Select from the drop-down MENU & READ the Blog in your PREFERRED Language

BLOG CONTENTS

Akbar & Harka Bai | Maharana Pratap | Mauryans | Razia Sultan | Miscellaneous | Jodha Akbar | FolkLore | Suggestions

5300+ comments registered on over 165 active posts, till now.
Plagiarism is a serious ethical offense amounting to copyright infringement. ZERO tolerance for Plagiarism.

Friday, December 12, 2014

Farman of Hamida Banu Begum to protect a Brahmin Saint of Mathura | With Scan of Original Persian



Friends,

Today, I am sharing a Farman which was granted by the mother of Mughal Emperor Akbar to a Brahmin who lived in the suburbs of Mathura. This farman by Hamida Bano Begum was to confirm an earlier farman of Akbar given in same regard. We had interesting discussions on Mughal Farmans few days back on the blog, hence this post.


Following is her order:

 *****

Title : HE IS GREAT

Seal : 8-petals of a flower with the legend mentioning - "Hamida Banu bint-i-Ali Akbar"


Order of Hamida Banu {< note that the word "Begum" was missing from this order}

Contents:

" May it be known to the Krori and diligent officer and others of the Pargana of Mahaban in the Sarkar of the Great Seat (Capital) of the Empire, Agra, that according to the Farman of the Exalted and the just (Emperor), the cows belonging to the indisputable prayer-offerer (well-wisher) Vithalesharai Brahmin, may graze, wherever they are, and not a single individual out of the Khalis or jagir (land-holders) should molest them or prevent them (from grazing). They must permit his cows to graze (wherever they are).

The above mentioned (Vithalrai) should therefore remain easy at heart. It is incumbent (on all), that they must act according to the order and carry it out, and they should not act contrary to and against it ( should not deviate from it). Written on the 10th day of Ramzan al Mubarak, Hijri 989. "



 

***** 

I could obtain a photocopy of the Persian Farman, though it was too much tattered.
Thankfully, this document could be scanned. Here it is :




Here is another format of this farman:






About the Seal: 

Note the farman. There is a stamp which appears to be circular in shape with some petals. It is the seal of Hamida Bano Begum. If one gets to see the farman in person,the details of this seal can be noticed. It is very beautiful.

Interestingly, this is the same seal from which Hamida Bano Begum had stamped an imperial document, around 30 years back, in 1550's. The document was presented for the first time by the British Library in 2013 in an exhibition.

There is an Islamic explanation for this seal. Hamida Bano Begum being a devout Muslim lady, would have most probably chosen this seal for the following reasons:
"A flower with 8 petals is said to represent 8 attributes of Allah."



Notes:

1. The date of this farman shared above is Sunday, the 8th of October 1581.


2. Mahaban, is a small town in Mathura district of present day Uttar Pradesh state of India.

3. Similar farman of Hamida Bano Begum, was mentioned  few days back on the blog by Preeti.{Link} I too, have read of a farman of similar nature : dated September 1587.

4. A farman of this nature by Hamida Bano Begum bestowed to Vithal Rai, permitting him to graze his cows even in the jagir lands is NOT a small favor. The farman grants him the right to graze his cows anywhere without any molestation by anyone.! 

This Brahmin must have been held in high favor/regard by Hamida Bano Begum, hence such an order. She would not go out of her way to grant him this favor. This also shows that the Royal ladies were not ONLY confined to the 4 walls of the harem, but also could interact with (select) people and were aware of the developments in the kingdom. It is not surprising that a royal lady has issued this farman, unless the person under consideration has impressed her greatly. Of course, such farmans were not gifted out to everyone, but only a few people of high repute.

5. This Vithal Rai was one of the two sons of a great saint of Mathura, Vallabhacharya who had impressed Akbar by his divine views.

