The Muntakhabu-’rukh, Volume 2

but this was not easy. In the month of Shawwál in the year nine hundred and eighty-three (983), on my applying for leave of absence, it was refused, but the Emperor excused my inspections of the horses. Still through the unfriendly disposition of the Çadr, and the unpropitiousness of the times he only allotted to me a tenure to the amount of 1000 bígahs of land, which in that iron age appeared to be equivalent to the lief of a commander of twenty. It was styled also in the farmán a madad-i-ma'ásh. I represented that with this small tenure I could not afford to be always in attendance on the Court, to which the Emperor replied that he would also give me subsidies and presents during the marches. And Shaikh 'Abd-un-Nabí said that no (P. 207) person of my quality had received from him so large a grant of land. As for the presents which I was promised, though twenty-two years have elapsed since my hopes were raised, I have received them but once or twice, and the rest have been concealed behind the veil of fate and have fallen like leaves to the ground. These fine promises were nothing better than a baseless mirage. I have performed services without rewards, and undergone useless restraints, from which I can now be relieved only by the good-humour of destiny:—

“Either faithfulness, or news of union with thee, or the death of the rival,
The playfulness of fate will do one of these three things.”

‘We are content with the decree of God, are patient under His trials, and thankful for His favours’:—

“In any case I must give thanks,
If I may never be in worse plight than now!”

And this qiṭ'ah of Fazúlí of Baghdád, who composed it in reference to Ḥairatí of Samarqand, when he was in the favour of Sháh Ṭahmásp, is expressive of the vain hopes of your humble servant:—

“I am from the dust of Arabia, and Ḥairatí from the kingdom of Persia;
Both of us have sought our desire in uttering our words.
We have found from two benefactors the desire of our hearts,
He a glance from the king of Persia, I from the king of Arabia.”²¹⁰

Since the world, and what is in it, is known to me, my hopes are fixed on the Creator, who helps his servants, that at the last all may be well, and that the seal of the matter may be in the felicity of Religion:—“What is with you will pass away, what is with God is eternal”:^210a —

“This is our hope from the mercy of our Creator,
That Thou wilt not make hopeless those who hope.”^210b

The first of the questions which the Emperor asked in these days was this: ‘How many freeborn women may a man legally marry by nikaḥ?’ The lawyers answered that four was the limit fixed by the prophet. The Emperor thereupon remarked that from the time he had come of age he had not restricted himself (P. 208) to that number, and in justice to his wives of whom he had a large number, both freeborn and slaves, he now wanted to know what remedy the law provided for his case. Most expressed their opinions, then the Emperor remarked that Shaikh 'Abd-un-Nabí had once told him that one of the Mujtahids²¹¹ had had as many as nine wives. Some of the Ulamá present replied that the Mujtahid alluded to was Ibn Abí Lailá, and that some had even allowed eighteen from a too literal translation of the verse of the Qur'án:^211a “Marry whatever women you like, two and two, and three and three, and four and four;”^211b but this interpretation is rejected. His Majesty then sent a message to Shaikh 'Abd-un-Nabí who replied that he had merely wished to point out to the Emperor that a difference of opinion existed on this point among lawyers, but that he had not given a fatwá, in order to legalize irregular marriage proceedings. This annoyed His Majesty very much. “The Shaikh,” said he, “told me at that time a very different thing to what he tells me now.” He never forgot this.

After much discussion on this point the Ulamá, having collected every Tradition on the subject, decreed, first that by mut'ah [not by nikáḥ] a man might marry any number of wives he pleased: and secondly, that mut'ah marriages were allowed as legal by Imám Málik. The Shí'ahs, as was well-known, loved children born in mut'ah wedlock more than those born of nikaḥ wives, contrary to the Sunnís and Ahl-i-Jamá'at. On the latter point also the discussion became rather lively, and I would refer the reader to my work entitled Naját-ur-rashíd,²¹² in which the subject is briefly discussed. But to make things worse, Naqíb Khán fetched a copy of the Muwaṭṭá of Imám Málik, and pointed to a Tradition in the book, which the Imám had cited as a proof against the legality of Mut'ah marriages.

Another night Qází Ya'qúb, Shaikh Abu-l-Fazl, Ḥájí Ibráhím, and a few other Ulamá were invited to meet His Majesty at the house near the Anúptaláo tank. Shaikh Abu-l-Fazl had been selected as the opponent, and laid before the Emperor several traditions regarding Mut'ah marriages, which his father had collected, and the discussion commenced. At this juncture the Emperor sent for me also, and (P. 209) asked me what my opinion was on this subject. I said: “The conclusion to be drawn from so many contradictory Traditions and sectarian customs is in a word this:— Imám Málik and the Shíahs are unanimous in looking upon Mut'ah marriages as legal; Imám Sháfi'í and the great Imám^212a (the mercy of God be on them both!) look upon Mut'ah marriages as illegal. But should at any time a Qází of the Málikí sect decide that a Mut'ah is legal, it is legal according to the common belief, even for Sháfi'ís and Ḥanafís. Every other opinion on the subject is idle talk.” This pleased His Majesty very much. Qází Ya'qúb said something unintellegible. I reminded him that, when a matter is doubtful, it is generally in the power of the Qází to decide. “So what do you say about it?” And in reference to this appeal of mine I brought forward the question of reading the Fátiḥah according to the martyred Imám, and I adduced many other confirmations, and as briefly as possible the story of the going of Shaikh Bihá-ud-dín Zakaryáí of Multán to Baghdád to visit the Shaikh of Shaikhs Shiháb-ud-dín Saharúrdí (God bless the spirits of them both!), and of that great man's beginning to read the Fátiḥah according to the Sháfi'í school, and of the suspicions of the ordinary Ulamá against them, and of the bringing forward of traditions which allowed it, and of the matter being eventually decided by the Qázís of Dihlí. So I maintained that it is allowable. Then Qází Ya'qúb helplessly said after me: “What shall we say? God be praised it is allowed.” The Emperor then said, “I herewith appoint Qází Ḥusain 'Arab Málikí as Qází before whom I lay this case concerning my wives, and you Ya'qúb are from this day suspended.” This was immediately obeyed, and Qází Ḥusain on the spot gave the decree which made Mut'ah marriages legal. The veteran lawyers such as Makhdúm-ul-Mulk, Qází Ya'qúb, and others, were the losers by this affair, and from this moment their power began to wane. The result was that a few days later Mauláná Jalál-ud-dín of Multán, who was a profound (P. 210) and learned man, whose grant had been transferred, was ordered from Ágrah,²¹³ and appointed Qází of the realm. Qází Ya'qúb was sent to Gaur as district Qází. From this day forward the road of opposition and difference in opinion lay open, and remained so until His Majesty was appointed Mujtahid of the Empire: and so on, and on, and on, until he reached any degree of exaltation!

At this time Shaikh 'Abd-un-Nabí and Mukhdúm-ul-Mulk were ordered to examine into the matter, and to decide the amount of tax to be levied on Hindús, and farmáns were issued in all directions; but this order quickly disappeared like a reflection on the water.

In these days His Majesty once asked how people would like it, if he ordered the words Alláh Akbar to be cut on the Imperial seal, and the dies of his coins. Most said that the people would like it very much, but Ḥájí Ibráhím objected, and said, that the phrase had an ambiguous meaning,^213a and that the Emperor might substitute the verse of the Qur'án Lazikrulláhi Akbaru,^213b because it involved no ambiguity. But the Emperor was much displeased, and said it was surely sufficient, that no man who felt his weakness would claim Divinity; he merely looked to the sound of the words, and he had never thought that a thing could be carried to such an extreme.

In this year, before the decision about Mut'ah marriages, the Emperor appointed Sayyid Muḥammad, Mír 'Adl, for whom he entertained the highest respect, to go to Bakkar, and presented him with one of his own swords, and a horse, and a dress. Some time after arriving there he died (the mercy of God be upon him!). After his death a dress came into vogue, which to this day has never looked well on any one's figure, one would say that it was as bizarre as the age! Some people mentioned that Ḥájí Ibráhím of Sarhind had given a fatwá, by which he made it legal to wear red and yellow cloths,²¹⁴ quoting at the same time a Tradition as his proof (P. 211). On hearing this the Mír 'Adl in the imperial presence called him an accursed wretch, abused him, and lifted up his stick to strike him, when the Ḥájí by some subterfuges managed to get rid of him.

During this year there arrived at Court Hakím Abu-l-Fatḥ, Hakím Humáyún (who subsequently changed his name to Humáyún Qulí, and lastly to Hakím Humán), and Núr-ud-dín, who as poet is known under the name of Qarárí. They were brothers, and came from Gílán, near the Caspian Sea. The eldest brother, whose manners and address were exceedingly winning, obtained in a short time great ascendancy over the Emperor. He flattered him openly, adapted himself to every change in the religious ideas of His Majesty, or even went in advance of them, and thus became in a short time a most intimate friend of the Emperor.

Soon after there came from Persia Mullá Muḥammad of Yazd, who got the name of Yazídí, and attaching himself to the Emperor commenced openly to revile the Çaḥabah,^214a told queer stories about them, and tried hard to make him a Shí'ah. But he was soon left behind by Bír Baṛ—that bastard!—and by Shaikh Abu-l-Fazl, and Ḥakím Abu-l-Fatḥ, who successfully turned the Emperor from the Islám, and led him to reject inspiration, prophetship, the miracles of the prophet and of the saints, and even the whole law, so that I could no longer bear their company. Their eventual fates shall be told, each in its proper place, if God (He is exalted!) will.

At the same time His Majesty ordered Qází Jalál-ud-dín, and several Ulamá, to write a commentary on the Qur'án; but this led to great dissentions among them.

Deb Chand Rájah Manjholah—that fool!—once set the whole Court in laughter by saying that Alláh after all had great respect for cows,²¹⁵ else the cow would not have been mentioned in the first chapter of the Qur'án.^215a

His Majesty had also the early history of the Islám read out to him, and soon began to think less of the Çaḥabah. Soon after, the observance of the five prayers, and the fasts, and the belief in everything connected with the prophet, were put down as vain superstitions, and man's reason was acknowledged as the only basis of religion. Portuguese (P. 212) priests also came frequently; and His Majesty enquired into the articles of their belief, which are based upon reason:—

“Whatever imagination their intellect invents,
God laughs at the intellect of people of that creed.”

And in this year the Emperor sent for Shaikh Badr-ud-dín to come to the 'Ibádat-khánah. He was the son of Shaikh Islám Chishtí. He was much given to prayer, and having given up all attendance on princes, had become his father's successor, and had found favour with God, and become a recluse, and occupied himself only in fasting, zeal, repeating God's name, exercising poverty, and reading the Qur'án. Since the old customs of respect in sitting, rising, and speaking were no longer observed, he committed many breaches of etiquette, and other misfortunes coming in succession, after three or four years, without saying anything to any one, he left the Court in sheer disappointment and despair, and went to Ajmír, and thence to Gujrát, where he took ship alone to make a pilgrimage to Makkah. There he fasted, till he obtained spiritual union with God, and in the hot air with naked feet performed the circuits, so that he attained the honour of reaching the heavenly Ka'bah, and enjoyed union with the Lord of Glory²¹⁶ (O God make me a partaker thereof!):—

O Kamál thou art gone
From the Ka'bah to the Door of the Friend.
A thousand times Áfrín!^216a
Thou art gone like a man.

In this year a learned Bráhman, Shaikh B'háwan, had come from the Dak'hin and turned Musalmán, when His Majesty gave me the order to translate the At'harban. Several of the religious precepts of this book resemble the laws of the Islám. As in translating I found many difficult passages, which Shaikh B'háwan could not interpret either, I reported the same to His Majesty, who ordered Shaikh Faizí, and then Ḥájí Ibráhím, to translate it. The latter, though willing, (P. 213) did not write anything. Among the precepts of the At'harban there is one which says that no man will be saved unless he reads a certain passage. This passage contains many times the letter l, and resembles very much our Lá illáh illa' lláh. Besides I found that a Hindú under certain circumstances may eat cow-flesh; and also that Hindús bury their dead, but do not burn them. With such passages the Shaikh used to defeat other Bráhmans in argument, and they had in fact led him to embrace the Islám (God be thanked for this!).

In the month Sha'bán^216b of this year Gulbadan Bégum, daughter of Bábar Pádsháh and paternal aunt to the Emperor, who had, in the year nine hundred and eighty-two (982) in company with Salímah Sulṭán Bégum daughter of Núr-ud-dín Muḥammed Mirzá (who was formerly wife of Bairám Khán, Khán Khánán, and afterwards entered the Ḥaram of the Emperor), left Ágrah for Ḥijáz and tarried one year in Gujrát, and attained that felicity,^216c and thus performed the four pilgrimages.²¹⁷ On her return, she remained another whole year at 'Aden through shipwreck, and arrived in Hindústán in the year nine hundred and ninety (990). And from that time it became an established practice, that every five or six years one of the nobles of the Court was made Leader of the pilgrims, and a general permission was given to the people, so that at great public expense, with gold and goods and rich presents, the Emperor sent them on a pilgrimage to Makkah. But this was afterwards abandoned.

In this year Mírzá Sulaimán, who from the time of the reign of Bábar had held absolute rule over Badakhshán—after that his promising son 'Ibráhím Mírzá had been slain in war with Pír Muḥam-mad Khán Uzbek in Balkh, and the decease^217a of Walí Ni'mat Bégum, and after that various acts of a perverse and rebellious nature had taken place on the part of Sháh Rukh Mírza, son of Ibráhím Mírzá, who had gone into rebellion with a view to usurping the whole government of Badakhshán—first of all came to Kábul hoping to obtain help from Mírzá (P. 214) Muḥammad Ḥakím.^217b When his hope failed to be realized, he requested that an escort might be given him to conduct him through the dangerous districts as far as the Indus. The Mírzá met his request with the greatest urbanity and politeness, and appointed him an escort, which deserted him at the first stage and returned to Kábul, and in accordance with:—

“May it not be that thou remain long in this world!
For old age is humiliation, and nonentity,”

taking his daughter with him in full confidence in God he travelled into Hind, alone and unattended. At several places the Afgháns opposed his progress by force of arms; but the Mírzá, showing the most intrepid bravery, and wounded with an arrow, after a hundred troubles arrived at the river Indus. Thence he sent two or three horsemen, men born in his house, with a petition to the Court. Then the Emperor sent 50,000 rupees and abundant other necessaries, and a team of horses of pure Arab breed by the hand of Aghá Khán the treasurer to give the Mírzá an honourable reception. And before this Rájah Bhagwán Dás, governor of Láhór, in accordance with a farmán had gone to the Indus to meet him, and was showing him day by day suitable hospitality. The Amírs and governors also of every parganna and town on the way, in accordance with the recognised laws of hospitality promoted his wish to go forward. In this manner they brought the Mírzá [to the Court].

Meanwhile A'zam Khán²¹⁸ (who is also called Khán-i A'zam) was sent for from Gujrát to appear at the Court, with which command he hastened to comply, and did homage at Fatḥpur on the 4th of Rajab^218a in the year nine hundred and eighty-three (983). One day he broached the subject of the new regulations about branding horses, and the management of tax-collecting, and of contracting for the army, and of the distressed condition of agriculturists and other acts of oppression. Everything that he knew about these things he mentioned with unqualified disapprobation. For some time the Emperor, from old habit, could not endure this unpleasant plain-speaking, and ordered (P. 215) that for some time he should be forbidden the royal presence, and appointed officers to prevent any of the nobles from visiting him. After some days he sent him to Ágrah, that, closing the door of egress and ingress in the face of mankind, he might practise the retirement of a monastic solitude in his own garden. Now Mírzá Sulaimán having arrived at Mattra^218b by continued journeys from Láhór, Tarsún Muḥammad Khán, and Qází Nizám Badakhshí (to whom the Mírzá had given the title of Qází-Khán, and who had obtained from the Court the title of Ghází-Khán) came from the great Amírs to meet him. And first of all the nobles, and magnates of the Court, and the pillars of the State, and afterwards the Emperor himself, with the assembled Amírs went out five cosses to meet him. And on that day 5,000 elephants, some with housings of European velvet, and some with Turkish cloth of gold, and some with chains of gold and of silver, and with black and white fringes hung on their heads and necks, were drawn up in line on both sides: also Arabian and Persian horses with golden saddles of like splendour. And between each pair of elephants they placed a car of cheetahs with golden collars, and coverings of velvet and fine linen, and an oxen-car with fillets of embroidered gold. And the whole face of the wilderness, in this manner, became like a vision of Spring, and the desert and hill-country like the reflection of a tulip-bed. And when he saw the Emperor afar off, he alighted with ceremony from his horse, and ran forward to meet him with saláms. The Emperor with politeness quickly descended from his saddle to the ground, and would not permit him to pay any of the formal acts of politeness, and customary humiliations. After embracing him he remounted, and ordered that he should ride with him, and occupied himself in making the kindest enquiries after his welfare. In the palace [called] Anúptaláo²¹⁹ (the door, walls, and interior of which they had furnished with painted canopies, brocade, and splendid carpets, and golden (P. 216) vessels and all other kinds of furniture in abundance) he gave him a place by his side on the throne of Sultanate, and also summoned the Prince, his son, and introduced him to him. After they had finished their repast he granted his request for assistance, and promised him aid with such money and troops, as might enable him to reduce Badakhshán, and had apartments prepared for the Mírzá in the tower of the Hatyápúl,^219a where was the Naqárah-khánah.^219b Of an evening he used often to go to the ibádat-khánah, and hold converse with the Shaikhs and sages and cultivate ecstacy, and sometimes loud shouts were heard proceeding from him: and prayer with the congregation was never neglected by him. One day, after leading in all the other prayers, I considered that I had said sufficient prayers when the Mírzá objected to me that I had not recited the Fátiḥah. I said: “In the time of the Prophet (God bless him, and give him peace!) the reciting of the Fátiḥah was not customary; and some of the traditions have pronounced it to be of questionable authority.” He said: “Do you mean to say then that those who read it are not in the region of knowledge, nor wise men?” I replied: “We have to do with the Written Law, not with [possible] forgeries.” The Emperor after this commanded that I should recite it. I complied, although I showed him the tradition which pronounced it as questionable.²²⁰

At this time [the Emperor] revived an old Chaghatáí custom. For some days, in order to exhibit it to Mírzá Sulaimán, they spread royal tables in the Audience-hall. And the officers of high grade^220a gathered the soldiers together, and took to themselves the trouble of arranging the customary food. But when the Mírzá departed, all these [revived customs] departed too.

Khán Jahán, commandant of the Panjáb, was ordered to take with him 5,000 warlike mounted archers, and putting himself at the service of the Mírzá to go to Badakhshán, and deliver the country from Mírzá Sháh-Rúkh and hand it over to Mírzá Sulaimán. But as a matter of fact the aspect of affairs took a somewhat different complexion.

Meanwhile news came that Mun'im Khán, Khán Khánán, after making peace with Dáúd in the midst of the rainy-season, under the guidance of Fate, passed over the Ganges from Tándah (the climate of which is temperate), and made the inhabitants (P. 217) migrate to Gaur, and ordered that that town (which was formerly the Capital of Bengál, and the climate of which is debilitating and foul) should be inhabited: and all that the Amírs could say against it availed nothing:—

“O wonder! that ye had no misgivings of heart, no sadness of soul,
On account of this foul air, these noxious waters.”

Various diseases, the names of which it would be difficult to know, attacked their constitutions; and every day hosts upon hosts of people, having played out their existence, bade farewell to one another; and how many thousands soever were told off for that country, it cannot be stated that a hundred ever returned to their homes:—

“What a fatal thing, O God, may a place become!”

Things came to such a pass that the living were unable to bury the dead, and threw them head-foremost into the river. Every hour, and every minute, news came to the ear of the Khán Khánán of the death of Amírs, and yet, for all that, he did not himself become infected. And, on account of the arrogance of his disposition, no one had the power to remove the cotton-wool of ignorance from his ears, and make him leave the place:—

“If I give advice to my heart in love, it is taken ill.
I will leave it in her street to hit its head against the wall.”

After a time the constitution of the Khán Khánán, Mun'im Khán, began to deviate from its usual course of equilibrium, and, at over eighty years of age, after completing the first ten days of the month Rajab²²¹ of the year nine hundred and eighty-three (983) he rendered his account to the Guardian of Paradise, or to the Guardian of Hell (God knows!); and all that rank and glory, and that grandeur and perfection became a mere dream and fantasy:—

“Since thou canst not place any confidence in thy life,
What matters it whether it be one, or one hundred years?

(P. 218) Since there is no perpetuity in life,
What matters power,^221a or servitude?”

Since he had no heirs, the officials seized all that wealth and gains (which had taken so many years to accumulate) for the imperial treasury, ‘Announce to the wealth of a miser reverse of fortune, or an heir:—

“How well has a clever speaker said,
Gold attracts gold, and treasure treasure!”

Then, in accordance with the well-known saying—‘In a place without trees a Palma Christí²²² is [looked on as] a shady and fruitful tree’ the Amírs, on this principle, looked to Sháham Khán Jaláír as their leader:—

“The death of the great has made me great.”

But, when the news reached the Court, the Emperor appointed the Khán Zamán, in the room of the Khán Khánán, to the Command in Bengál, and presented him with a gold-embroidered cloak, and vest of gold, and jewelled sword-belt, and a horse with a guilded saddle. Then whether at his own request, or for the peace of the kingdom, it was settled that Mírzá Sulaimán should go by sea on a pilgrimage to Ḥijáz: and having signed a draught for him of 50,000 rupees upon the imperial treasury, and given him another sum of 20 rupees from the local treasury of Gujrát, the Emperor gave him leave to depart. And Qulíj Khán he appointed as his escort, to see him off safely from the port of Súrat. During this same year he reached Makkah and Al Madínah, and by the help of God's grace and faithfulness he returned by way of 'Iráq, and was, as was right, reinstated in the sovereignty of Badakhshán:—

“Thou hast never seen that road, therefore they never showed it thee,
Else, who has ever knocked at that door, and they opened not to him.”

