"She was of Rajput caste, daughter of a Hindu chief.....a very beautiful, and it is said, a very amiable woman..... She was a very sensible woman, whose councils had great weight with His Majesty, the Emperor. The people of India, no doubt, owed much of the good they enjoyed under the long reign of Akbar, to this most excellent woman, who inspired not only her husband but the most able Muhameddan minister that India has ever had, with feelings of universal benevolence. "
" His majesty's only fault was an inclination to learn the art of magic, which was taught to him by an old Hindu religious mendicant.....absence of bigotry on the part of Akbar."
Friends,
Before reading this post, please go through these 3 posts:
" Mariam-Uz-Zamani " -- The Forgotten Enigma - I
Account of Akbar and HIS Favorite Rajput Wife
Facts about Akbar and Mariam-Uz-Zamani Begum
And then come back here. This will prove to be VERY beneficial in better understanding this post.
I have titled this post as " Mariam-Uz-Zamani -- The Forgotten Enigma - II " as this is in continuation of the part-1.
Background
This post is based on an account from the 1800's, which was penned down by a Lieutenant Colonel (later Major General), who served in the British Army in Bengal. He was a distinguished officer of the British administration and a close confidante of Lord Dalhousie, the Governor General of India at that time (1848-56). Lord Dalhousie appointed Sir William to the post of British Resident at the court of the ruler of Awadh. Before this, he had served as a British Resident at Lucknow. He was also an associate of the Maratha Chief Scindhia. He had a decorated career and was a dedicated officer, known for his "honesty to the law", who rose from the post of a mere cadet to the Major General of the British Bengal Army Regiment.!!
{
Before i start with the main post, i want to mention an interesting anecdote from the life of this honest officer who lived up to his high ideals throughout his life, even going against his own British Government at one time.!
Many of us might be knowing that the then Governor General of India, Lord Dalhousie had devised the policy of "Doctrine of Lapse", according to which - "If the ruler of a princely (protected) state died without leaving a natural heir, his state was not to pass to an adopted heir as sanctioned by the age old law of this country. Instead, it was to be annexed to the British Indian Empire, unless the adoption had been approved earlier by the British authorities."
Many states like Satara in 1848 and Nagpur and Jhansi of Rani Lakshmi Bai in 1854 were annexed by applying this doctrine. Lord Dalhousie also refused to recognise the titles of many ex-rulers or to pay their pensions. Thus, the titles of Nawab of Carnatic and of Surat, the Raja of Tanjore were extinguished. Similarly, after the death of ex-Peshwa Baji Rao II, the Raja of Bithur, Lord Dalhousie refused to extend his pay/pension to his adopted son, Nana Sahib.
Lord Dalhousie was keen on annexing Awadh also. Here the British Resident was Sir William, the official on whose personal diary this blog post is based. Awadh could not be annexed using the Doctrine of Lapse, as the ruler had many heirs. Also, the Nawabs of Awadh had been British allies since the Battle of Buxar and were "obedient" to them. Hence, some other pretext had to be found. Finally, Lord Dalhousie hit upon the idea of alleviating the plight of the people of Awadh. The ruler - Nawab Wajid Ali Shah - was "accused of having misgoverned his state and refusing to introduce reforms". Finally, in 1856, Awadh was annexed.
But, this annexation was opposed by this officer, when this idea became known to him.
Here is a letter, which he wrote to Lord Dalhousie in 1854. But this letter was publicly published only in November, 1857, in The Times .!
" We have no right to annex or confiscate Oude(old name of Awadh) ; but we have a right, under the treaty of 1837, to take the management of it, but not to appropriate its revenues to ourselves. We can do this with honour to our Government and benefit to the people. To confiscate would be dishonest and dishonourable. To annex would be to give the people a government almost as bad as their own, if we put our screw upon them."
Copy of this letter is attached below.
}
Sir William wrote this memoir while travelling from Madhya Pradesh (Gwalior and Jabalpur) to Agra, Meerut, Delhi, etc. with his wife and his son.
During this time, he was on leave on medical grounds. He started the journey in November 1835 and reached Agra on the New Year's day - 1st January, 1836. Today, exactly after 178 years, on 1st January, 2015, we have snapshots from his account in this post. Note that this is an extremely rare account.
You all must be wondering why a British officer's personal account has been posted on this blog.
The reason being --- In his memoir/personal diary, this officer has made some observations about the Rajput wife of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, who was the mother of Jahangir and who was very famous among the masses of Agra and its surrounding region. Today we call this region the Golden Triangle of India > Delhi, Agra and Jaipur.
This officer was very fascinated by this lady and her equation with Akbar and noted this in his diary.
He has based this account on the testimony of the native people of India, after "talking to them personally" and he wrote this account as a personal diary/memoir. He dedicated this account to his sister, as he wanted to tell her about the place where he was working (i.e., India).
In the dedication page of this account, he has assured his sister that this account is an honest work of his travel in the Indian provinces, and he has NOT indulged in fiction, and has tried to be completely truthful to her in what he recorded. I found this account pretty interesting because this was his personal diary. It was not written for commercial purposes, but by a brother for his sister back in Europe, as he wanted to tell her about this land.
The section of this account that is of significance to us is the part where he mentions about Akbar and his Rajput wife in depth.
Here we go. Cover page of this account, showing the title... >>
Constable's Miscellany of Original and Selected Publications
The following is the "dedication", which this officer made to his sister.
The Main Account of Akbar and His Rajput Wife
The author has recorded the name of Akbar's Rajput wife and the mother of Jahangir as Jodha Bai, as per what people told him. Akbar's wife's name is often confused with the name of the princess of Jodhpur, who was Jahangir's wife.
