When his Majesty came and saw how it was, his light-
>graphic<
BĀBAR IN PRAYER, DEVOTING HIMSELF FOR HIS SON.
[To face p. 105.
During Humāyūn's illness* his Majesty walked round him and turned his face (in intercession) to his Reverence, Murtaẓa 'Alī Karīmu-l-lāh. He kept up that going-round from the Wednesday and made intercession from the Tuesday, in anxiety and deep dejection. The weather was extremely hot and his heart and liver burned. While going round he prayed, saying in effect: ‘O God! if a life may be exchanged for a life, I who am Bābar, I give my life and my being for Humāyūn.’*
That very day he fell ill, and Humāyūn poured water on his head, and came out and gave audience. (17b) Because of his illness, they carried my royal father within, and he kept his bed for two or three months.
As he grew worse, a messenger was sent to summon his Majesty Humāyūn, who had gone towards Kalinjar. He came post-haste, and on paying his duty to the Emperor, noticed that he was very feeble. Filled with compassion, he began to break down, and kept saying to the attendants: ‘How has he come to such a lamentable pass all at once?’ He sent for the doctors, and said to them: ‘I left him well. What has happened all at once?’ They said this and that in reply.
The whole time my royal father kept repeating: ‘Where
is Hindāl? What is he doing?’ Just at this time
some-one came in and said: ‘Mīr Bardī Beg, the son
of Mīr Khurd Beg,*
conveys his obeisance.’ My royal
father, full of agitation, sent for him at once and asked:
‘Where is Hindāl? When will he come? What trouble
waiting gives!’ (18a) Mīr Bardī said: ‘The fortunate prince
has reached Dihlī; he will wait on you to-day or to-morrow.’
On this my royal father said to Mīr Bardī Beg: ‘Ill-
During his illness, he laid a command on my lady, and said: ‘Marriages ought to be arranged for Gul-rang Begam and Gul-chihra Begam. (18b) When the royal aunt, my elder sister,* honours me with a visit, tell her that I say it has occurred to me to give Gul-rang to Isān-tīmūr Sulān and Gul-chihra to Tūkhta-būghā Sulān.’*
Dearest lady, the smiling one,* came, and they said to her: ‘The Emperor spoke in this manner, and it has occurred to him in such a way. It now remains to know your pleasure. Let it be as you wish.’ She said the same and, ‘God grant blessing and peace! His idea is very good.’ My chīcha* herself and Badī'u-l-jamāl Begam and Āq Begam, both of whom were paternal aunts of his Majesty, were conducted into the hall. Having raised an estrade* and spread carpets and chosen a propitious hour, Māham's nanacha made both sulāns bow the knee* in order to exalt them to the rank of sons-in-law.
Meantime his Majesty's disorder of the bowels increased. The Emperor Humāyūn broke down again when he saw his father's condition worsen, and called the doctors, and said to them: ‘Think it well over and find some remedy.’ (19a) Having consulted together, they said: ‘Small is our luck, for our remedies are of no avail. We hope that God, the most Holy, will soon give one from His invisible treasures.’
When they felt his Majesty's pulse, they came to the opinion that there were symptoms of the same poison as that given him by Sulān Ibrāhīm's mother. It was in this way: that ill-fated demon (the mother) gave a tōla of poison to one of her maids, and said: ‘Take this and give it to Aḥmad the taster and tell him to put it in some way or other into the special dishes prepared for the Emperor.’ And she promised him large rewards. The ill-fated demon did this although his Majesty used to call her “mother,” and had assigned her place and lands with every favour, and had been kindly pleased to say: ‘Consider me as in the place of Sulān Ibrāhīm.’* But as ignorance prevails amongst those people, she did not regard his kindnesses. The (fitting) hemistich is well known:
‘Everything reverts to its original type,
(Whether pure gold, or silver, or tin).’*
To cut short the story: the cook (Heaven having made him blind and deaf,) spread the poison which had been brought and given to him, on the Emperor's bread only, and so little was eaten. But the symptoms of this illness were like that one's, seeing that day by day he lost strength and became more and more emaciated. (19b) Every day the disorder increased and his blessed countenance changed.
Next day*
he called his chiefs together and spoke after
this wise: ‘For years it has been in my heart to make over
my throne to Humāyūn Mīrzā and to retire to the Gold-
‘Moreover, Humāyūn, I commit to God's keeping you and your brothers and all my kinsfolk and your people and my people; and all of these I confide to you.’
At these words hearers and onlookers wept and lamented. His own blessed eyes also filled with tears.
When his family and the people within the ḥaram heard of these occurrences, they were stupefied and overwhelmed, and cried and lamented.
Three days later he passed from this transitory world to the eternal home. The death took place on Monday, December 26th, 1530 (Jumāda I. 5th, 937H.). (20a)
They brought out our paternal aunt* and our mothers* on the pretence that the doctors were coming to look. All rose. They took all the begams and my mothers to the Great House.*
Black fell the day for children and kinsfolk and all.
They bewailed and lamented; voices were uplifted in
weeping; there was utter dejection. Each passed that ill-
The death was kept concealed. After a time Araish Khān,—he was an amīr of Hind,—said: ‘It is not well to keep the death secret, because when such misfortunes befall kings in Hindūstān, it is the custom of the bāzār people to rob and steal; God forbid that the Mughals not knowing, they should come and loot the houses and dwelling-places. It would be best to dress someone in red, and to set him on an elephant, and to let him proclaim that the Emperor Bābar has become a dervish and has given his throne to the Emperor Humāyūn.’ This his Majesty Humāyūn ordered to be done. People were at once reassured by the proclamation, and all offered prayers for his welfare. On Friday, December 29th, 1530 (Jumāda I. 9th, 937H.), the Emperor Humāyūn mounted the throne, and everyone said: ‘May all the world be blessed under his rule.’ (20b)