'Tis an ancient canon and an established ordinance that when God the Creator of the world wills to set an elect one on the throne of sway over mortals and by establishing him on a kingdom-adorning seat to place in his mighty hand the bridle of men's hearts, He maketh him in the beginning of his course the alighting-place of divers difficulties and the receptacle of sundry afflictions to the end that he may the more fully appreciate the force of the unending favours which stand ready for him in the hidden world; so that by becoming conversant with the varied stages of existence he may come to know personally Grace and Wrath, expansion and con­traction, joy and sorrow. All this is clear to those who are familiar with ancient records, and are cognisant of old stories. But inas­much as the personality of the holy product of the meeting* of the two seas of the Divine Power (Jalāl) and the Divine Beauty (Jamāl), his Majesty the Shāhinshāh, to wit, is by virtue of the Eternal Decree designated for all the stages of knowledge, and as the world-adorning Deity created him a wise-hearted* Teacher and an illuminated, farseeing soul needing not the instruction of any of the sons of men, the apparition of those calamities was not to acquaint him with Grace and Wrath, nor to burn away carnalities and mortalities. Rather did the order of the manifestations of the glories of opposing qualities and the notes of conflicting attributes unveil themselves as of course and in their full perfection. And there was an illustration* of this in his carly years, for at that time his holy soul kept aloof from inappropriate teaching. These truthful remarks will make it clear to the wise and the admonished that it is in the eyes of the superficial that such facts* are regarded as arising from abun­dance of instruction and a surplus of knowledge, while in the eyes of those who see the truth they are but the inevitable refulgence of a personality imbued with wisdom from of old. And whenever the bitter* waters of affliction are to be poured into the lips of one who stands afar off from the courts of Unity, and is a bewildered wan­derer in the desert of astoniedness, there is in the first place a curve (lit. a fold or wrinkle) of magnificence cast into his forehead* of acceptance and he is made the originator of divers act of ingrati­tude, and the shower-forth of varieties of injustice and tyranny, till he be flung into eternal wrath and everlasting punishment. This is a figure of the condition of M. Kāmrān who fell out with his benefactor and elder brother, his eternal superior, chosen one of God, king of the age, and just ruler, and wrought the destruction in life, estate and honour, of many a servant of God.

In fine, a strange disaster occurred during this time of enjoy­ment, when the capacious soul of his Majesty was a palatial garden of mirth and rejoicing. A desolating report came that M. Kāmrān was strife-mongering and that he had suddenly fallen upon the city of Kābul and brought it into his possession, and that Sherafkan had, heedless of the end of things, gone over to the Mīrzā. His Majesty Jahānbānī's sanctified heart was troubled, firstly, by the fate of his Majesty the Shāhinshāh; secondly, by sympathy for the citizens and subjects, who are a trust from the Creator, and who should be tended not less carefully than the children; thirdly, by the rebellious pro­ceedings of the Mīrzā and the results thereof. He addressed him­self with celestial genius to the remedying of these disturbances, and displayed suitable solicitude for putting an end to the outbreak. And Abūl Faẓl, the writer of this noble record, turns away from amplitude of language, in order that he may give an account of events, and hastens towards narration, and gives a brief and paren­thetical account of the circumstances so that the lips of those athirst for the waters of words may be satiated.

