Muntakhab al-tawarikh 79.11
Muntakhabu-t-tawārīkh (Ranking, Lowe, Haig) 79.11
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79.11.1
He married him to the younger daughter of Muzaffar Khan, and treating him with regal pomp associated him in the wazirship with Rajah Todar Mal. And he, entering boldly into negotiations with the Rajah, came to an agreement with him. He became devoted to teaching the children of the Amirs, and every day would go to the houses of the courtiers, and would act the elementary teacher, first of all to the servant of Hakim Abu-l-Fath, and at another time to the son of Shaikh Abu-l-Fazl, and to other children of Amirs of seven or eight years of age, and even younger, and taught them to point, and to draw straight lines and curves, and even taught them the Alphabet: — “In the hands of children new to instruction Do not place a tablet of astronomical calculations. A horse, which is of Arab breed, Do not mark with a Grecian brand.” Putting a gun on his shoulder and a belt of ammunition round his waist, like a Runner, he used to accompany the Emperor at his stirrup in the chase, and all the glory of the knowledge, which he had not already lost, he utterly trampled in the dust. But in spite of all this want of dignity, and vileness, and baseness, he practised such heroism in bluff honesty, that no Rustam could have surpassed. The date of his arrival is given by the hemistich: — “Shah Fath-ullah Imam of saints.”
79.11.2
One night the Emperor, in Fath-ullah’s presence, said to Bir Bar, “I really wonder how any one in his senses can believe that a man, whose body has a certain weight, could in the space of a moment leave his bed, go up to heaven, there have 90,000 conversations with God, and yet on his return find his bed still warm!” So also was the splitting of the moon ridiculed. “Why,” said His Majesty, lifting up one foot (P. 317), “it is really impossible for me to lift up the other. What silly stories men will believe!” And that wretch [Bir Bar] and some other wretches — whose names be forgotten, — said “Yea, Your Majesty is right,” and chirped in confirmation. But Fath-ullah — His Majesty had been every moment looking at him, because he wanted him to say something: for he was a new-comer — looked straight before him, and did not utter a syllable, though he was all ear. About this time Mulla Ahmad of Tat’hah, who was a bigoted Shiah, and had made himself a hakim by pure affrontery, came from the Dak’hin and was presented at Court. His ancestors, who resided in Sind, had been very scrupulous orthodox believers, and this wretch used to shower anathemas on those unfortunate persons. But, in accordance with the saying of the Prophet (Peace be upon him !) ‘ God curses him, who curses his father,’ his cursing recoiled on his own head. When, in the time of Shah Tahmasp, he associated in ‘Iraq with some old Tabara’is, he became orthodox. Then he deserted them.
79.11.3
When Shah Isma‘il the second, becoming an excessive Sunni in opposition to the opinions held by his father, proceeded to kill and ill-treat the Shi‘ahs, Mulla Ahmad in the company of Mirza Makhdum (who was a Sharif and a zealous Sunni, and wrote the Kitab-un-naqiz in blame of the Shi‘ah, which contains the date of its composition), went to Makkah. Thence he proceeded to the Dak’hin, and afterwards to Hindustan, and finding no opposition to the prosecution of his designs, he began to teach his absurd doctrines, and invite converts to the Shi‘ah persuasion : but in a short time he met the penalty of his evil deeds. He had as yet had no interview with Shaikh Faizi, and had not yet assumed that air of confidence, with which his intimacy with that minister inspired him, when I saw him one day in the bazar, where some ‘Iraqis took the opportunity of mentioning my name to him in terms of praise. Upon this he addressed me and said : “ I see the mark of a Shi‘ah stamped on your forehead.” I replied promptly: “ Just as much as I see Sunni stamped on yours ! ” The friends, who were present, all laughed, and were pleased. I shall, if God (He is exalted !) will, notice the close of his life in its proper place.
79.11.4
The year 1,000 of the Hijrah era, which is in general use, being now on the point of completion, the Emperor ordered a history of all the kings of the Islam to be written, which should in reality supercede all other histories, and directed that such a name should be given to the work as to denote the year of its composition. It was for this reason that the work was entitled Alfi. He further ordered the word rihlat to be substituted for hijrah in the different dates, and employed seven persons to undertake the compilation from the date of the death of the last of the Prophets (the blessing of God be upon him, and may He give him peace !) up to the present day, and to mention therein the events of the whole world. He assigned the first year to Naqib Khan, the second to Shah Fath-ullah, and so on to Hakim Humam, Hakim ‘Ali, Haji Ibrahim Sarhindi (who had just then arrived from Gujrat) Mirza Nizam-ud-din Ahmad, and myself. And after that another seven years, and in this way the distribution of 35 years was provided for.
