BY THE SAME AUTHOR.
IN ENGLISH.
The Farsees at the Court of Akbar and Dastur Meherji Rana.
Aiy&dgar-i-Zariran, Shatroiha-i-Airan, va Afdya va Sahi-
giya-Seistan, i.e., The Memoir of Zarir, Cities of Ir&n, and
the Wonders and Marvels of Seistan. (Pahlavi Translations,
Part I. Texts in Gujarati character, with English and
Gujarati translations and notes).
J&maapi (Pahlavi Translations, Part III. Pahlavi, Pasend and
Persian texts with translations).
The Persian Farziat nameh and Kholaseh-i Din of Dastur
Darab P&hlan, Text and English Version with Notes.
Asiatic Papers, Parts I and II.
Anthropological Papers, Parts I, II and III. (Part IV in
the Press).
Masonic Papers.
Dante Papers.
Memorial Papers.
The Parsees at the Court of Akbar and Dastur Meherji Rana.
Anquetil Du Perron and Dastur Darab.
Moral Extracts from Zoroastrian Books.
A few Events in the Early History of the Parsees and their
Dates.
A Glimpse into the Work of the Bombay Branch Royal Asiatic-
Society during the last 100 years, from a Parsee point of
view.
Dastur Bahman Kaikobad and the Kisseh-i- Sanjan.
Education among the Ancient Iranians.
Religious Ceremonies and Customs of the Parsees.
The Religious System of the Parsees.
A Catechism of the Zoroastrian Religion.
The Nadjote Ceremony of the Parsees
The Marriage Ceremony of the Parsee
Marriage Customs among the Parse
similar customs of other Nations,
Les Impressions d'un Parsi sur la Vil
La Visite d'un Parsi & la Vile de Com
La Ceremonie du Naojote parmi les }
GUJERATL
(Meteorology).
(Jamshed, Horn and Fire).
(The Social Life, Geography and Articles of Faith of Av(
times).
>3 AnAhita and Farohar.
of the Sc
(Mithra and the Feast of Mithras).
}*:l (A Dictionary of Avestic Prc
Names).
(Iranian Essays, Part I).
(Iranian Essays, Part IT).
(Iranian Essays. Part III).
(A Sermon on Death).
l*il ^1"^ ^'Jl (Shah-nameh up to the reign
Minocheher).
(Shah-nameh and Fridousi).
>IPI ^SU (Lectures before the Dn;
Prasarak Society, Part I).
(Lectures before the Dn;
Prasarak Society, Part II).
(Lectures before the Dn;
Prasarak Society, Part III).
"UMl-te RH*U <HPl *4l^U (Lectures before the Dn;
Prasarak Society, Part IV).
(Zoroastrian Catechism ) .
(History of the Zoroastrian Religic
*HH, ^Hl^Hl (Zoroastrian Rites i
Ceremonies).
rll fe/fdl^i 1PI ^^U (Ancient History of Ir
Part I).
(Peshdadian Dynasty of Iran).
tAKd "^HlKlMH < (Kyanian Dynasty of Iran).
.^ \ . . _f\ t _^ .>*..>" f\ M..k,i7^i -w..*H ^iiTTiJit^k AJI^I ^i.ij^ii (I^ectl
T\
GUJERATI {contd.)
(Lectures
and Sermons on Zoroastrian Subjects, Part II).
M ttX'cfl <Hl^l ^ ^l^H<?A, <HPl ^l^l (Lectures
and Sermons on Zoroastrian Subjects, Part III).
^ *i'"tMl <Hl^l ^ Hl^H^l, <hPl *lftl (Lectures
and Sermons on Zoroastrian Subjects, Part IV).
M ^'^Vfl ti^i ^71 U*tfil, <HPl Nl=HMl (Lectures
and Sermons on Zoroastrian Subjects, Part V).
^i'Hl otl^l ^^l qi^H^M, otl^l ftjli (Lectures
and Sermons on Zoroastrian Subjects, Part VI).
(Bundehesh, Transliteration and Translation with
Notes in Gujarati, Pahlavi Translations, Part II).
(The Ancient Iranians,
according to Herodotus and Strabo, compared with the
Avesta and other Parsee Books).
tR ^S5il (Episodes from the Shah-nameh,
Part I).
, <HPl 41^ (Episodes from the Shah-nameh,
Part II).
ll (Heroines of the Shah-nameh).
(An Inquiry from Pahlavi, Pazend,
Persian and other works on the subject of the Number of
Days of the Fravardegan).
MlVtfl H^M ^Idi^l (Bombay Parsee Charities).
WORKS EDITED BY THE SAME AUTHOR.
K. R. CAMA MEMORIAL VOLUME.
THE PAHLAVI MiDioiN-i-HAZiB
K. R. CAMA MASONIC JUBILEE VOLUME.
SPIEGEL MEMORIAL VOLUME.
SIR J. J. MADRESSA JUBILEE VOLUME.
to
THE CHANCELLOR,
VIOB-GHANCELLOR AND FELLOWS OF THE BOMBAY UNTYEMTTY,
A8 AN HUMBLE TOKEN OF MY APPRECIATION
OF THE SPLENDID WORK OF THE UNIVERSITY
AND
As A SOUVENIR OF THIS, THE JUBILEE
YEAR OF HY GRADUATION (1877) AND THE
QUARANTINE YEAR OF MY FELLOWSHIP (1887).
CONTENTS.
PAGE
I. THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR : JEHANGIR'S
INSCRIPTION AT VIRNAG, AN INSCRIPTION ON THE DAL
LAKE . . *. 1
Kashmir, Its central position geographically and
historically . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
History of Kashmir before the Moguls . . . . . . 4
The Moguls and Kashmir . . .... . . . . 7
Akbar and Kashmir . . . . . . . . . . 8
Kashmir as described in the Ain-i-Akbari . . . . 10
Abul Fazul on the beauty of Kashmir . . . . 10
The Vernag spring, described in the Ain-i-Akbari . . 11
The beauty of Kashmir, Jehangir's hand in beautifying
it 11
Beveridge's estimate of the taste of Jehangir . . . . 12
Jehangir's six visits of Kashmir . . . . . . 12
Vernag, described by Jehangir in his Tuzuk-i- Jehangir 13
Jehangir's visit to Kashmir in the 14th- 15th year of his
reign (1029 Hijri, A.D. 1620) 14
Jehangir's admiration of Kashmir . . . . . . 16
Jehangir's faith in Astrology . . . . . . . . 17
Jehangir's account of the ghinars of Kashmir . . 17
The Garden of Sh&laniar 15
Jeharigir's foiidness for gardens . . . . . . . . 19
Jeharigir's taste of art, as displayed in the Dal garden
palaces of Kashmir . . . . . . . . . . 19
Jehangir's account of the flower-margs of Kashmir . . 19
Machi Bhavan and Adival (Achibal) . . . . . . 20
The spring of Vernag . . . . . . . . . . 21
The origin of the name Vernag . . . . . . 22
P&mpur 23
Jehangir's second visit of Kashmir as Emperor in 1924. 23
Experiments on saffron and birds 25
Jehangir's fourth and last visit to Kashmir in 1926 . 26
Some further particulars from Mu'tamad Khan's
Iqbal n&meh-i-Jehangiri .. 26
li ASIATIC PAPERS
PAGE
The memoirs of Jehangir translated by Major David
Price 27
Jehangir's fondness of commemorating events by
Inscriptions . . . . . . 28
Shah Jehan and Kashmir 29
Shah- Jehan's visit of Virnag 30
Shah- Jehan's Inscriptions of Kashmir 31
Aurangzeb and Kashmir . . . . . . . . 32
The Banihal Pass near Virnag . . . . . . . . 32
Transport for Aurangzeb's visit to Kashmir . . . . 35
The Mogul Emperors after Aurangzeb 36
The Influence of Persia through the Moguls upon
Kashmir in particular and India in general . . . 37
The Persians and gardening. The Mogul gardens of
Kashmir 39
References to Jehangir's visits to Virnag . . . . 42
Who is the Haidar referred to in the second Inscription ? 43
Haidar Malik referred to in Muhammad Aatzim's His-
tory of Kashmir . . . . . . . . . 44
Who is the king referred to in the second Inscription ? 46
The original place of the 2nd tablet 46
II. THE STORY OP THE KING AND THE GARDENER IN THE
WAKI'AT-I JEHANGIRI OF JEHANGIR AND ITS PARALLELS 51
The Story 51
A parallel from the Shah-Nameh of Firdousi
Another parallel . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
III. AN INSTANCE OF ROYAL SWAYAMVARA DESCRIBED
IN THE SHAH-NAMEH OF FIRDOUSI 57
IV. ARCHERY IN ANCIENT PERSIA. A FEW EXTRA-
ORDINARY FEATS 65
Archery among the ancient Iranians according to
Herodotus 65
Archery as represented on the ancient monuments of
Persia . . . . . . . . , . . . . 66
Archery as referred to in the Avesta . . . . 66
Symbolic signification of a bow and arrow . . . . 67
Symbolic signification of a bow and arrow upon Iranian
monuments 68
CONTENTS 111
PAQE
Malcolm's story 68
Firdousi's version of this story 69
Madame Dieulafoy's painting 70
Another hunting feat of Behramgour according to
Tabari 70
Erekhsha, a famous Iranian Archer . . . . . . 70
V. AN UNPUBtiSHED MOGUL INSCRIPTION AT THE MAR-
OALLA PASS NEAR RAWALPINDI . . 77
Plan and Tablet 79
Markaleh of the Tablet is the Margalla Pass . . . . 82
Who is the Khan referred ? 82
The statement of the Rawalpindi Gazetteer examined. . 89
What is it that the Inscription takes a note of ? . . 90
VI. A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANQIR IN FAVOUR OF
TWO PARSEES OF THE DORDI FAMILY OF NAOSARI,
WITH OTHER COGNATE DOCUMENTS OF THE MOGUL
TIMES 98
The commencement of the Farman with the words
" Allah Akbar " 116
The King's seal at the head of the Farman .. .. 116
Peculiarities of the Farman
(a) The golden colour of the square on the seal . . 7 9 ,
(6) And the red colour of some of its letters . . . . J
The first two short lines and the Tughra characters . . 122
Decipherment of other seals . . . . . . . . 122
Saiyid Ahmad Kadari 125
Nuru-d-din Quli 125
Mahamad Baqur 125
$aiyid Mir Muhammad . . . . 126
Mulla Jamasp and Mulla Hoshang 126
Jehangir's name for Wednesday . . . . . . 132
Why such a large Reward for four goblets of afar . . 138
Jehangir's appreciation of atar. Another example of a
present in appreciation . . . . . . . . 138
Naosari famous for its perfumes . . 139
Regard for the priestly class . . . . . . . . 139
Two copies of the Chak-nameh of Mehernoush . . 157
IV ASIATIC PAPEES.
PAGB
VII. SOME PRAYER-GESTURES OF THE BABYLONIANS
AND ASSYRIANS, THEIR PARALLELS AMONG THE ANCIENT
IRANIANS AND MODERN PARSEES 170
Babylon, the Bawri of the A vesta. Its founder
Baevar (asp) . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 72
Some hand-poses of the Avesta 174
Processions and Processional scenes . . . . ... 175
The praying figures in the Babylonian and Iranian
Archaeology . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
The use of hands in Prayers . . . . . . . . 177
The winged genii of the Babylonians and the winged
Farohars of the Iranians . . . . . . . . 178
The various attitudes of the worshipper's hands . . 178
The attitude of being led by the hand 179
Two peculiarities of the Iranian Sculptures in this matter 1 80
The attitude of the right hand extended and the forearm
raised parallel to the face, palm inward . . . . 182
The extended or outstretched hands . . . . . . 182
The forearm raised parallel with the face, palm inward 183
The left hand 18(>
Both hands folded 1 8(>
The " kiss hand " pose or attitude . . . . . . 187
The pointed finger attitude of the hand . . . . 1 8S
Various attitudes of the hand and their significations
as observed among the Iranians . . . . . . 191
Hand-postures in Sassanian coins liKS
Detestation for the Evil 194
VIII. A VISIT TO THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA. A SIMILAR
WALL OF KING NOSHIRWAN (CHOSROES 1) OF PERSIA . . 195
The Great Wall of China, one of the wonders of the
ancient world . . 196
China, a country of walls . . . . . . . . 197
My visit ' 197
The extent of the Wall 199
A sketch of the history of China and the builder of
the Great Wall 199
The effect of the Great wall upon the history of the
World '. .- 202
% CONTENTS V
PAGE
The wall of Noshirwfm according to Ma^oudi . . 204
NoshirwAn's wall according to Yaqout . . . . 207
Noshirwan's wall referred to in the Turkish Der-
bend Nameh 209
Tabari on Noshirwan's spring of water at Derbend . . 210
Professor Jackson's account of his visit to the wall . . 211
Wall of Alexander 212
The process of constructing wall . . . . . . 212
Persia's communication with China . . . . . . 213
IX. THE AFGHANISTAN OF THE AMIR AND THE ANCIENT
MAZDAYACNiNS . . . . . . . . . . ' . . 215
X. A PARSEE PRAYER, PRESENTING PASSAGES PARAL-
LEL TO THOSE OF TWO GREEK AND CHINESE ANECDOTES. 225
XT. WINE AMONG THE ANCIENT PERSIANS . . . . 231
The teachings of Iranian Literature 232
Classical writers . . . . . . . . . . . . ' 234
Pahlavi writers . . . . . . . , . . . . 240
Usages of Wine drinking . . . . 241
Old Wine 243
Date Wine 243
XII. MAHOMEDAN VIEW OF COMETS. THE VIEW OF
THE ANCIENT IRANIANS (PlSHlNlGiN) . . . . . . 247
List of Mahomedan authors referred to in the paper . . 247
Mafloudi's version 252
The version of Ahmad bin Mahmad in his Nagaristan
about the comet of 941-942 A.D 253
Nizam-ud-din's version of the comet of 1578, the
twenty-third year of the reign (A.D. 1578-79) . . 253
Badaoni's version of the comet of 1578, as given in his
Muntakhab-ut Tavfirikh 254
Jahangir's Wak'a'at-i Jahiingiri 254
Mutamadkhan's Ikbal Nameh i Jahangiri . . . . 255
Ma^oudi's comet of 912 A.D 256
The comet referred to in the Nigaristan 257
Abul Fazl's comet 257
The comets referred to in the Wak'a'at-i Jahangiri
and in the IkbAl Nameh i Jahangiri . . . . 259
A list of comets 259
Vi ASIATIC PAPERS
PAGE
An inquiry into the view of the Mahomedan writers
on comets . . 261
Abul Fazl's views 261
Abul Fazl's theory 261
A comparison of his view with the modern view . . 261
Abul Fazl's view about the forms assumed by the
comets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263
The influence attributed by the people to a comet's
appearance . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Abul Fazl's version of the influence of the comets . . 265
Its comparison with other similar views . . . . 265
Who were the Pishinigan ? 269
What were the nirangs of the PishinigAn ? . . 269
Origin and meaning of the word Nirang . . . . 269
A few Parsee Nirangs . . . . 270
What have Pishinigans to say about comets . . . . 271
Meteors and comets classed together in Pahlavi Books 272
Reference to the comets in the Bundehesh . . . . 272
Pahlavi words for comets . . . . . . . . . . 273
PREFACE.
" We trust that Mr. Modi will some day collect his numerous
essays into a volume ; they are worthy of preservation." (The
late Right Revd. Dr. L. C. Casartelli, Professor of St. Bedes
College, Manchester, Bishop of Salford, in the Babylonian and
Oriental Record, Vol. VIII, No. 31, p. 72, April 1896.)
"Mr. Modi, an educated Parsee Gentleman and a prolific?
writer, has recorded in his essays much that would not other-
wise be published of his countrymen, whose ancestors emigrated
from Persia, fleeing from the Arab conquest, and settled in the
Bombay Presidency. There is much to learn of Indian life
from his papers which Mr. Modi should continue to write and
publish (The London Academy of 14th September 1913).
Appreciations of this kind from the above and other Literary
Journals have encouraged me to publish my Asiatic and
Anthropological Papers in book forms.
In all, I have read 47 papers before the Bombay Branch
of the Royal Asiatic Society. Out of these, 35 have been
published in separate Volumes as follows :
16. Asiatic papers, part I (1905).
13. Asiatic papers, part II (1917).
2. In a separate volume, entitled " The Parsees at the court
of Akbar and Dastur Meherji Rana" (1903).
1. In a separate volume, entitled *' A glimpse into the work
of the B. B. R. A. Society during the last 100 years from a Parsee
point of view " (1905).
1. In a volume entitled " Dante papers " (1914).
2. In a separate volume, entitled " Anquetil Du Perron
and Dastur Darab " (1914).
Eight more are published in this volume. Four more remain
to be published in another volume.
I also give in this volume the following 4 papers, read or
contributed elsewhere.
(a) <k The Afghanistan of the Amirs and the ancient Mazda-
yacanans," contributed to ' ' the East
(b) " A Parsee Prayer, presenting
of two Greek and Chinese anecdote
R. A. Society to the Royal Asiatic y
occasion of the celebration of its Cttitq
Till ASIATIC PAPERS.
(c) " Wine among the Ancient Persians " read before a
local Society, the Zarthosti Din-ni-Khol Karnari MandlL
(d)" A Mohamedan view of comets. The view of the ancient
Iranians (PisMntgdn)" contributed to the columns of the " Revue
du Monde Musalman " (40 Anne No.) I beg to thank the
Editors for this republication.
I give my best thanks to my learned friend Mr. Bomanji
Nusservanji Dhabhar, M.A., for kindly preparing the Index
of this volume.
I took my degree in the Bombay University on 16th January
1877, when the then Governor, Sir Philip Wodehouse, was the
chancellor of the University and I was nominated a fellow
of the University in 1887. 1 have served my Alma Mater
continuously for these last 40 years. Thus, this is the Jubilee
year of my Graduation and the quarantine year of my Fellowship
of the University. So, 1 take this happy opportunity to do
myself the honour and pleasure of dedicating this, my humble
work, to my mother University. This University and the
Literary and Scientific Societies of Bombay, among which
my dear Bombay Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society of Bombay
is the foremost, have made me what I am. I bow my head of
homage and gratitude to them for all the mental nourishment
that they have given me. May they all prosper is my heartfelt
prayer.
JIVAMJJ JAMSHEDJI MODI.
24th March, 1927.
211, Pilot Bunder Road,
Colaba, Bombay.
tfhe Mogul Emperors at Kashmir :
Jehangir's Inscriptions at Virndg. An inscription
on the Ddl Lake.
(Read on nth July 1917).
I
I had the pleasure of visiting the interesting and beautiful
country of Kashmir for the first time in
Introduction. Mfty 18Q5 This ^^ guggcgted seve ral
subjects for study. Of these, one was " Cashmere and the
Ancient Persians," and a Paper was read on the subject
before this Society, at its meeting of 9th December 1895. 1
1 Journal, B. B. R. A. S. Vol. XIX, pp. 237-48. A public lecture on " Kashmir "
was also delivered in Gujarati on 21st January 3896, under the auspices of the Gujarat!
Dnyan Prasarak Society. (Vide my Gujarati " Dnyan Prasarak Essays" Part I,
pl. 185-203). Thomas Moore in his Lala Rookh has sung the praises of the beauty of
Kashmir, lie sang :
" Who has not heard of the vale of Cashmere
With its roses the brightest that earth ever gave
Its temple and grottos, and fountains as clear
As the love-lighted eyes that hang o'er their waves."
The study of this poem, after the above visit, suggested the subjects
of three Readings in Gujarati ; one on Thomas Moore's poem of *' The
Fire-Worshippers "on 1st November 1895, the second on that of his
' Loves of the Angels '' on 30th October 1896, and the third on Voltaire'*
Les Guebres " on 31st October 1903 (Vide my Gujarati "Episodes from
the Shah-narneh"). The first subject forms an episode in Moore's
Lala Rookh, Thomas Moore was an Irishman and the Irish question
is a very old question. In his poem of "The Fire- Worshippers," while
picturing the noble fight of one of the flying bands of Zoroastrians after
tlio Arab canquest, he preaches Toleration and Freedom, and it is said,
that in preaching and praying for these for the Zoroastrians, he had at
the bottom of his heart the question of Toleration and Freedom for his
countrymen, the Irish. Thomas Moore's <e Fire-Worshippers " in the
Lala Rookh which speaks of Kashmir, reminds one of " Les Guebres "
of Voltaire who, while describing the persecution of some Persians, is
vftid to have aimed at the persecution of the Christian Jansenists and
desired toleration for them.
2 ASIATIC PAPERS.
In 1895, there were no good roads there. A tonga road had just
been made upto Baramul&, whence the river Jhelum becomes
navigable upwards to Srinagar and further up. Since then, pretty
good roads have been made up to Srinagar and in other parts of
the country, whereon even motors run now. A railway line
is now contemplated. I remember my guide, Rahim, telling
me, during my first visit, that no sooner the whistle of a Railway
engine will be heard in Kashmir the Behesht (paradise) will fly
away from it to the higer mountains. That is quite true.
As Mr. Walter del Mar says " . . . Now is the time to visit
Kashmir before the amenities of the Kashmir Valley are
endangered by the new railway." 1
I had the pleasure of re-visiting Kashmir in June-July 1915.
This second visit suggested several subjects of study. One was
that of the very interesting people of the country, the Pandits.
It formed the subject of my Paper on " The Pandits of
Kashmir " before the Anthropological Society of Bombay 2 on
28th July 1915.3
The present Paper has been suggested to me by some of the
Persian inscriptions which I saw in Kashmir during this second
visit. It is especially the two inscriptions at the beautiful spring
of Virnag that have suggested the subject. I took a copy of them,
very little suspecting at the time that they have not been pub-
lished. I inquired at the time from Mr. Daya Ram Sohani, the
head of the Archaeological Department of Kashmir, whether the
inscriptions were published, and I was told that they were not.
To make the matter certain, whether I was anticipated by some
one, I wrote again this year on 3rd May 1917 to Dr. D. B. Spooner
of the Archaeological Department of the Government of India
to make inquiries if the Virnag inscriptions were published. He
kindly forwarded the matter for further inquiry to the officiating
Superintendent of Hindu and Buddhist Monuments, Lahore
Circle. By a coincidence, Mr. Daya Ram Sohani happened
to be the Superintendent, and he wrote to me in his letter
dated 22nd June 1917 : " As far as I know, the inscription in
question has not been published properly at any place. Other
Persian Inscriptions from Kashmir are published in the Journal
of the Asiatic Society of Bengal Vol. XXXIII (1864) pp. 278 et
1 "The Romantic East, Burma, Assam and Kashmir." by Walter del Mar, (1906)
Preface p. VI.
2 Journal of the Anthropological Society of Bombay Vol X, No. 6, pp. 461-85-
Vide my Anthropological Papers Part II.
3 The visit has also been the subject of 19 descriptive letters on Kashmir In the
Jam-i Jamshed of Bombay, beginning with two on my visit of the interesting Exca-
vations by Sir John Marshal, the Director of Archalogy, Govt. of India, at the site of
the old city of Taxala near Rawalpindi, the last Railway Station whence we start for
Kashmir.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. '3
aeq. and Proeedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal (1880)
p. 54." Such being the case, I think, that I publish in our
Journal for the first time, the Inscriptions at Virnag.
I will divide my subject under the following heads :
L A short account of the rule and visits of Kashmir by the
Mogul Emperors.
II. The Text and the Translation of Jehangir's Inscriptions
at Virnag, and a few observations on them.
III. As a supplement to the Paper I will refer to an inscrip-
tion on a tomb on the Dal Lake.
II.
I. A SHORT ACCOUNT OF THE RULE AND VISITS OF KASHMIR
BY THE MOGUL EMPERORS.
I will, at first, give a short account of the rule and of the
visits of Kashmir by the mogul Emperors. In this account,
I will dwell, at some greater length, on the visits of Jehangir,
because we have to identify the events and dates given in his
above inscriptions, and to identify the person Haidar named
in the second inscription.
It is the hand of God that has made Kashmir naturally
beautiful, but the hand of man has tried to
Kashmir. Its add to its beauty. In this matter, the
Central position Mogul Emperors of India, and among them
fnd^stoiicrily/ Jetangir especially, had a great hand.
Among the Mogul Emperors, it was Akbar
who first conquered Kashmir and it was Jehangir who first
-embellished it.
Geographically, Kashmir stands, as it were, in the middle of
three stages : (a) In the first stage, down below Kashmir are
the vast hot plains of Punjab, Sind and other parts of India.
.(&) The second stage is Kashmir's own, in which it, in a higher
-region, forms the most beautiful of the beautiful valleys of the
world, watered by a river and a number of streams. As said by
a French writer, " there are few valleys more beautiful than this
part of Kashmir." 1 (c) Then the third stage is that of the
higher Himalayan mountains by which it is surrounded on all
sides. On account of its position near these mountains (daman-i
Kuh) it is, as it were, the Indian Piedmont. 2
In the matter of History also, she can be said to have three
periods or stages, (a) The first is that, which can be called the
jare-historical period, of which its written history, the Rajataran-
1 NouveUc Geographic Univenelle, Vol. VIII, p. 112, 2 Ibid.
4 ASIATIC PAPERS.
gird gives us a little glimpse. According to Parsee books and
some Mahomedan books of history, the early ancient Iranians
had some relations with Kashmir as with northern India. Early
writers speak of it as a part of India. The Pahlavi Bundehesh
speaks of Kashmir as a part of India. I have spoken before, on
this subject, in my paper before the Society, entitled " Cashmere
and the Ancient Persians." 1 (6) Its second historical stage or
period, and that the most important period, is the one mostly des-
cribed by the Rajatarangini. During this period, we have both,
what Sir Francis Younghusband terms " outward effort " and the
" inward effort " i.e., attempts on the part of foreigners to invade
and occupy Kashmir and the attempts on the part of the Kash-
miri kings to conquer adjoining countries like Punjab, Tibet
and Badakhshan. In spite of a number of inglorious pages here
and there, it may comparatively be called the golden or the
glorious period of its history, (c) The last period is that which
is subsequent to this second and which extends up to now. The
Mogul period can be said to belong to the last part of the second
or the middle period which was a long extensive period. We
will give a short bird's eye view of the second period, most of
which is principally referred to by the Rajatarangini.
Ill
Sir Francis Younghusband, in his interesting and beautifully
History of Kash- illustrated book on Kashmir, while speak-
mir before the ing of its history, says : " A country of
M S ul8 - such striking natural beauty must, surely,
at some period of its history, have produced a refined and noble
people. Amid these glorious mountains, breathing their free
and bracing air, and brightened by the constant sunshine,
there must have sprung a strong virile and yet aesthetic race.
The beautiful Greece, with its purple hills and varied contour,
its dancing seas and clear blue sky, produced the graceful Greeks.
But Kashmir is more beautiful than Greece. It has the same
blue sky and brilliant sunshine, but its purple hills are on a far
grander scale, and if it has no sea, it has lake and river, and the
still more impressive snowy mountains. It has, too, great
variety of natural scenery, of field and forest, of rugged moun-
tain and open valley. And to me, who have seen both countries,
Kashmir seems much the more liekly to impress a race by its
natural beauty. Has it ever made any such impression ? " 2 Sir
Francis Younghusband replies that the noted shawls of Kasmir
1 Journal B. B. R. A. XIX, pp. 237-48. Vide my " Asiatic Papers, " Part I,
pp. 99-110.
2 Kashmir by F. Youngbusband (1909), p. 194.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. &
.and the remains of its old temples, '" remarkable for their almost
Egyptian solidity, simplicity and durability, as well as for
what Cunningham describes as the graceful elegance of their
outlines, the massive boldness of their parts, " indicate, that " its
inhabitants have a sense of form and colour and some delicacy
and refinement." 1 ki The people that built the ancient temples
of Kashmir must have been religious, for the remains are all
of temples or of sacred emblems, and not of palaces, commercial
offices or hotels ; they must have held at least, one large idea to
have built on so enduring a scale, and they must have been men
of strong and simple tastes averse to the paltry and the florid.
What was their history ? Were they a purely indigenous race ?
Were they foreigners and conquerors settled in the land, or were
they a native race, much influenced from outside, and with
sufficient pliability to assimilate that influence and turn it to
profitable use for their own ends ? :? Younghusband answers this
long question, by saying that the race was indigenous, but still
it was subject to foreign influence. Though its surrounding lofty
mountains acted as a barrier against foreign influence, its natural
beauty made up for that barrier, because it attracted foreigners
in spite of the difficulty of access.
The Rajatarangini, written by Kalhana in A. r>. 1148 and
brought down to later times by additions by Jotraj in 1412, and
to still later times by further additions by Shrivar Pandit in 1477,
begins the history with a reference to the times of Asoka (about
250 B. c.), the relics of whose Buddhist temples are still seen in
this country. Alexander the Great had invaded India in about
327 B. c. and his invasion is said to have made some Greek influ-
ence on Indian Architecture. Hence it is, that we see on old
Kashmir temples the influence of Greco-Buddhist art. Darius,
the great Persian, had preceded Alexander and had also left some
traces of Iran's Persepolitan influence on Indian Art. Hence it
is, that we see some traces, though few, on Kashmir buildings,
e.g., on the great Martand temple, of the Persepolitan influence.
The modern village of Prandrathan, three miles above Srinagar,
was the site of the old city founded by Asoka.2 The name
signifies " old capital " (puranadhisthan.)
After Asoka and his heirs, there came the Indo-Scythians
under Kanishka (about A.D. 40) and his successors, who ruled
in the north and even on the north-western frontiers of India.
This line of kings also was Buddhist, but their Buddhism was
1 Ibid.
2 I had the pleasure of visith.g the ruin ami the present
the agreeable company of Mr .Daya Ram Sohani. the
Archaologcal Department of Kashmir, on 18th Juno, 101 j.
6 ASIATIC PAPERS.
partly infused with some Zoroastrian ideas, as can be seen from
their Indo-Scythic coins, which, as showed by Sir Aurel Stein,
had the names of Zoroastrian deities on them. Kanishka is
said to have held in Kashmir the Third Great Council of the
Buddhist Church, which council is said to be the author of " the
Northern Canon " or *' the Greater Vehicle of the Law" (Maha-
yana, lit. the High or the broad liberal way). Harwan, 1 one
of the several beautiful places of Kashmir, at present a site of
the Water Works for Srinagar, is spoken of as the seat of a
known Buddhisatva, Nagarjuna.
The Buddhism of Asoka and Kanishka was overthrown by
Brahmamsm. This fact appears from the writings of the
Chinese traveller, Hieun Tsiang, who, visitig Kashmir in>
A. D. 631, deplored, that Buddhism was neglected there.
A century later, there was an excursion of the White Huns
headed by Mihrcula, who, driven away from India, went tc*
Kashmir, and paying ungratefully the hospitality of the ruler,
captured his throne. The name Mihrcula is a Persian name.
He is said to have founded the temple and the city of Mihresh-
wara and Mihirapur. All these names, which are connected with
Mihr, the later form of Avestaic Mithra, point to his being one
who can be called an Iranian Hun. Rajatarangini condemns
him for having introduced in Kashmir, Gandharwa Brahmins
to supercede the orginal Hindu Kashmir Brahmins. I have
referred to Mihrcula at some length in my paper, read last year
before the Society on the subject of the Huns. 2
Then, we come to a reigning family, which belongs to Kashmir
itself. Its famous king was Liladitya (A. D. 699 to 736). Not only
did he rule Kashmir well, but he conquered adjoining countries
such as Punjab, Tibet and Badakhshan. He was the builder
of the celebrated temple of Martand whose ruins still appear to
be grand and majestic. King Avantivarman (A.D. 855 to 883)
the founder of Avantipura, whose ruins we still see, was one of
Ms dynasty. A number of weak rulers followed him and there
was a good deal of disorder for a number of years.
Then, there came the first invasion of Mahomedans under
Mahmud Gaznavi (A. D. 1015) which was unsuccessful. There
were dissensions in the family of the ruling dynasty, which had
several weak kings till the time of Harsa (1089-1101). By
1339, the Mahomedan power had made great strides in Punjab
and in the adjoining country. A Mahomedan ruler, named Shab
Mir, deposing the widow of the last ruling Hindu ruler, founded
for the first time a Mahomedan dynasty. The kings of this
1 I had the pleasure of visiting this beautiful spot on 14th June 1915.
2 Journal B. B. K. A. 8. Vol. XXIV, No. 3, p. 688. Vide my Asiatic Papers Part IL
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. 7
dynasty were not strong. Disorder and internal struggles conti-
nued and the country was no way better than during the
last 200 years of disorder and misrule of the Hindu rulers.
Then, there came Zain-ul-abad-din (1420-70), of whom the
people still speak as the Padshah, i.e., the King. He was to
Kashmir, what, latter on, Akbar was to the whole of India
including Kashmir. He was tolerant to the Hindus, so much so,
that he contributed money for the repairs of old Hindu temples
and for the revival of old Hindu learning. His reign was, as
said by Younghusband, " a mere oasis in the dreary record ""
of a long line of Mahomedan kings, both those who preceded
him and those who followed him till 1532, when Mirza Haidar, at
the head of some Turks from the northern regions, conquered
Kashmir and ruled for some years. In 1536, Akbar's generals
conquered it, and it became a part, as it were, of India. The
Mogul rule, thus established, continued for about 200 years.
IV.
Now, we come to the Moguls, whose taste for art led them to
_ give a helping hand to beautify Kashmir. It
KiTh^ 0g was Jehangir especially who had done a good
^' deal in this matter. The Shalimar, Nishat,
Virnag and many other gardens point to this king's handsome
work in this line. Bernier, a French physician and traveller,
who lived in the 17th century (died A. D. 1688), was in the
Court of Aurangzebe for about 12 years, 8 out of which he served
as a court physician. He visited Kashmir in the company of a
Mogul nobleman named Danishmand who accompanied Aurang-
zebe. He says, that the Moguls considered Kashmir to be the
paradise of India. He thus speaks of the beauty of Kashmir,
as he saw it in the time of Aurangzebe : "I am charmed
with Kachemere. In truth, the kingdom surpassed in beauty all
that my warm imagination had anticipated. It is probably un-
equalled by any country of the same extent. ... It is not indeed
without reason that the Moguls called Kachemere the terrestrial
paradise of the Indies. . . . Jehanguir became so enamoured of
this little kingdom as to make it a place of his favourite abode,
and he often declared that he would rather be deprived of every
other province of his mighty empire than lose Kachemere." 1
Taimur, the ancestor of the Mogul Emperors of India, who
had written his auto-biography known as
a " " Malfuzat-i-Taimuri ( ^ jj* ^>^ ) i.e.,
the Words or Memoir of Taimur, refers to
Kashmir. His memoir is also known as Tuzuk-i Taimur ( ^ jj^*>
1 Constable's Oriental Miscellany of Original and Selected Publications, Vol. I.
Bowler's Travels, A.D. 1658-1668 (1891), pp. 400-401.
8 ASIATIC PAPEBS.
-*3 j3 ) i.e., the Institutions or Regulations of Taimur. It was
written in Turki and then translated into Persian in the reign of
Shah Jehan. In these Memoirs, Taimur refers to Kashmir and to
the Spring of Virnag. He says : " I made inquiries about the
country and city of Kashmir from men who were acquainted
with it and from them I learned that. . . . Kashmir is an in-
comparable country ... In the midst of the country there is a
very large and populous city called Naghaz. 1 The rulers of
the country dwell there. The buildings of the city are very
large and are all of wood and they are four or five stories high.
They are very strong and will stand for 500 or 700 years. A
large river runs through the middle of this city, as large as the
Tigris at Baghdad and the city is built upon both sides of it.
The source of this river is within the limits of Kashmir in a large
lake, some parasangs in length and breadth which is called Vir-
nak. The inhabitants have cast bridges over the river in nearly
thirty places. These are constructed of wood, stone or boats ;
seven of the largest are within the city and the rest in the en-
virons. When this river passes out of the confines of Kashmir,
it is named after each city by which it passes ; as the river of
Damdana, the river of Jand. The river passes on and joins the
Chinab above Mult an." 2
We find a short account of Kashmir in the Zafar-Nama
of Sharaf-ud-Din Yazdi, " which is a very partial bio-
graphy of Timur written in A. D. 1424. . . and is based
upon the Malfuzat-i-Timuri." 3 We read there: "There is
a city named Naghaz. which is the residence of the rulers of
the country. Like Bagdad, the city has a large river running
through it, but the waters of this river exceed those of the
Tigris. It is extraordinary that the waters of so great a river all
spring from one source, which source is situated in this country
itself and is called Vir." 4
It was in the 31st year of his reign (Hijri 993, A. D. 1585)
AH. JV u that^Akbar invaded Kashmir. He advanc-
^AkbarandKash- ^ &s fftr ag Atftk and gent Bhagwan Das>
Shah Kuli Mahran and other well-known
Amirs, with about 5,000 horses, to effect the conquest of
Kashmir. 5 They were opposed by Yusuf Khan, the ruler
of the country, who came and blockaded the pass. The above
generals resolved to make peace. They settled that Yusuf
1 I think it is a corruption of Nagar, the final Persian, (r) being hy mistake written
with a nuktah aa (z). This name Nagur then is a contraction of Uri-nagar (Cf. Nagar
for AhmednaKar.)
3 Ibid, II, p. 478. 2 Elliot's History of India, Vol. IL p. 470.
6 Ibid, V. p. 450. 4 Ibid, p. 522.
THE MOGt L EMPEROR^ AT KASHMIR. 9
may pay sonic tribute to Akbar in saffron, shawls and some
money. Akbar disapproved of the terms of peace and at first
ivas angry with his generals, but he afterwards admitted them
into his audience. 1 Akbar then sent Kasim Khan Mirbahr
to conquer Kashmir. Owing to the dissensions among the
Kashmiris, the task of conquest was easy.
Akbar took Kashmir in A. D. 1586 and visited it three times.
During one of these visits, he directed the fort of Hari Parbat
to be built. His son Jehangir completed it. We read as
follows in the Tabakat-i-Akbari : <k The rulers of Kashmir had
always been well-wishers and servants of the Imperial house.
His Majesty now intended, after performing his usual pilgrimage
to Ajmere, to pay a visit to the tomb of Saikh Farid Shakar-
ganj and to visit the Panjab. So he sent Mulla Ishki, one of the
old servants of the Court, along with Kazi Sadru-d-din, to
Kashmir. Alikhan , the ruler of Kashmir, entertained them nobly
and respectfully, and exhibited his fidelity and devotion. 5 ' 2
Akbar then paid a running visit to Kashmir in 1589 (Hijri 997)
when on his way to Kabul. Leaving the ladies of the Court on
this side of the mountains of Kashmir, he ik went on express." 3
In 1592, he paid another visit. On his way thither, he heard
that Yadgar, a nephew of Yusuf Khan Rizani, his governor of
Kashmir, had raised the standard of revolt and declared him-
self as the Sultan. This rebellion was put down and Yadgar
was killed before Akbar reached the capital. We read in the
Tabakat-i-Akbari, that he " stayed the^ eight days, riding about
and hunting water-fowl. . ." On his return journey, embark-
ing in a boat , he proceeded towards Baramula on the confines of
Kashmir, on the way to Pakhali. On the road he saw a reservoir
called Zain-lanka. This reservoir is enclosed on the west, north
and south by mountains and it is thirty toe in circumference.*
The river Bahut (Jilam) passes through this lake. Its water is
very pure and deep. Sultan Zain-u-l-'Abidin carried out a pier
of stone to the distance of one jarib into the lake and upon it
erected a high building. Nothing like this lake and building is to
be found in India. 5 After visiting this edifice he went to Bara
Mula." 6 In all, Akbar paid three visits to Kashmir. 7
1 Ibid, p. 453. 2 Ibid, Vol. V., p. 411.
:J Ibid, Vol. V.. p. 457.
4 This reservoir is now known as Wulur Lake, which is said to le the largest lake
in India.
5 Udaipur in Mowar (Rajpntana) i* spoken of by some as the " Kashmir of Eaj-
putana." There, we see beantitul artificial lakes. In the midst of one ot these, wr
find some handsome royal buildings. These may be an imitation of the above building
in the Wular Lake.
6 EJliot V., p. 405. 7 Ain-i-Ahkari, .larref* Translation II, p. 348.
10
ASIATIC PAPERS.
Akbar had divided his Empire into divisions called Sub&hs.
Kashmir as des- Each Sub&h was known from the name of
oribed in the Am- the tract of the country or its capital city.
i-Akbari. Latterly, when Berar, Khandesh and Ahmed-
nagar were conquered there were in all 15 SubAhs. Each-
Subah was sub-divided into Sark&rs. There were in all 105*
Sarkars. Each Sark&r was divided into pargan&hs or Mahals.
All the Sarkars were subdivided into 2,737 townships. 1 The
Sub&hs were spoken of as being in such and such a climate.
The term climate meant a slope or inclination and " was used in
the mathematical geography of the Greeks with reference to the
inclination of various parts of the earth's surface to the plane
of the equator. Before the globular figure of the earth was
known, it was supposed that there was a general slope of its sur-
face, from South to North, and this was called ' klima.' But
as the science of mathematical geography advanced, the word
was applied to belts of the earth's surface divided by lines parallel*
to the equator, these lines being determined by the different
lengths at different places, of the shadow cast by a gnomon of
the same altitude, at noon of the same day. . . . The Arabs
adopted this system, but restricted the number to seven." 2 The
Arabs seem to have followed the ancient Iranians who had
haft keshwars, i. e., seven regions or climates. In our inscrip-
tions, Jehangir is spoken of as the king of these seven regions.
Kashmir belonged to the Sub&h of Kabul which comprised
Kashmir, Pakli, Binbar, Sw&t, Bajaur, Kandah&r and Zabu-
listan. The capital of this Subah was Kabul. Kashmir lies
in the 3rd and 4th clim&tes. Of the several routes leading to
this country encompassed on all sides by the Himalayan
ranges, the Pir Pangal route was the one adopted by Akbar in*
his three visits to " the rose garden of Kashmir." 3
Abul Fazl, the great historian of Akbar, thus speaks of Kash*
Abul Fazl on mir : " The country is enchanting and might
the beauty of be fittingly called a garden of perpetual
Kashmir. spring surrounding a citadel terraced to th^
skies, and deservedly appropriate to be either the delight of the-
worldling or the retired abode of the recluse. Its streams are-
sweet to the taste, its waterfalls music to the ear, and its climate
is invigorating . . . The lands are artificially watered or depen-
dent on rain for irrigation. The flowers are enchanting, and fitt
the heart with delight. Violets, the red rose and wild narcissus?.
v i i Ata 'tAt* ai1 Bk ' m " Im V itM Administration. Janet's Translation 1891
vol. II., p. 115. ^
2. Ibid, p. 115, n. 4. 8. Ibid, H., p. 348.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. Jl
cover the plains. To enumerate its flora would be impossible. Its.
spring and autumn are extremely beautiful . . . Tulips are growa,
on the roofs which present a lovely sight in the spring time." 1
Abdul Fazl thus describes the Vernag spring : " In the Ver tract
The Vernag * ^ e country is the source of the Behat.
spring, described It is a pool measuring a jarib which tosses in
AVV> t<lle Am "^ foam with an astonishing roar and its depth is
Akban. unfathomable. It goes by the name of Vernag
and is surrounded by a stone embankment and to its east are
temples of stone." 2
VI
JEHANGIR'S VISITS OF KASHMIR.
Now we come to the reign of Jehangir. We will speak of
The beauty of ^ s connection with Kashmir at some length,
Kashmir. Jehan- because he had a great hand in beautifying
gir's hand in Kashmir, and because we have to explain and
beautifying it. identify the events and dates referred to in
his inscriptions. In his work of beautifying Kashmir by
laying gardens at various beautiful places, Jehangir was ably
assisted by his Nur Mahal. We know that this queen had
great influence upon Jehangir in various matters, even in state
matters. 3
Kalhana, the author of the Rajatarangini, while speaking of
Kashmir's beauty, says : " It is a country where the sun shines
mildly, being the place created by Kashyapa as if for his glory.
High school-houses, the saffron, iced water and grapes which
are rare even in Heaven are common here. Kailasa is the best
place in the three worlds, Himalaya the best part of Kailasa, and
Kashmir the best part in Himalaya." 4 The Kashmiris speak
of their country as " an emerald set in pearls, a land of lakes,
clear streams, green turf, magnificent trees and mighty moun-
tains, where the air is cool and the water sweet, where men are
strong and women vie with the soil in fruitfulness." 6
Bernier says of the Dal Lake of Kashmir, as he saw it later 01*
beautified at the hand of Jehangir, that it " is one of the most
beautiful spots in the world. . . Perhaps in the whole world,.
1 Ain-i-Akbari, Jarretf a Translation, Vol. II., pp. 348-49.
' 2 The Ain-i-Akbari, Jarrett's Translation, Vol. II., p. 301.
3 She had a powerful hand in helping the cause of Sir Thomas Roe, the first English
ambeiudor at the Court of Jehangir. Roe, was so much helped and supported by Nur
Mahal, that he wrote from Jehanglr's Court to his people at Surat : *' Noor Mahal i a
my solicitor and her brother my broker " (Early English Adventurers in the East by
Arnold Wright, 1917, p. 163.)
4 Ai quoted by Sir W. Lawrence. 5 Ibid.
12
ASIATIC PAPERS.
there IB no corner so pleasant as the Dal Lake." Of the very
beautiful lake of Manasbal, Sir R. Younghusbarid 1 says
ithat it is " a jewel among the mountains." I was pleased with
tno lake of Kashmir so much as with this beautiful gem. Moving
about in your boat in the calm and clear water of this lake, you
feel, as if you see beautiful pictures moving in a cinematograph
before you.
Kashmir, as described by these writers, old and modern,
was beautiful and Jehangir vied with Nature to make it
more beautiful. In his memoirs, he often spoke of Kashmir
-as " Behesht-nazir Kashmir" (^x^r^oJ^) i.e., the
paradise-like Kashmir. At times, he spoke of it it as
><ielpazir (^A$Ja)3 Kashmir, i.e., heart-ravishing Kashmir.
In connection with Jehangir's detailed admiring description
B eve ridge' s of the beauties of Kashmir and of its
'estimate of the various flowers, one may notice what
taste of Jehangir. Mr Beveridge says of the scientific tastes of
the Emperor. Vk If B&bur, who was the founder of the Mogul
Empire in India, was the Caesar of the East, and if the many-
sided Akbar was the epitome of all the great Emperors, includ-
ing Augustus, Trajan, Hadrian, Marcus Aurelius, Julian, and
Justinian, Jahangir was certainly of the type of the Emperor
Claudius, and so bore a close resemblance to our James I. All
three were weak men, and under the influence of their favourites,
and all three were literary, and at least two of them were fond
of dabbling in theology. All three were wrong in their places
-as rulers. Had James I. (and VI. of Scotland) been, as he half
wished, the Keeper of the Bodleian, and Jahangir been head of
^ Natural History Museum, they would have been better and
happier men. Jahangir's best points were his love of nature and
powers of observation, and his desire to do justice." 4
Jehangir had paid, in all, six visits to Kashmir, two of which
Jehangir's six were in the company of his father Akbar
visits of Kashmir, and four during his own reign. We will
briefly refer to these visits as described by him in his Memoirs.
This description will give us an idea, not only of his tastes and
of his love of Nature, but also of his admiration for Vern&g,
where we find his two inscriptions which have suggested to me
the subject of this paper. At first, we will speak of his impres-
sions about Vernag, as formed during his visits in the life time
of his father Akbar.
1 Kashmir by Younghusband, p. 37i
2 Vide the ifj&^\* ^^ J^' the 1865 edition of the Asiatic Society
of Bengal, pp. 213, 240, Ac. 3 Ibid, p. 213.
4 The Tuiuk-i-Jahangiri, Vol. II., Preface, pp. V-VI.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. U
Jehangir came to the throne on 24th October 1605 (1014
Hijri) at the age of 38. In the second year
VernAg, des- o f his reign, he went to Kabul. While-
Vu?ikl describing his journey to that city in his
i-Jehangiri. Memoirs he refers to the river Bihat, i.e., the
Jhelam on the banks of which he had pitched
his tents. The mention of Jhelam makes him speak of Vernag,
the source of the river Jhelam. He thus describes Vern&g :
" The source of the Bihat is a spring in Kashmir called the
Vir-nag ; in the language of India a snake is Vir-nag. Clearly
there had been a large snake at that place. I went twice to the
spring in my father's lifetime ; it is 20 kos from the city of Kash-
mir. It is an octagonal reservoir about 20 yards by 20. Near
it are the remains of a place of worship for recluses ; cells cut
out of the rock and numerous caves. The water is exceedingly
pure. Although I could not guess its depth, a grain of poppy-
seed is visible until it touches the bottom. There were many
fish to be seen in it. As I had heard that it was unfathomable,
I ordered them to throw in a cord with a stone attached, and
when this cord was measured in gaz it became evident that the
depth was not more than once and a half the height of a man.
After my accession, I ordered them to build the sides of the
spring round with stone, and they made a garden round it with
a canal ; and built halls and houses about it and made a
place such that travellers over the world can point out few
like it." i
We learn from this passage, that Vernag was a favourite
place of Jehangir and that he had been twice there during his
father's time. We learn further, that after his accession to the
throne, he had ordered the sides of the tank to be built up
with stone and a garden to be made near the place. The first
inscription, when it speaks of the order of His Majesty ( (*>
oj*AA>(.jf ), seems to refer to the order mentioned in the above
passage. During my first visit of Kashmir in 1895, 1 had passed
one night in one of the houses over the spring referred to
by Jehangir in the above passage. Since then, the building
has been destroyed by fire, and, during my second visit
on 30th June 1915, we had to pass the day in the adjoining
garden under the shady chindrs, and the night in the
pavilion over the main canal, the jui or db-shdr, referred to in
the inscription.
1 The Tuzuk-i-Jehangtri, or Memoirs of Jeahangir, translated by A. Rogers, edited
by H. Beveridge (1909), Vol. 1, p. 92-
14 ASIATIC PAPBES.
Jehangir visited Kashmir in the 15th year of his reign. He
Jehancir'B visit 8* ves a ra *her extensive account of it in
to Kashmir in the MB Memoirs. The thought of visiting
14th-15th year of Kashmir occurred to him in the 14th year
?Ws reign (1029 o f his reign (1619-20). He thus speaks
Hijn, A.D. 1620). of this firgt thought .
" As the purpose of visiting the eternal spring of the rose-
garden of Kashmir was settled in my mind, I sent off Nuru-d-
din Quli to hasten on before, to repair as far as was possible the
ups and downs of the Punch route to it, and to prepare it, so
that the passage of laden beasts over difficult hill-tops might be
accomplished with ease, and that the men should not undergo
labour and hardship. A large number of artificers, such
as stone-cutters, carpenters, spadesmen, etc., were dispatched
with him, to whom an elephant was also given." 1 I will
give here a short account of this visit, as given in his
Memoirs, because we learn therefrom, Jehangir's impressions
of the beauty of Kashmir and of its interesting places and
features.
Jehangir started for Kashmir at the end of the 14th year of
ids reign. He celebrated the Naoroz of the 15th year (10th
March 1620, the 1st of Farvardin) on the banks of the river Kishan
Oangt. In some of the mountainous tracts of this country, it
is often difficult to find a flat place for a camp. So Jehangir
notes with special satisfaction the fact of a proper place being
found by chance. He says : 2 " On the top of this (a ridge
overlooking the water, green and pleasant) was a flat place of
50 cubits, which one might say the rulers of fate had specially
prepared for such a day. The aforesaid officer (Mu 'tamid
Khan) had made ready everything necessary for the New Year's
feast on the top of that ridge which was much approved.
Mu 'tamid Khan was much applauded for this The
15th year of the reign of this suppliant at the throne of Allah
commenced happily and auspiciously."
On coming to Baramuia, he was told that " in the Hindi
language they call a boar Bdrdh ( Varaha) and mtila a place that
is, the boar's place. Among the incarnations that belong to
the religion of the Hindus, one is the boar incarnation and
B&r&h mul& by constant use has become Bara mAla." 3 On the
Toad up, the king and the court ladies were overtaken by a
enow- storm. An officer of his court was drowned while bathing
in the river. The king describes a Zampa or a rope-bridge,
j and Beveridge, Vol. II., (1014), pp. 97-08.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. 15
-which a traveller even now sees occasionally on the river*
During my first visit, I tried to walk over one, but soon got
nervous and could not go over it for more than a few feet. It
"is made up of three ropes. On one, which is the lower one, they
walk, holding in their hands the other two which are higher up.
'These ropes are tied with two big strong trees on the banks.
'Only one man can walk at a time, and nervous travellers
are carried blindfolded by an experienced footman on his
shoulder. 1
Of the beauty of the counrty higher up, Jehangir says : " It
was broad, and plain after plain, and mead after mead of flowers.
'Sweet-smelling plants of narcissus, violet and strange flowers
that grow in this country, came to view. . . . The flowers
of Kashmir are beyond counting and calculation. Which shall
I write of ? And how many can I describe ?" 2 Later on, he
again says of the flowers, that "the flowers that are seen in the
territories of Kashmir are beyond all calculation." 3 Travelling
onward by boat, Jehangir came to the capital, and landed on
1>hat bank of the Dal, where, on the Hari Parbat hill, his father
Akbar had directed the construction of a fort. The fort begun
by Akbar was completed by Jehangir. The king took 168 days
to travel from Agra to Kashmir, a distance of 376 kos. There
were 102 marches and 63 halts. 4
Jehangir then refers to the Raja-tarang (Rajatarangini) which
liis father had got translated from the Sanskrit into Persian.
He then takes a note in his account of his arrival at the
-capital of Kashmir, that it was in Hijri 712 (A. D. 1312-13)
that Kashmir was first " illumined by the religion of Islam.
'Thirty-two Mahomedan princes reigned over it for 282 years
until in 994 (1586) my father conquered it." 6 He then got a
survey made of the country in order to ascertain the length and
the breadth of the valley. The length was found to be about
<67 kos and the breadth from 10 to 25 kos.
While describing the capital, the city of Srinagar, Jehangir
thus refers to Virnag, the inscription of which forms a part of
the subject of this Paper : "The name of the city is Srinagar,
and the Bihat river flows through the midst of it. They call
its fountain-head Vir-nag. It is 14 kos to the south. By my
i Vide Ibid p. 137, for the description by Jehangir.
* Ibid, p. 134.
Ibid, p. 145.
Ibid, p. 130.
5 Ibid, fi, p 140
or 56 kos, if "the boundary of a country is the place up to which people
*peak the language of that country." A kos equalled 5,000 yard*. Each yard was equal
to two snarl yards, each of which again was 24 digits or angutht, 40 anqntht made one
Ilahl gaz.
16 ASIATIC PAPERS.
order they have made a building and a garden at that source," 1
Jehangir makes a longer mention of Virnag in another part of
his Memoirs.
We have referred above to Jehangir's admiration of
Jehangir'sadmi- Kashmir's beauty and of its flowers. He
ration of Kashmir, thus speaks of it further on : " Kashmir is a
garden of eternal spring, or an iron fort to a palace of
kings a delightful flower-bed, and a heart-expanding heritage
for dervishes. Its pleasant meads and enchanting cascades
are beyond all description. There are running streams and
fountains beyond count. Wherever the eye reaches, there
are verdure and running water. The red rose, the violet
and the narcissus grow of themselves ; in the fields, there
are all kinds of flowers and all sorts of sweet-scented herbs
more than can be calculated. In the soul-enchanting spring the
hills and plains are filled with blossoms ; the gates, the walls,
the courts, the roofs, are lighted up by the torches of banquet-
adorning tulips. What shall we say of these things or of the
wide meadows (julgahd) and the fragrant trefoil ? . . . The
finest inflorescence is that of the almond and the peach. Out-
side the hill-country the commencement of blossoming is the
first Isfandarmuz (February 10). In the territory of Kashmir
it is the first Farwardin (March 10), and in the city gardens it
is the 9th and 10th of that month, and the end of their blooming
joins on to the commencement of that of the blue jessamine. In
attendance on my revered father, I frequently went round the
saffron fields and beheld the spectacle of the autumn. Thank
God that on this occasion I beheld the beauties of the
spring." 2
Jehangir then describes at some length the buildings of
Kashmir and its various products fruits, silk, wine, vegetables,
grains, oils, animals, shawls, cloths, dress, ways of travelling,
and music. What travellers observe now about the cleanliness
of the people was observed by Jehangir about 400 years ago.
He says : " Although most of the houses are on the river-bank
not a drop of water touches their bodies. In short, they are
as dirty outside as inside, without any cleanliness.' ' 3
Proceeding further, one sees in Jehangir's Memoirs a some-
what detailed description of the fort of Hari Parbat and the
garden attached to it which he named Nur-afzd, i.e., light-
increasing. 4
1 Ibid, II., pp. 141-142.
2 The Tuzuk by Rogers Beveridge. II., pp. 143-44.
3 Ibid, p. 148.
4 Ibid pp. 150-51.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. 17
Kashmir was known to the ancient Persians as a country of
good astrologers. Firdousi refers to this
f ? ct * 1 Jehall g ir ' in fck Present account of
Kashmir, describes an accident, that hap-
pened to his child Shuja, which shows his faith in astrology. 2
The child, while playing in one of the palace buildings on the
Dal lake, fell out of a window from a height of 7 yards, but was
fortunately saved by having fallen on a carpet below and on
a carpet-spreader who was sitting there. In connection with
this event Jehangir says : " A strange thing was that three or
four months before this event Jotik Ray, the astrologer, who is
one of the most skilled of the class in astrology, had represent-
ed to me without any intermediary, that it was predicted
from the Prince's horoscope that these three or four months
were unpropitious to him, and it was possible he might fall down
from some high place, but that the dust of calamity would
not settle on the skirt of his life. As his prognostications had
repeatedly proved correct, this dread dwelt in my mind, and
on these dangerous roads and difficult mountain passes I was
never for a moment forgetful of that nursling of the parterre of
Fortune. I continually kept him in sight, and took the greatest
precautions with regard to him. When I arrived in Kashmir
this unavoidable catastrophe occurred. . . God be praised that
it ended well." 3 Further on, we find the following instance
of Jehangir's faith in astrology : " Padshah Banu Bcgain died.
.... A strange thing is, that Jotik Kay, the astrologer
two months before this, had informed some of my servants
that one of the chief sitters in the harem of chastity would
hasten to the hidden abode of non-existence. He had
discovered this from the horoscope of my destiny and it fell out
accordingly." 4
What Jehangir says of the enormous bulk of a plane tree
Jehangir's &r- (chirtdr) 5 in Kashmir is worth-noting. The
count of the chi- huge shady Chindr trees are the beauty of
w2r of Kashmir. Kashmir. I saw, both during my first visit
and the second one (3rd June 1915), a chindr at Sumbal, which, I
1 M. Mohl, Le Livre des Rote, Vol. IV., p. 704 ; Small edition, Vol. IV j>. 5C7.
(Meccan'8 Calcutta edition, Vol. III.. 1230.)
2 Tuzuk by Rogers and Beveridge, II., p. 151.
3 Ibid, pp. 152-53. 4 Ibid, pp. 159-00.
5 The Mogul Emperors are aaid to have further spread the planting of chinars iii
Kashmir. The ehlnare were held in reverence in Pewia. Vide my pauer on The
Veneration pnid to the plune tree in Powia," in the Journal of the Anthropological Society
^of Bombay, Vol. VI, No. 8. Vide my Anthropological Papers, Part I., pp. 200-207.
18 ASIATIC PAPERS.
think, could easily give, to a family of 7 or more persons, sleeping
accommodation on the ground within its hollow trunk which was
eaten away and hollowed by age. I saw another big chinar tree
(26 June 1915) at Bijbiara on the way to Isl&m&bad. It bears
a tablet, saying " 64 feet circumference at Q (ground) Level."
