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Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Khusrau | The unfortunate Mughal Prince - Struggle for Power - 1


This post is about an unfortunate Mughal Prince, Khusrau, the son of Jahangir and Maan Bai, who became a victim of the political propaganda ; in the game to capture the power - the throne of Hindustan.

The series had 2 articles. This is Part-1 of the same.

Power, then as now, brings its own price. Neither life nor death was kind to this unfortunate son of Jahangir. Recounting one of the most tragic yet inspiring stories to come out of Mughal India…


The Fort of Agra, October 27/28 1605. Inside the gilded chambers of the Royal Quarters a man lay on his bed, dying. Select queens of the zenana and senior courtiers were gathered around, as was a younger man of royal countenance in his mid-thirties. It was upon him that the gaze of the sinking man finally rested. He was not to know, even if he was in any position to reflect on it, that the prince had been smuggled into the room in the nick of time. 

He raised his head painfully and nodded, beckoning the prince forward. With a servant supporting him reverently, the sick man placed the robes and turban in the younger man's hands in a formal yet curiously tender gesture. Then he fell back on the cushions; his eyes roved around the room one last time before glazing forever.

The wails of the women from the anteroom began, marking the end of one of the defining reigns in the annals of Hindustan. For almost half a century, Jalal-ud-din Mohammed Akbar had been master of one of the largest empires. He was the greatest of the Mughals , an empire-builder of genius, whose name shines undimmed through the passage of centuries not just for what he achieved by force of arms, but for the brilliant administrative edifice through which he governed, and for the religious syncretism and tolerance that he brought to polity.


Prince Khusrau ( the son Jahangir and Maan Bai), in red turban, with his brother Parvez(behind) meeting Jahangir. Khusrau is giving a drink to his father and Parvez is serving dishes. | 1605-06




Akbar was a man far in advance of his time. So potent was his persona that only those most gifted and possessed of a strong sense of self-worth could stand up to him. It was a trait that was to have fateful consequences for his heirs. 

Akbar had three surviving sons: Salim, Murad and Daniyal, born to him in 1569, 1570 and 1572 respectively. Yet, by 1605 only Salim still lived; the other two had self-destructed through addiction to opium and alcohol. At the time of his father's death, Salim too had become over-fond of stimulants and subject to the most capricious mood swings when in the grip of arrack and opium. Between 1599 and 1605 he also led a series of revolts against Akbar, and war between father and son was averted only through the intervention of Akbar's senior begum - namely Salima Begum and his mother Hamida Bano Begum, and by Salim's own realization that he was militarily no match for his father. {Link}

In despair over the succession, Akbar's mind turned to one who, by widespread consent, had all the requisite qualities to succeed him: Salim's eldest son Khusrau. Khusrau was born in 1587 to Salim and Man Bai, a Rajput princess from Amer, the daughter of Raja Bhagwan Das and sister of Raja Man Singh. Khusrau soon grew up to be a court favourite.

A European clergyman writes of Khusrau : “He had a pleasing presence and excellent carriage, was exceedingly beloved of the common people, their love and delight”. At 18, Khusrau was everything his father was not: personable, brave, and a talented battlefield commander.


"1. Following details have been collected from Akbarnama(Persian), Vol-3, Page-651

On 28th March 1594, Akbar made a decision, which had no precedent, and neither it saw a feat of this kind being repeated in the future, in Mughal Empire. He granted Khusrau, a high imperial rank (mansab) of panz hazari, i.e., 5000, even though Khusrau was only six years old at the time.!

In the Akbarnama, Abu'l Fazl praises Khusrau, as possessor of "great khird(wisdom) with a khurd(small)" , meaning "a small/young kid with great wisdom".

Along with the high ranking mansab, Akbar assigned the financial resources of the newly conquered province of Orissa to Khusrau. The emperor also appointed his maternal uncle and Salim’s brother-in-law - Raja Man Singh, as his ataliq (guardian). 