On his return he gave one of his daughters to Muzaffar Ḥusain Mírzá, commandant of Qandahár, who at that time had come to Láhór, and had attached himself to the Court; and another daughter he gave to another man.

In this year the late^222a Ḥusain Khán (for whom, of all men of superior understanding, the Author had an old and strong attachment, and the most perfectly sincere friendly relations) through infirmity caused by the appearance (P. 219) of that stage and mark, which is the destroyer of pleasures, and the vanquisher of the warrior, after the buffeting of all those troubles, which had passed over him, through apparent madness, but real wisdom, left Kánt-u-Golah with a band of his friends and intimates (who, whether in the flood of fire, or in the billows of the sea, had never in any wise deserted him), and, passing through the confines of Badáún and Sambhal, and crossing the river Ganges, arrived in the Dúáb. Then, after plundering, the mawásán²²³ and disaffected of that neighbourhood (who, deeming the payment of rent unnecessary, never used to return any answer to their feudal lord, so that you may guess what happened to the helpless, duped, non-plussed, dishonoured tax-collectors) took a moon-light flit to the base of the northern mountains. This was a place he had all his life a hankering after, and kept it, as a mine of silver and gold in full view: continually concocting in the crucible of his guileless breast (which was large enough to contain a world) visions of golden and silver idol-temples^223a and bricks of gold and silver. Then, without having received any orders authorizing him to do so, he turned to Basant-púr (an elevated and well-known place in the hill-district), and invested the place. Malik-ush-Sharaq, the tax-collector of T'hánésar^223b shut the door of the fort: and the other tax-collectors in like manner, in a fright, having run into their holes, spread a false report that he was in rebellion, and sent a petition to that effect to the Court. The Emperor enquired of Sa'íd Khán Moghúl (who was a connection and very old friend of Ḥusain Khán, and who had just come from Multán) whether this report was true; this he firmly denied. But when the Emperor asked him to give, on the part of Ḥusain Khán, a bond in writing for the cattle and goods which Ḥusain Khán had carried off from the agriculturists he utterly declined to do so, and all that former love and friendship changed into an affection of being utterly unacquainted with him:—

“These deceitful friends, whom you see,
Are but flies about a sweetmeat.
Before you they are truer to you than the light,
Behind your back they are more evanescent than a shadow.”

(P. 220) At last he sent Sayyid Háshim, son of Muḥammad Bárha, and the sons of Mír Sayyid Muḥammad, the Judge of Amráhah (before he dismissed him to Bakkar), with a body of the Amírs to operate against²²⁴ him. While he was fighting in the hill-district of Basant-púr he received a severe musket-wound under the shoulder-blade, besides losing a host of his veterans. Accordingly, without having accomplished anything, he turned back, and getting into a boat he went on the river Ganges towards Patyálí (which was the native place of his kith and kin). He got as far as Gaḍha Maktésar where they came on him, disabled by his wound, and, in accordance with their orders, brought him to Ágrah, and deposited him in the house of Çádiq Muḥammad Khán (between whom and Ḥusain Khán there had existed from the beginning of the conquest of India, or rather from Qandahár—times onward, the kindliest feeling, and most sincere friendship) Shaikh Bínáí, the physician, being sent for by the Emperor's command, came to try and heal him. But on his representing that the wound was of a frightful character the Emperor sent for Ḥakím 'Ayn-ul-mulk. And the Author, having received the Emperor's permission, went with the physician to see him, in order to keep up my old relations with him. I found him, and while a moment, by reason of my sorrow, seemed to me like days, I composed these words of friendship, sorrowful and mingled with tears:—

“Wherever I and the loved-one met together,
For fear of the malevolent we bit our lips.
Without the intervention of ear or lip, by means of heart and eye,
Many a word was there, that we said and heard.”

Meanwhile the imperial surgeons came to operate on him. They thrust a probe into the wound to the depth of a span, and probed it mercilessly. But that man of fortitude swallowed the agony, like a sweet draught, and neither frowned (P. 221), nor shewed any sign of pain, but smiled without dissimulation:—

“My face is calm in spite of the bitter words of men,
Poison is in my mouth, but my face is wreathed in smiles.”

And that was my last sight of him until the Judgment-day, and my very last farewell of him. I heard two or three days after I arrived at Fatḥ-púr, that his sickness had turned to a flux. He was so refined in the crucible of abstinence, that what remained of impurity in him, by reason of human nature and the infirmity of the flesh, entirely left him, and the alloy of his nature becoming pure gold, he became purified by fire, for ‘Trial is to the Saints what the flame is to gold’:—

“All carnal attributes have departed from Mas'ud Beg,
That of him which was Soul is become that very Soul again.”

And—that he might attain the full felicity of a true and regular martyrdom, in accordance with the authentic tradition: ‘He that is afflicted with the colic is a martyr,’ in that distress of expatriation, and grief of exile, and trouble of penury, together with the accident of a wound from Infidels received in a hostile country, and the distraction of relaxed liver, he removed his baggage from this transitory existence to the eternal Paradise: and the Bird of his Soul escaping from the Cage of this World, that prison of the Believer, at the invitation: “Return thou, O soul, unto thy Lord, well pleased and wellpleasing,”²²⁵ flew towards the Rose-bed, to dwell there in “rest, and in gracious favour, and a garden of delights:”^225a

“None ever came into the world, who remained there,
Except he, of whom a good name remained.”

Although he gave away whole worlds of gold to the deserving and the needy, yet when he took his departure to the other world [he was so poor, that] his excellence of regal qualities, exalted in degrees, and holy in his attributes, Khwájah Muḥammad Yaḥyá Naqshbandí (the Spirit of God is his Spirit!) brought the expenses of his burial, and with all honour^225b and respect deposited him in peace in the strangers' burial-place at Ágrah:—

“How can I see him sleeping in the dust,

(P. 222) Him, who has raised me from the dust!”

Thence he was carried to the cemetery of Patyálí, which became his burial-place, and they made him like a buried treasure: and Ganj-bakhsh²²⁶ ‘Bestower of treasure’ was found to give the date. And when, on my following the Mír 'Adal^226a (who is now departed himself to the mercy of God) on his journey to Bakkar, I told him of the decease of this man, so rich of heart but poor in purse, he burst into tears, and began to extol his purity and ability, and said: “If any one wish to practice walking unspotted from the world, he ought to act and walk, just as Ḥusain Khán acted and walked:”—

“I am the slave of that man, who, under the blue sky,
Is free from whatever partakes of the tinge of dependance.”

It so happened that this interview also, with the Mír, became memorable to the author: and from the expression made use of by that great man on that occasion, viz., “All my friends are departed and I know not whether I shall ever see you again,” you would have said that his star was sinking; and so it in fact was:—

“As long as in this flock there remains a single sheep,
Fate will not desist^226b from the butcher-trade.”

Let it not be forgotten that the author enjoyed the society of that unique one^226c of the age for the space of about nine years, and [but] one piece of opposition (though to use so strong a term in connection with him were a shame, and a dire injustice) did I meet with from him, and that was in military matters, and the affairs of this world. And among the many venerable persons and spiritual directors of the age, who still remain, I do not find a tithe of a tenth part of that I found in him, [who was] in the Sunní section [of Islám] pure in faith, and in purity of conduct perfectly sincere and upright, in spirit without an equal, in valour peerless, in courtesy alike in his beheavour both to small and great, and in disinterestedness without an equal in the age, in detachment from worldly objects stainless, in active service untiring, in dependence on God without compare, in asceticism worthy of a hundred praises; but if he had lived in these days he would hardly have been able to have attained such a character for orthodox and sincere religion.²²⁷ (P. 223.) At the time that he was absolute governor of Láhor (I have it from trustworthy people), his food consisted of barley-bread, his object being to follow the example of the Seal of the Prophets and best of Apostles^227a (the blessings of God be on him, and on them all!): and ever so many thousands of mosques and ancient se-pulchres he repaired, restored, or rebuilt. One day it happened that a Hindú in the dress of a Muslim came into his assembly, and he with his usual genuine humility, taking him for a Muslim, stood up to greet that Hindú. When he found out the true state of the case, he felt ashamed and ordererd that from that day forward all Hindús should sew a patch of stuff of a different colour on their garments near the bottom of the sleeve, that there might be a mark to distinguish between Muslims and Káfirs.^227b For this reason he was commonly known among the people by the title of Tukriya, for they call a patch tukrá,^227c which is another name for the Arabic word Ghiyár^227d (with kasra under the dotted 'ain, and ye with two dots below,^227e

so that it is of the form of the word diyár).²²⁸ On another occasion he ordered that the Káfirs, in accordance with the requirements of the Holy Law, should not ride on saddles, but should sit on a packsaddle. When on a journey, out of deference to the Sayyids, and men of learning and excellence (who used to attend him, and to greet whom he, when seated, used always to rise), he would never use a four-post bedstead: nor would he voluntarily omit saying the Prayers in the night any more than the Friday prayers in the mosque. And, although he had a jágír worth lacs and krors, he never had more than one horse with him, and even that he would sometimes give away to meet some expense, or for some worthy object, and so whether on a journey or at home would be content to go afoot, until one of his friends, or of his servants, brought him another. And a poet in a qaçídah said:—

“The Khán is bankrupt, and the slave is wealthy.”

He had taken an oath that he would never amass treasure, and whenever gold was brought before him he would say: “You would say that it is an arrow or a javelin that pierces my side” (P. 224), and he was never at ease until he had given it away. And sometimes it would be observed that, when the Government had assigned some fifteen to thirty or forty thousand rupees on the pargana,^228a he, regardless of this, would sign orders for the soldiers and for other expenses also, so that both^228b would get an equal share. He also had a vow that every slave who came into his possession should have the first day to himself. He never had anything to do with any women except his three legally married wives. He looked on nuts as a sort of intoxicating food, and as therefore forbidden by the religion. One day the Shaikh-ul-hidyah of Khairábád (who was one of the leading Shaikhs on the high way of direction and guidance of posterity) being exercised at the Khán's voluntary poverty, and expenditure, and squandering of property, and unnecessary presents, and extreme extravagance in the distribution of pensions and grants,^228c

endeavoured to urge him to a change in those habits. But this advice was not in harmony with his disposition, so becoming angry he said: “It is simply a question between obeying your order in the matter, and following the tradition of the Prophet; what choice can there be? On the other hand we expect from such as you religious guides, that, if there be any root of avarice or desire for the things of this world in us, you should show us the way by which we may eradicate and cut off such a matter; and not that you should be the ones to lend a false glitter to the accessories of transient trifles, and should make us avaricious, so as to sink among the lowest of the low in the unworthy pursuit of greed and avarice:—

“Wealth never remains in the hand of the free,
Nor patience in the heart of a lover, nor water in a sieve.”

Although the author was never with him on any serious battlefields, still I was his companion in many jungle-warfares, and comfortless journeys. And I observed in him a resolution and a courage, such as perhaps those renowned heroes, who have left their names emblazoned on the pages of history, may have possessed; and not to mention his immense physical strength (P. 225) and prowess—they might have boasted of the same courage as that lion-like warrior. And in the day of battle the Fátiḥah²²⁹ which he read was to this effect: “Either martyrdom or victory.”^229a And whenever people told him that he ought to put victory before martyrdom, he used to say: “My desire is rather to see the glorious departed, than the lords who remain alive.” And such was his liberality, that if by any possible supposition the treasures of the world and the Sultanate of the whole face of the earth could have become accessible to him, and have been delivered over to him, the very first day he would have become a bankrupt. And this quit'ah became true in his day:—

“He did right in not making both worlds²³⁰ manifest,
The peerless Lord, dispenser of justice, without equal or compare:
Else in a moment of liberality he would have given away both,
And the Creature would have nothing left to hope for from the High God.”

And sometimes it would so happen that he would purchase forty or fifty horses, Arabs, and of mixed breed, and Turkish, at the price at which the dealer first offered them, and would say “You and God know that:—

‘A true merchant never demands too much.’”

And afterwards at some social gathering would give them all away to his friends, and then apologize for so doing. The very first time that the writer became acquainted with him, at the time when the army of Garha-Katangah was being got ready at Ágrah, he presented me with an Arab horse, which he had bought for 500 rupees, and in accordance with:—

“The king of Hormúz never saw me, and without a word from me
He conferred on me a hundred favours;
The king of Yazd saw me, and I lauded him,
But he did not give me anything.”

What can one do?

“Speak of a person, as you find him.”

(P. 226). When he removed his baggage from this transitory world, he was in debt to the amount of a lac and a half of rupees, and more; but, on account of the numerous good offices which he had during his lifetime performed for his creditors, they of their own free will and pleasure tore up his bonds, and went away perfectly satisfied, with prayers for the pardon, acceptance, peace, and eternal happiness of his soul upon their lips. And they did not on account of his liabilities bring any lawsuit or litigation against his children (such as is the usual bequest of deceased debtors):—

“There are Muḥammads and Muḥammads:
The live one killed me, and the dead one revived me.”²³¹

In a word how can I, when there is such uninimity of opinion on the subject, find the ability to eulogize such numerous virtues as his. But since I spent in his service the best of this life, which is the flower of youth, and not the mere dregs of life, which is the time of the worthlessness of old age and bewilderment, and since through his kind patronage I have got on so exceedingly well, and am become one of the renowned of the age, and a man of mark in the world, and have obtained the blessing (in so far as it is possible) of contributing to the comfort of the servants of the Lord of earth and heaven, therefore, in gratitude to God for his many favours and goodnesses towards me, have I composed this memorial section, in commemoration of some of his good qualities, though it be but one of a thousand, but a few out of many:—

“It is not that I confer any honour on Muḥammad by mentioning him,
But rather my words that are honoured by mentioning Mu#x1E25;ammad.”

And trusting in the truth of the saying ‘To commemorate the righteous brings down mercy from God,’ I hope on account of this commemoration of his virtues to become a recipient of the all-embracing mercy of God:—

Repeat to us the mention of Na'mán,^231a verily the mention of him
Is like musk, which diffuses its odour as often as thou agitatest it.

So that it may come to pass in accordance with that old time which I spent with him, that my resurrection may also be with him; as has been intended, and involved in futurity: “And this is not difficult with God.”^231b

And in this year the Emperor, on account of the beauty of my voice, which was comparable with the sweet voice, and ravishing tones (P. 227) of a parrot, made me the Reader of the Prayers on Wednesday evenings, and entered me among the seven Imáms.²³² And the duty of summoning the congregation on that day and night he committed to Khwájah Doulat Názir Ghaif Shadíd (a eunuch, neither man, nor woman,) and appointed him a stipend on the condition that he should be present at the five hours of prayer.^232a

At this time Khwájah Amín-ud-dín Muḥammad (known as Khwájah Amíná) passed from the world, and the abundant wealth which he left behand came into the royal treasury.

On the 17th of the month Zí-Qadah^232b of this year, the Emperor's journey to Ajmír took place, and at one of the stages he, according to his usual custom on such occasions, went on foot on a pilgrimage to the Sacred Sepulchre. On the 9th of this month the Sun entered Aries:—

“The Workman, the Sun, when he begins anew his work,
His entrance into Aries makes glorious the rising Morn.”

This was the commencement of the twenty-second year from the accession. At this time news arrived, that after the death of Mun'im Khán, Khán Khánán, the Amírs being unable any longer to withstand the attacks of Dáúd, had retired on Ḥájípúr and Patnah from Gaur and Tánḍah, and that Khán Jahán, because his army was still at Láhor, was advancing but slowly. Accordingly the Emperor wrote a farmán, and entrusted it to Turk Subhán Qulí to bear to Khán Jahán, ordering him to hasten up as quickly as possible. And Subhán Qulí performed his mission, covering a distance of nearly a thousand cosses in twenty-two days. At the same time news came to Ágrah, that Khán Jahán, on arriving at Garhi, had fought an obstinate battle with the Afgháns of Dáúd, and had defeated them, and was still advancing.

During the first part of the blessed month Muḥarram^232c of the year nine hundred and eighty-four (984) the Emperor introduced Mán Singh, son of Bhagvan Dás, into the burial place of the saint Mu'ín (may its occupants attain a happy resurrection!) and treating him with kindness, and showing him the greatest favour, presented him with a robe of honour, and a horse with (P. 228) all its appointments, and ordered him to proceed to the hostile district of Kokanda and Kombalmír,²³³ which was a dependancy belonging to Ráná Kíká. And 5,000 regular troopers, partly from his own bodyguard, and partly belonging to the Amírs who were in command,^233a he appointed and dispatched as his force. And he sent with him Áçaf Khán Mir-bakhshí,^233b and Ghází Khán Badakhshí, and Sháh Ghází Khán Tabrízí, and Mujáhid Khán, and Sayyid Aḥmad Khán, and Sayyid Háshim Bárha, and Mihtar Khán a servant of the Family, and other Amírs. And when the author, in the train of Qází Khán and Áçaf Khán, arrived at about three cosses from Ajmír, and ardour for fighting against the infidels kindled in my breast, I represented the state of the case to the High Çadr, Shaikh 'Abd-un-Nabí, Shaikh-ul-Islám, and made interest with him to obtain leave of absence from the Emperor. Although he granted my request he left the presentation of the petition to his Wakíl, Sayyid 'Abd-ur-Rasúl, a meddlesome sort of a fellow. And, when I found that the matter hung fire far too long, I sought the intervention of Naqíb Khán (with whom I was on brotherly terms). At first he made objections, and said: “If a Hindú had not been the leader of this army, I should myself have been the first to have asked permission to join it.” But I represented strongly to the said Khán, that I looked on any true servant of the Emperer as a fit leader for myself, and what did it matter, whether it were Mán Singh, or another? And that the purity of intention was what one should look to. Then Naqíb Khán took the opportunity, when the Emperor was going in high state to visit the shrine of that Diffuser of Light,^233c to present my petition. At first the Emperor said: “Why he has just been appointed one of the Court-Imáms, how can he go?” Naqíb Khán represented that I had a very strong desire to take part in a holy war. So the Emperor sent for me, and asked me: “Are you in earnest?” I answered: “Yes.” Then he said, “For what (P. 229) reason?” I humbly replied: “I have the presumption to desire to dye these black mustachios and beard in blood through loyalty to your Majesty's person:—

Thine is a perilous service, but I wish to undertake it,
That I may gain renown, or death,²³⁴ for thy sake.”
He replied, “If God (He is exalted) will, thou
Shalt return the bearer of news of victory.”

And when I put out my hand towards the couch in order to kiss his foot, he withdrew it; but, just as I was going out of the audience chamber, he called me back, and filling both his hands he presented me with a sum of 56 ashrafí,^234a and bid me farewell. And when I went to take leave of Shaikh 'Abd-un-Nabí, who reached the very acme of kindness in removing all my former obstacles, he said: “Be sure that at the moment of the meeting of the two armies in battle, which according to a sure tradition of the Prophet (may the best of blessings and peace he upon him!) is the most favourable time and place for the acceptance of prayer, be sure, said he, that you remember me for good in your prayer: do not forget.” I consented; and, having prayed the Fátḥah, joined that army with horse and arms in company with a number of friends of one mind with myself in the matter:—

‘Every day on the march, and each night a new halting-place.’

And this journey from beginning to end turned out most successful and prosperous, till eventually I came back to Fatḥpúr with news of victory, and brought with me the well-known elephant (the subject of dispute)²³⁵ form Ráná Kíká.

On the twentieth of Muḥarram^235a in this year having arranged the affairs of the army of Kokandah, the Emperor started on his way back to the Seat of Felicity Fatḥpúr, and on the first of the month of Çafr^235b he reached his usual dwelling-place. At this time messengers brought word that after the Khán Jahán had left Garhí,^235c Dáúd had advanced from Tándah to a place called Ág-Maḥall, on one side of which is the river Ganges, and on the other side it joins the mountains. And that there he had taken up his position, and strengthened it with a trench, and fort, and was every day making sallies thence. And that Khwájah 'Abd-ulláh, (P. 230) grandson of Khwájah Aḥrár (may God sanctify his glorious tomb!) had fallen after making repeated and vigorous attacks on the trench. And that on the other side Khán Khánán (?) the leader of the Afgháns had been slain. Upon this the Emperor wrote a farmán to Zafr Khán, commandant of Patnah and Bihár, ordering him to collect all the forces of that district and to proceed to the assistance of Khán Jahán.^235d

In the month Rabí'ul-awwal^235e of this year Mírzá Muḥammad Sharíf, son of Mír 'Abd-ul-Latíf Qazwíní, who was a young man of the very greatest ability, and sharpness of intellect, and possessed of a sweet disposition, and a sweet voice, and endowed with all sorts of perfections, while playing at Chogán^235f with the Emperor in the open space of Fatḥpúr, fell from his horse, and immediately gave up his soul of the Beloved.^235g And a great cry arose in the city and neighbourhood, and this report^235h spread on all sides. The Emperor was an eye-witness of this accident, and did not know what to do. Meanwhile Quṭb-ud-dín Muḥammad Atgah seized the rein of his Majesty's horse, and said: “My Lord, what are you doing here? go away.” And so he turned his rein towards the palace. Then he sent farmáns with assurances of the soundness of his health and strength to the Amírs of the frontiers, so that the panic was stayed. Of the number of these farmáns one arrived at Kokandah, addressed to Mán Singh, and Áçaf Khán, with the contents aforesaid. And so that grief of ours was changed into rejoicing.