6. Few days back we were discussing the significance of this shape of the seal of Hamida Bano Begum. The following details were shared on the blog by Radhika. This 8-petal shape also holds a special place in Hindu mythology. It is not known whether Hamida Bano Begum was impressed by the following clause, but still sharing just for info. {Link}

"The 8-petalled lotus is very sacred to Hindus. Known as the "ashta-dala-padma" , it is typically used, at least in the south now, as the rangoli pattern on which Gods are installed for performing any major puja. No major puja or religious ritual can be completed without using this symbol of Goddess Lakshmi."

In Buddhism, this represents the eight-fold path for self-awakening.

References: 

1. Edicts from the Mughal Harem, Pg-4, Idaraha-i-Adabiyat-i-Dilli(1974)
By S.A.I Tirmizi, Deputy Director of Archives
Government of India, New Delhi

2. The copy of this farman{order} has been sourced from the President House's Library, New Delhi.



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


Share this article :

86 comments:

  1. Abhay


    Wow, wonderful post! :)


    It's amazing to see a farman from Hamida Banu. And it shows she had the power to confirm orders issued by the emperor himself. It would imply she could also possibly also overrule the emperor's orders, if need be.


    You had mentioned that you have 2 more farmans of Hamida Banu. Pls share them also if possible.


    You are right. Even MUZ's farman shows that she had knowledge of what was happening in the kingdom and at least a few select people could approach her with their problems and get them resolved.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Abhay, wonderstruck to see the centuries' old docu. Btw, no.8 is also important fr Hindus. God is supposed to posses Ashta-aishwarya, wealth in 8 forms. This may also be co-incidental. history -geek, did Ruquiyya begum also had the power to issue farmaans?
    This only goes to show that the Audha of Mughal women was not toothless:)

    ReplyDelete
  3. very nice post abhay. d persian document adds 2 d well described post. der r enough evidences 2 show tat mughal women were not inferior compared 2 men. dey had dere role in administration. if mariam makani has given 'tis farman den she must hv had interaction wid him. she had liberty 2 talk 2 him. dis single post answers lot of questions. thanks 4 it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Beautiful post, Abhay!
    The farman scan is a almost a piece of treasure. Something that really fascinated me was, how much importance and divinity is associated with the same symbol in different religions.

    Nearly a month back i was in Amritsar and saw the Golden Temple. What really surprised me was it's similarity in structure to Mughal monuments i.e. the dome, the arches, the ornamentation on the walls. Also, around the pond or tank that surrounds the temple, there were inscriptions in Urdu/persian on the stairs which helped on descent into the pond for a holy dip. I saw these such inscriptions on the roof on the golden temple too. Both were present on the entrance and exit from the roof. Any explanation for this? Reply at leisure, when you have time. Or if anyone else knows an answer to this, plz share :)

    Abhay, could you also upload a picture of MUZ's farman? Absolutely nothing would beat it! In your previous post, it was coolpree (i think) who talked about MUZ's seal being a pitcher. And surprisingly, even MUZ's tomb in Sikandra has carvings of pitchers on it's walls.
    Have a look: http://www.tombell.net/?p=667#comments

    ReplyDelete
  5. beautiful! wow!!! it feels great to see HB and MUZ having so much authority in Mughal court.
    HB ke walid ka naam Ali Akbar tha na? "Hamida Banu Bint-i-Ali Akbar" ka matlab hota hai Hamida Banu Ali Akbar ki beti...Muslim girls name aisa hota hai...sabka nahi..jo dena chahe...for boys it's "Ibn" instead of "Binti"..tumhe toh pata hi hoga.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi Savtruth!

    I am really glad to find you back, and surprised too.!! :D

    What a wonderful comment. !!
    Yes, you are right. MUZ's tomb also has a pitcher symbol like her seal. :))

    I am going to post the picture of farman of MUZ. I have got the scanning done. I was only busy in procuring the Persian translations of her farman. It is almost done. And soon, the next post will be about her farman only.

