Hi everyone..
This time i am back with a post solely to discuss the twins of Akbar and Mariam-Uz-Zamani . The account of the birth and demise of the twins from the Akbarnama, has been mentioned in my earlier post on their children . Here i have tried to lay emphasis on the underlying events which led to the demise of the kids.
Name - Hasan Mirza and Husain Mirza
DOB - 19 October 1564 / Thursday 13 Raby' al-awal 972 / 13th day of 3rd month of the Islamic Year 972
Expired On - Hussain Mirza - 29 October, 1564 / Sunday 23 Raby' al-awal 972 /
Hassan Mirza - 5 November, 1564 / Sunday 1 Raby' al-THaany 972
Mother - Mariam-Uz-Zamani Begum(MUZ) / Harka Bai(HK)
In Akbarnama, Volume 2, Page-357, Abu'l Fazl, notes the incident of birth of these kids, as follows.
He writes:
" One of the occurrences, which occurred during this happy time, was the birth of twins. Two priceless jewels appeared from one matrix*,{this refers to the mother of the twins} two world-lighting stars emerged by one ascension, two (pairs of) glorious eyes received brightness, two (sets of) earrings were exalted, two precious necklaces shone, two powerful arms came into being, two wrists of success appeared, two beauteous eyebrows came into being, two ears of joy were opened. That is, two twin princes were born. The worlds expanded with joy, and the parterres of flowers smiled.{means the parents(parterres) of the kids(flowers) - i.e. Akbar and HK/MUZ} The carpet of joy was spread from shore to shore and happiness was proclaimed to mankind. The sound of the drum of rejoicing was heard throughout the nine heavens, and the strains of the organ of felicity resounded over the six sides of the world. "
{
*Matrix -
This word is used by Abu'l Fazl to describe the mother of the Twin Princes. This word is also used by Abu'l Fazl in his Akbarnama, Volume-2, Page-503, to describe HK/MUZ, vis-a-vis Akbar. Hence, keeping in mind the usage of this term in Akbarnama, the meaning of the word "Matrix", appears quite beautiful as a "Mass of fine grained rock in which gems are embedded", or a point of star/light.
Reference:
The 7th Impression(1998) of the 9th edition(1995) of The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English, Page-841, edited by Della Thompson, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
}
Abu'l Fazl dedicates a verse to this auspicious moment.
Qasim Arslan made this chronogram about the birth of those two royal pearls.
He further writes:
These two unique pearls of the 'ocean of holiness' ,{the parents are called Holy} 'returned to the ample domain of the other world after one month'.{passed away and went to the 'other' world.} They FLUNG DOWN the coin of their lives for their father. H.M. felt grieved at the departure of those two early fruits, but trod the pleasant path of acquiescence and resignation, for to the farseeing there is no remedy save submission and resignation against the inevitable Divine decrees.
****************************END of Akbarnama Extract****************************
Religio-Historic Note
The names of the Twin Princes - Hasan and Husain, were ALSO the names of the grandsons of Prophet Mohammed. The grandsons were destined to be martyrs . Their mother, Fatima, was a deeply knowledgeable and chaste lady.
The complete article can be read at this link :
Archival snippets of Prince of Wales' Visit to Fatehpur Sikri in 1906 | Tributes to Akbar and Fatehpur Sikri | Mariam-Uz-Zamani's Twins' death linked with Fatehpur Sikri | With Akbarnama miniatures, 30+ pictures of Fatehpur Sikri from archives
INFERENCE ::
Note the line above in Bold Underlined, where Abu'l Fazl, tells us about the death of the twins. I have read this line many times and still the meaning of this LINE is a mystery to me, as there were many thoughts which came to me. We should keep in mind that Abu'l Fazl was a mystic and a learned philosopher of a highly developed intellect . I have read a lot of his work, and it's quite clear from his writings that he had the remarkable distinction of penning down the most dark acts in the 'calmest possible' manner, thus hiding or not giving the details of the actual act which could not be transpired. Perhaps, he wants to tell us something more than what is understood. It appears that, he wanted to tell us something, which is not conspicuous.
He says that the twins FLUNG DOWN the Coin of their lives for their father.
Let's try to understand this word by word.
1. If one looks at the adjective used by Fazl in his writing, this says that the twins "FLUNG DOWN" their lives. Ponder at the locution chosen by him. And, the manner in which the clause has been fabricated. The assembly of words points towards a violent action and an aggressive approach while describing the event. Does this means that the lives of the twins, who are described as unique pearls and priceless jewels, were taken away in a forceful manner ?
Literally, the word FLUNG, means to throw forcefully / to impel(constrain) with a great force. This raises a genuine question about the nature of the demise of these twins, which does NOT seem natural, but was compelled to happen by aggression or violence.
2. Next, let us come to the following phrase "Coin of their Lives".
It is indeed perplexing that Abu'l Fazl has described the Life of the Twins on the wavelength of Coins. Moreover, he says that the Coin of the lives of twins was FLUNG DOWN (forcefully taken away) for their father.
Why was the terminology of a "Coin" used here.?.
Why did Abu'l Fazl say that the lives were sacrificed(with force) for their father.?.