But the plane (chinar) tree which Jehangir describes, waa
larger than this. He says : " In the village of R&walpfrr, 2|
kos from the city towards Hindustan, there is a plane-tree,
burnt in the inside. Twenty-five years before this, when I
myself was riding on a horse, with five other saddled horses and
two eunuchs, we went inside it. Whenever I had chanced to
mention this, people were surprised. This time I <egain ordered
some of the men to go inside, and what I had in my mind
came to pass in the same manner. It has been noted in the
Akbar-nama that my father took thirty-four people inside and
made them stand close to each other." 1 Jehangir, later
on, refers to a place known as Panj Brara and to the large
chindr trees there. He says : "In the neighbourhood of Panj
Brara there is a meadow (julga) exceedingly clean and pleasant,
with seven lofty plane-trees in the middle of it, and a stream of
the river flowing round it. The Kashmiris call it Satha Bhtili.
It is one of the great resorts of Kashmir." 2 This Panj
Brara is the modern Bijbihara, and I think, the big
plane trees referred to by Jehangir are of the spot referred to by
me above. It is still one of the picturesque spots of Kashmir.
Jehangir had further beautified the place of Shalamar which
was beautiful in itself. We read as fol-
J! 16 ? arde * of lows in his Tuzuk in his account of the fort
Shftlamar. of ^ parbat ^^ ^ ^ fathep . j
frequently embarked in a boat, and was delighted to go round
and look at the flowers of Phak and Shalamar. Phak is the
name of a pargana situated on the other side of the lake (Dal).
Shalamar is near the lake. It has a pleasant stream, which comes
down from the hills, and flows into the Dal Lake. I bade my
son Khurram dam it up and make a waterfall, which it would
be a pleasure to behold. This place is one of the sights of Kash-
mir." 3 Shalamar is still a sight of Kashmir. It was not in
so good an order when I first visited it about 20 years ago. But
now, the present Maharaja Saheb has improved the surroundings
by a beautiful garden. Once a week, all the fountains and
they are numerous are made to play, and people from the city
of Srinagar visit it during the afternoon. They generally go
by boats, but there is also a fine road passing through pleasant
beautiful surroundings.
1 IbM, n, pp. 164-5. i: Ibid. 1 p. 171-72. 3 Ibid, p. 151.
THE MOGUL EMPEBOBS AT KASHMIR. 19
We see in the following passage, Jehangir's desire that one
Jehangir's fond* should have his own fruit-garden. While
ness for gardens. speaking of the shdh-dlti, i.e., cherries of
Kashmir, he says : " Every day I plucked with my own hand
sufficient to give a flavour to my cups. Although they sent
them by runners from Kabul as well, yet to pick them oneself
from one's home garden gave additional sweetness. The
shdh-dl^ of Kashmir is not inferior to that of Kabul ; it is even
better grown. The largest of them weighed one tdnk five
surkhs." 1 We learn, from what Jehangir says further on, that
it was he who ordered the further cultivation of this fruit in
Kashmir. He says : " I strictly ordered the officials of Kashmir
to plant sMh-dlA (cherry) trees in all the gardens." 2
Jehangir says : " The picture-gallery in the garden had
' Jehangir's taste keen ordered to be repaired ; it was now
for art, as display- adorned with pictures by master hands,
ed in the DAI I n the most honoured positions were the
K^mi r r laCe8 f like nesses of Humayun and of my father
opposite to my own, and that of my brother
Shah Abbas. ... "3
Kashmir has several beautiful places known as margs or
Jehangir's account meadows, such as Sona-marg, Gul-marg,
of the flower- Kailan-marg. I had the pleasure of seeing
margs of Kashmir, the last two (7th to 13th July 191 5). These
soft grassy meadows are covered, especially in the spring, with
various little flowers. They are situated on higher mountains
at some distance from the capital city and people go there
during the summer. Jehangir thus speaks of one of them :
"I rode to see the summer quarters of Tfisi-marg. 4 Arriv-
ing in two marches at the foot of the Kotal. . . I reached the
top of the pass. For a distance of 2 kos very elevated ground
was crossed with difficulty. From the top of the Kotal to the
Ilaq (summer quarters) was another kos of high and low land.
Although here and there flowers of various colours had bloomed,
yet I did not see so many as they had represented to me,
and as 1 had expected. 1 heard that in this neighbourhood
there was a very beautiful valley, and ... I went to see it.
Undoubtedly, whatever praise they might use in speaking of
that flowery land would be permissible. As far as the eye
reached flowers of all colours were blooming. There were
picked fifty kinds of flowers in my presence. Probably there
were others that I did not see." 6 Of the Ilaq of Kftri-marg*
_ . ._..'--
1 Ibid, p. 169. 2 Ibid, p. 162. n T?J Wd 'tS p ' 16 i' 162 '
4 i *TheplaoetetheToftoMaidanof Lawrence, 16." Ibid, p. 163, n. 1.
5 Ibid, pp. 162-163. 6 " Gurais Valley of Lawrence, 16." Ibi d . p, 164, n. 2.
20 ASIATIC PAPBBS.
be wirtes : " How shall I write its praise ? As far as the eye
could reach flowers of various hue were blooming, and in the
midst of the flowers and verdure beautiful streams of water
were flowing : one might say that it was a page that the painter
of destiny had drawn with the pencil of creation. The buds
of hearts break into flowers from beholding it. Undoubtedly
there is no comparison between this and other Ilaqs and it may
be said to be the place most worth seeing in Kashmir.' 11
In his tour towards the celebrated stream of Virnag,
Machhi Bhavan Jehangir stayed at Machhi Bhavan, so called,
and Achval (Achi- perhaps, because it contains, even now, a
bal -) number of fish. I remember the noon of
27th June 1915, when I paid a second visit to the temple and
entertained its fish with the delicious Bhavan bread, sold there
for the pur pose. A play with the fish is enjoyable. I remember
having a hasty standing breakfast there on a picturesque shady
spot opposite the temple on the side of the stream running from
behind the temple. Perhaps it is the very spot which Jehangir
refers to in his Memoirs. He says : " There is a fountain that
they called Machhi Bhawan, above which Ray Bihari Chand, one
of the servants of my father, built an idol temple. The beauty
of this spring is more than one can describe, and large trees of
ancient years, planes, white and black poplars, have grown up
round it, I passed the night at this place." 2
I may say here a word of warning to modern tourists, lest what
they see at the above spot at the time of their visit may disap-
point them and lead them to think that the Mogul Emperor's
description of the beauty was an exaggeration. The trees are
grand, shady and beautiful. The springs are beautiful. The air
is bracing. But at times, the ground is not kept well-cleaned.
When royal personages and grandees go there the place also
is kept scrupulously clean. So, no doubt, perhaps a modern
tourist, who sees at present some dirt and filth in the midst of
beauty, may, at times, consider Jehangir 's description a little
exaggerating.
From Machhi Bhawan, Jehangir went to the spring of Achibal.
of which he speaks as Achval. Jehangir says : " The water
of this spring is more plentiful than that of the other (Machhi
Bhawan), and it has a fine waterfall. Around it lofty plane-
trees and graceful white poplars, bringing their heads together,
have made enchanting places to sit in. As far as one could see,
in a beautiful garden Jd'fari flowers had bloomed, so that one
might say it was a piece of Paradise." 3
1 IMd, p. 104. 2 Ibid. p. 172. S fbKU p. 17&
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. 21
Prom Achiba), Jehangir went to Virniig. He says : l " I pitched
The Spring of camp near the fountain of Virnag. . . .
Virnag. The feast of cups was prepared at the spring.
I gave my private attendants permission to sit down.
Filling brimming cups, I gave them Kabul peaches as a relish
and in the evening they returned drunk to their abodes. This
spring is the source of the river Bihat and is situated at the foot
of a hill, the soil of which, from the abundance of trees and
the extent of green and grass, is not seen. When I was a prince,
I had given an order that they should erect a building at this
spring suitable to the place. It was now 2 Completed. There
was a reservoir of an octagonal shape, forty-twb yards in
area and fourteen gaz in depth. Its water, from the reflection of
the grass and plants on the hill, had assumed a hue of verdure.
Many fish swam in it ; round it, halls with domes had been erect-
ed, and there was a garden in front of them. From the edge of
the pond to the gate of the garden there was a canal 4 gaz in
width and 180 gaz in length and 2 gaz in depth. Round the
reservoir was a stone walk (KJtiydbdn-i-sanQ). The water of
the reservoir was so clear that, notwithstanding its 4 gaz
of depth, if a pea had fallen into it, it could have been seen."
" Of the trimness of the canal and the verdure of the grass that
grew below the fountain, what can one write ? Various sorts of
plants and sweet-smelling herbs grew there in profusion, and
among them was seen a stem, which had exactly the appearance
of the variegated tail of a peacock. It waved about in the ripple
and bore flowers here and there. In short, in the whole of Kash-
mir there is no sight of such beauty and enchanting character.
It appears to me that what is up stream in Kashmir (i.e., in the
upper part of Kashmir) bears no comparison with (i.e., is far
superior to) what is down stream. One should stay some
days in these regions and go round them so as to enjoy
oneself thoroughly. ... I gave an order that plane-trees
should be planted on both sides, on the banks of the canal
above-mentioned."
I have quoted at some length this rather long description of
Firn% from Jehangir's Memoirs, because, it is this visit of the
15th year of his reign, that the Inscription, which forms a part
of the subject of my Paper, commemorates. Again, it is in the
above passage, that Jehangir refers to his orders for the
erection of the buildings, &c., where the inscriptions stfend :
" When I was a prince, I had given an order that they should
etedt a building at this spring suitable to the place. It
1 Ibid, pp. 173-74
2 In the 15th year of his reign, Hijri 1029, t>., A.D. 1620.
22 ASIATIC PAPBBS.
was now completed." 1 We read all this in his account
the 15th year of his reign and the Inscription very prop
bears that date. It says as we will see later on: "I _^
Jehangir. . . . did the honor of coming to this fountain-head of
abundant mirror-like water in the 15th year of his accession
to the throne." Again, as he says, that the buUding was than
finished, it appears that he must have ordered the Inscription-
tablet to be placed there during the very time he was there.
As to the origin of the name of Virnag, we saw above what
The origin o! the Jehangir's information was. Some derive
name Virnag. it from vir, willow ; so Virn&g means willow-
fountain. On the subject of its origin and the legend about
the origin, I will quote here from a written Hindu account
shown to us here by the Pandit who acted as our guide :
" The spring is called Virnag, because, according to a legend,
the goddess Vitashta ( Jhelum) wanted to take her rise from this
place, but it happened that, when she came, Shiva was staying
here. Thereupon she had to go back. Then, she took her rise
from Vithavatru (Vithashta), a spring, about a mile to the North-
west of this place. ' Verah ' means ' to go back ' and * n&g' means
* spring.' And as Vitashta had to go back from the place, it came
to be called " Verah-n&g or Virnag." They say that at Virnag they
worship the Panchayet of the Gods, i.e., the five (panch) gods
viz., Brahma, Vishnu, Maheshwar, Bhagwan and Ganesh."
There are two groups of springs here at the distance of about
one mile from Virn&g. One is that of the Shapta-rishi from the
seven (sapta) Bishis or saints, viz., Vasishtha, Augashta, Gaotama,
Atri, Bardwan, Augra and Marich. This group is made of three
springs. The other group is that of Vitashta and Ganga- Jamnk
Two tanks are pointed out to us bearing these names. The
water from the Vitashta tank (kund) flows to that df the Ganga-
Jamna, and thence the joint water of both the tanks, flowing out,
joins that of the Sapta-rishi group. All the waters, so joined,
form the Vitashta, river. The springs of Achibal, and VirnSg
and the above joint spring are said to form the springs of the
Jhelum, but the joint group at Virnag is believed to be the true
main spring. As a proof, it is alleged, that the water of this
group remains pure even in the rains,while those of the other
two Achibal and Virn&g get a little spoiled and assume colour,
because they are believed to be some underground streams
coming from a distance.
It is said, that about eight miles from here, there is a spnng
called Pavan Sandhyfc. The water of this spring has a flow
and ebb twenty times during an hour. There is another,
I Tu*ak-i Jfthanglri by Ro gera-Boeridge, II., p. 142, n. 1.
THE MOGUL EMPEBOBS AT KASHMIR. 23
about five miles distant, known as Pandar Sandhya, where, in
the months of Vaiehakh and Jaith, water alternately rushes
forth once every hour and then stops altogether for the next hour.
From Virnag, Jehangir went to Lake Bhawan, a spring
PAmpflr. on a pk* 88 ' 11 * s P ot and thence to Andha
Nag which contained blind (andha) fish,
and thence by the road of the springs of Machhi Bhawan
and Inch back to Srinagar. After a stay at the city, he went on
an autumn tour in the direction of Safapur and the valley of
Lar. On the 27th of the Divine (Ilahi) month of Meher, the
royal standards were raised to return to Hindustan. In this
return journey as the saffron had blossomed, Jehangir visited
the saffron fields at Pampur. "In the whole country of
Kashmir there is saffron only in this place...The feast of cups
was held in a saffron field. Groves on groves, and plains on
plains were in bloom. The breeze in that place scented one's
brain." 1 The cultivators of the saffron took their wages in
half the weight of the saffron in salt, which was not produced
in Kashmir but was brought from India. 2
In his account of Pampur, Jehangir speaks of the kalgi>
e.g., the plumes or feathers, as one of the excellencies of
Kashmir. He also refers to an order to build houses, or what
are now called Travellers' Bungalows, at each stage in Kashmir
to accommodate his royal party. He then refers to a waterfall
in the neighbourhood of Hirapur. He says : " What can be
written in its praise ? The water pours down in three or four
gradations. I had never seen such a beautiful waterfall.
Without hesitation, it is a sight to be seen, very strange and
wonderful. I passed the time there in enjoyment till the third
watch of the day and filled my eye and heart with the sight." 3
Jehangir paid a second visit to Kashmir during the 22nd year
Jehangir's second of his reign. It seems that he had formed
visit of Kashmir as the intention of going there in the 18th year
Emperor in 1624. commencing with 10th Mareh 1623. He
says in his Tuzuk in the account of this year : " As I was at ease
1 Ibid, p. 177.
2 Vide Journal Bengal Asiatic Society, Vol. XXXIII, pp. 270, et seq. Thereto. Eev.
Loewentban gives an article, entitled :" Some Persian Inscriptions found in Srinagar
Kashmir." In that article, an inscription on the Jam! Masjid contains a firman, of Shah
Jaban, which contains the following order : " At the time of collecting the saffron, men
used to be impressed for this work without any wages except a little salt, and
hence the people are suffering much distress. We ordered that no man should by any
means be molested as to gathering the saffron ; and as to saffron grown on crown-lands,
the labourers must be satisfied and receive proper wages ; and whatever grows on lands,
granted in jagir, let the whole saffron hi kind be delivered to the Jagirdar that he may
gather it as he pleases."
3 Ibid, p 170.
24 ASIATIC PAPERS.
with regard to the affair of Bidaulat 1 and the heat of Hindu-
stan did not agree with my constitution, on the second of the*
month, corresponding with the 1st of Safar (1 Safar 1033 H.
i.e., 14th November 1623), my camp started from Ajmer for a
tour and to hunt in the pleasant regions of Kashmir." 2
We have no account of this visit of Kashmir in Jehangir's
Tuzuk or Memoirs which are translated and edited by Rogers
and Beveridge. They extend only up to a part of the 19th year
of his reign. Elliot's quotations from other sources also are not
sufficient. So we have to resort to the original Persian of the
Iqbal-nameh for reference to this and the subsequent visits.
He arrived at Kashmir on the 19th of Khordad of the 19th
year of his reign, when Istakad Khan presented to His Majesty
some delicacies of Kashmir. 3 On the 1st of the month Shahrivar,
Jehangir was at Virnag. In this account of the visit he speaks
of this stream as ' the source of the river Bihat (Jhelum) " and
as " soul -ravishing place of delight and a house of pleasure of
Kashmir." *^ + ^,> L>^ W** 4
The author says that he does not give a description of this-
place as it has been already given before. From Virnag he
started on the 5th of Shahrivar for Lahore.
In the beginning of the 20th year of his reign which fell on
Jehangir's third 10th March 1624, he paid another visit to
visit of Kashmir Kashmir, of which he speaks as the gar-
l625 - den of roses and the (seat of) perpetual
spring (j*+~* J { tf A*? jl>tf). 5 He says, that, as the Pass
( J*a/) O f pi r Panjal was covered with snow, having hunted
at Bhimbar, he entered Kashmir by way of the lower hills of
Princh (gj* ly~j*) or Punj. He describes at some length
tne beautiful flowers he saw there, and, in this description, gives a
proof of his knowledge, taste and fondness of flowers. In the
account of the different flowers, he says of one species, that it
gfows so large, that it cannot be contained in both the hands
joined together. (*#& &** ji jd *S &j*>** e^^M^^cA^)*
Of the oranges of this mountainous place (Punch), he says, that
remain on the trees for two or three years and a tree gires
1 fftm the time Shali-Jahan rebelled ttptinat Ms father Jehatfgfr, the latter poke
bf him as the Bi-danlat, i.e., the unfortunate.
Torak-i-Jehflmfbf by Roger-BeTerldge, It, p. 882. Ffcfe the Iktal-nflmeh.
.,, . Bengal Asiatic Society's Text of 1866, p. 21.
3 Iqbal-nameh, p. 224, 11. 20 et seq. Bengal Asiatic Society's edition of 1805.
4 Ibid, p. 229, 1. 8.
5 Iqbal-nameh, p. 240, 1. 19.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. 25>
1/KK) oranges. From Baramula* the royal party got into boats-
and went to the paradise-Kke (^f ^tf) Kashmir. We find
the following couplet in praise of the beautiful place :
i.e., "what is this new youth and beauty for this world, resulting
from this new condition accrued to the land and time ? "
The beautiful lines cannot be well rendered into English. What
is meant is this : The sight of the beautiful place gives, as it
were, youth and beauty to the beholders. Both, Space and
Time, get, as it were, refreshed.
Kashmir is known for its saffron, and they said, that the eating
_, of it produced laughter. So, to verify this
Jcjxp6mn9nt8 on * * *-* * t
saffron and birds. belief, Jehangir sent for, from the prison, a
criminal who was condemned to death for
theft (yf& jd) and gave him to eat one-fourth of a sir
equal to 40 miskdls. It produced no laughter. Next day,
double the quantity was given, but that also had no effect. The
king thus proved that the common belief was wrong.
During this visit, Jehangir tried to verify what he had heard
of a bird known on the mountain of Pir Panjal as Homa
( l *r or ^ U, ). The people of Kashmir said, that it lived pnly on
bones, and is always seen in the air and very little on the ground-
The king offered a prize of Us. 500 to any hunter who would shoot
a bird of that kind and bring it to the royal court. One JamaL
Kh&n brought it alive, having shot it merely on one of its legs.
The king ordered its crop, f .., the food-receptacle to be brought
out, so that it may be discovered what food it ate. The crop>
was opened and bone particles were found in it. The moun-
taineers explained to the king, that it always flew in the air,
looking to the ground. Wherever it saw a bone, it came down and
lifting it up in its beak, went high up into the air again. From.
there, it threw, the bone on strong ground. The bone, falling on
a stone, broke into small pieces which it then picked up and ate.
It is generally believed that this bird Homa is the well-known
bird Hom&i (pelican or royal eagle), which is believed to
be very suspicions. It is lucky for a man, if the Homai flies
over his head. The following couplet is quoted on the subject :
i.e., "Homai holds dignity over all birds, because it eats bones and:
hurts no animals." In strength and form, this bird is like an*
eagle ( y ^ ). The above referred to bird weighed 1037| misMU.
1 A atfcforfis 1J drahm
* ASIATIC PAPERS,
Jehangir paid another visit to Kashmir in the 22nd year of his
Jehangir's fourth reign. He started for it at the end of the 21st
-and last visit to year on the 21st of the Asfand&nnaz. H^
Kashmir in 1626. Iqb&l-n&meh says that this visit was com-
pulsory, not voluntary (^^ t ^' ** o^j^l ). Want of
..good health necessitated a change to Kashmir, the paradise-
like land of roses, the land of perpetual spring ( /**i jt>^
^XBJ i#> ^^ *+**f J tO the envy of paradise ( P***^ w* ^ ) *
Abd-ul-Rahim Khaja was given a sum of Rs. 30,000 for prepara-
tion. A female elephant with a litter was prepared for the
king. His health continued to be bad during this visit. He
continued to lose strength and grow weaker. He could not ride
and went out for airing in a palkhi ( <^ l #). He lost all appetite
-and even gave up taking opium (u^')> which he was in
the habit of taking for the last 40 years. He liked nothing
but a few glasses of grape wine (cfjj^ 1 v'^r* ^*i ***).
He then resolved to return to Lahore. " On the way at the fort
of Bairam (|*j--) * hunt was arranged. Deer were driven
to a place where he sat and he shot from his seat. During the
course of this hunt, one of the footmen slipped, fell down a hill
-and died. This event and the grief of the mother of the deceased
affected him, and he did not recover from the shock. From the
iort Bairam, they went to Tahna and from Tahna to Raj our
( ^ ja* t j ). He died on the way further. He asked for a drink which
was brought but which he could not swallow. He died on the
-aext day. His body was taken to Lahore and buried there.
From the Iqbal-nameh-i Jehangiri or Wakiat-i Jehangiri of
Some further Mu'tamad KMn, we learn that Jehangir had
particulars from in all six visits of Kashmir. They were in
Mu'tamad Khan's the 14th, 16th, 18th, 1.9th, 20th and the 21st
fobal nfcneh-i years of his reign. 1 We find from this book,
^ ehai *S ir2 ' that, in one beautiful place, he ordered an
inscription to be put up to commemorate his vibit of the place.
We read the following :
i.e., Order was issued that the date of the stay of the victorious
army may be inscribed on a stone tablet, so that the note of the
Auspicious event may remain commemorated on the page of time.
1 Ibid, p. 290.
2 The Iqbal nameh-1 Jehangiri of Mu'tamad Khan, published by the Asiatle
Society of Bengal (1865), edited by Mawiawia Abd Al Hall and Ahmad All under the
superintendence of Major W. X, Lees, pp. 127, 186 213, 220, 290.
THE MOGUL BMPEEOES AT KASHMIH. 27
In the account of the fourth visit the following matetrs are
moted as novelties or peculiarities :
1. A flower, not seen up to now, having three beautiful
'Colours. It was unmatched in colours and beauty vf^j-^j>)
(^jjJai ^ ^y^&j. The flower grew so large that it could
-not be contained in two hands. The people of Kashmir call it
^makarbush ( isjij*").
2. There were some orange trees, giving 1,000 oranges
each.
3. During the return journey, a lion was presented to his
Majesty which lived with a goat in the same cage. The animal
was so much domesticated in the company cf the goat, that
when the latter was removed, it roared and cried. The king
ordered another goat of the same size and colour to be put in
the cage. The lion then at first smelt the goat, and, not finding
it to be its own companion, killed it. When the same goat was
-restored to him in the cage, the lion embraced and kissed him.
I have given Jehangir's account of his visit to Kashmir on the
The Memoirs of authority of his Memoirs, known (a) as the
Jehangir transla- Tuzuk-i Jshangiri and (6) as Iqbal-nameh.
ted by Major But, there is another Persian text, styled
David Price. Tarikh-i Salim-Shahi by Major David Price,
who translated it in 1829. There was some controversy
*on this work, as to whether it was genuine or spurious, a
controversy in which the well-known orientalist Sylvester de
Sacy of Paris , also took some part . l Without entering much into
the controversy, I, having been to the country twice, and having
seen the force of the torrent of its river Jhelum, beg to doubt its
.genuineness, at least the genuineness, of some of its statements.
-No doubt, there is a good deal of exaggeration. For example,
the Memoir, which Major Price translated, speaks in very great
-exaggeration of the loss of life caused by the force of the torrent
of the river and of the rigour of the climate. Suhr&b Khan, the
son of Mirza Rustam Khan, was drowned while bathing in the
Driver, when Jehangir was on his way to Srinagar during his first
visit after his accession to the throne. The Emperor's account
in his Tuzuk is simple, and says nothing of any enormous loss of
dives of persons sent to recover the dead body. But look to the
following exaggerated account as given by the writer of Price's
work : " Without enlarging further on a subject .to me so
.painful, I sent nearly a thousand of the best swimmers into the
river in the hope of recovering the lifeless body of the young
Mirza, in order to give it the last mournful proofs of my affection :
1 Elliot II., pp. 252-257.
ASIATIC PAPERS.
but all search proved m vain. What became of his poor-
remains was never discovered. But this is not all that I have to
record of this fatal river. Impatient of restraint, the unreflecting
multitude plunged in heedless throngs into the stream, and
perished to the number of fifty thousand persons, not having the
common sense to wait until the waters should have subsided.
The cold on the banks of the river was, moreover, so severe, that
it was reported to me the next morning that nearly ten thousand
elephants, camels and horses, had perished during the night,
belonging to the imperial stables alone, independently of what
belonged to the army in general. Blessed be God, for the greatest
heat of the dry season, lor never in the very hottest temperature,
was there an instance of such extensive destruction at one time.
" The oldest and most experienced man present united in declar-
ing, that in all that they had seen at different times and in every
variety of season, it did not occur to them ever to have witnessed
such severity ol cold as that which this year had proved so des-
tructive on hill and plain, to so many animals of every description.
" At the foot of the mountains of Kashmir the snow fell without
intermission for seven days and seven nights, and fuel of any
description was not to be procured. The army was accompanied
by fakirs or religious mendicants, in extraordinary numbers, and,
as they must have perished if not preserved by some immediate
intervention, I ordered a lakh of camels belonging to the imperial
equipment to be employed forthwith in conveying such fuel as
could be procured at a distance, to camp, and these fakirs to be
supplied from the very first convoy, otherwise their destruction
would have been inevitable," 1 The writer seems to have had
no sense of proportion in the matter of his figures. Elliot gives
several instances 2 of exaggeration and the above is one mote ins*
tance. Again, from Bemier's account of his visit of Kashmir with
Aurangzebe, we find, that, looking to the difficulties of the
route and to the small capacity of the valley to supply provisions
for a large number, the Mogul Emperors took special care to
take ds small a number of army and followers as possible. 3
We learn from Jehangir's Memoirs, that he was fond of
Jehangir's fond- commemorating his visits to certain
of commemo- enchanting beautiful places in Kashmir by
by inscriptions. We notice two instances of tbi.
^^ ^ fiwt occurred Curing the return
journey via Rr Panj&l (1029 H., A.D. 1620, the 16th year of
.- - - _.-__.- - - ,.-
topperor Jehangfr, by Major David Price (1829), pp. 13*40.
pp. 257-200.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. 29
his reign). Jehangir went to see a beautiful waterfall and
& spring at Bahramgalla, which he calls " a sight to be
seen" and there " ordered that they should engrave on
a stone tablet the date of the crossing, and place it
on the top of the terrace." 1 We find the second instance,
as referred to above, in his Iqbal-nameh, 2 in its account
of his third visit to Kashmir in 1625. After having enetred into
the limits of Kashmir by the Punch (Punj) route, he came to a
place, where there was a very large waterfall, 50 cubits in
height and 4 in breadth. He sat for an hour before it, drank
wine, and, in the end, ordered that the date of his arrival
there may be inscribed on a tablet. Thus, in these instances,
we see the fondness of Jehangir to commemorate his visits
to picturesque and beautiful places in Kashmir like that
-at Virnag.
VII.
Shah Jehan is said to have visited Kashmir several times. We
Shah Jehan and find a detailed account of his first visit during
Kashmir. the 7th year of his reign (1043 Hijri A. u.
1633), in the Badshah Nameh by Abdul Hamid Lahoari. 3
Elliot, in his extracts from the Badshah Nameh 4 or Shah Jehan
Nameh of this author, only refers to this visit, but does not give
.any account of it. We read in the original, an account of the four
roads leading to Kashmir. Shah Jehan went by the Pir Panjal
Route (J^i^f *lj). intheKhurdad month. The country is
spoken of as nazhat-gah (3 1? c* r- >J)-i-Kashmir, i.e., the place of
pleasure of Kashmir. It is aloo spoken of as Kashmir-i-delpazir,
(jityt) i.e., heart-ravishing Kashmir. We read the following
about the beauty of Kashmir :
(5)
Translation. This paradise-like country is, on account of its
pleasantness and cleanliness, and sweetness of its water and air,
-and the excess of its herbs and trees, and abundance of fruit and
1 Tuzuk-i Jehaiitfiri by Roffers-Beveridge, Vol. II. p. 179.
2 Iqbal-nameh, Calcutta edition of the Bengal Asiatic Soi-fety, p. 242, 1, 16.
i TUhanttwoa Indira neries Badahah Namah bv '\Jt>d AJ-Hamid Ltihawri, edited by
tteMiiSto-ll ?Sb^-bh^ilS and Abd AflUhiW. Vol. I (1867) 2nd part,
p. 15.
4 Ellfot VII. p. 3. a Ji*d8bttJi Naah, Vol. J., Text. p. 21, 1. 13.
30 ASIATIC PAPERS.
fruits' produce, and pleasant gardens, and beautiful islands,,
fountains of wholesome water like that of the fountain of
Paradise and lakes like the river of Paradise, and joy-increasing
water-courses and enchanting mountain resorts, the best of the
beautiful places of the world.
We find from the B&dsh&h Nameh, that Kashmir was then,
as now, the place whence there was a route to Tibet. Sh&h
Jehan sent from there, Zafar Khan, the Subahdftr of Kashmir,,
for the conquest of Tibet. 1
Shah Jehan visited Kashmir for the second time in the 25th
year of his reign (A. D. 1650-51). He stayed at the fort of Hari
Parbat, built at the direction of his grandfather Akbar. He visited
the Mosque built by Mulla Shah Badakhshani at a cost of
Us. 40,000. " Towards the close of the spring, on account of the
heavy rain and tremendous floods, all the verdant islands in the
middle of the Dal, as well as the gardens along its borders, and
those in the suburbs of the city, were shorn of their grace and
loveliness. The waters of the Dal rose to such a height, that
they even poured into the garden below the balcony of public
audience, which became one sheet of water from the rush
of the foaming tide, and most of its trees were swamped.
Just about this time, too, a violent hurricane of wind arose,
which tore up many trees, principally poplars and planes,
by the roots, in all the gardens, and hurled down from on high
all the blooming foliage of Kashmir. A longer sojourn in
that region was consequently distasteful to the gracious mind ;
so notwithstanding that the sky was lowering, he quitted
Kashmir."*
Though the inscriptions at Virnag have nothing to do with Shah
Shah Jehfin's Jehan, some ruins at Virnag are associated
visit of Virnag. by the people there with the name of this*
monarch. Near the garden opposite to the
spring tank, on the left of the adjoining tonga road leading to
the spring, there are several ruins, which were shown to me, as-
those of the hot water and cold water baths of Shah Jeh%fc
A ruin is shown as that of the place where hot water was boi^U
We still see ruins of two pipes there. It seems, that a part of t\#r
water of the canal was carried from under the road to the baths. '
I am not in a position to say, how far what the people said
there was true, that the ruined baths were built by Shah Jehan.
But, it is certain that Shah Jehan also had paid visits to
Kashmir.
1 Ibid, p. 281. Vide also Elliot VII. p. 98.
2 Inayat Khan's Shah Jahan-Natoft. Elliot VII. pp. 97-8.
THE MOGUL EMPEEORS AT KASHMIR. 31
On proceeding from this site to the village, we pass over the
ruins of some old water works. A very large stone, about 10 ft. in.
length, forms, as it were, a bridge over a streamlet. This is
pointed out to us as that of the time of the Panda vas. Anything
unusual in size is often pointed out to us in many places in
India as connected with, or belonging to, the time of the
Panda vas. Here is an instance of this kind.
Shah Jehan's rule in Kashmir is commemorated by an In-
Sh&h-Jehfin's scription, bearing his name and giving his
Inscriptions on Farmdn on the Jami Mas j id of Kashmir. 1 '
Kashmir. i>h e Farmdn was given by Emperor Shah
Jehan on 7th of Isfandannuz (February) and inscribed in
Adar. The year is not given but it seems that it was
during his second visit of 1061 Hijri, A.D. 1650-51 that
the King's Farman was inscribed on the Juma Masjid. We
read : "On the 4th Rajab, His Majesty paid a visit to the
Mosque which had been erected in the most exquisite style
of art, for the asylum of learning, Mulla Shah Badakhshani." 2
The year 1061 Hijri began on 25th December 1650. So, the
Rajab, the 7th month of that year, fell in June of 1651. It
seems, therefore, that he may have issued the order before
coming to Kashmir in the preceding February (Asfandarmuz),
and the order was inscribed in March. On his arrival in.
Kashmir, perhaps, he went to see how his Farman was inscribed.
The Farmdn did justice to the following grievances of the
Kashmiris : (1) There should be no forced labour for the pur-
pose of collecting saffron. (2) A tax for wood used by the
people was charged by the Subadars, which charge was increased
by the government of Itiqad Khan. That charge of tax was^
abolished. (3) An impost on the growth of rice in villages
" whose rental was more than 400 Kharvar of rice/' was
abolished. (4) The poll-tax of 75 ddms on each boatman was
reduced to the previous tax of 60 ddms. (5) The Subadars
kept their own men in private fruit gardens to watch over the
best fruits, to have them. The result wa*, that the owners,
to avoid this, did not grow good fruits. So, this restriction from<
the Subadars was removed. 8
Another inscription on the same Jami Masjid refers to the
belief, that if a man did some good work, not only he, but his
father and forefathers got the advantage or benefit of the
1 Bev. LoeweDthal's article, entitled "Some Persian Inscriptions found in Srinagar
Kashmir." Journal, Bengal Asiatic Society, Vol. XXXIII, No. 3, pp. 287-88:
2 Shah Johan Kama, Elliot, VII., p. 97.
a Journal, Bengal Asiatic Society, XXXIII, No. 3, pp. 289-90.
32 ASIATIC PAPEES.
righteous act in the other world. We read at the end of this
inscription, which is dated 1056 Hijri. " Oh God, pardon its
'builder and his father, Oh Pardoner." 1
VIII.
Fran9ois Bernier (1620-1688), a French medical man, who*
d . ^ r travellin g in several parts of the East,
"*
the court oi King Aurangzeb in 1659,
describes at some length, in an interesting
, Aurangzeb 's visit to Kashmir in 1665. He had accompanied
the Emperor in this visit. The great Mogul was carried by
people in his Takht-i-ravan, i.e., a moving throne, guarded by
gourZ'barddrs, i.e., mace-bearers. The King marched with a
retinue. He had a number of the choicest elephants for his
baggage and also a few mules. Besides these, there were 6,000
porters or coolies to carry the baggage. In all, for the whole
royal party there were 30,000 porters. They were collected by
the Rajahs of the adjoining countries. Ihe royal party was
; accompanist! by a large number of traders who opened their
shops wherever the camps were pitched. Bernier was enamoured
of the beauty of the country. The praise of Kashmir has been
sung by many a traveller and many a poet. As said by Bernier,
. during Aurangzeb 's visit of Kashmir, there was k< an emulous
contest between the Kashmiri and the Mogul poets "
for " poems in praise of the favoured land." 2 I have
referred above to Bernier's own view about the beauty of
Kashmir.
I will here say a few words on the Banihal Pass, by which
The Banihal the Mogul Emperors, in some of their visits
Pass near Virn&g. crossed the Pir Panjal range of the moun-
tains surrounding Kashmir. If one wants to enter into Kashmir
'from Jamoo he has to cross this high Pass. It is referred to by
.Abul Fazl in his Ain-i-Akbari. It is in the vicinity of Virnag.
It was on 30th June 1915, that I had the pleasure of going to
the top of this Banihal Pass which serves as the route over the
Pir Panjal mountains. I had attempted this ascent during my
'first visit of Kashmir in May 1895 on foot, but had failed. We
.had to return all exhausted after climbing one-third the height.
1 Ibid, p. 2B6
2 Constable's Oriental Miscellany of Original and Selected Publications, Vol. J ,
Berniers's Travels (1656-1608) (1801), p. 401. Second edition revised by
Vincent A. Smith, 1014.
THE MOGUL EMPEKORS AT KASHMIR. 3$
This time we went on horseback. We started at about 6-45 a.m.,
and reached the top at about 10-20. The path is at places so nar-
row, that to give way to some of the Maharaja's troops coining
from Jamoo, we had to wait at one place for about half an hour.
The Pass is named Banihal, from a stream of that name running
at some distance from here. Jamoo is said to be 8 stages from
here. This Pass is always windy. Tradition says, that the-
mountain is named Pir Panjal from the fact of a Pir, i.e., a saint,
living here in former times. This Pir was much harassed by a
person living here ; and so, to punish him, he cursed him and
prayed for cold wind. The man was overtaken by the wind and
was killed. The wind has continued to blow here since that time.
Chi my visit, I was showed a very large slab of stone here.
It was about 8 feet long, 4 feet broad, and 3 to 4 feet thick.
The Pir said his prayers on this stone. Four small hollows on
the surface are pointed out to us as the place where he rested
his knees and placed his hands during the prayer-ritual. The
Pir had miraculously changed the direction of this big stone to
enable him to turn to the Kebleh towards the maghreb (west).
Before his advent here, and before the abovementioned event
of his curse to punish his tormentor, the Pass was free
om stormy winds. 1
Let us note what Bernier, who travelled in Kashmir in the
company of Aurangzeb, says of the Pir and his miraculous
pow3rs of producing the winds : " The third extraordinary ap-
pearance was an aged hermit, who had resided on the top of this
mountain ever since the time of Jehan-Guyre. Of his religion
everybody was ignorant ; but it was said that he wrought
miracles, caused strange thunders, and raised storms of wind,
hail, snow and rain. His white and uncombed beard was
extremely long and bushy. . . . The old man was also very angry
with those who made a noise. . . He informed me that noise
made there stirred up the most furious tempests imaginable.
.... Jehan-Guyre having upon one occasion derided his
counsel, and, notwithstanding his earnest remonstrance, having
i There is in Kashmir another big stone which is traditionally connected with
another Pir. It is near the Tulwan marg on Gulmarg. It is connected with the story of
one Baba Rlslii who had driven away a demon from Kashmir. The demon, in revenge
threw against Baba Bishi a big atone from the side of a distant mountain. He missed
his aim, and Baba Bishi, in thanksgiving got up over the stone and said his afternoon
nimaz or prayer over it. His foot made a mark over the stone. But, lest people may
make the stone a Ziarat-gah or a place of pilgrimage, he overturned the stone so that
people may not see his foot-mark. The Tulwan marg and the stone were visited by m&
on the 10th and llth of July 1015. I found the atone to be about 18 to 20 ft. long, 8
to 10 ft. broad, and 7 to 8 ft. high. We see the Ziarat-gah ol this Baba Bishi on our
way to Baramulla down the Gulmarg.
3
34 ASIATIC PAPERS.
ordered the cymbals to be beaten and the trumpets to be
sounded, narrowly escaped destruction." 1
It seems, that the Pir's apprehensions about any noise what-
ever being made there may be wrong, but, it is quite possible,
that loud noises like those of drums, &c., may very likely produce
a change in the equilibrium of the weather-conditions there.
The following note on the subject in Beniier's translation shows,
that large noises are likely to produce such changes in mountain
recesses. It says : " At the present day the bands of pilgrims
who visit the Holy Shrines, situated in the lofty mountains
of Kashmir refrain from chanting their hymns of praise when
in the vicinity of the banks of snow, as on several occasions
the effect of such reverberations of sound has been to dislodge
avalanches, which swept away to destruction many men and
women." 2
Abul Fazl, in his Ain-i-Akbari, 3 says as follows on the subject
of the wind on the Pir Panjal hills : " Jf on these hills an ox or a
horse be killed, storm clouds and wind arise with a fall of snow
and rain." Col. Jarret makes the following note on the subject,
in his translation : " The superstition regarding the tempest of
Wind and snow and rain, appears to be connected wi 4 h that of
the Yedeh (**J) or rain-stone frequently alluded to by Babcr,
the history of which is given by D'Herbclot. It is of Tartar
origin and the virtues of the stone are celebrated in Yarkand and
attested by authorities who have never witnessed them. It is
said to be found in the head of a horse or a eow, and if steeped in
the blood of an animal with certain ceremonies, a wind arises
followed by snow and rain."
While traversing the mountain Pass of Pir Panjal, three things
recalled Beniier's "old philosophical speculations." One was
the above one of the aged hermit and the tempests. The second
was the experience of the opposite seasons ol summer and win-
ter within the same hour : "In ascending we were exposed to
the intense heat of the sun, and perspired most profusely ; but
when we reached the summit, we found ourselves in the midst
of frozen snow." One of ten experiences some changes of tempe-
rature when he goes on the top of a hill, but here, on thi lofty
Pass, the change is very great. Though I had not the severe
experience of Bernier to be on the frozen snow, I experienced
an unusual sudden change within two or three minutes. I
1 Bernier's Travels (16561668) in Constable's Oriental Miscellany, Vol. I. (1891)
p. 410.
2 Ibid p. 410, n. 1.
3 Col. Jarrett'i Translation. Vol. II. p. 348.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. 35
cannot do better than quote, what I put down there and then in
my note-book, on arriving at the top of the Pass. I wrote :
...... vt
Mi
<k Thanks to God that He has brought me to-day with my two
relatives to the top of this Banihal Pass. Where I had failed 20
years ago, He has brought me to-day. . . . Though it is eleven
o'clock, there blows cold wind. I had to remove my coat while
climbing up. I have to put it on again. Very cold wind. The
(heat of the) sunshine not perceptible. The gardener down below
and a Mahomedan here say, that in winter, owing to the force of
the wind, at times men are thrown down and carried away into
the valley and killed."
Bernier gives an interesting account of the preparations and
Transport for transport for Aurangzeb's visit of Kashmir.
Aurangzeb's visit He says i 1 ** That a scarcity of provisions
to Kashmir. mav no t be produced in the small kingdom
of Kachemire, the King will bo followed by a very limited
number of individuals. Of females he takes only ladies of the
first rank, the intimate friends of Rauchenara-Begum, and those
women whose services cannot easily be dispensed with. The
Omrahs and miltary will also be as few as possible ; and those
Lords who have permission to attend the Monarch will be
accompanied by no more than twenty-five troopers out of every
hundred ; not, however, to the exclusion of the immediate
officers of their household. These regulations cannot be evaded,
an Omrah being stationed at the pass of the moutains, who
reckons every person one by one, and effectually prevents the
ingress of that multitude of Mansebdars and other cavaliers who
-are eager to inhale the pure and refreshing air of Kachemire, as
well as of all those petty tradesmen and inmates of the bazars,
whose only object is to gain a livelihood.
" The King has a few of the choicest elephants for his baggage
.and the women of the Seraglio. Though heavy and unwieldy,
these animals are yet very surefooted, feeling their way when
the road is difficult and dangerous, and assuring themselves of
1 Bender's Travels by A. Constable, 2nd edition, revised by Vincent A. Smith (1914)
7>. 391.
36 ASIATIC PAPERS.
the firm hold of one foot before they move another. The king,
has also a few mules ; but his camels, which would be more
useful, are all left behind, the mountains being too steep and
craggy for their long stiff legs. Porters supply the place of
camels ; and you may judge of the immense number that will be
employed if what they tell me be true, that the king alone has
no fewer than six thousand. I must myself have three,
although I left my large tent and a considerable quantity of
luggage at Lahor : every person did the same, not excepting the
Omrahs and the king himself ; and yet it is calculated that
there are at least fifteen thousand porters already collected in
Bember ; some sent by the Governor of Kachemire and by the
neighbouring Rajas, and others who are come voluntarily in
the expectation of earning a little money. A royal ordinance
fixes their pay at ten crowns for every hundred pounds
weight. It is computed that thirty thousand will be
employed ; an enormous number, when it is considered that
the king and Omrahs have been sending forward baggage,
and the trades people articles of every sort, for the last month."
IX.
Aurangzeb, who died in 1118 H. A. D. 1707, was succeeded by
The Mogul Em- the following kings, one after another :
perors after Au- 1. Shah Alum Badshah, known as Bahadur-
rang ! eb . . shah ' who died in 1123 m i Ti > A - D - 171L
2. Jahandar Shah, who ruled for 11 months only, and was then
killed by Muhammad Farrukh Siyar, the Jhahid (martyr). 3.
Sultan Muhammad Farrukh Siyar who came to throne in 1123.
Hijri A.p. 1711. He ruled for eight years and 4 months and
was then dethroned and put in prison, where he soon died. 4.
Abti-1 Barakat Rafi-'ud Darajat, who was declared Emperor in
1131 Hijri (18th February 1719) and who ruled for a few days. 5.
Rafi-'ud Daula entitled Shah Jehan II, who came to throne on 2(V
Rajab 1131, May 27, A.D. 1719, and reigned only for 3 months and
2 days. 6. Muhammad Shah Badshah, known as Roshan Akhtar,
who came to throne on 11 Zi-1 kada 1131 H., September 1719.
We know nothing interesting, in connection with Kashmir
in the short reigns of these Mogul Kings after Aurangzeb, until
we come to the reign of the last ruler in the above list. In
his reign, one Mahbub Khan, otherwise known as Abdu-n Nalur
Kashmiri, satisfied his enmity towards the Hindus of Kashmir,
by submitting them to many indignities. This was followed by
a heavy fight between two factions of the Mahomedans. These
disturbances caused a damage of lacs of rupees.
1 ttuntakhabu-l-Lulftb, Elliot -VII, pp. 387-485.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. 37
X.
The language of the Inscriptions generally, and the use of some
The influence f words especially, suggest the question of the
Tersia 1 through * n fl uence of Persia upon India. The Moguls
the Moguls upon have left a powerful mark on India in various
Kashmir in parti- lines, and in that mark, Old Persia, which
eneraf d * "* had influenced earl y Mahomedanism, has some
ne " indirect hand. 'In an interesting article,
entitled "India's debt to Persia," 1 Mr. H. Beveridge refers to
some sources for this influence. Speaking generally he says :
" But if Persian Muhammedans were influential in India, the
followers of the old Persian faith were also powerful agents in
civilizing the country. The Persian settlers in Gujrat the
forefathers of the modern Parsis did same service to India
as the Huguenots did to England. They introduced new
arts and sciences and enriched the blood of the Indian
nations. When we think of what the Parsees have done for
India, the Huguenots for England, and the Puritans for
America, we are almost inclined to think, that there is good in
religious persecutions, and that, like Kirigsley's ' Wild
North-Easter' they drive hearts of oak seaward round the world."
Now it is the language of Jehangir's Inscription, and especially
the use of some religious terms of " the Old Persian faith," referred
to by Mr. Beveridge, that suggest to us some stray thoughts of
this kind. Words like ' Haft-keshvar ' and ' Sarush ' used in
the inscriptions point to the influence of Zoroastrianism upon
Mahomedanism. The words have come down, as it were, in
their original form from the Avesta. The first part ' hafta ' in
1 haftkeshwar ' is Avesta ' hapta ' (seven). The second part
"* keshwar ' is Avesta ' karshvare ' (country). The word Sarush
{angel Gabriel) is Avesta Sraosha.
We find the word Sarush in another inscription of Kashmir. It
is that on " a postern gate" of the tomb of Kashmir's celebrated
kirtg Zain-ul Abadin, situated at a short distance from the Masjid
of Shah Hamdan. The inscription was put by Sultan Habib
in 981 Hijri, some time after the death of Zain-ul Abadin. The
couplet which speaks of Sarush runs thus : 2
iSjyi
i.e., At the time of laying the foundation, I heard from Sarush
the year of its date, " the second tomb of Sultan Habib" 981.
1 Spiegel Memorial Volume, edited by me, pp. 21-22.
2 AB friven by Kev. Loewenthal in hi* article, entitled " Some Persian Inscriptions
found In Srinagar. Kashmir" (Journal Bensal Aiiatic Society (1865) Vol.
XXXIII, No. 8, p. 282).
ASIATIC PAPERS.
In the case of Kashmir, Saiyad All of Hamadan (the ancient
Ecbatana), whose name is borne by a large Masjid of Srinagar,
had preceded the Moguls and had been the medium of the spread
of Persian influence. The saint's original name is Mir Sayid Ali
Hamadani. He died in 786 Hijri (A.D. 1384). This appears
from the following inscription in the mosque in Srinagar, known
as the Masjid of Shah Hamdana. *
r
13 j U \ | ^9 J
Translation." Date of his death.
" In the year 786 from the time of Ahmad, the seal of religion-
(that is) from the Hijri, there went from the transitory to the*
eternal world the prince of both worlds, the descendant of
Yasin (i.e., the descendants of the Prophet)."
In old Parsee books, for example, the Pahlavi Bundehesh,
Kashmir is spoken of as a part of India and the Sad-dar
speaks of Kashmir as being one of the several places where, in
olden times, Zoroastrianism prevailed. Even later Arab and
Mahomedan writers speak of Kashmir as being a part of Hind
or India. According to Magoudi, 2 Kashmir together with Bind
and Kanauj formed a part of India.
Up to a few years ago, Persian was the court language of the
Durbar of Kashmir. Even during my second visit of Kashmir,
I had occasion to talk in Persian with a large number of peoplo
there. Even the Hindu Pandits spoke Persian. At one time,
there were, as it were, two parties in Kashmir ; one was that of
the Persian-knowning Pandits and the other of Sanskrit-knowing
Pandits. The Mahomedan King Zain-ul Abadin, a very popular
and benevolent ruler, known, and still spoken of, as " The Pad-
shah," i.e., the king, greatly helped the study of Persian. It is
said, that at one time, the schism was so much, that the Persian-
speaking Pandits and the Sanskrit-speaking Pandits did not
inter-marry. Again, the Persian knowing Pandits could not
practise as gurus or professional Hindu priests. 3
1 I give the Inscription and translation as given by Bv. J. Loewenthal (Ibid
PP. 270-289). Eev. Loewenthal gives two more Inscriptions found on this
MuHjid.
2 Masoudi, Chap. VII., XVI. Elliot I., pp. 19-23.
8 Vide my paper on the Pandits of Kashmir, (Journal of the Anthropological Socittp-
of Bombay. Vol. X, No. 6, pp. 401-85. My " Anthropological papers " Part II),.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. 39
The Moguls brought their taste for gardening to Kashmir
The Persians and f m J Mr. Witt, in his " Retreat of
gardening. The The Ten Thousand," says : This charming
Mogul gardens of pursuit (of gardening) had been raised almost
Kashmir. to the rank of religious duty by Zoroaster,
the founder of the Persian religion, who had taught his disciples
that when occupied in the planting and tending of trees useful
to man, they were engaged in a good action well-pleasing to
God." 1
The principal Mogul gardens of Kashmir are the Nishat Bagh
and the Shalimar on the Dal lake, and the gardens at Achibal and
Virnag. Sir F. Younghusband, while speaking of the Shalimar
garden, says : IS The Moguls certainly understood such matters.
They were quite right in selecting trees of formal growth and
planting them on geometrical lines, the essence of a good garden
being that it should form a pleasing intermediate step between
the free treatment which Nature lavishes on hills and plains,
fields and forests, and that necessarily artificial object a building
made by the hand of man." 2
XI.
II. THE TEXT AND THE TRANSLATION OF JEHANGIR'S INSCRIP-
TIONS AT VIRNAG.
There are two Inscriptions at Virnag. Both are on the walls
surrounding the octagonal tank, (a) One is on the wall opposite
to the entrance. (6) The other is on a side wall. I will first give
the text of the Inscriptions.
(a) Text of Jehangir's Inscription on the wall of the octagonal
tank, opposite to the entrance.
t tsM eU-c Jf AJ-CJ ^t Jjl* c*'-'
1 "The Retreat of the Ten Thousand " by Prof. C. Witt, translated from tfie Ocnuun
by Francis Younghusband (1891) p. 17.
2 " Kashmir " by F. Younghusband, p. 81,
3 Nuru-ud-din. This was also a title of Jehangir and formed part of his name.
40 ASIATIC PAPERS.
(6) Text of the Inscription on the wall on the right-hand side
of the octagonal tank.
I'M
(a) Translation of the first Inscription :
King Jehangir, the king of the seven regions, the justice-
spreading Emperor, father of victory, splendour of religion,
the son of the brave King Akbar, did the honour of coming to this
fountain-head of abundant mirror (-like water) in the 15th year
.after his accession to the throne. This building was completed
by His Majesty's order. This building raised its head toward
heaven (by the hand of) Jehangir Shah, (son of) Akbar Shah. The
source of Reason (i.e., angel Gabriel) obtained (i.e., decreed) its
date as qasr dbdd chcbshmeJi-i-V erndg , i.e., (May the palace of
the fountain of Vernag flourish). Hijri 1029. 1
(6) Translation of the second Inscription :
Thanks to God ! What a (beautiful) waterfall and running
; stream has Haidar prepared at the order of the King of the
World, 2 the king of the time ! This running stream has reminded
us of the stream of Paradise. Kashmir has obtained fame
from this stream. The invisible Sarush (angel Gabriel) men-
tioned the date of the canal to be : " Az cha&Kma (i) behesht
birun dmadfoh ast jui, " i.e., the stream has come out of the
spring of Paradise, 1036.
In the case of the first Inscription,the numerical computation
of the letters in the line iJ^ jj *+*<* a^T j*& must give us the
number 1029 as given in figures in the Inscription. To give
us that number, we have to take two alifs for the first letter
in the word ttf . The word /++ may be taken for p&+
and cJfcjj must be read as Virnag cJ l ^j which is the
1 I.e., A.D. 1619-20, the 15th year of Jehangir'g reign.
2 The word la Shah Jehan ( fcj^ *^ ). One may, at the ftrit sight,
take the Inscription to refer to the won and aucccssor of Jehangir, but the date 1086
clearly shows, that the word here IB a common noun and not a proper noun, and that It
refers to Jehangir (A.D. 1605-1626), and not to Shah Jehan (1626 -1659). I will speak
further on this subject later on.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. 41
iorm of the name we find in the Memoirs of Jehangir. With
this modification, the sentence, in order to give the numerical
value of 1029, must read as iSbjtj * [ J j<** The values
will be 100+90+200+1 + 1+2+1+4+3+30040+6+10+
200+50+1+20=1029.
In the case of the second Inscritpion, the date of the event, as
given in figures, is 1036 ; and so, it must tally with the chronogram
contained in the last line. This chronogram has given me a good
deal of trouble for numerical calculation. At first, it looks, so that,
the whole of the last line gives the chronogram, but it is not be-
cause it does not give the required number 1036. Here, it is not
a case of the addition of the numerical values of the letters, but
a case both of addition and subtraction. The date, viz., 1036, can
be arrived at by adding the numerical values of the letters of the
words c*fj ,*,* and subtracting from the result the value of the
letters of the word ^^ The words ***1 uxH " coming out "
i.e., " taking out " suggest subtraction. Thus, we come to the
following result :
5-
JL- 300
t .... 5
w ." .." '.'. '.'. '.'. '.'. 2
J,- 300
400
Total . . 1055
i ...... - :: I
.......
Total . . 19
Thus 1055 191036.
We find, that the first of the two inscriptions commemorates
two events, viz., (I) the visit of Jehangir to the Spring of Virnfcg
during the 15th year of his reign, which commenced on Friday
the 15th of the month of Rabi-us Slut, Hijri 1029, 10th March
1620 1 and (2) the fact that the building round the tank was
constructed at the orders of Jehangir and the inscription put up
^during the same year. _ _
1 The Memoira of Jahangir, by Rogers-Be veridge, II, p. 130.
42 ASIATIC PAPERS.
The second tablet on the right-hand side while entering^
takes a note of the fact, that the artificial canal, in which
the stream ran after leaving the above tank, was built in 1036
Hijri A.D. 1627 by one Haidar at the orders of the then King
of the World.
XII.
A FEW OBSERVATIONS ON THE INSCRIPTIONS.
I will now speak of several matters in connection with the
inscriptions of Jehangir at Virnag, which require to be looked
into. They are the following :
1. References to Jehangir 's visits of Virnag in the books of
history relating to his reign.
2. Who is the Haidar referred to in the second Inscription ?
3. Who is the king referred to in the Inscription as Shah
Jahan ?
We find from the books of history, that Jehangir had paid
1. Beferencesto several visits to Virnag. (a) As said above,
Jehangir's visits we learn from his Memoirs (Tuzuk) 1 that
to Vim&g. h e b ac i k een there twice during the life-time
of his father. These visits had impressed him with the beauty
of the spring, and so, he had ordered some structures there. He
says in his Tuzuk, " When I was a prince, I had given an order
that they should erect a building at this spring suitable to
the place. It was now (1029 H., A.D. 1620, the 15th year of the
reign) completed." 2 He then describes the tl reservoir of an
octagonal shape," round which " halls with domes had been
erected, and there was a garden in front of them." "Round
the reservoir there was a stone walk." 3 After his accession to
the throne he paid a third visit to Virnag and gave orders for some
extensive works. He says, " I ordered them to build the sides
of the spring round with stone, and they made a garden round it
with a canal, and built walls and houses about it, and made a place
such that travellers over the world can point out few like it." 4
Then Jehangir had a fourth visit of Virnag, during his fourth
visit of Kashmir, in the 19th year of his reign. It was on the first
of Shahrivar that he visited Virnag. We find no reference to
this visit in his Tuzuk. Elliot's quotations also do not refer to-
it. But we find a reference to it in his Iqbal-nameh. 5 We thus
1 Tuzuk-i Jahangiri, by Rogers-Beveridge, Vol. I., p. 92.
2 Ibid II, p. 173.
3 Ibid II, p. 173.
4 Ibid Vol. I, p. 92.
5 Bengal Asiatic Society's edition of 1918, p. 229.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR. 4$
find, that Johangir had, during his six visits of Kashmir,
paid four visits to Virnag. We find two references to his orders
for the construction of the walls, &c., round the spring, and of
the canal, referred to in our inscriptions.
The next question before us is, who is the Haidar referred to in
2. Who is the tne second inscription as the person, who at
Haidar referred to the orders of the King of the World (Shah-i
in the second in- Jehan), built the canal, &c. It seems that
scnption ? hig name wag Haidar Malik, and that he was
an officer who was entrusted to do some canal work. We read in
Jehangir's Memoirs, that in the 17th year of his reign (Hijri 1031),
beginning with March 10-12, 1622, Jehangir sent this officer to
Kashmir " to bring a canal from the valley of Lar to the Nur-
afza garden (at Hari Parbat), giving him Rs. 30,000 for the
materials and labour." 1 Haidar Malik was a native of Kashmir
itself. His village was Chardara (or Charvara or Chadura or
Isadur). 2 It appears that he was the author of a history of
Kashmir. His work is referred to in another history of Kashmir.
We have in the Moola Fcroze Library of Bombay a manuscript
named Tarikh-i Kashmir ( j**f J jl3 ) i. e., the History of
Kashmir. 3 The author is Muhammad Aatzim, son of Khayr
Alzeman Khan 4 (e; 1 ^ oK^i^ ^j f^*\ *+&<*). The third
part of this manuscript history treats of the ' ' Events of Kashmir
from the beginning of the conquest by the sovereigns of the
Chagatai dynasty of Taimur."
Therein, we find an account of Nurrudin Jehangir Badshah's
rule over Kashmir. In that account, there is a reference to
the history written by Haidar Malik *j &jb j* cU j***. ).6
( A~J jixo In the preface, the author of this Ms. history speaks
of this Haidar Malik Chadurah ( *jji^ ). This Chadurah is
the abovenamed village of Kashmir to which Haidar Malik
belonged. It is a town situated near Srinagar. The author
speaks of Haidar Malik as singing the praises of his own
forefathers and ancestors and of himself
1 Tuzuk-i Jehanglri by Rogers and Bevcridge II, p. 238.
2 Ibid, p. 154 and n.
3 It bears No. 105. It is the 22nd Ms., described under the heading IV of History,
Biography, <fec., (Vide p. 82 of the Library's printed catalogue by Prof. E.