During the first part of the month Rabi'ul-awwal of the year nine hundred and eighty-four (984) took place the victory of Ko-kandah. And the following is a succinct account of it. When Mán Singh and Áçaf Khán with the army of Ajmír, on their way to Mandalgaṛh, arrived by forced marches at the town of Darah, seven cosses from Kokandah, the Ráná came out to oppose them. Then Mán Singh mounted an elephant, and with a number of the imperial horsemen, such as Khwájah Muḥammad Rafí Badakhshí, and Shihábud-dín Guroh-páyandah Quzáq, and 'Alí Murád (P. 231) Uzbek, and Rájah Loun Karan, commandant of Sámbhar, and other Rájpúts in the centre, and a body of renowned youths took his place in the advance-body. And some eighty or more picked men of these were sent, with Sayyid Háshim Bárha,²³⁶ as skirmishers in front of the advance-body (and such are called the ‘chickens of the front line).’ And Sayyid Aḥmad Khán Bárha with a body of others^236a had the right-wing, and Qází Khán with a body of sons of Shaikhs of Síkrí, relatives of Shaikh Ibráhím Chishtí, had the left-wing. And Mihtar Khán was in the rear. And Ráná Kíká advancing from behind Darah with a force of 3,000 horse, divided his men into two divisions. One division, of which Ḥakím Sár Afghán was the leader, came straight from the direction of the mountains, and attacked our advance-body. And on account of the broken and uneven state of the ground, and the quantity of thorns, and the serpentine twistings of the road, the skirmishers and the advance-body of our troops became hopelessly mixed up together, and sustained a complete defeat. And the Rájpúts of our army, the leader of whom was Rájah Loun Karan, and who were most of them on the left, ran away like a flock of sheep, and breaking through the ranks of the advance-body fled for protection to our right wing. At this juncture the author, who was with some of the special troops of the advance-body said to Áçaf, “How are we now in these circumstances to distinguish between friendly and hostile Rájpúts?” He answered “They will experience the whiz²³⁷ of the arrows, be what may:—”

‘On whichever side there may be killed, it will be a gain to Islám.’ So we kept firing away, and our aim^237a at such a mountain-like mass of men never missed. And there was even a surer proof [of the righteousness of my conduct in so doing, for]—

‘The heart is the most faithful witness that can testify:’^237b—[And]
‘The proof of the true Lover is in his sleeve:’

and it became certain that my hand prospered in the matter, and that I attained the reward due to one who fights against infidels.

And the Sayyids of Bárha,^237c and some youths of renown, performed in this battle (P. 232) such exploits as would have become Rastam;^237d and many slain on both sides strewed the plain. The other division of Ráná Kíká's army, under the Ráná in person, charged out of the pass, and meeting Qází Khán, who was at the entrance of the pass, swept his men before them, and bearing them along broke through his centre. Then the Shaikh-sons from Síkrí all fled at once. And an arrow struck Shaikh Mançur, (son-in-law of Shaikh Ibráhím) who was leader of this company, in the seat of honour as he was in the act of flight, and he bore the wound for a considerable time. But Qází Khán, although he was but a Mulla, stood his ground manfully, until receiving a cimetar blow on his right hand, which wounded his thumb, being no longer able to hold his own, he recited [the saying] ‘Flight from overwheling odds is one of the traditions of the prophet,’ and followed his men [in their retreat]. Those of the army who had fled on the first attack, did not draw rein till they had passed five or six cosses beyond the river. In the midst of all this confusion Mihtar Khán hastening up from the rear with his reserves, and beating his kettle-drums, called on the imperial troops to rally. And this shout of his was to a great extent the cause of the fugitives taking heart again, and making a stand. And Rájah Rámsháh of Gwályár (grandson of the famous Rájah Mán), who always kept in front of the Ráná, performed such prodigies of valour against the Rájpúts of Mán Singh, as baffle description. And these [Rájpúts of Mán Singh] were those who, on the left of the advance-body, fled, and thereby caused also the flight of Áçaf Khan,²³⁸ and then took refuge with the Sayyids who were on the right; and, if the Sayyids had not held their ground firmly, such confusion did the retreating advance-body cause in their ranks, that the affair would have turned out a disgraceful defeat. And with regard to the elephants, when they made a charge on the elephants of the Imperial army, two strong must-elephants singled each other out and fought together. And Ḥusain Khán, leader of the elephants, who was riding on an elephant behind Mán Singh, also joined in the fight. And Mán Singh, springing into the place (P. 233) of the elephant-driver, exhibited such intrepidity as surpasses all imagination. And one of these two elephants, which was a private one of the Emperor's fought furiously with the Ráná's elephant (which was named Rám Parshád, and was of exceedingly strong build), and the two kept charging at one another, until by chance an arrow reached a mortal place in the driver of the Ráná's elephant, so that the shock of the charge threw him to the ground. Then the driver of the imperial elephant, with the greatest quickness and address, leapt from his own elephant, and took his seat on that of the Ráná, and performed such a deed as none other could have done. On seeing this circumstance the Ráná could no longer hold his ground, but left the ranks and fled, and confusion fell on the army of the Ráná. Then the young heroes, who acted as the body-guard of Mán Singh, performed such exploits as were a perfect model; and that day through the generalship of Mán Singh the meaning of this line of Mullá Shírí became known:

“A Hindú wields the sword of Islám.”

And the son of Jaimal of Chítór, and Rám Sháh Rájah of Gwályár with his own son Śálabhán, who showed extreme obstinacy of resistance, went to hell; and of the clan of the Rájpúts there was not left one fit to be his successor—Good riddance of bad rubbish!²³⁹ And showers of arrows were poured on the Ráná, who was opposed to Mádhav Singh. And Ḥakím Súr,^239a who had fled before the Sayyids, retreated on the Ráná, and so the two divisions became one. Then the Ráná turned and fled, and betook himself to the high mountains, whither he had retreated after the conquest of Chítór, and there sought to shut himself up as in a fortress. And though it was so extremely hot, being during the forty midsummer-days, so that the very brain boiled in the cranium, they fought from early morning till midday. Nearly five hundred men were slain, and fell on the field of battle, of which number one hundred and fifty were of the people of Islam, and the rest Hindús.^239b And the number of the champions of Islám, who were wounded, (P. 234) exceeded three hundred. And when the air was like a furnace, and no power of movement was left in the soldiers, the idea became prevalent, that the Ráná, by stealth and stratagem, would keep himself concealed behind the mountains. This was the reason why they made no pursuit, but retired to their tents and occupied themselves in the relief of the wounded. And the following was found to give the date:—

‘And victory from God appeared nigh’.^239c

The next day the army marched thence, and having looked over the battle-field to see how each had behaved, leaving Darah,^239d came to Kokandah.^239e And certain of the devoted servants of the Ráná, who were the guardians of his palace, and some of the inhabitants of the temples, in all amounting to twenty persons, in accordance with an ancient custom²⁴⁰ of the Hindús, that, when they are compelled to evacuate a city, they should be killed in order to save their honour, coming out of their houses and temples performed the sacrificial rite, and by the stroke of their life-taking swords committed their souls to the keepers of hell. The Amírs, as security against a night-attack on the part of the Ráná, barracaded the streets, and drew a trench, and a wall of such a height that horsemen could not leap over it, round the city of Kokandah, and then settled down quietly. And they had a list drawn up containing the names of all the slain, and the horses killed in the action, intending to enclose it with the despatch to the Emperor. Sayyid Aḥmad Khán Bárha said, ‘There has been no person, or horse, of ours killed, whose name you will have to report to the imperial government, so what is the good of writing them down? It is more important at the present moment to look after the Commissariat.’^240a Then, since there was in that mountain district but little arable land, and so but a seanty amount of corn was produced, and moreover the Banjárás^240b did not come, so that the army at that time was suffering from great scarcity, they set their wits to work to tackle the difficulty. Accordingly from time to time they singled out one of the Amírs in command, and commissioned him to bring corn into the lines, and wherever in the high hills and mountains (P. 235) they found many people congregated together, they broke them up and took them prisoners. And one had to sustain life upon the flesh of animals, and the mango-fruit. This latter grew there in such abundance as defies description. The common soldiers used to make a meal on it, fasting, in default of bread, and from its extreme juciness very many of them became ill. The mango-fruit was actually produced in that country of the weight of a sér akbarí²⁴¹ but for sweetness and flavour they are not up to much.

At this time Muḥammad Khán,^241a a special hanger-on of the Court, arrived from Court charged with an order to hasten to Kokandah, and examine the state of the battle-field.^241b The next day he went away, and having seen [from his investigation of the field] how every one had conducted himself he reported it to the Emperor. His Majesty was graciously pleased to be satisfied on the whole; only he was vexed at their having abandoned the pursuit of the Ráná, and so allowing him to remain alive. Then the Amírs wished to send to the Emperor the elephant, named Rám-parsád,^241c which had come into their hands with the spoil, (and which His Imperial Highness had several times demanded^241d of the Ráná, and he, unfortunately for him, had declined to surrender it) and together with it, the report of the victory to Court. Áçaf Khán mentioned the name of the Author, as a proper person to be sent with it, since he had been allowed to join the army through his being a particular favourite of his Majesty. Mán Singh answered [jocosely]: ‘There is a great deal of his work still left undone; he ought to come in front of the line and everywhere take the lead in battle.’ I answered: ‘My Imám-ship here is finished; my business now is to go and act as Imám before the ranks of His Imperial Highness.’ He was pleased and smiled, and sent me with the elephant, and appointed three hundred horsemen to accompany me by way of precaution. And he himself, taking advantage of the opportunity to enjoy himself in hunting, and to leave detached guards²⁴² in different places, came with me by very easy marches as far as the town of Mohaní, which is twenty cosses from Kokandah. There he furnished me with letters of commendation, and dismissed me to go to the Court. Thence, by way of Bák'hór, and Mándal Gaṛh, I arrived at Ambér^242a the home of Mán Singh. (P. 236) Wherever we passed, the circumstances of the battle were published, but the people would not credit our statements. By chance it happened, that at five cosses from Ambér the elephant sank into a morass, and the more it went forward, the deeper it sank in the clay. And since this was my first service of such a nature, I was in a terrible fix. At last the country people of the neighbourhood came up, and said, ‘Last year^242b at this very spot a royal elephant became bogged. Let them pour a quantity of water on the clay and mud, and then the royal elephant will come out easily enough. Accordingly the water-carriers^242c did so, and poured a quantity of water on, and the elephant became gradually extricated from the quagmire, and got to Ambér; and the exultation of those people reached the very heavens. The Author remained there three or four days, and then proceeded on his journey, by way of the town of Todah, which is his birth-place,²⁴³ and Basáwar which bears this relation to him, that:—

‘In that land his skin first touched the dust.’

And during the first days of the month Rabi'ul-awwal, by the intervention of Rájá Bhagván Dás, father of Rájá Mán Singh, I prostrated myself in Audience-chamber at Fatḥpúr, and delivered the despatches of the Amírs, together with the elephant. The Emperor asked; ‘What is its name?’ I replied: ‘Rám-prasád.’^243a His Majesty replied: Since all this [success] has been brought about through the Pír,^243b its name henceforth shall be Pír-prasád.^243c Next His Majesty said: ‘They have written ever so many praises of you, tell me truly, in what army have you served, and what exploits have you performed?’ I replied: ‘In the presence of the Emperor, Your Majesty's humble servant speaks even the truth, with a hundred fears and tremblings, how can he speak that which is not the truth!’ And then I related to him succinctly what had happened. Again he asked: ‘Were you unarmed, or armed?’ I said: ‘I had armour both for man and horse.’ ‘Where did you get it from?’ he said. I replied: ‘From Sayyid 'Abd-ulláh Khán.’ The Emperor was exceedingly pleased, and putting forth his hand to a heap of Ashrafís^243d (which in those days, just like a heap in a treasury, used always to be laid before him) presented me with a sum of ninety six Ashrafís, and said: (P. 237) ‘Have you seen Shaikh 'Abd-un-Nabí [since your return]?’ I answered: ‘From the dust of the road I came to the Court, how could I have seen him?’ Then the Emperor gave me a pair of splendid Nakhúdí^243e shawls [and said]: ‘Take these and go and see the Shaikh, and say to him from us: ‘They are from our own private treasury, and we had them made on purpose for you, do you wear them.’ I took them, and carried the message to the Shaikh, who was very much pleased. Then he asked: At the moment of taking leave of you, I said, At the moment of joining battle remember to pray for me? I replied: I then recited the prayer ‘O God! pardon believers male and female, and keep those who keep the Religion of Muḥammad, and abandon those who abandon the Religion of Muḥammad (on him be blessing and peace!)’ He said: ‘That was sufficient, praise belongs to God!’

This Shaikh Abd-un-Nabí eventually went out of the world²⁴⁴ by a mischance, such as which may none experience or hear! and may it serve as a warning to all!—

‘Whomsoever this world fosters,
At last it spills his blood.
What can be the condition of that child,
Whose own mother is its enemy!’

In this year the Emperor sent Sayyid 'Abd-ulláh post haste to the Khán Jahán (who was encamped against Dáúd near K'halgáon,^244a and was awaiting the arrival of Muzaffar Khán,^244b and the army of Bihár and Ḥájí-púr) entrusted with a firmán expressing his anxiety for those Amírs, and promising the speedy arrival of His Majesty in person. And he despatched five lacs of rupees by a mounted messenger, as a subsidy to that army, and also ordered several vessels to start from Ágrah laden with corn for the troops. Then news arrived that Gujpatí,^244c a zamíndár of the neighbourhood of Ḥájí-púr and Patnah, who had been subjugated,^244d had rebelled, and gathering together a force, had attacked Farḥat Khán, and his son Mírak Radáí, who were in the station of Ára, and had brought them both to the grade of martyrdom, and now held all the roads. On this account on the twenty-fifth of Rabi'ul ákhir²⁴⁵ of the aforesaid year the Emperor started towards the east of Hind, and came to a halt within five cosses of his goal (P. 238). At this halting-place Sayyid 'Abd-ulláh Khán sent the head of Dá'úd: and this verse, which Sayyid Mír Kai at the moment of returning from Patnah to Jounpúr had chosen as a charm of prophetic meaning, came true:—

“News of the victory suddenly came,
The head of Dá'úd came to the Court.”

And the history of the battle is concisely as follows. When Sayyid 'Abd-ulláh Khán joined the army of the Khán Jahán in the neighbourhood of K'halgáon, he was very anxious to attack the enemy. So the next day (which was the fifteenth of Rabí'ul ákhir) the Khán Jahán issued orders to the Amírs of his own troops, and appointed to each the place he was to take. Then Muzaffar Khán reinforced him with 5,000 horse. And Dá'úd with the greatest presumption and pride, being supported by his paternal uncle Junaid Kararání and other leaders, drew out of the fortress, and leaving his hiding-place offered battle. At the very first attack a cannon-ball struck the knee of Junaid and shattered it. When the armies closed with one another, defeat fell on the Afgháns. The horse of Dá'úd stuck fast in a swamp, and Ḥasan Bég surrounded him, and brought him to Khán Jahán. Dá'úd being overcome with thirst asked for water. They filled his slipper with water and brought it to him. But, when he refused to drink, Khán Jahán offered him his own private canteen, and allowed him to drink out of it. He did not wish to kill him, for he was a very handsome man; but finally the Amírs said that to spare his life would be to incur suspicions as to their own loyalty, so he ordered them to cut off his head. They took two chops at his neck without success, but at last they succeeded in killing him, and in severing his head from his body. Then they stuffed it with straw, and anointed it with perfumes, and gave it in charge to Sayyid 'Abd-ulláh Khán, and sent him with it to the Emperor. They took many elephants and much spoil. And on the twenty-third of Jamád'-as-sání^245a the Emperor went to Ajmír with the intention of returning thanks for the victory.

And on the sixth of the month Rajab,²⁴⁶ which is the anniversary of the decease of Ḥazrat (P. 139) Khwájah^246a (may God sanctify his glorious tomb!) the Emperor arrived at Ajmír. And Sulṭán Khwá-jah, son of Khwájah Kháwand Maḥmúd^246b he appointed Mír Hájí,^246c and sent a sum of six lacs of rupees, in money and goods, to be distributed among the deserving people of Mecca and Madína, and for building a Khánah^246d in the sacred precincts. When the Emperor dismissed Sulṭán Khwájah on his road to the two Sacred Cities, he himself, with bare head and feet, and dressed in the Iḥrám, and in every respect clothed like a pilgrim, and having shorn his head a little, went a little distance in his train. At this a cry broke forth from the multitude,^246e and he showed himself moved by their devotion. And Qaṭb-ud-dín Muḥammad Khán and Qulíj Khán, and Áçaf Khán were appointed to escort Sulṭán Khwájah, with orders that they should part from the caravan at Kokandah, and should scour the country of the Ráná,^246f and following his track wherever they should hear news of him, should bring destruction on him.

And contemporaneously with these events news arrived, that Sháh Tahmásp had passed from the world,^246g and that Sháh Isma'íl II had succeeded him. And they found this mnemosynon for the date:—

“It is the beginning of Reign and Victory, and Conquest.”^246h

And the Emperor made a general order, that any one who wished might go on a pilgrimage, and that his expenses should be paid from the Treasury. And a great number of persons attained that felicity. But the revese is now the case, for he cannot now bear even the name of such a thing, and merely to ask leave to go on a pilgrimage is enough to make a man a malefactor worthy of death: “We alternate these days among men.”²⁴⁶ⁱ

And at this time, when news arrived of the distressed state of the army at Kokandah, the Emperor sent for Mán Singh, Áçaf Khan and Qází Khán, to come alone from that place, and on account of certain faults which they had committed, he excluded Mán Singh and Áçaf Khán (who were associated in treachery)²⁴⁷ for some time from the Court; while on the contrary Ghází Khán Badakhshí, and Mihtar Khán, and 'Alí Murád Uzbek, Khanjarí Turk, and one or two others, of whom I was of the number (P. 240) were distinguished from these men, and were honoured with presents and promotion in rank. But all the rest, though they fell from the position of confidence, were dismissed without punishment.

On the 19th of this month the Emperor marched towards the country of the Ráná, who was pillaging in the mountain district of Oudípúr, Jounpúr &c.

At this time Khwájah Sháh Mançúr, a Shírází clerk, who at the beginning of his career had been for some time clerk in the perfumery department, and had been obliged to flee on account of the hostility and power of Muzaffar Khán, came to Mun'im Khán at Jounpúr, and was received with the greatest respect, and appointed to be his díván. And after the death of Mun'im Khán he came to Court in accordance with an imperial firmán, and on account of his exceedingly fine business qualities and soundness of judgment, he became díván of the whole empire, and by degrees became associated in imperial affairs with the prosperous Rájah:^247a —

“He is an incapable who does not rise to power,
For at all events Destiny is on the look out for a capable man;”

But some one has just reversed the statement and said:—

“The incapables of the world have risen to power,
How then can Destiny be on the look out for a capable man?”

But the first is true, and the second is not a fair statement of facts.

And among the events of that year was the appearance of a comet in the west. And, when Sháh Mançúr took to wearing a long tail to the back of his turban, they dubbed him ‘The Star with a tail’. And through his excessive economy and stinginess in the army expenses, and the pitch that he reached in grasping in season and out of season; people forgot the tyrannies of Rájah Muzaffar Khán and kept heaping upon him abundance of abuse:—

“For many bads are worse than bad.”

(P. 241) In this same year news arrived that Sháh Isma'íl, son of Sháh Ṭahmásp, Emperor of Persia,²⁴⁸ had been murdered, with the consent of the Amírs, by his own sister Parí Ján Khánam: and Mír Ḥaidar, the riddle writer, found the táríkh of his accession in the word:—“A king^248a of the face of the earth:” and the táríkh of his death in:—A king below the earth.” And the effect of the comet in that country became manifest, and in 'Iráq the greatest perturbation resulted, while the Turks conquered Tabríz, Shirwán, and Mázandarán. And Sulṭán Muḥammad Khudábandah, son of Sháh Ṭahmásp by another mother, succeeded to the throne, as is related in its proper place. And the period of cursing and reviling the great Companions of the Prophet, which had lasted for 1,000 months in direct opposition to authority, and involved the use of improper language towards the sons of Ummaiya, came to an end;^248b but the heresy had already travelled from that country to this:—

“Error^248c came to Hind from the land of 'Iráq,
Know that 'Iráq rhymes with road to Nifáq.”

While the imperial army was encamped at Mohaní the Emperor wrote a firmán to Qutb-ud-din Muḥammad Khán, and Rájah Bagh-van Dás ordering those two commanders to remain at Kokandah. and Qulíj Khán with other Amírs he ordered to accompany the pilgrim-caravan as far as Ídar, which is 40 cosses from Aḥmadábád, and thence to send on a body of troops to convey them as far as Aḥmadábád, while he himself should lay seize to Ídar, and extirpate Naráin Dás the Rájah of that place. So Qulíj Khán in accordance with his orders remained at Ídar, and sent on Tímúr Khán Badakhshí with 500 horsemen to escort the caravan to a place of safety. But the Rájah of Ídar, like the Ráná,²⁴⁹ after the fashion of robbers kept wandering from mountain to mountain, and from jungle to jungle:—

“What does the Moon, that the Halo does not imitate?”