A mistake was also made by the translator of Ain-i-Akbari, who translated the work from Persian to English. On page 309 of that translation, he also called princess of Jodhpur as the mother of Jahangir, but he corrected himself on page 619 of the same account, by mentioning that Jodh Bai of Jodhpur was the wife of Jahangir and the princess of Amer was the mother of Jahangir. The following snap is from page 619 of the translation of Ain-i-Akbari.
Please note that though the name of Akbar's Rajput wife may not be known to common people, but "her persona" is very much alive in the collective memories of the people in the Golden Triangle region (Delhi, Jaipur, Agra) of India.
The identity of Jahangir's mother has been solved by the discovery of her farman. The complete farman can be read in a descriptive blog post here : Farman of Wali Nimat Mariam-Uz-Zamani Begum with Scan of Original Persian Document
Sidenote:
Khulasat-Ut-Tawarikh, of Sujan Rai Bhandari, ed. Zafar Hasan, Page-374, mentions queen Mariam-Uz-Zamani of Amber as the mother of Jahangir. This account dates back to the 17th century. This is one of earliest accounts that names the mother of Jahangir. The account has been made available now by the Indian Council of Cultural Relations, New Delhi.
See Point #3 of the following post for details. 2 new snaps have been added.
Facts about Akbar and Mariam-Uz-Zamani Begum
The emphasis in Sir Williams' memoir is not on the name but on the wife of Akbar and mother of Jahangir, who was still remembered by the people of the Golden Triangle region, just by word of mouth, when this officer visited the region.
Let us begin.
He
also mentions something interesting about the Rajput clan, which he heard
from the Muslims in this area. The snaps below state the same.
After this portion, some part could not be scanned. This part mentions a pilgrimage undertaken to the shrine of Sheikh Muin-ud-din Chisti at Ajmer.
The part after that is continued below...He mentions the birth of Salim, as per the prophecy of the "old man"..
***********************************************
Here, he is describing the big mosque in Fatehpur Sikri.
The author writes that Akbar was very much interested in Hindu practices. I could not get the entire page. This is what he mentions about Akbar:
" His majesty's only fault was,"he said, "an inclination to learn the art of magic, which was taught him by an old Hindoo religious mendicant," whose apartment near the palace he pointed out to us.
Fortunately, said our cicerone, "the fellow died before the Emperor had learnt enough to practise the art without his aid."
{
"His Majesty or H.M. " refers to Akbar.
Clearly, the "fellow" referred to in the above anecdote is a Brahmin named Devi, who had his seat near the chambers of Akbar in Fatehpur Sikri. He was well versed in the ancient Hindu scripture/epic - Mahabharata, and he used to 'teach' him this epic.
I was impressed to read that along with the account of his Rajput wife, Akbar and Devi's story was famous too. Clearly, this establishes that Akbar placed the people of other religions in high regard. We even have a Farman by his mother issued to a Hindu Brahmin of Mathura. Farman of Hamida Bano Begum to a Brahmin of Goverdhan.
}
Conclusion:
Every one has some faults and Akbar is no exception. I am talking of some good qualities, which I found in this monarch. We all know that Akbar took interest in various religions and his reign is regarded in high terms among that of many other kings during the period of medieval Indian history. He also held religious debates in the Ibadat Khana (Hall of Worship) in Fatehpur Sikri.
{I would like to mention that fortunately I have obtained some photocopies of the proceedings of the religious debates, which were held in Fatehpur Sikri. I will slowly scan and upload them. }
Akbar had an urge to know more and more about various religions and sects. In this journey, there were various people who inspired him. His Rajput wife was one among them, but, I would add, a very important one. There was something very special between these two people, which amazes many people even today. Shah Jahan required a big monument to make posterity remember him and his wife Mumtaz. Still, it the story of Akbar and Mariam-Uz-Zamani, which was, and still is, on the lips of the people of this region, to the extent that this officer made a special note of it in his account.
The Oxford Encyclopedia Of Women in World History, Volume-4, Page-656, notes about this Rajput wife of Akbar, the princess of Amber, as an influential wife in Akbar's life, who exemplified his religious tolerance and also in shaping many policies in the Mughal Empire.
Just by word of mouth, hers and Akbar's relation is remembered even today in the Golden Triangle region of India. For those who plan to travel to Agra, Sikandra or Jaipur - make sure you talk to the local people in this region. Especially, the caretakers in the museums of Rajasthan. Royal descendants still admire them and are in awe of the very special bond between Akbar and his Rajput Queen. The scans, which were included in this post, are an articulation of the same fact.
We also have a regular blog member who posted her views about the story of Akbar and MUZ, in one of her comments on this blog. She also belongs to the Golden Triangle region. Do read her comments on the post about Mosque of Mariam-Uz-Zamani Begum at Lahore.
Click here to read Comment-1.
Click here to read Comment-2.
Article Category : Mughals(Akbar).
" His majesty's only fault was an inclination to learn the art of magic, which was taught to him by an old Hindu religious mendicant.....absence of bigotry on the part of Akbar."
-- From the personal diary of Lt. Colonel Sir William Henry
Friends,
Before reading this post, please go through these 3 posts:
" Mariam-Uz-Zamani " -- The Forgotten Enigma - I
Account of Akbar and HIS Favorite Rajput Wife
Facts about Akbar and Mariam-Uz-Zamani Begum
And then come back here. This will prove to be VERY beneficial in better understanding this post.
I have titled this post as " Mariam-Uz-Zamani -- The Forgotten Enigma - II " as this is in continuation of the part-1.