Kehatsek.
4 JWcf, p 8, 1. 3. of the Mi. 5 Ibid, p. 205.
6 Ibid, p. 294, 1.9. 7 Ibid, p. 7, 1. 7.
** ASIATIC PAPERS.
We read the following in his History of Kashmir by Muham-
Haidar Malik mad Aatzim : "Jehangir ordered the. im-
MuhlnLiad Aa* Pavement and prosperity of the country
*im's History of anc * the reparation and the construction of
Kashmir, forts and buildings and royal gardens within
the fort and in the direction of the ponds, especially " Faiz-
bakhsh."*
The history names the following persons as the governors of
Kashmir during the reign of Jehangir : Nawab Kulich Khan,
Naw&b Haahim Khan, Nawab Safdar Khan, Nawab Ahmad
Beg Khan, Nawab Delawar Khan (Hijri 1027).
In the account of the governorship, a reference is made to
Kashmir's great calamities from storm and fire. In one of the
:great fires, from 10 to 12 thousand houses were burnt. The great
Juma Masjid built by Sikandar But-shekan, was also burnt in
this fire. Jehangir, during his visit of Kashmir, got this Masjd
repaired. Our author says, that Haidar Malik in his history says,
that the Sunnis accused his ancestors of bringing about the
destruction of the Masjid by fire. 2 So, the burden of repairing
the Masjid was thrown by the kirig upon Haidar's father, Malik
Mahmad Naji. The event is commemorated in the lines,
Translation. Malik Haidar, a chief of the country, in the time
of Jehangir, laid anew its foundation on the day of Id-i
qurbani.
Jehangir came to Kashmir for the first time in the year 1029
Hijri by way of Punj . At that time, he had ordered Ali Malik, the
brother of Haidar Malik, to clear the roads beforehand. In the
time of the governorship of Nawab Itaqad Khan (1032 Hijri),
Haidar Malik had a hand in the construction of the great Juma
Masjid in Punch. According to this book, Jehangir visited
Kashmir seven times, ( j k c*i f ) and during every visit
repaired and laid over gardens and buildings.
During the last visit, the king, at the request of Nur Jehan, ap-
pointed Haidar Malik, a permanent officer to remain in the
presence of the king and gave him the title of Bais-ul Mulk
Chagatai (yJK-f *fl+H u*fj v lJbu3L )- 3 In the beginning,
1 Translated from the Persian of the above MH. History of Kashmir, p, 291 ; 11.
2 IWd/p? 94!' 3 Ibid, p 298, 1. 6.
THE MOGUL BMPBBOBS AT KASHMIR. 45.
it was on the recommendation of Meher-ul-Nasa Begum,
that Haidar Malik was appointed a Zamindar of his
own country (of Chadrur near Srinagar). On coming to
Kashmir (Srinagar), he studied the art of repairing buildings
VS * XJ > C c* 5 ) a nd applied it to several buildings. This
history of Kashmir thus refers to Jehangir's work of improving
Kashmir.
^J >J t J
Translation. Nur-ud-din Jehangir Badshah Sultan bore the
name of Selim. After overcoming the enemies of the country,
he added splendour to the crown and throne. Jalal-ud-din
Mahmad Akbarshah lived for seventeen years after the conquest
of Kashmir and came to Kashmir three times. This' Jehangir
Shah honoured Kashmir with visits for the sake of a pleasant
ramble and hunt and for the work of protecting the subjects, of
increasing the prosperity of the country, and of placing in good
order and proper condition the royal forts, buildings and gardens.
He ordered to be put in good order the inside of the forts and
the surroundings of the lakes and especially that of the spring of
Fafo-bakhsh. He beautified water courses. He (thus) benefited
and profited the people very much. In the year one thousand
and fifteen (1015) which was the second year after the
accession to the throne, the governorship of Kashmir passed to
Nawab Kulich Khan.
Haidar's father Hasan Malik bin Malik Muhammad Naji
Charvarah was of a noble Kashmir family. Malik's history is
said to have been abridged from Kalhana's Rajatarangini. He
commenced his work in the 12th year of Jehangir's reign 1 (A.D.
1697). It seems, that, as he had done a similar work about five
years ago, (Hijri 1031 A. D. 1622) in the royal palace at Hari
Parbat near Srinagar, he was also entrusted with the work at
Vjrnag. _____
1 Bernler's Travel*, in Constable's Oriental Miscellany, Vol. I, (1891), p. 393, n. 2.
46 ASIATIC PAPERS.
Nur Jehan, the queen of Jehangir, was, at first, the wife of Ali
Kuli Beg, who had received the title of Sher Afghan and who
was sent to Bengal. 1 When Sher Afghan was killed in Bengal,
his wife (Nur Jehan, who afterwards married Jehangir) was avod
by this Malik Haidar from the hands of those who killed her hus-
band. 2
The second Inscription sa} 7 s that Haidar did the Avork at the
order of Shall Jehan Padshah -i-Dahr
3. Who is the (^ Ualj ^l^U, ). One may, at the first
king referred to in . ht and thought, say that the Jang referred
cation? to was King Shah Jehan. In fact, some-
body at the spring led me to understand
that the Inscription referred to Shah Jehan, and, that the
tablet was at one time on some part of the canal and was
latterly brought and put up there on the spring. But an examina-
tion of the date shows, that the word Shah Jehan on th tablet
is used as a common noun, in the sense of "the King of the
World," and not as a proper noun for King Shah Jehan. The
date of the Inscription is 1030 Hijri. Jehangir died on " the
28th Safar, 1037 A. H. in the 22nd year of his reign/' 3 Sc it
was he, who is referred to as the Shah-i- Jehan, ?.e., the Kins, of
the World, and as the Padshah-i-Dahr, i.e., the King of the
Time.
It seems, that the first Inscription, which bears ihe Hijri
The original date of 1029 (A.i>. 1620), was put up
place of the 2nd during Jehangir's 3rd visit of Kashmir,
tablet, which was the first after his accession to
the throne. Jehangir says : " On Friday the 27th of (Shah-
rivar) I went out to see Virnag, the source of the Bihat." 4
He had ordered some work to be done theie during the
time of his princehood. On accession to the throne, he had
repeated the orders perhaps with those for some further
extension. All that was done before, or during, the year. So,
the date of the inscription takes a note both of his first auspicious
visit as king to his favourite place, and of the completion of
all his orders.
The second Inscription takes a note of the subsequent rk of
the canal, which carried the water of the sp^ng f.om the
octagonal reservoir to the garden opposite, and from there
further on. What I heard at the spring seems possible., viz., that
the tablet at first stood on some part of the canal further
1 Vide Elliot, VI, pp. 402-4 for an account.
2 Vide Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri by Rogers-Beverirtue II., p. 154, n. 2.
3 Ikbal-Nama-i JahanRiri, Elliot, VL P. 4*5 This Hijri date corresponds to 28th
October A.D. 1627.
4 1029 Hijri corresponding to about the 6th of September A.D. 1620, Tiunik. Rogere-
Beveridge II, p. 70. The month was Hhahrivar (Itrid, p. 168). Vide also
Wakiat-1-Jehangiri, Elliot VI, 373.
THE MOGUL EMPEBOBS AT KASHMIB. 47
><lown, but that that part having fallen into ruins, the tablet
\vas brought down to the tank and put up there on a part of
the wall, adjoining to that on which the tablet directly referring
to the tank was put up.
XIII.
III. AN INSCBIPTION ON A TOMB ON A HILL ON THE BANK
or THE DAL LAKE.
As a supplement to this paper, I propose giving here,
another inscription on a tomb on a hill on a bank of the
Dal lake. It is in no way connected with the Mogul Emperors,
but it is associated with one of the stories related about the
beauty of the Dal lake, which was further beautified by the
Mogul Emperor Jehangir by means of his beautiful gardens.
The story is as follows : There came to Kashmir, a young man
named Daud, a son of a very rich father, from India for
the purpose of trade. Instead of carrying on trade properly, he
wasted his father's money in the enjoyment of pleasure in the
beauties of the Dal lake. Abul Fazl says in his Ain-i-Akbari,
that Kashmir is " deservedly appropriate to be either the delight
of the worldling or the retired abode of the recluse." 1 This
young man turned out to be a worldling, lost completely in the
delights and pleasures of the Dal lake. Under the pretext of
wanting more money for trade, he sent for it from his father in
India and squandered all. It is said, that he was so enamoured
of the beauty and pleasures of the Dal, that he had enjoined
that, on his death, he may be buried somewhere on the lake itself.
During my first visit, I had heard the story, but could not
discover the tomb. I noted the story of this young man in my
lecture on Kashmir before the Gujerati Dnyan Prasarak Mandah*
as follows :
1 Ain-i Akbari, Jarrett'a Translation, II, p. 348.
2 Fftmy flw^ini Rift " UH \, Hl<ll
48 ASIATIC PAPERS.
During that visit, I could not see the tomb itself. I succeeded
to discover the tomb during the 2nd visit of 1915. It is situated
on the top of a lonely unfrequented hill, a spur of the Takht-i
Suliman, near a place known as Gangribal. Mr. Nowroji Pestonji
Unwala of Messrs. Pestonji & Co., of Srinagar, kindly guided me-
to Gangribal. He did not know where the tomb was situated.
At first, we could get no definite information about the where-
abouts of the tomb, though some persons said, that they knew
that there was a tomb somewhere on the adjoining hill. At length,
a person was found who pointed out to us from below, the place
on the top of the spur where I could find the tomb. Leaving my
friend below, I went up the hill, taking this person as my
guide and promising him a payment of 4 annas for his trouble.
It was on the evening of 19th June 1915. The weather was
cloudy and was becoming threatening. The guide took me
to the height of about 100 feet, and pointed out a place, as
the place where Daud was buried. There seemed to be a little
mound, like what we see on some unclaimed tombs in out-of-the-
way places. But it struck me, that that cannot be the tomb of a
man in a good state of life, whose story was traditionally known
on the Dal lake. His tomb must be at least one with some
pretension of brickwork. So, I refused to pay my guide,
saying that he did not show me the proper tomb. And that was
so. Finding that the weather was getting a little rough and rainj 7 ,
and with a view to be saved from being wet and from the trouble
of ascending still further, he tried to dupe me. But my stubborn
refusal compelled him to take me little further up, and to show
me the right tomb. I purposely speak of, and take a note of, this
fact, in order that those engaged in such pursuits may be
cautious, that there are many chances of not only being mis-
informed, but of being shown wrong places. Suppose, I had
believed this man, and then said before this Society or elsewhere,
that I had seen the place of the tomb of Daud, and that there
was no regularly built tomb and no inscription thereon, and
suppose some other student had followed me and had come across
the proper tomb. I would have then been put to the humiliation
of being accused of bragging and giving an incorrect report. To
ascertain facts, such guides, at times, require to be examined
and cross-examined. This Daud is popularly spoken of here as
Dalu Mian from the connection of his story with the Dal lake.
I beg to submit, for inspection, my note-book, to show a
rough outline of the tomb as drawn hastily by me. The toml>
seems to be one of the ordinary kind of a Mahomedan tomb. It
is on the edge of a spur very little frequented. As it had be-
gun to drizzle, and as the weather was getting upleasant and
threatening, I could not wait longer to make a better inspection
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR 49
of the tomb. I hastily copied in my note-book a few words that
were easily legible. These words were tdrikh ( *}*>* ) and Mirza
Daud ( *jt a Ij^* ). The decipherment of these words at least
gave me the satisfaction that there was some truth in the tradi-
tion heard by me on the Dal lake about one Daud Mian or Dalu
Mian. It gave me further satisfaction, that I had the good fortune
to discover, at last, the tomb of that man, whose story I had
heard during my first visit, about 20 years ago and had taken a*
note of, in one of my published lectures. As a matter of fact, it
turned out to be really a discovery, because the State Archaeolo-
gical Department, founded a few years ago, knew nothing of this
tomb. I wrote to Mr. Daya Ram Sohani, the Superintendent of
the Archaeological Department, to inquire if a copy of the Inscrip-
tion was taken by his Department. I was surprised to learn,
that not only was the Inscription not copied, but that his Depart-
ment knew nothing of the tomb itself. I requested him to
kindly get an impression taken and sent to me. I reminded him
of it again on my return to Bombay, and was glad to have it from
him, with his letter dated Srinagar, 16th August 1915. He writes :
" I am sending you herewith a copy of the Persian Inscription
noticed by you. In the first line, we have the date
I | ir A~ S*F-*> ^ 3 ^ r\ O & and the name of Mirza Daud.
In the second line we read / CA+A^ which have to be construed
with Mirza Daud. In the second half of the same line, we read of
the construction ( c^ UP \ apparently of the tomb in which the
epigraph is incised and which enshrines the remains of the Mirza
named in the 1st line."
I am greatly indebted to Mr. Sohani for the impression he has
kindly sent me. I produce it here, so that it may be given in
our Journal, and others may have an opportunity to correctly
decipher it. Until Mr. Sohani sent me a copy of the impression,
I did not know, that I had seen only half of the Inscription. I
went to the tomb from the front and saw the Inscription on
that front, and owing to haste, due to the weather, with which I
inspected the tomb and the Inscription, I had no idea, that half
of it continued on the other side. From the copy of the impres-
sion, which has been sent to me, and which I produce here for
reproduction in our Journal, I give below what little I can,
make out.
THE FIRST PART OF THE INSCRIPTION IN THE EASTERN
FRONT OF THE TOMB.
M ^k
Translation. On the 29th of the month of Zu-1-Hijjah year
1162 Mirza Daud Mogul, whose last breathings (hushdsh)*.
4
ASIATIC PAPERS
THE SECOND PABT OF THE INSCRIPTION ON THE BACK
OF THE TOMB.
Translation passed away from this world of destiny.
The Hijri year 1162 began on 22nd December 1748. 1 The
Hijri month is the last month of the Mahomedan year and the
29th day is the last day of that month. 2 So, the day is the
last day of the Hijri year 1162. The Hijri year 1163 commen-
ced on llth December 1749. 3 So, the day of the Inscription,
which is the last day of the preceding year, corresponds with
10th December 1749. Thus the tomb is about 177 years old.
i Woliaiton'B Persian Dictionary, p. 1489. * Ibid, p. 1401. 3 Ibid, p. 1489.
After the above paper was written and put into type, and
before it is printed off, I have had the pleasure of visiting
Kashmir for the third time. The tomb has been cleaned, and
so the inscription is much more legible than before. I inspected
it twice, onco alone on 14th June, and then on 26th June in the
-company of Moulvi Mahamad Shah kindly recommended to me
by Pandit Hiranand Shastri, M.A., the present Superintendent
of the Archaeological Department. The inscription so far as we
have been now able to decipher on the spot runs thus :
M kijUj (1)
...r.. : .. (2)
Translation. On the 21st of the month of Zai Hijri year
1162 Mirza Daud Beg Mogul ...... died (lit. went to the house
of Eternity.) Mirza ...... Beg erected (this) tomb. They
(i.e., the visitors) may remember him with (the recital of) a
Jatilui.
The last word in the first line after the word Mogul
and the first two letters of the second line seem to make up a
word which seems to be a proper name signifying perhaps the
country to which the deceased belonged.
The indistinct portion after the word Mirza is some proper
noun, giving the name of the person who built the tomb, per-
haps according to the last testamentary will of the deceased.
Moulvi Mahmad Shah thinks the words to be Akbar Kabar.
-So, the whole name may be Mirza Akbar Kabar Beg. The
tomb is just on the very edge of a spur and may perhaps go
'down the hill in a few years with a heavy downfall of rain. It
-can be protected in time at small expense.
House Boat, Pearl, No. 306,
SBINAQAR, KASHMIR,
29f& June, 1918.
THE MOGUL EMPERORS AT KASHMIR
50a
c
fc
*' The Story of the King and the Gardener"
Emperor in the Wakt&t-i Jehangiri of
Jehangir and its Parallels.
(Read 24th January 1918.)
In the Waki'at-i Jehangiri, in the account of the thirteenth
The Sto year of his reign, after describing the crossing
Ty ' of the river Mahi near Ahmedabad, Jehangir
rthus relates a story :
" On the way I passed through a field of Juwdr, in which every
'plant had no less than twelve bunches of corn, while in other
fields there is generally only one. It excited my astonishment
and recalled to my mind the tale of the King and the Gardener.
A King entered a garden during the heat of the day, and met
a gardener there. He inquired of him whether there were any
pomegranates and received a reply that there were. His Majesty
told him to bring a cupful of the juice of that fruit on which the
gardener told his daughter to execute that commission. She
was a handsome and accomplished girl. She brought the cupful
of that beverage, and covered it with a few leaves. The King
drank it, and asked the girl why she had put the leaves over it.
'The girl with much readiness replied, that she had done it to
prevent His Majesty drinking too fast, as drinking of liquids just
after a fatiguing journey was not good. The King fell in love
with her, and wished to take her into his palace. He asked the
gardener how much he derived each year from his garden. He
said 300 dinars. He then asked how much he paid to the
diwdn. He gave answer that he did not pay anything on
f ruit-trees,but whatever sum he derived from his agriculture, he
paid a tenth part to the State. His Majesty said within himself,
* There are numerous gardens and trees on my dominions ; and
if I fix a revenue of a tenth on them, I shall collect a great deal
of money.' He then desired the girl to bring another cup of the
'pomegranate juice. She was late in bringing it this time, and
it was not much she brought. His Majesty asked her the reason
of this deficiency, observing, that she brought it quickly the first
time and in great plenty, that now she had delayed long, and
brought but little. The daughter replied, * The first time one
tpomegranate sufficed. I have now squeezed several, and have
52 ASIATIC PAPEES
not been able to obtain so much juice.' The Sultan was asto-
nished, upon which her father replied that good produce is en-
tirely dependent on the good disposition of the Sovereign ; that
he believed that his guest was the King ; and that from the time
he inquired respecting the produce of the garden, his disposition
was altogether changed ; and that therefore the cup did not
come full of the j uice . The Sultan was impressed with his remark
and resolved upon relinquishing the tax. After a little time,
His Majesty desired the girl to bring a third cup of the same
beverage. This time the girl came sooner, and with a cup brim-
ful, which convinced the King that the surmise of the gardener
was sound. The Sultan commended the gardener's penetration,
and divulged to him his real rank, and the reflections which had
been passing in his mind. He then asked to be allowed to take
his daughter in marriage, in order that the memorial of this
interview and its circumstances might remain for the instruction
of the world. In short, the abundance of produce depends
entirely on the good will and justice of the Sovereign. Thanks
to the Almighty God, that no revenue on fruit-trees has been
taken during my reign ; and I gave orders that if any one were to
plant a garden in cultivated land, he was not to pay any revenue.
I pray that the Almighty may cause the mind of this hum bio
creature to entertain good pure intentions." 1
Now the question is : Who is the King of the
A Parallel from Emperor Jehangir does neither name the
the Shah-n&meh king, nor does he give the name of the
of Firdousi. country. I think, the King is the King
Behramgour of Persia. We find the following story about
him in the Shah-nameh of Firdousi : On a day in the
season of spring, when the ground was covered with vegeta-
tion and had become like the garden of paradise, King Beh-
ramgour went-a-hunting. He had a good hunt. On the third
day, he came across a large snake with two breasts like
that of a woman. The king killed it with an arrow, and
then, rending its breast with a dagger, found that the snake
had devoured a young man. A few drops from the poisonous
blood of the snake pained his eyes. He felt exhausted and his
pain increased. He arrived incognito before a poor house, the
land-lady of which, on his inquiring for help, welcomed him in
her house. She shouted to her husband and asked him to look
after the stranger. She showed herself to be more hospitable
Elliot's History of India, Vol. VI. pp. 864-85. We find this story in the TQzok-
i-Jahingiri with some difference here and there (The Tftzuk-i- Jahangid, by Rogers and
Beveridge. pp. 60-5-2.) For example, according to the latter, the girl said that ftte
eeeond time she squeezed 5 or 6 pomegranates, while the Wakfet said several.
THE STOBY OF THE KING AND THE GARDENER 53
~than her husband. Behram rested there for the night, and the
next day she produced before him all that she could afford in her
rustic house. Among the dainties, there was also a dish of
harisah ( *~s t ) l - The traveller (king) was much pleased
with her hospitality. Before retiring to bed, he asked the land-
lady to regale his sick and suffering mind with some refreshing
stories. If she liked, she may say something of the rule of the
then king. Thereupon, the land-lady complained of the officers
of the king who passed through the village one way or another
*on business. They accused some poor people of theft and ex-
torted money from the innocent. They accused respectable
women. These small extortions did not go to the treasury of the
king, but, anyhow, they were taken as coming from the King.
Behramgour, who was travelling incognito, was pained to learn
all this. He thought to himself : " Though I do my best to
rule well, my people do not distinguish between a good ruler
and a bad ruler, and, on account of the misdeeds of my officers,
accuse me of bad rule. In order to give my people an opportu-
nity to feel the troubles of a bad rule, I would really try to rule
badly for some time. The people then will be in a position to
compare good rule and bad rule." He entertained this evil
intention of being a bad ruler during the whole night which he
passed restlessly from his pain. The next moring, the
land-lady went to milch her cow, taking with her the usual
quantity of grain and hay for it. She remembered her God
as usual: and went to her work, but could get no milk from
the cow. She thereupon shouted to her husband and said :
"My husband ! The mind of the ruling king has become evil.
He has become oppressive. Since last time, (of milching), his
good faith has left him." The husband thereupon asked for
the reason to say so. She. replied : " When the king becomes
evil-minded, the milk gets dried in the breasts of the cows.
We have not decreased her food and drink. So, how is it that
her milk has gone off ?"
Behramgour heard this loud conversation between the wife
and the husband, and repented of his evil intention of being
really oppressive for some time. He said to himself : " I would
1 Mecan's Calcutta edition, Vol. in, p. 1514 1. 19. It is " a kind of thick pottage
made of bruised wheat boiled to a consistency, to which meat, butter, cinnamon, and
aromatic herbs are added." (Steingass). Haiteah still forms a special dish of sweets
among the Parsees, specially at the end of the Fayardegan or Muktid holidays. From
the accounts of the Parsee Punchayat of Bombay of 1832, we find, that the Trustees pro-
vided that sweet dish on the above occasion at the communal expense to all those who
asked tor tt. We find a sum of Rupees one hundred and one debited for it for several
years. It was prepared at the Manockii Seth's Wadi in the Fort, from where anybody
-who wanted it took a portion. (Vide the Bombay Samachar of 14th September 183U.)
54 ASIATIC PAPERS
rather like to be without a royal throne than that my heart
should turn away from justice." 1 A short time after, the
land-lady again tried to milk the cow. She began to get the
milk as usual. She thanked God, saying, "O God ! You hav&
made the unjust king just again.'* Thereafter, Behramgour
revealed himself before the peasant couple.
It seems that it is some version of this story of King Behram-
gour that Emperor Jehangir refers to, as the story of the King
and the Gardener.
I remember having heard, when a boy, another version of
this story. It is to the following effect : A
Another parallel, king, feeling exhausted in a hunt, went to
the hut of a gardener and asked for a drink
from his wife. She went with a cup and a thorn to her sugar-
cane field, and, pricking the thorn in a sugarcane, held the cup
before the hole made in it. The cup was soon filled with juice.
The king got refreshed with the cup and was surprised at the
amazing fertility of the soil of this part of his country. On his
way homeward, he thought, that the land-tax of that portion of
the country was not, looking to its fertility, what it ought to be.
He went home and ordered the tax to be increased. A few days
after, he again went to the same hut and asked for a drink. The
land lady went to her field and, pricking a sugar-cane with a thorn,
held a cup before it, but no juice came out of it. She at once
shouted ; " The good faith of the King has changed." It is said,
that the king, seeing with his own eyes what had happened^
repented of his conduct and ordered the reduction of the tax
again.
APPENDIX.
On the report of the Society's meeting with an outline of this
paper, appearing in the public papers, Miss Dinoo S. Bastawala,
a talented promising young lady, a grand-daughter of Sir
Dinsha Edalji Wacha, wrote to me on 27th January 1918 and
drew my attention to a version of the above story as given in
the Arabian Nights. I thank Miss Bastawala for kindly draw-
ing my attention to this version, which I give below, following
Sir Richard Burton's translation :*
2 Plain and Literal Translation of the Arabian Nights,bv Richard JT. Barton, Vol. V.
pp 87-38, S89th and 300th Xighta. '
THE STOKY OF THE KING AND THE GARDENER 55-
" KING KISRA ANUSHIRWAN AND THE
VILLAGE DAMSEL."
4 The just King Kisra Anushirwan one day rode forth to the
chase and, in pursuit of a deer, became separated from his suite.
Presently, he caught sight of a hamlet near hand and being sore
athirst, he made for it and presenting himself at the door of a
house that lay by the wayside, asked for a draught of water.
So a damsel came out and looked at him ; then, going back into
the house, pressed the juice from a single sugar-cane into a b&wl
and mixed it with water ; after which she strewed on the top
some scented stuff, as it were dust, and carried it to the King.
Thereupon he seeing in it what resembled dust, drank it, little
by little, till he came to the end ; when said he to her, ' O dam-
sel, the drink is good, and how sweet it had been but for this
dust in it, that troubleth it.' Answered she, ' guest, I put in
that powder for a purpose ; ' and he asked ' And why didst
thou thus ? ; ' so she replied, ' I saw thee exceeding thirsty
and feared that thou wouldest drain the whole at one draught
and that this would do thee mischief ; and but for this dust
that troubled the drink so hadst thou done.' The just King
wondered at her words, knowing that they came of her
wit and good sense, and said to her, ' From how many
sugar-canes didst thou express this draught ? ' One,'
answered she ; whereat Anushirwan marvelled and, calling
for the register of the village taxes, saw that its assessment
was but little and bethought him to increase it, on his
return to his palace, saying in himself, ' A village where they
get this much juice out of one sugar-cane, why is it so
lightly taxed ?' He then left the village and pursued his
chase ; and, as he came back at the end of the day, he passed
alone by the same door and called again for drink ; whereupon
the same damsel came out and, knowing him at a look, went in
to fetch him water. It was some time before she returned and
Anushirwan wondered thereat and said to her, ' Why hast thou
tarried V She answered, ' Because a single
sugar-cane gave not enough for thy need ; so I pressed three ;
but they yielded not so much as did one before.' Rejoined he,
What is the cause of that ? ' ; and she replied, ' The cause
of it is that when the Sultan's mind is changed against a folk,
their prosperity ceaseth and their goods waxeth less.' So
Anushirwan laughed and dismissed from his mind that which he
had purposed against the villagers. Moreover, he took the dam-
sel to wife then and there, being pleased with her much wit and
acuteness and the excellence of her speech."
-56 ASIATIC PAPERS
As to the name of the King Anushirwan, Burton says, that
" the beautiful name is Persian ' Anfishin-ravan' sweet of soul."
This derivation is not correct. The original name of the King
is Khusro, which has given us the Greek form Chosroe, Arabic
Kisra, modern Kaisar. In the Pahlavi Pazend books, he is
\Y
spoken of as Khusru-i-Kavatan * ]$?)) \
Khusru, the son of Kavad or Kobad. His epithet in Pah-
lavi was Anushe-roban 2 W>r ^W Av - Anaosha-urvan.
i- e-> ^e immortal-souled, glorious.
1 Zand-i Vohnman Yaaht (Dastur Kekobad'i Text) chap. I, u ; II 1:1.
2 ibid.
An Instance of Royal Swayamvara as Described
in the Shdh-Ndmeh of Firdousi.
(Read 2<tth January 1918).
The word Swayamvara ( ^r**r q^ ) in Sanskrit literally
'means ' self-choice ' from svayam ( ^"VT one's self (from
sva =* Av. hva = Lat. Se, suus) and var ^ ( Av. var ===== Lat.
velle) to choose. Then, it means the self -choice of a husband or
choice-marriage. Choice-marriage, though not common among
modern Hindus, is not rare. But, in ancient India, it seems to have
been somewhat rare in royal families. The word Swayamvara
specially came to be applied to choice-marriages by princesses
among the ancient royal families of India. An article, entitled
" Ancient Royal Hindu Marriage Customs," by Pandit Vishwa-
nath in the Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute of
'Great Britian and Ireland, 1 which has suggested to me the
subject of this short paper, says on this subject : " The mode of
winning a wife 2 at that time among Kshatriyas was that called
a swayamvara or self -choice. Kings and princes used to be invi-
ted by the bride's father to his capital, and they displayed their
skill at games and their prowess in arms and performed great
feats of strength. The bride witnessed them all and chose him
who pleased her most."
I give here,in brief, the two cases of Swayamvara given in the
paper, as there are here and there a few points which will bear
some comparison in the case I propose giving from the Shah-
nameh. The story of the first case of Swayamvara, mentioned in
the article, is that of Ganga, the great goddess of rivers who was
ordered to be born on earth to punish Mahabhisha, who, when
in heaven, did not respect her modesty, by bending his head
when others did so, on finding that her body was accidentally
exposed by a gust of wind blowing away her clothes. When
born on earth, Ganga sought marriage with the pious King Pratipa.
Pratipa refused, but promised to see that his son who was to
be born may marry her. A son was born to him and named
1 Vol. XLVII, January to June 1917, pp. 31*86*
2 Bather, winning a husband.
58 ASIATIC PAPERS
Shantanu (son of the peaceful). Pratipa relinquished his throne,
and gave it to his son Shantanu, and asked him to marry a celestial*
maiden (Ganga) to whom he had promised such a marriage. The
marriage came of itself without Sahntanu knowing that the lovely
maiden, whom he saw on the bank of the Ganges and after-
wards married, was herself Ganga whom his father had asked
him to marry. The principal condition of marriage provided
that Shantanu was to let the girl do whatever she liked and not
speak a word of protest. Eight sons were born, one after an-
other, but all, except the last one, were killed by the mother.
When the eighth was born, the father, in spite of his promise
not to protest against any of his wife's doings, remonstrated, and
the child was saved. Thereupon, the wife explained, that all the
eight children were the eight vasus, thieves in heaven, who had.
stolen the nandini cow of a rishi, and that they were therefore,
for divine punishment, made to be born on earth. When
punished, they apologized, and so, were permitted to return to
heaven, but the eighth, Dyan by name, being the greatest offend-
er, was not pardoned and was destined to remain on earth. All
that was destined to happen did happen. However, Ganga
brought up and trained the saved child as a good son, most
dutiful and affectionate to his father. One day, the father
Shantanu while going about on the banks of Yamuna (Jamna)
saw a lovely daughter of a fisherman and fell in love with her.
The father agreed to give him his daughter Satyavati in mar-
riage, provided, the king undertook, that the son that may be
born be appointed heir. Shantanu could not agree to let his
dutiful son Dyan to be superceded. Under the circumstances,
the marriage could not take place. Dyan, finding that hi
father had become morose and dejected, 'inquired from his
Minister, what the cause was. On learning it, he secretly went
to the fisherman and asked him to give his daughter in marriage
to his father, promising on his part, that he would let the male
progeny of his father's second marriage succeed to the throne.
The fisherman said, that he accepted the prince's word, but what
if the son or sons that may be born to the prince would not ac-
cept the arrangement ? The dutiful son, in order to remove even
that remote chance of a future objection, undertook never to
marry and remained celibate. The gods in heaven blessed this
dutiful son, who thence came to be blown as Bhishma, i.e., the
terrible, because of the terrible vow he took for the sake of his
father. The marriage took place. Two sons Chitrangad and
Vichitravirya were the fruits of the marriage. When Sh&ntanu
died, Chitrangad came to the throne. Being a minor at the
time, his elder step-brother Bhishma acted as his protector. Chit*
AN INSTANCE OF ROYAL SWAYAMVARA 5
rangad being killed in battle Vichitravirya came to the throne.
" The mode of winning a wife at that time amongst Kshatriyas
was that called a swayamvara or self -choice/ Kings and princes
used to be invited by the bride's father to his capital and they
displayed their skill at games and their prowess in arms and
performed great feats of strength. The bride witnessed them all,
and chose him who pleased her most."' Vichitravirya was too
young to take part in such a competition, but his mother being
eager to see him married, Bhishma took upon himself the task
of finding him a queen. At a swayamvara, he carried off by
force three daughters of the King of Kashi, challenging all
the assembled princes to wrest the girls from him if they could.
The oldest of the three princess having told Bhishma that
she had taken a vow to marry another prince, she was let go and
tj^B other two were married to Vichitravirya, who unfortunately
cBed some time after. He left no issue and this caused the
further grief of seeing the royal house heirless. To avoid this
calamity, their mother Satyavati requested Bhishma to marry
the widows of his step-brother, but he declined as he had,
under arrangement with Satyavati's fisherman-father, taken a
vow of celebacy. However, to avoid the disappointment of
seeing the royal line extinct, Bhishma advised Satyavati to
perform niyoga, which was a practice 1 resorted to in emer-
gency. The practice was, that when a person died heirless ,
somebody else, for whom the family had a regard or affection,
was asked to beget children to the widow. The children thus
born were not the children of the new or second husband but
of the deceased first husband. When so advised, Satyavati
remembered Krishna Dvapayana Vyasa, her son by her former
husband Parasha who was a great sage. When they parted, this
son had promised his mother to go to her help whenever she
wanted help. She had only to think of him and he would
appear. So, during this emergency Satyavati thought of her son
Vy&sa and he appeared. The mother asked him to beget
children to the widows of her deceased son Vichitravirya. He
1 The form of marriage, referred to in this Indian story as Chokravand, reminds
us of an old Iranian form of marriage known as Chakraian. The Indian form of
marriage, known as Chakravand, is one, in which, when a person dies heirless, somebody
else for whom the family had regard or affection was asked to beget children to the
widow of the deceased. When children were born of such an union, they were taken
to be the children of the deceased husband. Of the five kinds of wife in ancient Penia (
gome of which are referred to hi the Pahlavi books, and which are explained in some
detail in the Pcwian Rivftyete, one to known as the Chakraanj The wife to a widow
who marries again. If she has no children by her first husband, she marries a second
husband, stipulating that half her children by the second husband should be taton as
belonging to the first husband In the other world. She herself continues to
the first husband. Firfe 8. B. B. Vol. V., p. H2, n. 10.
00 ASIATIC PAFEES
consented. But as he was very ugly and was therefore called
Krishna, i.e., black, the widows did not like that he should
beget children ; but, on the request of their royal mother-in-
law and for the sake of saving the royal line from extinction,
they consented. They were excused the whole year's purificatory
penances, as their toleration of Vyasa's ugliness was in itself a
penance. 1 The elder widow, in order to avoid the sight of
the ugly man with whom she had to associate against her will,
shut her eyes for the time being. Vyasa predicted for her son
a blind son, who on being born was named Dhritarashtra. The
younger widow, on looking at the ugly associate, turned pale.
The son born to her was born pale and he was named Pandu,
the pale. The queen wished for a third son, perhaps because
one was blind and the other was pale. But the elder widowed
daughter-in-law, in order to avoid being with the ugly man, sent
one of her maids to Vyasa. This maid reverently submitted and
so a good saintly son was born to her and was named Vidura.
Bhishma looked after the education of these brothers who
turned out learned as well as sportsmenlike. Dharitarashtra,
being blind, the second son Pandu came to the throne. He
married two wives, Kunti and Madah, but, once, having shot a
stag when it was coupling with its mate, received a curse that if
he lived with his wives, he would soon die. So, he went into
retirement in a jungle followed by his wives even there. When
there for some time, he began to wish that he may have children.
His wife Kunti said, that she knew a mantra, by the recital of
which she could summon gods Dharma (god of justice), V&yu
(god of wind), and Indra, the king of all gods to come and live
with her. The result was the birth of three sons, Yudhishthra,
Bhima and Arjun. The second wife Madri also, by virtue of
the mantra taught to her by Kunti, summoned the twins Aswins
and the result was the birth of two sons, Nakula and Sahadewa.
Kunti had already a son Kama, born from the sun before her
marriage with Pandu. It was this son, who, as described in
Mahabharata, fought against the sons of Pandu. Pandu died as
the result of the abovementioned curse, having one day em-
braced his Madri. His wife also thereupon committed suttee.
The account of the second case of Swayamvara runs as fol-
lows : " King Drupada had heard much of Arjuna's skill as an
archer and wanted to give him his daughter Draupadi in mar-
riage. But he wished that she should be won in a swayamvara.
He made a great bow which he thought none but Arjuna could
bend, and placed on a lofty pole a revolving fish whose eye was
I Journal Eoyal Anthropological Institute, Vol. XLVII, January to June 1917.
AN INSTANCE OF ROYAL SWAYAMVARA 61 .
to be the mark. He who could hit was to marry his daughter.
A great crowd of kings assembled for the contest, but all
failed to bend the bow. Then Kama stepped forward and
strung it and took aim with an arrow. Just as the Pandava
brothers, who had so far not come forward and were disguised
as Brahmans, were giving way to despair, Draupadi spoke in
clear accents : " I will not take a low-born man for my hus-
band." At this, Kama put down the bow and went away, but
Arjuna came forward looking like a Brahman, lifted the bow,
drew it, and hit the mark. Flowers rained from heaven, and
Draupadi put a garland of sweet flowers round Arjuna' s neck
as a sign of her choice. The crowd of kings protested that a
Brahman must not carry off a Kshatriya girl and fought for
her possession, but the Pandvas defeated them all and carried
the bride home.
Now I come to the story of the Shah-nameh : The King
Gustasp of the Shah-nameh is the King Vishtasp of the
Avesta. He was the son of Lohrasp, the Aurvat-aspa of the
Avesta. He was the father of Aspandyar, the Spcnto-data of
the Avesta. In one point, we find a parallel between the story
of these three kings and that of the Mogul Emperors Jehangir,
Shah Jahan and Aurangzobe. Shah Jahan was an undutiful
son of Jehangir. In turn, he was ill-treated by his son Aurang-
zebe. Gushtasp also was an undutiful son, who wanted
the throne of Persia in the life-time of his father. In turn,
his son Aspandyar wanted his throne in his life-time. When
Kaikhusro, who, in the matter of his retirement from the
world, is compared to Yudhisthira, l abdicated the throne
of Persia and retired childless into a wilderness, he, setting
aside, as heirs to the throne, other descendants of his grand-
father Kai Kaus, appointed, as his heir, Lohrasp who was des-
cended from a brother of Kaus. Lohrasp was unknown to the
courtiers, but Kaikhusru thought highly of him as a good suc-
cessor. Lohrasp, on coming to the throne, repaid Kaikhusru 's
kindness towards him, by showing special favours to the other
heirs who were displaced. Thereupon, his son Gushtasp felt
offended. He did not like that his royal father should love his
distant nephews more than himself. Fearing, lest he may dis-
place him and appoint somebody else from the family of Kaus
as his heir, he began to quarrel with his father and asked for the
throne in his life-time. His wishes not being complied with, he
left the royal court to come to India, but he was pursued by hi?
uncle Zarir, persuaded and taken back. He again left the Court,
1 Fi<to Journal B. B. B. A. Soc. Vol. XVII, Abstract of Proceedings, pp- II.IV
Journal Atiatique (1887) Huittemme aerie, Tome X, pp. 38-75.
62 ASIATIC PAPERS
and, under an assumed name of Farrokhzad, went to the country
of Roum. There, when he sat one day homeless and friendless
bemoaning his fallen fortune, the headman of the village, being
struck with his manly and noble appearance, befriended him
and took him to his own place as his guest.
Now, the royal custom with the Kaisar, the ruler of that
land, for the marriage of his daughters was as follows :
The King called in his palace an assembly ( er*^l ) of young
men of position and wisdom, and the princess chose from
among them a young man for her husband. The then Kaisar
had three beautiful daughters, the eldest of whom was named
Kaitayun. He called an assembly of young men from whom
Kaitayun can choose her husband. The night before the day of
the assembly she dreamt as follows : " Her country was illumi-
nated by the sun. There assembled a gathering of young men,
so large, that 6ven the Pleiades would make way before it. In
that assembly there was a foreigner, who, though poor and dis-
tressed, was very wise. He was as straight and taU as a cypress
and as beautiful as the moon. His demeanour and manner of
sitting were such as befitted a king sitting on his throne. She
(Kaitayun) presented a nosegay of myrtle- coloured fragrant
flowers to him and received one from him."
The next morning, the princess went with her 60 court-ladies to
the assembly of the young men, convened by her father, to choose
a husband for herself. She held a nosegay of roses in her hand.
She moved about among the young men, but found none whom
she could like for marriage. She returned to her palace.
dejected and disappointed for not having found a husband to
her liking.
When the Kaisar learnt that his daughter found no young man
to her liking from among the young men of the first rank in
wealth and nobility, he called another assembly, to which he
invited young men of the second grade or the middle class. The
notice convening this second assembly was given in the city and
in the adjoining country. Thereupon, the host of Gushtasp
pressed him to go to that assembly with him. Gushtasp
accompanied him and sat in a corner, a little dejected. The
princess went in the assembly with her court-ladies and moved
about among the people, till, at length, she came near Gushtasp.
She saw him and said ' ' The secret of that dream is solved." She
then placed her crown on the head of Gushtasp and chose him
as her husband. The prime minister of the Kaisar, learning
this, hastened towards his royal master and said : "Kaitayun has
chosen from among the assembly a young man' who is as erect
AN INSTANCE OF BOYAL SWAYAMVABA 63
'as A cypress, and as handsome as a rose and has a commanding
stature ; whoever sees him admires him. One may say, that
the glory of God shines in his face. But we do not know who
4he is."
The Kaisar, finding that the young man was an unknown
foreigner, did not like the choice. His minister tried his best to
persuade him, that he could not now act against the usual royal
-custom of selection, but to no purpose. The king then handed
over Kaitayun to the young man without any dowry or gift
.and asked both to leave his court. Gushtasp, seeing what had
happened, tried on his part to dissuade the princess, saying he
was a poor man. Kaitayun thereupon said : " Do not be dis-
tressed with what our fate has destined. When I am contented
with thee, why do you ask me to choose, as husband, one with
the prospects of a crown or throne ? " The couple then left
the royal palace and Gushtasp's host kindly made proper
lodging arrangements for the couple at his house. Though
the king had given nothing as dowry or gift, the princess
had very rich jewellery on her body when she left her royal
father's palace. With that, she tried to set up her new house
and to live with her husband pretty comfortably. Gushtasp
often went a-hunting and presented the game he killed to his
friends.
After this event, the Kaisar did away with the above custom,
and for the marriage of his two other daughters he himself tried
to find out proper husbands. One Miran, a member of a high
family, asked for the hand of the Kaisar's second daughter. The
king said to the suitor, that he would accept his offer if he achiev-
ed a great deed. He asked him to prove his bravery and fitness
by killing a ferocious wolf in the adjoining village of F&skun.
Miran had not the required courage and strength to do so. So,
through the intercession of a mutual friend, he got the wolf
MQed by the brave foreigner, Gusht&sp. He then went before
the king, and, claiming the credit of killing the ferocious wolf,
asked the king's daughter in marriage. The king acting accord-
ing to his promise, brought about the marriage.
One Ahran also married the third daughter of the Kaisar,
similarly seeking the help of brave Gushtasp for killing a
ferocious snake which caused terror in the adjoining country.
The Kaisar occasionally held athletic sports in an open place
which were open to all sportsmen of his country. At the desire
of Kaitayun, Gushtasp attended one of these, and by displaying
his courage, strength and intelligence, drew the admiration of
-all. He also drew the admiration of the king himself, who was
64 ASIATIC PAPERS
then soon reconciled with his son-in-law. Gushtasp had stilt
continued to be known under the name of Farrokhzad, but
an embassy from Persia from the court of Lohrasp, who was
challenged to war by the Kaisar at the instigation of Farrokhzad
(Gushtasp), divulged the whole secret. The Kaisar became glad
when he knew all the facts, and was proud of his matrimonial
alliance with the royal family of Persia.
There seem to be several points of similarity as well as differ-
ence in the Swayamvara cases referred to in the Indian and
Persian stories. In the story of Gushtasp, we observe a new
trait, viz., that of the dream of Kaitayun. Again, the first
assemblies, or Anjumans are without athletic sports. It is later
on, that there is the assembly where atheltic sports take place
and where Gushtasp by his extraordinary sportsmanlike feats
wins the favour of his royal father-in-law. Again,' just as
Bhishma by his bravery won two daughters of the King of
Kashi for the two princes, so did Gushtasp win the two
daughters of the Kaisar for two princes. The garlanding of the
chosen husband by the princess is common to the Indian and
Persian cases. In both the stories, the question of the position
of the family of the bridegroom is attended to. In the Indian,
case, it is the bride herself who is solicitous about it.
ART. IV. Archery in Ancient Persia. A Few
Extraordinary Feats.
(Read 24th January 1918.)
The subject of this paper is suggested by an interesting article
on " Taxila as a Seat of Learning in the Pali
Introduction. Literature/' by Mr. Bimaha Charan Law in
the Journal and Proceedings of the Asiatic
Society of Bengal (New Series Vol. XII, 1916, No. 11). Taxala
was the place which " pupils from different parts of India used
to visit for learning various arts and sciences." Prom a para,
in the article, entitled " Archery," we learn, that archery also
was taught at Taxala. Some feats in archery are specially men-
tioned, e.g., (a) that of bringing down a mango from the top of a
tree, (b) piercing by one arrow four plantain plants kept on
four sides. These feats remind one of such feats of archery
among the ancient Persians, especially of the feats of King
Bahramgour. I will speak on my subject under two heads : I,
Archery among the ancient Persians as referred to in the
Avesta and eslewhere, and II, A few feats of Archery, referred
to by Firdousi and others.
Archery as referred to in the Avesta.
The ancient Iranians learned Archery from their very child-
Archery among nood - Herodotus says that " Beginning
the ancient Irani- from the age of five years to twenty, they
ana according to instruct their sons in three things only : to
Herodotus, ^^ to use the b ow an( j to spea fc the
truth." 1 Herodotus, in his account of Xerxes' expedition
against the Greeks, thus speaks of the dress and arms of the
ancient Persians : 2 " On their heads, they wore loose coverings,
called tiaras ; on the body, various coloured sleeved breast-
plates, with iron scales like those of fish ; and on their legs,
loose trousers ; and instead of shields, bucklers made of osiers ;
1. Herodotus Bk. I, 136, Carey's translation (1889) p. 61.
2. Ibid, Bk. VII, 61, p. 433.
ASIATIC PAPBB3
and, under them their quivers were hung. They had short
.spears, long bows and arrows made of cane and besides, daggers
suspended from the girdle on the right thigh."
Prof. Jackson thus speaks of the evidence presented by the
Archery is re- ancient monuments on the subject of bows,
presented on the arrows and quivers : " The large quiver is
ancient monu- prominent in the figures of the Dieulafoy
ments of Persia. archers and ^ ^ cage rf ^ sculpture8
on the Behistan rock. In both these instances the quiver is
suspended from the back ..... The quiver, merely as
arrow-holder, is alluded to in ^Eschylus Pers, 1001-3. . . .
The bow appears in most of the sculptures and monuments,
and is naturally mentioned as an important weapon in Iranian
as in other ancient writers. On the monuments the bow is
usually represented as strung and as suspended at the left
shoulder. . . . The arrows are naturally mentioned again
and again in connection with the bow. Herodotus says that
the Persian arrows were made of reed ; in the Iranian writings
there seems to be no mention of the material from which the
shaft is made, but the weighing and tipping of the arrow is
described. In the Avesta (Vd. XIV, 9), the number of darts
carried in the quiver is thirty/' 1
The Avesta 2 gives a list of twelve weapons used by the ancient
Archery as refer- Iranians. Therein we find "the fourth
red to in the Aves- a bow, the fifth a quiver with shoulder-
^" belt and thirty brass-headed arrows. " 8
' Falcon- winged arrows " (ishavascha erezifyo-parena) are men-
tioned in one place* in connection with the bow. In another
place* we read of " vulture-feathered, gold-notched, lead-
poised arrows." The Fravardin Yasht 8 speaks of the Frava-
shis as affording protection against " well-aimed arrows "
(ishush hvdthakhto).
The Avesta word for a bow is thanvare 7 or thanvara*
orthanvana 9 or thanvareti 10 ( Sanskrit ^5: , VJP*,
from the root tan ( Sans. iwr, P. euj* 3 fcwridan, Lat.
1 Prof. Jackson's article on " Herodotus VII, 61, or the Arms of the Ancient
Persians Illustrated from Iranian Sources," in the Volume of the Classical
Studies in honour of Henry Drisler, (1894 pp. 05-125), p. 100.
2 Vendidad XIV 9. 3 B. B. E. (1880) Vol. IV , p 169i
* Vend. XVII 9, 10 ; Ibid, p. 188.
5 Meher Yaaht (Yt. X), 129, Vide Prof. Jackson's above article, p. 105.
Yt. XIII, 72.
7 Vcndldad XVII, 0,10. 8 Vend. XIV, 9. 9 Meher Yasht (Yt. X, 39). 10, IMef 128.
ARCHERY IN ANCIENT PERSIA 67
Vr. e-fendre, Guj. wptf T&mran. to stretch. The bow-string
is jya, Sans. *RTT Pers. *j The material of the bow-string
was cow-gut (g&vafnahe sndvyajya). 1
For the arrow we find the following words in the Avesta :
(a) ainghimana* from the root ah or a9 ( Sans, wr ) to
throw.
(b) afti 3 from root a^ to throw.
(c) ishu 4 ( Sans. f*r ) from the root ish, Sans, f* to
throw.
(d) tigra* Pers. ^3) from foot tij Sans. <%sr to sharpen
(from which root 'tij,' come the English words,
stimulate, instigate).
As to the material of the arrows, we read of the arrows being
vulture-feathered, gold-pointed or yellow-pointed, horn-handled
and iron-bladed (kahrka^o-parenanam, zaranyo-zafram, ravS
fitayam, ayanghaena sparegha). 6
We learn from the Avesta and Pahlavi books, that the
Symbolic signi- weapons of war which an Iranian soldier
fication of a bow (rathaeshtar) carried, were metaphorically
and arrow^. or symbolically taken to be the weapons of
a priest ( A thra van) to fight against evil. In the Khorshed Yasht
(Yt.VI 5) one praises the vazra or gurz, i.e., the mace, for striking
it upon the heads of the Daevas or evil-doers. So, in the case
of the bow and arrow, they are taken to be symbolical for mental
perfection and the spirit of liberality. We read in the Mino-
kherad the following question and answer :
The question is " How is it possible to make Auharmazd, the
arch- angels, and the fragrant, well -pleasing heaven more fully for
oneself ? And how is it possible to make Aharman, the wicked,
and the demons confounded ? " In reply, it is said, that that
can be done " when they make the spirit of wisdom a pro-
tection for the back, and wear the spirit of contentment on the
body, like arms and armour and valour, and make the spirit
of truth a shield, the spirit of thankfulness a club, the spirit
of complete mindfulness a bow, and the spirit of liberality
an arrow . . ," 7
1 Ibid, 123
2 Yacna LVII, 28.
3 Meher Yasht. (Yt. X, 113).
4 Meher Yasht, (Yt. X 24).
5 Tir Yasht, (Yt. VIH) 6.
6 Meher Yasht, (Yt. X , 129).
7 Chap. XLIH. 1-12. West S.B.E., XXIV, pp. 83-84.
68 ASIATIC PAPERS
The fact, that the bow and arrow were held as symbols for
Symbolic signifi- some mental qualities or virtues, is illus-
cation of a bow trated by some semi-religious Achaemenian
and arrow upon sculptures. There, in the midst of some
Iranian Monu- re ligious associations, a king is represented
111611 8 ' as drawing his bow with all his possible
strength. That signifies, that one must do his level best in his
line of life and do good to others. Dr. Bartholomao has very
suggestively put this figure on some of his Iranian publications
with the words under it : " Wie du kannst so wolle " i.e.,
" Wish as thou canst. " The signification is : The more you
draw your bow with all your possible strength, the more
distant will the arrow go. So, put forth all possible energy in
your work and the result will be proportionately good.
II
Some Extraordinary Feats in Archery.
We will now describe some feats of archery, attributed to king
Bahramgour by Pirdousi and other Persian writers. Bahram-
gour was a typical Iranian, possessing masterly skill in archery.
The poet thus refers to him in the words of a translator.
" The Lion and the Lizard keep
The Courts where Jamsheyd gloried and drank deep ;
And Bahrain, that great Hunter the Wild Ass
Stamps o'er his head, but cannot break his sleep."
His name was Bahrain, but he was called Bahram Gour, be-
cause he was very fond of killing the gour, jj! i.e., the wild
ass in the hunt.
Sir John Malcolm, one of the distinguished past-Presidents of
our Society, and a Governor of our city, thus describes an
anecdote of one of Bahramgour's hunting feats in archery as
heard by him during one of his visits of Persia, at a known
hunting seat of Bahram.
" Baharam, proud of his excellence as an archer, wished to
display it before a favourite lady. He
Malcolm's story, carried her to the plain ; an antelope was soon
found, asleep. The monarch shot an arrow
with such precision as to graze its ear. The animal awoke, and
put his hind hoof to the ear, to strike off the fly by which he
conceived himself annoyed. Another arrow fixed his hoof to
his horn. Baharam turned to the lady, in expectation of her
praises : she cooly observed, Neeko kurden z pur kurden eat ;
" Practice makes perfect." Enraged at this uncourtly observa-
tion, the king ordered her to be sent into the mountains to perish.
ARCHERY IN ANCIENT PERSIA 69
Her life was saved by the mercy of a minister, who allowed her
to retire to a small village on the side of a hill. She lodged in an
upper room, to which she ascended by twenty steps. On her
arrival she bought a small calf, which she carried up and down
the stairs every day. This exercise was continued for four
years ; and the increase of her strength kept pace with the
increasing weight of the animal. Baharam, who had supposed
her dead, after a fatiguing chase stopped one evening at this
village, she was a young woman carrying a large cow up a
flight of twenty steps. He was astonished, and sent to inquire
how strength so extraordinary had been acquired by a person of
so delicate a form. The lady said she would communicate her
secret to none but Baharam ; and to him only on his condes-
cending to come alone to her house. The king instantly went ;
on his repeating his admiration of what he had seen, she bade
him not lavish praises where they were not due : ' Practice
makes perfect, ' said she, in her natural voice, and at the same
time lifted up her veil. Baharam recognised and embraced his
favourite. Pleased with the lesson she had given him, and
delighted with the love which had led her to pass four years in an
endeavour to regain his esteem, he ordered a palace to be built
on the spot, as a hunting-seat, and a memorial of this event." l
The story, as given by Firdousi, says, that the woman in the
Firdousi's ver- story was neither Bahrain's favourite wife nor
Bion of this story, his queen. She was a favourite flute-player.
The place of the story was Arabia and the
time his boyhood when he was under the tutelage of Naaman
( ^U*} ) at the Court of Manzar ( j&*> ). The story, as heard by
Malcolm, seems to be another version of it. Firdousi's story runs
as follows : 2 Baharam, who was a very clever hand in hunting,
went one day to the chase with Azdeh, a woman of Rouin, who
was his favourite flute-player. He came across two antelopes,
one male and the other female. Baharam asked Azdeh kt Which
of the two you wish me to aim at ?" She replied, " A brave man
never fights with antelopes, so you better turn with your arrows
the female into a male and the male into a female. Then, when
an antelope passes by your side, you aim at him an arrow, in
such a way, that it merely touches his ear without hurting it,
and that when he lays down his ear over the shoulder and raises
his foot to scratch it, you aim another arrow in such a way as to
pierce the head, the shoulder and the foot all at the same time."
Baharam had with him an arrow with two points. He aimed it
1 Malcolm's History of Penis, 2nd ed. (1839), Vol. I, p. 04, n. 1.
2 Vide my paper on*.* The Education among the Ancient Iranians," p. 14.
70 ASIATIC PAPBBS
at the male in such a way that it carried away his two horns
and gave him the appearance of a female. Then he threw two
arrows at the female antelope in such a clever way, that they
struck her head and struck themselves over it, so as to give her
the appearance of a male with two horns. Then he aimed his
arrow at another antelope, so as to merely touch his ears. The
animal raised his foot to scratch his ear, when Baharam aimed
at him another arrow, so cleverly, that he hit the head, the ear
and the foot all at the same time. The woman thereupon shed
tears from her eyes, saying, it was inhuman on the part of
Baharam to have so killed the poor animal. This enraged
Baharam, who had done all this at her bidding. He said : ' It
is all a deceit on your part. If I had failed in doing what you
ordered me to do, my family would have been put to shame.'
With these words he immediately killed her.
Madame Dieulafoy, in her " La Perse, La Chaldee et La Su-
MadameDieula- siane " <P- 357 ) g^ 68 a Panting illustrating
foy's painting. the above story. She found it decorating a
door-frame in a house which she occupied
in the valley of Eclid. Her painting entitled " Rencontre de
Baharam et de son ancienne favourite " gives us a picture of
the favourite woman in the story, carrying the calf on her back
over the steps.
Tabari l describes another archery-feat of Behramgour : " One
Another hunt- da Y Behramgour, when he was in Arabia in
ing feat of Beh- his boyhood with the Arab King Manzar,
raingour accord- went a -hunting. He saw a wild ass running,
ing to Tabari. ft was being overtaken by a lion. The lion
was on the point of devouring the ass. Behram then threw
an arrow with such dexterity that it passed through the lion
and the ass, and killed them both at the same time. Manzar
is said to have ordered this hunting scene to be painted on the
walls of the palace where Behramgour lived.
The Avesta speaks of a famous archer whose arrow went along
Ere k h s h a, a an enormous distance. He is referred to in
famous Iranian the Tir Yasht, the Yasht in honour of Tir or
archer. Tishtrya, the star Sirius, whose enormous
speed is compared to that of the arrow (tir) thrown by him on a
historical occasion. We read as follows :
Tishtrim st&rem raeventem kharenanghantem yazamaide* y6
avavat khshvaewd vazaiti avi zrayd vouru-kashem yatha tigrish
mainiva^ao yim anghat Erekhsho khshaviwi-ishush khshviwi-
ishvatemo Airyanam Airyd Khshaothat hacha gardit khanvan-
i Tabari par Zotenberg, Vol. II, pp. 11M2.
ABCHBBY IN ANCIENT PERSIA 71
tern avi gairim (Tir Yasht. Yt. VIII, 6. We read the same
passage again later on (s. 37) in the same yasht with the addition
of two words " &9U-khshavaewem khshviwi-vazem," i.e., " swift-
running and swift-going " as further adjectives for Tishtrya).
Translation. We invoke the brillant shining star Tishtrya
which moves as fast towards the Vourukasha (the Caspian) Sea,
as the mental arrow (i.e., the arrow whose speed cannot be
measured but only mentally conceived) which was of Erekhsha,
the swift Iranian, the swiftest (Iranian) archer among all
the Iranians (who threw it) from che Khshaotha mountain to the
Khan van t mountain.