At this camping-place Shiháb Khán, and Sháh Bidágh Khán with his son 'Abd-ul-Maṭlab (P. 242) and Sháh Fakhr-ud-dín Khán and other zamíndárs of Málwah, came and paid their respects. And the Emperor left Ghází Khán Badakhshí, who had been raised to the rank of Commander of a Thousand, with Sharíf Muḥammad Khán Atgah, and Mujáhid Khán, and Turk Subḥán Qulí, with 3,000 cavalry at the station of Mohaní. And the military commanders 'Abdurraḥmán Beg son of Jaláluddín Beg, and 'Abdurraḥmán son of Mu'ayyad Beg he left with 500 troops in the hill district; but he sent for Quṭbuddín Khán and Rájah Bhagván Dás from Gogan-dah, and having stationed Sháh Fakhruddín and Jaganáth in Udípúr, and Sayyid 'Abdulláh Khán and Rájah Bhagván Dás at the entrance of the defile of Udípúr, the Emperor went himself into the neighbourhood of Bánswála and Dungarpúr. At this place Rájah Todar Mal arrived from Bengál, and brought to the Emperor 500 elephants from the spoil of that kingdom, and other valuables.

While at this place he sent Qulíj Khán (whom he had recalled from Ídar, and appointed Áçaf Khán as leader of the army in his stead) together with Kalyán Ráí Baqqál an inhabitant of Cambay to the port of Çúrat to obtain an agreement from the Europeans, so as to set free the ships of Sulṭan Khwájah,^249a which for want of such an agreement were lying idle.^249b Afterwards he was to come to Málwah and join the army.

In the month of Ziḥijjah²⁵⁰ of this year took place the New Year's day of the 23rd year from the Accession. He celebrated that festival in the castle of Dibálpúr one of the dependencies of Málwah.

The compiler of this Compendium had on account of a severe sickness remained at Basáwar.^250a He now asked leave to proceed to the camp by way of Bánswálah. At Hindún^250b Sayyid 'Abd-ulláh Khán consented, but representing that road was blocked up and full of difficulties, he caused me to return and brought me to Bajaunah. And after some days on account of my anxiety to perform my duty as one of the Imperial Imáms, I went in company with Razawí Khán by way of Gwályár and Sárangpúr (P. 243), and Ujayn, and on the 12th of Ziḥijjah paid my respects to the Emperor in the confines of Dibálpúr belonging to Málwah. Then I presented to the Emperor a valuable pocket-Qur'án, and a note-book of marvellous and rare sermons by Ḥáfiz Muḥammad Amín, a preacher of Qandahár, such a sweet-voiced preacher as whom had never been seen by any one in this generation. This Qur'án and note book had been carried off by some thieves from a certain halting-place a cos distant from Basáwar, and Sayyid 'Abdulláh Khán had gone in pursuit and had handed over the things to me. When I brought them into his presence, the Emperor evinced great pleasure, and calling Ḥafiz Muḥammad Amín he said to him in joke: “They have brought me a pocket-Qur'án from somewhere or other, I make it a present to you.” Ḥafiz recognizing it, was extremely delighted, and making profuse and boundless bows and prostrations by way of thanks, said: Your Majesty the very same day said to Sayyid 'Abdulláh Khán, “If God will, you will find it, it can't be really lost.” When the Emperor enquired of the author the circumstances of its discovery, I replied: “A company of labourers, who in some of the villages of Basáwar are occupied in digging wells and tanks &c., and who under pretext of this occupation do a little in highway robbery had stolen these articles. But one of them, having had a difference with his companion brought word to Sayyid 'Abdulláh Khán, so that he was able to seize them all, and so they confessed the thefts they had committed.” Then the Emperor said to Ḥáfiz: “If God will, the rest of the articles will also be found, so be of good cheer!” To this he replied: “I have attained my wish in the recovery of my Qur'án and note-book, which I received as an inheritance from my father and grandfather, and I cannot compose sermons myself. For the other things I don't care much.” And eventually (P. 244) on the return from that journey those articles were all found among the things taken from the countrymen, as the Emperor had said would be the case, and Sayyid 'Abdulláh Khán brought them into the Imperial presence at Fatḥpúr. While at Dibálpúr I was reinstated in my office of Imám, and Khwájah Daulat Názir had to keep me up to the mark, and in the old way one day and night out of the seven used to make me mount the pulpit, and the proverb became fulfilled: “Little Aḥmad will not go to school, so they carry him”:—

“Either thou goest, or otherwise they will carry thee, there is
no choice”.

And on account of anxiety for the affairs of that kingdom, the Emperor remained some days at Díbálpúr. And some of the great Amírs, such as Shahib-ud-dín Aḥmad Khán he sent, with the jágírdár s of Málwah, against Rájah 'Alí Khán in the direction of Asír and Burhánpúr, to subdue that district. And Sháhbáz Khán, Bakh-shí , was to see to the branding of the horses and the mustering of that army. At that station Rájah Todar Mall, together with I'timád Khán of Gujrát, was appointed to look into revenues of the country of Gujrát, and into the stores of that kingdom.

At this time news came of the defeat of Rájah Naráín Dás, and the taking of Ídar. The particulars are as follows: When Qulíj Khán, through the efforts of 'Alí Murád Uzbek, who had been sent to fetch him, had left Ídar and returned to Court, and Áçaf Khán²⁵¹ had been appointed to the command, the Rájah of Ídar, who had become an outcast and wanderer, had with the assistance of Ráná Kíká and other zamíndárs collected an army and advanced to within 10 cosses of the station of Ídar, intending to make a night attack. Then Áçaf Khán and Mírzá Muḥammad Muqím and Tímúr Ba-dakhshí, and Mír Abu-l-ghays Bokhárí, and Mír Muḥammad Ma'çúm Bakrí, &c. agreed that it would be the best plan (P. 245), leaving about 500 horse to guard the station, themselves to make a night attack on the enemy, and so anticipate him in his plans. Accordingly just at daybreak on the 4th of Ziḥijjah, in the year nine hundred and eighty-four (984), when they had proceeded 7 cosses, Rájah Naráín Dás met them coming in the opposite direction armed cap à pie, and immediately attacked them, and arrows and swords and javelins began flying in the air. And Mírzá Muḥammad Muqím, who was in the van in advance of every one, in drinking the draught of martyrdom still showed his superiority. Defeat fell on the infidels, and they fled to a man and skulked like foxes in their holes. When the dispatch of Áçaf Khán arrived, a firmán of commendation was issued to the officers of that army.

In this year Mír Sayyid Muḥammad Mír'adal, who had been appointed to the government of Bhakkar, sent Sayyid Abu-l-Fazl and his other sons against Sabwí (?), and then reduced that fortress in a short space of time. And Mír Sayyid Abul Qásim son of Mír Sayyid Çafálí (who is one of the most important personages of Bhakkar and had come to do homage at Court) was raised to the rank of a body-guardsman. And this line gives the date:—

“To the sons of the Prophet²⁵² belongs the taking of Sabwí”.

And in this year the Mír 'Adl^252a departed this life, and the date is given by the following:—Sayyid-i-Fázil^252b —May God deal with him according to excellence (fazal)!

Among the events of this time was the arrival of Sharíf of Ámul, and his interview with the Emperor while he was at Díbálpúr. The sum of the matter is as follows: This reprobate apostate (P. 246) had run from country to country, like a dog that has burnt its foot, and turning from one sect to another, he went on wrangling until he became a perfect heretic. For some time he studied after the vain fashion of Çúfíism, which is void of all -sophy, in the school of Mauláná Muḥammad Záhid of Balkh, nephew of the great Shaikh Ḥusain of Khwárizm (God sanctify his tomb!), and had lived with darveshes. But as he had little of the darvesh in him he set on foot abundance of vain talk and senseless effrontery, and blurted it out, so that they expelled him. The Mauláná wrote a poem against him in which the following verse occurs:—

“There was a heretic, and Sharíf was his name,
Perfect he thought himself, not perfect all the same!”

In his wanderings he came to the Dak'hin, where from his want of self-restraint he betrayed the filthiness of his disposition, and the rulers of the Dak'hin wished to cleanse the tablet of existence of his image, but eventually he was only set on a donkey and shown about the city in disgrace. But since Hindustán is a wide place, where there is an open field for all licentiousness, and no one interferes with another's business, so that every one can do just as he pleases, at this time he made his way to Málwah, and settled at a place five cosses distant from the Imperial camp. Every foolish and frivolous word that proceeded out of his mouth instead of being wholesome food was the poison of asps, and became the absorbing topic of general conversation. Many persons blind to God's mercies, especially the heretics of 'Iráq (who separated themselves from the Truth of the Faith, like a hair from the dough, ‘Nabatheans’²⁵³ exactly describes them, and they are destined to be the foremost worshippers of Antichrist)^253a gathered round him, and at his orders spread abroad the report that he was the Restorer promised for the tenth century. The sensation was immense. As soon as His Majesty heard of him he invited him one night (P. 247) to a private audience in a long prayer-room, which was made of cloth, and in which the Emperor with his suite used to say the five daily prayers at the stated hours. Ridiculous in his exterior, ugly in shape, with his neck stooping forward, he performed his obeisance, and then stood still with his arms crossed, you could scarcely see how his blue eye (which colour is said to be a sign of hostility to the Prophet—peace be upon him!) shed lies, falsehood, and hypocrisy. There he stood for a long time, and when he got the order to sit down, he prostrated himself as in worship, and then sat down duzánú,²⁵⁴ like an Indian camel. And there he held tête à tête with the Emperor, and discussed various questions. No one except the Ḥakím-ul-mulk^254a was allowed to be present with them, but every now and then from a distance, when he raised his voice, I could catch the word 'ilm [knowledge]. He chewed the cud of a host of foolish stories, and called them “the Truth of Truths”, and ‘the Foundation of Fundamentals’:—

“A race both outwardly and inwardly ignorant
Through ignorance is lost in folly.
They are immersed in heresy and call it Truth!
There is no power or might except in God!”

The whole talk of the man was a mere repetition of the ideas of Maḥmúd of Basakhwán, who lived in the time of Tímúr the Lord of Conjunction, at Basakhwán, which is the name of a village in the neighbourhood of Gílán. Maḥmúd had written thirteen treatises of dirty filth, full of such droppings of heresy as no religion or sect would suffer, and containing nothing but deceitful flattery, which he called ‘science of expressed and implied language’.^254b The chief work of this miserable wretch is entitled Bahr u Kúzah,^254c containing such loathsome nonsense, that when the ear eats thereof it turns sick. How the devil would have laughed in his sleeve, had he heard it, and what capers he would have cut! And this gross fellow Sharíf had also written a regular conflict of absurdities, which he named “First glimpses of the Truth,” in which he blindly follows Mír 'Abdulawwal. This book is written (P. 248) in loose, deceptive aphorisms, each beginning with the word mífarmúdand:²⁵⁵ it is a regular poser, and a mass of ridiculous silly nonsense. But in spite of this folly, in accordance with the saying: ‘Verily God the King brings people to people,’ he so carried things before him, and knew so well how to turn to his own account the spirit of the age and mankind, that he is now a Commander of One Thousand, and one of the apostles of His Majesty's religion in Bengál, possessor of the four^255a degrees of Faith, and in his turn summoning faithful disciples to these degrees. An account of these degrees will be given later on:—

“Regard not the reprobation or approval of the common people,
For their business is always either to pray or to purr.
Common people believe in a Cow^255b as a God,
And do not believe in Noah as a prophet.”

We make our complaint unto God on account of the world: if ever it does good, it immediately repents; and if it does evil, it goes on in its evil course. The following just suits his case:—

“I was last year a star of the lowest dimension,
This year I am the Pole-star of religion.
If I last out another year,
I shall be the Pole-star of the religion of 'Alí.”

And when the Emperor had satisfactorily settled the affairs of that district, he started thence by successive stages by way of Rin-thambór, and hunting as he went along arrived on the 23rd of Çafr of the year nine hundred and eighty five (985) at Fatḥpúr. And Shaikh Faizí, who now enjoys the title of the King of Poets, wrote an ode, of which the opening lines are:

“The breeze that cheers the heart comes from Fatḥpúr,
For my king returns from a distant journey.”

Two or three months later news arrived of the troubles in Gujrát, the origin of which was as follows (P. 249). When Rájah Todar Mall went in the afore-mentioned capacity²⁵⁶ to Gujrát, Muzaffar Ḥusain, son of Ibráhím Ḥusain Mírzá, who was daughter's son to Kámrán Mírzá came from the country of the Dak'hin. At the time of the seige of Súrat his mother Gulrukh Bégum had carried him off from there, at the age of fifteen or sixteen years. At the instigations of a scoundrel named Mihr 'Alí, one of the old retainers of Mírzá Ibráhím Ḥusain, he gathered together a number of vagabonds and raised an insurrection in Gujrát. Then Báz Bahádur, son of Sharíf Muḥammad Khán Atgah, and Bábá Bég Díwán of Gujrát, marched against Muzaffar Ḥusain Mírzá, attacked him in the pargana of Patlád, and were defeated. Then the Mírzá went off to Cambay with some 2,000 or 3,000 horse. And Wazír Khán, governor of Gujrát, although he had a force of 3,000 horse, on account of the dissatisfaction among his troops, who were by no means to be relied on, determined to shut himself up in the fort, and wrote a statement of affairs to Rájah Todar Mall, who was at Patan. Then the Rájah marched towards Aḥmadábád, upon which the Mírzá decamped from outside Aḥmadábád^256a and retired on Dúlaka. Wazír Khán and the Rájah pursued them, and a fierce battle took place in that neighbourhood, and defeat fell on the enemy, who retired to Júnágaṛh. At this juncture the Rájah returned suddenly to Fatḥpúr. Then Muzaffar Ḥusain returned from Júnágaṛh, and beseiged Wazír Khán (who for the aforenamed reason had, rather than risk an engagement, again shut himself up in the fortress) at Aḥmadábád. He placed ladders against the walls of the castle, and endeavoured to take it by assault: in fact he had almost carried the fort, when suddenly a bullet reached the breast of Mihr 'Alí, who was the Mirzá's absolute vicegerent, and the casket of his secrets, and brought him into a casket indeed:—

“Death comes unexpectedly,
And the grave is a casket indeed”.

As soon as the Mírzá became aware of this catastrophe he took to flight (P. 250), and went towards Sulṭánpúr and Nadarbár.

The renowned Amírs who, under the leadership of Shihábuddín Aḥmad Khán, had been appointed against Rájah 'Alí Khán, and had driven him into the fortress, and keeping him closely beseiged had ravaged the country, were very near taking the fortress. Meanwhile Quṭb-uddín Muḥammad Khán became anxious, and separating himself from the Amírs went towards Bahroṇch and Barodah, where he held a jágír, and which through the Mírzá²⁵⁷ had been thrown into the direst confusion. The financial affairs of Asír and Burhánpúr had become so completely embarrassed, that the Amírs had to content themselves with receiving from Rájah 'Alí Khán so much tribute as he was then in a position to pay, and sent it to Court, and themselves returned to their jágírs

At this time Ḥakím 'Ain-ul-mulk Shírází, who in the year nine hundred and eighty-three had gone on an embassy in company with the wakíl of 'Ádil Khán ruler of the Dak'hin,^257a returned and presented the elephants and other valuable presents of 'Ádil Khán to the Emperor: and after the superseding of Deb Chand, Rájah of Majholí, in the military command of Báns Barelí, Ḥakím 'Ain-ul-mulk was appointed to the command in the skirts of the mountain district. From that place he wrote a report consisting of ever so many sections. In one of them he said: “Since I am separated from the Court, and in this desolate wilderness I have not a single individual of my friends for a companion, if a certain Rájah who is well acquainted with the good and evil of this district, and the whole conduct of its affairs should mention my name, and if people should be inclined to restore their confidence to him, and he should have many unrequited services at Court, please send him: it would be a great kindness to him, and a great advantage to your humble servant. But your Majesty's will is law.” Khwájah Sháh Mançúr read over each section, and wrote an answer according to the Emperor's orders, but when he came to this section His Majesty gave him neither ‘Yea’ nor ‘Nay’:—

“Though hair should grow on the palm of the hand,
Yet thy locks cannot come into my hand.

(P. 251) Such is my hard fate,
And such is thy hard-heartedness.”

And in the month of Rajab²⁵⁸ (in the year nine hundred and eighty-five) which is the time of the festival the saint Khwájah Ajmírí, the Emperor turned his face towards Ajmír. And while he was at Todah, Sháh Abu Turáb one of the great Sayyids of Shíráz and counsellor of the Sultans of Gujrát, and Rájah Todar Mall, who after his victory over Mírzá Muzaffar Ḥusain had set out for the Court, arrived. When not far from Mairt'ha he appointed Sháh Abu Turáb Mír Hájjí over a caravan of pilgrims, and to I'timád Khán Gujrátí he gave a large sum of money, and permission to proceed to the sacred Makkah. And the Emperor issued a general order that any one who wished might go. And when I brought a petition from 'Abd-un-nabí, I also received permission to go. The Emperor asked me: ‘Have you a mother still alive?’ I answered: ‘Yes’. He said: ‘Is there one of your brothers who withdraws from the fulfilment of his obligations?’ I answered: ‘No, I am their only means of support.’ To this he replied: ‘If you were to obtain your mother's permission first, it would be better’. But that happiness I was not fortunate enough to obtain: and now with the teeth of disappointment she gnaws the back of the hand of repentance:—

“Thy favour did not do one particular thing,
And the time for the thing passed by.
On one particular day I met not with thee,
And the opportunity passed by.”

In the neighbourhood of the town of Ambír, in the district of Múltán, which is an ancient city which had become totally ruined, the Emperor commanded the rebuilding of the city. A lofty castle, and gates and a garden were apportioned out to the Amírs, and they expended the greatest energy in the work of building, so that in eight²⁵⁹ days it was finished. And the Emperor made the rayats settle down in that district. He called (P. 252) the place after the name of Ráí Manohar, son of Ráí Lonkaran, governor of Sámbhar, and gave it the name of Manohar-púr. This Manohar, whom they called for some time Mírzá Manohar, grew up and was educated in the service of the eldest prince, and attained to great proficiency. Now he composes poetry and bears the title of Tusaní, and an exceedingly able young man he is. He will be mentioned in the sequel containing Memoirs of the Poets. Thence by way of Nárnúl the Emperor set out for Dihlí: and Shaikh Nizám of Nánúl, one of the greatest Shaikhs of the time, came to meet him. After performing the pilgrimages at Dihlí to the tombs of the great saints of that illustrious locality, the Emperor went on a hunting expedition in the neighbourhood of Pálam.

At the beginning of the last decade of the blessed month of Ramazán in this year, news reached me at Rewárí, that at Basáwar a son had been born to me, a happiness which I had been long anxiously expecting. I presented an offering of ashrafís to the Emperor, and requested him to name the child. After reading the Fátiḥah he enquired the name of my father and of my grandfather. I answered “Mulúk Sháh was my father, and he was the son of Ḥámid”. He said, “This child is called 'Abdul Hádí”—Hádí being a name which at that time was day and night upon his lips. Although Ḥáfiz Muḥammad Amín, the preacher, and one of the seven Imáms^259a kept urging me with the greatest importunity not to commit this folly, but to assemble some reciters of the Qur'án to my house to recite the whole Qur'án in order to secure a long life to my son, I declined to do so, and at the end of six months my son died. If God will, may he be to me a reward and treasure, an intercessor and one accepted in the Day of Judgment!

From Rewárí I took five months' leave and went to Basáwar, on account of certain important affairs, or rather follies; but I exceeded my term of absence and remained there a whole year. This neglect of duty and the machinations of my enemies caused me to fall from the Emperor's favour, and he took no further notice of me. Even to this day (P. 253) although a period of eighteen years has elapsed since that event, and eighteen thousand worlds²⁶⁰ have passed away, I continue still afflicted with this unrequited service, which offers neither chance of confirming myself in his favour, nor opportunity of leaving his service:—

“I have not the fortune to have intercourse with the Beloved,
I have not the fortitude to abstain from Love.
I have not the power to fight against Fate,
I have not the foot to flee from the field.”

And while the Emperor was at Hásdí, at the time that he was on his way to the Panjáb, a despatch arrived at Court from Sher Beg Tawáchí, to the effect that Muzaffar Ḥusain Mírzá having fled from Gujrát and gone to the Dak'hin, had been captured by Rájah 'Alí Khán, and was held prisoner by him. So at the beginning of Zí ḥajjah^260a in the year nine hundred and eighty-five (985) the Emperor despatched a farmán to Rájah 'Alí Khán concerning Maqçúd^260b Jauharí, which resulted in his sending the Mirzá to the Imperial Court.

In the beginning of the sacred month of Muḥarram^260c in the year nine hundred and eighty-six (986) was the new year's day of the Jalálí period, corresponding with the twenty-fourth year from the accession:—

“The Çafar^260d of the throne wins the day over the Sultan of the sky
Verily his fame rises up to Aries.”

At Patan the Emperor had the honour of visiting the tomb of the saint Ganj Shakar (may God sanctify his glorious spirit!), and then went for a Qamurghah hunt in the neighbourhood of Nan-danah, and in the course of four days numberless game was enclosed. And when it had almost come about that the two sides of the Qamurghah were come together, suddenly all at once a strange state and strong frenzy came upon the Emperor, and an extraordinary change was manifested in his manner, to such an extent as cannot be accounted for. And every one attributed it to some cause or other; but God alone knoweth secrets. And at that time he ordered the hunting to be abandoned:—

(P. 254) “Take care! for the grace of God comes suddenly,
It comes suddenly, it comes to the mind of the wise.”