Artistic Depiction of Hindu Queen of Mughal Emperor Akbar. Probably in V and A Museum. |
Background
This post is based on an account from the 1800's, which was penned down by a Lieutenant Colonel (later Major General), who served in the British Army in Bengal. He was a distinguished officer of the British administration and a close confidante of Lord Dalhousie, the Governor General of India at that time (1848-56). Lord Dalhousie appointed Sir William to the post of British Resident at the court of the ruler of Awadh. Before this, he had served as a British Resident at Lucknow. He was also an associate of the Maratha Chief Scindhia. He had a decorated career and was a dedicated officer, known for his "honesty to the law", who rose from the post of a mere cadet to the Major General of the British Bengal Army Regiment.!!
{
Before i start with the main post, i want to mention an interesting anecdote from the life of this honest officer who lived up to his high ideals throughout his life, even going against his own British Government at one time.!
Many of us might be knowing that the then Governor General of India, Lord Dalhousie had devised the policy of "Doctrine of Lapse", according to which - "If the ruler of a princely (protected) state died without leaving a natural heir, his state was not to pass to an adopted heir as sanctioned by the age old law of this country. Instead, it was to be annexed to the British Indian Empire, unless the adoption had been approved earlier by the British authorities."
Many states like Satara in 1848 and Nagpur and Jhansi of Rani Lakshmi Bai in 1854 were annexed by applying this doctrine. Lord Dalhousie also refused to recognise the titles of many ex-rulers or to pay their pensions. Thus, the titles of Nawab of Carnatic and of Surat, the Raja of Tanjore were extinguished. Similarly, after the death of ex-Peshwa Baji Rao II, the Raja of Bithur, Lord Dalhousie refused to extend his pay/pension to his adopted son, Nana Sahib.
Lord Dalhousie was keen on annexing Awadh also. Here the British Resident was Sir William, the official on whose personal diary this blog post is based. Awadh could not be annexed using the Doctrine of Lapse, as the ruler had many heirs. Also, the Nawabs of Awadh had been British allies since the Battle of Buxar and were "obedient" to them. Hence, some other pretext had to be found. Finally, Lord Dalhousie hit upon the idea of alleviating the plight of the people of Awadh. The ruler - Nawab Wajid Ali Shah - was "accused of having misgoverned his state and refusing to introduce reforms". Finally, in 1856, Awadh was annexed.
But, this annexation was opposed by this officer, when this idea became known to him.
Here is a letter, which he wrote to Lord Dalhousie in 1854. But this letter was publicly published only in November, 1857, in The Times .!
" We have no right to annex or confiscate Oude(old name of Awadh) ; but we have a right, under the treaty of 1837, to take the management of it, but not to appropriate its revenues to ourselves. We can do this with honour to our Government and benefit to the people. To confiscate would be dishonest and dishonourable. To annex would be to give the people a government almost as bad as their own, if we put our screw upon them."
Copy of this letter is attached below.
Views of British Resident about annexation of Awadh by Lord Dalhousie |
Views of British Resident about annexation of Awadh by Lord Dalhousie |
Sir William wrote this memoir while travelling from Madhya Pradesh (Gwalior and Jabalpur) to Agra, Meerut, Delhi, etc. with his wife and his son.
During this time, he was on leave on medical grounds. He started the journey in November 1835 and reached Agra on the New Year's day - 1st January, 1836. Today, exactly after 178 years, on 1st January, 2015, we have snapshots from his account in this post. Note that this is an extremely rare account.
You all must be wondering why a British officer's personal account has been posted on this blog.
The reason being --- In his memoir/personal diary, this officer has made some observations about the Rajput wife of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, who was the mother of Jahangir and who was very famous among the masses of Agra and its surrounding region. Today we call this region the Golden Triangle of India > Delhi, Agra and Jaipur.
This officer was very fascinated by this lady and her equation with Akbar and noted this in his diary.
He has based this account on the testimony of the native people of India, after "talking to them personally" and he wrote this account as a personal diary/memoir. He dedicated this account to his sister, as he wanted to tell her about the place where he was working (i.e., India).
In the dedication page of this account, he has assured his sister that this account is an honest work of his travel in the Indian provinces, and he has NOT indulged in fiction, and has tried to be completely truthful to her in what he recorded. I found this account pretty interesting because this was his personal diary. It was not written for commercial purposes, but by a brother for his sister back in Europe, as he wanted to tell her about this land.
The section of this account that is of significance to us is the part where he mentions about Akbar and his Rajput wife in depth.
Here we go. Cover page of this account, showing the title... >>
Constable's Miscellany of Original and Selected Publications
***********************************************
Cover Page of the memoirs |
***********************************************
Brittle condition of the account |
***********************************************
The following is the "dedication", which this officer made to his sister.
Dedication made to his sister by the officer |
***********************************************
Here he assures his sister that this account is an honest work of his travel in the Indian provinces, and he has NOT indulged in fiction and has tried to be completely truthful to her in what he recorded. |
***********************************************
End of Dedication |
***********************************************
The author has recorded the name of Akbar's Rajput wife and the mother of Jahangir as Jodha Bai, as per what people told him. Akbar's wife's name is often confused with the name of the princess of Jodhpur, who was Jahangir's wife.
A mistake was also made by the translator of Ain-i-Akbari, who translated the work from Persian to English. On page 309 of that translation, he also called princess of Jodhpur as the mother of Jahangir, but he corrected himself on page 619 of the same account, by mentioning that Jodh Bai of Jodhpur was the wife of Jahangir and the princess of Amer was the mother of Jahangir. The following snap is from page 619 of the translation of Ain-i-Akbari.
Jodh Bai was erroneously called mother of Emperor Jahangir and wife of Emperor Akbar. The translator of Ain i Akbari corrects himself here. |
Please note that though the name of Akbar's Rajput wife may not be known to common people, but "her persona" is very much alive in the collective memories of the people in the Golden Triangle region (Delhi, Jaipur, Agra) of India.
