pilgrimage, I saw the building that had
been erected in the cemetery. It did not come up to my idea of what
it ought to be, for that would be approved which the wayfarers of the
world should point to as one the like of which was not in the inhabited
world. Inasmuch as at the time of erecting the aforesaid building the
affair of the ill-starred Khusrau took place, I started for Lahore,
and the architects had built it after a design of their own. At last a
certain expenditure was made until a large sum was expended, and work
went on for three or four years. I ordered that experienced architects
should again lay the foundations, in agreement with men of experience,
in several places, on a settled plan. By degrees a lofty building was
erected, and a very bright garden was arranged round the building of
the shrine, and a large and lofty gateway with minarets of white stone
was built. On the whole they told me the cost of this lofty edifice
was 1,500,000 rupees, equivalent to 50,000 current tumans of Persia
and 4,500,000 khanis, according to the currency of Turan.
On Sunday, the 23rd, I went with a band of courtiers who had not seen
it to look at the reservoir in the house of Hakim `Ali like one that
had been made at Lahore in the time of my father. The reservoir is
6 gaz by 6 gaz. At its side has been erected a well-lighted room,
the entrance to which is through the water, but the water does
not get into it. Ten or twelve people could meet in it. He made
an offering of some of the cash and jewels that had accumulated
[286] in his time. After looking at the room, and the entering of a
number of courtiers therein, I raised him to the rank of 2,000, and
returned to the palace. On Sunday, the 14th Sha`ban, the Khankhanan
was honoured with a jewelled sword for the waist, a robe of honour,
and a special elephant, and was given leave to go to his duty in the
Deccan. Raja Suraj Singh, who was attached to him in that service,
was raised to the rank of 3,000 personal and 2,000 horse. As it was
again represented to me that oppression was being committed by the
brethren and attendants of Murtaza Khan on the ryots and people of
Ahmadabad in Gujarat, and that he was unable properly to restrain
his relations and people about him, I transferred the Subah from him
and gave it to A`zam Khan, and it was settled that the latter should
attend at court, and that his eldest son Jahangir Quli Khan should go
to Gujarat as his deputy. The rank of Jahangir Quli Khan was fixed at
3,000 personal and 2,500 horse. An order was given that in company with
Mohan Das diwan and Mas`ud Beg Hamazani bakhshi he should carry on the
business of the province. Mohan Das was promoted to the rank of 800
with 500 horse, and Mas`ud Beg to 300 with 150 horse. Tarbiyat Khan,
one of the personal servants, was given the rank of 700 with 400 horse,
and Nasru-llah the same. Mihtar Khan, whose circumstances have been
related, died at this time, and I promoted his son Munis Khan to the
rank of 500 personal and 130 horse. On Wednesday, the 4th Zi-l-hijja,
Khusrau had a son born to him by the daughter of the Khan A`zam,
and I gave him the name of Buland-akhtar. On the 6th of the same
month Muqarrab Khan sent a picture (with a report) that the belief
of the Franks was this, that the picture was that of Timur. At the
time when Yildirim Bayazid was taken prisoner by his victorious army,
a Nazarene, who at that time was ruler [287] of Constantinople, had
sent an ambassador with gifts and presents in token of submission and
service, and an artist who had been sent with the ambassador took his
likeness and brought it away. If this story were true, no better gift
could be presented to me. But as the picture had no resemblance to any
of his descendants I was not satisfied of the truth of the statement.
THE FOURTH NEW YEAR'S FEAST AFTER THE AUSPICIOUS ACCESSION.
The passing of the great star that illumines the world into the
constellation of Aries took place on the night of Saturday, the 14th
Zi-l-hijja, in Hijra 1017 (21st March, 1609), and New Year's Day that
made brilliant the world began with good auspices and rejoicing. On
Friday, the 5th Muharram, in the year 1018, Hakim `Ali died. He was
an unrivalled physician; he had derived much profit from Arabic
sciences. He had written a commentary on the Canon (of Avicenna)
in the time of my revered father. He had greater diligence than
understanding, just as his appearance was better than his disposition,
and his acquirements better than his talents; on the whole he was
bad-hearted, and of an evil spirit. On the 20th Safar I dignified
Mirza Barkhurdar with the title of Khan `Alam. They brought from the
neighbourhood of Fathpur a water-melon, greater than any I had ever
seen. I ordered them to weigh it, and it came to 33 seers. On Monday,
the 19th Rabi`u-l-awwal, the feast of my annual lunar weighing was
arranged in the palace of my revered mother; a part of the money was
divided among the women who had assembled there on that day.
As it had been evident that in order to carry on the affairs of
the State in the Subah of the Deccan it was necessary to send one
of the princes there, it came into my mind to send my son Parwiz
there. I ordered them to send his equipments and fix the hour for his
departure. I summoned to Court Mahabat Khan, who had been nominated
to the command of the army against the rebel Rana to arrange certain
matters at headquarters, and appointed in his place `Abdu-llah Khan,
whom I exalted with the title of Firuz-jang. I sent `Abdu-r-Razzaq
bakhshi to carry an order to all the mansabdars of that army not to
depart from the orders of the aforesaid Khan, and to pay every heed to
his thanks and blame. On the 4th Jumada-l-awwal one of the goatherds,
who are a particular tribe, brought before me a gelded goat that
had teats like a female, and gave every day sufficient milk to take
with a cup of coffee. [288] As milk is one of the favours of Allah,
and the source which nourishes many animals, I looked on this strange
affair as an omen for good. On the 6th of the same month, having given
him the rank of 2,000 personal and 1,500 horse, I sent Khurram, son
of Khan A`zam, to the government of the province of Sorath, which is
known as Junagadh (in Kathiyawad). I honoured [289] Hakim Sadra with
the title of Masihu-z-zaman, and gave him the rank of 500 personal
and 30 horse. On the 16th a jewelled waist-sword was sent to Raja
Man Singh. On the 22nd, having handed over 2,000,000 rupees for the
expenses of the army of the Deccan, which had been ordered for Parwiz,
to a separate treasurer, 500,000 rupees more were given for the private
expenses of Parwiz. On the 25th, Wednesday, Jahandar (his son), who
previously to this had been appointed, together with Qutbu-d-din Khan
Koka, to Bengal, came and waited on me. In reality it became known to
me that he was a born devotee. [290] As my mind was taken up with the
preparations for the Deccan, on the 1st Jumada-l-akhir I nominated the
Amiru-l-umara as well to that duty. He was honoured with the favour
of a robe of honour and a horse. Having promoted Karam Chand, son of
Jagannath, to the rank of 2,000 personal and 1,500 horse, I sent him
in company with Parwiz. On the 4th of the month 370 ahadi horse were
appointed with `Abdu-llah Khan to the assistance of the army employed
against the Rana. One hundred horses were also despatched from the
government stables to be given as he thought proper to the mansabdars
and ahadis. On the 17th I gave a ruby of the value of 60,000 rupees
to Parwiz, and another ruby with two single pearls, worth about 40,000
rupees, to Khurram. On Monday, the 28th, Jagannath was promoted to the
rank of 5,000 personal and 3,000 horse, and on the 8th of Rajab, Ray
Jay Singh was promoted to that of 4,000 personal and 3,000 horse, and
was dismissed for service in the Deccan. On Thursday, the 9th, Prince
Shahriyar from Gujarat came and waited on me. On Tuesday, the 4th,
I despatched my son Parwiz on the service of conquering the country of
the Deccan. He was presented with a robe of honour, a special horse, a
special elephant, a sword, and a jewelled dagger. The Sardars and Amirs
who were appointed with him each according to his condition received
and were made happy with the favour of a horse, a robe of honour, an
elephant, a sword, and a jewelled dagger. I appointed 1,000 ahadis to
be in attendance on Parwiz for the service of the Deccan. On the same
day a representation came from `Abdu-llah Khan that having pursued the
rebel Rana into the hill country into rough places, he had captured
several of his elephants and horses. When night came on he had escaped
with difficulty with his life. As he had made things go hard with him,
he would soon be taken prisoner or killed. I promoted the said Khan
to the rank of 5,000 personal, and a rosary of pearls, worth 10,000
rupees, was given to Parwiz. As I had given the province of Khandesh
and Berar to the said son, I also conferred on him the fort of Asir,
and 300 horse were sent with him to be given to ahadis, mansabdars,
and whomever else he might consider worthy of favour. On the 26th,
Saif Khan Barha was given the rank of 2,500 personal and 1,350 horse,
and appointed to the faujdarship of the Sarkar of Hisar. On Monday,
the 4th Sha`ban, an elephant was given to Wazir Khan. On Friday,
the 22nd, I gave an order that as bang and buza (rice spirit)
were injurious, they should not be sold in the bazars and that
gambling should be abolished, and on this subject I issued stringent
orders. On the 25th they brought a tiger from my private menagerie
to fight with a bull. Many people gathered together to see the show,
and a band of Jogis (religious mendicants) with them. One of the
Jogis was naked, and the tiger, by way of sport, and not with the
idea of rage, turned towards him. It threw him on the ground and
began to behave to him as it would to its own female. The next day
and on several occasions the same thing took place. As no such thing
had ever been seen before and was exceedingly strange, this has been
recorded. [291] On the 2nd of the month of Ramazan, at the request
of Islam Khan, Ghiyas [292] Khan was promoted to the rank of 1,500
personal and 800 horse. Faridun Khan Barlas was promoted to the rank
of 2,500 with 2,000 horse. One thousand tolcha of gold and silver
and 1,000 rupees were given in alms on the day of the procession of
the sun into the constellation of the Scorpion, which, according to
the general acceptation of the Hindoos, is called the Sankrant. On
the 10th of that month an elephant was presented to Shah Beg Yuzi
[293] (? the panther-keeper), and Salamu-llah, the Arab, who is a
distinguished young man and a relative (son-in-law?) of Mubarak, the
ruler of Darful. [294] On account of some suspicion that Shah `Abbas
had entertained against him, he came to wait upon me. I patronised
him, and gave him the rank of 400 personal and 200 horse. Again,
another force, containing 193 mansabdars and 46 ahadis, I sent after
Parwiz for service in the Deccan. Fifty horses were also entrusted
to one of the servants of the Court to convoy to Parwiz.
On Friday, the 13th, a certain idea came into my mind, and this rhymed
ghazal was produced:--
"What shall I do, for the arrow of loss of thee has pierced my liver!
So that the (evil) eye not reaching me again may reach another?
Thou movest as if frenzied, and the world is frenzied for thee.
I burn rue lest thy eye should reach me.
I am frenzied at union with my friend, and in despair at her absence.
Alas for the grief that has o'erwhelmed me!
I've grown mad that I may rush on the pathway of meeting:
Woe for the time that brought me the news!
Jahangir, the time for humility and prayer is every morning, [295]
I hope that some spark of light may take effect."
On Sunday, the 15th, I sent 50,000 rupees as sachaq to the house
of the daughter of Muzaffar Husain Mirza, son of Sultan Husain
Mirza, son of Bahram Mirza, son of Shah Isma`il Safawi, who had
been demanded in marriage for my son Khurram. On the 17th of the
month Mubarak Khan Sarwani was honoured with the rank of 1,000
personal and 300 horse. Five thousand rupees were also given to
him, and 4,000 rupees to Haji Bi Uzbeg. On the 22nd a ruby and a
pearl were given to Shahriyar. One hundred thousand rupees were
given for the subsistence of the Uymaqs (special cavalry) who
had been appointed for service in the Deccan. Two thousand rupees
were given to Farrukh Beg, the painter, who is unrivalled in the
age. Four thousand rupees were sent for expenditure on Baba Hasan
Abdal. One thousand rupees were handed to Mulla `Ali Ahmad Muhrkan
(engraver) and Mulla Ruzbihan Shirazi to expend on the anniversary
festival of Hazrat Shaikh Salim at his mausoleum. An elephant was
given to Muhammad Husain, the writer, and 1,000 rupees to Khwaja
`Abdu-l-Haqq Ansari. I gave orders to the Diwans that having
raised the rank of Murtaza Khan to 5,000 personal and horse
they should give him a jagir. I ordered Bihari Chand Qanungu,
of the Sarkar of Agra, to take 1,000 footmen and equipment from
the Zamindars of Agra, and, fixing their monthly pay, to send
them to Parwiz in the Deccan, and 500,000 rupees more were fixed
for the expenses of Parwiz. On Thursday, the 4th Shawwal, Islam
Khan was promoted to the rank of 5,000 personal and 5,000 horse,
Abu-l-wali Beg Uzbeg to that of 1,500 and Zafar Khan to that of
2,500. Two thousand rupees were given to Badi`u-z-zaman, son
of Mirza Shahrukh, and 1,000 rupees to Pathan Misr. I ordered
that drums should be given to all of them as their rank had
been raised to 3,000 and higher. Five thousand rupees more of
the money from my weighing were entrusted for the construction
of a bridge at Baba Hasan Abdal and the building that is there
to Abu-l-wafa, son of Hakim Abu-l-fath, in order that he might
exert himself and put the bridge and the aforesaid building in
perfect order. On Saturday, the 13th, when four gharis of day
were left, the moon began to be eclipsed. By degrees the whole
of its body was obscured, and it continued till five gharis of
night had passed. In order to avert the bad omen of this I had
myself weighed against gold, silver, cloth, and grain, and gave
away in alms all kinds of animals, such as elephants, horses,
etc., the cost of all of which was 15,000 rupees. I ordered them
to be distributed among the deserving and the poor. On the 25th,
at the request of her father, I took the daughter of Ram Chand
Bandilab into my service (i.e. married her). I gave an elephant
to Mir Fazil, nephew of Mir Sharif, who had been appointed to
the faujdarship of Qabulah and those regions `Inayat-ullah was
dignified with the title of `Inayat Khan. On Wednesday, the 1st
Zi-l-qa`da, Bihari Chand was granted the rank of 500 personal and
300 horse. A khapwa (dagger), adorned with jewels was given to my
son Baba Khurram. Mulla Hayati, by whom I had sent a message to
the Khankhanan, with a verbal message containing (expressions of)
all kinds of condescension and affection, came and brought before
me a ruby and two pearls of the value of about 20,000 rupees,
which the Khankhanan had sent by him. Mir Jamalu-d-din Husain,
who was in Burhanpur and whom I had sent for, came and waited on
me. I presented Shaja`at Khan Dakhani with 2,000 rupees. On the
6th of the aforesaid month, before Parwiz arrived at Burhanpur, a
petition came from the Khankhanan and the Amirs that the Dakhanis
had assembled together and were making disturbances. When I
discovered that, notwithstanding the nomination of Parwiz and
the army that had proceeded with him and been appointed to his
service, they were still in need of support and assistance, it
occurred to me that I should go myself, and by Allah's favour
satisfy myself with regard to that affair. In the meanwhile a
petition came also from Asaf Khan that my coming there would be
for the advantage of the daily-increasing State. A petition from
`Adil Khan, from Bijapur, also came, that if one of the trusted
ones of the Court could be appointed there to whom he could tell
his desires and claims, so that the envoy might convey them to me,
he hoped that it might become the means of affording profit to
these slaves (i.e. himself). On this account I consulted with the
Amirs and loyal men, and told them to represent whatever entered
into anyone's mind. My son Khan Jahan represented that inasmuch as
so many Amirs had been despatched for the conquest of the Deccan,
it was not necessary for me to go in person. If he were ordered,
he himself would go and attend on the prince and would, please God,
perform this duty while serving him. Those words were approved of by
all those who were loyal. I had never contemplated separation from
him, but as the affair was an important one I necessarily gave him
permission, and ordered that as soon as matters had been arranged he
should return without delay, and should not remain more than a year
in those regions. On Tuesday, the 17th Zi-l-qa`da, he was free to
go. I presented him with a special gold-embroidered robe of honour,
a special horse with a jewelled saddle, a jewelled sword, and a special
elephant I also gave him a yak-tail standard (tuman tugh). I appointed
Fida; Khan, who was one of my faithful servants, and to whom I gave
a robe of honour and a horse and his expenses, promoting him to the
rank of 1,000 personal and 400 horse, original and extra, to go with
Khan Jahan, in order that if it were necessary to send anyone to `Adil
Khan according to his request, he might despatch him. Lanku Pandit,
who in the time of the late king Akbar had come with offerings from
`Adil Khan, I also gave leave to go with Khan Jahan, bestowing on
him a horse, a robe of honour, and money. Of the Amirs and soldiers
who had been appointed with `Abdu-llah Khan to the duty of beating
back the Rana, men such as Raja Bir Singh Deo, Shaja`at Khan, Raja
Bikramajit, and others, with 4,000 or 5,000 horse, were nominated to
support Khan Jahan. I sent Mu`tamad Khan with the announcement that I
had made him a sazawal (i.e. one who urges on others), and that he was
to act along with Khan Jahan in Ujjain. Out of the men of the palace,
I sent 6,000 or 7,000 horse with him, such as Saif Khan Barha, Haji
Bi Uzbeg, Salamu-llah `Arab, brother's son of Mubarak `Arab, who had
in his possession the province of Jutra(?) [296] and Darful(?) and
that neighbourhood, and other mansabdars and courtiers. At the time
of giving them leave I gave each one an increase of rank and robe of
honour and money for their expenses. Making Muhammad Beg paymaster
of the army, I provided him with 1,000,000 rupees to take with him. I
sent to Parwiz a special horse, and to the Khankhanan and other Amirs
and officers who were appointed to that Subah dresses of honour.
After carrying out these matters I left the city for the purpose of
hunting. One thousand rupees were given to Mir `Ali Akbar. As the
Rabi` Fasl (Spring season) had arrived, for fear any damage should
happen to the cultivation of the ryots from the passage of the army,
and notwithstanding that I had appointed a qurisawul [297] (Erskine has
Kor, the Yasawal) (probably a kind of provost marshal) with the band of
ahadis for the purpose of guarding the fields, I ordered certain men
to see what damage had been done to the crops from stage to stage and
pay compensation to the ryots. I gave 10,000 rupees to the daughter of
the Khankhanan, the wife of Daniyal, 1,000 rupees to `Abdu-r-Rahim Khar
(i.e. ass) for expenses, and 1,000 to Qacha the Dakhani. On the 12th,
Khanjar Khan, brother of `Abdu-llah Khan, received the rank of 1,000
personal and 500 horse original and extra, and Bahadur Khan, another
brother, that of 600 personal and 300 horse. On this day two antelopes
with horns and one doe were taken. On the 13th I bestowed on and sent
to Khan Jahan a special horse. Having promoted Badi`u-z-zaman, son of
Mirza Shahrukh, to the rank of 1,000 and 500 horse, I gave him 5,000
rupees for expenses, and he was sent off with Khan Jahan for service
in the Deccan. On this day two male and three female antelope were
killed. On Wednesday, the 10th, I killed a female nilgaw and a black
antelope with a gun, and on the 15th a female nilgaw and a chikara
(gazelle). On the 17th of the month two rubies and a pearl were brought
to me by Jahangir Quli Khan from Gujarat, as well as a jewelled opium
box, which Muqarrab Khan had sent from the port of Cambay. On the
20th I killed with a gun a tigress and a nilgaw. There were two cubs
with the tigress, but they disappeared from view in consequence of
the thickness of the jungle and the number of trees. An order was
given that they should search for and bring them. When I reached
the halting-place my son Khurram brought me one of the cubs, and the
next day Mahabat Khan caught the other and brought it. On the 22nd,
when I had got within shot of a nilgaw, suddenly a groom (jilaudar)
and two kahar (bearers) appeared, and the nilgaw escaped. In a great
rage I ordered them to kill the groom on the spot, and to hamstring
[298] the kahars and mount them on asses and parade them through
the camp, so that no one should again have the boldness to do such a
thing. After this I mounted a horse and continued hunting with hawks
and falcons, and came to the halting-place.
Next day, under the guidance of Iskandar Mu`in, I shot a large nilgaw,
and promoted him to the rank of 600 personal and 500 horse. On Friday,
the 24th, Safdar Khan, who had come from the Subah of Behar, had the
good fortune to perform his obeisance to me. He presented as offerings
a hundred muhrs, a sword, and five female and one male elephant. The
male elephant was accepted. On the same day Yadgar Khwaja of Samarkand
came from Balkh and paid his respects. He made offerings of an album,
some horses, and other presents, and was dignified with a robe of
honour. On Wednesday, 6th Zi-l-hijja, Mu`izzu-l-mulk, who had been
removed from the paymastership of the army against the rebel Rana,
ill and miserable, waited on me. On the 14th of the said month,
having pardoned all the faults of `Abdu-r-Rahim Khar, [299] I promoted
him to the rank of yuzbashi (centurion) and 20 horse, and ordered
him to go to Kashmir and in company with the bakhshi of that place
hold a muster of the troops of Qilij Khan and all the jagirdars and
Uymaks in the service or not, and to bring the list. Kishwar Khan,
son of Qutbu-d-din Khan, came from the fort of Rohtas and had the
good fortune to pay his respects to me.
THE FIFTH NEW YEAR'S FEAST FROM THE AUSPICIOUS ACCESSION.
On Sunday, the 24th Zi-l-hijja (20th March, 1610), after two watches
and three gharis the sun entered into the constellation of Aries, which
is the house of honour and good fortune, and at this auspicious hour
the New Year's feast was arranged at Bak Bhal, one of the villages of
the parganah of Bari, and according to the rules of my revered father
I mounted the throne. On that morning, which was the New Year's Day
that lighted up the world, and coincided with the 1st of Farwardin
of the 5th year from my accession, I held a public reception, and
all the nobles and servants of the Court had the good fortune to
pay their respects. Some of the nobles' offerings were laid before
me. Khan A`zam gave a pearl worth 4,000 rupees; Miran Sadr Jahan,
twenty-eight hawks and falcons, and other gifts; Mahabat Khan, two
European boxes, the sides of which were made with slabs of glass,
so that whatever was placed inside could be seen from outside in a
way that you might say there was nothing between them; Kishwar Khan,
twenty-two male and female elephants. In the same way each of the
servants of the Court laid before me the presents and offerings that
they had. Nasru-llah, son of Fathu-llah sharbatchi (in charge of the
sharbat), was placed in charge of the offerings. By Sarang Deo, who had
been appointed to carry orders to the victorious army of the Deccan,
I sent souvenirs (tabarruk) to Parwiz and to each of the officers. I
presented Husamu-d-din, son of Ghazi Khan [300] Badakhshi, who had
taken to the ways of a dervish and seclusion, with 1,000 rupees and
a farji shawl. The day after the New Year's Day I mounted and started
for a tiger-hunt. Two males and a female were killed. I gave rewards
to the ahadis who had shown bravery and gone in to the tigers, and
increased their monthly pay. On the 26th of the same month I went and
busied myself mostly with hunting nilgaw. As the air was hot and the
(propitious) hour for re-entering Agra had nearly arrived, I went to
Rupbas, and hunted antelope in that neighbourhood for some days. On
Saturday, the 1st Muharram, 1019, Rup Khawass, who was the founder of
Rupbas, presented the offering that he had prepared. That which pleased
was accepted and what remained was given him back as a reward. At the
same time Bayazid Mankali and his brothers, who had come from the Subah
of Bengal, were honoured with paying their respects. Sayyid Adam, son
of Sayyid Qasim Barha, who had come from Ahmadabad, also had the same
good fortune. He presented an elephant as an offering. The faujdarship
of the Subah of Multan was given to Wali Bi Uzbeg in place of Taj Khan.
On Monday, the 3rd Muharram of the 5th year, I halted at the
Mandakar Garden, which is in the neighbourhood of the city. On the
morning on which was the auspicious hour of entry into the city,
after a watch and two gharis had passed I mounted and rode on a
horse to the beginning of the inhabited part, and when I came to
the immediate neighbourhood mounted on an elephant, so that the
people from far and near might see, and scattering money on both
sides of the road, at the hour that the astrologers had chosen,
after midday had passed, entered with congratulation and happiness
the royal palace. In accordance with the usual custom of the New
Year I had ordered them to decorate the palace, which is like the
courts of heaven. After seeing the decorations, Khwaja Jahan laid
before me the offering that he had prepared. Having accepted out of
the ornaments and jewels, dresses and goods, whatever I approved of,
I gave the rest as a reward to him. I had ordered the clerks of the
hunting department to write out (a list of) all the animals that
had been killed from the time of my leaving until I re-entered the
city. At this time they represented that in 56 days 1,362 animals,
quadrupeds, and birds had been killed; the tigers were 7 in number;
nilgaw, male and female, 70; black buck, 51; does and mountain goats
and antelope (rojh), etc., 82; kulang (cranes); peacocks, surkhab,
[301] and other birds, 129; fish, 1,023. On Friday, the 7th, Muqarrab
Khan came from the ports of Cambay and Surat, and had the honour of
waiting on me. He had brought jewels and jewelled things, and vessels
of gold and silver made in Europe, and other beautiful and uncommon
presents, male and female Abyssinian slaves, Arab horses, and things
of all kinds that came into his mind. Thus his presents were laid
before me for two and a half months, and most of them were pleasing
to me. On this day Safdar Khan, who held the rank of 1,000 personal
and 500 horse, had an increase of 500 personal and 200 horse, and was
presented with a standard, and given leave to return to his former
jagir. Standards were also given to Kishwar Khan and Faridun [302]
Khan Barlas. A fighting elephant for Afzal Khan (Abu-l-fazl's son)
was handed over to his son Bishutan, to take to his father. I bestowed
1,000 rupees on Khwaja Husain, a descendant of Khwaja Mu`inu-d-din
Chishti, as was usual for the half-year. The Khankhanan had sent
as an offering a "Yusuf and Zulaikha" in the handwriting of Mulla
Mir `Ali, [303] with illustrations and in a beautiful gilt binding,
worth 1,000 muhrs. This Ma`sum, his Wakil, brought and submitted. Up
to the day of culmination, which is the conclusion of the New Year's
feast, every day many offerings were laid before me by the Amirs and
servants of the Court. Whichever of the rarities was approved of by
me I accepted, and gave back what was left. On Thursday, the 13th,
corresponding to the 19th Farwardin, which is the day of culmination
of the sun and of gladness and pleasure, I ordered them to prepare
an entertainment of different kinds of intoxicating drinks, and an
order was given to the Amirs and servants of the Court that everyone
might choose the kind of drink he affected. Many took wine and some
mufarrih (exhilarating drinks), whilst some ate what they wished of the
preparations of opium. The assembly was successfully held. Jahangir
Quli Khan from Gujarat had sent as an offering a throne of silver,
inlaid and painted, of a new fashion and shape, which was presented to
me. A standard was also conferred on Maha Singh. In the commencement
of my reign I had repeatedly given orders that no one should make
eunuchs or buy or sell them, and whoever did so would be answerable
as a criminal. At this time Afzal Khan sent some of these evildoers
to Court from the Subah of Behar, who were continually perpetrating
this vile offence. I ordered these unthinking ones (bi-`aqibatan)
to be imprisoned for life.
On the night of the 12th an uncommon and strange event took place. Some
Delhi singers (Qawwalan, see Jarrett, ii, 236) were singing songs
in my presence, and Sayyidi [304] Shah was, by way of buffoonery,
mimicking a religious dance. This verse of Amir Khusrau was the refrain
(miyan-khana) of the song--
"Each nation has its right road of faith and its shrine
(qibla-gahi).
I've set up my shrine (qibla) on the path of him with the
cocked cap."
I asked what was the real meaning of the (last) hemistich. Mulla
`Ali Ahmad, [305] the seal engraver, who in his own craft was one of
the first of the age, and had the title of Khalifa, and was an old
servant, and with whose father I had learned when I was little, came
forward and said, "I have heard from my father that one day Shaikh
Nizamu-d-din Auliya had put his cap on the side of his head, and
was sitting on a terraced roof by the bank of the Jumna and watching
the devotions [306] of the Hindus. Just then Amir Khusrau appeared,
and the Shaikh turned to him and said, 'Do you see this crowd,'
and then he recited this line:--
'Each race has its right road of faith and its shrine'
(qibla-gahi).
The Amir, without hesitating, respectfully did homage to the Shaikh,
and addressing him said--
'I've set up my shrine in the direction of him with the
cocked cap.'" [307]
The aforesaid Mulla, when these words were uttered, and the last words
of the second hemistich passed over his tongue, became senseless and
fell down. Conceiving a great fear from his falling down, I went to
his head. Most of those who were present doubted whether he had not
had an epileptic fit. The physicians who were present distractedly
made inquiry and felt his pulse and brought medicine. However much
they beat their hands and feet and exerted themselves, he did not come
to. Immediately he fell he had delivered his soul to the Creator. As
his body was quite warm, they thought that possibly some life might
be left in him. After a short time it became evident that the thing
was all over and he was dead. They carried him away dead to his own
house. I had never seen this kind of death, and sent money to his
sons for his shroud and burial, and the next morning they sent him
to Delhi and buried him in the burial-place of his ancestors.
On Friday, the 21st, Kishwar Khan, who held the rank of 1,500, was
promoted to 2,000 personal and horse, and, having been presented
with an Iraq horse out of my private stable, a robe of honour and a
private elephant, named Bakht-jit, [308] and the Faujdarship of the
country of Uch, was dismissed with a view to the punishment of the
rebels of that region. Bayazid Mankali, having been honoured with
a robe and a horse, was sent off together with his brothers in the
company of Kishwar Khan. An elephant from my private stud, by name
`Alam-guman, was entrusted to Habibu-llah for Raja Man Singh and
sent. A special horse was sent to Bengal for Kesho Das Maru, [309]
and a female elephant was now given to `Arab Khan, the jagirdar
of Jalalabad. At this time Iftikhar Khan had sent an offering of a
rare elephant from Bengal. As I approved of it, it was entered among
my private elephants. I raised the rank of Ahmad [310] Beg Khan,
who had been nominated to the command of the army of Bangash on
account of his good service and that of his sons, from his original
rank of 2,000 personal and 1,500 horse by 500 more personal. I sent
a gold throne [311] of jewelled work for Parwiz, and a sarpich,
which was of rubies and pearls, and made at a cost of 2,000 rupees,
was sent for Khan Jahan by the hand of Habib, son of Sarbarah Khan,
to Burhanpur. At this time it became known that Kaukab, son of Qamar
Khan, had become intimate with a Sanyasi, and by degrees his words,
which were all blasphemous and impious, made an impression on that
foolish fellow. He had made `Abdu-l-Latif, son of Naqib Khan, and
Sharif, his cousins, partners in that error. When this affair was
discovered, with only a slight frightening they revealed certain
circumstances with regard to themselves, the relation of which would
be extremely disgusting. Considering their punishment advisable,
I imprisoned Kaukab [312] and Sharif after giving them a whipping,
and ordered `Abdu-l-Latif a hundred lashes in my presence. This
special chastisement (was given) for the purpose of carrying out
the Divine law in order that other ignorant persons might not be
disposed towards the same actions. On Monday, the 24th, Mu`azzam
Khan was despatched to Delhi to punish the rebels and disaffected
of that neighbourhood. Two thousand rupees were given to Shaja`at
Khan Dakhani. I had ordered Shaikh Husain Darshani to proceed with
certain firmans to Bengal and presents to each of the Amirs of that
Subah. I now gave him his orders and despatched him. With an eye on
his actions and his approved services, I promoted Islam Khan to the
rank of 5,000 personal and horse, and bestowed on him a special dress
of honour. I gave a special dress of honour also to Kishwar Khan, and
presented Raja Kalyan with an Iraq horse, and similarly to the other
Amirs there were given robes of honour or horses. Faridun Barlas,
who held the rank of 1,500 personal and 1,300 horse, I promoted to
2,000 personal and 1,500 horse.
On the night of Monday, the 1st Safar, through the carelessness of the
servants, a great fire occurred in the house of Khwaja Abu-l-hasan,
and before they became aware of it and the fire could be put out
many of his properties were burnt. In order to afford consolation to
the mind of the Khwaja and to make up for the loss he had sustained,
I gave him 40,000 rupees. On Saif Khan Barha, who had been cherished
and brought up by me, I bestowed a standard. I increased the rank of
Mu`izzu-l-mulk, who had been appointed to the Diwanship of Kabul,
from his original of 1,000 personal and 225 horse by 200 personal
and 275 horse, and dismissed him. The next day I sent a phul-katara
(dagger) studded with valuable jewels to Burhanpur to Khan Jahan.
A widow woman complained that Muqarrab Khan had taken her daughter
by force in the port of Cambay, and after some while, during which
he had kept her in his own house, when she enquired for the girl had
said that she had died by an unavoidable death. I ordered an enquiry
to be made into the affair. After much search I discovered that one
of his attendants had been guilty of this outrage, and had him put
to death, and reduced Muqarrab Khan's mansab by one half, and made
an allowance to the woman who had been thus injured.
As on Sunday, the 7th of the month, a qiran-i-nahsin (an unlucky
conjunction) had occurred, I gave alms of gold and silver and other
metals, and different kinds of cereals, to faqirs and indigent people
to be divided in most parts of the dominion. On the night of Monday,
the 8th, having sent for Shaikh Husain Sirhindi and Shaikh Mustafa,
who were celebrated for the adoption of the ways of dervishdom and the
state of poverty, a party was held, and by degrees the assembly engaged
warmly in sama` and wajd (dervish dancing and ecstasy). Hilarity and
frenzy were not wanting. After the meeting was over I gave money to
each and gave him leave. As Mirza Ghazi Beg Tarkhan repeatedly made
representations with regard to provisions for Qandahar and the monthly
pay of the musketeers of the said fort, I ordered 200,000 rupees to
be sent there from the treasury of Lahore. [313]
On the 19th Urdibihisht, in the fifth year of my reign, corresponding
with the 4th Safar, there occurred a strange affair at Patna, which
is the seat of government of the province of Behar. Afzal Khan, the
governor of the Subah, went off to the jagir to which he had just
been appointed, and which was at a distance of 60 kos from Patna, and
handed over the fort and the city to the charge of Shaikh Banarasi and
Ghiyas Zain-khani, the Diwan of the Subah, and to a number of other
mansabdars. With the idea that there were no enemies in that region he
did not satisfy himself as he should have with regard to the protection
of the fort and city. By chance, at that time an unknown man of the
name of Qutb belonging to the people of Uch, who was a mischievous
and seditious fellow, came to the province of Ujjainiyya, [314]
which is in the neighbourhood of Patna, with the look of a dervish
and the clothes of a beggar, and having made acquaintance with men
of that part, who were always seditious, represented to them that he
was Khusrau, who had escaped from prison and conveyed himself there;
saying that if they would accompany and assist him, after the affair
had been completed they would be the ministers of his State. In short,
deceiving those simpletons with foolish words he brought them over to
him and persuaded them that he was Khusrau. He showed those deceived
ones the parts about his eyes, where at some time he had produced
scars, of which the marks were still apparent, and told them that in
the prison they had fastened cups (katori) on them and those were the
marks. [315] Through these falsehoods and deceit a number of foot- and
horsemen had collected round him, and had obtained information that
Afzal Khan was not at Patna. Considering this a great opportunity,
they made a raid, and when two or three hours of the day had passed
on Sunday came to the city, and being hindered by nothing went for
the fort. Shaikh Banarasi, who was in the fort, obtaining news of
this, went in a disturbed state to the gate of the fort. The enemy,
who came on with speed, did not give him time to close the gate of
the fort. Together with Ghiyas, he betook himself to the side of the
river by a wicket gate, and procuring a boat proposed to go to Afzal
Khan. Those rebels came with ease into the fort and took possession
of Afzal Khan's property and the royal treasury; and some of those
wretched creatures who wait on events, who were in the city and its
neighbourhood, joined them. This news reached Afzal Khan at Gorakhpur
(Kharakpur), [316] and Shaikh Banarasi and Ghiyas also came to him
there by way of the river. Letters came from the city that this wretch,
who called himself Khusrau, was in reality not Khusrau. Afzal Khan,
placing his trust on the grace and mercy of Allah, and through my
good fortune, started without delay against those rebels. In five
days he reached the neighbourhood of Patna. When the news of Afzal
Khan's coming reached those scoundrels, they entrusted the fort to
one of those whom they had confidence in, and the horse and foot
arraying themselves went out for four kos to meet Afzal Khan. A
fight took place on the bank of the river Pun Pun, and after a slight
skirmish the array of those ill-fated ones was broken and they became
scattered. In great bewilderment a second time that wretch was coming
into the fort with a few men. Afzal Khan followed him, and did not
allow them to close the gate of the fort. Going to Afzal Khan's house
in a state of confusion, they fortified the house and remained there
for three watches, and fought. They wounded about thirty people with
arrows. After his companions had gone to jahannam (hell) he himself
became helpless, and asked for quarter, and waited upon Afzal Khan. In
order to put a stop to this affair, Afzal Khan executed him on the
same day, and imprisoned some of his companions who had fallen alive
into his hand. These items of news one after another reached the
royal ear. I summoned to Agra Shaikh Banarasi and Ghiyas Zain-khani
and the other mansabdars who had made default in holding the fort and
protecting the city, and ordered their hair and beards to be cut off,
and that they should be clothed in women's clothes, seated on asses,
and paraded round the city of Agra and in the bazars, as a warning
and example to others.
At this time representations succeeded each other from Parwiz and the
Amirs appointed to the Deccan and those who were well-wishers of the
State, that `Adil Khan Bijapuri prayed that they would send to him
Mir Jamalu-d-din Husain Inju, on whose words and acts all the rulers
of the Deccan had great reliance, that he might associate himself
with them and dispel the fear in their minds, and the affairs of
that place might be arranged as it might seem proper to `Adil Khan,
who had chosen the way of loyalty and service. In any case, he might
drive out of their minds the fear that was in them, and soothing them
might give him hopes of the royal favour. In order to obtain this end,
on the 16th of the same month I despatched the above-mentioned Mir,
giving him a present of 10,000 rupees. I increased the former rank of
Qasim Khan, which was 1,000 personal and 500 horse, by 500 personal
and horse, in order that he might go to the support of his brother
Islam Khan in Bengal. At the same time, in order to punish Bikramajit,
Zamindar of the province Bandhu, [317] who had withdrawn his foot
from the circle of obedience and service, I appointed Maha Singh,
grandson of Raja Man Singh, to proceed to put down the disaffection
in that region and at the same time administer the estate of the
jagir of the Raja, which was in that neighbourhood.
On the 20th of the month I gave an elephant to Shaja`at Khan
Dakhani. As the governor of Jalalabad had written and represented
the ruinous state of the fort of that place, I ordered what might be
required for the repair of the said fort to be taken from the treasury
of Lahore. Iftikhar Khan had done approved service in Bengal. On
the request of the governor of that Subah I increased his original
rank, which was 1,500, by 500. On the 28th a representation came from
`Abdu-llah Khan Firuz-jang, containing recommendations in favour of
some of the zealous servants who had been sent with him to subdue the
rebel Rana. As Ghaznin Khan Jalwari had shown the greatest zeal of all
in this service, I increased by 500 personal and 400 horse his former
rank, which was 1,500 personal and 300 horse. In the same manner each
one of those persons was promoted according to his services.
Daulat Khan, who had been sent to Allahabad to bring the throne of
black stone, came on Wednesday, the 4th of the month of Mihr (15th
September, 1610), and had an audience and brought the stone safe and
sound. In truth it was a wonderful slab, very black and shining. Many
say it is of a species of touchstone; in length it was one-eighth
less than four cubits, and in breadth 2 1/2 cubits and one tasu,
[318] whilst its thickness may be three tasu. I ordered stone-cutters
to carve suitable couplets on the sides of it. They had attached feet
to it of the same kind of stone. I often sat on that throne.
As the brothers of Khan `Alam became security for him, I brought out
of prison `Abdu-s-Subhan Khan, who was in confinement for certain
offences, and promoted him to the rank of 1,000 personal and 400
horse, and appointed him to the faujdarship of the Subah of Allahabad,
and gave him the jagir of Qasim Khan, the brother of Islam Khan. I
sent Tarbiyat Khan to the faujdarship of the Sarkar of Alwar. On the
12th of the same month a representation arrived from Khan Jahan that
the Khankhanan, according to my order, had started for the Court in
company with Mahabat Khan, and that Mir Jamalu-d-din Husain, who had
been nominated by the Court to go to Bijapur, had also gone from
Burhanpur, together with the wakils of `Adil Khan, to Bijapur. On
the 21st of the same month I promoted Murtaza Khan to the subadarship
of the Panjab, which is one of the largest charges in my dominions,
and gave him a special shawl. Having appointed Taj Khan, who was
in the Subah of Multan to the governorship of Kabul, I added 500
horse to the rank of 3,000 personal and 1,500 horse already held by
him. At the request of `Abdu-llah Khan Firuz-jang, the son of Rana
Shankar was also promoted in rank. When Mahabat Khan, who had been
sent to Burhanpur to ascertain the numbers of the forces of the Amirs
appointed to the Deccan, and to bring the Khankhanan, arrived in the
neighbourhood of Agra, he left the Khankhanan some stages off the city
and came on in front himself, and was honoured with the good fortune
of paying his respects and kissing the threshold. After a few days,
on the 12th Aban, the Khankhanan came and waited on me. As many of
those who were loyal had represented the state of his affairs whether
true or false, according to their ideas, and I was displeased with
him, because the degree of favour and regard that I previously had
observed in his case and that I had seen in my revered father had
not produced its effect, I did justice in the matter, for previously
to this a letter of appointment to the service of the Deccan for a
certain time had been given to him, and he had proceeded there in
attendance on Sultan Parwiz with other nobles for that important
matter. After he arrived at Burhanpur he had not looked to the
opportuneness of the time, and at an improper season for moving,
and when forage and other necessaries had not been laid in, he had
taken Sultan Parwiz and his forces above the Ghats, and by degrees,
in consequence of want of concert among the Sardars and his treachery,
and of conflicting opinions, things had come to such a pass that
grain was obtained with difficulty, and not a man was to be got for
large sums of money. The affairs of the army became so confused that
nothing went on properly, and horses, camels, and other four-footed
beasts died. In consequence of the exigency of the time he had patched
up a kind of peace with the enemy and withdrawn Sultan Parwiz and
the army to Burhanpur. As this business did not turn out well, all
the well-wishers of the State knew that this division (of counsels)
and confusion had arisen from treachery and want of arrangement of the
Khankhanan, and represented this to the Court. Although this appeared
altogether incredible, at last this impression was left upon my mind,
and a representation came from Khan Jahan to the effect that all
this mischief and confusion had arisen through the treachery of the
Khankhanan; either this service should be left entirely in his control,
or, summoning him to Court, I should appoint to this duty this man
whom I had myself cherished and brought up, and appoint 30,000 horse
to support this slave (Khan Jahan himself), in order that in the space
of two years, having freed the whole of the royal province, now in the
possession of the enemy, and having brought the fort of Qandahar [319]
and other forts on the border into the occupation of the servants of
the Court, he should include in the royal dominions the province of
Bijapur. If he did not complete this service in that time, he might
be debarred from the good fortune of paying his respects (to me)
and would not show his face to the servants of the Court. When the
relations between the Sardars and the Khankhanan reached this point,
I did not consider it advisable for him to be there any longer, and
handed over the command to Khan Jahan and sent for him to Court. In
reality the cause of my disinclination and want of favour to him was
this. The degree of inclination and disinclination towards him in
future will be in accordance with whatever may become clear.
I favoured and promoted Sayyid `Ali Barha, who is one of our
distinguished young men, with an increase of 500 personal and 200
horse beyond his previous rank, which was 1,000 personal and 500 horse,
and gave Darab Khan, son of the Khankhanan, the rank of 1,000 personal
and 500 horse, with the Sarkar of Ghazipur as his jagir. Previously to
this I had had the daughter of Mirza Muzaffar Husain, son of Sultan
Husain Mirza Safawi, ruler of Qandahar, betrothed to my son Sultan
Khurram, and on this date, the 17th Aban, as the marriage meeting
had been arranged, I went to the house of Baba Khurram and passed the
night there. I presented most of the Amirs with robes of honour. Some
of those confined in the fort of Gwalior I released, and especially
Haji Mirak. Islam Khan had collected 100,000 rupees from the khalisa
(directly managed) parganahs. As he was at the head of the army and the
service, I handed this over to him as a present. Giving a little gold
and silver and some of every kind of jewellery and grain to trustworthy
men, I determined that they should distribute them to the poor of
Agra. On the same day a report came from Khan Jahan that Iraj, the son
of the Khankhanan, had obtained leave from the prince, and according
to orders he had despatched him to Court. With regard to what had been
ordered in the case of Abu-l-fath, of Bijapur, as the above-mentioned
was an experienced man, and his being sent would cause despair to
the other Sardars of the Deccan to whom promises had been made, he
had (therefore) kept him under surveillance. [320] An order had been
sent that as Kesho Das, the son of Ray Kalah(?), was in the service
of Parwiz, if any impediment should occur in sending him, he (Khan
Jahan) should despatch him whether he wished it or not. Immediately
on this becoming known to Parwiz, he gave him leave and said to Khan
Jahan: "These few words from my mouth thou wilt represent, that as
I would give my existence and life for the service of my visible God
(Jahangir), what is there in the being or annihilation of Kesho Das
[321] that I should show any resistance in sending him? When they
(i.e. the king) send for my confidential servants for any reason it
produces a feeling of hopelessness and disquietude of mind in the rest,
and becoming known in these regions gives an idea of disfavour on the
part of our lord and Qibla (place looked towards in worship). As for
the rest, it is His Majesty's order." From the date on which the fort
of Ahmadnagar, by the efforts of my deceased brother Daniyal, came
into the possession of the heads of the victorious State, up till now,
the guardianship and preservation of that place had been entrusted to
Khwaja Beg Mirza Safawi, who was a relative of the asylum of pardon
Shah Tahmasp. After the disturbance of the rebel Deccanis went to a
great length, and they besieged the said fort, he had committed no
fault in the duties of devotedness and holding of the fort. When
the Khankhanan and the Amirs and other leaders who had assembled
at Burhanpur in waiting on Parwiz devoted themselves to the driving
back and defeat of the rebels, and from the differences of opinion
and quarrels of the Amirs, and the absence of provision of forage
and grain, those who looked after matters of importance brought this
large army into improper roads and among hills and difficult passes,
they in a short space of time rendered it wretched and impotent,
and matters had come to such a pass and the difficulty with regard
to grain was such that they were giving a life for a loaf. They then
turned back helplessly with their objects unfulfilled. The garrison of
the fort, who were expecting aid from this army, on hearing this news,
lost heart and stability, and tumultuously wished to vacate the fort
at once. When Khwaja Beg Mirza became aware of this he endeavoured
to soothe and quiet the men, but though he did his best it had
no good result. At last, under an agreement, he vacated the fort,
and proceeded to Burhanpur, and on the day mentioned waited on the
prince. Representations with regard to his coming reached me, and,
as it was clear that he had not been wanting in bravery and loyalty,
I ordered his rank of 5,000 personal and horse to be confirmed and
a jagir to be given him. On the 9th a petition came from some of the
Amirs in the Deccan that on the 22nd Sha`ban Mir Jamalu-d-din Husain
had gone to Bijapur. `Adil Khan sent his wakil forward for 20 kos,
and himself received him at a distance of 3 kos, and took the Mir by
the same road to his own residence.
As the desire to hunt overcame me, at a propitious hour determined by
the astrologers, when a watch and six gharis had passed on the night
of Friday, the 15th Ramazan, corresponding with the 10th Azar in the
5th year (of my reign), I started to hunt, and made my first halt in
the Dahrah Garden, which is near the city. At this stage I gave Mir
`Ali Akbar leave to go into the city after bestowing on him 2,000
rupees and a special warm wrapper (fargul). In order that the grain
and cultivation should not be trodden down by my men I ordered that
all should remain in the city but the men who were actually wanted
and my personal servants. Having entrusted the charge of the city
to Khwaja Jahan I gave him his leave. On the 14th Sa`du-llah Khan,
son of Sa`id Khan, was given an elephant. On the 28th, corresponding
with the 21st Ramazan, forty-four elephants, which Hashim Khan, son
of Qasim Khan, had sent as an offering from Orissa, were produced
before me. Of these one was very good and tame; this one I put in my
private stud. On the 28th an eclipse (of the sun, kusuf) took place,
in order to do away with the unluckiness of which I weighed myself
against gold and silver; it came to 1,800 tolas of gold and 4,900
rupees. This, along with several kinds of vegetables and sorts of
animals such as elephants and horses and cattle, I ordered to be
divided among deserving people who were unprovided for and helpless
poor of the city of Agra and other cities in the neighbourhood.
As the affairs of the army which had been nominated for the subjugation
of the Deccan under the command of Parwiz, and leadership of the
Khankhanan and other high Amirs such as Raja Man Singh, Khan Jahan,
Asaf Khan, the Amiru-l-umara, and other mansabdars, and other leaders
of every tribe and condition, had ended in this, that they had turned
back from half-way and returned to Burhanpur, and all the confidential
servants and news-writers who spoke the truth had sent in reports
to the Court, that although there were many causes for the ruin of
this army, yet the chief reason was the disagreement of the Amirs,
especially the treachery of the Khankhanan, it came into my mind that
I must send Khan A`zam with another fresh and powerful army to make
amends for and set to rights some of the improper proceedings that had
arisen from the disagreement of the Amirs that has been described. On
the 11th of Day he (Khan A`zam) was honoured with the charge of this
duty, and an order was given to the Diwans to make preparations and
send him off quickly. I appointed Khan `Alam, Faridun Khan Barlas,
Yusuf Khan, son of Husain Khan Tukriyah, `Ali Khan Niyazi, Baz Bahadur
Qalmaq, and other mansabdars, near to the number of 10,000 horse,
to accompany him. It was settled that in addition to the ahadis
who were appointed to this duty 2,000 others should accompany him,
making altogether 12,000 horse. Having sent with him thirty lakhs of
rupees and several elephants, I gave him his leave and presented him
with a magnificent dress of honour, a jewelled sword-belt, a horse
with a jewelled saddle, a private elephant, and 500,000 rupees for
expenses. An order was given that the chiefs of the civil department
should recover this from his jagir. The Amirs who were under his
orders were honoured with robes of honour, horses, and presents. I
increased by 500 more horse the rank held by Mahabat Khan, of 4,000
personal and 3,000 horse, and ordered him to conduct Khan A`zam and
this army to Burhanpur, and having enquired into (the circumstances of)
the destruction of the army, should give the order of the appointment
of the Khan A`zam to the Amirs of those regions and make them of one
purpose and counsel with him. He was to see the state of preparation
of the army of those parts, and after arranging all matters should
bring the Khankhanan with him to Court. On Sunday, the 4th Shawwal,
when near the end of the day, I engaged in a cheetah hunt. I had
determined that on this day and Thursdays no animals should be killed
and I would eat no meat, on Sunday especially because of the respect my
revered father had for that day in not being inclined to eat flesh on
it, and in forbidding the killing of any animals for the reason that
on the night of Sunday his own honoured birth had taken place. He
used to say it was better on that day that all animals should be
free from the calamity of those of a butcherly disposition. Thursday
is the day of my accession. On that day also I ordered that animals
should not be killed, so that whilst sporting I should not shoot an
arrow or a gun at wild animals. In hunting with cheetahs Anup Ray,
who is one of my close attendants, was heading the men who were with
him in the hunt at a little distance [322] from me and came to a
tree on which some kites were sitting. When his sight fell on those
kites he took a bow and some pointless arrows (tukka) and went towards
them. By chance in the neighbourhood of that tree he saw a half-eaten
bullock. Near it a huge, powerful tiger got up out of a clump that was
near and went off. Though not more than two gharis of day remained,
as he knew my liking for tiger-hunting, he and some of those who
were with him surrounded the tiger and sent some one to me to give
me the news. When it reached me I rode there at once in a state of
excitement and at full speed, and Baba Khurram, Ram Das, I`timad Ray,
Hayat Khan, and one or two others went with me. On arriving I saw the
tiger standing in the shade of a tree, and wished to fire at him from
horseback but found that my horse was unsteady, and dismounted and
aimed and fired my gun. As I was standing on a height and the tiger
below, I did not know whether it had struck him or not. In a moment
of excitement I fired the gun again, and I think that this time I hit
him. The tiger rose and charged, and wounding the chief huntsman,
who had a falcon on his wrist and happened to be in front of him,
sat down again in his own place. In this state of affairs, placing
another gun on a tripod, [323] I took aim (majra giriftam [324]). Anup
Ray stood holding the rest, and had a sword in his belt and a baton
(kutaka) in his hand. Baba Khurram was a short distance off to my
left, and Ram Das and other servants behind him. Kamal the huntsman
(qarawul) loaded the gun and placed it in my hand. When I was about
to fire, the tiger came roaring towards us and charged. I immediately
fired. The ball passed through the tiger's mouth and teeth. The noise
of the gun made him very savage, and the servants who had crowded
together could not stand his charge and fell over one another, so
that I, through their pushing and shock, was moved a couple of paces
from my place and fell down. In fact, I am sure that two or three of
them placed their feet on my chest and passed over me. I`timad Ray
and the huntsman Kamal assisting me, I stood up. At this moment the
tiger made for those who were on the left-hand side. Anup Ray let the
rest slip out of his hand and turned towards the tiger. The tiger,
with the same activity with which he had charged, turned on him,
and he manfully faced him, and struck him twice with both hands on
the head with the stick he had in his hand. The tiger, opening his
mouth, seized both of Anup Ray's arms with it, and bit them so that
his teeth passed through both, but the stick and the bracelets on his
arms were helpful, and did not allow his arms to be destroyed. From
the attack and pushing of the tiger Anup Ray fell down between
the tiger's fore-feet, so that his head and face were opposite the
tiger's chest. At this moment Baba Khurram and Ram Das came up to
the assistance of Anup Ray. The prince struck the tiger on the loins
with his sword, and Ram Das also struck him twice with his sword,
once on the shoulder-blade. On the whole it was very warm work, and
Hayat Khan struck the tiger several blows over the head with a stick
he had in his hand. Anup Ray with force dragged his arms out of the
tiger's mouth and struck him two or three times on the cheek with
his fist, and rolling over on his side stood up by the force of his
knees. At the time of withdrawing his arms from the tiger's mouth,
as his teeth had passed through them, they were partly torn, and
both his paws passed over his shoulders. When he stood up, the tiger
also stood up and wounded him on the chest with his claws, so that
those wounds troubled him for some days. As the ground was uneven,
they rolled over each other, holding on like two wrestlers. In the
place where I was standing the ground was quite level. Anup Ray says
that God Almighty gave him so much intelligence that he bore the tiger
over deliberately to [325] one side (in the original, that side), and
that he knew no more. At this time the tiger left him and was making
off. He in that state of bewilderment raised up his sword and followed
him and struck him on the head. When the tiger turned his face round,
he struck him another blow on the face, so that both his eyes were cut,
and the skin of the eyebrows, which had been severed by the sword,
fell over his eyes. In this state of affairs, a lamp-man of the name
of Salih, as it was time to light the lamps, came in a hurry and by
a blind chance [326] came across the tiger. The tiger struck him one
blow with his paw and knocked him down. To fall and give up his life
were the same thing. Other people came in and finished the tiger's
business. As Anup Ray had done this service to me and I had witnessed
the way in which he offered his life, after he had recovered from the
pain of his wounds and had the honour of waiting on me, I bestowed on
him the title of Anira'i Singh-dalan. Anira'i [327] they call in the
Hindi language the leader of an army, and the meaning of Singh-dalan
is a tiger-slayer. Giving him a special sword of my own, I increased
his mansab. I gave Khurram, son of Khan A`zam, who had been appointed
to the governorship of the province of Junagadh, the title of Kamil
Khan. On Sunday, the 3rd Zi-l-qa`da, I employed myself in fishing,
and 766 fish were caught; these were divided in my presence among the
Amirs, Ibachkian (?), [328] and most of the servants. I eat no fish but
those that have scales, but not because the professors of the Shiah
faith look on those without scales as unlawful, but the cause of my
aversion is this, that I have heard from old men, and it has become
known to me by experience as well, that fish without scales eat the
flesh of dead animals and fish with scales do not eat it. From this
cause, to eat them is contrary to my disposition. The Shiahs know
[329] why they do not eat them and for what reason they consider
them unlawful. One of my home-bred camels that was with me in the
hunt carried five nilgaws that weighed 42 Hindustani maunds. I had
before this sent for Naziri of Nishapur, who excelled other men in
the art of poetry, and passed his time in Gujarat as a merchant. At
this time he came and waited on me, and imitating a poem of Anwari,
"Again, what youth and beauty this is for the world!"
laid before me a poem that he had composed on me. I presented him
with 1,000 rupees, a horse, and a robe of honour as a gift for this
poem. I had also sent for Hakim Hamid Gujarati, whom Murtaza Khan
greatly praised, and he came and waited on me. His good qualities
and purity were better than his doctoring. He waited on me for some
time. When it became known that there was no physician but himself in
Gujarat, and I found he himself desired leave to go, I gave him and his
sons 1,000 rupees and some shawls, and set aside a whole village for
his maintenance; he went off to his native place quite happy. Yusuf
Khan, son of Husain Khan Tukriyah, came from his jagir and waited on
me. On Thursday, the 10th Zi-l-hijja, was the festival of the Qurban
(the sacrifice of Ishmael). As it is forbidden to take life on that
day (Thursday), I ordered that on the Friday they should kill the
sacrificial animals. Having sacrificed three sheep with my own hand,
I mounted to go hunting, and returned when six gharis of night had
passed. On this day was killed a nilgaw (commonly called blue bull)
of the weight of 9 maunds and 35 seers. The story of this nilgaw is
written because it is not devoid of strangeness. In the two past years,
during which I had come to this same place to wander about and hunt I
had shot at him each time with a gun. As the wounds were not in a fatal
place, he had not fallen, but gone off. This time again I saw that
nilgaw in the hunting-ground (shikargah), and the watchman recognized
that in the two previous years he had gone away wounded. In short, I
fired at him again three times on that day. It was in vain. I pursued
him rapidly on foot for three kos, but however much I exerted myself
I could not catch him. At last I made a vow that if this nilgaw fell
I would have his flesh cooked, and for the soul of Khwaja Mu`inu-d-din
would give it to eat to poor people. I also vowed a muhr and one rupee
to my revered father. Soon after this the nilgaw became worn out with
moving, and I ran to his head and ordered them to make it lawful (cut
its throat in the name of Allah) on the spot, and having brought it to
the camp I fulfilled my vow as I had proposed. They cooked the nilgaw,
and expending the muhr and rupee on sweets. I assembled poor and hungry
people and divided them among them in my own presence. Two or three
days afterwards I saw another nilgaw. However much I exerted myself
and wished he would stand still in one place, so that I might fire
at him, I could get no chance. With my gun on my shoulder I followed
him till near evening until it was sunset, and despaired of killing
him. Suddenly it came across my tongue, "Khwaja, this nilgaw also
is vowed to you." My speaking and his sitting down were at one and
the same moment. I fired at and hit him, and ordered him, like the
first nilgaw, to be cooked and given to the poor to eat. On Saturday,
the 19th Zi-l-hijja, I fished again. This time about 330 fish were
caught. On the night of Wednesday, the 28th [330] of the same month,
I encamped at Rupbas. As this was one of my fixed hunting-places
and there was an order that no one should hunt in the neighbourhood,
a great number of antelope had come together in the desert there, so
much so that they came into the inhabited parts and were not subject
to any kind of molestation. I hunted for two or three days in those
desert plains, and shot, and hunted with cheetahs many antelopes. As
the hour for entering the city was near, making two halts on the way,
I alighted on the night of Thursday, the 2nd Muharram, in the year 1020
(17th March, 1611), at the garden of `Abdu-r-Razzaq Ma`muri, which is
near, in fact close to, the city. On this night many of the servants
of the Court, such as Khwaja Jahan, Daulat Khan, and a number who had
remained in the city, came and waited on me. Iraj also, whom I had
sent for from the Subah of the Deccan, had the honour of kissing the
threshold. I stayed in that garden also on the Friday. On that day
`Abdu-r-Razzaq presented his own offerings. As this was the last day
for hunting, an order was given that the duration of the hunt and the
number of animals killed should be counted up to me. The time of the
hunt was from the 9th of the month of Azar to the 29th Isfandarmuz of
the 5th year, or three months and twenty days. In this time tigers
12, deer (gawzan) 1, chikarah (gazelle) 44, kutah-pacha (hog-deer)
1 head, fawns 2 head, black buck 68 head, does 31 head, foxes 4,
kurara deer 8, patal (?) 1, bears 5, hyænas 3, hares 6, nilgaw 108,
fish 1,096, eagle 1, bustard 1, peafowl 5, herons 5, partridges 5,
brahmini ducks (surkhab) 1, saras 5, dhik (?) 1; total, 1,414.
On Saturday, the 29th Isfandarmuz, corresponding to the 4th Muharram,
I mounted an elephant and went to the city. From the garden of
`Abdu-r-Razzaq to the palace the distance is a kos and 20 tanab. I
scattered 1,500 rupees to the crowd. At the fixed hour I entered the
palace. The bazars had been decorated with cloths after the manner of
the New Year's feast. As at the hunting-time an order had been given
to Khwaja Jahan to prepare in the Mahall (Zenanah) a building fit for
me to sit in, the said Khwaja had in the space of three months prepared
and brought to perfection this kind of lofty building, and with folded
hands (in humility) had done exceedingly active work. Coming off
the dust of the road I entered that Paradise-like building and went
to look round that abode, and it was very much to my taste. Khwaja
Jahan was dignified with much praise and commendation. The offerings
he had prepared were displayed to me in the same building. Some of
these were approved and accepted and the remainder presented to him.
THE SIXTH NEW YEAR'S FEAST AFTER MY AUSPICIOUS ACCESSION.
Two gharis and forty seconds of day had passed on the Monday when the
sun (lit. his honour the greatest star) entered his tower of honour,
which is in the constellation of Aries. That day was the 1st Farwardin,
corresponding with the 6th Muharram [331] (21st March, 1611). The feast
of the New Year having been prepared, I seated myself on the throne
of good fortune. The Amirs and all the servants of the Court enjoyed
the good fortune of waiting on me and gave their congratulations. The
offerings of the servants of the Court Miran Sadr Jahan, `Abdu-llah
Khan Firuz-jang, and Jahangir Quli Khan, were laid before me. On
Wednesday, the 8th Muharram, the offering of Raja Kalyan, who had
sent it from Bengal, was laid before me. On Thursday, the 9th of
the same month, Shaja`at Khan and some of the mansabdars, who had
come on summons from the Deccan, waited on me. I gave a jewelled
waist-dagger to Razzaq-wirdi Uzbeg. On the same day the New Year's
offering of Murtaza Khan was laid before me. He had prepared all
kinds of things. Having inspected all these, I took what I approved
in the shape of valuable jewels, fine cloths, elephants, and horses
and gave back the rest. I presented a jewelled dagger to Abu-l-fath
Dakhani, 3,000 rupees to Mir `Abdu-llah, and an Iraq horse to Muqim
Khan. I increased the rank of Shaja`at Khan, which was 1,500 personal
and 100 horse, by 500 personal and horse. I had summoned him from
the Deccan for the purpose of sending him to Bengal to Islam Khan,
in reality to take his place permanently, and I entrusted him with
the charge of that Subah. Khwaja Abu-l-hasan laid before me (as
offerings) two rubies, one royal pearl, and ten rings. I gave Iraj,
the son of Khankhanan, a jewelled dagger. The rank of Khurram was 8,000
personal and 5,000 horse; I increased his personal allowance by 2,000,
and increased that of Khwaja Jahan, which was 1,500 personal, 1,000
horse by 500 personal, 200 horse. On 24th Muharram, 18th Farwardin,
the day of the ascendant, Yadgar `Ali Sultan, ambassador of Shah
`Abbas, ruler of Persia, who had come on a visit of condolence on
the death of the late king and with congratulations on my accession,
had the honour of waiting on me, and laid before me the gifts Shah
`Abbas, my brother, had sent. He had brought good horses, cloth stuffs,
and every kind of fitting present. After he had presented the gifts,
on the same day I gave him a superb robe of honour and 30,000 rupees,
which were equivalent to 1,000 Persian tumans. He handed me a letter
in which were mingled congratulations and condolences for the death
of my revered father. As in the letter of congratulation he expressed
the greatest friendship, and omitted no point of regard and concord,
it has pleased me to enter here an exact copy of it.
Copy of the letter of Shah `Abbas.
"May the sprinklings of the cloud of the grace of God and the
dropping of the favour of the Almighty impart freshness to the
gardens of wonderful men and inventors (of new things)! May the
flower-bed of sovereignty and rule and the mead of magnificence
and exalted happiness of his Honour of heavenly dignity, of sun-like
grandeur, the king whose fortune is young, of Saturn-like majesty, the
renowned prince, possessing the authority of the spheres, the Khedive,
the world-gripper (Jahangir) and country-conquering sovereign, the
prince of the exaltedness of Sikandar, with the banner of Darius,
he who sits on the throne of the pavilion of greatness and glory,
the possessor of the (seven) climes, the increaser of the joys of
good fortune and prosperity, adorner of the gardens of happiness,
decorator of the rose-parterre, lord of the happy conjunction (of the
planets), the opener of the countenance, the perfection of kinghood,
expounder of the mysteries of the sky, the adornment of the face of
learning and insight, index of the book of creation, compendium of
human perfections, mirror of the glory of God, elevator of the lofty
soul, increaser of good fortune and of the beneficent ascension,
sun of the grandeur of the skies, the shadow of the benignity of the
Creator, he who has the dignity of Jamshid among the stars of the
host of heaven, lord of conjunction, refuge of the world, river of the
favours of Allah, and fountain of unending mercy, verdure of the plain
of purity, may his land (lit. surface) be guarded from the calamity of
the evil eye; may his fountain of perfection be preserved in truth,
his desire and love; the tale of his good qualities and benevolence
cannot be written.
"'The pen has not the tongue to express the secret of love.'
Although outwardly the distance (between us) prevents my attaining
to the ka`bah of desire, yet he is the qiblah of my keen longing
for spiritual intercourse. Thank God that by virtue of essential
oneness this humble supplicant and that pure nursling of glory have in
reality been united to one another. The distance of space and outward
separation of the body not having prevented nearness of soul and
spiritual union, my face is still towards friendship, and accordingly
the dust of sorrow has not settled on the sun-like mirror of my mind,
but it has received the reflection of the beauty of that exhibitor of
perfection, and the olfactory of my soul has been ever scented with
the sweet savour of friendship and love and the ambergris-perfumed
breezes of affection and concord, and spiritual fellowship and
perpetual union have rubbed off the rust from friendship.
"'I sit beside thee in thought, and my heart is at ease,
For this is an union not followed by separation's pain.'
"Praise be given to the most mighty and pure God that the plant of
the desire of true friends hath borne the fruit of fruition. Success
(maqsud), that beauty who for years was hidden behind the veil, has
by dint of humility and supplication at the throne of the Almighty,
come forth and manifested herself from the hidden bridal chamber,
and a ray of perfection has been thrown on the plain of the hopes
of the expectants; she has ascended the auspicious throne and seated
herself beside the king who adorns the assembly and enhances the glory
of the tribune of the king of kings. The world-opening standard of
the Caliphate and rule, and the sky-scraping umbrella of justice and
world-sway of that creator of the diadem and throne, and that opener
of the knots of knowledge and wisdom have cast the shade of equity
and sovereignty and mercy over the heads of the inhabitants of the
world. My hope is that the chief of desire-granters may make the
auspicious ascension of that blessed rising of fortune brighten the
crown and illuminate the throne, making it of good omen and prosperous
to all, and may the things that appertain to kingship and rule of
the world and the causes of dignity and prosperity be ever on the
increase! For long past the customs of amity and the ways of intimacy,
which have been in existence between our ancestors, and now freshly
have been re-established between this one who is bent on friendship
and him who is intent on equity, demanded that when the good news of
the accession of him who sits on the Gurgani throne and is the heir of
the crown of Timur reached this country, one of the confidants of the
royal palace should be quickly nominated to convey congratulations,
but inasmuch as the business of Azarbijan and the conquest of the
province of Shirwan just then occurred, and until my loving mind was
satisfied as to the affairs of that province, I could not return to my
capital, some delay took place in the accomplishment of this important
duty. Although outward ceremonial observances and politenesses have
not much weight with people of knowledge and discernment, yet the
observance of them is the observance of the dues of friendship. Of
necessity, therefore, at this auspicious time when the attention of
the servants of holy angels (?) has been withdrawn from the affairs
of that province, which have been arranged in accordance with the
desires of my well-wishers, and I am at ease in that quarter, I
have returned and settled down in my capital of Isfahan, which is
the permanent seat of rule. Therefore I have despatched Kamalu-d-din
Yadgar `Ali, who possesses the attributes of nobility, is perfect in
sincerity and fully reliable, who is moreover of the number of devoted
servants and Sufis of pure design of our family, to the most exalted
Court, that after he has obtained the good fortune to salute you,
to condole with you, and kissed the carpet of honour, and performed
the dues of inquiry (after health, etc.) and congratulations, he may
obtain leave to return, and may convey to the sincere mind of your
well-wisher the good tidings of the safety of your angelic person
and the health of your temperament that is of the brightness of
the sun and increases joy. It is hoped that the tree of hereditary
friendship and assiduousness, and the garden of intimacy and regard,
both apparent and spiritual, which by the irrigation of the rivers of
affection and the brooks of sincere regard acquire great splendour
and greenness, not casting their leaves, may set in motion the cord
of intimacy and drive away the misfortune of estrangement by the
arrival of correspondence, which is the communication of the soul,
and may connect by spiritual chains our visible friendship, and may
favour the course and accomplishment of business.
"May God Almighty give the assistance of the secret powers to that
living family of dignity and glory and that household of grandeur
and good fortune."
Up to this is the copy of the letter of my brother Shah `Abbas.
My brothers Sultan Murad and Daniyal, who had died in the lifetime of
my revered father, people had called by several names. I ordered that
one of them should be called Shahzada maghfur (the pardoned prince),
and the other Shahzada marhum (the prince admitted to mercy). I
promoted I`timadu-d-daulah and `Abdu-r-Razzaq Ma`muri, who each held
the rank of 1,500, to that of 1,800, and increased the horse-rank of
Qasim Khan, brother of Islam Khankhanan, by 250. I dignified Iraj,
eldest son of the Khankhanan, with the title of Shah-nawaz Khan, and
Sa`du-llah, son of Sa`id Khan, with the appellation of Nawazish Khan.
At the time of my accession I had increased weights and measures
(lit. gaz), viz. to the extent of three ratis (small weight equal to
eight barleycorns), in the weight of muhrs and rupees. At this time
it was represented to me that in mercantile transactions it would be
for the convenience of the people that muhrs and rupees should be of
the same weight as previously. As in all affairs the contentment and
ease of the people are to be looked to, I gave an order that from the
present day, that is, the 11th Urdibihisht in the 6th year of my reign,
they should strike muhrs and rupees of the former weight in all the
mints of my dominions. As before this, on Saturday, the 2nd of the
month of Safar, in the year 1020, the evil-dispositioned Ahdad had
heard that Kabul was deprived of an eminent leader, that Khan Dauran
[332] was in the interior, and only Mu`izzu-l-mulk with a few servants
of the aforesaid was in Kabul, thinking it a good opportunity he
(Ahdad) betook himself unexpectedly to Kabul with a large number of
horsemen and foot-soldiers. Mu`izzu-l-mulk, according to the measure of
his ability, displayed activity, and the Kabulis and other inhabitants,
especially the Farmuli [333] tribe, barricaded up the streets and
fortified their houses. The Afghans with some guns came in to the
streets and bazars from different directions. The people from the
shelter of their terraces and houses killed many of these wretches with
arrows and guns, and Bargi, [334] one of the confidential leaders of
Ahdad, was killed. From the occurrence of this affair, for fear that
the people from all sides and quarters should assemble and block the
road for them to get out, giving up their hearts and feet (in a state
of distraction), in fear and confusion they turned back. About 800 of
those dogs went to jahannam (hell), and 200, having caught horses,
hastily escaped with their lives from that deadly place. Nad `Ali
Maidani, who was in Lahugar, at last on the same day arrived there,
and pursued them for a short distance. As the distance (between them)
was too great and his band small, he turned back. For the energy
he had shown in coming quickly, and for the activity displayed by
Mu`izzu-l-mulk, they were both promoted in rank; Nad `Ali, who held
that of 1,000 personal to that of 1,500, and Mu`izzu-l-mulk, who held
the rank of 1,500, to 1,800. As it transpired that Khan Dauran and
the Kabulis were in the habit of passing their days in carelessness,
and the repelling of the evil disposition of Ahdad had taken a long
time it occurred to me that as the Khankhanan was without employment
I might appoint him and his sons to this duty. Soon after this idea
occurred, Qilij Khan, to summon whom a firman had already been issued,
came from the Panjab and obtained the honour of an audience. It became
evident from the forehead of his circumstances (his manner) that he
was annoyed at the duty of driving back the ill-dispositioned Ahdad
being assigned to Khankhanan. As he faithfully promised to take up
this duty, it was settled that the governorship of the Subah of the
Panjab should belong to Murtaza Khan, and that the Khankhanan should
remain at home, and that Qilij Khan should be promoted to the rank of
6,000 personal and 5,000 horse, and be appointed to Kabul to drive back
Ahdad and the up-country robbers. I ordered the Khankhanan to have a
jagir in the Subah of Agra in the Sarkars of Qanauj and Kalpi, that
he might inflict condign punishment on the rebels of that region and
exterminate them (pull them out by the roots). When I dismissed them
I gave each of them special robes of honour and horses and elephants,
and having received the robes of exaltation they started off. At the
same time, on account of the sincerity of his friendship and his old
services, I bestowed on I`timadu-d-daulah the rank of 2,000 personal
and 500 horse, and presented him with a sum of 5,000 rupees by way of
gift. Mahabat Khan, whom I had sent to make the necessary preparations
for war for the victorious army of the Deccan and point out to the
Amirs the desirability of concord and unanimity, paid his respects to
me at the capital of Agra on the 12th of the month of Tir, the 21st
of Rabi`u-s-sani. It was brought to notice in a letter from Islam
Khan that `Inayat Khan had performed approved service in the Subah of
Bengal; on this account I increased by 500 personal the rank he already
held of 2,000. I also increased by 500 personal and 300 horse, so as
to make it up altogether to 1,500 personal and 800 horse, the rank of
Raja Kalyan, who was one of the officials of that Subah. I appointed
Hashim Khan, [335] who was in Orissa, to the government of Kashmir,
and sent his uncle, Khwaja Muhammad Husain, there to look after the
affairs of that country until his arrival. In the time of my revered
father his father, Muhammad Qasim, had conquered Kashmir. Chin Qilij,
who was the eldest son of Qilij Khan, came from the Subah of Kabul
and waited on me. As in addition to his natural excellence he was
a khanazad (houseborn one), he was honoured with the title of Khan,
and according to the prayer of his father, and on condition of his
undertaking service in Tirah, I increased his rank by 500 personal
and 300 horse. On the 14th Amardad on account of the previous service
and great sincerity and ability of I`timadu-daulah, I bestowed on him
the high rank of the viziership of the kingdom, and on the same day
presented a belt with a jewelled dagger to Yadgar `Ali, ambassador
of the ruler of Iran. As `Abdu-llah Khan, who had been appointed
to command the army against the rebel Rana, promised to enter the
province of the Deccan from the direction of Gujarat, I promoted him
to be Subahdar of that province, and at his request appointed Raja
Baso to the command of the army against the Rana, increasing his rank
by 500 horse. In place of Gujarat I conferred the Subah of Malwa
on Khan A`zam and sent 400,000 rupees to provide for the army and
warlike materials for the force that had been appointed to accompany
`Abdu-llah Khan by way of Nasik, which is near the province of the
Deccan. Safdar Khan, with his brothers, came from the Subah of Behar,
and had the honour of kissing the threshold.
