It is not concealed from the hearts which closely scrutinise the established law of the elements and the celestial bodies, or from the acute descriers of the associations of loins and wombs, that as the stewards of things terrestrial and celestial have distinguished the Khedive of the world by daily-increasing fortune, and eternal dominion, and have made him successful in his desires, spiritual and physical, and auspicious as regards the objects of realm and religion, so also have they every morning caused a fresh spring-flower to bloom for him in the gardens of hope, and every evening have made a felicitous star arise from the horizon of his wishes. Inasmuch as the amount of Divine aid in respect of the Shāhinshāh of the universe is beyond human calculation—for Almighty God, after having gathered together all the blessings and glories which are in the hidden stores of the eternal decrees and having placed them in his fortune's bosom, hath attached to his personality many unwished-for great gifts—how could there be room for things which he had wished for, to remain secluded behind the screen of delay? Accordingly as his holy mind was desirous of obedient truth-seeking, truth-recognising children, Almighty God bestowed on him this favour without limitation and this blessing without cessation, which is styled “the creation of copies,”* and from time to time makes a priceless pearl of the secret ocean glorious on the shore of manifestation.
At the time that the sublime cortège was proceeding from Ajmīr, one of the secluded ones of the screen of chastity had come near the time of child-birth and was unable to endure movement or a journey. In searching for an auspicious place the house of Daniel* —a follower of the illustrious shrine (or M'uīnu-d-dīn)—was found. It was made empty and the lady was placed there. The cortège of fortune had halted in Phalūdī,* which lies in a desert (ran) belonging to the Sarkār of Nāgaur, when couriers came from Ajmīr and brought the joyful intelligence that after 41 puls of the night of Āsmān, 27 Shahriyūr, Divine month, corresponding to Wednesday, 2 Jamāda-al-awal, 9 September 1572, according to visibility* and to the night of the third according to supreme decree, under the sign of Aries according to the Greek philosophers, and of Pisces according to the Indian sages, the Giver of life and Adorner of the world had, in the blissful land of Ajmīr,* the longitude of which is 111°5', and latitude 26', bestowed on the Shāhinshāh a lofty-starred son. By the emergence of this brilliant star favour had been conferred on souls and on horizons. When the lord of the world heard this news he placed his forehead on the dust of prostration, and returned thanks to God. He recognised in this news the foretidings of incalculable victories, and inaugurated splendid feasts. The people received fresh joy by general gifts, and the coin of liberality was poured into the lap of the world.
A soul-sustaining rose bloomed in the garden
The fragrance reached a thousand gardens
When the cypress sprang from the noble* root
Gratulations were uttered by the seven planets
The Khedive gave fresh wings to joy
He proclaimed a wine-distribution to the seven climes
Rapture was hung on the chords of melody
Song penetrated the brain of the Age
Liberality, when it gave a glance of genius
Removed the curtain from in front of desire.
H.M. had regard to the birthplace which was the house of Shaikh Daniel, and having implored aid from His Highness Daniel the Great (the prophet) gave to that nursling of fortune's rosarium the name of Sulān Daniel. Acute poets wrote congratulatory odes, and rare chronograms came from the tongues of the skilful, and were rewarded with gifts. An order was issued that when this celestial star should be a month old, his cradle should be conveyed to the town of Ambēr and the care of him committed to the Rānī, the wife of Rajah Bāra Mal.* It is hoped that this cypress of the Caliphate will for long epochs be watered by the Shāhinshāh's fortune, and will grow up under his shade and protection. Now that the eternal aid has guided me astray in life's assembly to the exposition of the instructive account of H.M. the Shāhinshāh, and makes me more impatient and mobile than my pen, I here insert the horoscope of the happy birth according to Greek and Indian calculations, but leave the extraction of the judgments to the subtle eyes of astronomers.*
In fine, after the completion of thanksgivings for this great boon the Shāhinshāh's cortège continued its march, and on the day of Isfandarmaẕ, 5 Mihr, Divine month, corresponding to Wednesday, 9 Jamāda-al-awwal, 17 September 1572, encamped in the town of Nāgaur.