Simultaneously, Raja Man Singh was  made the governor of the neighboring province of Bengal. Not only this, Khusrau was placed as incharge of the seasoned Rajput and Afghan troops to his command. Thus, political and military muscle was added at the hold of Khusrau.

This was Khusrau at the age of 6.!.He was everything his father was not at this age, in his lifetime. Further, he insisted that Prince Khusrau was to remain under his exclusive charge. He also proclaimed - "I love my grandchildren more than sons."




2. 16th August 1604 was a very important day, as many important decisions were taken. 
Scan from Akbarnama is given below.


 Akbarnama tells us before his death, Akbar made Khusrau a commander/mansabdar of 10,000 forces (he was already a commander of 5000 in 1594 at the age of 6), which was the highest Imperial rank existing that time. Now, after receiving this rank, his status was equal to his father Salim, despite he being a grandson, and not a direct/natural claimant in the succession to throne. But, further, his status was raised over Salim when, along with this dus-hazari mansabdari, Akbar also assigned him drum and a tuman-togh(yak tail fixed at the end of long staff, normally we see this in Gurudwaras to honor Shri Guru Granth Sahib, Sikh readers might be knowing.)


Drum - This was a symbol of authority, and the honor reserved ONLY for The Emperor. This honor was rarely given to anyone, once it was bestowed upon Raja Bhagwan Das after the Battle of Gujarat in 1573, for his exceptional bravery in guarding Akbar's life.

Tuman-togh - Akbarnama, Vol-2, Pg-182 tells us that, after the death of Bairam Khan, Akbar had given "Drums and tuman-togh" to Ataga Khan - raised him to an authority just under him. Note that, now these imperial standards were given to Khusrau.!

Tuman-togh

 
 Akbar further secured the interests of Khusrau by assigning him under the guardianship of Raja Man Singh. Along with that, Raja Man Singh was made a mansabdar of 7000/6000. Mirza Aziz Koka, the father in law of Khusrau was assigned the province of Bihar. The young grandson of Raja Man Singh, Maha Singh, who was his preferred choice for the throne of Amer, was assigned a mansab of 2000. Raja Man Singh already had the province of Bengal, and as we saw earlier Khusrau was having the command of Orissa since the age of 6.!


Raja Man Singh was already called as his Farzand(son) by Akbar. For Mirza Aziz Koka, Akbar used to say - "There flows a river of milk between the two of us, which i can never cross." After reading the above facts, it can be understood, what was Akbar trying to do, while bestowing one honor after another on Khusrau and his supporters.


In 1599(the year Murad died), Akbar granted the use of red-tents to Danial. Red-tents(apart from drums and tuman togh) were a symbol of "Imperial authority", which only Akbar used till then. This act of Akbar was very offending to Salim, as he was the eldest son, still Akbar gave this authority to Danial. But, Akbar knew who was more able to succeed him.

It is worth noting that, after the death of Danial, Akbar openly started bestowing favors on Khusrau and his supporters. These crucial steps were taken just after the death of Prince Danial(1604). He was considered a good successor of Akbar, if not for his alcohol addiction. But after his death, Akbar's bet was on Khusrau.

Akbar was a man of vision. He never opened his cards before anyone. No one could read his mind. He had groomed Khusrau since his young days to be a ruler, and now, when Daniyal also died, he began to execute his plans silently for Khusrau.


Akbar's policy was one of "action and pacification", rather say of "carrots and sticks", with Salim. On one hand, he wanted him to mend his ways , on the other hand he was placing Khusrau on the way to throne. Here are 3 more steps taken by him. 

a. Akbar decided, in 1597, to remove Salim from the Imperial court, despite his resistance. Salim argued that he should remain at court in light of the Emperor’s advancing age, and this drew support from Salim’s own circle(see point b. below). But, in 1599, Akbar made Salim to accept command of an expedition against the recalcitrant Rajput state of Mewar and to subjugate it by going against Rana Amar Singh, after the death of Maharana Pratap. {It may be noted that in his lifetime Maharana Pratap{To read More details : Click here} had gained entire Mewar back except Chittor and the Fort of Mandal.} This(1599) was the same time, when Danial was granted the use of red-tents, while Salim was away, as we saw earlier. This opened the tensions between the father-son and in 1599 Salim rebelled against Akbar.