Doesn't the analogy of a "Coin" put light on the fact that the lives of the twins were a part of some 'gamble' . Did they pay the price for being ROYAL HEIRS.?. Normally, the use of "COIN" and that too when it is "FLUNG DOWN" , is used for a toss/gamble. For example : In many games, we 'forcefully' throw a coin for a toss "to decide the future course" of the event.
On similar lines, Abu'l Fazl's depiction of "giving up the lives of twins for their father" or the "FLUNG-'ing' down of the Coin of Life for their father" , naturally raises a strong suspicion.
Was the demise of twins related to Akbar in some manner, or his prestige.?. We know, Akbar's Foster Mother, Maham Anga was responsible in him remaining childless for Long, but by the time, Hasan and Husain were born, she was no more. Hence, she cannot be held responsible for any act here. The clause is interesting, that why, Abu'l Fazl said, the twins sacrificed their lives for their father. I am still in process of searching more documents for my answers.
Read the Line once more :
They "FLUNG DOWN" the "COIN" of their LIVES "FOR" their FATHER.
There were many events which were 'tried to be hid' beneath the 'Royal Carpet' , as chronicling them was not at the liberty of the chronicler. But, Abu'l Fazl's work provides an implicit understanding of the event. Perhaps, he wanted to tell something, but did not enjoy the sovereignty to do so. It is also possible that he did not want to disclose the exact sequence of events and the circumstances which led to the death of twins. BUT, the placement of the finely selected phrases in the construction of the above sentence, is a testimony to the fact, that these words are not a mere gaffe, but a result of a carefully and cleverly woven web of 'unvoiced deliberate speech'.
These words 'silently' give a tacit approval to 2 points :
a. The incident of losing twins was not natural; it suggests use of force/aggression; an event/course of action, which has not been given to us by Abu'l Fazl .
b. The twins sacrificed their life FOR their father. The possible circumstances have already been discussed above.
Indeed, Abu'l Fazl has displayed his class, which makes him stand apart from many chroniclers in this extract from Akbarnama, and intelligently woven a web of cleverly chosen words in describing the death of the twins. And made all of us ponder over the reasons and underlying factors, which led to the demise of the twins, and HOW they 'sacrificed' their lives for their father......While i have given my views based on my readings, now i expect the views of my readers to help me unshackle these mysterious writings of Abu'l Fazl....Till then, i am continuing with my search for the exact reasons....
Here is a video of the Old Serial, "Akbar - The Great" of 1980's which aired on DoorDarshan, and was made by Akbar Khan. It was a well researched & very short series of approximately 50 episodes....Here is the Video of the Episode which shows, the Birth/Demise of Twin sons of Akbar and his Hindu Queen, the Princess of Amer.
This time i am back with a post solely to discuss the twins of Akbar and Mariam-Uz-Zamani . The account of the birth and demise of the twins from the Akbarnama, has been mentioned in my earlier post on their children . Here i have tried to lay emphasis on the underlying events which led to the demise of the kids.
 |
| The death of the twin sons led to unhappiness everywhere including in Amer. |
Name - Hasan Mirza and Husain Mirza
DOB - 19 October 1564 / Thursday 13 Raby' al-awal 972 / 13th day of 3rd month of the Islamic Year 972
Expired On - Hussain Mirza - 29 October, 1564 / Sunday 23 Raby' al-awal 972 /
Hassan Mirza - 5 November, 1564 / Sunday 1 Raby' al-THaany 972
Mother - Mariam-Uz-Zamani Begum(MUZ) / Harka Bai(HK)
 |
| Akbarnama Extract Akbar had arrived in Agra before the birth of these twins on Tuesday, 3 Rabi-al-awwal, 972 , i.e., 9th October, 1564. |
In Akbarnama, Volume 2, Page-357, Abu'l Fazl, notes the incident of birth of these kids, as follows.
He writes:
" One of the occurrences, which occurred during this happy time, was the birth of twins. Two priceless jewels appeared from one matrix*,{this refers to the mother of the twins} two world-lighting stars emerged by one ascension, two (pairs of) glorious eyes received brightness, two (sets of) earrings were exalted, two precious necklaces shone, two powerful arms came into being, two wrists of success appeared, two beauteous eyebrows came into being, two ears of joy were opened. That is, two twin princes were born. The worlds expanded with joy, and the parterres of flowers smiled.{means the parents(parterres) of the kids(flowers) - i.e. Akbar and HK/MUZ} The carpet of joy was spread from shore to shore and happiness was proclaimed to mankind. The sound of the drum of rejoicing was heard throughout the nine heavens, and the strains of the organ of felicity resounded over the six sides of the world. "
 |
| Akbarnama extract. Note the use of word matrix and the highlighted part. And co relate it with the next extract from Akbarnama. |
{
*Matrix -
This word is used by Abu'l Fazl to describe the mother of the Twin Princes. This word is also used by Abu'l Fazl in his Akbarnama, Volume-2, Page-503, to describe HK/MUZ, vis-a-vis Akbar. Hence, keeping in mind the usage of this term in Akbarnama, the meaning of the word "Matrix", appears quite beautiful as a "Mass of fine grained rock in which gems are embedded", or a point of star/light.
