The History of Humāyūn (Gulbadan Begam) 41.4

41.4

Akbar is said to have been much attached to her, and she was to him like a second mother She went to Makka in 972H (1564-65), and returned three years later One thing raises the question whether this was her first pilgrimage, viz , the fact that all the sources, except Gul-badan’s, call her Haji Begam Why is she singled out to bear this title? It had been earned by many royal ladies before any one of the trio of great writers under Akbar had put pen to paper The same unexplained distinction is conferred by the histories on a daughter of Kamran In both these cases a renewed pilgrimage might serve as the explanation of the distinction Bega Begam died in 989H (1581), shortly before Gul-badan’s return from Makka She had almost certainly passed her seventieth year, and was perhaps still older Abu’l-fazl says that her affairs were settled by one Qasim 'Ali Khan He also records a visit of Akbar to her in her last illness, as well as an earlier visit of hers to him made from Dihli in 981H Gul badan, 22a, 28b, 29b, 80b, 78b, 83a Mems , 888, 890 Akbar nama, Bib Ind ed , index, s n Ain-i-akbari, Blochmann, 465 (Confusion has been made here with Kamran's daughter ) Badayuni, Lowe, 808 n History of the Afghans, Dorn, I 108