79.11.5
During the time that I was compiling the events of the seventh year, and was engaged on the life of the second true Khalifah (may God be propitious to him !) I had just finished the account of the foundation of Kufah, and the building and destruction of Qasr-ul-imarat, which was narrated in detail together with the cause of its destruction, and the marriage of Umm Kulsum, daughter of the Amir-ul-muminin ‘Ali (God be propitious to them both !), as well as the institution of five stated times for prayer, the fall of the city of Nasibin, and the scorpions big as cocks, which were made use of to effect its capture, when one night Asaf Khan Salis, who was the same as Mirza Ja'far, thought proper to dispute the correctness of these facts. Notwithstanding this, Shaikh Abu-l-Fazl and Ghazi Khan Badakhshi confirmed my assertions shortly afterwards. When I was asked whence I got this information, I replied that I had seen it in books, and had written accordingly, and that it was not my own invention. Immediately the Rauzat-ul-Ahbab and other historical books were called for from the library, and given to Naqib Khan to verify the accuracy of the statement, which by God’s grace, being found correct, I was relieved from the charge of invention.
79.11.6
At the recommendation of Hakim Abu-l-Fath the compilation of the work from the thirty-sixth year was entrusted solely to Mulla Ahmad of Tat’hah, who, however, wrote whatever coincided with his sectarian prejudices, a fact which is well known. The compilation of two volumes was finished up to the time of Changiz Khan, when Mirza Fulad one night, pretending that the Emperor had sent for Mulla Ahmad, summoned him from his house, and murdered him in a street of Lahor, in revenge for some injury which he had suffered at his hands, as well as because he was violently opposed to him in matters of religion. He was put to death in retaliation. The remainder of the work was done by Açaf Khan up to the year nine hundred and ninety-seven. In the year one thousand I was ordered to proceed to Lahore, to revise the composition, compare it with other histories, and arrange the dates in their proper sequence. I composed the first two volumes in one year, and entrusted the third to Açaf Khan.
79.11.7
Among the remarkable events of this year is the translation of the Mahâbhârata, which is the most famous of the Hindu books, and contains all sorts of stories, and moral reflections, and advice, and matters relating to conduct and manners, and religion and science, and accounts of their sects, and mode of worship, under the form of a history of the wars of the tribes of Kurus and Pandus, who were rulers in Hind, according to some more than 4,000 years ago, and according to the common account more than 80,000. And clearly this makes it before the time of Adam: Peace be upon him! And the Hindu unbelievers consider it a great religious merit to read and to copy it. And they keep it hid from Musalmans. The following considerations disposed the Emperor to the work. When he had had the Shâhnâmah, and the story of Amîr Hamzah, in seventeen volumes transcribed in fifteen years, and had spent much gold in illuminating it, he also heard the story of Abû Muslim, and the Jâmi‘-ul-hikâyât, repeated, and it suddenly came into his mind that most of these books were nothing but poetry and fiction; but that, since they were first related in a lucky hour, and when their star was in the act of passing over the sky, they obtained great fame.
79.11.8
But now he ordered those Hindu books, which holy and staid sages had written, and were all clear and convincing proofs, and which were the very pivot on which all their religion, and faith, and holiness turned, to be translated from the Indian into the Persian language, and thought to himself, “Why should I not have them done in my name? For they are by no means trite, but quite fresh, and they will produce all kinds of fruits of felicity both temporal and spiritual, and will be the cause of circumstance and pomp, and will ensure an abundance of children and wealth, as is written in the preface of these books.” Accordingly he became much interested in the work, and having assembled some learned Hindus, he gave them directions to write an explanation of the Mahabharata, and for several nights he himself devoted his attention to explaining the meaning to Naqib Khan, so that the Khan might sketch out the gist of it in Persian. On the third night the Emperor sent for me, and desired me to translate the Mahabharata, in conjunction with Naqib Khan. The consequence was that in three or four months I translated two out of the eighteen sections, at the puerile absurdities of which the eighteen thousand creations may well be amazed. Two parts were written. Such discussions as one never heard! as, Shall I eat forbidden things? Shall I eat turnips? But such is my fate, to be employed on such works.
79.11.9
Nevertheless, I console myself with the reflection, that what is predestined must come to pass.