One of the royal slaves who was serving in the seal-cutting departments
prepared and laid before me a design such as I had never seen or heard
of before. As it is exceedingly strange, a detailed [336] description
of it is given. In the shell of a filbert four compartments had been
carved out of ivory. The first compartment was one of wrestlers, in
which two men were engaged in wrestling, a third was standing with
a spear in his hand, a fourth with a hard stone. [337] Another was
sitting with his hands placed on the ground, while in front of him
were laid a piece of wood, a bow and a pot. In the second a throne had
been made above which a shamiyana (a tent-fly or canopy) was depicted,
and a man of wealth (a prince) was seated on the throne with one leg
placed over the other and a pillow at his back. Five servants were
standing around and before him, and tree-boughs threw a shade over
the throne. In the third compartment is a company of rope-dancers,
who have raised upright a pole with three ropes fastened to it. A
rope-dancer upon it (qu. on the ropes? [338]) has taken hold of his
own right foot with his left hand behind his head, and standing on
one foot has placed a goat on the top of the pole. Another person has
thrown a drum on his neck and is beating it, whilst another man is
standing with his hands lifted up and looking at the rope-dancer. Five
other men are also standing, of whom one has a stick in his hand. In
the fourth compartment there is a tree, below which the figure of
the revered (hazrat) Jesus is shown. One person has placed his head
at Jesus' feet, and an old man is conversing with Jesus and four
others are standing by. [339] As he had made such a masterpiece,
I honoured him with a present and with increased salary.
On the 30th Shahriwar, Mirza Sultan, who had been sent for from the
Deccan, came and waited on me. Safdar Khan had an increase of rank
conferred on him, and was appointed to go to the assistance of the
army against the rebel Rana. As `Abdu-llah Khan Bahadur Firuz-jang
had proposed to enter the neighbouring province of the Deccan by way
of Nasik, it occurred to me to appoint Ram Das Kachhwaha, who was
one of the sincere servants of my revered father, to accompany him
in order that he might in every place look after him, and not allow
him to be too rash and hasty. For this purpose I bestowed on him great
favours, as well as the title of Raja, which he had not thought of for
himself. I also gave him drums and the fort of Ranthanbur, which is
one of the noted castles in Hindustan, and honouring him with a superb
robe of honour and an elephant and horse I dismissed him. I appointed
Khwaja Abu-l-hasan, who had been transferred from the chief Diwanship,
to the duty of the Subahdarship of the Deccan, as he had been for
a long time in those regions in the service of my deceased brother
(Daniyal). I honoured Abu-l-hasan, son of I`timadu-d-daulah, with the
title of I`tiqad Khan, and having promoted the sons of Mu`azzam Khan
to fitting ranks sent them to Bengal to Islam Khan. At the request
of Islam Khan, Raja Kalyan was appointed to the government of the
Sarkar of Orissa and had an increase in rank of 200 personal and
horse. I presented Shaja`at Khan Dakhani with 4,000 rupees. On the
7th Aban Badi`u-z-zaman, son of Mirza Shahrukh, came from the Deccan
and waited on me.
About this time, in consequence of the disturbances that had occurred
in the country of Mawara'a-n-nahr, many of the Amirs and Uzbeg
soldiers, such as Husain Bi, Pahluwan Baba, and Nauras Bi Darman,
and Baram Bi and others came to Court and waited on me. They were all
honoured with robes of honour, horses, cash, mansabs, and jagirs. On
the 2nd Azar Hashim Khan came from Bengal and had the honour of
kissing my threshold. I sent 500,000 rupees for the expenses of the
victorious army of the Deccan, of which the leader was `Abdu-llah
Khan, to Ahmadabad in Gujarat by the hands of Rup Khawass and Shaikh
Anbiya. On the 1st day I went to the village of Samonagar, which is one
of my fixed hunting-places, to hunt. Twenty-two antelope were killed,
of which I myself killed sixteen and Khurram the other six. Remaining
there two days and two nights, on the night of Sunday I returned to
the city in health and safety, and one night this couplet threw its
brilliance on my mind:--
"As long as there's in heaven light for the sun,
Be not the reflection far from the Shah's umbrella."
I ordered the lamplighters and the relators of stories that at the
time of their salutations and telling stories they should commence
with this couplet, and it is still in use. On Saturday, the 3rd day,
a letter came from Khan A`zam that `Adil Khan Bijapuri had given
up his evil ways and become penitent, and in the rank of servants
was now more loyal than ever. On the 14th day, corresponding with
the last day of Shawwal, leave was given to Hashim Khan to go to
Kashmir. I gave a special wrapper [340] (fargal) to Yadgar `Ali,
ambassador of Persia. I presented I`tiqad Khan with one of my special
swords called Sar-andaz (thrower of heads). Having honoured Shadman,
son of Khan A`zam, with the title of Shadman Khan, I increased his
rank to 1,700 personal and 500 horse. He was also honoured with a
standard. Sardar Khan, brother of `Abdu-llah Khan Firuz-jang, and
Arslan Bi Uzbeg, who had been appointed to the charge of Sivistan,
[341] were also presented with standards. I ordered that ja'i-namaz
(prayer carpets) should be made of the skins of the antelopes I had
myself killed, and be kept in the public audience hall for people to
use in saying their prayers. By way of special respect to the Law I
ordered that the Mir-i-`Adl and Qazi, who are the pivot of affairs
of the divine law, should not kiss the ground (before me), which is a
kind of sijda. On Thursday, the 22nd day, I went again to Samonagar to
hunt. As many antelope had collected together in that neighbourhood I
had this time sent off Khwaja Jahan to prepare a qamargah and drive in
the antelope into a broad place from all sides, to place canvas-walls
(sara-parda) and a gulal-bar [342] round it. They enclosed a kos and
half of ground with sarapardas. When news came that the hunting-place
had been prepared and a great deal of game had been confined, I went
there and began to hunt on the Friday. Until the next Thursday I
went every day to the qamargah with the ladies and hunted as much
as I liked. Some of the deer were taken alive and some killed with
arrows and guns. On the Sunday and Thursday, on which I do not fire
guns at animals, they took them alive in nets. In these seven days
917 head, male and female, were caught, and of these 641 deer were
caught alive. Four hundred and four head were sent to Fathpur to
be let loose on the plain there, and with regard to 84 I ordered
them to put silver rings in their noses and set them free in the
same place. The 276 other antelope that had been killed with guns
and arrows and by cheetahs were divided from day to day among the
Begams and the slaves of the palace, and Amirs and servants of the
palace. As I became very tired (dilgir) of hunting, I gave orders to
the Amirs to go to the shikargah (hunting-place) and hunt all that
were left over, and myself returned in safety to the city. On the
1st Bahman, corresponding with the 17th Zi-l-qa`da, I ordered that in
the large cities of my dominions, like Ahmadabad, Allahabad, Lahore,
Delhi, Agra, etc., they should arrange bulghur-khanas (places for the
distribution of cooked food) for the poor; thirty mahalls (districts)
had been ordered. Six had already been established, and twenty-four
other districts were now ordered. On the 4th Bahman I increased the
rank of Raja Bir Singh Deo by 1,000 personal; it was previously 4,000
personal and 2,000 horse: I gave him a jewelled sword. Another sword
out of my special ones, that was called Shah-bacha, (king's child), was
presented to Shah-nawaz Khan. On the 16th Isfandarmuz, Badi`u-z-zaman,
son of Mirza Shahrukh, was appointed to the army against the rebel Rana
and a sword sent by his hand for Raja Baso. Having again heard that
the Amirs on the borders interfere with authority in matters that do
not concern them, and do not observe laws and regulations, I ordered
[343] that the Bakhshis should circulate orders, to be obeyed amongst
the Amirs of the borders, that hereafter they should not interfere
in such things, which are the private affair of kings. The first
thing is this, that they should not sit in the jharokha (private
window), and should not trouble their officers and captains of the
auxiliaries with keeping guard or saluting them, and should not have
elephant fights, and should not inflict the punishment of blinding,
and should not cut off ears and noses, and should not force Islam on
anyone, and should not confer titles on their servants, and should not
order the royal servants to do kurnish or prostration, and should not
force singers to remain on duty in the manner customary in (royal)
darbars, and should not beat drums when they go out, and when they
give a horse or elephant to anyone, whether to the king's attendants
or to their own servants, they should not place reins or elephant's
goads on their backs and make them perform obeisance. In going in
procession they should not take with them on foot in their retinue
the royal attendants. If they write anything to them they should not
put a seal on it. [344] The regulations which have been styled the
rules of Jahangir (Ayin-i-Jahangiri) are now in force. [345]
THE SEVENTH NEW YEAR'S FESTIVAL AFTER THE AUSPICIOUS ACCESSION.
On Tuesday, the 1st Farwardin of the seventh year from my accession
on the 16th Muharram u-l-haram (19th March, 1612) in the year 1021,
the New Year's assembly that illuminates the world, and the festival
that brings joy, were held in the capital of Agra. After four gharis
of the night had passed on Thursday, the 3rd of the aforesaid month,
the hour that the astrologers had chosen, I sat on the throne. I
had ordered that, according to annual custom, the bazars should
be decorated and the assembly should be kept up until the day of
culmination (ruz-i-sharaf). Khusrau Bi Uzbeg, who was known among
the Uzbegs as Khusrau Qimchi, [346] came on these days and had the
honour of waiting on me. As he was one of the influential men of
Mawara'a-n-nahr, I bestowed many favours on him, and gave him a fine
robe of honour. I gave 15,000 rupees to Yadgar `Ali, ambassador of
the ruler of Iran, for his expenses. On the same day the offering
of Afzal Khan, which he had sent from the Subah of Behar, was
laid before me. There were 30 elephants and 18 ponies (gunth), and
pieces of Bengal cloth, sandalwood, some pods of musk, aloes-wood
(Agallochum), and all kinds of things. The offering of Khan Dauran
was also produced before me. He had sent 45 head of horse and two
strings of camels, porcelain from China, dressing-gowns (pustinha
[347]) of sable (sammur), and other valuable presents procurable in
Kabul and its neighbourhood. The officers of the palace had taken
trouble about their offerings, and according to the yearly custom from
day to day of the festival the offerings of the servants were laid
before me. Having looked at them in detail, I took what I approved
and gave them the remainder. On the 13th Farwardin, corresponding
with the 29th Muharram, a representation from Islam Khan arrived to
the effect that through the blessing of Allah's favour and through
the benign influence of the royal grace, Bengal had been freed from
the disturbance of `Usman, the Afghan. Before the circumstances of
this war are written down, some particulars with regard to Bengal
will be recorded. [348] Bengal is a country of great extent, and in
the second clime its length, from the port of Chittagong to Gari, is
450 kos; and its breadth, from the Northern hills to the boundary of
Sarkar Madaran, 220 kos. Its revenue is about 60 krores of dams. [349]
The former rulers of this place always had 20,000 horse, a lakh of
foot-soldiers, 1,000 elephants, and 4,000 or 5,000 war-boats. From
the time of Shir Khan and his son Salim Khan, this country was in the
possession of the Afghans. When the throne of sovereignty of Hindustan
in the hands of my revered father acquired beauty and splendour,
he ordered the victorious forces (of the empire) into it, and for
a long time made the conquest of it his object, until the aforesaid
province, through the great efforts of the chiefs of the victorious
State, passed from the possession of Da'ud Karani, who was the last
of its rulers. That wretch was killed in the fight with Khan Jahan,
and his army became scattered and in desperate condition. From that
date until now the province is in the possession of the servants of
the State. In the end a few of the remaining Afghans had remained in
the corners and sides of the country, and kept a few distant places in
their possession, until, by degrees, most of that body became despised
and helpless, and were captured by the chiefs of the State in the
places of which they had still possession. When the arrangement of
the affairs of rule and empire, simply through the grace of God,
became entrusted to this humble servant of the throne of Allah,
in the first year after my accession I sent for Raja Man Singh,
who had been appointed to the rule and government of that place,
to Court, and sent Qutbu-d-din Khan, who, out of all the officials,
was distinguished as my foster-brother, in his place. As he entered
the province he attained to martyrdom at the hand of one of those
mischievous ones who had been appointed to that country, and that
man, who had not thought of the consequences, also obtained the
reward of his deeds, and was slain. I promoted Jahangir Quli Khan,
who was governor and a Jagirdar in the province of Behar, on account
of his nearness to that neighbourhood, to the rank of 5,000 personal
and horse, and ordered him to go to Bengal and take possession of
the province. I sent an order to Islam Khan, who was at the capital
of Agra, to go to Behar and consider that province his jagir. When
a short time had passed under the rule of Jahangir Quli Khan, he
contracted a severe illness, in consequence of the bad water and
air of that place, and by degrees the power of the disease and his
weakness became so great as to end in his destruction. When the news
of his death came to my hearing at Lahore, an order was issued in the
name of Islam Khan to proceed as soon as possible to Bengal. When I
appointed him to this important duty, most of the servants of the State
made remarks on his youth and want of experience. As the excellence
of his disposition and his natural capacity had been noticed by my
judicious eye, I myself chose him for this duty. As it happened, the
affairs of this province were carried on by him in such a manner as
from the time when it first entered into the possession of the Chiefs
of the everlasting State until this day has never been attained to
by any of the servants of the Court. One of his noteworthy deeds
was the driving away of the rebel `Usman, the Afghan. He frequently
in the time of the late king encountered the royal forces, but his
expulsion was not accomplished. When Islam Khan made Dhaka (Dacca)
his place of abode and made the subjection of the Zamindars of that
neighbourhood his chief object, it occurred to him that he should
send an army against the rebel `Usman and his province. If he agreed
to serve loyally, well and good, but if not, they should punish and
annihilate him like other seditious people. At that time Shaja`at
Khan [350] joined Islam Khan, and the lot of leading in this service
[351] fell on his name. Several others of the State servants were
also appointed to go with him, such as Kishwar Khan, Iftikhar Khan,
Sayyid Adam Barha, Shaikh Achhay, [352] nephew of Muqarrab Khan,
Mu`tamad Khan, the sons of Mu`azzam Khan Ihtimam Khan, and others. He
took with him also some of his own men. At the hour when Mushtari
(Jupiter) was propitious, he started off this band, and appointed Mir
Qasim, son of Mirza Murad, its chief paymaster and news-writer. He took
also some of the Zamindars with him to show the road. The victorious
armies started. When they reached the neighbourhood of `Usman's fort
and land, they sent some eloquent men to admonish him and point out to
him the way of loyalty, and bring him back from the road of rebellion
to the right path. As much pride had seated itself in his brain-cup,
and he had in his head a desire to seize the country, beside other
fancies, he turned a deaf ear to their words and prepared himself for
conflict and fight. The battlefield happened to be on the bank of a
nullah in a place which was a complete bog. On Sunday (12th March,
1612), the 9th Muharram, Shaja`at Khan, choosing the hour for the
fight, arrayed the victorious forces, so that everyone should go to
his place and be prepared for the battle. `Usman had not settled the
battle for that day with himself. When he heard that the royal army
had come prepared for battle, having no remedy he himself mounted and
came to the bank of the nullah, and arrayed his own horse and foot
opposite the victorious army. When the affair grew hot, and the two
forces opposed each other, that foolish, obstinate man at the first
onset threw his own fighting raging elephant against the advanced
guard. After much fighting many of the leaders of the advanced guard,
as Sayyid Adam [353] Barha and Shaikh Achhay, attained the dignity
of martyrdom. Iftikhar Khan, the leader of the right wing, was in
no way remiss in attacking, and sacrificed his own life. The band
that was with him fought to such a degree that they were all cut to
pieces. In the same way Kishwar [354] Khan and his band of the left
wing bravely sacrificed themselves in the affair of their master,
but many of the enemy (lit. those of dark fortune) were also wounded
and killed. That evil one (`Usman) took account of the combatants
and ascertained that the leaders of the advanced guard and right and
left wings were killed. The centre alone remained. He took no account
of the killed and wounded on his own side, but attacked the centre
(of the royal army) with the same energy. On this side the son and
brothers and sons-in-law of Shaja`at Khan, as well as other officers,
stopped the advance of those lost ones, and attacked them like tigers
and leopards armed with claws and teeth. Some of them attained the
dignity of martyrdom, and those that remained alive bore away fatal
wounds. At this time (`Usman) drove a raging elephant of the name
of Gajpat, [355] which was his premier elephant, at Shaja`at Khan,
who laid hold of his spear and struck the elephant. What does a
raging elephant care for a javelin. He then seized his sword and
struck him two blows one after another. How did he regard these
either! He then drew his dagger and struck him twice with it, but
for this, too, he did not turn back, but overthrew Shaja`at Khan with
his horse. Immediately he was separated from his horse; calling out
"Jahangir Shah," he leapt up, and his equerry struck the elephant on
both front legs a blow with a two-handed sword. As the elephant fell
on his knees, the equerry pulled the elephant driver down off the
elephant, and Shaja`at with the dagger he had in his hand, and while
on foot, struck such blows on the trunk and forehead of the elephant
that the elephant roared out at the pain and turned round. As he was
severely wounded, he went to his own army and fell down. Shaja`at
Khan's horse got up safely. As he was mounting his horse those vile
ones drove another elephant at his standard-bearer, and overthrew his
horse and standard. Shaja`at Khan gave a manly shout and roused the
standard-bearer, saying: "Be bold: I'm alive and the standard is at
my feet (?)." [356] At this critical moment all the servants of the
State who were present seized their arrows and daggers and swords,
and smote the elephant. Shaja`at himself came up and shouted to the
standard-bearer to rise, and got another horse for the standard-bearer
and mounted him on it. The standard-bearer unfurled the standard and
maintained his ground. At the time of this struggle a (ball from a)
gun struck that rebel on his forehead. However much they enquired
for the man who fired it he could not be found. When this struck
him, he recognized that he was a dead man. Yet for two watches,
notwithstanding this fatal wound, he urged on his men to the fight,
and the battlefield was still deadly and the struggle warm. Afterwards
the enemy turned their faces, and the victorious army pursued them,
and continually striking them drove back those vile ones into the place
where they had encamped. With arrows and guns those wretches would
not allow the royal troops to enter the place where they were. When
Wali, the brother of `Usman, and Mamrez, his (`Usman's) son and other
relations and followers became aware of `Usman's wound, they made
up their minds that he would not recover from it, and that if they,
defeated and put to flight, should go towards their fort none would
reach it alive. They thought it best to remain for the night in the
place where they had encamped, and towards the end of the night seek
an opportunity and get to their fort. Two watches of night had passed
when `Usman went to hell. In the third watch they raised his lifeless
body, and leaving his tent and the things they had with them in the
camp, proceeded to their fortress. The scouts of the victorious army,
having obtained news of this, informed Shaja`at Khan. On the morning
of Monday the loyalists assembled and decided to follow them, and
not allow breathing-time to those of dark fortune. In the end, in
consequence of the tired state of the soldiers, and in order to bury
the martyrs and out of sympathy for the wounded, they were perplexed
in their minds as to going or settling down (where they were). Just
at this time `Abdu-s-Salam, son of Mu`azzam Khan, arrived with a body
of servants of the State, altogether 300 horse and 400 musketeers
(tupchi). When this fresh body of men arrived it was determined to
pursue, and they accordingly went on. When Wali, who after `Usman
was the stock of the disturbance, learned that Shaja`at Khan with the
victorious army had come together with another fresh force, he saw no
resource for himself but to go to Shaja`at Khan on the straight line
of faith and loyalty. In the end he sent a message that he who had
been the cause of the disturbance had gone, and that the body of those
who were left were servants and Musulmans. If he would give his word
they would wait upon him and would agree to serve the State, giving
their elephants as an offering. Shaja`at Khan and Mu`taqid Khan, who
had arrived on the day of the battle and had done approved service,
and all those who were loyal, in accordance with the necessity of
the time and with what was best for the State, gave their word and
encouraged them. On the next day, Wali and the sons, brothers, and
sons-in-law of `Usman all came and waited upon Shaja`at Khan and the
other servants of the State. They brought forty-nine elephants as an
offering. After the completion of this work Shaja`at Khan, leaving
some of the royal servants in Adhar [357] and the neighbourhood which
was in the possession of that one of evil fortune, took with him
Wali and the other Afghans, and on Monday, the 6th of the month of
Safar, came to Jahangirnagar (Dacca) and joined Islam Khan. When the
joyful news reached in Agra this supplicant at the throne of Allah,
he performed the prostrations of gratitude, and recognized that the
driving away of this description of enemy was brought about simply
through the unstinted mercy of the Almighty Giver. As a reward for
this good service I promoted Islam Khan to the rank of 6,000 personal,
and honoured Shaja`at Khan with the title of "Rustam of the age"
(Rustam-zaman), as well as increased his rank by 1,000 personal and
horse. I also increased the rank of other servants according to the
measure of their services, and they were selected for other honours.
When this news first came of the killing of `Usman it appeared to
be a joke, but by way of ascertaining the truth or falsehood of the
words I took an omen from the divan of the tongue of the unseen world,
Khwaja Hafiz of Shiraz, and this ghazal [358] turned up:--
"I make my eyes red and throw patience to the wilds,
And in such a case throw my heart into the sea.
I'm wounded by the shaft of heaven:
Give wine, so that intoxicated I may cast a knot in the girdle
of the Twins."
As this couplet was very appropriate to the occasion, I drew an omen
from it. After some days news came again that the arrow of Fate,
or rather of God, had struck `Usman, for however much they enquired
for him, he who fired the shot was not made manifest. This has been
recorded on account of its strange nature.
On the 16th Farwardin, Muqarrab Khan, who is one of my chief retainers
and the old confidants of the Jahangiri service, who had attained
the rank of 3,000 personal and 2,000 horse, came from the fort
of Cambay and had the honour of waiting on me. I had ordered him,
on account of certain business, to go to the port of Goa [359] and
buy for the private use of the government certain rareties procurable
there. According to orders he went with diligence to Goa, and remaining
there for some time, took at the price the Franks asked for them the
rareties he met with at that port, without looking at the face of
the money at all (i.e. regardless of cost). When he returned from
the aforesaid port to the Court, he produced before me one by one
the things and rareties he had brought. Among these were some animals
that were very strange and wonderful, such as I had never seen, and
up to this time no one had known their names. Although King Babar has
described in his Memoirs the appearance and shapes of several animals,
he had never ordered the painters to make pictures of them. As these
animals appeared to me to be very strange, I both described them and
ordered that painters should draw them in the Jahangir-nama, so that
the amazement that arose from hearing of them might be increased. One
of these animals in body is larger than a peahen and smaller than a
peacock. [360] When it is in heat and displays itself, it spreads out
its feathers like the peacock and dances about. Its beak and legs are
like those of a cock. Its head and neck and the part under the throat
are every minute of a different colour. When it is in heat it is quite
red--one might say it had adorned itself with red coral--and after a
while it becomes white in the same places, and looks like cotton. It
sometimes looks of a turquoise colour. Like a chameleon it constantly
changes colour. Two pieces of flesh it has on its head look like the
comb of a cock. A strange thing is this, that when it is in heat the
aforesaid piece of flesh hangs down to the length of a span from the
top of its head like an elephant's trunk, and again when he raises it
up it appears on its head like the horn of a rhinoceros, to the extent
of two finger-breadths. Round its eyes it is always of a turquoise
colour, and does not change. Its feathers appear to be of various
colours, differing from the colours of the peacock's feathers. He
also brought a monkey of a strange and wonderful form. Its hands,
feet, ears, and head are like those of a monkey, and its face like
that of a fox. The colour of its eyes is like that of a hawk's eye,
but the eyes are larger than those of a hawk. From its head to the
end of its tail it is an ordinary cubit in length. It is lower than
a monkey and taller than a fox. Its hair is like the wool of a sheep
and its colour like that of ashes. From the lobe of its ear to its
chin it is red and of the colour of wine. Its tail is two or three
finger-breadths longer than half a cubit, quite different from that
of other monkeys. The tail of this animal hangs down like the tail
of a cat. Sometimes it makes a sound like a young antelope. On the
whole it is a very strange beast. Of the wild birds which they call
tadru (pheasant) till now it has never been heard that they breed in
captivity. In the time of my revered father they made great efforts
to obtain eggs and young ones but it was not managed. I ordered them
to keep some of them, male and female, in one place, and by degrees
they bred. I ordered them to place the eggs under hens, and in a
space of two years sixty or seventy young were produced and fifty or
sixty grew up. Whoever heard of this matter was astonished. It was
said that in the Wilayat (Persia?) the people there had made great
efforts, but no eggs were produced and no young were obtained.
In these days I increased the mansab of Mahabat Khan by 1,000 personal
and 500 horse, which thus became 4,000 personal and 3,500 horse. The
mansab of I`timadu-d-daulah, original and increased, was fixed at
4,000 personal and 1,000 horse. To the mansab of Maha Singh also an
increase of 500 personal and horse was given: it was originally and
with increase 3,000 personal and 2,000 horse. The mansab of I`tiqad
Khan was increased by 500 personal and 200 horse, and made up to 1,000
personal and 300 horse. Khwaja Abu-l-hasan in these days came from the
Deccan and waited on me. Daulat Khan, who had been appointed to the
faujdarship of Allahabad and of the Sarkar of Jaunpur, came and paid
his respects: an increase of 500 was made to his mansab, which was
1,000. On the day of culmination (ruz-i-sharaf), which was the 19th
Farwardin, I raised the mansab of Sultan Khurram, which was 10,000,
to 12,000, and made that of I`tibar Khan, which was 3,000 personal
and 1,000 horse, up to 4,000. I raised the mansab of Muqarrab Khan
from 2,000 personal and 1,000 horse by 500 personal and horse; and
increased that of Khwaja Jahan, which was 2,000 personal and 1,200
horse, by 500. As these were the days of the New Year, many of the
servants (of the State) obtained an increase of their mansabs. On
the same day Dulip came from the Deccan and waited on me. As his
father Ray Ray Singh had died, I honoured him with the title of Ray
and clothed him in a dress of honour. Ray Ray Singh had another son,
by name Suraj Singh. Although Dulip was his tika (marked with the
tika) son, he wished Suraj Singh to succeed him, in consequence of
the love that he bore to his mother. When the circumstances of his
death were reported to me, Suraj Singh, in consequence of his want
of intelligence and tender years, represented to me: "My father
has made me his successor and given me the tika." This remark was
not to my liking, and I said: "If thy father has given the tika to
thee, we shall give it to Dulip." Then marking the tika with my own
hand, I presented the latter with his father's jagir and hereditary
possessions. I bestowed on I`timadu-d-daulah an inkstand and jewelled
pen. Rudar, the father of Lakhmi Chand, Raja of Kumaon, who is one
of the considerable Rajas of the hill country, had come in the time
of the late King Akbar, [361] and when he came had petitioned [362]
that the son of Raja Todar Mal might take him by the hand and bring
him to wait on him. In consequence, the Raja's (Todar Mal's) son had
been appointed to bring him. Lakhmi Chand now similarly asked that
the son of I`timadu-d-daulah might bring him to pay his respects. I
sent Shapur [363] to bring him to wait on me. He laid before me rare
things from his own hill country, such as gunth ponies, and birds of
prey, such as hawks, jurra (falcons), royal falcons, qatas (yaks),
navels of musk, and skins of the musk antelope with the musk-bags on
them, swords which in their language they call khanda, and daggers
which they call katar, and all kinds of things. Amongst the Rajas of
this hill country this Raja is well known for the large quantities
of gold he has. They say there is a gold-mine in his territory. [364]
In order to lay the foundation of a palace at Lahore, I sent there
Khwaja Jahan Khwaja Dust Muhammad, who is well skilled in this kind
of business.
As the affairs of the Deccan, in consequence of the disagreements
among the Sardars and the carelessness of Khan A`zam, did not look
well, and the defeat of `Abdu-llah Khan had taken place, I had sent
for Khwaja Abu-l-hasan to make enquiries into the real state of these
quarrels. After much enquiry and investigation it became clear that
the defeat of `Abdu-llah Khan had been caused by his pride and his
sharp temper, and not listening to words (of advice) and partly by
the quarrels and want of agreement between the Amirs. Briefly, it had
been determined that `Abdu-llah Khan should start from the direction
of Nasik and Trimbak with the Gujarat army and the Amirs who had been
appointed to accompany him. This army had been brought into proper
order by trustworthy leaders and zealous Amirs, such as Raja Ram Das,
Khan A`lam, Saif Khan, `Ali Mardan Bahadur, Zafar Khan, and other
servants of the State. The number of the army had passed 10,000 and
come up to near 14,000. On the side of Berar it was settled that Raja
Man Singh, Khan Jahan, the Amiru-l-umara, and many other leaders should
proceed. These two armies should be aware of each other's marches and
halts, so that on an appointed day they might catch the enemy between
the two. If this rule had been observed and their hearts had been in
unison, and self-interest had not come between, it is most probable
that Almighty God would have given them the victory of the day. When
`Abdu-llah Khan passed the Ghats and entered the enemy's country,
he did not take care to send runners (qasidan) to bring intelligence
from the other army, nor did he, in accordance with the arrangements,
make his movements harmonise with theirs, so that on an appointed day
they might take the enemy between two armies. Rather he relied on
his own strength, and considered that if he could gain the victory
alone it would be better. This idea fixed itself in his mind, and
however much Ram Das desired him to promise to go forward with due
deliberation, it was of no use. The enemy, who were observing him
closely, had sent a large number of leaders and Bargis (Mahrattas)
against him, and encounters took place with them every day. They did
not fail to throw rockets and different fireworks at night. At last
the enemy drew near, and yet he obtained no intelligence about the
other army, though he had approached Daulatabad, which was the place
of assembly of the Dakhanis. `Ambar, the black-faced, had raised to
sovereignty a child who, in his opinion, bore relationship to the
family of Nizamu-l-mulk. In order that men might fully accept his
(the child's) sovereignty, he raised him up and took him by the hand,
and made himself the Peshwa and leader. He sent men again and again
(against `Abdu-llah), and the number of the enemy was continually
increasing till at last they made an attack, and by throwing rockets
and other fireworks made matters hot for him. [365] At length the
loyalists thought it best, as no assistance had come to them from the
other army and all the Dakhanis had turned against them, to retreat at
once and try some other arrangement. All agreed, and with one consent
started off before dawn. The Dakhanis followed them to the boundaries
of their own country, and the two armies, meeting every day, did not
fail in fighting. In these days several of the ambitious and zealous
young men were killed. `Ali Mardan Khan Bahadur, behaving like a brave
man, carried away terrible wounds and fell into the hands of the enemy,
and showed his companions an example of fidelity to his salt and of
life-sacrifice. Zu-l-faqar Beg also displayed manly actions, and a
rocket struck him on the leg, and two days afterwards he died. When
they entered the country of Raja Bharju, [366] who was one of those
loyal to the throne, that body (the enemy) turned back, and `Abdu-llah
Khan proceeded towards Gujarat. The real truth is this, that if in
going he had drawn his rein (gone slowly) and allowed the other army
to have come up to him, the matter would have turned out according to
the wish of the chief men of the victorious State. [367] As soon as the
news of the retreat of `Abdu-llah Khan reached the leaders of the army
that was advancing from Berar, not seeing any advantage from further
stay, they also retired, and joined the camp of Parwiz at `Adilabad
in the neighbourhood of Burhanpur. When this intelligence reached me
at Agra I was greatly agitated, and proposed to go there myself and
destroy root and branch those servants who had become masters. The
Amirs and other devoted ones would in no way consent to this. Khwaja
Abu-l-hasan represented that as no one understood the business of that
region as the Khankhanan did I ought to send him, and that he should
again arrange matters that had fallen into disorder, and according
to the exigencies of the time should compose differences so that
affairs might return to their original condition. Other well-wishers
being consulted, all their opinions were at one in this, that the
Khankhanan must be sent and that Khwaja Abu-l-hasan should accompany
him. Agreeing with this determination, those who had charge of the
affairs of the Khankhanan and his companions obtained leave to go on
Sunday, the 17th Urdibihisht, in the 7th year. Shah-nawaz Khan, Khwaja
Abu-l-hasan, Razzaq-birdi Uzbeg, and several others of his associates
paid their parting salutations on the same day. The Khankhanan was
promoted to the rank of 6,000 personal, Shah-nawaz Khan to that of
3,000 and horse, that of Darab Khan increased by 500 personal and 300
horse (altogether 2,000 personal and 1,500 horse), and to Rahman-dad,
his (the Khankhanan's) younger son, I also gave a fitting mansab. I
presented the Khankhanan with a grand dress of honour, a jewelled
dagger, a special elephant with talayir (accoutrements), and an Iraq
horse. In the same way I bestowed on his sons and companions dresses
of honour and horses. In the same month Mu`izzu-l-mulk came from Kabul
with his sons, and had the good fortune to kiss the threshold. Shyam
Singh and Ray Mangat Bhadauriya, who belonged to the army of Bangash,
according to the request of Qilij Khan, were promoted to higher
mansabs. Shyam Singh had 1,500 personal and was increased by 500,
and Ray Mangat was also raised to a higher rank.
For a long time past news had come of the illness of Asaf Khan;
sometimes the disease was got under and sometimes recurred, until
he died at Burhanpur in the 63rd year of his age. His understanding
and capacity were very good. He was very quick-witted. He also wrote
poetry. He composed "Khusrau and Shirin," dedicating it to me, and
called it the "Nur-nama" (the writing of light). [368] He had been
ennobled in the time of my revered father and made Vizier. In the
days when I was a prince he had several times done foolish things,
and most men, and indeed Khusrau himself, were of opinion that after
my accession I would do unpleasant things (with regard to him). In a
manner contrary to what had entered the minds of himself and others,
I favoured him and promoted him to the rank of 5,000 personal and
horse, and after he had for some time been Vizier with full authority,
neglected no point in increasing favour towards him. After his death
I gave mansabs to his sons and bestowed kindnesses on them. At last
it was clear that his disposition and sincerity were not as they
should be, and, considering his own evil deeds, he had always been
suspicious with regard to me. They say he was aware of the conspiracy
and disturbance that took place on the Kabul expedition, and had
given support to the wretches. Indeed, I had no confidence that
notwithstanding my favour and kindness to him he was not disloyal
and of perverse fortune.
After a short space of time, on the 25th of the same month of
Urdibihisht, the news of Mirza Ghazi's death arrived. The said
Mirza was of the ruling family of Thatta (Tatta), of the tribe of
Tarkhani. His father, Mirza Jani, in the time of my revered father
became loyal, and with the Khankhanan, who had been appointed to his
province, he had the good fortune to have the honour of waiting on
Akbar near Lahore. By the royal favour he was given his own province,
and, choosing himself to serve at Court, he sent his men to the charge
and administration of Thatta, and remained in the service while
he lived. At last he died at Burhanpur. Mirza Ghazi Khan, his son,
who was at Thatta, in accordance with the firman of the late king
obtained the government of that country. Sa`id Khan, who was at Bhakar
(Bukkur), received an order to console him and bring him to Court. The
aforesaid Khan sent men to him to recommend loyalty to him. At last,
having brought him to Agra, he procured him the honour of kissing
the feet of my revered father. He was at Agra when my father died
and I ascended the throne. After I arrived at Lahore for the pursuit
of Khusrau news came that the Amirs on the borders of Khurasan had
assembled together and proceeded against Qandahar, and that Shah Beg,
the governor of that place, was shut up in the fort and looking out
for assistance. Of necessity an army was appointed for the relief
of Qandahar under the leadership of Mirza Ghazi and other Amirs
and generals. When this army reached the neighbourhood of Qandahar,
the army of Khurasan, not seeing in themselves the power to await it,
returned. Mirza Ghazi, having entered Qandahar, handed over the country
and the fort to Sardar Khan, who had been appointed to the government
of the place, and Shah Beg went to his own jagir. Mirza Ghazi started
for Lahore by way of Bhakar. Sardar Khan was only a short time at
Qandahar before he died, and that province was again in need of a
leader and master. This time I added Qandahar to Thatta and handed
it over to Mirza Ghazi. From that time till his death he remained
there continuously in performance of the duties of its protection
and government. His conduct towards the disaffected was excellent. As
it was necessary to send a leader to Qandahar in the place of Mirza
Ghazi, I appointed Abu-l-bi Uzbeg, [369] who was at Multan and in
that neighbourhood, to that post. I promoted him in rank from 1,500
personal and 1,000 horse to 3,000 personal and horse, and honoured him
with the title of Bahad Khan and a standard. The governorship of Delhi
and the protection and administration of that province was conferred
on Muqarrab Khan. I dignified Rup Khawass, who was one of the personal
servants of my revered father, with the title of Khawass Khan, and,
giving him the rank of 1,000 personal and 500 horse, bestowed on him
the faujdarship of the Sarkar of Qanuj. As I had sought the daughter
[370] of I`tiqad Khan, son of I`timadu-d-daulah, in marriage for
Khurram, and the marriage festival had been arranged for, I went on
Thursday, 18th Khurdad, to his house, and stayed there one day and
one night. He (Khurram) presented offerings (to me) and he gave jewels
[371] to the Begams, and to his mothers (including stepmothers) and to
the female servants of the harem, and dresses of honour to the Amirs.
I sent `Abdu-r-Razzaq, the bakhshi of the palace (darkhana), to settle
the country of Thatta (Sind) until a Sardar should be appointed who
could conciliate the soldiery and the cultivators, and so bring
the province into order. I increased his rank and presented him
with an elephant and a shawl (parmnarm), and sent him off. I made
Mu`izzu-l-mulk bakhshi in his room. Khwaja Jahan, who had been sent
to inspect the buildings in Lahore and to arrange about them, came
in the end of this month and waited on me. Mirza `Isa Tarkhan, one
of the relations of Mirza Ghazi, had been appointed to the army of
the Deccan. I sent for him to arrange about the business of Thatta,
and on the same day he had the good fortune to pay his respects. As he
was deserving of favour, he was given the rank of 1,000 personal and
500 horse. The disease of khun-para [372] had affected my health. By
the advice of the physicians on Wednesday, the (date not given) of
the said month, I drew about a sir (asar) [373] of blood from my left
arm. As great lightness resulted, it occurred to me that if they were
to call blood-letting 'lightening' it would be well. Nowadays this
expression is made use of. To Muqarrab Khan, who had bled me, I gave
a jewelled khapwa (dagger). Kishan Das, accountant of the elephant
department and stable, who from the time of the late king until now
has been the clerk in charge of two departments, and for ages had
been hopeful of the title of Raja and the rank of 1,000 personal,
and before this had been gratified with a title, now had the rank
of 1,000 conferred on him. Mirza Rustam, son of Sultan Husain Mirza
Safawi, who had been appointed to the army of the Deccan, I sent for
at his request. On Saturday, the 9th of the month of Tir, he came with
his sons and waited on me. He made an offering of a ruby and forty-six
royal pearls. I increased the rank of Taj Khan, the governor of Bhakar,
who was one of the old Amirs of this State, by 500 personal and horse.
The tale of the death of Shaja`at Khan is a very strange affair. After
he had performed such services and Islam Khan had given him leave
to go to the Sarkar of Orissa, one night on the road he was riding
on a female elephant chaukandi-dar [374] (? in a square howdah or
four-pillared canopy), and had given a young eunuch a place behind
him. When he left his camp they had fastened up an elephant that
was in heat on the road. From the noise of the horses' hoofs and
the movement of the horsemen he attempted to break his chain. On this
account a great noise and confusion took place. When this noise reached
the ear of the eunuch, he in a state of bewilderment awoke Shaja`at
Khan, who was asleep or in the insensibility of wine, and said: "An
elephant in heat has got loose and is coming in this direction." As
soon as he heard this he became confused and threw himself down from
the front of the chaukandi. When he threw himself off his toe struck
against a stone and was torn open, and he died in two or three days of
that same wound. In short, from hearing this affair I was completely
bewildered. That a brave man on the mere hearing of a cry or a word
coming from a child should become so confused and throw himself down
without control from the top of an elephant is in truth a matter of
amazement. The news of this event reached me on the 19th of the month
of Tir. I consoled his sons with kindnesses and the conferring of
offices. If this accident had not happened to him, as he had done
notable service, he would have obtained exaltation with greater
favours and kindnesses.
"One cannot strive against destiny."
Islam Khan had sent 160 male and female elephants from Bengal; they
were brought before me and placed in my private elephant stables. Raja
Tekchand, the Raja of Kumaon, asked for leave to depart. As in the
time of my father there had been given to his father 100 horses, I
gave him the same number as well as an elephant, and while he was at
Court bestowed on him dresses of honour and a jewelled dagger. Also
to his brothers I gave dresses of honour and horses. I presented him
with his territory according to previous arrangements, and he went
back to his home happy and successful.
It happened incidentally that this verse of the Amiru-l-umara was
quoted:--
"Pass, O Messiah, o'er the heads of us slain by love;
Thy restoring one life is worth a hundred murders." [375]
As I have a poetical disposition I sometimes intentionally and
sometimes involuntarily compose couplets and quatrains. So the
following couplet came into my head:--
"Turn not thy cheek, without thee I cannot live a moment;
For thee to break one heart is equal a hundred murders."
When I had recited this, everyone who had a poetical vein composed a
couplet in the same mode. Mulla `Ali Ahmad, [376] the seal-engraver,
of whom an account has been given previously, had not said badly--
"O Censor, fear the weeping of the old vintner;
Thy breaking one jar is equal to a hundred murders."
Abu-l-fath Dakhani, [377] who was one of the most considerable of `Adil
Khan's Amirs, and had two years previously taken to being loyal and had
entered himself among the leaders of the victorious army, on the 10th
of Amurdad waited on me, and being accepted by my grace and favour
had bestowed on him a special sword and a robe of honour, and after
some days I also gave him a special horse. Khwajagi Muhammad Husain,
[378] who had gone to Kashmir as the deputy for his brother's son,
when he was satisfied in his mind with the state of affairs of that
place, came on the same day and waited on me. As a Sardar was needed
to be sent for the governorship of Patna and the rule of that place,
it occurred to me to send Mirza Rustam. Having raised his rank from
5,000 personal and 1,500 horse to 5,000 personal and horse, on the
26th Jumada-s-sani, corresponding to the 2nd Shahriwar, I gave him the
government of Patna, and bestowing on him a special elephant, a horse
with a jewelled saddle, a jewelled sword, and a superb dress of honour,
I dismissed him. His sons and the sons of his brother Muzaffar Husain
Khan Mirza'i were exalted with increased rank, elephants, horses,
and dresses of honour, and sent off with him. I appointed Ray Dulip
to support Mirza Rustam. As his residence was near that place, he
collected a good body of men for that service. I increased his rank
by 500 personal and horse, so that it became 2,000 with 1,000 horse,
and also gave him an elephant. Abu-l-fath Dakhani had obtained a jagir
in the Sarkar of Nagpur and that neighbourhood. He was dismissed in
order that he might administer his jagir and look to the guarding and
government of that country as well. Khusrau Bi Uzbeg was appointed
to the faujdarship of the Sarkar of Mewar. His rank of 800 personal
and 300 horse was now increased to 1,000 personal and 500 horse, and I
also presented him with a horse. As I had my eye on the old service of
Muqarrab Khan, it occurred to me that I must not pass by the desire of
his heart. I had increased his rank and he had obtained good jagirs,
but he longed for a standard and drums, and he was now honoured with
these as well. Salih, the adopted son of Khwaja Beg-Mirza Safawi,
was a youth of great bravery and zeal. I gave him the title of Khanjar
Khan, and made him eager in the service.
On Thursday, the 22nd Shahriwar, corresponding with 17th Rajab,
1021, the feast of my solar weighing took place in the house of
Maryam-zamani. It is an approved custom with me to weigh myself in
this manner. The late king Akbar, who was the place of manifestation
of kindness and grace, also approved of the custom, and twice in every
year weighed himself against several sorts of metals, gold, silver,
and many precious articles, once according to the solar and once
according to the lunar year, and divided their total value, which
was worth about a lakh of rupees, among faqirs and needy people. I
also observe this annual custom and weigh myself in the same manner,
and give those valuables to faqirs. Mu`taqid Khan, Diwan of Bengal,
who had been relieved from that service, produced before me the sons
and brothers and some of the servants of `Usman, whom Islam Khan had
sent with him to the Court. The charge of each one of the Afghans was
entrusted to a responsible servant. Then he (Mu`taqid) produced his
own offering, which consisted of twenty-five elephants, two rubies,
a jewelled phul katara [379] (a kind of dagger), trustworthy eunuchs,
Bengal stuffs, etc. Mir Miran, son of Sultan Khwaja, who was in the
Deccan army, obtained the honour of kissing the threshold and gave
a ruby as an offering. As between Qilij Khan, leader of the army
of Bangash on the borders of Kabul, and the Amirs of that Subah who
had been sent as companions to him under his leadership, there were
quarrels, especially with Khan Dauran, I sent Khwaja Jahan to make
enquiry as to which side was in fault. On the 11th of the month of
Mihr, Mu`taqid Khan was appointed to the high dignity of bakhshi,
and his mansab was raised to 1,000 personal and 300 horse. Raising for
the second time the mansabs of Muqarrab Khan a little, I made it 2,500
personal and 1,500 horse by an increase of 500. On the representation
of the Khankhanan, Faridun Khan Barlas was raised to the mansab,
original and increase, of 2,500 personal and 2,000 horse. Ray Manohar
received that of 1,000 personal and 800 horse, and Raja Bir Singh Deo
that of 4,000 personal and 2,200 horse. Bharat, grandson of Ramchand
Bandilah, I, after the latter's death, honoured with the title of
Raja. On the 28th Aban, Zafar Khan, having come according to summons
from the Subah of Gujarat, waited on me. He brought as offerings a ruby
and three pearls. On the 6th Azar, corresponding with the 3rd Shawwal,
news came from Burhanpur that the Amiru-l-umara had died on Sunday,
the 27th Aban, in the parganah of Nihalpur. After the illness he had
at Lahore his intelligence appeared to be less, and a great loss of
memory happened to him. He was very sincere. It is sad that he left
no son capable of patronage and favour. Chin Qilij Khan came from
his father, who was at Peshawar, on the 20th Azar, and offered (on
his father's behalf) 100 muhrs and 100 rupees, and also presented the
offerings he had of his own in the shape of a horse and cloth stuffs
and other things. To the government of Behar I promoted Zafar Khan,
who is one of the trustworthy house-born ones and foster-children,
and increasing his mansab by 500 personal and horse, I made it up to
3,000 personal and 2,000 horse, and also honouring his brothers with
robes of honour and horses, allowed them to go off to that province. He
had always hoped that he might obtain some separate service in order
that he might show his natural ability. I also desired to prove him
and make this service the touchstone by which to try him. As it was
the season for travelling and hunting, on Tuesday, the 2nd Zi-l-qa`da
(25th December, 1612), corresponding with the 4th Day, I left Agra
with the intention of hunting and encamped in the Dahrah garden,
remaining there four days. [380] On the 10th of the same month the
news came of the death of Salima Sultan Begam, who had been ill in
the city. Her mother was Gul-rukh Begam, daughter of King Babar, and
her father Mirza Nuru-d-din Muhammad, of the Naqshbandi Khwajas. She
was adorned with all good qualities. In women this degree of skill
and capacity is seldom found. H.M. Humayun, by way of kindness (to
Bairam), had betrothed her who was his sister's daughter to Bairam
Khan. After his death, in the beginning of the reign of the late king
Akbar, the marriage took place. After the said Khan had been killed,
my revered father married her himself. She received mercy (died)
in the 60th year of her age. [381] On the same day I marched from
the Dahrah garden and sent I`timadu-d-daulah to bury her (lit. lift
her up), and ordered him to place her in the building in the Mandakar
garden which she herself had made. On the 17th of the month of Day,
Mirza `Ali Beg Akbarshahi came from the army of the Deccan and waited
on me. Khwaja Jahan, whom I had despatched to the Subah of Kabul,
returned on the 21st of the same month and waited on me. The time for
his going and coming had extended to three months and eleven days. He
brought twelve muhrs and twelve rupees as an offering. On the same
day Raja Ram Das also came from the victorious army of the Deccan and
paid his respects, and made an offering of 101 muhrs. As robes of
honour for the winter season had not been sent to the Amirs of the
Deccan, they were forwarded by the hand of Hayat Khan. As the port
of Surat had been assigned in jagir to Qilij Khan, he prayed that
Chin Qilij (his son) might be despatched for its guardianship and
administration. On the 27th Day he had a dress of honour, and being
honoured with a dress of honour and the title of Khan, and a standard,
obtained leave to go. For the purpose of advising the Amirs of Kabul,
and on account of the disagreements that had sprung up between them
and Qilij Khan, I sent Raja Ram Das, and bestowed on him a horse and
robe of honour and 30,000 rupees for expenses. On the 6th Bahman,
when my camp was in the parganah of Bari, there came the news of the
death of Khwajagi Muhammad Husain, who was of the ancient servants
of this State. His elder brother, Muhammad Qasim Khan, in the time of
my revered father, found great favour, and Khwaja Muhammad Husain as
well was one of his confidential servants, and held employments such
as that of superintendent of the kitchen (bakawul) and such like. He
left no son and was beardless, and not a single hair of moustache
or whiskers appeared on him. At the time of speaking he spoke very
shrilly, and was looked upon as an eunuch. Shah-nawaz Khan, whom the
Khankhanan had sent from Burhanpur to make certain representations,
came on the 15th of the same month and waited on me. He presented 100
muhrs and 100 rupees. As the affairs of the Deccan, in consequence
of the hasty proceedings of `Abdu-llah Khan and the treachery of
the Amirs, did not present a good prospect, the Dakhanis obtained
an opportunity for speaking and began to talk of peace to the Amirs
and well-wishers there. `Adil Khan embraced the robe of loyalty, and
prayed that if the affairs of the Deccan were entrusted to him he would
so arrange that some of the districts which had been taken out of the
possession of the officers of the State should be restored. The loyal
ones, looking to the necessities of the time, represented this, and a
settlement of some kind was arrived at, and the Khankhanan undertook
to settle matters. The Khan A`zam was also desirous of putting down
the rebel Rana, and begged for this service by way of obtaining merit
(as a ghazi). He was ordered to go to Malwa, which was his jagir,
and after arranging matters there to take up this duty. The mansab of
Abu-l-bi Uzbeg [382] was increased by 1,000 personal and 500 horse
to 4,000 personal and 3,500 horse. My hunting went on for 2 months
and 20 days, and during that time I went out every day to hunt. As
not more than 50 or 60 days remained before the world-illumining New
Year, I returned, and on the 24th Isfandiyar encamped in the Dahrah
garden. The courtiers and some of the mansabdars, who by order had
remained in the city, came on that day and waited on me. Muqarrab Khan
presented a decorated jar, Frank hats, and a jewelled sparrow (?). I
remained three days in the garden, and on the 27th Isfandiyar entered
the city. During this time [383] 223 head of deer, etc., 95 nilgaw,
2 boars, 36 cranes (or herons), etc., and 1,457 fish were killed.
THE EIGHTH NEW YEAR AFTER THE AUSPICIOUS ACCESSION.
The eighth year after my accession, corresponding with Muharram,
1022. On the night of Thursday, the 27th Muharram, corresponding
with the 1st Farwardin in the eighth year after my accession, after
3 1/2 gharis of day had elapsed, his honour the sun passed from
the constellation of Pisces to that of Aries, which is his abode of
rejoicing and victory. Early in the morning of the New Year's Day
the feast was prepared and adorned after the custom of every year. At
the end of that day I sat on the throne of State, and the Amirs and
ministers of the State and the courtiers of the palace came to salute
and congratulate me. On these days of happy augury I sat the whole
day in the public audience hall. Those who had anything to ask or
claim presented their petitions, and the offerings of the servants
of the palace were laid before me. Abu-l-bi, governor of Qandahar,
had sent for an offering Iraq horses and hunting dogs, and they were
brought before me. On the 9th of the same month Afzal Khan came
from the Subah of Behar, and in waiting on me presented 100 muhrs
and 100 rupees, as well as an elephant. On the 12th the offering of
I`timadu-d-daulah was laid before me, consisting of jewels, cloths,
and other things. That which pleased me attained to the dignity of
acceptance. Of the elephants of Afzal Khan's offering ten others
were inspected on this day. On the 13th the offerings of Tarbiyat
Khan were laid before me. Mu`taqid Khan bought a house at Agra, and
passed some days in that place. Misfortunes happened to him one after
another. We have heard that prosperity and bad luck depend on four
things: first, upon your wife; second, upon your slave; third upon
your house; fourth, upon your horse. In order to know the prosperity
or ill-luck of a house a rule has been established, indeed they say it
is infallible. One must clear a small piece of the site from earth,
and again strew the earth upon the same ground. If it cover it, one
may call it middling good fortune for that house, neither prosperity
nor misfortune; if it become less (i.e. does not cover it exactly)
it points to ill-luck, and if it does more (than cover it) it is
fortunate and auspicious. On the 14th the mansab of I`tibar Khan was
raised from 1,000 and 300 horse to 2,000 personal and 500 horse. I
increased the mansab of Tarbiyat Khan by 500 personal and 50 horse,
so that it became 2,000 personal and 850 horse. Hushang, son of Islam
Khan, who was in Bengal with his father, came at this time and paid
his respects. He brought with him some Maghs, whose country is near
Pegu and Arracan, and the country is still in their possession. I
made some enquiries as to their customs and religion. Briefly they
are animals in the form of men. They eat everything there is either on
land or in the sea, and nothing is forbidden by their religion. They
eat with anyone. They take into their possession (marry) their sisters
by another mother. In face they are like the Qara Qalmaqs, but their
language is that of Tibet and quite unlike Turki. There is a range
of mountains, one end of which touches the province of Kashghar and
the other the country of Pegu. They have no proper religion or any
customs that can be interpreted as religion. They are far from the
Musulman faith and separated from that of the Hindus.
Two or three days before the Sharaf (the sun's highest point) my
son Khurram desired me to go to his house that he might present his
New Year's offerings from that place. I agreed to his request, and
remained for one day and one night at his house. He presented his
offerings. I took what I approved of and gave him back the rest. The
next day Murtaza Khan presented his offerings. Every day until the
day of culmination (ruz-i-sharaf) the offerings of one or of two or
three of the Amirs were laid before me. On Monday, the 19th Farwardin,
the assembly of the Sharaf was held. On that auspicious day I sat
on the throne of State, and an order was given that they should
produce all sorts of intoxicating things, such as wine, etc., so
that every one according to his desire might take what he liked. Many
took wine. The offerings of Mahabat Khan were on this day brought to
me. I gave one gold muhr of 1,000 tolas, which is called the star of
destiny (kaukab-i-tali`), to Yadgar `Ali Khan, the ambassador of the
ruler of Iran. The feast went off well. After the assembly broke up I
ordered that they might carry off the furniture and decorations. The
offering of the Muqarrab Khan had not been arranged on New Year's
Day. All sorts of rareties and excellent presents were now produced
which he had collected together. Amongst others, twelve Iraq and Arab
horses that had been brought in a ship, and jewelled saddles of Frank
workmanship [384] were produced before me. To the mansab of Nawazish
Khan 500 horse were added so as to make it one of 2,000 personal and
horse. An elephant called Bansibadan, which Islam Khan had sent from
Bengal, was brought to me and put among my special elephants. On the
3rd Urdibihisht, Khwaja Yadgar, brother of `Abdu-llah Khan, came from
Gujarat and waited on me; he offered 100 Jahangiri muhrs. After he
had been in attendance a few days he was honoured with the title of
Sardar Khan. As a competent bakhshi had to be sent to the army of
Bangash and those regions, I chose Mu`taqid Khan for this duty, and
increased his mansab by 300 personal and 50 horse so that it became
1,500 with 350 horse, and dismissed him. It was settled that he must
go quickly. I sent off Muhammad Husain Chelebi, who understood the
purchase of jewels and collecting curiosities, with money to go by way
of Iraq to Constantinople and buy and bring for the Sarkar curiosities
and rareties. For this purpose it was necessary that he should pay
his respects to the ruler of Iran. I had given him a letter and a
memorandum (of what he was to procure). Briefly, he saw my brother,
Shah `Abbas, in Mashhad, and the king enquired from him what kind of
things should be brought for his master's Sarkar. As he was urgent,
Chelebi showed the list he had brought with him. In that list there
were entered good turquoise and mumiya (bitumen) from the mine of
Ispahan. He told him that these two articles were not to be bought,
but he would send them for me. He authorized Uwaisi Tupchi (gunner),
who was one of his private servants, to hand over to him six bags
(ambancha) of turquoise earth holding about 30 seers, with 14 tolas
of mumiya and four Iraq horses, one of which was a piebald, and he
wrote a letter containing many, many expressions of friendship. With
regard to the inferior quality of the turquoise dust (khaka) and the
small quantity of mumiya he made many apologies. The khaka appeared
very inferior. Although the jewellers and makers of rings made every
endeavour, no stone that was fit to be made into a finger ring could
be produced. Probably in these days turquoise dust is not procurable
from the mines such as it was in the time of the late king Tahmasp. He
mentioned all this in the letter. With regard to the effect of mumiya
I had heard much from scientists, but when I tried it no result
was apparent. I do not know whether physicians have exaggerated
its effect, or whether its efficacy had been lessened by its being
stale. At any rate, I gave it to a fowl with a broken leg to drink
in larger quantity than they said and in the manner laid down by the
physicians, and rubbed some on the place where it was broken, and kept
it there for three days, though it was said to be sufficient to keep
it from morning till evening. But after I had examined it, no effect
was produced, and the broken place remained as it was. [385] In a
separate letter the Shah had written a recommendation of Salamu-llah,
the Arab. I immediately increased his mansab and his jagir.
I sent one of my private elephants with trappings to `Abdu-llah
Khan and gave another to Qilij Khan. I ordered that assignments
(tankhwah) should be made to 12,000 horse on the establishment [386]
of `Abdu-llah Khan at the rate of three horses and two horses for
each trooper. As previously with a view to service in Junagarh I
had increased the mansab of his brother Sardar Khan by 500 personal
and 300 horse, and had afterwards assigned the duty to Kamil Khan,
I ordered that he should retain his increase and that it should
be counted (permanently) in his mansab. I increased the rank of
Sarfaraz Khan, which was that of 1,500 personal and 500 horse, by
200 horse more. On the 27th Urdibihisht, corresponding with the 26th
Rabi`u-l-awwal, in the eighth year of my reign, in the year 1022
of the Hijra era, on Thursday, the meeting for my lunar weighing
took place in the house of Maryam-zamani (his mother). Some of the
money that was weighed I ordered to be given to the women and the
deserving ones who had assembled in my mother's house. On the same
day I increased by 1,000 the mansab of Murtaza Khan, so that it came
to 6,000 personal and 5,000 horse. Khusrau Beg, a slave of Mirza Khan,
came from Patna in the company of `Abdu-r-Razzaq Ma`muri and waited on
me, and Sardar Khan, brother of `Abdu-llah Khan, obtained leave to go
to Ahmadabad. An Afghan had brought from the Carnatic two goats that
had pazahar (bezoar stones, an antidote against poison). I had always
heard that an animal that has pazahar is very thin and miserable,
but these goats were very fat and fresh. I ordered them to kill one
of them, which was a female. Four pazahar stones became apparent,
and this caused great astonishment.
It is an established fact that cheetahs in unaccustomed places do not
pair off with a female, for my revered father once collected together
1,000 cheetahs. He was very desirous that they should pair, but this
in no way came off. He had many times coupled male and female cheetahs
together in gardens, but there, too, it did not come off. At this time
a male cheetah, having slipped its collar, went to a female and paired
with it, and after two and a half months three young ones were born
and grew up. This has been recorded because it appeared strange. As
cheetahs did not pair with cheetahs, (still less) had it ever been
heard in former times(?) that tigers mated in captivity. As in the
time of my reign wild beasts have abandoned their savagery, tigers have
become so tame that troops of them without chains or restraint go about
amongst the people, and they neither harm men nor have any wildness
or alarm. It happened that a tigress became pregnant and after three
months bore three cubs; it had never happened that a wild tiger after
its capture had paired. It had been heard from philosophers that the
milk of a tigress was of great use for brightening eyes. Although
we made every effort that the moisture of milk should appear in
her breasts, we could not accomplish it. It occurs to me that as it
is a raging creature, and milk appears in the breasts of mothers by
reason of the affection they have for their young, as milk [387] comes
into their breasts in connection with their young ones drinking and
sucking at the time of their taking (the milk), their (the mothers')
rage increases and the milk in their breasts is dried up.
At the end of Urdibihisht, Khwaja Qasim, brother of Khwaja
`Abdu-l-`Aziz, who is of the Naqshbandi Khwajas, came from
Mawara'a-n-nahr and waited on me. After a few days 12,000 rupees were
given to him as a present. As Khwaja Jahan had made a melon-bed in
the neighbourhood of the city, when two watches of day had passed
on Thursday, the 10th Khurdad, I got into a boat and went to inspect
the melon-bed, and took the ladies with me. We reached there when two
or three gharis of day were left, and passed the evening in walking
among the beds. A wonderfully sharp wind and whirlwind sprang up, so
that the tents and screens fell down. I got into the boat and passed
the night in it. I also passed part of the Friday in walking about
the melon-bed, and returned to the city. Afzal Khan, who for a long
time had been afflicted with boils and other sores, died on the 10th
Khurdad. I transferred the jagir and hereditary land of Raja Jagman,
who had failed in his service in the Deccan, to Mahabat Khan. Shaikh
Pir, who is one of the emancipated ones who hold aloof from the
attachments of the age, and who on account of the pure friendship
that he bears towards me has chosen to be my companion and servant,
had before this founded a mosque in the parganah of Mairtha, which
is his native place. At this time he took occasion to mention the
circumstance. As I found his mind bent on the completion of this
building I gave him 4,000 rupees, so that he himself might go and
expend it, and also gave him a valuable shawl and dismissed him. In the
public audience hall there were two railings (mahjar) of wood. Inside
the first, Amirs, ambassadors, and people of honour sat, and no one
entered this circle without an order. Within the second railing,
which is broader than the first, the mansabdars of inferior rank,
[388] ahadis, and those who had work to do are admitted. Outside this
railing stand the servants of the Amirs and all the people who may
enter the Diwankhana. As there was no difference between the first
and second railings, it occurred to me that I should decorate the
first with silver. I ordered this railing and the staircase that led
from this railing to the balcony of the Jharokha, as well as the two
elephants placed on the two sides of the seat of the Jharokha, which
skilful people had made of wood, to be decorated with silver. After
this was completed it was reported to me that 125 maunds of silver in
Hindustani weight, equal to 880 maunds of Persia, had been used up;
indeed, it now assumed a worthy appearance.
On the 3rd of the month of Tir, Muzaffar Khan came from Thatta [389]
and waited on me. He made an offering of twelve muhrs and a Koran with
a jewelled cover, and two jewelled roses(?) (du gul). On the 14th of
the same month Safdar Khan came from the Subah of Behar and waited
on me, offering 101 muhrs. After Muzaffar Khan had been some days in
attendance, I increased his former mansab by 500 personal, and giving
him a standard and a private shawl dismissed him to Thatta. [390]
I knew that every animal or living thing bitten by a mad dog died,
but this had not been ascertained in the case of an elephant. In
my time it so happened that one night a mad dog came into the place
where was tied one of my private elephants, Gajpati [391] by name,
and bit the foot of a female elephant that was with mine. She at
once cried out. The elephant-keepers at once ran in, and the dog
fled away into a thorn-brake that is there. After a little while it
came in again and bit my private elephant's fore-foot as well. The
elephant killed it. When a month and five days had passed after this
event, one day when it was cloudy the growling of thunder came to
the ear of the female elephant, that was in the act of eating, and
it of a sudden raised a cry and its limbs began to tremble. It threw
itself on the ground, but rose again. For seven days water ran out
of its mouth, then suddenly it uttered a cry and showed distress. The
remedies the drivers gave it had no effect, and on the eighth day it
fell and died. A month after the death of the female elephant they
took the large elephant to the edge of the river in the plain. It
was cloudy and thundery in the same way. The said elephant in the
height of excitement all at once began to tremble and sat down on the
ground. With a thousand difficulties the drivers took it to its own
place. After the same interval and in the same way that had happened
to the female elephant this elephant also died. Great amazement was
caused by this affair, and in truth it is a matter to be wondered at
that an animal of such size and bulk should be so much affected by
a little wound inflicted on it by such a weak creature.
As Khankhanan had repeatedly begged for leave to be given to his son
Shah-nawaz Khan, on the 4th Amurdad I gave him a horse and a robe of
honour and dismissed him to the Deccan. I promoted Ya`qub Badakhshi,
whose mansab was 150, to 1,500 personal and 1,000 horse, on account
of the bravery he had displayed, and gave him the title of Khan as
well as a standard.
The Hindus are in four divisions, and each of these acts according
to its own rules and ways. In every year they keep a fixed day. The
first is the caste of the Brahmans, [392] that is those who know
the Incomparable God. Their duties are of six kinds--(1) to acquire
religious knowledge, (2) to give instructions to others, (3) to
worship fire, (4) to lead men to the worship of fire, (5) giving
something to the needy, (6) taking gifts. There is for this caste
an appointed day, and that is the last day of the month of Sawan,
the second month of the rainy season. [393] They consider this an
auspicious day, and the worshippers go on that day to the banks of
rivers and tanks, and recite enchantments, breathe upon cords and
coloured threads; on another day, which is the first of the New Year,
they fasten them on the hands of the Rajas and great men of the time,
and look on them as (good) omens. They call this thread rakhi, [394]
that is, preservation (nigah-dasht). This day occurs in the month of
Tir, when the world-heating sun is in the constellation of Cancer. The
second caste is that of the Chhatri, which is known as Khatri. Their
duty is to protect the oppressed from the evil of the oppressors. The
customs of this caste are three things--(1) that they study religious
science themselves but do not teach others; (2) that they worship fire,
but do not teach others to do so; (3) that they give to the needy, but
although they are needy take nothing themselves. The day of this caste
is the Bijay dasamin, 'the victorious tenth.' [395] On this day with
them it is lucky to mount and go against one's enemy with an army. Ram
Chand, whom they worship as their god, leading his army on that day
against his enemy won a victory, and they consider this a great day,
and, decorating their elephants and horses, perform worship. This day
falls in the month of Shahriwar, [396] when the Sun is in the mansion
of Virgo, and on it they give presents to those who look after their
horses and elephants. The third caste is that of Baish (Vaishya). Its
custom is this, that they serve the other two castes of which mention
has been made. They practise agriculture and buying and selling, and
are employed in the business of profit and interest. This caste has
also a fixed day which they call the Dewali; this day occurs in the
month of Mihr when the sun is in the constellation of Libra, the 28th
day of the lunar month. On the night of that day they light lamps,
and friends and those who are dear assemble in each other's houses
and pass their time busily in gambling. As the eyes of this caste
are on profit and interest, they consider carrying over and opening
new accounts on that day auspicious. The fourth caste is the Sudras,
who are the lowest caste of the Hindus. They are the servants of all,
and derive no profit from those things which are the specialities of
every (other) caste. Thursday is the Holi, which in their belief is the
last day of the year. This day occurs in the month of Isfandarmuz,
when the sun is in the constellation of Pisces. On the night of
this day they light fires at the head of the streets and ways, and
when it becomes day they for one watch scatter the ashes on each
other's heads and faces, and make a wonderful noise and disturbance,
and after this wash themselves, put on their apparel, and walk about
in the gardens and on the plains. As it is an established custom of
the Hindus to burn the dead, to light fires on this night, which is
the last night of the year that has passed, signifies that they burn
the last year, which has gone to the abode of the dead. In the time
of my revered father the Hindu Amirs and others in imitation of them
performed the ceremony of rakhi in adorning him, making strings of
rubies and royal pearls and flowers jewelled with gems of great value
and binding them on his auspicious arms. This custom was carried on
for some years. As they carried this extravagance to excess, and he
disliked it, he forbade it. The brahmans by way of auguries used to
tie these strings and (pieces of) silk according to their custom. I
also in this year carried out this laudable religious practice,
and ordered that the Hindu Amirs and the heads of the caste [397]
should fasten rakhis on my arms. On the day of the rakhi, which was
the 9th Amurdad, they performed the same rites, and other castes by
way of imitation did not give up this bigotry; this year I agreed to
it, and ordered that the brahmans should bind strings (of cotton)
and silk after the ancient manner. On this day by chance fell the
anniversary of the death of the late king. [398] The commemoration
of such an anniversary is one of the standing rules and customs in
Hindustan. Every year on the day of the death of their fathers and
those who are dear to them, each according to his circumstances and
ability prepares food and all kinds of perfumes, and the learned men,
the respectable and other men assemble, and these assemblies sometimes
last a week. On this day I sent Baba Khurram to the venerated tomb to
arrange the assemblage, and 10,000 rupees were given to ten trustworthy
servants to divide among fakirs and those who were in want.