b. We saw in point-a, that Salim had many supporters. Akbar's daughter Shakr-un-Nissa Begum was a very strong supporter of her brother Salim, since starting. {See more here at #10:Children of Akbar and Mariam-Uz-Zamani} In order to contain the force from her side, Akbar played a masterstroke. He made her husband, his son-in-law Mirza Shahrukh a mansabdar of 7000/5500, just below the rank of Raja Man Singh(7000/6000), on 16th August 1604.

c. Such calculated were moves of Akbar that he knew how to proceed with caution at every step, "carrot and stick". An example : Before granting the huge favors to Man Singh, Khusrau, Mirza Aziz Koka, Mirza Shahrukh, and others on 16th August 1604, he went to the quarters of Salim, mounting on a boat without informing anyone, and spent one pahar in his quarters. Akbarnama notes that Salim "received him with the step of devotion and made the dust of Akbar's feet his eye salve, and opened his lips in thanks giving for the visit." 

Akbar came back and after granting favors on everyone, Akbar made a concession for Salim by announcing that the diwans should manage the affairs of the kingdom in accordance with the "advice" of Salim , and that his seal should be affixed to the grants of the officer's mansab. To me, this appears to be a gimmick of Akbar to contain Salim, because the real powers were being given to Khusrau and his supporters. It is worth noting that Salim's seal, perhaps, was to be used to grant an equal mansab to his son and his supporters, as moments back Akbar had elevated their position.

 Note that, all imperial court members have seals, and they worked as modern day signatures at the end of a document, and Salim's powers were merely "advisory" in nature. "
Note:
This year of bestowing all these favors on the nobles and Khusrau is also said to be 1605, not 1604. But that can be verified only after reading the Persian text, not from the English translation.


Struggle for power

Inevitably, in the years just prior to Akbar's death his court was a political cauldron, “a snake-pit of intrigue” between the rival camps of Salim and Khusrau. So distressed was Man Bai at the vicious infighting that she committed suicide by an overdose of opium in May 1605, according to the accounts present with us.{Link}

By October, the succession was poised on a knife-edge. Khusrau was backed by the duo of Raja Man Singh, the Raja of Amer, and Mirza Aziz Koka (Khusrau's uncle and father-in-law respectively), and by Abdur Rahim Khan-i-Khana. These 3 were amongst the most influential nobles in the Mughal durbar and Khusrau's star seemed clearly in the ascendant. 

Khusrau himself was convinced that he was destined to be the next ruler of Hindustan, addressing his father in terms of equality as ‘Bhai' or brother rather than as a father. {From, Masir-i-Jahangiri of Husaini, Alavi Bombay edition, 1978, Persian, Pg-53} This had complete backing of Akbar. An alternate view is that - Akbar was pitting Khusrau against Jahangir in order to contain the latter, since 1594.!

No sooner was Akbar laid to rest than events began to move at breakneck speed. At a meeting of the senior umra(nobles) called to decide the succession, Akbar's handing of the robes to Salim tipped the scales in favour of the Salim faction, which carried the day. But, Akbar had not declared him as the next ruler, but only asked him to return to his quarters, until he asks him to come back again. Finally, In November, 1605, Salim ascended the Mughal throne as Nur-ud-din Mohammed Jahangir Padshah Ghazi. One of the first acts of the new Emperor was to have Prince Khusrau confined to his quarters in the fort, with only his wife to keep him company. Also, he was denied his governorship of Bengal, which was promised to him earlier.

Chroniclers at Jahangir's court record dismissively Khusrau's descent into melancholy at this time. But this was a young man who had been offered a giddy vision of power afforded to very few, encouraged by many, including his illustrious grandfather - The great Akbar himself, to believe in his manifest destiny — only to have it crushed in the space of just hours.

