Fall of the Mughal Empire v1.c10.s4.22

v1.c10.s4.22

Abdālī’s religious guide Bābā Sābir entered Lāhor alone, avowedly to visit his mother who was living in that city, and also to make a pilgrimage to the local saints’ tombs, but really to deliver to Hayātullah an invitation from Abdālī to join him. His fame as a magician had preceded him, and people talked how his spells had turned a number of toy tents and horses into real cavalry and war equipment for Ahmad immediately after Nādir’s death. It was now reported that Sābir had come to Lāhor in order to render the Mughal artillery powerless by his charms. So formidable an enemy could not be suffered to escape. He was at once arrested by order of Hayātullah, and next day put to death by a subordinate officer without the governor’s knowledge. [Bayān 225, Siyar iii. 17-18, Anand 325.]