On the 15th of the month of Amurdad the offering of Islam Khan was
laid before me. He had sent 28 elephants, 40 horses of that part of
the country which are known as tanghan, 50 eunuchs, 500 pargala nafis
sitarkani. [399]
It had been made a rule that the events of the Subahs should be
reported according to the boundaries of each, and news-writers from
the Court had been appointed for this duty. This being the rule that
my revered father had laid down, I also observe it, and much gain
and great advantage are to be brought about by it and information is
acquired about the world and its inhabitants. If the advantages of
this were to be written down it would become a long affair. At this
time the news-writer of Lahore reported that at the end of the month
of Tir ten men had gone from the city to Amanabad, which lies at a
distance of 12 kos. As the air was very hot, they took shelter under
a tree. Soon afterwards wind and a dust-storm (chakri) sprang up,
and when it blew on that band of men they trembled, and nine of them
died under the tree, and only one remained alive; he was ill for a long
time, and recovered with great difficulty. In that neighbourhood such
bad air was created that numerous birds who had their nests in that
tree all fell down and died, and that the wild beasts (beasts of the
plain, perhaps cattle) came and threw themselves on to the cultivated
fields, and, rolling about on the grass, gave up their lives. In short,
many animals perished. On Thursday, the 13th Amurdad, having said my
prayers (lit. counted my rosary), I embarked on board a boat for the
purpose of hunting in the village of Samonagar, which is one of my
fixed hunting-places. On the 3rd Shahriwar, Khan `Alam, whom I had
sent for from the Deccan in order to despatch him to Iraq in company
with the ambassador of the ruler of Iran, came and waited on me at
this place. He offered 100 muhrs. As Samonagar was in Mahabat Khan's
jagir, he had prepared a delightful halting-place there on the bank
of the river, and it pleased me greatly. He presented offerings of
an elephant and an emerald ring. The former was put into my private
stud. Up to the 6th Shahriwar I was employed in hunting. In these
few days 47 head of antelope, male and female, and other animals were
killed. At this time Dilawar Khan sent as an offering a ruby, which
was accepted. I sent a special sword for Islam Khan. I increased
the mansab of Hasan `Ali Turkuman, which was 1,000 personal and
700 horse, by 500 personal and 100 horse. At the end of Thursday,
the 20th of the same month, in the house of Maryam-zamani, my solar
weighing took place. I weighed myself according to the usual custom
against metals and other things. I had this year attained to the age
of 44 solar years. On the same day Yadgar `Ali, ambassador of the
ruler of Iran, and Khan `Alam, who had been nominated to accompany
him from this side, received their leave to go. On Yadgar `Ali there
were bestowed a horse with a jewelled saddle, a jewelled sword, a
vest without sleeves with gold embroidery, an aigrette with feathers
and a jigha (turban ornament), and 30,000 rupees in cash, altogether
40,000 rupees, and on Khan `Alam a jewelled khapwa or phul katara
(a sort of dagger) with a pendant of royal pearls. On the 22nd of the
same month I visited the venerated mausoleum of my revered father at
Bihishtabad, riding on an elephant. On the way 5,000 rupees in small
coin were scattered round, and I gave other 5,000 rupees to Khwaja
Jahan to divide among the dervishes. Having said my evening prayers,
I went back to the city in a boat. As the house of I`timadu-d-daulah
was on the bank of the river Jumna, I alighted there until the end
of the next day. Having accepted what pleased me of his offerings,
I went towards the palace; I`tiqad Khan's house was also on the bank
of the river Jumna; at his request I disembarked there with the ladies,
and walked round the houses he had lately built there. This delightful
place pleased me greatly. He had produced suitable offerings of cloth
stuffs and jewels and other things; these were all laid before me and
most of them were approved. When it was near evening I entered the
auspicious palace. As the astrologers had fixed an hour in this night
for starting for Ajmir, when seven gharis of the night of Monday,
the 2nd Sha`ban, corresponding with the 24th Shahriwar, had passed,
I started in happiness and prosperity with intent to go there from
the capital of Agra. In this undertaking two things were agreeable to
me, one a pilgrimage to the splendid mausoleum of Khwaja Mu`inu-d-din
Chishti, from the blessing of whose illustrious soul great advantages
had been derived by this dignified family, and whose venerable shrine
I had not visited after my accession to the throne. The second was
the defeat and beating back of the rebel Rana Amar Singh, who is one
of the most considerable of the Zamindars and Rajas of Hindustan,
and whose headship and leadership and those of his ancestors all the
Rajas and Rays of this province agree to. The administration has for
long been in the hands of this family, and they have long borne rule
towards the East, that is the Purab. They became in that time well
known under the title of Rajas. After this they fell on the Deccan
[400] and took possession of many of the countries of that region. In
the place of Raja they have taken the title of Rawal. After this they
came into the hill country of Mewat, and by degrees got into their
possession the fort of Chitor. From that date until this day, which is
in the eighth year after my accession, 1,471 years have passed. [401]
There are twenty-six others of this caste who have ruled for 1,010
years. They have the title of Rawal, and from the Rawal who was
first known as Rawal down to Rana Amar Singh, the present Rana,
there are twenty-six individuals who have ruled for the space of
461 years. During this long time they have never bent their necks
in obedience to any of the kings of the country of Hindustan, and
have for most of the time been rebellious and troublesome, so much
so that in the reign of the late king Babar, Rana Sanga collected
together all the Rajas, Rays, and Zamindars of this province, and
fought a battle in the neighbourhood of Biyana with 180,000 horse and
several lakhs of foot-soldiers. By the aid of Almighty God and the
assistance of fortune the victorious army of Islam prevailed against
the infidel forces, and a great defeat happened to them. The details
of this battle have been given in the Memoirs of King Babar. My
revered father (may his bright tomb be the abode of unending Grace)
exerted himself greatly to put down these rebels, and several times
sent armies against them. In the twelfth year after his accession
he set himself to capture the fort of Chitor, which is one of the
strongest forts of the inhabited world, and to overthrow the kingdom
of the Rana, and after four months and ten days of siege took it by
force from the men of Amar Singh's father, after much fighting, and
returned after destroying the fort. Every time the victorious forces
pressed him hard in order to capture him or make him a fugitive, but
it so happened that this was not effected. In the end of his reign,
on the same day and hour that he proceeded to the conquest of the
Deccan, he sent me with a large army and reliable Sardars against the
Rana. By chance these two affairs, for reasons which it would take
too long to recount, did not succeed. At last I came to the throne,
and as this matter was only half done, the first army I sent to the
borders was this one. Making my son Parwiz its leader, the leading
nobles who were at the capital were appointed to this duty. I sent
abundant treasure and artillery with him. As every matter depends
on its own season, at this juncture the unhappy affair of Khusrau
occurred, and I had to pursue him to the Panjab. The province and the
capital of Agra remained void. I had necessarily to write that Parwiz
should return with some of the Amirs and take charge of Agra and the
neighbourhood. In short, this time again the matter of the Rana did
not go off as it should. When by the favour of Allah my mind was at
rest from Khusrau's disturbance, and Agra became again the alighting
place of the royal standards, a victorious army was appointed under
the leadership of Mahabat Khan, `Abdu-llah Khan, and other leaders,
and from that date up to the time when the royal standards started for
Ajmir his country was trodden under foot by the victorious forces. As
finally the affair did not assume an approved form, it occurred to
me that, as I had nothing to do at Agra, and I was convinced that
until I myself went there the affair would not be set to rights, I
left the fort of Agra and alighted at the Dahrah garden. On the next
day the festival of the Dasahra took place. According to the usual
custom they decorated the elephants and horses, and I had them before
me. As the mothers and sisters of Khusrau repeatedly represented to
me that he was very repentant of his deeds, the feelings (lit. sweat)
of fatherly affection having come into movement, I sent for him and
determined that he should come every day to pay his respects to me. I
remained for eight days in that garden. On the 28th news arrived that
Raja Ram Das, who was doing service in Bangash and the neighbourhood
of Kabul with Qilij Khan, had died. On the 1st of the month of Mihr I
marched from the garden, and dismissed Khwaja Jahan to look after the
capital of Agra and guard the treasure and the palace, and gave him
an elephant and a special robe (fargul). On the 2nd Mihr news arrived
that Raja Baso had died in the thanah of Shahabad, [402] which is on
the border of the territory of Amar. On the 10th of the same month
I halted at Rup Bas, which has now been named Amanabad. Formerly
this district had been given as jagir to Rup Khawass. Afterwards,
bestowing it on Amanu-llah, son of Mahabat Khan, I ordered it to be
called by his name. Eleven days were passed at this halting-place. As
it is a fixed hunting-place, I every day mounted to go hunting, and
in these few days 158 antelopes, male and female, and other animals
were killed. On the 25th of the month I marched from Amanabad. On the
31st, corresponding with the 8th Ramazan, Khwaja Abu-l-hasan, whom
I had sent for from Burhanpur, came and waited on me, and presented
as offerings 50 muhrs, 15 jewelled vessels, and an elephant, which
I placed in my private stud. On the 2nd Aban, corresponding with
the 10th Ramazan, news came of the death of Qilij Khan. He was one
of the ancient servants of the State, and obtained the mercy of God
in the 80th year of his age. He was employed at Peshawar in the duty
of keeping in order the Afghans full of darkness. [403] His rank was
6,000 personal and 5,000 horse. Murtaza Khan Dakhani was unrivalled
in the art of pulta-bazi, which in the language of the Dakhanis
they call yaganagi, and the Moguls shamshir-bazi, 'sword-play'
(fencing). For some time I studied it with him. At this time I exalted
him with the title of Warzish Khan (Exercise-Khan). I had established
a custom that deserving people and dervishes should be brought before
me every night, so that I might bestow on them, after personal enquiry
into their condition, land, or gold, or clothes. Amongst these was a
man who represented to me that the name Jahangir, according to the
science of abjad (numerals reckoned by letters), corresponded to
the great name "Allah Akbar." [404] Considering this a good omen,
I gave him who discovered (this coincidence) land, a horse, cash,
and clothing. On Monday, the 5th Shawwal, corresponding to the 26th
Aban, the hour for entering Ajmir was fixed. On the morning of the
said day I went towards it. When the fort and the buildings of the
shrine of the revered Khwaja appeared in sight, I traversed on foot
the remainder of the road, about a kos. I placed trustworthy men on
both sides of the road, who went along giving money to fakirs and the
necessitous. When four gharis of day had passed, I entered the city
and its inhabited portion, and in the fifth ghari had the honour of
visiting the venerated mausoleum. After visiting it I proceeded to the
auspicious palace, and the next day ordered all those present in this
honoured resting-place, both small and great, belonging to the city,
and travellers, to be brought before me, that they might be made
happy with numerous gifts according to their real circumstances. On
the 7th Azar I went to see and shoot on the tank of Pushkar, which is
one of the established praying-places of the Hindus, with regard to the
perfection of which they give (excellent) accounts that are incredible
to any intelligence, and which is situated at a distance of three kos
from Ajmir. For two or three days I shot water-fowl on that tank,
and returned to Ajmir. Old and new temples which, in the language
of the infidels, they call Deohara [405] are to be seen around this
tank. Among them Rana Shankar, who is the uncle of the rebel Amar,
and in my kingdom is among the high nobles, had built a Deohara of
great magnificence, on which 100,000 rupees had been spent. I went
to see that temple. I found a form cut out of black stone, which
from the neck above was in the shape of a pig's head, and the rest
of the body was like that of a man. The worthless religion of the
Hindus is this, that once on a time for some particular object the
Supreme Ruler thought it necessary to show himself in this shape; on
this account they hold it dear and worship it. [406] I ordered them
to break that hideous form and throw it into the tank. After looking
at this building there appeared a white dome on the top of a hill,
to which men were coming from all quarters. When I asked about this
they said that a Jogi lived there, and when the simpletons come to see
him he places in their hands a handful [407] of flour, which they put
into their mouths and imitate the cry of an animal which these fools
have at some time injured, in order that by this act their sins may
be blotted out. I ordered them to break down that place and turn the
Jogi out of it, as well as to destroy the form of an idol there was
in the dome. Another belief they have is that there is no bottom to
this tank. After enquiry it appeared that it is nowhere deeper than
12 cubits. I also measured it round and it was about 1 1/2 kos.
On the 16th Azar news came that the watchmen had marked down a
tigress. I immediately went there and killed it with a gun and
returned. After a few days a nilgaw (blue bull) was killed, of which I
ordered them to take off the skin in my presence and cook it as food
for the poor. Over 200 people assembled and ate it, and I gave money
with my own hand to each of them. In the same month news came that the
Franks of Goa had, contrary to treaty, plundered four cargo vessels
[408] that frequented the port of Surat in the neighbourhood of that
port: and, making prisoners a large number of Musulmans, had taken
possession of the goods and chattels that were in those ships. This
being very disagreeable to my mind, I despatched Muqarrab Khan,
who is in charge of the port, on the 18th Azar, giving him a horse
and elephant and a dress of honour, to obtain compensation for this
affair. On account of the great activity and good services of Yusuf
Khan and Bahaduru-l-mulk in the Subah of the Deccan, I sent standards
for them.
It has been written that my chief object, after my visit to the Khwaja,
was to put a stop to the affair of the rebel Rana. On this account
I determined to remain myself at Ajmir and send on Baba Khurram, my
fortunate son. This idea was a very good one, and on this account,
on the 6th of Day, at the hour fixed upon, I despatched him in
happiness and triumph. I presented him with a qaba (outer coat) of
gold brocade with jewelled flowers and pearls round the flowers,
a brocaded turban with strings of pearls, a gold woven sash with
chains of pearls, one of my private elephants called Fath Gaj, with
trappings, a special horse, a jewelled sword, and a jewelled khapwa,
with a phul katara. In addition to the men first appointed to this
duty under the leadership of Khan A`zam, I sent 12,000 more horse with
my son, and honoured their leaders, each according to his condition,
with special horses and elephants and robes of honour, and dismissed
them. Fida'i Khan was nominated to the paymastership of this army. At
the same time Safdar Khan was despatched to the government of Kashmir
in place of Hashim Khan. He received a horse and robe of honour. On
Wednesday, the 11th, Khwaja Abu-l-hasan was made general paymaster
(bakhshi-kul), and received a dress of honour. I had ordered them to
make a large caldron [409] at Agra for the revered mausoleum of the
Khwaja. On this day it was brought, and I ordered them to cook food
for the poor in that pot, and collect together the poor of Ajmir
to feed them whilst I was there. Five thousand people assembled,
and all ate of this food to their fill. After the food I gave money
to each of the dervishes with my own hand. At this time Islam Khan,
governor of Bengal, was promoted to the mansab of 6,000 personal and
horse, and a flag was given to Mukarram Khan, son of Mu`azzam Khan.
On the 1st of Isfandarmuz, corresponding with the 10th Muharram, 1023
(20th February, 1614), I left Ajmir to hunt nilgaw, and returned on
the 9th. I halted at the fountain of Hafiz Jamal, [410] two kos from
the city, and passed the night of Friday [411] there. At the end of
the day I entered the city. In these twenty days ten nilgaw had been
killed. As the good service of Khwaja Jahan and the smallness of his
force for the defence and government of Agra and that neighbourhood
were brought to my notice, I increased his mansab by 500 personal and
100 horse. On the same day Abu-l-fath Dakhani came from his jagir and
waited on me. On the 3rd of the same month news came of the death of
Islam Khan; he had died on Thursday, the 5th Rajab, in the year 1022
(21st August, 1613). In one day, without any previous illness, this
inevitable event occurred. He was one of those born and brought up in
the house (house-born). The naturally good disposition and knowledge
of affairs that showed themselves in him were seen in no one else. He
ruled Bengal with entire authority, and brought within the civil
jurisdiction of the province countries that had never previously come
under the sway of any of the jagirdars or into the possession of any
of the Chiefs of the State. If death had not overtaken him he would
have done perfect service.
The Khan A`zam had himself prayed that the illustrious prince should
be appointed to the campaign against the Rana, yet, notwithstanding
all kinds of encouragement and gratification on the part of my son
(Shah Jahan), he would not apply himself to the task, but proceeded
to act in his own unworthy manner. When this was heard by me, I sent
Ibrahim Husain, who was one of my most trusty attendants, to him,
and sent affectionate messages to him to say that when he was at
Burhanpur he had daily begged this duty of me, as he considered it
equivalent to the happiness of both worlds, and had said in meetings
and assemblies that if he should be killed in this enterprise he would
be a martyr, and if he prevailed, a ghazi. I had given him whatever
support and assistance of artillery he had asked for. After this he
had written that without the movement of the royal standards to those
regions the completion of the affair was not free of difficulty. By
his counsel I had come to Ajmir, and this neighbourhood had been
thus honoured and dignified. Now that he had himself prayed for the
prince, and everything had been carried out according to his counsel,
why did he withdraw his foot from the field of battle and enter the
place of disagreement? To Baba Khurram, from whom up till now I had
never parted, and whom I sent in pure reliance on his (Khan A`zam's)
knowledge of affairs, he should show loyalty and approved good-will,
and never be neglectful day or night of his duty to my son. If,
contrariwise, he should draw back his foot from what he had agreed
to, he must know that there would be mischief. Ibrahim Husain
went, and impressed these words on his mind in the same detailed
way. It was of no avail, as he would not go back from his folly and
determination. When Baba Khurram saw that his being in the affair was
a cause of disturbance, he kept him under observation and represented
that his being there was in no way fitting, and he was acting thus
and spoiling matters simply on account of the connection he had with
Khusrau. [412] I then ordered Mahabat Khan to go and bring him from
Udaipur, and told Muhammad Taqi, the diwan of buildings, to go to
Mandesur and bring his children and dependants to Ajmir.
On the 11th of the month news came that Dulip, son of Ray Singh,
who was of a seditious and rebellious disposition, had been heavily
defeated by his younger brother, Rao Suraj Singh, who had been
sent against him, and that he was making disturbance in one of the
districts of the Sarkar of Hissar. About this time Hashim of Khost,
the faujdar, and the jagirdars of that neighbourhood seized him, and
sent him as a prisoner to Court. As he had misbehaved repeatedly,
he was capitally punished, and this was a warning to many of the
seditious. In reward for this service an increase of 500 personal
and 200 horse was made to the mansab of Rao Suraj Singh. On the 14th
of the month a representation came from my son Baba Khurram that the
elephant `Alam-guman, of which the Rana was very fond, together with
seventeen other elephants, had fallen into the hands of the warriors of
the victorious army, and that his master would also soon be captured.
THE NINTH NEW YEAR'S FEAST AFTER MY AUSPICIOUS ACCESSION.
The commencement of the ninth year after my auspicious accession,
corresponding with the Hijra year 1023 (1614).
Two watches and one ghari had passed on the night of Friday, the 9th
Safar (21st March, 1614), when the world-warming sun shed his rays on
the constellation of Aries, which is his house of dignity and honour;
it was the first morning of the month of Farwardin. The assembly for
the New Year's festival took place in the pleasant regions of Ajmir,
and at the time of entry (of the sun into Aries), which was the
propitious hour, I seated myself on the throne of good fortune. They
had in the usual manner decorated the palace with rare cloth-stuffs and
jewels and gem-decked things. At this auspicious moment the elephant
`Alam-guman, [413] which was fit to be entered in the private stud,
with the seventeen other male and female elephants which my son Baba
Khurram had sent of the Rana's elephants, were presented before me,
and the hearts of the loyal rejoiced. On the 2nd day of the New Year,
knowing it to be propitious for a ride, I mounted it and scattered
about much money. On the 3rd I conferred on I`tiqad Khan a mansab
of 3,000 personal and 1,000 horse, increasing thus that which
he had already, which was of 2,000 personal and 500 horse, and I
distinguished him with the title of Asaf Khan, with which title two
of his family had been previously honoured. I also increased the
mansab of Dayanat Khan by 500 personal and 200 horse. At the same
time I promoted I`timadu-d-daulah to the mansab of 5,000 personal
and 2,000 horse. At the request of Baba Khurram I increased the
mansab of Saif Khan Barha by 500 personal and 200 horse, that of
Dilawar Khan by the same number, that of Kishan Singh by 500 horse,
and that of Sarfaraz Khan by 500 personal and 300 horse. On Sunday,
the 10th, the offering of Asaf Khan was produced before me, and on
the 14th I`timadu-d-daulah produced his own offering. From these two
offerings I took what pleased me and gave back the rest. Chin Qilij
Khan, with his brothers, relations, and the army and retinue of his
father, came from Kabul [414] and waited on me. Ibrahim Khan, who had
a mansab of 700 personal and 300 horse, having been promoted to that
of 1,500 personal and 600 horse, was appointed jointly with Khwaja
Abu-l-hasan to the exalted dignity of paymaster of the household. On
the 15th of this month Mahabat Khan, who had been appointed to bring
Khan A`zam and his son `Abdu-llah, came and waited on me. On the 19th
the assembly of honour was held. On that day the offering of Mahabat
Khan was laid before me, and I sent a private elephant called Rup
Sundar for my son Parwiz. When that day had passed I ordered them to
deliver Khan A`zam into the charge of Asaf Khan, that he might keep him
in the fort of Gwalior. As my object in sending him to the fort was
in case some disagreement and disturbance should occur in the matter
of the Rana in consequence of the attachment that he had to Khusrau,
I ordered him not to be kept in the fort like a prisoner, but that they
should provide everything necessary for his comfort and convenience in
the way of eating and clothing. On the same day I promoted Chin Qilij
Khan to a mansab of 2,500 personal and 700 horse. To the rank of Taj
Khan, who had been appointed to the charge of the province of Bhakar,
I added 500 personal and horse. On the 18th Urdibihisht I forbade
Khusrau to pay his respects. The reason was this, that through the
affection and fatherly love (I bore him) and the prayers of his mother
and sisters, I had ordered again that he should come every day to pay
his respects (kurnish). As his appearance showed no signs of openness
and happiness, and he was always mournful and dejected in mind, I
accordingly ordered that he should not come to pay his respects. In
the time of my revered father, Muzaffar Husain Mirza and Rustam Mirza,
sons of Sultan Husain Mirza, nephews of Shah Tahmasp Safawi, who had
in their possession Qandahar and Zamindawar and that neighbourhood,
sent petitions to the effect that in consequence of the nearness to
Khurasan and the coming of `Abdu-llah Khan Uzbeg to that country,
they could not leave the charge of looking after the country and come
(to pay their respects), but that if he (Akbar) would send one of
the servants of the palace they would hand over the country to him,
and themselves come to pay their respects. As they repeatedly made
this request, he sent Shah Beg Khan, who is now honoured with the
title of Khan Dauran, to the governorship of Qandahar and Zamindawar
and that neighbourhood, and wrote firmans full of favour to the Mirzas
summoning them to the Court. After their arrival favours appropriate to
the case of each were bestowed on them, and he gave them a territory
equal to two or three times the collections of Qandahar. In the end,
the management expected from them was not achieved, and by degrees the
territory deteriorated. Muzaffar Husain Mirza died during the lifetime
of my revered father, and he sent Mirza Rustam with the Khankhanan to
the Subah of the Deccan, where he had a small jagir. When the throne
was honoured by my succession, I sent for him from the Deccan with the
intention of showing him favour and sending him to one of the border
territories. About the time he came Mirza Ghazi Tarkhan, who held the
governorship of Thatta and Qandahar and that neighbourhood, died. It
occurred to me to send him to Thatta, so that he might show there
his natural good qualities and administer that country in an approved
manner. I promoted him to a mansab of 5,000 personal and horse, 200,000
rupees were given to him for expenses, and I despatched him to the
Subah of Thatta. My belief was that he would do good service [415]
on those borders. In opposition to my expectation he did no service,
and committed so much oppression that many people complained of his
wickedness. Such news of him was heard that it was considered necessary
to recall him. One of the servants of the Court was appointed to summon
him, and I sent for him to Court. On the 26th Urdibihisht they brought
him. As he had committed great oppression on the people of God, and
inquiry into this was due according to the requirements of justice,
I handed him over to Anira'i Singh-dalan that he might enquire into
the facts, and that if guilty he might receive prompt punishment and
be a warning to others. In those days the news also came of the defeat
of Ahdad, the Afghan. The facts are that Mu`taqid Khan came to Pulam
[416] Guzar (ferry?), in the district of Peshawar, with an army,
and Khan Dauran with another force in Afghanistan and blocked the
path of that rascal (lit. black-faced one). Meanwhile a letter came
to Mu`taqid Khan from Pish Bulagh that Ahdad had gone to Kot Tirah,
which is 8 kos from Jalalabad, with a large number of horse and foot,
and had killed a few of those who had chosen to be loyal and obey,
and made prisoners of others, and was about to send them to Tirah,
and intended to make a raid on Jalalabad and Pish Bulagh. Immediately
on hearing this news Mu`taqid Khan started in great haste with the
troops he had with him. When he arrived at Pish Bulagh he sent out
spies to ascertain about the enemy. On the morning of Wednesday, the
6th, news reached him that Ahdad was in the same place. Placing his
trust on the favour of God, which is on the side of this suppliant
at the throne of Allah, he divided the royal army into two, and
went towards the enemy, who, with 4,000 or 5,000 experienced men,
had seated themselves haughtily in complete carelessness, and did
not suspect that besides Khan Dauran's there was an army in the
neighbourhood that could oppose itself to them. When news came that
the royal forces were coming against that ill-fortuned man, and the
signs of an army were becoming manifest, in a state of bewilderment
he distributed his men into four bodies, and seating himself on an
eminence a gunshot away, to get to which was a difficult matter, he
sent his men to fight. The musketeers of the victorious army assailed
the rebel with bullets, and sent a large number to hell. Mu`taqid Khan
took the centre of his army to his advanced guard, and, not giving
the enemy more than time to shoot off their arrows two or three times,
swept them clean away, and pursuing them for 3 or 4 kos, killed nearly
1,500 of them, horse and foot. Those left of the sword took to flight,
most of them wounded and with their arms thrown away. The victorious
army remained for the night in the same place on the battlefield,
and in the morning proceeded with 600 decapitated heads [417]
towards Peshawar and made pillars of the heads there. Five hundred
horses and innumerable cattle and property and many weapons fell into
their hands. The prisoners of Tirah were released, and on this side
no well-known men were killed. On the night of Thursday, the 1st of
Khurdad, I proceeded towards Pushkar to shoot tigers, and on Friday
killed two of them with a gun. On the same day it was represented to
me that Naqib Khan had died. The aforesaid Khan was one of the Saifi
Sayyids, and was originally from Qazwin. The tomb of his father, Mir
`Abdu-l-Latif, is at Ajmir. Two months before his death his wife,
[418] between whom and her husband there was a great affection, and
who for twelve days was ill with fever, drank the unpleasant draught
of death. I ordered them to bury him by the side of his wife, whom
they had placed in the Khwaja's venerated mausoleum. As Mu`taqid Khan
had done approved service in the fight with Ahdad, in reward he was
exalted with the title of Lashkar Khan. Dayanat Khan, who had been
sent to Udaipur in the service of Baba Khurram and to convey certain
orders, came on the 7th Khurdad and gave good account of the rules
and regulations made by Baba Khurram. Fida'i Khan, who in the days
of my princehood was my servant, and whom after my accession I had
made bakhshi in this army, and who had obtained favour, gave up the
deposit of his life on the 12th of the same month. Mirza Rustam,
as he showed signs of repentance and regret for his misdeeds, and
generosity demanded that his faults should be pardoned, was, in the
end of the month, summoned to my presence, and I satisfied his mind,
and having given him a dress of honour, ordered him to pay his respects
to me. On the night of Sunday, the 11th of the month of Tir, a female
elephant in the private elephant stud gave birth to a young one in my
presence. I had repeatedly ordered them to ascertain the period of
their gestation; at last it became evident that for a female young
one it was 18 months and for a male 19 months. In opposition to the
birth of a human being, which is in most cases by a head delivery,
young elephants are born with their feet first. When the young one was
born, the mother scattered dust upon it with her foot, and began to
be kind and to pet it. The young one for an instant remained fallen,
and then rising, made towards its mother's breasts. On the 14th the
assembly of Gulab-pashi (sprinkling of rose-water) took place; from
former times this has been known as ab-pashi (water-sprinkling),
and has become established from amongst customs of former days. On
the 5th Amurdad (middle July, 1614) came news of the death of Raja
Man Singh. [419] The aforesaid Raja was one of the chief officers of
my revered father. As I had sent many servants of the State to serve
in the Deccan, I also appointed him. After his death in that service,
I sent for Mirza Bhao Singh, who was his legitimate heir. As from the
time when I was prince he had done much service with me, although the
chiefship and headship of their family, according to the Hindu custom,
should go to Maha Singh, son [420] of Jagat Singh, the Raja's eldest
son, who had died in the latter's lifetime, I did not accept him,
but I dignified Bhao Singh with the title of Mirza Raja, and raised
him to the mansab of 4,000 personal and 3,000 horse. I also gave
him Amber, the native place of his ancestors, and, soothing and
consoling the mind of Maha Singh, increased his former mansab by
500, and gave him as an in`am the territory of Garha. [421] I also
sent him a jewelled dagger belt, a horse, and dress of honour. On
the 8th of this month of Amurdad I found a change in my health,
and by degrees was seized with fever and headache. For fear that
some injury might occur to the country and the servants of God,
I kept this secret from most of those familiar with and near to me,
and did not inform the physicians and hakims. A few days passed in
this manner, and I only imparted this to Nur-Jahan Begam than whom I
did not think anyone was fonder of me; I abstained from eating heavy
foods, and, contenting myself with a little light food, went every day,
according to my rule, to the public Diwan-khana (hall of audience),
and entered the Jharokha and ghusal-khana (parlour) in my usual manner,
until signs of weakness showed themselves in my skin. [422] Some of
the nobles [423] became aware of this, and informed one or two of my
physicians who were trustworthy, such as Hakim Masihu-z-zaman, Hakim
Abu-l-qasim, and Hakim `Abdu-sh-Shakur. As the fever did not change,
and for three nights I took my usual wine, it brought on greater
weakness. In the time of disquietude, and when weakness prevailed
over me, I went to the mausoleum of the revered Khwaja, and in that
blessed abode prayed to God Almighty for recovery, and agreed to give
alms and charity. God Almighty, in His pure grace and mercy, bestowed
on me the robe of honour of health, and by degrees I recovered. The
headache, which had been very severe, subsided under the remedies
of Hakim `Abdu-sh-Shakur, and in the space of twenty-two days my
state returned to what it was before. The servants of the palace,
and indeed the whole of the people, made offerings for this great
bounty. I accepted the alms of no one, and ordered that everyone in
his own house should distribute what he wished among the poor. On the
10th Shahriwar news came that Taj Khan, the Afghan, governor of Thatta,
[424] had died; he was one of the old nobles of the State.
During my illness it had occurred to me that when I completely
recovered, inasmuch as I was inwardly an ear-bored slave of the
Khwaja (Mu`inu-d-din) and was indebted to him for my existence,
I should openly make holes in my ears and be enrolled among his
ear-marked slaves. On Thursday, 12th Shahriwar, [425] corresponding
to the month of Rajab, I made holes in my ears and drew into each a
shining pearl. When the servants of the palace and my loyal friends
saw this, both those who were in the presence and some who were in
the distant borders diligently and eagerly made holes in their ears,
and adorned the beauty of sincerity with pearls and rubies which were
in the private treasury, and were bestowed on them, until by degrees
the infection caught the Ahadis and others. At the end of the day
of Thursday, the 22nd of the said month, corresponding with the 10th
Sha`ban, the meeting for my solar weighing was arranged in my private
audience hall, and the usual observances were carried out. On the
same day Mirza Raja Bhao Singh, gratified and prosperous, returned to
his native country with the promise that he would not delay (there)
more than two or three months. On the 27th of the month of Mihr news
came that Faridun Khan Barlas had died at Udaipur. In the clan of
Barlas no leader remained but he. As his tribe had many claims on
this State and endless connection with it, I patronised his son Mihr
`Ali, and raised him to the mansab of 1,000 personal and horse. On
account of the approved services of Khan Dauran, I increased by 1,000
his mansab, which became 6,000 personal and 5,000 horse, original and
increase. On the 6th Aban the qarawuls (shikaris) reported that three
tigers had been met at a distance of 6 kos. Starting after midday,
I killed all three of them with a gun. On the 8th of the month the
festival of the Dewali came on. I ordered the attendants of the
palace to have games with each other for two or three nights in my
presence; winnings and losings took place. On the 8th of this month
they brought to Ajmir the body of Sikandar Mu`in Qarawul (Shikari),
who was one of my old attendants and had done much service for me when
I was prince, from Udaipur, which was the place where my son Sultan
Khurram was staying. I ordered the qarawuls and his fellow-tribesmen
to take his body and bury it on the bank of Rana Shankar's tank. He
was a good servant to me. On the 12th Azar two daughters whom Islam
Khan in his lifetime had taken from the Zamindar of Kuch (Behar),
whose country is on the boundary of the eastern provinces, together
with his son and 94 elephants, were brought before me. Some of the
elephants were placed in my private stud. On the same day, Hushang,
Islam Khan's son, came from Bengal, and had the good fortune to kiss
the threshold, and presented as offerings two elephants, 100 muhrs,
and 100 rupees. On one particular night in Day I dreamt that the late
king (Akbar) said to me: "Baba, forgive for my sake the fault of
`Aziz Khan, who is the Khan A`zam." After this dream, I decided to
summon him from the fort (of Gwalior).
There is a ravine in the neighbourhood of Ajmir that is very
beautiful. At the end of this ravine a spring appears which
is collected in a long and broad tank, and is the best water in
Ajmir. This valley and spring are well known as Hafiz Jamal. When I
crossed over to this place I ordered a suitable building to be made
there, as the place was good and fit for developing. In the course of
a year a house and grounds were made there, the like of which those
[426] who travel round the world cannot point out. They made a basin
40 gaz by 40, and made the water of the spring rise up in the basin
by a fountain. The fountain leaps up 10 or 12 gaz. Buildings are laid
on the edge of this basin, and in the same way above, where the tank
and fountain are, they have made agreeable places and enchanting
halls and resting-rooms pleasant to the senses. These have been
constructed and finished off in a masterly style by skilled painters
and clever artists. As I desired that it should be called by a name
connected with my august name, I gave it the name of Chashma-i-Nur,
or 'the fountain of light.' In short, the one fault it has is this,
that it ought to have been in a large city, or at a place by which
men frequently pass. From the day on which it was completed I have
often passed Thursdays and Fridays there. I ordered that they should
think out a chronogram for its completion. Sa`ida Gilani, the head
of the goldsmiths, discovered it in this clever hemistich:--
"The palace [427] of Shah Nuru-d-din Jahangir" (1024).
I ordered them to put a stone with this carved upon it on the top of
the portico of the building.
In the beginning of the month of Day, merchants came from Persia
and brought pomegranates of Yazd and melons from Kariz, which are
the best of Khurasan melons, so many that all the servants of the
Court and the Amirs of the frontiers obtained a portion of them and
were very grateful to the True Giver (God) for them. I had never
had such melons and pomegranates. It seemed as if I had never had
a pomegranate or a melon before. Every year I had had melons from
Badakhshan and pomegranates from Kabul, but they bore no comparison
with the Yazd pomegranates and the Kariz melons. As my revered father
(may God's light be his witness!) had a great liking for fruit, I was
very grieved that such fruits had not come to Hindustan from Persia in
his victorious time, that he might have enjoyed and profited by them. I
have the same regret for the Jahangiri `itr (so-called otto of roses),
that his nostrils were not gratified with such essences. This `itr
is a discovery which was made during my reign through the efforts of
the mother of Nur-Jahan Begam. When she was making rose-water a scum
formed on the surface of the dishes into which the hot rose-water
was poured from the jugs. She collected this scum little by little;
when much rose-water was obtained a sensible portion of the scum
was collected. It is of such strength in perfume that if one drop
be rubbed on the palm of the hand it scents a whole assembly, and
it appears as if many red rosebuds had bloomed at once. There is no
other scent of equal excellence to it. It restores hearts that have
gone and brings back withered souls. In reward for that invention I
presented a string of pearls to the inventress. Salima [428] Sultan
Begam (may the lights of God be on her tomb) was present, and she
gave this oil the name of '`itr-i-Jahangiri.'
Great difference appeared in the climates of India. In this
month of Day, in Lahore, which is between Persia and Hindustan,
the mulberry-tree bore fruit of as much sweetness and fine flavour
as in its ordinary season. For some days people were delighted by
eating it. The news-writers of that place wrote this. In the same
days Bakhtar Khan Kalawant, who was closely connected with `Adil
Khan, inasmuch as he (`Adil) married his own brother's daughter to
him, and made him his preceptor in singing and durpat [429] guftan,
appeared in the habit of a dervish. Summoning him and enquiring into
his circumstances, I endeavoured to honour him. In the first assembly I
gave him 10,000 rupees in cash and 50 pieces of cloth of all sorts and
a string of pearls, and having made him a guest of Asaf Khan, ordered
him to enquire into his circumstances. It did not appear whether he
had come without `Adil Khan's permission, or the latter had sent him
in this guise in order that he might find out the designs of this
Court and bring him news about them. Considering his relationship to
`Adil Khan, it is most probable that he has not come without `Adil
Khan's knowledge. A report by Mir Jamalu-d-din Husain, who at this
time was (our) ambassador at Bijapur, corroborates this idea, for
he writes that `Adil Khan has, on account of the kindness which has
been shown by H.M. (Jahangir) to Bakhtar Khan, been very gracious
to him (Jamalu-d-din). Every day he has shown him more and more
favour, keeps him beside him at nights, and recites to him durpats,
which he (`Adil Khan) has composed, and which he calls nauras [430]
(Juvenilia). "The remainder of the facts will be written on the day
when I get my dismissal."
In these days they brought a bird from the country of Zirbad (Sumatra,
etc., Blochmann, p. 616) which was coloured like a parrot, but had
a smaller body. One of its peculiarities is that it lays hold with
its feet of the branch or perch on which they may have placed it and
then makes a somersault, and remains in this position all night and
whispers to itself. When day comes it seats itself on the top of the
branch. Though they say that animals also have worship, yet it is most
likely that this practice is instinctive. It never drinks water, and
water acts like poison upon it, though other birds subsist on water.
In the month [431] of Bahman there came pieces of good news one
after the other. The first was that the Rana Amar Singh had elected
for obedience and service to the Court. The circumstances of this
affair are these. My son of lofty fortune, Sultan Khurram, by dint
of placing a great many posts, especially in some places where
most people said it was impossible to place them on account of the
badness of the air and water and the wild nature of the localities,
and by dint of moving the royal forces one after another in pursuit,
without regard to the heat or excessive rain, and making prisoners
of the families of the inhabitants of that region, brought matters
with the Rana to such a pass that it became clear to him that if this
should happen to him again he must either fly the country or be made
prisoner. Being without remedy, he chose obedience and loyalty, and
sent to my fortunate son his maternal uncle, Subh Karan, with Haridas
Jhala, who was one of the men in his confidence, and petitioned that
if that fortunate son would ask forgiveness for his offences and
tranquillise his mind, and obtain for him the auspicious sign-manual,
[432] he would himself come and wait on my son, and would send his son
and successor Karan to Court, or he, after the manner of other Rajas,
would be enrolled amongst the servants of the Court and do service. He
also begged that he himself might be excused from coming to Court on
account of his old age. Accordingly my son sent them in company with
his own Diwan Mulla Shukru-llah, whom after the conclusion of this
business I dignified with the title of Afzal Khan, and Sundar Das,
his major-domo, who, after this matter was settled, was honoured with
the title of Ray Rayan, to the exalted Court, and represented the
circumstances. My lofty mind was always desirous, as far as possible,
not to destroy the old families. The real point was that as Rana Amar
Singh and his fathers, proud in the strength of their hilly country and
their abodes, had never seen or obeyed any of the kings of Hindustan,
this should be brought about in my reign. At the request of my son I
forgave the Rana's offences, and gave a gracious farman that should
satisfy him, and impressed on it the mark of my auspicious palm. [433]
I also wrote a farman of kindness to my son that if he could arrange
to settle the matter I should be much pleased. My son also sent them
[434] with Mulla Shukru-llah and Sundar Das to the Rana to console
him and make him hopeful of the royal favour. They gave him the
gracious farman with the sign-manual of the auspicious hand, and it
was settled that on Sunday, the 26th of the month of Bahman, he and
his sons should come and pay their respects to my son. The second
piece of good news was the death of Bahadur, who was descended from
the rulers of Gujarat, and was the leaven of disturbance and mischief
(there). Almighty God had annihilated him in His mercy: he died of a
natural illness. The third piece of news was the defeat of the Warza
(Portuguese Viceroy), who had done his best to take the castle and
port of Surat. In the roadstead [435] of the port of Surat a fight
took place between the English, who had taken shelter there, and
the Viceroy. Most of his ships were burnt by the English fire. Being
helpless he had not the power to fight any more, and took to flight. He
sent some one to Muqarrab Khan, who was the governor of the ports of
Gujarat, and knocked at the door of peace, and said that he had come
to make peace and not to make war. It was the English who had stirred
up the war. Another piece of news was that some of the Rajputs, who
had determined to attack and kill `Ambar (misprinted Ghir), had made
an ambush, and finding a good opportunity had gained access to him,
when a slight wound had been inflicted on him by one of them. The men
who were round `Ambar (again misprinted Ghir) had killed the Rajputs
and taken `Ambar to his quarters. A very little [436] more would have
made an end of him. In the end of this month, when I was employed in
hunting in the environs of Ajmir, Muhammad Beg, [437] an attendant
on my fortunate son Sultan Khurram, came and brought a report from
that son, and stated that the Rana had come with his sons and paid
his respects to the prince; "the details would be made known by the
report." I immediately turned the face of supplication to the Divine
Court, and prostrated myself in thanksgiving. I presented a horse,
an elephant, and a jewelled dagger to the aforesaid Muhammad Beg, and
honoured him with the title of Zu-l-faqar Khan.2 From the report it
appeared that on Sunday, the 26th Bahman, the Rana paid his respects
to my fortunate son with the politeness and ritual that servants pay
their respects, and produced as offerings a famous large ruby that
was in his house, with some decorated articles and seven elephants,
some of them fit for the private stud, and which had not fallen into
our hands and were the only ones left him, and nine horses.
My son also behaved to him with perfect kindness. When the Rana
clasped his feet and asked forgiveness for his faults, he took his
head and placed it on his breast, and consoled him in such a manner
as to comfort him. He presented him with a superb dress of honour,
a jewelled sword, a horse with a jewelled saddle, and a private
elephant with silver housings, and, as there were not more than 100
men with him who were worthy of complete robes of honour (sar u pa),
he gave 100 sarupa and 50 horses and 12 jewelled khapwa (daggers). As
it is the custom of the Zamindars that the son who is the heir-apparent
should not go with his father to pay his respects to a king or prince,
the Rana observed this custom, and did not bring with him Karan,
the son who had received the tika. As the hour (fixed by astrology)
of the departure of that son of lofty fortune from that place was
the end of that same day, he gave him leave, so that, having himself
gone, he might send Karan to pay his respects. After he had gone,
Karan also came and did so. To him also he gave a superb dress of
honour, a jewelled sword and dagger, a horse with a gold saddle, and
a special elephant, and on the same day, taking Karan in attendance,
he proceeded towards the illustrious Court. On the 3rd Isfandarmuz my
return to Ajmir from hunting took place. From the 17th Bahman up to
that date, during which I was hunting, one tigress with three cubs
and thirteen nilgaw had been killed. The fortunate prince encamped
on Saturday, the 10th of the same month, at the village of Devrani,
which is near the city of Ajmir, and an order was given that all the
Amirs should go to meet him, and that each should present an offering
according to his standing and condition, and on the next day, Sunday,
the 11th he should have the good fortune to wait upon me. The next
day the prince, with great magnificence, with all the victorious
forces that had been appointed to accompany him on that service,
entered the public palace. The hour for him to wait on me was when
two watches and two gharis of the day had passed, and he had the
good fortune to pay his respects, and performed his prostrations and
salutations. He presented 1,000 ashrafis and 1,000 rupees by way of
offering, 1,000 muhrs and 1,000 rupees by way of charity. I called
that son forward and embraced him, and having kissed his head and
face, favoured him with special kindnesses and greetings. When he
had finished the dues of service and had presented his offerings and
charities, he petitioned that Karan might be exalted with the good
fortune of prostrating himself and paying his respects. I ordered them
to bring him, and the Bakhshis with the usual ceremonies of respect
produced him. After prostration and salutation were completed, at
the request of my son Khurram, I ordered them to place him in front
on the right hand of the circle. After this I ordered Khurram to
go and wait on his mothers, and gave him a special dress of honour,
consisting of a jewelled charqab (sleeveless vest), a coat of gold
brocade, and a rosary of pearls. After he had made his salutation,
there were presented to him a special dress of honour, a special horse
with a jewelled saddle, and a special elephant. I also honoured Karan
with a superb robe of honour and a jewelled sword, and the Amirs and
mansabdars had the honour of prostrating themselves and paying their
respects, and presented their offerings. Each of these, according to
his service and rank, was honoured with favours. As it was necessary
to win the heart of Karan, who was of a wild nature and had never seen
assemblies and had lived among the hills, I every day showed him some
fresh favour, so that on the second day of his attendance a jewelled
dagger, and on the next day a special Iraqi horse with jewelled saddle,
were given to him. On the day when he went to the darbar in the
female apartments, there were given to him on the part of Nur-Jahan
Begam a rich dress of honour, a jewelled sword, a horse and saddle,
and an elephant. After this I presented him with a rosary of pearls
of great value. On the next day a special elephant with trappings
(talayir) were given. As it was in my mind to give him something
of every kind, I presented him with three hawks and three falcons,
a special sword, a coat of mail, a special cuirass, and two rings,
one with a ruby and one with an emerald. At the end of the month I
ordered that all sorts of cloth stuffs, with carpets and cushions
(named takiya) and all kinds of perfumes, with vessels of gold, two
Gujrati carts, and cloths, should be placed in a hundred trays. The
Ahadis carried them in their arms and on their shoulders to the public
audience hall, where they were bestowed on him.
Sabit Khan [438] at the paradise-resembling assemblies was always
addressing unbecoming speeches and making palpable allusions to
I`timadu-d-daulah and his son Asaf Khan. Once or twice, showing
my dislike of this, I had forbidden him to do so, but this was not
enough for him. As I held very dear I`timadu-d-daulah's good-will
towards me, and was very closely connected with his family, this
matter became very irksome to me. As one night without reason and
without motive he began to speak unpleasant words to him, and said
them to such an extent that signs of vexation and annoyance became
evident in I`timadu-d-daulah's face, I sent him next morning, in the
custody of a servant of the Court, to Asaf Khan to say that as on the
previous evening he had spoken unpleasant words to his father I handed
him over to him, and he might shut him up either there or in the fort
of Gwalior, as he pleased; until he made amends to his father I would
never forgive his fault. According to the order Asaf Khan sent him to
Gwalior fort. In the same month Jahangir Quli Khan was promoted to
an increased mansab, and was given that of 2,500 personal and 2,000
horse. Ahmad Beg Khan, who is one of the old retainers of the State,
committed some faults on the journey to the Subah of Kabul, and Qilij
Khan, who was the commander of the army, had repeatedly complained of
his making himself disagreeable. Necessarily I summoned him to Court,
and in order to punish him handed him over to Mahabat Khan to confine
him in the fort of Rantambhor. Qasim Khan, governor of Bengal, had
sent two rubies as an offering, and they were laid before me. As I
had made a rule that they should bring before me after two watches
of the night had passed the dervishes and necessitous people who had
collected in the illustrious palace, this year also after the same
manner I bestowed on the dervishes with my own hand and in my own
presence 55,000 rupees and 190,000 bighas of land, with fourteen
entire villages, and twenty-six ploughs, [439] and 11,000 kharwar
[440] (ass-loads) of rice; I presented as well 732 pearls, of the
value of 36,000 rupees, to the servants who by way of loyalty had
bored their ears.
At the end of the aforesaid month news came that when four and a
half gharis of night had passed on Sunday the 11th of the month, in
the city of Burhanpur, God Almighty had bestowed on Sultan Parwiz a
son by the daughter of Prince Murad. I gave him the name of Sultan
Dur-andish [441] (long-thoughted).
THE TENTH NEW YEAR'S FESTIVAL AFTER MY AUSPICIOUS ACCESSION.
When 55 seconds had passed on Saturday, 1st Farwardin, in my 10th
year, corresponding with the 8th [442] of the month of Safar (March,
1615), 1024 Hijra, the sun from the constellation of Pisces entered the
house of honour of Aries. When three gharis had passed on the night of
Sunday I seated myself on the throne of State. The New Year's feast
and ceremonials were prepared in the usual manner. The illustrious
princes, the great Khans, the chief officers and Ministers of State
made their salutations of congratulation. On the 1st of the month
the mansab of I`timadu-d-daulah was increased from 5,000 personal and
2,000 horse by 1,000 personal and horse. Special horses were given to
the Kunwar Karan, Jahangir Quli Khan, and Raja Bir Singh Deo. On the
2nd the offering of Asaf Khan was laid before me; it was an approved
offering of jewels and jewelled ornaments and things of gold, of
cloth stuffs of all kinds and descriptions and was looked over in
detail. That which I approved was worth 85,000 rupees. On this day a
jewelled sword with a belt and band(?) (band u bar) was given to Karan,
and an elephant to Jahangir Quli Khan. As I had made up my mind to
proceed to the Deccan, I gave an order to `Abdu-l-Karim Ma`muri, to
go to Mandu and prepare a new building for my private residence and
repair the buildings of the old kings. On the 3rd day the offerings
of Raja Bir Singh Deo were laid before me and one ruby, some pearls,
and one elephant had the honour of being accepted. On the 4th day the
mansab of Mustafa Khan was increased by 500 personal and 200 horse
to 2,000 personal and 250 horse. On the 5th I gave a standard and
drums to I`timadu-d-daulah, and an order was given him to beat his
drums. The mansab of Asaf Khan was increased by 1,000 personal and
horse to 4,000 personal and 2,000 horse, and having increased the
mansab of Raja Bir Singh Deo by 700 horse, I dismissed him to his
own country, directing that he should present himself at Court at
stated periods. On the same day the offering of Ibrahim Khan was laid
before me. Some of all the kinds of things pleased me. Kishan Chand,
of the sons of the Rajas of Nagarkot, was honoured with the title of
Raja. On Thursday, the 6th, the offerings of I`timadu-d-daulah were
laid before me at Chashma-i-Nur; a large meeting had been arranged,
and by way of favour the whole of his offerings were inspected. Of
the jewels and jewelled things and choice cloth stuffs the value of
100,000 rupees was accepted, and the remainder given back. On the 7th
day I increased by 1,000 personal the mansab of Kishan Singh, which had
been 2,000 personal and 1,500 horse. On this day a tiger was killed in
the neighbourhood of Chashma-i-Nur. On the 8th I gave Karan the mansab
of 5,000 personal and horse, and gave him a small rosary of pearls and
emeralds with a ruby in the centre which in the language of the Hindus
is called smaran (Sanskrit for 'remembrance'). I increased the mansab
of Ibrahim Khan by 1,000 personal and 400 horse, so as to make it 2,000
personal and 1,000 horse, original and increase. The mansab of Haji Bi
Uzbeg was increased by 300 horse, and that of Raja Shyam Singh by 500
personal so as to make it 2,500 personal and 1,400 horse. On Sunday,
the 9th, there was an eclipse of the sun when twelve gharis of the day
had passed. It began from the west, and four out of five parts of the
sun were eclipsed in the knot of the dragon. From the commencement of
the seizure until it became light eight gharis elapsed. Alms of all
kinds, and things in the shape of metals, animals, and vegetables,
were given to fakirs and the poor and people in need. On this day
the offering of Raja Suraj Singh was laid before me; what was taken
was of the value of 43,000 rupees. The offering of Bahadur Khan, the
governor of Qandahar, was also laid before me on this day; its total
value came to 14,000 rupees. Two watches of the night had passed on the
night of Monday, the 29th Safar (30th March, 1615), in the ascension
of Sagittarius, when a boy was born to Baba Khurram by the daughter
of Asaf Khan; I gave him the name of Dara Shukuh. I hope that his
coming will be propitious to this State conjoined with eternity,
and to his fortunate father. The mansab of Sayyid `Ali Barha was
increased by 500 personal and 300 horse, so as to bring it to 1,500
personal and 1,000 horse. On the 10th the offering of I`tibar Khan
was laid before me, and what was of the value of 40,000 rupees was
accepted. On this day the mansab of Khusrau Bi Uzbeg was raised by
300 horse, and that of Mangli Khan by 500 personal and 200 horse. On
the 11th the offering of Murtaza Khan was laid before me. Of it seven
rubies, one rosary of pearls, and 270 other pearls were accepted, and
their value was 145,000 rupees. On the 12th the offerings of Mirza
Raja Bhao Singh and Rawat Shankar were laid before me. On the 13th,
out of the offering of Khwaja Abu-l-hasan, one qutbi (Egyptian?) ruby,
one diamond, one string of pearls, five rings, four pearls, and some
cloths, altogether the value of 32,000 rupees, were accepted. On the
14th the mansab of Khwaja Abu-l-hasan, which was 3,000 personal and
700 horse, was increased by 1,000 personal and 500 horse, and that
of Wafadar Khan, of 750 personal and 200 horse, by 2,000 personal
and 1,200 horse. On the same day Mustafa Beg, the ambassador of the
ruler of Iran, had the good fortune to wait upon me. After completing
the matter of Gurjistan (Georgia), my exalted brother sent him with
a letter consisting of expressions of friendship and assurances of
sincerity, with several horses, camels, and some stuffs from Aleppo,
which had come for that fortunate brother from the direction of
Rum. Nine large European hunting dogs, for which a request had gone,
were also sent by him.
Murtaza Khan, on this day, obtained leave to go for the capture
of the fort of Kangra, the equal of which for strength they cannot
point to in the hill country of the Panjab or even all the habitable
world. From the time when the sound of Islam reached the country
of Hindustan up to this auspicious time when the throne of rule
has been adorned by this suppliant at the throne of Allah, none of
the rulers or kings has obtained possession of it. Once in the time
of my revered father, the army of the Panjab was sent against this
fort, and besieged it for a long time. At length they came to the
conclusion that the fort was not to be taken, and the army was sent
off to some more necessary business. When he was dismissed, I gave
Murtaza Khan a private elephant with trappings. Raja Suraj Mal, son
of Raja Baso, as his country was near that fort, was also appointed,
and his previous mansab was increased by 500 personal and horse. Raja
Suraj Singh also came from his place and jagir and waited on me, and
presented an offering of 100 ashrafis. On the 17th the offering of
Mirza Rustam was laid before me. Two jewelled daggers, one rosary of
pearls, some pieces of cloth, an elephant, and four Iraq horses were
accepted, and the rest returned; their value was 15,000 rupees. On
the same date the offering of I`tiqad Khan, of the value of 18,000
rupees, was laid before me. On the 18th the offering of Jahangir
Quli Khan was inspected. Of jewels and cloth stuffs the value of
15,000 rupees was accepted. The mansab of I`tiqad Khan, which was 700
personal and 200 horse, I increased by 800 personal and 300 horse,
so that with original and increase it came to 1,500 personal and 500
horse. Khusrau Bi Uzbeg, who was one of the distinguished soldiers,
died of the disease of dysentery. On the 8th day, which was Thursday,
after two watches and four and a half gharis had passed, the sharaf
(highest point of the sun's ascension) began. On this auspicious day I
ascended the throne in happiness and prosperity, and the people saluted
and congratulated me. When one watch of the day remained I went to the
Chashma-i-Nur. According to agreement the offering of Mahabat Khan
was laid before me at that place. He had arranged beautiful jewels
and jewellery, with cloth stuff and articles of all kinds that were
pleasing to me. Among these, a jewelled khapwa (dagger), which at
his request the royal artificers had made, and the like of which in
value there did not exist in my private treasury, was worth 100,000
rupees. In addition to this, jewels and other things of the value
of 138,000 rupees were taken. Indeed, it was a splendid offering. To
Mustafa Beg, the ambassador of the ruler of Iran, I gave 20,000 darab,
or 10,000 rupees. On the 21st I sent robes of honour by the hand of
`Abdu-l-Ghafur to fifteen of the Amirs of the Deccan. Raja Bikramajit
obtained leave to go to his jagir, and a special shawl (parm narm
[443]) was given to him. On the same day I gave a jewelled waist-dagger
to Mustafa Beg, the ambassador. I increased the mansab of Hushang,
the son of Islam Khan, which was 1,000 personal and 500 horse, by 500
personal and 200 horse. On the 23rd, Ibrahim Khan was promoted to the
Subah of Behar. Zafar Khan was ordered to present himself at Court. To
the mansab of Ibrahim Khan, which was 2,000 personal and 1,000 horse,
I added 500 personal and 1,000 horse. Saif Khan on the same day was
dismissed to his jagir, as well as Haji Bi Uzbeg, who was honoured
with the title of Uzbeg Khan. Bahaduru-l-mulk, who belonged to the
army of the Deccan and held the mansab of 2,500 personal and 2,100
horse received an increase of 500 personal and 200 horse. An increase
of 200 was made in the mansab of Khwaja Taqi, which was 800 personal
and 180 horse. On the 25th an increase of 200 horse was made in the
rank of Salamu-llah, the Arab, so that it became 1,500 personal and
1,000 horse. I presented Mahabat Khan with the black piebald horse
out of my special horses which the ruler of Iran had sent me. At
the end of the day of Thursday I went to the house of Baba Khurram
and remained there till a watch of the night had passed. His second
offering was laid before me on that day. On the first day he paid his
respects he laid before me a celebrated ruby of the Rana, which, on the
day of his paying his respects, he had made an offering of to my son,
and which the jewellers valued at 60,000 rupees. It was not worthy of
the praise they had given it. The weight of this ruby was eight tank,
[444] and it was formerly in the possession of Ray Maldeo, who was the
chief of the tribe of the Rathors and one of the chief rulers (or Rays)
of Hindustan. From him it was transferred to his son Chandar Sen, who,
in the days of his wretchedness and hopelessness, sold it to Rana
Uday Singh. From him it went to Rana Partap, and afterwards to this
Rana Amar Singh. As they had no more valuable gift in their family,
he presented it on the day that he paid his respects to my fortunate
son Baba Khurram, together with the whole of his stud of elephants,
which, according to the Indian idiom, they call gheta char. [445]
I ordered them to engrave on the ruby that at the time of paying his
respects Rana Amar Singh had presented it as an offering to Sultan
Khurram. On that day certain other things from among the offerings of
Baba Khurram were accepted. Among them was a little crystal box of
Frank work, made with great taste, with some emeralds, three rings,
four Iraq horses, and various other things, the value of which was
80,000 rupees. On the day on which I went to his house he had prepared
a great offering, in fact there were laid before me things and rarities
worth about four or five lakhs of rupees. Of these the equivalent of
100,000 rupees was taken away and the balance given to him.
On the 28th the mansab of Khwaja Jahan, which was 3,000 personal and
1,800 horse, was increased by 500 personal and 400 horse. In the end
of the month I presented Ibrahim Khan with a horse, a robe of honour,
a jewelled dagger, a standard and drums, and dismissed him to the
province of Behar. The office of `arz-mukarrir (reviser of petitions),
that belonged to Khwajagi Haji Muhammad, as he had died, I gave to
Mukhlis Khan, who was in my confidence. Three hundred horse were
increased in the mansab of Dilawar Khan, who now had 1,000 personal
and horse. As the hour of the leave-taking of Kunwar Karan was at hand,
I was desirous of showing him my skill in shooting with a gun. Just at
this time the qarawulan (shikaris) brought in news of a tigress. Though
it is an established custom of mine only to hunt male tigers, yet,
in consideration that no other tiger might be obtained before his
departure, I went for the tigress. I took with me Karan, and said
to him that I would hit it wherever he wished me to do so. After
this arrangement I went to the place where they had marked down the
tiger. By chance there was a wind and disturbance in the air, and the
female elephant on which I was mounted was terrified of the tigress
and would not stand still. Notwithstanding these two great obstacles
to shooting, I shot straight towards her eye. God Almighty did not
allow me to be ashamed before that prince, and, as I had agreed,
I shot her in the eye. On the same day Karan petitioned me for a
special gun, and I gave him a special Turkish one.
As on the day for his departure I had not given Ibrahim Khan an
elephant, I now gave him a special elephant, and I also sent an
elephant to Bahaduru-l-mulk and one to Wafadar Khan. On the 8th
Urdibihisht the assemblage for my lunar weighing was held, and I
weighed myself against silver and other things, distributing them
amongst the deserving and needy. Nawazish Khan took leave to go to
his jagir, which was in Malwa. On the same day I gave an elephant to
Khwaja Abu-l-hasan. On the 9th they brought Khan A`zam, who had come
to Agra from the fort of Gwalior, and who had been sent for. Though
he had been guilty of many offences, and in all that I had done
to him I was right, yet when they brought him into my presence
and my eye fell on him, I perceived more shame in myself than in
him. Having pardoned all his offences, I gave him the shawl I had
round my waist. I gave Kunwar Karan 100,000 darab. On the same day
Raja Suraj Singh brought a large elephant of the name of Ran-rawat,
which was a celebrated elephant of his, as an offering. In fact,
it was such a rare elephant that I put it into my private stud. On
the 10th the offering of Khwaja Jahan, which he sent me from Agra
by the hand of his son, was laid before me. It was of all kinds of
things, of the value of 40,000 rupees. On the 12th the offering of
Khan Dauran, which consisted of forty-five [446] horse two strings
of camels, Arabian dogs (greyhounds), and hunting animals (hawks?),
was brought before me. On the same day seven other elephants from Raja
Suraj Singh were also brought to me as an offering, and were placed
in my private stud. Tahayyur Khan, after he had been in attendance
on me for four months, to-day got leave to go. A message was sent to
`Adil Khan. I impressed on him the profit and loss of friendship and
enmity, and made an agreement (with Tahayyur Khan) that all these
words should be repeated to `Adil Khan, and he should bring him back
to the path of loyalty and obedience. At the time of his taking leave I
also bestowed on him certain things. On the whole, in this short time,
what with the gifts bestowed on him by me privately, by the princes,
and those given him by the Amirs according to order, the account
mounted up to about 100,000 rupees that he had received. On the 14th
the rank and reward of my son Khurram were fixed. His mansab had
been one of 12,000 personal and 6,000 horse, and that of his brother
(Parwiz) 15,000 personal and 8,000 horse. I ordered his mansab to be
made equal with that of Parwiz, besides other rewards. I gave him a
private elephant of the name of Panchi Gaj, [447] with accoutrements
of the value of 12,000 rupees. On the 16th an elephant was given to
Mahabat Khan. On the 17th the mansab of Raja Suraj Singh, which was
4,000 personal and 3,000 horse, was increased by 1,000, and it was
raised to 5,000. At the request of `Abdu-llah Khan the mansab of Khwaja
`Abdu-l-Latif, which was 500 personal and 200 horse, was raised by 200,
and it was ordered to be 1,000 personal and 400 horse. `Abdu-llah,
the son of Khan A`zam, who was imprisoned in the fort of Rantambhor,
was sent for at the request of his father. He came to the Court, and
I took the chains off his legs and sent him to his father's house. On
the 24th, Raja Suraj Singh presented me with another elephant, called
Fauj-sangar ('ornament of the army'), by way of offering. Although
this is also a good elephant, and has been placed in my private stud,
it is not to be compared with the first elephant (he sent), which
is one of the wonders of the age, and is worth 20,000 rupees. On
the 26th, 200 personal were added to the mansab of Badi`u-z-zaman,
son of Mirza Shahrukh; it was 700 personal and 500 horse. On the
same day Khwaja Zainu-d-din, who is of the Naqshbandi Khwajas,
came from Mawara'a-n-nahr and waited on me, bringing as an offering
eighteen horses. Qizilbash Khan, who was one of the auxiliaries of
the province of Gujarat, had come to Court without the leave of the
governor. I ordered that an ahadi should put him into confinement,
and that he be sent back to the governor of Gujarat, so that others
might not desire to do the same. The mansab of Mubarak Khan Sazawal
I raised 500 personal, so that it should be 1,500 personal and 700
horse. On the 29th I gave Khan A`zam 100,000 rupees, and ordered that
the parganahs of Dasna [448] and Kasna,1 which are equivalent to 5,000
personal, should be made his jagir. At the end of the same month I gave
leave to Jahangir Quli Khan, with his brothers and other relatives,
to go to Allahabad, which had been appropriated to them as jagir. At
this meeting twenty horse, a qaba (parm narm) of Cashmere cloth,
twelve deer, and ten Arabian dogs were given to Karan. The next day,
which was the 1st Khurdad, forty horse, the next day forty-one horse,
and the third day twenty, amounting in the space of three days to
101 head, were given as a present to Kunwar Karan. In return for the
elephant Fauj-sangar, an elephant worth 10,000 rupees out of my private
stud was presented to Raja Suraj Singh. On the 5th of the month ten
turbans (chira), ten coats (qaba), and ten waist-bands were given to
Karan. On the 20th I gave him another elephant.
In these days the news-writer of Kashmir had written that a Mulla of
the name of Gada'i, a disciplined dervish, who for forty years had
lived in one of the monasteries of the city, had prayed the inheritors
of that monastery two years [449] before he was to deliver over the
pledge of his life that he might select a corner in that monastery
as a place for his burial. They said, "Let it be so." In short, he
selected a place. When the time for his delivery came he informed his
friends and relations and those who were dear to him that an order
had reached him that, delivering over the pledge (of life) he had, he
should turn towards the last world. Those who were present wondered
at his words, and said that the prophets had no such information,
and how could they believe such words? He said, "Such an order has
been given to me." He then turned to one of his confidants, who was
of the sons of the Qazis of the country, and said: "You will expend
the price [450] of my Koran, which is worth 700 tankas, in carrying
me (to the grave). When you hear the call to Friday's prayer you
will enquire for me." This conversation took place on the Thursday,
and he divided all the goods in his room among his acquaintance and
disciples, and went, and at end of the day bathed at the baths. The
Qazi-zada aforesaid came before the call for prayer, and enquired
as to the health of the Mulla. When he came to the door of the
cell he found the door closed and a servant sitting there. He asked
the slave what had happened, and the servant said, "The Mulla has
enjoined me that until the door of the cell open of its own accord I
must not go in." Shortly after these words were said the door of the
cell opened. The Qazi-zada entered the cell with that servant and saw
that the Mulla was on his knees with his face turned toward the qibla,
and had given up his soul to God. Happy the state of the freed who can
fly away from this place of the snares of dependence with such ease!
By the increase of 200 personal and 50 horse in the mansab of Karam
Sen Rathor, I raised it to 1,000 personal and 300 horse. On the
11th of this month the offering of Lashkar Khan, which consisted of
three strings of Persian camels and twenty cups and plates from Khita
(China) and twenty Arabian dogs, was brought before me. On the 12th
a jewelled dagger was bestowed on I`tibar Khan, and to Karan I gave
a plume (kalgi) worth 2,000 rupees. On the 14th I gave a dress of
honour to Sar- [451]buland Ray, and gave him leave to go to the Deccan.
On the night of Friday, the 15th, a strange affair occurred. By chance
on that night I was at Pushkar. To be brief, Kishan, own brother to
Raja Suraj Singh, was in great perturbation through Gobind Das, the
Vakil of the said Raja having some time ago killed his nephew, a youth
of the name of Gopal Das. The cause of the quarrel it would take too
long to tell. Kishan Singh expected that, as Gopal Das was also the
nephew of the Raja (Suraj Singh), the latter would kill Gobind Das. But
the Raja, on account of the experience and ability of Gobind Das,
relinquished the idea of seeking revenge for his nephew's death. When
Kishan saw this neglect on the part of the Raja, he resolved himself
to take revenge for his nephew, and not allow his blood to pass away
unnoticed. For a long time he kept this matter in his mind, until on
that night he assembled his brothers, friends, and servants, and told
them that he would go that night to take Gobind Das's life, whatever
might happen, and that he did not care what injury might happen to
the Raja. The Raja was in ignorance of what was happening, and when
it was near dawn Kishan came with Karan, his brother's son, and other
companions. When he arrived at the gate of the Raja's dwelling he
sent some of the experienced men on foot to the house of Gobind Das,
which was near the Raja's. He himself (Kishan) was on horseback, and
stationed himself near the gate. The men on foot entered Gobind Das's
house, and killed some of those who were there on guard. Whilst this
fight was going on Gobind Das awoke, and seizing his sword in a state
of bewilderment was coming out from one side of the house to join the
outside watchmen. When the men on foot had finished killing some of
the people, they came out of the tent to endeavour to find out Gobind
Das, and, meeting him, they finished his affair (killed him). Before
the news of the killing of Gobind Das reached Kishan, he, unable to
bear it any more, dismounted and came inside the dwelling. Although
his men protested in a disturbed state that it was not right to be on
foot, he would in no way listen to them. If he had remained a little
longer and the news of his enemy having been killed had reached him,
it is possible that he would have escaped safe and sound, mounted as
he was. As the pen of destiny had gone forth after another fashion,
as soon as he alighted and went in, the Raja, who was in his mahall
(female apartment), awoke at the uproar among the people, and stood
at the gate of his house with his sword drawn. People from all sides
were aroused and came in against the men who were on foot. They saw
what the number of men on foot was, and came out in great numbers
and faced Kishan Singh's men, who were about ten in number. In short,
Kishan Singh and his nephew Karan, when they reached the Raja's house,
were attacked by these men and both of them killed. Kishan Singh had
seven and Karan nine wounds. Altogether in this fight 66 men on the
two sides were killed, on the Raja's side 30 and on Kishan Singh's
36. When the sun rose and illumined the world with its light, this
business was revealed, and the Raja saw that his brother, his nephew,
and some of his servants, whom he considered dearer than himself,
were killed, and the whole of the rest had dispersed to their own
places. The news reached me in Pushkar, and I ordered them to burn
those who were killed, according to their rites, and inform me of the
true circumstances of the affair. In the end it became clear that the
affair had happened in the manner in which it has been written here,
and that no further enquiry was necessary.
On the 8th Miran Sadr Jahan came from his native place and waited on
me with an offering of 100 muhrs. Ray Suraj Singh was dismissed to
his duty in the Deccan. I presented him with a couple of pearls for
his ears and a special Kashmir shawl (parm narm). A pair of pearls
were also sent to Khan Jahan. On the 25th I increased the mansab
of I`tibar Khan by 600 horse, so as to bring it to 5,000 personal
and 2,000 horse. On the same day Karan obtained leave to go to his
jagir. He received a present of a horse, a special elephant, a dress
of honour, a string of pearls of the value of 50,000 rupees, and a
jewelled dagger which had been completed for 2,000 rupees. From the
time of his waiting on me till he obtained leave, what he had had
in the shape of cash, jewellery, jewels, and jewelled things was
of the value of 200,000 rupees, with 110 horses, five elephants, in
addition to what my son Khurram bestowed on him at various times. I
gave Mubarak Khan Sazawal a horse and an elephant, and appointed him
to accompany him. I sent several verbal messages to the Rana. Raja
Suraj Singh also obtained leave to go to his native country, with a
promise to return in two months. On the 27th, Payanda Khan Moghul,
[452] who was one of the old Amirs of the State, gave up the deposit
of his life.
At the end of this month news came that the ruler of Iran had executed
his eldest son Safi Mirza. This was a cause of great bewilderment. When
I enquired into it they said that at Darash, [453] which is one of
the noted cities of Gilan, he ordered a slave of the name of Bihbud
to kill Safi Mirza. The slave found an opportunity, early in the
morning on the 5th of Muharram, in the year 1024 (25th January,
1615), when the Mirza was returning from the baths towards his
house, and finished his affair for him with two wounds from a sword
(sikhaki). [454] After a great part of the day had passed, while his
body lay between the water and the mud, Shaikh Baha'u-d-din Muhammad,
who was the best known man in the country for learning and holiness,
and on whom the Shah had full reliance, reported the affair, and,
obtaining leave to lift him up, took his corpse and sent it to Ardabil,
where was the burial-ground of his ancestors. Although much enquiry was
made of travellers from Iran, no one would say a word of this affair
that satisfied my mind with regard to it. The killing of a son must
have some powerful motive in order to do away with the disgrace of it.
On the 1st of the month of Tir I gave an elephant of the name of
Ranjit with its trappings to Mirza Rustam and another to Sayyid
Ali Barha. Mirak Husain, a relation of Khwaja Shamsu-d-din, was
appointed bakhshi and news-writer of the Subah of Behar, and took
leave to go. I gave Khwaja `Abdu-l-Latif Qush-begi (the falconer) an
elephant and a dress of honour, and dismissed him to his jagir. On
the 9th of the same month I gave a jewelled sword to Khan Dauran,
and a jewelled dagger was sent for Allahdad, the son of Jalala the
Afghan, who had become loyal. On the 13th took place the meeting for
the festival of the Ab-pashan [455] (rose-water scattering), and the
servants of the Court amused themselves with sprinkling rose-water
over each other. On the 17th, Amanat Khan was appointed to the port
of Cambay. As Muqarrab Khan proposed to come to Court, the (charge
of the) aforesaid port was changed. On the same day I sent a jewelled
waist-dagger to my son Parwiz. On the 18th the offering of Khankhanan
was laid before me. He had prepared all kinds of jewellery and other
things, jewels with jewelled things, such as three rubies and 103
pearls, 100 rubies (yaqut), two jewelled daggers and an aigrette
adorned with rubies and pearls, a jewelled water-jar, a jewelled
sword, a quiver bound with velvet, and a diamond ring, altogether
of the value of about 100,000 rupees, in addition to jewels and
jewelled things, cloth from the Deccan and Carnatic, and all kinds
of gilt and plain things, with fifteen elephants and a horse whose
mane reached the ground. The offering of Shah-nawaz Khan (his son)
also, consisting of five elephants, 300 pieces of all kinds of cloth,
was brought before me. On the 8th I honoured Hushang with the title
of Ikram Khan. Ruz-afzun, who was one of the princes of the Subah of
Behar and who had been from his youth one of the permanent servants
of the Court, having been honoured by admission into Islam, was made
Raja of the province of his father, Raja Sangram. [456] Though the
latter had been killed in opposing the leaders of the State, I gave
him an elephant and leave to go to his native place. An elephant was
presented to Jahangir Quli Khan. On the 24th, Jagat Singh, son of
Kunwar Karan, who was in his 12th year, came and waited on me, and
presented petitions from his grandfather, the Rana Amar Singh, and
from his father. The signs of nobility and high birth were evident on
his face. I pleased him with a dress of honour and kindness. To the
mansab of Mirza `Isa Tarkhan an addition of 200 personal was made,
so that it attained to 1,200 personal and 300 horse. In the end
of the month, having honoured Shaikh Husain Rohila with the title
of Mubariz Khan, I dismissed him to his jagir. Ten thousand darabs
(5,000 rupees) were given to the relations of Mirza Sharafu-d-din
Husain Kashghari, who at this time had come and had the honour of
kissing the threshold. On the 5th Amurdad, to the mansab of Raja
Nathmal, which was 1,500 personal and 1,100 horse, an addition of
500 personal and 100 horse was made. On the 7th, Kesho (Das) Maru,
who had a jagir in the Sarkar of Orissa, and who had been sent for to
Court on account of a complaint [457] against the governor of the Subah
of that place, came and paid his respects. He produced as an offering
four elephants. As I had a great desire to see my farzand (son) Khan
Jahan (Lodi), and for the purpose of enquiring into important matters
connected with the Deccan, it was necessary for him to come at once,
I sent for him. On Tuesday, the 8th of the same month, he waited on me,
and presented as an offering 1,000 muhrs, 1,000 rupees, 4 rubies, 20
pearls, 1 emerald, and a jewelled phul katara, the total value being
50,000 rupees. On the night of Sunday, as it was the anniversary of
the great Khwaja (Mu`inu-d-din), I went to his revered mausoleum,
and remained there till midnight. The attendants and Sufis exhibited
ecstatic states, and I gave the fakirs and attendants money with
my own hand; altogether there were expended 6,000 rupees in cash,
100 saub-kurta (a robe down to the ankles), 70 rosaries of pearls,
[458] coral and amber, etc. Maha Singh, grandson of Raja Man Singh,
was honoured with the title of Raja, and a standard and drums given
him. On the 16th an Iraq horse out of my private stable and another
horse were presented to Mahabat Khan. On the 19th an elephant was
given to Khan A`zam. On the 20th, 200 horse were added to the mansab
of Kesho (Das) Maru, which was 2,000 personal and 1,000 horse, and
he was dignified with a dress of honour. An increase of 200 personal
and horse was made to the mansab of Khwaja `Aqil, which was 1,200
personal and 600 horse. On the 22nd, Mirza Raja Bhao Singh took leave
to go to Amber, which was his ancient native place, and had given him
a special Kashmir phup (?) robe. [459] On the 25th, Ahmad Beg Khan,
who was imprisoned at Rantambhor, paid his respects to me, and his
offences were pardoned on account of his former services. On the 28th,
Muqarrab Khan came from the Subah of Gujarat and waited on me, and
offered an aigrette and a jewelled throne. [460] An increase of 500
personal and horse was made to the mansab of Salaamu-llah, the Arab,
and it was brought to 2,000 personal and 1,100 horse. On the 1st of the
month of Shahriwar the following increases were made in the rank of
a number of men who were going on service to the Deccan:--To Mubariz
Khan 300 horse, making 1,000 personal and horse. Nahir Khan was also
raised to 1,000 personal and horse. Dilawar Khan was raised by 300
horse to 2,500 personal and horse. Mangli Khan's rank was increased
by 200 horse to 1,500 personal and 1,000 horse. Girdhar, the son of
Ray Sal, had the rank of 800 personal and horse bestowed on him, and
Ilf Khan Qiyam Khan the same mansab, original and increase. Yadgar
Husain was raised to 700 personal and 500 horse, and Kamalu-d-din,
son of Shir Khan, to the same mansab. One hundred and fifty horse were
added to the rank of Sayyid `Abdu-llah Barha, which then came to 700
personal and 300 horse, original and increase. On the 8th of the said
month I bestowed one Nur-jahani muhr, which is equal to 6,400 rupees,
on Mustafa Beg, the ambassador of the ruler of Iran, and presented
five cheetahs to Qasim Khan, governor of Bengal. Mirza Murad, eldest
son of Mirza Rustam, on the 12th of the same month was honoured with
the title of Iltifat Khan. On the night of the 16th, corresponding with
the Shab-i-barat (consecrated to the memory of forefathers), I ordered
them to light lamps on the hills round the Ana Sagar tank and on its
banks, and went myself to look at them. The reflection of the lamps
fell on the water and had a wonderful appearance. I passed the most
of that night with the ladies of the mahall on the bank of that tank.