Whatever be the reason, Khusrau's character now underwent a shift as the disappointment ate into him like a cancer. One of the acts which alarmed Khusrau was, when he came to know - Jahangir was being guided by one of the nobles to blind him. Goaded on by a wide network of informants and sympathizers, he made his move in April, 1606. During a visit to the tomb of his grandfather Akbar at Sikandra, he slipped past his guards and, with a small band of soldiers faithful to him, struck out northwest towards Lahore.

The rebellion

The news of Khusrau's flight sped through the country like wildfire. Malcontents of every kind — disaffected nobles of many clans and several frontier tribes — flocked to his banner as did some senior loyalists of his grandfather.

However, Khusrau did not foresee the swiftness of the Mughal response. For once, Jahangir acted with speed and decision. The newly appointed governor, Dilawar Khan, raced from Agra to Lahore in just 11 days and strengthened and sealed the defences before Khusrau's army could reach the city. Simultaneously, a punitive force of over 50,000 was assembled at Agra and launched towards the enemy. Unable to break Lahore's defences, Khusrau had no option but to turn and fight. 

The armies met on the north bank of the Ravi on April 27, 1606. Fighting in heavy rain, which turned the battlefield into a mud soup, the rebels were routed and Khusrau captured and brought before his father in chains. Jahangir's retribution was ruthless. The rebel soldiers and their commanders were impaled alive on stakes by the hundreds, and Khusrau forced to ride between the screaming men to witness their agony up close. 

A more fateful outcome was the summary execution of the Sikh Guru, Arjan Dev, whose only fault was to bless Khusrau on his way to Lahore; an act dictated purely by the canons of hospitality, and which in no way could be construed as supportive of the rebellion. The result was a scarring of the Sikh psyche that would reverberate for centuries. {Note that, accounts contest it was NOT Jahangir who got the Holy Saint executed.}

Khusrau's life was spared, but he was condemned to a fate almost as terrible. Either immediately after the rebellion or a year later, holding him complicit in a further plot against him, Jahangir ordered Khusrau blinded.
Part-2 of this series will be posted soon. It will analyze the events which ultiamtely resulted in the murder of Prince Khusrau, along with the tussle between Mariam-Uz-Zamani Begum and Nur Jahan Begum and Co. regarding Khusrau.

This article has been posted under the Mughals(Akbar) & Miscellaneous topics section of this history Blog.

Note: 
Brief contents in this writeup have been borrowed from Mr. Aron R, and my friend Radhika who contributed to this.


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55 comments:

  1. Abhay


    Thank you for giving me credit but the entire effort is yours. :)


    This is a wonderful post. Khusrau is another tragic figure from the tragedy-ridden Mughal family. His story always moves me a lot. He who had so much going for him ended up in chains and worse, mentally depressed and emotionally broken by his own father and brother.


    And for what? A throne? A crown? Does human life and dignity have no value or respect? Esp that of one's own son?


    Ever since I read about Khusrau, I have never been able to call Salim the champion of justice. I always wonder why Akbar reversed his decision at the last minute. Most probably due to pressure exerted by the harem and other nobility? I have not been able to advocate Shahjahan as the ambassador of love.


    Yes, if we talk about love, Khusrau and his wife's love is something I understand, appreciate and value much more than Taj Mahal. Love as beautiful, devoted and pure as this will always survive in our hearts and minds.


    Thank you for introducing Khusrau to so many readers. looking forward to read more about him as well as Davar Baksh.

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  2. Radhika,

    I agree with your assessment of the Mughal politics. But this was a power struggle. And it seems, Salim wanted the throne at almost any cost. Akbar had made all the arrangements to secure Khusrau and his candidacy for the Mughal throne. We saw he took some bold steps to promote Khusrau till his last breath. I have not read from any "reliable source" that - "From his MoutH", Akbar declared Salim to be his successor.