And at the foot of a tree which was then in fruit he distributed much gold to the faqírs and poor, and laid the foundation of a lofty building, and an extensive garden in that place. And he cut off the hair of his head, and most of the courtiers followed his example. And when news of this became spread abroad in the Eastern part of India, strange rumours and wonderful lies became current in the mouths of the common people, and some insurrections took place among the ryots, but these were quickly quelled.

While he was at Bahrah the Imperial Begum arrived from the Capital. At this time he confided the government of the Panjáb to Sa'íd Khán Moghul, and appointed Qází 'Alí Baghdádí (who is the grandson²⁶¹ of Mír Qází Ḥusain Maibazí) to rearrange the boundaries of the lands given as Madad-i Ma'ásh and Aymah in the Panjáb and elsewhere, which had been encroached upon. He had orders to abolish the old boundaries and re-measure the enclosures, and to put them all together into one village. Thus an exact distinction was made between the different grant-lands of the empire, and all this was done in spite of Shaikh 'Abdunnabí, and the dishonesty of his subordinates. Thence the Emperor set out on his return to Fatḥpúr. And near to Khizrábád Sádhorah on the 5th of Jamada'-s-sání^261a in the aforesaid year the Emperor embarked on board ship and the Amírs and nobles of the kingdom also went on board a vessel to accompany him, but the army went by land. And on the 29th of this month the Emperor arrived at Dihlí. During the first part of the month Rajab he disembarking from the water-boat and mounted a land-boat (which is a figurative expression for a desert-traversing steed), and on the 5th of this month he reached Ajmír and attended the festival held at the tomb of the Saint.²⁶² The next day at the same hour he started for the Imperial Palace, and travelling each day 50 cosses, he arrived at day-break on Friday the 9th. The compiler of these pages, who had come from Basáwar to meet him, paid his respects to him at that time, and presented (P. 255) the Book of the Aḥádís,^262a which contains forty of them treating on the merit of war with Infidels, and the advantages of archery, and its names includes the date of it. It was admitted into the Library, and no mention whatever was made of any fault on my part in delaying to redeem my promise. And later that day the Emperor came to Fatḥ-púr. There he used to spend much time in the 'Ibádat-khánah in the company of learned men and Shaikhs. And especially on Friday nights, when he would sit up there the whole night continually occupied in discussing questions of Religion, whether fundamental or collateral. The learned men used to draw the sword of the tongue on the battle-field of mutual contradiction and opposition, and the antagonism of the sects reached such a pitch that they would call one another fools and heretics. The controversies used to pass beyond the differences of Sunní, and Shi'ah, of Hanífí and Sháfi'í, of lawyer and divine, and they would attack the very bases of belief. And Makhdúm-ul-mulk wrote a treatise, to the effect that Shaikh 'Abdunnabí had unjustly killed Khizr Khán Sarwání, who had been suspected of blaspheming the Prophet (peace be upon him!), and Mír Ḥabsh, who had been suspected of being a Shí'ah, and saying that it was not right to repeat the prayers after him, because he was undutiful towards his father, and was himself afflicted with hemorrhoids. Shaikh 'Abdunnabí replied to him that he was a fool and a heretic. Then the Mullás became divided into two parties, and one party took one side and on the other, and became very Jews^262b and Egyptians for hatred of each other. And persons of novel and whimsical opinions, in accordance with their pernicious ideas, and vain doubts, coming out of ambush decked the false in the garb of the true, and wrong in the dress of right, and cast the Emperor, who was possessed of an excellent disposition, and was an earnest searcher after truth, but very ignorant and a mere tyro, and used to the company of infidels and base persons, into perplexity, till doubt was heaped upon doubt, and he lost all definite aim, and the straight wall of the clear Law, and of firm Religion was broken down, so that after five or six years not a trace of Islám was left in him: and every thing was turned topsy turvy:—

(P. 256) The matter of me and you has fallen upside down,
You purchase the very thing I blame.²⁶³

Of this there were many causes and reasons, but in accordance with the Proverb ‘A little guides to the much, and fear points out the culprit,’^263a a specimen of them is brought forward in the course of this history (and God is the assistant!). In a word crowds of learned men from all nations, and sages of various religions and sects came to the Court, and were honoured with private conversations. After enquiries and investigations, which were their only business and occupation day and night, they would talk about profound points of science, the subtleties of revelation, the curiosities of history, and the wonders of nature, subjects of which large volumes could give only an abstract and summary: and in accordance with the saying:— “Three things are dangerous, Avarice satisfied: desire indulged: and a man's being pleased with himself” everything that pleased him, he picked and chose from any one except a Moslem, and anything that was against his disposition, and ran counter to his wishes he thought fit to reject and cast aside. From childhood to manhood, and from manhood to his declining years the Emperor had combined in himself various phases from various religions and opposite sectarian beliefs, and by a peculiar acquisitiveness and a talent for selection, by no means common, had made his own all that can be seen and read in books. Thus a faith of a materialistic character became painted on the mirror of his mind and the storehouse of his imagination, and from the general impression this conviction took form, like an engraving upon a stone, that there are wise men to be found and ready at hand in all religions, and men of asceticism, and recipients of revelation and workers of miracles among all nations and that the Truth is an inhabitant of every place: and that consequently how could it be right to consider it as confined to one religion or creed, and that, one which had only recently made its appearance and had not as yet endured a thousand years! And why assert one thing and deny another, and claim pre-eminence for that which is not essentially pre-eminent?

And Samanas²⁶⁴ and Brahmans (who as far as the matter of private interviews is concerned (P. 257) gained the advantage over every one in attaining the honour of interviews with his Majesty, and in associating with him, and were in every way superior in reputation to all learned and trained men for their treatises on morals, and on physical and religious sciences, and in religious ecstacies, and stages of spiritual progress and human perfections) brought forward proofs, based on reason and traditional testimony, for the truth of their own, and the fallacy of our religion, and inculcated their doctrine with such firmness and assurance, that they affirmed mere imaginations as though they were self-evident facts, the truth of which the doubts of the sceptic could no more shake—

“Than the mountains crumble, and the heavens be cleft!”

And the Resurrection, and Judgment, and other details and traditions, of which the Prophet was the repository, he laid all aside. And he made his courtiers continually listen to those revilings and attacks against our pure and easy, bright and holy faith, some of which are written in the book called “The Inspiration of Holy Scripture”: and urged and excited them to his own path by speech both set and extempore:—

“The guardian gave advice to that fair one:
Do not smile on every face, as the rose through the wind.
When the advice became past endurance, that coquette
Knit her brow, and hung down her head.”

Some time before this a Brahman, named Puruk'hotam, who had written a commentary on the book Khirad-afzá, had had private interviews with him, and he had asked him to invent particular Sanskrit names for all things in existence. And at one time a Brahman, named Debí, who was one of the interpreters of the Mahá-bhárata , was pulled up the wall of the castle sitting on a chárpáí till he arrived near a balcony, which the Emperor had made his bed-chamber. Whilst thus suspended he instructed his Majesty in the secrets and legends of Hinduism, in the manner of worshipping idols, the fire, the sun and stars, and of revering the chief gods of these unbelievers, such as Brahma, Mahádev, Bishn, Kishn, Rám and Mahámá (whose existence as sons of the human race (P. 258) is a supposition, but whose non-existence is a certainty, though some in their idle belief look on them as gods, and some as angels). His Majesty, on hearing further how much the people of the country prized their institutions, began to look upon them with affection. He became especially firmly convinced of the doctrine of the transmigration of souls, and he much approved of the saying:—“There is no religion in which the doctrine of Transmigration has not a firm hold.” And insincere flatterers composed treatises in order to establish indisputable arguments in favour of this thesis. And having instituted research into doctrines of the sects of the Hindú unbelievers, of whom there are an endless and innumerable host, and who possess numbers of sacred books, and yet do not belong to the Ahl-i-Kitáb,²⁶⁵ he took so much pleasure in such discussions, that not a day passed but a new fruit of this loathsome tree ripened into existence. Sometimes again it was Shaikh Táj-ud-dín whom he sent for. This Shaikh was son of Shaikh Zakariyá of Ajodhan. The principle 'Ulamá of the age call him Táj-ul-'árifín.^265a He had been a pupil of Rashíd Shaikh Zamán of Pánípat, author of a commentary on the Lawáiḥ, and of other excellent works, was most excellent in Çúfíism, and in the knowledge of Theology second only to Shaikh Ibn 'Arabí, and had written a comprehensive commentary on the Muzhat ul-arwáḥ. Like the preceding he was drawn up the wall of the castle in a blanket, and his Majesty listened the whole night to his Çúfic obscenities and follies. The Shaikh, since he did not in any great degree feel himself bound by the injunctions of the Law, introduced arguments concerning the Unity of Existence, such as idle Çúfís discuss, and which eventually lead to license and open heresy. He also interested the Emperor in the question as to the faith of Pharaoh (the curse of God be on him!), which is mentioned in the book Fuçúç ul-ḥikam, and as to the excellence of hope over fear, and such like questions, to which people, who naturally turn themselves from the warnings of Reason and the prohibitions of the Law, instinctively incline. Thus he became a chief cause of the weakening of the Emperor's faith in the commands of Islám. He allowed that infidels would be kept for ever in fire, but the eternity of the punishment he thought doubtful, and not actually established he also introduced many changes into the texts of the Qur'án, and (P. 259) the traditions of the Prophet (peace be upon him!). And the expression Insán i kámil he said referred to the Khalif of the age, explaining it in the sense of ‘holiest,’ and interpreting most things in a manner not wholly correct, and not a few of them quite wrong he uttered much such like nonsense. And he invented a sijdah [prostration] for him, and called it zamín-bos [kissing the ground], and looking on the reverence due to a king as an absolute religious command he called the face of the king Ka'bah i Murádát [sanctum of desires], and Qiblah i Ḥáját [goal of necessities]. And in support of these matters he brought forward some apocryphal traditions, and the practice of the disciples of some of the Shaikhs of India. And thus after a time the titles The Only One, The Absolute, The Perfect Man became commonly applied to the just, majestic, and magnanimous Emperor. Similarly other of the great Shaikhs, such as Shaikh Ya'qúb of Kashmír, who is a well-known writer, and at present the greatest authority in religious matters, mentioned some of the opinions expressed by that chief of the Qázís, Hamadání,²⁶⁶ such as the following: that Muḥammad the Prophet of God (may God bless him and his race and grant him peace!) was a personification of the title Alhádí [the guide], and that Iblís [the devil] is a personification of the title Almuzill^266a [the tempter], and that both names, thus personified, have appeared in the world, and that both personifications therefore are necessary.

Mullá Muḥammad of Yazd, too, was drawn up the castle wall in the same way, and uttered unworthy, loathsome abuse against the three Khalifs, and called all the companions of the Prophet, their followers and next followers, and the saints of past ages, (may God show favour to them!), infidels and adulterers, and represented the Sunnís and the Ahl i Jamá'at²⁶⁷ as despicable and contemptable, and pronounced every sect except the Shí'ah as erring and leading into error.

The differences among the 'Ulamá, of whom one would pronounce a thing as unlawful, and another by some process of argument would pronounce the very same thing lawful, became to his Majesty a cause of unbelief. And since he looked on each of the 'Ulamá of his own age as superior in dignity and worth to Imám i Ghazzálí and Imám i Rází, and since he knew the worthlessness of those of his own time, he inferred the unknown (P. 260) from the known and rejected also their predecessors.

Learned monks also from Europe, who are called Pádre, and have an infallible head, called Pápá, who is able to change religious ordinances as he may deem advisable for the moment, and to whose authority kings must submit, brought the Gospel, and advanced proofs for the Trinity. His Majesty firmly believed in the truth of the Christian religion, and wishing to spread the doctrines of Jesus, ordered Prince Murád to take a few lessons in Christianity under good auspices, and charged Abul-fazl to translate the Gospel. Instead of the usual Bismilláh-irraḥmán-irraḥín^267a the following line was used:—

Ai námí vey Gesu Christu,^267b

that is “O thou, whose name is merciful and very bountiful.” Shaikh Faizí added to this the hemistich:—

Subhánaka lá siwáka yá hú.^267c

And the attributes of the accursed Antichrist and his qualities were ascribed by those accursed men to his lordship The Best of the Prophets (God bless him and his family and preserve him from all Imposters!)

The accursed Bírbar tried to persuade the Emperor, that since the sun gives light to all, and ripens all grain, fruits and products of the earth, and supports the life of mankind, therefore that luminary should be the object of worship and veneration; that the face should be turned towards the rising and not towards the setting²⁶⁸ sun, which is the west; that man should venerate fire, water, stones, and trees, and all natural objects, even down to cows and their dung; that he should adopt the sectarial mark, and Brahmanical thread. Several wisemen at Court confirmed what he said, by representing that the sun was “the greater light” of the world, and the benefactor of its inhabitants, the patron of kings, and that kings are but his vicegerents. This was the cause of the worship paid to the sun on the Nou-róz-i-Jalálí, and of his being induced to adopt that festival for the celebration of his accession to the throne. (P. 261) Every day he used to put on clothes of that particular colour which accords with that of the regent-planet of the day. He began also, at midnight and early dawn, to mutter the spells, which Hindús taught him, for the purpose of subduing the sun to his wishes. He prohibited the slaughter of cows, and the eating of their flesh, because the Hindús devoutly worship them, and esteem their dung as pure. Instead of cows they sacrifice fine men. This reason was also assigned, that physicians have represented the flesh of cows to be productive of sundry kinds of sickness, and to be difficult of digestion.

Fire-worshippers also came from Nousárí in Gujrát, proclaimed the religion of Zardusht as the true one, and declared reverence to fire to be superior to every other kind of worship. They also attracted the Emperor's regard, and taught him the peculiar terms, the ordinances, the rites and ceremonies of the Kaiánians.^268a At last he ordered that the sacred fire should be made over to the charge of Abu-l-Fazl, and that after the manner of the kings of Persia, in whose temples blazed perpetual fires, he should take care it was never extinguished night or day, for that it is one of the signs of God, and one light from the many lights of His creation.

From early youth, in compliment to his wives, the daughters of Rájahs of Hind, he had within the female apartments continued to burn the hom,²⁶⁹ which is a ceremony derived from sun-worship; but on the New-year of the 25th year after his accession he prostrated himself both before the sun, and before the fire in public, and in the evening the whole Court had to rise up respectfully when the lamps and candles were lighted.

On the festival of the eighth day after the Sun's entering Virgo in this year he came forth to the public audience-chamber with his forehead marked like a Hindú, and he had jewelled strings tied on his wrists by Brahmans, by way of a blessing. The chiefs and nobles adopted the same practice in imitation of him, and presented on that day pearls and precious stones, suitable to their respective wealth and station. It became the current custom also to wear the rák'hí on the wrist, which means an amulet^269a formed out of twisted linen rags. [P. 262.] Every precept which was enjoined by the doctors of other religions he treated as manifest and decisive, in contradistinction to this Religion of ours, all the doctrines of which he set down to be senseless, and of modern origin, and the founders of it as nothing but poor Arabs, a set of scoundrels of highway-robbers, and the people of Islám as accursed. But in the course of time the truth of this verse^269b in its hidden meaning developed itself: “Fain would they put out the light of God with their mouths! but, though the Infidels abhor it, God will perfect his light.” By degrees the affair was carried to such a pitch that proofs were no longer considered necessary for abolishing the precepts of Islám. I remember, that in the early days of these discussions I had an argument with Shaikh Abu'-l-Fazl in the privy audience-chamber at Fatḥ-púr. He said: “It seems to me that there is a fair objection to be made to all writers [on such subjects] on two grounds. First—Why should they not have written as circumstantial histories of the oid prophets, as they have done in the annals of their own Prophet (God bless him and his family, and give them peace!)?” I answered: “The stories of the prophets are numerous enough in all conscience!” He said: “Nay, they are too compendious, they ought to have been written more in detail.” I answered: “In times gone by just the amount now extant must have been thoroughly sifted by critics and historians, and the rest not authenticated”.²⁷⁰ He said: “This answer is not satisfactory. But secondly—There is no kind of handy-craft's man, who ís not mentioned in the tazkirat-ul-auliyá, and the nafaḥát-ul uns &c., but the people of the Prophet's own family what fault have they committed that they are not mentioned therein? This is a great subject of wonder.” On this topic whatever the time allowed was said, but who will care to hear it! Afterwards I asked: “who will ever have a greater passion for all these notorious heresies, than yourself?” He said: “I wish to wander for a few days in the vale of infidelity for sport.” I said: “It will not be a bad thing if you eventually take the yoke of marriage,^270a as they have said:—(P. 263).

He took upon him the yoke of the Law, by the help of God,
From off the neck of the world, Peace be to his memory!”

He smiled and went away, and as has been suggested by a man of the world:—

“One favour of the Judge is better than a thousand witnesses”

he fell boldly into disputation in religious matters with such imbecile old men as the Çadr, the Qází, the Ḥakím-ul-mulk, and Makh-dúm-ul-mulk, and had not the slightest hesitation in putting them to shame, at which the Emperor was pleased. They sent privately a message to Abu-l-Fazl by Áçaf Khán, Bakhshí: “Why are you always falling foul of us?” He returned answer: The fact of the matter is I am the servant of a mere mortal, and not of an egg-plant”.²⁷¹ By dint of his own exertions, and the assistance of his father, and the patronage of the Khalif of the age, and by the favour of fortune, he cast them all in a short space of time down to the ground of scorn and contempt, as we have already stated. And not one of the people of Islám, except Hakím Abu-l Fatḥ and Mulá Muḥammad Yazdí could keep pace with him in any of the discussions. When further enterprises and propositions were brought forward I retired into private life:—

“When the desire is great
Difficulties become light”.^271a

I read the verse of flight,^271b and fell altogether out of the Emperor's notice, and all that friendship became estrangement. But thank God that I am as well off as I am!—

“My heart did not go gadding about, and a good thing it didn't!
It settled on nothing but thee, and a good thing it didn't!
Thou saidest, ‘I shall grieve if thine affair turn out well.’
Thou sawest that it did not turn out well, and a good thing it didn't!”

I did not consider myself a fit recipient of favour nor His Majesty a fit object of service, and I was quite content:—(P. 264).

“Come that we may wave all ceremony,
You shall not rise to me, I will not bow to you.”

And at long intervals I used to come and prostrate myself in the ante-chamber, and was a witness to the truth of:—

“Companionship will not arise,
Where dispositions are not congenial:”

And afterwards according to destiny:²⁷² —

“I saw that seeing thy face from afar was pleasanter,
I left thy companionship, I ceased to be a spectator.”

Since the account of those trifles and particulars, and the stringing of all these events in chronological order is of the number of impossibilities, thus much must be deemed sufficient, and my refuge is in the mercy of God (He is exalted!), who in all cases is the defender and protector of his servants, in fulfilment of the promise :^272a —“Shall not verily the party of God have the upper hand, is not God sufficient for his servants?” I have made bold to chronicle these events, a course very far removed from that of prudence and circumspection. But God (He is glorious and honoured!) is my witness, and sufficient is God as a witness, that my inducement to write this has been nothing but sorrow for the faith, and heart-burning for the deceased Religion of Islám, which 'Anqá^272b -like turning its face to the Qáf of exile, and withdrawing the shadow of its wings from the dwellers in the dust of this lower world, thenceforth became a nonentity, and still is so. And to God I look for refuge from reproach, and hatred, and envy, and religious prosecution:—

“I am content with what God has decreed for me,
And I commit my affairs to my Creator.
God has indeed been good in what is past,
So will He be good in what is to come.”

In this year a certain ḥakím came to Fatḥpúr, who said that he could construct a house having all its four sides in the water. And that he could plunge into the water and enter the house without the water's penetrating it. With a view to this they made a tank in the court-yard of the palace twenty gaz by twenty gaz, and three gaz deep. In this they built a stone cell, and (P. 265) on the roof of it they built a high tower, and on all four sides of the cell they left steps. But the pretensions of the ḥakím, like his medicines, proved a lie, and he fled and was seen no more.²⁷³ But Ḥakím 'Alí of Gílán some seventeen years later did construct such a pond at Láhor, and Mír Ḥaidar a riddle-maker found “The pond of Ḥakím 'Alí”^273a to give the date. And that pond the Emperor filled brimful of copper coins, which amounted to as much as 20 kror. One day he had an interview with one Shaikh Banj'hú by name, a singer with a sweet voice, and of Çúfí tendencies, one of the disciples of Shaikh Adhan of Jounpúr (whose name gives the date of his death),^273b and had a very agreeable time of it. Then he sent for Miyán Tánsín, and other unequalled singers of Hind; but he preferred him to any of them, and ordered that Shaikh Banj'hú should carry off the whole of that sum of money. But his strength was unequal to carrying it, so he asked for a little gold instead. The Emperor, accordingly, presented him with nearly 1,000 rupees in exchange. And the rest of that money the Emperor in the course of three years, more or less, got rid of by means of various expenses. About this time he received from Shaikh Mubárak^273c a lecture on his extravagant expenditure. Before that, at the time of the [musical] exhibitions, Shaikh Faizí had said: “Our Shaikh^273d is not much of a courtier”. “No,” replied the Emperor, “he has left all those extravagancies to you.” He sent Shaikh Banj'hú,^273e and Miyán Tánsín, and all the musicians to the Shaikh that he might tell him what they were worth as musicians. He said to Miyán Tánsín: “I have heard that you can sing a bit.” At last he compared his singing to the noise of beasts, and allowed it no superiority over it.