Reference:
The 7th Impression(1998) of the 9th edition(1995) of The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English, Page-841, edited by Della Thompson, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
}
 |
| Description of birth of Salim from Akbarnama and the sending of Mariam Uz Zamani, the matrix, to the abode of Sheikh Salim Chisti in Fatehpur Sikri. |
Abu'l Fazl dedicates a verse to this auspicious moment.
Verse
There was such a round of bumpers
That patience deserted patience, and sense left sense.
H.M. took the blooming of these two rose-bushes as an omen of the auspiciousness of two worlds.
He returned thanks to God, and named one of the twins Mirza Hasan, the other Mirza Husain.
There was such a round of bumpers
That patience deserted patience, and sense left sense.
H.M. took the blooming of these two rose-bushes as an omen of the auspiciousness of two worlds.
He returned thanks to God, and named one of the twins Mirza Hasan, the other Mirza Husain.
Qasim Arslan made this chronogram about the birth of those two royal pearls.
Verse
The unique king had two sons as successors
Two jewels came into the hands from the casket of success. {refers to the mother of twins.} Time searching for the date wrote thus:
Two moons appeared from the zenith.{refers to the Almighty.}
The unique king had two sons as successors
Two jewels came into the hands from the casket of success. {refers to the mother of twins.} Time searching for the date wrote thus:
Two moons appeared from the zenith.{refers to the Almighty.}
 |
| Akbarnama extract - Demise of the twins of Emperor Akbar |
He further writes:
These two unique pearls of the 'ocean of holiness' ,{the parents are called Holy} 'returned to the ample domain of the other world after one month'.{passed away and went to the 'other' world.} They FLUNG DOWN the coin of their lives for their father. H.M. felt grieved at the departure of those two early fruits, but trod the pleasant path of acquiescence and resignation, for to the farseeing there is no remedy save submission and resignation against the inevitable Divine decrees.
****************************END of Akbarnama Extract****************************
Religio-Historic Note
The names of the Twin Princes - Hasan and Husain, were ALSO the names of the grandsons of Prophet Mohammed. The grandsons were destined to be martyrs . Their mother, Fatima, was a deeply knowledgeable and chaste lady.
**************
 |
| Comparison of the aesthetic tastes of Shah Jahan and Akbar. A fitting tribute to Akbar. The story behind Akbar's association with Fatehpur Sikri is also given, starting with the death of the twin sons of Akbar and Mariam-Uz-Zamani, which lead to the contact with Sufi Sheikh Salim Chisti. |
The complete article can be read at this link :
Archival snippets of Prince of Wales' Visit to Fatehpur Sikri in 1906 | Tributes to Akbar and Fatehpur Sikri | Mariam-Uz-Zamani's Twins' death linked with Fatehpur Sikri | With Akbarnama miniatures, 30+ pictures of Fatehpur Sikri from archives
**************
INFERENCE ::
Note the line above in Bold Underlined, where Abu'l Fazl, tells us about the death of the twins. I have read this line many times and still the meaning of this LINE is a mystery to me, as there were many thoughts which came to me. We should keep in mind that Abu'l Fazl was a mystic and a learned philosopher of a highly developed intellect . I have read a lot of his work, and it's quite clear from his writings that he had the remarkable distinction of penning down the most dark acts in the 'calmest possible' manner, thus hiding or not giving the details of the actual act which could not be transpired. Perhaps, he wants to tell us something more than what is understood. It appears that, he wanted to tell us something, which is not conspicuous.
He says that the twins FLUNG DOWN the Coin of their lives for their father.
Let's try to understand this word by word.
1. If one looks at the adjective used by Fazl in his writing, this says that the twins "FLUNG DOWN" their lives. Ponder at the locution chosen by him. And, the manner in which the clause has been fabricated. The assembly of words points towards a violent action and an aggressive approach while describing the event. Does this means that the lives of the twins, who are described as unique pearls and priceless jewels, were taken away in a forceful manner ?
Literally, the word FLUNG, means to throw forcefully / to impel(constrain) with a great force. This raises a genuine question about the nature of the demise of these twins, which does NOT seem natural, but was compelled to happen by aggression or violence.
2. Next, let us come to the following phrase "Coin of their Lives".
It is indeed perplexing that Abu'l Fazl has described the Life of the Twins on the wavelength of Coins. Moreover, he says that the Coin of the lives of twins was FLUNG DOWN (forcefully taken away) for their father.
Why was the terminology of a "Coin" used here.?.
Why did Abu'l Fazl say that the lives were sacrificed(with force) for their father.?.
Doesn't the analogy of a "Coin" put light on the fact that the lives of the twins were a part of some 'gamble' . Did they pay the price for being ROYAL HEIRS.?. Normally, the use of "COIN" and that too when it is "FLUNG DOWN" , is used for a toss/gamble. For example : In many games, we 'forcefully' throw a coin for a toss "to decide the future course" of the event.
On similar lines, Abu'l Fazl's depiction of "giving up the lives of twins for their father" or the "FLUNG-'ing' down of the Coin of Life for their father" , naturally raises a strong suspicion.
