If a wicked and ill-fated man
Become good by a teacher's instruction,
In the end the mystery is explained
For then his true nature is revealed.
It is clear to those who can discern the mysteries of fate, that when the fortunate hand of an eternally elected one be decked with sovereignty's signet, and the dominion-head be exalted by the khilāfat's diadem, the rays of glory are ever shining on the forehead of his career. One of the wondrous indications and celestial portents which occurred at this time in relation to his Majesty, the king of kings, was as follows. When Mīrzā ‘Askarī came to the royal camp and began his improprieties, Mīr Ghaznavī and Māham Āghā* brought his Majesty the king of kings before him on the shoulder of honour and in the bosom of security. Though the Mīrzā directed his countenance towards him and had a jubilant* air and wore a forced smile, his Majesty, even then an aggregate of the perfections of a mature man of the world, spite of his tender years, was in no way elated (shigufta). Restraint* of spirit was manifested on his brow. The Mīrzā changed his tone* and said, “We can see whose this child is. Why should he be elated at seeing us?” The Mīrzā's ring was hanging from his neck by a red ribbon and after a little while the child in accordance with infantive ways— no! no! by Fortune's guiding hand, put his hand to the ribbon and sought to take it. The Mīrzā immediately took the ribbon from his neck and gave it to his Majesty, the king of kings. The acute in the assembly saw in this an auspicious prognostic that bye-and-bye the seal of dominion and the ring of sovereignty would bear his Majesty's name, and that water flowing from the fount of Divine bounties would become a river. From thence his Majesty the Shāhanshāh went, protected by the Divine aid, in company with M. ‘Askarī towards Qandahār. Standing and sitting, sleeping and waking, rays of greatness and command streamed from his Majesty's forehead, and the lights of God's knowledge were manifested. On the road Kōkī Bahādur, one of M. ‘Askarī's confidants, came near his Majesty's (Akbar) camel litter and said to Mīr Ghaznavī that if he made the prince over to him he would take him to the king. The Mīr replied that as the king himself had not taken him, 'twas evident there was a reason for leaving him; nor could he venture without high authority to take action. Bahādur said, “I've formed the desire to serve his Majesty and hence I come at such a time of desolation to do so. I wanted to perform this service and now that you don't exalt me by this blessing, give me a token from his Majesty, the king of kings (Akbar), that I may give it to his Majesty.” Mīr Ghaznavī gave to Bahādur his Majesty's cap, the diadem of the moon of auspiciousness, and thereby exalted him.
M. ‘Askarī brought his Majesty, the king of kings, to Qandahār on 18th Ramaẓān, 950 (16th December, 1543), and assigned him a residence in the citadel near himself. Māham Āghā, Jījī Anaga and Atka Khān were made eternally fortunate by serving him, and longed for the diffusion of the light of holiness. The Mīrzā made over this nursling of fortune who was growing up in the shadow of the Divine protection, to his own wife Sulān* Begam, and that cupola of chastity out of her abundant wisdom, lovingly and devotedly tended him. To appearance she watched over him, but in reality she was keeping herself alongside of light absolute, and so receiving illumination, and day by day she was beholding more and more the glory (farr) of greatness proceeding from the light-increasing brows of that world-blessing.
Evil thoughts respecting one who is God-supported and in whose person God-nourished light exists, can only terminate in good, and out of contrariety nothing can come except service and benefit. Accordingly Eternal Providence was tending him at that time when paternal affection and maternal love should have been responsible for his needments (takafful-i-muhimmāt) and he was in the hands of deadly enemies, so that the foot of loyalty of the far-sighted of wisdom's kingdom might be the more established, and that a guiding lamp might come into the hands of the short-sighted and simple, and that the facts of the Divine watchfulness and of heavenly guardianship might be manifest to friend and foe. I have heard from the sacred lips of his Majesty, the king of kings, as follows: “I perfectly remember what happened when I was one year old, and especially the time when his Majesty Jahānbānī proceeded towards ‘Irāq and I was brought to Qandahār. I was then one year* and three months old. One day Māham Anaga, the mother of Adham Khān, (who was always in charge of that nursling of fortune), represented to M. ‘Askarī, “It is a Tūrkī* custom that when a child begins to walk, the father or grandfather or whoever represents them, takes off his turban and strikes the child with it, as he is going along, so that the nursling of hope may come to the ground (i. e., may fall down). At present his Majesty Jahānbānī is not here; you are in his room, and it is fitting you should perform this spell which is like sipand* against the evil eye. The Mīrzā immediately took off his turban and flung it at me, and I fell down.” “This striking and falling,” his Majesty deigned to observe, “are visibly before me. Also at the same time they took me for good luck to have my head shaved* at the shrine of Bābā* Ḥasan Abdāl. That journey and the taking off my hair are present before me as in a mirror.”
What is there extraordinary about this or a hundred things like it, to any one in the blissful chambers of whose heart there is an enkindled lamp?
As the thread of the narrative has extended so far, it is unavoidable that for the moistening of discourse (sīrābī-i-sukhan), I say something about the remaining events of Sher Khān, about Mīrzā Ḥaidar's going to Kashmīr, about the condition of M. Kāmrān who went to Kābul, and M. Hindāl who hurried off to Qandahār, and Yādgār Nāṣir Mīrzā who made opposition and remained in Bhakkar, o that the searcher after instruction may take warning, and by the strength of a happy fortune, spend his days prudently and righteously.