In this year Ma'çúm Khán, foster-brother of Mírzá Ḥakím, who was a brave youth, and was always performing valiant deeds, being vexed with the Mírzá came and did homage to the Emperor. He gave him a command of 500 and appointed him to the district of Bihár. There he fought a battle with Kallá Pahár, a general distinguished among the Afgháns for his might and prowess, (P. 266) and gained the victory over him. The Emperor from Fatḥpúr sent him a farmán making him a mançabdár of 1,000, together with a present of a horse and a dress of honour from his own wardrobe. They say that he saw in a dream the glorified 'Alí (may God be gracious to his countenance!) so distinetly, that you would have said that the blessed hand had struck him on the back. Through this blessing he never turned his back from the foe; and the mark of the hand is visible on his back to this day:—

“What fear of the waves of the sea is there
To him, who has Noah for his pilot.”

In the month of Shavvál²⁷⁴ of the aforesaid year the Emperor sent for Mullá Taib from Kít'hal, and patronized him, and appointed him Díwán of the province of Bihár and Ḥájípúr. And most of his acts of patronage were of a like character. Also Ráí Puruk'hotam in reward for his commentary^274a he made Bakhshí. And Mullá Mujdí of Sarhind, who had formerly been warrant-writer to Islím Sháh, he made Receiver-General of revenues. And Shamshír Khán, khwá-jah-sará , he made Superintendent of the Exchequer. And these through the vileness of their birth, which necessarily produces vileness of character, having arrived at that place, were loyal neither to God nor their Emperor. They perpetrated all sorts of oppression and tyranny, and bending unsuitable and unfitting seasons to their wishes, so annoyed the soldiery that they compelled Ma'çúm Khán to revolt, as shall soon be narrated, if God (He is exalted!) will.

In this same month Maqçúr^274b Jauharí Mírzá Muzaffar Ḥusain brought the presents of Rájah 'Alí Khán from Khándesh, and presented them to the Emperor, who after a time forgave him his transgressions, and then honoured him by raising him to the dignity of son-in-law,^274c and took him into favour.

In this year the Emperor appointed Shahbáz Khán Bakhshí, with Ghází Khán Badakhshí and Sharíf Khán Atgah, and others to march against Ráná Kíká.²⁷⁵ The Ráná shut himself up in Koṇbhal-mír ,^275a which is a strong fortress. The imperial troops were victorious and ravaged that district. One night the Ráná (P. 267) effected his escape from the fortress, and took refuge in another mountain-fastness.

In this year Sulṭán Khwájah returned from a pilgrimage to Makkah and brought with him horses of Arabian pedigree, and Abyssinian slaves, and other precious presents for the Emperor, who received him with favour and made him Çadr.

The office of Mír-Hájj for the year nine hundred and eighty-six was given to Khwájah Muḥammad Yaḥyá, one of the descendants of Khwájah Aḥrár (God sanctify his spirit!). He left 4 lacs of rupees as a deposit at his ancestor's shrine, and in the month of Shavvál^275b of this year started from Ajmír to go to Makkah.

Now Shaikh 'Abd-un-nabí and Makhdúm-ul-mulk having fallen out with one another had been the cause of people's distrusting both the past and the future, and had brought about a great declension from true religion. In accordance with the [Arabic] saying: “When two people clash together, they fall together” the Emperor sent them to Makkah together with this caravan. The next year they arrived at the goal of their wishes, and in the end of the business (which deserves honour for that result) they became cleansed from the stain of their countenances, and returned in safety to the fold of Islám, and learning eventually brought about its natural result, and “He is great, and man is little”^275c was found to give the date.

In the beginning of the year nine hundred and eighty-seven (987) news arrived of the death of Khán Jahán governor of Bengál. The Emperor wrote a farmán of condolence to his brother Isma'íl Qulí Khán, and he appointed Muzaffar Khán, who had been honoured with the post of Díwán, as governor in his stead, and Razawí Khán he appointed Bakhshí, and Ḥakím Abu-l-Fatḥ he made Çadr, and Ráí Patr Dás with Mír Adham as his colleague he made Díwán, and sent them off from Fatḥpúr.

On the 19th of the month Çafar²⁷⁶ of this year the Author (praise be to the Most High!) was blest with the birth of a darling son named Muḥi-d-dín (may God prolong his days, and furnish him with wholesome knowledge, and acceptable works!). He was born at Basáwar.

In this year Mullá 'Ashqí, who had the title of Khán, and had written a díván^276a and a masnaví (a ridiculous one too!), and who had gone as vakíl of Qází Çadr-ud-dín of Láhor to Kashmír (P. 268), came back, and in company with one Muḥammad Qásim by name, ambassador of 'Alí Khán governor of Kashmír, brought presents of quantities of safron and musk and costus arabicus, and shawls and other precious products of Kashmír and Tibet.

At this time the Emperor sent Ḥakím 'Alí, a relative of Ḥakím-ul-mulk, of Gílán (who is now without an equal in philosophy, and medicine, and other rare sciences) in company with the vakíls of 'Ádil Khán of the Dak'hin to Bíjágarh.

At this time Mír Nizám, sister's husband to Mírzá Sháhrukh, came as ambassador from Badakhshán with presents of Badakhshí horses, and glittering rubies, and strings of camels.

In this year the Emperor was anxious to unite in his person the spiritual as well as the secular headships, for he held it to be an insufferable burden to subordinate to any one, as he had heard that the Prophet (God be gracious to him, and give him peace!), and his lawful successors, and some of the most powerful kings, as Amír Tímúr Çáḥibqirán, and Mírzá Ulugh Beg-i-Gurgán, and several others had themselves read the khuṭbah, he resolved to do the same, apparently in order to imitate their example, but in reality to appear in public as the Mujtahid of the age. Accordingly on the first Friday of Jumáda'l-awwál^276b of the year nine hundred and eighty-seven, in the chief mosque of Fatḥpúr, which he had built near the palace, His Majesty began to read the khuṭbah. But all at once he stammered and trembled, and though assisted by others, he could scarcely read three verses of a poem, which Shaikh Faizí had composed, but came quickly down from the pulpit, and handed over the duties of Ímám to Ḥáfiz Muḥammad Amín, the Court Khatíb. These are the verses:—

“The Lord, who gave to us sovereignty,
Who gave us a wise heart, and a strong hand,
Who guided us in equity and justice,
And drove from our thoughts all save equity,
His description is higher than the range of thought,
Exalted is His Majesty, Alláhu Akbar!”

(P. 269) And in these days, when reproach began to spread upon the doctrines of Islám, and all questions relating thereto, and ever so many wretches of Hindús and Hindúizing Musalmáns brought unmitigated reviling against the Prophet, and the villanously irreligious Ulamá in their works pronounced the Emperor to be without sin, and contenting themselves with mentioning the unity of God, they next wrote down the various titles of the Emperor, and had not the courage to mention the name of the Prophet (God be gracious to him and his family, and give them peace in defiance of the liars!) this matter became the cause of general disgrace, and the seeds of depravity and disturbance began to lift their heads in the empire. Besides this base and low men of the higher and lower classes, having accepted the collar of spiritual obedience upon their necks, professed themselves his disciples. They became disciples through the motives of hope and fear, and the word of truth could not proceed out of their mouths.

At this time Muzaffar Khán, governor of Bengál sent a present to the Emperor consisting of 5 lacs of rupees in ready money, and other notable gifts of elephants, and cloth, which were beyond calculation, also 39 elephants were presented by Muḥammad Ma'çúm Kábulí.

On the second Friday of this month the Emperor assembled the poor and the deserving in the chaugán-field, and came in person to the place. Nearly a lac of persons, men and women, were present in that enclosure. And Sulṭán Khwájah the Çadr, and Qulíj Khán presented to each a piece of gold. On that day of assembly eighty persons, women and children, were crushed to death under the hands and feet. And from the girdles of some of the women, whose husbands had died in Bengál, there fell purses full of ashrafís and rupees. This affair caused great suspicion to arise as to all the poor. An order was issued, that in future but few persons should be brought together at once, but he soon laid aside this rule also.

In these same days the Emperor appointed Quṭb-ud-dín (P. 270) Muḥammad Khán Atgah as tutor to the eldest prince, and held a great levee. The tutor as is customary on such occasions presented the Emperor with notable elephants, and other presents worthy of his new post, and taking the prince upon his shoulders he ordered dish-fulls of gold and jewels to be scattered to the people.

In this year an ambassador of 'Abd-ulláh Khán Uzbek came from Transoxiana with a letter containing assurances of friendship. The Emperor sent Mírzá Fúlád Barlás, with Khwájah Khaṭíb, who was a native of Bokhárá, to accompany him with presents and gifts. And the seal of the letter was as follows:—

“When we are friends with one another,
Sea and land are free from confusion and evil.”

At this time a document made its appearance, which bore the signatures and seals of Makhdúm-ul-mulk, of Shaikh 'Abd-un-nabí çadr-uç-çudúr, of Qází Jalál-ud-dín of Multán, qázi-l-quzát, of Çadr Jahán the muftí of the empire, of Shaikh Mubárak the deepest writer of the age, and of Ghází Khán of Badakhshán, who stood unrivalled in the transcendental sciences. The subject-matter of the document was the settling of the absolute superiority of the Imám-i-'ádil over the Mujtahid and the investigation of the grounds of this superiority. In so doing they set right some doubtful traditions containing some disputed points, so that no one of them might any longer have it in his power to pretend ignorance of the difference between what is religious and what is political authority, but that he might stand self-convicted. And the discussion of this matter was carried on with great prolixity. Such questions were discussed as: “To whom is the title Mujtahid, and the word ijtihád applicable?” And, “whether it is the duty of the Imám-i-'ádil, who is versed in politics and holds a higher rank than the Mujtahid, to decide according to the requirements of the times and the wants of the age all legal questions on which there exists a difference of opinion.” At last, however, all signed the document, some willingly and the rest against their convictions. I shall copy the document verbatim:—

(P. 271) “Petition.

Whereas Hindústán is now become the centre of security and peace, and the land of justice and beneficence, a large number of people, especially learned men and lawyers, have immigrated and chosen this country for their home. Now we, the principal 'Ulamá, who are not only well-versed in the several departments of the Law and in the principles of jurisprudence, and well acquainted with the edicts which rest on reason or testimony, but are also known for our piety and honest intentions, have duly considered the deep meaning, first, of the verse of the Qur'án:²⁷⁹ “Obey God, and obey the prophet, and those who have authority among you,” and, secondly , of the genuine tradition: “Surely the man who is dearest to God on the day of judgment is the Imám-i-'ádil; whosoever obeys the Amír, obeys Thee; and whosoever rebels against him, rebels against thee, and, thirdly, of several other proofs based on reasoning or testimony; and we have agreed that the rank of Sulṭán-i-'ádil,^279a is higher in the eyes of God than the rank of a Mujtahid.^279b Further we declare that the king of the Islám, Amír of the Faithful, shadow of God in the world, Abu-l-Fatḥ Jalál-ud-dín Muḥammad Akbar Padsháh Ghází (whose kingdom God perpetuate!) is a most just, a most wise, and a most God-fearing king. Should therefore in future a religious question come up, regarding which the opinions of the Mujtahids are at variance, and His Majesty in his penetrating understanding and clear wisdom be inclined to adopt, for the benefit of the nation, and as a political expedient, any of the conflicting opinions, which exist on that point, and issue a decree to that effect, we do hereby agree that such a decree shall be binding on us and on the whole nation.

Further, we declare that, should (P. 272) His Majesty think fit to issue a new order, we and the nation shall likewise be bound by it, provided always that such order be not only in accordance with some verse of the Qur'án, but also of real benefit to the nation; and further, that any opposition on the part of his subjects to such an order passed by His Majesty shall involve damnation in the world to come, and loss of property and religious privileges in this.

This document has been written with honest intentions, for the glory of God, and the propagation of the Islám, and is signed by us, the principal 'Ulamá and lawyers, in the month of Rajab²⁸⁰ of the year nine hundred and eighty-seven (987).”

The draft of this document, when presented to the Emperor, was in the handwriting of Shaikh Mubárak. The others had signed it against their will, but the Shaikh had added at the bottom that he most willingly signed his name; for this was a matter to which for several years he had been anxiously looking forward.

No sooner had His Majesty obtained this legal document, than the road of deciding any religious question was open; the superiority of the intellect of the Imám was established, and opposition was rendered impossible. All orders regarding things which our law allows or disallows were abolished, and the superiority of the intellect of the Imám became law.

But the state of Shaikh Abu-l-Fazl resembles that of the poet Ḥairatí^280a of Samarqand, who after having been annoyed by the cool and sober people of Máwara-n-nahr, joined the old foxes of Shí'itic Persia, and chose the roadless road. You might apply the proverb to him—“I prefer hell to disgrace.”

On the 16th of Rajab of this year His Majesty made a pilgrimage to Ajmír. It is now fourteen years since His Majesty has been to that place. On the 5th of Sha'bán, at the distance of five kos from the town, the Emperor alighted and went on foot to the tomb of the Saint [Mu'in-ud-dín]. But sensible people smiled, and said, It was strange that His Majesty should have such a faith in the Khwájah of Ajmír, while he rejected the foundation of everything, our prophet, (P. 273) from whose “skirt” hundreds of thousands of saints of the highest degree had sprung:—

“The Fairy has her face hidden,
But the Demon is all ogles and blandishments:
The Intellect is consumed with astonishment,
What can this miracle mean!
In this Garden no one has ever gathered
A Rose without a thorn: Nay,
The Lamp of Muḥammad is ever attended
By mischievous-sparks of Abu Lahab.”

After that the Emperor had started [for Ajmír] Makhdúm-ul-mulk and Shaikh Abd-un-nabí tempted mankind by suggesting the forgery of the Qur'án, and by going out of the way to show the impossibility of inspiration, and by throwing doubts on the authority of prophets and Imáms, and utterly denying the existence of demons and angels, and all mysteries and signs and miracles. Also the integrity of the traditional Text of the Qur'án and its verbal authority, and existence of the soul after the dissolution of the body, and reward and punishment other than by means of transmigration they deemed impossible, and tenaciously brought forward such verses as these:—

“How much of Truth is in the hand of the tomb!
The Qur'án remains, and many an old Tomb.
The Tomb tells not a word to any,
For the secret of the Qur'án none searches.
The Festival is come, and all shall be well—like the face of the bride,
The cupbearer will pour pure wine into the cup—like the blood of the cock,
The bridle of prayer, and the muzzle of fasting—Once again
It will remove from the necks of these asses—Aha! aha!”

His Majesty had now determined publicly to use the formula, ‘There is no god but God, and Akbar is God's representative.’ But as this led to commotions, he thought better of it, and restricted the use of the formula to a few people in the Harem. People expressed the date of this event by the words, “Revolution of Religion”.²⁸² The Emperor tried hard to convert Quṭb-ud-dín Muḥammad Khán and Shahbáz Khán. But they staunchly objected. (P. 274). Quṭb-ud-dín Khán said: “What would the kings of the West say, such as the Sulṭán of Constantinople, if he heard all this? For they all hold the same faith be it a travesty or no.” His Majesty then asked him, if he was in India on a secret mission from Constantinople, as he showed so much opposition; or if he wished to keep a small place warm for himself, should he go away from India, and become an honoured subject there. He might go at once. Shahbáz got excited, and took part in the conversation; and when Bír Bar— that hellish dog—said: “You cursed infidel, will you go on talking in this manner, until I am able to pay you out!” Affairs became rather unpleasant, and the Emperor said to Sháhbáz in particular, and to the others in general: “Would that they would beat your mouths with a slipper full of filth!”

At this time Tarsún Muḥammad Khán, governor of Patan arrived from Gujrát.

And in this year Qází 'Alí of Baghdád, who had been appointed in spite^282a of Shaikh Abd-un-nabí to look into the administration of the Madad-i-ma'ásh lands, and their encroachment,^282b brought those holders^282c of grant-lands, which brought in 1,000, or 500 down to those which brought in 100, to Court, and cut off most of their lands, and taking the very calf^282d from the cow left them precious little. By this means respect for the families of the great and noble, and the renowned and famous vanished from the cities, and the children of no race were left so helpless as the human beings of Hind: “A generation came after, who neglected prayer, and followed their own lusts”.^282e Schools and mosques were obliterated, and great numbers left their native country: and their children, who remained, in course of time got a reputation for mean conduct.

“The schools were as empty of learned men,
As the wine-seller's shop of wine-bibbers in the Fast-month.

(P. 275) They turn the teacher's black-board into a draught board,
And the Reader's Qur'án into a gambling-stake.”

And the Emperor after showing much severity to Ḥakím-ul-mulk on account of his opposition to Shaikh Abu-l-Fazl, whom he called Fazlah,²⁸³ at last ordered him to make a pilgrimage to Makkah.

In the blessed month of Ramazan^283a of this year the afore-mentioned Qází 'Alí brought me (who through my absence from Court had begun to look upon myself as one of those forgotten out of mind) before the Emperor in the city of Ajmír, and mentioned my 1,000 bígahs of subsistence-land, which he said caused me to waste my time:—

“To the Court of Princes in season and out of season
Thou shouldest go in order to receive some grant.”^283b

The Emperor said: “I suppose that in the farmán for this grant there is some condition insisted on”. He replied: “Certainly, it was on condition of his attendance at Court.” The Emperor said: “Make enquiries, perhaps he is not well, that he absents himself so long.” Ghází Khán Badakhshí said in joke: “He is suffering from a purse-complaint”: and all the courtiers made some reference to the duties of my late office of Imám, which together with public prayer, was at that time in abeyance. Shahbáz Khán said: “He ought always to be present.” The Emperor said: “We do not wish any one to attend against his will, if he does not care about attending at Court, let him have but half of the grant.” Immediately I resigned it, and this was very annoying to the Emperor, and he turned his face from me. But when Qází 'Alí kept perpetually asking the Emperor: “What does your Majesty decree concerning it?” after a good deal of talk he said: “Ask Shaikh 'Abd-un-nabí (who is now at the Camp) how much he ought to have without condition of attendance.” Shaikh 'Abd-un-nabí sent word by the late Mulláná Iláhdád of Amrohah: “Since he is a family-man, and the expenses he has are well known, we (P. 276) approve of his having the amount, which your Majesty has decreed, viz., 700 or 800 bígahs. But the courtiers did not see the fitness of this, and put great pressure on me to be more diligent in attendance, so that nolens volens I fell again into the snare:—

“The clever bird, when it falls into the snare,
Has to bear it as well as he can.”

All this arose from my not consenting to be branded as his disciple, and I used frequently to allude to it, and in extemporary verse to say:—

“I am glad I have not a horseman nor a foot-soldier,
I am free from the bond of the king, and of the Prince too.”

In this year the Tamghá,²⁸⁴ and the Jazyah,^284a which brought in several krors of dáms were abolished, and edicts to this effect were sent over the whole empire.

In the same year Ma'çúm Khán, son of Mu'ín-ud-dín Aḥmad Khán Farankhúdí, who held the governorship of Jaunpúr, came to the Court, and was afterwards sent back to Jaunpúr. And Mullá Muḥammad Yazdí the Emperor appoint Qázi'l-quzát of Jaunpúr, and the governorship of Diḥlí was given to Muḥibb 'Alí Khán, son of Mír Khalífah.