Was the demise of twins related to Akbar in some manner, or his prestige.?. We know, Akbar's Foster Mother, Maham Anga was responsible in him remaining childless for Long, but by the time, Hasan and Husain were born, she was no more. Hence, she cannot be held responsible for any act here. The clause is interesting, that why, Abu'l Fazl said, the twins sacrificed their lives for their father. I am still in process of searching more documents for my answers.
Read the Line once more :
They "FLUNG DOWN" the "COIN" of their LIVES "FOR" their FATHER.
There were many events which were 'tried to be hid' beneath the 'Royal Carpet' , as chronicling them was not at the liberty of the chronicler. But, Abu'l Fazl's work provides an implicit understanding of the event. Perhaps, he wanted to tell something, but did not enjoy the sovereignty to do so. It is also possible that he did not want to disclose the exact sequence of events and the circumstances which led to the death of twins. BUT, the placement of the finely selected phrases in the construction of the above sentence, is a testimony to the fact, that these words are not a mere gaffe, but a result of a carefully and cleverly woven web of 'unvoiced deliberate speech'.
These words 'silently' give a tacit approval to 2 points :
a. The incident of losing twins was not natural; it suggests use of force/aggression; an event/course of action, which has not been given to us by Abu'l Fazl .
b. The twins sacrificed their life FOR their father. The possible circumstances have already been discussed above.
Indeed, Abu'l Fazl has displayed his class, which makes him stand apart from many chroniclers in this extract from Akbarnama, and intelligently woven a web of cleverly chosen words in describing the death of the twins. And made all of us ponder over the reasons and underlying factors, which led to the demise of the twins, and HOW they 'sacrificed' their lives for their father......While i have given my views based on my readings, now i expect the views of my readers to help me unshackle these mysterious writings of Abu'l Fazl....Till then, i am continuing with my search for the exact reasons....
***************************************
Here is a video of the Old Serial, "Akbar - The Great" of 1980's which aired on DoorDarshan, and was made by Akbar Khan. It was a well researched & very short series of approximately 50 episodes....Here is the Video of the Episode which shows, the Birth/Demise of Twin sons of Akbar and his Hindu Queen, the Princess of Amer.
:)
:D
g-)
:-h
:X
:-?
h-(
:P
:(
:))
:((
=))
y-)
:-O
:-SS
5-p
c-)
s-)
The names, Hasan and Hussain, are sometimes bestowed on twins. Both names mean beautiful.
ReplyDeleteProphet Muhammad was both sad and happy at the birth of his grandsons and took their care upon himself and tried to protect them from evil. He knew they were destined to become martyrs. And they did.
Similarly, Akbar, unknowingly perhaps, named his sons Hasan and Hussain. Little did he know that his sons too would sacrifice their life for their father.
I agree that they may have died a violent death or at least an unnatural death. May be a disgruntled begum who could not have a child of her own killed them out of jealousy. Or some enemy of Akbar who didn't want Akbar to have any heir killed his kids.
It is a belief in some communities that the destinies of a parent and child are sometimes linked together, esp their lifetimes. There is a popular story of how Babur laid down his life to save Humayun. It is, therefore, also a possibility that the twins took on the danger that was to befall on Akbar upon themselves and died in his stead. Hence, they may have "flung down the coin for their father". That is, died in his place.
It must have been extremely traumatic to Akbar and HK to lose their first-borns in this manner, after dreaming of their kids for a long time.
radhika,
DeleteThanks for sharing these additional details, about the names of Hasan and Husain. The example of Babur laying down his life for his son Humayun is a noteworthy point in this regard. Though, there is another anecdote that, Babur died due to effect of slow poison, which was administered to him, by mother of Ibrahim Lodi...
Coming to Husan and Husain, It is also possible that some 'external' agencies could have led to the demise of twins, as you mentioned here.
Indeed, losing twins must have been traumatic to Akbar and HK. No wonder, Akbar took HK with him, even while going for war, just after the demise of twins. On coming back, they both went to Salim Chisti Dargah in Sikri. Such was their bond.
It is possible that someone may have caused the death of the twins of Akbar-HK. Because after them, two more children died young. And then Akbar took HK to Sikri to have Salim. May be he knew the palace in Agra was not a safe place to have a child with enemies lurking in every corner.
DeleteWish Akbarnama gave more details about this issue and why HK gave birth to Salim in Sikri and not at Agra / Amber and too, in a modest house.
DeleteRadhika,
There can be many reasons for the demise of other kids..High Infant mortality rate being one of them..
Though, in the case of twins, Abu'l Fazl has given a strong impression of a violent deed..
Sikri was the abode of Sufi Saint, Sheikh Salim Chisti...For mystic as well as security reasons(away from Harem machinations), that could be the best place..
Also, Salim was born from blessings of Salim Chisti...Hence, that could also be a major contributing factor in deciding Sikri as the venue..
Before giving birth to Salim, HK was shifted to the dwelling place of Sufi Saint, which, itself was quite modest. :)
Radhika,casually speaking, no body wants to name their son as Abhimanyu, however great warrior he might hv been!! Same way, nobody names his son as Vibhishan though he was Rambhakt, as he was ghar ka bhedhi.Similarly, twins were destined to die fr their father, n unknowingly named after martyres, very sad
DeleteYes, Geeta. Very few people name their girls Sita or Vaidehi because her life was so tragic.
