Though in the eyes of the superficial many things are the cause of joy to the envious and those of narrow capacity, yet in fact, they are the beginnings of increased dominion and the vanguard of bril­liant fortune. They are at once the key of hope and peace, and the bolt upon sedition, and both the material of increased loyalty, and the leaven of destruction for the hypocritical. Of this nature was the commotion which now arose in Gujarat, to quell which the world's Khedive went there in person. The brief account of this instructive occurrence is that when H.M. the Shāhinshāh dismissed the Khān A'aam M. Koka and went on to the capital, the latter, as he knew that Ikhtīyār-il-mulk had raised the head of sedition in Īdar in con­junction with Rai Narain, the zamindar thereof, and that the sons of Sher Khān Fūlādī had joined him, in order not to delay the affairs of the State, went off straight to that province without going to Aḥmadābād. Mīrzā Muqīm,* who had a fief there, left it on account of the predominance of those evil conspirators, and joined himself to him.

The Khān A'aam was in the act of extirpating that crew when ⁴² the dust of Muḥammad Husain* M.'s strife rose up again. The brief account of this is that Muḥammad Ḥusain M. heard in the territory of Daulatābād in the Deccan of H.M.'s proceeding to the capital, and came to Surat and stirred up commotion. Qulīj Khān shut himself up and attended to the defence of the fort. The Mīrzā left that place and came to Broach which he took owing to the unfaithfulness of Qubu-d-dīn's servants. From there he went to Cambay and also got possession of that place without a battle owing to the carelessness of Ḥasan* Khān (Khazāncī) who came away to Aḥmadabad. The Khān A'aam sent Saiyid Ḥāmīd, Saiyid Bahāu-d-dīn, Shaikh Muḥammad of Monghyr and a number of others to assist Qubu-d-dīn Khān. Just then Ikhtiyār-al-mulk and the body of men who were in the defiles of the hill-country acquired strength* and came forward. The Khān A'aam took protection in a strong place and stayed there. The rebels could not venture to attack him. They considered, “How long will he stay there? What advantage will he reap from it? Our course is to attack Aḥmadabad. If the Khān A'aam come out of that strong­hold we shall fight him and perhaps we shall succeed. If he does not come out we shall get possession of Aḥmadabad.” With this evil intention they marched out. At the end of the day the Khān A'aam, when he heard of the march of the enemy, proceeded rapidly towards Aḥmadabad. As the day was near its close the enemy could not oppose him, and Khān A'aam without halting during the night entered the city at dawn. On the same night Muḥammad Ḥusain M. passed close by after his defeat at Cambay and some baggage was captured by him. As he was in a miserable plight, he passed along at a distance from the Khān A'aam's army, and joined Ikhtiyār al-mulk and the sons of Sher Khān Fūlādī. The account of this mysterious boon is that Qubu-d-din Khān, Saiyid Ḥāmid Bokhāri, Naurang Khān and a number of the servants of the Khān A'aam came to Cambay. That wretch, though he had few men, exceeded his powers of resistance, but was utterly defeated. Saiyid Bahāu-d-dīn displayed great bravery and offered up his life. The officers regarded his defeat as a great boon and did not address themselves to pursuing him. If they had exerted themselves a little, the scoundrel would have been caught.

In fine, when he had joined that inauspicious crew, he was very earnest that they should hasten to Aḥmadabad. The Gujratīs made long speeches and debated the matter for three days. This was owing to the good fortune of the Shāhinshāh, and the Khān A'aam employed this respite in strengthening the ways of ingress and egress. The Cambay officers also arrived, and after some more days those ill-fated and presumptuous men arrived in the neighbourhood of Aḥmadabad. Though the army was such that if they had given battle, the imperial servants would have been victorious, yet as the Khān A'aam had not confidence in his own men or in those of Qubu-d-dīn ⁴³ Khān, he did not engage. At the time of bidding him adieu the far-sighted Khedive had advised him that if by heaven's decree the seditious should gather together, and there should be a hot disturbance, he should be very cautious about giving battle. He observed this fortune-increasing advice. One day Fāẓil Khān (son of the Khān Kilān) came out near the Khānpūr gate, and sought for a combatant, when a body of the enemy fell upon him, and as soon as they attacked his men, they fled, and Fāẓil Khān was severely wounded. When he came inside of the city he expired. Sulan Khwāja* got separated from his horse and fell into the ditch. They fastened a basket and pulled him by a rope. But as by heaven's arrangement they were all agreed that they could not with their troops give battle, the Khān A'aam sent a report to the Sublime Threshold along with Sulan Khwāja, in which he described the state of affairs and asked for assis­tance, moral and physical, from the Shāhinshāh. When the Khwāja arrived at court and the facts of the rising of the dust of commotion were shown to H.M., inasmuch as that mine of manliness and ocean of kindness was exceedingly fond of M. Koka, his world-conquering genius determined that he would make an expedition in person and go post towards that country. As from shortness of time there was not an opportunity for the men's making arrangements for this great enterprise, he opened the door of the treasury and poured abundant money into the laps of his servants in presents and in assistance. And the sacred harem was set off along with many of the faithful officers, such as Shujā'at Khān, Raja Bhagwant Dās, Saiyid Maḥmūd Bārha, and Rai Rām Singh. He also exclaimed with his holy tongue, “Though in observance of appearances I am arranging for the des­patch of men, yet it has flashed on my interior that no one will arrive before me.” The Khān-jahān and S'aīd Khān and many of the Panjab officers were dismissed in order that they might arrange for the defence of that province. But he took from among them as his own companions M. Yūsuf* Khān and Makhṣūṣ* Khān, and an order was issued that Moaffar Khān should take the Malwa officers, and proceed rapidly to Gujrat, and that Kuar Mānsingh should collect the fief-holders of Kachhīwārah, and hasten to come (to Akbar). Rajah Bihārī Mal, Rajah Todar Mal, Shaikh Ibrāhīm, Ḥakīm-al-mulk, Shaikh Aḥmad and many of the loyal were left in charge of the princes and of the capital.

⁴⁴ When his holy mind was at rest about the arrangements, he on the day of Ābān 10 Shahrīyūr, Divine month, corresponding to Sunday 24 Rabi'-al-ākhīr, 23 August 1573, mounted on a swift and softly-going she-camel.*

and taking the reins of victory in his hand, and with the help of the strong cable of reliance upon God, proceeded on the long journey to Gujrat. The loyal officers, and his special intimates accompanied him—some on swift she-camels, and some on fiery-hoofed horses. When a watch of the night had passed, he for the relief of the loyal halted in the town of Toda.* In the morning he again started under the guidance of an auspicious star, and early in the morning of Mon­day reached the stage of Hans Maḥal, and there halted for a while. From there he hastened on still faster, and after a watch of the night had passed he reached M'uizzābād.* On that day many of the followers had not the strength of body to keep up with him. He also felt some heaviness in his limbs, but in spite of that, after midnight he got upon a chariot and proceeded on rapidly.

The chariot goes swift as a cloud,
Like as Patience departs from lovers,
From the rapid going outside and inside
The echo reaches the southern* sky (?)