The feat of archery by a great Iranian archer referred to here,
is that of throwing an arrow from one mountain to another
distant mountain. We are not in a position, on the authority
of A vesta or Pahlavi books, to identify the two mountains
Khshaotha and Khanvant and the distance between them. But
the Arab historian Tabari helps us in this matter, and throws
much light upon this passage of the Avesta, which otherwise
would have remained much obscure. We learn the following
details from this historian. 1
Minocheher, the Iranian king who was fighting in a war with
Afrasiab, the Turanian king, was besieged in the fort of Amoul
in the province of Tabaristan. 2 The siege lasted long, because
Minocheher and his army could get and grow in the fort, all the
atricles of food except pepper. The want of pepper which grew
in Hindustan was, on the advice of the sages of Minocheher,
met by the use of ginger and of a plant named term ( fjk )
which grew there. So, the siege lasted for ten years. According
to Tabari, Minocheher, the besieged sovereign, even sent a few
things as presents to Afrasiab. f He says : " Minocheher remained
in the castle, and was not once (during the ten years) obliged to
procure either clothing or food from any other place ; for he
possessed there such a superfluity of garments, carpets, herbs,
and vegetables of every kind that he occasionally sent some as
presents to Afrasiab ; thus saying ' how longsoever you may
continue before the gates of this city, I cannot suffer any
injury, defended by so strong a castle/ " 3 At the end of ten
years, Afrasiab raised the seige, because there was a great loss of
life in his troops, owing to sickness, resulting from the great
humidity of the air round the besieged mountain. Both the
1 I follow Tabari, traduit par Zotenborg, Vol. I pp. 278-80. Partie, I, Chap. 68.
9 The Pahlavi Bundeheah speaks of this fortress as situated oi> the mountain of*
Pftdashkhvargar. Chap. XXXI, 21-22. Vide my Bundehesh, pp. 170-72.
* Oualoy's Trave IiIII, p. 301.
72 ASIATIC PAPERS
kings then made peace on the condition, that their frontiers may
be fixed. It was arranged, that Minocheher may select the best
of his Iranian archers, and direct him to throw an arrow from a
peak of the Demavand. 1 The place, i.e., a line extending both
ways from the place where the arrow fell, may serve as the bound-
ary line for the country under dispute. Minocheher found one
Aresch to be the best archer in his country. He asked him
to throw an arrow with all his force. He did so, and the arrow
crossed the province of Tabaristan, Nishapour, Sarakhs, Merv,
and fell on the banks of the river Jehoun ( &j^*& ). It was
an extraordinary feat to throw an arrow hundreds of miles away.
Afrasiab had to stand true to the condition and to accept the
boundary thus fixed.
I give below the passage from a recent text of Tabari 3
which gives a simple narration of the story. His version saves
the story from any kind of improbability in the matter of an
enormous distance.
Translation. A horseman, who may be a good archer, may
throw a strong arrow from this side of the Jehoun, and that
place, where the arrow falls, may form the boundary of the
Iranians. Both the kings bound themselves in this agreement
and wrote a treaty. Then they chose Aresh. Aresh was a man
than whom there was no better archer. He went over a hill,
than which there was no higher mountain in that region. They
made a mark over the arrow and he (then) threw it ; and it fell
on the ground on the bank of the Jehoun (Oxus). It was a'
divine thing (i.e., a miracle) and Afrasiab became sorry, as he
had to give up the sovereignty of that much country to Mino-
cheher. 3
1 One muflt understand, that the names Elburz and Demavand were, at times, used
for a very long range of mountains in Persia.
2 Ousley also refers to the story from Tabari. Ousley's Travels in Persia, Vol. Ill,
PP. 800, 883.
a Munshi Naval Kishore's Text of 1874, p. 115, 1. 24 et 864.
ARCHERY IN ANCIENT PERSIA 73
Mirkhond also refers to this feat in his Rauz-at-us-Safa on the
authority of Tarikh Maogan. We read there as follow* :*
Translation. "It was stipulated, that Arish should ascend
Mound Damavend, and from thence discharge an arrow towards
the east ; and that the place in which the arrow fell should form
the boundary between the two kingdoms. Arish thereupon
ascended the mountain, and discharged towards the east an
arrow, the flight of which continued from the dawn of day until
noon, when it fell on the banks of the Jihun. As this incident,
though so remote from probability, has been invariably recorded
in the text of all historians, it is therefore mentioned
here."*
This extraordinary marvellous feat of archery has been at-
tempted to be explained in various ways. Ousley thus speaks
on the subject : "As that golden arrow, of such classical cele-
brity, which wafted Arbais through the air, has been the subject
of much learned conjectural explanation, so we find that some
have attributed the exploit of Aresh to magick, or to the assist-
ance of an angel ; whilst other ingenious commentators divest
the story of its most marvellous circumstances and suppose the
arrow to express figuratively, that the Persians invaded and by
their skill in archery, obtained possession of the enemy's country ;
that Aresh was the successful general ; that he determined the
boundaries ; and that by the magick characters inscribed on his
wonderful arrow, nothing more is understood than the written
orders which he dispatched with the utmost expedition to the
farthest borders of Persia. Others, however, are willing to
interpret the story more literally ; and on the authority of
different chronicles, Dowlet Shah informs us that the arrow was
so contrived as to contain a chymical (chemical) mixture of
quicksilver and other substances, which, when heated by the
sun, augmented the original force of projection in such a manner
that it reached to Marv." 3
1 Naval Ktehore'a Text of Mirkhond's Rauz-ut-ua-Safa, Vol. I, p. 166 1. 18.
2 History of the Early Kings of Persia, translated from the original Persian of Mir
khond, by David Shea (1832) p. 175.
Oufiley's Travels in Persia, Vol. Ill, pp. 333-34.
74 , ASIATIC PAPERS
Ousley speaks of " that golden arrow of such classical celebrity
which wafted Abaris through the air." We learn as follows-
of this Abaris : " Abaris, son of Southas, was a Hyperbolean
priest of Apollo and came from the country about the Caucasus*
to Greece, while his own country was visited by a plague. In
his travels through Greece, he carried with him an arrow as the
symbol of Apollo. . . . He is said to have ridden on his
arrow, the gift of Apollo, through the air. 1 " May I suggest,
that this classical Abaris is the same as Iranian Arish ? (a) The
similarity of name suggests this thought. (6) Again Abaria
(Axis) is said to have come to Greece from the country about the
Caucasus. Now, the Mount Damavend in the Iranian story is a
peak of the Elburz, which itself is a mountain in the range of
the Caucasus, (c) Dr. James MacDonald, in his article on Druid-
ism, 2 speaks of Abaris " the mysterious Hyperbolean philoso-
pher " as the friend of Pythagoras. According to him, Pytha-
goras was instructed by the Druids who are spoken of as " a
class of priests corresponding to the Magi or the wise men of the
ancient Persians." The learning of Pythagoras, is, by some,
connected with Persia and Persian sages. So, this also suggests
the connection of the classical Abaris with the Iranian Arish.
The improbability of the story seems to be fortunately well
explained to some extent by Tabari. He says : " Some persons
maintain, that this arrow, by virtue of the good fortune of Mino-
cheher, happened to strike a vulture in the air, and that this
bird fell and died on the banks of the Jehoun ; that they after-
wards found the arrow and carried it to Tabaristan. 3 " Another
way in which the improbability is sought to be explained is,
that, by mistake, one place is mistaken for another bearing the
same name. As we will see later on, the particular place
whence this arrow was thrown, was according to some writers,
Amel or Amoul. Now, there are two Amouls, one in the Trans-
oxania near the river Jehoun, another in the west. The arrow
was possibly thrown from the Transoxanian Amoul which was
latterly mistaken to be the western Amoul, thus creating a
cause for improbability.*
The Arish mentioned in the works of the above Arab oriental
writers is the Erekhsh of the Avesta. The Parsis observe a
festival called the Jashan-i-Tlrangan or Tirangan, on Tir the
thirteenth day of their month Tir. The word Tir, in the names
of the day, the month and the festival, means an arrow in
1 Dr. Smith's Classical Dictionary.
2 Encyclopedia Britannlca, Vol. VII, p. 478.
* I translate from the French translation of Zotenberg I., p. 280. Naval Kishore's
Text does not give this portion. 4 Vide Oualey's Travels, Vol. Ill, pp. 338-84.
ARCHERY IK ANCIENT PERSIA 75
Pahlavi, Pazend and Persian. The Farhang-i-Jehangiri, as
pointed out by Ousley, 1 says, that the festival was meant
to commemorate the above feat of the arrow by the Persian
archer. According the Albiruni, the festival was celebrated
for two reasons. One of these was for the celebration of the
above extraordinary feat. He says as follows :
" On the 13th, or Tir-R6z, there is a feast Tiragan, so called
on account of the identity of the name of the month and the day.
Of the two causes to which it is traced back, one is this, that
Afrasiab, after having subdued Eranshahr, and while besieging
Minocihr in Tabaristan, asked him some favour. Minocihr
complied with his wish, on the condition that he ( Afrasiab}
should restore to him a part of Eranshahr as long and as broad
as an arrow-shot. On that occasion there was a genius present
called Isfandarmadh ; he ordered to be brought a bow and an
arrow of such a size as he himself had indicated to the arrow-
maker, in conformity with that which is manifest in the A vesta.
Then he sent for Ajrish, a noble, pious, and wise man, and
ordered him to take the the bow and to shoot the arrow. Arish
stepped forward, took off his clothes, and said : " Bong, and
ye others, look at my body. I am free from any wound or disease.
I know that when I shoot with this bow and arrow I shall fall
to pieces, and my life will be gone, but I have determined to
sacrifice it for you.' Then he applied himself to the work, and
bent the bow with all the power God had given him ; then he
shot, and fell asunder into pieces. By order of God the wind
bore the arrow away from the mountain of Ruyan and brought
it to the utmost frontier of Khurasan between Farghana and
Tabaristan ; there it hit the trunk of a nut-tree that was so large
that there had never been a tree like it in the world. The dis-
tance between the place where the arrow was shot and that
where it fell was 1,000 Farsakh. Afrasiab and Minocihr made a
treaty on the basis of this shot that was shot on this day. In
consequence people made it a feast-day ". 2
In a Persian book giving an account of the ancient Iranian
feasts, 3 wherein this feast of Triangan is referred to, the feat
of the above archer is thus spoken of :
1 Vol. Ill, p. 333.
2 "The Chronology of Ancient Nations " of Albiruni translated by Dr. C. E. Sachau
(1879) p. 205.
3 Vide my lecture on "Zoroastrian Festivals," in my Gujerati "Lectures and
Sermons on Zoroastrian Subjects, " Part III, p. 133.
76 ASIATIC FAFEES
The above story, as given in this Persian book, runs as follows:
" This Jashan is called ' Tirgan-e-Mehin, 1 i.e., the great Tirgan
Jashan. This Jashan falls on the day Tir of the month Tir.
It was on this day that King Manucheher made peace with the
Turanian King Afrasiab, on condition, that Afrasiab should give
up to Manucheher so much of his dominions as would cover the
distance of a fast-flying arrow. Then ingenious persons made
an arrow with great contrivance and it was put into the bow
by Arish standing on a mountain near Tabristan and thrown
in the direction of the rising sun, the heat of which carried
the arrow to the boundary line of Takharestan. In the words
of a poet ' Arish is called Kaman-Gir, i. e., a reputed archer,
on this account, that he threw an arrow from Amel to Marv.*
They say, that on this day (i.e., the Tirgan Jashan), the
country covered by the flight of that arrow was given to
Manucheher, and the day was passed in revelry and rejoicing." 1
According to this version of the story, the ingenuity consisted
in the preparation of the arrow with such materials, as would
be chemically acted upon by the heat of the rising sun.
The Mujmul-al Tawarikh speaks of a Arish Shivatir CH^fjx* J^l )
Here Shivatir is the Persian form of Shepak-tir, which is the
Pahlavi rendering of the word Khshviwi-ishu in the above
Avesta passage of the Tir Yasht. 2
In the Shah-nameh of Firdousi, we often come across the
words Tir-i Areshi ( if*^ j ) i.e., the arrow of Aresh.
This shows, that the name of Arish (Av. Erekhsha) and his
arrow have become proverbial. Among several uses of this
kind, we have the following in the accounts of the battle which
Arjasp fought with Zarir. \jS <iri*U ** .'. (j***f ^~~r *&$ (jjjiy
cr^-H^-* *****' Here, Sam is referred to as the best mace-man
and Arish as the best archer. We find from Firdousi 3 that
Behram Chobin traced his descent from this great archer.
1 Spiegel Memorial Volume, edited by me, pp. 206-7. Paper on " A few Parses
festivals (Jashans) according to an old Parsee manuscript," by Ervad
Manekji.Bustamji Unvala.
2 Etudes Iranienncs, par Darmesteter, Tome, II, pp. 220-21.
8 Mohl, small edition, VII, pp. 26 and 30.
ART V. An unpublished Mogul Insc
the Margalla Pass near Rawal
(Read on the llth October 1918.)
On my return to Rawalpindi on my way back to Bombay from
Kashmir, during my second visit of the
Introduction. beautiful valley in 1915, I had paid a short
visit on 16th July 1915 to the excavations
of Taxala situated at about 20 miles from Rawalpindi. On
my way back from the excavations, I halted at the Margalla
Pass which is situated at about 15 miles from Rawalpindi,
to see there, the great monument in honour of General
John Nicholson (died 23rd September 1857, aged 34), erected
by his British and Indian friends to commemorate his services
in the " four great wars for the defence of British India "
and to commemorate " his civil rule in the Punjab " and " his
share in its conquest." 1 As I had then in mind the movement
of the erection at Sanjan, of a Memorial Column by my commu-
nity to commemorate the event of the landing in Gujarat of
our forefathers, the Iranian Pilgrim fathers, after the Arab
conquest of Persia, I had some special interest in examining
the structure of the monument. While going to the monument
from an old Mogul road on the right, I happened to see on my
right, a Persian tablet in a rock. I asked the keeper in charge
of the monument to produce a ladder, so that I could examine
and copy the inscription. I waited for some time, but, as he
could not turn up in time with the ladder and as I had to return
to Rawalpindi in time to prepare for, and catch, the one o'clock
train for Bombay, I had reluctantly to leave the place without
iVide Indian M oiiu mental Iincrlptionn, Vol. II; Part I. A Ltet of Inscriptions on
Christian tombs or .Monuments in the Punjab, N. W. F. Province, Kashmir and
Afghanistan, p. 128. (Serial No. 842).
78 ASIATIC PAPERS
satisfying my literary curiosity. On coming to Bombay, I
looked into the Rawalpindi Gazetteer, if I could find the inscrip-
tion therein. I did not find the inscription itself, but found a
reference to it, which runs as follows : " At M&rgalla there is
an old cutting through the hill crossing the Lahore and Pesha-
war Road. The roadway is paved with flags of stone, while a
stone slab inserted into the wall on the side contains an inscrip-
tion, which shows that the work was completed in 1083 A.H.,
corresponding with 1672 A.D., or about the time when
the Emperor Aurangzeb marched to Hassan Abdal and sent his
son Prince Sultan with an army against the Khattaks and other
trans-Indus tribes. The pavement was no doubt a remarkable
achievement in those days, but it has been completely cast into the
shade by the new cutting higher up to the east by our own en-
gineers, who have also constructed at the latter place a fine
column to the memory of the late General John Nicholson." 1
Then, on 29th September 1915, I wrote to the Commissioner
of the Rawalpindi Division, requesting him to be good enough
to refer me to any publication which gave the inscription, and,
if it was not published anywhere, to kindly send me a copy from
his records, if it was there. After some further correspondence,
the Commissioner, Lt.-Col. (now Sir) F. Popham Young, kindly
sent me, with his letter, dated 13th November 1915, a report,
dated 10th November, from the Tahsildar, Mr. Hari Singh. The
report was accompanied with the text, transliteration and
translation at the hands of the Tahsildar and was received
by the Commissioner through the Deputy Commissioner. I
beg to tender my best thanks to these officers for the trouble
they so kindly took in this matter.
The Deputy Commissioner, in his communication to his
Chief, dated llth November 1915, hoped " Mr. Jamsetjee will
now be satisfied." Unfortunately, or, as it has turned out
rather fortunately, I was not satisfied, because the Tahsildar
said thus in his report : " I have tried to decipher this in-
scription which has been dimmed by time. The inscription
is engraved in bold relief and the constant exposure to rain
and hail has washed away several letters and parts of words.
I have tried to make it out as far as possible but am doubtful
about the words marked X. The date given is 1080. It is
probably Hijri, and it would correspond with 1662 A.D. This
was the fifth year of Aurangzeb's reign, but I doubt very
much whether this inscription could be meant for an
Emperor. This appears to be meant for some Khan ; and it may
i Punjab District Gaztttetr, Vol. XXVIII-A, Rawalpindi Dirtrict (ICO 7), p. 85.
AN UNPUBLISHED MOGUL INSCRIPTION 79
be for Mahbat Khan, the famous Mogul general who was for
.some time Governor of Peshawar."
I visited Kashmir again for the third time this year, 1
and on my return to Rawalpindi from there, I took advantage
of my stay there for a day and saw the inscription again
leisurely on the 21st of July. I had the pleasure of the company
and the assistance of Munshi Mahmad Din, the teacher of
Persian in the Dennis High School at Rawalpindi, and so,
in the reading of the inscription, which I give below, I
acknowledge with thanks his help in settling the reading of
several words, here and there.
II
First of all, I give below a plan of the place at the Mar-
Plan and Tablet & a ^ a ^ ass where the tablet is situated. It
was kindly drawn, at the request of my
host, Mr. Nusserwanji J. Boga, by Mr. J. Vesugar, Assistant
Engineer, P.W.D., at Rawalpindi. I beg to thank Mr. Vesugar
for it. To do justice to the Tahsildar, and to do justice to my-
self, as well as to place before the students another reading of
a number of words here and there, I give, as an appendix, the
reading and translation of the Tahsildar, which, in some places
is evidently faulty. Of course, his reading was a hasty
decipherment in the midst of work in response to the desire of
his superiors ; so, his reading must be free from criticism. Had
he known that his decipherment was required for some literary
purpose, he would have perhaps been more cautious and careful.
I repeat here my thanks for what he has kindly done.
On my way homewards, and on my return to Bombay
after my second visit to Margalla, I wrote to the Archaeological
Department of the Government of India and requested it to
kindly send me an impression of the inscription. Dr. D. B.
Spooner, the then Officiating Director- General of Archaeo-
logy, kindly sent me, with his letter, dated 14th Sep-
tember, a copy of the inscription with its transliteration and
translation. These were, as said by him in his letter,
dated 14th October 1918, supplied to him by the Commis-
. sioner, Rawalpindi Division. I give these, as an appendix, at the
-end to help the student to make his own selection of the reading.
I have again asked for an impression which I have not received
1 From 27th nay to 21st July 1018, Including the days of arrival at, nd depar-
ture from, Rawalpindi.
80 ASIATIC PAPERS
as yet. It will be subsequently given, if received. I give
below, my reading of the text and translation :
& Text of the Tablet.
J
GOD, THE POWERFUL.
The Khan, (who possesses) a powerful claw and awe-
inspiring dignity, before whose claw the lion is powerless, built,
in the hill of Markaleh, which is linked 3 with the high heavens*
a building, which, out of respect, is always honoured by the
heavens. 6 The Mogul said : " ndsiya mehva&h-i-Hin&ustdn'.
(1:6., the moon-like face of Hindustan), 6 for the date of its year'
*c2& the supervision of Mirza Muhammad Mirani, the
superintendent of 7 , Ahmad the architect, 8 and
fogdlish and 9 . . . Sharf and Day aldas were . . . . la
Spared (i.e., finished) in the year 1083.
* fjJ ^*The line here has disappeared. It does not seem to be a running line, but a mere
heAjKfikg to the ett'ect that now follows the name of the architect, supervisor, builder,
e*& One or two words are legible, e,?.,j and (^
2 The reading is doubtful. The first part^H^ seems to be clear, Th p word
may be ^ [#* or (*)[&* Mirami or Miran or it may be kt^**
'-"> ' *p ^Tau'amftn twins, linked with.
. * Lit., which is a twin with the globe or dome of the high wheel, i.e., whjch is an
ttHA or as splendid as the Heavens.
A Lit. to which the sky gives a kins every moment out of respect for it.
o i.e., the building is a beautiful place of Hindustan.
- .? the word reads like dastan.
* Mi'mar, an architect, a builder, a mason.
~"<9 Not legible. It seems to be the first part of a name ending in Sharf.
10 The reading of the word is not clear, though the last part oz j^ is
dear. It seems to be a word signifying some petty officer under the architect or
supervisor. It seems that here three names are mentioned, riz., (1) Jogdash and ....
Shuf ai'd Dyaldas, as those of petty officera who served as overseen or as some
officers of that kind. I may add, that even the reading of the names is not certain.
AN UNPUBLISHED MOGUL INSCRIPTION 8f
III
There are several matters in the inscription which re-
quire to be looked into. They are
(1) The date of the inscription.
(2) The identification of the place referred to in it a*
Markaleh (^j u ).
(3) Who is the Khan referred to therein ?
(4) What is it that the inscription takes a note of ?
Of the figures at the end of the tablet, giving the
date, the last figure is not very clear. Elliot,
(1) The Date of in his extracts from the Wakiat-i-Jehan-
the Tablet. giri, wherein, in the account of Jehangir\s
march in this district, the hill of Margalla
is referred to, gives in a footnote, the date as A. H. 1084. l
The Rawalpindi Gazetter, in its short reference to the tablet,
gives the date as 1083. The Tahsildar gives it as 1080, as quoted
above. The Archaeological Department also gives it as 1080. I
think it is 1083. Both, the Tahsildar and the Archaeological
Department give the chronogram in the 9th line of the the
inscription as ^ij^ r <^j>i /^ (Nama-i-yurish-i-Hindustan).
The Tahsildar translates it as " of the invasion of Hindustan."
The Archaeological Department translates it as " a writing
on the conquest of India." This chronogram gives, as follows,
1188 as the date :
^= 50 + ' = 1 -f r = 40 + * = 5 + ^=:10+j = 6 + j =
200 + u* = 300 +* = 5 -f e> =50 + * = 4+j = 6 -f
^.=604- o = 400+ 1= 1 + e; = 50 = 1188
Thus, as the total conies to 1188, either their reading of
the figures of the date at the end of the tablet must be wrong,
or, the reading of the chronogram must be wrong. But both
seem to be wrong.
The date as given by the Rawalpindi Gazetteer is correct,
but the writer has not given us his reading of the chronogram.
My reading of the chronogram is ejl^J^r (J*J?* '** ^
"Nasiya mahwash-i- Hindustan," i.e., the moon-like face-
of Hindustan. The abjad calculation of this chronogram gives,
'*" 1 " The road has been Improved since this Emperor's time. There ia a sub -
stantlal stone pavement through the pass, which from a Persian inscription on
a rock appears to have been erected in A. it. 1084 by the strong-handed Khan Mahabat
fihikoh ff (Elliot's History of India, Vol. VI, p. 310, . 1).
6
82
ASIATIC PAPERS
as follows, 1083 as the date, which is the date I read at the
end of the inscription.
= 50+ 1 = 1+^= 90+ ^ =10+ * =5+ r =40+ * =5
6+ Ji =300,+ * =5+"u = 50+a=4+j =6+0- =
60 + o =.400 + I = 1 + e, = 50 = 1083
Thus, my reading of the chronogram supports my reading of
the date. Again, the chronogram , as read by me, gives some sense.
IV
The Markaleh ( *&/* ), referred to in our tablet,
is the modern Margalla Pass. It is the
(2) Markaleh of place, the country round which was, at
Marga^PaL* 110 one time ' oc ' cu P ied *>y the Ghakkari tribe,
who played an important part in the early
history of the Punjab. We read as follows in the Rauxilpindi
Gazetteer about Margalla : " The Margalla Range, which, so far
as it lies within the district, is a continuation of a spur running
through Hazara District about the junction of the Murree, Hari-
pur and Rawalpindi Tahsil boundaries, and runs in a south-
westerly direction across the north of the Rawalpindi Tahsil.
For most of its course through this tahsil it maintains a height
of over 5,200 feet, and derives from the steepness of its sides and
the suddenness with which it starts up from the level fertile
plain below, its somewhat impressive appearance. As it approach-
es the Attock border the range begins to sink down. About
15 miles north-west of Rawalpindi, it is crossed by the Margalla
Pass which carries the Grand Trunk Road and is also marked
by a conspicuous monument to General John Nicholson. "'-
In the Wdki'dt-i-Jehangiri, Margalla is thus referred to :
" The camp moved to Kala-pani, which means in Hindu ' black
water.' On this march there occurs a hill called Margalla. Mar,
in Hindi, signifies ' to rob on the highway' and galla, a caravan,
that is, * it is a place where caravans are plundered.' Up to this
-extends the country of the boundary of the Gakkhurs."*
V
As to the Khan referred to in the tablet, Elliot, in the foot-
note referred to above, takes him to be
(3) Who is the one Khan Mahabat Shikoh. It appears
JKhan referred? that the Khan is Mahabat Khan of the
time of Aurangzeb. The date of the
1 The Ghakkars are spoken of also as Gakhars, Gakkhurs, Gakkliars, Ghakars,
-Kokare and Khokhars.
2 Rawalpindi District Gazetteer. Part A, p. 3.
3 Elliot, Vol. VI, p. 310. Vide also "The Tuzak-i Jahangiri by Kogera and
2BeverIdge,Vol. I, p. 98.
AN UNPUBLISHED MOGtL INSCRIPTION 83
tablet is, as, we saw above, 1083. So, it belongs to the time of
Aurangzeb. Though Ms name is not mentioned directly as such
in the tablet, it is indirectly mentioned, as is, at times, the way
-of some Persian poets, inasmuch as he is spoken of as mahdbat
tshikuh, i.e., of awe-inspiring dignity. The writer has ingeniously
used the word mahdbat, both, directly, as a common noun
signifying his position, status or influence, and indirectly, as his
proper noun.
The following is an epitome of an account of
Mahabat Khan's life, as given in the J\Iad$ir-ul-U ward
of Nawab Samsamud-Daulah Shah Nawaz Khan. 1 His whole
name was Mahabat Khan Mirza Lohnisp. He was the
bravest of the sons of Mahabat Khan Kluin Khanan. As a
youth, in the reign o*f Shah Jahan, he accompanied his father
in the conquest of Daulatabad as a commander of 2,000 troops.
After the death of his father, he was appointed to various
places, among which one was the Foujduri of Oudh. He was
then appointed on a post in Kandhar. In the 24th year of
the reign of Shah Jahan, i.e., in 1052, he was made a Mir Bakhshi.
Up to the 25th year of the reign (1053), he was known as
Lohrasp Khan. In this year, after being honoured with the
title of Mahabat Khan, he was appointed viceroy (Subah) of
Kabul. In 1057, he was appointed governor of Deccan under
Aurangzeb. He took part in the war with Bijapur and in the
siege of Bidar. He had a great hand in the defeat of the Bija-
pur army under Afzul Khan. Soon after, he received a message
from Dfira Shakoh, the eldest prince, that he was wanted by
*Shah Jahan ; arid so, he went by quick marches to the Emperor's
Court. He was then (Hijri 1008, _\.v>. 1057-58) appointed
to the viceroy alty of Kabul. In the 5th year of Aurangzeb's
reign (1003-04), he returned to the royal eourt. He was then
appointed viceroy of Gujarat. In the llth year of Aurang-
zeb's reign (A.D. 1070), he was again appointed viceroy of
Kabul. In the J3th year of the reign (A.D. 1071-72), he re-
turned to the royal court at Akbarulmd. When Shivaji began
his depredations, including therein the plundering of Surat,
he was sent to the Deccan to punish him. He punished the
Mahratha chief. A short time after, the Afghans of the moun-
tains round Kabul rose in rebellion and Mali a mad Am in Khan,
Governor of Afghanistan, was defeated in the Khyber Pass;
Mahabat Khan, who had a previous experience of the moun-
taineers, was thereupon called from the Deccan, and in the
16th year of the reign (A.D. 1673), \\as sent to Kabul for the
1 Bengal Asiatic Society's Text, edited by Maulavi Mirza Aahraf Ali (1891). Vol. Ill
KP. 090-94.
34 ASIATIC PAPERS
settlement (band -o-bast) of the affairs of Kabul. Butj instead of"
fighting -with and molesting the Afghan army on his way to>
Kabul, he evidently avoided a fight and went to Kabul safely
by another route. Aurangzeb did not like this. So, in the-
17th year of the reign (A.D. 1674), he himself went to'
Hassan Abdal. Mahabkt Khan then attended the royal
court and was placed under the orders of Birsangh, the
grandson of Raja Bahavpat Das Kur.
The above is the outline of the life of Mahabat Khan
as given in the Maasir-ul-Umara. To properly under-
stand that life, especially to properly understand his connec-
tion with the Afghan frontiers, in a locality of which we find
his tablet, we will examine some further details. 1
In 1636, a treaty was made by Shah Jahan, the Moghul
Emperor at Delhi, with Adil Shah, the king of Bijapur, whereby
the latter was acknowledged as a friendly ally and his
sovereignty was left unimpaired to him. Several royal
customs were special to the Court of the Emperors of
Delhi. For example, (a) they alone could hold their courts,
in palaces or places outside the citadel. Other kings were to
hold their courts within their citadels. (6) They alone held
elephant-combats in the open ground outside the fort, the
other kings holding them within the fort, (c) The Emperors
only could confer the title of Khan-Khanan upon their pre-
vious ministers. The king of Bijapur latterly began to act
in opposition to these customs and acted as if he were an^
Emperor. So, Shah Jahan called upon him not to do so. Adil.
SMh first defied Shah Jahan, but soon yielded. The quarrel
was thus averted, but that only for a few years. It began
again in th reign of Adii Shah's successor, Ali Adil Shah II.
In the meantime, Shah Jahan's son Aurangzeb, had, by his
intrigues and bribes, won over some of the nobles of the Courts
of Bijapur. It was in the war declared in 1667, against
Bijapur, that we first find Mahabat Khan taking an active part
at the direction of prince Aurangzeb. At the head of an army
of 15,000 soldiers, this Moghul general ravaged a part of tlfe
Bijapur territory, and, later on, gained other victories over tjle
Bijapur armies. 2 We then find, that, soon after the above
victories, Mahabat Khan retired from Aurangzeb's army and
went away to Agra without giving any notice to Aurangzeb
1 Vide Elliot's " History of India " and Prof. Jadunath Sarkar'a "History of Aurang
*eb"i" in throe volumes.
2 Vide Prof. Jadunatb Sarkar'a "History of Aurangzeb," VoL I, chap, VL for farther
details of Mahabat Khan's part in the war with Bijapur.
AN UNPUBLISHED 'MOGUL INSCRIPTION 85
This, was in the 32nd year of Shah Jahan's reign (1068 Hijri,
1657-58 A.D.). 1 Shah Jahan fell ill on 6th September 1657, and
was, as it were, on death-bed for one week. Then began a war of
succession among his sons, Dara, Shuja, Aurangzeb and Murad
<even in his life- time. He had declared his wish that Dara,
the eldest son, should succeed him. The other sons jointly
and severally opposed that nomination. Aurangzeb marched,
against the capital, took it, and, in June 1658, made his father
a prisoner. Shah Jahan continued as prisoner for sevefi years till
the time of his death on 22nd January 1666. Aurangzeb was
declared Emperor in July 1658. His formal installation was in
IViay 1659. It was in the account of this captivity that we read
of Mahabat Khan again. He was then the governor of Kabul.
We thus read in the Muntakhabu-l-LuMb,: " Shah Jahan,
while in confinement, wrote secretly to Mahabat Khan
Governor of Kabul : ' Dara Shokoh is proceeding to Lahore.
There is no want of money in Lahore, there is abundance of
men and horses in Kabul, and no one equal to Mahabat
Khan in valour and generalship. The Khan ought, there-
fore, to hasten with his army to Lahore and having there
joined Dara Shukoh, they might march against the two
undutiful sons to inflict upon them the due reward of their
misconduct, and to release the Emperor, the Sahib Kiran-i-
iSani from prison.' " a
Aurangzeb had a long war with the Afghans. We
^tre now and then hearing of the question of "the Afghan Fron-
tiers," and of the raid of this tribe and that tribe, of the
Afghans. On the way to Afghanistan from India, there live
a number of clans which are Turco-Iranian clans, and are
known as Pathan or Baluchi, according as the clans belong to
the north or to the south of the region. These clans have their
own peculiar constitutions, the one principal feature of which,
is, that the chiefs rule over their followers as allowed by them.
So, the chiefs often change. There is no hereditary line of
-chiefs, which one may expect to rule long. So, no treaty
arrangement with them can be called a pucca arrangement on
which one can depend long. That is the present difficulty
of our British rulers and that was the difficulty of the
Moghal Emperors. Though these emperors had their rule in
Kabul itself, they had their difficulties with the Afghan tribes
living between Afghanistan proper or Kabul and India.
Akbar had such difficulties, and his famous courtier Raja
Birbal was defeated and killed by these Afghan tribes in
i KlliotVII,p. 130.
> Muntokbttbu-l-Lubab " of Muhammad Hoifliin Khafl *ban, Elliot, VH, p. 22*
86 ASIATIC PAPERS
1586. 1 Our present experiences were, to a great extent, the*
experiences of the Moghals. Tiny expeditions to punish
them, treaties to secure peace, pensions for keeping peace,
and guarding the roads, etc., are our present inheritances from
old times. All such things continued, even after Akbar, in
Jehangir's and Shah Jahan's times.
When we come to the time of Aurangzeb, we find the
mischief -growing. The Yusufzai tribe had the chief hand in
the mischief. In 1667, under one Bhagu, they rose, and cross-
ing the Indus above Attock, invaded the Mcghal territory.
A Moghal army of more than 25,000 men went against them;
and defeated them. Even after the defeat, stray depreda-
tions and fights continued, off and m, till 1672, A.D. The
Rajput feudatories of Aurangzeb fought bravely against the
Afghans during this war. Maharaja Jaswant Sin^h with
his Rathors had, at one time, held Jamrud, 2 which stands
on this side of the Khyber Pass. In 1672, the Afridis rose
against Auraugzeb and defeated Amin Muhammad Khan,
the Moghal Viceroy of Afghanistan. It is said, that
10,000 men of Aurangzeb 's Army were killed and two crores
of rupees in cash were lost. Besides these, 20,000 men
and women were captured and transported to Central Asia,
where they were sold as slaves. Aurangzeb's army met
with a catastrophe, greater than that of Birbal in the time
of Akbar. In this national rising of the Afghans, the Kha-
taks who lived in the Southern part of the Peshawar District,
and who were formeily conquered and won over by Aurangzeb,
also joined under their chief Khush-bal, who was a poet as
well as a brave chieftain and who, at one time, was im-
prisoned iu Delhi and Raitambhor. It was at this crisis,
that Mahabat Khan who had thrice before ruled over
Afghanistan as Governor from Aurangzeb and who was
then in the Dec can was appointed Viceroy of Afghanistan
for the fourth time. Mahabat Khan did not dare to fight
with the Afghan who had struck terror all round by their
above-mentioned great victory. Instead of proceeding to
Kabul, he wasted time at Peshawar, in trying to bring about
some settlement with the Afghans. Thereupon, Aurangzeb
1 Birbal, who advocated the vtews of Akbar, who admired the Iranian reverence
for. the Sun and Fire, met his death at the hands of the Afghans iu this rebellion which
was hailed with delight by bigoted Mahomedan writers like Badaonl, who called him*
M a hellish dog " ( ^^^ -& ) and bastard ( * a \) f [^ ) and who said,
that the death he met with hthis rebellion was a portion of his base deeds. Akba
was much affected by hia death (vide my " Parsia at the Court of Akbar.")
2 Afghan tradition connects this Jamrud with Shah Jamshed of the PeshdSdlar*
dynasty of v Pe'reia. Vide my paper on ' ' J/Etymolofrie populairc* des npma des gtapes-
entre Pichaver et Kabul " (Journal) Asiatiqe. Huti$me Serle, Tome XIV, (188ft>
page 527. Vide my Asiatic Papers, Part I, p. 261 et teq.
AN UNPUBLISHED &OGUL INSCRIPTION 87"
sent a special officer from his court to Peshawar to urge
Mahabat Khan to force his way to Kabul. Mahabat Khan
thereupon did proceed to Kabul, but not by the regular
route, fighting with the difficulties he may meet with,
at the hands of the Afghan enemies, but by another route,
the Karopa Pass, making his passage thereby easy by bribing
the Afghans. He thereupon incurred the displeasure of
Aurangzeb, who then appointed one Shujayet Khan, a man
who had risen from a lower status of life, to the command,
against the Afghans. But Shujayet Khan met with a great
disaster in the Karopa Pass at the hands of the Afghans
in 1674. Thereupon, Aurangzeb himself went to Hassan
Abdal, situated on the road from Rawalpindi to Peshawar,
and stayed there for nearly 18 months. He removed Mahabat
Khan from the Viceroyalty of Kabul, for having intentionally
abstained, out of jealousy, from giving help to Shujayet
Khan. The emperor's presence and diplomacy mastered
the situation. Some of the hostile Afghan tribes were
won over by money and others were defeated and overpowered.
Mahabat Khan is once referred to by Aurangzeb in
one of his letters 1 to Asad Khan, who bore the titles
of Umadat-ul-Mulk (the best of the kingdom) and Madur-ul-
Mahal (the support of State business), but nothing special is
mentioned about him.
I give below a list of the principal events referred to
above in connection with Mahabat Khan's
career :
A.D.
1636. Treaty of Shah Jahan with the King of Bijapur.
1652. Mahabat Khan appointed Mir Bakhshi.
1652. Appointed to the Viceroyalty of Kabul for the
first time.
1653. Got the title of Mahabat Khan, his original
name being Lohrasp Khan. His father, who -
died in 1634, also had the same title.
1656. War declared against Bijapur in which
Mahabat Khan takes an important part.
1657. Mahabat Khan leaves Prince Aurangzeb's
army at Bijapur and goes to Agra.
1657. Shah Jahan fell ill.
(1) The Ruka'at-i-Alamgiri or Letters of Aurangzebe by Jamshld H. Bilimoria
(1908) p. 142.
,88 ASIATIC PAPERS
1657. Mahabat Khan appointed Governor of Deccan.
1657. Appointed Governor of Kabul for the second
time.
1658. Shah Jahan imprisoned by his son Aurangzeb.
1658. Aurangzeb declared himself Emperoi.
1658. Dara Shuk6h gathers troops at Delhi and
marches towards Lahore (end of June,
beginning of July).
1658. Shah Jahan writing secretly from the prison
to Mahabat Khan, who was then the
Governor of Kabul, imploring him to go
with his army to Lahore and help Dara
Shuk6h.
1659. Aurangzeb formally installed as Emperor.
1663. Mahabat Khan appointed Viceroy of Gujarat.
1666. Death of Shah Jahan.
1667. The Yusufzai Afghans rose in rebellion under
Bhagu. They were defeated.
1670. Mahabat Khan appointed Viceroy of Kabul
for the third time.
1671. Mahabat Khan sent to the Deccan to suppress
Shivaji's power.
1672. The Afridi Afghans rose in rebellion.
1672-73. Mahabat Khan, who was at Deccan, was
appointed, for the fourth time, the
Governor of Afghanistan, and adked to
proceed to Kabul. He went to the fron-
tiers but hesitated to fight and reached
Kabul by another way.
1673. Mahabat Khan was superseded, as a general
against the Afghans, by Shujayet Khan.
Shujayet Khan met with a great defeat.
1674. 26th June. Aurangzeb himself went against
the Afghans and stayed at the frontiers
for 18 months, till he settled the Afghan
question, both by diplomacy and force.
Mahabat Khan died in this year, on his way
from Kabul to the Royal Court.
J675. Aurangzeb returns to Delhi at the end of
the year.
AN UNPUBLISHED MOGUL INSCRIPTION 89
(a) The tablet bears the Hijri date of 1083. The Hijri,
year 1083 began on 29th April 1672.1
Now ' we learn from the above ac^unt of
Mahabat Khan, that it was in this year
mined. (1083 Hijri, i.e., 1672-73 A.D.), that he was
appointed, for the fourth time, the viceroy
' of Afghanistan, and was asked to march against the Afghan
rebels. The Rawalpindi Gazetteer, as quoted above, attributes
the tablet to " the time when the Emperor Aurangzeb marched
to Hassan Abdal and sent his son prince Sultan with an army
against the Khattaks and other trans- Indus tribes " and at-
tributes the tablet to that event. But we find from the above
account, that th^ Gazetteer seems to be wrong. It was in 1674,
that Aurangzeb went to Hassan Abdal and not in 1672. So,
this tablet has nothing to do with Aurangzeb. It seems to
have been put up by Mahabat Khan in 1672, when he was in
the good grace of Aurangzeb, and when he was on his way to
Peshnwar to fight with the Afghans and to make his way to
Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, of which he was appointed
"the Governor.
(b) The Gazetteer also seems to be incorrect in the mention
of the name of the prince who accompanied Aurangzeb when
he went to the place to look personally after the affairs of the
Afghan war. Aurangzeb had five sons (1) Muhammad Sultan,
who had intrigued against his father in the war of succession
and joined the side of Shuja, but was admitted to favour in
1072. (2) Muhammad Muazzan (afterwards, Emperor Bahadur-
shah I), who was at first a great favourite of his father, but had
subsequently fallen into his displeasure in 1673 and was after-
wards restored to favour again in 1676. He was appointed, under
.the title of Shah Alam, commander in Afghanistan in that year,
fell in disfavour again, and was arrested in 1687. (3) Moham-
mad Azam. (4) Muhammad Akbar, who rebelled openly against
his father. (5) Muhammad Kam Bakhsh. When Aurangzeb went
personally to attend to the Afghan war, it was the fourth, out of
these five sons, prince Akbar, who accompanied him. He was
asked to march to Kabul vid Kohat under the guardianship of
Aghar Khan 2 , and Mah&bat Khan was removed from the vice-
royalty. When Aghar Khan won victories over the Afghans
on behalf of his royal master, it was prince Akbar who was asked
to co-operate and advance eastwards from Jalal&bad. 3 He could
1 Wolloaton's Persian Dictionary, p. 1489.
2 Aurangzeb by* Prof. Sarkar, Vol. Ill, p 270,
.3 Ibid p. 273.
90 ASIATIC PAPERS
not cany on well his part of the war work. Having settled the
affairs of the province of Kabul, he returned to Hassan Abdal.*
When Afghan affairs improved in the end of 1675, prince Akbar
seems to have returned to Delhi with his father. In October
1676, it was prince Muazzan, the second son, that was sent to
Afghanistan after being invested with the title of Shah Alam.
We thus see, that Prince Sultan, the first son of Aurangzeb,
had no hand in the Afghan war and had not accompanied his
father to the frontiers. So, the Gazetteer is incorrect in
mentioning the name of Prince Sultan in place of Prince Akbar*
VI.
Then, the next question is : What is it that the inscription
4. What is it takes a note of ? I think, that it takes a
that the Inscrip- note of the work of some adjoining build-
tion takes a note j n g j w hich no longer stands there now. The
Rawalpindi Gazetteer says, that it takes a
note of the completion of the pavement of the roadway,
which, it says, " was no doubt a remarkable achievement
in those days." As the Gazetteer has not given the whole
inscription, we are not in a position to know, how, its
writer, has come to this conclusion. Both, the Tahsildar and.
the copyist of the Archaeological Department have taken the
word u/-^ Khan in the fifth line of the inscription, to be the
honorific word Khan, meaning a chief, but I think it is a com-
mon noun signifying a house. The word khdn means " a house,
an inn, a caravanserai, a station, a market, or any meeting
place of merchants." 2
(a) If it is merely the construction of a roadway, pavement
or cutting that the tablet commemorates, however good an
achievement it may be in those days, it cannot be spoken of so
highly as it is in the tablet. The work referred to, is spoken of,
as being in or on the kotal, i.e., hill of Margalla. Again, it is-
spoken of as one, to which even the high heavens pay a homago.
So, even taking into consideration, the fact of exaggeration in
praise by Persian versifiers, we cannot take it, that a mere road-
way or pavement would be spoken of so highly and compared to
the high heavens. (6) Again, the roadway or pavement is not
very long or extensive. It is, I think, about 200 yards or -so.
So, a tablet with an inscription of the above kind for a road-
way of such a length would be something too much for a small
thing. The Moghal Emperors had built mausoleums like the
Taj Mahal, masjids like the several Juma masjids, and palatial.
1 Ibid, p. 274. 2 Steintfass.
AN UNPUBLISHED MOGUL INSCRIPTION
buildings like the Diwan-i-Khas, So, a small paved roadway
would be nothing before these great works and would not be
so highly praised and compared to the high heavens, (c)
Again, if the tablet was intended to commemorate the event
of cutting the hill and making a roadway through it, and if,
as such, it was the work of the Moghal Government, and not of
Mahabat Khan personally, the tablet should have mentioned
Aurangzeb's name and not simply Mahabat Khan's. This
circumstance also should lead us to think, that it is not merely
the Moghal cutting of paved roadway that it takes a note of.
In the plan which Mr. Vesugar, the Assistant Engineer,
P.W.D., has kindly prepared for me, and which is given above,
he describes the road as "an old stone set road made by Akbar
for his elephants to pass." While studying the subject on my
return to Bombay, these words struck me and I wrote on
24th September to Mr. Vesugar, inquiring, what was his
authority for the statement. He writes on 30th September
1918 in reply : " The information given by me to you re
the stone at Margalla is just from local traditions and I vouch
for its accuracy in no way." I think this tradition as heard
by Mr. Vesugar may be true. From a passage of the WaJcidt-i- 1
Jdkangiri given above, we learn, that, when Jahangir went to
Kabul in the second year of his reign (1015 Hijri, 1606 A.D.),
he passed across this Margalla hill. It seems, that there was
already a road there, and perhaps, as said by the tradition
heard there now, it was built by Akbar. One, who would see
this road paved with big rough stones, would not take long to
agree, that it was intended for elephants. To save the feet of
elephants from slipping while passing on the slopy road on
both sides of the pass, it seems to have been paved with big
stones.
The road may have been built by Akbar's officers at the
king's direction, as a necessary war-work during the time of the
rebellion of the Yusufzai Afghans, in the suppression of which, as
said above, Birbal, the great favourite courtier of the king,
was killed. Or, it is possible, that, the roadway may have been
built at Akbar's direction for his elephants to pass during his
visits of Kashmir by this route. Akbar took Kashmir in A.I>.
1586 and visited it three times. According to his Ain-i-Akbari,
Kashmir, Kandhar, Zabulistan, Swat and other adjoining places
belonged to the Subeh or viceroyalty of Kabul. In the divisions
made by Akbar of this part of the country, one was named
Akbarabad. The hill of Hassan Abdal in the neighbourhood, re-
ferred to in our above account of the Afghan war of Auraijigzeb
1 Vide alpo "The Juzuk-i Jahangeri" by Rogers and Beveridge, Vol., II, pp. 98-99
ASIATIC PAPERS
was a favourite place of Akbar. A place there is named '*Wah"
from the fact, that Akbar, once admiring its beauty, exclaimed
wah ( lj ), which is a Persian expression of admiration. The
place was a resting-place for Akbar and other Moghal Emperors
when they went to Kashmir. So, it seems, that possibly this
paved roadway was specially intended for Akbar's and his suc-
cessors' elephants. It is more likely that it is was built, not for
the temporary purposes of the Afghan war, but for a perma-
nent purpose, as a part of the trunk-road, passing over the
On various considerations, and after examining the place,
I think, that the tablet belongs to some other building or edi-
fice in that locaHty buttt by MahM>at Khan in 1672 A.D., and that
the building having fallen down, somebody later on it may be
one or two hundred years ago may have brought it here and
fixed it on the rock. We find some instances of this kind, where-
in, a tablet belonging to one place, has been, on that place falling
into ruins, removed and fixed in another place, (a) In my paper on
the Moghal Emperors at Kashmir before this Society, 1 I have
referred to a tablet of Shah Jahan removed from an adjoining
canal and fixed in the side of an octagon tank, the sidework
of which was done at the orders of the king. (6) I found another
instance of this kind during my third visit of Kashmir, this
summer, when I was studying and examining some of the in-
scriptions of Kashmir, referred to by Rev. J. Loewenthal in his
paper, entitled " Some Persian Inscriptions found in Srinagar,
Kashmir." 2 Rev. Loewenthal, speaking of the inscriptions
in the ruins of buildings known as the tomb of Zain-ul-Abadin,
gives an inscription over what he calls " a postern gate." When
I went to examine the inscription on 24th June 1918, I could
neither find " the postern gate " not the inscription given by
him. After some inquiry, to my great surprise, not unmixed
with sorrow, I found, that the stones bearing the inscription,
which Rev. Loewenthal saw in 1864 at their proper place,
were used with some other loose stones, to form the compound
wall of the back part of the yard containing Zain-ui-
Abadin's tomb. The inscription sides of the stones face the
public road of the adjoining bazar, and, I think, it will not be
long before the street boys deface the inscription, or some body
carries away the stones.
1 Vide Journal, Vol. XXV, No. I, pp. 20-73. Vifr above, p. 46.
2 Journal Bengal "Asiatic Society, Vol. XXXII No. 3 a864), pp. 278-2W;
AN UNPUBLISHED MOGUL INSCRIPTION 9$
APPENDIX.
THE TAHSILDAR'S READING, TRANSLITERATION AND
TRANSLATION.
II
12
Har-ul-Qadir.
1. Khan Kavi Chasham Mahabat Shakoh
2. Sher zi sar panja-i oo natiwan
3. Bar kastal 1 Markalla an ki-bud
4. Ba kurra i charakh barin tawanau
5. Sakht khan ra zi ru i sharaf
6. Bosa dihad charakh baroo Mehar i zaman
7. Biguzasht Mil dawami tarikh sal
8. Nama i l urash i Hindustan
9. Ba IhtamanTMirza Mohammad Miran Darogha Das-tan*
10. Ahmed mimar chaukidarsh* wald Sharaf
11. Wa Dialdass tajuba* saz dar 1080
12. Muratab shud ___
I These. words are very doubtful*
94 ASIATIC PAPEBS
(Translation.)
He who is omnipotent.
1. The khan with bold eyes and commanding appearance
2. Against whom even the lion is quite powerless
3: Who was in the pass of Margalla
4. By the help of the high heavens Powerful
5. Made the khan through its greatness
<K The heavens kiss the face of this the sun of the times
7. Left a permanent inscription of the date and the year
8. Of the invasion of India
9. Under the supervision of Mirza Mohammad Miran,
superintendent of passes
10. Ahmad Mason and chaukidar sou of Sharaf
11. And Dialdass sculptor in 1080 (Hijri.)
12. Was made
THE TEXT TRANSLITERATION AND TRANSLATION*
SUPPLIED BY THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL
DEPARTMENT.
2
3
4
3 o ^ 5
6
7
8
9
10
** V^^ 8 12
AN UNPUBLISHED MOGUL INSCRIPTION 95
HO WAL QADIR.
'Kh&n-i'-Qawf chashm mahabat shikoh
Sher ze sar-i-panjae o natawan
Dar katsal-i-Margalla an ke bftd
Ba kurrah-i-charkh-i-barin tawanan
Sakht Khan ra ze rue sharf
Posa dihad charkh-i-bar wo mehre zaman
Bar makmanat mail-i-dawami Tarikh sal
Nama-i-yurish-i-Hindostan
Ba ehtinam Mirza Muhammad Miran, Darogha-i-
dastan.
Ahmad mainiar, chowkidarash wald Sharf
Wa Dayal Das, tajuba saz, dar san 1080
Murattab shud.
ALMIGHTY.
The awe-inspiring redoubtable Khan
By whose invincible strength the lion is reduced to
helplessness.
Who in the fortress of Margalla
could cope with the untrained horse of the sky.
God created this Khan, at whose face the sky and the
sun of the
world imprint their kisses on account of his exaltedness.
In perpetuation of the date of the erection of this edifice,
of which eternity is enamoured, the following words have
been written.
' A writing on the conquest of India '
Under the management of Mirza Muhammad Miran, the
supervisor of stories
Ahmed architect, his aid-de-camp, son of Sharf
And Dayal Das sculptor,
Prepared in the year 1080.
TO ASIATIC PAPERS
POSTSCRIPT.
After reading the paper on 17th October 1918, I received a
letter dated 18th November 1918 (Saraikala, District Rawalpindi*
from Sir John Marshal, the Director-General of Archaeology
in India, in reply to mine of the 28th September, sending there-
with a rubbing of the inscription. Then, in continuation of
that letter, I received another letter, dated 14th January 1919*
(Camp Sanchi Bhilsa. Central India) from Dr. D. B. Spooner,
the Assistant Director-General, sending therewith the reading and
translation of the inscription by Mr. Ghulam Yazdani. I beg
to thank all these gentlemen. I give here a copy of the rubbing
as well as Mr. Yazdani's reading and translation:
Mr. Yazdani's reading differs a good deal from the previous
readings, supplied to me by the Commissioner of Rawalpindi
and the Archaeological Department, and agrees much with my
reading, especially in the first important part. But his reading
of the fifth line differs from mine. It is the second word that
makes all the difference. What the Tahsildar, the reader of
the copy supplied by the Archaeological Department, and I with
Munshi Mahmad Din, read from the tablet itself as Khan ra
(L> o 1 *'), Mr. Ghulam Yazdani reads, from the rubbing, as
,'Chflnan rah (tj v^*>). He puts(?) a mark of question in
his reading after these words. So, he himself is doubtful.
He reads the fifth line as <Jj& CS-J-H V ? ) * J J ^^ c ^ 1 **
and translates it very freely as " Cut a pass rising so high."
There is no word for " cut " in the text. The word is
sakht (OA.U) i.e., made. But the fact of the tablet being
found on a road which is a " cutting " seems to have sug-
gested to him the sense of cutting. However, if this reading
is accepted, my above view of the tablet, that it belonged
to some other work and was latterly placed here, would
turn out to be wrong, and we must take it, that it '
belongs to the road itself and that it takes a note of its cons-
truction. But, as the Tahsildar, the reader of the Archeaolo-
gical Department's first copy, myself, and the Munshi who
accompanied me, have all read the word on the spot itself, as
' Khdn', and, as Mr. Yazdani himself seems to be doubtful
about his reading, I leave the matter as it is in the hands of
other readers.
BYBAMJEE HOUSE,
Matheran, 27t& February 1919,
AS" UNPUBLISHED MOGUL INSOBIPTIOK- 97
TRANSLATION.
He is Omnipotent !
The Khan of powerful grip, Mahabat 1 Shikoh (awe-in-
spiring),
In whose hand the tiger is feeble ;
In the hill of Margala which was
A rival (in loftiness) to the sphere of Heaven,
Cut a-pass rising so high
That Heaven kisses it every moment.
Mughal 8 thus composed a chronogram (for the Pass) :
" The parting in the hair of the moon-faced (mistress
of India. 5 '
Completed under the Superintendence of Maulana Muham
mad and Wafa Ahmad, the ma
son, Jogidas, the accountant, and Dialdas, the cash-keeper,
in the year 1083 A. H. (1672 A.P.)
1 Hahftbat Khan, Governor of Kabul, 1651-56, 1658-62, 1668-70 and 1672-78 A.D.
For a full aooount sec If a'cfWrMj-UOTara, Vol. UI, pp. 690-95.
2 Here Moghal is the name of the poet. He may be identified with Mughal Khan,
<**& officer attached to th? Court of Aurangzeb who held different posts.
a, Vol. m, pp. 628-25.
7
A Farmdn of Emperor Jehangir in favour
of two Par sees of the Dordi family of
Naosari, with other cognate Docu-
ments of the Mogul times.
Head 22nd March 1020.
I had the pleasure of placing for inspection before this So-
ciety two Persian farmdns of Emperor
Akbar, when I read before it, on 16th
December 1901, my paper on " The Parsees at the Court of
Akbar and Daatur Meherji Rana/' 1 I beg to submit to-day
for inspection another farwrfw, given by Akbar 's son Jeh&ngir in
1618 to two Parsis, Mulla Jamasp and Mulla Hoshang of Naoeari.
One of these two, Mulla Jamasp was an ancestor ninth
in ascent of the late Mr. Dadabhai Nowroji. lake the
two fannftns of Akbar, this f arman also illustrates some of the
Ayins or institutes of the Mogul times on the subject oiidgirs,
land revenue, &c., described by Abul Fad, the Sir William
Hunter of Akbar's Court, in his Ayin-i-Akbari, the Imperial
Gazetteer of the times* My first paper seems to have drawn
the attention of some scholars in Europe, among whom I was
glad to find persons like the late Mr. Vincent Smith, 1 Mr. Bev-
eridge, 3 Mr. Irvine, all of the distinguished Civil Service of
India, and M. Bonet Maury of France. 4 It were the seals of
Akbar given in the photo-litho fac-simile in the appendix of the
paper, that drew the special attention of the late Mr. Irvine in
1909. He wrote to me, asking for good photographs of such
i Journal B. B. B. A. S. Vol. XXI. 69-245.
tin his, Akbar. the Great Mogul," Mr. V. Smith speaks of my paper, as "the
excellent and convincing treatise " and of the /araufiw and other documents published
therein, as "previously unpublished documents In both text and translation" ft l^n).
Sffafistott^ "***
*.^^S. A ,!^^
In his paper, entitled " I* BeUflon d'Akbar dans ses rapports ami
M lead before the International Congress of 4fce ffistanr of Bt__
- i-**sw.i Sasaa"
A FABMAV OF BMPBBOB MtiUKGIR. 99
seals on other documents of the Mogul Emperors.
I am glad that I attended to Mr. Irvine's request. Not
only did I send him large photographs of the seals of Akbar's
two farmdns, but I also sent him with my letter of 18th Feb-
ruary 1910, a photo of the seal of Jehangir's farmdn which
forms the subject of my present paper. At my request, the
owner of the farmdn, the late Mr. Byramji Khurshedji Dordi of
Naosari, got the whole farmdn photographed and then
photo-lithoed. I am glad that I got that done, because, had
the photo not been taken at the time, much of the
help in now deciphering the farmdn would have been lost,
I present for inspection the photo-litho, as taken about
10 years ago for Mr. Irvine, and the photo as taken recently
about a year ago, at the instance of Dr. Jehangir Byramji Dordi,
F.R.C.S., the youngest son of the late owner of the farmdn. I
am very sorry to find, that a very sad mistake has been commit*
ted, in getting the farmdn patched up and stuck on the two side*
of a glass plate as you see it before you. Good many words
have been lost in the work of patching which has been done
carelessly.
My above paper has been referred to in a judgment in a
case of some importance to the Parsee community, wherein
I had to give evidence. One of the presiding judges, the Hon'ble
Mr. (now Sir) Justice Beamanj therein animadverted a good
deal on the paper. When the appreciation of the above learn-
ed scholars, who had read my paper carefully and leisurely,
has given me some pleasure, I beg to admit, that the criticism
of the Hon'ble Judge, the result of his hasty and careless reading,
has given me some pain. A literary man has no right to com-
plain against any fair criticism of bis views, but he has every
right to complain against the language in which that criticism
is couched, and more especially when the position of the critic
at the time of his criticism places the victim of his criticism
in a position whence he cannot reply: As the paper in ques-
tion was read from the platform of this learned Society, I humbly
beg to take this opportunity, when I read a paper on another
farmdn, similar to that referred to in the previous paper, to
protest against the language of that criticism, wherein motives
were sought to be attributed when none existed. Had the cri
ticism been made out of the Court, I knew how best to reply
to it. But, I had to be silent. Even now, I do not want
to enter into any details of the criticism ; I think, that if the
learned judge would read the whole of my paper carefully
without any prejudice, and especially what led me to write it,
I think, be would revise his criticism or at least its language.
'100 ASIATIC PAPEB.