The identity of Jahangir's mother has been solved by the discovery of her farman. The complete farman can be read in a descriptive blog post here : Farman of Wali Nimat Mariam-Uz-Zamani Begum with Scan of Original Persian Document
Sidenote:
Khulasat-Ut-Tawarikh, of Sujan Rai Bhandari, ed. Zafar Hasan, Page-374, mentions queen Mariam-Uz-Zamani of Amber as the mother of Jahangir. This account dates back to the 17th century. This is one of earliest accounts that names the mother of Jahangir. The account has been made available now by the Indian Council of Cultural Relations, New Delhi.
See Point #3 of the following post for details. 2 new snaps have been added.
Facts about Akbar and Mariam-Uz-Zamani Begum
The emphasis in Sir Williams' memoir is not on the name but on the wife of Akbar and mother of Jahangir, who was still remembered by the people of the Golden Triangle region, just by word of mouth, when this officer visited the region.
Let us begin.
***********************************************
The author notes in his diary that on 6th January, 1836, when he left
Agra, he passed by the "Tomb of the wife of the Emperor Akbar and the mother of
Jahangir".
{
He
is referring to the Tomb of Mariam-Uz-Zamani in Sikandra. The British Army at Agra had established an "artillery testing"
division in the grounds surrounding this tomb at that time. Today, that portion is preserved, and is a part of the garden/park in the Tomb Complex
of Mariam-Uz-Zamani.
}
He describes her as an "amiable and a very beautiful woman".
The author talks about the Tomb of Mariam Uz Zamani, the wife of Emperor Akbar and the mother of Mughal Emperor Jahangir. |
***********************************************
In the following snap, he mentions that on 8th January, 1836, he reached Fatehpur Sikri.
The author describes Fatehpur Sikri. |
After this portion, some part could not be scanned. This part mentions a pilgrimage undertaken to the shrine of Sheikh Muin-ud-din Chisti at Ajmer.
The part after that is continued below...He mentions the birth of Salim, as per the prophecy of the "old man"..
Birth of Prince Salim as per the prophecy of an old man ( Sheikh Salim Chisti) in Fatehpur Sikri. According to him, the Hindu Wife of Akbar (Mariam-Uz-Zamani) would give birth to Emperor Akbar's his heir. |
***********************************************
Here
are the last two scans from that account. What is mentioned in these 2
pages was a treat to read. Please read for yourself. The author reserves high praise for Akbar and his Rajput wife.
The author describes the inscription related to Jesus Christ, on the Buland Darwaza, in Fatehpur Sikri. |
First,
he writes about his thoughts on Akbar (below), after seeing a passage
quoting Jesus on the entrance of this mosque, he concludes that Akbar was not a bigot.
After that he writes the following about the mother of Jahangir and the wife of Akbar.
" He
showed us the little roof of stone tiles, close to the original little
dingy mosque of the old hermit, where the Empress gave birth to Jahangir
; and told us, that she was a very sensible woman, whose councils had great weight with the Emperor."
***********************************************
Continued from previous page...
Every
sect becomes infatuated with its particular doctrines; animosity and
dissension prevail, and each man deeming the tenets of his sect to be
the dictates of truth itself, aims at the destruction of all others,
vilifies reputation, stains the earth with blood, and has the vanity to
imagine that he is performing meritorious actions. Were the voice of
reason attended to, mankind would be sensible of their error, and lament
the weaknesses which led them to interfere in the religious concerns of
each other. Persecution after all defeats its own end; it obliges men
to conceal their opinions. but produces no change in them.
.. Summarily. the Hindus are religious, affable, courteous to strangers, prone to inflict austerities on themselves, lovers of justice, given to retirement, able in business, grateful, admirers of truth, and of unbounded fidelity in all their dealings. This character shines brightest in adversity. Their soldiers know not what it is to fly from the field of battle: when the success of the combat becomes doubtful, they dismount from their horses, and throw away their lives in payment of the debt of valour.{<This most probably refers to the practice of Saka of Rajputs.} They have great respect for their tutors; and make no account of their lives when they can devote them to the service of their God. .. They consider the Supreme Being to be above all labour. and believe Brahmah to be the creator of the world, Vishnu its preserver, and Sewa its destroyer. But one sect believes that God, who hath no equal, appeared on earth under the three above mentioned forms, without having been thereby polluted in the smallest degree, in the same manner as the Christians speak of the Messiah; others hold that all these were only human beings, who, on account of their sanctity and righteousness, were raised to these high dignities." |
The author writes that Akbar was very much interested in Hindu practices. I could not get the entire page. This is what he mentions about Akbar:
" His majesty's only fault was,"he said, "an inclination to learn the art of magic, which was taught him by an old Hindoo religious mendicant," whose apartment near the palace he pointed out to us.
Fortunately, said our cicerone, "the fellow died before the Emperor had learnt enough to practise the art without his aid."
{
"His Majesty or H.M. " refers to Akbar.
Clearly, the "fellow" referred to in the above anecdote is a Brahmin named Devi, who had his seat near the chambers of Akbar in Fatehpur Sikri. He was well versed in the ancient Hindu scripture/epic - Mahabharata, and he used to 'teach' him this epic.
I was impressed to read that along with the account of his Rajput wife, Akbar and Devi's story was famous too. Clearly, this establishes that Akbar placed the people of other religions in high regard. We even have a Farman by his mother issued to a Hindu Brahmin of Mathura. Farman of Hamida Bano Begum to a Brahmin of Goverdhan.