God be praised! On 7 Ardībihisht of the 41st year of the Divine Era, corresponding to Friday, 27 Sh'abān 1004, 16 April 1596, the noble task of the record of a cycle (qarn) of everlasting dominion and of many marvellous incidents in the fortune of the Lord of the World during thirty years received a happy completion by the strength of a word-weighing intellect and the swiftness of a heavens-like moving pen.
Lamp of six arches, King of nine pavilions
Akbar Shāh, the King of the Age
May fortune's day gain brightness from his face
May the age become a rose-garden from his Spring.
Many great princes have been commemorated as complements to that unique one of creation, and so the garden of history has been watered, and the countenance of life eternal has glorified those who were resting in the sleep of non-existence.
Hundreds of thanks for that this Gallery
Has assumed everlasting decoration
He who is a chief for acuteness
Knows what has been the spiritual outpouring.
Had my confused glance fallen upon myself, I should have seen that I was unfit for this great emprise, and have accepted the words of the sage and turned away from the execution of the great task.
If thou hast not a nature clear as running water
Lay not hands on the record of princes
If the mouth* is to remain free of food
'Tis best to leave the table unsupplied.
But the Shāhinshāh's command and the potent magic of loyalty opened my mind's eye to the exhibitions of fortune, and victoriously withdrew me from myself.
The beginning of my education came from Arabic. In Persian I was less versed. The pacings in the alleys of a spiritual Spring, and the contemplation of the house-garden of theoretical and practical wisdom abstracted my attention from all other matters. Especially did I live in alienation from old stories about divs.* Methought it great loss to give up current coin for antiquated bills of credit. An extensive survey showed me that the palace of history was in ruins, and that the ample plain of chronicles could be no arena for Truth's cavaliers, seeing that it did not merit even a glance from exoteric persons who were capable of making a right choice. It is essential that the sons of men should not gratuitously cast away the precious jewels of the spirit, and should keep life's brief tenement in repair by obedience to the wise, and not spend their days in folly, or sell life's precious pearl for worthless potsherds. Cupidinous persons and confused babblers introduced untrue statements for their own ends. They designedly mixed truth with falsehood, and thus incurred the reproach of the enlightened. Unexperienced physicians and quacks who had no proper understanding of goodness or purity fabricated tales of hopes and fears. They supposed the bitter medicaments of falsehood, and a mixture from the poisonous herb of untruth to be a remedy for the chameleon-like spirit, and for the melancholy engendered by opposing humours, and so entered the wide field of error. Many drugged-dreamers* and worshippers of fancies took their evil imaginations to be called celestial visitants, and became blatant babblers. From mental confusion and long-continued turmoil of spirit they mixed up presumptuous imaginings with the delightful utterances of Truth. Very many truthful, well-constituted, well-meaning simpletons and writers have given way to dejection (literally, loosed the tress ends of dejection), and, from shortness of view and want of understanding, indulged in foolish discourse, and at the instance of silly persons, who did not know what truth was, brought false tales into vogue. Owing to the lapse of epochs, to the mustiness of records, to wisdom's retiring to a corner, and to the predominance of natural temperament, typhoons of strife were let loose, and floods of evil seethed over. Class upon class of mankind and all sorts of natures heaped up great punishments (for themselves) from the reading of old and erroneous books, and fell into eternal loss. From the dulness of their fortune and the dreaminess of their understandings, they chose, instead of the unique pearl of science, which quiets perturbations, physical and spiritual, and gives light to darknesses external and internal, an injurious intermixture (of truth and falsehood). They covered up the illuminating light with dust and rubbish, and devastated the city of bliss. More extraordinary still! they, while in that burning desert of indiscrimination, where no restful shelter is to be found, are eager to fashion the life-destroying simoom thereof into the material of a refreshing sleep! They go down into the gloomy abode of error, and build joy and sorrow upon miserable dreams.