CHAPTER XII
RETURN OF THE WORLD-CONQUERING STANDARDS TO THE CAPITAL.

When the administrative mind of the Shāhinshāh had disposed of the affairs of Gujrāt in the space of eleven days he proceeded towards the capital on the roz-i-roz, the 31st Shahrīyūr, Divine month, corresponding to Sunday 16 Jumāda-alawal (13 September 1573). On that day he halted at Mahmūdābād.* Next day he encamped at the town of Dūlqa. In this pleasant place he stayed one day. Here he conferred honours on M. Koka and after giving him sage instructions permitted him to depart. He also exalted Khwāja Ghīāu-d-dīn 'Alī* of Qazwīn, Bakhshī, who was distinguished for good services and for eloquence and had done excellent work in this campaign, by the title of Āṣaf Khān and left him as Bakhshī of the province of Gujrāt, in order that he might act under H.M. Koka and assist in the work of administration. All the arrangements for Gujrāt were made at this station, and on the day of Ardībihisht 3 Mihr, Divine month, he proceeded rapidly towards the capital. In two marches he reached the town of Karī and from there arrived in two marches at Sathpūr.* There he heard that the army which had been dispatched by way of Īdar under the command of Rajah Bhagwānt Dās had reached the town of Badḥnagar,* and that Rāwālīā, the ghulām of Sher Khān 65 Fūlādī, who had strengthened Karī at the time when H.M. marched to Gujrāt, was now as formerly breathing the breath of defiance (in Badhnagar). Next day H.M. halted where he was, in order to see if he (Bhagwānt Dās) needed his assistance. When it appeared that the fort had been taken and that Rāwālīā, who had put on a jogi's dress, had been caught, H.M. proceeded on rapidly, and when he reached Sirohī he left Ṣādiq Khān there with some loyal followers in order that they might keep the peace there and repress the seditious. On the day of Sarosh 17 Mihr, Divine month, 27th September 1573, he alighted at Ajmir and visited the shrine of Khwāja M'uīnu-d-dīn. Those connected with the shrine, and others who were needy benefited by H.M.'s bounty. At the end of the next day an order was given that the main camp should proceed slowly, stage by stage, while he himself should hasten on like the wind. He travelled the rest of that day, the whole night and to the end of the next day, and arrived near Bakar.* There Rajah Todar Mal who had been hastily summoned from the capital, had the bliss of doing homage. Then he was sent away in order that he might make the settlement of Gujrāt, etc. He was instructed to make a just settlement without regard to the covetous demands of men, and to send the statement to court so that the clerks might act according to it with reference to the soldiers and subjects.

In short, he halted for a little in the beginning of the evening at the village of Newata,* where is the house of the Rām Dās Kacwāha,* who performed the duties of service towards him. After midnight he again set out on his swift horse and arrived in the evening at Hans Maḥal. He did not halt there, but went on that night and the next day. On the Sunday he rested in the pargana of Toḍa. When a watch of the day remained he left it and after midnight reached Basāwar. There the Khwāja Jahān and Shihābu-d-dīn Aḥmad Khān, who had come from the capital to welcome him, did homage. They accompanied him on his onward journey and at dawn the town of Bajūna was reached. There he rested for a while. There an order was given that the victorious heroes who were in the retinue should take their spears or lances in their hands and so proceed to the capital. After 66 1 1/2 watches of the day of Bād the 22nd Mihr, Divine month, corre­sponding to Monday 8 Jumāda-l akhira (5 October 1573) he marched to the capital. On that day a great number of the officers and nobles hastened out to welcome him, and the country was full of high and low. H.M. reached Fatḥpūr when a watch of the day remained. Fresh water came into the canals, and the world became a flowing garden! Their highnesses the Begams and the princes and the secluded ladies were gladdened by seeing H.M. Largesses were bestowed. The eyes of those who longed were filled with light, and the hearts of those who waited were filled with eternal joy. By the Divine aid the march to this distant country (Gujrāt), its conquest, and pacification and return were accomplished in forty-three days.

Where is the brilliant writer who could fittingly describe the wonders of this instructive expedition? When the eye-witnesses were filled with amazement, how can hearers thereof describe it? The justice-distributing Khedive at such a time of success, and the display of such wondrous deeds, one of a thousand of which would have led many mighty men of yore into negligence and corporeal pleasures, behaved contrary to the disposition of his age and of mortals and became yet more discreet and more an adorner of the divan of justice and addressed himself to spiritual improvement. He enlightened the world by lofty principles and wise actions. The great men and the officers of the State came from various parts of the kingdom and did homage, and attained their desires. One month had not elapsed when Rajah Bhagwānt Dās came to court with the army which H.M. had sent by the way of Īdar. He had done good service and his reputation was increased. He brought Umrā, the son and heir of the Rānā,* to do homage, and also Rāwāliyā, who had fallen into his hands at the taking of Badhnagar, and he (Bhagwānt) was encompassed with royal favours.