}
***********************************************
Every one has some faults and Akbar is no exception. I am talking of some good qualities, which I found in this monarch. We all know that Akbar took interest in various religions and his reign is regarded in high terms among that of many other kings during the period of medieval Indian history. He also held religious debates in the Ibadat Khana (Hall of Worship) in Fatehpur Sikri.
{I would like to mention that fortunately I have obtained some photocopies of the proceedings of the religious debates, which were held in Fatehpur Sikri. I will slowly scan and upload them. }
Akbar had an urge to know more and more about various religions and sects. In this journey, there were various people who inspired him. His Rajput wife was one among them, but, I would add, a very important one. There was something very special between these two people, which amazes many people even today. Shah Jahan required a big monument to make posterity remember him and his wife Mumtaz. Still, it the story of Akbar and Mariam-Uz-Zamani, which was, and still is, on the lips of the people of this region, to the extent that this officer made a special note of it in his account.
The Oxford Encyclopedia Of Women in World History, Volume-4, Page-656, notes about this Rajput wife of Akbar, the princess of Amber, as an influential wife in Akbar's life, who exemplified his religious tolerance and also in shaping many policies in the Mughal Empire.
Just by word of mouth, hers and Akbar's relation is remembered even today in the Golden Triangle region of India. For those who plan to travel to Agra, Sikandra or Jaipur - make sure you talk to the local people in this region. Especially, the caretakers in the museums of Rajasthan. Royal descendants still admire them and are in awe of the very special bond between Akbar and his Rajput Queen. The scans, which were included in this post, are an articulation of the same fact.
We also have a regular blog member who posted her views about the story of Akbar and MUZ, in one of her comments on this blog. She also belongs to the Golden Triangle region. Do read her comments on the post about Mosque of Mariam-Uz-Zamani Begum at Lahore.
Click here to read Comment-1.
Click here to read Comment-2.
Article Category : Mughals(Akbar).
Wow, Amazing post!!! What a beautiful way to start the New Year – remembering the mesmerizing love story of Akbar and his MUZ. :) Thanks so much, Abhay, for this absolutely lovely post. It is great to know that MUZ influenced not only her husband but also his gems like Abul Fazl. :)
ReplyDeleteWilliams’ memoirs confirm that Akbar and MUZ continue to live on in the hearts of the people in the Golden Triangle region and do not need any epic literature or monument to herald their love to the world. Their love is so sublime that it does not need any proof. It is just accepted and this truth is passed down by word of mouth to the next generation as naturally as the tales of legendary lovers like Heer-Ranjha. Hope their love will continue to shine bright in the centuries to come!
And here’s hoping to reading more such beautiful posts from your pen in the coming year :)
Wow ..Wow ..Wow..Wow....Abhay...WHAT A NEW YEAR TREAT.......!!!!!! :D Today when I see these jewels coming out from the forgotten depths of History...I remember the 1st time when I had visited Agra or FS or Chisti dargah as a young child who was hugely surprised by the anecdotes told by the old keepers there...!! It had made me curious even at that age to know that the Great Akbar had such special considerations for his Hindu Wife .....whose name was still a haze...!!
ReplyDeleteAnd Mainly due to that particular curiosity born from the mysterious smile of the Ancient keeper of the Dargah that I kept going back to those places till date ... a quest to know what was exactly the truth of the Great Royal Couple....!!
And now when we see these precious pieces strewn together by Our Abhay's endless effort and dedication, I feel that It was worth all the tiresome journey and time which all of us here have somehow invested in getting to know bout the "Golden Royal Duo of History"...!1 :)
Abhay , please do not stop your journey which is gaining the right direction day by day....All of us are with you..!1
God Bless..!!
HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL.....!! :)
abhay - what a tribute to dese legends. simply loved 'tis. u know i feel more n more reassured 2day abt d unique relation between akbar nd her. since ppl in my area still speak abt akbar and hindu queen wid gr8 zeal. thnks 4 including my comments. i m really thnkful 4 'tis post.
ReplyDeletefolks, plz share 'tis post link wid as many ppl as psbl. 'tis deserves 2 b read by all.
Abhay the best. New year gift I could get post was amazing
ReplyDeleteMuz was a wonderful women she was a true enigma
I can't speak more,I feel like crying this get women till now didn't get her due
No one wants to believe she was mostly close to a kbar
She will get her dues one day
Why only golden triangle
Orissa my state where muz had not even visited after man Singh conquering orissa a poet wrote about him muz akbar
She was that popular
Abhay the real author of the poet is unknown it was rewritten fakir Mohan senapati in history book of 12th class oriya medium a!
am trying to find that the poet,was,a,4 line and a line. Mentioned muz akbar
Awesome Abhay. Thank you so much for this wonderful New years Gifts. Really appreciate this. Looking forward to more.
ReplyDeleteAwesome post Abhay :) A royal tribute to the Royal couple...!
ReplyDeleteThanks for taking so much effort to dig out this info and sharing with us...
Happy new year 2015 :) Looking forward for more such amazing post from you in this new year.
Awesome Post Abhay.Thanks for this perfect treat on new year.MUZ is truly an enigma and the relation they shared should have been very special for people to remember them after so many years and talk abt them..Thanks for all your efforts and please do continue
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year Abhay.
ReplyDeleteThank you for yet another awesome write-up on the letters of Sir Williams to his sister, the contents of which praise the Rajput princess Jodha bai and Shehenshah Akbar.
This Royal couple will live in the hearts of people forever. It does not matter if certain people question the nature of Jodha's relationship with Akbar. There are enough folk tales and documents to prove the influence that she had in Akbar's life and in the Mughal political scenario for several years. Not only was she instrumental in influencing him positively as a human being, her presence as a family member in Mughal Royalty, brought about religious tolerance too. This in turn strengthened the political infrastructure. The highly astute, and sensible Jodha Bai played an important role in making Jalaluddin Mohammad, the benevolent, tolerant and 'great' king that he was.