DeleteBut Hasan and Hussein are still commonly used for babies. And Inshallah, most of these babies do well in life. : )
Thanks abhay for info
ReplyDelete
DeleteYou're Welcome Gem..
Thank u Abhay. :)
ReplyDeleteI cant even imagine the state of Jalal and Jodha after the twins demise..their first kids and that too twins..how difficult that would have been for them to came out the trauma..:(
twins die due to mortality rate or conspiracy? :-O
Tamy,
DeleteIndeed, losing twins must have been a traumatic experience for Akbar and HK.. And about your question, even i am searching the exact reasons, but Abu'l Fazl has made one thing quite clear, and that is, a violent action involved in the demise of twins, with the statement that, the lives were sacrificed FOR AKBAR..This makes me think, was the issue associated with Akbar also.?. Was it an issue of prestige for the Royal Family....!!!..
I find this post very interesting. You have raised some pertinent points about the death of the twins. Very tragic episode.
ReplyDeleteOne could imagine, after reading your post, that there was an attempt on Akbar's life but the twins, inadvertently got in between and died as a result.
Those lines of Akbarnama have always intrigued me. My views are in sync with yours, with an addition that, perhaps Abu'l Fazl emphasizes on the prestige of Akbar..
DeleteI mean there may be some incident which could have tarnished the prestige of some Mughal Royal, and hence, in a way it was ' fine ', that the twins passed away..The scenario is quite confusing...I am still looking for the answers...Till then, enjoying reading interesting views by all members..
Wonderful post.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, Abu'l Fazl was a writer with class. Carefully chosen words....almost like a riddle that makes me wonder what exactly is he trying to say. Reminds me of another writer( He was much more than that) from the same era....Nosterdamus.
Thanks Cleo..
DeleteAbu'l Fazl has penned this beautifully..
You have mentioned another personality - Nostradamus..Just now read something about him..Well he is also multi-talented. Learned that his book has not been out of print since his death in 16th Century..!!!!
geeta
ReplyDeleteYes.it does seem that Abu'l Fazl seems to be hinting at something in a superfine manner.Though in those days , it was normal fr the writers to use, similies, metaphors,he could hv used something else, why 'flung'?If Fazl has done it this way then it cud be that, he was not permitted to reveal names n other details. And history- geek, this cud happen only if there was a shameful actby close family member of Akbar, an insider.One tries to coverup the evil deeds of one's own mother, father, children, wife/husband.I am sure that there must be tomtoming of the evil deeds of Maham, Adham, sharifuddin, as they were outsiders.
But, history- geek, I find the other part of the phrase,more mysterios!!.i.e.' For The Father'.which hints at some act of sacrifice. This may force us to think in totally different way i.e.There cud hv been a plot to kill Akbar,that gone awry, the kids might hv got killed instead. if this is the case then Ruqs gets clean chit, as she would not harm her husband.
It is also possible that Ruqs wanted to get rid of the kids,n there was also a plot to kill Akbar,both got mixed upresulting into the death of the twins.That way we hv seen Akbar had been very lucky in escaping.if this was the case, then why the culprit was not punished? Either because 1.he/she was not caught. Or 2 because there wasn't enough evidence against him/her.I think, this might be the reason fr not revealing the painful incident, n names involved.History- geek, I request u to reseach this angle as well.
Geeta,
DeleteIt is possible what you are saying. Abul Fazl could only record that which Akbar approved. Even references to people like Mahamanga are oblique. He just about hints that she was responsible for Akbar remaining childless.
Here also, he just hints that something happened that made the children die. May be the target was Akbar, but unfortunately the twins died.
The person responsible for their death may have been a close family member or friend / associate. And for this reason, the matter may have been hushed up. There are many skeletons waiting to tumble out in royal cupboards. : )
Unfortunately, we have lost the keys to many cupboards. : (
@geeta and radhika..
DeleteNice views..But, i have one more theory here, which i mentioned in my post also..Perhaps, Abu'l Fazl wants to say that the Kids sacrificed their life for Akbar(means not Akbar BUT "Prestige of Akbar" ).. It is possible that, had the kids been alive, then that could, in some way, or other result in the tarnishing of image of Akbar and/or , of the Royal Household (in future) .?. May be someone had planned to do something, using the Kids in future..!!!
Though, i am still looking for my exact answers..This ' single ' line is quite complex, and difficult to understand..
This entire Ruqaiyya conspiracy that is being shown in JA presently indicates that she is willing to go to any length to become the MUZ / acquire the importance of this title, i.e., become Mother to the Heir Apparent.
DeleteYour words make me think. Ruqaiyya first took away one child completely through a farman, not even sharing him with Akbar. Then she may harm the baby left with Jodha (who will be the heir) and later lose her own baby through carelessness or harm him in a fit of anger.
Because the Chief Queen had harmed the children, for her own benefit, the matter may have been hushed up. If it had become public knowledge then Akbar's image would have suffered with people gossiping about how a queen had killed the royal heirs out of jealousy.