On the 17th, Mirza Jamalu-d-din Husain, [461] who had gone as an
ambassador to Bijapur, came and waited on me, and presented three
rings, the stone of one of which was a cornelian from Yemen, of
great beauty and pureness of water, the like of which is seldom
seen among the cornelians of Yemen. `Adil Khan sent a person of
the name of Sayyid Kabir Khan on his own part with the said Mir,
and forwarded as offerings elephants with gold and silver fittings,
Arab horses, jewels and jewelled things, and all kinds of cloth made
in that country. On the 24th of this month they were brought before
me with a letter he had brought. On the same day the assembly for my
solar weighing was held. On the 26th, Mustafa Beg, the ambassador,
took his leave. In addition to what had been bestowed on him during
the time of his attendance, I gave him 20,000 rupees more in cash
and a dress of honour, and in answer to the letter he had brought
sent a friendly letter written in the perfection of friendship. On
the 4th of the month of Mihr the mansab of Mir Jamalu-d-din Husain,
which was 2,000 personal and 500 horse, was fixed at 4,000 personal
and 2,000 horse. On the 5th, Mahabat Khan, in company with Khan
Jahan, who had been appointed to serve in the Deccan, at the hour
that had been appointed for him, took his leave; he was honoured
with a dress of honour, a jewelled dagger, a phul katara, a special
sword, and an elephant. On the 8th, Khan Jahan took his leave, and I
presented him with a dress of honour, and a special nadiri (a dress),
and an ambling horse with a saddle, a special elephant, and a special
sword. On the same date 1,700 horse of those under the command of
Mahabat Khan were ordered to have assignments (tankhwah) for two or
three horses given them. The whole of the men who were at this time
appointed for service in the Deccan were 330 mansabdars, 3,000 ahadis,
700 horse from the Uymaqs, and 3,000 Dalazak Afghans. Altogether
there were 30,000 [462] cavalry, and 3,000,000 rupees of treasure,
and an efficient artillery, and war elephants. They proceeded on this
duty. The mansab of Sarbuland Ray was increased by 500 personal and
260 horse, and came to 2,000 personal and 1,500 horse. Balju, nephew of
Qilij Khan, was promoted to the mansab of 1,000 personal and 700 horse,
original and increase. I also increased Raja Kishan Das's mansab by
500. At the request of Khan Jahan, the mansab of Shahbaz Khan Lodi,
who belonged to the Deccan force, was fixed, original and increase,
at 2,000 personal and 1,000 horse; and 200 horse were added to the
mansab of Wazir Khan. The mansab of Suhrab Khan, son of Mirza Rustam,
was fixed at 1,000 personal and 400 horse, original and increase. On
the 14th of the same month 1,000 was added to the mansab of Mir
Jamalu-d-din Husain, and by increasing it also by 500 horse he was
raised to the exalted rank of 5,000 personal and 2,500 horse. On the
19th, Raja Suraj Singh, with his son Gaj Singh, who had gone home,
came and paid their respects, and presented as offerings 100 muhrs and
1,000 rupees. I gave Sayyid Kabir, who had been sent by `Adil Khan,
one Nurjahani muhr, which weighed 500 tulcha. On the 23rd, ninety
elephants of those which Qasim Khan had acquired from the conquest
of the country of Kuch (Behar), and the conquest of the Maghs and the
zamindars of Orissa, were brought before me and placed in the special
elephant houses. On the 26th, Iradat Khan was raised to the rank of
Mir-samani (head butler), Mu`tamad Khan to that of Bakhshi of the
Ahadis, Muhammad Riza Jabiri to that of Bakhshi of the Subah of the
Panjab and news writer of that place. Sayyid Kabir, who had come on
the part of `Adil Khan to beg pardon for the offences of the rulers
(dunya-daran) of the Deccan, and to promise the restoration of the
fort of Ahmadnagar and the royal territory which had been taken out
of the possession of the chiefs of the victorious State through the
rebellion of certain rebels, came and waited on me, and obtained
leave to go on this date; and, having received a dress of honour,
an elephant, and a horse, started off. As Raja Raj Singh Kachhwaha
had died in the Deccan, I promoted his son Ram Das to the mansab of
1,000 personal and 400 horse. On the 4th of Aban, drums were given
to Saif Khan Barha and his mansab increased by 300 horse, so as to
bring it up to 3,000 personal and 2,000 horse. On the same date I
released Raja Man, who was in confinement in the fort of Gwalior,
on the security of Murtaza Khan, and, confirming his mansab, sent
him to the said Khan for duty at the fort of Kangra. At the request
of Khan Dauran, an increase of 300 horse was ordered to the mansab
of Sadiq Khan, raising it to 1,000 personal and horse. Mirza `Isa
Tarkhan came from the province of Sambhal, which was his jagir, and
waited on me, and offered 100 muhrs. On the 16th, Raja Suraj Singh
obtained leave to go to his duty in the Deccan, and I increased his
mansab by 300 horse, so as to make it 5,000 personal and 3,300 horse;
he received a dress of honour and a horse, and started. On the 18th
I confirmed the mansab of Mirza `Isa, original and increase, at 1,500
personal and 800 horse, and gave him an elephant and a dress of honour,
and he took leave to go to the Deccan.
On the same day the news of the death of the wretch Chin Qilij was
received by a letter from Jahangir Quli Khan. After the death of Qilij
Khan, who was one of the old servants of this State, I had made this
inauspicious man an Amir, and shown him great favour, and given him
in jagir such a place as Jaunpur. I also sent his other brothers and
relations with him and made them his deputies. He had one brother of
the name of Lahori, [463] of a very wicked disposition. It was reported
to me that the servants of God (people) were greatly oppressed by his
conduct. I sent an ahadi to bring him (Lahori) from Jaunpur. At the
coming of the ahadi, suspicion without any cause prevailed over Chin
Qilij, and it came into his mind to run away, taking his misguided
brother with him. Leaving his mansab, his government, place, and jagir,
money, property, children, and people, he took a little money and gold
and a few jewels and went with a small body among the zamindars. This
news arrived a few days ago and caused great astonishment. In short,
to whatever zamindar he went he took money [464] from him(?) and then
let him go(?), until news came that he had entered the country of
Johat. [465] When this news reached Jahangir Quli Khan, he sent some
of his men to take and bring that thoughtless one. They took him as
soon as they arrived, and were intending to take him to Jahangir Quli
Khan, when he at that very moment went to hell. Some of those who had
accompanied him said that for some days previously he had contracted
an illness and it had killed him. But this was heard of him as well,
that he committed suicide, in order that they might not take him to
Jahangir Quli Khan in this state. In any case, they brought his body
with his children and servants who were with him to Allahabad. They
made away with most of the money that he had, and the zamindars took
it from him. Alas, that salt (i.e. loyalty) should not have brought
such black-faced wretches to condign punishment!
"Behind the duty that lies on all people is the duty to the
sovereign and benefactor"(?). [466]
On the 22nd, at the request of Khan Dauran, 200 horse were added to the
mansab of Nad `Ali Maidani, one of the officers appointed to Bangash,
which brought it to 1,500 personal and 1,000 horse; 100 horse were
also added to the mansab of Lashkar Khan, which was 2,000 personal
and 900 horse. On the 24th I confirmed the mansab of Muqarrab Khan,
which was 3,000 personal and 2,000 horse, and increased it to 5,000
personal and 2,500 horse. On the same day I bestowed the title of Khan
on Qiyam, son of Shah Muhammad Qandahari, who was an Amir-zada, and was
in service as a huntsman. On the 5th of the month of Azar a jewelled
dagger was given to Darab Khan, and by the hand of Raja Sarang Deo
dresses of honour were bestowed on the Amirs of the Deccan. As some
(evil) things had been heard about Safdar Khan, governor of Kashmir,
I dismissed him from the government, and favouring Ahmad Beg Khan
on account of his previous services, I promoted him to be Subadar of
Kashmir, and confirmed his mansab of 2,500 personal and 1,500 horse,
honoured him with a jewelled waist-dagger and a dress of honour, and
gave him leave. By the hand of Ihtimam Khan I sent winter dresses of
honour to Qasim Khan, governor of Bengal, and the Amirs that were
attached to that province. On the 15th of the month there was laid
before me the offering of Maka'i, son of Iftikhar Khan, consisting of
an elephant, got [467] horses, and pieces of cloth. He was honoured
with the title of Muruwwat Khan. At the request of I`timadu-d-daula,
I had sent for Dayanat Khan, who was in the fort of Gwalior, and he
had the good fortune to pay his respects; his property, which had
been confiscated, was restored to him.
At this time Khwaja Hashim, of Dahbid, who at this day vigorously
maintains in Transoxiana the profession of a dervish, and in whom
the people of that country have great belief, sent a letter by the
hand of one of his disciples pointing out his old devotion (to the
royal family) and connection and friendship of his ancestors with
this illustrious family, together with a farji [468] and a bow and a
couplet which the late king Babar had made for a saint of the name
of Khwajagi, who also belonged to that sect of dervishes. The last
hemistich is as follows:--
"We are bound to the Khwajagi and are servants to the Khwajagi."
I also with my own pen wrote some lines in the style of that writing,
and sent impromptu quatrains with 1,000 Jahangiri muhrs to the said
Khwaja--
"O thou whose kindness to me is ever more and more,
The State has remembrance of thee, O Dervish,
As from good tidings our heart is rejoiced,
We are glad that thy kindness passes all bounds."
As I ordered that whoever had the poetic temperament should recite
(compose?) this quatrain, [469] Hakim Masihu-z-zaman said, and said
very well--
"Although we have the business of kingship before us,
Every moment more and more we think on the dervishes.
If the heart of our Dervish be gladdened by us
We count that to be the profit of our kingship."
I gave the Hakim 1,000 muhrs for the composition of this quatrain. On
the 7th of the month of Day, when I was coming back from Pushkar and
returning to Ajmir, on the way forty-two wild pigs were taken.
On the 20th, Mir Miran came and waited on me. A summary of his
circumstances and of his family is now written. On the side of his
father [470] he is the grandson of Mir Ghiyasu-d-din Muhammad Mir
Miran, son of Shah Ni`matu-llah Wali. During the reigns of the Safawi
kings the family had attained to great respect, so that Shah Tahmasp
gave his own sister Janish [471] Khanim to Shah Ni`matu-llah, and so
on account of his being a great Shaikh and of his being an instructor
he was made a relative and a son-in-law (of kings). On the side of his
mother he was the daughter's son of Shah Isma`il Khuni (Isma`il II, the
Bloody). After the death of Shah Ni`matu-llah, his son Ghiyasu-d-din
Muhammad Mir Miran received great consideration, and the late Shah
(Tahmasp) gave to his eldest son in marriage a daughter from the royal
family. He gave the daughter of the above-mentioned Shah Isma`il to
another son of his, Khalilu-llah, to whom Mir Miran was born. The
aforesaid Mir Khalilu-llah, seven or eight years before this, had come
from Persia and waited on me at Lahore. As he belonged to a high and
saintly family, I was much interested in his affairs, and gave him a
mansab and a jagir, and honoured and cherished him. After the seat of
government was at Agra, in a short time he was attacked by bilious
[472] diarrhoea from eating too many mangoes, and in ten or twelve
days gave up his soul to the Creator. I was grieved at his going,
and ordered what he had left in cash and jewels to be sent to his
children in Persia. Meanwhile Mir Miran, who was 22 years old, became
a qalandar and dervish, and came to me at Ajmir in a way that nobody
on the road could recognize him. I soothed all the troubles of his
mind and the miseries of his inward and outward condition, and gave
him a mansab of 1,000 personal and 400 horse, and presented him with
30,000 darabs in cash. He is now in waiting and attendance on me.
On the 12th, Zafar Khan, who had been removed from the Subah of Behar,
came and waited on me, and made an offering of 100 muhrs, as well as
three elephants. On the 15th of Day I increased the mansab of Qasim
Khan, the Subahdar of Bengal, by 1,000 personal and horse, so as to
make it 4,000 personal and horse. As the diwan and bakhshi of Bengal,
Husain Beg and Tahir, had not done approved service, Mukhlis Khan,
who was one of the confidential servants of the Court, was nominated
to these duties. I conferred on him a mansab of 2,000 personal and
700 horse, and also gave him a standard. The duty of `arz-mukarrir
(reviser of petitions) I ordered to be given to Dayanat Khan. On the
25th, Friday, the weighing of my son Khurram took place. Up to the
present year, when he is 24 years old, and is married and has children,
he has never defiled himself with drinking wine. On this day, when the
assembly for his weighing was held, I said to him: "Baba, thou hast
become the father of children, and kings and kings' sons have drunk
wine. To-day, which is the day of thy being weighed, I will give thee
wine to drink, and give thee leave to drink it on feast days and at
the time of the New Year, and at all great festivals. But thou must
observe the path of moderation, for wise men do not consider it right
to drink to such an extent as to destroy the understanding, and it is
necessary that from drinking only profit should be derived." Bu `Ali
(Avicenna), who is one of the most learned of hakims and physicians,
has written this quatrain--
"Wine is a raging enemy, a prudent friend;
A little is an antidote, but much a snake's poison.
In much there is no little injury,
In a little there is much profit."
With much trouble wine was given to him. I had not drunk it till I
was 15 [473] years old, except when in the time of my infancy two
or three times my mother and wet-nurses gave it by way of infantile
remedy. They asked for a little spirit from my revered father, and
gave it me to the extent of a tola mixed with water and rosewater to
take away a cough, designating it as medicine. At the time when the
camp of my revered father had been pitched in order to put down the
disturbance of Yusufza'e Afghans at the fort of Attock, which is on
the bank of the Nilab (Indus) River, one day I had mounted to go out
to hunt. When I had moved about a good deal and the signs of weariness
had set in, a gunner of the name of Ustad Shah-quli, a wonderful gunner
out of those under my revered uncle Mirza Muhammad Hakim, said to me
that if I would take a cup of wine it would drive away the feeling of
being tired and heavy. It was in the time of my youth, and as I felt
disposed towards it I ordered Mahmud, the Ab-dar (person in charge of
drinking water, etc.), to go to the house of Hakim `Ali and bring me
an intoxicating draught. He sent me [474] the amount of one and a half
cups of yellow wine of a sweet taste in a little bottle. I drank it,
and found its quality agreeable. After that I took to drinking wine,
and increased it from day to day until wine made from grapes ceased to
intoxicate me, and I took to drinking arrack (`araq, spirits), and by
degrees during nine years my potions rose to twenty cups of doubly
distilled spirits, fourteen during the daytime and the remainder
at night. The weight of this was six Hindustani sirs or one and a
half maunds of Iran. The extent of my eating in those days was a fowl
[475] with bread and vegetables (lit. radish). [476] In that state of
matters no one had the power to forbid me, and matters went to such a
length that in the crapulous state from the excessive trembling of my
hand I could not drink from my own cup, but others had to give it me
to drink, until I sent for Hakim Humam, brother of Hakim Abu-l-fath,
who was of the most intimate with my revered father, and informed him
of my state. He, with excessive sincerity and unfeigned burning of
heart, said to me without hesitation, "Lord of the world, by the way
in which you drink spirits, God forbid it, but in six months matters
will come to such a pass that there will be no remedy for it." As his
words were said out of pure good-will, and sweet life was dear to me,
they made an impression on me, and from that day I began to lessen
my allowance and set myself to take filuniya. [477] In proportion as
I diminished my liquor, I increased the amount of filuniya.
I also ordered that the arrack should be diluted with wine of the grape
so that there should be two parts wine and one part arrack. Every
day I diminished the quantity I took, and in the course of seven
years I brought it down to six cups. The weight of each cupful was 18
1/4 misqals. It is now fifteen years that I have drunk at this rate,
neither more nor less. And my drinking time is the night except on the
day of Thursdays, as it is the day of the blessed accession. Also on
the eve [478] of Friday, which is the most blessed eve of the week,
and is the prelude to a blessed day (I do not drink). I drink at
the end of each day with these two [479] exceptions, for it does not
appear right that this eve (Thursday night) should be spent in neglect,
and that there should be an omission (on Friday) of returning thanks
to the True Benefactor. On the day of Thursday and on the day of
Sunday I do not eat meat. Not on Thursday, because it is the day
of my auspicious accession, and not on Sunday, because it is the
birthday of my revered father, and he greatly honoured and held dear
the day. After some time I substituted opium for filuniya. Now that
my age has arrived at 46 solar years and 4 months, I eat eight surkhs
(a red berry used as a weight) of opium when five gharis of day have
passed, and six surkhs after one watch of night.
I gave a jewelled dagger to `Abdu-llah Khan by the hand of Maqsud
`Ali. Shaikh Musa, a relation of Qasim Khan, was dignified with the
title of Khan, and promoted to the mansab of 800 personal and 400
horse, and was allowed to go to Bengal. The mansab of Zafar Khan was
increased to 500 personal and horse, and he was appointed to duty in
Bangash. On the same day Muhammad Husain, brother of Khwaja Jahan,
was given the faujdarship of the Sarkar of Hissar and dismissed, his
mansab being increased by 200 horse to raise it to 500 personal and
400 horse, with the gift of an elephant. On the 5th Bahman an elephant
was conferred on Mir Miran. When the merchant `Abdu-l-Karim left Iran
for Hindustan, my exalted brother Shah `Abbas sent me by his hand
a rosary of cornelian from Yemen and a cup of Venetian workmanship,
which was very fine and rare. On the 9th of the same month they were
laid before me. On the 18th some offerings of many kinds of jewelled
ornaments, etc., which Sultan Parwiz had sent to me, were laid before
me. On the 7th Isfandarmuz, Sadiq, nephew of I`timadu-d-daulah, who was
permanently employed as Bakhshi, was honoured with the title of Khan. I
had also conferred this title on Khwaja `Abdu-l-`Aziz. According to
what was right, I called him by the title of `Abdu-l-`Aziz Khan and
Sadiq by that of Sadiq Khan. On the 10th, Jagat Singh, son of Kunwar
Karan, who had obtained leave to go to his native country, when he
took leave was presented with 20,000 rupees, a horse, an elephant, a
dress of honour, and a special shawl. Five thousand rupees, a horse,
and a dress of honour were also given to Haridas Jhala, who was one
of the confidants of the Rana and tutor to Karan's son. By his hand
I also sent a mace of gold (shashpari) for the Rana.
On the 20th of the same month, Raja Suraj Singh, son of Raja Baso,
who on account of the nearness of his dwelling-place to it had been
sent with Murtaza Khan to capture the fort of Kangra, came on my
summons and waited on me. The aforesaid Khan had entertained certain
suspicions with regard to him, and on this account, considering him
an undesirable companion, had repeatedly sent petitions to the Court,
and wrote things about him until an order was received to summon him.
On the 26th, Nizamu-d-din Khan came from Multan and waited on me. In
the end of this year news of victory and prosperity came in from all
sides of my dominions. In the first place, this was with regard to
the disturbance of Ahdad, the Afghan, who for a long time past had
been in rebellion in the hill country of Kabul, and round whom many
of the Afghans of that neighbourhood had assembled, and against whom
from the time of my revered father until now, which is the 10th year
after my accession, armies have always been employed. He by degrees was
defeated, and, falling into a wretched state, a part of his band was
dispersed and a part killed. He took refuge for some time in Charkh,
which was a place on which he relied, but Khan Dauran surrounded
it and closed the road for entry and exit. When there remained no
grass for his beasts or means of living for men in the fortress,
he at night brought down his animals from the hills and grazed them
on the skirts, and accompanied them himself, in order that he might
set an example to his men. At last this intelligence reached Khan
Dauran. He then appointed a body of his leaders and experienced
men to go into ambush on an appointed night in the neighbourhood of
Charkh. That band went and hid itself at night in places of refuge,
and Khan Dauran rode on the same day in that direction. When those
ill-fated ones brought out their cattle and let them loose to graze,
and the ill-conditioned Ahdad himself passed by the places of ambush
with his own band, suddenly a dust rose in front of him. When they
enquired it became known that it was Khan Dauran. In a state of
bewilderment he endeavoured to turn back, and the scouts announced
to the aforesaid Khan that it was Ahdad. The Khan gave his horse the
reins and went at Ahdad; the men who were in ambush also blocked the
road and attacked him. The fight lasted till midday in consequence of
the broken nature of the ground and the thickness of the jungle; at
last defeat fell on the Afghans and they betook themselves to the hill:
about 300 fighting men went to hell and 100 were taken prisoners. Ahdad
could not regain the stronghold and hold on there. Necessarily he
turned his face towards Qandahar. The victorious troops entering
Charkh, burnt all the places and houses of those ill-fortuned ones,
and destroyed and rooted them up from their foundations.
Another [480] piece of news was the defeat of the ill-starred `Ambar
and the destruction of his unfortunate army. Briefly, a band of the
influential leaders and a body of Bargis (Mahrattas), who are a hardy
lot and who are the centre of resistance in that country, becoming
angry with `Ambar, showed an intention to be loyal, and begging for
quarter from Shah-nawaz Khan, who was in Balapur with an army of royal
troops, agreed to interview the said Khan, and being satisfied, Adam
Khan, Yaqut Khan, and other leaders, and the Bargis Jado [481] Ray
and Bapu Katiya, came and interviewed him. Shah-nawaz Khan gave each
of them a horse, an elephant, money, and dress of honour, according
to their quality and condition, made them hot in duty and loyalty,
and marching from Balapur started against the rebel `Ambar in their
company. On the road they fell in with an army of the Dakhanis, whose
leaders were Mahalldar, [482] Danish (Atash?), Dilawar, Bijli, Firuz,
and others, and routed it.
"With broken arms and loosened loins,
No strength in their feet, no sense in their heads." [483]
They reached the camp of that ill-starred one, and he from excessive
pride determined to fight with the victorious troops. Having collected
those rebels who were with him and `Adil Khan's army and that of
Qutbu-l-mulk together, and preparing their artillery, he started
to meet the royal troops until a space of not more than 5 or 6 kos
remained between. On Sunday, the 25th Bahman, the armies of light and
darkness approached each other and the scouts became visible. Three
watches of day had passed when cannon and rocket firing began. In
the end Darab Khan, who was in command of the vanguard, with other
leaders and zealous men such as Raja Bir Singh Deo, Ray Chand,
`Ali Khan the Tatar, Jahangir Quli Beg Turkman, and other lions of
the forest of bravery, drew their swords and charged the vanguard
of the enemy. Performing the dues of manliness and bravery, they
scattered this army like the Banatu-n-na`sh ('Daughters of the Bier,'
i.e. the Great Bear); and not stopping there they attacked the enemy's
centre. Turning on the army opposed to them, such a hand-to-hand
struggle took place that the onlookers remained bewildered. For nearly
two gharis this combat went on. Heaps of the dead lay there, and the
ill-starred `Ambar, unable to offer further opposition, turned his
face to flight. If darkness [484] and gloom had not come on at the
cry of those black-fortuned ones, not one of them would have found
the road to the valley of safety. The crocodiles of the river of
conflict followed the fugitives for 2 or 3 kos. When horses and men
could move no more and the defeated were scattered, they drew rein
and returned to their places. The whole of the enemy's artillery,
with 300 laden camels that carried rockets, war elephants, Arab and
Persian horses, weapons and armour beyond reckoning, fell into the
hands of the servants of the State, and there was no counting the
slain and the fallen. A great many of the leaders fell alive into their
hands. The next day the victorious troops, marching from the place of
victory, proceeded to Karki, which was the nest of those owlish ones,
and seeing no trace of them they encamped there, and obtained news
that they during that night and day had fallen miserably in different
places. For some days the victorious army, delayed at Karki, levelled
with the dark earth the buildings and houses of the enemy, and burnt
that populous place. In consequence of the occurrence of certain
events, to describe which in detail would take too long here, they
returned from that place and descended by the Rohan Khanda Pass. In
reward for this service I ordered increases to be made in the mansabs
of a number who had shown zeal and bravery.
The third piece of news was the conquest of the province of Khokhara
[485] and the acquisition of the diamond mines, which were taken by
the excellent exertions of Ibrahim Khan. This province is one of the
dependencies of the Subah of Behar and Patna. There is a river there
from which they procure diamonds. At the season when there is little
water, there are pools and water-holes, and it has become known by
experience to those who are employed in this work that above every
water-hole in which there are diamonds, there are crowds of flying
animals of the nature of gnats, and which in the language of India
they call jhinga(?). [486] Keeping the bed of the stream in sight as
far as it is accessible, they make a collection of stones (sangchin)
round the water-holes. After this they empty the water-holes with
spades and shovels to the extent of a yard or 1 1/2 yards and dig
up the area. They find among the stones and sand large and small
diamonds [487] and bring them out. It occasionally happens that they
find a piece of diamond worth 100,000 rupees. Briefly, this province
and this river were in possession of a Hindu Zamindar of the name
of Durjan Sal, and although the governors of the Subah frequently
sent armies against him and went there themselves, in consequence
of the difficult roads and thickness of the jungles they contented
themselves with taking two or three diamonds and left him in his former
condition. When the aforesaid Subah was transferred from Zafar Khan,
and Ibrahim Khan was appointed in his place, at the time of his taking
leave I ordered him to go and take the province out of the possession
of that unknown and insignificant individual. As soon as he arrived
in the province of Behar he assembled a force and went against that
Zamindar. According to former custom he sent some of his men with a
promise to give some diamonds and some elephants, but the Khan did
not agree to this and entered impetuously into the province. Before
the fellow could collect his men he found guides and invaded it. Just
when the zamindar received this news, the hills and vales that are his
abode were beleaguered. Ibrahim sent men about to find him and they got
hold of him in a cave with several women, one of whom was his mother,
while others were also his father's wives. They arrested him, and also
one of his brothers. They searched and took from them the diamonds
they had with them. Twenty-three male and female elephants also fell
into Ibrahim's hands. In reward for this service the mansab of Ibrahim
Khan original and increase, was made up to 4,000 personal and horse,
and he was exalted with the title of Fath-jang. Orders were also given
for an increase in the mansabs of those who accompanied him on this
service and had shown bravery. That province is now in possession of
the imperial servants of the State. They carry on work in the bed of
the stream, and bring to Court whatever diamonds are found. A large
diamond, the value of which has been estimated at 50,000 rupees,
has lately been brought from there. If a little pains are taken,
it is probable that good diamonds will be found and be placed in
the jewel-room.
THE ELEVENTH NEW YEAR'S FEAST AFTER THE AUSPICIOUS ACCESSION.
Fifteen gharis of day had passed on Sunday, the last day of
Isfandarmuz, corresponding with the 1st Rabi`u-l-awwal (19th
March, 1616), when from the mansion of Pisces the sun cast the
ray of prosperity on the palace of Aries. At this auspicious
hour, having performed the dues of service and supplication at
the throne of Almighty God, I ascended the throne of State in the
public audience hall, the area of which was laid out with tents and
canopies (shamiyanaha), and its sides adorned with European screens,
painted gold brocades, and rare cloths. The princes, Amirs, the
chief courtiers, the ministers of State, and all the servants of the
Court performed their congratulatory salutations. As Hafiz Nad `Ali,
guyanda (singer), was one of the ancient servants, I ordered that
whatever offerings were made on the Monday by anyone in the shape of
cash or goods should be given to him by way of reward. On the 2nd
day (of Farwardin) the offerings of some of the employés were laid
before me. On the 4th day the offering of Khwaja Jahan, who had sent
them from Agra, and which consisted of several diamonds and pearls,
of jewelled things, cloth stuffs of all kinds, and an elephant,
worth altogether 50,000 rupees, was brought before me. On the 5th
day, Kunwar Karan, who had been given leave to go to his home,
returned and waited on me. He presented as offering 100 muhrs,
1,000 rupees, an elephant with fittings, and four horses. To the
mansab of Asaf Khan, which was 4,000 personal and 2,000 horse,
I on the 7th made an addition of 1,000 personal and 2,000 horse,
and honoured him with drums and a standard. On this day the offering
of Mir Jamalu-d-din Husain was laid before me; what he offered was
approved and accepted. Among the things was a jewelled dagger which
had been made under his superintendence. [488] On its hilt was a
yellow ruby [489] (yaqut-i-zard), exceeding clear and bright, in
size equal to half a hen's egg. I had never before seen so large and
beautiful a yellow ruby. Along with it were other rubies of approved
colour and old emeralds. Brokers (muqiman) valued it (the dagger)
at 50,000 rupees. I increased the mansab of the said Mir by 1,000
horse, which brought it to 5,000 personal and 3,500 horse. On the
8th I increased the mansab of Sadiq Haziq by 300 personal and horse,
and that of Iradat Khan by 300 personal and 200 horse, so as to
raise each to 1,000 personal and 500 horse. On the 9th the offering
of Khwaja Abu-l-hasan was laid before me; of jewelled ornaments and
cloth stuffs, what was of the value of 40,000 rupees was accepted,
and the remainder I made a present to him. The offering of Tatar Khan
Bakawul-begi, consisting of one ruby (la`l), one yaqut, a jewelled
takhti (signet?), two rings, and some cloths, was accepted. On the
10th three elephants which Raja Maha Singh sent from the Deccan,
and 100 and odd pieces of gold brocade, etc., which Murtaza Khan sent
from Lahore, were laid before me. On this date Dayanat Khan presented
his offering of two pearl rosaries, two rubies, six large pearls, and
one gold tray, to the value of 28,000 rupees. At the end of Thursday,
the 11th, I went to the house of I`timadu-d-daulah in order to add to
his dignity. He then presented me with his offering, and I examined it
in detail. Much of it was exceedingly rare. Of jewels there were two
pearls worth 30,000 rupees, one qutbi ruby which had been purchased for
22,000 rupees, with other pearls and rubies. Altogether the value was
110,000 rupees. These had the honour of acceptance, and of cloth, etc.,
the value of 15,000 rupees was taken. When I had finished inspecting
the offering I passed nearly one watch of the night in conviviality
and enjoyment. I ordered that cups (of wine) should be given to the
Amirs and servants. The ladies of the mahall (harem) were also with
me, and a pleasant assembly was held. After the festive assembly
was over I begged I`timadu-d-daulah to excuse me, and went to the
hall of audience. On the same day I ordered Nur-mahall Begam to be
called Nur-Jahan Begam. On the 12th the offering of I`tibar Khan was
laid before me. They had made a vessel (zarf) in the form of a fish,
jewelled with beautiful gems, exceedingly well shaped and calculated
to hold my allowance. [490] This, with other jewels and jewelled
things and cloth stuffs, the value of which was worth 56,000 rupees,
I accepted and gave back the rest. Bahadur Khan, governor of Qandahar,
had sent seven Iraq horses and nine tuquz (81?) of cloth stuffs. The
offerings of Iradat Khan and Raja Suraj Mal, son of Raja Baso,
were laid before me on the 13th. `Abdu-s-Subhan, who held a mansab
of 1,200 personal and 600 horse, was promoted to 1,500 personal and
700 horse. On the 15th the Subahdarship of the province of Thatha
was transferred from Shamshir Khan Uzbeg to Muzaffar Khan. On the
16th the offering of I`tiqad Khan, son of I`timadu-d-daulah, was
laid before me. Of this the equivalent of 32,000 rupees was taken,
and I gave back the rest to him. On the 17th the offering of Tarbiyat
Khan was inspected. Of jewels and cloth what was valued at 17,000
rupees was approved. On the 18th I went to the house of Asaf Khan,
and his offering was presented to me there. From the palace to his
house was a distance of about a kos. For half the distance he had
laid down under foot velvet woven with gold and gold brocade and plain
velvet, such that its value was represented to me as 10,000 rupees. I
passed that day until midnight at his house with the ladies. The
offerings he had prepared were laid before me in detail. Jewels,
jewelled ornaments, and things of gold and beautiful cloth stuffs,
things of the value of 114,000 rupees, four horses, and one camel
were approved of. On the 19th (Farwardin), which was the day of honour
(ruz-i-sharaf) of the sun, a grand assembly was held in the palace. In
order to observe the auspicious hour, when 2 1/2 gharis of day were
left of the aforesaid day, I seated myself on the throne. My son Baba
Khurram at this blessed hour laid before me a ruby of the purest water
and brilliancy, which they pronounced to be of the value of 80,000
rupees. I fixed his mansab, which was 15,000 personal and 8,000 horse,
at 20,000 personal and 10,000 horse. On the same day my lunar weighing
took place. I increased the mansab of I`timadu-d-daulah, which was
6,000 personal and 3,000 horse, to 7,000 personal and 5,000 horse,
and bestowed on him a tuman tugh (horse-tail standard), and ordered
his drums to be beaten after those of my son Khurram. I increased the
mansab of Tarbiyat Khan by 500 personal and horse, so as to bring
it to 3,500 personal and 1,500 horse. The mansab of I`tiqad Khan
was increased by 1,000 personal and 400 horse. Nizamu-d-din Khan was
promoted to 700 personal and 300 horse, and appointed to the Subah of
Behar. Salamu-llah, the Arab, was honoured with the title of Shaja`at
Khan, and, being dignified with a necklace of pearls, became one of the
royal [491] servants. I promoted Mir Jamalu-d-din Inju to the title
of `Azudu-d-daulah (Arm of the State). On the 21st Almighty God gave
Khusrau a son by the daughter of Muqim, son of Mihtar Fazil Rikab-dar
(stirrup-holder). To Allah-dad, the Afghan, who, accepting my service,
had separated himself from the evil-minded Ahdad and come to Court,
I gave 20,000 darabs (10,000 rupees). On the 25th came the news
of the death of Ray Manohar, who had been attached to the army of
the Deccan. Giving his son a mansab of 500 personal and 300 horse,
I bestowed upon him his father's place and property. On the 26th the
offering of Nad `Ali Maidani, consisting of nine horses, several bits
(? dahana kish [492]), and four Persian camels (wilayati), was brought
before me. On the 28th I presented Bahadur Khan, governor of Qandahar,
Mir Miran, son of Khalilu-llah, and Sayyid Bayazid, governor of Bhakar,
each with an elephant. On the 1st Urdibihisht, at the request of
`Abdu-llah Khan, I presented drums to his brother Sardar Khan. On the
3rd I gave Allah-dad Khan, the Afghan, a jewelled khapwa (dagger). On
the same day news came that Qadam, [493] one of the Afridi Afghans
who had been loyal and obedient, and to whom the rah-dari (transit
dues) of the Khaibar Pass belonged, from some slight suspicion had
withdrawn his feet from the circle of obedience and raised his head
in sedition. He had sent a force against each of the posts (thana),
and wherever he and his men went, through the carelessness of those men
(in the posts), had plundered and killed many of the people. Briefly,
in consequence of the shameful action of this senseless Afghan,
a new disturbance broke out in the hill country of Kabul. When this
news arrived I ordered Harun, brother of Qadam, and Jalal, his son,
who were at Court, to be apprehended and handed over to Asaf Khan to
be imprisoned in the fort of Gwalior. By the manifestation of the
Divine mercy and kindness and the signs of God's favour, an affair
took place at this time which is not devoid of strangeness. After the
victory over the Rana my son presented me in Ajmir with an exceedingly
beautiful and clear ruby, valued at 60,000 rupees. It occurred to me
that I ought to bind this ruby on my own arm. I much wanted two rare
pearls of good water of one form to be a fit match for this kind
of ruby. Muqarrab Khan had procured one grand pearl of the value
of 20,000 rupees, and given it to me as a New Year's offering. It
occurred to me that if I could procure a pair to it they would make a
perfect bracelet. Khurram, who from his childhood had had the honour
of waiting on my revered father, and remained in attendance on him day
and night, represented to me that he had seen a pearl in an old turban
(sar-band) of a weight and shape equal to this pearl. They produced
an old sar-pich (worn on the turban), containing a royal pearl of
the same quality, weight, and shape, not differing in weight even
by a trifle, so much so that the jewellers were astonished at the
matter. It agreed in value, shape, lustre, and brilliance; one might
say they had been shed from the same mould. Placing the two pearls
alongside of the ruby, I bound them on my arm, and placing my head
on the ground of supplication and humility, I returned thanks to the
Lord that cherished His slave, and made my tongue utter His praise--
"Who succeeds with hand and tongue?
He who performs the dues of thanks."
On the 5th (Urdibihisht) 30 Iraq and Turki horses that Murtaza Khan had
sent from Lahore were brought before me, as also 63 horses, 15 camels,
male and female, a bundle of crane's (kulang) plumes, 9 `aqiri(?),
[494] 9 veined [495] fish-teeth, 9 pieces of china from Tartary,
3 guns, etc., from Khan Dauran, which he had sent from Kabul, were
accepted. Muqarrab Khan presented an offering of a small elephant
from Abyssinia which they had brought by sea in a ship. In comparison
with the elephants of Hindustan it presents some peculiarities. Its
ears are larger than the ears of the elephants of this place, and
its trunk and tail are longer. In the time of my revered father
I`timad Khan of Cujarat sent a young elephant [496] as an offering;
by degrees it grew up and was very fiery and bad-tempered. On the 7th
a jewelled dagger was given to Muzaffar Khan, governor of Thatha. On
the same day news came that a band of Afghans [497] had attacked
`Abdu-s-Subhan, brother of Khan `Alam, who was stationed at one of the
posts, and had laid siege to his post. `Abdu-s-Subhan, with certain
other mansabdars and servants who had been appointed to go with him
had behaved valiantly. But at last, in accordance with the saying--
"When gnats get wings they smite the elephant,"
those dogs overcame them, and elevated `Abdu-s-Subhan with several of
the men of the post to the dignity of martyrdom. [498] As a condolence
for this affair a gracious farman and a special dress of honour were
sent to Khan `Alam, who had been appointed ambassador to Iran (and was
still in that country). On the 14th the offering of Mukarram Khan,
son of Mu`azzam Khan, came from Bengal. It consisted of jewels and
articles procurable in that province, and was brought before me. I
increased the mansab of some of the jagirdars of Gujarat. Of these,
Sardar Khan, whose mansab was that of 1,000 personal and 500 horse, was
raised to 1,500 personal and 300 [499] horse, and had a standard given
to him as well. Sayyid Qasim, son of Sayyid Dilawar Barha, was raised
to an original and increased mansab of 800 personal and 450 horse, and
Yar Beg, nephew of Ahmad Qasim Koka, to one of 600 personal with 250
horse. On the 17th there came the news of the death of Razzaq of Merv,
the Uzbeg who belonged to the army of the Deccan. He was well skilled
in war, and one of the distinguished Amirs of Mawara'a-n-nahr. On the
21st, Allah-dad, the Afghan, was honoured with the title of Khan, and
his mansab, which was 1,000 personal and 600 horse, was raised to 2,000
personal and 1,000 horse. Three hundred thousand rupees out of the
treasury of Lahore were ordered as a reward and for expenses to Khan
Dauran, who had greatly exerted himself in the Afghan disturbance. On
the 28th, Kunwar Karan obtained leave to go home for his marriage. I
conferred on him a dress of honour, a special Iraq horse with a saddle,
an elephant, and a jewelled waist-dagger. On the 3rd of this month
(Khurdad) the news of the death of Murtaza Khan came. He was one of
the ancients of this State. My revered father had brought him up and
raised him to a position of consequence and trust. In my reign also
he obtained the grace of noteworthy service, namely the overthrow
of Khusrau. His mansab had been raised to 6,000 personal and 5,000
horse. As he was at this time Subahdar of the Panjab, he had undertaken
the capture of Kangra, to which in strength no other fort in the hill
country of that province or even in the whole inhabited world can
be compared. He had obtained leave to go on this duty. I was much
grieved in mind at this news; in truth, grief at the death of such
a loyal follower is only reasonable. As he had died after spending
his days in loyalty, I prayed to God for pardon for him. On the 4th
Khurdad the mansab of Sayyid Nizam was fixed, original and increase,
at 900 personal and 650 horse. I gave Nuru-d-din Quli the post of
entertainer to the ambassadors from all parts. On the 7th news came
of the death of Saif Khan Barha; he was a brave and ambitious young
man. He had exerted himself in an exemplary way in the battle with
Khusrau. He bade farewell to this perishable world in the Deccan
through cholera (haiza). I conferred favours on his sons. `Ali
Muhammad, who was the eldest and most upright of his children,
was given the mansab of 300 [500] personal and 400 horse, and his
(`Ali Muhammad's) brother, by name Bahadur, that of 400 personal and
200 horse. Sayyid `Ali, who was his nephew, received an increase in
rank of 500 personal and horse. On the same day Khub-Allah, son of
Shah-baz Khan Kambu, received the title of Ran-baz Khan. On the 8th
[501] the mansab of Hashim Khan, original and increase, was fixed
at 2,500 personal and 1,800 horse. On this date I bestowed 20,000
darabs (10,000 rupees) on Allah-dad Khan, the Afghan. Bikramajit,
Raja of the province of Bandhu, whose ancestors were considerable
zamindars in Hindustan, through the patronage of my fortunate son
Baba Khurram, obtained the blessing of paying his respects to me,
and his offences were pardoned. On the 9th, [502] Kalyan of Jesalmir,
to summon whom Raja Kishan Das had gone, came and waited on me. He
presented 100 muhrs and 1,000 rupees. His elder brother Rawal Bhim
was a person of distinction. When he died he left a son 2 months old,
and he too did not live long. In the time when I was prince I had taken
his daughter in marriage, and called her by the title of Malika-Jahan
[503] (queen of the world). As the ancestors of this tribe had come
of ancient loyal people, this alliance took place. Having summoned
the aforesaid Kalyan, who was the brother of Rawal Bhim, I exalted
[504] him with the tika of Raja and the title of Rawal. News came
that after the death of Murtaza Khan loyalty was shown by Raja Man,
and that, after giving encouragement to the men of the fort of Kangra
an arrangement had been made that he should bring to Court the son
of the Raja of that country, who was 29 years old. In consequence of
his great zeal in this service, I fixed his mansab, which was 1,000
personal and 800 horse, at 1,500 personal and 1,000 horse. Khwaja
Jahan was promoted from his original and increased mansab to that of
4,000 personal and 2,500 horse. On this date [505] an event occurred
such that, although I was greatly desirous of writing it down, my
hand and heart have failed me. Whenever I took my pen my state became
bewildered, and I helplessly ordered I`timadu-d-daulah to write it.
"An ancient sincere slave, I`timadu-d-daulah, by order writes in this
auspicious volume [506] that on the 11th [507] Khurdad the traces of
fever were seen in the pure daughter [508] of Shah Khurram of lofty
fortune, for whom His Majesty showed much affection as the early
fruit of the garden of auspiciousness. After three days pustules
(abila) appeared, and on the 26th of the same month, corresponding with
Wednesday, the 29th Jumada-l-awwal (15th June, 1616), in the year 1025,
the bird of her soul flew from her elemental cage and passed into the
gardens of Paradise. From this date an order was given that Char-shamba
(Wednesday) should be called Kam-shamba (or Gum-shamba). What shall
I write as to what happened to the pure personality of the shadow of
God in consequence of this heartburning event and grief-increasing
calamity? Inasmuch as it happened after this manner to that soul of
the world, what must be the condition of those other [509] servants
whose life was bound up with that pure personality? For two days
the servants were not received in audience, and an order was given
that a wall should be built in front of the house which had been
the abode of that bird of paradise, so that it might not be seen. In
addition to this he did not adorn the gate of the hall of audience
(did not come there). On the third day he went in an agitated state
to the house of the illustrious prince, and the servants had the good
fortune to pay their salutations and found fresh life. On the road,
however much the Hazrat (the Emperor) desired to control himself,
the tears flowed from the auspicious eyes, and for a long time it
was so that at the mere hearing of a word from which came a whiff
of pain, the state of the Hazrat became bewildered. He remained for
some days in the house of the prince of the inhabitants of the world,
and on Monday [510] of Tir, Divine month, he went to the house of
Asaf Khan, and turned back thence to the Chashma-i-Nur, and for
two or three days employed himself there. But as long as he was in
Ajmir he could not control himself. Whenever the word 'friendship'
reached his ear, the tears would drop from his eyes unrestrained,
and the hearts of his faithful followers were torn in pieces. When
the departure of the cortège of fortune to the Subah of the Deccan
took place, he gained a little composure."
On this date Prithi Chand, son of Ray Manohar, obtained the title of
Ray and the mansab of 500 personal and 400 horse, and a jagir in his
native place. On Saturday, the 11th, I went from the Chashma-i-Nur to
the palace at Ajmir. On the eve of Sunday, the 12th, after 37 seconds
had passed, at the time of the ascension of Sagittarius to the 27th
degree, by the calculations of the Hindu astronomers, and the 15th
degree of Capricorn, by the calculations of the Greeks, there came from
the womb of the daughter of Asaf Khan (wife of Khurram) a precious
pearl into the world of being. With joy and gladness at this great
boon the drums beat loudly, and the door of pleasure and enjoyment
was opened in the face of the people. Without delay or reflection
the name of Shah Shaja`at came to my tongue. I hope that his coming
will be auspicious and blessed to me and to his father. On the 12th
a jewelled dagger [511] and an elephant were bestowed on Rawal Kalyan
of Jesalmir. On the same day arrived the news of the death of Khawass
Khan, whose jagir was in the Sarkar of Qanauj. I gave an elephant
to Ray Kunwar, Diwan of Gujarat. On the 22nd of the same month (Tir)
I added 500 personal and horse to the mansab of Raja Maha Singh, so
as to make it one of 4,000 personal and 3,000 horse. The mansab of
`Ali Khan Tatari, who before this had been exalted with the title of
Nusrat Khan, was fixed at 2,000 personal and 500 horse, and a standard
was also conferred on him. With a view to the accomplishment of certain
purposes, I had made a vow that they should place a gold railing with
lattice-work at [512] the enlightened tomb of the revered Khwaja. On
the 27th of this month it was completed, and I ordered them to take
and affix it. It had been made at a cost of 110,000 rupees. As the
command and leading of the victorious army of the Deccan had not been
carried out to my satisfaction by my son Sultan Parwiz, it occurred
to me to recall him, and send Baba Khurram as the advanced guard of
the victorious army, inasmuch as the signs of rectitude and knowledge
of affairs were evident in him, and that I myself would follow him,
so that this important matter would be carried through in one and the
same campaign. With this object a farman had already been sent in the
name of Parwiz ordering him to start for the Subah of Allahabad, which
is in the centre of my dominions. Whilst I was engaged in the campaign,
he would be entrusted with the guarding and administration of that
region. On the 29th of the same month a letter came from Bihari Das,
the news-writer of Burhanpur, that the prince on the 20th had left
the city safely and well and gone towards the aforesaid Subah. On the
1st Amurdad I bestowed a jewelled turban on Mirza Raja Bhao Singh. An
elephant was conferred on the shrine of Kushtigir. On the 18th, Lashkar
Khan had sent four ambling (rahwar) horses, and they were brought
before me. Mir Mughal was appointed to the faujdarship of the Sarkar
of Sambal in the place of Sayyid `Abdu-l-Waris, who had obtained the
governorship of the Subah of Qanauj in the place of Khawass Khan. His
mansab, in view of that duty, was fixed at 500 personal and horse. On
the 21st the offering of Rawal Kalyan of Jesalmir was laid before me;
it was 3,000 muhrs, 9 horses, 25 camels, and 1 elephant. The mansab
of Qizil-bash Khan was fixed original and increase, at 1,200 personal
and 1,000 horse. On the 23rd, Shaja`at Khan obtained leave to go to
his jagir that he might arrange the affairs of his servants and his
territory, and present himself at the time agreed upon. In this year,
[513] or rather in the 10th year after my accession, a great pestilence
appeared in some places in Hindustan. The commencement of this calamity
was in the parganahs of the Panjab, and by degrees the contagion spread
to the city of Lahore. Many of the people, Musulmans and Hindus,
died through this. After this it spread to Sirhind and the Du'ab,
until it reached Delhi and the surrounding parganahs and villages,
and desolated them. At this day it had greatly diminished. It became
known from men of great age and from old histories that this disease
had never shown itself in this country [514] (before). Physicians
and learned men were questioned as to its cause. Some said that it
came because there had been drought for two years in succession and
little rain fell: others said it was on account of the corruption
of the air which occurred through the drought and scarcity. Some
attributed it to other causes. Wisdom is of Allah, and we must submit
to Allah's decrees!
"What does a slave who bows not his neck to the order?"
On 5th Shahriwar 5,000 rupees towards her expenses were sent to the
mother of Mir Miran, the daughter of Shah Isma`il II, by merchants
who were proceeding to the province of Iraq. On the 6th a letter came
from `Abid Khan, [515] bakhshi and news-writer of Ahmadabad, to the
purport that `Abdu-llah Khan Bahadur Firuz-jang had quarrelled with him
because he had recorded among (current) events certain affairs that
had been unpleasing to him, and had sent a body of men against him,
and had insulted him by carrying him away to his house, and had done
this and that to him. This matter appeared serious to me, and I was
desirous at once to cast him out of favour and ruin him. At last it
occurred to me to send Dayanat Khan to Ahmadabad to enquire into this
matter on the spot from disinterested people to see if it had actually
occurred and if so, to bring `Abdu-llah Khan with him to the Court,
leaving the charge and administration of Ahmadabad to Sardar Khan,
his brother. Before Dayanat Khan started, the news reached Firuz-jang,
and he in a state of great perturbation confessed himself an offender
and started for the Court on foot. Dayanat Khan met him on the road,
and seeing him in a strange condition, as he had wounded his feet
with walking, he put him on horseback, and taking him with him came
to wait on me. Muqarrab Khan, who is one of the old servants of the
Court, from the time when I was a prince had continually wanted the
Subah of Gujarat. It thus occurred to me that, as this kind of action
on the part of `Abdu-llah Khan had come about, I might fulfil the
hope of an ancient servant and send him to Ahmadabad in the place
of the aforesaid Khan. A fortunate hour was chosen in these days,
and I appointed him to be ruler of the Subah. On the 10th the mansab
of Bahadur Khan, governor of Qandahar, which was 4,000 personal and
3,000 horse, was increased by 500 personal.
Shauqi, the mandolin player, is the wonder of the age. He also sings
Hindi and Persian songs in a manner that clears the rust from all
hearts. I delighted him with the title of Anand Khan: Anand in the
Hindi language means pleasure and ease.
Mangoes [516] used not to be in season in the country of Hindustan
after the month of Tir (June-July), (but) Muqarrab Khan had established
gardens in the parganah of Kairana, [517] which is the native place of
his ancestors, and looked after the mangoes there in such a manner as
to prolong the season for more than two months, and sent them every
day fresh into the special fruit store-house. As this was altogether
an unusual thing to be accomplished, it has been recorded here. On
the 8th a beautiful Iraq horse of the name of La`l Bi-baha (priceless
ruby) was sent for Parwiz by the hand of Sharif, one of his attendants.
I had ordered quick-handed stone-cutters to carve full-sized
figures of the Rana and his son Karan out of marble. On this day
they were completed and submitted to me. I ordered them to be
taken to Agra and placed in the garden [518] below the jharoka
(exhibition-window). On the 26th the meeting for my solar weighing
was held in the usual manner. The first weight came to 6,514 tulcha
of gold. I was weighed twelve times against different things; the
second weighing was against quicksilver, the third against silk,
the fourth against various perfumes, such as ambergris and musk,
down to sandalwood, `ud, ban, and so on, until twelve weighings were
completed. Of animals, according to the number of years that I had
passed, a sheep, a goat, [519] and a fowl (for each year) were given
to fakirs and dervishes. This rule has been observed from the time of
my revered father up to the present day in this enduring State. They
divide after the weighing all these things among the fakirs and those
in need to the value of about 100,000 rupees.
This day a ruby which Mahabat Khan had purchased at Burhanpur for
65,000 rupees from `Abdu-llah Khan Firuz-jang was laid before me, and
was approved of. It is a ruby of beautiful form. The special mansab
of Khan A`zam was fixed at 7,000 personal, and an order was passed
that the diwani establishment should pay an equivalent to that in a
tankhwah jagir. At the request of I`timadu-d-daulah, what had been
deducted from the mansab of Dayanat on account of former proceedings
was allowed to remain as before. `Azudu-d-daulah, who had obtained
the Subah of Malwa in jagir, took his leave, and was dignified with
the gift of a horse and a dress of honour. The mansab of Rawal
Kalyan of Jesalmir was fixed at 2,000 personal and 1,000 horse,
and it was ordered that that province (Jesalmir) should be given
him as tankhwah. As the (auspicious) hour of his departure was on
that same day, he took leave to depart for his province well pleased
and exalted with the gift of a horse, an elephant, a jewelled sword,
a jewelled khapwa (dagger), a robe of honour, and a special Kashmir
shawl. On the 31st Muqarrab Khan took leave to go to Ahmadabad, and
his mansab, which was 5,000 personal and 2,500 horse, was fixed at
5,000 personal and horse, and he was honoured with a dress of honour,
a nadiri (a kind of dress), a takma [520] of pearls, whilst two horses
from my private stable, a special elephant, and a jewelled sword
were also bestowed on him. He went off to the aforesaid Subah with
delight and in a state of happiness. On the 11th of Mihr, Jagat Singh,
son of Kunwar Karan, came from his native place and waited on me. On
the 16th, Mirza `Ali Beg Akbarshahi came from the province of Oudh,
which had been given him in jagir, and waited on me. He presented as
offerings 1,000 rupees, and he produced before me an elephant which
one of the zamindars of that province possessed, and which he had been
ordered to take from him. On the 21st the offering of Qutbu-l-mulk,
the ruler of Golcondah, consisting of some jewelled ornaments, was
inspected by me. The mansab of Sayyid Qasim Barha was fixed, original
and increase, at 1,000 personal and 600 horse. On the eve of Friday,
the 22nd, Mirza `Ali Beg, whose age had passed 75 years, gave up the
deposit of his life. Great [521] services had been performed by him
for this State. His mansab rose by degrees to 4,000. He was one of the
distinguished heroes of this family (jawanan-i in ulus) [522] and of a
noble disposition. He left neither son nor other descendants. He had
the poetic temperament. As his inevitable destiny had been fulfilled
[523] on the day on which he went to pay his devotions at the venerated
mausoleum of Khwaja Mu`inu-d-din, I ordered them to bury him in the
same blessed place.
At the time when I gave leave to the ambassadors of `Adil Khan
of Bijapur, I had requested that if in that province there were a
wrestler, or a celebrated swordsman, they should tell `Adil Khan
to send him to me. After some time, when the ambassadors returned,
they brought a Mughal, by name Shir `Ali, who was born at Bijapur,
and was a wrestler by profession and had great experience in the art,
together with certain sword-players. The performances of the latter
were indifferent, but I put Shir `Ali to wrestle with the wrestlers
and athletes who were in attendance on me, and they could none of
them compete with him. One thousand rupees, a dress of honour, and
an elephant were conferred on him; he was exceedingly well made,
well shaped, and powerful. I retained him in my own service, and
entitled him "the athlete of the capital." A jagir and mansab were
given him and great favours bestowed on him. On the 24th, Dayanat Khan,
who had been appointed to bring `Abdu-llah Khan Bahadur Firuz-jang,
brought him and waited on me, and presented as an offering 100
muhrs. On the same date Ram Das, the son of Raja Raj Singh, one of
the Rajput Amirs who had died on duty in the Deccan, was promoted
to a mansab of 1,000 personal and 500 horse. As `Abdu-llah Khan had
been guilty of faults, he made Baba Khurram his intercessor, and on
the 26th, in order to please him, I ordered the former to pay his
respects to me. He waited upon me with a face of complete shame,
and presented as offerings 100 muhrs and 1,000 rupees. Before the
coming of `Adil Khan's ambassadors I had made up my mind that, having
sent Baba Khurram with the vanguard, I should myself proceed to the
Deccan and carry out this important affair, which for some reasons
had been put off. For this reason I had given an order that except
the prince no one should represent to me the affairs of the rulers of
the Deccan. On this day the prince brought the ambassadors and laid
their representation before me. After the death of Murtaza Khan,
Raja Man and many of the auxiliary Sardars had come to Court. On
this day, at the request of I`timadu-d-daulah, I appointed Raja Man
as the leader in the attack on the fort of Kangra. I appointed all
the men to accompany him, and according to the condition and rank of
each made him happy with a present--a horse, an elephant, a robe of
honour, or money--and gave them leave. After some days I conferred on
`Abdu-llah Khan, at the request of Baba Khurram, a jewelled dagger,
as he was exceedingly broken-hearted and grieved in mind, and an order
was passed that his mansab should continue as it was before, and that
he should remain in attendance on my son among those appointed for duty
in the Deccan. On the 3rd Aban I ordered the mansab of Wazir Khan, who
was in attendance on Baba Parwiz, to be, original and increase, 2,000
personal and 1,000 horse. On the 4th, Khusrau, who was in the charge,
for safe keeping, of Anira'i Singh-dalan, for certain considerations
was handed over to Asaf Khan. I presented him with a special shawl. On
the 7th (Aban), corresponding with the 17th Shawwal (28th October,
1616), a person of the name of Muhammad Riza Beg, whom the ruler
of Persia had sent as his representative, paid his respects. After
performing the dues of prostration and salutation (kurnish, sijda,
taslim), he laid before me the letter he had brought. It was decided
that he should produce before me the horses and other presents he
had brought with him. The written and verbal messages sent were full
of friendship, brotherhood, and sincerity. I gave the ambassador on
that same day a jewelled tiara (taj) and a dress of honour. As in the
letter much friendliness and affection were displayed, an exact copy
is recorded in the Jahangir-nama. [524]
On Sunday, the 18th Shawwal, corresponding to the 8th Aban, [525] the
camp equipage of my son Baba Khurram left Ajmir for the purpose of the
conquest of the provinces of the Deccan, and it was decided that my
son aforesaid should start by way of advanced guard, followed by the
glorious standards (of Jahangir). On Monday, the 19th, corresponding
with the 9th Aban, when three gharis of day had passed, the auspicious
palace moved in the same direction in the like manner. On the 10th
the mansab of Raja Suraj Mal, who had been appointed to accompany
the prince, was made up, original and increase, to 2,000 personal
and horse. On the night of the 19th Aban, after my usual custom,
I was in the ghusul-khana. Some of the Amirs and attendants, and by
chance Muhammad Riza Beg, the ambassador of the ruler of Persia, were
present. When six gharis had passed, an owl came and sat on top of
a high terrace roof belonging to the palace, and was hardly visible,
so that many men failed to distinguish it. I sent for a gun and took
aim and fired in the direction that they pointed out to me. The gun,
like the decree of heaven, fell on that ill-omened bird and blew it to
pieces. A shout arose from those who were present, and involuntarily
they opened their lips in applause and praise. On the same night I
talked with the ambassador of my brother Shah `Abbas, and at last the
conversation turned on the slaying of Safi Mirza, his (the Shah's)
eldest son. I asked him because this was a difficulty in my mind. He
represented that if his slaughter had not been carried out at that time
he would certainly have attempted the Shah's life. As this intention
became manifest from his behaviour, the Shah was beforehand with him
and ordered him to be killed. On the same day the mansab of Mirza
Hasan, son of Mirza Rustam, was fixed, original and increase, at 1,000
personal and 300 horse. The mansab of Mu`tamad Khan, [526] who had been
appointed to the post of paymaster of the army with Baba Khurram, was
settled at 1,000 personal and 250 horse. The time for the leave-taking
of Baba Khurram had been fixed as Friday, the 20th (Aban). At the end
of this day he paraded before me the pick of his men armed and ready
in the public hall of audience. Of the distinguished favours bestowed
on the aforesaid son one was the title of Shah, which was made a part
of his name. I ordered that thereafter he should be styled Shah Sultan
Khurram. I presented him with a robe of honour, a jewelled charqab,
the fringe and collar of which were decorated with pearls, an Iraq
horse with a jewelled saddle, a Turki horse, a special elephant called
Bansi-badan, [527] a carriage, according to the English fashion, [528]
for him to sit and travel about in, a jewelled sword with a special
pardala (sword-belt) that had been taken at the conquest of the fort of
Ahmadnagar and was very celebrated, and a jewelled dagger. He started
with great keenness. My trust in Almighty God is that in this service
he may gain renown (lit. become red-faced). On each of the Amirs
and mansabdars, according to his quality and degree, a horse and an
elephant were conferred. Loosening a private sword from my own waist,
I gave it to `Abdu-llah Khan Firuz-jang. As Dayanat Khan had been
appointed to accompany the prince, I gave the duty of `arz-mukarrir
(reviser of petitions) to Khwaja Qasim Qilij Khan. Previously [529]
to this a band of thieves had carried off a certain sum of money from
the royal treasury in the kotwali chabutara (Police Office). After
some days seven men of that band, with their leader, of the name of
Nawal, were caught, and a portion of that money was recovered. It
occurred to me that as they had been guilty of such boldness I ought
to punish them severely. Each was punished in exemplary fashion,
and I ordered Nawal, the leader of them all, to be thrown under the
feet of an elephant. He petitioned that if I would give the order he
would fight the elephant. I ordered it to be so. They produced a very
furious elephant. I bade them put a dagger into his hand and bring him
in front of the elephant. The elephant several times threw him down,
and each time that violent and fearless man, although he witnessed the
punishments of his comrades, got up again and bravely and with a stout
heart struck the elephant's trunk with the dagger, so that the animal
refrained from attacking him. When I had witnessed this pluck and
manliness, I ordered them to inquire into his history. After a short
time, according to his evil nature and low disposition, he ran away
in his longing for his own place and abode. This annoyed me greatly,
and I ordered the jagirdars of that neighbourhood to hunt him up and
apprehend him. By chance he was caught a second time, and this time
I ordered that ungrateful and unappreciative one to be hanged. The
saying of Shaikh Muslihu-d-din Sa`di accords with his case--
"In the end a wolf's cub becomes a wolf,
Although he be brought up with man."
On Tuesday, [530] the 1st Zi-l-qa`da (10th November, 1616),
corresponding with the 21st Aban, after two watches and five gharis
of the day had passed, in good condition and with a right purpose
I mounted the Frank carriage, which had four horses attached
to it, and left the city of Ajmir. I ordered many of the Amirs
to accompany me in carriages, and at about sunset alighted at a
halting-place about 1 3/4 kos distant, in the village of Deo Ray
(Dorai?). [531] It is the custom of the people of India that if
the movement of kings or great men for the conquest of a country
is towards the east they should ride a tusked elephant, and if the
movement is towards the west on a horse of one colour; if towards
the north in a palanquin or a litter (singhasan), and if towards
the south, that is, in the direction of the Deccan (as on this
occasion), on a rath, which is a kind of cart (araba) or bahal
(two-wheeled car). I had stayed at Ajmir for five days less than
three years. [532] They consider the city of Ajmir, which is the
place of the blessed tomb of the revered Khwaja Mu`inu-d-din, to
be in the second clime. Its air is nearly equable. The capital
of Agra is to the east of it; on the north are the townships
(district) of Delhi, and on the south the Subah of Gujarat. On
the west lie Multan and Dealpur. The soil of this province
is all sandy; water is found with difficulty in the land, and
the reliance for cultivation is on moist [533] soil and on the
rainfall. The cold season is very equable, and the hot season
is milder than in Agra. From this subah in time of war 86,000
[534] horse and 304,000 Rajput foot are provided. There are
two large lakes in this city; they call one of these the Bisal
[535] and the other the Anasagar. The Bisal tank is in ruins
and its embankment is broken. At this time I ordered it to be
repaired. The Anasagar at the time that the royal standards were
there was always full of water and waves. This tal is 1 1/2
kos and 5 tanab (lit. tent-ropes) (in circumference?). Whilst
at Ajmir I visited nine times the mausoleum of the revered
Khwaja, and fifteen times went to look at the Pushkar lake;
to the Chashma-i-Nur I went thirty-eight times. I went out to
hunt tigers, etc., fifty times. I killed 15 tigers, 1 cheetah,
1 black-ear (lynx), 53 nilgaw, 33 gazelle (gawazn), 90 antelope,
80 boars, and 340 water-fowl. I encamped seven times at Deo Ray
(Deo Rani) (Dorai?). At this halt 5 nilgaw and 12 water-fowl were
killed. Marching on the 29th from Deo Ray, my camp was pitched at
the village of Dasawali, 2 kos and 1 1/2 quarters distant from Deo
Ray. On this day I gave an elephant to Mu`tamad Khan. I stayed
the next day at this village. On this day a nilgaw was killed,
and I sent two of my falcons to my son Khurram. I marched from
this village on the 3rd Azar, and pitched at the village of
Badhal (Mawal?), 2 1/4 kos distant. On the road six water-fowl,
etc., were killed. On the 4th, having gone 1 1/2 kos, Ramsar,
[536] which belongs to Nur-Jahan Begam, became the place for the
alighting of honour and glory. A halt was made at this place for
eight days. In the place of Khidmat-gar Khan I here appointed
Hidayatu-llah mir-tuzak (master of ceremonies). On the 5th day
7 antelope, 1 kulang (crane), and 15 fish were killed. The next
day Jagat Singh, son of Kunwar Karan, received a horse and a
robe of honour and took leave for his native place. A horse was
also given to Kesho Das Lala and an elephant to Allah-dad Khan
Afghan. On the same day I killed a gazelle, 3 antelope, 7 fish,
and 2 water-fowl. On that day was heard the news of the death
of Raja Syam Singh, who belonged to the army of Bangash. On
the 7th day 3 antelope, 5 water-fowl, and a qashqaldagh [537]
(coot) were killed. On Thursday and the eve of Friday, as Ramsar
belongs to the jagir of Nur-Jahan, a feast and entertainment were
prepared. Jewels, jewelled ornaments, fine cloths, sewn tapestry,
and every kind of jewellery were presented as offerings. At night
on all sides and in the middle of the lake, which is very broad,
lamps were displayed. An excellent entertainment was arranged. In
the end of the said Thursday, having also sent for the Amirs, I
ordered cups for most [538] of the servants. On my journeys by land
some boats are always taken along with the victorious camp; the
boatmen convey them on carts. On the day after this entertainment
I went to fish in these boats, and in a short time 208 large fish
came into one net. Half of these were of the species of raku. At
night I divided them among the servants in my own presence. On the
13th Azar I marched from Ramsar, and hunting for 4 kos along the
road, the camp was pitched at the village of Baloda. [539] Here
I stayed for two days. On the 16th, moving 3 1/4 kos, I alighted
at the village of Nihal. [540] On the 18th the march was one of
2 1/4 kos. On this day I gave an elephant to Muhammad Riza Beg,
ambassador of the ruler of Persia. The village of Jonsa became
the halting-place of the tents of greatness and prosperity. On
the 20th I marched to the halting-place of Deogaon; I hunted along
the road for a distance of 3 kos. I stayed at this place for two
days, and at the end of the day went out to hunt. At this stage a
strange affair was witnessed. Before the royal standards arrived
at this halting-place, an eunuch went to the bank of a large tank
there is in the village, and caught two young saras, which are a
kind of crane; at night, when we stopped at this halting-place,
two large saras appeared making loud cries near the ghusul-khana
(parlour), which they had placed on the edge of the tank, as if
somebody were exercising oppression on them. They fearlessly began
their cries and came forward. It occurred to me that certainly
some kind of wrong had been done to them, and probably their
young had been taken. After enquiry was made the eunuch who had
taken the young saras brought them before me. When the saras
heard the cries of these young ones, they without control threw
themselves upon them, and suspecting that they had had no food,
each of the two saras placed food in the mouths of the young ones,
and made much lamentation. Taking the two young ones between them,
and stretching out their wings and fondling them, they went off
to their nest. Marching on the 23rd 3 3/4 kos, I alighted at the
village of Bahasu (Bhalu?). Here there was a halt of two days,
and each day I rode to hunt. On the 26th the royal standards moved
and the halt was outside of the village of Kakal. A halt was made
after traversing 2 kos. On the 27th the mansab of Badi`u-z-zaman,
son of Mirza Shahrukh, original and increased, was fixed at
1,500 personal and 750 horse. Marching on the 29th 2 3/4 kos,
a halt was made at the village of Lasa, near parganah Boda. [541]
This day corresponded with the festival of Qurban (19th December,
1616). I ordered them to observe the ordinances of that day. From
the date on which I left Ajmir up to the end of the aforesaid
month, viz. the 30th Azar, 67 nilgaw, antelope, etc., and 37
water-fowl etc., had been killed. A march was made from Lasa on
the 2nd Day, and I marched and hunted for 3 kos 10 jarib, and
halted in the neighbourhood of the village of Kanra. On the 4th
a march of 3 1/4 kos was made to the village of Surath. Marching
4 1/2 kos on the 6th, a halt was made near the village of Barora
(Bardara?). On the 7th, when there was a halt, 50 water-fowl
and 14 qashqaldagh (coot) were killed. The next day was a halt
as well. On this day 27 water-fowl became a prey. On the 9th
a march of 4 1/8 kos was made. Hunting and overthrowing prey,
I alighted at the halting-place of Khush Tal. At this stage a
report came from Mu`tamad Khan that when the territory of the Rana
became the halting-place of Shah Khurram, though there had been
no agreement to this effect (i.e. to the Rana's meeting him),
the fame and dignity of the victorious army had introduced a
commotion into the pillars of his patience and firmness, and he
had come and paid his respects to him when he halted at Dudpur,
[542] which was on the border of his jagir, and observing all the
dues and ceremonies of service he had neglected not the smallest
portion of them. Shah Khurram had paid him every attention,
and pleased him with the gift of a dress of honour, a charqab,
a jewelled sword, a jewelled khapwa, Persian and Turki horses,
and an elephant, and dismissed him with every honour. He had also
favoured his sons and relations with dresses of honour, and out
of his offering, which consisted of five elephants, twenty-seven
horses, and a tray full of jewels and jewelled ornaments, had
taken three horses and given back the remainder. It was settled
that his son Karan should attend on the stirrup of Baba Khurram
in this expedition with 1,500 horse. On the 10th the sons of
Raja Maha Singh came from their jagir and native place (Amber)
and waited on me in the neighbourhood of Rantambhor, making an
offering of three elephants and nine horses. Each one of them,
according to his condition, received an increase of mansab. As
the neighbourhood of the said fort became a halting-place for the
royal standards, I released some of the prisoners who were confined
in that fort. At this place I halted for two days and each day
went to hunt. Thirty-eight water-fowl and qashqaldagh (coot) were
taken. On the 12th I marched, and after going 4 kos halted at the
village of Koyala. On the road I killed fourteen water-fowl and
an antelope. On the 14th, having traversed 3 3/4 kos, I halted in
the neighbourhood of the village of Ektora, [543] killing on the
road a blue bull, twelve herons (karwanak), etc. On the same day
Agha Fazil, who had been appointed deputy for I`timadu-d-daulah at
Lahore, was dignified with the title of Fazil Khan. At this stage
they had erected the royal lodging (daulat-khana) on the bank of a
tank, which was exceedingly bright and pleasant. On account of the
pleasantness of the place I halted two days there, and at the end
of each went to hunt water-fowl. To this place the younger son of
Mahabat Khan, by name Bahra-war, came from the fort of Rantambhor,
which is his father's jagir, to pay his respects to me. He had
brought two elephants, both of which were included in my private
stud. I promoted Safi, son of Amanat Khan, to the title of Khan,
and, increasing his mansab, made him bakhshi and news-writer of
the Subah of Gujarat. Having travelled 4 1/2 kos on the 17th,
I halted at the village of Lasaya. [544] During the halt I killed
one water-fowl and twenty-three sand-grouse (durraj). As I had sent
for Lashkar Khan to Court on account of the disagreement that had
occurred between him and Khan Dauran, I at this place appointed
`Abid Khan, [545] bakhshi and news-writer, in his stead. On the
19th, having made a march of 2 1/4 kos, an encampment was made
in the neighbourhood of the village of Kuraka (Koran?), [546]
which is situated on the bank of the Chambal. On account of the
excellence of the place and the pleasantness of its air and water,
a halt took place here for three days. Every day I sat in a boat
and went to hunt water-fowl and to wander over the river. On the
22nd [547] there was a march, and having traversed 4 1/2 kos,
shooting on the road, the victorious camp was pitched at the
villages of Sultanpur and Chila Mala (Chilamila?). On this day
of halt I bestowed on Miran Sadr Jahan 5,000 rupees, and gave him
leave to proceed to the place assigned to him as his jagir. Another
1,000 rupees were given to Shaikh Pir. On the 25th I marched and
hunted for 3 1/2 kos and encamped at the village of Basur. [548]
According to fixed rules one halt and one march took place, and
on the 27th I marched and hunted 4 1/8 kos and encamped at the
village of Charduha (Varadha?). Two days halt took place here. In
this month of Day 416 animals were killed, namely, 97 sand-grouse
(durraj), 192 qashqaldagh, 1 saras, 7 herons, 118 water-fowl, and
1 hare. On the 1st Bahman, corresponding with the 12th Muharram,
1026 (20th January, 1617), seating myself in boats with the ladies,
I went forward one stage. When one ghari of day remained I arrived
at the village of Rupahera, the halting-place, the distance being 4
kos and 15 jarib. I shot five sand-grouse. On the same day I sent
by the hands of Kaikana winter dresses of honour to twenty-one
Amirs on duty in the Deccan, and ordered him to take 10,000 [549]
rupees from those Amirs as a thanksgiving for the dresses of
honour. This halting-place had much verdure and pleasantness. On
the 3rd a march took place. As on the previous day, I embarked in
a boat, and after traversing 2 1/8 kos the village of Kakha-das
(Kakhavas?) [550] became the encamping place of the victorious
camp. As I came hunting on the way, a sand-grouse fell flying into a
thicket. After much search it was marked, and I ordered one of the
beaters to surround the thicket and catch it, and went towards it
myself. Meanwhile another sand-grouse rose, and this I made a falcon
seize. Soon afterwards the beater came and laid the sand-grouse before
me. I ordered them to satisfy the falcon with this sand-grouse, and to
keep the one we had caught, as it was a young bird. (But) before the
order reached him the head huntsman fed the falcon with the sand-grouse
(the second one, viz. that which the falcon had caught). After a while
the beater represented to me that if he did not kill the sand-grouse
it would die (and then could not be eaten as not properly killed). I
ordered him to kill it if that was the case. As he laid his sword on
its throat, it with a slight movement freed itself from the sword and
flew away. After I had left the boat and mounted my horse, suddenly
a sparrow (kunjishk) by the force of the wind struck the head of an
arrow that one of the beaters who was in my retinue had in his hand,
and immediately fell down and died. I was amazed and bewildered at
the tricks of destiny; on one side it preserved the sand-grouse,
whose time had not arrived, in a short time from three such dangers,
and on the other hand made captive in the hand of destruction on the
arrow of fate the sparrow whose hour of death had come--
"The world-sword may move from its place,
But it will cut no vein till God wills."