The very fact that she was the only queen to be buried closest to him at Sikandra proves the importance she held in his life. I've seen the magnificent tomb of Akbar at Sikandra. Jodha Bai's tomb was being given a facelift and closed to the public, when I visited.
I wish you good luck with your research work and pray that you continue to write brilliantly and educate several of us around the world with your findings.
Abhay hats off to you for finding this information No doubt the word of mouth can never be erased by any one only some points may get slightly distorted but the basic thing remain no doubt MUZ was a great woman and well respected by her husband Akbar the great also contributing in his great secular policy and credit also goes to him for giving weightage to his wife MUZ and her views. Indeed soulmates
ReplyDeleteAmazing! The amount of effort you have put in unearthing all this knowledge is exemplary.
ReplyDeleteThe happenings in the serial JA in recent months have been depressing, whole chapters of Jodha and Akbar's life have been erased, no mention of MUZ's great trading career, her philanthropy, her imperial command. No, in the serial Jodha is still the same hapless woman who always gets bested by Ruqaiya.
That is why I have been absent, but posts like this bring a smile to my lips.
WOW! Abhay HOW do you find these documents???!!!!!!!!!!! Before even commenting on the post, the very fact that you consistently search and unearth such rare documents has to be appreciated & marveled at.
ReplyDeleteI had no doubts at all, after reading your threads for so long about the special place MUZ had in Akbar's heart and their very special relationship that managed to survive everything from Aurangzeb onwards. Still it is so nice to again read about them. How every time I read a post like this, I wish I can just take a peek in past and just once see how REAL MUZ and Akbar were :))
Nobody could manage to erase them how hard they tried, thru word of mouth, thru folklore, thru the many many palaces Akbar built for her and the titles he bestowed on MUZ their special bond still remained intact.
Sigh how I wish we had got to see YOUR HK/MUZ Akbar and not the NR twisted fictional sadistic version of the JA writers :((
Wonderful reading this post and thanks for bringing such rare treasures to us.
You make history so wonderfully interesting :))
Happy Healthy Prosperous fun filled peaceful 2015 to you, your entire family & all the lovers of your blog :)))
Hi Donjas,
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year!
Can understand your absence from forum but why have you been away from blog too? :) You are one of the few people on the forum who's really into history too. Do keep sharing your views here.
Marshi
ReplyDeleteThat's incredible. Pls do share the poem if you find it. Would love to read it (the translated version :) )
well said, Iqra :)
ReplyDeleteAbhay
ReplyDeleteIt was wonderful to read everyone's comments here. For 2 reasons. :) One, of course, for the spellbinding and endearing love story of two great historical legends, who didn't fall in love but rather lifted each other up to greater heights than may have been individually possible for them.
Second reason - If ever you needed any affirmation that your research is valued and appreciated by many, these comments provide exactly that! It is very difficult to find so much information about this couple in one place on the Internet. This blog fills that gap and will, one day, be used for research by others who follow in your footsteps. :)
The serial has just been too disappointing and I needed to take a break from it all. I am back now.
ReplyDeleteHappy new year to you too.
Abhay,your consistent hard work and avidity in bringing forward such rare,meaningful and heart-warming information about the beautiful bond shared between Akbar and his MUZ is worthy of a huge applause.
ReplyDeleteIndian history through the centuries has been very eventful with a lot of extraordinary examples to give.The best is remembered and the rest is forgotten.In such a scenario,if a particular royal couple's love and bond is still remembered and passed down generations even after 400+ years and also in the presence of many great love stories,it says a lot.Nothing ordinary can be remembered for too long.
The beauty of their relationship,in my opinion,was that it caused a further rise,greatness and growth in them.They together brought out the best in each other.MUZ was a positive,powerful influence on Akbar,MUZ also had a substantial political growth with Akbar's support.
That was really a box of mixed sweets , history-geek !.The post contained,
ReplyDelete1.Tribute to honest officers of all time ! Hats off to Sir Williams, fr expressing fearlessly what he thought was right against his boss.
2. A tribute to brother n sister relationship, the intricacies of which has been beatifully brought forth thru his writing.Again hats off to him !
3 last but not the least, tribute to Enigma, Marium uz- Zamani , her relationship with her loving husband, Akbar! I won't use the word 'Forgotten' as she was n is still living in the hearts of people of Golden Triangle.
Now it is becoming more n more clear that the chronicles regarding Heer kunwari has been purposely destroyed by the people in the Mughal court, who were in the position to do so, during the successive years. .Main reason may be jealousy,or religion. But ironically, they cud not erase her charm frm the very hearts which she ruled over. !:) Thank u Sir williams n thank u, sir Abhay. :) fr that yearending "jshn' n new year gift :)
That is no excuse, not to be on the blog, Donjas ! anyway, happy new year, n happy blogging.!
ReplyDeleteAbhay, Amaging surprise by you, on New Year. Cleary shows, A Hard Work done by you, But Your Heart also attach, MUZ+AKbar, Abhay +Akbar= Three Letters, Same in Your+Akbar, This post, Cleary shows, MUZ, Effects on AKBAR , Life, If A Mughal Prince, changes too much, Accepts Others relgions, & Works a lot, Cleary shows,
ReplyDeleteHis Liberal attitude, Adopting, Other Values, Thats shows his greatness.Once In Show, Manavati said, to jodha, in Ragput Familes, too much respect, not gets Women, But Jawai saa, is Manofing you. this sentence shows, After Learning, Akbar too much changed.
If Blind eyes Anyone sees Fathpur Sikiri, Cleary feels, how much strong Role played by MUZ, in Akbar Life.