Another possibility is that Ruqaiyya may have bargained for some rank / power using the baby in her custody to blackmail Akbar. And when the baby died, Akbar was freed form her clutches and his image remained untarnished.
These are just my conjectures and I may be totally wrong. I want to see how this plays out in the show. But we cannot rely on what is shown in the serial. The answer has to come from Mughal/Rajput records only.
Radhika,
DeleteVERY Interesting views. I also have theories on these lines. But, then as you said, we need some verification from the historical records. Till then, we can discuss all possible angles here..
But, one thing i strongly believe is the fact that, Abu'l Fazl talks of Akbar's prestige in the present case.
Abhay, can u please elaborate, what makes u think Ab'l Fazl means ' Father's prestige more than 'Father's life'?Under what circumstances wolud a father's pride be at stake?Could the urdu word may hv multiple meanings?Babies I hv read (my only source is ur postings :) )died one after the other within the span of 2 months. Whithin such a short span, what conspiracy Ruqayya cud do?How r u going to dig up these skeletones. history- geek?
DeleteHi Geeta,
DeleteI think the meaning is not Life of Akbar, but prestige of Akbar..
Abul Fazl says that the twins sacrificed their life for their father..
Now we have 2 options/meanings..
a. For Life of Akbar
b. For Prestige of Akbar
1. The twins died instead of Akbar. Perhaps, there was an attempt on Akbar's life, and twins perished in between, but if that was the case, then we should have got the NAME of the culprit also..!!!..But, Abul Fazl has not given any name..
2. This may mean twins sacrificed their life , and in this process , the prestige of Akbar was safeguarded. This may not mean , Akbar's prestige basically, but that of the Royal household..
Now, what is the exact meaning, is something which will be clear with more digging only..
What makes me more suspicious is the fact that, no other chronicler of Akbar's time has mentioned the episode of twins birth and death, despite this being a HUGE occasion for Akbar..!!!..
This makes me BELIEVE , there is more to eyes than we can see.. :)
By the way, the twins died in 10 and 17 days after birth, or in rough calculation we can say, within a short span of 1 month..
I have mentioned here in my post that, Abu'l Fazl says "after" one month.. This again means that(as far as i understand Fazl's reading), that the twins were born in 1 month and they passed away in the "succeeding" month, that is, not in the same month...
history-geek
Deleteur reply points to involvement of a near and dear one of akbar in this episode.it shocked me that no other writer has written about twins in the books of akbar.why they did not write?i am getting more close to zero in on ruqaiya.thanks for this brilliant post.
It is really shocking, history-geek, that such an important ghastly incident has not found any place in other naamas?! :-o That means it must be leaving bitter taste/ memory unacceptable to Mughal Sultanat.It may be that the death of infants closed some unwanted chapter/ contravercy, thus the word-sacrifice might hv been used :-?
DeleteYes Geeta.
DeleteThis is quite obvious. Moreover, the language suggests a " violent/aggressive act " associated with twins demise. Such an important event and the details are hidden by Abu'l Fazl. Others did not even mention it. Well i am searching in more accounts and still hopeful.
Thanks Abhay for a detail post in reply to my question. Somehow the FLUNG the coins of their lives words were very curious. They did not use words randomly in historical chronicles.
ReplyDeleteYour description about use of word coins relating it to gambling is very interesting. Would it have happened that someone did something of a gamble and instead of harming Akbar the kids lives were tragically lost.
Since they passed away in hardly few days of short life, it could have been something fed to them. What an agony it must have been for the parents.
The idea is so horrific - involving infants and also about the security implications. Certainly points to some insiders.
It must have been traumatic for HK and Akbar. I guess this must be the reason for Salim's birth she was in Sikri.
Medha,
DeleteYour points are certainly valid, and surely the description points to an insider conspiracy, as NO names have been given, and the event is described in a concealing manner. I think, this does not relates to an attempt on Akbar's Life, but to an attempt on the prestige of the Royal Mughal Household. Some member must have done something, or tried to plan something for the future, using the twins as a weapon/bait, and in such circumstances, the demise of twins was said to be a sacrifice for their father(or the prestige of father/Mughal Royalty).
Abhay, as in the show JA spoilers say that ruq make a saazish against jodha to become muz. Do someone like shariff make use of this chance and try to attack akbar or jodha and the blame comes on ruq? or support ruq in this saazish resulting in the death of kids? Is there any possibility that since the royal family involved in it akbar did not want this saazish recorded in his biography
ReplyDeleteMehak,
DeleteThe conspiracy angle has been haunting me since long..I too feel that, in order to cover up an act, which could tarnish the image of "Akbar/Royal Household" , the detailed description of the demise of twins has not been given to us.
This fact is further supported by the fact that - In commonly available translated Mughal Records, as far as i know, the death of twins is mentioned ONLY by Abu'l Fazl.. Other 2 prominent chroniclers have not mentioned anything about this episode..