The brief account of the campaign of this victorious army is that it in a short space of time took the strong fort of Badhnagar and then proceeded towards Īdar. The Zamindār thereof, Narain Dās Rāthor,* recognised the arrival of the imperial officers as a great honour and went forward to welcome them. He presented suitable gifts, and when the victorious army reached Gogānda,3* which was the Rānā's residence, Rānā Kīkā expressed shame and repentance for his past conduct and prolonged deficiency in service, and by way of submission came and visited Rajah Bhagwānt Dās. He also took him to his house and treated him with respect and hospitality. He sent along with him his son and heir, and represented that by his ill-fortune a feeling of desolation (tawaḥḥushī) had taken possession of him, and that now he presented his petition through the Rajah and was sending his son as a mark of obedience. When his desolate (or savage) heart should become soothed by the lapse of time, he too would come and do homage in person. After a little time Rajah Todar Mal also arrived from Gujrāt and did homage. He made over to the imperial archives a corrected settlement (jama' manaqqaḥ) of those territories. The Rānā visited him also on his way and dis­played flattery and submissiveness.

One of the occurrences was the arrival of Moaffar Khān and his being promoted to the lofty office of vakīl. Though such an adorner of the throne of realm and religion requires not a vakīl, nor a Vizier, for his far-seeing capacity is responsible for all the duties of sovereignty, yet H.M. either in order to veil himself, or from humility before God, or in order to increase the dignity of loyal servants, from time to time makes over the duties of sovereignty to a courtier. Accordingly on this occasion he determined that the office of vakīl should again be entrusted to Moaffar Khān. From Gujrāt an order was issued that Moaffar Khān should be turned back from wherever he might be and should come and present himself when the victorious standards reached the capital. Moaffar Khān took with him Khāldīn Khān, Mīrak Khān Kolābī, Shāh Qulī Maimandī, Khwāja Shamsu-d-dīn and others of the Mālwa army and proceeded towards Gujrāt. Near Ujjain he joined Rajah Mān Singh who was proceeding from Kaci­wāra to Gujrāt. Khwāja Shamsu-d-dīn Khawāfī* says that two Seōrās (Jain ascetics) ascertained by means of astrology and stated that the army would shortly return. Moaffar Khān, in order to test them had kept them in a kind of arrest. At the town of Dhūb,* which is a place between Malwa and Gujrāt, letters were received from Āṣaf 68 Khān and Qāsim 'Alī Sīstānī, to the effect that the good fortune of Shāhinshāh had made the conquest of Gujrāt, and that the seditious and rebellious had been cast from the height of presumption into the abyss of ruin. A firmān was also issued that the officers should stop at whatever place they had reached and prepare to proceed to the capital. Surprise was expressed at the acuteness of those two recluses. There were rejoicings at the good news of victory and the army proceeded to return. Mān Singh went to his fief and Moẓaffar Khān had not yet recruited himself at Sārangpūr when news came that the royal standards had reached the capital. Moaffar went off post haste and did homage on the day of Anīrān 30 Abān, Divine month. He was received with princely favours, and was appointed to the high position of Vakīl. He applied himself with ability to discharge his financial and political duties. When he took charge of his former duties, and by virtue of the Shāhinshāh's fortune did good services, his eye owing to his ill-fate lost sight of the glorious aid of the God-given fortune and regarded only itself. He began to quaff the sense-destroying wine of worldly success, and ascribed every administrative success to his own abilities. He appropriated to himself the management of external affairs, and because the world's lord had for reasons of policy conferred on him the title of Vakīl, the simpleton gradually came to consider himself fit for such an office, and his arrogance increased. He failed to comprehend the point of the Shāhinshāh's remissness and shutting of the eyes (lit. winking) and looked to himself and became self-confident. At last the question of branding (sakhn-i-dāgh i-sipāhī) came up and as he was drunk with the intoxication of presumption, and his understanding was coated with rust, he did not comprehend the matter and made foolish remarks.

The short account of this is: H.M.'s holy head was grieved to find that there were oppositions between masters and servants. For, low-natured and mercenary officers, who had no particle of sense or loyalty, were wont to consider that their own profit consisted in others' loss, and practised much injustice, indiscrimination and inappreciation. Consequently, servants on the occurrence of a slight contretemps cast the dust of infidelity on their heads and chose other masters. From darkness of intellect they did not apprehend the baseness of dis­loyalty. The masters and leaders too were overcome by cupidity and strove to gather wealth and neglected to preserve their honour. They always gave their servants little and bartered honour for silver and gold (dirham u dīnār). The world-adorning mind of the Shāhinshāh which had for the sake of preserving the veil, abandoned the distribution of degrees, and of pays and stipends—which is the first work of great rulers—resolved that he would remove this veil, and conduct these matters by the light of his own far-seeing intelli­gence. Accordingly, he promulgated the branding regulation, the 69 conversion of the imperial territories into crown-lands, and the fixing the grades of the officers of State. He decided that he would carry out all these measures in accordance with the steadiness, the ser­vices, the loyalty, disinterestedness and energy of the officers. As spiritual undertakings were always more important than external affairs, and as he did not find an interlocutor or an assistant who was fit for this matter, he on sundry occasions discussed the question with the intimate partakers of his holy entertainments. Rajah Todar Mal used to submit that it was a good idea which had entered his mind, and that it was owing to the general want of understanding among men that the thing had not occurred to them.* Assuredly most of the soldiers would be loyal, and their zeal would be increased by this decision. But it was most probable that Mun'im K. and Moaffar K. would not approve of the plan.

When Moaffar K. became the transactor of business at the sub­lime Court, the proposition was laid before him, but he, from self-con­ceit and lack of understanding, showed reluctance to carry out the sacred regulations and fell out of favour.