First She was Rajput, Rajput was famous for their loyality, Second, Akbar Knows, his realtives Cheating. So which qualities needed, he got in MUZ, & he accepted that.
Male Igo Easily, not accepts, Female qualites. or He was a King of Hindustan,but he give,, values to her qualites, accpted them, both learn, from eachother.
If we see Rajput History, A Community Gap, shows Both, Mughal +Rajput's, But Jodha accepted, him Core of her Heart. Rajputana is famous for PATI DHARM also, so jodha also showed, Honour of her, Rajputana. She accepted Mughal's & in 16 cen's, her name was also written, in Golden Words.
Frangrance always spreads, Same happened Akdha Life.Many people tried to destroy real facts, but who want to Know Real facts, they know in past, or they added in their Diaries,One ex, you wrote this post.
.
If a Person alives, after so many years, for good work, that's shows, Her influence, in Society.
31 dec, i was seeing, Epic channel,One secene they said, Akbar was very famous in Allahabad, Cause of his Good Works.
Hope this Year, we will read More interesting posts, in your, Beautiful, Write-Ups.
Akdha will be sure feeling relax, in Grave, Some are finding, their Orignal facts, or giving them, a Heartely Regard.
Superb Post. Hats off Abhay. Happy New Year.
ReplyDeleteQuotes in Yellow.. "His majesty 's only fault.."
Here "His majesty " refers to British or Akbar.
Hi Katana,
ReplyDeleteNice to see you here. Happy New Year to you too. :)
"His Majesty", here refers to Akbar.
Interesting reference to Akbar and his religious tolerance
ReplyDeletelink
http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00islamlinks/ikram/part2_11.html#writers
Thus by Akbar's time many of the traditional difficulties
had been removed, and he was able to take full advantage of the changes in
outlook on both sides. One example of this was his enunciation of the principle
of sulah-i kul, or universal
tolerance, by which he accepted responsibility for all sections of the
population, irrespective of their religion. Through his marriages with leading
Rajput families, Hindus became members of the ruling dynasty, and Hindu women
practiced their faith within the palace confines. The abolition of jizya was a
more widespread indication of his policy, making the common people aware of the
changing climate of opinion. That two of his most famous
officials, Man Singh, viceroy of Kabul and Bengal, and Todar [[149]] Mal,
his revenue minister, were Hindus, was an indication not of his desire to show
his tolerance but his freedom to choose able associates wherever they might be
found. Beyond these administrative acts, Akbar showed his sympathies with Hindu
culture by patronizing the classical Indian arts, providing scope once more for
painters, musicians, and dancers of the old tradition. Perhaps the most
striking of his activities in this area is the creation of the post of kavi
rai, or poet laureate, for Hindi poets. The adaption of Hindu elements in
architecture is demonstrated in many of Akbar's buildings, notably at Fathpur
Sikri. There and elsewhere he showed regard to Hindu religious leaders.
Hi Sunram
ReplyDeleteAgain an interesting article / link shared by you :) Thanks so much!
Since you have mentioned administrative acts of Akbar that show his tolerance and embracing of people of various faiths, I will add one point to your wonderful post.
This is regarding the grant of revenue free land by the Mughal emperors to religious institutions, holy men, persons of high lineage (for example, descendants of Prophet Muhammad) and the needy (including widows of nobles and saintly persons). Such grants were variously known as madad-i-ma'ash, inam, milk (land given in milk was milkiyat :) ), sayurghal or aimma in Persian. Such grants were temporary in nature during Akbar's time, meaning that the grant ceased to be effective if either the person who had granted the land or the person who had received the grant deceased.
Initially, such grants were made to orthodox / conservative muslims. But as Akbar started down the path of religious tolerance, he started extending the benefits of such grants to non-muslims too, provided they were holy or needy. The influence of his Rajput wives could also be a contributing factor here. :)
If we look at the farmans of Hamida Bano Begum and Maryam-uz-Zamani, we see that these ladies collaborated in implementing the religious policies of Akbar/Jahangir.
Abhay posted a farman of Hamida Bano Begum that confirms the farman of Akbar and allows the cows of a Hindu brahmin to graze freely in the pargana of Mahaban. (See link.)
http://mariam-uz-zamani.blogspot.in/2014/12/farman-of-hamida-banu-begum-with-scan.html
Akbar had granted Gokul, barely 1.5 kms from Mahaban, free of taxes, to Vithalesharai, after being impressed by his learning and piety. This shows that Akbar and his mother granted free land to non-muslims too.
Yes I read that and lot of other documents too on Akbar whenever I have time I do that other day I read in a newspaper that one person in Telangana owns a 16 century Dhaka muslin which the state archives wanted to give it to them to preserve immediately I was reminded of the marriage scene of JOJA will visit the archives and archeology department once may come across something interesting as here lot of info and archives are preserved as the NIzams were pro British who had a residency here. But will have to get that time out of my busy schedule.Me from Hyderabad.
ReplyDeletevery informative and amazing post abhay thank u very much
ReplyDeleteSunram,
ReplyDeleteThat's such a rare piece of cloth! Wonder how they preserved it all these centuries!! I believe now that kind of muslin is not being produced any more. :(
Since the Nizam family descended from the Mughal nobility, you can find some good information about Mughals there. Do share whatever you find in the state archives. :)
Great to know that you are from Hyderabad. :) My in-laws r settled there.
Amazing post Abhay!
