Delhi.--Description of the city.--Marble hall--The Queen's Mahul
(palace).--Audience with the King and Queen.--Conversation with
them.--Character of their Majesties.--Visit to a
Muckburrah.--Soobadhaars.--The nature of the office.--Durgah of Shah
Nizaam ood deen.--Tomb of Shah Allum.--Ruins in the vicinity of Delhi.
--Antique pillars (Kootub) .--Prospect from its galleries.--Anecdotes
of Juangheer and Khareem Zund...Page 289
My visit to Delhi, once the great capital of Hindoostaun, and the
residence of the great Sultauns, has made impressions of a lasting kind,
and presented a moral lesson to my mind, I should be sorry to forget in
after years; for there I witnessed the tombs of righteous men in perfect
repair after the lapse of many centuries, standing in the midst of the
mouldering relics of kings, princes, and nobles, many of whose careers, we
learn from history, was comparatively of recent date; yet, excepting in
one solitary instance of Shah Allum's grave, without so much of order
remaining as would tell to the passing traveller the rank of each
individual's mausoleum, now either entirely a ruin or fast mouldering to
decay.
The original city of Delhi presents to view one vast extent of ruins;
abounding in mementos of departed worth, as well as in wrecks of greatness,
ingenuity, and magnificence. Why the present city was erected or the
former one deserted, I cannot venture an opinion, neither can I remember
correctly in what reign the royal residence was changed; but judging from
the remnants of the old, I should imagine it to have been equally
extensive with the modern Delhi. A part of the old palace is still
standing, whither the present King, Akbaar Shah,[1] occasionally resorts
for days together, attracted perhaps by sympathy for his ancestors, or by
that desire for change inherent in human nature, and often deemed
essential to health in the climate of Hindoostaun.
The city of Delhi is enclosed by a wall; the houses, which are generally
of brick or red stone, appear to good advantage, being generally elevated
a story or two from the ground-floor, and more regularly constructed than
is usual in Native cities. Mosques, mukhburrahs, and emaum-baarahs, in all
directions, diversify the scene with good effect; whilst the various shops
and bazaars, together with the outpourings of the population to and from
the markets, give an animation to the whole view which would not be
complete without them.
The palace occupies an immense space of ground, enclosed by high walls,
and entered by a gateway of grand architecture. On either side the
entrance I noticed lines of compact buildings, occupied by the military,
reaching to the second gateway, which is but little inferior in style and
strength to the grand entrance; and here again appear long lines of
buildings similarly occupied. I passed through several of these formidable
barriers before I reached the marble hall, where the King holds his durbar
(court) at stated times; but as mine was a mere unceremonious visit to the
King and Queen, it was not at the usual hour of durbar, and I passed
through the hall without making any particular observations, although I
could perceive it was not deficient in the costliness and splendour suited
to the former greatness of the Indian empire.
After being conveyed through several splendid apartments, I was conducted
to the Queen's mahul[2] (palace for females), where his Majesty and the
Queen were awaiting my arrival. I found on my entrance the King seated in
the open air in an arm chair enjoying his hookha; the Queen's musnud was
on the ground, close by the side of her venerable husband. Being
accustomed to Native society, I knew how to render the respect due from an
humble individual to personages of their exalted rank. After having left
my shoes at the entrance and advanced towards them, my salaams were
tendered, and then the usual offering of nuzzas, first to the King and
then to the Queen, who invited me to a seat on her own carpet,--an honour
I knew how to appreciate from my acquaintance with the etiquette observed
on such occasions.
The whole period of my visit was occupied in very interesting conversation;
eager inquiries were made respecting England, the Government, the manners
of the Court, the habits of the people, my own family affairs, my husband's
views in travelling, and his adventures in England, my own satisfaction
as regarded climate, and the people with whom I was so immediately
connected by marriage;--the conversation, indeed, never flagged an instant,
for the condescending courtesy of their Majesties encouraged me to add to
their entertainment, by details which seemed to interest and delight them
greatly.
On taking leave his Majesty very cordially shook me by the hand, and the
Queen embraced me with warmth. Both appeared, and expressed themselves,
highly gratified with the visit of an English lady who could explain
herself in their language without embarrassment, or the assistance of an
interpreter, and who was the more interesting to them from the
circumstance of being the wife of a Syaad; the Queen indeed was particular
in reminding me that 'the Syaads were in a religious point of view, the
nobles of the Mussulmauns, and reverenced as such far more than those
titled characters who receive their distinction from their fellow-mortals'.