    About the question on Golden Temple. Lets see if anyone has an answer. I will also try to find it out. :)

    Keep posting/sharing. :D

    ReplyDelete
  7. Tamy,
    A surprise visit after many days. :-P
    Yes, you are absolutely right. It is daughter of Ali Akbar. And totally agreed that no one can deny the authority these queens had in those times. :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Radhika,
    Hamida Bano Begum had great authority and could issue farmans independently. I will keep sharing the farmans as and when the scans are available. :)
    It is completely true that they were aware of the developments in the kingdom and the content of the farmans proves it. :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Geeta,
    Ruqayya Begum did not have the authority to issue farmans. As far as evidences are considered, during Akbar's time it was Hamida Bano Begum and Mariam-Uz-Zamani Begum only who could issue it. :)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Again we are online at the same time :D
    Waiting for that particular scan and your reply. And will always share whatever i get to know and if it can be posted here :)
    Also, will try to come here as often as possible. BTW i do, just don't comment so often :P


    Read Radhika's update about Jahanara begum and it was lovely! Reading about another wonderful lady from that period. Interestingly, even she handled the pilgrimage ship. Looks like only the most important ladies in the harem held this job. It says a lot about MUZ's stand among Mughals :)


    See you around Abhay!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Abhay....
    U r becoming a genie Day-by -Day... :D Such treasures u r giving us here....!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Yes again, same time. :-P
    Hoping that you will register your presence more often here. :)

    Jahanara Begum was one gem of a lady, and her strong Sufi leanings add to her aura. You noted well, even she had Sufi leanings and was a good businesswoman. :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Thank you very much. :)

    It's because of the interest we all have in knowing more about that era and the discussions here keep me going. I also learn a lot from you all. :D

    ReplyDelete
  14. You're welcome Iqra. Your arguments answers many questions as well. :-P
    Well said. :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Thank U Abhay for this wonderful Post.This blog is growing and growing with lots of valuable information and I am so happy for you.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Thank you for the scanned Persian farman by HB :)....Always knew HB was a lot more than JA HB :( ....Had read quite a bit about her importance during Akbar's rein...Thanks again for this post :)

    ReplyDelete
  17. Very informative post Abhay. Thanks for sharing.


    From your write-up, I've learnt that the eight petalled lotus has significance in Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism.
    I am a south indian and I know for sure that every Friday, my mother draws a pattern of the eight petalled lotus in the prayer room.


    Hamida Bano was a cultured, dignified and powerful lady of her times. We also see that Hindus, their beliefs and seers were treated with utmost respect, during Akbar's rule.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Hi Abhay, thanks for posting a scanned version of Hamida's farmaan.

    Abhay small correction on dates though: it is the exact same Farmaan that I had referred to on the thread "MUZ forgotten enigma". The farmaan I had posted had the date 29 September 1581 AD not 1587 as you have stated above. I posted so many farmaan's on that thread that you may have mixed up the date :). Anyways can't wait till you find one of MUZ from the reign of Akbar. We already know one exists from Jehangir's reign

    ReplyDelete
  19. ana toh tha hi :D tabiyat thik hai abhi aur puri tarha se fit hoke hi I took out time to read your posts :))

    ReplyDelete
  20. Preeti,

    I am talking of a farman of "similar" nature. The date was September 1587 only. PerhapsHamida Bano Begum issued another farman. :)


    I am going to post MUZ's farman of Jahangir's reign only, the difference being i am trying my best to get the "clear" scan of her seal also. :)

    ReplyDelete
  21. Abhay, Its Great, Clap for You, So Now we have to think, Abhay Kee Pitare mee Kya Kya Hee, Lol,


    So farman by HB, Reading farman words Many things clear, HB kind Nature, +strong, will power,or Which place, she deserves in Mughal Era.
    If she was wife +Mother of King, But she has own Persoanilty, +Own Authority, to taking decesions. if we are in higher poistions, or we get, decesions authority, so Power misuse, Happens, But Using power, Right time, Right way is a great thing, or this farman shows this clear.But one thing clear More, Duties Distribuation, To Right Persons, Acc to reading, MUJ, also can use farmans, Salima Harem incharge, etc,So womens have their Own Responisbilites, if they are cap-able.
    Female freedom in 16 cen, its Great.
    so work load was not on One Authority. Its also shows, Akbar working System, If a person is tackling Whole Hindustan, its Not a easy task.or that person, suffering, a cheatedness by own realtives. If a person falls, easy to Standup, but if Own realtives,
    falls You, Very tough, to stand -up,After standing up, Handling, Own kingdom, or choosing Right persons, Ex, Navratns,Faith on Amer people,