ReplyDeleteTells us how Akbar and MUZ have etched in normal public's memory across India. This is the first time i read Iqra's other comment too. Thanks for sharing it, a wonderful piece of information. Their love didn't need coins, monuments etc to be made legendary. It was all about soul and emotions. And it is the only love story from our rich history which has survived in soul and public still talks about it. EK and Ashutosh Gowarikar hardly were able to do justice to their tale. But surprisingly, they chose it be brought alive on-screen. Despite so much deliberate obscurity surrounding their love and supposedly little text available 'affirming' JA story, it managed to captivate them. And you too :P
Thanks so much for bringing us closer to this duo :)
Happy New Year people!
happy new year sav. missed u dear. welcome back.
ReplyDeleteloved ur comment.
Thanks Iqra :)
ReplyDeletedo you by any chance study at Jamia, Delhi?
Hi Abhay....why the creator of Jodha Akbar serials doesn't visit your blog. I don't enjoy it anymore. So many distortions...make me as a historian lover upset. Same like Marshi...almost cry reading your post. I'm amused by Akbar and MUZ relations and I do believe MUZ had so much influence in mughals family. Rahim...was a muslim but I read somewhere..he made so many poet about Khrisna..MUZ is a Khrisna devotee...right? I hope someday I can do yatra to India and visit Agra, Fatehpur Sikri to feel the place where The Great Akbar and MUZ lived before.....Thanks again Abhay for making this blog....after watching the serials I search every sources about them in the internet..and found your blog..really amazing blog......
ReplyDeleteThank you Abhay for this info. I always wonder if there was some documents regarding MUZ to know more personal things about her! I am always so fascinate about Akbar and MUZ relationship. Wish I was a time traveller!!!
ReplyDeleteThough i m late in commenting , i have read this post on the day of mail itself ... But wanted to give it a proper second read on the pages given to understand the inner depth of the article ... So sorry first !!! And as far as the article , it ought to be a matter of fact that u have already mentioned that A bro has written to his sis ... Ofc to express his views on the place he his working n to say that he loved her :):)
ReplyDeleteI too have visited the places in Agra , but have never got the chance to speak with the local ppl there :( Would possibly do it , when i tend to visit this golden triangle area for sure :) Thanks a lot for this post of this Enigma who still lives in our heart through words if not for official chronicles ....
sav - i studied 4rm dere but i finished studying long back. now m into research.
ReplyDeleteThank you Abhay! By your work I can understand how deeply you respect and in awe of this beautiful couple! I salute u for your tremendous effort and hopefully it is recognized by some historians for your work and publicized! I really want the world to know the real sweet relationship of these two loving couple!!! At least without prejudices! Bless u dear!!
ReplyDeleteHi Mirah,
ReplyDeleteThank you very much. :)
The tale of the show Jodha Akbar is very sad now. It is been plunged to great depths. Not an iota of history is being followed there. The mother of kids has been changed. Add to that, the problem is that they are adding fictitious tracks in the show. I wish you good luck, try to come to this area to visit the places.
Yes Rahim was a devotee of Lord Krishna, and i personally feel it was the influence of MUZ only.
Suganya,
ReplyDeleteIf you visit this region someday, do make sure to talk to the person who is incharge of the Dargah/Fakir - as mentioned by KDR above and also by Iqra in her comments, when they visited FS in 1990's. The trip will be a memorable one. :)
Hi Sankaran,
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for your wishes. Jodha Akbar's story has survived 450+ years and it will survive in future also, as one of my friends recently put it that this story is like a phoenix. Every time, someone tries to eclipse it, it rises again. :))
Yeah , i surely will when i get to visit there !!! And KDR said it correct , they were indeed a Golden Royal Duo of history who held most significance not only in Mughal empire Then ... And it's clear , now too even it was destroyed years Ago !!!
ReplyDeletewow!! it always feels great to read about Akbar and Jodha..their love, their bond, their companionship..can't believe even this officer to his letter to sister didnt forget to mention them!
ReplyDeleteu r so right Abhay!! Shahjahan had to build Taj Mahal to show his love for Mumtaz to the world.. and it is only the pure love of Akbar and Jodha making people remember and admire them much more. <3 <3
no matter how much people try to hide facts, they will come out eventually...truth shall prevail :)
I am in complete agreement with you, Tamy. This story is really unique and different. And surely you must have enjoyed reading this account. I can see this. :P
ReplyDeleteLovely discussions and a great read of part-2 about MUZ. Its so beautiful. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteViji
read, reply, thanks a lot, can you please start a picture (to really look) Jodha B., RB and SB.zanima me what they look like in reality, it was the "india forums" but I could not see, maybe is unavailable in my country thanks a lot,
ReplyDeleteTanja
ReplyDeleteIt is difficult to come across real pictures of Mughal queens because they lived behind the veil. Painters were given their descriptions and had to paint accordingly without seeing them actually.
You can see many so-called images of Jodha Bai etc on the internet but these are mostly fake. :)
Radhika, thank you so much, is really so that Akbar and Jodha then, images, although I've seen them around one image to india forum is argued that with Akbar (Akbar has a "white" hair) standing woman, somewhere, say that Jodha, and some did not, I saw a picture of Salim, the Anarkali.Jos one question, in the Ottoman Empire (in the Balkans), alcohol was strictly forbidden, see here and Akbari and his son (Salim), only drink so .
ReplyDeleteTanja,
ReplyDeleteAs Radhika said, most images are fake or later ones, but we have some REAL images too, but they are too rare to be found. Check this Post:
http://mariam-uz-zamani.blogspot.com/2014/09/glory-of-faith-akbar-with-mariam-uz.html
Yes, alcohol was used as a drink in Mughal Empire.
Sunram,
ReplyDeleteWhile writing the latest blog post about Akbar, i somehow remembered these beautiful snippets which you had shared earlier. What a man he was.! Born in that era and truly needed in today's time.!
http://mariam-uz-zamani.blogspot.in/2015/04/jodha-akbar-shah-iran-track-pt2-infallibility-decree.html