Dresses of honour for the winter had also been sent by the hand of
Qara, the yasawul (usher), to the Amirs at Kabul. I halted at this
place on account of the pleasantness of the spot and the excellence
of the air. On this day there came the news of the death of Nad `Ali
Khan Maidani at Kabul. I honoured his sons with mansabs, and at the
request of Ibrahim Khan Firuz-jang [551] increased the mansab of Rawat
Shankar by 500 personal and 1,000 horse. On the 6th there was a march,
and going for 4 1/8 kos by the pass known as Ghate Chanda, the royal
camp was pitched at the village of Amhar (Amjar?). This valley is very
green and pleasant and good trees are seen in it. Up to this stage,
which is the limit of the country of the Subah of Ajmir, 84 kos had
been traversed. It was also a pleasant stage. Nur-Jahan Begam here
shot with a gun a qarisha(?), the like of which for size and beauty of
colour had never been seen. I ordered them to weigh it, and it came to
19 tolas and 5 mashas. The aforesaid village is the commencement of the
Subah of Malwa, which is in the second clime. The length [552] of this
Subah from the extremity of the province of Garha to the province of
Banswala (Banswara?) is 245 kos, and its breadth from the parganah of
Chanderi to the parganah of Nandarbar is 230 kos. On the east is the
province of Bandho, and on the north the fort of Narwar, on the south
the province of Baglana, and on the west the Subahs of Gujarat and
Ajmir. Malwa is a large province abounding in water and of a pleasant
climate. There are five rivers in it in addition to streams, canals,
and springs, namely, the Godavari, [553] Bhima, Kalisindh, Nira, and
Narbada. Its climate is nearly equable. The land of this province is
low, but part of it is high. In the district of Dhar, which is one of
the noted places of Malwa, the vine gives grapes twice in the year,
in the beginning of Pisces and the beginning of Leo, but the grapes
of Pisces are the sweeter. Its husbandmen and artificers are not
without arms. The revenue of the province is 24,700,000 dams. When
needful there are obtained from it about 9,300 [554] horse and four
lakhs, 70,300 foot-soldiers, with 100 elephants. On the 8th, moving
on 3 1/2 kos, an encampment was made near Khairabad. On the road
14 sand-grouse and 3 herons were killed, and having traversed and
shot over 3 kos the camp was pitched at the village of Sidhara. On
the 11th, while there was a halt, I mounted at the end of the day to
hunt, and killed a blue bull. On the 12th, after traversing 4 1/4 kos,
a halt was made at the village of Bachhayari. On that day Rana Amar
Singh had sent some baskets of figs. In truth it is a fine fruit, and
I had never seen such delicious figs in India. But one must eat only a
few of them; it does harm to eat many. On the 14th there was a march;
having traversed 4 1/8 kos, I encamped at the village of Balbali. Raja
Janba who is an influential zamindar in these regions, had sent two
elephants as an offering, and they were brought before me. At the
same stage they brought many melons grown in Kariz near Herat. Khan
`Alam had also sent 50 camels. In former years they had never brought
melons in such abundance. On one tray they brought many kinds of
fruit--Kariz melons, melons from Badakhshan and Kabul, grapes from
Samarkand [555] and Badakhshan, apples from Samarkand, Kashmir, Kabul,
and from Jalalabad, which is a dependency of Kabul, and pineapples,
a fruit that comes from the European ports, plants of which have been
set in Agra. Every year some thousands are gathered in the gardens
there which appertain to the private domains (khalisa-i-sharifa) [556];
kaula, [557] which are similar in form to an orange, but smaller and
better in flavour. They grow very well in the Subah of Bengal. In what
language can one give thanks for such favours? My revered father had
a great liking for fruit, especially for melons, pomegranates, and
grapes. During his time the Kariz melons, which are the finest kind,
and pomegranates from Yezd, which are celebrated throughout the world
and Samarkand grapes had not been brought to Hindustan. Whenever I
see these fruits they cause me great regret. Would that such fruit
had come in those days, so that he might have enjoyed them!
On the 15th, which was a halting day, news came of the death of Mir
`Ali, son of Faridun Khan Barlas, who was one of the trusted amir-zadas
(descended from amirs) of this family (the Timurides). On the 16th
a march took place. Having traversed 4 1/8 kos, the camp of heavenly
dignity was pitched near the village of Giri. On the road the scouts
brought news that there was a lion in this neighbourhood. I went
to hunt him and finished him with one shot. As the braveness of
the lion (shir babar) has been established, I wished to look at his
intestines. After they were extracted, it appeared that in a manner
contrary to other animals, whose gall-bladder is outside their livers,
the gall-bladder of the lion is within his liver(?). It occurred to me
that the courage of the lion may be from this cause. On the 18th, after
traversing 2 3/4 kos, the village of Amriya was our halting-place. On
the 19th, which was a halt, I went out to hunt. After going 2 kos,
a village came to view exceedingly sweet and pleasant. Nearly 100
mango-trees were seen in one garden; I had seldom seen mango-trees
so large and green and pleasant. In the same garden I saw a bar-tree
(a banyan), exceedingly large. I ordered them to measure its length,
breadth, and height in yards (gaz). Its height from the surface to the
highest branch (sar-shakh) was 74 cubits (zira`). The circumference
of its trunk was 44 1/2 cubits and its breadth [558] 175 1/2 measured
by the gaz. This has been recorded as it is very unusual. On the 20th
was a march, and on the road a blue bull was shot with a gun. On the
21st, which was a halt, I went out to hunt at the end of the day. After
returning, I came to the house of I`timadu-d-daulah for the festival
of Khwaja Khizr, whom they call Khizri; I remained there till a watch
of the night had passed, and then feeling inclined for food I went
back to the royal quarters. On this day I honoured I`timadu-d-daulah
as an intimate friend by directing the ladies of the harem not to
veil their faces from him. By this favour I bestowed everlasting
honour on him. On the 22nd an order was given to march, and after
3 1/8 kos were traversed the camp was pitched at the village of
Bulghari (Nawalkheri?). On the road two blue bulls were killed. On
the 23rd day of Tir, which was a halt, I killed a blue bull with a
gun. On the 24th, traversing 5 kos, the village of Qasim-khera was
the halting-place. On the road a white animal [559] was killed, which
resembled the kutah paya (hog-deer); it had four horns, two of which
were opposite the extremities of its eyes, and two finger-breadths in
height, and the two other horns four finger-breadths towards the nape
of the neck. These were four finger-breadths in height. The people of
India call this animal dudhadharit (dudhariya?). The male has four
horns and the female none. It was said that this kind of antelope
has no gall-bladder, but when they looked at its intestines the
gall-bladder was apparent, and it became clear that this report has
no foundation. On the 25th, which was a halt, at the end of the day I
rode out to hunt and killed a female nilgaw with my gun. Balju, nephew
of Qilij Khan, who held the mansab of 1,000 personal and 850 horse,
and had a jagir in Oudh, I promoted to 2,000 personal and 1,200 horse,
dignified him with the title of Qilij Khan, and appointed him to the
Subah of Bengal. On the 26th a march took place, and after traversing
4 3/4 kos a halt was made at the village of Dih Qaziyan, which is in
the neighbourhood of Ujjain. A number of mango-trees in this place
had blossomed. They had pitched the tents on the bank of a lake, and
had prepared an enchanting place. Pahar, son of Ghaznin [560] Khan,
was capitally punished at this stage. Cherishing this unlucky one
after the death of his father, I had given him the fort and province
of Jalaur, which was the place of his ancestors. As he was of tender
years, his mother used to forbid him certain evil practices. That
eternally black-faced one with some of his companions one night came
into the house and killed his own full mother with his own hand. This
news reached me and I ordered them to bring him. After his crime was
proved against him, I ordered them to put him to death (kih ba biyasa
rasanidand). At this halting-place a tamarind [561]-tree came to view,
the form and habit of which were somewhat strange. The original tree
had one trunk; when it had grown to 6 gaz, it turned into two branches,
one of which was 10 and the other 9 1/2 gaz. The distance between
the two branches was 4 1/2 gaz. From the ground to the place where
the branches and leaves came to an end(?), there were on the side of
the large branch 16 gaz, and on the other branch 15 1/2 gaz. From
the place whence the branches and green leaves began(?) to the top
(trunk?) of the tree was 2 1/2 gaz, and the circumference was 2 3/4
gaz. I ordered them to make a chabutara (platform) round it of the
height of 3 gaz. As the trunk was very straight and well-shaped, I told
my artists to depict it in the illustrations to the Jahangir-nama. A
march was made on the 27th. After traversing 2 1/8 kos, a halt was
made at the village of Hinduwal [562]; on the road a blue bull was
killed. On the 28th, after traversing 2 kos, the village of Kaliyadaha
became the halting-place. Kaliyadaha is a building which was made
by Nasiru-d-din, son of Ghiyasu-d-din, son of Sultan Mahmud Khalji,
who was ruler of Malwa. In the time of his rule he had made it in the
neighbourhood of Ujjain, which is one of the most celebrated cities
in the Subah of Malwa. They say that the heat overcame him so much
that he passed his time in the water. He made this building in the
middle of the river, and divided its waters into canals, and brought
the water on all sides, as well as inside and outside, of the house,
and made large and small reservoirs suited to the place. It is a
very pleasant and enjoyable place, and one of the noted habitations
of Hindustan. Before it was decided to halt at this place I sent
architects and ordered them to clean up the place again. On account of
its pleasantness I remained in this place for three days. At the same
place Shaja`at Khan came from his jagir and waited on me. Ujjain is
one of the old cities, and is one of the seven established places of
worship of the Hindus. Raja Bikramajit, who introduced the observation
of the heavens and stars into Hindustan, lived in this city and
province. From the time of his observations until now, which is the
1026th Hijra year (1617 A.D.) and the 11th year from my accession,
1,675 [563] years have passed. The deductions of the astronomers of
India are all based on his observations. This city is on the bank of
the River Sipra. The belief [564] of the Hindus is that once in some
year at an uncertain time the water of this river turns into milk. In
the reign of my revered father, at the time when he had sent Abu-l-fazl
to set in order the affairs of my brother Shah Murad, he sent a report
from that city that a large body of Hindus and Musulmans had borne
testimony that some days previously at night this river had become
milk, so that people who took water from it that night found in the
morning their pots full of milk. [565] As this obtained currency it
has been recorded, but my intelligence will in no way agree to it. The
real truth of this affair is known to Allah. On the 2nd Isfandarmuz
I embarked in a boat from Kaliyadaha, and went to the next stage. I
had frequently heard that an austere Sanyasi [566] of the name of
Jadrup many years ago retired from the city of Ujjain to a corner of
the desert and employed himself in the worship of the true God. I had
a great desire for his acquaintance, and when I was at the capital
of Agra I was desirous of sending for and seeing him. In the end,
thinking of the trouble it would give him, I did not send for him. When
I arrived in the neighbourhood of the city I alighted from the boat
and went 1/8 kos on foot to see him. The place he had chosen to live
in was a hole on the side of a hill which had been dug out and a door
made. At the entrance there is an opening in the shape of a mihrab,
[567] which is in length (? height) 1 gaz and in breadth 10 gira,
(knots, each 1/16 of a gaz), and the distance from this door to a hole
which is his real abode is 2 gaz and 5 knots in length and in breadth
11 1/4 knots. The height from the ground to the roof is 1 gaz and 3
knots. The hole whence is the entrance to the abode is in length 5 1/2
knots and its breadth 3 1/2 knots. A person of weak body (thin?) can
only enter it with a hundred difficulties. The length and breadth
of the hole are such. It has no mat and no straw. In this narrow and
dark hole he passes his time in solitude. In the cold days of winter,
though he is quite naked, with the exception of a piece of rag that
he has in front and behind, he never lights a fire. The Mulla of Rum
(Jalalu-d-din) has put into rhyme the language of a dervish--
"By day our clothes are the sun,
By night our mattress and blanket the moon's rays."
He bathes twice a day in a piece of water near his abode, and once
a day goes into the city of Ujjain, and nowhere but to the houses
of three brahmins whom he has selected out of seven, who have wives
and children and whom he believes to have religious feelings and
contentment. He takes by way of alms five mouthfuls of food out
of what they have prepared for their own eating, which he swallows
without chewing, in order that he may not enjoy their flavour; always
provided that no misfortune has happened to their three houses, that
there has been no birth, and there be no menstruous woman in the
house. This is his method of living, just as it is now written. He
does not desire to associate with men, but as he has obtained great
notoriety people go to see him. He is not devoid of knowledge, for
he has thoroughly mastered the science of the Vedanta, which is the
science of Sufism. I conversed with him for six gharis; he spoke well,
so much so as to make a great impression on me. My society also suited
him. At the time when my revered father conquered the fort of Asir,
in the province of Khandesh, and was returning to Agra, he saw him
in the very same place, and always remembered him well.
The learned of India have established four modes of life for the caste
of brahmins, which is the most honoured of the castes of Hindus,
and have divided their lives into four periods. These four periods
they call the four asram. [568] The boy who is born in a brahmin's
house they do not call brahmin till he is 7 years old, and take no
trouble on the subject. After he has arrived at the age of 8 years,
they have a meeting and collect the brahmins together. They make
a cord of munj grass, which they call munji, in length 2 1/4 gaz,
and having caused prayers and incantations to be repeated over it,
and having had it made into three strands, which they call sih tan, by
one in whom they have confidence, they fasten it on his waist. Having
woven a zunnar (girdle or thread) out of the loose threads, they hang
it over his right [569] shoulder. Having given into his hand a stick of
the length of a little over 1 gaz to defend himself with from hurtful
things and a copper vessel for drinking-water, they hand him over to
a learned brahmin that he may remain in his house for twelve years,
and employ himself in reading the Vedas, which they believe in as
God's book. From this day forward they call him a brahmin. During this
time it is necessary that he should altogether abstain from bodily
pleasures. When midday is passed he goes as a beggar to the houses
of other brahmins, and bringing what is given him to his preceptor,
eats it with his permission. For clothing, with the exception of a
loin cloth (lungi) of cotton to cover his private parts, and 2 or
3 more gaz of cotton which he throws over his back, he has nothing
else. This state is called brahmacharya, that is, being busied with
the Divine books. After this period has passed, with the leave of
his preceptor and his father, he marries, and is allowed to enjoy
all the pleasures of his five senses until the time when he has a
son who shall have attained the age of 16 years. If he does not have
a son, he passes his days till he is 48 in the social life. During
this time they call him a grihast, that is, householder. After that
time, separating himself from relatives, connections, strangers,
and friends, and giving up all things of enjoyment and pleasure,
he retires to a place of solitude from the place of attachment to
sociality (ta`alluq-i-abad-i-kasrat), and passes his days in the
jungle. They call this condition banprasta, [570] that is, abode in
the jungle. As it is a maxim of the Hindus that no good deed can be
thoroughly performed by men in the social state without the partnership
of the presence of a wife, whom they have styled the half of a man,
and as a portion of the ceremonies and worshippings is yet before
him (has to be accomplished), he takes his wife with him into the
jungle. If she should be pregnant, he puts off his going until she
bear a child and it arrive at the age of 5 years. Then he entrusts
the child to his eldest son or other relation, and carries out his
intention. In the same way, if his wife be menstruous, he puts off
going until she is purified. After this he has no connection with
her, and does not defile himself with communication with her, and at
night he sleeps apart. [571] He passes twelve years in this place,
and lives on vegetables which may have sprung up of themselves
in the desert and jungle. He keeps his zunnar by him and worships
fire. He does not waste his time in looking after his nails or the
hair of his head, or in trimming his beard and moustaches. When he
completes this period in the manner related, he returns to his own
house, and having commended his wife to his children and brothers
and sons-in-law, goes to pay his respects to his spiritual guide,
and burns by throwing into the fire in his presence whatever he has
in the way of a zunnar, the hair of his head, etc., and says to him:
"Whatever attachment (ta`alluq) I may have had, even to abstinence
and worshipping and will, I have rooted up out of my heart." Then he
closes the road to his heart and to his desires and is always employed
in contemplation of God, and knows no one except the True Cause of
Being (God). If he speak of science it is the science of Vedanta,
the purport of which Baba Fighani has versified in this couplet--
"There's one lamp in this house, by whose rays
Wherever I look there is an assembly."
They call this state sarvabiyas, [572] that is, giving up all. They
call him who possesses it sarvabiyasi.
After interviewing Jadrup I mounted an elephant and passed through the
town of Ujjain, and as I went scattered to the right and left small
coins to the value of 3,500 rupees, and proceeding 1 3/4 kos alighted
at Da'ud-khera, the place where the royal camp was pitched. On the
3rd day, which was a halting day, I went, from desire for association
with him, after midday, to see Jadrup, and for six gharis enjoyed
myself in his company. On this day also he uttered good words,
and it was near evening when I entered my palace. On the 4th day
I journeyed 3 1/4 kos and halted at the village of Jarao [573] in
the Paraniya garden. This is also a very pleasant halting-place,
full of trees. On the 6th there was a march; after proceeding for
4 3/4 kos I halted on the bank of the lake of Debalpur Bheriya. On
account of the pleasantness of the place and the delights of the lake,
I halted at this stage for four days, and at the end of each day,
embarking in a boat, employed myself in shooting ducks (murghabi)
and other aquatic animals. At this halting-place they brought fakhri
grapes from Ahmadnagar. Although they are not as large as the Kabul
fakhri grapes, they do not yield to them in sweetness.
At the request of my son Baba Khurram the mansab of Badi`u-z-zaman,
son of Mirza Shahrukh, was fixed at 1,500 personal and 1,000 horse. On
the 11th I marched, and after proceeding for 3 1/4 kos halted in
the parganah Daulatabad. On the 12th, which was a halt, I rode out
to hunt. In the village of Shaikhupur, which belonged to the said
parganah, I saw a very large and bulky banyan-tree, measuring round
its trunk 18 1/2 gaz, and in height from the root to the top of the
branches 128 1/4 cubits. The branches spread a shade for 203 1/2
cubits. The length of a branch, on which they have represented the
tusks of an elephant, was 40 gaz. At the time when my revered father
passed by this, he had made an impression of his hand by way of a
mark at the height of 3 3/4 gaz from the ground. I ordered them also
to make the mark of my hand 8 gaz above another root. In order that
these two hand-marks might not be effaced in the course of time, they
were carved on a piece of marble and fastened on to the trunk of the
tree. I ordered them to place a chabutara and platform round the tree.
As at the time when I was prince I had promised Mir Ziya'u-din
Qazwini, who was one of the Saifi Sayyids, and whom during my reign
I have honoured with the title of Mustafa Khan, to give the parganah
of Maldah, which is a famous parganah in Bengal, to him and his
descendants [574] in al tamgha (perpetual royal grant), this great
gift was bestowed in his honour at this halting-place. On the 13th a
march took place. Going separately from this camp to look round the
country and hunt with some of the ladies and intimates and servants, I
proceeded to the village of Hasilpur, and whilst the camp was pitched
in the neighbourhood of Nalcha (Balchha?) I halted at the village
of Sangor. What shall be written of the beauty and sweetness of this
village? There were many mango-trees, and its lands were altogether
green and delightful. On account of its greenness and pleasantness
I halted here for three days. I gave this village to Kamal Khan,
the huntsman, in place of Kesho Das Maru. An order was passed that
they should hereafter call it Kamalpur. At this same halting-place
occurred the night of Shivrat (Shivratri). Many Jogis collected. The
ceremonies of this night were duly observed, and I met the learned
of this body in social intercourse. In these days I shot three blue
bulls. The news of the killing of Raja Man reached me at this place. I
had appointed him to head the army that had been sent against the fort
of Kangra. When he arrived at Lahore he heard that Sangram, one of the
zamindars of the hill-country of the Panjab, had attacked his place
and taken possession of part of his province. Considering it of the
first importance to drive him out, he went against him. As Sangram
had not the power to oppose him, he left the country of which he had
taken possession and took refuge in difficult hills and places. Raja
Man pursued him there, and in his great pride, not looking to the
means by which he himself could advance and retreat, came up to him
with a small force. When Sangram saw that he had no way to flee by,
in accordance with this couplet--
"In time of need when no (way of) flight is left,
The hand seizes the edge of the sharp sword." [575]
A fight took place, and according to what was decreed, a bullet
struck Raja Man and he delivered his soul to the Creator thereof. His
men were defeated and a great number of them killed. The remainder,
wounded, abandoned their horses and arms, and with a hundred alarms
escaped half-dead.
On the 17th I marched from Sangor, and after proceeding 3 kos came
again to the village of Hasilpur. On the road a blue bull was
killed. This village is one of the noted places in the Subah of
Malwa. It has many vines and mango-trees without number. It has
streams flowing on all sides of it. At the time I arrived there
were grapes contrary to the season in which they are in the Wilayat
(Persia or Afghanistan). They were so cheap and plentiful that the
lowest and meanest could get as much as they desired. The poppy had
flowered and showed varied colours. In brief, there are few villages
so pleasant. For three days more I halted in this village. Three
blue bulls were killed with my gun. From Hasilpur on the 21st in two
marches I rejoined the big camp. On the road a blue bull was killed. On
Sunday, the 22nd, marching from the neighbourhood of Nalcha (Balchha?),
I pitched at a lake that is at the foot of the fort of Mandu. On that
day the huntsmen brought news that they had marked down a tiger within
3 kos. Although it was Sunday, and on these two days, viz. Sunday and
Thursday, I do not shoot, it occurred to me that as it is a noxious
animal it ought to be done away with. I proceeded towards him, and when
I arrived at the place it was sitting under the shade of a tree. Seeing
its mouth, which was half open, from the back of the elephant, I fired
my gun. By chance it entered its mouth and found a place in its throat
and brain, and its affair was finished with that one shot. After this
the people who were with me, although they looked for the place where
the tiger was wounded, could not find it, for on none of its limbs was
there any sign of a gunshot wound. At last I ordered them to look in
its mouth. From this it was evident that the bullet had entered its
mouth and that it had been killed thereby. Mirza Rustam had killed
a male wolf and brought it. I wished to see whether its gall-bladder
was in its liver like that of the tiger, or like other animals outside
its liver. After examination it was clear that the gall-bladder was
also inside the liver. On Monday, the 23rd, when one watch had passed
in a fortunate ascension and a benign hour, I mounted an elephant
and approached the fort of Mandu. When a watch and three gharis of
day had passed, I entered the houses which they had prepared for
the royal accommodation. I scattered 1,500 rupees on the way. From
Ajmir to Mandu, 159 kos, in the space of four months and two days,
in forty-six marches and seventy-eight halts, had been traversed. In
these forty-six marches our halts were made on the banks of tanks or
streams or large rivers in pleasant places which were full of trees
and poppy-fields in flower, and no day passed that I did not hunt
while halting or travelling. Riding on horseback or on an elephant I
came along the whole way looking about and hunting, and none of the
difficulties of travelling were experienced; one might say that there
was a change from one garden to another. In these huntings there were
always present with me Asaf Khan, Mirza Rustam, Mir Miran, Anira'i,
Hidayatu-llah, Raja Sarang Deo, Sayyid Kasu, and Khawass Khan. As
before the arrival of the royal standards in these regions I had sent
`Abdu-l-Karim, the architect, to look to the repair of the buildings of
the old rulers in Mandu, he during the time the camp halted at Ajmir
had repaired some of the old buildings that were capable of repair,
and had altogether rebuilt some places. In short, he had made ready
a house the like of which for pleasantness and sweetness has probably
not been made anywhere else. Nearly 300,000 rupees, or 2,000 Persian
tumans, were expended on this. There should be such grand buildings
in all great cities as might be fit for royal accommodation. This
fort is on the top of a hill 10 kos in circumference; in the rainy
season there is no place with the fine air and pleasantness of this
fort. At nights, in the season of the qalbu-l-asad (Cor leonis of
Regulus, the star a of Leo), it is so cold that one cannot do without
a coverlet, and by day there is no need for a fan (bad-zan). They say
[576] that before the time of Raja Bikramajit there was a Raja of the
name of Jai Singh Deo. In his time a man had gone into the fields to
bring grass. While he was cutting it, the sickle he had in his hand
appeared to be of the colour of gold. When he saw that his sickle had
been transmuted, he took it to a blacksmith of the name of Madan [577]
to be repaired. The blacksmith knew the sickle had been turned into
gold. It had before this been heard that there was in this country
the alchemist's stone (sang-i-paras), by contact with which iron and
copper became gold. He immediately took the grass-cutter with him to
that place and procured the stone. After this he brought to the Raja
of the time this priceless jewel. The Raja by means of this stone made
gold, and spent part of it on the buildings of this fort and completed
them in the space of twelve years. At the desire of that blacksmith he
caused them to cut into the shape of an anvil most of the stones that
were to be built into the wall of the fort. At the end of his life,
when his heart had given up the world, he held an assembly on the bank
of the Narbada, which is an object of worship among the Hindus, and,
assembling brahmins, made presents to each of cash and jewels. When
the turn of a brahmin came who had long been associated with him,
he gave this stone into his hand. He from ignorance became angry and
threw the priceless jewel into the river. After he came to know the
true state of the affair he was a captive to perpetual sorrow. However
much he searched, no trace of it was found. These things are not
written in a book; they have been heard, but my intelligence in no
way accepts this story. It appears to me to be all delusion. Mandu
[578] is one of the famous Sarkars of the Subah of Malwa. Its revenue
is 1,390,000 dams. It was for a long time the capital of the kings
of this country. There are many buildings and traces of former kings
in it, and up till now it has not fallen into ruin.
On the 24th I rode to go round and see the buildings of the old kings,
and went first to the Jami` mosque, which is one built by Sultan
Hushang Ghuri. A very lofty building came to view, all of cut stone,
and although 180 years have passed since the time of its building,
it is as if the builder had just withdrawn his hand from it. After
this I went to the building containing the tombs of the Khalji
rulers. The grave of Nasiru-d-din, son of Sultan Ghiyasu-d-din,
whose face is blackened for ever, was also there. It is well known
that that wretch advanced himself by the murder of his own father,
Ghiyasu-d-din, who was in his 80th year. Twice he gave him poison,
and he twice expelled it by means of a zahr-muhra (poison antidote,
bezoar) he had on his arm. The third time he mixed poison in a cup
of sherbet and gave it to his father with his own hand, saying he
must drink it. As his father understood what efforts he was making
in this matter, he loosened the zahr-muhra from his arm and threw it
before him, and then turning his face in humility and supplication
towards the throne of the Creator, who requires no supplication,
said: "O Lord, my age has arrived at 80 years, and I have passed this
time in prosperity and happiness such as has been attained to by no
king. Now as this is my last time, I hope that Thou wilt not seize
Nasir for my murder, and that reckoning my death as a thing decreed
Thou wilt not avenge it." After he had spoken these words, he drank
off that poisoned cup of sherbet at a gulp and delivered his soul
to the Creator. The meaning of his preamble was that he had passed
the time of his reign in enjoyment such as has not been attained to
by any of the kings. When in his 48th year he came to the throne,
he said to his intimates and those near him, "In the service of my
revered father I have passed thirty years in warfare and have committed
no fault in my activity as a soldier; now that my turn to reign has
arrived, I have no intention to conquer countries, but desire to pass
the remainder of my life in ease and enjoyment." They say that he
had collected 15,000 women in his harem. He had a whole city of them,
and had made it up of all castes, kinds, and descriptions--artificers,
magistrates, qazis, kotwals, and whatever else is necessary for the
administration of a town. Wherever he heard of a virgin possessed of
beauty, he would not desist (lit. did not sit down from his feet)
until he possessed her. He taught the girls all kinds of arts and
crafts, and was much inclined to hunt. He had made a deer park and
collected all kinds of animals in it. He often used to hunt in it with
his women. In brief, in the period of thirty-two years of his reign,
as he had determined, he went against no enemy, and passed this time
in ease and enjoyment. In the same way no one invaded his country. It
is reported that when Shir Khan, the Afghan, in the time of his rule,
came to the tomb of Nasiru-d-din, he, in spite of his brutish nature,
on account of Nasiru-d-din's shameful conduct, ordered the head of the
tomb to be beaten with sticks. Also when I went to his tomb I gave it
several kicks, and ordered the servants in attendance on me to kick the
tomb. Not satisfied with this, I ordered the tomb to be broken open and
his impure remains to be thrown into the fire. Then it occurred to me
that since fire is Light, it was a pity for the Light of Allah to be
polluted with burning his filthy body; also, lest there should be any
diminution of torture for him in another state from being thus burnt,
I ordered them to throw his crumbled bones, together with his decayed
limbs, into the Narbada. During his lifetime he always passed his days
in the water in consequence of the heat that had acquired a mastery
over his temperament. It is well known that in a state of drunkenness
he once threw himself into one of the basins at Kaliyadaha, which was
very deep. Some of the attendants in the harem exerted themselves and
caught his hair in their hands and drew him out of the water. After he
had come to his senses they told him that this thing had happened. When
he had heard that they had pulled him out by the hair of his head,
he became exceedingly angry, and ordered the hands of the attendants
to be cut off. Another time, when an affair of this kind took place,
no one had the boldness to pull him out and he was drowned. By chance,
after 110 years had passed since his death, it came to pass that his
decayed limbs also became mingled with the water.
On the 28th, as a reward for the buildings of Mandu having been
completed through his excellent exertions, I promoted `Abdu-l-Karim
to the rank of 800 personal and 400 horse, and dignified him with
the title of Ma`mur Khan (the architect-Khan). On the same day
that the royal standards entered the fort of Mandu, my son of lofty
fortune, Sultan Khurram, with the victorious army, entered the city
of Burhanpur, which is the seat of the governor of the province
of Khandesh.
After some days, representations came from Afzal Khan and the Ray
Rayan, to whom at the time of leaving Ajmir my son had given leave
to accompany the ambassador to `Adil Khan, reporting that when the
news of our coming reached `Adil Khan he came out for 7 kos to meet
the order and the litter of the prince, and performed the duties of
salutation and respect which are customary at Court. He did not omit
a hair's point of such ceremonies. At the same interview he professed
the greatest loyalty, and promised that he would restore all those
provinces that `Ambar of dark fate had taken from the victorious State,
and agreed to send to the Court with all reverence a fitting offering
with his ambassadors. After saying this he brought the ambassadors
in all dignity to the place that had been prepared for them. On the
same day he sent some one to `Ambar with a message of the matters
it was necessary to acquaint him with. I heard this news from the
reports of Afzal Khan and the Ray Rayan.
From Ajmir up to Monday, the 23rd of the aforesaid [579] month,
during four months, 2 tigers, 27 blue bulls, 6 chital (spotted deer),
60 deer, 23 hares and foxes, and 1,200 water-fowl and other animals
had been killed. On these nights I told the story of my former hunting
expeditions and the liking I had for this occupation to those standing
at the foot of the throne of the Caliphate. It occurred to me that I
might make up the account of my game from the commencement of my years
of discretion up to the present time. I accordingly gave orders to the
news-writers, the hunt-accountants and huntsmen, and others employed
in this service to make enquiries and tell me of all the animals that
had been killed in hunting. It was shown that from the commencement
of my 12th year, which was in 988 (1580), up to the end of this year,
which is the 11th year after my accession and my 50th lunar year,
28,532 head of game had been taken in my presence. Of these, 17,167
animals I killed myself with my gun or otherwise, viz.: Quadrupeds,
3,203; viz., tigers, 86; bears, cheetahs, foxes, otters (udbilao),
and hyænas, 9; blue bulls, 889; mhaka, a species of antelope, in
size equal to a blue bull, 35 head; of antelope, male and female,
chikara, chital, mountain goats, etc., 1,670 [580]; rams (quj) and
red deer, 215; wolves, 64; wild buffaloes, 36; pigs, 90; rang, 26;
mountain sheep, 22; arghali, 32; wild asses, 6; hares, 23. Birds,
13,964; viz., pigeons, 10,348; lagarjhagar (a species of hawk), 3;
eagles, 2; qaliwaj (ghaliwaj, kite), 23; owls (chughd), 39; qautan
(goldfinch?), 12; kites (mush-khwur, mice-eaters), 5; sparrows, 41;
doves, 25; owls (bum), 30; ducks, geese, cranes, etc., 150; crows,
3,276. Aquatic animals, 10 magar machha, that is, crocodiles [581]
(nahang).
THE TWELFTH NEW YEAR'S FEAST AFTER MY AUSPICIOUS ACCESSION.
One ghari of day remained of Monday, the 30th of the aforesaid
(Isfandiyar) month, corresponding to the 12th Rabi`u-l-awwal, 1026
(20th March, 1617), when the sun changed from the constellation of
Pisces into the pleasure-house of Aries, which is his abode of honour
and good fortune. At the very time of transit, which was a fortunate
hour, I sat upon the throne. I had ordered that according to the usual
custom they should decorate the public audience hall with fine cloths,
etc. Notwithstanding that many of the Amirs and chief men of the State
were in attendance on my son Khurram, a meeting was arranged which was
not inferior to those of previous years. I presented the offerings
of Tuesday [582] to Anand Khan. On the same day, which was the 1st
Farwardin of the 12th year (21st or 22nd March, 1617) a representation
arrived from Shah Khurram to the effect that the New Year's festival
had been arranged for in the same manner as in previous years, but as
the days of travelling and service had occurred the annual offerings
of the servants would be remitted. This proceeding of my son was much
approved. Remembering my dear son in my prayers, I besought for him
from the throne of Allah his welfare in both worlds, and ordered that
on this New Year's Day no one should present offerings.
In consequence of the disturbance that tobacco brings about in most
temperaments and constitutions, I had ordered that no one should
smoke it (lit. draw). My brother Shah `Abbas had also become aware
of the mischief arising from it, and had ordered that in Iran no
one should venture to smoke. As Khan `Alam (ambassador to Persia)
was without control in continual smoking of tobacco, he frequently
practised it. Yadgar `Ali Sultan, ambassador of the ruler of Iran,
represented to Shah `Abbas that Khan `Alam could never be a moment
without tobacco, and he (Shah `Abbas) wrote this couplet in answer--
"The friend's envoy wishes to exhibit tobacco;
With fidelity's lamp I light up the tobacco-market."
Khan `Alam in answer wrote and sent this verse--
"I, poor wretch, was miserable at the tobacco notice;
By the just Shah's favour the tobacco-market became brisk."
On the 3rd of the same month, Husain Beg, the diwan of Bengal,
had the good fortune to kiss the threshold, and made an offering
of twelve elephants, male and female. Tahir, bakhshi of Bengal, who
had been accused of several offences, obtained the favour of paying
his respects to me, and presented before me an offering of twenty-one
elephants. Twelve of these were approved and the remainder I conferred
on him. On this day a wine-feast was arranged, and I gave wine to most
of the servants who were engaged in waiting on me, and made them all
heated with the wine of loyalty. On the 4th the huntsmen sent news that
they had marked down a lion in the neighbourhood of the Shakkar [583]
tank, which is inside the fort and one of the famous constructions of
the rulers of Malwa. I at once mounted and went towards that game. When
the lion appeared he charged the ahadis and the retinue and wounded ten
[584] or twelve of them. At last I finished his business with three
shots [585] (lit. arrows) from my gun, and removed his evil from the
servants of God. On the 8th the mansab of Mir Miran, which was 1,000
personal and 400 horse, was fixed at 1,500 personal and 500 horse. On
the 9th, at the request of my son Khurram, I increased the mansab of
Khan Jahan by 1,000 personal and horse, making it thus 6,000 personal
and horse; that of Ya`qub Khan, which was 1,500 personal with 1,000
horse, was made 2,000 personal and 1,500 horse; that of Bahlul Khan
Miyana [586] was increased by 500 personal and 300 horse to 1,500
personal and 1,000 horse; and that of Mirza Sharafu-d-din Kashghari,
by whom and his son great bravery had been shown in the Deccan, was
increased to 1,500 personal and 1,000 horse. On the 10th Farwardin,
corresponding with the 22nd Rabi`u-l-awwal, 1026, my lunar weighing
took place. On this day two `Iraq horses from my private stable
and a dress of honour were conferred on my son Khurram and sent to
him by Bahram Beg. I increased the mansab of I`tibar Khan to 5,000
personal and 3,000 horse. On the 11th, Husain Beg, of Tabriz, whom the
ruler of Iran had sent to the ruler of Golconda by way of embassy,
as, in consequence of the quarrel of the Franks with the Persians,
the road of the Mir had been closed, [587] waited upon me with the
ambassador of the ruler of Golconda. Offerings came from him of two
horses and some tuquz [588] (nine-pieces?) of cloth from the Deccan
and Gujarat. On the same day an `Iraq horse from my private stable
was bestowed on Khan Jahan. On the 15th, 1,000 personal were added to
the mansab of Mirza Raja Bhao Singh, raising it to 5,000 personal and
3,000 horse. On the 17th, 500 horse were added to the mansab of Mirza
Rustam, and I made it up to 5,000 personal and 1,000 horse; that of
Sadiq Khan was fixed at 1,500 personal and 700 horse, original and
increase; Iradat Khan in the same manner was raised to the mansab
of 1,500 and 600 horse. To the mansab of Anira'i 500 personal and
100 horse were added, and it was made one of 1,500 personal and 500
horse. Three gharis of Saturday, the 19th, remained when the beginning
of the sharaf (day of sun's culmination) occurred, and at the same time
I again took my seat on the throne. Of the thirty-two prisoners from
the army of the rebel `Ambar who had been captured by the servants
of the victorious State in the battle won by Shah-nawaz Khan and the
defeat of that disastrous man (`Ambar), I had handed one man over to
I`tiqad Khan. The guards who had been appointed to keep him showed
carelessness and let him escape. I was much annoyed at this, and I
forbade I`tiqad Khan to come to wait on me for three months. As the
said prisoner's name and condition were unknown, he was not caught
again, although they showed activity in the matter. At last I ordered
the captain of the guards who had been careless in keeping him to
be capitally punished. I`tiqad Khan on this day, at the request of
I`timadu-d-daulah, had the good fortune to pay his respects to me.
As for a long time no good had been heard of the affairs of Bengal and
of the conduct of Qasim Khan, it entered my mind to send to the Subah
of Bengal Ibrahim Khan Fath-jang, who had carried on successfully the
affairs of the Subah of Behar and had brought a diamond mine into
the possession of the State, and to despatch Jahangir Quli Khan,
who had a jagir in the Subah of Allahabad, in his place to Behar. I
sent for Qasim Khan to Court. At the same hour on the auspicious day
(the day of culmination) an order was given that they should write
royal farmans to the effect that sazawalan (revenue collectors) should
be appointed to take Jahangir Quli Khan to Behar and to send Ibrahim
Khan Fath-jang to Bengal. Patronizing Sikandar, [589] the jeweller,
I promoted him to the mansab of 1,000 personal and 300 horse.
On the 21st I gave leave to Muhammad Riza, ambassador of the ruler
of Iran, and bestowed on him 60,000 darbs, equal to 30,000 rupees,
with a dress of honour. As an equivalent to the souvenir (yad-budi)
that my brother Shah `Abbas had sent to me, I forwarded with the
aforesaid ambassador certain presents of jewelled things which the
rulers of the Deccan had sent, with cloths and rare things of every
kind fit for presentation, of the value of 100,000 rupees. Among
these was a crystal cup that Chelebi [590] had sent from `Iraq. The
Shah had seen this cup and said to the ambassador that if his brother
(Jahangir) would drink wine out of it and send it to him it would
be a great mark of affection. When the ambassador represented this,
having drunk wine several times out of the cup in his presence,
I ordered them to make a lid and a saucer for it and sent it along
with the presents. The lid was of enamel (mina-kari). I ordered the
Munshis of mercurial writing (`Utarid-raqm) to write in due form an
answer to the letter he had brought.
On the 22nd the scouts brought in news of a tiger. Mounting
immediately, I went against the tiger and with three shots I delivered
the people from his wickedness, and himself from the wickedness of his
vile nature. Masihu-z-zaman produced before me a cat, and represented
that it was a hermaphrodite, and that in his house it had young ones,
and that when it had connection with another cat, young were born to
the latter.
On the 25th the contingent of I`timadu-d-daulah passed before me in
review on the plain under the jharoka. There were 2,000 cavalry well
horsed, most of whom were Moghuls, 500 foot armed with bows and guns,
and fourteen elephants. The bakhshis reckoned them up and reported
that this force was fully equipped and according to rule. On the 26th
a tigress was killed. On Thursday, the 1st Urdibihisht, a diamond that
Muqarrab Khan had sent by runners was laid before me; it weighed 23
surkh, and the jewellers valued it at 30,000 rupees. It was a diamond
of the first water, and was much approved. I ordered them to make a
ring of it. On the 3rd the mansab of Yusuf Khan was, at the request of
Baba Khurram, fixed at 1,000 with 1,500 horse and in the same way the
mansabs of several of the Amirs and mansabdars were increased at his
suggestion. On the 7th, as the huntsmen had marked down four tigers,
when two watches and three gharis had passed I went out to hunt them
with my ladies. When the tigers came in sight Nur-Jahan Begam submitted
that if I would order her she herself would kill the tigers with her
gun. I said, "Let it be so." She shot two tigers with one shot each
and knocked over the two others with four shots. In the twinkling of
an eye she deprived of life the bodies of these four tigers. Until
now such shooting was never seen, that from the top of an elephant and
inside of a howdah (`amari) six shots should be made and not one miss,
so that the four beasts found no opportunity to spring or move. [591]
As a reward for this good shooting I gave her a pair of bracelets
[592] (pahunchi) of diamonds worth 100,000 rupees and scattered 1,000
ashrafis (over her). On the same day Ma`mur Khan (the architect-Khan)
obtained leave to go to Lahore to complete the buildings of the
palace there. On the 10th the death of Sayyid Waris, who was faujdar
of the Subah of Oudh, was reported. On the 12th, as Mir Mahmud asked
for a faujdarship, I dignified him with the title of Tahawwur Khan,
and, increasing his mansab, appointed him to the faujdarship of
some of the parganahs of the Subah of Multan. On the 22nd, Tahir,
the bakhshi of Bengal, who had been forbidden to pay his respects,
waited upon me and presented his offerings. Eight elephants were also
presented as the offering of Qasim Khan, governor of Bengal, and two
as that of Shaikh Modhu. On the 28th, at the request of Khan Dauran,
an order was given for the increase of the mansab of `Abdu-l-`Aziz
Khan by 500. On the 5th Khurdad the duty of the Diwanship of Gujarat
was given to Mirza Husain in supercession of Kesho. I dignified him
with the title of Kifayat Khan. On the 8th, Lashkar Khan, who had
been appointed bakhshi of Bangash, came and waited on me; he offered
100 muhrs and 500 rupees. Some days before this Ustad Muhammad Nayi
(flute-player), who was unequalled in his craft, was sent by my son
Khurram at my summons. I had heard some of his musical pieces [593]
(majlis-saz), and he played a tune which he had composed for an ode
(ghazal) in my name. On the 12th I ordered him to be weighed against
rupees; this came to 6,300 rupees. I also gave him an elephant with
a howdah, [594] and I ordered him to ride on it and, having packed
[595] his rupees about him, to proceed to his lodging. Mulla Asad,
the story-teller, one of the servants of Mirza Ghazi, came on the same
day from Tattah and waited on me. As he was a reciter and story-teller
full of sweetness and smartness, I liked his society, and I made
him happy with the title of Mahzuz Khan, and gave him 1,000 rupees,
a dress of honour, a horse, an elephant, and a palanquin. After some
days I ordered him to be weighed against rupees, and his weight came up
to 4,400. He was raised to the mansab of 200 personal and 20 horse. I
ordered him always to be present at the meetings for talk (gap). On
the same day Lashkar Khan brought his men to the darshan jharoka before
me. There were 500 horse, 14 elephants, and 100 musketeers. On the 24th
news came that Maha Singh, grandson of Raja Man Singh, who was entered
among the great officers, had died from excessive wine-drinking at
Balapur in the province of Berar. His father also had died at the age
of 32 [596] from the drinking of wine beyond measure. On the same day
they had brought to my private fruit-house many mangoes from all parts
of the province of the Deccan, Burhanpur, Gujarat, and the parganahs
of Malwa. Although this province is well known and celebrated for
the sweetness, freedom from stringiness, and size of its mangoes, and
there are few mangoes that equal its mangoes--so much so that I often
ordered them to be weighed in my presence, when they were shown to
come to a seer or 1 1/4 seer or even more--yet in sweetness of water
and delicious flavour and digestibility the mangoes of Chapramau,
[597] in the province of Agra, are superior to all the mangoes of
this province and of all other places in India.
On the 28th I sent for my son Baba Khurram a special gold-embroidered
nadiri of a fineness such as had never been produced before in my
establishment; I ordered the bearer to tell him that as this rarity
had the speciality that I had worn it on the day I quitted Ajmir for
the conquest of the Deccan, I had sent it to him. On the same day I
placed the turban from my own head, just as it was, on the head of
I`timadu-d-daulah, and honoured him with this favour. Three emeralds,
a piece of jewelled urbasi, [598] and a ruby signet ring that Mahabat
Khan had sent by way of offering were laid before me. They came to
7,000 rupees in value. On this day, by the mercy and favour of Allah,
continued rain fell. Water in Mandu had become very scarce and the
people were agitated about the matter so that most of the servants had
been ordered to go to the bank of the Narbada. There was no expectation
of rain at that season. In consequence of the agitation of the people
I turned by way of supplication to the throne of God, and He in His
mercy and grace gave such rain that in the course of a day and a night
tanks, ponds (birkaha), and rivers became full, and the agitation of
the people was changed to complete ease. With what tongue can I render
thanks for this favour? On the 1st of Tir a standard was presented
to Wazir Khan. The offering of the Rana, consisting of two horses,
a piece of Gujarati cloth, and some jars of pickles and preserves,
was laid before me. On the 3rd, Mu`azza [599](?) brought news of the
capture of `Abdu-l-Latif, a descendant of the rulers of Gujarat,
who had always been the originator of mischief and disturbance in
that Subah. As his capture was a reason for the contentment of the
people, praise was given to God, and I ordered Muqarrab Khan to send
him to Court by one of his mansabdars. Many of the zamindars in the
neighbourhood of Mandu, came and waited on me, and laid offerings
before me. On the 8th, Ram Das, son of Raja Raj Singh Kachhwaha, was
given the tika of a Raja, and I honoured him with that title. Yadgar
Beg, who was known in Mawara'a-n-nahr (Transoxiana) as Yadgar Qurchi,
and had not been without connection and influence with the ruler of
that country, came and waited on me. Of all his offerings a white
china cup on a stand was the most approved. The offering of Bahadur
Khan, governor of Qandahar, consisting of nine horses, nine tuquz of
fine cloth (81 pieces?), two black foxes' skins, and other things,
was brought before me. Also on this day the Raja of Gadeha, Pem [600]
Narayan, had the good fortune to wait on me, and made an offering
of seven elephants, male and female. On the 10th a horse and dress
of honour were given to Yadgar Qurchi. On the 13th was the feast of
rose-water scattering (gulab-pashan). The rites due to that day were
performed. Shaikh Maudud Chishti, one of the officers of Bengal,
was honoured with the title of Chishti Khan, and I presented him
with a horse. On the 14th, Rawal Samarsi (Samarsimha), son of Rawal
Uday Singh, zamindar of Banswala, waited on me; he gave as offering
30,000 rupees, three elephants, a jewelled pan-dan (box for betel),
and a jewelled belt. On the 15th nine diamonds which Ibrahim Khan
Fath-jang, the governor of Behar, had sent along with Muhammad Beg
from the mine, and from the collections of the zamindars of that place,
were laid before me. Of these, one weighed 14 1/2 tanks, and was of the
value of 100,000 rupees. On the same day Yadgar Qurchi was presented
with 14,000 darbs, and I promoted him to the mansab of 500 personal
and 300 horse. I fixed the mansab of Tatar Khan, bakawul-begi (chief
steward), original and increase, at 2,000 personal and 300 horse, and
each of his sons was separately promoted to an increased mansab. At
the request of Prince Sultan Parwiz, I increased the personal mansab
of Wazir Khan by 500.
On the 29th, which was the auspicious day of Thursday, Sayyid
`Abdu-llah Barha, the envoy of my son of good fortune, Baba Khurram,
waited on me, and presented a letter from that son containing news
of a victory over the provinces of the Deccan. All the chiefs, laying
the head of duty in the noose of obedience, had consented to service
and humility, and laid before him the keys of forts and strongholds,
especially the fort of Ahmadnagar. In gratitude for this great favour
and beneficence, placing the head of supplication on the throne of that
God who requires no return, I opened my lips in thankfulness, and,
humbling myself, ordered them to beat the drums of rejoicing. Thanks
be to Allah that a territory that had passed out of hand has come back
into the possession of the servants of the victorious State, and that
the seditious, who had been breathing the breath of rebellion and
boasting, have turned towards supplication and weakness, and become
deliverers of properties and payers of tribute. As this news reached
me through Nur-Jahan Begam, I gave her the parganah of Boda (Toda?),
[601] the revenue of which is 200,000 rupees. Please God, when the
victorious forces enter the province of the Deccan and its forts, and
the mind of my excellent son Khurram is satisfied with regard to their
possession, he will bring with the ambassadors such an offering from
the Deccan as no other king of this age has received. It was ordered
that he should bring with him the Amirs who were to receive jagirs
in this Subah, in order that they might have the honour of waiting on
me. They will thereafter get leave to depart, and the glorious royal
standards will return with victory and rejoicing to the capital of
Agra. Some days before the news of this victory reached me, I took
one night an augury from the diwan of Khwaja Hafiz as to what would
be the end of this affair, and this ode turned up--
"The day of absence and night of parting from the friend are o'er.
I took this augury; the star passed and fulfilment came." [602]
When the secret tongue (lisanu-l-ghaib) of Hafiz showed such an ending
it gave me a strong hope, and accordingly, after twenty-five days,
the news of victory arrived. In many of my desires I have resorted
to the Khwaja's diwan, and (generally) the result has coincided with
what I found there. It is seldom that the opposite has happened.
On the same day I added 1,000 horse to the mansab of Asaf Khan, and
raised it to that of 5,000 personal and horse. At the end of the day
I went with the ladies to look round the building of the Haft Manzar
[603] (seven storeys), and at the beginning of the evening returned
to the palace. This building was founded by a former ruler of Malwa,
Sultan Mahmud Khalji. It has seven storeys, and in each storey there
are four chambers (suffa) containing four windows. The height of
this tower (minar) is 54 1/2 cubits, and its circumference 50 yards
(gaz). There are 171 steps from the ground to the seventh storey. In
going and returning I scattered 1,400 rupees. [604]
On the 31st I honoured Sayyid `Abdu-llah with the title of Saif Khan,
and having exalted him with a dress of honour, a horse, an elephant,
and a jewelled dagger, gave him leave and sent him to do duty with
my son of lofty fortune. I also sent by him a ruby of the value of
more than 30,000 rupees for my son. I did not regard its value, but
as for a long time I used to bind it on my own head, I sent it him by
way of good augury, considering it lucky for him. I appointed Sultan
Mahmud, a son-in-law of Khwaja Abu-l-hasan bakhshi, to be bakhshi
and news-writer of the Subah of Behar, and when he took leave I gave
him an elephant. At the end of the day of Thursday, 5th Amurdad,
I went with the ladies to see the Nil-kund, which is one of the most
[605] pleasant places in the fort of Mandu (Mandogarh). Shah-budagh
Khan, who was one of my revered father's most considerable Amirs, at
the time when he held this province in jagir, built in this place an
exceedingly pleasing and enjoyable building. Delaying there till two or
three gharis of night had passed I returned to the auspicious palace.
As several indiscretions on the part of Mukhlis Khan diwan and bakhshi
of the Subah of Bengal, had come to my ears, I reduced his mansab
by 1,000 personal and 200 horse. On the 7th a war (masti) elephant
from among those sent as offerings by `Adil Khan, by name Gaj-raj,
was sent to Rana Amr Singh. On the 11th, I went out to hunt and came
one stage from the fort. There was excessive rain, and the mud was
such that there was hardly any moving. For the convenience of the
people and the comfort of the animals I gave up this undertaking, and
passing the day of Thursday outside, returned on Friday eve. On the
same day Hidayatu-llah, who is very well suited to carry out the rules
and movements (in travelling) of the headquarters (lit. presence),
was honoured with the title of Fida'i Khan. In this rainy season rain
fell in such quantities that old men said that they did not remember
such rain in any age. For nearly forty days there was nothing but
cloud and rain, so that the sun only appeared occasionally. There was
so much wind that many buildings, both old and new, fell down. On the
first night there was [606] such rain and thunder and lightning as
has seldom been heard of. Nearly twenty women and men were killed,
and the foundations even of some of the stone buildings were broken
up. No noise is more terrifying than this. Till the middle of the
month was passed, wind and rain increased. After this they gradually
became less. What can be written of the verdure and self-grown fragrant
plants? They covered valley and plain and hill and desert. It is not
known if in the inhabited world there exists another such place as
Mandu for sweetness of air and for the pleasantness of the locality
and the neighbourhood, especially in the rainy season. In this season,
which lasts for months and extends up to the hot weather, one cannot
sleep inside houses without coverlets, and in the day the temperature
is such that there is no need for a fan or for change of place. All
that could be written would still fall short of the many beauties of
the place. I saw two things that I had not seen in any other place
in Hindustan. One was the tree of the wild plantain that grows in
most of the uncultivated places in the fort, and the other the nest
of the wagtail (mamula), which they call in Persian the dum-sicha
(tail-wagger). Up till now none of the hunters had pointed out its
nest. By chance in the building I occupied there was its nest, and
it brought out two young ones.
Three watches of day had passed on Thursday, the 19th, when I
mounted with the ladies in order to go round and see the courts and
buildings on the Shakkar tank, founded by former rulers of Malwa. As
an elephant had not been conferred on I`timadu-d-daulah on account of
his government of the Panjab, I gave him on the road one of my private
elephants of the name of Jagjot. I remained in this enchanting place
until the evening, and was much delighted with the pleasantness and
greenness of the surrounding open spaces. After performing my evening
prayer and counting my rosary, we returned to our fixed residence. On
Friday an elephant named Ran-badal (cloud of war?), which Jahangir
Quli Khan had sent as an offering, was brought before me. Having
adopted for myself certain special cloths and cloth-stuffs, I gave an
order that no one should wear the same but he on whom I might bestow
them. One was a nadiri coat that they wear over the qaba (a kind of
outer vest). Its length is from the waist down to below the thighs,
and it has no sleeves. It is fastened in front with buttons, and the
people of Persia call it kurdi (from the country of the Kurds). I
gave it the name of nadiri. Another garment is a Tus shawl, which my
revered father had adopted as a dress. The next was a coat (qaba)
with a folded collar (batu giriban). The ends of the sleeves were
embroidered. He had also appropriated this to himself. Another was a
qaba with a border, from which the fringes of cloth were cut off and
sewn round the skirt and collar and the ends of the sleeve. Another
was a qaba of Gujarati satin, and another a chira and waistbelt woven
with silk, in which were interwoven gold and silver threads.
As the monthly pay of some of Mahabat Khan's horsemen, according
to the regulation of three and two horsed men, for the performance
of duty in the Deccan, had become increased and the service [607]
had not been performed, I gave an order that the civil officers
(diwaniyan) should levy the difference from his jagir. In the end
of Thursday, the 26th, corresponding with the 14th Sha`ban, which is
the Shab-i-barat, I held a meeting in one of the houses of the palace
of Nur-Jahan Begam, which was situated in the midst of large tanks,
and summoning the Amirs and courtiers to the feast which had been
prepared by the Begam, I ordered them to give the people cups and all
kinds of intoxicating drinks according to the desire of each. Many
asked for cups, and I ordered that whoever drank a cup should sit
according to his mansab and condition. All sorts of roast meats, and
fruits by way of relish, were ordered to be placed before everyone. It
was a wonderful assembly. In the beginning of the evening they lighted
lanterns and lamps all round the tanks and buildings, and a lighting up
was carried out the like of which has perhaps never been arranged in
any place. The lanterns and lamps cast their reflection on the water,
and it appeared as if the whole surface of the tank was a plain of
fire. A grand entertainment took place, and the drinkers of cups took
more cups than they could carry.
"A feast was arranged that lighted up the heart,
It was of such beauty as the heart desired.
They flung over this verdant mead
A carpet broad as the field of genius.
From abundance of perfume the feast spread far,
The heavens were a musk-bag by reason of incense,
The delicate ones of the garden (the flowers) became glorious,
The face of each was lighted up like a lamp." [608]
After three of four gharis of night had passed, I dismissed the men
and summoned the ladies, and till a watch of night (remained?) passed
the time in this delightful place, and enjoyed myself. On this day of
Thursday several special things had happened. One was that it was the
day of my ascension of the throne; secondly, it was the Shab-i-barat,
thirdly, it was the day of the rakhi, which has already been described,
and with the Hindus is a special day. On account of these three pieces
of good fortune I called the day Mubarak-shamba.
On the 27th, Sayyid Kasu was dignified with the title of Parwarish
Khan. Wednesday in the same way that Mubarak-shamba had been a
fortunate one for me had fallen out exactly the opposite. On this
account I gave this evil day the name of Kam-shamba, in order that
this day might always fail from the world (lessen). On the next day
a jewelled dagger was conferred on Yadgar Qurchi, and I ordered that
after this he should be styled Yadgar Beg. I had sent for Jay Singh,
son of Raja Maha Singh. On this day he waited on me and presented an
elephant as an offering. A watch and three gharis of Mubarak-shamba,
the 2nd of Shahriyar, had passed, when I rode to look round the
Nil-kund and its neighbourhood; thence I passed on to the plain of the
`Id-gah on the top of a mound that was very green and pleasant. Champa
flowers and other sweet wild herbs of that plain had bloomed to such
a degree that on all sides on which the eye fell the world looked
like a world of greenery and flowers. I entered the palace when a
watch of night had passed.
As it had been several times mentioned to me that a kind of sweetmeat
was obtained from the wild plantain such that dervishes and other poor
people made it their food, I wished to enquire into the matter. What
I found was that the fruit of the wild plantain was an exceedingly
hard and tasteless thing. The real fact is that in the lower part
(of the trunk) there is a thing shaped like a fir-cone from which
the real fruit of the plantain comes out. On this a kind of sweetmeat
forms which has exactly the juiciness and taste of paluda. It appears
that men eat this and enjoy it. [609]
With regard to carrier pigeons (kabutar-i-nama-bar), it had been
stated to me in the course of conversation that in the time of the
Abbaside Caliphs they taught [610] the Baghdad pigeons who were styled
'letter-carriers' (nama-bar), and were one-half larger [611] than
the wild pigeon. I bade the pigeon-fanciers to teach their pigeons,
and they taught some of them in such a manner that we let them fly
from Mandu in the early morning, and if there was much rain they
reached Burhanpur by 2 1/2 pahars (watches) of the day, or even in
1 1/2 pahars. If the air was very clear most of them arrived by one
pahar of the day and some by four gharis (hours) of the day.
On the 3rd a letter came from Baba Khurram, announcing the coming
of Afzal Khan and Ray Rayan and the arrival of the ambassadors of
`Adil Khan, and their bringing suitable offerings of jewels, jewelled
things, elephants, and horses, offerings such as had never come in
any reign or time, and expressing much gratitude for the services
and loyalty of the aforesaid Khan, and his faithfulness to his word
and duty. He asked for a gracious royal firman bestowing on him the
title of farzand (son) and for other favours, which had never yet been
vouchsafed in his honour. Since it was very gratifying to me to please
my son, and his request was reasonable, I ordered that the Munshis of
the mercurial pen should write a farman in the name of `Adil Khan,
conveying every kind of affection and favour, and exceeding in his
praise ten or twelve times what had been previously written. They
were ordered in these farmans to address him as farzand. In the body
of the farman I wrote this couplet with my own hand--
"Thou'st become, at Shah Khurram's request,
Renowned in the world as my son" (farzandi).
On the 4th day this farman was sent off with its copy, so that my son
Shah Khurram might see the copy and send off the original. On
Mubarak-shamba, the 9th, I went with the ladies to the house
of Asaf Khan. His house was situated in the valley, and was
exceedingly pleasant and bright. It had several valleys round
it; in some places there were flowing waterfalls, and mango and
other trees exceedingly green and pleasant and shady. Nearly 200
or 300 keora shrubs (gul-i-keora, Pandanus odoratissimus) grew
in one valley. In fine that day passed in great enjoyment. A
wine party was held and cups were presented to the Amirs and
intimates, and an offering from Asaf Khan was laid before
me. There were many rare things. I took whatever I approved,
and the remainder was given to him. On the same day Khwaja Mir,
son of Sultan Khwaja, who had come on a summons from Bangash,
waited on me, and presented as an offering a ruby, two pearls,
and an elephant. Raja Bhim Narayan, a zamindar of the province
of Gadeha, was promoted to the mansab of 1,000 personal and 500
horse. An order was given that a jagir should be provided him
out of his native country. On the 12th a letter came from my son
Khurram that Raja Suraj Mal, son of Raja Baso, whose territory is
near the fort of Kangra, had promised that in the course of a year
he would bring that fort into the possession of the servants of
the victorious State. He also sent his letter which covenanted for
this. I ordered that after comprehending his desires and wishes,
and satisfying himself with regard to them, he should send off the
Raja to wait on me, so that he might set about the said duty. On
the same day, which was Monday, the 11th, corresponding with the
1st Ramazan (2nd September, 1617), after four gharis and seven
pals had passed, a daughter was born to my son by the mother of
his other children, who was the daughter of Asaf Khan. This child
was named Rushanara Begam. As the Zamindar of Jaitpur, which is
in the jurisdiction [612] of Mandu, in consequence of wickedness
had not had the felicity of kissing the threshold I ordered Fida'i
Khan to proceed against him with some mansabdars and 400 or 500
musketeers and plunder his country. On the 13th one elephant was
given to Fida'i Khan and one to Mir Qasim, son of Sayyid Murad. On
the 16th Jay Singh, son of Raja Maha Singh, who was 12 years old,
was promoted to the mansab of 1,000 personal and horse. To Mir
Miran, son of Mir Khalilu-llah, I gave an elephant which I had
myself approved, and another to Mulla `Abdu-s-Sattar. [613] Bhoj,
son of Raja Bikramajit Bhadauriya, after his father's death,
came from the Deccan and waited on me, and presented 100 muhrs
as an offering. On the 17th it was represented that Raja Kalyan
had come from the province of Orissa, and proposed to kiss my
threshold. As some unpleasant stories had been told with regard to
him, an order was given that they should hand him over with his
son to Asaf Khan to enquire into the truth of what had been said
about him. On the 19th an elephant was given to Jay Singh. On the
20th 200 horses were added to the mansab of Kesho Das Maru, so
that it came, original and increase, to 2,000 personal and 1,200
horse. On the 23rd, having distinguished Allah-dad, the Afghan,
with the title of Rashid Khan, I gave him a parm-narm (shawl). The
offering of Raja Kalyan Singh, consisting of eighteen elephants,
was brought before me; sixteen elephants were included in my
private elephant stud, and I presented him with two. As the news
had arrived from Iraq of the death of the mother of Mir Miran,
daughter of Shah Isma`il II, of the race of the Safawi kings,
I sent him a dress of honour and brought him out of the robes
of mourning. On the 25th Fida'i Khan received a dress of honour,
and, in company with his brother Ruhu-llah and other mansabdars,
obtained leave to go to punish the Zamindar of Jaitpur. On the
28th, having come down from the fort with the intention of seeing
the Narbada and to hunt in its neighbourhood, I took the ladies
with me and halted two stages down on the bank of the river. As
there were many mosquitoes and fleas, I did not stay more than one
night. Having come the next day to Tarapur I returned on Friday,
the 31st. On the 1st of the month of Mihr, Muhsin Khwaja, who at
this time had come from Transoxiana, received a dress of honour
and 5,000 rupees. On the 2nd, after enquiry into the matters of
Raja Kalyan, with regard to which a report had been received, and
which Asaf Khan had been appointed to investigate, as he appeared
innocent, he enjoyed the good fortune to kiss the threshold,
and presented as an offering 100 muhrs and 1,000 rupees. His
offering of a string of pearls, consisting of eighty pearls and
two rubies with a bracelet with a ruby and two pearls, and the
golden figure of a horse studded with jewels, was laid before
me. A petition from Fida'i Khan arrived stating that when the
victorious army entered the province of Jaitpur the zamindar had
elected to run away. He could not oppose Fida'i, and his country
was ravaged. He now repented of what he had done, and intended
to come to the Court, which was the asylum of the world, and
proffer service and obedience. A force with Ruhu-llah was sent
in pursuit of him to capture and bring him to Court, or to lay
waste and ruin his domain and imprison his women and dependants,
who had gone into the country of the neighbouring zamindars. On the
8th Khwaja Nizam came and laid before me fourteen pomegranates from the
port of Mukha (Mocha), which they had brought to Surat in the space of
fourteen days, and in eight days more to Mandu. The size of these was
the same as that of the Thatta pomegranates. Though the pomegranates of
Thatta are seedless and these have seeds, [614] yet they are delicate,
and in freshness excel those of Thatta. On the 9th news came that
while Ruhu-llah was passing through the villages, he came to know that
the women and dependants of the Jaitpuri zamindar were in a certain
village. He remained outside, and sent men into the village to make
enquiries and to bring out the persons who were there. Whilst he was
making enquiries, one of the devoted servants of the zamindar came
along with the villagers. Whilst his men were scattered here and there,
and Ruhu-llah with some servants had brought out his furniture and was
sitting on a carpet, that devoted servant came behind him and struck
him with a spear; the blow was fatal and the spearhead came out at
his breast. The pulling out of the spear and the reverting [615] to
his original (dying) of Ruhu-llah took place together. Those who were
present sent that wretch to hell. All the men who had been scattered
about put on their armour and attacked the village. Those doomed men
(khun-giriftaha) had the disgrace of harbouring [616] rebels and
sedition-mongers, and were killed in the course of an astronomical
hour. They brought into captivity their wives and daughters, and,
setting fire to the village, made it so that nothing was seen
but heaps of ashes. They then lifted up the body of Ruhu-llah and
went and joined Fida'i Khan. With regard to the bravery and zeal
of Ruhu-llah, there was no dispute; at the most, his carelessness
brought about this turn of fortune. No traces of habitation remained
in that region; the zamindar of that place went into the hills and
jungles and concealed and obliterated himself. He then sent someone
to Fida'i Khan and begged for pardon for his offences. An order was
given that he should be allowed quarter and brought to Court.
The mansab of Muruwwat Khan was fixed, original and increase, at
2,000 personal and 1,500 horse, on condition that he should destroy
Harbhan, [617] Zamindar of Chandra-kota, from whom travellers endured
great annoyance. On the 13th Raja Suraj Mal, together with Taqi, the
bakhshi who was in attendance on Baba Khurram, came and waited on
me. He represented all his requirements. His engagement to perform
the work was approved, and at the request of my son he was honoured
with a standard and drums. To Taqi, who had been appointed with him, a
jewelled khapwa (dagger) was given, and it was arranged that he should
finish his own affairs and start off quickly. The mansab of Khwaja `Ali
Beg Mirza, who had been appointed to the defence and administration of
Ahmadnagar, was fixed at 5,000 personal and horse. An elephant apiece
was given to Nuru-d-din Quli, Khwajagi Tahir, Sayyid Khan Muhammad,
Murtaza Khan, and Wali Beg. On the 17th the mansab of Hakim Beg was
fixed, original and increase, at 1,000 personal and 200 horse. On
the same day, after presenting Raja Suraj Mal with a dress of honour,
an elephant, and a jewelled khapwa, and Taqi with a dress of honour,
I gave them leave to proceed on duty to Kangra. When those who had been
sent by my son of lofty fortune, Shah Khurram, with the ambassadors of
`Adil Khan and his offerings, arrived at Burhanpur, and my son's mind
was completely satisfied with regard to the affairs of the Deccan,
he prayed for the Subahdarship of Berar, Khandesh, and Ahmadnagar for
the Commander-in-Chief, the Khankhanan, and sent his son Shah-nawaz
Khan, who is really Khankhanan junior, with 12,000 cavalry to hold
possession of the conquered provinces. Every place and estate were put
as jagirs into the hands of reliable men, and fitting arrangements
were made for the government of the province. He left, out of the
troops that were with him, 30,000 horse and 7,000 musketeer infantry,
and took with him the remainder, amounting to 25,000 horse and 2,000
gunners, and set off to wait on me. On Thursday (Mubarak-shamba), the
20th [618] of the month of Mihr (Divine month), in the twelfth year
from my accession, corresponding with the 11th Shawwal, 1026 Hijra
(12th October, 1617), after three watches and one ghari had passed,
he entered the fort of Mandu auspiciously and joyfully, and had the
honour of waiting on me. The duration of our separation was 11 [619]
months and 11 days. After he had performed the dues of salutation
and kissing the ground, I called him up into the jharokha, and with
exceeding kindness and uncontrolled delight rose from my place and
held him in the embrace of affection. In proportion as he strove to be
humble and polite, I increased my favours and kindness to him and made
him sit near me. He presented 1,000 ashrafis and 1,000 rupees as nazar
and the same amount by way of alms. As the time did not allow of his
presenting all his offerings, he now brought before me the elephant
Sarnak (?) (snake-head?), that was the chief of the elephants of
`Adil Khan's offering, with a casket of precious stones. After this
the bakhshis were ordered to arrange according to their mansabs the
Amirs who had come with my son to pay their respects. The first who
had the honour of audience was Khan Jahan. Sending for him above,
I selected him for the honour of kissing my feet. He presented 1,000
muhrs and 1,000 rupees as nazr, and a casket filled with jewels and
jewelled things as an offering (pish-kash). What was accepted of his
offering was worth 45,000 rupees. After this `Abdu-llah Khan kissed
the threshold, and presented 100 muhrs as nazr. Then Mahabat Khan
had the honour of kissing the ground, and presented an offering of
100 muhrs and 1,000 rupees, with a parcel (gathri) [620] of precious
stones and jewelled vessels, the value of which was 124,000 rupees. Of
these one ruby weighed 11 miskals; an European brought it last year
to sell at Ajmir, and priced it at 200,000 rupees, but the jewellers
valued it at 80,000 rupees. Consequently the bargain did not come
off, and it was returned to him and he took it away. When he came to
Burhanpur, Mahabat Khan bought it from him for 100,000 rupees. After
this Raja Bhao Singh waited on me, presenting 1,000 rupees as nazr
and some jewels and jewelled things as a pish-kash. In the same
manner Darab Khan, son of the Khankhanan, Sardar Khan, brother of
`Abdu-llah Khan, Shaja`at Khan the Arab, Dayanat Khan, Shah-baz Khan,
Mu`tamad Khan bakhshi, Uda Ram, [621] who was one of the chief Amirs
of Nizamu-l-mulk, and who came on the promise of my son Shah Khurram
and joined the ranks of the loyal, waited on me in the order of
their mansabs. After this the Wakils of `Adil Khan had the honour
of kissing the ground, and presented a letter from him. Before this,
as a reward for the conquest of the Rana, a mansab of 20,000 personal
and 10,000 horse was conferred on my son of lofty fortune. When he
had hastened to the capture of the Deccan he had obtained the title
of Shah, and now, in reward for this distinguished service, I gave
him a mansab of 30,000 personal and 20,000 horse and bestowed on
him the title of Shah Jahan. An order was given that henceforth they
should place a chair in the paradise-resembling assemblies near my
throne for my son to sit upon. This was a special favour for my son,
as it had never been the custom heretofore. A special dress of honour
with a gold-embroidered charqab, with collar, the end of the sleeves
and the skirt decorated with pearls, worth 50,000 rupees, a jewelled
sword with a jewelled pardala (belt), and a jewelled dagger were
bestowed upon him. In his honour I myself came down from the jharokha
and poured over his head a small tray of jewels and a tray of gold
(coins). [622] Having called Sarnak elephant to me, I saw without
doubt that what had been heard in its praise and of its beauty was
real. It stood all the tests in size, form, and beauty. Few elephants
are to be seen of such beauty. As it appeared acceptable to me, I
myself mounted (i.e. drove it) and took it into my private palace,
and scattered a quantity of gold coins on its head, and ordered them
to tie it up inside the royal palace. With regard to this I gave it
the name of Nur-bakht [623] (light of fortune). On Friday, the 24th,
Raja Bharjiv, Zamindar of Baglana, came and waited on me. His name is
Partap; every Raja there has been of that place they call Bharjiv. He
has about 1,500 horse in his pay (mawajib-khwar), and in time of need
he can bring into the field 3,000 horse. The province of Baglana lies
between Gujarat, Khandesh, and the Deccan. It has two strong forts,
Saler and Maler (Muler), and as Maler is in the midst of a populous
country he lives there himself. The country of Baglana has pleasant
springs and running waters. The mangoes of that region are very sweet
and large, and are gathered for nine months from the beginning of
immaturity [624] until the end. It has many grapes, but not of the
best kinds. The aforesaid Raja does not drop the thread of caution
and prudence in dealing with the rulers of Gujarat, the Deccan, and
Khandesh. He has never gone himself to see any of them, and if any
of them has wished to stretch out his hand to possess his kingdom,
he has remained undisturbed through the support of the others. After
the provinces of Gujarat, the Deccan, and Khandesh came into the
possession of the late king (Akbar), Bharjiv came to Burhanpur
and had the honour of kissing his feet, and after being enrolled
among his servants was raised to the mansab of 3,000. At this time,
when Shah Jahan went to Burhanpur, he brought eleven elephants as an
offering. He came to Court in attendance on my son, and in accordance
with his friendship and service was dignified with royal favours,
and had presented to him a jewelled sword, an elephant, a horse,
and dress of honour. After some days I conferred on him three rings
of jacinth (yaqut), diamond, and ruby. On Mubarak-shamba (Thursday),
the 27th, Nur-Jahan Begam prepared a feast of victory for my son
Shah Jahan, and conferred on him dresses of honour of great price,
with a nadiri with embroidered flowers, adorned with rare pearls,
a sarpich (turban ornament) decorated with rare gems, a turban with
a fringe of pearls, a waistbelt studded with pearls, a sword with
jewelled pardala (belt), a phul katara (dagger), a sada (?) of pearls,
with two horses, one of which had a jewelled saddle, and a special
elephant with two females. In the same way she gave his children
and his ladies dresses of honour, tuquz (nine pieces) of cloth with
all sorts of gold ornaments, and to his chief servants as presents
a horse, a dress of honour, and a jewelled dagger. The cost of this
entertainment was about 300,000 rupees. Presenting on the same day
a horse and dress of honour to `Abdu-llah Khan and Sardar Khan, his
brother, I gave them leave to go to the Sarkar of Kalpi, which had
been given them in jagir, and also dismissed Shaja`at Khan to his
jagir, which was in the Subah of Gujarat, with a dress of honour and
an elephant. I dismissed Sayyid Haji, who was a jagirdar of Behar,
with a gift of a horse.
