The Book of Akbar 186: Account of Bairam Khan.

186

The brief account of Bairam Khan is as follows. After exposing his life in the unfortunate affair of Qanauj, he went to Sambal. There he took refuge with Raja Mitter Sen, one of the great landholders of that country, in the town of Lakhnūr and for a while remained there under protection. When Sher Khan heard of this, he sent a messenger for him, and the Raja being helpless, sent the Khan. They met on the road to Malwa. At the beginning of the interview, Sher Khan rose up to receive him and in order to attract him, spoke crafty words to him. Among his remarks was this, “Whoever keeps his loyalty, stumbleth not.” “Yea,” replied Bairam Khan, “whoever keeps his loyalty, shall not stumble.” He contrived, after a thousand difficulties, to escape from near Burhanpur in company with Abu’l-qasim, the governor of Gwaliyar, and set out for Gujrat. While they were on their way, Sher Khan’s ambassador who was coming from Gujrat, got information about them and sent people who arrested Abu’l-qasim,—who was remarkable for the beauty of his person. Bairam Khan out of nobleness and generosity stoutly asseverated that he was Bairam Khan, while Abu’l-qasim heroically said, “This is my servant; he would sacrifice himself for me, beware and withdraw your hand from him.” Thus it was the case of Verse. “Leave me, seize the hand of my friend.”
In this way Bairam Khan escaped and went to Sultan Mahmud in Gujrat. Abu’l-qasim was taken before Sher Khan, and from failure to appreciate him, that mine of magnanimity was martyred. Sher Khan used frequently to remark that “as soon as Bairam Khan said in the assembly ‘Whoever keeps his loyalty shall not stumble,’ we gathered that he would not come to terms with us.” Sultan Mahmud of Gujrat too, though he tried to induce him to stay with him, could not succeed. He (Bairam) got leave to go on pilgrimage and came to Surat. Thence he hurried off to the country of Hardwar and from there he came to the feet of his own master (sahib) and the benefactor of mankind in the village of Jim.