The point of dispute then was not at all of ooveraum, but was,
as to who influenced Abkar in his new eclectic religion. The
point of dispute was not, as the judge erroneously thought,
. and this serves as an instance of his very hasty superficial
-treading whether the Naosari Parsees influenced Akbar or the
Bombay Parsees, but whether the Naosari Parsees influenced
him or the Parsees of Persia. Bombay had not then even
passed into the hands of the British and its Parsee population
then, if any, may not have been even a dozen. Then, the next
-question of dispute was this : Among the Christians, who are
said to have influenced Akbar in his Hahi or Divine Faith/there
were fathers like Rodolph Aquaviva, Antony Monserrat, and
Francis Herric. Among the Jains who influenced him were
gurus like Hirvijaya Suri, Vijyasena Suri and Bhamuchandra
Up&dhaya. Among the Hindus, there was a large number
who often attended his Court. Now, as to the Parsees, the
point of dispute was, whether it was Dastur Meherji Rana of
Naosari or Dastur Ardeshir of Persia. I said, it was Meherji
Rana, and out of about 177 pages of my paper, about 85, i.e.,
nearly half, have been devoted to the presentation of two far-
mdns and other documents. Again, as I have hinted in the
paper, I had undertaken the study of the paper at the instance
of a friend in France. In spite of all these facts, the judge said :
' Mr. Modi writes an elaborate treatise, or one might aay almost
.a book, to prove that the priests of Naosari are fairly entitled
to the credit of having converted the emperor Akbar." Now,
there is not a single sentence in the whole of my paper, wherein
I have stated, that I believed that Akbar was converted to
rZoroastrianism. On the other hand, what I clearly stated was,
that, as he put on the visible symbols of the religions of the
Christians and Hindus, either out of temporary real affection
for those religions, or only out of dissimulation, or for the sake
of curiosity, he may have put on, even for a short time, the
visible signs of Parseeism. If any sure and certain proof of
what I say is wanted; it is supplied by the report of
the experts' committee referred to in the case and which was
framed by me after the paper was read. There, Akbar's
case has not at all been mentioned as a case of
conversion. Had I taken it to be a case of con-
version, I would have mentioned it in my report.
I beg to repeat, that I do not like to protest so much
against the criticism as against its -I may be pardoned to .say
undignified and improper language, imputing motives to
my paper, written long before the case, when I had no idea,
that any particular communal question of the kind would
<Jrop up.
A FAEMAN OF EMPBBOE JEHA3TGQL 10T
Now, coming to the subject of the paper, I propose to
deal besides the farmdn itself, which forms the principal part
of my subject, with the following documents which relate to
the land, whole or in part, given to the twoParsisby Emperor
Jehangir.
1. A chak-ndmeh, referring to the whole of the land.
The original of this was sent to me by Mr. BehramjiKhurshedji
Dordi with his letter, dated 3rd November 1909, when he sent
to me the farmdn itself and a Gujrati translation of the farmdn
by Prof. S. H. Hodiwala of Junaghad. There is also a subse-
quent copy of the chak-ndmeh written on two leaves of thin
paper.
2. A chak-ndmeh, in the name of Mehernoush, the third
in descent from Mulla Jamasp, to whose share there came,
in subsequent partition, about 18 bigahs of land. There are
two subsequent copies of this chak-ndmeh, one with the seal
of Jamalu-d-din Usmani, and another, a copy of the first copy
with the seal of Kazi Fazal-ud-din.
3. A parwdneb referring to the above 18 bighas of land
falling to the share of Mehernoush. There is also a certified
copy of this parwaneh bearing the seal of the above Fazal-ud-din.
There is also another certified copy.
4. An Appeal of Mehernoush to the leading men of Naosari
to certify that the above 18 bigahs of land had come to his
hands after a proper Deed of Partition among the heirs of
Mulla Jamasp.
5. A Receipt by Mehernoush acknowledging the receipt
of a sum of money for a three years' lease of his land.
I will first give the text and translation of the farmdn. 1
II.
THE TEXT OF THE FARMAN.
^j &j* ( 2 )
i I beg to acknowledge with thanks the help received in the decipherment of
several words here and there of the text of the Farman from a copy of the farmftn
by Munshi Nasir Alikhan of Naosari, supplied to me by Dr. Jehangir Byramji Dordi,*
and in the decipherment of the farman and other document! by the Gujarat! transla-
tions which accompanied all the documents except the last.
l The numbers on the right give the number of the lines in the original/arm**.
The first two and the last two letters of this word do not appear clearly in the
photo-lHho copy but can be read in the photo Itself. The same is the case with the last
letter of the next word. '
102 ASIATIC PAPER.
JL,l
-^ (
JL-J
( 4 ) v^Jt^J j ^ 7 xi ...... (3)
1 These first two lines are, as will be seen from the photo-litho and the photo, shore,
and are written in the left-hand half of the width of the paper of the farmtn. That was a
characteristic of the Mogul farmtn, of which the Ain-i-Akbari says that the first t\i o
lines are shortened (Blochmann's, Text p. 195. *& \ tj& ft ^ ^A^sxj^Ja^ ^ ^)
2 The reading of this word is doubtful. It may be arabic (^~~= )ia$n in Uie sense
of pleasingness. In that case, with the next word, it may mean , " he ina> .spend us lie
o^
pleased"; or it may be arabic UAA. "power or sagacity," meaning "he may bring the
income tinder his power and expense." In that case, the nukteh IB wrong, or it may
have been mtawritten for kharj r-^r^- . The corresponding sentence in the Akbar-
Meherjl Eana farmftn is
Not legible. Dr. Jehanglr B, Bordi has given me a copy of the farmjn, recently
made by Munshi Nasir All khan of Naosari, wherein the Munehi reads the words OB
The names of the vinous taxes and imports mentioned here are well-nigh the
same as those in the two /u/ mjns of King Akbar, the difference being only in their
consecutive order. So, we are helped a good deal by those farmtns in the reading
of this/arn?n. Vide my Translation of Akbar's farming with footnotes (J. B. B. K.
A. 8. XXI pp. 163-200). For an explanation of the names of seme of these taxes,
mentioned in the farm 6ns of the Mogul Emperors, vide the instructive article,
entitled " Taxation and Finance under the Mughul " by Mr. Qulahan Eai, in the
Indian Review of September 1919.
A FABMAN OF EMPBBOB JEHAKGEB. 103
J ***** J ^ ** J ( l ) j& *j* j jt J j^ j 7
(4) jjU yJUs (3)
I t i}^
1 In the photo-liUio fac-simile, the word looks like fc^xAJtw* in the original the
word is read clearly as^wiJ. A part of the letter, j is seen in th fac-similc. The
conjunction ^5 looks faultily joined with the broken ^ 9 but the original makes it clear.
2 I cannot make out clearly the words between the two words kanflngtii^^T&P^)
and zakat al jahati (\^f&Wjr)). In Akbar'stwo farmans, the words between the two
-words are ^g jj* j C** Ij j j ]j which, in my translation of the two fannfins ( J.
B. B. B,. A. S. XXI p. 169), I have translated as " burdens (i.e., taxes) for cultivation
and gardening." I am inclined to take that the word just preceding .
farmanis s*j&* mvJitarifa, which, according to Steingass, is "A tax on professions."
The word occurs in the Ain-i-Akbari (Bk. Ill, ain 7. Blochmann's Text Vol. I. p. 204,
1. 15), as the name of a tax j J rretthas in his translation (Vol. II p. 58) taken it as an
impost on manufactures. Gladwin (Ayeen Akbery (1800) Vol. I p. 251) also takes it as a
tax upon manufactures.
As to the two words which name a tax or taxes, preceding the word which ] read as
muhtarifa, though the letters are clear, I do not understand the words dearly. They seem
to be Ij^jb <H k fk* If the reading may be so accepted, the first word may be m'Uhab
< *f** i.e., extremely fair," and the word after dor may be hwrra " a free woman."
Perhaps, one may say, that it may be a tax upon loose women, but it does not seem
to be so.
s and . The last letters (j^ can be seen, but
But this word and the next word 4&P* (renewed) cai
the help of Ak bar's two/orm^nt.
104 ASIATIC PAPER.
(The text of the Writing on the back of the farman.)
1U ib &U* ,>
Ir ^ ji *
2 ...... /^ ...... ^ax/lj f1
1 The cursive word in the form of a long line above the word, extending over
nearly three-fourths of the- line gives the word mad ad.
2 Some words here, at the end of the line, are not clearly legible. All the figures
of the year written next to, or to speak more properly, a little above the word sana <****,
are not clear, but the last figure is elear as v 7 (seven). The figure next to it on the left
aeems to be t (two). Thus, if we take these last two to be 27, we may unhesitatingly
take the next two on tlu- left i.e. the first two to be 10. Then the number of the year
should be 1027 ( t T V) because we know it for certain, that we are dealing with &farmdn
of King Jehangir, who came to throne cm "Thursday, Jumftdft-s-Sfinl 20th A. H. 3014
(October 24th 1605)" (TuzMk-i-Jehaiigiri, translated and edited by Rogers-Beveridge
p. 1). Now, in this very line, the >ear of the King's reign is given as IT 13 the
thirteenth. So, this tallies with the year 1027 (H. 1014+13=1027). The veek day
and the Christian date- corresponding to this day are Tuesday 24th November 1018 old
style.
The next word seem-? to be dar j & i.e. in. The next word must be a word signifying
some olfhv. As the next line speaks of an officer holding the resalah /JU j this word
very probably i> thnwky ^J^ This writing on the back of the farwdn is, what is called,
tharfi-'i-ttt'lUiafi /*1*3 rj* i.e. an abridgement of the y&d-d&sht (a memorandum) ot
His Majesty's orders about the fannfins etc., or shark b'il hfahij/a s**> knJlj ~j i.e,
post-script explanation. I have explained this in details, on the authority of the 10th and
llth &ins of the 2nd book of the Ain-i-Akbari (lilochmann's Translation I pp. 2r>8-f>9) f
in my paper on Akbar's Farmans given to Dastur Meherji Rana (J. B. B. II. A. S. XXI
pp. 170-71). Now, in these sharks of Akbar's two farmins, we find, in the beginning,
the notes or the memoranda of the officers holding at the time the rasalah and the
chowki. So, as in the present farmn we nud the word rasalah (/J Uj) in the second
line with the name of its holder, here the word must be chowki ^^^ with the name
of its holder which occurs in the beginning of the second line.
As to the third or the last illegible word in the first line, it seems, that it may be ft
word having some signification like that of the second word in the second line m.C*J &
niq&bat, signifying some dignity. We are led to think so, because the second line begins
with the conjunction vfiv, i.e., 'and.' In the second line, in connection with the renftoh
holder, we have the words *^J ^ w j o & U* . so, we have the words 8 ^JC*^ft>
with the holder of, what I think to be, the ctiowH. I think also that the last illegible
word of the first line may perhaps be O a U* . Thus, the indistinct or illegible words
would be t6 6 **** \s* tt J * I * p y There 8eem to De one r two more words, but
they do not seem to be very important.
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. 105
i alijcolftjj (2)
C? ! J ^^ J C5 1
^ (3)
ir x^jj^ |U r Uj ................. 2
(4)
ftstri i.e., one having the impressions or signs of good fortune.
2 There secra to be throe wrds between the words i/**; ^ and fijfy which
eem to he illegible. I venture to suggest, that they may be Shehr-i-Shfth Mandal
and they refer to the town of Naosari. They were meant to signify, thai the
two Parsees wore from Kaosari Naosari had several names of old (Vide Mr. Sorabji
Mancherji Desai's Tavfirikh-i-Navsari ClcJl^l'Ui *tc(^l^l i.e., the History of Navsari
j)p. 4-8). Two of these were A fcMifihi and N&pj-Mandal x Hpl ^||^ , ^p( VjS^).
Perhaps, it may be sid, that more than once, the town is mentioned in the farmjn as
Naosari. So, \\here wa^ then- the necessity of pivinp here another name ? But, it is
possible, that 1 ho Court ofllccr-s when taking down the notes of the King's gift in
their records, a^ked thn donees, the name of tlieir town or place of residence. They
possibly gave the nanv or names which they familiarly used among themselves. Many an
old document speaks of the to\\n as Nfip-Mandal. Ti J do not mistake, in pomeold papers
the word N&ff-Manda) is un-d in addition to 1 he name Naosari, in order to mention a
particular locality of Naosari. There is a particular place at Kaosari. on the Railway
Station side, which is still ^polkcu of as Sbfihfin Kuvo, 3jl&li *fi\[ i.e.* the " Shahln
well or the royal or great veil". So, it is possible, that the officer, entering the gift entered
the name of th" town as given to him by the donee. One may try to read the last two
words as Sh fch Mogul, but tin- last word does not clearly admit of that reading. The
word Mandal ( J***) is occasionally used in Persian books for a limited circle or space
of ground.
There is another conjecture which I venture to make, and that is to eay,that perhaps
the words may be "az Shah Mandal " ( J*.x* *U^f) or padsh&h mandal ( J<xl* t^^J)
Both the fietb of words come to or mean the same thing.
Firstly, as to the word Kl>6h, we know, that among the Mahomedan*, many of the
priestly classes, especially of the fakir type, assume the title of tldh. In Kashmir, i
have heard many a ptr (saint) spoken of as xl.th, e.g., Sli&h Hamdan, Shah Makdum, etc.
In this connection, one must remember, that, up to very late, Parsee priests were, at
times, addres ed by thoir laMuen as padshili. The several Fire-temples are even now
spoken of as p&rfasfc Aft ( ^Ml<15U '*& l"H ^KtylO. The word seems to have been
transferred also to the priest 1 - who *orved In the temples. It seems, that perhaps from
very ancient times HOW Zoroastrian high priests came to be spoken of as Ttdshtht from
the fact of their being petty rulers as well as priests.
Coming to the word Mandal J^ 1 *, it seems to be used in Persian as a circle or group.
So " Shah Mandal " or PacMiali Mandal " may mean a circle or group of priesU. Thu,
the/aman, by adding these words after the word Parsi (Farsi) next to the proper names,
seems to have meant that they belonged to " the group of Parsee priests " residing at
Naosari. We know that th**word " mandli " which comes from " mandal," has been
used in one of the Silhra grants in connection with the Parsees. Thtir colony at Saajan
at been spoken-erf as< " Khorasan Mandl* "
106 ASIATIC PAPER.
/^ ;! xJwU (5)
Cf l
J (6)
IP
1 All the words after bar qarfir shudah up to the end of the line are illegible. The
last word seems to be AT in geh i.e., ' at that time.' The following facts lead us
to think what these other illegible words may be. In the beginning of this writing, on
the back of the fanrja. we find the names of officers in whose records the fact of the gift
of the land is noted. They are 1 Mustaffi Khan (the holder of the ehotoki), 2 Sayid
Ahmad Kadari, the holder of the resalth, 3 Nuruddin Quli, through whose ma'rafat, the
document passed and 4 Ma h mud Biqr, the waqah-nawteh. Now, in the succeeding line
we find, in a consecutive order, the names of the above-named second and third officers.
So, it seems probable, that here in the indistinct and illegible portion is the reference to
the first person and his record or y4<ld&iht. If we follow somewhat the phraseology of
the two farmins of King Akbar, in this part of Jehangir's farmdn, the indistinct words
may be something like /^* j> v^*>J^j (3j* *.., according to the ytd
dttht of th marginal explanation. Then, there may be the name of the particular
officer of the time.
* The figure is 18. The second figure for S may, to some, look like v (7), but it Is
8. Kashn (\^*\) is the 18th day and not the 17th of the Parsee month.
Here the illegible words are the day of the week and the date. The figure of the
, Mahomedan date is not clear. But we can determine it by means of the Hah! date.
I am thankful to Mr. Muncherji Pestonji Kharegat, I.C.8. (Retd.) for helping me in deter-
mining this date. He writes to me : " There are two methods of calculating H&hi date*
(a) the first, which I will call Dr. Taylor's, in which the months are reckoned exactly as in
the Parsee calendar, of 30 days each, with 5 intercalary days (Gathas) at the end ;
(6) the second in which the months accord exactly with the times which the sun takes
in passing through each sign of the Zodiac, and in which, therefore, the months vary in
length from 29 to 32 days and there are no intercalary days at the end, and which I
call the true solar method."
Now, In the first part of the shjrh, as given above, we see that both the Hani date
and the corresponding Mahomedan date are given. There we read :
S tyo ir /Ju jf jj
t.6., " the date of day Tir 13. month azar (Adar), year 13 (Hani), corresponding
to Wednesday corresponding to date 16 of Zi 'ul Hajja 1028." According to the Tuxuk
i Jahanniri, Jehangir named Wednesday, kara Shambt, i.e., the inauspicious
day. Vide below. These Ilahi and Hijri dates correspond according to the
second of the above two methods, viz : the true Solar method. So, it la certain, that
the corresponding dates for other Ilahi dates in this farmdn must be reckoned according
to the second method. Thus, the Ilfthi date " roz lUshna 18, mlh A*f|ndarmaz ( Asian -
darzQftd). Dahl year 13," corresponds to Friday 21 llabi-ul-awgal 1028. Therefore, the
Illegible words seem to be . f I
The last but one word of the line is not legible.
A The last word of the line is mukamr. to., repeated, again, a MOOO* time.
A FABMAN OF EMPEROK JEHANGDR. 107
3 ,JU$ (^b 2 ^(
U> lyl^ 4 Ul
Jb t
m.
(TRANSLATION OF THE PARMAN.)
GOD is GREAT.
The farman* of victorious Nur-ud-din Muhammad Jehan-
gir Badshah Gazi. 7 At this time, a Royal Order marked with
the favour 8 (of His Majesty), has acquired the honour of pub-
lication and the glory of being issued, that land, about one
hundred bigahs* (as measured) by the royal gaz, lQ according
to the general practice, in the qasaba n of Naosari in the sarkar^
of Surat, may, from the commencement of the spring 13 ku el 1 *,
1 Nan, elevating, raising
2 Htfab, a veil, a curtain.
Falak'tihtibah resembling Heaven.
* CJ ^^ Jirayan " What issues forth (as an order)" (Steingass).
5 Order, Imperial mandate. The word is originally Pahlavi fannan r^O It comes
(* c -*1d Sans X-><1 to arrange, to place in order) to order,
from fra * i^l j* Lat< pro (}erm vor English forth) and ma (" >ll I*t.
w*tiri, Germ, messen. Fr. m^-surer) to measure.
6 Lit. Light of Religion. 7 Brave, Gallant.
K e)f^ C*,4.A.^/o Distinguished with or honoured by favour.
9 Modern Vingha cf[aj( " A measure of a third of an acre " (Steiugass). Accordmg
to the Ain-i-Akbari, in the Mogul times, it was more than half an acre (Vide my
A Paper In J. B. B. K. A. XXI. p. 1 64 n 2).
tO Of the three kinds of gaz known in the Mogul times, that known as the long gaz
(^)jr*J*) ^as used for the measurement of cultivated lands (Ibid. p. 164 n. 3.
Ain-i-Akbari, Bk. IHain 8. Blochmann's Text, Vol. I, p. 294, 1.25. Jarret'i
Translation Vol. II. p. 59).
Town.
J * " A district comprising several pergwwahs."
l The two words Babi ( and Eharif (spring and autumn) of the Mogul times have
come down to our times and are still used by the British lie venue depart-
ment.
i* These are Turkish words. As to ku ^, the iin-i-Akbari (Bk. Til din I), speak-
ing of the Turkish era, says, that they counted years by cycles, each cycle having 12
years. In the names of the 12 years of the cycle which Abu Fazl gives, we find k& j*
the sheep (*iftj? ) as the 8th year (Blochmann's Text, p. 278, 1. 13. Jarrett's Tran-
slation, Vol. II, p. 21). As to the word el, Abul Fazl says that " they add the word el to
each of these words which signifies year." (Jarrett's Translation, Vol. II, p. 21).f ?ulj &
.Ai>l^t^J ouW JU^A+J^ Jj|&U <J^ (Blochmann's Text, p. 273, II, 16-17)
According to AJbiruni, ku or kdt seems to be also the name of the 8th month of a Turkish
r (Alb'ruui
col o ran.)
,
year (Alb'ruui's Chronology of Ancient times, byDr.O, Bdward Sacbau (1870), p. 83,
Aast c
108 ASIATIC PAPER.
be (set apart) free and exempted from taxes, according to the
contents 1 (of this f arman), for the purpose of the aid of the live-
lihood (madad-i-maash) 2 of Mulla Jamasp and MulU Hoshang,
Parsees, and (their) children, so that, by spending and using
the income of that (land) from season to season and year to year
for the expenses of their livelihood, they may for all time, be
engaged in saying prayers for the continuous 3 good fortune
(of His Majesty).
It is incumbent on all the present and future noble gover-
nors 4 and happy 5 agents 6 and pgirdars and Karorians, 7 that
trying to observe the continuance 8 and confirmation 9 of this
most holy and exhalted Order (of His Majesty), (and) measuring
the said lands, and settling 10 the chak, 11 and transferring 12 it
1 JIasb ul Zimn, according to the contents of. Cf. &+'
in Meberji Ran&'s first /arm&ti. Vide my paper on that subject, p. 93, 1. 8.
2 According to the Aiu-i-Akbari (Bk. II, 4in 19 on sayftrgh&ls ( J^JLTfc* 1 } " sub-
sistence allowances, paid in cash, are called \Vuzilah (sJUJ&j) ; lands conferred are called
Milk (*!") or madad-i-ma'&sh (^1*-* ^ J^o) Blochmami's Text, p. 198, 1.7, Transla-
tion, Vol. I, p. 208). Blochiuann, under the head of "Note by the Translator on the Cadra
of Ak bar's reign, " thus speaks on the subject of the Madad-i-ma'ash : " In this Ain one
of the most interesting in the whole work the Chagatai Sayarglifcl is translated by the
Arabic modad-ul-ma'ash. The latter term signifies ' assistance of livelihood, and, like
its equivalent milk, or property, it denotes landx given fur benevolent purpose*, as specified
by Abul Fazl. Such lands were hereditary and differ for this reason from Jdi/ir or tftyQl
lands, which were conferred for a sped lied time, on Alditfabddrx in lieu of salaries."
(Blochmann's Translation, p. 270).
a Lit. joined (quarin) to eternity (abad).
* UjLkftm, pi. of Hakim. According to Blochmann, " the higher MaiiHabd&rs were
mostly governors of (JQbahs (provinces). The governor were at iirst called SipalutUtrs ;
towards the end of Akbar's reign we find them called Hdkims, and afterwards, Cdhib
CUbah or C&bahdrs and still later merely Cuba/is. The other Mangabdars held jagirs."
(Blochmann's Translation of the Ain-i-Akbari, Vol. 1, pp. ii41-4^).
5 Kifftyat-farjara. Lit. with sufficient happiness.
6 Am&l, agents, governors, nobles, tax-gatherers.
' Karori was an officer in charge of the revenues over one kror (10 millions) of
d&ms. The Ain-i-Akbari says: ***j*~ && *s* *^*& ^-* l i^ JJ-^ 1 -^ ^^O
(Bk. I, Ain, 2, Blochmann'a Text I, p. 10, 11.4-5-) " And zealous and upright men were
put in charge of the revenues, each over one kr5r of dams" (Blochmaun's Translation
J, p. 13). "The (/Am was a copper coin, weighing blanks, i.e., I tofah. 8 mdshant,
and 7 surks, it la the fortieth part of a rupee. At first this coin was called Paisah,
and also UdMoli ; now it is known under this name (d&m). On one Bide the place is given
where it was struck, and on the other, the date, (Bk. 1, Am 9, Blochmaim's Trans.
p. 31).
H Istemr&r " continuance, perpetuity, fixed rent not liable to alteration."
9 Istiqrr "requiring a settlement ; confirmation ; ratification."
10 Lit. Binding.
11 Chak ordinarily means a bond, deed or note. According to the Ain-i-Akbari
B. Ill, Ain 6), it was the duty of the above said amals or amal-guz&r* (jl& JU* the
revenue collectors) to ascertain the correctness of chak nimdh
) (Blochmann's Text I, p. 287,1. 16. Trans. II, Jarrett p. 47). According to
Jarrett the chaJcndmah "is a grant of alienated lands specifying the boundary limits
thereof, Chak, according to Elliot, is a patch of rent-free laud detached from a
Tillage" (Jarrett II, p. 47, n 1.)
12 GuatBhian "to make a present on the renewal of a lease, to transmit (used with.
A negative)" Steingau.
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. 109
enew in their possession, (they should), by no meanfc 1 at all, 2
make any change or alteration 3 ; and on account of land-tax,*
and duties on manufacture, 5 capitation taxes 6 and extraordi-
1 Asian, " by no means, not at all, never, in no shape."
2 Mutiaq-an " absolutely entirely."
a There are two or three small words after tar/Mr and toJb-Ul, which are not legible
but Munshi Nasir Alikhan's reading given above, seems probable. The insertion of that
reading " r& badfin rfth " make the sentence more elegant, and do not change the mean
Ing. The rendering of the sentence with the addition of these words would be : "They,
shall not give way to any change or alteration in any way whatever."
* We read in the Ain-i-Akbari (Bk. Ill, itn 7) :
(Blochmann's Text I, p. 294, 11. 12-13.)
\j &JU, ^
J
"In Iran and Tnran, they collect the land-tax (m&l) from some ; from others the
JiJidt and from others again the S6ir Jihtf ........ What is imposed on cultivated lands
by way of quit-rent is termed M dl. Imports <? imposts) on manufacturers of respectable
kinds are called jihfa, and the remainder Sdir Jih&t " (Jarrett's Translation, Vol. II,
pp; 57-58).
In a very interesting article of Mr. Ciulsluin Hai,in the September 1910 issue of the
'Indian Review, entitled "Taxation and Financial administration under theBIughals "ve
pet a good summary of the Mogal system of public re venues, including the land revenue.
The land revenue system is said to have been " firit defined and brought into shape" by
Baja Todar Mall, The rulturable land v as divided into four classes and the share of the
State in the produce of the crop varied according to the class. Tender Todar Mall's De-
cennial settlement, " an aggregate of the actual collection for the past ten years was
formed, and a tenth of the total was fixed as the annual settlement. After the expiry of
five years this assessment was made permanent" As to the other sources of public
revenue, "they were known by the name of kar in Hindu period, and Jilidt, Sair Jilt&t,
and abiv&btf in the Mahometan period. These imposts were either custom duties, or
transit duties on merchandise, or taxes on sales of houses, nvrkct places, persons, cattle*
trees, professions and manufactures, tees and royalties charged on marriages, discount
on the exchange of coins, fees on fishery rights, and manufacture of salt, lime and
spirituous liquor ...... In modem phraseology some of these imposts were Imperial
taxes, some provincial rates and other local cesses."
5 Vide the above note for Jilifit.
6 Ikhrfijdt pi. of ikhrfij from klrir&j, i.e., capitation tax.
We read in the Ain-i-Akbari (Bk. Ill, Ain VII): ^J^^- f
^<iO l^^^j - l^i j (**J$ J\ '< * " ln ancient times, a rapitntion tax (a tax per
head) was imposed called Khiraj " (Bli.chmnmV* Text I, p. 2.>2, 31. 24-25. Jarrett's
Trans. II, p. 55). King Kobad first thought of abolishing the tax taking it to be unfair
but it was Noshirwan who finally did away with it (Ibid). It appears, that in India, In
the Mogul times, khiraj was the tribute paid by the Khirftji lands, i.e., lands " which those
outside the (Mahomedan) faith retain on convention " (Ibid 11, p. 57). In fact, this tax
was the same as Jaziyah (capitation tax in Persia in the time of the Khalifs.
110 ASIATIC PAPER.
nary contributions, 1 such as qariLaghe? and presents 3 and fines
and tax-gatherers' fees 4 and village assessments 6 and marriage-
* Aw&rizfit from awfiriz, i.e., extraordinary contributions.
2 ^ilxS qanlaghe. We must settle what this word is. It occurs in both the faraftns
of Zing Akbar (Vide the photo-litho facsimiles, given by me in my paper on the two
farming referred to above. J. B. B. R. A. S. Vol. XXI). The first of this two farmtns
gives the word as s*Uii. Persian Dictionaries do not give us that word. The second
farman gives the word with no points (nuktehs) over any o 1 the letters. In my
above paper, I was doubtful about the reading of this word. I then said: '"This word is not
clear and legible. One may read it s*& qu ' la. It would mean ' anything paid into the
exchequer unweighed ; borrowed money/ (Steingass). I think, it is the same as ***!*,
spoken of as one of the imposts of King A k bar's time in the Ain-i-Akbari (Bk. Ill, Ain
XI, Blochmann'B Text I, p. 301, 1.8). Another manuscript (of the Ain-i-Akbari) gives
the words as <**^, In Blochroann's Text the word is marked as doubtful (?).
Jarrett has not translated it, saying he, " cannot trace it " (Translation Vol. II, p. 67
note I)." Viie my paper in 3 . B. B. tt. A. s. Vol. XXI, p. 167, n. 4). The above men-
tioned other reading of the word is not explained by Persian dictionaries. Now, our
present farman seems to solve all the previous doubts and difficulties. Here the
word is clearly given as /**U 9 and 1 now feel sure, that it is one of the imposts
(vajuhat) of King Akbar 's time referred to by Abu-1 Fazl, in the llth ain of the Ain-i-
Akbari headed " Land and its classification and the proportionate does of sove-
reignty/' I think that this Jarmfin settles Blochmann's doubts about the reading ol
the word.
As to what particular kind ol impost it x\as, \ve are not in a position to say with cer-
tainty. Col. Jarrett says, he " cannot trace " it. I beg to submit the following explana-
tion with some diffidence. The first part of the word ^ (quin) means " a slave, especi-
ally one born in the family, whose father and mother are slaves." The second part of
the word laght /**) may be the Indian word, known in Gujarati as Hl^ll meaning tux.
It comes, 1 think, from fcUH^. So, the impost, meant by the word, may be a tax for each
slave possessed by a man of means. One must not understand by the word * slave' a
slave in the most ordinary sense of the word e.g., when we speak of ' slave-trade,' but in
the sense of a life-long family servant, in which sense, it is used in my paper, entitled " A
Panee Deed of Partition more tbafi 150 years old : a form of slavery referred to therein"
(Journal of the Anthropological Society of Bombay Vol. VI, pp. 12-16. Vide my Anthro-
pological Papers, Part I, pp. 167-172). I am supported in this surmise by the fact, that
jn the Ain-i-Akbari'B list of the various taxes and imposts which includes this impost, \ve
find* among other taxes of the kind, " a tax on each head of oxen, a tax on each tree."
So, it is possible that this impost of qanlaghC, may be a tax on each head of slaves.
Pishkash or royal fee was one of the imposts (vajuhat) of the Mogul times. It is
referred to as such in the Ain-i-Akbari (Bk. Ill, Ain XI, Text p. 301. Jarrett II, p. 66).
Akbar remitted it with several other taxes. It is " a magnificent present, such as is
only presented to princes, great men, superiors, or sometimes to equals (particularly on
receiving a great appointment.)" Steingass.
Perhaps, it is the same impost as ^5^ loU^AAj tahsildari, in Bk. in, Ain XI
(Ibid).
ft ZabtAneb, from zo&A, which word, according to Jarrett, was applied by Abu Fad
loosely for " the revenue collection ox assessment of a village (Vol. II, p. 158, n, 1). The
word occurs in the 15th tin (Bk. HI) where Jarrett translates it as " revenues In cash
from crops charged at special rates " (Vol. II, p. 158, Text, p. 417, 1. 16.)
A FABMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. Ill
fees 1 and the fees of the Darogha 2 and forced labour 3 and forced
attendance at hunting (shikar) 4 ' and supplying of soldiers 5 and
1 Mahrftnah was " a tax exacted by the Qlzi from the Mahomedans at weddings. '
(Steingass). Perhaps,it is the same as the marriage-tax referred to as being on^jJ (<***> &
(marriage) in the j.in-1-Akbari (Text p. 201. Blochmann'e Trans 1. 1, pp. 277-78). Abu-
Fazl thils speaks of marriage and refers to the marriage tax in Bk. II, din 24, under the
head of " Regulations regarding marriages " : " Every care bestowed upon this wonder-
ful tie between men is a means of preserving the stability of the human race, and ensuring
the progress of the world ; it is a preventive against the outbreak of evil passions, and
leads to the establishment of homes. Hence His Majesty, inasmuch as he is benign
watches over great and small and induces men with his notions of the spiritual union and
the equality of essence which he sees in marriage. He abhors marriages which take
place between man and woman before the age of puberty. They bring forth no fruit, and
His Majesty thinks them even hurtful ; for afterwards, when such a couple ripens into
manhood, they, dislike having connexion, and their home is desolate. Here in India,
where a man cannot see the woman to whom he is betrothed, there are peculiar obsta-
cles ; but His Majesty maintains that the consent of the bride and bride groom, and the
permission of the parents are absolutely necessary in marriage contracts
His Hajesty disapproves of high dowries ; for as they are rarely even paid they are mere
sham ; but he admits that the fixing of high is a preventive against rash divorces. Nor
does His Majesty approve of every one marrying more than one wife ; for this ruins a
man's health, and disturbs the peace of the home He has also appointed two sober
and sensible men, one of whom inquires into the circumstances of the bridgroom, and the
other into those of the bride. These two officers have the title of Tuibegi, or masters o f
marriages His Majesty also takes a tax from both parties, to enable them to show
their gratitude. The payment of this tax is looked upon as auspicious. Man^abdtrs
commanding from five to one thousand pay 10 Muhurs The middle classes pay
one Rupee, and common people one dam. In demanding this tax, the officers have to
pay regard to the circumstances of the father of the bride." (Blochmann's Trans,
pp. 277-78 Text Bk. I, &in 24, p. 201).
Akbar'a tQibegts or marriage censors remind us of such marriage censors of the ancient
Romans whose principal business was to see that people did not spend much after mar-
riage-festivities. They had the right of attending marriage gatherings and of driving
A way marriage guests over and above a fixed number permitted by the State.
2 Dartghgang, was one of the imposts of Akbar's time (Ain-i-Akbari, Bk. Ill, din
XI, Text p. 301, 1. 6, Jarrett II, p. 66). D&rOgha was " the headman of an office, prefect
of a town or village, overseer or superintendent of any department" (Steingass). " The
inspection of village records and the preparation of circle accounts was the work of a
Darogha or Inspector " (Gulshan Rai).
* Beg&r "Employing any one without a remuneration" (Steingass). Forced
labour was prevalent in Mogul times. From a farmftn of Shah-Jah&n, inscribed on the
Jam! Masjid at Srinagar in Kashmir, on 7th of Isfandarmaz (February. Perhaps Hijri,
1061 A.D. 1650-51), we learn, that Shah-Jehan did away with this custom of BegAr from
Kashmir in the matter of the collection of saffron from Government fields.
Our Bombay word begiri (<*(3ft^l) * a labourer, seems to come from this word
begir. It seems that originally a begftri was a forced labourer. The word originally may be
be* or bi k&r, i.e., work exacted without (payment).
* Neither the Ain-i-Akbari, nor the Tuzuk-i-Jehangari throws any light on this
word, as to what this impost was. It seems to be something like beg&r. Just M the
villagers had to submit to forced labour for Royal or Government services, so, perhaps
they had to submit to go as beaters when the Mogul Kings and their officers went a-hunt-
i&g. Perhaps, it was incumbent on the holders of land to supply a certain number of
btgirit and Shikaris, to serve as labourers and beaters to high Government officials.
5 Mard-lafhkar. Lit. Men for the Army. It seems that this impost was one like
the two preceding ones. It was incumbent upon large holders of royal lawU, that they
must, when necessary, procure recruits for the Army.
112 ASIATIC PAPER.
( fiye per cent tax 1 and allowances paid to muqaddams* and
rubs&ft and two per cent tax 4 and kanungui 5 ..............
and imposts on manufactures, 7 and dues 8 of duties on manu-
i Deh-nimi. Lit, half of ten i.e., five per cent. It was one of the imposts referred
to in ths Ain-i-Akbari (Bk. Ill, ftin XI Text I, p. 800. 1. 21. Jarrett II, p. 66) We read
there :
Idj JU
feftlu
(Text p. 300, 11. 21-24).
"His Majesty in his wisdom thus regulated the revenues in the aT>ove-mentloned
favourable manner. He reduced the duty on manufacture from ten to five per-eent.
(deh-nim), and two per -cent (sad-dfti) was divided between the patwars and thekftnfingo.
The former is a writer employed on the part of the cultivator. He keeps an account of
receipts and disbursement, and no village is without one. The latter is the refuge of
the husbandman. There is one in every district. At the present time the share of the
kdn&ngo (one per-cent) is remitted, and the three classes of them are paid by the State
according to rank (Jarrett II, p. 67).
2 Muqaddami. This word is familiar to us in our Indian form *y*jlVHU This
Beems to be a new kind of impost. It is not mentioned in the Ain-i-Abkari. A muqad-
dam is " a superior officer of the revenue in a village ; a title of respect among villagers.
A leader, a chief, commander " (Steingass).
I cannot make out what this impost was.
Vide the above note for this tax. Lit. Two in the hundred, i.e., two per-cent.
5 Vide the above note. His fee is one per cent. Jarrett says as follows of the
k&n&ngo : " An officer in each district acquainted with its customs and land tenures and
whose appointment is usually hereditary. He receives reports from the patwdris of new
cases of alluvion and diluvion, sales, leases, gifts of land etc.. which entail a charge in
the register of notations. He is a revenue officer and subordinate to th" tahaildir (Jar-
rett Vol. II, p. 47, n. 3). He was a Registrar of land records. This officer >*as appointed
directly by the Crown, ouc for eacli pan/ana ............ He was in charge of all land
records of the pargana. He was to keep a record of all land assessments and the state-
ments in his charge showed what was due from each land-holder. All sales and trans-
fer of property were also to be carefully verified by him."
6 For the two words here, see the foot-note at this portion of the text. Vide
above.
. Muhtarifa. Vide the footnote of this portion of the text.
j Zakat The word is also written 8 tfj and it means " aim* given accord-
\ ng to Mahomedan law, by way of purifying or securing a blessing to the rest of one's
possessions " (Steingass). Jarrett thus speaks of it : " The poor rate, the portion there-
from given as the due of God by the poesessor that he may purify it thereby, the root of
the word, \) denoting purity. The proportion varies, but is generally a fourtieth or
2J per cent, provided that the property is of a certain amount and hat? been in possession
eleven months " (Jarrett's Translation of the Ain II, p. 57, n 4 ) Abu-1 Fazl while
speaking of "land, which those outside the faith retain in convention " and which they
call khiraji, says that the " tribute paid by khiraji land is of two kinds. 1. Muka*amah
(divided), is the 5th or 6th produce of the soil. 2 Wazffah, what is settled according to
the capability and convenience of the tributaries. Some call the whole produce of the
revenue khiraj and as the share of the producing body is in excess of their expenditure,
the zakdtiB taken from the amount under certain stipulations and this they call a tithe,
but on each of these points there is much difference of opinion. The Caliph Omar,
during his time, taxed those who were not of his faith at the rate of 45 dirhams for
persons of condition, 24 for those of the middle class, and 12 for the lowest class. This
was called the Jaziyat (capitation tax). (Jarrett II. p. 57).
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGHt. 113
acture l and annual revenue collections 2 , no molestation
may be given (to them), and no exactions 3 made for the
ascertainment of the grant (chak) and the burden 4 of the
cultivation- taxes and of all civil dues 5 and royal taxes, 6 and
they may count them as pardoned and free and absolved 7 from
all taxes, 8 references 9 and transfers., 10 And, in this matter,
they shall not ask every year for a renewed royal farm.an and
they shall not turn back from what is (hereby) ordered and
shall be true to (this) contract.
Written on the llth of the month Shahrivar Ilahi year 13
only. 11
(Translation of the Writing on the back of the Farman. 12 )
(This f arman is in the matter of) The aid of livelihood in
^the name of Mull a Jamaspand another 13 with (their) children,
according to the Yad-dasht of^the Waqi'ah dated, roz (i.e. day)
Tir 13, mah (i.e. month) Azar (Adar) year thirteen, corresponding
with Wednesday, 14 corresponding to the 16th of Zu'1-hijja year
1027, during the (time of the) choki of fortunate Mustafa Khan,
the protector of chiefs 15 and leaders, 10 (and) during the rasdlah
of Sayid Ahmad Kadari, the protector of chiefs and leaders,
the giver of power 17 to chieftainship 18 and to magisterial dignity,
(and) during the Ma c rafat 1 ** of Nurud-din Quli who was worthy of
favours 20 (and) lord of exalted dignity, 21 and during the period- 2
of the waqui'ahnavish, Mah mad Baqr, who is an humble member
of the Court. During that time 23 there waited upon 24 His most
1 " Imports (? Imposts) on manufactures of respectable kiwi are called jlhfit and
-the remainder Sjir Jtii&t " (Ain-i-Akbari Bk. ill, tfin VII, Jarrett II, p. 58).
2 Zabt. Vide above, the note on the word Zjbtanah.
9 MuWabat from talab.
Takrjr question dispute, burden.
5 ZW/tf pi. of taklif, trouble.
6 Matlabdt pi. of Matlab. demand from talab.
7 Mar/H u'l qalam, absolved, remitted.
8 RasQmat, rasum (pi. of rasm) customs, common, dues, taxes, fees.
9 Itl&qat from itlAq reference, application.
10 Haw tilt pi. of hawftla, transfer, charge, care.
11 The word Ja&, meaning only, is peculiar to thisfarmdn. We do not find it in
Akbar's above two/armrfn*. It seems to have been written here in the same sense, as
we, now a days, write the word 'only* in cheques of money which we pass. This is intend-
ed to show that the writing is finished and it was ' only * up to the last preceding word,
to that nobody could add to it. A
12 The writing on the back of the Farmanis, what is called, Sharh-i-ta'liqah (^r**
i.e., Explanation of the ta'liqah. It is so named in the first of the two farmana
given to Dastur Meherji Kana. In the second, it is spoken of as Sharh ba'l hlshiyeh
i.e. marginal explanation. The word Sharh is used even by the
Parsees as SharehUl\) in the sense of the commentaries or explanations of their
acred writings. The following passage from the Ain-i-Akbari will explain some of t lie
'technical words as choki, waqlah, ytd-d&sht, rislah, Ac.,
, used in this writing.
8
114 ASIATIC PAPEB.
Shaih-i-ta'liqah. Ta'iiqah is a technical term used in the Ain-I-Akbarfc
or an abridgment of the yidd&sht (i.e. memorandum) of His Majesty's orders about
the farmans, etc. Its explanation in detail is eaid to be Its tharh. The following
passages from the 10th and llth Ains will explain, who made this yftdd&sht, or memor-
andum and ta* liqah or abridgment, and how they were made, and why this abridgment:
of the memorandum has been added here. We read the following in the 10th Ain on tht
waqi'ahnawis ( i.e., the writer of events.) " Keeping records is an excellent thing for a
government His Majesty has appointed fourteen zealous, experienced
and impartial clerks, two of whom do daily duty in rotation, so that the turn (uaolnt) >
of each comes after a fortnight Their duty is to write down the orders and the
doings ol His Majesty and whatever the heads of the departments report, the acts of His
Majesty as the spiritual guide of the nation, appointments to mangabs, contingents
of troops, salaries, jagirs.
' After the diary has been corrected by one of His Majesty's servants, it is laid before
the emperor, and approved by him. The clerk then makes a copy of each report, -signs it.
and hands it over to those who require it as a voucher, when it is also signed by the 1'ar-
w&nchi, by the Mir'Arz, and by that person who laid it before His Majesty. The nport
lu this case is called y&d-d&sht or memorandum.
" Besides, there are several copyists who write a good hand and a lucid style. They
receive the y add fish t when completed, keep it with themselves and make a proper abridg-
ment of it. After signing it, they return this instead of the jadc'dent, \\hen the abridg-
ment is signed and sealed by the \Vdqiahnawis, and the Rbilluhc'ar, the Mir 'Arz and the
Pirogah. The abridgment, thus completed, is called Ta 'liqah and the writer is caKed.
Taliqahnawis. The Ta'iiqah is then signed, as stated above, and sealed by the minis-ter
of State " (Blochmann's Translation I pp. 258-259, Text I, pp. 192-3).
This passage of the 10th Ain then explains the terras ta'Jiqah (abridgment of memo-
randum), and Tufiqi'ah, (writing or record) which occur in these Farmfins.
The following passage of the llth Ain explains why this Ta liqah or abridgment of,
the memorandum of the king's orders has been entered on the back of the Farm&n.
" The Cfihib-i-Tanjih (the master of military account) keeps the former Taliqah
with himself, writes its details on the Farman and seals and signs it. It is then
inspected by the mustanji and is signed and sealed by him. Afterwards the Nfizir and the
Bakhshis do so likewise, when it is sealed by the Divan, his accountant, and the Vakil
of the State." (Blochmann's Translation I, pp. 261-62, Text I, pp. 194, II. 13-14).
la Wa-ghairah i.e., Et cetera or another. This word alto, like the word faqt (only)
referred to above, reminds us of some similarity to our present writings in moiy
matters. Whem there are accounts in more than one name in Banks, etc., in writing
cheques over these accounts, we only write the first name and add after it 'another 'or?
' others .' The same is the case in legal documents.
14 /J*> + Kam Shambah. I will speak below at some length why, contrary
to the usual practice of calling Wednesday, Chahfir Shambah, Jehangir calls it Kam
Shambah.
15 Siyfidat, " dominion, rule, chieftainship."
16 Naq&bat, leader of the people ; magisterial dignity.
17 Dastgah, power, strength, learning.
18 Sadflrat from Sudur chiefs, ministers, from Sadr,a chief, government, a high offi-
cial.
19 Ma'rafat, knowledge, account, means. Ba-ma'rafat through, by means of.
20 Anftyat, favour, solicitude, assistance.
?l Walft Khan. Lord (Khan) of exalted dignity (wltt).
?? Naobat. lit. period. In the Court military language, it also means a " guards
which is relieved."
23 i.e. During the time when the above named officers held their respective posts.
2 Ba nazr guz&shtand. Lit. They passed in waiting.
A FAB-MAN OF EMPEBOE JEHANGIR. 115-
noble and most holy Majesty, Mulla Jamasp and Mullet Hoehang
Parsi of (orfrom) .................. l on the 2nd day of month
Shehrivar year 13, and presented four globlets 3 of the oil of
fulel* His Majesty presented 4 in Court 5 a sum 6 of one hundred
Rupees, and a world-obeyed order, having the lustre 7 of the sun,
was issued, that about one-hundred bigdhs of land (measured>
in Ilahi gaz according to the general practice 8 from the qasba
of Naosari in the Sarkdr of Surat be settled upon the above-
named 9 persons with their children for the purpose of aid of
(their) livelihood. 10 ......................................
In the rasdfah of the humble servant of the Court, Sayicl
Ahmad Qadari, in the Ma'rafat of Nurrud-din Quli; this
(gift) may be entered in the waquah. Another Sharhis (or may
be) entered at that time in the W aqi'ah in the handwriting
of Jumlat-ul-Mulki 11 Madaru-l-mahammi. 12 The marginal
shark in the hand writing of the Waqi'ah-navish is according to
the waqfah. The SMrh in the hand-writftig of the Jumlat-
ul-Mulki Madar-ul-Mahaimni has entered tlie request (in its
record). Another Shark in the elegant hand-writing of Saiyid
Mir Muhammad on day Rashn 18 (of) month Asfandarmaz ilahi
13, corresponding to [Saturday the 16th 1 3 J Rabi'u-1-awwal 1028.
---- reached again (or was repeated in) the dignified curtain of
the Heaven-resembling Court (of the King) and like the order
of fate, was issued as an order. Another sJiarh in the hand-
writing of Jumlat-ul-Mulki Madar-ul-Muhammi. The farman
may be written from Rabi kuel. Only. 11
One hundred bighas of land (measured) by Ilahi gaz.
1 Vide the Text above for the conjectural readings of three illegible words.
2 B&nu, a globlet of rose water.
3 Fulel is " a fragrant oil prepared in India from Jassaraine." Fill Ls* I* "a
species of water lily."
MarhamatfarmudeJi. Lit. having ordered a present. Perhaps, from the want of
a clear distinct style, one may say that the presentation of K. 100 was from the M ullaa.
to His Majesty in the form of tiazar. Uut, on carefully examining the style (<\g.
) , it seems that the gift was from the King to the Mulias.
* Ba Hazur.
6 Mablagh, a sum, ready money.
7 Shu'a' Light, lustre.
8 Zftbita, universal rule, general practice, judicial usage.
9 Mushftr ilaihi, abo vemen tioned, aforesaid.
10 Vide the Note in the Text for this portion which is illegible. It ecems to refer to
the ydd-ddsM or chowki of some officer.
11 It was a title. Here, the officer is named not by his personal name, but I y hi*
title. The Chief Git. the sum total) of the kingdom.
12 This also was a title. Lit. Centre of important affairs i.e., a minister.
13 Vide above, the foot-note of the text for the reading.
l* Vide the foot-note above for this word.
116 > ASIATIC PAPJBE.
IV.
DECIPHERMENT OF THE SEALS AND SOME OTHER SHORT
WRITINGS ON THE FARMiN.
We will now proceed to the decipherment of the seals on
the farman, of the writings accompanying the seals, and of some
other notes on the farman.
The very first thing that draws our attention on holding
1 The Com- ^ ne Farman ^ n our hands is the top- line
mencement of the in the centre, giving the words, Alla'u
Farman with the Akbar. We learn from. Badaoni's Mun-
words " Allah Ak- takhab-ut-Tawarikh, 1 that it was in 983
bar ' Hijri (A.D. 1575-76) that Akbar introduced
this form of salutation. While discussing its question at Court,
one courtier objected to its use, as it had an ambiguous
meaning, because it would mean either "God is Great" or
'*' Akbar is God," but Akbar overruled the objection, saying,
that "no man who felt his weakness would claim Divinity."
He added, that ' k he merely looked to the sound of the words,
and he had never thought that a thing could be carried to
such an extreme."
After the above formula of invocation, we come to the seal,
2. The King's ^ n tne case * Akbar's two Farmans,
eai at the head of the seal was round. King Akbar's and
the Farman. his ancestors' names upto that of Taimur
were given in eight small circles within a large circle. The
circle of Akbar's name was in the centre of the circular
seal. Then, we found the circles of the names of his
ancesters. Timur's name was in the top circle. Then, Miran
Shah's in the circle next to that of Taimur coming down from
the left. Then, the names of Sultan Mahammad Mirza, and Sul-
tan Abdul Sayid. Then, going up on the right from, down below,
the circles bore the names of Mirza Omer Shekh, Budshah Babar
and Badshah Humayun. AH these names except that of Tai-
mur began with ibn ^t i.e., 'the son of.'
Now the seal on Jehangir's Farman under our examination is a
square one, instead of a circular or round one. The photo of the
farman, has not come off well, as one would wish. That was so
also in Akbar's farman. Even, looking to the original farman,
which is placed here on the table for inspection, it is with great
difficulty that you can, with the help of a powerful magnifying
glass, read some names. Now, the King's seal in the present
iarman, though a square, has, if you will carefully see it with
i Lees and Ahmad All's Text, Vol. II, p. 210. Lowe's Translation II, P. 218.
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. 117
a magnifying glass, a large circle within it and the other small
circles are, as in the Akbar's farman, within the circle. Akbar
had to make room for the names of his seven ancestors, upto
Taimur. Jehangir, being the son of Akbar, had to make room
for names of eight ancestors upto Taimur.
(a) As in the case of Akbar's farman, we find Jehangir's
own name in the central smaller circle in the middle of the
larger circle within the square. We read there his name arranged
as follow :
This arrangement gives the whole name as
I am sure of the reading of the upper lines but not so of
the last line containing the word t>i*Mj^
The names of Jehangir's eight ancestors are contained in
the eight small circles round his name.
(b) The circle just over the above central one bearing his
own name contains the name of his furthest eighth ancestor.
The name is not legible, a portion of the paper having been
destroyed, but there can be no doubt, that it contains Taimfir's
name, because, (c) the next lower one on the left contains,
as in Akbar's farmans, the name of Taimtir's son Miran Shah,
We read the name in the following order :
Which gives the whole reading as &
The word &\ (the son of ) occurs as the first word of the lowest
line in every inner circle.
(d) Coming down further on the left, we read the name aa
follows :
This gives ua
118 ASIATIC PAPER.
(e) Then, in the lowest middle circle, we read :
This gives us the name **^t
(f ) Then, in the circle 011 the right of the above, we read :
Tliis gives us the name
<g) Then, in the circle going up on the right, we read :
This gives us the name of Babar as
(h) Then, going further upward, we read :
This gives us Humayun's name as lalj
(i) Lastly, we come to the circle containing Akbar's name.
,A portion of it is destroyed, wherein the missing word seems to
be U,ilj The other words which can be read with some
difficulty make up the reading as :
g U ^ t j
This gives us the name as
Thus, the whole of the King's seal will read as :
i The name is not legible. So, the gap IB filled frotn Akbar'i farmtnt refined to
A FABMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. lift
5.e, Mahmmad Nurud-din Jehangir Badshah Gazi, son
*of Mahmmad Akbar Badshah, son of Humayun Badshah,
^son of Babar Badshah, son of Omar Sheikh Mirza, son of
Sultan Abu Sayid, son of Sultan Mahammad Mirza, son of
Miran Shah, son of Amir Taimyr Saheb-i-Qiran.
As to the position of the King's seal, Abu Fazl says : " The
seal of His Majesty is put above the Tughra lines on the top
of the Farrnan." * (*/ v ( J> ^^ L^OlAn* uT"^ 2 )
We find this rule carried out in our Fannan. We see that
'the seal is on the top and above the Tughra lines.
In King Akbar 's farmana, a horizontal line under his seal
3. The Square said, what the document was. It said,
containing jehan- that it was a farman of Akbar. In Jehan-
gir's Name. gj r > s f arm an under examination, we find
the statement, not in a horizontal line under the seal, but in a
square on the left of the seal. The square has three somewhat
incomplete horizontal lines at well nigh equal distances and
eleven somewhat incomplete vertical lines, two of which form
the right hand and the left hand side limits of the square and the
remaining lines occur in three equi-distant groups, each of three
equi-distant lines. The whole writing reads as " Farman-i-
Abu-1-Muzaffar Nuru-d-din Jehangir Badshah Gazi
I will explain here, how we arrive at this reading : Under
the lowest horizontal line, we read, at first, the word ej^y
(the 2nd vertical line from the right giving us the alif of the
word farman). Then the first vertical line of the square and
first two letters 5* above the lowest horizontal line make
up the word j-*t. Then, the third, fourth and fifth vertical
lines together with the letters on the left of the word v^j*
give us the word jAJa+Ji. Then, the two letters ^ in the small
right hand top corner square, formed by the first (from the
right hand side) two vertical lines and the middle or the second
horizontal line, together with the two letters ** at the end of
this second horizontal line, give us the word, *+&*. Then the
letters jy in the small square formed above and the letter j
in the small square above it and the letter ^ next to j*&*
under the lower horizontal line, together with the letters & in
the small square above the * give us the word i^j^M^jJ.
Then the last letters in the lowest line with the 9th and 10th
1 Ain-i-Akbwi. Blochmann I. p. 264.
2 Text. p. 195, 11. 25-26.
120 ASIATIC PAPER.
vertical lines give us the word ^^^t Then, the letters k in-
the square containing the above letters <^i with the letter a i
the small square above it and the letters & formed by the
uppermost horizontal line ending shortwise with an t alif with
the necessary three nuktas /. above and with the * in the
north- west corner give us the word *^^. Lastly the letters **
formed by the letter above the last letter of J& ( &> and the
Jast left hand vertical line and the letters 453 formed by the letter
3 above and (.5 formed by the lowest horizontal line,
commencing from the left, give us the word 453 l *. All the
diacritical points for the letters are mostly given at the top, and
some, in the body of the square, above some of the letters
themselves.
As to the name itself, the original name of King Jehangir
was Salim ; and it was latterly, that he took the name of Nuru-
d-din Jehangir. We read as follows about the origin of all
these names in his Tuzuk-i-Jehangiri : " Till he (Akbar) was
28 years old, no child of my father had lived, and he was conti-
nually praying for the survival of a son to dervishes and reclu-
ses, by whom spiritual approach to the throne of Allah is obtained .
As the great master, Khwaja Mu'inu-d-din Chishti was the foun-
tain head of most of the saints of India, he considered that in
order to obtain this object he should have recourse to his blessed
threshold, and resolved within himself that if Almighty God
should bestow a son on him he would, by way of complete humi-
lity, go on foot from Agra to his blessed mausoleum, a distance
of 140 kos ...................... At the time when my vener-
ated father was on the outlook for a son, a dervish of the name
of Shaikh Salim, a man of ecstatic condition who had traversed
many of the stages of life, had his abode on a hill near Sikri,
one of the villages of Agra, and the people of that neighbour-
hood had complete trust in him. As my father was very sub-
missive to dervishes, he also visited him. One day, when wait-
ing on him and in a state of distraction, he asked him how many
sons he should have. The Shaikh replied, 'The Giver who
gives without being asked will bestow three sons on you.'
My father said, * I have made a vow that, casting my first son
on the skirt of your favour, I will make your friendship and kind-
ness his protector and preserver.' The Shaikh accepted this
idea, and said, * I congratulate you, and I will give bm\ my own
name.' When my mother came near the time of her delivery*
he (Akbar) sent her to the Shaikh's house that I might be
born there. After my birth they gave me the name of Sultan
Salim, but I never heard my .father, whether in his cups or in
A FAEMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. 12!
bis sober moments, call me Muhammad Salim or Sultan Salim
but always Shaikhti Bdbd When I became
king it occurred to me to change my name because this
resembled that of the Emperor of Rum. An inspiration from
the hidden world brought it into my mind that, in as much
as the business of kings is the controlling of the world, I
should give myself the name of Jahangir (World-seizer) and
make my title of honour (laqab) Nuru-d-din, in asmuch as my
sitting on the throne coincided with the rising and shining on
the earth of the great light (the Sun). I had also heard, in the
days when I was a prince, from Indian sages, that after the
expiration of the reign and life of King Jalalu-d-din Akbar one
named Nuru-d-din would be administrator of the affairs of the
State. Therefore I gave myself the name and appellation of
Niiru-d-din Jahangir Padshah/' 1
On looking to the original farman, which I produce here
4. Peculiarities of f or inspection, we find (a) firstly, that the
(a) a Tte n 'golden s P ace of the above S( * uare on the left of the
colour of the square above seal differs a little from the rest of
on the seal the paper. It is a little yellowish or gold-
(b) and the red coloured; (b) secondly, that some of the
it? tottew. S me V0wel marks of the letters of the writin S
are in red ink. Both these peculiarities are explained by what
Jehangir himself says in his Tuzuk. He says : 2 " Our ances-
tors and forefathers were in the habit of granting jagirs to
every one under proprietory title, and adorned the farmans
for these with the al tamghd seal, which is an impressed seal
made in vermilion (i.e., red ink). I ordered that they should
cover the place for the seal with gold leaf (tMposh) and impress
the seal thereon and I called this the altun tamghd."* We
find here a kind of adaptation of the above order of Jehangir.
The place for the seal is not covered with gold leaf nor is the
seal itself impressed in red ink. But, there is an adaptation.
The seal is there, and some space just on the left of it has gold-
en or yellow colour applied to it, and it is then written over
with the name of Jehangir in a peculiar flourish of style.
Again, instead of the whole being written in red ink, it is the
vowel marks that arc put in red ink.
I Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri, Translated and edited by Rogers and Beveridge, Vol. I, pp. 1-&
* Rogers-Beveridge, Vol. I, p. 23.
" Alia vermilion in Tuzki, and attwn gold. Jahangir means.that he changed th*
name from al tamghd to atom tamghd.
122 ASIATIC PAPER.
On looking to the body of the farman, we find, that the
first two lines are short. This again is
-5. The first two explained by what we read in the llth
short ^ e <<* ain of the Ain-i-Akbari. It says, that in
characters. wnat are called parwdnduis, the lines are
not short ; otherwise, i.e., in farmans proper,
they are short. It says: " Farmans are sometimes written in
Tughra characters ; but the first two lines are not made short.
Such a farman is called parwanchah." This being a farmdn
and not a parwanchah, the first two lines are short.
As to the Tughra characters, Dr. Steingass says in his Per-
sian Dictionary : " The Royal titles, prefixed to letters, dip-
lomat or other public deeds are generally written in a fine orna-
mental hand." We find that our farmdn is written in such a
fine ornamental hand, but the two first lines are made short.