    More than harem, it were the other Mughal nobles and clerics who played a great role in Salim's assesion to the throne -

    1. The orthodox elements among the nobility supported Salim, as they wanted to get the favors which were stopped during the reign of Akbar, after the promulgation of Din-e-Illahi.

    2. Already Rajput hold was increasing in the Mughal court and Khusrau's coming to throne would have thwarted their interests, further.

    3.The nobles insisted that Akbar should not ignore the claim of a son when he was living for sake of his grandson.



    But the real reason was point 1 and 2.


    I have only listed facts in my above post. Now, i am giving my personal understanding. To me Khusrau was better than Salim and Shah Jahan in many ways of morality. He was the one who ultimately suffered, and died a tragic death. More will be clear in the Part-2 post, which will be posted shortly.

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  3. Hello Abhay!

    long time!! today after a long time I logged in and the first site I opened is this! :) to check your posts...I was having bad days...was sick for weeks..was in complete bed rest. :( :(

    anyway, best thing is, I opened this site and got to read the post last time I told u to make! yes, Khusrau! :D I so wanted to know about him :)))
    it was indeed a surprise for me.

    loved reading it........no wonder Akbar supported him...he was actually a true descender of Akbar from all fronts..how I wish destiny had some blissful plans for him...poor guy faced the worst death..torture from father later from brother. :'( :'(

    looking forward to the second part.

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  4. Thanks ABhay and Radhika for this beautiful Post. I was looking forward to know more about Khusrau.

    Radhika I totally agree with your below words 100 %. This is called true love. My opinion about Salim has lowered again.

    "Yes, if we talk about love, Khusrau and his wife's love is something I
    understand, appreciate and value much more than Taj Mahal. Love as
    beautiful, devoted and pure as this will always survive in our hearts
    and minds."

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  5. Beautiful post Abhay.. Khusrau was really great char among Mughals.. Waiting for part 2

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  6. A very informative post, Abhay and Radhika. I really liked the way the post was written, the sequence of events were beautifully explained and made it a very interesting read.
    It was really nice to know that Akbar was silently preparing Khusrau for succession. He obviously wanted Daniyal to succeed him, but his untimely death must have put him in a panic mode of sort.
    It is getting really difficult to believe that Salim inflicted such terrible things on his own son. Does the hunger for power really drive people to do the unthinkable? It even made Salim forget about blood relations. It is unimaginable to think someone could think of blinding their own flesh and blood. And the father-son conflict even took away Maan Bai's life; she must have been torn between her husband and her son.
    Frankly, I was under the impression that JA show is showing Salim in a bad light, and although it has no relation with the fore-mentioned post, I have lost even the little respect I probably had for him.
    I am also sure that Akbar had a keen sense of foresight. He very well knew that the Mughal Empire would collapse under Salim's alcohol and opium addiction. He also tried his very best to prevent him from ascending the throne. But ultimately, he did.
    I really see no reason as to why he had to kill the saint. Had blessing his own son become a crime for him?
    The hunger for power blinded him, made him forget even about blood relations. The increasing importance given to his son also must have made him insecure and vengeful, I feel. Otherwise he wouldn't have resorted to such terrible means of torture.
    Thank you for the post :)

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  7. Very interesting information collected Abhay and Radhika no wonder monarchy died because of such behavior irrespective of countries and democratic form of government survived.

    Mahabharata and to some extent Ramayana are also epic examples of both good and bad behaviour .Kaam, krodh, loabh, moah and ahunkar which is the basis of all such acts