The description of the occurrence is as follows. When the army of fortune took Qandahār and came to the environs of Kābul, and all the Kābul army and all the people of that country were delighted at the good tidings of his Majesty Jahānbānī's advent, and separated from the Mīrzā and came in crowds and did homage, the Mīrzā turned away from the path of advice and the road of obedience and loyalty and becoming a bewildered wanderer in the desert of per­turbation and want took the road to Ghaznīn. He forsook the blessing of service and absconded. M. Hindāl, Muṣāḥib Beg and a number of others were sent after him, as has been related in the account of the taking of Kābul. But when no trace of him could be found, and it was not known which way he had gone (lit. no dust rose up from his path) the pursuers returned in obedience to the royal commands and came to Kābul. This Mīrzā brought himself in all haste to Ghaznīn. The rulers and inhabitants of that place were favoured by fortune, they strengthened the fort and did not open the gate of inclination for him. The Mīrzā's false representations were unsuccessful; so he hastened from these to the house of Khiẓr Khān Hazāra. He treated the Mīrzā with hospitality and brought him to Tīrī, and from thence to Zamīn Dāwar. Ḥisāmu-d-dīn ‘Alī, the son of Mīr Khalīfa, was in Zamīn Dāwar. He strengthened the fort and fought bravely, and courageously guarded the fort. When this news was brought to his Majesty he made over Ghaznīn to M. Hindāl and Zamān Dāwar and its appurtenances to M. Ulugh, giving him also a standard, a kettle-drum and a tuman tūgh. He also sent an order to Bairām Khān to join Yādgār Naṣir M., who had come there (Qandahār) to act loyally, to M. Ulugh and to send them against M. Kāmrān. He also sent a rescript to Yādgār Nāṣir M. to act in concert with M. Ulugh in putting down M. Kāmrān and by means of this service to move upwards on the steps of amendment of his past crimes. The Mīrzās went together from Qandahār to Zamīn Dāwar, and when the news of their approach reached the Mīrzā's camp, the Hazāras dispersed into the wilds and M. Kāmrān withdrew. He hurried off to Bhakkar and took refuge with Shāh Ḥasan Arghūn. M. Ulugh Beg took firm possession of his fief; and Yādgār Nāṣir M. made as it were, a pilgrimage to the service of his Majesty. In Kābul he learnt the bliss of service as has already been stated. M. Kāmrān came to a halt in Sind and married the daughter of the Ruler of Tatta, who had already been betrothed to him. He had stayed there for some time devising mischief when the news came of his Majesty Jahānbānī's illness, which had occurred in Badakh-shān. After that there came other bad news. The Mīrzā asked help from the Ruler of Tatta and resolved to go to Kābul. The ruler of Tatta thought this a great opportunity and sent a body of troops with the Mīrzā. Some were of opinion that he should first seize Qandahār, and then go to Kābul. But as Qandahār was secure under the control of Bairām Khān, Kāmrān set before himself the capture of Kābul and boldly hastened there. Near Qilāt he fell in with a number of Afghān merchants who were bringing horses. He arbitrarily took the horses from them and gave them to his men. From thence he hastened to Ghaznīn, and arrived there unexpectedly. Zāhid Beg was holding the fort for M. Hindāl and was spending his time in drunkenness and negligence. He was completely intoxi­cated on the night when the Mīrzā arrived. By the help of the butcher ‘Abdu-r-raḥmān, the Mīrzā's men secretly ascended, and got possession of the fort. Zāhid Beg was brought drunk before the Mīrzā, and the wretches cast him in his drunkenness from the pin­nacle of life into the abyss of annihilation. The Mīrzā left his son-in-law Daulat Sulān in Ghaznīn, and leaving there also a number of men from Bhakkar under the leadership of Mulk Muḥammad, who was a confidential servant of the Ruler of Tatta he went as rapidly to Kābul. He arrived there at dawn without warning. He first went to the headdress-maker's gate. He learnt that Muḥammad Taghāī was in the hot bath, and it would appear that there too (referring to what occurred at Ghaznīn) drunkenness had brought him into the stupor of cropsickness. ‘Alī Qulī Ūghlī, one of the Mīrzā's bodyguard, entered the bath and brought out Muḥammad ‘Alī naked. The Mīrzā gave him his ablution with the water of the sword, and entered the fort. Pahlwān Ashtar, who had charge of the Iron Gate, opened it in accordance with a compact, and the Mīrzā entered the city, which now came into his possession. On the morning when this occurrence took place, Ḥājī Muḥammad ‘Asas* came and saluted the Mīrzā. The latter said ‘How have I gone and how have I come back’! ‘Asas replied “You went in the evening and you came in the morning.” The Mīrzā went up to the citadel and took up his quarters there. Shamsu-d-dīn Muḥammad Khān Atka brought his Majesty the Shāhinshāh with all reverence before M. Kāmrān. The Mīrzā, on beholding that theatre of miracles involuntarily became gracious and gentle. He shewed him various favours, but from short-sighted­ness put his Majesty, who was under the shadow of the protection of God, into the charge of his own men.