So, this farman is not of the parwanchah type ; but of a proper
Now, we come to the decipherment of the different seals
and writings below the writing of the Sharh-
f i - ta ' li 3 ah on the back side of *he farman.
We find, that the seals, the writings within
and below them, and the other three lines of writing at the bot-
tom of the other side of the farman, are all written in an inverted
position. I have explained this q uestion of inversion in my paper
on Akbar's farman, but 1 may briefly say here, that the Ain-i-
Akbari (Bk. II, Ain 12) gives the reason. It says, that the
seals were put in the order of their folds ( ^/^W ). g o ,
holding the document in our hands in the position in which
it commences, the first fold will present the bottom of the other
side of the document where we find the seals of the principal
officers. The passage of the Ain-i-Akbari on this subject says :
"Farmans, Parwanchas, and Baratas, are made into several
iolds beginning from the bottom." (Blochinann's Text Vol.
I, p. 195, 1. 19. Translation VoL I, p. 263). After this
explanation, I will come to the seals and the writings, given
in an inverted order on the lower half of the back side of
the farmdn.
1. We will first determine the Text and the meaning of the
three lines on the first fold of the farman after turning it over.
"Holding the farman in the usual way, in order to read it from
.the words f-k J*' 1 ** *** , these lines occur at the foot of the
page in an inverted position. These lines take a note of the docu-
ment having been passed in the time (o^i), when Mahznad
Baqr was. the Waqi'ah-naviah. As the writing of these
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. 123
three lines is much damaged, we cannot read well all the lines,
f)ut I give below the words that can be deciphered :
...... 2
3
Portions of these three lines are destroyed. The words of
the first line are much destroyed. The first word is indistinct.
The second seems to be rasakh. The next word is not legible.
"Then the next word seems to be 'dastf (hand). Then theilast word
is rasid (reached) or may be rasand. The word siyd dat pandh va,
niqdbat pandk, which are legible in the second line, are applied
in the text of the Sharh given above, as words of honour to
officers holding the chawki and the resalah. So, the other miss-
ing and illegible words of these two lines seem to contain the
names of the officers named in the Sharh. The first line may
contain the name of the officer in charge of the rascdah and
the second that of the officer in charge of the chowki. The
last line gives the words "naubat waqi'ah-nawis Mahamad
Baqr, i.e., " in the time of the writer of the waqiah Mahmmad
Baqr." This name occurs in the text of the shark taliq'ah.
So, the missing portions may be containing the names, with
ome qualifying adjectives of one or more of the other officers
named in the body of the Shark, viz. Mustafa Khan, Sayid Ahmad
Qadri and Nuruddin Quli. So, as far as they can be deciphered,
the translation of the three lines is something like this :
(The document) came to the hands of ............ (to be
recorded) in the rasalah of .... and (the choki ?)
of ... who is the protector of chiefs and leaders ; and in
the naubat (time) of the waqiah -navis Mohammad Baqr ----
(2) The writing on the first seal on the left of the above
three lines is not legible, though a few letters here and there
can be read. In the illegible writing under it, the figure twenty
-nine can be read. The next word may be jXJt"
(3) The next two seals on the left of the above also are
illegible. The date under the third on the extreme left seems
to be (&*)jj* IT 12 Farwardin.
(4) The wording of the fourth seal below the above three
eals is in the following order
124 ASIATIC PAPER.
This wording when properly arranged can be read as
It means : " Jehangir King, the royal deciple. Issued in
1025." It appears from the date, that the royal seal which was
affixed to the farman was prepared in 1025 i.e. two years before
the date of the farman. As to the word, " murid-'ali," Jehangir
thereby calls himself a disciple or follower of Akbar. In one
of Akbar's farmans, the first farman, Khan Khanan calls him-
self " Murid-i- Akbar Shah." Jehangir, instead of naming his
father, simply refers to him as *ali?
There is some further writing under the seal which is not
quite clear. It seems to bear the name of some officers who
put the seal. It also bears a date. We read words like^
Mcher and the figure re i.e. 25. We read also a word like ***>
Sayid. It may be the name of the officer, Sayid Ahmed Qadri,
referred to in the body of the Sharh.
5. Below these, there are two other seals. They are
mixed up. We decipher under one of them the words ^rt* **
V.
IDENTIFICATION or THE PERSONAGES MENTIONED IN THE
FARMAN.
We will now proceed to identify the various personages
named in the Farman and give some particulars about them.
I give below the names in the order in which we find them in
the Farman.
1. Mulla Jamasp. 5. Nuru-d-din Quii.
2. Mulla Hoshang. 6. Mahmmad Baqr.
3. Mustafa Khan. 7. Saiyid Mir Muhammad.
4. Saiyid Ahmad Kadari.
As we have to speak at some length for the first two per-
sonages, the heroes of the farman, I will first identify the rest.
We learn from Jehangir's Memoirs that Mustafa Khan was a
great Officer of his Court. In the 10th year
Mustafa Khan. of his reign, his mansab was " increased by
500 personal and 200 horse to 2,000 per-
sonal and 260 horse." 1 In the 14th year of his reign he is
represented as submitting offerings to the King 2 . His name is
mentioned with that of Nftru-d-din Quii, who also is mentioned
in our farman. During the 17th year of his reign, he was the
Governor of Thatta, and " had sent, as an offering, a Sh&hnama
i Mtmoirs. Boftn-levertdge I, pp. 280-81. s Ibid H, p. 80*
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. 125
a Khamsa (quintet) of Shaikh Nizaini illustrated by inas-
ters (of painting) along with other presents." 1
Jehangir speaks of the " Sayyids of Barha " as " the brave
. . ones of the age " and as those " who have
Ktd^r ad k eld this P lace (**' comi pand)in every fight
in which they have been. 2 '* They were in the
van in his fight against his son Khusrau. Sayyid Ahmad Kadri
seems to be one of the members of this known family. His
name is mentioned in the Tuzuk with that of Nur-u-d-din
Quli, \\hose name occurs in our farmannexfc to Saiyid Ahmad's.
He seems to have made his name even in Akbar's time. When
Akbar was engaged in beseiging Surat, Saiyid Ahmad, who
is spoken of there as Saiyad Ahmad Khan Barha, defended
Pattan against Ibrahim Husain Mirza's two colleagues in revolt,
-viz. Muhummad Husain Mirza and Shah Mirza. 3
According to the Tuzuk-i- Jehangiri, Niiru-d-din was one
of the great officers of the Court. In the
Xuru-d-din Quli. twelfth year of the reign, he " was honoured
with the mansabj original and increase,
of 3,000 personal and 600 horse." 4 In the
14th year of the reign ? he was the kolwdl, and he is spoken of as
submitting his offering before the King. 5 His name is men-
tioned with that of Mustafa Khan, who also is mentioned in our
farman.
Muhamad Baqr seems to be the Baqr Khan, who, according
to the Tuzuk, was, in the 13th year of the
Muhamad Baqr. reign, Fozdar of Multan 6 and in the 14th
was raised to the mansab of 1,000 personal
and 400 horse. 7 In the same year (the 14th), he was given
an elephant 8 and was honoured with a standard. 9 He had
some influence with the King, and so, had secured pardon
for one Allah-dad, who was in the ill will of the King. 10 In the
16th year, he was in charge of 2,000 personal and 1,000 horse,
which were reviewed by the King who then made him the
Fozdar of Agra. n In the 16th year, he was raised to the mansab
f 2,000 personal and 1,200 horse. 12 In the same year, he was
made the Subah of Oudh. 13 In the 17th year, we find him as the
Fozdar of Oudh. 14 In the 18th year, he took an active part in
Jehangir's war with his son Khusrau. 15
1 Ibid p..232. 2 Tuzuk, Ibid I, p. 64. a Elliot I, pp. 251-32.
The Memoirs of Jehangir by Hogers and Beveridge I, p. 418.
5 Ibid II, p. 80. 6 Memoir's Rogers-Beveridge II, p. 4.
7 Ibid. p. 82. 8 Ibid p. 86.
t Ibid p. 100. 10 Ibid p. 120.
n Ibid p. 199. 12 Ibid p. 210.
'3 Ibid p. 217. " Ibid p. 252.
'15 Ibid p. 254.
126 ASIATIC PAPER.
We learn from the Tuzuk-i- Jehangiri, that he was a favourite
Saiyid Mir * J e h an g ir * He was with the King in his-
Muhammad i>OUT * Gujarat. Once, the King asked
him to demand from him whatever he liked,
and swore on Koran, that he would give it. But the Saiyid
asked only for a Koran. The King presented to him a very
elegant copy of it, writing on it with his own hand, that the gift
was made " on a certain day and in a certain place." In the*
account of this affair, the King thus speaks of this person :
"The Mir is of an exceedingly good disposition, endowed with '
personal nobility and acquired excellencies, of good manner
and approved ways, with a very pleasing face and open fore-
head. I have never seen a man of this country of such a pleas-
ing disposition as the Mir." 1
Now, \ve come to the most, important personages of the
Mulla Jmnasp Farmdn, the donees of the Parman, Mulla
and Jamasp and Mulla Hoshang. They were
HuEluinfc. two O f t k e sever al P a rsees who visited the
court of the Mogul Emperors of Delhi on different occasions. 1
According to the tradition recorded by Khan Bahadur
Bomanji Byramji Pat el (Parsee Prakash, Vol. I, p. 856, n. 3),
on the authority of a note on the back of a document written,
by Dastiir Framji Sorabjec Mehcrji Rana of Naosari (1758-1806 ) r
who was one of the, if not the, most learned Dasturs of the
1 Ibid II, i>.:.{ 4.
2 The Bombay Gazetteer (Vol. IX Part II Gujarat Population pp. 183-254)
thus speak* of these different visitors of the Mogul Court of Delhi. " Of the Paruis wh
visited the Moghal Court the names of eight remain. The first was Meherji Rana (1589.)
The second was Meherji's son Kekonad who about A. D. 1594-95 went to
Delhi The third was Mulla Jamanp a priest of Nawftri who about A.
D. 1619 in return for a present of jasimin oil was given a piece of land named
Ratn&giri near Navnftri by the emperor Jahangir. The fourth was Rustam Manek
who went with the head of the Surat factory to Delhi in 1600. The fifth was Sorabji
Kavasji who was of great service to the English in 1760 when they obtained com-
mand of the Surat castle and the post of Moghal Admiral. He returned to Surat bringing
dresses of honour and a horse to the heads of the English Company at Surat (Despatch
from the Surat Chief in Council to the Bombay President and Council 3rd May 1760 in
Briggs' Cities of Gujarastra). It is said that Sorabji Kfivasji, who had been taught watch-
making by a European, first went to Delhi in 1744 to mend a favourite clock of the
emperor. The emperor, probably Muhammad Shah (A. D. 1719-1748), was so pleased
with Sorabji's skill that he honoured him with the title of Nek Satkhanthat is Lord of the
Lucky Hour, gave liim a lien on the customs revenue in Surat and the rank of a chief of
500 horse and 300 foot. Nek Satkhan was an ancestor of the well known Ardeshir Bahadur
Kotwal of Surat. The sixth was Kavasji Rustamji, third son of the high priest of Udvftda,
who is said to have gone to Delhi as Nek Satkhan's assistant. He was given the title of
Mirzan Khosru Beg and land near Surat which his family, now known as the Mirzan .
family, enjoyed for several years. Mirzan Khosru Beg's skill as a watchmaker descend-
ed to his son Kaioji who was watch -repairer to B&jir&v Peshwa. After BaJirav'sfall(A.D.
1818) Kaioji went to Bhavnagar with a clock of Bajir&v's which the Bhavnagar chief
had brought. In Bhavnagar he made entirely from local materials a large clock for
which a tower was built and which is still (A.D. 1898) in order. Kaioji's descendants
have a high name in Bhavnagar and in KathiawaT generally for their skill as watch-
makers and mechanics. The seventh was Kalabhai SerabjHhe sen-In-law of Nek Sfttkh&n.
He is said to have gone to Delhi to meet his father-in-law and received an estate in
Rftnder in Surat. The eighth was Mancherji Kharshedji Seth, a wealthy merchamt
and well known Dutch broker who some time before A. D. 1784 visited Delhi, It was said)
at the emperor's request, who had heard of the liberality for which he was famons.
(This article is printed in a separate book form by K. N. Survai and B. B. Patelj.
Vide p, 15. n. 2.)
A FABMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. IS?
Meherji Rana family of Naosari, l the original names of these two
persons were Chandji Kamdin and Hoshang Rftnji. Hoshang
was the nephew (brother's son) of Chandji.
There is one statement in the Parsee Prakash, that draws our
special attention. The author, Mr. Bomanji Patel quotes from
the manuscript of the above Dastur, a statement, which says
that the principal person of the Farman, Mulla Jamasp (whose
original name was Chandji Kamdin) had received the
title of Mulla from king Akbar (2US29 iPttfl-IH, ^Hi^
MlSU<| $*2li wTHRM^l ^CllH *HlM&t 6cll). I have found
no other writing to confirm this statement of Dastur Framji
about Mulla Jamasp. But, at the same time, there seema
to be no reason to doubfc that statement. The two Parsees
were the contemporaries of the great Dastur, Dastur
Meherji Rana, who had gone to the Court of Akbar.
We learn from Mahomedan histories like the Muntakhab-ut-
Tavarikh of Badaoni, Tabakat-i-Akbari and from the Dabistain,
that some other Parsees also had gone to the court of Akbar in
the company of Dastur Meherji Kana on the occasion of the
religious discussions. Upto now, we know of the name of only one
Parsee, and that Dastur Meherji Rana. I think, that these two
Parsees, the beneficiaries of our farman, Jamasp and Hoshang,
may possibly be two others of the party, and that when Dastur
Framji refers in the above quotation, to Jamasp (Chandji Kamdin)
having been given the title of Mulla Jamasp, his reference may
be to the time when some Parsees headed by Dastur Meherji
Rana had visited the court of Akbar. It is not said in the above
quotation, why Chandji Kamdin (Jamasp) was given the title of
Mulla Jamasp, but I think, it may be for his presence and some
services in the religious discussions of his Court. The same
must have been the case with Hoshang. Perhaps, one may ask
then, why was not Meherji Rana given the title of Mulla. The
answer is easy. He was already more than a Mulla. Being th
son of a learned father and being a member of a learned family,
he already held a high position in his town. So, he required no
titular special recognition but was given land at Naosari.
If that is so, we can understand the fact, that the two Parsees,
who had been at Akbar's Court and who were honoured by th
king, having heard of the arrival of Akbar's son Jehangir at
Ahmedabad, a few days' journey from Naosari, went there to
pay their homage to the sovereign, whose father had given them
material and literary hospitality at his court and had honoured
them. While paying their homage, they carried as wazar or
present some attar (perfume) which was well known then as oner
i P. Prakash I, pp. 106-7.
128 ASIATIC PAPER.
of the best products of their land. Their presence may have
drawn the attention of Jehangir to the fact of their presence
at the court of his father. This fact and the additional
fact of their having taken the trouble all the way from
Naosari to Ahmedabad, to pay their homage to him and that
with the nazar of an article like attar which was always very
acceptable to him, may have induced Jehangir to present them
with land near their own town. I am not in a position to speak
with any confidence on the subject of their visit to the Court of
Akbar, but since a learned Dastur of a later time is said to have
mentioned the fact, I beg to submit the above view of their
possibly being members of Dastur Meherji Rana's party, for
further consideration and inquiry.
I give below the ascending and descending lines of ancestors
and heirs of Mulla Jamasp (Chandji) and Moola Hoshang.
They are prepared from "The Geneology of the Parsi Priests." 1
Out of these two lines, there may arise some doubts about the
authenticity of the topmost names in the geneology in the ascen-
ding line, but none in the case of the descending line (the
farzanddn of the Farman) as it is based on recent more
authentic firhasts or records of descent kept at Naosari, the head-
quarters of the Parsi priesthood and on the ndmgrahan of the
Dordi family which comes down from one of Mulla Jamasp's heirs.
Mulla Jamasp's Line of Ascent up to Jarthost Mobad.
JARTHOST MOBAD.
I
Kamdin.
!
Mobad.
I
Kamdin.
i
Kana.
!
Chandna.
i
Anna.
I
Pahlun.
Wacha.
Kamdin.
i ** The Geneology of the Parsi Priests " by Ervad Rustomii Jamaspji Dastoor
Meherjirana, issued for private circulation only by the liberality of Austa Naoros
Ervad M. Parveez, with an introduction by Sir George Birdwood, pp. 15 et seq.
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR.
Mulla Jamasp's Line of descent.
KAMDIN
Chandji. Ranji. Faridun.
(Mulla) Jamasp | |
of the farman. (Mulla) Hoshang, (Desai) Behram,
| of the farman. (D. 1622).
Burjorji.
Sorabji.
(Known as Hafiz).
Dorabji (Dordi).
Khorshed.
Nowroji.
Sdulji.
Edulj
(Father-in-law
of the well-known
Desai Khurshedji
Temulji of Navsari).
Bacha.
Hamajiar. Mehernoshji.
(Died 21st
March 1742).
Framroz.
Behrani. Nowroji. Maneck.
Framji. Khdrshed. Kausji.
Hormazji.
Pallanji.
Minochehrji.
Khurshedji,
Nowroji.
Dadabhoy. Behramji. Manockji. Dadabhoy.
Ardeshir.
Nowroji. j
Rustomji. Edalji. Jehangir.
130 ASIATIC PAPERS.
We see that .in the case of the neph -jw Hoshang Banji
Their names and the title or honorific name was applied
title as given in the before his own name Hoshang, but in the
Farman. case of the uncle Chandji Kamdin his
original name Chandji was changed to Jamasp. Among Parsee
names, Chandji is a Hindoo name, derived from Chdnd, i.e.,
moon. Mr. Behramji Dordi the owner of the documents while
.sending me this Chak-nameh, in his Letter dated 3rd November
1909, wrote
i.e. " The names in the original Farman are Mull a Jamasp
and Hoshang. But this personage's original name is Chandji
Kamdin. That being a Hindu name, it is changed to the above
name." The Mogul Emperors had a liking for Iranian names
of ancient Persia. So, it seems, that King Jehangir, while
conferring the farman upon the Parsee to express his apprecia-
tion, changed his Hindu name Chandji to an old Parsee name
Jamasp. In the case of the nephew, there was no reason to
change it, as his name, Hoshang, was an old Iranian name. We
find from Jehangir 'sTuzuk, that, at times, he conferred altogether
.new titled names upon persons whom he wanted to honour. For
example, Jehangir Quli Beg, a Turkoman, was dignified with
the title of Jan-Si par Khan- 1 Shamsu-d-din Khan received
the name and title of Jehangir Quli Khan. 2 Murtaza Khan
of Deccan got the new name and title of Warzish Khan. We find
a number of such examples. So, it is quite possible, that
Jehangir, while giving the farman for a gift of lands changed
the Hindu name to a true old Persian name.
As to the title, Mulla these two persons were priests and
perhaps Jehangir was led to give it to them on account of their
being priests or members of the priestly family.
I may say here a few words on some of the descendants
History of their of Mulla Jamasp, the first of the two
Descendants. beneficiaries of the farman.
1. His grandson Sorabji was, for his good knowledge of
Persian, known at Naosari as Hafiz, i.e., gifted with a good
memory.
2. His great great grandson Behramji Mehernoshji was the
founder of the Naosari family known as the Dordi family. Mr.
i Tuzuk, Bogers-B veridge I, p. 396. Ibid I, P. 144.
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANG1B. 131
Sorabji Muncherji Desai thus explains the surname: 1 "Once
A number of friends went on a picnic. Behramji had agreed
to be one of them. But he went a little late, and, approaching
the place where the party was sitting, tried to conceal himself.
Thereupon, one of the party, noticing him said : " l*Ml it^l
*Ptt!lMl aicii fc^iai? . "Why do you twist yourself
here and there like a rope (dordi)." Heuce, he and his family
began to be known by that surname. Not only that, but the
surname began to be applied to all the descending branches of
his grandfather, one of which was that of the late Mr. Dadabhoy
Nowroji. Mr. Dadabhoy thus referred to this surname in his
lecture on 13th March 1861 before the Liverpool Phil-Harmonic
Society. " My name is Dadabhai, which is the name given to
me on my birth. My father's name is Nowroji given to him in
the same way. My surname or family name is Dordi
and in any important documents I may sign Dadabhoy Now-
roji Dordi."
3 . Mehernoshj i , the third in descent from Mulla Jama sp, was
a known Mobed and a leading Parsee of Naosari. He died on
31st March 1742 (roz 11, inah 6, 1111 Yazd.) (a) As a lead-
ing Mobed, he was one of the signatories to the letter from the
Naosari priests, dated roz 22, mah 11, 1090 Yazd. (3rd Sep-
tember 1721), in reply to a letter of inquiry from the Surat
Parsees, whether a paddn (mouth-cover) should or should not be
put over a dead body before disposal. He, with other Naosari
priests, gave the opinion that mouth-cover should be put on- 2
(ft) He was one of the addressees in a letter of agreement, dated
roz 26, wok 3, savant 1791 (18th January 1735), written by the
Naosari laity to the clergy, saying, that they agreed to act accord-
ing to the decision of the ten Hindu arbitrators residing at Surat,
Naosari, Gandevi, etc., to whom Rao Shri Gangaji Gaikwad
ihad referred the matter of dispute among them, viz., which of
the two divisions of priests, the Bhagarias or the Minocherhomjis
may perform the religious services at the houses of the laity. 3
(c) He was a signatory, as a leading Mobed, of a memorial, sent
by the Naosari priests in 1736, to Nawab Tegbeg Khan of Surat.
The frequent inroads of some Pindaris in Naosari had driven
some of the clergy and laity of the town to Surat, where they had
settled. 4 The Surat clergy thereupon had claimed the right
of officiating in the houses of these new-comers. The Naosari
i Vide his article entitled " Parsee Surnames and Names " -.. ^. %- * - - .
"*W nl in the Zoroautrian Calendar of the late Mr. Muncherji Jagoah, of the year
1200 Yaidatardi (1890 A.D.). * P. PnkfthB I p. 28. For the discwwion of this qiuw
4ion among the Panees. vide Mr. B. B. Patera Paper in the K. A. Cama Memorial
Whune, 8. /Wrf.p.31. 4 J6Wp. 858.
132 ASIATIC PAPERS.
priests opposed this claim. The claim was examined by Maho-
medan Judges in consultation with some leading Hindus and
Parsees of Surat and decided in favour of the Naosari priests.
The Surat priests occasionally disregarded this decision. So,
in the above memorial, the Naosari priests prayed, that a proper
writing or parvanah may be sent to them, embodying the above
decision properly attested. Such a proper writing was sent
to the Naosari priests. It had as witnesses or confirmatories*
the signatures of about 41 Hindus in addition to those of about
22 Parsees.
4. Coming to the last but one generation of this line of
descent, we find, that the brothers Behramji, Maneckji, and
Dadabhoy Gursetji Dordi had a helping hand in the founding
of the Meherjirana Library at Naosari. They presented a
number of books to form a nucleus of the library and one of them
Behramji was one of the mem hers of the first managing commit -
tee and its local Honorary Secretary from 1874 to 1878.
5. The late Mr. Dadabhoy Nowroji, the Grand Old Man of
India, was the sixth in descent from this Mehernoshji. Our
genealogical tree shows him as coming down from Bacha, the
eldest son of Mehernoshji. The late Mr. Behramji Cursetji
Dordi, referred to above, who had kindly placed at my disposal
the original farman for a photo for Mr. Irvine, came down from
Nowroji, the third son of this Mehernoshji. I am thankful to
the three sons of this Mr. Byramji, and especially to Dr. Jehan-
gir B. Dordi, F.R.Cj-S., for kindly placing again at my disposal
for my present study, the original farman, and for giving me
some particulars about the family.
VI.
EXPLANATION ABOUT A FEW PARTICULARS OF THE FARMAN.
Having spoken at some length on several points relating
to the order observed in the Farman itself, I will now
speak of several facts referred to in the body of the
farmdn.
In one place, in the Farman, there is the mention of a week
i.Jehangir'sname dav > Wednesday. The usual Persian
fop Wednesday. name for Wednesday is Chahar Shamba,
i.e., the fourth Shamba, Shamba /****
means a day. Saturday, which is the day after Juina (Friday),
the sacred day of the week, is simply called Shamba, i.e., the*
d*y* Sunday, the next day, is called Yak-shamba, ".&, the-
first day after the Shamba. Monday is called
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. 13$
and so on. Similarly, Wednesday is the Chahar (fourth) Shamba.
Now, our Farman speaks of a week day as Kam-shamba s***ff
Were it not for the Tuzuk (Memoirs) of Jehangir, one would
be at a lo$s to say, what that day is. 1 x^f* Kam-shamba
was the name given by Jehangir to Wednesday. The reason
as given in the Tuzuk is this : on the llth day of Khurdad
month, of the llth year of his reign, when Jehangir was at
Ajmere, there died his grand-daughter, 2 daughter of Shah Khur-
ram (afterwards Shah Jehan) of small-pox. The day was Wed-
nesday, the 29th of Junxadiu-l-awval 1025 Hijri "(15th June
1616). Jehangir was much grieved at her death, because
she was the first child of the prince. Hence, he directed,
that Wednesday, the day of the week on which the death
took place, may be called Kam-ehamba. The translator of the
Tuzuk, Mr. Rogers, seems to think that the word may be Gum-
sham ba, i.e., the day on which the grand-daughter was lost
(gum). 3 In our Farman, the word is ^and not ff. So the
word is Kam-Shamba i.e., the less (fortunate) or unfortunate
day*
We have another instance of how Jehangir, according to
Jhis fancy, changed the proper name of a week day. During the
12th year of his reign, Jehangir named Thursday, which is the
fifth shamba, Mubarak (i.e., auspicious) shamba. Thursday the
26th corresponding with the 14th of Shaban, which is the Shab-
i-barat was first named Mubarak shamba. Jehangir thus gives
the reasons : " On this day of Thursday, several special things
had happened. One was that it was the day of my accession to the
throne ; secondly, it was the Shab-i-barat; thirdly, it was the day
of the rdklii, which has already been described, and with the
Hindus is a special day. On account of these three peices of
good fortune I called the day the Mubarak- shamba t
Wednesday, in the same way that Mubarak- shamba had been
fortunate one for me, had fallen out exactly the opposite. On
this account I gave this evil day the name of Kam-shamba, in
order that this day might always fail from the world (lessen)." 4
In his Tuzuk, Jehangir continues to name Wednesdays and Thurs-
days as Kam-shamba and Mub&rak-shamba, e.g., he uses this
.name in his account of his hunting expedition in Gujarat in
i Munani Nasir Alikhaii's copy of the farmSn and a Cinjarati translation of
the farmftn given to me by the family have misread the word and taken it to lie
Y**haiftba i.0., Sunday.
* According to Beveridge, her name w Chittni Begun, which name may be Cha*
jmani Begum, i.e., verdant or garden-like Begum (Memoir* 1, p, 3i't), n. 6).
Memoirs I, p. 327.
The Tyxufc-1-JehMQgiri by Kqfere smA Bef eri4f> I >P- 366.
134 ASIATIC PAPERS.
the 12th year of his reign. 1 Further on, we find that he ceases
using these auspicious and inauspicious names. 2
We have an instance of Jehangir never naming even hi&
son whom he disliked. He says about his son Khurram, (after-
wards Shah Jehan) who had turned disloyal to him*: " I pro-
ceeded to punish that one of dark fortune, and ghve an order
that henceforth they should call him Bi-daulat (wretch). Wher-
ever in this record of fortune, ' Bi-daulat ' is mentioned it will
refer to him. 3 " We find that thereafter he always speaks
of Khurram as Bi-daulat.
The family tradition, current among the descendants of
2. The place of pre- the Mullas, says that they went to
sentatioii of the Delhi and p resen ted the atar there. The
ofator r latc Khan Bahadur Bomanji Byramji Patel
thus recorded the tradition in his Parsi Prakash, 4 while speak-
ing of the death of Mehernosh Darab, the fourth in descent from
Mulla Jamasp :
tl. *. ivie>
Ml S "^ Sl
t cl -iWi^ >3<l tttf 2lll^ -i^l^ 4VHIMI
i.e.," His great grandfather, A. (i.e., Andhiaruor priest) Ghandji
Kamdin and one of his nephews, Andhiaru Hoshang Ranji, had
gone in 1619 to Delhi in the court of Sh&h Jehangir ; and it
appears from a document that they submitted to the king as an
offering ( nazar) a jar of the atar of daisies. His Majesty thereupon
being pleased gave them a hereditary grant of 100 bigahs of
land in the qasbd (town) of Naosari. And it is (further) said
that after returning from the Court of Delhi, he was known by
the name of Mulla Jamasp at Naosari. The late Dastur Fram ji
Sohrabji Meherjirana of Naosari has thus written about this
(matter) on the back of a document. ' Ghandji Kamdin wa
given the title of Mulla Jamasp by king Akbar."
PP.404. 406, .413. t, IHd II. pp. 153, 163, 167. Tuzuk II, p. 248.
* Vol. I, p. 856. a. 3.
A FARMAN OF EMFEBOB JEHANGHt. 135-
The dastdvej (i.e., the document), referred to by Mr. Patel,
seems to be our farman under examination, and it corrects Mr.
Patel in the following matters which he heard as mentioned in
the family tradition.
1. Firstly, Mulla Jamasp had not gone to Delhi. T he-
presentation was not at Delhi.
2. The proper date of the event is 1618 and not 1019,
though the latter is the year in which a note of the*
fannin was taken in one oi the court records.
3. The presentation from the Mulla was that of 4 gob-
lets of the atar of Jessamine and not of one jar
of the atar of daisy.
The most important correction is that in the matter of
the place of presentation. It was not Delhi but was Ahmed a -
bad. What we learn from the different dates mentioned in the
body of the Farman and in its postscript, etc., is this :
(1) The two Parsees saw King Jehangir with some bottles
of atar on the 2nd roz Bahman of Shehrivar (the 6th Parsee
Month) in the 13th year of his reign. The 13th year of Jehan-
gir 's reign (which also was the new year's day, Roz 1 Farwar-
din) began on " Wednesday, the 23rd Rabi 'u-1-awwal, 1027
(March 10, 1618)." 1 So, the event of the interview happened
on 15th August 1618 (New style).
(2) In appreciation of the present, acceptable to His Majesty,
the Mullas were presented with a sum. of Rs. 100 and land about
100 bigahs in area. The farman of this gift was issued on
the llth (i.e., roz Khorshed) of the same month Shehrivar, i.e.*
9 days after the presentation of the itar (atar). This corre-
sponds with the 12th of Ramzan, 2 24th of August 1618.
(3) A note of the Emperor's gift was taken in the Yddddsht
and a -written farman was issued on the 13th day roz Tir of the
month Adar, the 9th month of the Parsee Calendar, i.e., 3 months
and 2 days after the issue of the Royal Fannan orally. This
date then comes to the 24th of November 1618.
(4) Then a note of the issue of the Royal Farman was made
in the records of Sayid Mir Mahmad on roz Rashne (18th day)
of month Aspandarmaz, the 12th month of the Parsee year.
This then was the 27th of February 1619.
From these dates we see, that the presentation of the atar
and the issue of the farmdn took place in the month of Shehrivar
of the 13th year of Jehangir's reign, i.e., in August 1618. Now
i Date calculated from the Memoirs of Jehangir by Bogerc-Beveridge, II, p. I.
t From Ibid, p. 8U
JL36 ASIATIC PAPEKS.
we learn from the Tuzuk of Jehangir, that on the 21st of Far-
wardin, the first month, Jehangir turned with his army towirds
Ahifcedabad. 1 On 23rd Farwardin, he was at Jalod and on the
29th on the bank of the Mahi. He left Mahi on the 1st of Ar-
dibehesht and on the 7th of the same month entered Ahmeda-
bad. In his account of the events of the month of Khurdad, he
condemns Ahmedabad as " a spot devoid of the favour of God." 2
He condemns its air, soil and water. He gives bad names to Ahmed -
abad, such as Samumistan, i.e., the place of the simoom, Bima-
ristan, i.e., the place of sickness, and Jahannamabad, i.e., the sea,t
of hell. He continued to remain at Ahmedabad in the months of
Tir and Amardad. He had grand illuminations, at the Kankaria
tank there, on the occasion of the holiday of the Shab-i-Barat.
We further read, that on the 1st of Shehrivar, he was still at
Ahmedabad. His advance camp left Ahmedabad for Agra on
the 7th of Shehrivar, 3 corresponding to 19th August 1618. 4
An auspicious hour was named by astrologers and astronomers
for the march of the King's and his men's camp. He was to
start on the 21st of Shehrivar (22 Ramzan 1027=2nd Septem-
ber 1618). 5 Thus, on the 2nd day of Shehrivar (the 14th of
August 1618), when the Mullas presented themselves before the
Emperor with their nazar of the four goblets of the atar of
jessamine, the emperor was at Ahmedabad.
We find from the itinerary as given in the Tuzuk that
the royal march was very slow. As Jehangir himself says :
" From Ahmedabad to Ujain is a distance of Oil kos (19fi
miles). It was traversed in 28 marches and forty-one halts
that is in two months and nine days." This comes to less than
3 miles per day. After he arrived at Ujain on 1st of Adar
he stopped there long. On the 2nd of the next month Deh
he arrived at the fort of Ranthambur. He then says :
" The astrologers and astronomers chose the day of Mu-
barak shamba (Thursday), the 28th of the Divine month of Dai,
in my thirteenth year, corresponding with the last day of the
Muharram in the Hijri year 1028 (January 7, 1619), as the proper
time at which to enter the capital of Agra. At this time, again,
it appeared from the reports of the loyal, that the disease of the
plague was prevalent in Agra, so that daily about 100 people,
more or less, were dying of it. Under the armpits, or in the
groin, or below the throat, buboes formed, and they died. This
is the third year that it has raged in the cold weather, and dis-
appeared in the commencement of the hot season. It is a
Btnu&ge thing that in these three years the infection has spread
p. & 2 Iftid. p. IS.
. 25. Calculated toon Ibid, p. 27 iiote. 5 Ibid, p. 2* note.
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHAKGIR.
137
to all the towns and villages in the neighbourhood of Agra, while
there has been no trace of it in Fathpur. It has come as far
as Amanabad, which is 2 kos from Fathpfir, and the people
-of that place (Amanabad) have forsaken their homes and
gone to other villages. There being no choice, and consider-
ing the observance of caution necessary, it was decided that
at this propitious hour, the victorious army should enter the
inhabited part of Fathpur in all joy and auspiciousness, and after
:the sickness and scarcity had subsided and another auspicious
ihour had been chosen, I should enter the capital, please the
Almighty and most holy Allah." 1
He stayed at Fathpur for more than three months. Then
iurthcr on we read : " On Sunday the 1st Urdibihisht, at
:the auspicious hour chosen by astrologers and astronomers,
I mounted a special elephant of the name of Dilir, and in
all prosperity and happiness entered the City." 2 Then,
from Agra he went to Kashmir. From all the above,
we find that for all the dates found in the Farman, the last of
which was in Asfandarmaz, the king was not at all at Delhi.
On the date of the issue of the Farman, the llth of Sherivar
.(23rd of August 1618) he was at Ahmedabad.
Thus, we see that the family tradition, that the Mullas
Avent to Delhi to see the Emperor is not correct, though it is
correct to say that they went to the Delhi Darbar or the King's
Darbar. The Emperor's Darbar is said to be at the place wher-
ever he be for the time being, just as we now speak of the Bom-
bay Government to be at Bombay, Poona or Mahableshwar,
wherever the Governor in Council may be for the time being.
The following table gives the dates of the different events
referred to in the Farman.
Events.
Ilahi date of the
13th year of Jehongir's
reign, i. e., 1027 Hijri
1618 A. D.
Hijri date.
Christian
date.
1. J e h a n g i r*s
-arrival at Ahmedabad.
2. TheMulla'a
interview with Jehan-
gir.
3. The date on
which the Farman for
the grant of 100 bigaha
^was given by Jehangir.
Roz 7th Amerdad,
mah 2nd, Ardibehesht.
Roz 2 Bahman,
mah 6 Shehrivar.
Roz 11 Khorshed
mah 6 Shehrivar.
15th Aug.
1018.
24th Aug.
idia. fe
Tuzuk, Vol. II, pp. 60-00.
2 Ibid, p. 8*.
138
ASIATIC PAPERS.
4. The date, on
Boz 13 Tir, mah
Wednes-
24th Nov.
which the farman was
Adar.
day, the
1618.
noted in the Records
16th Z i 1
of the Chowki, the
Hajja 1027.
Resateh, Waqiah,etc.
5. The date of
Koz IS Rashna, mah
21 Rabi-ul
Friday,
noting the farman in
12 Asfandarmad.
Auwal 1023.
27th Feb.
the records of Saiyid
1619.
Mir Mahomed.
Now, a question may arise, why Jehangir should have
presented to the two Parsees Us. 100
3. Why such a large and 100 bigahs of land for four goblets
Re ?f f fo f r four (mil) of the afar (tiar). Of course, we
gODiets 01 amr. ^^ tfaat rftm much dependg> u ' the
whims or fancies of kings. They may pay fancy prices for
insignificant things or niggardly miserable prices for rare costly
things. But, in this case, I think, there were special reasons,
why the King should be very favourable towards the Parsees.
The reasons seem to be the following :
(a) The fact of Jehangir's personal appreciation far
perfumes.
(6) The fact, of the perfume coming from the hands of
persons at Naosari, which was much famed for
its perfumes.
(c) The fact that the two Parsees belonged to the priestly
class, and were men of some position.
I will speak of these three i^oints in order.
Firstly, we learn from Jehangir's Tuzuk, that he greatly
appreciated fragrant oils, and, at one time r
he rewarded his own mother-in-law for dis-
eovmng fragrant otto of roses He des'
cubes that event yi the account of the 9th
year of his reign. Once he had very large
pomegranates brought by merchants from
Yezd, and melons brought from Kariz. They
weie so extraordinarily good in comparison with those he usu-
ally had pomegranates from Kabul and melons from Badakh-
shan that he thought as if he " had never had a pomegranate
or a melon before." He then regretted that his revered father
Akbar, who was fond of fruits, had not the opportunity of en-
joying such good fruits in his time. The fruits reminded him
of the afar of roses, and he similarly regretted that his father
(a) Jehangir's
a present in appro
ciation.
A FAB-MAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. 139
had not also the advantage of enjoying the most fragrant oil
discovered in his time. He then thus describes the discovery and
the reward that he gave for it : "I have the same regret for the
Jahangiri 'itr (so called otto of roses), that his nostrils were not
gratified with such essences. This itr is a discovery which
was made during my reign through the efforts of the mother of
Nur-Jehan Begam. When she was making rose-water, a scum
formed on the surface of the dishes into which the hot rose-
water was poured from the jugs. She collected the scum little
by little ; when much rose-water was obtained a sensible por-
tion of the scum was collected. It is of such strength in per-
fume that if one drop be rubbed on the palm of the hand, it
scents a whole assembly, and it appears as if many red rose buds
had bloomed at once. There is no other scent of equal excel-
lence to it. It restores hearts that have gone and brings back
withered souls. In reward for that invention, I presented a string
of pearls to the inventress. Salima Sultan Begam (may the
lights of God be on her tomb) was present, and she gave this
oil the name of ' dr-i-Jehangiri." 1
Another reason, why Jehangir should have so generously
rewarded the two Parsees for presenting
the P erfume > seems to * that they
were from Naosari ; and so, the perfume
must have been the product of that town which was well-known
for its excellent perfumery. In a reference to Naosari, in the
Ain-i-Akbari, we read Abul Fazl saying that "they manu-
facture fragrant perfumes there, the like of which is produced
nowhere else." 2
Jehangir may have perhaps presented Mulla Jamasp and
(c) Regard for the ^ulla Hoshang with cash in addition to land
priestly class. because they belonged to the priestly class of
a community for whose ancient ancestry and
religion his father had a great regard. We find some cases of
such double presentation in Jehangir's Tuzuk. For example,
he presented Maulana Muhammad Amin, a faqir with 1,000
bighas of land and 1,000 rupees in cash. 3
i The Tuzuk-1-Jehangiri by Rogers Beveridge I, pp. 270- 271.
* Blochmann's Text, Vol. I, p. 408, column 1, 1. 13. Col. Jarrett'a Translation, Vol.
II, p. 257. From my casual visits of Naosari, I think that the people of Naosari, *\c a
now, are very fond of flowers and that the soil of the town produces fragrant flowers.
While passing through its Bazar (chowtt) one sees, that compared to the population
of the town there te a very large number of flower-shops, which reveal their presence to*
the passers-by by the fragrance of the flowers. Mr. Bana of Naosari has won many
prizes for perfumery in several Indian Exhibitions.
a Tniuk-Bogers-Bcveridge I, p, 135.
140 ASIATIC PAPERS.
VII*
THE PLACE AND SITUATION OF THE LAND GIVEN TO THE MULLAS.
Now, let us examine, in what part of the Naosari district
was the land, granted to the two Parsis, situated. We saw, that
thefarmdn speaks of chak bastan, 1 i.e., of settling the boundaries
of the land given by the Emperor. It seems, that the rule of the
Mogul Emperors was, that tne donee went with thefarmdn given
by the Emperor to the particular district named in the farmdn
and presented it to the governor or other officers of the district.
They, then gave the proposed area of available land in their
district. The officers, selecting the land, described it in, what
is called a chak-nameh. All the land granted by the Emperor
cannot always be available in one place. So, they described in
the chak-nameh where the different pieces of land which made
up the area granted were situated, and what the boundaries of
the pieces were. In the case of thefarmdn in favour of the two
Parsees, we have a chaknameh of this kind in the hands of the
Dordi family, a branch of one of the original donees. It is
dated 1031 Hijri. So, it took about four years after the date
of the f arman for the authorities of the Surat Sarkar to find
out the land for the Parsis and settle its details.
I beg to give the text and translation of the chak-nameh,
which I think will be found very interesting, as it gives one an
idea of the old way of describing the boundaries which was
not much different from our present method. It is also interest-
ing from another point of view, viz.^ that the Revenue Officers
of the Moguls had, in spite of the comparative richness of the
Persian language, to use many Gujarat! words in describing the
boundaries. I am supplied with the original chak-nameh, a sub-
sequent copy, and an old Gujarati translation of it . I am surprised
to find that the copy differs from the original in an important part
of it, viz., the details of tha boundaries . The text of the preliminary
portion, which relates what the document is, is well nigh the
same with the difference of a word here and there. I think,
the copyist had before him also the original f arman. So, when
copying the chak-nameh, he put in some additional words,
which he found in the f arman itself, but which were not put in
the chak-nameh) perhaps because they were thought not very.
1 1 have explained the word chals above. The word has several cognate rneaBtam.
One of its m*"fog in " the written and signed sentence of a judge or magistrate." The
ladian words chftkado (sl&l) for " decision " andchftkawu (fcq^) for" to settle*
pa^ off " are connected with this word. It also meant title-deeds, bonds, notes.
' "
U.' In the matter of land, the technical word which goes with it as a verb is ,
.., " to bind." So, eta* toutan means * to draw out the boundaries of the land and give
its description in detail/ The document that does this, is spoken of as ehak-nAmth.
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. 141
important. As to the difference in the description of the details,,
they are not very important, but the copyist perhaps was
asked to give what was subsequently thought to be a more exact
description of the boundaries of the different pieces.
The copy bears a name, perhaps of its owner, in Gujarati
as <*u. Mi. "^Rl i.e.* B. P. Dordi. It bears on the left hand
corner of the top some words which look like ^j" ut/*
Quran Sharif, i.e., the holy Quran. It omits the word <^
given at the top of the original chak-nameh. The Gujarati
translation has followed not the original chak-narneh, but the
copy.
Before giving the text and the translation, I will describe
the process of the description of the boundaries, so that the
reader may easily follow the contents of the chak-nameh.
It was generally the practice of the Mogul times that when
land was granted as a favour, one -fourth of it formed good
ground which was already cultivated, and three-fourths uncul-
tivated land, which is technically spoken of in the document-
as ufladeh *otit i.e., "fallen," the corresponding Gujarati
wordf or which, as used even now, is pa'lat ( ^ 6 <1 ), i.e., land that
had fallen or remained uncultivated. According to the above
division, the details of the land as given in the chak-nameh, are
divided into two parts. Firstly, the details of the one-fourth
cultivated land (zamin-mazrua) are given and then those of the
uncultivated or fallen land. The cultivated land was not in
one contiguous plot. Some of it was in a place known as the
garden (bagh) of Bauji, which, as the chak-nameh is not written
all along with proper dots (nukteh) on the letters, may be read
variously. The name may be read as Makuji or Naluji or in
several other ways. But I read it as Bauji, because in the old
Gujarati translation, it is so read. So, it is possible, that the
old translation perhaps gave the name as it had come down
to the times of the translator from one lip to another. Again
the name Bawaji is even now heard at Naosari as the name of
some persons. For example, there was upto a few years ago,
a known learned Parsee Desai, known as Bawabhai Desai. The
rest of the cultivated land, was in the garden of Batnagar. This
word also can be read variously. But there is no doubt about
its reading, because the name still continues as Batan wadi or
Batnagar wadi. It is situated on our way to Kachiawady on
the bank of the Puma river at Naosari. I had the pleasure of
going to this part of % Naosari several times in some of piy
morning walks during my occasional visits to Naosari., ..... ,
142 ASIATIC PAPERS.
The boundaries of these two pieces in the above two bdghs
or gardens are described in two rows in the document, the
Bawji's garden land on the right hand and the Ratnagar land
on the left. The order followed in the description of the
boundaries is East, West, South and North.
Tjie uncultivated (uftadeh) land consisted of seven
different pieces as follows :
1 . In the land known as that of the garden of Ratnagar.
2. In Pddar i reh i.e., the pddar of the road. 1
, 3. The piece of land in Tigreh 2 on the bank of the river
(nodi).
4. Another piece of land at Tigreh.
5. A piece of land named as Goleh *^
From the details of the boundary of this piece, it seems that it
was near Tigreh.
tf . A piece of land known as Loki. It was near Tigreh.
7. A piece of land at Italweh. 3
The above nine pieces two of good cultivated land and
seven of uncultivated ( ufladeh \s><\ ) land made up the 100
bigahs as follows :
The garden of Bawji had 22| bigahs.
The Ratnagar garden had 2J bigahs.
These two made up the one-fourth good cultivated land
measuring 25 bigdhs.
i The word is used even now at Naosari and in other villages of Gujarat as
3|l*Ml MI& 8 &1U ui padarfi* * on the outskirt of the village or town. We do
not find this word in Persian dictionaries, but it may be pd dar j lj i.e., " the foot in."
We have the phrase V^O J ^ ^ (lit. foot in the stirrup), used when one is just about to
Hide. So, in connection with towns or villages, the word* pfi dar ' may mean, ground
just on the border of the town, whence you step into the town. Here, by ' pi dar i reh/
is meant, perhaps the land just on the road.
2 There is even now a village of the name of Tigrab about two miles from Naosari
and about a mile on the louth-east of the Mehta Parsee Lying-in Hospital. A road from
the *outh of the Jail, leads to it (vide my paper on the poet Bhajo Bhagat in my Dnyta
Prasarak Essays Fart IV). A large tract of land over and above the present village
then bore the name of Tigreh.
Italwun is a village about 3 to 4 miles from Naosarf. At present, the main road
to Gandevi from Naoaari pawses through this village. H iw larger than Tlfreh. '
A FABMAN OF EMPEEOB JEHANGIR. 143
Then the above seven pieces contained 76 bigdhs&s follows:
1. 16 J. A plot of ground in the land known as Ratnagar
2. 2. A plot on the pddar of the road.
3. 2J. A plot at Tigreh on the bank of the nadi (river).
4. 7. Another plot of Tigreh.
5. 7. Plot known as Goleh.
6. 27i. Plot known as Loki.
7. 12J. Plot at Italweh.
Total 75.
Now, I give the text of the chak-nameh. It is difficult
to decipher correctly all the words, especially the proper names
of the places, as the usual dots or nulctelis are not generally given.
So, in reading these and the figures about the bigahs, I am
helped by the Gujarati translation. There is also a copy of this
chak-nameh on very thin paper in two leaves. In rare cases,
this copy helps us to determine a word here and there. The
second leaf of this copy contains the boundaries of the last few
pieces.
(The Text of the Chak-nameh)
i
S \ AJJ I
1 This form of invocation to God, introduced by A klmr, over which there was a good
deal of discussion among his courtiers (vide above) is written in different styles or
shapes. In this chak-nameh, it is written as above. In the farmftn itself it is written
In another shape.
* The word M^la, as written here, varies from what is written in the farman Itself
where it is written A* wuWA, which means "a schoolmaster, a doctor, a learned wan,
judge, a priest " (Steingass). When written Jjj* Maula, as written in this chak-namab,
In the copy of the chak-n&meh is the proper form. So, I have followed it in my transla-
tion. The copy omits th(s word before the name of Hoshang .
In the copy, of the chak-nameh, the word is (jp \y*
* Mnstatftb, gracious.
In the copy, we have an additional word Irefore this, viz. t{ j* I>t+Jj\&* i.e., the
centre of affairs.
6 In the copy, we find these additional words after this word:
.., the protector of the ministry, the wealth of dominion, Mir Saiyid Ahmad
9 Wartrat, the dignity of the Minister.
144 ASIATIC PAPERS.
8* IS! /.-ft^ ,! j OJ^j jjl>* /*** c^J /J' JsJ U ;$
^ J-
3
A
C J
The word as given in tht- cluik-ii&mah, is x* wherein all the letter^
are not given their proper nukfahs. But the word seems to be Tanguz, the 12th or the
last month of the Turks (vide the Chronology of Albruni by Dr. Sachan, p. 83).
2 Shi'ftri, customary, habitual.
The copy of this document omits this word.
* The copy has the word as *fJ I j {***
5 rlha a king, prince, emperor. I am doubtful about the reading of this word.
6 The copy has after the word b 6*1 t and jd**/^ i.e., "with the seal of the sadr.
As it Is a copy, it means to say, that the original has the seals of the proper authorities.
7 The copy of the chak-nftmah gives between the two words, two additional wordb
ris., p 4 j *Jli c., (The piece is) "in the garden" of Bauji. We find the word bftgh in the
case of the other piece in the garden Ratn&gir,
8 I do not understand the word which is written without the nuktahs. It seem.-
to be the proper name of a neighbour's land.
9 The copy gives, instead of the Vfoi&muttasil (contiguous adjacent). s<Q* ^ *u. The
whole will then read ^5^ f*!/H C5J^ '"*^r P^ ** ^ lu tlle B* rdeu oi &**
hith-kiftri of Behramji. Hftth-kiiri is Gujarati, meaning, the rice-neld(^l^l^j), which
can be only ploughed by hand (gl^)* where bullocks cannot work.
10 This and the following word are local Gujarat! words, now spo can as '^l<T/<t
t*t l^J khftjan khiri, i.e., excavated land and salt water bed. When one exaggerates a
matter, a Gujarat! proverb says. ^Sft ^li<JV-i ^l^l ilfcf Ucft *l^
i.e., he is not restricted by any excavated ground or outlet of water. The copy gives
for the whole line only the words /^j^ ^ b&g kharieh ( ^iltQ^l HIH )
U Sar a'&m, i.e., public side. Tneae words, used in the cast of
another boundary, are^U jl which seem to be more appropriate, efi" ShAr'aa
is high road. The words mean 'public road .' We use in co lioouial Gujaratl *l^**U M
t.c M public road. The copy gives for this line f^jW j jj&3& ( \\rt \
) whichare explained above.
A FABMAN OF BMPEBOB JE HANG IB. 145
jf Mj fc fikS (2)
(Now follow the description of the seven pieces (qataa's
of the uncultivated ground. It runs as follows : )
U*"
* U 8
1 The name, as ordinarily spoken, is ^^ XJl^ Chandjiand notChandjiv. The
copy gives it as such.
2 Bahmanji, son of Behrftm. The copy gives the name as:
Bchram Andhiru ( M^^l>i ^'Hl^ ) *-, Behrim, the priest.
3 The copy gives this boundary as ^U *j^ i.e. public road. The Malik Yusuf
named here, is one of the signatories of the document as will be seen below :
4 The copy gives this boundary *BJ^J** ... u;^ ^t.. the large garden
ref . . . .Minocbfthar. The illegible word before Minochehar may be Desftl or Adhtrn.
5 The copy gives jS U3j b j,j gla5
6 The copy gives as boundary simply the word *J li i e . a steam. The copy all
along omits the first word mwttan/, i.e., adjoining.
7 The copy adds the name of the person to whom the d&baharith belonged, and says
**-> uU* ^b ^J^Jl^ i.e., the d&baharieh of the garden of Malik Yusuf.
DdtaJkaricA is the local Gujarati word for the ground where nothing useful grows, bat only
xank grass of the lowest kind.
B The copy has *ltf j **\j* * 'j the road of carriage and ox. The word
+*Uad for ox is Gujarati ( H&t4 ).
9 A Gujaraticised form ( CtfcUlil ) from Pers. v^ tilth, pond.
10 This seems to be the name of the pond. Or, perhaps, it may be a word for the Kara
madi ( H*Ul ) berrie - The copy has. instead of this line, <JJJ*3 <.,, i.e., the
jnoith of the snail pond ( (t^tl^^Q )
10
146 ASIATIC PAPERS.
i J( uJ ^ s yt*3 k? (3)
4.
5.
JU3 xoJ
1 The copy gives the boundary of the south asjj^l ^l^ 8^-f ^^t.e., th
hut (GujaraO 5PIM? ) of Behrtm, the priest; and that of the north. ae^j^^jW-*^
/So U |^?t4jM i.e., the tree of the date palm ( ^taj^Q ) of Somji Mtnkeh. Th
Gu jarati rendering gives the name as ?ll >1O Ml-Usl. The boundaries differ, but the
text of the copy and the Gujarat! rendering help us to read the proper name at Somji
Mankt.
2 Gujarat! &*\\ or &IM|.
The copy has, instead of /$ the word jb ptr, i.e., the edf.
4 The copy has this boundary as ^OJ V T **&&j!* jjf> 9 &\ ^j/t- ^**^JJ
.e.. the field of Behrftm Adhftru, near tue watfr of the river. Th original givet
the nama of the owner, as Bahmanjiv (Bahmanji), who, as seen above, was the som
of Behram)ee.
> r > Tiie copy has \s^*[ft* &J+t* ^ .., the garden of lemon (lahamn
rflc)of Bebramjee.
The copy gives this boundary CU* \y^ ^ cJS^ vS*A. j ^ i. f , t the trees, field
and cultivation.
7 The copy is torn off at this portion.
8 It may be read simply as ^**jj Hirji.
9 The name Bamanji (v) is quite clear in the original, but the copy, in its bad
thitosta style, gives a form, which can be read both as Bahmanji or *
Kahmuhi. So, the Gujarat! rendering baa given the boundary as
This is evidently a mistake.
I The copy gives the nameas jj r t f^f"? and the boundaries are inter*
changed, {. e^ what is the southern in the one H the northern in the other and rice vrrto.
II 1 am guided in reading this name by the Gujarat! version, which gives the name at -
A FABMAN OF EMPEROR JEHAKGIR.
& 6.
j I j
rr A
. llfc * that WWch (mfi)l8 In (ff) ' WIth the P^ceding word, this meant
vltei. * at WWch (mfi)l8 In (ff) ' WIth the P^ceding word, this mean
vital . to the contents (of this document)." 2 Doubtful : this signature is not clear
The copy gives this name as <H^> y (TV .
* The copy gives only seven names of the witnesses. One of these is 3m n
*? ^IPH. This shows that the *\\ in the original is an attonvf.
DUUl (G * rd * X We ^^ that Ih8ie i8 a w ell.k
" oflrdfi fanui3r - 8o P088ibly thu 8lBn
The copy gives among the seven, one name as
M -
the copy, which U not legible. It may be *>i for Brvad.
148 ASIATIC PAPBES.
(TRANSLATION OP THE CHAK-NAMEH.)
GOD IS GREAT.
CHAK-NAMEH.
"The Chak-namehfor the land (given)for thehelp of the liveli-
hood of Mulla Jamasp and Mulla Hoshang, Parsee, with their
children. Whereas, according to the respected and worthy to be
obeyed Jehangiri Farman, and (according to) the Parwancheh
of the gracious Nawab, the leader of the country, 1 the sup-
porter of the state, 1 and of the Nawab, the protector of the
Waz&rat , Sif kh&n, and (according to) the s register with the seal of
Mirza Mahmad Qasim, about 100 bigahs of land have been
measured with the ilahi gaz, according to the usual practice, viz.,
one part of the cultivated land of ryots 4 and three parts of the
Uncultivated (land) fit for cultivation, from the rural district
of the town of Naosari, in the Sarkar of Surat, in the fasal of
Kharif Tunguz El 6 (month) year 1031, (and Whereas)
the customary servants of the rule of Mirza Muzaffar
Hasin and Khwaja 7 Lalchand Diwan and the Deeahis and the
revenue-officers 8 and the ryotaand the cultivators have, on date
8th Jamadu-1-sani 1033, measured in details as given below
and settled the limits (chak), separated the four boundaries
and prepared assignments, (the land) has been entrusted
to the above said persons ; so that no body else may
enter into the land and be troublesome ; so that the above said
persons having the land in their own charge and possession, may,
with peace of mind, spending the income of the said land, remain
engaged in saying prayers for the perpetual good fortune of His
Majesty for the perpetuity of his long rule.
100 bighas of land (measured) by Ilahi gaz.
I Cultivated land tilled by ryots. Bigah **
Two pieces. ,<>!
1 The piece (in the garden of) Bauji. 23 J
EAST. Adjoining .... and the field of K&mdin . . .
WEST. Adjoining the kidri 9 of Behramji.
SOUTH. Adjoining the Ichdjan and khdri. 11
I Thii and the next words are titles. Lit. the turn total of the country.
> Lit. Support of State.
Ta'llqa a schedule, a register.
Raiyat, ryot, tenant of the soil.
5 Lit. fallen MMfcl M4fl.
6 Vide above, the footnote in the Text.
i It is an honorific title.
Muqaddam a superior officer of the revenue in a village (cf. Gujarat! )*rlt>t
9 If^Ml^fl " A rice field surrounded with and confined by ridges or embankments ;
*ed of garden watered and planted with flowers."
10 Khanjar a small ditch. ( v*tf | v^o/^ ).
II Perhaps from Gujarat! khMi.
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANOIB.
NOBTH Adjoining public road and a salt ditch (Rhdrio
l^l).
The piece of the Ratnagar Garden. Bigahs 2J.
EAST. Adjoining the kidri of Ch&ndji Patel.
WEST. Adjoining the field of Bahmanji, son of Behram.
SOTTTH. Adjoining the Dfcbhriyeh of Malik Yusuf .
NOBTH. The well of Chandji(v) Patel.
II The uncultivated land fit for cultivation. 75
1. The piece of the Batnagar (Garden). 16
EAST. Adjoining the Kiari of Chfindji Patel.
WEST. Adjoining the field of Bahmanji the son of Behram.
SOUTH. Adjoining the Dabhariyeh. 1
NOBTH. Adjoining the well of Chandji Patel.
2. The piece on the out skirt 2 of the road. Bigahs 2J.
EAST. Adjoining the public road.
WEST. Adjoining the small 3 pond of karamdd.
SOUTH. Adjoining the date 4 trees of Somji Manka.
NOBTH. Adjoining the well and the hut 6 of Bahmanji.
3. The piece of land at Tigrah on the edge of the water of
the river. 6 2J.
EAST. Adjoining the cultivation of Bahmanji.
WEST. Adjoining the well and the lemon-garden 7 of
Bahmanji.