It was frequently reported to me that Khan Dauran had become old and
weak, so as to be unfit for active duty, and the Subahs of Kabul and
Bangash is a land of disturbance, and to subdue the Afghans required
riding and active movement. Inasmuch as caution is the condition of
rule, I appointed Mahabat Khan, Subahdar of Kabul and Bangash, giving
him a dress of honour, and promoted Khan Dauran to the governorship of
the province of Thatta. Ibrahim Khan Fath-jang had sent as an offering
from Behar forty-nine elephants; these were submitted to me. On this
day they brought some sona-kela (golden plantains, bananas) for me. I
had never eaten such plantains before. In size they are one finger,
and are very sweet and of good flavour; they have no resemblance to
plantains of other descriptions, but are somewhat indigestible, so
that from the two that I ate I experienced heaviness, whilst others
say they can eat as many as seven or eight. Though plantains are
really unfit to eat, yet of all the kinds this is the one fit to
eat. This year, up to the 23rd of the month of Mihr, Muqarrab Khan
sent Gujarat mangoes by post (dak-chauki).
On this date I heard that Muhammad Riza, ambassador of my brother Shah
`Abbas, gave up the deposit of his life at Agra through the disease
of ishal (diarrhoea). I made the merchant Muhammad Qasim, who had come
from my brother, his executor, and ordered that according to the will
he should convey his goods and chattels to the Shah, so that he might
grant them in his own presence to the heirs of the deceased. Elephants
and dresses of honour were conferred on Sayyid Kabir and Bakhtar Khan,
Wakils of `Adil Khan. On Mubarak-shamba, the 13th Aban, Jahangir Quli
Beg, Turkman, who is dignified with the title of Jan-sipar Khan, came
from the Deccan and waited on me. His father was included among the
Amirs of Iran. He had come from Persia in the time of the late king
Akbar, and having a mansab conferred on him was sent to the Deccan. He
was brought up in that Subah. Although he had been appointed to a
duty, yet as my son Shah Jahan came at this time to pay his respects
and represented his sincerity and devotion, I ordered that he should
come post to Court and have the good fortune to wait upon me and then
return. On this day I promoted Uda Ram [625] to the rank of 3,000
personal and 1,500 horse. He is a brahmin by caste, and was much relied
on by `Ambar. At the time when Shah-nawaz Khan went against `Ambar,
Adam Khan Habshi, Jadu Ray, Babu Ray Kayath, Uda Ram, and some other
Sardars of Nizamu-l-mulk left him and came to Shah-nawaz Khan. After
`Ambar's defeat they, by the persuasions of `Adil Khan and the deceit
of `Ambar, left the right road again and gave up their loyalty and
service. `Ambar took an oath on the Koran to Adam Khan and put him
off his guard, and, capturing him deceitfully, imprisoned him in the
fort of Daulatabad, and at last killed him. Babu Ray Kayath and Uda
Ram came away and went to the borders of `Adil Khan's dominions, but
he would not admit them into his territory. About that time Babu Ray
Kayath lost his life (lit. played away the coin of existence) by the
deceit of his intimates, and `Ambar sent a force against Uda Ram. He
fought well and defeated `Ambar's army. But afterwards, as he could
not remain in that country, he threw himself on to the borders of
the royal dominions, and, having got a promise, came with his family
and dependants and entered the service of my son Shah Jahan. That son
distinguished him with favours and kindnesses of all sorts, and made
him hopeful by giving him a mansab of 3,000 personal and 1,000 horse,
and brought him to Court. As he was a useful servant, I increased
this by 500 horse. I also increased the mansab of Shah-baz Khan,
who had one of 2,000 personal and 1,500 horse, by 500 more horse,
and gave him the faujdarship of the Sarkar of Sarangpur and a part of
the Subah of Malwa. A special horse and elephant were given to Khan
Jahan. On Mubarak-shamba (Thursday), the 10th of the month, my son Shah
Jahan produced his own offerings--jewels and jewelled things and fine
cloths and other rare things. These were all laid out in the courtyard
of the jharokha, and arranged together with the horses and elephants
adorned with gold and silver trappings. In order to please him I came
down from the jharokha and looked through them in detail. Among all
these there was a fine ruby they had bought for my son at the port of
Goa for 200,000 rupees; its weight was 19 1/2 tanks, or 17 miskals,
and 5 1/2 surkhs. There was no ruby in my establishment over 12 tanks,
and the jewellers agreed to this valuation. Another was a sapphire,
among the offerings of `Adil Khan; it weighed 6 tanks and 7 surkhs
and was valued at 100,000 rupees. I never before saw a sapphire
of such a size and good colour. Another was the Chamkora diamond,
also of `Adil Khan's; its weight was 1 tank and 6 surkhs, which they
valued at 40,000 rupees. The name of Chamkora is derived from this,
that there is in the Deccan a plant called sag-i-chamkora. [626]
At the time when Murtaza Nizamu-l-mulk conquered Berar he had gone
one day with his ladies round to look at the garden, when one of
the women found the diamond in a chamkora vegetable, and took it to
Nizamu-l-mulk. From that day it became known as the Chamkora diamond,
and came into the possession of the present Ibrahim `Adil Khan during
the interregnum (fatarat) of Ahmadnagar. Another was an emerald,
also among `Adil Khan's offerings. Although it is from a new mine,
it is of such a beautiful colour and delicacy as I have never before
seen. Again, there were two pearls, one of the weight of 64 surkhs, or
2 miskals and 11 surkhs, and it was valued at 25,000 rupees. The other
weighed 16 surkhs, and was of exceeding roundness and fineness. It was
valued at 12,000 rupees. Another was a diamond from the offerings of
Qutbu-l-mull, in weight 1 tank, and valued at 30,000 rupees. There were
150 elephants, out of which three had gold trappings, chains, etc.,
and nine had silver trappings. Though twenty [627] elephants were put
into my private stud, five were very large and celebrated. The first,
Nur-bakht, which my son presented on the day of meeting, was worth
125,000 rupees. The second, Mahipati, [628] from the offerings of
`Adil Khan, was valued at 100,000 rupees; I gave it the name of
Durjansal. Another, also from his offerings, was Bakht-buland, and
valued at 100,000 rupees; I called it Giran-bar. Another was Qaddus
Khan, and the fifth was Imam Riza. They were from the offerings of
Qutbu-l-mulk. Each of the two was valued at 100,000 rupees. Again,
there were 100 Arab and Iraq horses, most of which were good horses. Of
these, three had jewelled saddles. If the private offerings of my
son and those of the rulers of the Deccan were to be written down
in detail, it would be too long a business. What I accepted of his
presents was worth 2,000,000 rupees. In addition to this he gave his
(step-)mother, [629] Nur-Jahan Begam, offerings worth 200,000 rupees,
and 60,000 rupees to his other mothers and the Begams. Altogether my
son's offerings came to 2,260,000 rupees, or 75,000 tumans of the
currency of Iran or 6,780,000 current Turan-khanis. Such offerings
had never been made during this dynasty. I showed him much attention
and favour; in fact, he is a son who is worth grace and kindness. I
am very pleased and satisfied with him. May God Almighty allow him
to enjoy long life and prosperity!
As I had never in my life had any elephant-hunting, and had a great
desire to see the province of Gujarat and to look on the salt sea,
and my huntsmen had often gone and seen wild elephants and fixed on
hunting-places, it occurred to me to travel through Ahmadabad and
look on the sea, and having hunted elephants on my return, when it
was hot and the season for hunting them to go back to Agra. With this
intention I despatched to Agra Hazrat Maryamu-z-zaman (his mother)
and the other Begams and people of the harem with the baggage and
extra establishments, and betook myself to a tour in the Subah of
Gujarat to hunt, with such as were indispensable with me. On the eve
of Friday in the month of Aban (precise date not given, but apparently
the 10th), I marched auspiciously and happily from Mandu, and pitched
on the bank of the tank of Nalchha. In the morning I went out to
hunt and killed a blue bull with my gun. On the eve of Saturday,
Mahabat Khan was presented with a special horse and an elephant,
and obtained leave to go to his Subah of Kabul and Bangash. At his
request I conferred on Rashid Khan a robe of honour, a horse, an
elephant, and a jewelled dagger, and appointed him to assist him. I
promoted Ibrahim Husain to the post of bakhshi in the Deccan, and
Mirak Husain to that of news-writer in the same Subah. Raja Kalyan,
[630] son of Raja Todar Mal, had come from the Subah of Orissa; on
account of some faults which had been attributed to him he had for some
days been forbidden the honour of paying his respects. After enquiry
his innocence appeared clear, and having given him a dress of honour
and a horse, I appointed him to do duty together with Mahabat Khan in
Bangash. On Monday I gave the Wakils of `Adil Khan jewelled turban
fringes after the fashion of the Deccan, one of the value of 5,000
rupees and the other worth 4,000 rupees. As Afzal Khan and Ray Rayan
had performed the duties of Wakils to my son Shah Jahan in a becoming
manner, I raised them both in mansab and honoured Ray Rayan with the
title of Bikramajit, which among Hindus is the highest title. In
truth he is a servant worthy of patronage. On Saturday, the 12th,
I went to hunt and shot two female nilgaw. As the hunting-ground was
a long way from this halting-place, I on Monday marched 4 1/2 kos
[631] and pitched at the village of Kaid Hasan. On Tuesday, the
15th, I killed three blue bulls, the larger one of which weighed
12 maunds. On this day Mirza Rustam escaped a great danger. [632]
It seems that he had taken aim at a mark and fired his gun. Then he
reloaded, and as his bullet was very flexible, he rested the gun on
his chest and put the bullet between his teeth in order that he might
contract it and put it right. By chance the match reached the pan,
and his chest at the place where the gun was resting was burnt to the
extent of the palm of the hand, and the grains of powder got into his
skin and flesh and a wound was made, and he suffered much pain. [633]
On Sunday (?), the 16th, [634] four nilgaw were killed, three females
and one bukra [635] nilgaw. On Mubarak-shamba (Thursday) I went to look
round a hill valley in which there was a waterfall near the camp. At
this season it had but little water, but as for two or three days
they had dammed the watercourse and, about the time of my reaching
the place, let it loose, it flowed over very well. Its height might
be 20 gaz. It separates at the top of the hill and flows down. In
this way it is a great boon (ghanimat) on the road. Having enjoyed
the usual cups on the edge of the stream and the shade of the hill,
I came back to the camp at night. On this day the Zamindar of Jaitpur,
whose offences I had forgiven at the request of my son Shah Jahan,
had the good fortune of kissing the threshold. On Friday, the 18th,
a large blue bull and a bukra, and on Saturday, the 19th, two females,
were killed. As my huntsmen represented that there was much game in
the parganah of Hasilpur, I left my large camp at this halting-place,
and on Sunday, the 20th, and with some of my close attendants,
hastened to Hasilpur, a distance of 3 kos. Mir Husamu-d-din, son of
Mir Jamalu-d-din Husain Inju, who has the title of `Azudu-d-daulah,
was promoted to the mansab, original and increase, of 1,000 personal
and 400 horse. I presented Yadgar Husain Qush-begi and Yadgar Qurchi,
who had been appointed to do duty in Bangash, with an elephant each. On
this day some Husaini grapes without seeds arrived from Kabul; they
were very fresh. The tongue of this suppliant at the throne of God
fails in gratitude for the favours by which, notwithstanding a distance
of three months, grapes from Kabul arrive quite fresh in the Deccan. On
Monday, the 21st, three small blue bulls, on Tuesday, the 22nd, one
blue bull and three cows, and on Kam-shamba (Wednesday), the 23rd,
one cow, were killed. On Mubarak-shamba, the 24th, a feast of cups was
held on the bank of the tank of Hasilpur. Cups were presented to my
son Shah Jahan and some of the great Amirs and private servants. On
Yusuf Khan, son of Husain Khan (Tukriyah), who was of the houseborn
ones worthy of patronage, was bestowed the mansab of 3,000 personal
and 1,500 horse, original and increase, and he was dismissed to the
faujdarship of Gondwana, dignifying him with a gift of a dress of
honour and an elephant. Ray Bihari Das, the diwan of the Subah of the
Deccan, had the good fortune to kiss the threshold. On Friday Jan-sipar
Khan was exalted with a standard, presented with a horse and a dress
of honour, and despatched to the Deccan. This day I made a remarkable
shot with a gun. By chance there was inside the palace a khirni tree
(Mimusops Kauki). A qurisha [636] (?) came and sat on a high branch,
and I saw its breast in the midst of it. I fired at it and struck it in
the middle of its breast; from where I stood to the top of the branch
was 22 gaz. On Saturday, the 26th, marching about 2 kos, I pitched
at the village of Kamalpur. On this day I shot a blue bull. [637]
Rustam Khan, who was one of the principal attendants of my son Shah
Jahan, and who had been appointed from Burhanpur with a body of the
royal servants against the zamindars of Gondwana, having taken a
tribute of 110 elephants and 120,000 rupees, came this day to wait
upon me. Zahid, son of Shaja`at Khan, was given the mansab of 1,000
personal and 400 horse, original and increase. On Sunday, the 27th,
I hunted with hawks and falcons. On Monday I killed a large blue bull
and a bukra; the bull weighed 12 1/2 maunds. On Tuesday, the 29th,
a blue bull was killed. Bahlul Miyana and Allah-yar came from service
in Gondwana, and had the good fortune to wait upon me. Bahlul Khan
is the son of Hasan Miyana, and Miyana is an Afghan tribe. In the
commencement of his career Hasan was a servant of Sadiq Khan, but a
servant who recognized the king (worthy of a king's service), and was
at last included among the royal servants and died on service in the
Deccan. After his death his sons were granted mansabs. He had eight
sons, and two of them became famous as swordsmen. The elder brother
in his youth gave up the deposit of his life. Bahlul by degrees was
promoted to the mansab of 1,000. At this time my son Shah Jahan arrived
at Burhanpur, and, finding him worthy of patronage, made him hopeful
with a mansab of 1,500 personal and 1,000 horse. As he had not yet
waited on me and was very desirous to kiss the threshold, I summoned
him to Court. He is in truth a good Khana-zada (household-born one),
inasmuch as his heart is adorned with the perfection of bravery
and his exterior is not wanting in good appearance. The mansab my
son Shah Jahan had bespoken for him was granted at his request, and
he was honoured with the title of Sar-buland Khan. Allah-yar Koka
was also a brave youth and a servant worthy of patronage. Finding
him fit and suitable for service in my presence, I sent for him to
Court. On Kam-shamba (Wednesday), the 1st of the month of Azar, I
went out to hunt and shot a blue bull. On this day the Kashmir [638]
reports were laid before me. One was that in the house of a certain
silk-seller two girls were born with teeth, and with their backs as
far as the waist joined together, but the heads, arms, and legs were
separate; they lived a short time and died. On Mubarak-shamba, the
2nd, on the bank of a tank where my tents were, a feast of cups was
held. Presenting Lashkar Khan with a dress of honour and an elephant,
I promoted him to the duty of diwan of the Subah of the Deccan, and
gave him the mansab of 2,500 personal and 1,500 horse, original and
increase. To each of the Wakils of `Adil Khan two [639] kaukab-i-tali`
(horoscope star) muhrs, the weight of each of which was 500 ordinary
muhrs, were given. I gave a horse and robe of honour to Sar-buland
Khan. As fitting service and approved activity were manifest in
Allah-yar Koka, I honoured him with the title of Himmat Khan and
gave him a dress of honour. On Friday, the 3rd, I marched 4 1/4 kos
and halted the royal standards in the parganah of Dikhtan. [640] On
Saturday also I marched 4 1/4 kos and halted at the township of Dhar.
Dhar is one of the old cities, and Raja Bhoj, who was one of the
great Rajas of Hindustan, lived in it. From his time 1,000 [641]
years have passed, and in the time of the Sultans of Malwa it was
for a long time the capital. At the time when Sultan Muhammad Tughluq
was proceeding to the conquest of the Deccan, he built a fort of cut
stone on the top of a ridge. Outside it is very showy and handsome,
but inside the fort is devoid of buildings. I ordered them to measure
its length, breadth, and height. The length inside the fort was 12
tanab, 7 gaz; the breadth, 17 tanab, 13 gaz, and the breadth of the
fort wall 19 1/2 gaz. Its height up to the battlements appeared to
be 17 1/2 gaz. The length of the outer circuit (?) of the fort was
55 tanabs. `Amid Shah Ghori, who was called Dilawar Khan, and who
in the time of Sultan Muhammad, son of Sultan Firuz, king of Delhi,
had complete authority over the province of Malwa, built the Jami`
mosque in the inhabitable part outside the fort, and opposite the gate
of the mosque fixed a quadrangular iron column. When Sultan Bahadur
of Gujarat took the province of Malwa into his own possession, he
wished to transfer this column to Gujarat. The artificers did not
take proper precautions when they lowered it, and it fell and broke
into two pieces, one of them of 7 1/2 gaz and the other of 4 1/4
gaz. The column was 1 1/4 gaz round. As it was lying there useless,
I ordered them to take the larger piece to Agra and put [642] it up in
the courtyard of the mausoleum of H.M. Akbar, and to burn a lamp on
the top of it at night. The aforesaid mosque has two gates. In front
of the arch of one gate some sentences in prose have been carved on
a stone tablet; their purport is that Amid Shah Ghori founded this
mosque in the year 870, [643] and on the arch of the other gate a
qasida has been written, and these few couplets are from it--
"The lord of the age the star of the sphere of glory,
Centre of the people of the earth, sun of the zenith of perfection,
Asylum and support of religious law, `Amid Shah Da'ud, [644]
In whose excellent qualities Ghor glories,
Helper and protector of the Faith of the Prophet, Dilawar Khan,
Who has been chosen by the most mighty Lord (God),
Founded the Jami` mosque in the city of Dhar,
At a fortunate, auspicious time, on a day of happy omen.
The date of eight hundred and seven [645] had passed
When the Court of hopes was completed by Fortune."
When Dilawar Khan gave up the deposit of his life there was
no king with full dominion over Hindustan, and it was a time of
confusion. Hushang, son of Dilawar Khan, who was just and possessed
of courage, seeing his opportunity, sat on the throne of sovereignty
in Malwa. After his death through destiny the rule was transferred
[646] to Mahmud Khalji, son of Khan Jahan, who had been Vizier to
Hushang and passed from him to his son Ghiyasu-d-din, and after him to
Nasiru-d-din, son of Ghiyasu-d-din, who gave his father poison and sat
on the throne of infamy. From him it passed to his son Mahmud. Sultan
Bahadur of Gujarat took from Mahmud the province of Malwa. The
succession of kings of Malwa ended with the aforesaid Mahmud.
On Monday, the 6th, I went to hunt and shot a female nilgaw. Presenting
an elephant to Mirza Sharafu-d-din Husain Kashghari, I dismissed him
to duty in the Subah of Bangash. A present of a jewelled dagger, a
muhr of 100 tolas, and 20,000 darbs was made to Uda Ram. On Tuesday,
the 7th, I shot an alligator in the tank at Dhar. Though only the
top of his snout was visible and the rest of his body was hidden in
the water, I fired at a guess and hit him in his lungs and killed
him with a single shot. An alligator is of the crocodile species and
exists in most of the rivers of Hindustan, and grows very large. This
one was not so very big. An alligator has been seen (by me) 8 gaz
long and 1 gaz in breadth. On Sunday, marching 4 1/2 kos, I halted at
Sa`dalpur. In this village there is a stream over which Nasiru-d-din
Khalji built a bridge and erected buildings. It is a place like
Kaliyada, and both are his works. Although his building is not worthy
of praise, yet as it has been built in the river-bed and they have
made rivulets and reservoirs, it is somewhat remarkable. At night
I ordered them to place lamps all round the canals and streams. On
Mubarak-shamba (Thursday), the 9th, a feast of cups was held. On this
day I made a present to my son Shah Jahan of a ruby of one colour,
weighing 9 tanks and 5 surkh, of the value of 125,000 rupees, with
two pearls. This is the ruby which had been given to my father at
the time of my birth by Hazrat Maryam-makani, mother of H.M. Akbar,
by way of present when my face was shown, and was for many years in
his sarpich (turban ornament). After him I also happily wore it in
my sarpich. Apart from its value and delicacy, as it had come down
as of auspicious augury to the everlasting State, it was bestowed
on my son. Having raised Mubariz Khan to a mansab of 1,500 personal
and horse, I appointed him to the faujdarship of the province of
Mewat, distinguishing him with the present of a dress of honour,
a sword, and an elephant. A sword was given to Himmat Khan, son of
Rustam Khan. I gave Kamal Khan, the huntsman, who is one of the old
servants and is always present with me on hunting expeditions, the
title of Shikar Khan (hunting-Khan). Appointing Uda Ram to service
in the Subah of the Deccan, I conferred on him a dress of honour,
an elephant, and Iraq horses (lit. wind-footed ones), and sent with
him for the Commander-in-Chief, Khankhanan, the Ataliq, a special gilt
dagger (zar-nishan). On Friday, the 10th, I halted. On Saturday, the
11th, I marched 3 3/4 kos and halted at the village of Halwat. [647]
On Sunday, the 12th, marching 5 kos, I halted in the parganah [648]
of Badnor. This parganah from the time of my father had been in the
jagir of Kesho Das Maru, [649] and in fact had become a kind of watan
(native country) to him. He had constructed gardens and buildings. Out
of these one was a well (baoli) (step-well probably) on the road,
which appeared exceedingly pleasant and well made. It occurred to
me that if a well had to be made anywhere on a roadside it should be
built like this one. At least two such ought to be made.
On Monday, the 13th, I went to hunt and shot a blue bull. From the
day on which the elephant Nur-bakht was put into the special elephant
stables, there was an order that he should be tied up in the public
palace (court). Among animals elephants have the greatest liking
for water; they delight to go into the water, notwithstanding the
winter and the coldness of the air, and if there should be no water
into which they can go, they will take it from a water-bag (mashk)
with their trunks and pour it over their bodies. It occurred to me
that however much an elephant delights in water, and it is suited to
their temperament, yet in the winter the cold water must affect them. I
accordingly ordered the water to be made lukewarm (as warm as milk)
before they (the elephants) poured it into their trunks. On other days
when they poured cold water over themselves they evidently shivered,
but with warm water, on the contrary they were delighted. This usage
is entirely my own.
On Tuesday, the 14th, marching 6 kos, I halted at Silgarh (Sabalgarh
?). On Wednesday, the 15th, crossing the Mahi River, a halt was made
near Ramgarh. A march of 6 kos was made on Thursday, the 16th, and
a halt was made and a feast of cups held at a waterfall near the
camp. Distinguishing Sar-buland Khan with a standard and giving
him an elephant, I dismissed him to do duty in the Deccan. His
mansab, original and increase, was fixed at 1,500 personal and 1,200
horse. Raja Bhim Narayan, Zamindar of Gadeha, who had been promoted to
the mansab of 1,000 horse, obtained leave to go to his jagir. Having
raised Raja Bharjiv, Zamindar of Baglana, to the mansab of 4,000,
I gave him leave to go to his native country, and an order was given
that when he arrived there he should send to Court his eldest son, who
was his successor, that he might do duty in my presence. I honoured
Haji Baluch, who was the chief of the huntsmen and was an active
and old servant, with the title of Baluch Khan. On Friday, the 17th,
marching 5 kos, I alighted at the village of Dhavala. On Saturday,
the 18th, which was the feast of Qurban, after the Qurban rites had
been performed, marching 3 1/4 kos, I halted on the bank of the tank
of the village of Nagor. [650] On Sunday, the 19th, marching about
5 kos, the royal standards were erected on the bank of the tank of
the village of Samriya. On Monday, the 20th, marching 4 1/4 kos, we
alighted at the chief place of the Dohad [651] parganah. This parganah
is on the boundary between Malwa and Gujarat. Until I passed Badnor
the whole country was a jungle, with an abundance of trees and stony
land. On Tuesday, the 21st, I halted. On Kam-shamba (Wednesday), the
22nd, marching 5 1/4 kos, I halted at the village of Ranyad (Renav
?). On Thursday, the 23rd, I halted and held a feast of cups on the
bank of the village tank. On Friday, the 24th, marching 2 1/2 kos,
the royal standards were hoisted at the village of Jalot. At this halt
some jugglers from the Carnatic came and showed their tricks. One of
them placed one end of an iron chain, 5 1/2 gaz in length and weighing
1 seer and 2 dams, [652] in his throat and slowly swallowed it with
the aid of water. It was for a while in his stomach; after this he
brought it up. On Saturday, the 25th, there was a halt. On Sunday,
the 26th, marching 5 kos, I alighted at the village of Nimdah. On
Monday, the 27th, also marching 5 kos, I pitched on the bank of a
tank. On Tuesday, the 28th, marching 3 3/4 kos, the royal standards
alighted near the township of Sahra [653] on the edge of a tank. The
flower of the lotus, which in the Hindi language they call kumudini,
is of three colours--white, blue, and red. I had already seen the blue
and white, but had never seen the red. In this tank red flowers were
seen blooming. Without doubt it is an exquisite and delightful flower,
as they have said--
"From redness and moistness it will melt away." [654]
The flower of the kanwal [655] is larger than the kumudini. Its flower
is red. I have seen in Kashmir many kanwal with a hundred leaves
(petals). It is certain that it opens during the day and becomes a
bud at night. The kumudini, on the contrary, is a bud during the day
and opens at night. The black bee, which the people of India call
bhaunra, always sits on these flowers, and goes inside them to drink
the juice that is in both of them. It often happens that the kanwal
flower closes and the bee remains in it the whole night. In the same
manner it remains in the kumudini flower. When the flower opens it
comes out and flies away. As the black bee is a constant attendant on
these flowers, the poets of India look on it as a lover of the flower,
like the nightingale, and have put into verse sublime descriptions of
it. Of these poets the chief was Tan Sen Kalawant, who was without a
rival in my father's service (in fact, there has been no singer like
him in any time or age). In one of his compositions he has likened
the face of a young man to the sun and the opening of his eyes to the
expanding of the kanwal and the exit of the bee. In another place he
has compared the side-glance of the beloved one to the motion of the
kanwal when the bee alights on it.
At this place figs arrived from Ahmadabad. Although the figs of
Burhanpur are sweet and well-grown, these figs are sweeter and with
fewer seeds, and one may call them 5 per cent. better. On Kam-shamba,
the 29th, and Mubarak-shamba, the 30th, we halted. At this stage
Sar-faraz Khan came from Ahmadabad and had the good fortune to kiss the
threshold. Out of his offerings a rosary of pearls, bought for 11,000
rupees, two elephants, two horses, two bullocks and a riding cart,
and some pieces of Gujarati cloth, were accepted, and the remainder
presented to him. Sar-faraz Khan is a grandson of Musahib Beg, by which
name he was called by Akbar after his grandfather, who was one of the
Amirs of Humayun. In the beginning of my reign I increased his mansab
and appointed him to the Subah of Gujarat. As he had an hereditary
connection with the Court as a Khana-zada (one born in the house),
he proved himself efficient in the Subah of Gujarat. Considering
him worthy of patronage, I gave him the title of Sar-faraz Khan and
raised him in the world, and his mansab has risen to 2,000 personal
and 1,000 horse. On Friday, the 1st of Day, I marched 3 3/4 kos and
halted on the bank of the tank of Jhasod. [656] At this stage Ray Man,
captain of the Khidmatiya, [657] caught a rohu fish and brought it. As
I am particularly partial to the flesh of fish, especially that of the
rohu, which is the best kind of fish in Hindustan, and I had never,
notwithstanding much enquiry, had one for eleven months from the time
of crossing the pass of Ghati Chand [658] until the present time, and
now obtained it, I was greatly delighted. I presented a horse to Ray
Man. Although the parganah of Dohad is reckoned as within the boundary
of Gujarat, yet, in fact, it was from this stage that all things
appeared different. The open plains and soil are of a different kind;
the people are different and the language of another description. The
jungle that appeared on the road, has fruit-bearing trees, such as
the mango and khirni and tamarind, and the method of guarding the
cultivated fields is with hedges of zaqqum. The cultivators separate
their fields with cactus, and leave a narrow road between them for
coming and going. Since all this country has a sandy soil, when any
movement takes place, so much dust rises that the faces of people are
seen with difficulty, so that one should call Ahmadabad 'Gardabad'
[659] (abode of dust). On Saturday, the 2nd, having marched 3 3/4 kos,
I encamped on the bank of the Mahi. On Sunday, the 3rd, again after a
march of 3 3/4 kos, I halted at the village of Bardala. At this stage
a number of mansabdars who had been appointed to serve in Gujarat
had the good fortune to kiss the threshold. Marching 5 kos on Monday,
the 4th, the royal standards halted at Chitrasima, and the next day,
Tuesday, after a march of 5 kos, in parganah Monda. [660] On this
day three blue bulls were killed; one was larger than the others and
weighed 13 maunds and 10 seers. On Wednesday, the 6th, I marched 6
kos and halted in parganah Naryad. [661] In passing through the town
I scattered 1,500 rupees. On Thursday, the 7th, marching 6 1/2 kos,
I halted in the parganah of Pitlad. [662] In the country of Gujarat
there is no larger parganah than this; it has a revenue of 700,000
rupees, equal to 23,000 current tumans of Iraq. The population of the
town (qasba), too, is dense. Whilst I passed through it I scattered
1,000 rupees. All my mind is bent upon this, that under any pretext
the people of God may be benefited. As the chief way of riding among
the people of this country is in carts, I also wished to travel in a
cart. I sat for 2 kos in a cart, but was much troubled with the dust,
and after this till the end of the stage rode on horseback. On the
road Muqarrab Khan came from Ahmadabad, and had the good fortune to
wait on me, and presented an offering of a pearl he had bought for
30,000 rupees. On Friday, the 8th, marching 6 1/2 kos, the place of
the descent of prosperity was on the shore of the salt sea.
Cambay [663] is one of the old ports. According to the brahmins,
several thousand years have passed since its foundation. In the
beginning its name was Trimbawati, and Raja Tryambak Kunwar had the
government of the country. It would take too long to write in detail
the circumstances of the aforesaid Raja as the brahmins relate it. In
brief, when the turn to the government came round to Raja Abhay Kumar,
[664] who was one of his grandsons, by the decree of heaven a great
calamity happened to this city. So much dust and earth were poured
on it that all the houses and buildings were hidden, and the means
of livelihood of many people was destroyed. Before the arrival of
this calamity, an idol (but), which the Raja worshipped, came in a
dream and announced this event. The Raja with his family embarked
in a ship, and carried away the idol with them with a pillar it had
behind it for a support. By chance the ship also was wrecked by a
storm of misfortune. As there was left still a term of life for the
Raja, that pillar bore the boat of his existence in safety to the
shore, and he proposed to rebuild the city. He put up the pillar as
a mark of repopulation and the coming together of the people. As in
the Hindi language they call a pillar istambh and khambh, they called
the city Istambhnagari and Khambawati, and sometimes also Trimbawati,
in connection with the Raja's name; Khambawati has by degrees and much
use become Khambayat (Cambay). This port is one of the largest ports
[665] in Hindustan and is near a firth, which is one of the firths
of the Sea of Oman. It has been estimated to be 7 kos in width, and
nearly 40 kos in length. Ships cannot come inside the firth, but
must cast anchor in the port of Goga, which is a dependency [666]
of Cambay and situated near the sea. Thence, putting their cargoes
into ghurabs [667] (commonly called 'grabs') they bring them to the
port of Cambay. In the same way, at the time of loading a ship they
carry the cargo in ghurabs and put it in the ships. Before the arrival
of the victorious host some ghurabs from European ports had come to
Cambay to buy and sell, and were about to return. On Sunday, the 10th,
they decorated them and showed them to me. Taking leave they went
about their business. On Monday, the 11th, I myself went on board a
ghurab for about a kos on the face of the water. On Tuesday, the 12th,
I went out with cheetahs (yuz), and captured two [668] antelope. On
Wednesday, the 13th, I went to see the tank of Tarangsar (Narangsar?),
[669] and passed through the streets and bazaar on the way, scattering
nearly 5,000 rupees. In the time of H.M. Akbar (may Allah's lights
be his testimony), Kalyan Ray, the superintendent of the port, by
His Majesty's order built a wall of brick and cement round the city,
and many merchants came from various quarters and settled there, and
built fine houses and employed themselves in gaining their livelihood
under easy circumstances. Although its market is small, it is clean
and full of people. In the time of the Sultans of Gujarat the customs
of this port came to a large sum. Now in my reign it is ordered that
they should not take more than one in forty. In other ports, calling
it a tithe, they take one in ten or one in eight, and give all kinds
of trouble to merchants and travellers. In Jeddah, which is the port
of Mecca, they take one in four or even more. One may imagine from
this what the customs of the ports of Gujarat must have come to in
the time of the former rulers. God be praised that this suppliant
at the throne of God obtained the grace to remit the whole of the
customs dues of his dominions, which came to a countless sum, and
the very name of customs (tamgha) has passed away from my empire. At
this time an order was given that tankas [670] of gold and silver
should be coined twice the weight of ordinary muhrs and rupees. The
legend on the gold coin was on one side the words "Jahangir-shahi,
1027" (1618), and on the reverse "Struck in Cambay in the 12th year
of the reign." The legend for silver coins was on one side "Sikka,
Jahangir-shahi, 1027"; round it this hemistich, "King Jahangir of the
conquering ray struck this"; and on the reverse, "Coined at Cambay
in the 12th year of the reign," with this second hemistich round it--
"When after the conquest of the Deccan he came to Gujarat from
Mandu."
In no reign except mine have tankas been coined except of copper [671];
the gold and silver tankas are my invention. I ordered it to be
called the Jahangiri coinage. On Mubarak-shamba (Thursday), the
14th the offering of Amanat Khan, the superintendent (mutasaddi)
of Cambay, was laid before me in the women's apartments. His
mansab was fixed, original and increase, at 1,500 personal and 400
horse. Nuru-d-din Quli was honoured with the mansab, original and
increase, of 3,000 personal and 600 horse. On Friday, the 15th,
mounted on the elephant Nur-bakht, I made it run after a horse. It
ran exceedingly well, and when it was stopped stood well. This
is the third time that I myself have ridden it. On Saturday,
the 16th, Ram Das, son of Jay Singh [672], was promoted to the
mansab, original and increase, of 1,500 personal and 700 horse. On
Sunday, the 17th, an elephant each was given to Darab Khan. Amanat
Khan, and Sayyid Bayazid Barha. In these few days during which
I was encamped on the shore of the salt sea, merchants, traders,
indigent people, and other inhabitants of the port of Cambay having
been summoned before me, I gave each according to his condition
a dress of honour or a horse or travelling money or assistance
in living. On this day, Sayyid Muhammad, Sahib Sajjada (Lord of
the prayer carpet) of Shah `Alam (a mosque near Ahmadabad), the
sons of Shaikh Muhammad Ghaus, Shaikh Haidar, grandson of Miyan
Wajihu-d-din, and other Shaikhs living at Ahmadabad came to meet
me and pay their respects. As my desire was to see the sea and the
flow and ebb of the water, I halted for ten days, and on Tuesday,
the 19th (Day, about 30th December, 1618), the royal standards
started for Ahmadabad. The best description of fish procurable
in this place, the name of which is `arbiyat, [673] was caught
and frequently brought for me by the fishermen. Without doubt
these fish, are, as compared with other fish of this country,
more delicious and better, but they are not of the flavour of
the rohu. One might say as nine to ten or even eight to ten. Of
the food which is peculiar to the people of Gujarat there is
the khichri of bajra (a mixture of split peas and millet boiled
together); this they also call laziza. It is a kind of split
grain, which does not grow in any other country but Hindustan,
and which in comparison with many other regions of India is more
abundant in Gujarat; it is cheaper than most vegetables. As I had
never eaten it, I ordered them to make some and bring it to me. It
is not devoid of good flavour, and it suited me well. I ordered
that on the days of abstinence, when I partake of dishes not made
with flesh, they should frequently bring me this khichri On the
said Tuesday having marched 6 1/4 kos, I halted at the village of
Kosala. On Wednesday, the 20th, I passed through the parganah of
Babra [674] and halted on the bank of the river. This was a march
of 6 kos. On Mubarak-shamba, the 21st, I halted and held a feast
of cups. In this river I caught many fish, and divided them among
the servants who were present at the feast. On Friday, the 22nd,
having moved on 4 kos, I pitched at the village of Baricha. On
this road, walls came in sight from 2 1/2 to 3 gaz in length,
and on enquiry it appeared that people had made them from the
desire of spiritual reward. When a porter is tired on the road he
places his burden on the wall and gains his breath a little, and
lifting it up again with ease and without assistance from anyone
proceeds towards his destination. This is one of the peculiar
ideas of the people of Gujarat. The building of these walls
pleased me greatly, and I ordered that in all large towns [675]
they should make walls of this kind at the imperial expense. On
Saturday, the 23rd marching 4 3/4 kos, the camp was pitched
at the Kankriya tank. Qutbu-d-din Muhammad, grandson of Sultan
Ahmad, the founder of the city of Ahmadabad, made this tank, and
placed round it steps of stone and cement. In the middle of the
tank he constructed a little garden and some buildings. Between
the bank of the tank and these buildings he had made a causeway,
which was the way for entering and leaving, Since this occurred
a long time ago, most of the buildings had become dilapidated,
and there was no place left fit to sit in. At the time when the host
of prosperity was about to proceed towards Ahmadabad, Safi Khan,
bakhshi of Gujarat, repaired at the expense of government what was
broken down and in ruins, and clearing out the little garden erected
a new building in it. Certainly it is a place exceedingly enjoyable
and pleasant. Its style pleased me. On the side where the causeway
is, Nizamu-d-din Ahmad, [676] who was for a while bakhshi of Gujarat
in my father's time, had made a garden on the bank of the tank. At
this time a representation was made to me that `Abdu-llah Khan, in
consequence of a dispute that he had with `Abid, son of Nizamu-d-din
Ahmad, cut down the trees of this garden. I also heard that during
his government he, at a wine party, signed to a slave, and cut off
the head of an unfortunate man who was not wanting in fun and jesting,
merely because in a state of drunkenness he had uttered some improper
expressions by way of a joke. On hearing these two reports, my sense of
justice was shocked, and I ordered the Diwans to change one thousand of
his two-horsed and three-horsed cavalry into one-horsed, and to deduct
from his jagir the difference (of pay), which came to 7,000,000 dams.
As at this stage the tomb of Shah `Alam was by the roadside, I recited
the fatiha in passing by it. About 100,000 rupees had been spent in
building this mausoleum. Shah `Alam was the son of Qutb `Alam, and
their family goes back to Makhdum-i-Jahaniyan [677] (a saint). The
people of this country, high and low, have a wonderful belief in him,
and they say that Shah `Alam used to raise the dead. After he had
raised several dead men, his father became aware of this and sent him
a prohibition, saying it was presumption in him to meddle with the
workshop of God, and was contrary to true obedience. It happened that
Shah `Alam had an attendant (female) who had no children, but at Shah
`Alam's prayer God Almighty bestowed a son on her. When he reached
his 27th [678] year he died, and that slave came weeping and wailing
into his presence, saying, "My son has died, and he was my only son;
since God Almighty gave him to me by your favour, I am hopeful that
through your prayer he may become alive." Shah `Alam fell into thought
for a time and went into his cell, and the attendant went to his son,
who greatly loved her, and besought him to ask the Shah to make his son
alive. The son, who was of tender years, went into his cell, and used
much entreaty. Shah `Alam said, "If you are content to give up your
life for him, perhaps my petition may be accepted." He represented
"I am perfectly contented with what may be your wish and the desire
of God." Shah `Alam took his son's hands, and lifting him up from the
ground turned his face towards heaven and said, "O God, take this kid
in place of that one." Instantaneously the boy surrendered his soul to
God, and Shah `Alam laid him down on his own bed and covered his face
with a sheet, and coming out of the house said to that attendant,
"Go home, and get news of thy son; perhaps he may have been in a
trance and not have died." When she arrived at her house she saw
her son alive. In short, in the country of Gujarat they say many
things of this sort of Shah `Alam. I myself asked Sayyid Muhammad,
who is lord of his prayer carpet (in charge of the mausoleum), and
who is not wanting in excellence and reasonableness, what was the
real state of the case. He said, "I have also heard the same from
my father and grandfather, and it has come down in succession, and
wisdom is from Allah." Although this affair is beyond the laws of
understanding, yet, as it has attained great notoriety among men,
it has been recorded as a strange occurrence. His departure from
this perishable mansion to the eternal world took place in 880
(1475), in the time of the reign of Sultan Mahmud Bigara, and the
buildings of this mausoleum are the memorial of Taj Khan Tariyani,
[679] who was one of the Amirs of Sultan Muzaffar, the son of Mahmud.
As an hour on Monday had been chosen for my entry into the city,
on Sunday, the 24th, I halted. At this place some melons came from
Kariz, which is a town dependent on Herat, and it is certain that
in Khurasan there are no melons better than those of Kariz. Although
this is at a distance of 1,400 kos, and kafilahs (caravans) take five
months to come, they arrived very ripe and fresh. They brought so many
that they sufficed for all the servants. Together with these there
came oranges (kaunla) from Bengal, and though that place is 1,000 kos
distant most of them arrived quite fresh. As this is a very delicate
and pleasant fruit, runners bring by post as much as is necessary for
private consumption, and pass it from hand to hand. My tongue fails
me in giving thanks to Allah for this.
"Thankfulness for Thy favours is one of Thy favours."
On this day Amanat Khan presented two elephants' tusks; they were
very large, one of them being 3 cubits 8 tassu (finger-breadths)
in length and 16 tassu in circumference; it weighed 3 maunds and 2
seers, or 24 1/2 Iraq maunds. On Monday, the 25th, after six gharis,
I turned towards the city in pleasure and prosperity at the propitious
hour, and mounted the elephant Surat-gaj, a favourite elephant of
mine, which is perfect in appearance and disposition. Although
he was fractious (mast), I had confidence in my own riding and
his pleasant paces (?). [680] Crowds of people, men and women,
had assembled, and were waiting in the streets and bazars and at
the gates and the walls. The city of Ahmadabad did not seem to me
so worthy of praise as I had heard. Although they had made the main
road of the bazar wide and spacious, they had not suited the shops
to this breadth. Its buildings are all of wood and the pillars of
the shops slender and mean (zabun). The streets of the bazar were
full of dust, and there was dust from the Kankriya tank up to the
citadel, which in the dialect of the country they call Bhadar. I
hastened along scattering money. The meaning of Bhadar is 'blessed'
(bhadra). The houses of the Sultans of Gujarat, which were inside the
Bhadar, have fallen into ruin within the last fifty or sixty years,
and no trace of them is left. However, our servants who have been sent
to the government of this country have erected buildings. When I was
proceeding from Mandu to Ahmadabad, Muqarrab Khan had done up the old
buildings and prepared other places for sitting that were necessary,
such as a jharokha, a public audience hall, etc. As to-day was the
auspicious day for the weighing of my son Shah Jahan, I weighed him
in the usual manner against gold and other things, and the 27th year
from his blessed birth began in pleasure and enjoyment. I hope that
the Giver of gifts will bestow him on this suppliant at His throne
and let him enjoy life and prosperity. On the same day I gave the
province of Gujarat in jagir to that son. From the fort of Mandu to
the fort of Cambay, by the road we came, it is 124 kos, which were
traversed in twenty-eight marches and thirty halts. I remained at
Cambay for ten days; from that place to the city of Ahmadabad is 21
kos; which we traversed in five marches with two halts. Altogether,
from Mandu to Cambay and from Cambay to Ahmadabad by the road we came
is 145 kos, which we accomplished in two months and fifteen days;
this was in thirty-three marches and forty-two halts.
On Tuesday, the 26th, I went to see the Jami` mosque, and gave
with my own hand in alms to the fakirs who were present there about
500 rupees. This mosque was one of the memorials of Sultan Ahmad,
the founder of the city of Ahmadabad. It has three gates, [681]
and on each side a bazar. Opposite the gate that looks towards the
east is the mausoleum of the said Sultan Ahmad. In that dome Sultan
Ahmad, his son Muhammad, and his grandson Qutbu-d-din are laid to
rest. The length of the court of the mosque, excluding maqsura
(the holy of holies), is 103 [682] cubits, and its breadth 89
cubits. Round this they have made an aywan (portico), in breadth 4
3/4 cubits. The flooring of the court is of trimmed bricks, and the
pillars of the portico of red stone. The maqsura contains 354 [683]
pillars, above which there is a dome. The length of the maqsura is
75 cubits, and its breadth 37 cubits. The flooring of the maqsura,
the mihrab (arch towards which the face is turned in prayer), and the
pulpit are made of marble. On both sides of the main arch (pish-taq)
are two polished minarets of cut stone, containing three ashyana
(stories) beautifully shaped and decorated. On the right-hand side of
the pulpit near the recess of the maqsura they have made a separate
seat for the king. The space between the pillars has been covered in
with a stone platform, and round this up to the roof of the maqsura
they have put stone cages [684] (in which women sit so as not to be
seen). The object of this was that when the king came to the Friday
service or the `Id he went up there with his intimates and courtiers,
and performed his devotions. This in the dialect of the country they
call the Muluk-khana (King's chamber). This practice and caution were
on account of the crowding of the people. Truly this mosque is a very
noble building. [685]
On Wednesday, [686] the 27th, I went to the monastery of Shaikh
Wajihu-d-din, which was near the palace, and the fatiha was read at the
head of his shrine, which is in the court of the monastery. Sadiq Khan,
who was one of the chief Amirs of my father, built this monastery. The
Shaikh was a successor of Shaikh Muhammad Ghaus, [687] but a successor
against whom the teacher disputed. Wajihu-d-din's loyalty to him is a
clear proof [688] of the greatness of Shaikh Muhammad Ghaus. Shaikh
Wajihu-d-din was adorned with visible excellencies and spiritual
perfection. He died thirty years ago in this city (Ahmadabad),
and after him Shaikh `Abdu-llah, according to his father's will,
took his place. He was a very ascetic dervish. When he died his son
Shaikh Asadu-llah sat in his place, and also quickly went to the
eternal world. After him his brother Shaikh Haidar became lord of
the prayer carpet, and is now alive, and is employed at the grave
of his father and grandfather in the service of dervishes and in
looking after their welfare. The traces of piety are evident on the
forehead of his life. As it was the anniversary festival of Shaikh
Wajihu-d-din, 1,500 rupees were given to Shaikh Haidar for the
expenses of the anniversary, and I bestowed 1,500 rupees more on the
band of fakirs who were present in the monastery, with my own hand
in charity, and made a present of 500 rupees to the grandson (?) of
Shaikh Wajihu-d-din. In the same way I gave something for expenses, and
land to each of his relatives and adherents according to his merit. I
ordered Shaikh Haidar to bring before me the body of dervishes and
deserving people who were associated with him, in order that they
might ask for money for expenses and for land. On Thursday, the 28th,
I went to look round the Rustam-Khan-bari, and scattered 1,500 rupees
on the road. They call a garden a bari in the language of India. This
is a garden that my brother Shah Murad made in the name of his son
Rustam. I made a Thursday entertainment in this garden, and gave cups
to some of my private servants. At the end of the day I went to the
little garden of the hawali (mansion) of Shaikh Sikandar, which is
situated in the neighbourhood of this garden, and which has exceedingly
good figs. As picking the fruit with one's own hand gives it quite
a different relish, and I had never before plucked figs with my own
hand, their excellence in this respect was approved. Shaikh Sikandar
[689] is by origin a Gujarati, and is not wanting in reasonableness,
and has complete information about the Sultans of Gujarat. It is now
eight or nine years since he has been employed among the servants
(of the State). As my son Shah Jahan had appointed to the government
of Ahmadabad Rustam Khan, who is one of his chief officers, at his
request I, in accordance with the association of his name, presented
him with (the garden) Rustam-bari. On this day Raja Kalyan, zamindar
of the province of Idar, had the good fortune to kiss my threshold,
and presented an elephant and nine horses as an offering; I gave him
back the elephant. He is one of the most considerable zamindars on the
frontier of Gujarat, and his country is close to the hill-country of
the Rana. The Sultans of Gujarat constantly sent armies against the
Raja of that place. Although some of them have professed obedience
and presented offerings, for the most part none of them have come to
see anyone personally. After the late king Akbar conquered Gujarat,
the victorious army was sent to attack him. As he understood that
his deliverance lay in obedience and submission, he agreed to serve
and be loyal, and hastened to enjoy the good fortune of kissing the
threshold. From that date he has been enrolled among the servants (of
the State). He comes to see whoever is appointed to the government
of Ahmadabad, and when work and service are necessary appears with
a body of his men. On Saturday, the 1st of the month of Bahman,
in the 12th year of my reign, Chandar Sen, who is one of the chief
zamindars of this country, had the good fortune to kiss the threshold,
and presented an offering of nine horses. On Sunday, the 2nd, I
gave elephants to Raja Kalyan, zamindar of Idar, to Sayyid Mustafa,
and Mir Fazil. On Monday I went out hawking, and scattered nearly
500 rupees on the road. On this day pears came from Badakhshan. On
Mubarak-shamba, the 6th, I went to see the "garden of victory" at
the village of Sair-khaiz (Sarkhej), and scattered 1,500 rupees on
the way. As the tomb of Shaikh Ahmad Khattu [690] is on the road, I
first went there and the fatiha was read. Khattu is the name of a town
in the Sarkar of Nagor, and was the birthplace of the Shaikh. [691]
The Shaikh lived in the time of Sultan Ahmad, who founded the city of
Ahmadabad, and the latter had a great respect for him. The people of
this country have a strange belief in him, and consider him one of the
great saints. Every Friday night a great crowd of people, high and low,
go to visit his shrine. Sultan Muhammad, son of the aforesaid Sultan
Ahmad, built lofty buildings in the shape of mausoleums, mosques, and
monasteries at the head of his tomb, and near his mausoleum on the
south side made a large tank, and surrounded it with stone and lime
(masonry). This building was completed in the time of Qutbu-d-din,
son of the aforesaid Muhammad. The shrines of several of the Sultans
of Gujarat are on the bank of the tank by the feet of the Shaikh. In
that dome there have been laid at rest Sultan Mahmud Bigara, Sultan
Muzaffar, his son, and Mahmud, the martyr, grandson of Sultan Muzaffar,
and who was the last of the Sultans of Gujarat. Bigara, in the
language of the people of Gujarat, signifies 'turned-up moustache,'
and Sultan Mahmud had a large turned-up moustache; on this account
they call him Bigara. Near his (Shaikh Khattu's) tomb is the dome of
his ladies. [692] Without doubt the mausoleum of the Shaikh is a very
grand building and a beautiful place. It is estimated that 500,000
rupees were spent on it. God only knows what is true.
After performing this visitation I went to Fath-bagh (garden
of victory). This garden is situated on the ground on which the
Commander-in-Chief, Khankhanan Ataliq fought with and defeated Nabu
(Nannu? Nanhu?), who gave himself the title of Muzaffar Khan. On
this account he called it Bagh-i-fath; the people of Gujarat call
it Fath-bari. The details of this are that when, by means of the
good fortune of the late king Akbar, the country of Gujarat was
conquered, and Nabu fell into his hands, I`timad Khan represented
that he was the son of a carter. As no son was left by Sultan Mahmud,
and moreover there was no one of the descendants of the Sultans of
Gujarat whom he could raise to the throne, he (I`timad) had accepted
the most available course, and had made out that this was the son of
Mahmud. He gave him the name of Sultan Muzaffar, and raised him to
the sovereignty. Men from necessity consented to this. As His Majesty
considered the word of I`timad Khan of weight, he ignored Nabu, and
for some time he did duty among the servants, and the king paid no
attention to his case. In consequence of this he ran away from Fathpur,
and coming to Gujarat lived for some years under the protection of
the zamindars. When Shihabu-d-din Ahmad Khan was turned out from the
government of Gujarat and I`timad Khan installed in his place, a body
of the servants of Shihabu-d-din Khan, who were attached to Gujarat,
separated from him, and remained at Ahmadabad in the hope of service
with I`timad. After I`timad entered the city they had recourse to
him, but had no good luck with him. They had not the face to go to
Shihabu-d-din, and had no prospects in Ahmadabad. As they were without
hope they thought their remedy lay in betaking themselves to Nabu,
and in making him an excuse for disturbance. With this intent 600 or
700 horsemen from among them went to Nabu and carried him off along
with Lona Kathi, under whose protection he was living, and proceeded
to Ahmadabad. When he arrived near the city many wretched men on
the look out for an occasion joined him, and nearly 1,000 horsemen,
Mughals and Gujaratis, collected together. When I`timad Khan became
aware of this he left his son Shir Khan in the city, and hastened
off in search of Shihab Khan, who was proceeding towards the Court,
in order that with his help he might quiet the disturbance. Many of
the men had separated themselves from him, and he read on the faces
of those who were left the signs of unfaithfulness, but Shihabu-d-din,
in company with I`timad Khan, turned his rein. It happened that before
their arrival Nabu had entered the fort of Ahmadabad. Those who were
loyal drew up their troops near the city, and the rebels came out of
the fort and hastened to the battlefield. When the army of the rebels
showed itself, those of the servants of Shihab Khan who were left
took the wrong road and joined the enemy. Shihab Khan was defeated
and hastened towards Patan (Patan?), which was in the possession of
the royal servants. His retinue and camp were plundered, and Nabu,
bestowing mansabs and titles on the rebels, went against Qutbu-d-din
Muhammad Khan, who was in Baroda. The servants of the latter,
like the servants of Shihab Khan, took the road of faithlessness
and chose separation, as is related in detail in the Akbar-nama. In
the end, after giving his word to Qutbu-d-din Muhammad, he sent him
to martyrdom, and his goods and property, which were equal to the
treasure of his courtesy and grandeur, were plundered. Nearly 45,000
horsemen collected round Nabu.
When this state of affairs was represented to H.M. Akbar he sent
against him Mirza Khan, son of Bairam Khan, with a force of brave
warriors. On the day when Mirza Khan arrived near the city, he drew
up the ranks of good fortune. He had about 8,000 or 9,000 horse, and
Nabu met him with 30,000, and drew up his host tainted with ruin. After
prolonged fighting and slaughter the breeze of victory blew on the flag
of the loyal, and Nabu, being defeated, fled in wretched plight. My
father, in reward for this victory, gave Mirza Khan a mansab of 5,000
with the title of Khankhanan and the government of the country of
Gujarat. The garden that Khankhanan made on the field of battle is
situated on the bank of the River Sabarmati. He founded lofty buildings
along that eminence on the river, and made a strong wall of stone and
cement round the garden. The garden contains 120 jarib of land, and
is a charming resort. It may have cost 200,000 rupees. It pleased me
greatly. One may say that in the whole of Gujarat there is no garden
like this. Arranging a Thursday feast, I bestowed cups on my private
servants, and remained there for the night. At the end of the day,
on Friday, I entered the city, scattering about 1,000 rupees on the
road. At this time the gardener represented that a servant of Muqarrab
Khan had cut down some champa trees above the bench alongside the
river. On hearing this I became angry, and went myself to enquire into
the matter and to exact satisfaction. When it was established that this
improper act had been committed by him, I ordered both his thumbs to
be cut off as a warning to others. It was evident that Muqarrab Khan
knew nothing of this affair, or otherwise he would have punished him
there and then. On Tuesday, the 11th, the Kotwal of the city caught
a thief and brought him. He had committed several thefts before, and
each time they had cut off one of his members; once his right hand,
the second time the thumb of his left hand, the third time his left
ear, and fourth time they hamstringed him, and the last time his nose;
with all this he did not give up his business, and yesterday entered
the house of a grass-seller in order to steal. By chance the owner
of the house was on the look out and seized him. The thief wounded
the grass-seller several times with a knife and killed him. In the
uproar and confusion his relatives attacked the thief and caught him. I
ordered them to hand over the thief to the relatives of the deceased,
that they might retaliate on him.
"The lines of the face show the thought of your head (?)."
On Wednesday, the 12th, 3,000 rupees were handed over to `Azamat
Khan and Mu`taqad Khan, that they might go the next day to the tomb
of Shaikh Ahmad Khattu, and divide it among the fakirs and indigent
people who had taken up their abode there. On Thursday, the 13th,
I went to the lodging of my son Shah Jahan, and held a Mubarak-shamba
entertainment there, and distributed cups among my private servants. I
gave my son the elephant Sundar Mathan, [693] which was superior
to all my private elephants in speed and beauty and pleasant paces,
and competed with horses, and was the first among the elephants, and
one much liked by King Akbar. My son Shah Jahan had a great liking
for him, and frequently asked him of me, and seeing no way out of it
I gave it to him with its gold belongings of chains, etc., together
with a female elephant. A present of 100,000 of darbs was given to
the wakils of `Adil Khan. At this time it was represented [694] to
me that Mukarram Khan, son of Mu`azzam Khan, who was the governor of
Orissa, had conquered the country of Khurda, and that the Raja of that
place had fled and gone into the Rajmahendra. As he was a khana-zad
(houseborn one) and worthy of patronage, I ordered his mansab, original
and increase, to be 3,000 personal and 2,000 horse, and honoured him
with drums, a horse, and a dress of honour. Between the province of
Orissa and Golconda there were two zamindars, one the Raja of Khurda
and the second the Raja of Rajmahendra. The province of Khurda has
come into the possession of the servants of the Court. After this it
is the turn of the country of Rajmahendra. My hope in the grace of
Allah is that the feet of my energy may advance farther. At this time
a petition from Qutbu-l-mulk reached my son Shah Jahan to the effect
that as the boundary of his territory had approached that of the King,
and he owed service to this Court, he hoped an order would be issued to
Mukarram Khan not to stretch out his hand, and to acquire possession
of his country. It was a proof of Mukarram's valour and energy that
such a one as Qutbu-l-mulk should be apprehensive about his (Mukarram)
becoming his neighbour.
On this day Ikram Khan, son of Islam Khan, was appointed faujdar of
Fathpur and its neighbourhood, and presented with a dress of honour
and an elephant; Chandar Sen, the zamindar of Haloz (Halwad?), [695]
was given a dress of honour, a horse, and an elephant. An elephant
was also given to Lachin Qaqshal. At the same time Muzaffar, [696]
son of Mirza Baqi Tarkhan, had the honour of kissing the threshold. His
mother was the daughter of Barha (Bhara), the zamindar of Kachh. When
Mirza Baqi died and the government of Thatta went to Mirza Jani,
Muzaffar was apprehensive of Mirza Jani, and he took refuge with the
aforesaid zamindar. He had remained from his childhood until now in
that country. Now that the fortunate retinue had reached Ahmadabad, he
came and did homage. Though he had been reared among men of the wilds,
and was unfamiliar with civilized ways and ceremonies, yet as his
family had had the relations of service with our exalted dynasty from
the times of Timur [697]--may God make his proof clear!--I considered
it right to patronize him. For the present I gave him 2,000 rupees
for expenses, and a dress of honour. A suitable rank will be given
to him, and perhaps he will show himself efficient as a soldier.
On Thursday, the 20th, I went to the "Garden of Victory," and
contemplated the red roses. One plot had bloomed well. There are not
many red roses (gul-i-surkh) in this country, so it was pleasant
to see so many here. The anemone [698] bed, too, was not bad, and
the figs had ripened. I gathered some figs with my own hands, and
weighed the largest one. It came to 7 1/2 tolas. On this day there
arrived 1,500 melons from Kariz. The Khan `Alam had sent them as a
present. I gave a thousand of them to the servants in attendance,
and five hundred to the women of the harem. I spent four days in
this garden in enjoyment, and on Monday eve, the 24th, I came to the
city. Some of the melons were given to the Shaikhs of Ahmadabad, and
they were astonished to see how inferior were the Gujarat melons. They
marvelled at the goodness of the Deity.
On Thursday, the 27th, I held a wine-feast in the Nagina [699]
garden, which is inside the palace grounds, and which one of the
Gujarat Sultans had planted. I made my servants happy with flowing
bowls. A pergola (takhta) of grapes had ripened in this garden, and
I bade those who had been drinking to gather the bunches with their
own hands and partake of them.
On Monday, the 1st of Isfandarmuz, I left Ahmadabad and marched towards
Malwa. I scattered money on the road till we reached the bank of the
Kankriya tank, where I halted for three days. On Thursday, the 4th,
the presents of Muqarrab Khan were laid before me. There was nothing
rare among them, nor anything that I took a fancy to, and so I felt
ashamed. I gave them to my children to take into the harem. I accepted
jewellery and decorated vessels and cloths to the value of a lakh,
and gave him back the rest. Also about one hundred Kachhi horses were
taken, but there was none of great excellence.
On Friday, the 5th, I marched 6 kos, and encamped on the bank of
the Ahmadabad River. As my son Shah Jahan was leaving Rustam Khan,
one of his chief servants, in charge of the government of Gujarat, I,
at my son's request, gave him a standard, drums, a dress of honour,
and a decorated dagger. Up till now it had not been the custom in
this dynasty to give to the prince's servants standards or drums. For
instance, H.M. Akbar with all his affection and graciousness to me,
did not decide upon giving to my officers a title or a standard. But
my consideration for this son is so unbounded that I would do anything
to please him, and, in fact, he is an excellent son, and one adorned
with every grace, and in his early youth has accomplished to my
satisfaction, everything that he has set his hand to.
On this day Muqarrab Khan took leave to go to his home.
As the shrine of Qutb `Alam, the father of Shah `Alam Bukhari, was in
the village of Batoh, [700] and on my way, I went there and gave 500
rupees to the guardians. On Saturday, the 6th, I entered a boat on
the Mahmudabad River and went a-fishing. On the bank is the tomb of
Sayyid Mubarak Bukhari. He was one of the leading officers of Gujarat,
and his son Sayyid Miran erected this monument to him. It is a very
lofty cupola, and there is a very strong wall of stone and lime round
it. It must have cost more than two lakhs of rupees. None of the tombs
of the Gujarat Sultans that I saw came up to one-tenth of it. Yet
they were sovereigns, and Sayyid Miran was only a servant. Genius
and the help of God have produced this result. A thousand blessings
on a son who has made such a tomb for his father: [701]
"That there may remain a memorial of him upon earth."
On Sunday I halted and fished, and caught 400 fish. One of them had
no scales, and is called the sang-mahi, 'the stone-fish.' Its belly
was very large and swollen, so I ordered them to cut it open in my
presence. Inside was a fish with scales which it had recently swallowed
and which had as yet undergone no change. I told them to weigh both
fish. The stone-fish came to 6 1/2 seers and the other to nearly 2.
On Monday, the 8th, I marched 4 1/4 kos, and encamped in the village
of Moda (Mahaondat). The inhabitants praised the rainy season of
Gujarat. It happened that on the previous night and on this day before
breakfast some rain fell, and the dust was laid. As this is a sandy
country, it is certain that there would not be any dust in the rainy
season, nor would there be any mud. The fields would be green and
cheerful. At any rate, a specimen of the rainy season has been seen
by me. On Tuesday I marched 5 1/2 kos, and halted at the village of
Jarsima (Jarisama). [702]
At this stage news came that Man Singh Sewra had surrendered his
soul to the lords of hell. The account of this in brief is that
the Sewras [703] are a tribe of infidel Hindus who always go with
their head and feet bare. One set of them root out their hair, their
beards, and moustaches, while another set shave them. They do not
wear sewn garments, and their central principle is that no living
creature should be injured. The Banyans regard them as their pirs
and teachers, and even worship them. There are two sects of Sewras,
one called Pata (Tapa) and the other Kanthal (Kartal). Man Singh was
the head of the latter, and Bal Chand the head of the Patas. [704]
Both of them used to attend upon H.M. Akbar. When he died and Khusrau
fled and I pursued him, Ray Singh Bhurtiya, zamindar of Bikanir,
who had been made an Amir by Akbar's kindness, asked Man Singh what
would be the duration of my reign and the chances of my success. That
black-tongued fellow, who pretended to be skilled in astrology and
the extraction of judgments, said to him that my reign would, at most,
last for two years. The doting old idiot (Ray Singh) relied upon this,
and went off without leave to his home. Afterwards, when the glorious
God chose out this suppliant and I returned victorious to the capital,
he came, ashamed and downcast, to Court. What happened to him in the
end has been told in its proper place. [705] In fine, Man Singh, in
the course of three or four months, was struck with leprosy (juzam),
and his limbs fell off him till he was in such a state that death
was by many degrees preferable to life. He was living at Bikanir,
and now I remembered him and sent for him. On the road he, out of
excessive fear, took poison, and surrendered his soul to the lords
of hell. So long as the intentions of this suppliant at God's courts
are just and right, it is sure that whoever devises evil against me
will receive retribution according to his merits.
The sect of the Sewras exists in most of the cities of India, but is
especially numerous in Gujarat. As the Banyans are the chief traders
there, consequently the Sewras also are plentiful. Besides making
idol-temples for them, they have built houses for them to dwell in
and to worship in. In fact, these houses are the headquarters of
sedition. The Banyans send their wives and daughters to the Sewras,
who have no shame or modesty. All kinds of strife and audacity are
perpetrated by them. I therefore ordered that the Sewras should be
expelled, and I circulated farmans to the effect that wherever there
were Sewras in my empire they should be turned out.
On Wednesday, the 10th, I went out to hunt, and shot two nilgaw,
one male and one female. On this day the son of Dilawar Khan came
from Pattan, which was his father's fief, and paid his respects. He
presented a Kachhi horse. It was a very handsome animal, and pleasant
to ride. Till I came to Gujarat no one had presented me with so fine
a horse. Its value was 1,000 rupees.
On Thursday, the 11th, I had a wine party on the bank of the tank,
and bestowed many favours on those servants who had been appointed to
the province, and then dismissed them. Among the promotions was that
of Shaja`at Khan, the Arab, to the rank of 2,500 personal and 2,000
horse. I also gave him drums, a horse, and a robe of honour. Himmat
Khan was raised to the rank of 1,500 with 800 horse, and had a
robe of honour and an elephant. Kifayat Khan, who was made Diwan of
the province, received the rank of 1,200 with 300 horse. Safi Khan
bakhshi received a horse and a robe of honour. Khwaja `Aqil had the
rank of 1,500 with 650 horse, and was made bakhshi of the Ahadis,
and had the title of `Aqil Khan. Thirty thousand darbs were given to
the wakil of Qutbu-l-Mulk, who had brought the tribute.
On this day my son Shah Jahan presented pomegranates and quinces
that had been sent to him from Farah. I had never seen such large
ones, and I ordered them to be weighed. The quince weighed 29 tolas
9 mashas and the pomegranate 40 1/2 tolas. On Friday, the 12th, I
went a-hunting and shot two nilgaw, a male and a female. On Saturday,
the 13th, I shot three nilgaw, two males and one female. On Sunday,
the 14th, I gave Shaikh Isma`il, the son of Shaikh Muhammad Ghaus, a
robe of honour and 500 rupees. On Monday, the 15th, I went a-hunting
and shot two female nilgaw. On Tuesday, the 16th, I again presented
the Shaikhs of Gujarat, who were in attendance, with robes of honour
and maintenance-lands. To each of them I gave a book from my special
library, such as the Tafsir-i-kashshaf, [706] the Tafsir-i-Husaini,
[707] and the Rauzatu-l-ahbab. [708] I wrote on the back of the
books the day of my arrival in Gujarat and the day of presentation
of the books.
At the time that Ahmadabad was adorned by the setting up of the
royal standards my employment by day and by night was the seeing of
necessitous persons and the bestowing on them of money and land. I
directed Shaikh Ahmad the Sadr and some other tactful servants to
bring before me dervishes and other needy persons. I also directed the
sons of Shaikh Muhammad Ghaus, the grandson of Shaikh Wajihu-d-din,
and other leading Shaikhs to produce whatever persons they believed
to be in want. Similarly I appointed some women to do the same thing
in the harem. My sole endeavour was that as I a king had come to this
country after many years, no single person should be excluded. God is
my witness that I did not fall short in this task, and that I never
took any rest from this duty. Although I have not been delighted with
my visit to Ahmadabad, yet I have this satisfaction--that my coming
has been the cause of benefit to a large number of poor people.
On Tuesday, the 16th, they caught Kaukab, the son of Qamar Khan. He had
in Burhanpur put on a faqir's dress and gone off into the wilds. The
brief account of his case is this:--He was the grandson of Mir
`Abdu-l-Latif, who was one of the Saifi Sayyids and was attached to
this Court. Kaukab had been appointed to the Deccan army, and had
spent some days with it in poverty and wretchedness. When for a long
time he did not get promotion he suspected that I was unfavourable
to him, and foolishly took the dress of asceticism and went off to
the wilderness. In the course of six months he traversed the whole
of the Deccan, including Daulatabad, Bidar, Bijapur, the Carnatic,
and Golconda, and came to the port of Dabul. [709] From there he came
by ship to the port of Goga, and after visiting the ports of Surat,
Broach, etc., he reached Ahmadabad. At this time Zahid, a servant
of Shah Jahan, arrested him and brought him to Court. I ordered them
to bring him before me heavily bound. When I saw him I said to him,
"Considering the obligations of service of your father and grandfather,
and your position as a houseborn one, why have you behaved in such an
inauspicious manner?" He replied that he could not tell a lie in the
presence of his qibla and real teacher, and that the truth was that
he had hoped for favours, but as he was unlucky he had left outward
ties and gone into the wilderness of exile. As his words bore the
marks of truth they made an impression on me, and I abandoned my
harsh tone and asked him if in his misfortunes he had waited upon
`Adil Khan, or Qutbu-l-Mulk, or `Ambar. He replied that though he
had been unsuccessful at this Court and had remained thirsty in
this boundless ocean of beneficence, he had never--God forbid that
he should--approached with his lips other fountains. Might his head
be cut off if it had bowed at this Court and then lowered itself at
another! From the time that he went into exile he had kept a diary
showing what he had done, and by examining it it would be seen how he
had conducted himself. These words of his increased my compassion for
him, and I sent for his papers and read them. It appeared from them
that he had encountered great hardship, and that he had spent much
time on foot, and that he had suffered from want of food. On this
account I felt kindly disposed towards him. Next day I sent for him
and ordered them to remove the bonds from his arms and legs, and gave
him a robe of honour, a horse, and 1,000 rupees for his expenses. I
also increased his rank by one half, and showed him such kindness as
he never had imagined. He repeated this verse--
"What I see, is it, O God, waking or in a trance?
Do I behold myself in such comfort after such torture?"
On Wednesday, the 17th, I marched 6 kos and halted at the village of
Barasinor (Balasinor). It has already been mentioned that the plague
had appeared in Kashmir. On this day a report of the chronicler of
events arrived, stating that the plague had taken firm hold of the
country and that many had died. The symptoms were that the first day
there was headache and fever and much bleeding at the nose. On the
second day the patient died. In the house where one person died all
the inmates were carried off. Whoever went near the sick person or a
dead body was affected in the same way. In one instance the dead body
was thrown on the grass, and it chanced that a cow came and ate some
of the grass. It died, and some dogs that had eaten its flesh also all
died. Things had come to such a pass that from fear of death fathers
would not approach their children, and children would not go near their
fathers. A strange thing was that in the ward in which the disease
began, a fire broke out and nearly 3,000 houses were burnt. During
the height of the plague, one morning when the people of the city and
environs got up, they saw circles on their doors. There were three
large circles, and on the face of these (i.e. inside them) there were
two circles of middle size and one small one. There were also other
circles which did not contain any whiteness [710] (i.e. there were no
inner circles). These figures were found on all the houses and even on
the mosques. From the day when the fire took place and these circles
appeared, they say there was a diminution of the plague. This has been
recorded as it seems a strange affair. It certainly does not agree
with the canons of reason, and my intellect cannot accept it. Wisdom
is with God! I trust that the Almighty will have mercy on his sinful
slaves, and that they will be altogether freed from such calamity.
