Storia do Mogor 118: AURANGZEB SENDS AN AMBASSADOR TO PERSIA.
Storia do Mogor (Irvine) 118
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AURANGZEB SENDS AN AMBASSADOR TO PERSIA.
118.1
After the funeral of Shahjahan Aurangzeb determined to send an ambassador to Shah 'Abbas, King of Persia. The real reason for such an embassy was not disclosed. But it was commonly conceived that it was to establish peace and friendship with the King of Persia. He apprehended that this sovereign might make war upon him, as he had upon Shahjahan. On his side Aurangzeb intended to overcome Bijapur and Gulkandah, to tempt fortune by an attack on China, to eject the Rana from his territory, and to occupy the kingdoms of Arakan and Pegu, which barred the door to his enterprises. The ambassador that he selected was [97] Tarbietcan (Tarbiyat Khan), an Uzbak, a large, tall man with a huge beard, and possessed of good judgment, being a man of great learning. As presents Aurangzeb sent many pieces of Indian cloth highly adorned and very costly, and several elephants. With the embassy went the usual officials, a waqi'ah-navis and a khufiyah-navis, who are the public reporter and the secret reporter. The ambassador arranged matters so that on his arrival in Isfahan he received fresh mangoes. This is an Indian fruit not grown in Persia. He also received there fresh betel, a leaf that, on mastication, gives an agreeable odour to the mouth, and is comforting to the stomach. I spoke of it in the First Part of my History (I. 39) upon my arrival in Surat. They have none of this leaf in Persia.
118.2
The ambassador was well received upon his entry into Isfahan; but he did not receive equal honour in the presence of Shah 'Abbas. When permission to appear in audience had been given to him, the king recollected what Aurangzeb had done to his ambassador. He now took a twofold revenge. The first was he received him while mounted on horseback, as he was coming from the court on a promenade. In this way the wretched Tarbiyat Khan was forced to follow the king on foot for some distance. Then he was told to go away and take some rest; he would be sent for another time. This was the first mouthful the ambassador had to swallow. He was forced to wait for about a year before he obtained leave to depart. In this interval he was sent for several times to the court, where they treated him with much less respect than Persian subjects were treated. His going to court served for no purpose but to expose him to the king's contempt. They merely made a mock of him and of Aurangzeb. One day, speaking of Aurangzeb's hypocrisy, Shah 'Abbas called him his slave, as the Persians are used to do in naming Indians. Another time he scoffed at the complexion and customs of the people of Hindustan. Thus many months elapsed.
118.3
One day, speaking about the reception given by Aurangzeb to his ambassador, Shah 'Abbas complained of the unusual ceremonial. Among other things they said to Tarbiyat Khan that the Blackamoor (meaning Aurangzeb) ought not to forget that it was the kings of Persia who established his family in Hindustan; for without their help never would his ancestor, Humayun, have returned there as king. The ambassador answered that it was the truth, but equally should the Shah recollect that his predecessors were given the kingdom of Persia by Taimur-i-lang. Shah 'Abbas was amused at such an answer, and as a reward made him drink a cup of wine by force. It was not a little of an insult to the ambassador to see himself forced to do such a thing. Having exhausted their stock of jests with the ambassador, when he had been there a year they asked him one day who his two followers were, about whom on every day of visit Shah 'Abbas made jokes. Tarbiyat Khan replied they were the public reporter and the secret reporter, who informed Aurangzeb of all that took place. Shah 'Abbas laughed, and in a loud voice said to him that one must necessarily assume he was a man of little sense and of slight consideration, seeing that the king had given him such followers and had not trusted in him.
118.4
Many are the things which might be told about this embassy, but the story would be very long. It might even be that everybody might not credit it; for infinite were the jokes with which Shah 'Abbas repaid the hauteur of Aurangzeb in treating his ambassador badly. Among other pleasantries, one day when the ambassador was at the audience, the king ordered into his presence a lion secured by two chains of silver gilt. When the lion appeared, he took hold of it by the mane and stroked it, to show how brave he was. The lion, which was tame, let itself down gently on the floor, and made friendly gestures to the king. The ambassador was in a wonder, and Shah 'Abbas, as a joke against the reporters, said: 'Write this, too, to Aurangzeb.' Finally, having by this time prolonged sufficiently the misery of the ambassador, the king decided to send him off. But it was a sad business, this leave-taking. One day Shah 'Abbas held the ambassador in animated conversation till late in the evening, and it being then dark, asked if he had any coin of Hindustan, and any portrait of his king. The ambassador replied in the affirmative, and produced some coins of gold and of silver. On these was written: 'Secazad der jahan chum bader manir Xaa Orangzeb Alamguir' (Sikkah zad dar jahan chun badr-i-munir, Shah Aurangzeb-i-'Alamgir) That is 'Struck coin in the world like sun and moon, Aurangzeb, the conqueror of the world.'
118.5
At the same time he gave him [99] a portrait of Aurangzeb painted on paper. He was depicted on horseback, and there was an angel in the air presenting to him a sword. Shah 'Abbas returned the coins to the ambassador, directing him to read aloud the words stamped on the coins. Beforehand he had told the torch-holder to approach the ambassador, so that he might be able to see; then, when he had finished reading, he was to make a pretence of stumbling, and in so doing set fire to the ambassador's beard. This was done. Meanwhile Shah 'Abbas kept calling out: 'It is nothing! it is nothing! there are plenty of barbers to repair the damage.' Then, gazing at Aurangzeb's portrait, he began to utter against it much abuse, going through the life and the chief doings of such a king; then, spitting on the picture, threw it on the ground. He ordered his slaves to shoe-beat the face, which deserved no less. This was done, and all observing silence, he said that on the coins there should not appear such words, but these: 'Secazad bacurs penir Orangzeb beradercox paderguir' (Sikkah zad ba qurs-i-panir, Aurangzeb, baradar-kush-i-pidar gir). That is 'Struck coin upon a round of cheese, Aurangzeb, brother-slayer, father-seizer.'
118.6
At the same time he ordered forty fine horses from his stables to be given to Tarbiyat Khan, telling him to go back to his master and inform him that he sent those horses, so that he might not have the excuse of a deficiency of horses for not taking the field against him. Thereby he defied him to enter the field, hoping to teach him thus how a king became a real world conqueror. But of the rest let us speak farther on, for the wars of Shiva Ji here make me pause, having somewhat to say about them.