SOUTH. Adjoining the Khari of Tigrah. 8
NOBTH. Adjoining the field of Narsang Meherji.
4. (Another) piece at Tigrah according to the sharh 7J.
EAST. Adjoining the field of Narsang Meherji.
WEST. Adjoining the mangoe-trees of Bahmanji.
1 A place, wherein, grows dfibhdo <cl(Hil a kind of rough grass. It is spoken
of as "ll<M^"d*bhadiyftn,justasa place where grass ( Ml*| ) grows is called
m^\j (ghasyftn). Mr. Sorabji Muncherji Desai of Naosari informs me, in reply to my
inquiry, that there still exists a vazifah at K&chiawadi ( ^ 1^*41 41^1 ) which is
known as dabhariyun. ( tICHH )- I* is about 23 bigahs in area and is the property
of Mr. Pardunji Desai. It is the dfibhtriyeh, referred to in this document.
2 PAdar. The word seems to mean Lit. "the foot in ;" i.c., the place, whence the
next step leads you to a place. For example, we speak of the p&dar of a village
), *.., the place whence the next step takes you to the village itself .
* Talftvri, a Gujarat! word for a small pond.
* Khajuri, a Gujarat! word for date-tree.
5 ChApreh, a Gujarat! word for a hut.
Kadi, Gujarat! word for a river.
7 LehmuD, Lemon,
8 For the village of Tigrfth, vide an account of my visit of it in my paper on
" *il*Mieii^i fc'fl 5ul
=tiiH^rfl 'cffl <n *m.
FraMcak EBMVB, Put IV, p. 142).
150 ASIATIC PAPEBS.
SOUTH. Adjoining the lemon-garden of Bahmanji.
NOBTH. Adjoining the KhAri of Tigrab.
5. The piece of Guleh. 7
EAST. Adjoining the land of It&lweh ^hich is within the
limit of the three trees of Indian dates.
WEST. Adjoining the land of the Koli 1 and the well of
the Guleh.
SOUTH. Adjoining the Mart of Tigrah.
NORTH. Adjoining the kftari of the village of Basoli from
the rule (anial pi. of * amal,' tracts, rule, country) of the
parganah of Tilari.
6. The piece L6ki. 27J
EAST. Adjoining the well of the Kolis.
WEST. Adjoining the land of Kamdin, the physician.*
SOUTH. Adjoining Tigrah.
NORTH. Adjoining the khdri of the village of Basoli.
7. The piece at Italweh.
EAST. Adjoining the land of the Tchdriyeh.
WEST. Adjoining the limit of the Kulieh.
SOUTH. Adjoining the khdri of Tigrah and Kahr . . . leh 8
NORTH. Adjoining the land 4
(Then follow as mentioned below the signatures of some
well-known men of the town, certifying, that, as said above,
the boundaries have been settled. The first two signatures
are in Persian characters and the rest in Gujarati. They put
down their signatures under the following statement):
The above mentioned described pieces according to their
boundaries, are given after being all entered into chak-bandi.
These few words of the Chaknamch are written and given by
way of proof so that in case of necessity in court, they may
serve as a proof. Written on .... 9th of the month
Jum&du'l s&ni year 1033. 6
1 Tho Kolis form a caste in Gujarat.
2 After this paper wa? read and by the time it parses through the PrefS, Prof.
8. H. Hodivalft, Principal arid Professor of History at Bjhauddin college, bat pub*
liahed an excellent book, entitled " Studies in Parti History," wherein (pp. 1-491-88)
he speaks of a 1'trsi physician Meher Vaid (born about 1&20 A. C), whose ancestors and
descendants practi ed medicine at Naosart. One of the descendants was Qiam Talib.
A document belonging to his property has a date of about 1085 A. H. (j62fiA ('.)
I think that the Kamuin Tabib of our document of about 1023-24 A. C., id the Qlara
Tabib of the above document. We Know that the name Kamdin is a form of Qiftmu-
d-din.
The letters of the word have no nukteh. So, it is difficult to read them. They
seem to form the name of a place. The word may be gadhftr-ba-nftleh, i.0., the cart road
in the water-course ( *ll6tHU *ltf ), < it may be gahr-naleh, i.e., a covered outlet
for water ( 3R-1iq ).
I do not understand the word. If we take it, that a stroke over the first letter
has been omitted by mistake by the writer, it may be gttulyeh I Hl%< ), ***.t
place where only grass grows.
5 i. e., A. D. 1628-24.
A FARM AW OF JBMPEBOB JEHANGR. 151
Witness to the contents. Shaikhji son of Shaikh Ahmad,
Witness Malik Yusuf, son of Malik Habib.
1. Hari. Witness according to the schedule. 1
1. Bhoodhar Suj Kal;y,an. Witness according to what
is written (above).
1. Bahman Behram. Witness according to the chak
in Persian.
1. Ch&ndji Sheheryar. Witness.
1. Chandji Ashdin. Witness.
1. Manock Nagoj. Witness according to what is written.
Sohrab Behram. Witness.
Gopal Syamdas. Witness according to what is written.
Writer, Mathuran Rai. Witness 1031 ?
Mehernosh Ferdunji. Witness.
Sohrab Kaka. Witness.
Daji Manka. Witness.
1. Narayan Kinda La. Witnesc,
1. 6a. Rustom Mehirji. Witness.
(the signator es on the right hand margin arp)
1. Mehernosh Kekbad Dcshai. This chaknameh is cor-
rect according to the writing. Witness to the contents Shaik
Mahamud son of Shaik Mansur. Witness to the contents Khan
Mahamud son of Abd-ul-Karim An^ayari."
In all, there are 19 signatures uf which four are in Persian
characters and 15 in Gujarati. Of the 19 signatories, four are Ma-
homedans, 6 are Hindus and 9 Parsers. The Hindu and Parses
signatures are all preceded by the Gujarati numeral figure
for one. This seems to be the general custom in Gujarati,
to affirm perhaps, that what they state is truth and truth alone,
as enjoined by God who is one.
Some of the signatories seem to be respectable known
citizens of Naosari at that time. We have authority to say so,
at least for the Parsees. The first Parsee signatory Bahman
Behram was Bahman ji Behramji Desai who died in 1655
A.D. 2 He had acquired great influence at the Mogul Court
and held large ja jirs He was the son of a well known
Desai, Desai Behram Faredun. 3
Sohrab Kaka was one of the signatories of a document
dated roz 5, mah 1, year 1033 tfazdazardi (1683 A.D.)
wherein the laymen of Naosari agree among themselves, that
they may engage any priests they like for the religious services
in their families, and not necessarJy those who come to office
in turn according to their sacerdotal arrangement. 4
1 Doubtful. Tae la*t part may be read H6t<l|. Here the word pat may b*
Gujarat! Md meaning a schedule, list.
2 Pawee Praka^h 1, p. 14. 3 Ibid p. 111. 4 Ibid p, 844,
152 ' ASIATIC PAPERS.
As to the last signatory, who signs as Ga.Rustam Mehrjv
we saw above, that the word Ga ( '(I ) seems to be an abbre-
viation for Gaida. The Gard& family is a well-known family
of Naosari at present. Now there remain, the seals on the-
Chak-nameh to be deciphered.
The first topmost seal reads 1 ^^sJI^ Ail! J^j ^jA ^U*
aUlcU> i. e> Abdulhusan Fazulalla, the servant of the orders
of the Prophet.
On the next seal the first topmost word is not clear.
The next word gives the name t*n j&* ^^AX* i. e. 9
Sayid Husin Muzaffar 1031. This and the next seals above
them bear the words ** *&j? d*> i- e., the copy is taken. So
these are the seals of Government officers.
The third seal reads : **+ ^ &* *** cW *j*JI i.e., ser-
vant L&lchand, the son of 2 Aurchand.
The fourth seal is not clear. Some words seem to read
^-AjAJLM Alia Nasir. We read the The name Nasir in the
writing onitsleft. It is A*U^AJ atwJl JSf^^a-tU &)+#>+* LA*iy t
i.e., formed according to the purport of these lines. The
humblest of servants, 3 Nasir Mahmad.
vrn.
APPENDIX.
As an appendix to the paper, I give the text and transla-
tion of some old documents, referring, not to the whole land,
but to 18 high as, which, latterly, came to the share of Meher-
nosh, the third in descent from Mulla Jamasp. The documents
are of some antiquarian interest, as they show some old methods
of describing boundaries, proving one's rights over any land,
passing receipts, etc., and as giving some idea of other cognate
matters.
We learnt from the Farm&n, that 100 Bighas of land were
presented jointly to Mulla Jamasp and his nephew Mulla
Hoshang. So, possibly they themselves, latterly in their life-
time, or their heirs after their death, divided the land, and each,
or the descendants of each, got. 50 Bigh&s. It appears from a
Chak-nameh in the name of Mehernosh, the third in descent
from Mulla Jamasp, that, after some divisions, there came
to his share about 18 Bigh&s of land. I give below the chak
nameh of this share of the land.
1 The reading of the last part of fcthe name is doubtful. The last word of the.
seal also is not legible.
2 The first part of the name is not clear;
8 ' AqalT (i.e., the least of) ' ibid (a servant).
A FARXAN OF BMPEEOE JE HANGER.
First Document. Chak-nameh of 18 Bighas of land thai
came to the share of Mehernoush.
13
C*^
14
1 This word stands for /JJt. I am told, that even now, Mahomedans write thii form
on the top of their letter.
2 In the original, the first four letters &U. of the word form the first line run-
ning over well-nigh the whole breadth of the paper and the last two letters ** appear
as if they were joined with the letters <-*^ of the word V^l In the next line.
* The word c?*J which occurs in the first chak-ntmeh, given abore, of Moil*
Jamasp, is here omitted and taken as understood.
This word is written here as in the original farmin and the cop j of the first chak-
nameh, and not as Vy ai in the original of the first chak-nameh. Vide above p. 141.
* The last letter y P is omitted. We find such eliminations in some ancient
Parsi names. For example; the name Tehmurasp (Avesta Takhma urupa) has becom*
Tehmuras, which, in its turn, latterly became Tehmur (Tenant, Taimur), which again
has been changed into Tehmul, in which form we see it in the modern Parsi name Temulji.
In this chak-nameh, we find only the name of Mulla Jamasp and not of Mnlla Hoshang
because it refers only to 18 bigahs of land which came in division and sub-divisions to one
of the descendants of the third generation of Mulla Jamasp.
6 Here, after this word, the name Emperor Jehangir, which is mentioned in the first
Chak-nameh is omitted and taken as understood and a little space Is kept blank.
7 In the first chak-nameh, the word is
ghafr; pardoning.
A title. Here the personage is spoken of by his title and not by his name, just
as we say* " the Prime Minister, the Chancellor," etc.
10 Lit. The prop or support (i'tam&d) of the State.
11 Marhfim, the late. As Sifkhan was dead by the time of this second chak-nameh
he is spoken of as ' the late."
12 The word ' which generally follows in such documents of the Mogul times
IB not found here. Instead of that, a small space as could contain the word is kept
vacant. Perhaps this is meant to signify, that the word is too revered to be often repeated.
! Aima, ayimxna "Land given as a reward or favour by the king at a very low rent,
A fief (when no rent is paid the land is called g \j*> H JA khar&j, Allodial) ; Charity
lands." (Steingass). or it may be for t* s* one hundred.
IA The words " Khfeei jama " outside (i.e., free of) the assessment (Jam*) are not
ound in the first chak-nameh.
15 AshJAr trees.
1C Masaff (from *-&* rank, order) ranked in. The words' 'ranked in the Suba (pro-
Tince) of Ahmedabad" are not found in the first chak-nameh and the original farmin.
80, it seems, that it was latterly, after the 17th year of Jehangir's reign, when the first
chak-nameh was made, that Surat was properly placed in the Suba-ship of AbmedabadL
154 SASIATIC PAPERS.
J 5 ir AlJ
1 Jl^J I
~J A
J 1,4-SJ I ^ J f i-y^^ t
J ^1 gk
3! y ^ ^fatjl^^ ^ ir*
TRANSLATION.
GOD ( ALLAH).
Ghak-nameh for the assistance of the livelihood of
Mehernoush (one) of the children of Mulla Jamas Parsi
and his (Mehernousl/s) children. According to the farmdn,
1 mansftb, constituted, appointed, substituted.
2 rif'at, exalted, noble.
ma' ale, eminences, high places, sublime matters.
4 majmu'ad&r " a record-keeper ; one who checks or audit* the account of reven
collector* in each district."
5 bitwa, the twentieth part of an acre of land q^|. In reading the flgorea, I am
helped by a Gujarat! translation of the chak-nimeh.
ttdi upto, towards.
A FARMAlf OF KMPEBOB JEHANGIR. 155
of His Majesty, worthy to be obeyed, 1 and according to the
parwdneh of the protector (or giver) of pardons, the gracious 2
Nawftb Jumlatu-1-Mulki 3 ratim&duJ-Daulat and Nawab Wa-
zarat-panah the late Sifkhan,* 18 bigdhs of land (measured)
by gaz (-i ilahi), from the total free land of the said Mulla Jamas,
according 5 to the Deed of Partition of the said Mehernoush,
(and ) according to the usual practice, (viz) one share, (i.e., one-
fourth) in the cultivated land of the ryots and three shares in the
uncultivated land tree of assessment and fit for cultivation,
together with all trees, from the suburbs of the district of Naosari
in the sarkar of Surat (which is) ranked in the subah of
Ahmcdabad, in the season of kharif tahd 6 Icoel in the year
1125 fasdli. have been entrusted by Haji Bashir, the Mansub,
(i e. the appointed officer) of the exhalted and the most
eminent 7 Mirza Mahmad Zaman and by the Desais 8 and
Majmudars^ and Re venue -offic:rs and ryots and cultivators,
alter measuring (the land) according to the details in the
postscript, (i.e., the following details) and settling the Chak, to
the above-named (Mehernoush), so that, no one may be au
intruder and be troublesome in the said land, and the above-
said 10 peraon may, bringing the land under his hold and
possession (and) spending the produce of the said land with
peace of mind, for perpetuity be engaged in praying for tht
constant good fortune (of the King).
The pieces of 18 bigahs.
The First piece, bigahs 9, biswa 11 12.
Length 12 from the East to the West, 61 sticks.
Breadth 13 from the South to the North 62 sticks.
(Boundaries.)
The East adjoining a public thoroughfare and the field 14
of Gokal Birah.i'
i W a ;ibu-l-Iz'?an. * Mustat4b.
* Tuts and the next three word? form titles.
We And the nam? of this officer iu the first Chak-nameh of Mulla Jamaip and
Mulla Hodhung.
* (3^ cleaving to, joined to.
<* Alb.niiii's li.nt of T irxlah m^ntlr, doai not give this name. He gave Kuy as
the n.iiue oi tha -th month and Taghuk AH fiat of tli-s lota month. Perhaps the nama
Tat A Kiul of our Utia^-iiamah is the Taghuk o.' Ali.lrnnl (Chronology p. 83 1
' Lit. protactor of eminent persons. If we read the first word as ^3 '** m'ate
<Gujrati Hp^-fl ), it may nuan protector of spiritual matters, i.e., learned theologian
8 DoHfly-n. 9 Majmu'adftr.
10 Mumi, above-mentioned and ilait above-named. Afumi ilai, above laid.
1 1 t f~'! The 20th part of an acre.
it i5")jb Length. i* vJ**-^ Breadth.
* Oi^ AD Indian word for fielded. 15
156 ASIATIC PAPEBS.
The West adjoining the second piece, the property of
said Mehernoush.
The South, adjoining (the property of) Gokal Birah and
the dabharyeh 1 of Malek Sharif .
The North. The boundary of this piece is towards the
South, leaving 22 sticks from the old well of Ch&ndji Patel.
The Second piece, big&hs 8, biswa 8.
Length from the East to the West 56 sticks. 2
Breadth from the South to the North 60 sticks.
(Boundaries.)
East. Adjoining the first piece of Mehernoush, the said'
landholder.
West. (It is) Adjoining the public thoroughfare.
South. The Dabhariyeh of Malik Sharif.
North. Public thoroughfare. 3
Written on date 14th of the great month Sha'aban of the
year 7 of the ezhalted Accession.
(Here follow four signatures, three of Parsees and one of a.
Hindu who calls himself Majmudar.)
Desai Manock Homjee. Signed.
Desai Darab Bustamji. Signed.
Tehmul Rustam Witness.
Mehta Baghnathdass Vandavandass Majmudar. What
is written here is correct."
The Parsee signatories of the document were known persons
of the time.
Desai Manock Homji. He came to his Desai-ship in 1701
on the death of his father Homejibhai Temulji. He died in
1730. His son Jivanji 4 Manock ji also had become famous
at Naosari.
Desai Darab Bustamji also was a known personage of his
times. 6
Desai Tehmulji Bustamji (died 1728). He held from the
Delhi Emperor the ckodhrai* of Naosari and Parchol. In 1714,
he had purchased from the above Desai Darab Bustamji his
share of Desai-ship. It is said, that, as the people of Naosari
were tired of the misrule of the officers of the Mogul Emperor,
he tried to bring Subed&r Pilaji Gaikwad, who ruled at Songad,
* A Gujarat! word. Field of course grass. Vide above.
Modem Gujarat! Jjlfl.
* The modern Gujarat! ^|ifl^Hl>i ( ^| ) is JDft^l *Hl*i. The Gujarat!
phrase Strfl^HW $Ud & comes from these Persian words, meaning it is very false,
the intensity of the falsehood being as great as the width of a public thornghiare.
* Parsee Prakash I, pp. 28-50. 5 Ibid pp. 28 and 28.
Cfctfkri was a kind of high police office.
A VABMAN OF EMPEEOB JEHANGIR. 157
to power at Naosari in 1720. The Nawab of Surat, thereupon
took him and his family prisoners. Pil&ji Rao Gaikwad releas-
ed them from their prison and gave them high powers under
.him. 1
The Chak nameh bears four seals at the top. The inscrip-
tion on the first big seal on the left runs as follows :
i.e., Rafiu-d-din Usmani, the servant of the religion of
Mahomad confirms. 2 1127? From a copy of this chak-
nameh referred to below, it appears that this personage was
the Qazi of Naosari at that time.
The second small square seal, a little above, and on the
right of the first, bears the name <j^*j *+t* Mahmad Zaman.
He is the officer named above in the chak-nameh.
The third small round seal, below the second and on the
'right of it, reads jfy *oux/l i.e. servant Bashir. He also
is mentioned above in the chak-nameh. He was a subordinate
of Mahamad Zaman. It bears a date which seems to be 1123.
The fourth seal on the extreme right seems to give the
reading as " Mian Miran," 3
This chak-nameh of 18 bigahs is spoken of on the last
fold from below in th? first original as (&**) ^j ,* lj&^
i.e. The Chak-n&meh in the matter of the land in the
district of Chovisi in the matter of the land of Ratnagar
in the name of Mehernosh.
.(a) I produce another Persian document for inspection. It is
only a copy of the above-given original Chak-
Two copies of the nameh of Meher-noush. It is an authenticated,
what we may now caU, a certified copy.
It bears the seal of the person who gave the
copy. The seal reads ^^ CJ^JU* ...... ts~ f*^
*.c., the servant of Religion ........ 4 Jamalu-d-din
Usmani. Under the seal of this person, we read the words
JUl
i.e., copy according to the original.
As it is a copy, we find the following writing, somewhat
similar to that of the original, added at the commencement to
how t that it is a copy of the original Chak-nameh.
1 Paitae Ptaktth I, p. 27.
z & Shad, confirming. * The word is not quite legible.
The word U not legible. It may be
ASIATIC PAPERS.
JfL, ^.jU 3! v *
i.e., copy of the Chak-nameh with the seal of Kazi R;.fiu-d-din
and of exalted and most eminent 1 Mirza Mahmad Zaman
and Haji Bashir and with the name of Desai from the Agreement
of the 14th of the great month Sh'aban, year 7 of the
exalted accession of the King; viz.,
We read on the back of the last fold from Jbhe bottom
the following title: aifc-li^, ^^ $, n<w\^^ Ml \i*Q
(b) I produce for inspection another copy of the same Chak
nameh, which is a copy taken from the second copy. It is a
certified copy of the preceding copy of the Chak-n&meh. It
gives the wording of the seal of the above copy with additional
words, written in a vertical line on the left, as <J& <JJ tja * cW
.e.,a copy according to a copy. Then, there is the seal of the
certifying officer on the top, on the left of the above writing.*
Its lines run as follows :
These words, when properly arranged, read
If vn ^U
i.e., The servant of the noble religion, K&zi Fazlu-d-dm Oosmani
1286.
In the very beginning of the text of this copy of th*
chak-n&meh, we have the following writing, showing, that it is
a copy from a copy.
i.e. copy of the Chak-n&meh with the seal of Kazi Rafiu-d-din
and of exalted and most eminent Mirza Mahmad Zaman
and Haji Bashir and with the name of Desai from the agree-
ment of the 14th of the great month Sha'aban, year 7 of the
exalted accession of the King, viz.
1 If read Ma'fini-panfih, it would mean Protector of spiritual matters, i.e., Theolo-
gian.
* It bears the following title on its last fold from the bottom.
cfl. \{ 3
A FABMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANQHU
156
We find, from this Chak-nameh, that all the 18 big&hs
of this chak-n&meh were in the land known as Ratn&gar
Bag or Ratn&gar vazifeh (now known as Ratnagar wddi). It is
near the land now known as KachiH-wadi ( Jji^r-u J) ), which
is considered to be one of the fertile parts of the district of
Naosari. As it is situated near the Purna river on which Naosari
stands, the land is occasionally renewed and fertilized by the
new soil brought by the inundations of the river. The Ghovisi
village which gives its name to the whole district is about 2
miles from this place. The land of Tigreh, referred to in the first
Chak-nameh of Mulla Jamasp, adjoins Chovisi district.
The Batnagar bdg land is first referred to in the boundaries
of the nine pieces that made up 100 bigahs of the land granted
by Jehangir. Both, a part of the cultivated land (25 bigahs)
aad a part of the uncultivated or fallen (uftadeh) land (75
bigahs), were included in this Ratnagar bdg land. The follow-
ing diagrams give us a bird's eye-view of the boundaries of the
two pieces (vide the chak-n&meh above) 1
The piece of 2 bigahs in the cultivated good ground of
Ratnagar Bdg.
N.
The Well of Chaudji Pfltel.
I
Cd
The Dahbarieh of Malik
Yusuf.
S.
1 Choviil is the name of a district still known by that
aame now is about two miles from the land in question, w]
f the members of the Dordl family who have descended froff M<
tat
ASIATIC PAPERS.
The piece of 16J bigabs in the fallen or uncultivated
( ufttdeh M4<t ) ground of the Ratnagar Bdg.
N.
The Well of CMndji Patel.
W
The Dahbarieh.
8.
The details of the boundaries show that both the pieces,
one in the fertile or cultivated ground and the other in the
fallen or uncultivated ground, stood adjoining each other.
So, the boundaries of the whole ground of the Ratnagar
bdgm&y be represented by the same above diagrams.
It seems from the details of the chak-n&xneh now under
consideration, that Mehernosh got as his share, well nigh the
whole of the above referred to land of the Ratn&gar garden.
The following diagram based on the details of the chak-n&meh
gives us a bird's eye-view of Mehernosh's land. This diagram
is not supposed to be a very exact plan. The chak-nftmeh
describes it in two pieces, the length of one of which is shorter
than the breadth. As described in the chak-n&meh, the length
runs from East to West. So, I give the diagram in two parts,
marked I and II. The public road is represented by the arrow
heads.
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIE.
Well of Chandji Patel.
N.
161
^
' 3
^
S
2
I
II.
re"
.2
3
3 ^
^
Leni>th 61 Sticks. r 9
QQ
1
S
J3 1 *0
Length T>f> J
^ T
x
S ' K
5
23
CQ ' .?
1 *
T
>V
loVinl.niMAli r,f Malik Shftrif
Second document. A Parwanah with the seal of Mahomad
Zaman.
There is an old document, named on its fold as a parwanah,
which refers to the 18 bigahs of land that came to the share of
Mehernosh on partition. It seems, that it was made after
the land was settled by the Chak-nameh.
fc^lifl ^uAA. ^M
rr i
God.
Zill subhani IB a royal title or epithet, meaning the shadow or representative of
Thifl is the abbreviated sign of Alia referred to above.
162 ASIATIC PAPERS
TRANSLATION.
41 Resting in Paradise. God. The Shadow of God.
Let the present and the future officers of Government of the-
town of Naosari of the Sarkar of Surat know, that ( Wheras) about
eighteen bigahs of land, (measured) by the (Ilahi 1 ), gaz, have
been fixed as described for the purpose of the help of the liveli-
hood of Mehernosh, (one) of the children of Parsi Mulla Jamas
and his (Mehernosh J s) children, according to the farman of His
Majesty who is merciful 2 and according to thepanuanah of Nawab
Jumlatu-1-Mulki Ia'timadu-1-daulat and Nawab Wazarat panah,
the late Sifkhan, 3 according to the Deed of Partition of the said
Mehernosh, (and) according to the usual practice, i.e , one share of
cultivated ryot land and three shares of uncultivated land,
free of assessment (and) fit for cultivation, together with trees,
in the direction of Chovisi (known as) Ratnagar in the above 4
kasbeh, it is therefore put down in writing, that the said lands
may be entrusted in the usual way in the charge and possession
of the above-named person (Mehernosh) and his children as a sac-
rifice* over the auspicious heads of the slaves of His Majesty,
so that spending the (land's) income upon his wants 6 he may
pray continually ? for the increase of the life and good fortune
for a continuous period. In this matter they (the Government
officers) should exercise no delay or defection. Written on the
date 22 of Zi'al qaddeh, year 7 of accession."
The document bears a square seal on the right, a little above
the first line. We read therein the name of the officer as
^ U^ *+&* Mahamad Zaman. On its fold, it bears the word
5 * H I *1 (far man) i nstea d of Mil 3 1^ (par w anah . )
There is a certified copy of this Parwanah with the seal
of Kazi Fazlud-din Usmani. The seal bears words below
it saying ^L*^ (j^b+i d& i.e. a copy according to the original.
The seal itself bears the wording :
* Instead of the usual word ufJ a space is kept vacant It seems that to
uume God and great mm was considered Irreverent.
2 Lit. of manners or mode ('anvin) of compassion or mercy.
a The name Sifkhan seems to be a contraction of Asufkh4n.
* Mastur, described.
5 43* sacrificing, charity. Farqis head,cf. the Gujarat! saying *U*4l <M^tfl
3*^4^3. The Gujarat! ^Ml^4R<^ gives some similar idea. The signification is,.
that the land may be given free, so that the donee may remain devoted, and pray for th*
kingdom and its officers. Perhaps in the Gujarat! word 3J\I c( i^cj ' we have the word
U in the phrase va guzftshtan which we find here.
6 Ma-yahtaJ i.e., what IB wanted.
7 Muwftzibat, b"ln? assiduous, co&ntant.
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGJR. 163*
.e., servant of the noble religion Kazi Fazalu-d-din Usmani.
This copy bears over a fold the title of the document as
There is a subsequent certified copy of a copy of the original
parwanah with the following additional words to show that it
is a copy :
i.e., the Parwanah with the seal of Mahmad Zaman
from the writing of date 22 Ziu-1-qu'adeh year 7 of accession, viz. 9
It bears the seal of Jamalu-d-din Usmani with the words
cUj j^Ua-* J& i.e., a copy according to the, copy. The seal bears
th^ name thus ^ U-*^ ^- &J I J UA. ^^> ti & ULxJ U *j * & Li.
i.e., The servant of the noble religion Jamal-ud-din Usmani.
The document is wrongly named on its fold by the owner
in pencil as *ii^l ^ -il^lHl.
Third document. A Document in the matter of a Dispute
about the land of Mehernoush.
It seems that the above Mehernoush had a dispute with
his nephew in the matter of the above 18 bignhs of land. We
have a document which refers to this dispute and in which some
of the known men of Naosari, both Parsees and non-Parsees,
support Mehernoush. It is a kind of our modern affidavit.
I give below the text and the translation of the document.
Text of the Document appealing for evidence.
rJ >5
^ Istiahh&d, taking evidence, summoning witnesses, bringing testimony or proof.
2 Az'a/, most weak, helpless.
> 'Ibid, servant ; devotee, ibidat, service, worship.
* This is another way in which the word mulla is written in this document. We
saw above two forms Jt* and
Jumhnr, gathering of people ; populate ; all.
6 Sakanatfpl. of *&ken\ inhabitants.
7 Mutawattin, inhabitanti resident.
464 ASIATIC PAPERS.
^ j*.
x ^\\\
? AJ Jj^J <Jb U ^J I ^a^-H^ ^^ J ^
I Jk i o ^ o ^ l ^ Ai-' I ^Ja-^ ' A t
ilUlf
TRANSLATION.
Mehernosh, a poor servant of God, a son of Adharft
(i.e. , priest) Darab, of the Parsee Community (one) of the heirs
of Adharu Mulla Jamas of the said community, an inhabitant
of the qasaba (town) of Naosari, asks and implores evidence,
from generous Saiyids 5 and most honoured 6 Shaikhs, 7 and from
all the inhabitants and the resident public of the above-said
1 Shuraka' pi. of sharik. partner.
2 hisBas, pi. of hlssah, share.
hasb, in conformity with, according to, agreeably to.
4 Waaiqat, writing, bond, agreement.
5 SM&t, pi. of Salvid. 6 Zawi'l-ihUrara, master of honour.
^ Hashftlkh, pi. of Shaikh.
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. 165-
town (of Naosari), in this matter, viz,, that (there is) a piece oi
land, about 18 Bigaha from the Wazif a (i.e. , the land) of the above-
named Mulla Jamas in the above-said qasaba in the direction*
of Chovisi, which (piece) is known as Ratnagar, and which above-
mentioned piece was formerly shared 1 by this applicant with
other partners and was undivided. 2 Till now, all partners
have, of their own free will and pleasure, given possession of
their shares in this said piece of IS.Bigahs to this applicant (and)*
having got done and given (i.e., transferred) legal 3 bonds 4 of
purchase and release 6 and Chak-nameh and letter of veri-
fication with the seal of ministers 7 for the said piece of 18 Bi-
gahs, in the name of this applicant, made him possessor and
occupant, 8 so that, he (the applicant) coming into the posses-
sion of the produce of the said piece of land, may hold himself
responsible 9 m the matter of all civil revenues. &c. , which may
be due on the land. Accordingly, I have in my hands in
my own name the said bonds and Chak-nameh and verifi-
cations of the minister, about the whole of the said piece (of
land), and since that long time, properly 10 improving 11 the
land (and) cultivating it. make it the means of my livelihood.
About all this, 12 Manock, the son of the above-mentioned
Darab, this applicant's (i.e., my) own 1 J brother, also had given
in writing the bond 14 of the sale of his own share in the said
piece of 18 Bigahs in the name of this applicant, which (bond)
also I have in my possession.
Now, the heirs of the above-mentioned Manock have, con-
trary to the legal bond of their own father, setting up a claim,,
without cause, turned (themselves) towards putting the appli-
cant to trouble and molestation. Therefore any body, who
has any information about the truth of this affair, 15 may, agree-
ably to God, affirm his own testimony under this writing, 10 so
that, he may be recompensed by God 17 and he may be
thanked by men. 18
i Mushtarak. 2 Ghair maqsuiu.
8 C*^r* Shara, legal. * Tamassukat.
5 iW^ la da w&, release. 6 Taahlha-ii&meh.
7 Sadur pi. of Sadr. 8 Musta>arraf . 9 Lit. gives questions and answers.
l o Waq'i, completely, properly.
*i Pardakhtan, to clean, adorn, improve; or it may mean, beinn wholly engaged in,
working on the land.
12 or, from all those (partners).
i Haqiqi, true. real. own. l4 Tamassuk.
15 ma ftni, signification, sense import.
16 Waslquah, writing, agreement, bond. W 'inda'1-lah.
18 Over the last word ffardad, there is a letter which is not clear. It may be
a word like faqt* to signify that the writing is finished ; or with it the last word may
be read gardanad. In this case then, the translation would be, " he would make me
recompensed by God and thankful to men. "
166 ASIATIC PAPERS.
There is one thing in this document which puzzles me. Me-
hernoush complains of the conduct of his brother's children,
saying, that though their father Manock (Mehernosh's brother)
had settled his share with him, they raised disputes. Now,
we do not find in the family genealogy, Manock as a brother of
Mehemoush. We find one Manock put down as the son of
Mehernoush. This makes us say, that we must be very careful
in the matter of these genealogies, based on the family ndm-
grdhn and the records of priesthood kept at Naosari. At times,
mistakes and misunderstandings may arise from the fact of the
-custom of adoption. When a person is adopted, his name is
recited in the family-recitals of prayers, as that of a son. At
times, even a brother is adopted. So, in that case, the brother is
shown as a son. It seems, that here, there may be a similar case.
Manock, though a real brother of Mehernoush, may have been
given to him in adoption. So, his name may appear in
the genealogical tree as that of a son.
Ten persons have signed the document in Gujarati. support-
ing the statement of Mehernoush. I have given above their
signatures in Gujarati. All these Parsees formed a galaxy of
some of the well known personages of the time at Naosari.
I have pointed out above that the first signatory, Desai Manockji
Homji, who had also signed the Chak-nameh, was a leading
Parsee of his time. The second Desai Kukaji Meherji (1652-
1742) was a great man, who had great influence with both
the Mogul and the Gaikwadi officers. It is said, that the
latter often consulted him in Government affairs. Desai
Khurshedji Temulji (1688-1779) was a leader of the Naosari
Parsees, who had great influence with the rulers of Naosari and
who had given a helping 'hand in some of the old Naosari
charities. Desai Darabji Rustomji is also referred to above.
Darab Pahlan was a known Dastur oi Naosari, and the
author of several Persian writings, and among them, of the
well-known Farziat-nameh and Kholaseh-i-Din. Nowroji Ker-
saspji was a leading priest of Naosari. 1 Jamasp Asaji (1697-
1753) was the great Dastur Jamasp Asa, the founder of the
Jamasp Asa family. He was a known Persian scholar. Button
Manockji was a known priest, known as Ruttonji Manockji
Antia. 2 Manock Nowroji also was a known priest of Naosari. 3
Jamshed Rustumji (1701-1760) was the Dastur Jamshedji
Rustomji Meherji Rana who came to the Dasturship of Naosari
in 1722.
Besides the above Parsee signatories, almost ail of whom
are well-known persons of the time, who have put down
1 Parsee Prakash I, pp. 25, 28, 29, 31.
2 Ibid, pp. 25-28. 3 Ibid. p. 29.
A PARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR. 167
"their signatures tinder the document, there are a number
of Mahomedan gentlemen who have signed the document in
various positions on the right hand side broad margin of the
document. Some of them have put down their seals.
Of the two seals above the first line of the document, the
' one on the left reads.
i.e., The seal of Qazi Utbaq Alia, the servant of the religion of
the prophet of God, informed of the science of the Divine order
of God, in Deputy -ship 1
Under the seal on the left, there is a line written crosswise,
which reads : 5 c*- I C-AJ 4 ^j ^(3^ 3 ^ j ' L$* s^^+i /* V ^
i.e.. The fact is, that all the lines in this text are inscribed true
and without doubt.
The second larger seal on the right reads :
i.e., The seal of Kazi Ahmad by Deputy-ship or (succession),
the servant of the religion of Mohamad 1139, year.
The third seal reads uri
i.e., A'madu-1-din Usmani 1139."
The line under this seal, on its left, reads something like:
i.e., The purport of this text is described as what happened.
The fourth seal in the extreme right is not legible. The
line under it in the left is /^Uj & r U
i e., Witness of what (md) in written within (j^).
The fifth seal down below on the right reads l, \ re &+:.- ^x^
i.e., Sayad^Mahomad 1135. The line under it on the left is
u*~A5 Ij ^ L j^jfl^/o ^j+iA* i.e. the purport of these lines is the
same as the fact.
The other Mahoinedan signatories, beginning from the top
on the right hand margin who have put down their signatures
everywhere under different statements of confirmation are
Qadavat Alia.
Shaikh Rasiuddin.
Mursalahuddin.
l Nay&bat, succession, vice-gerency, Deputy-ship. What is meant by this word
seems to be, that he was a Deputy in the Qazi-ship, or perhaps it may mean that
the qail-Bhlp had come to him in succession.
a amr, fact. a matn. the text of a book.
* la rib, undoubted. 5 sabt. inscribed.
168 ASIATIC PAPEES.
Abdullah, son of Shaikh Abdul Razah.
Malik Mahomad, son of Malik Ashaq.
Nuruddin, son of Shaikh Abdul Wahed.
Mahmad Hanah, son of Saleh Mahmad.
Abdulla Salam, son of Shaikh Abdul Malik.
Faizalla, son of Shaikh Razvanalla.
Shaikh Abdulla.
Mohamad Amin, son of Shaikh Mansen.
Saiyad Ahmad.
Sayid Aa'zin, son of Sayid Nuralla.
Sayid Surajuddin, son of Sayid Jaafar.
Shaikh Jinatallah (or perhaps Hasoballa), son of Shaikh
Abdul-latif.
Sayad Hamad, son of Sayid Mohamad,
Shaikh Amuruddin, son of Qazi Refi-u-ddin.
Shaikh Abdul-latif, son of Shaikh Rasid.
Mohamad- Zaz, son of Abdul-latif.
Sayid Arif, son of Sayid Mahomad.
Khwajeh Ahmad, son of Khwajeh Mahamad.
Almost all of these 23 signatories have begun with the word
Shahid, i.e., witness.
The document itself bears no date. Three of the seals of
the Mahomedan signatories have dates. Two bear thedate 1139.
A third seal, the last of the five, bears the date as 1135. These
seals bear the d^tes of the time when they were made.
From the dates of the document, it appears certain that the
dispute arose after the above Chak-nameh in favour of
Mehernoush was made and before the Hijri year 1135.
FOURTH DOCUMENT, A RECEIPT REFERRING TO THE
LEASE OF THE LAND OF MEHERNOUSH.
The following is the text and translation of a document
which says that Mehernoush had leased a part of the land of
Mulla Jamasp which fell to his share for cultivation for a period
of three years. In this document, which is a copy, not the ori-
ginal, he acknowledges receipt of the money and declares that
the use of the property has come back to him. The receipt
bears the seal of a Government officer. The document bears
on its fold the Gujarati word Hlf%l Pers. ***.; Rasfd,
English Receipt. This document, like many of the preceding
documents, bears, at the top in the centre of the leaf, the word
*J la-hu, i.e., to Him. It seems to be another and thai a shorter
form of
A FARMAN OF EMPEROR JEHANGIR
oo I ^Kj JU, Ujlji ,$ *
^^U TA ^A
TRANSLATION.
The object of \vriting this is this :
I, who am Mehernoush, the son of D?irab Adharoo, inhabit-
ant of the town of Naosari, make declaration to this effect, that
I have received a sum of Rupees nineteen and annas two, in
the matter of the propertj r of the share from Mulla Jamasp,
through Behrarn Aspu, Parsee, for the account of three years,
and I have brought it (i.e., the property) in my charge and
possession. These few words are written bjr way of agreement
(sanad), so that, it (the property) may come again (lit. secondly) 1
in (my) use.
Written on date 14 of the month of Jamadu-1-sani, year
38 of accession to the throne.
The original of this document had a seal which the present
copy gives as * x*x> ^j p^U. <y 1 *^ eH" ! U l< ^
v'.e.,Ziar-u-ddin 2 Usmani, the servant of the religion of Mohom-
ed. Confirmed.
Behrarn Aspur, referred to in the document was Behram-
Aspu-Peshitan-Chanda whose family held the Talati-ship of the
Parchol parganah. 3 It was in 1610 AD. that the Talati-ship
was first given to his grandfather Peshotan Chanda. The do-
cument bears the date 38 Jalusi. The Jalusi year is of the acces-
sion of Shah Alum, who came to throne in 1118 Hijri (1707-8
A.D.). So, the 38th year of his reign is 1156 Hijri corresponding
to 174344.
(a) The photo-lithos of the farmdn, (b) Mehernoush 's
chak-n&meh and (c) his appeal (aavdl) to the leading men are
appended herewith.
1 Arab, Sftniyan, secondly, in the second place.
2 The name may be Menaru-d-din.
a Parsee Prakash 1861.
Some Prayer-gestures of the Babylonians and
Assyrians. Their Parallels among the ancient
Iranians and modern Parsees.
Read on 3rd December 1920.
The subject of this paper has been suggested to me by an
interesting and instructive paper in the
Introduction. October 1010 issue of the Journal of the
Royal Asiatic Society of London (Art.
XVI), entitled. "Gesture in Sumerian and Babylonian Prayer:
A study in Babylonian and Assyrian Archaeology ?> and
written by Dr. S. Langdon, Professor of Assyreology at Oxford.
When I was reading Dr. Langdon's paper, I happened to
stay at Khandala, in the beautiful bungalow on the Elphinstone
point belonging to Mr. Rustamjee B m yramjee Jejeebhoy, in the
compound of which there is a monolith, which has on its
four sides a number of partly defaced and destroyed figures
with different gestures and postures of hands. 1 Among
these gestures, some hand postures suggest that some
i The Bombay Gazetteer of Poona thus speaks of the monolith : " Near the
west wall of the garden of Mr. Bairamji's houaeis a I illar about a foot square and four
feet high covered with rich much worn carving. Among the figures are more than
one small seated images. The pillar is said to have been brought from near the
reverting station by a Mr. Adam, who was employed in making the Railway "
'Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency, Vol. XVIII, Part III, Poona, page 237, n. 1.)
My information gathered from Mr. Pestonji Nusservanji Wadia, who, as the Private
Secretary of the late first Mr. Byramjee Jejeebhoy, had been off and on visiting the bunga-
low since about 1870, was, that the monolith belonged to a temple on the fort on the hill
Of llfij-Mfichl, which one sees from the Kail way train during a great part of the Bore
ilhaut ascent from Karjat to Khandala, and which is situated at the distance of about
in miles from Khandala. Some curiosity to know whether the monolith belonged to
that temple led me to visit the fort and the temple on 30th May of this year. The fort
has a fatiguing ascent and the temple the temple of Bhairav is a ruin. At present, it
is more a dilapidated hut thau a pucca structure. From what I observed there, I am in-
clined to think, that the Bombay Gazetteer's statement, that the monolith was brought
nt the Bungalow from a site at the He versing Station, is not correct, and that it it likely,
that it belonged to the temple at Ra j-m&chi. 1 got excavated from the rubbish round
the temple hut, the ruin of another monolith, which, however had some figures on only
one side, similar to those on the monolith at Khandala. This much is certain, that
the monolith must have belonged to a temple or a place of worship of some structural
i mportance. But we do not find near the Reversing Station any ruins of a temple
to which the monolith may have belonged.
The monolith Is said to have been brought to the bungalow by Mr. S. Adamson, a
Contractor who built the Bore Ghaut Railway. He had built the bungalow for his resi-
dence for several years during which the Ghaut was built. I found his name in small
letters on three pieces of the furniture of the bungalow which passed from his hands
through one or two purchasers to the hands of the late Mr. Byramjee. The name
" Adam ", as given by the Gazetteer, is evidently a mistake for Adamson.
I beg to draw the attention of our Archaeological Department to the monolith for
study. A paper by some Hindu scholar on all the prayer-gestures, whether of hands or
otherwise, will be very welcome to students of Prayer-attitudes.
PRAYER-GESTURES. 171
of the figures are of persons who are praying. Two
figures present a pose of the hands placed on the lap,
which we see in many figures of Budha and Indian deities.
I am sorry, 1 have not been able to produce a cast of these
figures, but I produce for inspection a very rough sketch of
them taken by an unskilled hand. The gestures of the figures
on this monolith led me to think further on the subject of Dr.
Langdon's paper and to study the question of prayer-gestures
of the ancient Iranians and "modern Parsees.
While speaking of gestures referred to in the Bible, Mr. W;
Ewing 1 says, that " The Oriental is a natural expert in appro-
priate and expressive gesture. To his impulsive and iminotionai
temperament, attitude and action form a more apt vehicle for
thought and feeling than even speech Conversation is,
accompanied by a sort of running commentary of gestures. "
The object of this paper is to treat the question of gestures
among the ancient Iranians, not all gestures but only those
which present some parellelism with those referred to by Dr.
Langdon as prevailing in Sumeria, Assyria or Babylonia.
Dr. Langdon says " Religious worship is abundantly illustrated
in many of its most important aspects by scenes engraved
on Sumerian, Babylonian, and Assyrian seal cylinders.
Chionologically, the seals of this region illustrate nearly
very period of the long history of these peoples and the
changing rituals and beliefs of their religion. A very large
proportion of the seals represent the owner of the seal
approaching a deity in the attitude of prayer The
engravers of cylinders in all periods probably kept in stock seals
engraved with the scene of the private prayer as the custom
imposed in their periods. The human who is figured standing
betore a god, or in Assyria more frequently before a divine
symbol, is not a portrait of the owner of the seal. The owner
regards himself rather as represented and symbolized by the
conventional figure. In those cases in which the engraver
produced a seal cylinder at the command of a Sumerian or Baby-
lonian, perhaps, we may regard the praying figure as an approxi-
mate portrait. " 2 Dr. Langdon then refers to " the various
attitudes of the worshipper's hands in the different periods,"
and compares " these attitudes with those which characterise the
worship of adjacent peoples." 3 Among the adjacent peoples,
Dr. Langdon does not rei'er to the ancient Iranians who were
Zoroastnans by faith. This is, perhaps, because, .what can be
called authentic history shows that the ancient Iranians at the
1 Dictionary of the Bible by Rev. Hastings.
2 J. R. A. S. October 1010, p. 531. * Ibid p. 533;
172 ASIATIC PAPERS.
time of their highest glory were the successors of the Babylon-
iansand Assyrians and not their contemporaries. Sir W. Jones,
though he identified the earlier Iranians of the Peshdadian
dynasty with the Assyrians, thought, " that the annals of the
Peshdad or Assyrian race may be considered dark and fabulous ;
those of the Kaiani family as heroic and poetical ; and those of
the Sassanian kings as historical." However, we know from some
authentic sources, that the ancient Iranians had, in the early
career of their history, come into contact with the Babylonians
and Assyrians
The very name Ba bylon can be traced to the Avesta. Babylon,
Baby ion, the istheBawrii j*>| of the Avesta (Yt. V.,
Bawri of the Aves- _ J x '
ta. Its founder 09 ), Babyrus of the Cuneiform inscriptions
Basvar(a*p). ( Behistin Inscription I, 6) and Babil Jbk
of the Persian writers. Philologically, the ancient Iranian
name Bawri, can easily become at first Babyl and then
Babylon. The letter * w ' of Bawri can easily change place with
" b," both letters being of the same Sthdna. So, Avesta Bawri,
would become Babri. Then * r ' can easily be read ' 1.' So
Babri would become Babli, which then became Babil. The last
part ' on " is a later Greek addition, as we find in the case of
Macedon, Chalcedon, etc.
I think that the city has taken its name from its original
founder. Who was the founder ? The Avesta connects
Bawri with one Azi-Dahaka, who is said to have offered at
Bawri a great sacrifice of 100 horses, 1,000 oxen and 10,000
lambs or goats. This name Azi Dahaka was latterly contract-
ed into Dahaka, the first part Azi being dropped. We
have several such cases of parts of an old name being dropped ;
for example, in the Avesta name Takhma-urupa, the latter part
' urwpa ' is dropped in the Farvardin Yasht, and we find ths name
simply s& Takhma, a form whi^h has latterly given us the later
Iranian name Tahma-tan (another name of Rustam) and Tehe-
min& (the name of the wife of Bustam). In the same way, we
find that the Avesta name Yima Khshaeta, which has given us
the later name Jamshed, has been contracted into Yima (Jam in
the Afrin i Hept AmesMspand). Here, in the Case of the name
Azi-Dahaka, it is the first part, Azi, that is dropped and the-
name was contracted into Dahak, which soon became, without
any philological difficulty, Zoh&k, a name with which Sir Walter
Scott has familiarized his readers of the novel of Talisman.
Now, the extent Avesta connects this Azi Dahaka or Zohak
with Bawri in the matter of a sacrifice and says nothing
PRAYEB-GESTUBES. 173
more, but the Pahlavi Bundehesh 1 says, that this Azi
Dahaka or Zohak built a palace in Babylon which was
known as Kulang Dushit, which is the Kvirinta Duzhita of
the Avesta ( Yt XV 19 ), Kulen Dis of Hamza Isphahani,
Gang-i Diz hukht of Firdousi 2 ( Mohl I p. 96). These
references show that Bawri or Babylon, was not only the
seat of Zohak's great sacrifice but was also founded by him.
Ma9oudi attributes the foundation of Babylon to Nimrod. 3
But, as pointed out by Malcolm, oriental writers identify this
Nimrod with Zohak. Ebn Haukal 4 and Edrisi 5 also attribute
the foundation of Babylon to Zohak.
The Pahlavi Shatroiha i Airan says, that Bawri was founded
in the reign of Jamshed. "He (the founder of the city) fixed
there (the direction of) the planet mercury. By the situation
of the city or its building, he pointed out magically the 7 planets,
the 12 constellations and signs of the Zodiac and the eight parts
<(of the heavens) towards the sun and other planets." Now
Zohak lived in the time of Jamshid. In fact, Jamshid, the
Iranian was overthrown by Zohak the Babylonian. So, this
statement of this Pahlavi treatise also indirectly supports the
fact that Zohak was the founder of Babylon.
The above statement of this book that Zohak founded the
city on some astronomical principles, or to speak generally,
attending to some principles of orientation, is supported by
Ma9oudi, who connects with Nimrod (who is identified by some
with Zohak) the cult of fire and stars. 6 Now, the Burdehesh 7
and the Shah-nameh 8 say, that this Azi-Dahaka or Zohak
was known as Baevar-asp. The Pazend Afrin-i Haft Amsh-
aspand (s.S) also points to this identification. Zohak was called
Baevar-asp, because he was the possessor of 10,000 (baevar)
horses (asp). I think then, that the city Bawri, the original form
of the later name Babil (Babylon), derived its name from its
founder Baevar-asp, which was another name of Azi Dahaka
or Zohak. The second part of the name " asp *' was dropped,
AS it often happens and as seen above in the case of other
proper names. I have gone rather deep into this subject in order
to show, on the authority of old Parsee books and of the
works of Arab authors, that the ancient Iranians had come
into contact with the Babylonians under Zohak. I must admit,
i Darmesteter. Le Zend Avesta II p. 584. fitudes Iraniennes II pp. 210-218. Vide
the Photo-zlnco Text published by the Parsee Punchayat and edited by Mr. Behram-
ore Tehemuras Ankleiarla.
* Vide my Dictionary of Avestaic Proper names p. 68.
Magoudi, par Barbier de Meynard. I p. 78. * Ousley's Oriental Geography p. 70
& Edrisi par Jaubert II pp. 160-61. 6 tfagoudi par B-de Meynard I. p. 82.
1 Chap. XXIX, 9 S. B. E Vol. V. p. 119. 8 Mohl I p 57.
174 ASIATIC PAPERS.
that herein we go to, what are known as, pre-historic times,
but, anyhow, we find that there was some connection. So,
if you once expect some such connection, one may expect to-
find, at least some parallels between the prayer gestures and
attitudes of the Iranians and those of the Babylonians and
Assyrians. I propose dealing in this Paper with some of these
prayer gestures and attitudes. In fact, my paper may be
taken as one continuing the study of the prayer gestures and
attitudes of the Babylonians and Assyrians to times subsequent
to the periods to which Dr. Langdon refers. In the ordinary
course, I would have preferred to read this Paper before
my Anthropological Society of Bombay, but, as Dr. Langdon's
Paper is published in the Journal of the Royal Asiatic
Society, I beg to submit mine before the Bombay Branch
of the Society.
Let us first of all examine some poses of hand referred to in
, , the Avesta. The Avesta word for hand
Some hand-
poses of the Avesta. is Zasta -wcotfC (Pahl-hasta. Sans.
Pers. dast ( CM.J ) Ger. hand). The Avesta has
generally two words, one for good persons and another
for bad persons. Thus, Zasta is the hand of good per-
sons andgava ( -UA>Q Gr. guivri) for that of bad persons.*
The prayer-pose of the hands is ustana-zasta -UJAW^U>
i.e., stretched fourth or uplifted 2 (from us or uz
JB> (> Pahl. ,5pj Pers. j sans, ^f, Ger.aus. Lat. ex. out). We
find frequent references to hands, holding offerings in prayers.
For example, aesmozasta, i.e., holding the fire-wood in the hand*
(Yacna, LXII 1 ), gao-zasta, i.e., holding some cow-productions
1 For similar instances, we have padha (Sans. ^Tf , Per - P fie 4/^7 Lat * peds-
pw. FT. pied. Ger. fuss. Eng. foot) for the foot of good men and zbaretha f *&$}( \
and dvarethra ( *^kJ ) for that of *ad men. Vagdhana ( -l-tfytH^ f
for the head of good men and kam6r6dha ( 4 "^'K JI $ ) for that of bad men.
2 The holding up of the hands was a prayer geiture of the Hebrews also : " Whe
Moses held up his hand Israel prevailed " (Exodi* XVII, 11).
The three Magis or the Wisemen of the Bast are said to have carried incense-
(labannm U*il1) in their hands as an offering to the infant Jesus.
PRAYER-GESTURES. 175
like milk in the hand ; baresmo zasta, i.e., holding the twigs of
the sacred barsam in the hand ;havano-zasta,*.e., holding in the
hand the hdvantm or the mortar for pounding the Haoma ;
gaomata-zasta, i.e., holding a bovine production in the hand.
As the hand played an important part in prayer- gestures, a con-
tract made by a pressing of hands ( -p-m< -^**$ -*C )
was held to be very sacred. l Hand, being an useful organ of
the body and being used in prayer-gestures, a valuable contract
was spoken of as zasta maso, i.e., of the value of the hand.
Dr. Langdon first refers to the attitude of the worshipper's
hands in the early period of Sumerian glypti-
que, commonly known as pre-Sargonic, which
period had the so-called processional scenes
on the seals. So, let us see at first, what have the Iranian materials,
the writings, sculptures, etc., to say on the subject of processions.
I think, we find the germ of such processional scenes in the
Avesta. In the Vendidad (Chap. II, 21), Ahura Mazda himself
is represented as proceeding to the vara, or colony- the Airyana
Vaeja, the Iran Vej, the cradle of theAryas newly founded by
Yima (Jamshed), with his Yazatas or angels in some thing like
a procession. Yima also, in return, proceeds to meet Ahura
Mazda in the same way. In the processional entry of Ahura
Mazda in Iran a number of invisible Yazatas or angels who
can only be conceived in mind (mainyaoiby6 yazataeibyd)
accompanied him, Ahura Mazda proceeded with them, as if it
were, to inaugurate a house-warming or rather a city- warming
ceremony. Yima proceeded to welcome Ahura Mazda and his
host of Yazatas, in the company of the best men (vahishtaeibyd
mashyakaeibyo) of Iran. The Avestaic word Hanjaman (Pers.
Anjuman) used in this connection is the same as Sanskrit sangama
used for the groups, in which, in India, pilgrims march in
processional order when visiting known places of pilgrimage.
Coming to Iranian sculptures, we have no parallels of pro-
cessions going to seated deities, but we have those of proces-
sions going to seated kings. For example, we have two such
processional scenes in the ruins of the City of Sapur (Kiash's
Ancient Persian Sculptures, Plates 4 and 6). Mr. Kiash thinks,
that the first is that of Behram II and the second that of Khusro
Parvez (Chosroes II). Some writers think the second to be
that of Shapur I. Coming to modern times, we find that the
idea of a religious procession still survives.
i Cf. Genesis XIV, 22, wherein a holy vow was taken by holding the hand unto
the Lord.
176 ASIATIC PAPBBS.
(a) We see it in the initiation ceremony of N&var, wherein
the initiate or candidate for priesthood is conducted to a
temple by the head priest accompanied by other priests and
laymen and even ladies.
(b) Again upto a few years ago, at Naosari, on the occasions
of the Gahambars (season festivals), a procession headed by the
head priest (Dastur) and other elders (Desais) went on a pre-
vious day to the place where the communal feast was to take
place the next day. There, the head priest and the elders with
their own hands threw in a cooking pot a few spices ( ^VR )
etc., to be cooked for the meal for the next day. They placed
sandle wood and frank incense on the fire preparing the food
and said the prayer of Tan-darusti (Benediction) invoking
God's blessings on the whole community.
(c) Marriage processions, though dying out generally in a
great crowded city like Bombay, where the parents of the bride-
grooms and brides have not sufficient accommodation at their
own places for the marriage ritual and its preliminaries, social
and religious, and where, consequently there are common gather-
ing places like rhe Allbless Baug, the Cama Baug, etc., do not
still seem to have lost their preliminary signification. The
principle marriage procession in early days was that in which
the bridegroom, went to the house of the bride to be married
and to fetch the bride to her new home. Nowadays, though
both the parents of the bride and the bridegroom meet in a
common communal place, there generally still remains the
travesty or the show of the bridegroom going out in the com-
pany of the officiating priests and the ladies of his family, from
one gate of the gathering-place and returning by the other.
(d) The next instance of a religious procession still extant,
is that of the funeral procession, wherein the mourners, headed
by priests, at least by two priests, follow the bier in pairs of
two, reciting a piayer. The presence of priests in all these
processions still preserves the religious character of the
processions.
As in the Babylonian Archaeology, so, in the Iranian Archaeo-
logy, there arises the question, as to who
The praying the praying figures are. Whom do the
b&n n and e ]^ P ra y in S *&** on the Babylonian seals
nian Archaeology. represent ? Whom do the praying figures
in the Iranian sculptures represent ? As
to Babylonia, Dr. Langdon says : " The praying figures
on seals actually represent the owners. Of that we can no longer
doubt. Sumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians carried about
on their seals representatives of themselves as they said their
PRAYER-GESTURES. 11T
prayers before one of the great gods. These were supported
from the neck by a stout cord which passed through an aperture
at the axis of the cylinder 1 " We have a parallel of this
in some Iranian sculptures, which determine, that the praying
figures represent the owners. For example, take the sculpture
of the Naksh-i Darius in the sculptuies on the mountain of
Besitoun or Behistoun. There, we see on the top a winged
flying figure in the air, holding forth the hand for prayer. The
sculpture bears the well-known inscription which bears the^
name of Darius, thus showing that the praying figure is that of
King Darius himself (vide for the sculpture, Kavasji Dinwha
Kiash's Ancient Persian Sculpture, p. 185, Plate 55).
From the fact, that the sculpture bears the owner's name (the
name of Darius), we can safely infer, that similar portraits of
winged flying figures in other parts of Persia are the portraits of
the kings or noble men who engraved them. We have a similar
figure atPersipolis orTakht-i Jamshed (Kiash's Plates 26 & 27).
In one portrait (PI. 26), the king while saying his prayer before
the fire in two vases, bears in his hand the royal mace (the vazra
of the Avesta). In another (PL 27), the winged figure of the
King, or to speak more properly the winged figure of the Fravashi
or Farohar, the guiding spirit of the King, bears in his left hand
a circle (Avesta chakhra), the symbol of righteous authority.
The most notable instance of this, is that of a human winged
figure with a peculiar horned crown, at Pasargadse or Pasargard*
The figure bears at the top an inscription which gives the name
of Cyrus (Plate 53 of Kiash).
We find that the use of hands to express some emotions in
prayers is referred to in the Avesta. That use
The use of Hands presented different attitudes, (a) The Vendi-
in Prayers. dad (Chap. V, 59) refers to " the stretching
of hands in prayers " (zasto frene nizbarat).
A woman in the state of menses (dakhshtavanti), and
a person who has a cut or a wound in his body from which
there is a discharge of blood or filthy matter, are not con-
sidered to be in a proper condition necessary for worship.