By the way, I have made a new post to discuss the present track of twins' birth and demise in the show Jodha Akbar, at this link.. :)
DeleteDo peep in. >> September 22 2014 Jodha Akbar | 335 - Birbal and Twins of Jodha Akbar
Wonderful blog abhay . I always ponder upon words for their father so it was clue for us to detect . As we know so many were against to this union as hira bai gave these two beautiful gems to Akbar ,his most awaited dream of having children was full filled by none other then his love ,his soul mate that must have been left so many unhappy people in his circle . And after this ,and loosing so many children ,he must have lost faith in many so he stayed with her all the time during salim's birth . This experience must have been left them heart broken as your first child is something you cherish like some fragile ,precious little one .
ReplyDeleteI also feel the same - that after losing a few children in Agra, Akbar didn't want to take any chances when Jodha was expecting Salim. Sikri was a safe and spiritual place and Jodha was placed under the care of the great Sufi saint Salim Chisti. Further, Akbar himself stayed as much as possible with Jodha and took personal care of her to prevent any untoward incidents.
DeleteLife for royalty is full of thorns. Imagine how tough life must have been for Akbar-Jodha if they could not feel safe in their own fort-palace in Agra to have their child there. : (
@al_pal
DeleteThanks. What you say is very true..And after losing their twins, nothing could have been more safe and pious than Sikri, being the abode of a Sufi, as radhika elaborated above..
Awesome post Abhay ...
ReplyDeleteThanks Priya.
DeleteVery lovely insightful post. Am trying to read a lot here but running short of time due to Navrathiri. Will read indepth after the festive season. Just can't resist though
ReplyDeleteThank you Abhay,
Viji
Welcome Viji..
DeleteKeep visiting when possible..!! :)
Abhay was a maid involved somehow and was ruqaiyya also involved.
ReplyDeleteyes dear,ruqaiya and maid were related in some act.after an act of the maid akbar will be very angry with ruqaiya.i do not know about ekta's jodha akbar.but maid and ruqaiya had a connection.do u know more about this?
DeleteHi,
DeleteAre you talking about Ruq and the maid in light of the recent spoilers about the involvement of a maid in harming the kids in the show? Or do you really know more about this incident from history? :) Do elaborate. This is so interesting.
Hi Anchal,
DeleteRead this update, for more understanding.. >> :)
Historical Update - Jodha Akbar - Mirza Qasim, Sharif-ud-din and Twins-Ruqayya-Track
as for the "for their father" part is concerned, the only way a baby could come between a father and his enemy is if the enemy wants to hurt the father...ie maybe the twins were kidnapped? threatened? or if the enemy is not an enemy at all and wants to get closer to the emperor by eliminating the kids so that in very indirect sense the twins were killed "for their father" by someone... jealousy of a begum?
ReplyDeleteas far as the "violent" or "flung" part is considered, there is something called a shaken baby syndrome which comes to my mind... sometimes when a child cries constantly too much, the adult attendant of the child (mother, father or anyone) can be reduced to temporary madness and shake the child to shut him up which kills the kid...although this is new age medicine but still.
not to mention, as history geek said, the infant mortality rate..babies lost because like us fortunate beings, babies then did not have NICUs and vaccines..
Gauri,
DeleteThe possibility that a close insider was involved in the twins' demise is high because the name of that person, indeed the incident itself, was not disclosed.
It is possible that Akbar may have been put in a position where he was likely to lose his children to someone and he might have felt that it was better for the twins to die than be in the custody of someone specific.
Last line of your post: Reminded me of my own experience. My baby developed a severe blood infection on the 3rd day and had to be kept in the NICU for treatment. It was very stressful for us emotionally. I can well understand how much more traumatic it must have been to lose the twins for Akbar and HK.
Gauri,
DeleteInteresting response. :) About the words, the meaning is much deeper than what it appears. Abu'l Fazl normally writes in philosophical stance. And here, the stress is not on literal meaning. Just try to see, the articulation.
Also, see the New History Update, for more clarity. :)
Historical Update - Jodha Akbar - Mirza Qasim, Sharif-ud-din and Twins-Ruqayya-Track
Thanks a lot, Abhay for this information, How much pain, Akdha suffered, in front of their Eyes, their Twin childs Passed away, So i think, Akbar took this decesion, after Slaim Birth, he shifted Jodha, Salim chisthi, Hut, Where Child saved Borned. because Place they are not save. So Royalty, Took its Cost, from Parents, +childs.
ReplyDeletePractically it happens in Real life also.
History is witness, Heirs are, Watching by enemies, Always
Excellent writeup Abhay . I have read and re-read this article several times .
ReplyDeleteThey were very young parents in their early twenties when a tragedy of such intensity struck Jalal and Harka Bai . I can imagine the magnitude of their grief. It made them more spiritual and stronger as a couple .
@Ayushi and Charu..
ReplyDeleteWell said. No parent would be able to see their young kids die .
Twins in this case.
No doubt this made their bond stronger.
Hi Abhay, just curious to know when did Akbar stop talking to Ruqs? Was it after the death of the twins or before?
ReplyDeleteHi Sankaran,
ReplyDeleteThe timeline is not known to me with exact certainty.
Incase, i get it, i will update here in future. :)
Abhaaaaayy...
ReplyDeleteI just want to scream loudly as when i find this sentences of yours.
Is "We know, Akbar's Foster Mother, Maham Anga was responsible in him remaining childless for Long" a historical fact?? Documentarily recorded??