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  8. Abhay, Radhika,tell me why shud I thank people, who make me sad thru their write-up?:( Seriously, much was discussed on IF regarding this favrt grandson of Akbar, but nothing compared to above, wherein as if I was watching a film on Khusrau, that ended abruptly on a tragic note.! Frankly speaking, the most minute details of observation made by history-geek showcases his talent, n how deeply he was involved in this research! Not only that, he has also explained the whole thing in a manner, that even a child can understand. Though I feel like going thru it again, I hv noted some points.
    1 Going by the description of Khusrau, by history-geek, it seems it is apt fr Akbar, in a way, he was a replica of Akbar's persona. This may be by default, or may be that since he was brought up by Akbar with gr8 care, he must hv instilled his qualities in him.
    2.I am stunned by the foresight of Akbar, who saw the potential of Khusrau,n shrewedly took right steps at the right time, I can say, well before time. But Alas! destiny had different plan fr Khusrau.:( This clearly shows Akbar knew well before that Salim would be a useless king, a womaniser.He also must be aware of his addiction. But history-geek, what was stopping Akbar frm changing his mind n making announcement of Khusrau being waris to throne? May be he was afraid of Khusrau's wellbeing,
    3 It's also been clear that by this time,Groupism had sneaked into Mughal Khandaan n the court was reduced to our parliament today! Akbar's loyalists supporting Khusrau, n other Muslim leaders with simmering hatred against Rajvanshis, supporting Salim.
    4. I am now convinced thet if Akbar decided to support Khusrau as the successor, fr that only Salim n salim has to be blamed.Choosing a heir to his vast empire must hv been huge challenge to Akbar, who was also a benevelont king.Thinking in the interest of Avam, n seeing the waywardness of Salim, the duty of a king must hv overweighed the love fr his walihad. That may be the reason fr him not giving the reigns of kingdom to Salim, as he wished.:)
    Alas! I hv again come to thanksgiving note, without which the post will be incomplete.:) Not looking forward to the tragic end----

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  9. Abhay, wanted litle more explanation of 'Red Tent'. Also can u throw light on which Mughal lady brought up these gems Salim n Aurangzeb?

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  10. Well said Sindhu. You have filtered the best part from Radhika's comment. This has been(when i post) discussed in the next part also. :)

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  11. Thanks Tamy. Hope you are fine now, and recovering well.
    By the way, do check the new posts on Zeb-un-Nissa and MUZ, which you missed. I am sure you will enjoy them. :)

    Zeb-un-Nissa - Part-3
    http://mariam-uz-zamani.blogspot.com/2015/01/my-name-is-zeb-un-nissa-i-am-glory-of-womankind-part-3.html

    MUZ
    http://mariam-uz-zamani.blogspot.com/2015/01/mariam-uz-zamani-forgotten-enigma-part-2.html

    New post on Mewya Jan Begum. Some Persian words have been used.
    http://mariam-uz-zamani.blogspot.com/2015/01/meywa-jan-fake-preganancy-case-oriental-perspective.html

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  12. Thanks Rutu. Part-2 will be posted as and when it is completed, soon. It is more detailed than this one. :)


    @All..will reply slowly to comments here. :)

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  13. very true sammy dear. akbar stopped hunting due 2 life of muz and salim n 'tis fellow was giving troubles 2 dem. very complex relations.

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  14. Thanks for the article on Khusrau. very moving! Can't help but wonder what if...

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  15. wow Iqra, did not know that akbar stopped hunting for Salim and MUZ?

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  16. yes preeti - i read long ago. some thing related to life of muz and salim he stopped hunting on some special reasons.

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  17. wow abhay n radhika - how 2 thnk u both 4 'tis post. shabd nahi hain kehne ke liye. d effort involved in 'tis post shows in 'tis. as geeta said above i ws reading 'tis post 4 long till d tym i forgot 2 thnk u nd comment here. grt work both of u. so tragic n unfortunate was khusraus life. i knew abt him bt d details given here lucidly r not found nywhere.

    i also loved ur latest tweet. so true ---' It is not wrong to learn from others, putting it to good use, going on to create skills, understanding, & THRILLINGLY novel ideas & results. '

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  18. beautifully written sunram - d first para.
    bt wht iz loabh, moah, ahunkar. some hindi terms r new 2 me. plz tell.

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  19. geeta - i hv not read 4rm mughal accounts bt as much i know red color iz 4 royalty. salim ws not bad lyk aurangzeb. salim was unfair 2 khusrau, bt he was complex person with cruel streaks sometimes. salim had foster mothers n mother muz 2 take his care. bt salim was much pampered child. aurangzeb i dont know.