Mullá Muḥammad Yazdí, when he reached the province of Jaunpúr, issued a fatwá insisting on the duty of taking the field and rebelling against the Emperor. The consequence was that Muḥammad Ma'çúm Kábulí, and Muḥammad Ma'çúm Khán Faran-khúdí, and Mír Mu'izz-ul-mulk, and Nayabat Khán, and 'Arab Bahádur, and others, drew the sword, and in many places (as will be narrated) fought some desperate battles. The Imáms said, that the Emperor has in his dominion made encroachments on the grant-lands belonging to us and to God (He is magnified and glorified!), may the All-merciful have mercy on him! Finally Mihtar Sa'ádat who bears the title of Péshrau Khán, when he had been to Ma'çúm Khán Jaunpúrí and returned to Court, informed the Emperor of the facts of this fatwá of Mullá Muḥammad Yazdí, who accordingly on some pretext or other sent for Mír Mu'izz-ul-mulk and Mullá Muḥammad Yazdí from Jaunpúr. When they arrived at Fírozábád (P. 277), which is eighteen cosses from Ágrah, the Emperor sent word that they should separate them from their guards, and put them into a boat, and take them by way of the Jamná to Gwályár. Afterwards he sent another order that they should be made away with. So they put the guards into one boat, and them into another old one, and when they were in deep water ordered the sailors to swamp the boat of the lives of the two in the whirlpool of destruction. After some days Qází Yáqúb came from Bengál and the Emperor sent him to follow the other two. And one by one he sent all the Mullás, against whom he had any suspicions of dissatisfaction, to the closet of annihilation. And having banished the Ulamá of Láhor, he separated them from one another like a disheveled thread. Of the number of these was Qází Çadr-ud-dín Láhorí, whose free-thinking was greater than that of Makhdúm-ul-mulk; him he appointed Qází of Bahroṇch in Gujrát. And Mullá 'Abdu-sh-shukúr Gúldár he appointed Qází of Jounpúr, and Mullá Muḥammad Ma'çúm he appointed to Bihár. And Shaikh Munawwar he banished to Málwah, and made him Çadr of that district. In this way each of them obtained the promotion he wished, but away from home. But on account of his advanced age, and because the Mullás had refused him the title of Shaikh, looking on him, as they did, as a mere travester, and a regular enemy and ill-wisher to the Faith, and an unfortunate old beggar, the Emperor made an exception in the case of Shaikh Mu'ín, grandson of Mulláná Mu'ín, the celebrated preacher, and giving him no trouble left him at Láhor. He died in the year nine hundred and ninety-five. And Ḥájí Ibráhím Sarhindí he made Çadr of Gujrát, and set him thither. He abstracted much treasure and gold from the fief-lands by means of bribes, and so heaped up quantities of gold. If they would not pay the bribes he used to confiscate their lands. This matter was represented to the Emperor, and Ḥájí Ibráhím had to sue for permission to retire to the Dak'hin, until on suspicion of (P. 278) rebellion the Emperor sent for him, and committed him to the keeping of Ḥakím 'Azím-ul-Mulk. His Majesty used to send for him to attend the evening séances, and he inventing such things as would please the Emperor presented a pamphlet containing all sorts of lies about the great ones of the Faith. But this forgery and deception was found out. The sum-total of it is that he wrote in a clumsy manner in an old worm-eaten book a spurious expression purporting to have emanated from Shaikh Ibn 'Arabí (God sanctify his tomb!), to the effect that the Khalíf of the age would have many wives, and would shave his beard; and he included many other peculiarities of the Emperor. So his Majesty became again propitiated, and admitted him once more among his courtiers. And according to report Ḥájí Ibráhím had interpolated in an old pamphlet, one of the works of Mullá Abu Sa'íd, nephew of Miyán Pánípatí, a tradition to the effect that a son of one of the Companions of the Prophet came in shaven into his presence (God bless him, and his family, and grant them peace!), and that he said: “The people of Paradise will look like that.” When he took to boldly disputing with Sháh Fatḥ-ulláh, and Shaikh Abu-l-Fazl, and Ḥakím Abu-l-Fatḥ, and satirizing them, the Emperor sent him to the castle of Rintam-b'hor. There he died; and after the razing of the fortress, they found his dead body, which was tied up with long strips of cloth, and the story got abroad that he had thrown himself down from the top of the fortress. This event took place in the year nine hundred and ninety-four:—

“Last night our share in this world was in a garden like Paradise,
But this morning we are without house, as if it had never been inhabited.”²⁸⁶

And any piece of orthodox learning which a man might have acquired became his bane, and the cause of his degradation. And the Ulamá and Shaikhs, the leaders of thought to all around, he sent for to the Court, and enquired into their grant-lands and pensions. He saluted and honoured them all in the Moghul^286a style, and when they had had either a public or a private audience with him (P. 279), he settled upon them a certain portion of land according to the opinion he had formed of them. And any one, whom he knew to have pupils, or assemblies for dervish-dancing, or any kind of counterfeit²⁸⁷ worship, he named “a shop,”^287a and either sent him to prison, or dismissed him to Bengál or Bakkar. And this business was always going on. Those Pírs who had reached a blessed old age, and those Shaikhs who were nearest eternity, were the best off. But to enter into details would be too long. And on account of these farmáns the Çúfís, who gave themselves up to dances and ecstacies, were subjected to the testamur of Hindú examiners, and through their evil state “they forgot their religious ecstasy.”^287b These were banished from their country and had to creep into mouse-holes, and the whole position was reversed:—

“There was one year such a famine in Damascus,
That lovers forgot love.
Heaven became so stingy towards earth,
That fields and palms did not wet their lips.”

And in truth those wretched assemblies, and absurd ceremonies, and those worthless hypocritical Çúfís were for the more part quite worthy of perishing:—

“That is not Çúfí-action or liberality,
But rather deceitful action and bawdery.
Theft and robbery are better than this,
Robbing the dead of their clothes is better than this.”

However much I wish that this bit of sketch of a historical fact may be put together, my pen against my will slips from my guidance and turns in another direction to the description of this period of innovation, and the doctrines of the new sect and religion:—

“The virtues of Káfúr, if I wish to praise him
Or if I wish not, they dictate to me and I write.”
“Hush! the master is coming to the house.”
Would that I were quit of their business; But what can I do?—
“They are gone under the skirts of those by whom we lived,
And I am left among the worthless like the skin of a scabby camel.”

(P. 280) I reproached heaven, that with sword of oppression thou hast slain
Assembly-adorning kings, and the youth of the Barmak- family.²⁸⁸
Thou hast placed thine own power of binding and loosing in the hands of a people,
Compared with whom a dog is honourable in respect of generosity.
But in the ear of my soul the answer came: Be content, live happily!
For a period of eighteen days^288a pulls out the beard of every one.”

In this year Muzaffar Khán arrived in Bengál, and began a course of great strictness in his administration, and commenced wronging and oppressing the Amírs of that district, and confiscated many of their jágírs. He practised the dágh-u-maḥall in the Court fashion, and the settlement of accounts in the old manner:—

“Be not hard in reckoning with the world,
For every one who is hard dies a hard death.
In letting people be at ease spend thy time,
For he lives at ease, who leaves people at ease.”

And Bábá Khán Qáqshál, and Khálidí Khán, who were nobles of great importance, however much they tried to escape the dágh, and begged to have their jágírs confirmed, did not obtain their request. But Muzaffar Khán with a view to getting back the money from the jágír, which Khálidí Khán had acquired through neglecting the dágh-u-mahall, put him in prison and ordered him the bastinado. It so happened that at this time he received a farmán addressed to him ordering him to bring to punishment one Roshan Beg by name, a servant of Mírzá Muḥammad Ḥakím, who had arrived in Bengál from Kábul. Muzaffar Khán seized him from the midst of the Qáqsháls, and using harsh language to Bábá Khán showed him the farmán and ordered him to cut off Roshan Beg's head at the head of the díwán. All the soldiers of that place on beholding this affair trembled for their own safety, and with one accord scratching their heads, and putting on their Mughal helmets, broke out into open rebellion. They assembled in the city of Gaur, which in the ancient language (P. 281) was called Lak'hnautí, and looted the goods of Muzaffar Khán wherever they found them. Muzaffar Khán collected a number of boats, and ordered Ḥakím Abu-l-Fatḥ and Patr²⁸⁹ Dás to march against the Qáqsháls at the head of their own armies. It need hardly be said that by Ḥakím Abu-l-Fatḥ, who was a bottle-man rather than a battle-man, and by Patr Dás, who was a Hindú writer, no great signs of valour would be likely to be shown in this time. Muzaffar Khán sent a farmán to the Qáqsháls, expressing his wish to conciliate them all, and promising to confirm them in their jágírs. But they sent him answer, that he must send to them Razwí Khán and Patr Dás as a guarantee of his sincerity. Accordingly he sent them the aforenamed together with Mír Abu Isḥáq, son of Mír Sayyid Rafí'ud-dín Muḥaddis, all of whom they imprisoned, and then applied themselves still more vigorously to rebellion.

Meanwhile Mullá Ṭíb and Ráí Purushtam, Bakhshí, who had at one blow confiscated the jágírs of Ma'çúm Khán, and 'Arab Bahádur and the other Amírs of Bihár, and had thus laid the foundations of unpleasantness, and allowing their violence and arrogance to exceed all bounds had forced them into rebellion, crossed the river Josá with their whole force in order to attack Ma'çúm Khán. But 'Arab Bahádur came upon Ráí Purushtam unawares, and having slain him took much spoil. Then having opened a correspondence with Bábá Khán Qáqshál with a view to co-operating with him, he hastened to Gaṛhí.

On the side of Muzaffar Khán Khwájah Shams-ud-dín Muḥam-mad Khawáfí²⁹⁰ (who is now Díwán-i-kul)^290a opposed their entrance into Gaṛhí.

Then Ma'çúm Khán having been victorious and having succeeded in forming a junction with the Qáqsháls, crossed the river Ganges to oppose Muzaffar Khán. Muzaffar Khán shut himself up in the fort of Tándah, which consisted of four old walls and nothing more. Vazír Khán Jamíl Beg, who was one of the old loyal Amírs (P. 282), in conjunction with Ján Muḥammad Khán Bihbúdí and other warriors, joined the rebels. They took Ḥakím Abu-l-Fatḥ and Khwájah Shams-ud-dín and most of the nobles prisoners. But these two leaders together with Ráí Patr Dás by some means or other effected their escape, and with the help of the zamíndárs managed to reach Ḥájípúr. During these troubles Ḥakím Núr-ud-dín Qarárí lost his life. The Qáqsháls and Ma'çúm Khán lured Muzaffar Khán out of the fort of Tándah upon a solemn assurance of safety, and then put him to death with all sorts of tortures. And making his goods and chattels the fund from which they drew in inducing people to join them, they collected a force. So the whole of the province of Bengál and Bihár fell into their hands, and they collected a large force of horsemen and foot-soldiers. They released from prison Mírzá Sharaf-ud-dín Ḥusain, whom the Emperor had sent from the prison of Qásim 'Alí Khán Baqqál governor of Kábul to Bengál, and made him their general.

Then Rájah Todar Mal, with Çádiq Mnḥammad Khán and Tarsún Muḥammad Khán and other mighty Amírs were appointed from Fatḥpúr to go and quell the rebellion. And Muḥibb 'Alí Khán, governor of Rohtás, and Muḥammad Ma'çúm Khán Farankhúdí, governor of Jaunpúr, and the other jágír-holders of the neighbourhood were ordered to assist the Rájah. While they were still on their way Sháham Khán Jaláír engaged with Sa'íd Khán Badakhshí and slew him. Muḥammad Ma'çúm Jounpúrí joined the Rájah with 3,000 well-trained and perfectly appointed cavalry. But symptoms of rebellion were apparent in all his actions. The Rájah detecting this tried to soothe him by every possible means. Meanwhile he sent a report of the state of affairs to Court.

Muḥammad Ma'çúm Khán Kábulí, and the Qáqsháls and Mírzá Sharaf-ud-dín Ḥusain with 30,000 gallant horsemen, and 50 elephants and a number of boats and cannon in battle array seemed to intend to offer battle in the neighbourhood of the town of Mungír (P. 283). The Rájah since he could not quite trust his army, which was on the look-out for the slightest change of fortune, did not deem it prudent to fight in the open, and so shut himself up in the fortress of Mungír. Every day skirmishes took place, and the Imperial army was reduced to great distress. At this time Zain-ud-dín Kambú, a relative of Shahbáz Khán brought by water a lac of rupees under a postal-guard, and delivered them over to the Rájah. This supported him for a few days. In the same way the Emperor sent a lac of rupees every few days, one time by the hand of Daryá Khán Ábdár, another time by Sarmadí, and another time by a son of the banker²⁹¹ Bhagwán Dás the treasurer, and so received news each time. Of the number of the postal-guard was one 'Abd-ul-Ḥay Khawwás, a handsome man without brains, son of Qází Çadr-ud-dín Sambhalí (who also in a blundering sort of way used to discuss ceremonial and religious matters), he died young, and his barque of life was drawn into the whirlpool of calamity.

At this time Humáyún Farmúlí, a son of the celebrated Sháh Farmúlí, who had received the title of Humáyún Qulí Khán, and at the time of the discussions about the new Musalmánish customs, and the worrying and examining of men at Ajmír, had been a witness of those dreadful pieces of work, together with Tarkhán Díwánah fled from the army of the Rájah and joined the rebels.

It so happened that during the course of the seige Bábá Khán Qáqshál fell grievously sick, and was on the point of death. Then Jabbárí, son of Majnún Khán Qáqshál, who was a strong pillar of that cause (and is now in high favour in the service of the Emperor) on account of the sickness of Bábá Khán showed an inclination to be off. And so the solidity of that confederacy began to be broken up. Ma'çúm Khán Kábulí was obliged to hasten towards Bihár. And 'Arab Bahádur went from thence by forced marches to seize Patnah and get the imperial treasury into his hands. Pahár Khán Khaçç-i-khail, who is generally known as Sayyid 'Árif, shut himself up in the fortress of Patnah (P. 284). And Rájah Todar Mal sent Ma'çúm Khán Farankhúdí with a force to the assistance of Pahár Khán. 'Arab Bahádur, being unable to withstand the force opposed to him, withdrew to Kachítí,²⁹² a well-known zamíndár (?).^292a

The Rájah and Çádiq Khán with the rest of the Amírs set off for Bihár with the intention of suppressing Ma'çúm Khán Kábulí. The latter made a night-attack on them. It so happened that he attacked the quarters of Çádiq Khán. On that night one Tórmáh Beg, a great leader, who in conjunction with Ulugh Khán the Abyssinian had been appointed to keep guard, was slain. Ulugh Khán fell back but Çádiq Khán held his ground. Ma'çúm Khán fought bravely, and did all that was possible, but when he found that the attack was unsuccessful he retired, and became a bandit throughout that wide district. Eventually he took refuge with 'Isá Khán, the zamíndár of Oṛísá, who at that time by the hand of Sa'íd Khán Mughal sent to the Court two hundred and fifty elephants, and other precious gifts together with a sum of four lacs of rupees, and gold vessels, and aloe-wood, and fine linen and cloth beyond compare, and which are there to this day. Thus the whole of the province of Bihár as far as Gaṛhí came into the possession of the imperial army.

At this time the Emperor sent for Shajá'at Khán, and his son Qáyim Khán (who had a stipend as one of the musical people about Court, and was a smart and clever young man) from Sárangpúr to come to Fatḥpúr. On the road their attendants on account of bad conduct and evil goings-on, and faithlessness, and worthlessness, which are inseparable qualities of a leader of our day, killed both him and his son, and then dispersed. They say, that one day a beggar asked for something of Shajá'at Khán, and other Kháns, who were in the audience-chamber. After he had importuned them much he answered him: (P. 285.) “My good man, the door of alms which admits you, was not made by us.”

After this event the Emperor appointed Sháríf Khán Atgah governor of Malwá in his place, and having visited him at his quarters and received the greatest hospitality, he despatched him to that district.

In this year the Emperor sent for Khán i-A'zam from Ágrah, where he had been for a long time under surveillance, and treating him with kindness sent him with 5,000 horsemen to assume the governorship of Bengál.²⁹³ And having sent for Shahbáz Khán from the district of the Ráná, he appointed him with a well-equipped army to assist Khán-i A'zam, with orders that he should proceed to the confines of Hájípúr and traversing the jungle of Kachítí should compel 'Arab Bahádur to come out of that place.

In this year Ḥakím-ul-mulk Gílání, being reckoned by the Emperor as one of those not to be trusted in matters of religion and faith,^293a was sent, as has been already narrated, to Mekkah with a sum of five lacs of rupees, to be given as presents to the worthy among the sharífs and poor. And there he remained for the rest of his life:—

“I will not move from the head of thy street,
I am not the rolling-heavens, but the stationary earth.”

And however much the Emperor sent for him he still remained there, and committed himself to God.

In this year he sent for the renowned Shaikhs from all sides and quarters, and had a private interview with each, and investigated several matters. Most of them made themselves agreeable, having a grant of some bígahs of land in view (may dust be scattered on their heads!), and indulged in flattery, and wheedling, and open blasphemy. And their real intentions broke through their cloke of dissimulation. This is the portion of the enemies [of the Faith]: Morals remained after the loss of Renunciation, Solitude, Trust, Contentment, Aspiration; and even that too men saw stripped from them all, and so suspicion of them crept into other quarters:—

“This lot of fools are clothed in rags,
They mumble some mysterious words.²⁹⁴

(P. 286) They have never advanced far in sincerity and purity,
Though they have destroyed many a good name.”

Of the number of these was Shaikh Cháníldah, successor of the great Shaikh 'Abd-ul-'azíz, an inhabitant of the town of Síwahnah. In accordance with the Emperor's command he went down to the Ibádat Khánah^294a and began to display and sell perverted prayers. He foretold that a certain lady of the harem would bring forth a son, but as it so happened that a daughter was born, the prophesy fell rather flat. In the same way Sayyid Háshim Fírozábádí opened that kind of business with a hundred marvels; and they became the cause of discrediting former teachers. But when the Emperor sent for Shaikh Muttahi Afghán Kásí from the Panjáb, in obedience to his summons he came from the monastery on foot in company with the messengers, while they carried his litter behind him. At Fatḥpúr he alighted at the house of Shaikh Jamál Bakhtyár, and sent word: “My eye has not rested on any blessed sign of the Emperor.” So the Emperor without granting him an audience sent him quickly about his business. Also Shaikh-ul-hadyah Khairábádí came to Court in accordance with a message from the Emperor, who received him standing with great respect. He had traversed the desert of Poverty with the foot of Trust and Solitude, and had not accepted any land from the Emperor. He was very intimate with the own son of Abu-l-Fatḥ, with whom the Author at Samb'hal towards the end of the reign of Islím Sháh, in accordance with the command of the famous Moulawí, the great Master Miyán Ḥátim, Sambhalí (God have mercy on him!), read the Irshád-i Qází, and the commentary thereon. He has now succeeded his father, and is the great authority on all knowledge and practice and Çúfi-ism. When a question was asked Shaikh-ul-hadyah, he pointed to his ear and said: “I hear an exalted word!”, and the Emperor having excused him hastily dismissed him.

In this year low and mean fellows, who pretended to be learned, but were in reality fools, collected evidence (P. 287), that His Majesty was the Çáḥib-i-Zamán, who would remove all differences of opinion among the seventy-two sects of the Islam and the Hindús. Sharíf²⁹⁵ brought proofs from the writings of Maḥmúd of Basakhwán, that he had said that in the year 990 a certain person would abolish lies, and how he had specified all sorts of interpretations of the expression “Professor of the true Religion,” which came to the sum-total 990. And Khwájah Mouláná of Shíráz, the heretic of Jafrdán, came with a pamphlet by some of the Sharífs of Makkah, in which a tradition was quoted to the effect that the earth would exist for 7,000 years, and as that time was now over the promised appearance of the Mahdí would immediately take place. The Mouláná also brought a pamphlet written by himself on the subject. The Shíahs mentioned similar nonsense connected with 'Alí, and quoted the following Rubá'í, which is said to have been composed by Náçir-i-Khusrou, or according to some by another poet:—

“In 989, according to the decree of fate,
The stars from all sides shall meet together.
In the year of Leo, the month of Leo, the day of Leo,
The Lion of God will stand forth from behind the veil.”

All this made the Emperor the more inclined to claim the dignity of a prophet, perhaps I should say, the dignity of something else.^295a

Meanwhile a despatch arrived from Rájah Todar Mal, stating that all this while he had kept Ma'çúm Khán Farankhúdí along with him by conciliatory treatment, and all sorts of expedients. But that Khwájah Sháh Mançúr Díwán had claimed a good deal of money due from him and Tarsún Muḥammad Khán, and had written them exceedingly harsh and threatening letters and had caused them great annoyance. And, that at this critical juncture these payments were the cause of dissensions in the army. Since the exactions of Sháh Mançúr had several times been reported at Court, the Emperor refused him admittance, and after some days, thinking it the best thing to do, handed him over as a prisoner to Sháh Qulí Khán Muḥarram, and in his place (P. 288) appointed Vazír Khán, brother of Áçaf Khán of Herát, as Díwán-i-kul. And to Qází 'Alí Baghdádí, a heart-troubler, unlucky, preposterous, owllike, rejected of God and mankind, he granted the honour of being his assistant, that in conjunction they might decide important cases. Glory to God! what a proper combination it was!

At this time they brought a man to Court, who had no ears nor any trace of the orifices of the ear. In spite of this he heard everything that was said to him, though the place of the ears was quite level. And in this year, in order to verify the circumstances of this case, an order was issued that several suckling infants should be kept in a secluded place far from habitations, where they should not hear a word spoken. Well-disciplined nurses were to be placed over them, who were to refrain from giving them any instruction in speaking, so as to test the accuracy of the tradition which says: “Every one that is born is born with a natural tendency,” by ascertaining what religion and sect these infants would incline to, and above all what creed they would repeat. To carry out this order about twenty sucklings were taken from their mothers, for a consideration in money, and were placed in an empty house, which got the name of “Dumb-house” After three or four years they all turned out dumb, and the appellation of the place turned out prophetic. Many of these sucklings became the nurselings of mother earth:—

“My mother is earth, and I am a suckling,
The propensity of children for their mother is not strange.
Soon will it be that resting from trouble
I shall fall drunk with sleep on my mother's bosom.”²⁹⁶

In this year the Emperor sent the prince Dániyál with Shaikh Faizí, who was his teacher, and Shaikh Jamál Bakhtyár, and a number of courtiers to Ajmír. And he presented a donation of 5,020 rupees to the faqírs of that monastery.

In this year Rajah Todar Mal and the other imperial Amírs passed the rainy season in Hájípúr. (P. 289.)

And Ma'çúm Khán Farankhúdí, who was in a discontented state of mind went to Jounpúr without the permission of the Amírs, and broke out into rebellion. The Emperor sent Peshrou Khán, known as Mihtar Sa'ádat, the head of the chamberlain department (dáro-ghah-e-faráshkhánah ), with a farmán to appease him, and the government of Jounpúr was given to Tarsún Khán, and that of Oudh to Ma'çúm Khán Farankhúdí. He uttering some wild speeches like a crazy man, and considering Oudh an out-of-the-way corner of the Empire, went there and began to prepare for war.

Meanwhile Mihtar Sa'ádat came to Court, and again recounted how that Mullá Muḥammad Yazdí had issued a fatwá authorizing rebellion and insurrection. This was the cause of Mullá Muḥam-mad Yazdí and Mír Mu'izz-ul-mulk being sent for, as has been narrated.²⁹⁷

At this time Niyábat Khán, son of Háshim Khán, Níshápúrí, who at the time of the Emperor's going to Patnah had found favour, revolted in Jhosí and Piyáj, which was his jágír; and marching against Kaṛah, which sided with Isma'íl Qulí Khán: and an Afghán named Ilyás Khán, who was governor of that place, slew Ilyás Khán in battle. They then laid seige to the fortress, and began to ravage and lay waste the country. The Emperor appointed Isma'íl Qulí Khán Vazír Khán, and Muṭlab Khán, and Shaikh Jamál Bakhtyár, and other Amírs, to march against Niyábat Khán.