    After that Man (Akbar )lives a Heart, full life with Heartful partner, or changes,inner journey , Heart to Soul mate, or Alive today, feeling DREAM Land.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Exactly, Savtruth even i wanted to point out to the same thing :) It's like 'Ekam Sath Vipraha Bahuda Vadanti' There is one God. The same has been seen n described by many in different ways.Again Pitcher or Kalash is a symbol of purity. I am also curious to know how MUZ farmaan looked like n what fr she issued it:)

    ReplyDelete
  23. Abhay
    your contribution and tenacity to find information is worth applauding keep it up :-h

    ReplyDelete
  24. Ruk has no authority, to issue farmans, its clear shows, her place in Harem, so it means HB, + Akber knows her reality, +capacity, & thinking style, they knows, she will not use, this responsibility, in accurate Manner.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Tamy, can u please explain 'Ibn' is it a persian word?Does it mean beta?

    ReplyDelete
  26. Iqra, the Persian n Urdu script look the same. The languages r also the same? Also, Abhay I am curious to know in which language Mughal Baadshah n begum conversed n studied?

    ReplyDelete
  27. History-geek. in the serial, once there was a dialogue by Hamida begum to Akbar saying that he shud not forget that she has the power to overrule his orders. I don't remember now in which contxt it was.Can u please find out if there was indeed any incident in Mughal history where Shehanshah's order was overruled by Mariam Makani or MUZ?

    ReplyDelete
  28. Thank u Savtruth fr that link!:) Wondering when they r maintaining the garden n greenary, why they can't maitain the MUZ tomb also!

    ReplyDelete
  29. Geeta


    When Jodha was upset over the arrest of Man Singh and returned her MUZ title, at that time, MM told Akbar that Jodha had done the right thing and during that convo, she said that she has the power to overrule the emperor.


    If I am a good judge, I would say that MUZ would never overrule the emperor. She supported Akbar even when Salim went against him.


    MM may have gone against Akbar - though this also I find hard to believe. Looking fwd to Abhay's answer on this Q. :)

    ReplyDelete
  30. I read in an article on economic times that the tomb was used as a printing press for a while. It has only been recently reinstated to it's former glory somewhat by sprucing up it's exteriors. I so wish to visit this place some time!

    ReplyDelete
  31. Geeta,
    "Ibn" is an Arabic word. It means "son" / "beta" .

    ReplyDelete
  32. Geeta,
    There is no incidence where i found that Mariam Makani went against Akbar or over ruled. Hence, we can only debate on this topic, based on readings. :)

    ReplyDelete
  33. Radhika,
    There were some instances where Akbar and Mariam Makani's views differed on some issues. :)
    But that lady and Akbar, both were mature enough NOT to use their political personas (of Emperor and Queen Mother) in between all this. The decision was taken considering the best possible scenario in mind. :)

    ReplyDelete
  34. Geeta,
    Urdu is a later development which developed in military camps by fusion of languages of soldiers of different cultures. :)

    In the harem, the ladies used to converse in Turki and regional(Hindi) language. :)

    ReplyDelete
  35. Abhay


    Exactly, I also felt that she would not have used her political power publicly against her son though she may have expressed her differing views in private. :)

    ReplyDelete
  36. Abhay and all friends,


    Have you seen the political developments in Thailand? Most interesting scenario. Pls check it out, if you haven't already, esp those who are desperate for Ruq's downfall in the JA show. :)


    The Prince who is likely to become the next emperor (the emperor is ailing and not likely to survive for long) has divorced his wife, who has resigned from her position as the Princess. This was due to a number of her relatives getting exposed in a corruption scandal.