On Thursday, the 18th, I marched 2 1/2 kos and halted on the bank of
the Mahi. On this day the Jam zamindar [711] had the good fortune to
kiss the ground. He presented 50 horses, 100 muhrs, and 100 rupees. His
name is Jassa, and Jam is his title. Whoever succeeds is called Jam. He
is one of the chief zamindars of Gujarat, and, indeed, he is one of
the noted rajas of India. His country is close to the sea. He always
maintains 5,000 or 6,000 horse, and in time of war can supply as many
as 10,000 or 12,000. There are many horses in his country; Kachhi
horses fetch as much as 2,000 rupees. I gave him a dress of honour.
On the same day Lachmi Narayan, Raja of Kuch (Bihar), which adjoins
Bengal, did homage and presented 500 muhrs. He received a dress of
honour and an ornamented dagger.
Nawazish Khan, son of Sa`id Khan, who had been appointed to Junagarh,
had the good fortune to pay his respects. On Friday, the 19th, I
halted, and on Saturday, the 20th, I marched 3 3/4 kos and halted
at the tank of Jhanud. On Sunday I marched 4 1/2 kos and halted at
the tank of Badarwala. On this day there came the news of the death
of `Azamat Khan Gujarati. On account of illness he had remained in
Ahmadabad. He was a servant who knew one's disposition, and did good
work. As he had thorough knowledge of the Deccan and Gujarat, I was
grieved at his death. In the tank above mentioned I noticed a plant
which at the approach of the finger or the end of a stick contracts
its leaves. After a while it opens them out again. Its leaves resemble
those of the tamarind, and it is called in Arabic Shajaru-l-haya,
'the plant of modesty.' In Hindi it is called Lajvanti. Laj means
modesty. It is certainly not void of strangeness. They also call it
naghzak, and say that it also grows on dry land.
On Monday, the 22nd, I halted. My scouts reported that there was a
tiger in the neighbourhood which vexed wayfarers, and in the forest
where it was they had seen a skull and some bones lying. After midday
I went out to shoot it, and killed it with one discharge. Though it
was a large tiger, I had killed several that were larger. Among them
was a tiger which I killed in the fort of Mandu, and which was 8 1/2
maunds. This one weighed 7 1/2 maunds, or 1 maund less.
On Tuesday, the 23rd, I marched over 3 1/2 kos and alighted on
the bank of the River Bayab. [712] On Wednesday I marched nearly 6
kos and halted at the tank of Hamda. [713] On Thursday I ordered a
halt and had a wine party, and gave cups to my special servants. I
promoted Nawazish Khan to the rank of 3,000 with 2,000 horse, which
was an increase of 500 personal, and gave him a robe of honour and an
elephant, and allowed him to go to his fief. Muhammad Husain Sabzak,
[714] who had been sent to Balkh to buy horses, came to Court to-day
and paid his respects. Of the horses he brought, one was piebald
and was of fine shape and colour. I had never seen a piebald horse
of this colour before. He had also brought other good roadsters. I
therefore gave him the title of Tijarati Khan.
On Friday, the 26th, I marched 5 1/4 kos and halted at the village of
Jalod. [715] Raja Lachmi Narayan, the paternal uncle of the Raja of
Kuch, to whom I had now given the territory of Kuch, was presented
with a horse. On Saturday I marched 3 kos and halted at Boda. [716]
On Sunday I marched 5 kos and set up the royal standards at Dohad. It
is on the borders of Malwa and Gujarat.
Pahluwan Baha'u-d-din, the musketeer, brought a young monkey (langur)
with a goat, and represented that on the road one of his marksmen had
seen the female langur with a young one in its arms on a tree. The
cruel man had shot the mother, which on being struck had left the
young one on a branch, and had herself dropped on the ground and
died. Pahluwan Baha'u-d-din had then come up and taken down the young
one, and had put it beside the goat to be suckled. God had inspired
the goat with affection for it, and it began to lick the monkey and to
fondle it. In spite of difference of species she showed such love as
if it had come out of her own womb. I told them to separate them, but
the goat immediately began to lament, and the young langur also became
much distressed. The affection of the monkey is not so remarkable,
as it wanted to get milk, but the affection of the goat for it is
remarkable. The langur is an animal belonging to the monkey tribe. But
the hair of the monkey (maimun) is yellowish and its face is red,
while the hair of the langur is white and its face is black. Its tail,
too, is twice as long as the maimun's. I have written these things on
account of their strangeness. On Monday, the 29th, I halted and went
to hunt nilgaw. I shot two, one male and one female. On Tuesday also,
the 30th, I halted.
End of the twelfth year of the Emperor's reign,
in the Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri.
ERRATA AND ADDENDA.
Page 15, line 7 from foot. The figure 1 should be placed at
Sultanu-n-nisa Begam.
p. 24, l. 5. For my read his. With reference to n. 2, p. 120, l. 13,
shows that the father meant is Shahrukh.
p. 34, l. 2 of verse. Solomon's greatness depended on the possession
of a ring. When that was lost his power departed. See the story
of its loss and recovery in Mir Khwand (Rehatsek's translation,
pt. i, 100). Probably then the line should be rendered 'Call him the
ring-wearing Solomon.'
p. 38, near foot. The words 'the news,' etc., are not a verse, and
Nazar-jivi should be Nazar Chuli, i.e. the Nazar who accompanied
Humayun through the desert (chul). See Akbar-nama translation, i,
657, n. 3.
p. 39, l. 2. For near Lahore read a dependency of Lahore. Kalanur is
the Kalanaur of the maps, and is 15 miles west of Gurdaspur (I.G.,
new ed., xiv, 297).
p. 43, note. For lithograph read text.
p. 46, l. 8. For Mirza read Miran.
p. 50, l. 1, and note 1. I.O. MSS. seem to have Tanam Bahadur. The
reference to Ma'asiru-l-umara is ii, 140. The name of Muzaffar
Gujarati's son was Bahadur.
p. 54, n. 1. For Price, p. 6 read Price, p. 68. The Iqbal-nama and
Khulasatu-t-tawarikh say he was put in charge of Ihtimam Kotwal.
p. 58, n. 2. It is Nilera in I.O. MS. No. 181.
p. 60, l. 6. The meaning is that `Abidin was the son of `Abdu-llah
Khan's spiritual adviser. `Abidin is called `Abidi in Akbar-nama,
iii, 832. He came to India in 1013 (1604-5), and Akbar gave him the
rank of 1,000 and 500 horse (iii, 834).
p. 65, l. 11. For know read knew.
p. 66, l. 7. The MSS. seem to have Jaihal.
p. 66, last line. Kilin means 'daughter-in-law' in Turki. Perhaps
Kilan here is a synonym for 'son-in-law.'
p. 67, l. 8. The words 'which in Hindustani is called balli' are not in
the I.O. MSS. I do not know the word balli as meaning a pole. Perhaps
it is a mistake for laggi.
p. 76, l. 3 from foot. Omit the words 'who is one of the khanazadas
of the State.'
p. 79, l. 6. For and cash read in cash.
p. 81, n. 1. Delete question mark and the words 'near
Multan.' Nandanpur, i.e. Nandana (I.G., xviii, 349), and Girjhak
are in the Jhelam district. The Ram Das garden was some place near
Lahore, where Jahangir took up his residence on the way to the
hunting-ground. He spent 3 1/2 months in hunting.
p. 84, l. 19. For `Abdu-r-Rahim, read `Abdu-r-Rahman.
p. 87, l. 21. Firishta in his account of Babar says the Daulat Khan of
that time was descended from the Daulat Khan who in 816 A.H. (1413-14)
was Sultan of Delhi. See Elliot, iv, 45.
p. 90, l. 4 from foot. Jahangirpur is mentioned in account of 15th
year, p. 317, last line (text). It is the Shekhopura of the maps,
and is 22 miles from Hafizabad and 18 miles west of Lahore. It was
called Shaikhupura in allusion to Jahangir's pet name of Shaikhu Baba,
and also in honour of Shaikh Salim. See Khulasa T. in account of
Jahangir's reign. The I.G., xxii, 270, wrongly ascribes its origin to
Dara Shukuh. Mulla Husain Kashmiri, mentioned on p. 91, died in 1037
(1627-8), Rieu, ii, 7756. The minaret is still standing. See Eastwick's
"Panjab Handbook," 200. Instead of 'the gravestone in the shape of an
antelope' we should render, I think, 'a stone tomb with the figure
of an antelope (engraved upon it).' The I. O. MSS. have Marraj as
the name of the antelope. Perhaps we should read Manoraj 'mind's lord.'
p. 99, l. 3 from foot. I. O. MSS, have bahur b-hUr as the name of
the net.
p. 109, n. 1. Delete note. The rang is the ibex.
p. 110, n. 1. See J.A.S.B. for February, 1908, p. 39.
p. 117. The Iqbal-nama mentions in connection with the story of the
mummified saint that many Sabzawar saints lived in Bamiyan. See also
Kamgar Husaini.
p. 120, l. 1. Delete word 'Georgians.' I. O. MS. No. 181 has ghurja.
p. 122, l. 10. Insert 'and' after 'sheep.'
p. 125, l. 13. For garden read gardens.
p. 133, l. 4. For £ read rupees.
p. 134, l. 15. For he died on the 29th read he died in his ninth decade
(i.e. between 80 and 90). The Ma'asiru-l-umara, ii, 143, says he was
82 when he died.
p. 134, l. 13 from foot. Instead of 'he went off alone' the MSS. have
'carrying off his life' (i.e. escaping) with difficulty.
p. 136, n. 1. The opinion expressed in this note is proved to be wrong
by General Cunningham's Report, Arch. S., xiv, p. 58. The tombs are
those of a musician and his pupil.
p. 140, l. 8. Delete Sylvia olivacea.
p. 143, l. 7. Apparently there were twelve balls, or at least objects,
ten being as large as an orange, another being a citron, and the
twelfth a surkh. So instead of 'one to a citron' we should read,
perhaps, 'a citron and a surkh.'
p. 143, l. 3 from foot. For Ilf read Alf.
p. 147, l. 4 from foot. Delete the word 'Egyptian' and also n. 1. It
appears from the Ghiyasu-l-loghat that a Qutbi ruby is a broad ruby
suitable for a ring (signet?).
p. 153, l. 13 from foot. For Hamazani read Hamadani.
p. 156. According to Terry, Jahandar was called Sultan Takht because
born when Jahangir first sat on his throne.
p. 158, l. 9. Perhaps Yuzi = Yuz-bashi, i.e. centurion. But I. O. 181
has not the word, only saying 'Shah Beg Khan,' and No. 305 has Shah
Beg Khan Buri(?).
p. 158, l. 10. The passage is wrongly translated. No elephant
was presented to Salamu-llah. The sentence should end on
l. 9 after the word 'panther-keeper,' which word is probably a
mistranslation. Then this new sentence should come, i.e. 'Salamu-llah
`Arab, who is a young man of a distinguished Arabian family (kih az
jawanan-i-qarar-dada-i-`Arab ast) and related to Mubarak, the governor
of Dizful, came to wait upon me on account of his being suspicious
of the designs of Shah `Abbas (against himself).' 'I patronized him,'
etc. (as on p. 158).
p. 158, n. 3, and p. 162, n. 1. Both notes are wrong. The place meant
by Jahangir is Dizful, a town in the Khuzistan province of Persia,
and Juyza is evidently a copyist's error for Khuz or Khuza, another
name for Khuzistan. Dizful is an ancient name, and according to Yaqut,
Barbier de Meynard's translation, p. 231, the proper spelling is
Dizpul, i.e. 'the Bridge of the Citadel,' the town being named after
a famous bridge built over the river. For Khuz see B. de Meynard, 216.
p. 160, l. 12 from foot. Qabulah was a town in the Bet Jalandhar Du'ab.
p. 163, l. 9. It is 2,000 rupees in I. O. MSS.
p. 163, l. 12. It is not Qacha Dakhani in I. O. MSS., but I am not
sure what the clause, as given by them, means. No. 181 seems to have
bafatahaigi for 'assistance' (?). Two B. M. MSS. have apparently
bafatahai kapi, but Add. 26,215 has the Arabic ha, while Or. 3276
has the ordinary h, so that the words possibly mean 'the young of
the monkey' (kapi).
p. 166, l. 2. Husamu-d-din was married to Abu-l-fazl's sister,
Blochmann, 441.
p. 167, l. 16. The word rojh in brackets is wrong. The MSS. have
qara-quyragh and qara-quyragh. P. de Courteille gives quyrugh as
meaning a tail, so perhaps qara-quyrugh means a black-tailed sheep
or deer. See p. 129, l. 17, where the qara-quyrugh is said to be
the chikara.
p. 168, last line. The MSS. has habs-i-mazid, which does not
necessarily mean imprisonment for life.
p. 170, n. 2. For Akbar's wives read Jahangir's wives.
p. 172, l. 21 seq. Is this the story referred to by Hawkins (Purchas),
about Muqarrab having taken a Banian's daughter?
p. 177, note. For one-third of an inch read one and a third inches.
p. 183, l. 8. This is the annular eclipse entered in Dr. R. Schramm's
Tables, Sewell's Indian Calendar, as having occurred on 5th December,
1610, which corresponds to 28th Ramazan, 1019.
p. 185, n. 3. Persian text, p. 309, l. 11, has the phrase majra
girifta atash dadand, 'took aim and fired' (a cannon).
p. 188, l. 7 from foot. For Naziri, see Rieu, ii, 807b, and Blochmann,
579. He died in 1622 (1613).
p. 191, l. 10. For dhik (?) read dhik, i.e. adjutant bird.
p. 191, l. 8. Patal means 'red' or 'rose-coloured' in Sanskrit. Query
'red deer.'
p. 192, l. 2. Add year 1020.
p. 195, last line. The passage is rather obscure, but the meaning
seems to be that though formalities are not regarded by the wise,
yet weak persons (qawasir, which apparently is a plural of qasir),
regard externals as the means of paying the dues of friendship (and
so we must attend to them). Hence when at this auspicious time a
province which had gone out of my (`Abbas's) possession has been
settled by the exertions of angelic servants in accordance with
the hopes of well-wishers, I (`Abbas) have returned to the capital,
and have despatched Kamalu-d-din, etc.
p. 197, l. 7. For Khankhanan read Khan.
p. 197, l. 12. The I.O. MSS. have a different reading here. They say
nothing about three ratis. What they say is, "At this time I had made
some increase in the amounts of weights and measures. For instance,
I added one-fourth (siwa'i) to the weight of the muhrs and rupees." The
sih rati of text is a mistake for siwa'i.
p. 197, l. 12 from foot. I.O. MSS. have 'Sunday in Safar,' but they
wrongly have 1022.
p. 197, l. 9 from foot. Both I.O. MSS. have 'Neknahar' instead of
'in the interior.'
p. 198, l. 11. Or Lohgar.
p. 205, l. 14. I do not think that the translation 'should not force
Islam on anyone,' or the version in Elliot, vi, 325, 'Not to forcibly
impose Musulman burdens on anyone,' gives the full force of the
words taklif-i-Musalmani bar kasi nakunand. I think the reference
clearly is to circumcision, and that the words taklif-i-Musalmani
should be rendered 'the Muhammadan ceremonial.' This explains why the
injunction comes in immediately after the prohibitions against blinding
and mutilation. It has been said, and I believe with truth, that the
members of the Delhi royal family never were circumcised. Probably one
reason for this was that in many instances they had Hindu mothers. As
pointed out in Elliot, the passage is omitted in the Iqbal-nama. It
also does not occur in the version given in `Ali Muhammad's "History
of Gujarat," vol. i, p. 200 of lithograph.
p. 214, verse. For red read a river.
p. 216. See picture of a turkey in Havell's "Indian Sculpture,"
pp. 214-15.
p. 218, l. 10 from foot. About Shapur see Ma'asiru-l-umara, i, 180.
p. 224, n. 1. For infra read supra, pp. 27 and 30, note.
p. 229, ll. 9 and 14. For Patna read Tatta.
p. 229, note. For brother read brother's son.
p. 231, l. 14 from foot. For Nihalpur substitute Thalner as in the
MSS. The news of the death seems to have reached Agra very quickly.
p. 232, l. 1. Insert the word 'and' before 'allowed.'
p. 234, l. 2 from foot. The word translated 'cranes' is karwanak,
and probably means 'a little crane.' In Blochmann, 63, karwanak is
rendered by 'stone-curlew.'
p. 234, l. 5 from foot. The word seems to be kunjishk, 'sparrow,'
in the MSS., but probably it should be kunjak, 'a curiosity, a rarity.'
p. 235, l. 2. It is Thursday, the 28th, in the MSS., and instead of
'night' we should read 'eve.' The English date corresponding to 28th
Muharram is 10th March, 1613.
p. 237, l. 8. It is 1,000 in the MSS., and this is probably correct,
though B.M. MS. 1645 has changed the word for 1,000 into one for
100. The ordinary kaukab-i-tali` was 100 tolas in weight, see
p. 11. At p. 406 two kaukab-i-tali's are mentioned of 500 tolas
each. It is a mistake, I think, to regard the word muhr as always
implying gold. The ordinary kaukab-i-tali` was of silver, and these
large muhrs were no doubt also of silver. The note 1 to Elliott, vi,
355, is probably incorrect.
p. 237, l. 10. 'The feast went off well,' etc. The passage is obscure,
but probably the translation should be 'There was a splendid assemblage
(majis shigufta gasht), and after it was over I ordered that they
should arrange an illumination.' The words in text, p. 116, l. 3, are
hukm kardam kih asbab u ayin bar kunand. The MSS. have asbab-i-ayin
ra. No. 181 seems to have baz kunand, and so has B.M. MS. 1645, but
No. 305 has bar kunand, as in text. It may be that the meaning is that
Jahangir told the servants they might appropriate the decorations,
but I rather think the order was to make an illumination. It may also
simply mean that he ordered the decorations to be taken down. Baz
kunand ordinarily means 'to open out,' bar kunand 'to load.'
p. 237, l. 12. Delete 'the' before Muqarrab.
p. 237, note. I.O. MSS. seem to have zarin, 'golden'(?).
p. 241, l. 5 from foot. I.G., new ed., xvii, 309, speaks of a handsome
mosque in Mairtha having been founded by Akbar, but probably it is
this one of Shaikh Pir. Perhaps Shaikh Pir is the old beggar referred
to in Roe's Journal.
p. 247, l. 5 from foot. For chakri read jhakkar. It was not necessarily
a dust-storm.
p. 250, l. 6. The MSS. have Rup instead of Rawal, and so has Elliot,
vi, 335. They have 'hill country of Mewat,' as in text. They have
Chitor, and not Jaipur, as in Elliot, and they make (by error)
Jahangir speak of the year as the 10th, instead of the 8th. Instead
of 'have' at l. 12 we should read 'had,' and instead of 'from the
Rawal who was first known as Rawal,' they have, as also has Elliot,
'Rahab, who was the first to take the title of Rana.' Rahab is the
Rahup of Tod, who says he came to the throne in 1201 A.D.
p. 253, ll. 10 and 11. I cannot find the word pulta-bazi. My friend,
Mr. Irvine, suggests that we should read patta bazi. Patta means a
'foil,' or 'wooden sword,' and patta baz is given in Forbes as meaning
a 'fencer.' Paltha marna occurs in Forbes as meaning a 'peculiar
posture.' The yaganagi of l. 11 should be yakangagi, meaning 'one
body,' or 'one limb,' and corresponds to the yakhath of Blochmann,
252, both phrases meaning apparently 'that the fencer fights with
one hand,' that is, 'without using a shield.'
p. 260, l. 8. This I`tiqad is the father of Mumtaz-mahall, the wife
of Shah Jahan. He now became Asaf Khan, and apparently the title of
I`tiqad was transferred to his younger brother (or cousin?) Shahpur,
who was afterwards governor of Kashmir. See Ma'asir, i, 180. The
two previous Asaf Khans of the family are Ghiyasu-d-din of Qazwin
(Blochmann, 433), and Mirza Ja`far Beg, who was Ghiyasu-d-din's
nephew. The father of Nur-Jahan was Ghiyas Beg of Tihran (Blochmann,
508). Blochmann, in his Table, 512, has not mentioned Shahpur,
i.e. the I`tiqad who became governor of Kashmir.
p. 261, l. 17 from foot. For mother read mothers (i.e. stepmothers).
p. 261, l. 10 from foot. For nephews read nephew.
p. 278, l. 13. For named read namad, and it should be in italics.
p. 281, l. 2. The permission to beat his drums is explained by the
Iqbal-nama, p. 79, where it is said that he was permitted to beat
his drums in the capital, dar pay-i-takht.
p. 281, l. 6 from foot. This eclipse is noted in Dr. Schram's Tables
as occurring on 19th March, 1615.
p. 282, l. 10 from foot. Delete word 'Egyptian.'
p. 286, l. 6. For Frank read Venetian. Kar-i-Wanadik, as in MSS.
p. 288, l. 5. Chatur, instead of Tahayyur, in No. 305, and Bakhtar
(?) in No. 181.
p. 293. According to the Iqbal-nama, 80, Kunwar Karan, son of Rana
Amar Singh, became an officer of Jahangir, receiving the rank of 5,000
personal and horse. He was the first of the direct royal line of his
family to accept office.
p. 293, l. 2 from foot. No. 181 has 102 horses.
p. 294, n. 2. No. 181 has Rasht.
p. 300, l. 18. According to Vullers' Dict., i, 482, a tulcha is 96
grains or about half a tola. The Ghiyasu-l-loghat, however, says that
tulcha is merely the Persian form of the Hindustani tula. According to
the Burhan-i-qati' a tola is only 2 1/2 masha in Upper India. Generally
it is reckoned as 12 masha. According to Sir Thomas Roe 2 1/2 tolas
were equal to 1 ounce.
p. 317, MS. No. 181 has A.H. date 1025.
p. 321, l. 11. For several bits read some marten skins. See Tuzuk text,
p. 308, l. 3 from foot, and Vullers' Dict, ii, 6. The MS. No. 181
has sad dana-i-kish, 'one hundred marten skins.'
p. 321, l. 13 from foot. For transit dues read for keeping open the
Pass (rah-dari).
p. 321, n. 2. The words in I.O. MSS. seem to be igana begana, which
is perhaps a mere jingle on the word afghana, but may mean 'known,
unknown.' Jahangir puns on the name Qadam, which means 'a foot,
a pace.' The words occur again at p. 323.
p. 322, last line. Probably `aqiri is, or is derived from, `aqar, which
means a bird whose feathers were used for ornamentation. According
to P. de Courteille, Turki Dict., 384, `aqar is a heron.
p. 328, l. 13 from foot. For Shah Shaja`at read Shah Shuja`. He was
Shah Jahan's second son, and was born at Ajmir on the eve of Sunday,
and on 11th Tir. Apparently this corresponds to 24th June, 1616,
which is the date of birth mentioned by Sir Thomas Roe. Beale's date
of 12th May is wrong.
p. 332, l. 6 from foot. Here the word tulcha is used again, and
apparently as meaning the same thing as tola; 6,514 tulchas or tolas
would be about 82 sirs, or over 2 maunds and about 12 stone. Next year
Sir Thomas Roe saw Jahangir weighed, and he understood that his weight
was 9,000 rupees. If so, his weight would appear to have considerably
increased during the twelve months. Perhaps we should read 8,514,
instead of 6,514 tulchas. Hasht (8) and shash (6) are often confounded.
p. 341, l. 8 from foot. For times read days, the word ruz (days)
having been omitted from the text.
p. 344, n. 1. Apparently we should read Toda. The difference between
it and Nauda is, in Persian writing, only one dot. Toda is mentioned
by Roe as the place where he overtook Jahangir, and the stages given
by him come to 21 kos, counting from Ramsar, and this agrees very
nearly with Jahangir's stages from the same place.
p. 351, l. 15 from foot. The MS. No. 181 has the word gaz twice,
and makes the pahna'i, or width, 175 1/2 gaz (yards).
p. 351, last line. For Bulghari read Pulkhari.
p. 352, l. 1. Delete the words 'of Tir.' The month was Bahman,
corresponding to January-February, 1617, and 23rd Bahman would be
about 1st February. In Sayyid Ahmad's edition the word Tir is a
mistake for niz, 'also,' the meaning being that the 23rd was a halt
as well as the 22nd.
p. 353, l. 2. Ghaznin Khan is mentioned by Finch under the name of
Gidney Khan, and he is said to have been originally a Hindu. But this
seems doubtful, as his father's name is given in the Mir'at-i-Ahmadi
as Malik Khanji Afghan. See also Bayley's "Gujarat," p. 15. Jalor is
now in Jodhpur. It is described by Finch.
p. 353, l. 2. This seems to be the case of matricide mentioned in
Terry's "Voyage," p. 362, of ed. of 1777. His statement that it
occurred at Ahmadabad is presumably an oversight. Terry says the
matricide was put to death by being bitten by two snakes. See also
Irvine's "Manucci," iv, 422. Apparently the punishment recorded by
Jahangir took place on the 4th February, for Sir Thomas Roe mentions
that they reached Kaliyadaha, the next stage, on 6th February. The bi
in biyasa should be deleted. Jalaur, or Jalor, is in Jodhpur (I.G.,
xiv, 29). It used to be in Ajmir. It is not quite clear if Terry was
with Roe at Kaliyadaha, but if not he was with him at Ujjain. The
execution may have taken place there.
p. 355, l. 16. For 'from the city of Ujjain,' etc., read 'to a rural
spot near the city of Ujjain.'
p. 360, l. 22. For 128 1/4 cubits read 28 1/4 cubits. I.O. MS. 181
has 28 1/4 yards. The printed text of Sayyid Ahmad has 128 1/4 cubits.
p. 362, l. 8 from foot. Delete (Balchha?).
p. 373, l. 11 seq. This I`tiqad was the younger brother or perhaps
cousin of Asaf Khan, the brother of Nur-Jahan. He was also known as
Shahpur. See Ma'asiru-l-umara, i, 180.
p. 375, n. 2. Read two diamonds.
p. 406, n. 3. Dikhtan or Daikhtan seems right. It is so in both the
I.O. MSS.
p. 406, l. 11 from foot. These muhrs were probably of silver, and were
called muhrs because they were medals rather than coins. Dr. Kehr
has given an account of a large muhr which is now apparently in
Dresden. See also Richardson's Dict., article Sikka.
p. 407, l. 4. This is Juna Khan, son of Ghiyasu-d-din Tughluq. He
ascended the throne in 1325 under the title of Muhammad bin Tughluq.
p. 407, l. 15. This is the prince known as Nasiru-d-din. He ascended
the throne as Muhammad bin Firuz in 1387, and again in 1390.
p. 413, ll. 11 and 3 from foot. I.O. MSS. show that Sar-faraz should
be Sarafraz; apparently his present was 'seven bullock-carts' (haft
ras gaw bahal) and not two bullocks.
p. 417, n. 2. Cancel note. Narangsar seems right.
p. 417, l. 2 from foot. The words are dah bist wazn muhr u rupiya
ma`mul. Elliot, p. 354, renders this 'ten and twenty times heavier
than the current gold muhr and rupee.'
p. 418, l. 10. See n. 2 in Elliot, vi, 355. Apparently Jahangir
means that he was the first person to coin double muhrs and double
rupees. There is an account of tankas in the Bahar-i-`Ajam, 261,
col 2, p. 421, n. 2. But it is 27 in I.O. MSS. 113, p. 423, l. 14. A
tassu is more than a finger-breadth, it is the 1/24 of a gaz or yard,
and should be about 1 1/3 inches.
p. 437. I am indebted to my friend Dr. Hoernle for the explanation
of the names of the two sects of Sewras. They should be Tapa and
Kharatara. Man Singh's name in religion was Jin-simha. See Epigraphia
Indica, i, 37, and Ind. Antiquary, xi, 250. Man Singh died at Mairtha
(in Jodhpur) according to the Jain books, in the beginning of 1618. The
head of the Tapa sect in Jahangir's time was Vijayasena. There is an
elaborate paper on the Jains of Gujarat and Marwar by Colonel Miles
in the Transactions R.A.S., iii, pp. 335-71.
p. 442, l. 8. There is no previous reference to the outbreak of plague
in Kashmir, though there is one to its occurrence in the Panjab. There
is an interesting account of the plague in Khafi Khan, i, 286-8,
in which the description is carried down to the time of Aurangzib.
NOTES
[1] It is owing to the crabbed writing of Price's MS. that at p. 21
Jahangir is made to say that the Prince of Kashmir belonged to the
society of Jogis. The real statement is that the prince belonged to
the Chak family.
[2] A translation was begun by the Rev. Mr. Lowe for the Asiatic
Society of Bengal, but only one fasciculus was published. This was
in 1889.
[3] That is, he was 37 years 3 months by the lunar calendar, and
36 years 1 month by solar reckoning (Padshahnama, i, 69). Elliot
and all the MSS. have 8th Jumada-s-sani as the date of the
accession, but this is clearly wrong, as Akbar did not die till 13th
Jumada-s-sani. Evidently the copyists have, as is so often the case,
misread bistam as hashtam. See Blochmann's remark, p. 454, note 3. That
Jahangir was not at this time 38 is shown by his stating at p. 37 that
he celebrated his 38th birthday at Lahore after the capture of Khusrau.
[4] The Sanskrit Kalinda.
[5] The couplet appears in Mas`ud's divan, B.M. MS. Egerton, 701,
p. 142a, line 4. The preceding lines show that the dust (gard) referred
to in the first line means the dust caused by the invading army. I
take the words baru barhai to mean the battlements or pinnacles of
the fortress, the i at the end of barha being intensive.
[6] Erskine's manuscript translation of the Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri,
B.M. MS. Add. 26,611, and the B.M. MS. have chini, not habshi. But
I.O. MS. No. 181 and the R.A.S. MS. have husaini, and this seems
right. See Memoirs, Leyden & Erskine, p. 326, and the Haidarabad
Turki text, p. 284. The kishmishi is a small grape like that of which
currants are made.
[7] Cf. infra the account of the 11th year, p. 173.
[8] See Memoirs. L. & E., p. 330.
[9] The name rae bel is not given in Clarke's Roxburgh, but perhaps it
is one of the jessamines, and may be the bela of Clarke (p. 30). The
rae bel is described by Abu-l-fazl (Blochmann, pp. 76 and 82). The
statement about its flowers being double and treble is obscure. Erskine
renders the passage "The leaves are generally two and three fold." The
Persian word is tabaqa, which apparently is equivalent to the tui or
fold of the Ayin-i-Akbari, Persian text, i, 96. The reference may be
to the flowers growing in umbels.
[10] This is the bokul of Indian gardens (Clarke, p. 313), and well
deserves Jahangir's praise. It is probably the bholsari mentioned in
the Ayin (Blochmann, No. 10, p. 83). Blochmann gives bholsiri (p. 70)
as the name of a fruit-tree, and the bholsari of p. 83 maybe a mistake
for mulsari.
[11] The text has sewti, but the sewti seems to be the Rosa
glandulifera of Roxburgh (Clarke, p. 407) and has no resemblance
to the Pandanus. See also the description of the sewti, Blochmann,
p. 82. (Perhaps there are two sewtis, one famous for fragrance, the
other for beauty. See l.c., pp. 76 and 82.) What is meant in the
text is evidently a Pandanus and the ketki of Blochmann, p. 83. I
have followed, therefore, I.O. MS. 181, and have substituted ketki
for sewti. The ketki may be Pandanus inermis, which has no thorns
(Clarke, p. 708). Erskine also has ketki.
[12] L.c. p. 33 et seq.
[13] Du Jarric, who got his information from missionary reports,
seems to imply that the chain was of silver, and says that Jahangir
was following the idea of an old Persian king. It is mentioned in
the Siyar al-muta'akhkhirin (reprint, i, 230) that Muhammad Shah in
1721 revived this, and hung a long chain with a bell attached to it
from the octagon tower which looked towards the river.
[14] In text this is wrongly made part of regulation 2.
[15] Gladwin and the MSS. have dilbahra (exhilarating drink), and
this is probably correct. Jahangir would know little about rice-spirit.
[16] This regulation is more fully expounded in Price, p. 7.
[17] It is curious that Jahangir should give the 18th Rabi`u-l-awwal
as his birthday, while the authorities give it as the 17th. Probably
the mistake has arisen from Jahangir's writing Rabi`u-l-awwal instead
of Shahriwar. His birthday was Rashn the 18th day of Shahriwar (see
Akbarnama, ii, 344), but it was the 17th Rabi`u-l-awwal. See Muhammad
Hadi's preface, p. 2, and Beale, and Jahangir's own statement a few
lines above. Possibly Jahangir wished to make out that he was born on
the 18th Rabi`u-l-awwal and a Thursday, because he regarded Thursday
as a blessed day (mubarak shamba), whilst he regarded Wednesday as
peculiarly unlucky, and called it kam, or gam, shamba.
[18] Cf. Elliot's translation, vi, 513, and note 2.
[19] The MSS. have "the subsistence lands of people in general (ahali)
and the aimas."
[20] In the text and in Elliot, vi, 515, this is made a separate order,
but it is not so in the MSS. If it were, we should have thirteen
instead of twelve regulations. This is avoided in text and in Elliot
by putting the 8th and 7th regulations into one ordinance. With regard
to the regulation about releasing the prisoners, Sir Henry Elliot is
somewhat unjust to Jahangir in his commentary at p. 515. It was only
those who had been long imprisoned whom Jahangir released, and his
proceedings at Ranthambhor in the 13th year (Tuzuk, p. 256) show that
he exercised discrimination in releasing prisoners. The account in
Price, p. 10, may also be consulted. There Jahangir says he released
7,000 men from Gwalior alone. It may be remembered that most of these
were political offenders. Private criminals were for the most part
put to death, or mutilated, or fined. There were no regular jails.
[21] The above translation of the Institutes should be compared with
Sir Henry Elliot's translation and his commentary: History of India,
E. & D., vol. vi, Appendix, p. 493.
[22] Erskine's MS. has isari for nisari, and akhtar-i-qabul instead
of khair-i-qabul.
[23] This is Blochmann's Asaf Khan No. iii, viz. Mirza Ja`far Beg. See
pp. 368 and 411.
[24] The words Aftab-i-Mamlakat yield, according to the numeration
by abjad, the date 1014 A.H. (1605).
[25] Page 4 of the text is followed by engravings of the coins of
Jahangir and the inscriptions thereon, for which the editor, Saiyid
Ahmad, says he is indebted to Mr. Thornhill, the Judge of Meerut. They
do not show the lines of poetry. There is an interesting article on
the couplets on Jahangir's coins by Mr. C. J. Rodgers, J.A.S.B. for
1888, p. 18.
[26] The chronogram is ingenious. The words Sahib-Qiran-i-Sani yield
only 1013 according to abjad, and this is a year too little. But the
verse states that Prosperity (or Fortune), Iqbal, laid his head at the
second lord of conjunction's feet, and the head of Iqbal, according to
the parlance of chronogram-composers, is the first letter of the word,
that is, alif, which stands for one (A) in abjad, and so the date 1014
is made up. Sahib-Qiran-i-Sani means 'the second lord of conjunction,'
and is a title generally applied to Shah Jahan; the first lord of
conjunction (i.e the conjunction of Jupiter and Venus) was Timur.
[27] A great officer under Humayun and Akbar. See Ayin, Blochmann,
p. 317.
[28] Blochmann, p. 331. He had 1,200 eunuchs. He is generally
styled Sa`id Chaghatai. The exact nature of his relationship does
not appear. It is not mentioned in his biography in the Ma'asir, ii,
403. Perhaps the word (nisbat) does not here mean affinity by marriage.
[29] According to the account in Price, p. 16, and in the Ma'asir,
ii, 405, Sa`id Khan gave a bond that if his people were oppressive
he would forfeit his head.
[30] He does not seem to have had any real power, and he was soon
superseded. See Ma'asir, iii, 932.
[31] It appears from Erskine and from I.O. MS. that this is a
mistake for Yatish-begi, 'Captain of the Watch,' and that the name
is Aminu-d-din, and not Aminu-d-daula. See Akbarnama, iii, 474, etc.
[32] Sharif Khan had been sent by Akbar to recall Jahangir to his
duty, but instead of coming back he stayed on. He did not accompany
Jahangir when the latter went off the second time to wait upon his
father. Probably he was afraid to do so. Jahangir appointed him to
Bihar before he left Allahabad to visit his father for the second
time. Jahangir says Sharif waited upon him fifteen days after his
accession, and on 4th Rajab. This is another proof, if proof were
needed, that the copyists have misread the opening sentence of the
Tuzuk and have written hashtam instead of bistam, for 4th Rajab is
fifteen days after 20th Jumada-l-akhir. The Padshahnama and Khafi
Khan have 20th, and Price and Price's original say that Sharif arrived
sixteen days after the accession.
[33] I.O. MS. 181 and Muhammad Hadi have Sultan Nisar Begam. Khafi
Khan, i, 245, has Sultan Begam, and says she was born in 994. Price's
Jahangir, p. 20, says she was born a year before Khusrau. She built a
tomb for herself in the Khusrau Bagh, Allahabad, but she is not buried
there (see J.R.A.S. for July, 1907, p. 607). She died on 4th Sha`ban,
1056 (5th September, 1646), and was at her own request buried in her
grandfather's tomb at Sikandra (Padshahnama, ii, 603-4).
[34] Should be Shaikhawat.
[35] The R.A.S. and I.O. MSS. have here Umra instead of Uzbegs. Umra
here stands, I think, for Umr Singh, the Rana of Udaipur, and the
meaning is that Shir Khan lost his arm in service against the Rana.
[36] The point of the verse seems to be that light is regarded as
something spread like a carpet on the ground, and that to place
the foot upon it is to insult the sun. Compare Price, p. 33; but
Manohar's verse is wrongly translated there owing to a badly written
MS. For Manohar see Akbarnama, iii, 221, and Badayuni, iii, 201,
also Blochmann, p. 494, and his article in Calcutta Review for April,
1871, also the Dabistan, translation, ii, 53.
[37] Probably here ab means both water and the water of the
sword. These lines are not in the R.A.S. or I.O. MSS.
[38] Text, ihtiyat (caution); the MSS. have i`tiqad (confidence),
and I adopt this reading.
[39] Blochmann, p. 52. It was a small round seal. Uzuk or uzuk is a
Tartar word meaning a ring, i.e. a signet-ring.
[40] Text, sabiyya (daughter), and this led Blochmann (p. 477, note
2) to say that if Sayyid Ahmad's text was correct Jahangir must have
forgotten, in the number of his wives, which of them was the mother
of Parwiz. As a fact, Sayyid Ahmad's text is not correct, though
the R.A.S. MS. agrees with it. The two excellent I.O. MSS. have
khwish (relative), which is here equivalent to cousin. So also has
the B.M. MS. used by Erskine. According to Muhammad Hadi's preface
Parwiz's mother was the daughter of Khwaja Hasan, the paternal uncle
of Zain Khan Koka. His birth was in Muharram, 998, or 19th Aban
(November, 1589). See also Akbarnama, iii, 568.
[41] I.e., both were Akbar's foster-brothers.
[42] Price, p. 20, has Karmitty, and says the daughter only lived two
months. Karamsi appears twice in the Akbarnama as the name of a man;
see Akbarnama, ii, 261, and iii, 201. The name may mean 'composed of
kindness.' The statement in Price is wrong. Bihar Banu was married
to Tahmuras s. Prince Daniyal in his 20th year (see Tuzuk, M. Hadi's
continuation, p. 400). According to M. Hadi's preface, Karamsi was
the daughter of Raja Kesho Das Rathor, and her daughter Bihar Banu
was born on 23rd Shahriwar, 998 (September, 1590). Kesho Das Rathor
is probably the Kesho Das Maru of the Tuzuk.
[43] Best known as Jodh Bai (Blochmann, p. 619).
[44] It is extraordinary that Jahangir should have put Shah-Jahan's
birth into A.H. 999. The I.O. MSS. support the text, but the
R.A.S. MS. has A.H. 1000, which is without doubt right. Cf. Akbarnama,
Bib. Ind., iii, 603. Later on, a great point was made of his having
been born in a millennium. The date is 5th January, 1592.
[45] Muhammad Hadi says in his preface, p. 6, that Shah-Jahan's
grandfather Akbar gave him the name of Sultan Khurram, 'Prince Joy,'
because his birth made the world glad. It was noted that the child
was born in the first millennium, and also that, like his father,
he was born in the same month as the Prophet.
[46] Gladwin says they were twins, but this seems a mistake. They
were both born about the time of Akbar's death.
[47] In MS. No. 310 of Ethé's Cat. of I.O. MSS. Sa`id Khan is described
as giving as his reason for asking for M. Ghazi that he had adopted
him as his son. Price's Jahangir, p. 21, says the same thing.
[48] This should be Jan, and is so in I.O. MS. 181.
[49] See Ma'asiru-l-umara, iii, 932. The meaning of the half and half
is that the two men were made coadjutors.
[50] In R.A.S. and I.O. MSS. the following passage is a verse. See
also Mr. Lowe's translation, p. 16.
[51] Wird means 'daily practice,' and may be the word intended here.
[52] Cf. this with the fuller details in Price, p. 22. Following
Blochmann, I take Shab-i-jum`a to mean Thursday and not Friday night.
[53] The text has `Abdu-l-Ghani, but this, as the MSS. show and
Blochmann has pointed out, is a mistake for `Abdu-n-Nabi. `Abdu-n-Nabi
was strangled, and the common report is that this was done by
Abu-l-fazl. If this be true it is rather surprising that Jahangir does
not mention it as an excuse for killing Abu-l-fazl. Cf. the account
of Miran Sadr Jahan in Price, p. 24. The "Forty Sayings" is a book
by Jami. See Rieu, Cat. i, 17, and also Dr. Herbelot s.v. Arbain.
[54] This should be Ghiyas Beg. He was father of Nurjahan. According to
the Ma'asiru-l-umara (i, 129), he was commander of 1,000 under Akbar.
[55] Topkhana-i-rikab, lit. stirrup-arsenal. It means light artillery
that could accompany royal progresses. See Bernier, and Irvine,
A. of M., 134.
[56] Text, topchi, which seems properly to mean a gunner, but
the number is preposterous. Cf. Blochmann, p. 470, and Price,
p. 28. Price's original has 6,000 topchi mounted on camels, and has
paytakht, i.e. the capital. Erskine has "To have always in readiness
in the arsenal arms, and accoutrements for 50,000 matchlock men." This
seems reasonable, for even if Jahangir ordered 50,000 musketeers, he
would not have required them to be kept in the arsenal. It seems to
me that though chi in Turki is the sign of the agent (nomen agentis)
it is occasionally used by Indian writers as a diminutive. Thus topchi
here probably means a small gun or a musket, and in Hindustani we are
familiar with the word chilamchi, which means a small basin. At p. 301
of the Tuzuk, four lines from foot, we have the word ilchi, which
commonly means an ambassador--an agent of a people--used certainly
not in this sense, and apparently to mean a number of horses. It is,
however, doubtful if ilchi here be the true reading.
[57] Text, aknun (now), which is a mistake for altun (gold). See Elliot
and Dowson, vi, 288. Al is vermilion in Turki and altun gold. Jahangir
means that he changed the name from al tamgha to altun tamgha.
[58] Mirza Sultan was great-grandson of Sulaiman.
[59] Perhaps the reference is to the boy's own father. He was alive
at this time, and Akbar was not.
[60] This is the man who afterwards rebelled and made Jahangir his
prisoner.
[61] Text, ulus-i-Dihli. Blochmann (p. 482 n.) points out that this
is a very doubtful term, as Mirza `Ali came from Badakhshan. On
examining three MSS. of the Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri I find no word Dihli,
but the words in ulus, 'this tribe or family,' and I think this must
be the correct reading, and refers to the Timurides. The same phrase
occurs at text, p. 173. Blochmann suggests to read Dulday for Dihli,
but I think it more probable that the word Dihli should be `ali. Mirza
`Ali was styled Akbarshahi, and no doubt this is why Jahangir writes
in ulus or ulus-i-`ali. Mirza `Ali is often mentioned in the Akbarnama
in connection with the wars in the Deccan, and is generally called
Akbarshahi, e.g. at p. 702. For an account of his pathetic death see
Blochmann, l.c., the Ma'asiru-l-umara, iii, 357, and the text, p. 163.
[62] The MSS. have a different reading, "If a king seize country and
climes," etc.
[63] Shahrukh was married to Jahangir's half-sister, Shakaru-n-nisa. He
was a Timurid.
[64] The MSS. have Abu-l-wali, and this seems more likely.
[65] The MSS. have Bhina, and Price's original seems also to have
Bhina. Muqarrab did not return for about seven months, as this entry
could not have been made till then. See p. 35 of Persian text of Tuzuk.
[66] Text, Sukhunan-i-past u buland. Cf. Steingass, s.v. past. Words
gentle and severe seem meant.
[67] See Blochmann, p. 447. He is mentioned by Du Jarric as disputing
with the Catholic priests before Jahangir (see J.A.S.B. for
1896, p. 77). According to Badayuni, iii, 98, it was Naqib's
father, `Abdu-l-Latif, with whom Akbar read (see Akbarnama, ii,
19). `Abdu-l-Latif and his family arrived in 963 (1556). Erskine
understands Jahangir's remark to mean that Naqib was his (Jahangir's)
teacher, but probably Jahangir means that it was Naqib's father who
taught Akbar, or he has confounded the father and son. As Naqib lived
till 1023 (1614), he would probably be too young in 1556 to have been
Akbar's teacher.
[68] Man Singh was the adopted son of Bhagwan Das, and it would appear
from this passage that he was his nephew also.
[69] The MSS. have Hatim s. Babui Mangli, and this is right. See
Blochmann, p. 370, n. i, and p. 473.
[70] The MSS. have Shahwar.
[71] I.O. MSS. have Abu-l-wali. He was an Uzbeg, and received the
title of Bahadur Khan. See Ma asiru-l-umara, i, 400, and Akbarnama,
iii, 820 and 839, where he is called Abu-l-Baqa. The real name seems
to be Abul Be or Bey, and this is how Erskine writes the name.
[72] The text seems corrupt. The I.O. MSS. say nothing about Shiraz,
but merely that Husain Jami was a disciple who had a dervish character
(sirat); nor does the R.A.S. MS. mention Shiraz.
[73] That is, descended from the famous Central Asian saint Khwaja
Ahrar.
[74] Something seems to have fallen out of the text and MSS.,
for this passage is obscure and not connected with the context. It
is clearer in Price's version, where it is brought in as part of
Jahangir's statements about promotions, and where (p. 40) we read
as follows:--"I shall now return to the more grateful subject of
recording rewards and advancements.... On Khwaja Zakariyya, the
son of Khwaja Muhammad Yahya, although in disgrace, I conferred the
rank of 500. This I was induced to do on the recommendation of the
venerated Shaikh Husain Jami. Six months previous to my accession,"
etc. Evidently the statement about Zakariyya's promotion has been
omitted accidentally from the Tuzuk. There is a reference to the
Shaikh's dream in Muhammad Hadi's preface to the Tuzuk (p. 15). He
says there that it was the saint Baha'u-l-haqq who appeared in a
dream to Husain Jami and told him that Sultan Salim would soon be king.
[75] I.e. of Furj or Furg in Persia. But Furji is a mistake for Qurchi
(belonging to the body-guard). He was a Mogul. See Blochmann, p. 457.
[76] Text has wrongly Pakhta. See Blochmann, p. 469. He received the
title of Sardar Khan.
[77] Should be Namakin. See Blochmann, p. 199.
[78] This passage has been translated by Elliot (vi, 289). See also
Price (p. 44), where the discussion is fuller.
[79] Jahangir's idea is somewhat vaguely expressed, but his meaning
seems to be that the ten incarnations do not illustrate any attribute
of God, for there have been men who performed similar wonders. The
corresponding passage in the text used by Major Price is differently
rendered by him, but his version is avowedly a paraphrase, and it
appears incorrect in this passage.
[80] Literally, "of the How and the Why."
[81] Text, shir-andam, 'tiger-shaped,' which I think means thin in
the flank (see Steingass, s.v.). I have taken the translation of
the words malahat and sabahat from Elliot. See his note vi, 376,
where the two words seem wrongly spelt.
[82] Erskine has "Let Sulaiman place his ring on his finger."
[83] Price translates--
"In pleasure of the chase with thee, my soul breathes fresh
and clear;
But who receives thy fatal dart, sinks lifeless on his bier."
[84] Perhaps referring to the name which Daniyal gave to his gun,
and which recoiled on himself, but the MSS. and text have nagirad,
and not bagirad.
[85] The MSS. have Shakar-nisar, 'sugar-sprinkling.' She lived into
Shah-Jahan's reign.
[86] She died unmarried in Jahangir's reign.
[87] This must, I think, be the meaning, though according to the
wording the statement would seem to be that there is no room for Shias
except in Persia. Erskine has "None but Shias are tolerated in Persia,
Sunnis in Rum and Turan, and Hindus in Hindustan."
[88] Kings are regarded as shadows of God.
[89] The chronogram is one year short, yielding 962 instead of 963.
[90] According to the Tabaqat, Elliot, v, 366, what the Mirza said was
"Where are the elephants?"
[91] The word for 'face-guard' is pish-ruy (front-face), and Jahangir
makes his father pun upon the word, saying, "It has loosed (opened)
my front-face." Cf. Price, p. 54.
[92] 'The helper.' This is an allusion to Akbar's patron saint,
Mu`inu-d-din Chishti, whose name he adopted as his battle-cry.
[93] The reading in the lithograph seems wrong; the MSS. have az
bazicha, 'in jest.'
[94] Abu-l-fazl is more moderate; he says (Blochmann, p. 116) that
Akbar killed 1,019 animals with Sangram.
[95] Blochmann says, of Mashhad, p. 381.
[96] The furriery. See Blochmann, pp. 87 n. and 616. Kurk means 'fur'
in Turki.
[97] The word yatish is omitted in text, but occurs in the MSS.
[98] Haji Koka was sister of Sa`adat Yar Koka (Akbar-nama, iii,
656). According to Price this passage refers to a widows' fund.
[99] This was one of Akbar's regulations (Blochmann p. 142). The
amount was ten dams on each muhr of the horse's value, calculated on
an increase of 50 per cent. See also Price, p. 61.
[100] This passage is not clear, but the peculiarity to which
attention is drawn seems rather the prominent forehead than the oozing
fluid. Price (p. 62) has a fuller account of this elephant.
[101] See Blochmann, pp. 176, 452, and the very full account of him
in the Ma'asir, iii, 285. Amul is an old city south of the Caspian
and west of Astrabad.
[102] She was Akbar's first and principal wife, but bore him no
children. She long survived him.
[103] These are the opening lines of an ode of Hafiz.
[104] Ma'asiru-l-umara. Yatim instead of Pim or Bim. See Blochmann,
p. 470. Erskine has Sain Bahadur.
[105] MS. 181 has 34.
[106] I think Jahangir means that though the Khan was an excellent
servant in his own line, he was hardly fit for the command of 2,000
or for the title of Khan. Cf. his praise of him at p. 71 (Blochmann,
p. 498). He was called Pishrau probably from his going on ahead with
the advance camp, as being in charge of the carpets, etc., as well
as because of his personal activity.
[107] In Price's Jahangir, p. 15, Jahangir states that he had
imprisoned Khusrau in the upper part of the royal tower in the castle
of Agra. It from this confinement that Khusrau escaped.
[108] Du Jarric says it was in this way that he was allowed to pass
the sentinels. Du Jarric gives the date of Khusrau's flight as 15th
April, 1606 (this would be New Style). By Sunday night is meant
Saturday evening. Sunday was Akbar's birthday.
[109] Elliot (vii, 292) makes the Amiru-l-umara envious of his
peers, and Jahangir apprehensive lest he should destroy Khusrau,
but he had just told him that nothing he did against Khusrau would
be wrong. Clearly Jahangir's fear was that his favourite should be
destroyed by Khusrau, or perhaps by the Amir's treacherous associates.
[110] The text has a curious mistake here: instead of ba Kabul it has
bakawal ('superintendent of the kitchen') as part of Dust Muhammad's
name. Dust was not bakawal, but held higher office, and was later
put in charge of the fort of Agra and given the title of Khwaja Jahan.
[111] Price, p. 6, note.
[112] According to Khafi Khan (i, 250) he was put to death, unless
the expression "claws of death" is merely rhetorical. The Ma'asir
(iii, 334) says he was imprisoned.
[113] The above obscure passage is explained in Price, p. 69.
[114] Elliot (vi, 293) observes that this is a very involved and
obscure passage.
[115] Blochmann, p. 418.
[116] The word tiryaq means both opium and antidote.
[117] Blochmann, relying on Khafi Khan, puts her death in 1011,
and the Akbar-nama (iii, 826) puts it in 1012. The chronogram in the
Khusrau Bagh yields 1012. See J.R.A.S. for July, 1907, p. 604.
[118] Where Lord Bellomont died in 1656. See Manucci (Irvine), i, 71.
[119] Probably this means the grandsons. At p. 329 it is mentioned
that the grandsons had been confined in Gwalior up to the 16th year.
[120] Para, qu. 'a heap'?
[121] Narela is said to be 15 1/2 miles north-west of Delhi. William
Finch, in his itinerary, mentions the stage as Nalera, a name that
corresponds with Jahangir's.
[122] 53 miles north of Delhi.
[123] Instead of taza the MSS. have para, and the meaning seems to
be that he accompanied Khusrau for some distance. In Price's Jahangir
(p. 81) it is said that Nizam received 6,000 rupees.
[124] This is an interesting passage, because it is Jahangir's account
of his father's 'Divine Faith.' But it is obscure, and copyists seem
to have made mistakes. It is explained somewhat by the MS. used by
Price (trans., pp. 82, 83), where more details are given than in the
text. It is there stated that Ahmad was Mir-i-`Adl of Jahangir before
the latter's accession.
[125] The text has dast u sina (hand and bosom), but the correct
words, as is shown in the I.O. MS., No. 181, are shast u shabiha or
shabah, and these refer to the ring or token and the portrait given
by Akbar to the followers of the 'Divine Faith.' See Blochmann,
pp. 166 n. and 203; and Badayuni, ii, 338. Ahmad appears to be the
Ahmad Sufi of Blochmann, pp. 208, 209, and of Badayuni, ii, 404,
and Lowe, p. 418. He was a member of the 'Divine Faith.'
[126] Text, puj or puch, but the manuscript reading luk is
preferable. Erskine's MS. has luj, naked.
[127] Price (p. 83) has Anand or Anwand. Apparently Aluwa is right; it
is a place 18 miles north-west of Umballa. Cf. "India under Aurangzib,"
by J. N. Sarkar.
[128] Abu-l-Bey, the Abu-l-Baqa of Akbar-nama, iii, 820.
[129] A member of the 'Divine Faith' (Blochmann, p. 452, etc.).
[130] The text has qatl by mistake for qabl.
[131] Biryani. See Blochmann, p. 60.
[132] The Gundval of Tiefenthaler, i, 113. Cunningham, in his history
of the Sikhs, spells it Goindwal. It is on the Beas.
[133] The text has singhasan instead of sukhasan. Kamgaar Husaini
has sukhpal.
[134] Instead of the basuzanad of the text, the MSS. have bashuranad,
he defiles. In the last line they have jay instead of takht.
[135] I.e. the place to which to turn in prayer.
[136] Elliot (vi, 299) has Jahan, and the word in the MSS. does not
look like Jaipal.
[137] This word appears to be a mistake; it is not in the MSS.
[138] When the boat stuck, the boatmen swam ashore, and it was probably
then that Husain shot at them. See Blochmann, p. 414, n. 2.
[139] "With a chain fastened from his left hand to his left foot,
according to the law of Chingiz Khan" (Gladwin's Jahangir, quoted by
Elliot, vi, 507). But apparently what is meant is that Khusrau was
led up from the left side of the emperor.
[140] Du Jarric, in his history of the Jesuit Missions, gives some
details about the punishment. The bullock and ass were slaughtered
on the spot and their skins were sewed on the bodies of the unhappy
men. Horns and ears were left on the skins.
[141] Perhaps the meaning is that the weather was bad.
[142] The proper form seems to be Bhaironwal, the Bhyrowal of the
maps. It is on the right bank of the Biah (Beas) on the road from
Jalandhar to Amritsar. See Blochmann, p. 414, note.
[143] The words are omitted in the text. Erskine read in his MS. gau
jizwan, which I do not understand. The I.O. MSS. and B.M. MS. Or 3276
have gawan u kharan. Husain Beg, whose proper name was Hasan, was a
brave soldier, and did good service under Akbar. See his biography
in Blochmann, p. 454.
[144] The fifth Guru of the Sikhs and the compiler of the Granth. He
was the father of Har Govind. See Sayyid Muhammad Latif's history of
the Punjab, p. 253. Arjun's tomb is in Lahore.
[145] But qashqa is a Turkish word. The Hindi phrase seems to be tika.
[146] The cousin of Moses, famous for his wealth; the Korah of
the Bible.
[147] Gladwin has Nagh.
[148] Blochmann, p. 50.
[149] Akbar-nama, iii, 748, and Blochmann, p. 546. He was a man
of piety and learning, and Jahangir means that he restored him to
his former quiet life. The arbab-i-sa`adat, or auspicious persons,
were those who offered up prayers for the king's prosperity and
other blessings.
[150] Amba was killed later by Nur-Jahan's husband, Shir-Afgan (Tuzuk,
pp. 54, 55).
[151] Blochmann, p. 310.
[152] These words are not in the MSS., and they seem to have crept
into the text by mistake and to be a premature entry of words relating
to Hashim, etc. The brother of the former ruler (or king) of Khandesh
could hardly be a khanazad.
[153] This should be, according to the MSS., "army against the Rana,"
not army of the Deccan.
[154] The MSS. have "in the neighbourhood of Lahore." Parwiz had then
charge of Bihar.
[155] Text, wrongly, Bahman. Jahangir was born on the 21st of
Shahriwar.
[156] Apparently, had long looked forward to the happy day when
Jahangir should be weighed as a king.
[157] Perhaps the meaning is that he was introduced along with
Daniyal's children.
[158] Blochmann, p. 492.
[159] This refers to his parentage.
[160] In the MSS. this name seems to be Bhim Mal. Manjholi is written
Manjholah in Blochmann, p. 175.
[161] ? Nandanpur. These places are in Sindsagar, near Multan.
[162] MS. 181 has Bahar, and it has 600 instead of 800 horse.
[163] Text, Uymaq puri (?). MS. 181 has buri, and 305 seems to have
the same. Can it mean 'red cavalry'? As Blochmann has pointed out,
371, n. 2, the word Uymaq does not always mean the tribe, but was
used to denote a superior kind of cavalry.
[164] The qamargah or ring-hunt produced 265 head of game; the rest
were shot at other times; the total of the list should be apparently
576.
[165] The MSS. have the 6th stage instead of "last."
[166] This is the famous Khan Jahan Lodi of Shah Jahan's reign.
[167] Text, ba dastur.
[168] I.e. built him up in it.
[169] Jahangir did not like the Khankhanan, and so here belittles
his services.
[170] During Shah Jahan's reign, Khan Jahan Lodi fled from Court,
was pursued, and killed.
[171] Perhaps the antelope's name was Raj, and the syllable man the
pronoun 'my,' when the translation would be 'my antelope Raj.' See
Elliot, vi, 302, and R.A.S. MS., No. 124.
[172] Perhaps the Jandiala of the Indian Gazetteer, vii, 137.
[173] Indian Gazetteer, v, 239.
[174] Text omits the negative.
[175] Text, susani; apparently a blue iris.
[176] The text has shumar wrongly for shiyar, and it seems that
the negative of the text is wrong, since it does not occur in the
MSS. Abu-l-fazl gives the number of petals and stamens more correctly
than Jahangir.
[177] Az tikka andazi; perhaps 'the cast of a javelin.'
[178] Lit. 'have joined hands.'
[179] Sih-barga; but this reading seems doubtful; perhaps it is
sir-i-barga, full of leaves. Jahangir says that to lay a carpet on the
grass would be bi-dardi, unfeeling, unsympathetic, and kam saliqagi.
[180] The text has naqsh bar jay, but the true reading seems to
be nafiztar.
[181] `Ilm-i-khala`-i-badan, 'withdrawal of the soul from the body'
(Erskine).
[182] So in text, but the MSS. and Elliot, vi, 307, have "on one of
the gates."
[183] The figures seem wrong, and the MSS. differ. See Elliot, vi,
307. Apparently the correct sum in rupees is 34 lakhs 25,000. At
p. 61 the khani of Turan is reckoned at one-third of a rupee. If
the dam be taken at its ordinary value of one-fortieth of a rupee,
the number of rupees should be 40 lakhs 25,000, and if the khani
of Turan be one-third of a rupee we should read one kror instead of
one arb. Probably Jahangir has used arb as meaning kror, and not 100
krors. There is a valuable note on his expedition through the Ghakkar
country in Blochmann, p. 486. Blochmann takes the figures for the
rupees to be four krors, but probably this is due to wrong pointing.
[184] The MSS. and text have Pila or Pila. I adopt Tila from Blochmann,
p. 487, note. Elliot has Tillah, vi, 307, and note.
[185] In Tolbort's account of Ludhiyana, J.A.S.B. for 1869, p. 86,
bhakhra is given as the name of a creeping plant (Pedalium murex).
[186] Rud-khana; this, according to Blochmann, should be the river
Kahan, khana being a mistake for Kahan. See p. 487 note. But all the
MSS. have khana.
[187] See Elliot, vi, 309 note.
[188] Bugyals; Elliot, vi, 309. They are descendants of Sultan Buga.
[189] Paka is mentioned in Tiefenthaler, i, 114.
[190] Khor; Elliot, vi, 309 note. Near the Manikyala tope.
[191] Kharbuza Saray is marked on Elphinstone's map.
[192] Mr. Rogers has "The soul of the fool thou canst purchase for
little." Perhaps the sense is "God grants life to the fool on hard
terms." Erskine has "To serve a fool is hard indeed." Possibly the
literal meaning is "You buy the soul of the fool at a high price,"
that is, it costs a great deal to win him over. Elliot had what is
probably the best rendering, "Barbarous characters should be treated
with severity"; though in Elliot, vi, 310, the translation is,
"The life of fools is held very cheap in troublous times."
[193] Apparently this remark must have been written after Jahangir's
visit to Kashmir by the Baramula route in the fourteenth year.
[194] Bhanwar, as Mr. Lowe has pointed out, means in Hindi an eddy
or whirlpool.
[195] William Finch says that at Hasan Abdal there were many fish with
gold rings in their noses hung by Akbar, and that the water is so clear
that you may see a penny in the bottom. Jahangir's informants were
apparently not versed in hagiography. Baba Hasan Abdal is apparently
the saint who was an ancestor of Ma`sum Bhakari, and is buried at
Qandahar. See Beale, and Jarrett's translation of the Ayin, ii, 324
note. The Sikhs identify the place with their Baba Nanak. It is not
a wife of Akbar who is buried at Hasan Abdal, but Hakim Abu-l-fath
and his brother.
[196] Elliot has Amardi, but the MSS. have Amrohi. The Ma'asir, ii,
755, has Ahru'i. See Blochmann, p. 522.
[197] Az taghyan farud amada. Perhaps the meaning is exactly the
opposite, viz. 'had come down in violence.' But if so, could a bridge
have been made, and with eighteen boats? The time was the 4th or 5th
May. Elliot has "the Nilab was very full."
[198] According to the Ma'asiru-l-umara, iii, 376, Ma`mur is a village
in Arabia.
[199] The MSS. have sad instead of chand, i.e. 100.
[200] This Asaf Khan is Qawamu-d-din Ja`far Beg and the No. iii of
Blochmann, p. 411. Apparently his appointment as Mir Bakhshi was made
in 989 (1581), in which year Akbar went to Kabul. Blochmann says Asaf
Khan was made Mir Bakhshi in the room of Qazi `Ali, and we find at
p. 372 of A. N., iii, that Qazi `Ali Bakhshi was appointed in that
year to the Panjab. Twenty-eight years before 1016 (to the beginning
of which Jahangir is referring) yields 988. Basawal is on right bank
of Kabul River below Jalalabad.
[201] Text bauli, but the MSS. have luli, i.e. dancing-girl.
[202] Generally spelt ballut, either the oak or the
chestnut. Cf. Erskine's Baber, p. 145. Sir Alexander Burnes calls
the ballut the holly.
[203] See below, p. 52, where the Ra'is or headman of Chikri is
mentioned.
[204] Cf. Erskine's Baber, p. 145.
[205] The fort of Pesh Bulaq is mentioned in the third volume of the
Akbar-nama, p. 512. It is marked on the map of Afghanistan between
Daka and Jalalabad.
[206] Sic in text, but should be Jaunpur as in the MSS.
[207] There was also a Shahr-banu who was Babar's sister. Bika Begam
was Babar's widow and the lady who carried his bones to Kabul.
[208] Bakafsh-pay, which Erskine renders 'with slippers on' and Elliot
'with his shoes on.'
[209] Bayazid Biyat describes Humayun as holding a cooking festival
in Badakhshan. See A.N., i, translation, p. 496, n. 2. They cooked
bughra, which appears to be macaroni. The text wrongly has raqz az
`ishq (love-dances). The real word, as the MSS. show, is arghushtaq,
which is a kind of dance (not a child's game as in Johnson). It
is described in Vullers, s.v., in accordance with the account in
the Burhan-i-qati`. It is a dance by girls or young men, and is
accompanied with singing and with clapping of hands, etc. Probably
it is the dance described by Elphinstone in his account of Kabul,
i, 311, where he says: "The great delight of all the western Afghans
is to dance the Attun or Ghoomboor. From ten to twenty men or women
stand up in a circle (in summer before their houses and tents,
and in winter round a fire); a person stands within the circle to
sing and play on some instrument. The dancers go through a number of
attitudes and figures; shouting, clapping their hands, and snapping
their fingers. Every now and then they join hands, and move slow or
fast according to the music, all joining in chorus. When I was showed
this, a love-song was sung to an extremely pretty tune, very simple,
and not unlike a Scottish air." Erskine's translation is: "Custards
and confections were presented, and the amusements of dancing girls
and arghustak were introduced."
[210] The words seem to me to yield 1066, but if we read pajshanba
instead of panjshanba we get 1016, which is the Hijra date of
Jahangir's entry into Kabul and corresponds to 4th June, 1607. A
marginal note on I.O.M. 305 makes the chronogram clear by writing
ruz-i-panchanba hizhdah-i-Safar, thereby getting rid of the mim and
the ya of hizhdaham and bringing out the figures 1016.
[211] Evidently a kind of sheep.
[212] This is a reference to Babar's Memoirs.
[213] A juz' is said to consist of eight leaves or sixteen pages. Does
Jahangir mean that he wrote sixty-four pages?
[214] Probably the sections which Jahangir wrote were those printed
in the Ilminsky edition and which bring the narrative down to
Babar's death. They seem to have been in great measure copied from
the Akbar-nama. Jahangir does not say if he wrote them when he was
in Kabul or previously. According to Blochmann, J.A.S.B. for 1869,
p. 134, one juz' = two sheets of paper. The passage is translated in
Elliot, vi, 315. Though Jahangir does not say when he wrote the four
sections, I think that his language implies that these additions were
in the manuscript when he was looking at it in Kabul. Perhaps he made
them when he was a student in India, and for the sake of practice in
Turki. He may have translated the sections from the Akbar-nama. All,
I think, he did in Kabul was to put the Turki note, stating that the
sections were his. But possibly even this was done before. Elliot,
vi, 315, has the words "to complete the work," but these words do not
occur in the MSS. that I have seen. The translation in Elliot, seems to
represent Jahangir's words as meaning that the work was complete, but
that the four sections were not, like the rest, in Babar's handwriting,
and so Jahangir re-copied them. But it does not appear that there
could be any object in his doing this. There is a valuable article
in the Zeitschrift d. Deutschen Morgenl. Gesellsch. for 1883, p. 141,
by Dr. Teufel, entitled "Bâbur und Abû'l-fazl," in which the fragments
in Ilminsky are discussed. But the passage in the Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri
is not referred to.
[215] The text mentions a horse, but the MSS. have not this, and it
seems to be a mistake.
[216] Apparently the Shorkot of I.G., xii, 424. In the Rechnau Duab
(Jarrett, ii, 321). It is north of Multan and in the Jhang district.
[217] I.G., v, 188.
[218] Perhaps the `Ali Dust Khan of Blochmann, p. 533.
[219] The MSS. have Herat, and this is probably correct.
[220] That is, apparently, Mirza Shadman, but perhaps the meaning
is that Qaracha had sought a wife for his son among the Hazaras,
and not that he had himself married an Hazara woman.
[221] The MSS. have "less than 1 1/2 gaz by 1/8 (nim-pao)."
[222] Should, I think, be Tattah, i.e. Sind.
[223] Ghaibana, 'secretly.' But the phrase merely means that the
appointment was not made in the Emperor's presence.
[224] Text bargasht, 'he turned round.' But the MSS. have chi
rawish-i-tuzukast, "What kind of arrangement is this?"
[225] Shamshir-i-sikhaki, 'pointed sword, poniard'?
[226] The meaning of two words being used probably is that both
Hindu and Persian astrologers are referred to. Blochmann, p. 311,
says that Shah-Jahan's birthday was 30th Rabi`u-l-awwal.
[227] Lit., "His disposition had changed from equability."
[228] Gilas is a cherry in Kashmiri. See Blochmann's Ayin,
p. 616. Abu-l-fazl mentions in the Ayin (Blochmann, p. 66) that Akbar
called gilas shah-alu.
[229] Paywandi means 'to graft,' and possibly this is the meaning here,
but Steingass gives paywandi as part of the name of a plum. The text
seems to be corrupt, and perhaps what Jahangir wrote was "the zard-alu
resembles the khubani."
[230] Text has Yaqut, but it is clear from the Iqbal-nama, p. 25,
and from I.O. MS. 181 that the name is Khwaja Tabut, 'the coffin
Khwaja.' The author of the Iqbal-nama was the person sent to make the
inquiry, and he gives a long account of what he saw. A surgeon was
sent with him, as the Khwaja was said to have been martyred, and it
was necessary to report on the wounds. The coffin story is mentioned
in the Ayin, i, 194. See Jarrett, ii, 409-10, but the translation is
not quite accurate, I think. The punctuation of the text seems to me
to be correct. It is characteristic of Jahangir and the author of
the Iqbal-nama that they take no notice of the colossal figures at
Bamiyan, though Abu-l-fazl does. See Jarrett's note. It is stated in
the Iqbal-nama that Khwaja Tabut was said to have been killed in the
time of Chingiz Khan. If so, the Sultan Mahmud mentioned by Jahangir
must be Sultan Mahmud Ghori.
[231] He was appointed governor of Sehwan (Iqbal-nama, p. 27).
[232] The MSS merely have "of a size that I had never seen
before." Probably the text is corrupt, and the meaning may be "as
big as a head." Bih is a quince, and perhaps this is what is meant
here. Or the meaning may be "equal to the biggest for size." Or sar
may be a mistake for sih and the meaning be "equal in size to three
(ordinary peaches)."
[233] I.O. MS. 181 has Qarqara mountains. There is also the reading
Kharaq.
[234] Blochmann, p. 31.
[235] Du'aba is mentioned as a stage by W. Finch.
[236] The text omits the word zinda, 'alive.'
[237] The urdu or camp was probably not with Jahangir then, and he
thought that if he sent to it for the capture of 500 there would be
confusion. He therefore contented himself at the time with arresting
the ringleaders. There is a full account of the conspiracy in the
Iqbal-nama, p. 27, etc.
[238] Possibly the meaning is "his experience was greater than
his skill."
[239] Lit., when he was smooth-faced, i.e. beardless.
[240] The I.O. MSS. do not call him governor, and the names of the
animals captured differ in the MSS. from those given in the text. The
latter are obviously wrong, and I have discarded them. The Iqbal-nama,
p. 30, has Arzana as the name of the hunting-ground. Erskine has
Arzina.
[241] Erskine has "many of the hounds were destroyed." Sagan-i-tazi
probably means greyhounds, whether bred in Arabia or elsewhere.
[242] Blochmann, p. 377, and Ma'asiru-l-umara, ii, 642. He was
an Arghun.
[243] The passage is obscure and the text is corrupt. Erskine's
translation is: "His manners towards the soldiers is frank and gallant,
but not according to the rules of discipline, especially towards those
who have been or are in the wars with him. He is much flattered by his
servants, which gives him a light appearance." Evidently Erskine read
udzi or naz instead of baz as in the text, and the MSS. support his
reading. I think, however, that naz kashidan means 'to jest.' Instead
of the ta bamandand of text the MSS. have ya namayand, the meaning
being those soldiers who have served him well, or are doing so. We
learn from Blochmann, p. 378, that Shah Beg was "a frank Turk."
[244] The peculiarity of this year was that the lunar month and
the solar month of Akbar's birth, viz. Rajab and Aban, coincided,
so that there was a double celebration.
[245] Wajihu-d-din was a famous Gujarat saint. He died in 998.
[246] The word used by Jahangir, and which has been translated 'repeat
continually,' is mudawamat, and Erskine understood it to mean that
Jahangir hoped to prolong his life by this exercise.
[247] Har ahu'i kih zad bar sar-i-tir raft. The literal rendering
apparently is: "whenever an antelope was struck by him the arrow
entered up to its (the arrow's) head." Perhaps the meaning simply is
every arrow (or bullet) that he shot went home.
[248] Jalal Khan was a grandson of Sultan Adam (Blochmann, pp. 455
and 486).
[249] See infra for another notice of him in the chapter on Gujrat.
[250] One of Jahangir's wives was a daughter of Ray Ray Singh (of
Bikanir). See Blochmann, p. 310.
[251] See Rieu, Cat. ii, p. 634.
[252] There is evidently something wrong in the text, for a ruby
weighing 6 surkhs could not weigh 2 tanks and 15 surkhs. I.O. MS. 181
has barja instead of surkh, but I do not know what this means. Perhaps
shash-gusha, 'hexagonal,' was intended. This view is confirmed by
the Iqbal-nama, p. 31, which has shash pahlu, 'six-sided.' Erskine's
MS. also had 'six-sided,' and he translates "a six-sided ruby which
weighed two tangs fifteen surkhs." I.O. MS. 305 has shash parcha,
and it is evident that this word, as also the barja of No. 181,
is the parche of Steingass, which means a segment or facet.