Perhaps, the worship referred to is not private or individual
worship or prayer but common or joint worship. Their reverting,,
after recovery, to a proper clean state is spoken of as " stretching
their hands in prayers ". (b) The Ahunavaiti Gatha (Yasna
XXVIII, 1) refers to the prayer gesture of stretching out
hands. The worshipper says : Ahya yasa nemangha ustanazastd
rafedhrahya manyeush Mazdao paourvim spentahya asha
vispeng shkyaothna vangheush khratum manangho ya khshn-
(1) J, R. A. S. of 119, pp. 532-33.
12
178 ASIATIC PAPERS.
visha geushcha urvanem, i.e., I pray rapturously with all
humility with uplifted 1 hands primarily for all righteous acts
: from the invisible bountiful Mazda and for wisdom resulting
from good mind, so that, thereby, I may please the (very) soul of
the universe, (c) In the Farvardin Yasht (Yt. XIII 50, 57),
where prayers for the Fravashis or Farohars of the dear departed
ones are referred to, they are spoken of as with " hands holding
food and clothes " for the poor (gaomata Zasta vastravata
usha-nasa nemangha). (d) In Gatha Ushtavaiti (Yasna XLIII, 4),
Ahura Mazda is represented as bestowing blessings both upon
the sinful and the righteous with hands. (Zasta hafshi
^ ashish).
In the Babylonian seals, where the various prayer attitudes
are represented, we see the winged form
The Winged genii o f the genii. Among the Iranians, the
IdtheSedS p^ashis or Farohars are represented as
Shars of the Iranians. flvm g-
The Avesta refers to the winged form of the genii. It is said
in the Farvardin Yasht ( Yt. XIII 69-70 ), that the Fravashis,
(the spiritual proto-types) of the righteous, fly to the help of
those who invoke them in the form of winged birds or winged
bird-like men. We read there :
Aat yat bavaiti avi-spashto sasta dangheush hamo-khshathro
aurvathaeibyo paro tbishyanbyo, tao hasjchit upa-zbayeiti
. . . .avanghe tao dim avinifravaynti, manayen ahe yatha
na mereg6 hupereno, i.e., When the well-ruling King of a
country is taken unawares (i.e., is surprised) by a harmful enemy,
then he invokes to his aid the powerful Fravashis of the righteous
They (The Fravashis) fly towards him (for help) like
{i.e., in the form of) well- winged man -like 2 birds.
The various At- Now, we come to the various attitudes
titudes of the Wor- o f the worshipper's hands, Dr. Langdon
shipper'* Hands. refers to the following :
(1) The owner of the seal "conducted into the presence
of a great seated deity by his own personal god, who leads his
r protege by the hand.
(2) The right hand extended and the forearm raised
parallel with the face, palm inward.
(3) Both hands folded at the waist.
i or out stretched, from us-tan (Sans. ?T5-<TT I*t. tenders, Fr. tiendrc, Pers.
- tanudan) to stretch out. *
a Dr. Oeldner thinks this word unnecessary! hut here the .reference seems to he to
rforms half human and half bird-like.
PRAYEB-GBSTtJRES. 178
(4) The palm not turned inward but facing the left. " The
hand is thus brought into such position that the narrow surface
on the side of the little finger is turned towards the deity."
Now let us see what the Iranian materials have to say about
these attitudes.
In the Babylonian and Assyrian seals,
1. The attitude the gods are represented as leading their
of being led by the proteges by their hands before " a great
hand. seated deity ". (a) Iranian writings, (6) sculp-
tures and (c) ritual refer to this attitude.
(a) We learn from the Pahlavi Ardai Viraf -nameh, that, when
Ardai Viraf, the ancient Iranian Dante, was led in a vision to the
other world to see Heaven and Hell, he was led by the hand by
the Yazatas or angels, Atar and Sraosha. We read Viraf saying
" the two angels caught hold of my hands " (zak-i li yadman
faraz vakhdunl, Chap. IV, 6 ;* V, 6 ; XI, 2, 13 ; XVI, 1). He was
similarly led before Ahuramazda, the Supreme Deity and his
Ameshaspands or archangels. (Ch. CI 1, 2.)
(6) We see the same attitude in some of the Iranian sculptures
ivhich refer to times much anterior to that when the above Pahla-
vi work was written. We see this in the sculptures at Persepolis
(vide travels of Sir Robert Ker Porter in Georgia, Persia, Vol. I,
pp. 604, 608 (six groups), 612 (five groups, Plates 37, 43); vide
Mr. Kavasji Dinshawji Kiash's Ancient Persian Sculptures, Plates
XI, XIII, XV, XVII, XVIIH). Here a well-dressed person,
armed with a mace and a dagger, holds by his left hand the right
hand of another simple unarmed man and leads him. The second
man is followed by several others, who carry in both their hands
big bowls or cups containing, perhaps, various articles of presents
or offerings. The second person is led either before a King to
make presents as humble homage, or to a place of worship with
offerings. The first person may be a courtier, and he may be
leading, by the hand, citizens who came to pay their homage to
the sovereign. But the mace and the sword do not preclude
the possibility of his being a priest, because the Iranian priests
also carried weapons, intended to be symbolic of spiritual weapons
Tnth which they were to strike and destroy the Daevas or evil
powers and influences. Even now, in the ceremonial proces-
sion of the Navar, the initiate or the candidate for priesthood
carries with him a gurz (Avesta vareza, i.e., a mace), which he
keeps underneath his bed for three nights, and in the Yazash-
'nagah when he performs the liturgical services for four days.
jEer Porter argues, that "the design of the artist is not to display
1 The Text of Dr. Hoehangji, p. ie, etc.
180 AMATIC PAPERS.
a religious procession." 1 But one cannot definitely say that
it is not a religious procession. His own long quotation 2 from.
Zenophon about Cyrus's procession with sacred bulls and horses,
etc., points to a probability that the procession may perhaps
be religious.
(c) Again, in the modern Parsee ritual, we see something of one
person conducting another. In the very ceremony of Navar,
above referred to, the initiate or the candidate is held by the
hand by the priest who initiates him and is presented before*
the senior priest and the priestly assembly, from whom a forma!
permission is asked to initiate the candidate into priesthood.
Again, in the celebration of the Yacna, on two occasions, one
of the celebrants leads the other by the hand.
In the Persepolis sculptures, where we see the attitude of one-
Two peculiar!- Person leading the other by the hand, we-
ties of the Iranian see two other peculiarities which seem to
Sculptures in this have escaped attention. In one of the sculp-
matter. tureg ^^ Rer p orfcep . g p] ate 37 . ^ e
also Plate on page 708), we see a person holding the skirt of
another person who precedes him. We see this in both
the groups of the above plate. Again, in some cases, we-
see one person placing his hand on the shoulder of another
person preceding him (Ibid). What do these attitudes signify ?
What are they intended for 1 In the recital by an assembly, of the
Atash Nyaish, i.e., the prayer in honour of the angel presiding
over fire, we, at times, find the combination of all the varieties,
above referred to, of holding the hand, etc. We see persons
(a) holding others by the hand, (b) placing their hands on the
shoulders of another and (c) holding others by the fringes of
their drf-ss. I will describe the process here at some length.
(a) When a Parsee recites his Atash nydish, during the
recitals of some parts of the prayer, the worshipper holds a ladle
over the fire-vase, so as to touch it. If he is saying the nydiah
before the sacred fire of a Fire-temple, as he cannot go into the
fire-chamber, wherein priests only can enter, during the above
recitals he places his hand upon the door, or a window or the
wall of the fire-chamber, the object being to establish some con-
tact with the fire before him. In some fire-temples, some orna-
mental strings hanging from the ceiling are provided. The wor-
shippers catch hold of these strings and thus create, during the^
above recital, a kind of contact with the sacred fire from a distance.
1 Vol. I, p. 6:25. t Ibid, p. 017.
PRAYEK-GESTUKES. 181
In small or large gatherings or prayer meetings, for example,
those held on occasions of public prayers (jashans) during the
last war, or on occasions of joyous celebrations, they produce fire
in a vase in the midst of the gathering and all say the Atash nyaish
standing round the fire. A priest holds, by one hand, a ladle
over the vase during the above referred to recital of the portions
-of the nyaish and thus establishes, as it were, a contact between
himself and the fire before which they pray. He gives his other
hand to the person next to him. Then this second person gives
his other unoccupied hand to a third person, who in turn gives
one of his hands to a fourth person, and so on. The gathering
may be large, say of hundreds and all thus hold each other by
the hand. Some establish the contact by holding the fringe
-or skirt of another's upper garment. Some establish the contact
by placing their hands on the shoulders of others who have
iormed a contact in one way or another. The principal aim or
object is to establish a kind of contact with the Fire before whom
they pray. As all cannot form a direct contact by holding a
ladle on the fire- vase they form this indirect contact or
contact through another's contact.
(b) During the recital of a prayer, recited on the occasions of
'Gahambars or season festivals, and known as Gahambar nipdvi,
so called because all the celebrants were expected to sit in a kind
of circuit enclosed by a pdvi or a marked enclosure, a contact is
established by all the celebrants either spreading the skirts of
their upper ceremonial garment (jameh) so as to touch one another
or by placing their handkerchiefs between two persons when
they do not sit close enough to touch one another.
(c) In the recital of the Rapithavin Yacna, during a particular
part of the ritual, the two celebrants; the Zoti and the Itdthwi,
establish a contact among themselves by holding the skirt of
the Sudreh (sacred shirt-) of the other who precedes him.
(d) In a Parsee funeral procession, one sees, even at present,
the priests and other mourners going in the procession in pairs
holding a handkerchief between them.
From all these considerations, I think, that in some cases,
the idea of the attitude of holding another by the hand may be,
that of leading him, and in others where the holding of skirts of
each others clothes and the placing of one's hand upon the shoul-
der of another are variants that of establishing a contact. The
creation of the contact was ultimately meant to express co-opera-
tion and sympathy in the particular work.
182 ASIATIC PAPERS.
Dr. Langdon thus refers to another attitude of the hand in the
Babylonian worship : " On Fig. 2, an attendant
2. The attitude of brings the animal sacrifice ; the reader will ob-
the right hand ex- gerve that this attendant approaches with the
towm raTsed *- ri ht ann exte nded and the forearm raised
rallel to the face parallel with the face palm-inward. Observe
palm inward. also that the conducting deities approach
with disengaged arm, raised in a similar
manner palms inward: On seal Fig. 7 three deities approach
the seated grain goddess. The central figure (a goddess) of these
three has the most ancient attitude of prayer for humans, the
raised hand palm inward and the disengaged arm folded at the
waist. These are all archaic types extending back to a period
as early as 3,500 B.C. From them we conclude that man, when
not conducted by a deity, stood in the position of prayer described
above. This is apparently the original prayer attitude of
prehistoric man in Sumer."
Now, let us see, what have the Iranian materials to say on
the subject of this attitude. Herein, we have two attitudes
combined into one. (a) Extended or outstretched hand and
(b) the forearm or the disengaged arm raised parallel with the
face palm inward.
Among the Assyrians, the phrase " lifting of the hand " for
prayers was purely technical and borrowed,
(a) The extended along with the prayers, from the Babylonians. 1
or outstretched In the later Neo-Babylonian and. Persian
hands - periods, there prevailed "the open hand
position." During that period, the term
for " to pray " was' " to open the hands " and not " to
raise the hands. 2 " But, it seems, we cannot say posi-
tively, because the instances are not many that according ta
the Avesta " stretching the hands " was the technical phrase
of the Iranians. In practice, the stretching and opening seemed
to mean the same thing. The Iranian sculptures seem to support
this posture. There are cases of hands " opened " as well as
"stretched or raised or uplifted." In the celebration of the
liturgical ceremony of the Ya9na, just a little before the
commencement of the recital of the Ya9na proper, commencing
with the first chapter (nivaSdhaeyemi hankaray&ni), the two
celebrants join their two hands in an outstretched position
and recite the prayer of " Frastuyfc humatoibyascha ", which
prayer is spoken of by some as the Patet, i.e., the Penitence
prayer of the Avesta. Not only do they join their two hands
.into an outstretched position but also their feet. To join the/
1 J. B. A. S.j Oct. 1920., p. 539 k 2 Ibid, p. 541. - ' <
PRAYER-GESTURES. 18$
feet they place the toe of the right foot over the toe of the
left. The ritual is thus described in Gujarati in modern books
of the ritual " 4< <wtc{lctm ^IMql ift <x*\i iM <*ll^iciHi w^ii
M'ftl^fcl M<HlM'Hi *M^U>1 SlM* ^4Moft MVld \Z. i.e., Both
the Zaoti and the Rathvi shall join their hands and put the
toe of the right foot over the toe of the left, and then pray.
The object of joining the two hands and joining the two feet
is to indicate sincere devotion. *M$ M^l ^l*fl <MV*n b^cft
*.., "to pray God with (i.e., standing on) one foot," is the phrase
for saying a prayer with all devotion. One cannot join his two
feet in a standing position as he would join his two hands.
So, the next best way is to place the toe of one foot over the toe
of another.
We see a parallel of the Balylonian attitude in the Iranian
sculptures of Persipolis and elsewhere. (Vide Plates XXVII
and XXXVI of Kiash's Ancient Persian Sculptures.) There,
in one case, we find the winged flying figure of a king holding
a disc (Avesta chakhra) in his left hand and his right hand
extended but palm outward. In another case, the left hand
carries, what seems to be, a bundle of baraam twigs. This
attitude of the hand signifies blessing. Iranian winged figures
are associated with fravashis or farohars, which are the
guiding spirits of persons. These fravashis are represented
as blessing the people of the house where they are invoked
(khshntitao afrinentu ahmya mn&ne. Farvardin Yasht. Yt.
XIII, 157).
The show of hands in favour of propositions in the modern
rules and regulations for the proceedings of public meetings
seems to be a form of this attitude of hands for blessings. Those
who raise their hands in favour of a proposition raise them, as
it were, to bless the proposition. The Masonic ritual seems
to have preserved this attitude well, because in that craft,
the show of hands in favour of propositions is not like that
at ordinary meetings but in the attitude of blessing, the right
hand extended palm downward.
Now, as to the second component of the above attitude, viz.>
the raising of the forearm parallel with
(b) The forearm the face palm inward, which according to
raised parallel with DJ. Langdon is " the most ancient attitude
the face palm inward. rf prayer for humans," I think, we find
a parallel of this attitude in what is observed, even now, by
the Zoroastrian clergy during the recital of the Patet (the
prayer for penitence). In practice, the attitude is not observed
exactly by all alike, i.e., the arm is not kept parallel to the
184 ASIATIC PAPERS.
iace by all ; but some elders of the priestly assembly, in the midst
-of deep devotion observe it strictly.
It is this Babylonian attitude, and it is Dr. Langdon's descrip-
tion and explanation of it, ,that have much interested me
nd has led me specially to the study of the subject of this paper
from an Iranian point of view. Among Zoioastrian religious
prayers, there is one, which is called the Patet, i.e., prayer of
penitence (Av. paitita from Av. paiti ; Sans, prati ^tfci, Lat.
re, back, and Av. i Sans, i vf Lat. i-re to go ; a prayer whereby the
worshipper goes back to the proper path). While reciting that
prayer of penitence, Parsees hold up before, or parallel to, their
face their left hand. The prayer takes about 15 minutes to
recite and the left hand is, during all this time, Held up before
.the face. I confess, that it is after the perusal of Dr. Langdon's
paper, that I understood the proper signification of this attitude
of the Parsee worshippers' hands. According to Dr. Langdon,
in some Babylonian seals, the posture of the attitude of hands
varies. In some cases, it is associated with " penitential prayers."
So, I think, that the attitude observed in the Zoroastrian or
Parsee Patet or penitential prayer is a relic of the old attitude,
wherein the worshipper raised his disengaged arm parallel to his
face. In practice, as said above, the attitude is not observed
exactly by all alike, i.e., the arm is not kept parallel to the face
by all, but the elders in the priestly assembly observe the
attitude strictly and correctly.
There is one peculiarity in the modem Parsee custom, still
observed, which shows that the forearm must be strictly
parallel to the face, so that the palm-inward portion of the arm
may be just before the mouth. That peculiarity consists in
covering the palm-end portion of the hand with a piece of cloth.
A handkerchief, or a sleeve of the upper garment, or the shawl
in the case if the worshipper is a head priest or Dastur, serves
the purpose. In the Babylonian and Assyrian prayer gestures
of this kind, we do not see it. Then, what is the object of this
covering among the Parsees ? According to the Zoroastrian
health-laws, the saliva of the mouth being unclean, if the hand
has touched the saliva of the mouth, it must be washed.
Now, when the worshipper holds, during the recital of the
prayer, his left forearm palm inwards parallel to his face,
which position places it just opposite to the mouth, there is
a chance of some particles of the saliva falling on the palm
and thus polluting it. I think that, it is to protect the palm from
this pollution, that it is covered with some kind of cloth. This
practice of holding some kind of cloth on the inward part of
the palm, held parallel to the face and before the mouth, is spoken
PRAYER-GESTURES . 1 8$
of now, in the modern ritual phraseology, as paddn karvun
{ ^nil b^^) i.e>9 to do the paddn. Padan { J*t3{) ) is a
later Pahlavi form of the AvaStai paitidana (
from paiti front and dd to keep) i.e., that which is kept in
front of the A face. The paddn was, and is even now, put on by
the Parsi Athenians (Athravans or Fire-priests) when they go
before the sacred fire, so that their breath or particles of the
saliva of their mouth may not pollute the ^fire before them.
They put it on even when they say their Afringan and Baj
prayers before the myazd, *.e,the offerings of fruits and flowers,
or their liturgical prayers of the Ya$na, etc. Some kind of
cloth-cover for the face was also put on by the Flamines, the
fire-priests of the ancient Romans.
When asked, why the hand, covered as said above, was held
before the face in the Patet or penitence prayers, the explana-
tion now offered was, that it was another form of the ritual of
paddn observed before the Fire or before sacred offerings or
sacred utensils or liturgical apparatus. But, in the recital of
the Patet, when recited jointly in an assembly or singly, there
is no fire, or any sacred offering or utensil before the worship-
pers. So, why was the padan required in that recital ? I
think, we now learn, as said above, the proper signification, from
the Babylonian attitude. There must be among the ancient
Iranians, as among the Babylonians, the custom of holding the
hand before the face, during the recital of Patets or penitential
prayers. That custom has come down from their Iranian
ancestors to the present Parsees with the additional requisite
of a cloth-cover over the inward portion of the palm to protect
it from pollution by thl particles of the saliva of the mouth.
The main point is the raising of the hand, palm inwards,
parallel to the face. Then the covering of the hand is a second
subsidiary point that has arisen from the first main point.
This form or ritual of paddn karvun is observed by Parsee
priests, in assemblies for the celebration of Jashans, wherein
Af ringan prayers are recited. The two principle celebrants the
,Zaoti and the Jltravakhshi put on the actual paddn on their
faces. But the rest hold their covered hands, palm inwards,
parallel to their faces and before their mouth. Here there is no
special recital of the Patet or penitential prayer. So, in this
-case, the attitude may be taken as an attitude of prayer, whether
connected or not with penitence. In ceremonial customs and
attitudes, social or religious, we have, at times, a number of
186 ASIATIC PAPERS.
permutations and combinations of the various forms of one and
the same custom or attitude or of different customs and attitudes*
It is the left hand which observes the above attitude among
the Parsees. In many Zoroastrian rituals, at
The left hand. first, it is the left hand that plays a promi-
nent part, when an attitude is to be continued
for some time. The right hand is kept disengaged for various
other small observances or performances, e.g., to feed the fire.
The holding of the twigs of a particular kind of tree in the
ritual of the Yacna was held necessary. These twigs were
called barsam. The Vendidad (Ch. XIX, 19) enjoins that these
sacred twigs must be held in the left hand (havdya zasta).
In one of the sculptures at Persipolis or Takht-i Jamshed,
the king who prays before a fire vase, holds the royal mace
(Av. vazra : Pers. Gurz.) in his right hand and a bunch in his-
left hand. This bunch seems to be a bunch of the barsam
twigs (vide Plates 25 and 26 in Mr. K. D. Kiash's " Ancient
Persian Sculptures "). In other sculptures at the same place r
where the king holds out his right hand in a prayer gesture, there
also the sacred barsam twigs are held in the left hand (Ibid,
pi. 36).
In the Iranian sculptures it is also the left hand which does
the principal work that has to last long. For example, in
the case of the winged figures of the praying kings (Plates 36
and 47 of Kiash), it is the left hand that does the continuous
work of holding the symbolic disc, or the barsam or the bow, and
the disengaged right hand that is outstretched, palm sidewise,
expresses the attitude of prayer.
Dr. Langdon thinks that " the attitude with hands folded
at the waist " was assumed by the Baby-
3. B6th hands Ionian worshipper income formal prayers,,
folded. an d it denoted " humility, submission,
contrition." This attitude is referred to
in the Pahlavi Viraf-nameh, where it seems to be an attitude of
consent and obedience. When Ardai Viraf was selected from
among many for a journey to the other world, he stood up
and folded his hands on his breast (madam val regalman
ikvimfinat va yadman pavan kash kard. Chap. I, 36-37).
When he was finally selected for the heavenly journey from
among the three best, by drawing lots, he, as an expression of
consent &nd acceptance, folded his hands upon the waist
(yadman pavan kash vadtind : Chap. II, 21). We see ho figures
with folded hands in Iranian sculptures. At present, you may
see priests in prayer assemblies occasionally sitting with folded
hands, but with no formal purpose. They fold or unfold the-
PRAYBE-GESTUBBS . 1 87
hands as they like when the hands are otherwise not engaged
in particular attitudes of ritual. In modern Parsee phraseology,
his particular attitude of hands is spoken of as " adab vdlvi,"
t.e., " to fold the adab ", where the word " adab" is Arabic
adab ( v*' ) meaning "courtesy, politeness." The word has
nothing to do with hands, though the words intend an attitude
of folding hands. In assemblies of solemnity, gay or sorrowful,
like those of funerals or marriage or even in prayer assemblies
we see persons here and there sitting with folded hands, but
that attitude is in no way necessarily connected with any
prayer gesture though it signifies a kind of resignation or
submission to the will of God.
According to Dr. Langdon, the above attitude of folded hands,
latterly gave way " in favour of the kissing-hand (or kiss-throw-
ing hand) position with one arm folded
The "Kiss hand" at the waist. This widely adopted attitude
pose or attitude. of Babylonian religion seems to have been
introduced by the Semites ofthe first dynasty
as a simple means of containing the two principle religious poses
of the Sumerians. They thus continued the ideas of salutation
and humility." 1 The kiss-hand pose at one time " prevalent
in Greece and Rome" prevailed in Sumeria from the very
earliest period. It seems to have come to the Babylonians
from the Sumerians, as " the second great hand movement
in religious psychology " and fundamentally conveying "the
idea of salutation, greeting, adoration." 2
According to Herodotus, kissing was a form of salutation
among the Iranians of the Acheemenian times. He says:
When they meet one another in the streets, one may discover
by the followig custom, whether those who meet are equals.
For instead of accosting one another, they kiss on the mouth ;
if one be little inferior to the other they kiss the cheek ; but
if he be of a much lower rank, he prostrates himself before the
other."3
- But in prayer attitudes, the kissing hand posture does not
seem to Le possible among the Iranians from the standpoint
of their view of pollution and sanitation. Whatever comes out
from the mouth was polluted and unhealthy. The Parsees
generally, even now, would not drink from the samo cup. The
officiating priest, holding the Bareshnum ritual, would not
drink even from the same pot, though the pot may not have
touched the lip of the previous drinker. If the hand aocidently
l J . K. A. 8., Oct. 1020, p. 546.
Ibi'l, p. 544. '
a Herodotus Bk. 1, 184. Gary's Translation (1880) p. 61.
188 ASIATIC PAPERS.
touched any moist part of the lips, it was required to be
washed. So, the kissing pose of hand in religious ritual or
prayers is not observed among the Iranians.
In a sculpture at Persipolis (Kiash, PL 90) there appears a
pose of the hand, which one may very plausibly take to be a kiss-
throwing pose, but I think it is another form of the pose of
the arm raised parallel to the face palm inward. Had it been
a kiss-throwing pose, it would have been with the right hand,
but it is not so. The pose is that of the left hand though the
right hand is disengaged.
But a certain pose or attitude of both the hands is prevalent
among the Parsees from olden times, which comes somewhat
nearer to this attitude, which seems to be akin to what is
known as the " Bass of Peace " among the ancient Hebrews
and the early Christians, and which is still prevalent among
some Israels. This Hebrew or early Christian Kiss of Peace may
have come down from the ancient Babylonian attitude of the
kissing hand. This attitude or pose of both the hands is
known among the Parsees even now as Hamazor, wherein
one person lets his two hands pass alternately between the
two hands of another, and after two passes of that kind, both
carry the two hands to the head in the form of a salutation.
The Israels and the early Christians did the same thing, but in
thte end kissed their hands. For details of the Parsee custom
I will refer my readers to my Paper entitled " The Kiss of Peace,
among the Israels and the Hamazor among the Zoroastrians "
read before the Anthropological Society of Bombay. 1
Next to the attitude of the extended hand arm raised parallel
4. The Pointed- to the face, palm inward, it is the pointed
finger attitude of finger attitude of the hand among the Baby-
the Hand. lonians referred to by Dr. Langdon that
has inteiested me greatly from the Iranian or Parsee point of
view. Dr. Langdon refers to the "extraordinary pointed
finger attitude of the Assyrians as they worshipped before statues
and sacred symbols " and says that " it is really the kiss-throw-
ing hand arrested in the last stage of the act and thrown with
the index-finger only." 2 I will not enter here into the psycho-
logy of this attitude and say what it meant among the Babylo-
nians and Assyrians, but proceed to refer to a similar pose among
the Iranians, (a) in their sculptures and (6) in their rituals.
(a) We find this attitude in several Iranian sculptures. In one
of the sculptures at a place named Naksh-i-Shapur, which is
1 Journal of tho Anthropological Society of Bombay. Vol. VIII, pp. 84-95. Vide
my Anthropological Papers, Fart I, pp. 288-04.
t J. B. A. S. f Oct. 1010. p. 546.
PRAYER-GESTURES. 1 89
supposed by Mr. Kiash to depict the surrender of the Roman Em-
peror Valerian to the Iranian King Shapur I, there are two rows of
Persian horsemen who all point the index-finger of their right
hand to their King, while before the King there stand three
figures, supposed to be Roman courtiers with both hands extended
and opened palm upwards asking forgiveness for a person in
fetters before them, supposed to be Valerian (Ki ash's Ancient
Persian Sculptures, PL 12). In another sculpture of the same
king (Ibid, PI. 13), supposed to be a triumphal scene, we tee
similarly, two rows of horsemen, each of 14 troopers pointing
their right hand index-finger to the Iranian King. In another
sculpture (Z6w7, PL 39) which seems to be a coronation scene, the
King, while receiving from the Mobadan Mobad, the archimagus,
the Iranian archbishop, the royal disc or circlet (charkh) with
his right hand, holds his left hand closed as in a fist with
the pointed thumb before his face. This seems to be another
pose of the pointed finger attitude. It also, like the pointed
finger, signifies, obedience, consent, acceptance. It seems that
persons of lower grade, when they wanted to express a posture
of obedience, respect, agreement, or consent, in the presence of
their superiors, did so with the index-finger. But persons of
higher rank generally did so with all the five-fingers folded, as
if forming a fist with the thumb pointing a little upwards.
Vide the following plates for one or another of these finger
or thumb postures expressive of obedience, respect, agreement,
etc.
(1) Kiash, PL 41. Shapur I at Naksh-i-Rustam., Index-
finger by a subordinate standing behind the King.
(2) Ibid., PL 42. Closed fist with the thumb upwards.
A Coronation Scene at Naksh-i-Rustam.
(3) Ibid., PL 43. Index-finger at Naksh-i-Rustam. Behram
Gore or Behram V.
(4) Ibid., PL 44. Index-finger
(6) Coming to the modern rituals we find that the Parsees, in
the recital of their Afringan prayers, recite a section, which ia
common to all the Afringans and which is in honour of the
ruling King of the land. The Zoroastrian priests of Persia,,
during this recital, hold up their fingers. The Indian Parsee
priests, instead of holding up their fingers, hold up a flower in
their hands. Here, the flower seems to serve the purpose of a
finger. The flower is held up in the right hand, the arm of which
is, raised up well-nigh parallel to the face.
Now, what does the holding up of the finger in Iranian
Archaeology and in the Zoroastrian ritual in Persia, or the
holding up of the flower as a substitute in t]ie Zoroastrian ritual
100 ASIATIC PAPEBS.
in India signify ? It signifies assent, approval, agreement. The
particular section of the Afringan (lit. the prayer of blessing),
invokes God's blessing upon the ruler (khshathriya) of the land.
At this recital, all the priests of the prayer-assembly raise up
their fingers in Persia and flowers in India, to express their heart-
felt assent and good-will in the benediction.
The Tibetans observe the Buddhist religion at present. But
their old religion is said to be the Bon religion, some elements
of which they have embodied in their religion. Their old
Bon religion seems to have come to them from some part of
Oentral Asia where their ancestors may have had a home com-
mon with that of the early Iranians. Their custom of the
disposal of the dead, which resembles that of the modern Parsees
of India and much more resembles that enjoined in the Vendidad
from which the modern Parsees of India seem to have diverted
41 little, points to this very early relation. When at Darjeeling
in the summer of 1913, I had the pleasure of visiting often three
Gumpas or monasteries of the Tibetan Lamas there. My
long talks with the Lamas and my study of the works of great
writers and travellers of Tibet, like Col. Weddel, Rai Sarat
handra Bahadur, Mons. L. De Milloue, Mr. Rockhill, Dr. Sven
Hedin and Mons. Bonvalot, showed me some points of simi-
larity between some Tibetan and Zoroastrian beliefs and customs.
As I said then, I understood some parts of my Vendidad better*
there and then, than at home before.
Now these Tibetans have a form of salutation and of
expression of assent or approval which resembles the above
referred to Zoroastrian form of expressing consent by the raising
of a finger. This form is that of raising up their thumbs.
" Pulling the thumb up means approval and satisfaction." 1
One way of expressing their thanks is that of lifting up the
thumbs. According to Rockhill, " throughout Tibet, to say a
thing is very good, they hold up the thumb with the fingers
closed and say ' Angetumbo re' i.e., it is the thumb ; it is the
first. Second class is expressed by holding up the index with
the remark ' ange nyiba r6,' it is the second." Mr. Rockhill
says of one part of Tibet : " The mode of salutation among the
people in this section of the country is novel. They bold
out both hands, palms upper most." This mode of salutation
is prevalent among the Mongols also. Rockhill says further on :
" The lower classes here, when saluting superiors, are in
the habit of bending the knee very low, putting the right hand
beside the right cheek and the left hand under the elbow of the
right arm, at the same time sticking out the tongue." In one
i " Across Tibet, etc.," by Bonvalot, p. 08.
PRAYER-GESTURES. 191
part of Tibet) accoiding to Mr. Sarat Chandra, " it is customary
to greet one another with a kiss, and whoever omits a kiss when
meeting or parting with an acquaintance is considered rude
and unmannerly/*' 1 In many of the old age beliefs and
customs of the Tibetans, who have continued to live in an
isoJated condition surrounded by lofty mountains, we see a
good deal which explains some of the early Babylonian and
Iranian forms of belief and salutation.
From all these considerations we see that the finger and
thumb attitude as seen in more than one bas-relief of Iranian
sculpture was an attitude expressing satisfaction and assent.
In many a ritual of the Church, in almost all communities,
there prevails, what we mi* call, a shorten-
Various attitudes ing process. I have reterred to it in my
of the hand and p aper on Tibetan rosaries read before the
^JSSSSSS Anthropological Society of Bombay.* There
the Iranians. seems to have prevailed the same shorten*
ing-process in the matter of the attitude
or pose of hands in prayers. In spite of the shortening
process, we see prevailing, side by side, all the various
attitudes from the first primitive longest to the latest shortest.
From religious gatherings and religious surroundings to social
gatherings and social surroundings is one step, though the step
may occasionally be long. So, we see many customs prevalent
both in Church and Society. From a study of the attitudes
of the hand, as referred to in Iranian books, sculptures and
ritual, we may draw the following conclusions :
1. The outstretched hands raised a little above, somewhat
parallel to the face, palm upwards, pointing heavenwards, was
the primitive pose, expressive of imploration of God's help and
forgiveness. That was also the posture or pose for asking for-
giveness from another person, whether a prince or peer. In an
Iranian bas-relief of Darius (Kiash's Plate 55), a fallen person
lying prostrate on the ground face upward, implores forgiveness
irom the king by raising both his hands and feet upwards,
towards the face of the king.
2. The use of one hand in place of two is the next step. It is
'the first step in the shortening process. When the left hand
was occupied in holding a religious symbol like the barsam at
first, and like the cTutkhra (a wheel, disc or circlet) and bow later
on, the right hand only was similarly extended. (Vide the
sculptures of Persipolis, Plate 36 of Kiash; of Behistun, lbid>
PI. 55.) These may be said to be very early Avestan or AchflB-
menian poses.
1 Journey to Lbassa and Central Tibet, p. 137.
2 Vol. X, pp. 139-56, My " Anthropological Papers ", Part 11, pp. &2-109.
192 ASIATIC PAPERS.
In ceremonial gatherings like those of large religious congre-
gations or court assemblies, when the left hands held some symbols
of authority, for example the bow in the case of Achsemenian
kings, the right hand was free for expression of emotions. For
example, Darius, holding a bow in his left hand, extends his
right hand towards the state prisoners before him, and, pointing
his index-finger towards them, tells them some words of
caution or advice.
3. The left hand extended and arm raised parallel to the face
was the next pose derived from the first pose as the result
of the shortening process. One cannot keep both his hands
extended as above very long during the recital of a long prayer.
So, the left hand came to be so extended but not so much as to
fatigue the worshipper. The right hand was kept disengaged
for other religious or ordinary purposes, e.g., to feed the sacred
fire before the worshipper with sandalwood and frank incense
(adsam bui), or to form a contact with the fire- vase during parti-
cular recitals, or to extend it to the other worshippers to create
a sympathetic contact, or to guide others by gestures. When,
by this shortening process, the left hand gradually came to be
very close to the mouth, in order to avoid pollution, it had to
be covered with paddn or a piece of cloth.
4. Coming to later times, we find the pose of folded hands
(adab) expressing submission, consent, obedience, etc. For
example, Ardai Viraf folds his hands on his breast to express
such an emotion. When you f(?ld your hands, you shut off
your hands, as it were, from any work; you express helpless-
ness and surrender, and hence consent, or obedience. <k Fold
up hands >J was, as it were, the older form of later "Hold
up hands."
5. This is the case in the matter of voluntary submission.
But, in case of compulsory submission, both the hands are
voluntarily held backwards on the waist at the back or are
chained in a similar position. ( Vide Kiash's Plate 60, where
the nine rebel princes are made to stand in that position, with
a common rope passing through the necks of all.)
Then, occasionally, instead of both the hands being folded on
the waist, we find one folded and the other working.
6. The pointed, finger or thumb pose seems to be a much later
form. Instead of both the hands or of one hand being used in,
supplication, there came in the use of one finger. Of course,
at times, in the shortening- process, there came in also some addi-
tional signification. In a sculpture at Kermanshah, supposed
to be a coronation scene, there is a picture, supposed to be that of
a Zoroastrian, where the person instead of pointing his hands*
fBAYEB-GESTUBES. 193
or hand seems to point his wand towards God. In some later
varieties of that picture, we see the person pointing towards
Heaven with his finger.
We find some prayer attitudes of hands in the Sassanian
coins, (a) We find the attitude of arm
raised Parallel to the face palm inward in
some of the ccdns. For example, in the
coin of Varahran II (Nos. 3 and 5 of Plates IV of Longperier's
Essai surles MMailles des Rois Perses de la Dynastie Sassanide).
The worshipper, who is the king himself, stands before the altar
of the Sacred Fire in that posture, while on the other side of
the altar stands the fire-priest holding up a chakhra (disc or
circlet), an emblem of royalty or royal authority, in the attitude
of placing it on the fire. I think it is actually a chakhra or circlet
of sandal- wood or some other fragrant wood, that the fire-priest
(Athravan, the Iranian Flamine) is placing en the fire. He zeceiv-
es it from the royal worshipper who brings it as an offering
before the Sacred Fire and hands it to the priest whose function
is to feed the fire.
In the modern ritual of feeding the Sacred fire of the Atasb
Behraoi, the Fire-temple of the first grade the ritual known
as bui dddan &&** 45^ i.e., to give fragrant fuel, the priebt
goes round the fire-vase in a particular enjoined way . l The
ritual is now spoken of as " chak farvo." I think, that pos-
sibly, the word chak may be a corrupted form of chakhra, and
so, the above wards of the ritual may mean " to go round in a
circle (round the fire)." The modern ritual of mdchi over the
sacred fire is another form of offering fragrant fuel in the form
of a royal disc. The modern machi (lit. a throne, a seat) is in
the form of a throne, arranged by placing six or seven pieces
of sandal- wood.
(6) Another hand posture which we observe on the Sassanian
coins is that of both, the worshipping king and the serving fire-
priest, holding some long stick-like forms (Ibid Nos. 1, 2 and 4).
They may be metallic ladles. One cannot understand why
their faces are not turned towards the fire but away from the
fire, when they hold the ladle. It is true , that even now, in the
modern ritual of feeding the sacred fire, in one part of the recital
of the Atash-nyaish the recital of the " Dadar gehan diu-i-
Mtzda-yani, etc./' formula, the worshipper has to turn to the
south. But one cannot understand why is it generally so in the
case of the worshippers with the ladles or sticks in their hands .
i Vide my Paper on Consecration Ceremonies before the Anthropological* Society
Journal, Vol. XI, r 517.
13
194 ASIATIC PAPER.
(c) In gome later coins (Varaharan III, Narses, Hormsidas II
and others, Ibid Plate V Nos. 1 to 5 and Plot VI) the ladles,
are short. Here the picture of the ladles is like that of the
hand raised parallel to the face. The ladles or metallic sticks
seem to replace the hand posture. This is very clearly marked
in the case of the coins of Artaexrxes II and Shapur III (Ibid
PI. VII). In some coins, the royal worshipper has a short laddie
while the priest has a long one.
In the case of a coin of Chosroes I, we find the picture of folded
hands (Ibid PI. X 4).
In the case of short laddies in some coins, they are held up
from the waist upwards, and in others, they are rested on the
ground. The latter is the posture in which one can now see, at
times, Parsee priests standing before the fire.
The above different postures can also be studied from Thomas's
44 Numismtic and other Antiquarian Illustrations of the Rule
of the Sassasnians in Persia (1873)."
In all the ab^ve attitudes, I have referred to the Iranian
attitudes cr prayer gestures of hand, wherein
Detestation for ^ O( * or *^ e Higher Intelligences 01 Higher
the Evil. Powers are appealed to or implored. But,
there are certain attitudes which express
emotions of disgust or detestation of what is bad or
evil. I will conclude my Paper with a few words on these
attitudes. Seme of these prayers for these expressions of detes
taticn are later. They are not in the original Avesta, but are in
later Pazend. They are more of what we call incantations for the
removal of evils of all sorts including the pest of noxious animals
like serpsnts, snakes, wolves, cats, rats, etc. In the Vanant
Yasht, there are incantations of that kind, and the later ritual
enjoins that during their recital, the worshipper, must strike
the palm of one hand (the left hand) with the other hand, at
one part of the recital, one? ; at another part, twice ; and at
three other parts, ihrice.
In other similar incantations and in various parts of the
Avesta, where the name of Angra Mainyu, the Ahriman or the
Evil Power is mentioned, or where evil influences or powers are
referred to, the worshipper puts the thumb of his right hand over
the central finger and gives it a slip, so as to produce a sound,
spoken of in modern phraseology as tachdkdi or snapping. The
s tme emotion is expressed by an outward motion of the right
hand palm inwards, expressing an idea of repulsion.
A Visit to the Great Watt of China.
A Similar Watt of King Noshirwdn
(Chosroes I) of Persia.
READ ON 20TH APRIL 1923.
Last year (1922), I had the pleasure and honour of represent-
ing this Society and four 1 other Societies
Introduction. and Institutions at the second Oriental
Conference, held in the end of January at
^Calcutta. From Calcutta I had gone to Burma, the Strait
Settlements of Singapore and Penang, French Indo-China,
China and Japan. In my itinerary, I had included the world-
known Great Wall of China, which had influenced the history
of many ancient countries. I had the pleasure of visiting
it on 1st April 1922. It was one of the dreams of my
life to see this Great Wall, the construction of which
was a landmark, not only in the history of China but also
in the history of the then known world. Being the
realization of one of the dreams of my life, I take my visit of
it in the evening of my life as a landmark in the history of my ,
life. The object of this paper is, (I) to give a brief description of
.my visit of the wall and of my impressions, and (II) to speak of a
similar, though smaller, wall, built about 800 years later, in the
West, near the Caspian Sea, by Anoushirawan or Noushirwan
:(Chosroes I) of Persia, who, like Justinian, his contemporary
of Rome, was known as Noushirwan adal t i.e., the Just, and
of whose justice, his another contemporary, Mahomed, the
great Prophet of Arabia, is reported to have said, that he
considered himself very fortunate that he was born under the
sovereignty of a just prince like Noushirwan. I speak of
Noushirwan's wall as a wall similar to that of the Great*
Wall of China, because, like the great wall, it was built to keep
.away the inroads of a people, who were the descendants ot
an offshoot of the great people against whom the Chinesewall
built.
The University of Bombay, the Anthropological S>ciety of Bo-nbay. the K.
ntal Institute and th? Jarthosati Din ni A hoi Karnftri Mapdli.
196 ASIATIC PAPER.
We have often heard of the Seven Wonders of the ancient
World. 1 The Westerners, or, to speak mora
correcti y at Present, the Middle Westerners
the wonderof the * t'ke ancient times, looked for their Wonders,
Ancient World. only to the countries round the Mediterranean,
which was more intimately known to them,
and they did not include the Great Wall of the furthest East
among their seven wonders, as they had hardly any opportunity
to see it. It is not from any architectural point of view, but from
the point of view of the great enterprise and its great length, and
also from the point of view of the great and noble thought of the
safety of his people which led to its structure by the King of
China, that one can include the Great Wall in the list of wonders.
Dr. Edgar J. Banks, in his " Seven Wonders of the Ancient
World " very properly says that "it is a common weakness
of modern man to imagine that his own age and his own country
have progressed beyond all others." But imagine a continuous
wall of the length of 1,500 miles, of the width of about 12 feet
at the top, with 200 towers here and there across its whole
length, built in a kind of wilderness of wildernesses, rising and
falling over mountains and into valleys, and think, that the
great wall was built by a great king of the remote past for
securing the safety of his people from the frequent inroads of
hordes of marauders, and you will then, I think, admit,
that it must be a wonderful piece of work by a wonderful man,
wonderfully solicitous for the good of his country.
Some speak of the Himalayas, the Great Wall of China and
% the Pyramids as the three greatest Wonders of the World. Of
these three, one, the Pyramids are colossal mausoleums, which,
one may say, are not of any practical utility. But think of the
great practical purpose, the long wall of Nature, the Himalayas,
has served in defending the extensive frontiers of India on the
North ; and from that, you can form an idea of the great purpose
which the Wall of China has served in keeping off the inroads
of marauding^tribes into China. Fortunately, I have the plea-
sure of visiting all these three 'great wonders and I am in a
position to form a clear idea of the purposes they have served.
From the point of view with which it was built and from the
fact of its being built in a wilderness, the Wall of China is very
i The following are generally held to be the seven Wonders :
1. The Pyramids of Egypt, especially that of Cheops, built about 2900 B. C.
2. The Wall and Hanging Gardens of Babylon from about 605 to 562 B. C.
3. The Statue of Olympian Zeno by Phldeus about 470 to 462 B. C.
4. The Temple of Diana at Ephesus about 356 B. C.
5. The Mausoleum or tomb of King Mauzolus of Carla, erected by his
widow Artemesia, about 353 B. C.
6. The Colossus of Rhodes, about 280 B. C.
7. The Pharos or Watch-tower of Alexandria about 247 B. C.
A .VISIT TO THE GBB1T WALL OF CHINA. 197
^properly taken to " have no paralled in the whole world, not even
in the pyramids of Egypt." 1
From what you see, while travelling by train in China, and
in Pekin itself, and from what you read in
China, a Coun- the books on China, you can say, that China
try of Walls. is> as it were> a Country of Walls. The Great
Chinese Wall has made it emphatically so
But, even before that wall was built in about 217 B. C., a Chinese
King named Ts'm, who lived about 100 years before this time,
had built a wall against the Tartars who were now and then
attacking his people. It is said, that even about 50 years before
that time, Ngwei, a powerful prince of the Tsin family had
built a wall to keep off his neighbours. 2 The city of Pekin,
" a mysterious picturesque interesting City " itself, has
several walls, the wall round the Forbidden city which
included the quarters of the Emperors and his nobility,
the inner wall, and the outer wall. Some parts of the country
are said to have walls built to keep off prevailing injurious
winds.
T
We left Pekin on the morning of 31st March by a train,
. leaving that city at 7-25 a.m., and arrived
My visit. at Nankou at about 10-45 a m From there>
we went to see the great tombs of the Ming Kings (1368-1662
A. C.). From the station to the tombs, it is a ride on mules
of about 3 hours. The distance is about 11 miles. Resting
at Nankou for the night on returning from the tombs, we took
.the next day, at about 10 a.m., a train for the Ching-lung-chiao
station which is the station to go up to the Wall. Our train had
its engine at the back ; so we had, from the front gallery
of our carriage in front, a good look of the Nankou pass along
which the train ascends. The Nankou ridge is about 1,900 feet
high. I had the pleasure of crossing, in my previous travels,
three mountain passes the Khyber Pass on the way from
Peshawar to Cabul, the Bubu pass in the Himalayas leading
to the Kulu Valley, and the Banihal pass leading from Vernag in
Kashmir to Jamoo. Out of these three passes, I was reminded
of the Khyber Pass on seeing the wildly picturesque scenery
of the Nankou Pass. In the case of, the Khyber, I remember
leaving Peshawar on an early morning in the end of March
in 1887 shivering with cold, and returning at midday to Jamrud
irom Ali Musjid, all exhausted, riding for 10 miles and back
under a torching sun. It was well nigh the same time of the
i Calcutta Review of January 1003, Vol. 116. p. 40.
* Ancient China simplified, by Plot Edward, Harper Parker (1908),
p. 11.
198 ASIATIC PAPER.
year (1st April) when we crossed the Nankou pass by train and?
the weather here was cool. We saw snow here and there on some*
parts of the hills and also in some creviced down below.
We began seeing the great Wall with its watch-towers here and
there from the train. We saw from the train the old caravan
route running in a zig-zag line here and there. We got down
from the train at the Ching-lung-chiao station, and from there,
about half an hour's walk of gradual ascent takes us to the top
of a part of the wall. It was 12-10 when I placed my foot upon
this historical wall, and the first words I wrote then with a glad
heart in my note-book were "{jftHl *l*U ! " tf **U*l Sl*&
M^l *Hl <tU<Nl CHlfclM* *U3lU " *., " I am grateful to Thee,
O God ! that you brought me at this age on this Historic Wall."
The wall had watch-towers at some distances, and here and
there, there were rooms beneath the floor which may be godowns
or store-rooms for military requisites. The wind was blowing
terribly strong on the top of the Wall, and, though it was mid-
day and I had an overcoat on my body, it seemed to pierce
through. Leaving my friends, I proceeded a few hundred yards
further and it was a grand and glorious sight from there, to
see the noble wall rising and falling over precipices in a
wilderness. Looking on your right and on your left, in your
front and on your back, you can cast your physical eyes to long
distances of space, and your mental eyes to long vistas of time
past ages which had now and then kings in China, as noble
as in any other parts of the world, who thought more of their
subjects than of themselves. I would have liked to stay or
sit longer on this awe-inspiring wall in the wilderness and to
meditate there on the ups and downs of Empires. But there
was not much time to indulge in that luxury, and, once more
thanking God, I left the wall, full of joy for having seen this
great piece of the work of Man inspired by God. When I say,
that I saw the great Wall of China and realized a dream of
my life, I say, that I saw only a very small part of the great
wall which extended through a large tract of the country.
We had a second look at the Great Wall from a distance,
from the train on the 3rd of April 1922 at about 5-15 p.m.,
when we were on our way to Japan via Fengtien or Mukden.
From the Chin-Wang-tao station, we saw the Wall on our left.
The wall commenced from Shanhaikuan at the Gulf of Pechili
close by, which has a great harbour. But the distant view from
here was not sufficiently impressive. That at the Nankou pass
was one, which, as said by a traveller, "onoe seen, can never
be effaced from the memory." 1 As said by another writer,
i Charles E. D. Black in the Calcutta Be view of January 1903, p. 84.
A VISIT TO THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA. 191)
" It is one of the few great sights of the world that is not
disappointing. It grows upon me* hour by hour and from the
incredible it becomes credible." 1
The wall is said to be 1,500 miles long. The most accessible
P 81 ^ of it is that at the Nankou Pass. Its
hei S ht varies from 20 to 50 feet ' In some
parts of it, at the distance of every 200 yards,
there are watch-towers about 40 feet high. Some of these
towers, in addition to being watch-towers for the sentries, served
also as places for hurling stones towards the enemies. The
base- of the towers varied from 15 to 25 feet in thickness.
It was 12 feet at the summit. In some parts, the wall is about
4,000 feet high from the sea level. Wherever it was more
exposed to the marauding tribes, it was built of solid masonry.
General Grant of America is said to have estimated, that the wall
" took as much work as would have built all our (American)
railroads, all our canals and nearly all our cities." 2 Another
writer estimates the use of materials in its construction
as follows : "To give another idea of the mass of matter in
the stupendous fabric, it may be observed that it is more
than sufficient to surround the circumference of the earth at
two of its greatest circles with two walls, each six feet high
and two feet thick. It is to be understood that in the cal-
culation is included the earthy part of the midst of the Wall." 3
It is said, that about 30 lacs of men were engaged by the
king in building this Great Wall. As the marauders, against
whom the wall was being built, were likely to harass, and
actually harassed, these builders who all were spread along a
long line of the wall, an army of three lacs of men was required
to protect the builders from harm. It is said on some authority
that forced labour of 7,00,000 men 4 was employed over it.
The Great Wall separates, as said by Mr. Geil, 5 two lands
of the East, the Cold North and the Summer
A sketch of the South. It also separates two great races
Ch' 8tOI d y th f " the outward fl owing white race of the
Biilierrf the North and the black-haired race on the
Great Wall. south, now known as the Yellow race/'
In the same way, it separates two epochs in
1 Miflg Eliza Schidmore, as quoted by the above writer, Ibid, p. 36.
t The Great WaU of China by William Edgar Oeil.
a Calcutta Review of January 1908, p. 41.
< It is said of the Emperor who built it that he had employed 7,00,000 eunuchs
on the work of building his palaces. The eunuchs were castrated criminals whose
crimes were lesser than those that deserved the punishment of death or of maiming,
such as chopping off of feet or slicing of knees. (Ancient China simplified, by Prof.
Parker, p. liOt)
5 ''The Great Wall of China " by William Edgar Geil.
200 . ASIATIC PAPER,
the history of China the Mythical age and the Historical
age. The History of China is divided into four periods : 1.
The most Ancient period. 2. The Ancient period (265-207 B.
C.) 3. The Middle period and 4. The Modern period. Out
of these four, the Great Wall divides the first two periods,
and, " as the .greatest monument of human industry, it has
a noble history."
The pre-historic or semi-mythical history of China begins
at about 2,500 B. C., when China, under its three successive
rulers, is said to have passed into a stage of civilization. During
this period, marriage was instituted, animals were domesticated,
agriculture taught, medical art founded with the use of herbs,
cities were founded, time began to be regularly counted and
calendars formed, communication between cities was carried
by boats on rivers and by carts on land, and silk industry
commenced. Before this time, language, as it were, consisted
of expression of thoughts by means of knots tied on strings,
but during this period picture-writing began, which, later on,
developed into the modern system of Chinese ideographs.
The next set of rulers of China, after the first batch of the
above three kings and their successors, were known for the great
engineering works in connection with the regulation of floods,
one of which is said to have been as large as the great Deluge
of the Bible in Mesopotamia. The flood period lasted for about
9 years and was ended by the construction of canals, the engi-
neering feat of some of which is said to be as great as that of the
Panama canal. One of these rulers, Yu is known as the great
canal-builder (2205 B.C.).
Then reigned the Shang (Tang) or Yin dynasty (1766-1122 B.C.),
which was followed by the Chou (or Chow) dynasty, founded by
Wu Wang, who established a kind of feudal system in China by
granting portions of the kingdom to his supporters. The rule of
this dynasty was the longest in China (1122 to 249 B. C.). The
proper historical history of China begins with the rule of this
dynasty. The three great Chinese philosophers,Confucius,Mancius
and Taotze were born during the rule of this dynasty. The
feudal system of this dynasty weakened China after a number
of years when the feudal princes grew strong and weakened
the central power. So, a powerful nobleman of the
country, named Shih Hivang (or 9wang)-ti, spoken of as
the Napoleon of China, founded in 221 B. C., a new
regime of the Tsin or Chin dynasty. This was, 'as it were,
the foundation of China as a great united Empire, which
continued as an empire, though under different dynasties
A VISIT TO THE GEEAT WALL OF CHINA. 201
and though now and then divided for short periods between
rival rulers, for a long period of about 2,000 years, till it was
overthrown in the beginning of this century and a Republic
formed. Hwang- ti, the founder of the Empire, was a powerful
man. When he found, that a number of people preferred the
iormer Feudal system, and that scholars pointed for their
authority for the advantages of that system to previous litera-
ture, he ordered the destruction by fire of all old literature
which referred to old tradition. This was a great black spot
on the brilliant life of this great man. He destroyed extensive
libraries of old books formed by successive previous rulers of
Ohina, saving only scientific books on medicine, astrology,
and husbandly and books on divination. He also buried alive a
number of literary scholars who quoted old books in favour
of the ancient rulers and against the then rulers. His name
has therefore been condemned by later Chinese writers. He
was to China what Alexander the Great was to ancient Iran,
in the matter of destroying the country's old libraries, with this
difference, that Alexander was a foreigner but Hwang-ti was a
son of the soil. His name was cursed by the Chinese, as that of
Alexander by the Persians. It was this king, who began building
the Great China Wall in 214 B.C. to defend his country against
the northern Tartars who formed a tribe of the great Hun nation.
He entrusted his General Ming-tien with this great work. Chinese
trade with Persia and, further on, with Rome flourished in the
reign of this king. It was this great ruler Hwang-ti, who, from
the name Tsin, where he was born and lived, gave his dynasty
the name of Tsin or Chin, which dynasty, in its turn, gave the
country its later name of Chin or China. 1
One may perhaps say from the above act of the Emperor
that he was altogether opposed to education. But no ; from
his point of view of the good of the country, his quarrel was,
to speak in our modern style of speech, a quarrel with the
Humanists,who are believed to be attaching too much importance
to the Classics. He was, as it were, an anti-humanist, an extreme
anti-classic of the worst type. But while he tried to destroy the
old Chinese Classics, he attempted to liberalize general education.
He wanted to introduce a style of writing by which books can
be easily composed by the writers and understood by the readers.
From this point of view, Mr. W. E. Geil places him in the rank
of Peter the Great, Alfred the Great and even Bisinark. He
cared less for the fetf learned and more foi enlightened
commonalty.
!"i His dynasty was overthrown by the Hun dynasty, whose founder was to China
'what Ardeshir (Artaxerxes) Babegan was to Iran the restorer of its ancient literature
and enoourager of learning. It was he with whom commenced the well-known Ohjneo
system oi literary examinations for the civil service of China.
202 ASIATIC PAPER.
What is said of this Great Emperor who built the Great
Wall of China, reminds us of what we are told of Chandragupta^
the father of Asoka. It is said, that Chandragupta was so much,
afraid of his enemies who looked at his rise with jealousy, that r
to keep them off their watch, he did not sleep in one and the
same palace every night, and that, in the same palace also,,
he slept in different rooms during the different parts of night.
Similarly, it is said of the Chinese king, that powerful as he had
become after uniting the different kingdoms, he was not afraid of
human beings, but was afraid of evil spirits, who, he imagined,
pursued him. So, in order to throw them off their scent, he slept
each night in the different rooms of his great palace consisting of
about 1 ,000 bed rooms. He built the wall to keep off the ancient
Tartars of the Hun nation. But, by what is spoken of as " an
irony of fate," the dynasty of the same Monchu Tartars recently
ruled over China, till overthrown by the formation of the
Republic. To emphasize this change, all the Chinese got their
long hair cut off.
The building of this great wall of China, spoken of by the
Chinese as Chang,-Ching, i.e., the Great Wall, was preceded,
as said above, by some walls on a smaller scale, here and
there. M. Deguignes, in his History of the Huns, thus refers
to the previous walls : " China was desolated since a long
time, by the incursions made by the Tartars living on the
North. Several small kings had erected a long wall on their
frontiers to stop them. Tehing-van having become the master
of the Empire joined them together and constructed one
in his ancient country of Tsin, that which formed what we now
call the Great Wall, of which he was not entirely the author
as several writers of Europe have written." 1 M. Deguignes
says, that one may regard this wall built to check the
Huns as one of the Wonders of the World (une des marveilles
du monde). 2
The Great Wall affected the history of the whole world. It
is generally, and, to a certain extent, properly
nJS? w5f C L^ *hJ believed, that the downfall of the Roman
Great Wall upon the __ , * - . * /-* . j * * i
history of the world. Empire in the 5th Century was due to the
eruption of the Teutonic tribes into Roman
territories. But the cause which led the Germanic hordes to
drive towardfl the Roman territories was the movement of the
Hun tribes of Central Asia. The ancestors of these tribes-
_i J give jnjr. translation from " Histolre Gftnarale des Huns '
A VISIT TO THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA. 20$
were, for a long number of years, invading the different
countries of the East, and among these, the country of China.
The Chinese Emperor having built in the 3rd Century B.C., the
Great Wall for the defence of the Chinese Empire against
the Huns, the latter turned towards the West. Though
there was the interval of nearly eight centuries between the
time (the 3rd Century B.C.) when the Great Wall was built
and the time (5th Century A.C.) when the Roman Empire
fell, one can well trace the influence of the Great Wall upon
the Roman Empire. A great event in history exerts its influence
for a number of years, both in the country itself and outside of
it. The particular tribes of the Huns who were repulsed from
China by the construction of the Great Wall turned back and
fell upon the Yuechi tribes who were in front of them and drove
them further back. The latter in their turn fell upon the
Ut-Suivi tribes and drove them back. The latter again fell
upon the Scythic tribes which had extended up to the
Caspian sea, and so on.
In my paper on " The Early History of the Huns and their
inroads in India and Persia " before this Society, I have dwelt
at some length on the influence of this great wall, upon the
History of China, Rome, India and Persia. In my paper OD
" The Hunas in Avesta and Pahlavi " in the R. G. Bhandarkar
Commemoration Volume (pp. 65-80), I have touched in passing
the question as to who the king was, who defeated and put an
end to the Huna supremacy in India-- Was he Yashodharma
( Vikramaditya) or Baladitya ? In this controversy, the history
of Persia is appealed to, and I have ventured to believe " that
the credit of the defeat of the Huns belongs to Yashodharma."
I will not enter here into the great question of the influence
of the Great Wall on the History of the then known world,
but pass on, referring my readers to the above papers for details.
The ancient Huns who harassed China were divided into
various tribes, known under different names in different countries
and at different tim 