    I was struck to see that no royal family links itself to tainted begums.


    The case also reminded me of Nur Jahan, empress, whose relatives benefited a lot from her position.

    ReplyDelete
  37. Abhay, Preeti


    This particular farman of Hamida Banu about allowing the person to graze his cows anywhere - what is the date of this farman?

    ReplyDelete
  38. Geeta, Sav,


    Let's hope the MUZ tomb is returned to its pristine glory BY ASI soon.


    I was wondering that just as the 8-petaled flower seal of Hamida Banu has significance in various religions, does the pitcher symbol of MUZ's seal too have any significance in other faiths?


    Sav, I saw the photo you shared. The pitcher is an elongated one - its neck is long like that of a surahi used for storing water or the wine flasks of those times. Do you know if this symbol has any special meaning for muslims?

    ReplyDelete
  39. Sav,


    I read somewhere that Dara Shikoh had laid the foundation stone of the Golden Temple, though I don't know how true this is. He is said to have been close to the Sikh guru of that time. If the Mughals had any link to the construction of this temple, then it would be natural to have Persian inscriptions on the walls.


    I will look this up if possible. In the meantime, hopefully, Abhay or someone else may tell us more about this. :)

    ReplyDelete
  40. Though the Mughals were of Turkic origin, they soon adopted Persian as the official language of the empire, which much later changed to Urdu. The Mughals were highly influenced by Persian art and culture, literature, language and even a sense of identity.


    Babur and Humayun mostly used Turkic but later on, from the time of Akbar, Persian became identified closely with the Mughal empire.


    {Btw, Geeta, there is one theory which states that the area of Central Asia ruled by Genghis Khan (a Mongol) was known to Persians as Mughalistan. And the people of this land were called Mughals. }

    ReplyDelete
  41. Radhika,

    Golden Temple was (started)constructed in the time of Akbar. It is said that - Akbar donated some land/jaagir on which, later the Golden Temple came up.
    Persian was a "naturally" used language of those days.
    I think, this answers Sav's query to an extent. :)

    ReplyDelete
  42. Radhika,
    The date is mentioned in the post itself, in the Notes section as point number-1. And, if you are talking of this September 1587 one, for this i do not have the dates. :)

    ReplyDelete
  43. Abhay,


    So which farman was that 1587 one? Pls tell me :)

    ReplyDelete
  44. I understood so. Wanted more details ;p

    ReplyDelete
  45. Abhay


    1. I just checked Preeti's post. She mentioned this very same farman with the date 29th September, 1581. So why 2 dates for same farman?


    2. Where does the 1587 farman enter the picture?

    ReplyDelete
  46. Radhika,

    The farman which i posted above is of 1581, and the farman which i mentioned here in the comment is of 1587, and it is also of same nature as i mentioned.

    In this also, HB issued the farman to this Brahmin only.


    About the difference of dates i can not answer. Because the ORIGINAL scan gives the date as the one i mentioned in my psot above. :)


    Also, before the farman of HB in 1581, we have 2 farmans of Akbar also, which he issued to this Brahmin. :)

    ReplyDelete
  47. Abhay,


    Thanks! Akbar seems to crop up everywhere !


    Pls see my reply to Preeti, about Persian and the Mughals, since Persian was not the language of the Mughals, but was adopted by them, with the influx of Persians to the Mughal court. ;p

    ReplyDelete
  48. Radhika,
    Turki was the actual language of Mughals, but in Sikh Culture Persian was dominant. I will check the comment soon. Most of the sources of Sikh History are written in Persian language. :)

    ReplyDelete
  49. Abhay,


    This Vithalesharai seems like someone very important/privileged that so many farmans from the Emperor and the Queen Mother were issued for him!


    Another way to look at this is that despite so many farmans, he was still harassed perhaps, forcing him to approach the king and queen mother again and again.