Sháh Qulí Khán Muḥarram, and Bírbar bádfarosh,^297a he sent to Oudh to try and appease Ma'çúm Khán Farankhúdí.

After the departure of Vazír Khán, the Emperor released²⁹⁸ Khwá-jah Sháh Mançúr, and reappointed him díwán-i-kul.

When Niyábat Khán heard of the despatch of this army against him, he raised the seige of Kaṛah, and went towards Gasht a dependency of the district of Patnah. The Amírs crossed the river and quickly attacked him. He turned back to offer battle, and alone against so many Amírs fought such a desperate battle, that imagination fails to picture it (P. 290). At first he threw their army into utter confusion, and having dismounted Shaikh Jamál spared his life. But eventually he was put to flight, and retreated to Oudh to Ma'çúm Khán.

I. e. God.

↩

Al Qur'án xvi, 98.

↩

Comp. Ps. cxix, 49.

↩

See p. 203, note 1.

↩

IV. 3.

↩

2 + 2 + 3 + 3 + 4 + 4 = 18. The Mujtahid who took nine, interpreted it 2 + 3 + 4 = 9. The usual interpretation is “two or three or four.”

↩

A copy of this work is to be found among the Persian MSS. of the As. Soc., Bengal. Blochm., p. 104, note 2.

↩

Ḥanífah.

↩

To Fatḥpúr Síḳṛí.

↩

‘God is great’. or ‘Akbar is God.’

↩

To commemorate God is the greatest thing.

↩

Such as women may use. Blochm.

↩

Companions of Mahomet.

↩

He meant to imply that the Qur'án agrees with the Vedas in reverence for the cow.

↩

Surat-ul-baqarah, the “Sura of the heifer.” It is really the 2nd Sura, but the 1st is only an introduction (Fátíḥah). Similarly Ps. ii is quoted as “the first Psalm.” Acts, xiii, 33 (Codex D).

↩

I. e., he died at Makkah.

↩

Bravo!

↩

The eighth month.

↩

That is, reached Mecca.

↩

Kerbela, Kúm, Mash-had, and Mecca.

↩

For fauj read faut.

↩

Brother of Akbar, and Commandant of Kábul.

↩

Viz., Mírzá 'Azíz Kokah, son of Atgah Khán. His mother was Akbar's wetnurse, so that, however much Azíz might offend he was seldom punished. Akbar used to say, “Between me and Azíz is a river of milk which I cannot cross.” Blochm., pp. 321, 325. He was appointed governor of Gujrát in 979.

The seventh month.

N W. of Ágrah.

See p. 204.

The ‘Elephant Gate,’ compare Blochmann's Áín-í Akbarí, 505.

↩

A sort of gallery, generally above the gate-way, where the kettle-drums are beaten at certain hours.

↩

See above p. 212.

↩

Tawáchí see p. 74, note 5.

↩

The seventh month.

↩

Instead of Bamán and Fámál we must read Farmán and Pámál.

↩

The Qíqáyón of Jonah iv. 6. For a like prov. see Talm. Babl. Synh. 44a.

↩

He was dead, when our author wrote.

↩

Are these the same as the “máwís” Blochm., p. 252, or ought we to read Mu'áçiyán rebels?

↩

The Emperor Maḥmúd had acquired immense wealth from the plunder of Hindú temples. He hoped to do the same.

↩

See p. 94, note 4.

↩

For bar pisari o ought we to read bar sari o?

↩

Al Qur'án, LXXXIX, 28.

↩

Al Qur'án, LVI, 88.

↩

The word in the text ba-i'jáz means ‘in amazement.’ But the editors have put a (?) to it, and it should, doubtless, be read ba-i'záz ‘in honour,’ as the following word iḥtirám clearly points out.

↩

There seems to be some mistake, as this only gives 975.

↩

His name was Sayyid Muḥammad, see p. 224 and Text, p. 220, l. 1.

↩

Read nishínad.

↩

Ḥusain Khán.

↩

This is not said in disparagement of Ḥusain Khán, but in disgust at the innovations which Akbar introduced later on.

↩

I e., Muḥammad.

↩

Unbelievers, i. e., non-Muslims. This is the origin of the name Kaffir, which was applied by the Muslims of Africa to the other inhabitants.

↩

Sanscrit stoka ‘a piece,’ whence the Hindí tukrá (with cerebral t) ‘a patch.’

↩

A distinguishing badge, that which make a person ghair (different) from others.

↩

Since Semitic languages are generally written without vowel-points, and sometimes even without the diacritic points, which, in the Arabic (Persian, Ottoman-Turkish &c.) characters, distinguish between some of the consonants, e. g., between n and y &c., when a writer wishes to define the pronunciation of a word he has to spell it out in the most elaborate manner. The Persian character is the Arabic adapted to the exigencies of the language, and it is usually written without vowel-points.

↩

A tract of country.

↩

Viz., to keep up the required number of soldiers.

↩

Military and non-Military expenses.

↩

Instead of ??tifáq read auqáf. Compare p. 22, note 4.

↩

The first Surah of the Qur'án. The expression ‘reading the Fátiḥah’ is used figuratively of entering upon an undertaking. Compare the expression ‘reading the verse of flight’ on p. 48, note 1.

↩

Fatḥ.

↩

The editors' (?) to the last word of the first line is unnecessary. They seem to have overlooked the fact, that the lines are distinctly called a Qit'ah, and that therefore only the second and fourth lines need rhyme.

↩

The application seems to be this: that, while he was alive his extravagance rendered his children liable to fall into poverty, but that after he was dead the kind actions, he had performed during life, freed them again.

↩

King of Hírah in 'Iráq.

↩

Al Qur'án, XIV, 23.

↩

The Emperor had seven Imáms, or private Chaplains, one for each day of the week.

↩

The five hours of prayer are: Before dawn, midday, afternoon, after sunset, bedtime.

↩

The eleventh month.

↩

The first month.

↩

Near Údaipúr in Rajpútána.

↩

We propose to read Náibán, instead of Nábínám ‘sightless.’

↩

Paymaster of the Court. Áín-í Akbarí, Blochm. p. vi. He had been appointed vice Qází 'Alí. Ibid. p 411.

↩

Shaikh Mu'ín ud-dín Chishtí.

↩

Lit. That I may make my face red (with the glow of success), or my neck red (with the gore of death). This play on the words reminds one foreibly of a similar one in Gen. xl. 20—23 “And he lifted up the head of the chief butler, and of the chief baker among his servants, and he restored the chief butler unto his butlership, … and he hanged the chief baker.”

↩

About £ 86 stirling.

↩

It appears that he had refused to send to Court an elephant (as a sign of submission). See p. 241.

The first month.

The second month.

See p. 232.

Ḥusain Qulí Khán.

The third month.

Polo.

There is a play on the words ján ‘soul,’ and Jánán ‘Beloved,’ i. e. The Creator.

↩

It would appear from what follows, that the report was to the effect that it was the Emperor who was killed.

↩

Compare Text, p. 220, l. 1. This, of course, means ‘of Bárha.’ For the use of names of places in this manner compare my Memor book of Neurnberg, p. 21, under Heubach.

↩

“Others” means “other Sayyids.”

↩

Shayah is apparently a misprint for Shíbah-e, Shíb-i Shib-i, or Shapah-e, all of which words are onomatopæa for the ‘whiz’ of an arrow.

↩

Shiçt = Shist.

↩

Comp. 1 John iii. 21.

↩

Perhaps both the skirmishers under S. Háshim Bárha, and those of the right-wing under S. Aḥ. Kh. Bárha.

↩

The famous hero in the Sháhnámah.

↩

And of our worthy Author, no doubt, with him.

↩

Lit. ‘The base are diminished, and the world becomes pure.’ A proverb, see Roebuck, p. 21.

↩

Leader of that division of the Ráná's army, which first attacked the advance-body and right wing of Mán Sing's troops.

↩

It must be forgotten, that there were Hindús fighting on both sides.

↩

The sum of the letters = 984.

↩

See p. 236.

↩

In our text the name is always Kokandah, but Blochm. calls it Gogandah.

↩

It was a very common custom among the Rájpúts.

It has been equally common among the Jews, see translator's Memor. book of Nuernberg, p. 9 Ḥarakat-al-mazbúḥí kardan seems to be the Moslem equivalent to the Jewish ‘saying of the Benediction used when slaughtering animals for Jewish food,’ (Ibid.).

↩

He was evidently a man of action, and no friend to red-tapeism.

↩

The trade of corn in India is carried on in a mode peculiar to that country. The merchants in corn are a particular caste denoted by the term Brinjarries. They traverse the country, conveying the grain, often from the greatest distances, in large bodies which resemble the march of an army. They encamp with regularity, never lodging in houses; are strongly armed; and ready to fight no contemptible battle in their own defence. The practice comes down from a remote antiquity; and marks that unsettled and barbarous state of society, when merchants are obliged to depend upon themselves for the means of their defence. The experienced utility of their services has procured them considerable privileges. They are regarded as neutral in all was; they enjoy a right of transit through all countries; and the armies, which spare nothing else, act under a special obligation, seldom violated, of respecting the property of the Brinjarries (Mill and Wilson, Hist. of British India, V, p. 395). The name is Banjárah but also pronounced Brinjarah in India. It is derived from the Sanskrit Banij ‘a merchant,’ and not from the Pers. Birinj ‘rice.’ (Elliot, The Races of the Provinces of India, I. p. 52).

↩

A sér contained 28 dáms at the commencement of the reign of Akbar, and was fixed by him at 30. It is about 2lbs. avoird.

↩

Son of the sister of Tarson Khán. This last was in the service of Bairám Khán; but joined Akbar upon Bairám Khán's disgrace, and was sent to see Bairám Khán as far as Nágór on his way to Makkah. See Blochmann's Áín-í-Akbarí, pp. 342, 525.

↩

Similarly Napoleon used to go over the battle after a victory to criticise the doings of his troops.

↩

See p. 243 note 2.

↩

See p. 235 note 1.

↩

The word t'hána is Hindústání. It is used again p. 237, l. 3 infra of the ‘Station of Ára.

↩

Or Jaipúr, see p. 45 note 8.

↩

This word pársál is interesting since it helps to illustrate the word ◌ ‘last year’ 2 Cor. viii, 10; ix. 2. ◌ must have been originally ◌ = Sanskrit para + vat (sara) ‘last year.’ From first part para comes the Persian pár cf. ◌. Sál is perhaps the Sanscrit Çarad ‘a year.’

↩

Here the ordinary Arabic. word saqqár is used. But in India the common word is bístí, the origin of which is as follows: When Babar came to India he found the heat of the climate so unendurable, that he said that the only enviable people were the water-carriers, and that they ought to be called bihishtí, paradisiacal.

↩

Not Badáún, as English historians have supposed.

↩

It is a common Hindú name meaning ‘Favour of Rámá,’ from the Sanscrit prasáda ‘favour.’

↩

He refers no doubt to the Saint Mu'ín, mentioned often before.

↩

He meant that it should no longer be named after a Hindú god, but after a Saint of Islám.

↩

See p. 229, l. 7 of text.

↩

I do not know whether this means from a place in Persia called Nakhodeh near the Lake of Urumiyeh.

↩

See the year 991 in this History.

↩

K'hal-gáṉw (Colgong). The termination gáṉw in the Sanscrit gráma village, comp. Sátgaṉw.

↩

See p. 230, l. 4, text.

↩

So Blochmann, pp. 400, 441, and so, apparently, MS.; not Cajítí.

↩

I. e., he had been, but now rebelled. The word íl is Turkí, and means obedient, submissive.

The fourth month.

The sixth month.

The seventh month.

Mu'ín-uddín Chistí Sigizí of Ajmír.

↩

Dost. Blochmann.

↩

Leader of the pilgrims.

↩

See Burton's Mecca and El Madina, III.

↩

They were afraid that he was about to become a devotee.

↩

Ráná Kíká, see above.

↩

Sháh of Persia, see above.

↩

The first letters of these words give 4 + 80 + 900 = 984.

↩

Al Qur'án III. 134.

↩

The Táríkhi Nizámí says that what displeased the Emperor was, that they would not suffer any plundering of the Ráná's country, and that it was this that caused the distress of the army. Elliot v. 401.

↩

Rájah Muzaffar Khán.

↩

See p. 246.

↩

Sháhinsháh and Zamín give 768 in both cases. And in the first rúí gives 216, while in the second zer gives 817. Thus the date of the accession is 984, A. H., and of the death 985.

↩

Our writer means that while the preceding Sháhs of Persia had been Shi'ahs, the new Sháh was a Sunní.

↩

In Persian Nifáq.

↩

I. e., Ráná Kíká.

↩

The conductor of the pilgrimage.

↩

The Portuguese held Bombay, and so were able to control the navigation of Súrat.

↩

The last month of the Muhammadan year.

↩

Lak'hnou Lithograph gives Pasháwar.

↩

That edition reads Hindúán not Hindún.

↩

See above, p. 249.

↩

The brothers were Sayyids, i. e., descendants of the Prophet.

↩

The father of the above-mentioned ‘sons of the Prophet.’

↩

These words mean “Excellent Sayyid”, and give 985, which is one too much. But, if we take fazal instead of fázal, the date is 984.

↩

The ‘Nabatheans’ are the ‘Bæotians’ of the Arabs. “Ces gens sont fort grossiers. C'est pourquoi ils passent ordinairement parmi les Arabes pour des idiots et des ignorants.” D'Herbelot.

↩

See p. 301, Text.

↩

Kneeling and sitting on the heels, with the hands resting on the knees.

↩

Shamsuddín, of Gílán on the Caspian. Blochm. p. 542.

↩

So Blochmann (P. 177) renders the words 'ilám-i lafz u-ḥál. Our “letter and spirit” (?).

↩

‘The Ocean and the Jug,’ i e., God and the Soul, the Finite trying to reach the Infinite.

↩

I. e., ‘The master said’, comp. the Hebr. Midrash Yelammedénu ‘he used to teach us.’

↩

Akbar said that perfect devotedness consisted in the readiness to sacrifice four things, Life, Property, Religion, Honour.

↩

Al Qur'án II, where “Cow” is used for the “Calf” of Exodus.

↩

See above p. 251.

↩

He had gone thither after remaining two or three days at Cambay. Ṭaba-qát i Akbarí.

↩

Muzaffar Ḥusain.

↩

He was the reigning prince of Bíjápúr.

↩

The seventh month.

↩

The Tabaqát-i Akbarí says 20 days. Elliott V, 407.

↩

See p. 232.

↩

He seemed to mean that monstrous changes had taken place in the course of that time.

The twelfth month.

See p. 265.

The first month.

The old name of Muḥarram. Whence the two first months are sometimes called Çafaráni.

↩

The Lak'hnau edition has asterisks after the word naberah.

↩

The 6th month.

↩

Mu'ín-ud-dín Chishtí Sigizí.

↩

See p. 207, note 1.

↩

Sabṭí is from the Hebrew Shébheṭ ‘a tribe’ and is applied to Israel as descended from the twelve heads-of-tribes (Shebhátím), the sons of Jacob.

↩

The word ◌ ‘blame’ is ◌ ‘purchase’ written backwards.

↩

Ex uno disce omnes.

↩

Buddhist ascetic, Sansk, çramana.

↩

People of the Book, Jews, Christians, and Sabeites Al Qur'án 46 &c., xxix.

↩

Crown of the Çúfís.

↩

Abdul-Jabbár Hamadání, see D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. fol. 395.

↩

Al Qur'án xxviii 14.

↩

Those who in religious ordinances follow the ijmá' ‘agreement’ or common consent of the 1st cent. of the Hejrah.

↩

In the name of the gracious and merciful God.

↩

Our author seems to have imagined that “Jesus Christ” meant “merciful and bountiful.”

↩

Praise be to Thee, there is none like Thee, O HE!

↩

I. e. towards Mecca.

↩

An old Persian dynasty.

↩

The branch of a certain tree offered by Parsees as a substitute for Soma juice.

↩

Sanscrit rakshiká.

↩

Al Qur'án LXI, 8.

↩

History serves as a kind of filter for each generation, removing the impurities of the traditions of the generation before. Abbott.

↩

Viz. to Orthodoxy.

↩

The egg-plant bears fruit all the year round, hence the Brahmans say (Chanḍi p. 69) when they fear that their patron is drowned, that he was an egg-plant to them, whereas his s'ráddh?? (funeral feast) will only yield once like a radish. Abu-l-Fazl seems to mean, that since his patron is a mere man and liable to die, or to change, he thinks it advisable to “make hay while the sun shines.”

↩

“Where there is a will there is a way.”

↩

Compare p. 48, note¹.

↩

The Lak'hnau edition reads muqaddar not miqdár.

↩

An adaptation of Al Qur'án LVIII, 22, V, 61, XXXIX, 37.

↩

The fabulous bird (Símurgh) said to dwell in the mountains surrounding the world (Qáf).

↩

For the expression see Text p. 243, l. 11.

↩

The letters give 1002.

↩

Shaikh Adhan = 300 + 10 + 600 + 5 + 5 + 50 = 970.

↩

Father of Abu-l-Fazl.

↩

Meaning their father, Shaikh Mubárak.

↩

Mubárak.

↩

The tenth month.

↩

On the Khirad-afzá. See p. 265.

↩

See p. 260.

↩

In the 36th year he married him to his eldest daughter, the Sulṭán Khánum.

↩

Also called Pratáb, or Partáb.

↩

On the frontiers of Údípúr and Joudpúr.

↩

The 10th month.

↩

5 + 6 + 70 + 7 + 10 + 7 + 100 + 6 + 40 + 30 + 6 + 700 = 987.

The second month.

Blochm., p. 598.

The fifth month.

IV, 62.

Just ruler.

Authority on points of law.

↩

The seventh month.

↩

See Blochmann's Áín-i Akbarí, Translated p. 187, and Sprenger Catalogus p. 424.

↩

80 + 400 + 50 + 5 + 1 + 10 + 1 + 40 + 400 = 987.

↩

Instead of ◌ as in p. 254, l. 11.

↩

Compare Text p. 254, l. 9; Translation, p. 261.

↩

See Blochm. 274.

↩

I propose to read ◌ instead of ◌.

↩

Al Qur'án XIX, 60.

↩

Fazl means “excellence”, but Fazlah “refuse”, “leavings”.

↩

The ninth month.

↩

There is a play on the words bégah “out of season”, and bígah a measure of land, about 1/3 acre.

Inland tolls.

Tax on Non-Moslems.

Al Qur'án X. 25.

See p. (46), note 3.

↩

That is, in the Emperor's eyes.

↩

He meant that he was making his religion a trade. Comp. one of the sayings of Hillél in Mishnáh, Ábóth; and many similar sayings throughout the Talmúdím.

↩

A pun on the two meanings of ḥál, ◌ and ◌

↩

Put to death by Hárún-ur-rashíd.

↩

I. e., a short time.

↩

◌ appears to be a mistake for ◌.

↩

Khawáf is the name of a district and town in Khurásán. Blochm. p. 445.

↩

The 12 Díwáns who in 1003 had been appointed to the Çúbahs, were under his orders. Díwán-i-kul is the same as Vazír-i-kul, or Vazír-i-Mutlaq, or merely Vazír. Blochm. p. 446, note 3.

↩

Hindí Sét'h, Sanskrit çreshta “excellent”, “banker”.

↩

This is also the reading of the Lak'hnau lithograph.

↩

See Text, p. 285, ll. 7, 8. Transl. p. 293.

↩

See Elliot, V, p. 419, note.

↩

I. e., He could not depend on him to side with himself.

↩

◌ is in allusion to certain letters of the alphabet with which some of the Chapters of the Qurán, e. g., the second, begin.

↩

See p. 200.

↩

Of Ámul, see above p. 252.

↩

Of God.

↩

Compare Chaucer Pardoner's Tale 12661—12672.

“Ne Death alas! ne will not have my life.
Thus walk I like a restless caitiff,
And on the ground which is my mother's gate
I knockë with my staff, early and late
And say to her, “Leve mother, let me in,” &c.

Also Cowley's Old Man of Verona. And in Eastern literature Job i. 21, “Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither,” scil. ◌, Eccles. xl. 1. And Rig Veda (X, 18), as the body is committed to the earth, the hymn proceeds:—

“Approach thou now the lap of earth, thy mother,
The wide-extending earth, the ever kindly.”

Such instances might be multiplied indefinitely.

↩

See p. 285.

↩

Minstrel, dealer in encomiums.

↩

See above p. 295.

↩

Muntaḫab al-tavārīḫ - The Muntakhabu-’rukh, Volume 2

Other volumes of this work

	“Since thou canst not place any confidence in thy life, What matters it whether it be one, or one hundred years?
(P. 218)	Since there is no perpetuity in life, What matters power,^221a or servitude?”

	“How can I see him sleeping in the dust,
(P. 222)	Him, who has raised me from the dust!”

	“Though hair should grow on the palm of the hand, Yet thy locks cannot come into my hand.
(P. 251)	Such is my hard fate, And such is thy hard-heartedness.”

	“The schools were as empty of learned men, As the wine-seller's shop of wine-bibbers in the Fast-month.
(P. 275)	They turn the teacher's black-board into a draught board, And the Reader's Qur'án into a gambling-stake.”

	“This lot of fools are clothed in rags, They mumble some mysterious words.²⁹⁴
(P. 286)	They have never advanced far in sincerity and purity, Though they have destroyed many a good name.”