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تحفة النظار في غرايب الامصار وعجايب الاسفار 13.2

English (machine translation) 13.2

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English

13.2.1

Sultan Tughluq had a sister's son named Bahāʾ al-Dīn Gusht Asb — with u after the k, unvoweled dotted sh and t above the line, and Asb with undotted s and one-dotted b, both unvoweled — whom he made amīr over a certain district. When his uncle died, he refused to swear allegiance to his son. He was a brave hero, so the Sultan sent troops against him, among them great amīrs such as Malik Mujīr, with the vizier Khwāja Jahān as commander over all. The horsemen met, the fighting grew fierce, and both armies held firm; then the victory went to the Sultan's army, and

13.2.2

Bahāʾ al-Dīn fled to one of the kings of the infidels known as the Rāy of Kanbīla. Among them "rāy" means, as in the language of the Rūm, the sultan, and Kanbīla is the name of the region where he is — with a after the k, unvoweled n, one-dotted b with i, then y, and l with a.

13.2.3

This Rāy had territory in impregnable mountains and was one of the greatest of the infidel sultans. When Bahāʾ al-Dīn fled to him, the Sultan's troops pursued him and besieged that territory. The infidel was hard pressed, his stores of grain ran out, and he feared being taken by force. So he said to Bahāʾ al-Dīn: "Matters have come to what you see, and I am resolved to destroy myself, my family and those who follow me. Go to Sultan So-and-so" — an infidel sultan whom he named to him — "and stay with him, for he will protect you." And he sent with him someone to escort him to him.

13.2.4

The Rāy of Kanbīla ordered a great fire, which was kindled, and he burned his belongings in it and said to his wives and daughters:

13.2.5

"I intend to kill myself; whoever of you wishes to join me, let her do so." Then each woman among them would wash, anoint herself with Maqāṣirī sandalwood, kiss the ground before him and throw herself into the fire, until all of them perished. The wives of his amīrs, viziers and officers of state did the same, as did any other women who wished to. Then the Rāy washed, anointed himself with sandalwood and put on his arms, all except the coat of mail, and those of his people who wished to die with him did as he did. They went out against the Sultan's army and fought until all of them were killed. The city was entered and its inhabitants taken captive, and eleven of the sons of the Rāy of Kanbīla were captured. They were brought to the Sultan and all of them became Muslims; the Sultan made them amīrs and held them in high esteem for their noble lineage and for what their father had done. I saw among them at his court Naṣr, Bakhtiyār and the muhrdār, who is the keeper of the seal with which the water the Sultan drinks is sealed; his kunya was Abū Muslim, and there was companionship and affection between him and me.

13.2.6

When the Rāy of Kanbīla had been killed, the Sultan's armies marched on the country of the infidel with whom Bahāʾ al-Dīn had taken refuge and surrounded it. That sultan said, "I am not able to do what the Rāy of Kanbīla did," and he seized

13.2.7

Bahāʾ al-Dīn and handed him over to the Sultan's army. They fettered him, chained him by the neck and brought him to [the Sultan]. When he was brought before him, he ordered him to be taken in to his female relatives, who reviled him and spat in his face. Then he ordered him to be flayed alive; he was flayed, and his flesh was cooked with rice and sent to his children and family, and the rest of it was put in a dish and thrown to the elephants to eat, but they refused to eat it! He ordered his skin to be stuffed with straw and joined with the skin of Bahādūr Būra, and the two were paraded through the provinces.

13.2.8

When they reached the land of Sind, whose chief amīr at that time was Kishlū Khān, the companion of Sultan Tughluq who had helped him take the kingdom, and whom the Sultan held in high esteem, addressing him as "uncle" and going out to meet him whenever he came from his territory, Kishlū Khān ordered the two skins to be buried. When this reached the Sultan, he was angered by what he had done and resolved to destroy him.

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