    Do you have any idea of the dates of AKbar's farmans to him? I am intrigued that there is a 6 year gap between 1581 and 1587 when Hamida Begum issued him 2 similar farmans. Wonder if he never got the right to graze his cows anywhere till 1587 or if he was again troubled around 1587 for something similar.


    really sorry to ask the same Q again and again but this farman business to the same person over so many years seems fascinating to me. I am really curious about the whole thing now. I am wondering how much authority the farmans had if they had to be reissued so many times?

    ReplyDelete
  50. Persian became dominant across N. India from Akbar's time onwards. Earlier, that is before the Mughals, Hindavi was used by the Surs.

    ReplyDelete
  51. Radhika,

    Akbar also gave out farmans in 1577 and 1581 to this Brahmin.

    Yes, you are right, that again and again, he had to approach the Imperial House for this grazing right. This is because that every time, some or the other "defect/loophole" was found in the orders. LOL.

    Finally, a farman which was issued which said that even his family in future/future generations also, will not be asked for any tax or stopped from grazing.!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  52. Abhay


    So the officials in those days were quite bureaucratic in their approach, finding loopholes in the emperor's orders too and not following them blindly. LOL


    This shows that even a powerful emperor like Akbar had limited control over the execution of his orders. No wonder that though he introduced so many reforms, they didn't seem to have reached everyone in his kingdom. :(

    ReplyDelete
  53. You are right. Short and to the point. :)

    ReplyDelete
  54. fever and flu...1 week se zyada bimar thi :(

    ReplyDelete
  55. yeah Abhay is right...it means "son of". "Ibn" and "Bin" are same..both are Arabic words.

    ReplyDelete
  56. Aww, glad u r well now. Hope to see you more here now. :)

    ReplyDelete
  57. Thanks Radhika and Abhay!
    The foundation stone of Golden Temple was laid by a sufi saint Mian Mur. That is what i read. And Abhay is right, even the Guru Granth Sahib is written in Persian, some parts of it. This information raises more questions in my mind :)

    ReplyDelete
  58. No idea Radhika :-\
    Surahi isn't something i have read or heard anywhere to be part of any religion. Will definitely try to read about it more. One of the most intriguing thing about MUZ tomb is it's domeless-ness. And the structure is made of sandstone moslty instead of marble, like tombs of that time. Also, it has distinct Rajput style.
    Good to hear from you Radhika!

    ReplyDelete
  59. Hi Sav,


    Most spiritual people preferred to have open graves, rather than having domes over their graves - so that their souls could look at the sky and converse with God freely. MUZ was no exception.


    This was another thing common between MUZ and Jahanara. The latter also preferred an open grave covered with grass. :)


    MUZ's tomb also has a chattri as per Rajput style. :) And the surahi and flowers design on the walls is also so different from the geometrical patterns of the Mughal structures.

    ReplyDelete
  60. Sav,

    Mian Mir was a great mystic saint from Lahore. He was Dara Shikoh's preceptor to Sufism. Wow, it's incredible that this Sikh temple's foundation was laid by a Sufi saint on land given by a Mughal emperor!

    Why more Qs? By Akbar's time itself, Persian had become the official language. Many Persian words had also crept into the language spoken by the common people. Punjabi derived from Persian, Arabic and Sanskrit. There was a time when Punjabi was written in Persian script. :)

    It is said that Guru Gobind Singh was a Persian scholar and wrote the Zafarnama (letter of victory) to Aurangzeb in Persian. Most other gurus too were well-versed in Persian.

    Therefore, the use of Persian in the holy book is quite natural, esp to write the words of the gurus. Yet the Punjabi hue is quite visible overall. :)

    Anyway, do you know Persian isn't the only language used in the holy book?

    Guru Arjan Dev included not only his verses and those of other Sikh gurus, but also the verses and poetry of 15 other saints and 11 poet laureates, whose work reflected the gospel expounded by Sikhism. Almost 22 languages (including dialects) of that time have been employed in the book. Besides Persian, Sanskrit, Hindi, Arabic, Marathi, Bengali and Prakrit etc languages have been used majorly.