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  20. Preeti, in Jahangirnama,is there any mention of Khusrau? What kind of relation he states? Is there any mention of his blinding of his own son or remorse fr that matter?

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  21. Kaam means Lust, Krodth means Anger,Lobh means Greed,Moh means Emotional Attachment,Ahankaar means Ego,pride conceit all these are the basic bad qualities which leads to all sort of bad behavior and vices . Why I mentioned the epics especially in Mahabharata in this all sort of information is given family disputes/relationships politics defence economy , sociology,, accountancy,diplomacy,the art of war, chemistry, astronomy etc– all this is included in here along with
    philosophy and spirituality.

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  22. I read on his death bed Akbar did not say anything and he was made to nod or hakim ( who was pro Islamic clergy who knew they could twist a weak Salim( it was not possible for them in Akbar's reign as he did not let them have an upper hand) and Nurjahan's brother or father where instrumental ) in making it seem as if Akbar said yes for the coronation of Salim . I was reading also in the Discovery of India how the Islamic clergy did not want the Rajput lobby to be powerful and this would have happened if Khusrau would have succeeded Akbar.

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  23. Wow, I had no clue about this as well! Thank you Iqra! :)

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  24. On hindsight, Iqra, I feel Salim himself may not hv ordered blinding of his son.He might hv ordered sever punishment which might hv taken this shape:( May be I just don't want to believe a father can do such a thing to a son

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  25. Thank u Sunram fr that info .:) That means Akbar tried his level best to give his Avam a better king.!

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  26. Thanks, Iqra, fr that surprise! Do share with us the detail if u come across!

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  27. Hi Samanika,


    Your views are well put. Yes it is unimaginable to think that a father can get his son blinded. And this event is full of conflicting accounts.



    It is said he did not kill the Sikh Guru, though in his own autobiography it is mentioned that he was responsible. :-P

    Actually other sources do not hold him responsible for the execution.


    Jahangir also had some problems with Akbar and Khusrau, he had his own grievances. When we read both sides then the issue becomes more clear. :)



    But yes, i condemn what he did with Khusrau and no doubt Khusrau was better.

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  28. Perfectly put Sunram. Same thing also happened in Nepal. :(

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  29. Thank you very much Geeta for these profound thoughts. :)

    Yes AKbar knew who could succeed him well. For this reason Danial and Khusrau were his choices. Khusrau was groomed since long by Akbar personally.

    Factionism had sneaked into Mughal court in the last years of Akbar's reign. Few months before death of Akbar there was clash of Khusrau and Salim also. Akbar was disappointed knowing this.

    Will add more later. Continue the discussion. :)

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  30. Yes that is why he is called Great for his policies Vision made the Mughal dynasty survive so many years the minute they deviated from his policies his son and grandson did not deviate much but with Aurangzeb it was doom for them the rot had set in

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  31. Geeta, I did not see any remorse by him for blinding his son, as per Jahangirnama. In fact, he does not even mentions that Khusrau was blinded. !!!

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  32. Preeti, While writing this post, the first thing which came to my mind was Siyaasat's portrayal of Khusrau, which is completely wrong. :(

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  33. In his autobiography there is no mention that Khusrau was blinded.!

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  34. Abhay thanks for this info.Really the games of power make you animal and this is best example.Any father would have been happy to see his son excelling and shining and would have given his position to him.Whats more of joy for any father to see his son even better than him? But Salim lacked this vision and even a heart of a father.

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  35. Hi Rashmi,
    Biggest irony is this only. How can a father do so against his own son.?.
    He should be proud to see his son excelling, more than himself, but here the exact opposite happens. Unfortunate Khusrau.!

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  36. sunram - thanks. now i get it clearly.

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  37. I don't know abt Siyasat. Can u throw light in brief?