[253] This remark about Mirza Ghazi, and also the quotation, do not
occur in the two I.O. MSS.
[254] Blochmann, p. 417.
[255] Bayakta, but the I.O. MSS have batagpay, 'rapidly.'
[256] Properly Zainu-d-din Mahmud. See the story in Badayuni, Ranking,
p. 589; also Akbar-nama translation, i, 611, and Blochmann, p. 539
and note.
[257] I do not know if this is the author. There appears to be no
mention of the construction in the Akbar-nama. Nakodar is in the
Jalandhar district (I.G., x, 180, and Jarrett, ii. 317). Perhaps
the two tombs at Nakodar mentioned in I.G. as of Jahangir's time are
those of Muqim the Waziru-l-mulk and his wife. See Tuzuk, pp. 6 and 64.
[258] Khwurd, lit. 'devoured.' Apparently he refers to the fact of
the birth as a misfortune. I.O. MS. 181 has sar-i-madar u pidar ra
khwurd, and the A.S. 124 has shir-i-madar u pidar-i-khud, 'the milk
of his own mother and father'!
[259] This is given as a quotation in No. 181.
[260] This should be the 17th if Monday was the 14th.
[261] The MSS. seem to have mutassil-i-mab-i-chaukandi, 'in shape
like a chaukandi(?).' It was from the roof of this building that
Humayun fell.
[262] Turghai or turghei is a thrush according to Vambéry, and was
the name of Timur's father. Perhaps the bird was the large maina,
the Bhimraj or Bhringraj(?) of the Ayin, Jarrett, ii, p. 125 and
note. In Scully's Glossary, turghai is said to be the lark. The text
arranges the words differently from the MSS. They have mushakhkhas
Miyan Tuti gufta, and Erskine translates 'which said clearly Miyan
Tuti.' But possibly Jahangir meant that it spoke clearly like a parrot.
[263] Blochmann, p. 332. Sikandra, Akbar's tomb, lies half-way between
Rankattah and Agra. Tiefenthaler, i, 206, gives the name as Runcta,
and says it is a famous place, as Ram there took the figure of Paras
Ram. Jarrett, ii, 180, has Rangtah, and it is there described as a
village on the Jumna, near the city, and a much frequented place of
worship. The Agra volume of the N.W.P. Gazetteer, p. 764, spells
it Runkutta, and says it is 9 miles north-west of Agra. See also
Ma'asir, ii, 407, art. Sa`id Khan, where mention is made of Rankatta
and Hilalabad, and Blochmann, p. 332.
[264] If Thursday was the 2nd, Saturday would be the 4th. He went
first to Agra from Rangta, apparently.
[265] Tuyghun or tuyghun is given in Zenker as Turki for the white
falcon. See Elliot, vi, 317.
[266] Bighu, which is given in Zenker, is Turki. The text has lifu. The
I.O. MSS. have bigu.
[267] Should be budana, 'quail.'
[268] Apparently this is a translation from the Hindi.
[269] Text wrongly has 1014.
[270] Jahangir calls Islam farzand because he was the son of his
foster-brother. Jahangir Quli means 'slave of Jahangir.'
[271] The seed of Abrus precatorius.
[272] Or devtaq. Qu. devanayak? The MSS. have yunk and wabunk. The
text is corrupt and has converted the word for 'bat' into a 'lamb.'
[273] The text is corrupt.
[274] Blochmann, p. 387.
[275] Sister of Mirza Hakim, also known as Fakhru-n-nisa (Blochmann,
p. 322). The MSS. have Bakhtu-n-nisa, and it would seem that the
Najibu-n-nisa of the text is a wrong reading. See Gulbadan Begam's
Memoirs, p. 214.
[276] Text wrongly has Shamshiri. The MSS. have Shustari, and this
is right. See Blochmann, pp. 208, 209, and 518.
[277] Riqa` is a kind of writing (Blochmann, pp. 99, 100).
[278] Blochmann, p. 417. His name was Anisu-d-din.
[279] This must be Raja Sangram of Kharakpur, who had been a rebel. See
Blochmann, p. 446 and note.
[280] Text Qutbi, but I think the word is Qibti, 'Egyptian.'
[281] Fighani was a famous poet and also a drunkard. See Rieu,
ii, p. 651, and Sprenger, Oude Cat., p. 403. Fighani also means
lamentation, and there is a play in the couplet on the double meaning.
[282] In the Elliot MSS., B.M., the second line is translated
"Alas! if the angels made his shroud of another kind of odour!" The
angels meant are Nakir and Munkar.
[283] Blochmann, p. 612.
[284] Cf. Jarrett, ii, p. 122.
[285] Blochmann, p. 469.
[286] "What money and articles he could produce at the time" (Elliot,
vi, 320).
[287] Apparently the person spoken of as a Nazarene (Christian) was
the Emperor of Constantinople. Can this picture be the original of
that prefixed to White & Davey's translation of Timur's Institutes?
[288] Perhaps the meaning is enough milk to fill a coffee-cup.
[289] According to the contemporary, but anonymous, author quoted in
Elliot, vi, 448, this was in reward for restoring the sight of Khusrau.
[290] Majzub-i-madar-zad. Probably the meaning is that he was a
born idiot.
[291] The story is also told in the Iqbal-nama, p. 37, where it is
said that the tiger was one brought by a calendar as a present. It
had the name of La`l Khan and was very tame. It is added that the
tiger did no injury to the jogi with his claws or teeth.
[292] The MSS. have `Inayat.
[293] I.O. MS. No. 181, Shah Beg Khan.
[294] Salamu-llah is mentioned later on (p. 78), and is described
as brother's son of Mubarak, who held the country of Jotra (?) and
Darful. He is also mentioned in the Iqbal-nama, p. 38, where Mubarak
is described as ruler (hakim) of Juyza and Saful (?). But a MS. of the
Iqbal-nama in my possession only mentions Juyza or Juyna. I think Juyza
must be Juina or Juanny, which, according to Sir William Jones, is one
of the names of the island of Johanna or Hinzuan (one of the Comorro
Islands), and that Saful must be Sofala, a town on the east coast of
Africa. Sir W. Jones was landed on Johanna, and has a long account
of the island (see his works). The Iqbal-nama says that Salamu-llah
killed himself with drink. There is a short notice of him in the
Ma'asir, ii, 641, where he is called by his title of Shaja`at Khan.
[295] The I.O. MSS. have a different reading here. Instead of 'every
morning' they have 'renew (humility).' The word nur, 'light,' in the
last line probably refers to Jahangir's name of Nuru-d-din.
[296] See note above. Jutra or Jotra is probably a mistake for the
island of Johanna, i.e. Hinzuan. Darful is Dazful in I.O. MS. No. 181.
[297] Possibly Qur Yasawul is right, but most probably it was a
yasawul attached to the Qur, for which see Blochmann, p. 50.
[298] Jahangir's conduct was sufficiently brutal, but the text has
made it worse than it was by omitting the word pay before pay. The
back tendons of the bearers' feet were cut. Their feet were not cut
off. Erskine translates the passage rightly, and the I.O. MSS. agree
with him.
[299] This was the same `Abdu-r-Rahim who was a companion of Khusrau,
and after his capture was sweated in a skin. As he had life left in
him he escaped from that destruction, and, on being released, became
one of the personal servants, and served His Majesty till by degrees
the latter became gracious to him. (Note of Sayyid Ahmad.)
[300] Ghazi Khan was one of the famous officers of Akbar. Husam his
son was married to Abu-l-fazl's sister. See Blochmann, p. 440.
[301] Brahmini ducks.
[302] A son of Akbar's officer, Muhammad Quli Barlas (Blochmann,
pp. 342 and 478).
[303] Mir `Ali was a famous calligrapher. See Rieu, Cat., ii, 531. Can
the copy mentioned by Jahangir be that in the Bodleian Library, which
Sir W. Jones praised so highly? A writer in the Journal of the Moslem
Institute for January-March, 1907, p. 186, suggests that the copy is
in the Bankipur Library.
[304] The Iqbal-nama, p. 41, has Shayyadi, 'a dervish, a hypocrite,'
and the R.A.S. MS. has Sayyidi Shayyad. Shayyad is used at p. 60 to
mean an impostor. Here, perhaps, it would mean a buffoon.
[305] `Ali Ahmad's father was Shaikh Husain. See Blochmann, p. 53.
[306] It was the bathing of the Hindus that the saint was watching.
[307] The point of Amir Khusrau's hemistich is that kaj-kulah literally
means 'the awry cap,' and so refers to the saint, who had his cap
on his ear or on the side of his head. But it also means one who is
presumptuous, and has left the true path of religion. It also means,
according to Steingass, a beloved person.
[308] I.O. MS. 181 has Takht-i-bakht (Throne of fortune).
[309] Kesho Das was perhaps the father of Karamsi, one of Akbar's
wives. See Blochmann, p. 310.
[310] Blochmann, p. 465.
[311] Takhti, qu. a signet?
[312] Kaukab is mentioned again at the end of the twelfth year. For
notice of his father see Blochmann, p. 485.
[313] Elliot, vi, 321.
[314] Ujjainiyya here means Bhojpur.
[315] Apparently we may infer from this that Jahangir did blind
or attempt to blind his son Khusrau, though he says nothing about
it. Else why should this impostor pretend that he had marks of
the blinding? Tavernier says Khusrau was blinded. Du Jarric also
tells us that Jahangir blinded Khusrau on his way back from Kabul,
when he came to the place where Khusrau had fought the battle. He was
blinded by some juice of a plant being poured into his eyes. The juice
resembled milk (qu. Euphorbia). One of his captains, who was also a
judge, was likewise blinded there along with his son. W. Finch, too,
speaks of this outbreak. He also says that Khusrau was reported to
have been blinded on the battlefield with a glass. Another story was
that Jahangir merely caused a handkerchief to be tied over his eyes
and had it sealed with his own seal. It is mentioned in Whiteway's
"Rise of the Portuguese Power in India," p. 165, note, that fifteen
relatives of the King of Ormuz had been blinded by red-hot bowls
having been passed close to their eyes.
[316] Kharakpur. The word is written Gorakhpur in some MSS., but I
think it is clear that Kharakpur is the place meant, for `Abdu-r-Rahman
had lately got Sangram's estate of Kharakpur in jagir. The fact, too,
that he fought with the impostor at the Pun Pun to the east of Patna
shows that he was coming back from down the Ganges.
[317] Text wrongly has Mandhu.
[318] A tasu, or tasu, is said in Wilson's Glossary to be the 24th
part of a gaz or about a third of an inch. I.O. MS. makes the breadth
3 1/2 cubits 1 tasu. The slab is described in Keene's Guide and in
the N.W.P. Gazetteer, Agra volume. One inscription has the date 1011,
or 1602. Archæological Report, lv, pp. 132-5, says it is 10 ft. 7 1/2
ins. long, 9 ft. 10 ins. broad, and 6 inches thick. It is supported
on octagonal pedestals. See also Beale's Miftahu-t-tawarikh, pp. 300,
301, where a representation of the stone and copies of the inscriptions
are given.
[319] A fort in the Deccan "sixty miles north of Bidar" (Elliot,
vi, 70).
[320] So in MSS. Apparently Khan Jahan's meaning was that if this
Deccani man were sent to Agra (as if to be punished) the other Deccani
leaders would be discouraged.
[321] The text seems corrupt. Apparently I.O. MS. has Sargala, and
this may have been Kesho Das's title.
[322] Para durtar, but it would seem from the Ma'asir, ii, 231,
five lines from foot, that para, or bara, is a word meaning a body
of men. Perhaps it is barah, 'twelve.'
[323] At p. 256 we have the phrase majra girand applied to the
directing of cannon against the buildings of Fort Ranthambhor. I
confess that I do not know whether Jahangir fired the gun that was
on the stand or the one that Kamal loaded.
[324] Majra giriftam seems rather to mean here 'adjusted the tripod,'
for from what follows it appears that the gun was not then loaded. The
Iqbal-nama, p. 47, has masha ra zir kard, 'applied the match'(?).
[325] Apparently the meaning is that he rolled the tiger over to the
side furthest from Jahangir.
[326] Kuragi. The Iqbal-nama, p. 48, says the night was dark, and
so the lamplighter blindly (az kuragi) fell upon the tiger and was
killed. This tiger hunt and Jahangir's danger, etc., are described
by William Finch (Purchas, i, 430).
[327] Anikini means an army in Sanskrit and Rai is a title meaning
leadership.
[328] Text, Zangchiyan (?). I.O. 181 has Ibachkiyan, i.e. people of the
Ibachki-khana or closet. See Ayin, Persian text, i, 42, and Blochmann,
i, 46.
[329] This is said ironically.
[330] The text has 14th night, but I follow the I.O. MS. 181.
[331] Jahangir does not mention that it was in this year that he
married Nur-Jahan. He saw her on New Year's Day (Iqbal-nama, p. 56),
and it appears from a note of Jahangir on p. 132 of B.M. MS. Or. 3276
that he married her on 14th Khurdad (end of May, 1611). It was in the
11th year that she got the title of Nur-Jahan. Before that she was
known as Nur-Mahall. It would seem that Jahangir married Nur-Jahan
four years and a few days after her first husband's death.
[332] Khan Dauran was away in the district of Ningnahar (Iqbal-nama,
p. 53).
[333] Text wrongly has Qizilbashes.
[334] Or Barki.
[335] The text has here the word ghayatan, which does not seem to
have much meaning. Erskine has 'without his knowledge,' so he probably
had gha'ibana in his MS.
[336] Compare Elliot, vi, 324.
[337] Sang-i-durushti. Elliot had the name reading and translates 'a
heavy stone.' But both MSS. have sang u rasani, 'a stone and a cord,'
query a sling, and this is certainly the right reading. See Iqbal-nama,
p. 57.
[338] Text bar pay, but the I.O. MS. and Iqbal-nama, p. 58, have bar
bazi ('on the rope'? or perhaps 'is doing gymnastics')
[339] Note of Sayyid Ahmad (to the fourth compartment).--"Evidently
this masterpiece was not the work of a slave in the seal department,
for no reason appears why the portrait of Jesus should be introduced
into the fourth compartment. Probably this masterpiece was the work
of Frank artists and had fallen into the hands of the slave, and he
had ascribed it to his own workmanship. (Perhaps the scene depicted
was the Transfiguration.)"
[340] See Blochmann, p. 89, note. It came from Europe.
[341] In Scinde; it is the same as Sahwan, and is on the Indus.
[342] Blochmann, p. 45.
[343] Elliot, vi, 325.
[344] Both MSS. have bar ru instead of bar u, 'in front' or 'in the
face' of the letter, and this is no doubt the correct reading. See
Iqbal-nama, p. 59. See Blochmann, p. 263, for the different places
where seals are to be put. Jahangir's order apparently was that the
provincial governors were not to impress their seals on the face of
their letters or other documents.
[345] The reference seems to be, not to these subsidiary regulations,
but to the code of twelve rules promulgated by him at the commencement
of his reign.
[346] Quruqchi in I.O. MS. and in Iqbal-nama, p. 60. Steingass gives
it as meaning one who looks after the king's game, and as a sentinel.
[347] Text has pustha, skins, but I.O. MS. has pustinha.
[348] Copied from Ayin. See Jarrett, ii, 115. See also Elliot, vi, 326.
[349] This is equal to one krore, fifty lakhs of rupees. The Sarkar
of Orissa was included in Bengal, and its revenue is included in
this. (Note of Sayyid Ahmad.)
[350] Also called Shaikh Kabir Chishti (Blochmann, p. 519;
Ma'asiru-l-umara, ii, 630).
[351] Perhaps this is only rhetoric, but Abu-l-fazl describes how
lots were cast between him and Raja Birbal as to who should go on
the Yusufzai expedition.
[352] Ichi means a hawk, but the meaning may be a Shaikh of Uch. Acha
is given in Zenker as meaning a father in Turki. The Iqbal-nama
has Ajha.
[353] Text wrongly has A`zam. See Blochmann, p. 521, note.
[354] Kishwar was the son of Jahangir's foster-brother Qutbu-d-din,
who was killed by Shir-afgan.
[355] The Iqbal-nama and the B.M. MSS. call it Bakhla.
[356] These last words seem to be part of Shaja`at's speech, but see
Iqbal-nama, p. 63. See also Elliot, vi, 329, and the translation of
the Iqbal-nama account in Appendix L, Stewart's Cat. of Tippo Sultan's
MSS., p. 275. The Iqbal-nama says that `Usman's corpulence compelled
him to ride on an elephant.
[357] The text has dar adhar u tarf kih dar tasarruf-i-an tira-ruzgar
bud. I do not know if adhar is the name of a place or what its
meaning is. The I.O. MSS., Nos. 181 and 305, have arhad. Blochmann,
p. 520, on the authority of the Makhzan-i-Afghani, says the fight
took place 100 kos from Dacca and in a place called Nek Ujyal,
and he points out in a note that there are several Ujyals in Eastern
Bengal. Possibly Adhar is Udhar or Uzar, and a corruption of Ujyal. The
'hills of Dacca,' referred to by Blochmann, might be Ran Bhawal or
the Madhupur jungle. The Riyazu-s-salatin does not mention the site
of the battle, and the translator, Maulawi `Abdu-s-Salam, has in his
note at p. 175 confounded two `Isa Khans, and so drawn groundless
inferences. Blochmann points out, p. 520, that the Ma'asiru-l-umara
says the prisoners were afterwards put to death. The passage is at
vol. ii, p. 632. It says they were put to death by Jahangir's orders by
`Abdu-llah (who certainly was brute enough for anything). Jahangir,
Tuzuk, p. 112, mentions the arrival of `Usman's sons and brothers
at Court, so that Blochmann's statement at p. 520 about their being
executed on the road is not correct. It appears, too, they came to
Court after Shaja`at's death. Jahangir says (Tuzuk, p. 112) he made
over the prisoners to responsible servants of government. `Abdu-llah
may have been one of these, and have got rid of his prisoners by
killing them. It would appear that the battle with `Usman took place
to the east or south-east of Dacca, and not near Orissa, as Stewart
supposed.
[358] The lines occur in Hafiz' divan, under the letter M,
Brockhaus' ed., No. 396, but Jahangir has missed out two lines in his
quotation. An Indian lithograph has rakht in the first line instead
of sabr, but the latter reading occurs in Brockhaus. In the fourth
line nargis is a mistake for tirkash. Tir-i-falak, 'the arrow of
the spheres,' is also a name for the planet Mercury. Tirkash-i-Jauza
means both a particular constellation in the sign Gemini, which is
supposed to resemble a quiver in appearance, and also the strings
of a musical instrument. The meaning of the lines seems to be,
"I have been wounded by the shaft of heaven: give me wine that I may
become intoxicated and be able to tie a knot in the quiver-girdle of
the Gemini." The appositeness of the fal is not very apparent, but
the mention of an arrow was taken to be an allusion to the death of
`Usman by a shot from an unknown hand.
[359] Elliot, vi, 331.
[360] They call this in the English language a turkey, and the people
of India call it piru; Persian-knowing Indians call it in Persian
filmurgh. They are now plentiful in India. (Note of Sayyid Ahmad.)
[361] Akbar-nama, iii, 533. It was in the 33rd year.
[362] He asked Todar Mal's protection, but the son was sent
(Akbar-nama, iii, 533).
[363] This name is not in all the MSS. It is another name for I`tiqad,
son of I`timadu-d-daulah.
[364] Blochmann, p. 508.
[365] Elliot, vi, 333.
[366] Raja of Baglana.
[367] A periphrasis for Jahangir himself.
[368] The history of Nur, i.e. the history of Nuru-d-din Jahangir.
[369] Should be Abu-n-nabi. See infra.
[370] This was Arjumand Banu or Mumtaz-mahall, the favourite wife of
Shah Jahan and the mother of fourteen of his children. She was the
niece of Nur-Jahan, her father being Nur-Jahan's brother, the Asaf
Khan IV and Abu-l-hasan of Beale, who also had the names of I`tiqad
Khan and Yaminu-d-daulah. There is an account of the betrothal and
wedding in the Padshah-nama, i, 388. It seems that the betrothal took
place five years and three months before the marriage, and when Shah
Jahan was 15 years old. At the time of the marriage Shah Jahan was 20
years and 3 months old and Arjumand Banu was 19 years and 1 month. 18th
Khurdad, 1021, would correspond to about the end of May, 1612, but
the Padshah-nama gives the eve of Friday, 9th Rabi`u-l-awwal of 1021,
corresponding to 22nd Urdibihisht, as the day of the marriage. This
would correspond to 30th April, 1612, so that apparently Jahangir's
visit to the house (apparently I`timadu-d-daulah's, but possibly Shah
Jahan's) took place about a month after the marriage. Arjumand Banu
died in childbed at Burhanpur in 1040, or July, 1631, the chronogram
being one word, viz. gham, 'grief.' She must have been born in 1591,
and was in her 40th year when she died. She was not Shah Jahan's first
wife, for he was married to the daughter of Muzaffar Husain Safawi,
a descendant of Shah Isma`il of Persia, in September, 1610 (Rajab,
1019), but the betrothal to Arjumand was earlier than this. It was
in Arjumand's honour that the Taj was built.
[371] Turha. The corresponding passage in the Iqbal-nama, p. 67, last
line, shows that jewels are meant. The text omits the preposition ba
before Begaman.
[372] Khun-para, 'congestion of blood'; para or bara is used to mean
a collection or gathering. See Ma'asiru-l-umara, ii, 221, where we
have bara ya`ni jam`i. Erskine, in spite of his MS., reads chun para
and translates 'as quicksilver.'
[373] Asar, which, according to Forbes, is a sir weight.
[374] Perhaps it was only what is called a char-jama and not an
enclosed howdah.
[375] The reference is to the Messiah as the restorer to life by
His breath. For baguzar, 'pass by,' Erskine had in his MS. maguzar,
'pass not.' Apparently the verse means that it is more meritorious
for the Messiah to restore one man to life than it is for another to
slay a hundred infidels.
[376] `Ali Ahmad died suddenly two years before this, unless indeed the
passage at p. 169 refers to the mimic and not to `Ali Ahmad. Probably
the meaning is that `Ali Ahmad had made this couplet on some previous
occasion, and that one of the courtiers now quoted it. His verse about
the hundred murders may contain a play on the word khun, 'blood,'
and refer to the spilling of the blood-like wine. It is difficult to
understand how Jahangir came to introduce the verse into his Memoirs
here. It does not seem to have any connection with the account of
the Raja of Kumaon. Jahangir says it was quoted 'incidentally,' ba
taqarrubi. Perhaps the word here means 'by way of parody,' or 'by
way of paraphrase.' In the MS. used by Erskine the words of the first
line seem to be Maguzar Masih bar sar-i-ma, and so Erskine translates
"Pass not, O Messiah, over the heads of us victims of love." Perhaps
maguzar means 'do not pass by.'
[377] This is the Dakhani chief mentioned previously at p. 192.
[378] Blochmann, p. 485. He acted in Kashmir for his brother Hashim.
[379] The katara was a long, narrow dagger. See Blochmann's Ayin,
pl. xli, fig. 9. But the word phul (flower) is obscure. Perhaps
it means the knot or crochet of jewels called by Chardin, iv, 164,
ed. Rouen, "une enseigne ronde de pierreries," and which, he says,
the Persians called 'rose de Poignard.'
[380] He must have remained more than four days, for he got the news
of Salima's death while in the garden. See infra. Perhaps the date
10th refers to Day and not to Zi-l-qa`da. The Dahrah garden was in
the environs of Agra.
[381] This statement is wrong. Salima was 76 when she died, she
having been born on 4th Shawwal, 945, or 23rd February, 1539. She
died on or about 10th Zi-l-qa`da, 1021 (2nd January, 1613), so that
she was 73 solar years old. See note in B.M. MS. Or. 171, Rieu, 257a,
and an article in J.A.S.B. for 1906. The note is by the author of
the Tarikh-i-Muhammadi and is at 72a of the B.M. MS. Or. 171, and
the corresponding passage appears in MS. Or. 182, on p. 140. The
chronogram of Salima's birth was Khush-hal, which yields 945. She
was about 3 1/2 years older than Akbar.
[382] The real name appears to be Abu-n-nabi. He had the title of
Bahadur Khan. See Ma'asiru-l-umara, i, 400. In the Akbar-nama, iii,
820 and 839, he is called Abu-l-Baqa.
[383] This must refer to the 2 months and 20 days of hunting.
[384] Zin-i-murassa` kari-i-Farangi. The MSS. in the B.M. seem to
have zaram instead of zin.
[385] Jahangir's words seem to imply that he caused the fowl's leg
to be broken in order to try the experiment. Manucci, i, 55, has
a good deal to say about mumiya, though he admits that he had not
himself witnessed its effects. I do not find that Haji Baba descants
on its virtues, though at the end of the first chapter he says that his
mother gave him an unguent which she said would cure all fractures. The
Persian translator, no doubt rightly, has rendered the word 'unguent'
by mumiya. With regard to the derivation of the word, may it not be
connected with mom, 'wax'? Vullers has a long article on the word.
[386] The text has biradari, 'brotherhood,' but the true reading, as
shown by the B.M. MSS., is bar awardi, br 'AUrdI, and this means either
the establishment of `Abdu-llah or a list submitted by him. Perhaps
'list' is a better translation, the word awardi being connected with
the awarda-nawis of Wilson's Glossary.
[387] The sentence is very obscure. MS. No. 181 I.O. has khun,
'blood,' instead of chun, 'as,' and perhaps the meaning is blood
in the breasts turns to milk on account of love for their cubs,
and then the sucking by the latter increases the mother's natural
ferocity and the milk dries up.
[388] In the B.M. MSS. the words are mansabdaran-i-riza-mansab. These
last two words are wanting in the text.
[389] Text Patna, but B.M. MSS. have Thatta.
[390] Text has Patna.
[391] Text Kachhi, but it is Gajpati in B.M. MSS.
[392] This seems taken from Abu-l-fazl. See Jarrett, iii, 115. The
third duty, which Jahangir calls "worshipping fire," is by Abu-l-fazl
termed Yag, i.e. sacrifice.
[393] It is the day of the full moon in Sawan that is holy.
[394] Blochmann, p. 184, and Wilson's Glossary. Badayuni (Lowe, p. 269)
speaks of Akbar's wearing the rakhi on the 8th day of Virgo. I do not
know why Jahangir calls the day after the last day of Sawan the first
day of the New Year. Perhaps ruz-i-duyam here means 'another day,' and
not 'the next day'; but then, if so, why is it the rakhi day, for that
is in Sawan? The Hindu New Year begins in Baisakh (April). It will be
observed from Jarrett, ii, 17, that Sawan is also the name of a month
of a particular length. Perhaps Jahangir has confused the two things.
[395] It is the 10th of Aswin (September).
[396] The text wrongly has dar har mah instead of only dar mah.
[397] The negative in text is wrong apparently. It does not occur in
MS. No. 181 I.O. nor in the B.M. MSS., which have ba instead of na.
[398] That is, 9th Amurdad corresponded with the Hijra date of Akbar's
death, viz. 13th Jumada-s-sani, which this year, 1022, occurred in
July. According to the solar calendar Akbar's death was in October.
[399] Pargalas seem to be clothes of some sort. Perhaps the word
is another form of the fargul of Blochmann, p. 89. The text has
sitarkani. Sitar means a veil, but probably we should read Sonargaoni,
'of Sonargaon.' Both the MSS. give the number of elephants as 68
instead of 28 as in text.
[400] See Jarrett, ii, 268, where it is said that an ancestor of
Bappa came to Berar.
[401] According to Tod, Bappa, the ancestor of the Rana, acquired
Chitor in A.D. 728. Jahangir makes twenty-six princes rule for 1,010
years and twenty-six others only reign for 461 years! Tod says the
legendary ancestor Kenek Sen, the sixty-third from Loh, the son of
Ram, emigrated from the Panjab to Gujarat in 145 A.D. Perhaps the
Mewat of the Tuzuk is a mistake for Mewar.
[402] Probably the town of that name in the Rajputana State of
Jhalawar. See "Rajputana Gazetteer," ii, 211.
[403] The Raushanis, called by their enemies the Tarikis.
[404] Both Jahangir and Allah Akbar yield 288.
[405] Sanskrit Devahara, 'an idol temple.'
[406] "Rajputana Gazetteer," ii, 69.
[407] Instead of kaff ardi, 'a handful of flour,' the R.A.S. MS. has
kaf az way, 'his spittle,' and this seems more likely.
[408] Text ajnabi, 'foreign' or 'strange,' and Dowson had the same
reading, for at vi, 337, we have the translation 'ships engaged in
the foreign trade of Surat.' But I adopt the reading of I.O. MS. 181,
which is ajnasi, as it does not seem likely that Jahangir would
interest himself about 'foreign' ships.
[409] "Rajputana Gazetteer," ii, 63. There are now two large caldrons
(dig) inside the darguh enclosure.
[410] Hafiz Jamal was the name of the saint Mu`inu-d-din's daughter
("Rajputana Gazetteer," ii, 62). It lies at the back of the Taragarh
hill, and is now commonly called Nur-chashma. The fountains, etc.,
are in a ruined state. Sir Thomas Roe visited this place (id., p. 123).
[411] Shab-i-jum`a, which is Friday eve according to Blochmann.
[412] Khusrau was married to his daughter.
[413] The "Arrogant of the Earth" (Tod).
[414] Perhaps this means Peshawar, for apparently Qilij was there
when he died.
[415] According to the Ma'asir, iii, 486, in the biography of `Isa
Khan, Rustam was sent to put down the Tarkhans, and succeeded in doing
so. See also ibid., p. 438, in the biography of Rustam, where it is
said that Jahangir told him to send away the Arghuns. Perhaps the
passage in Ma'asir, p. 438, which according to Blochmann, p. 314,
means that Rustam ill-treated the Arghuns, rather means that he
intrigued with them but oppressed the peasantry.
[416] Though the text has Pulam, the real word seems to be Ilam or
Ailam. Ailam Guzar appears to be a pass in a range of hills. It may,
however, be a ferry on the Kabul River. That river seems to be also
known as the Shah `Alam, and there is a ferry on it of that name. The
text speaks of Kot Tirah as 8 kos from Jalalabad, but Tirah is much
further away. The B.M. MSS. have Kotal-i-Tirah, 'the Tirah defile.'
[417] Compare Price's Jahangir, p. 94. It appears from that
account that Mu`taqid alias Lashkar Khan was originally called
Abu-l-husain. According to the account there, the prisoners were
brought to Jahangir with the decapitated heads of 17,000 (!) suspended
from their necks!
[418] She was a daughter of Mir Mahmud, Akbar's secretary (Blochmann,
p. 449).
[419] Man Singh died in the Deccan in 1614, and apparently in the
month of June.
[420] Text pidar by mistake for pisar.
[421] Garha, described as Bandhu in Ma'asir, ii, 175. It is
Garha-Katanga, i.e. Jabalpur.
[422] Perhaps the meaning is that there was an eruption.
[423] Buzurgan, which perhaps here means elder ladies of the harem.
[424] This is Tash Beg (Blochmann, p. 457). The text wrongly has Patna.
[425] Jahangir was born in this month, which then corresponded
to Rajab.
[426] Is this an allusion to some complimentary remark of Sir Thomas
Roe? Sir Thomas did not come to Ajmir till December, 1615, but Jahangir
is here apparently writing of what happened a year after his visit
to Hafiz Jamal. The chronogram was 1024 (1615).
[427] Mahall-i-Shah Nuru-d-din Jahangir, 1024 (1615). See Proceedings
A.S.B. for August, 1873, pp. 159-60.
[428] Salima died in the 7th year, so that the discovery must have
occurred some time before this mention of it.
[429] Hindustani, dhurpad, "petit poëme ordinairement composé de
cinq hémistiches sur une même rime." "It was invented by Raja Man of
Gwalior" (Garçin de Tassy, Hist. Litt. Hindouie, i, 12).
[430] See Rieu, 741b, who calls the nauras a treatise on music
composed by Ibrahim `Adil Shah II. This `Adil Shah was Firishta's
patron, and reigned till 1626. Jamalu-d-din is the dictionary-maker
and friend of Sir T. Roe. The sentence about reporting the remainder
of the facts seems to be an extract from his report. Muhammad Waris,
in his continuation of the Padshah-nama, B.M. MS. Add. 6556, p. 438,
mentions, with reprobation, that `Adil Shah had given his niece in
marriage to a singer.
[431] Translated Elliot, vi, 339.
[432] Lit. procure for him the sign of the blessed panja (five
fingers). The sign-manual was that of Jahangir. See below. See also
Tod's Rajasthan, reprint, i, 411, for a representation of the panja;
also p. 383, note id.
[433] Panja mubarak (Tod's Rajasthan, i, 383 and 411).
[434] Perhaps the uncle and Haridas, or the inha, 'them' may mean
the farman. See Elliot, vi, 340, which has 'my letters.' Tod has
translated this part of the Tuzuk, i, 382.
[435] The text has khaurmiyan, and I. O. 181 has khaur-i-bandar. Khaur
means a bay or gulf in Arabic. The battle is that between Captain
Downton and the Portuguese, which took place in January, 1615, and is
described in Orme's Hist., Fragments, p. 351, etc. See also Danvers'
"Portuguese in India," ii. 170. The engagement was in the Swally
channel.
[436] Elliot, vi, 340. As Mr. Rogers remarks, the sentence is not
easily intelligible. Probably the translation should be, "No one
remained (all the Rajputs having been killed) who could finish off
Malik `Ambar."
[437] Probably the father or grandfather of the Muhammad Beg Zu-l-faqar
who was a servant of Aurangzib (Ma'asiru-l-umara, ii, 89).
[438] R.A.S. MS. has Dayanat Khan, and so has I.O. MS. 181.
[439] Qulba. It does not appear that this is a land-measure.
[440] Kharwar. It is a weight. See Jarrett, ii, 394, where a kharwar
is said to be equal to ten Hindustani maunds.
[441] Probably this was the son who died in the 14th year (Tuzuk,
p. 282).
[442] Should be 18th. See Elliot, vi, 341. I.O. 181 has 20th, and
this is probably correct, bistam and hashtam being often mistaken
for one another by the copyists. B.M. MS. Add. 26215 has dushamba,
Monday, instead of shamba, Saturday.
[443] Akbar used the word parm narm, 'very soft,' as a substitute for
'shawl' (Blochmann, p. 90).
[444] According to Gladwin, 96 tanks = one sir. Four mashas make a
tank, and a masha is about 18 grains troy.
[445] Text k-hyt'h chAr, kheta char. But the two B.M. MSS. which I have
consulted have no ya, and have khatta or ghatta char. I think that
the word must be ghata, which in Sanskrit means a troop of elephants
assembled for war. I am not sure what the word char means, but perhaps
it is only an affix. According to Abu-l-fazl a herd of (wild) elephants
is called sahn (Blochmann, p. 122).
[446] Panj tuquz, i.e. 9 by 5. The text has tAqUr, taqur.
[447] The B.M. MSS. seem to have panch kunjar, 'five elephants,'
i.e. equal to five elephants(?).
[448] In Sarkar Delhi (Jarrett, ii, 287).
[449] The text does not expressly say that the dervish foretold
two years before his death the period of his death, but apparently
Jahangir means this, for he goes on to speak of the time mentioned
for his delivery. See also Iqbal-nama, p. 81, where the dervish is
called Hafiz, and where it is added that the whole population of
Srinagar followed the bier.
[450] Lit. give it, for the Koran cannot be directly sold.
[451] Text pisar, 'son of Buland Ray.' but from the B.M. MSS. it
appears that pisar is a mistake for Sar.
[452] Blochmann, p. 387. Possibly he was the part author of a
translation of Babar's Commentaries.
[453] The name is wrong. The Iqbal-nama, p. 84, has Rasht (Rashd),
which is a well-known town on the Caspian.
[454] According to the Iqbal-nama the true reading is sanjaki (see
p. 84). But Olearius, who gives a full account of the murder (p. 352
of English translation, ed. 1662), says Bihbud gave him two stabs
with a chentze, which is a kind of poniard.
[455] A Persian festival in memory of a rain which fell on the 13th
Tir and put an end to a famine (Bahar-i-`ajam).
[456] Sangram was Raja of Khurkpur in Behar, and was killed in battle
with Jahangir Quli Khan (Blochmann, p. 446, note).
[457] Shakwa'i-sahib-i-Suba. I presume it means a complaint against
the governor, and perhaps one made by Kesho.
[458] The pearls are omitted in the MSS.
[459] It is phul in MS. No. 181.
[460] Takhti, qu. a signet? No. 181 has a lal takhti.
[461] Sir Thomas Roe's friend.
[462] Text wrongly has 3 instead of 30.
[463] Apparently because born in Lahore (see Blochmann, p. 500).
[464] According to I.O. MS. 181 every zamindar took some money from
Chin Qilij and sent him out of his estate, and this seems to be
the probable meaning, for we are told later on that the zamindars
plundered Chin Qilij.
[465] Tirhut. R.A.S. MS. has "It chanced that the zamindar of this
place was with Jahangir Quli, and the latter sent him with some
people to seize Chin Qilij." I.O. MS. has the same, and this seems
correct. The text has "It chanced that the zamindar of that place was
spending some days in that neighbourhood(?)." Perhaps a negative has
been omitted before 'spending.' I.O. MS. seems to have Johirhat as
the name of the zamindar's estate.
[466] Apparently the verse is quoted with reference to Jahangir Quli's
failure to exact retribution from the zamindars, There is an account
of Chin Qilij in the Ma'asir, iii, 351.
[467] Gunth, a breed of small horses or ponies.
[468] A farji is a coat (see Blochmann, p. 89).
[469] Text in ruba`i, 'this quatrain,' which does not seem to make
sense. Perhaps in here should be ayin-i-ruba`i, 'the rules or the
custom of a quatrain.' Similarly, in kitabat five lines down may be
ayin-i-kitabat, 'the rules of writing.'
[470] His father was Khalilu-llah, previously mentioned in the Tuzuk,
and who had lately died (Iqbal-nama, p, 84, and Tuzuk, pp. 62 and
69). Tahmasp gave Ni`matu-llah's daughter in marriage to his own
son Isma`il.
[471] Khanish Khanim in Ma'asir, iii, 339.
[472] Ishal-i-kabd.
[473] Two I.O. MSS. and the R.A.S. MS. have 18 instead of 15. Elliot
has "up to my fourteenth" year. Jahangir was born in Rabi`, 977,
or 31st August, 1569, and the beginning of wine-drinking to which he
refers must have taken place at earliest in January, 1586. He tells us
that it was after the death of Muhammad Hakim, and at the time when
his father was at Attock. Now Akbar arrived there on 15th Muharram,
994, according to Nizamu-d-din, and on 12th Day, 994, according to
Abu-l-fazl, iii, 976, i.e. about the end of December, 1585, and at
that time Jahangir was 17 years and 4 months of age, or in his 18th
year. He continued to drink heavily for nine years, i.e. till he was
26 (17 + 9), then he moderated for seven years, i.e. till he was 33,
and he kept to that for fifteen years more, i.e. till he was 48. These
years were lunar years, and he tells that at the time of writing he
was 47 years and 9 months old, according to the lunar calendar. It
seems to follow that the MSS. are right, and that we should read 18.
[474] Elliot, vi, 341.
[475] The two good I.O. MSS. have, not murgh or murghi, but tughdari
or tughdari, a 'bustard,' unless indeed the word be taghaddi,
'breakfast.' But probably the word is tughdari, a bustard, and the
reference is to the particular memorable day when he first drank
wine. His food that day, he says, was a bustard with bread and a radish
(turb).
[476] Blochmann. Calcutta Review, 1869, has 'turnips.'
[477] Filuniya. The word is not given in ordinary dictionaries, but
it is explained in Dozy's Supplement. It is stated there that it is
a sedative electuary, and that the word is derived from the Greek,
being philônia, which is the name of an antidote or drug invented
by Philon of Tarsus. There is an account of Philon and a reference
to his drug in Smith's Classical Dictionary. Philon lived in or
before the first century after Christ, and is referred to by Galen
and others. The word as given there is philôneion. We are not told
what it was made of. In Price's Jahangir, filuniya, misread there
as Kelourica, is described by Jahangir as brother's son to tiryaq,
i.e. theriaca (see Price, p. 6). Tiryak or tiryaq is supposed to be a
Greek word (see Lane), and means an antidote against poison, etc. It
is so used in the verse from Avicenna quoted by Jahangir to his son
Shah Jahan. See D'Herbelot, s.v. Teriak. But it is also often used
apparently as a synonym for opium. The mixing of wine with spirits
was intended to dilute the potation, for hitherto Jahangir had been
taking raw spirit. A misqal is said to be 63 1/2 grains troy, and so
18 misqals would be about 3 ounces, and the six cups would be about
1 1/2 lb. troy. In Elliot, Jahangir is made to say that he does not
drink on Thursdays and Fridays. But the shab-i-jum`a, as Blochmann
has pointed out elsewhere, Ayin translation, p. 171, n. 3, means
Thursday night or Friday eve, and this is clearly the case here,
for Jahangir speaks of the eve's being followed by a blessed day. It
should be noted that there is no connection in Jahangir's mind between
abstaining from wine and abstaining from meat. He did not eat meat
on Thursdays or Sundays because he did not approve of taking life on
these days, but he drank on both of them.
[478] Cf. Blochmann's translation and Calcutta Review for 1869.
[479] I understand the two exceptions (du chiz) to be that on Thursdays
he drank in the daytime, contrary to the general rule of only drinking
at night, and that on Thursday evenings he did not drink.
[480] Elliot, vi, 343.
[481] The MSS. have Jadun Ray and Baba Chokanth (Jiu Kanth?). The
Ma'asiru-l-umara, ii, 646, has Maluji Kantiya. The text has Babu
Kantiya.
[482] The text is corrupt. The Ma'asir, id., has Atash instead
of Danish.
[483] The text is corrupt. In the second line of the verse the
text has guft, which seems meaningless, and two I.O. MSS. and
B.M. MS. Add. 26,215 have jang, 'battle.' The R.A.S. MS. has pay,
'feet,' which seems to me the best reading. Possibly guft should be
read kift, 'shoulder.'
[484] It will be remembered that Jahangir has called `Ambar's army
the army of darkness, alluding perhaps to `Ambar's being an Abyssinian.
[485] Elliot, vi, and Blochmann, p. 479, n. 3.
[486] Perhaps it should be phanga or feringha, a grasshopper, or it may
be jhingur, a cockroach. Presumably the country was covered with thick
jungle, and the cloud of insects indicated where water was. Erskine's
MS. has chika. B.M. Or. 3276 has chika or jika. Possibly the word is
jhingur, a cockroach (see Blochmann in J.A.S.B. for 1871, vol. xl). He
quotes a Hindustani Dict., which says that the jhinga is what in Arabic
is called the jaradu-l-bahr or water-locust. The river referred to
by Jahangir is the Sankh of I.G., xii, 222. V. Ball, Proc. A.S.B. for
1881, p. 42, suggests that the jhinga may be thunder-stones!
[487] Compare Tavernier's account of the searching for diamonds in
Sambhalpur (vol. ii, p. 311, of ed. of 1676).
[488] Text, khud-hunarkari, 'his own workmanship,' but the MSS. have
khud-sarkari. See also Iqbal-nama, p. 87, which says that Jamalu-d-din
had had it made in Bijapur.
[489] Really a topaz. Tavernier points out that the natives call
various precious stones rubies, distinguishing them by their colour.
[490] Text, ba-andaza-i-mu`tad-i-man, 'of capacity corresponding to
my custom.' Presumably it was a drinking-cup, and held Jahangir's
customary potation.
[491] Halqa ba-gushan. Apparently referring to his being one of those
who bored their ears in imitation of Jahangir.
[492] The text is corrupt. The true reading seems to be sad
dana-i-kish, 'one hundred pieces of muslin' (?). I.O. 181 seems to
have kabsh, 'rams'.
[493] Here follow two unintelligible words, Pagana Bankana.
[494] Perhaps this should be faghfuri, 'porcelain.'
[495] Jauhar-dar, defined by Vullers as bone or wood bearing veins,
i.e. striated.
[496] See Akbar-nama, ii, 315. It was sent before Jahangir was
born. It, too, was an African elephant.
[497] Here the two words referred to at note 2 on p. 321 are repeated.
[498] Ma'asiru-l-umara. i, 736. Khan `Alam's name was Mirza Barkhurdar.
[499] This seems wrong; the number of horse would probably not
be reduced.
[500] So in text, but No. 181 has 600, and this is more likely,
for the number of horse is never, I think, larger than the zat rank.
[501] I.O. MSS. have 18th.
[502] I.O. MSS. have 20th.
[503] The two I.O. MSS. have the following sentence here: "On this
day it happened that however much I tried to write, my heart and hand
would not act. Whenever I seized the pen my condition altered. At
last I had to tell I`timadu-d-daulah to write."
[504] This sentence is not in the I.O. MSS.
[505] Here comes the passage which the two I.O. MSS. enter higher up.
[506] I.O. MS. 181 has "writes that on the 11th," etc.
[507] The I.O. MSS. add here "of the 11th year."
[508] Probably this is the Chimni Begam, a daughter of Shah Jahan,
whose grave is near that of the saint Khwaja Mu`inu-d-din Chishti
("Rajputana Gazetteer," ii, 62). Probably Chimni should be Chamani,
which means 'verdant' and comes from chaman, a garden. Perhaps she
died of smallpox. It was in the summer.
[509] Apparently the reference is to the parents of the child and to
the grandfather, that is, the writer of this notice.
[510] I.O. MSS. have Monday, the 6th Tir, and say that Jahangir went
to Chashma-i-Nur on the 9th, which they say was a Thursday. And we
see later that Jahangir speaks of Saturday as the 11th.
[511] The word 'dagger' is omitted in the text.
[512] I.O. MSS. have bar daur, 'round.'
[513] Elliot, vi, 346. There is a better account of the plague in
the Iqbal-nama, pp. 88, 89.
[514] The words are dar wilayat, and may mean 'any country' or 'any
foreign country.'
[515] The son of the historian Nizamu-d-din. Sir T. Roe refers to
this affair.
[516] Text Anand, but this makes no sense. The I.O. MSS. have amba,
mangoes, and though the remark seems abrupt this is no doubt the
correct reading. Jahangir was particularly fond of mangoes, and perhaps
he is here playing on the similarity between the words amba and anand.
[517] In Sarkar Saharanpur (Jarrett, ii, 292). It is now in the
Muzaffarnagar district (I.G., vii, 308).
[518] "It is a pity that no trace of these is left at Agra. Had
there been, they would have been the wonder of the age" (note of
Sayyid Ahmad). Perhaps they are the two figures which have generally
been supposed to have been put up by Akbar and to represent Chitor
heroes. The word tarkib in the text may mean that they were mounted
statues. But then the description of them as marble statues would
be wrong.
[519] Text has gusfand-i-nar, 'a ram,' but the MSS. have gusfand u
bar, or buz, and it is evident that the true reading is 'a sheep,
a goat.' See Blochmann, p. 266, where goats are mentioned among
the animals distributed by Akbar. The number of animals distributed
corresponded with the years of Jahangir's age (48) multiplied by 3, and
so would be 48 × 3 = 144 (see Blochmann, l.c.). The weight of Jahangir
was 6,514 tulchas, and Blochmann (p. 267, n.) takes this to be the
same as tolas, and estimates Jahangir's weight at 210 1/2 lb. troy or
15 stone. Probably this is excessive, and his weight might be 82 sir
or about 2 maunds, i.e. 164 lb. or 11 1/2 stone. The perfumes against
which he was weighed were ambergris, not amber (which has no scent),
`ud, i.e. lignum aloes, and ban (not pan as in text), which apparently
is the same as luban, 'frankincense' (see the chapter on perfumes in
Blochmann, p. 77). I am not sure of the meaning of the phrase ba-dast
nihada. The MSS. have not the preposition ba. Perhaps the meaning is
'put them into the hands of the fakirs.' Jahangir was born on the
18th Shahriwar, 977 = 31st August, 1569. The weighings described in
the text took place on the 26th Shahriwar. Perhaps this was because
his birthday was on the 24th Shahriwar according to the Jalali year.
[520] Generally written taghma, 'a badge of honour,' 'a medal,' etc.
[521] See Tuzuk, p. 11, Blochmann, p. 482, and Ma'asiru-l-umara, iii,
355. The statement at Tuzuk, p. 11, about Delhi seems a mistake, and
is not in the MSS. Mirza `Ali came from Badakhshan. He is frequently
mentioned in vol. iii of the Akbar-nama.
[522] This is the same phrase as, according to the MSS., occurs at
p. 11. Apparently the ulus referred to is the Timuride family to
which Jahangir belonged. It is connected with Mirza `Ali's title
of Akbarshahi.
[523] See in Blochmann, l.c., the affecting story of his death.
[524] This letter being of the usual Persian style, and having nothing
to do with Jahangir's history, is omitted. It relates to the sending
of Muhammad Husain Chelebi with presents to the emperor, and to the
offering his services for the purchase of jewels, etc.
[525] Text 20th Aban, but the MSS. have 8th, and this is clearly
right. By the latter part of the sentence Jahangir means that
Shah Jahan was to start first, and that he himself was to leave
afterwards. The "auspicious palace" referred to in the next sentence
is apparently Shah Jahan's establishment. Jahangir did not leave
for about a fortnight. Though Shah Jahan and the establishment
(daulat-khana-i-humayun) made a start on the 8th or 9th Aban, he did
not finally leave till the 20th Aban. See infra.
[526] Author of Iqbal-nama.
[527] 'Of body like Krishna, or like a flute'?
[528] According to Roe, it was not the English carriage, but a
copy. Perhaps Jahangir had the original carriage and Shah Jahan
the copy.
[529] Elliot, vi, 346.
[530] The day was Saturday, not Tuesday, and it is Saturday in the MSS.
[531] Elliot has Deo Rani, and it is Deo Rani in I.O. MS. 305.
[532] Jahangir arrived in Ajmir on the 26th Aban, 1022, and left it on
the 21st Aban, 1025. The Muhammadan dates are 5th Shawwal, 1022, and
1st Zi-l-qa`da, 1025 = 18th November, 1613, and 10th November, 1616.
[533] Text tar, but MSS. have abtar, i.e. inferior and perhaps low
land. The text seems corrupt.
[534] MSS. have 86,500 horse and 347,000 foot, and this agrees with
the Ayin (Jarrett, ii, 272).
[535] Text wrongly has Nil. The tank in question is the Bisalya tank
of the Rajputana Gazetteer, ii, 4, which was made by Bisal Deo Chohan
about 1050 A.D. It is described in Tod's "Personal Narrative," i, 824,
of Calcutta reprint. It is, or was, about 8 miles in circumference
and is about a mile west of the Anasagar, which was made by Bisal
Deo's grandson.
[536] About 20 miles south-east of Ajmir.
[537] This is the name of a water-bird in Turki. It is also called
magh and water-crow (zagh-i-ab), and in Hindi jalkawa (note of
Sayyid Ahmad).
[538] Probably the meaning is that he allowed those who wished to
drink to do so. Many, or at least some, would be abstainers.
[539] Namuda in MSS.
[540] Sahal in MSS.
[541] In Sarkar Marosor (Jarrett, ii, 208). It was in Malwa. But the
I.O. MSS. have Nauda.
[542] Text Udaipur, but this was not on the border of the Rana's
territory, and the MSS. have Dudpur.
[543] Perhaps the Toda of Sir T. Roe.
[544] Lyasa in MSS.
[545] Son of Nizamu-d-din the historian.
[546] Gorana in MSS. and the distance 2 1/4 kos and 1 jarib.
[547] 23rd in MSS.
[548] Manpur in text.
[549] MSS. 2,000 rupees.
[550] Perhaps Kanha Das.
[551] Should be Fath-jang as in MSS.
[552] Jarrett, ii, 195.
[553] The name seems to be wrong. Jahangir is evidently copying from
the Ayin, and the rivers mentioned there (Jarrett, ii, 195) are the
Narbada, Sipra, Kalisindh, Betwa, and the Kodi (or Godi).
[554] 29,668 (Jarrett, ii. 198).
[555] The MSS. also have sweet pomegranates from Yezd, and sub-acid
(may-khwush) ones from Farah, and pears from Badakhshan (see Elliot,
vi, 348).
[556] The MSS. have khassa-i-sharifa.
[557] Qu. komla? Instead of qabiltar the MSS. have ma'iltar.
[558] Pahna'i. Its area or shade. Perhaps the 175 1/2 are yards,
not cubits.
[559] Evidently the four-horned antelope, the Tetracerus
quadricornis of Blanford, p. 520, and which has the Hindustani name
of doda. Blanford describes its colour as dull pale brown. "The
posterior horns are much larger than the anterior ones, which are
situated between the orbits and are often mere knobs. It is the only
Indian representative of the duikarbok of Africa. Another Indian name
is chausingha. In jungle this species and the hog-deer may easily be
mistaken the one for the other. It is not gregarious, and moves with
a peculiar jerky action." The resemblance between the four-horned
antelope and the hog-deer--the kutah paycha or short-legged deer of
Babar and Jahangir--may account for Blanford's giving doda as a native
name for the hog-deer (Cervus porcinus). For Babar's description of
the kutah paya or paycha see Erskine, p. 317. Gladwin in his history
of Jahangir writes the native name as Dirdhayan.
[560] Blochmann, p. 493.
[561] Text, khurma, a date, but evidently the khurma-i-Hind or
the tamarind, i.e. 'the palm of India,' is meant (see Babar's Mem.,
Erskine, p. 324). I do not understand the measurements. The word yak,
'one,' before the word shakh is not in the MSS. and is, I think,
wrong. I think the 16 gaz and 15 1/2 gaz are the lengths of the two
branches, and that the measurements 2 1/2 and 2 3/4 gaz refer to the
length and circumference of the two branches at the place when they
started from the trunk and before they put out leaves.
[562] Hindwas or Hindawas in MSS.
[563] This is in accordance with and probably derived from Babar's
Commentaries, Erskine, p. 51, where he says that 1,584 years have
elapsed from the time when Bikramajit made his observatory. Erskine
takes this to show that Babar was writing in 934, and if we add 92
years, or the difference between 934 and 1026, we get 1,676 years
(or 1,675 if we take the year to be 1025).
[564] See Jarrett, ii, 196. Abu-l-fazl says there that the flow
occurred a week before his arrival at Ujjain.
[565] Cf. Jarrett, ii, 196.
[566] Sanyasi-i-murtaz.
[567] Text, mihrabi-shakl uftada, 'a place like a
prayer-niche.' Possibly the true reading is majra bi-shakl uftada,
'a passage without form.' However, the MSS. have mihrab. The account
in the text may be compared with the Ma'asiru-l-umara, i, 574, and with
the Iqbal-nama, p. 94. The measurements of the mouth of the hole in the
Ma'asir are taken from the Iqbal-nama, and differ from the account in
the Tuzuk. The Ma'asir, following the Iqbal-nama, calls the ascetic
Achhad or Ajhad. It also gives his subsequent history. He went to
Mathura and was there cruelly beaten by Hakim Beg. Jahangir's visit
to Jadrup is referred to by Sir Thomas Roe, who mentions a report
that the saint was said to be 300 years old. Jahangir does not say
any such nonsense.
[568] See Jarrett, iii, 271, etc. The Sanskrit word is Asrama,
or Ashrama.
[569] Left shoulder in Ayin.
[570] Sanskrit, Vanaprastha.
[571] Text qat`i dar miyan alat nihada, but apparently this should
be alat qat` ba miyan nihada: that is, "membrum virile in involucris
reponens."
[572] Text, sarb biyasi, which may mean 'distributing everything.' The
Iqbal-nama, p. 96, has sarb nasi, 'destroying everything.'
[573] I.O. MS. No. 306 says nothing about a garden, but speaks of a
village Khirwar and of halting under a mango-tree. Nor does No. 305
mention a garden.
[574] Cf. Elliot, vi, 348. The MSS. say nothing about two sons.
[575] From the "Gulistan."
[576] Cf. Jarrett, ii, 197. The story is also told with many more
details in Price's Jahangir, p. 108 etc.
[577] Text, Madan. But the name is Mandan, as MS. No. 181 and the
Ayin-i-Akbari (Jarrett, ii, 197) show. The legend is intended to show
how Mandu got its name (see also Tiefenthaler, i, 353).
[578] Elliot, vi. 348.
[579] Monday, the 23rd Isfandarmuz, the day on which he reached
Mandu. It was about the 6th March, 1617.
[580] The MSS. have 1,672.
[581] See Elliot, vi, 351 and 362, note. Jahangir only gives details of
the 17,167 animals killed by himself. The mhaka is possibly a clerical
error for mar-khwur. The text says it is allied to the gawazn, but the
MSS. have gur, a wild ass. The details of the quadrupeds come to 3,203,
the total stated by Jahangir. The details of the birds come to 13,954,
but the 10 crocodiles bring up the figures to 13,964, and the total
3,203 + 13,964 comes to the 17,167 mentioned. It has been suggested to
me that the mhaka of the text is the maha or swamp-deer of the Terai,
Rucervus Duvaucelli.
[582] The MSS. have Saturday instead of Tuesday, and this seems
reasonable, for there were no offerings on Tuesday (see infra).
[583] Text, Sakar. Now locally called the Sagan, 'sea,' tank.
[584] The MSS. only speak of twelve.
[585] The MSS. seem to have merely ba tir-i-banduq, 'with bullets.'
[586] Biyana in text.
[587] That is, apparently, the journey back by sea from the Deccan. The
MSS. have Hasan instead of Husain, and say the route by Ormuz was
closed. Perhaps the ba Mir of text is a mistake for bar bahr, 'by sea.'
[588] Tuquz means nine in Turki.
[589] The I.O. MSS. seem to have Sakakdar or Sakakandar.
[590] It appears from Shah `Abbas's letter to Jahangir (Tuzuk, p. 165)
that Muhammad Husain Chelebi had been employed by Jahangir to collect
curios in Persia.
[591] Note by Sayyid Ahmad. They say that a poet recited this
impromptu couplet--
"Though Nur-Jahan be in form a woman,
In the ranks of men she's a tiger-slayer."
The point of this couplet is that before Nur-Jahan entered Jahangir's
harem she was the wife of Shir-afgan, the tiger-slayer. The line may
also read "In battle she is a man-smiter and a tiger-slayer."
[592] The two I.O. MSS. have "a pair of pearls and a diamond."
[593] There is a fuller account of this flute-player in Price's
Jahangir, p. 114. The melody which he composed in Jahangir's name
is there called by Price Saut Jahangiri. (The text does not give
the name Jahangiri.) It is there stated that Shah Jahan brought the
flute-player with him from Burhanpur and introduced him.
[594] Hauza-dari, 'with a basin-shaped litter on it.'
[595] The word pashida, 'scattered,' does not occur in the
I.O. MSS. But perhaps the word has two opposite meanings.
[596] Father and son both died apparently at the same age.
[597] It was in Sarkar Qanauj (Jarrett, ii, 185). It is Chibramau of
I.G., iii, 97, and is in Farrukhabad district.
[598] Urvasi is the name of an Apsara or celestial nymph. Probably it
is here the name of a dress. (In Forbes's Hindustani Dictionary urbasi
is said to denote a particular kind of ornament worn on the breast.)
[599] The MSS. have maghra, which may be connected with the Arabic
maghr, 'travelling quickly.' It may be the name of a courier, or
merely mean 'quickly.'
[600] Apparently it should be Bhim; see infra. Gadeha is probably Gadhi
in Khandesh; see Lethbridge's "Golden Book of India," p. 138. It is the
Garvi of I.G., v, 33, and is one of the Bhil States in the Dang Tract.
[601] There was a Bodah in Sarkar Marosor in Malwa, but its revenue
was only 2 1/2 lakhs of dams (Jarrett, ii, 208). The two I.O. MSS. and
Debi Prasad's Hindi version have Toda. Toda was in Ajmir, Rantambhor
Sarkar, and its revenue in Akbar's time was 1 1/2 lakhs of rupees
(Jarrett, ii, 275).
[602] Ode 192 of Brockhaus' edition, p. 112, first couplet.
[603] This is the building described by William Finch. See the Journal
of John Jourdain, ed. by Foster for the Hakluyt Society, App. D. Finch
speaks of a high turret 170 steps high. The tower was the Tower of
Victory erected by Sultan Mahmud I in 1443 to commemorate a victory
over the Raja of Chitor. "The stump of it has been found." Jourdain
speaks of six storeys. It was built of green stone like marble.
[604] Two hundred rupees per storey(?).
[605] Blochmann, p. 371, and Ma'asiru-l-umara, ii, 537. Now locally
called the Nil-kanth, 'blue neck.'
[606] The text misses out a conjunction before sada.
[607] Apparently the meaning is that the standard of two and three
horses had not been kept up.
[608] Some lines of this agree with the verses in the Akbar-nama,
ii, 190. The last two lines are quoted again in the account of the
15th year (p. 299 of Persian text).
[609] The account is obscure. Elliot's translation is "In the root
of the tree is found a lump of sweet substance which is exactly like
that of Faluda. It is eaten by the poor." The text and some MSS. have
yak parcha-i-shirini, but B. M. Or. 3276 has yak para. Roxburgh says
nothing about any such growth on the wild plantain. Faluda or paluda
is the name of a sweetmeat.
[610] It is curious that the word amukhta, 'taught,' in the text,
and which appears to be almost necessary for the sense, does not
occur either in the two I. O. MSS. or in the R. A. S. one. Burhanpur
is about 100 miles as the crow flies south-south-east of Mandu.
[611] The text has par, 'feathers,' instead of the sign of the
comparative tar, but the MSS. have kalantar.
[612] The word is hawali, which is sometimes translated
'neighbourhood,' and has been so translated here by Mr. Rogers. But
either Jahangir has made a mistake or the word hawali is capable
of a wide interpretation, for Jaitpur appears to be Jaitpur in
Kathiawar. See Jarrett, ii, 258. and I. G., vii, 192. Possibly Mandu
is a mistake for Bandhu. But there is a Jetgarh in Malwa (Jarrett,
ii, 200).
[613] Probably this was the author who collaborated with Jerome
Xavier. See Rieu's Catalogue, iii, 1077.
[614] I. O. MS. 305 has dana-i-naziki, 'soft (or small) seeds.'
[615] Note 181 has wasil gashtan. 'becoming united' (to the Deity).
[616] Ja dadan, 'to give way,' the meaning apparently being that
they had protected Ruhu-llah's murderers. But I. O. MS. 305 seems to
have jawidan, 'eternal,' which would mean that they were killed and
also eternally disgraced as rebels. The Ma'asiru-l-umara, iii, 13,
has a different account of the manner of Ruhu-llah's death. He was
Fida'i's elder brother.
[617] The I. O. MSS. have Pir Bahar and Chandra Kona, which latter
may be the place in Midnapur.
[618] Text 8th, but should be 20th. See p. 196, where the next Thursday
is mentioned as the 27th. See Elliot, vi, 351.
[619] Text 15 months and 11 days, but it should be 11 months. Shah
Jahan left his father at Ajmir on the last day of Shawwal, 1025,
and he rejoined him on 11th Shawwal of the following year.
[620] So in text, but I.O. MSS. have kursi, 'a chair or stool' (l. 37).
[621] Text budand, but Uda Ram is the only Dakhani officer mentioned.
[622] The MSS. have zar-baft, 'gold brocade.'
[623] In reference to his own name of Nuru-d-din.
[624] Gharagi, 'unripeness.'
[625] The Udaji Ram of Ma'asiru-l-umara, i, 142.
[626] Jamkura is given in Forbes as the Dakhani word for a covering
made of reeds or palm-leaves and used in rainy weather.
[627] The MS. has eight.
[628] In the MSS. the name seems to be Hansomat (swan-like?).
[629] Text has walida-i-khud, 'his own mother.'
[630] A repetition.
[631] The MSS. have 3 3/4 kos.
[632] Text khata', 'fault,' but the MSS. show that the word is khatar,
'danger.'
[633] The passage is obscure, and the MSS. do not throw much light on
it. Fortunately for the Mirza, there was no bullet in his gun. The word
which I have translated by 'flexible' is rawan. Perhaps the meaning
is quite different. Possibly it is "he would fire a shot and then
reload. As many of his bullets had been shot away, he put a pellet
(ghalula) into his mouth and was shaping it," etc.
[634] He has just spoken of Tuesday as the 15th! And as Jahangir did
not shoot on Sundays, Sunday must be a mistake for Wednesday. It is
Wednesday in I.O. MS. 305.
[635] Perhaps bukra here means a male nilgaw; bukra means also
a he-goat.
[636] This is the same kind of bird that Nur-Jahan is mentioned as
having shot. Perhaps a green pigeon is meant.
[637] Text nila, without the addition of gaw. The MSS. have gor or
chor, a pheasant (?).
[638] Elliot, vi, 352.
[639] The 'two' is omitted in text.
[640] In Sarkar Mandu (Jarrett, ii, 207) Debi Prasad's Hindi version
has Dakna.
[641] The MSS. have "more than 1,000." Raja Bhoj's date, according
to Tod, is 567 A.D. (Jarrett, ii, 211).
[642] This iron pillar is not now in existence at the mausoleum of
Akbar (Note of Sayyid Ahmad). The pieces of the pillar are still
lying at Dhar, outside the Lat Musjid (I.G., new ed., xi, 295).
[643] The MSS. have 807, and this is correct, for Dilawar conquered
Malwa in 803 = 1400.
[644] Probably this means that `Amid was the son of Da'ud.
[645] Text 70, but should be 7. 807 = 1405.
[646] A son of Hushang. Muhammad Shah, intervened.
[647] The MSS. have Jalot (as in the Hindi version).
[648] Text, "the parganah aforesaid." But the MSS. have Badnor. See
infra, p. 204 of text. (In this passage the Hindi version has Madlor.)
[649] Blochmann, p. 502.
[650] MSS. Bakor.
[651] Dahut in MSS. But Dohad seems right, as it means two boundaries.
[652] The dam was also used as a weight, and was equal to 5 tank or
1 tola, 8 masha, 7 surkh (Blochmann, p. 31).
[653] Apparently Sahra is the name of a town, and does not mean an
open space here.
[654] Perhaps the line refers to the bee, and means that the bee
wishes to suck the moisture of the flower.
[655] The MSS. have gul-i-kul, 'the flower of the tank.' It seems to
be a water-lily.
[656] Query "the tank of Yasoda," the foster-mother of Krishna?
[657] Blochmann, p. 252.
[658] Jahangir crossed the Ghati Chand or Chand, between Ajmere
and Malwa, in the 11th year (see p. 172), but he does not speak of
having had any rohu fish there. Perhaps the reference is to his halt
at Ramsar shortly before coming to Ghati Chand. He got 104 rohu at
Ramsar. See p. 169.
[659] Elliot, vi, 353.
[660] Mondah of Jarrett, ii, 253.
[661] Text Nilao. No such parganah is mentioned in the Ayin; the two
I.O. MSS. have Naryad.
[662] Pitlad is mentioned in Bayley's Gujarat, p. 9, as having a very
large revenue. It is the Patlad of Jarrett, ii, 253. Text wrongly
has Nilab. Possibly Bhil is the parganah meant.
[663] Elliot, vi, 353.
[664] The I.O. MSS. have Abhay or Abhi Kar.
[665] Tiefenthaler, i, p. 380, etc., has an interesting notice of
Cambay. He also gives a sketch of its bay (plate xxxii).
[666] Now so silted up that no tolerably large vessel can approach it.
[667] Abu-l-fazl calls them tawari (Jarrett, ii, 241).
[668] I.O. MSS. have 'ten.'
[669] Tal tarang. Possibly tarang should read tarang (waves), and
the meaning be that Jahangir went to see the famous bore in the Gulf
of Cambay.
[670] See Elliot, vi, 355, and note.
[671] In the text ahdi occurs by mistake instead of `ahdi, and man
instead of mas.
[672] Wrongly so in text, but Jay Singh should be corrected to Raj
Singh. The son of Jay Singh, Raja of Ajmir, was Ram Singh, who was
born in Sambat, 1692.
[673] Or `Arabi (Arabian?).
[674] Matar or Natar in I. O. MSS.
[675] I. O. MS. 181 has "in all the cities of Upper India."
[676] The historian.
[677] A saint of Multan who died in 1384. See Beale, s.v. Shaikh Jalal,
and Jarrett, iii, 369.
[678] So in text, but surely it should be "8th or 7th"? It appears
from the Khazinatu-l-asfiya, ii, 71, that the attendant who lost the
child was a female disciple, and that the child was young.
[679] According to Bayley's Gujarat, p. 238, and Index, p. 515,
the name is either Taj Khan Turpali or Narpali.
[680] Suwari-i-khud u khwush-jalu-i-u, "my own riding and his pleasant
paces (?)." It does not seem likely that Jahangir would himself drive
the elephant. The meaning here probably is that Jahangir trusted to
his being on the elephant. Khwush-jalu is used lower down about another
elephant, and seems to refer to the elephant's paces. See p. 214.
[681] Or doors. The Iqbal-nama, 108, has "in front of each gate there
is a bazar."
[682] 123 in Iqbal-nama.
[683] 350 in I.O. MSS.
[684] Panjara-i-sang, presumably lattice-work in stone.
[685] See for dimensions of the mosque Bayley's Gujarat, p. 92 and
note, and the authorities there quoted.
[686] Text wrongly has Sunday.
[687] Muhammad Ghaus was accused of heresy by some of the Gujarati
mullas. He was much respected by Humayun, and is buried at Gwalior.
[688] Jahangir means that Wajihu-d-din was a very learned man, and
that his devotion to Muhammad Ghaus, who was an ignorant man (ummi),
shows what a great personality the latter was. Cf. Iqbal-nama, 169,
and Ma'asiru-l-umara, ii, 583, where we are told that Wajihu-d-din
thanked God that both his Prophet and his Pir were ignorant.
[689] He wrote a history of Gujarat--the Mirat-i-Sikandari. Rieu,
Cat., i, 287.
[690] Blochmann, 507, note.
[691] "Shaikh Ahmad Khattu, who had the title of Jamalu-d-din,
was born at Delhi of a noble family in 737 A.H. (1336-7). He was
the disciple and successor of Baba Ishaq (Isaac) Maghribi. His name
was Nasiru-d-din. By the jugglery of the heavens he was separated
from his home in a storm, and after a while entered the service of
Baba Ishaq. Maghribi. He acquired from him spiritual and secular
learning, and came to Gujarat in the time of Sultan Ahmad. High and
low accepted him, and paid him homage. Afterwards he travelled to
Arabia and Persia, and made the acquaintance of many saints. He is
buried at Sarkhech, near Ahmadabad."--Ayin-i-Akbari (vol. ii, p. 220,
of Bib. Ind., ed. Jarrett, iii, 371). See Bayley's Gujarat, p. 90,
note, and Khazinatu-l-asfiya, ii, 314, and Blochmann, 507, note, where
the reference to the Khazina, 957, seems wrong. The story told in the
Khazina is that Shaikh Ahmad belonged to the royal family of Delhi,
and was, as a baby, blown out of his nurse's arms into the street
during a storm.
[692] Text khawanin, 'khans,' but evidently this is a mistake for
khawatin, the plural of khatun, 'a lady.'
[693] I.O. MSS. have Sundar Sen.
[694] See Elliot, vi, 355.
[695] This name is doubtful, for the MSS. have a different reading,
apparently Namud. There is a Halod in Gujarat (Jarrett, ii, 242). See
also Bayley's Gujarat, 439. Perhaps it is the Halol of the Indian
Gazetteer.
[696] The existence of this son of Baqi Tarkhan does not seem to
have been known to Abu-l-fazl or to Blochmann. Nor is he mentioned
in the Ma'asiru-l-umara. See Jarrett, ii, 347, where only Payanda is
spoken of as the son of Baqi Khan, and Blochmann, p. 362. See also
Ma'asiru-l-umara, iii, 485, the biography of Mirza `Isa Tarkhan. His
name appears, however, in the pedigree of his house in the Tarkhan-nama
of Jamal Shirazi.
[697] The word sani in Sahib-qiran-i-sani in text is a mistake.
[698] Shaqa'iq, which perhaps means tulips. In Price's Jahangir,
p. 115, there is much more said about the "Garden of Victory,"
and Jahangir's entertainment there by his wife Khairu-n-nisa, the
daughter of the Khankhanan.
[699] Bagina in text. Debi Prasad has Bakina.
[700] Banoh in text. See Bayley's Gujarat, p. 237; also Tiefenthaler,
i, 377, who speaks of it as being 3 leagues south of Ahmadabad. See
also Jarrett, ii, 240, n. 7.
[701] For Sayyid Mubarak and his son see Bayley's Gujarat. Sayyid
Mubarak was the patron of the author of the Mirat-i-Sikandari. See
loc. cit., p. 454.
[702] It is the Chandsuma of Bayley's map.
[703] Jarrett, iii, 210; and Akbar-nama, translation, i, 147, n. 2.
[704] This should be Tapa. See Addenda.
[705] I.O. MS., instead of khatimat-i-ahwal-u, has chunanchih ahwal,
"as has been stated in its place." This is probably correct, as
Jahangir has already referred to his death. See also the account of
the 2nd year, where he speaks of Ray Singh's going home without leave.
[706] Perhaps an explanation of Zamakhshari's Commentary.
[707] A Persian commentary on the Koran (Rieu, p. 96).
[708] A life of Muhammad (Rieu, i, 147).
[709] Dabhol (I.G., new ed., xi, 100).
[710] Biyaz. The meaning is not clear. Perhaps what is meant is that
there was no writing, only the circles.
[711] Elliot, vi, 356.
[712] MSS. seem to have Manib.
[713] MSS. seem to have Nimda.
[714] The MSS. have Muhammad Husain Saudagar (trader).
[715] The Jhallod of Bayley's map.
[716] MSS. have Ranud.
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