I think that one is just another dramatization...
How MA did that??
Please tell me more about that Abhay...
Akbar stop talking to Ruq??? Why?? She brought up Khurram right??
ReplyDeleteAfterall, read this blog, both postings and comments, make me feel like reading A Dan Brown's novel... soooooo interesting...
ReplyDeleteGreat job abhay!!
No, Nia, this is not all dramatization. There is a veiled reference to Maham Anga being responsible for Akbar remaining childless in historical chronicles.
ReplyDeleteNia,
ReplyDeleteShe was given Khurram for a few years much later in life. The period when Akbar stopped talking to her happened much earlier.
Even Khurram doesn't mention her much in his memoirs.
Weeewwwww.... Radhika.. thought she took care of khurram since he was a baby. So she didn't?? And ruq, what happened till Akbar stop talking to her?? Any further information about this??
ReplyDeleteNia,
ReplyDeleteAs Radhika said, there is veiled reference to Maham Anga. Says Abu'l Fazl - "His Majesty was upset after knowing the role of the lady whom he considered his mother, in him remaining childless." :)
Nia,
ReplyDeleteRadhika means to say that the incident when Khurram was given to Ruqayya happened much later in life.
Khurram was given in 1592.
And this "cease in talk" incident happened in 1560's. :)
Okay abhay, radhika, i understand now.
ReplyDeleteBut wait,,,, 1560?? Even before akbar-hk got married??
Is there any further explanation about this abhay?? Maybe you would like to give me a quote from your source about this??
Thx again and again abhay...
Not 1560 but 1560s - the decade, Nia :) After Akbar-HK marriage.
ReplyDeleteBtw you seem to be quite fascinated by Ruqaiyya Begum - any special reason ? :)
radhika,
ReplyDeleteTrue, i become so fascinated abt ruq
but the only reason is because sooo little information i could dig from internet about ruqaiya begum. When i try to google it, i always find some article about her as the wife whom akbar loved the most and about her as a padshah begum/ chief of harem. But just not like you and abhay here, they never give the source.
I become so curious when and why the story about ruqaiya as padshah begum started.
But seems so little document mention her role right??
Just to make sure about her position in Akbar The Great's life..
Someone in IF even said with sure about the important role of ruqaiya in akbar's life. And she/he said that her/his uncle had a master of that topic. But, once more, she or he never give the source...
Haha, thx very much Radhika for sharing your knowledge here. I think enough for my searching related to ruqaiyya begum. Both of you and abhay had make me sure about her unimportant role in akbar's life.
ReplyDeleteEven I never heard about a king named Jalaludin Muhammad Akbar before one of station tv here showed the serial. But since i become very interested to the serial and all things related to jodha and akbar i try to collect more information about them. And here i am now. Felling astonished about their history. After all, i feel lucky finding this blog. You and abhay have very wide knowledge about their history. I think their story according to historycal fact is more interesting then the cvs writes.
Todays episodes seems they will show the rebellion of Mirz Hakim. Maybe they starts to make this serial back on the track...ha ha
Nia
ReplyDeleteAkbar is one of the greatest kings ever and you should read / learn more about him. Forget about what you saw in the show. That's a pathetic excuse for Akbar. The real Akbar was far ahead of his time in respecting women, in respecting talented and learned people, in his reforms, in his religious tolerance, ...It's a long list. The real Heer Kunwari was a woman beyond her time too.
Today is their real wedding anniversary. Have you seen those 2 posts? :)
These posts tell you more about the events that led to their unusual marriage.
Today in the show, the wedding anniversary celebrations should continue. :) Mirza Hakim can wait till Monday. LOL
Yaaaaa Akbar sings for MUZ and MUZ tells a story of Prophet Muhammad......
ReplyDeleteNice scene!!
Thanks Nia.
ReplyDeleteI am glad you liked the blog posts , also amazed at your interest in Indian History. :)
You and Radhika had a great discussion here. I was MIA due to lack of time.
Hope much of confusion has been cleared. :-P
I too learn a lot from the readers here. Its a 2-way process. Keep reading. I wish this blog helps many others as well. :)
Nia
ReplyDeleteNot just the Internet, even historical books carry very little information about her. Normally historical chronicles from Mughal times did not mention women much unless they had done something extraordinary. Heer Kunwari, Salima Sultan, Hamida Banu etc find mention because they played important roles in the court / empire. Ruqaiyya was not that important and hence finds little to no reference in the chronicles.
Do you think if she had been important, Akbar would have waited for so many years to let her raise a child (Khurram) when others like Salima Begum, Hamida Banu and the wife of Raja Bharmal were given kids for sometime to raise?
If she had been important, there would have been some farman issued by her, surely?
If she had been important, she would also have been involved in running the empire or in some activity.
It is easy to write anything on the Internet without evidence - other sites just keep recycling the same information without checking it. There is no record anywhere of Ruqaiyya Begum being a padshah begum.
However if you do want to find more about her, I suggest you start your search from a good library. Preferably refer to older books and original manuscripts rather than translations. Good luck and do share your readings with us. We are all still learning here and sharing our knowledge.:)