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  38. Just fr curiosity, Iqra, Tuman togh is what used to be held on the sides of the king, like chhamer? And the drum was played when the king entered?

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  39. Take care n wish u a speedy recovery, Tamy.:)

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  40. Abhay, blinding seems to be normal punishment during Mughals.It is just below the capital punishment. ! If jahangirnama doesn't mention it, then which source do we hv Abhay, which is close to an eye account?

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  41. Yes Geeta, blinding was a common punishment those days. The blinding is mentioned in the account of Hawkins. :)

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  42. It is a TV show based on a FICTIONAL novel on Ms. Indu Sundaresan. There, the makers are focusing on Salim and Nur Jahan. In that show, Khusrau is shown as a mentally retarded child. :(

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  43. Geeta,
    Drum is played for king's entry - you are correct. :)
    Tuman Togh - See the first picture of this post above^^. There a person is holding "Tuman Togh" behind Jahangir. :)

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  44. A very informative post Abhay Radhika thank u....but i read in internet after some days relation between salim n khusrau got better he even given some freedom to khusrau just like visting gardens...seeing their closeness Shahjhahan killed khusrau n his wife n he said to salim that khusrau died bcz of illness but salim got to know the truth n he excavated the body of khusrau n built a tomb near his mothers tomb...n i even read salim wants son of khusrau to access the throne..
    Isnt true??????? My friend told me there is a foretelling in dynasty that if something bad happens to khusrau then in future mughals has to face wars between brothers??? Isnt truee????Even in show Shaguni bhai gave a letter to jodha n told to open it after her death.....

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  45. Hi Sree.
    Nice to see you here. Most of the point will be covered in part-2 post. I am answering here as well. :)
    1. Yes, after getting Khusrau blinded , Salim wanted to restore him his sight back.!
    2. Some People doubt that Shah Jahan killed Khusrau. But i am sure that Shah Jahan got Khusrau killed due to the fear that he may be a rival for the throne.
    3. Yes, Khusrau is buried close to his mother in Allahabad.
    4. Yes, there was a foretelling that if anything wrong happens to Khusrau then, similar tragic fate will befall this dynasty. We discussed this point here >
    See these two comments. :)

    Links:
    http://mariam-uz-zamani.blogspot.in/2014/12/aurangzeb-sucession-to-throne-alternate-story.html#comment-1722947675
    http://mariam-uz-zamani.blogspot.in/2014/12/aurangzeb-sucession-to-throne-alternate-story.html#comment-1723263356
    ^^^ This entire post has good discussion. You may find it a good read. :)

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  46. Thank u Abhay.......waiting for 2 nd part......regarding foretelling i went through dicussion ..its good but hoping for some more details regarding that foretelling....if its possible....

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  47. Very sad to twist the history in such a horid way:( But was this NR or as per the novel?

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  48. Not sure about the novel, Geeta. I think this is dramatization.

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  49. Sure Tamy,
    It means you have a lot to read. :P
    Posted another post about Akbar-MUZ...
    http://mariam-uz-zamani.blogspot.com/2015/01/akbar-visits-ajmer-first-time-to-marry-muz-later-after-salim-birth.html
    Also about Maharana Pratap...
    http://mariam-uz-zamani.blogspot.com/2015/01/remembering-maharana-pratap-tribute.html
    Keep Reading buddy. ;)

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  50. Sree,
    I have more information about that, only impediment is the time to post on so many topics. Hence, the work is going on slowly. :)

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  51. Very Interesting Article Radhika and Abhay a picture of his grave @ copyright with the original book.
    The tomb also carries remains of Khusrau's mother Shah Begum both buried in Khusrau bagh built by Salim aka Jahangir

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  52. Khusrau and his mother's tomb - In it's prime, this place must have been really beautiful. Thanks for sharing Putija. :)

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  53. Its in Allahabad and simple exterior but a different story inside. His sister saw to its construction actively and also wanted to be buried here after her death but she died in Agra and was buried beside her grandfather Akbar the gr88 in his grave

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