    Since the holy book is what Sikhs follow like a guru, it is vital that what is written there is understood by all. So, it may be that commonly used words from multiple languages were used to make the meaning clear.

    Persian words that have been used, many in their Punjabi form, are so apt there and cannot be replaced by any other word, without making the verse less beautiful/divine. Words like hukm, raza (Punjabi form razai), Qudrat, Qadar, etc cannot be replaced by equivalent Indian words easily.

    If you want to see how Persian has been used in the hymns and been given a regional flavor, you can read this: :)

    http://www.vismaadnaad.org/persian.php

    ReplyDelete
  61. wow Radhika! fascinating information thanks sor sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  62. radhika - nice correlation. i want 2 add another dimension. dere must b sme families who hide things inside.
    i knw tat babur gave a son of 1 of his wives 2 another wife. :-(
    bt d reasons of tat r not known clearly. it iz lyk d case of khurram to ruqaiya begum. if ny1 knows plz reply here.

    ReplyDelete
  63. Iqra,


    True, royal cupboards hide many skeletons too. LOL


    I don't know anything about Babur, except that he was a great writer and poet and a Turkic scholar. Would like to know more about his personal life. Good Q, Iqra. I want to know the answer too :)

    ReplyDelete
  64. Iqra,
    You are running one step ahead of me. :-P

    I am also looking into this matter because i am also trying to know the circumstances in which Khurram was given to Ruqayya. I will reply for SURE when i get my answers. :)

    ReplyDelete
  65. Radhika, Abhay, Savtruth, thank u all fr this valuable info n the interesting discussion that followed.! U r right Radhika, it's more like a surahi than a Kalash.Btw, Savtruth was there any stepwell aslo nearby? I hv read that Salim had constucted a stepwell near her grave as per MUZ's wishes.
    As far as Golden temple is concerned,many sources say that this land was bought by Guru Ramdas Sahib on payment of rs. 700. frm Zamindar.Guru Arjan Sahib concieved the idea of having a central place of worship fr Sikhs, n designed the architecture of Harmandir.Whereas Hindu temple has one gate, he designed the Mandir with multiple gate meaning it is open fr people frm all caste, creed, religion,etc.What a noble thought! He also got the foudation laid by, muslim saint n his close freind saint Hazrat Mia mir of Lahore in1588.
    Radhika, since it was the time of Mughals, it's natural that it has their influence.Surprisingly, it is a unique combination of Muslim dome, has chhatris, lotus petals n as Savtruth said even the persian inscription.

    ReplyDelete
  66. Ha, ha nice name Mughalistan:) Btw, what was the timeline of Ghenhis khan?
    Radhika, as far as my knowledge goes,Sansrit is the oldest language is it right? Or is it Persian?

    ReplyDelete
  67. Geeta,
    Genghis Khan was Prithviraj Chauhan's contemporary , around late 12th century. This language topic is a bit contradictory, but both Persian and Sanskrit are fairly old.

    ReplyDelete
  68. But Akbar, Jahangir, Humayun's tombs had a dome. Interestingly even Nur Jahan's tomb is dome-less. Are we sure that only for spiritual reasons, a Mughal tomb was built without a dome?

    ReplyDelete
  69. Hi Sav,
    Jahangir's tomb and also Nur Jahan's tomb is "covered". They do not have domes over the cenotaphs but they are simply covered by a roof, and not open to sky. The spiritual reasons are related to not "covering" the cenotaphs and leaving it open to sky. :)

    ReplyDelete
  70. Thanks Radhika!
    This is a wonderful piece of information. So the Sikh holy book is an amalgam of various languages. Beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  71. Okay. Makes sense. Thanks Abhay :)

    ReplyDelete
  72. Hi Radhika, Abhay, Iqra , geeta, SAV and all... Since we have seen the pitcher/ surahi on mUZ tomb, can we then safely assume that the seal on MUZ farman may also be a surahi and not a kalash? When I posted info on MUZ farman from Timirzi, the farman was illustrated in his book but is very badly damaged and the seal is not visible at all. Hope Abhay is able to get a better scan of the Farman so we can maybe see the seal

    ReplyDelete
  73. Preeti


    You may be right.


