Twilight of the Sultanate c17.s3.6

c17.s3.6

State work claimed most of the Sultan's time, but since there was not much "office work", rest and recreation, too, he had in abundance. Almost all the Sultans were fond of sport, both big-game shooting as well as taming and flying birds. A large number of falconers¹⁹ and pigeon-boys²⁰ were employed to keep the birds in trim. South Indians were also "much addicted" to fowling and hunting.²¹ The Sultan spent a considerable amount of his time in the company of his personal friends and courtiers (*nadīms*).²² The *nadīms* were generally those nobles who enjoyed the Sultan's intimacy. Their nearness to the king rendered them influential.²³