    It seems you have also started posting info from "tattered documents breathing their last". ;p

    ReplyDelete
  74. Hi Preeti, Sav, Abhay and all friends,

    The symbol on the MUZ tomb wall is most likely a surahi. These motifs were commonly used on the walls of palaces in Fatehpur Sikri and Sikandra in the early 17th century.

    They were also used in wall niches in the background of imperial Mughal paintings, such as "the Death of Inayat Khan". Here they were used as design elements to provide relief in the stark composition of the painting.

    For more details, pls see:

    http://www.indianetzone.com/49/surahi_guldan.htm

    ReplyDelete
  75. interesting article Radhika. thanks

    ReplyDelete
  76. Geeta,


    Old Persian )from which Persian came later) and Sanskrit are both quite old and quite similar! :) Possibly they derived from the same source and then evolved into different languages over the years.


    The ancient Persian religious books are called Avesta. Their language is quite similar to that of Vedas. Of course, with phonetic differences, such as "s" in Sanskrit is equivalent to "h" in old Persian.


    We all know about Hindu/Sindhu, Hind/Sind. Aap meaning water is common to both. Sena in Sanskrit is Haena in old Persian/Avestan. Soma in Sanskrit is Homa in Avestan. And so on.

    ReplyDelete
  77. Geeta


    Yes, the Golden Temple is a beautiful example of Indo-Persian fusion architecture. :)


    Thanks for the details!

    ReplyDelete
  78. Thank u Radhikafr that valued info. But Radhika, isn't it surprising that their scripts r so different? Also I never knew Sikh history is written in Persian language! Thanks:)

    ReplyDelete
  79. Geeta


    Sanskrit and Persian evolved over centuries from older prototype Indo-Iranian languages. The scripts may also be different because Sanskrit uses a phonetic alphabet.:)

    ReplyDelete
  80. I am posting a farman which has been issued by Akbar for Mathura temples..

    ReplyDelete
  81. Gopaldas ke liye shahi farman 1565


    (Gol Muhar) Jalaluddin Mohammad Akbar Padshah Gazi ka farman.
    Babur, Humanyu ....


    Aaj yeh farman jiske palaln ki apeksha ki jaati hai, jaari kiya jaata hai ki (aaj ki )taarikh ke baad se 200 beegha (jiska aadha hua)100 bigha , aadha kashtasudha , aadha banjar (aadhe) niyam ke antargat , gram Vrindavan , Parganana Mathura sarkar Bayana main Islam ke bhakt Gopaldas ko (inam main ) di jaati hai..Uprokt Pargana ke sabhi jagirdaro,amin, diwan , malgujaro,chodhariyon aur kanongo se apeksha ki jaati hai ki (yeh daan)iss roop main diya gaya maane aur uprokt jameen ki paimaish aur haddbandi kar ke uske adhikar main saunpe..aur malguri, mehsoolon aur vasooliyon jaise upharon( kulanaga,peshkash aur sawari) sarvekshan sulk , maalguzar ka mehsool, daroga ka mahsool, paanch phisad mahsool, kaoongo ka do phisad mahsool, begaar, shikaar, maveshi mehsool, aur doosare sabhi maali daawon aur shahi mahsool ki talab karke use tang na karein...Iss mamale main us se har sal ek farman na maange..
    Tehrir, batarikh 5 jumada doyam, hi, 972( 8 January 1965)


    Back Page
    Gol Mohar
    tarikh

    ReplyDelete
  82. This is really beautiful. Awesome. :)
    Thanks for sharing. :D

    ReplyDelete
  83. Ela


    Absolutely wonderful farman - thanks for sharing :)

    ReplyDelete