I was grieved to be obliged to accept the Queen's parting present of an
embroidered scarf, because I knew her means were exceedingly limited
compared with the demands upon her bounty; but I could not refuse that
which was intended to do me honour at the risk of wounding those feelings
I so greatly respected. A small ring, of trifling value, was then placed
by the Queen on my finger, as she remarked, 'to remind me of the giver.'
The King's countenance, dignified by age, possesses traces of extreme
beauty; he is much fairer than Asiatics usually are; his features are
still fine, his hair silvery white; intelligence beams upon his brow, his
conversation gentle and refined, and his condescending manners hardly to
be surpassed by the most refined gentleman of Europe. I am told by those
who have been long intimate with his habits in private, that he leads a
life of strict piety and temperance, equal to that of a durweish[3] of his
faith, whom he imitates in expending his income on others without
indulging in a single luxury himself.
The Queen's manners are very amiable and condescending; she is reported to
be as highly gifted with intellectual endowments as I can affirm she is
with genuine politeness.
I was induced to visit the mukhburrah of the great-great-grandfather of the
present King of Oude,[4] who, at his death,--which occurred at Delhi, I
believe,--was one of the Soobadhaars[5] of the sovereign ruler of India.
This nobleman, in his time, had been a staunch adherent to the descendants
of Timoor, and had been rewarded for his fidelity by public honours and
the private friendship of the King. The monument erected over his remains,
is in a costly style of magnificence, and in the best possible condition,
standing in the centre of a flower-garden which is enclosed by a stone
wall, with a grand gateway of good architecture. The mukhburrah is
spacious, and in the usual Mussulmaun style of building mausoleums; viz.,
a square, with a dome, and is ascended by a flight of broad steps. This
building stands about three miles from the city, in a good situation to be
seen from the road. I was told that the family of Oude kept readers of the
Khoraun in constant attendance at the mukhburrah; and I observed several
soldiers, whose duty it was to guard the sacred spot, at the expense of
the Oude government.
In explanation of the word Soobadhaar, it may not be uninteresting to
remark in this place, that when the government of Hindoostaun flourished
under the descendants of Timoor, Soobadhaars were appointed over districts,
whose duty, in some respects, bore resemblance to that of a Governor; with
this difference, that the soobadhaaries were gifts, not only for the life
of the individuals, but to their posterity for ever, under certain
restrictions and stipulations which made them tributary to, and retained
them as dependants of, the reigning sovereign:--as for instance, a certain
annual amount was to be punctually transferred to the treasury at Delhi;
the province to be governed by the same laws, and the subjects to be under
the same control in each Soobadhaarie as those of the parent sovereignty;
the revenue exacted in the very same way,; each Soobadhaar was bound to
retain in his employ a given number of soldiers, horse and foot, fully
equipped for the field, with perfect liberty to employ them as occasion
served in the territory which he governed, whether against refractory
subjects, or encroachments from neighbouring provinces; but in any
emergency from the Court at Delhi, the forces to be, at all times, in
readiness for the Sultaun's service at a moment's notice.
The gift of a Soobadhaarie was originally conferred on men who had
distinguished themselves, either in the army, or in civil capacities, as
faithful friends and servants of the Sultaun. In the course of time, some
of these Soobadhaars, probably from just causes, threw off their strict
allegiance to their Sovereign, abandoned the title of Soobadhaar, and
adopted that of Nuwaub in its stead, either with or without the consent of
the Court of Delhi.
As it is not my intention to give a precise history of the Indian empire,
but merely to touch on generalities, I have confined my remarks to a brief
explanation of the nature of this office; and will only add, that whilst
the Soobadhaars (afterwards the Nuwaubs) of Oude swayed over that
beautiful province under these titles, they continued to send their usual
nuzzas to the King of Delhi, although no longer considered under his
dominion; thus acknowledging his superiority, because inferiors only
present nuzzas. But when Ghauzee ood deen Hyder was created King of Oude,
he could no longer be considered tributary to the House of Timoor, and the
annual ceremony of sending a nuzza, I understood, was discontinued. The
first King of Oude issued coins from his new mint almost immediately after
his coronation, prior to which period the current money of that province
bore the stamp of Delhi.[6]
Shah Nizaam ood deen[7] was one of the many Mussulmaun saints, whose
history has interested me much. He is said to have been dead about five
hundred years, yet his memory is cherished by the Mussulmauns of the
present day with veneration unabated by the lapse of years, thus giving to
the world a moral and a religious lesson, 'The great and the ambitious
perish, and their glory dieth with them; but the righteous have a name
amongst their posterity for ever.'
I was familiar with the character of Nizaam ood deen long prior to my
visit at the Court of Delhi, and, as maybe supposed, it was with no common
feeling of pleasure I embraced the opportunity of visiting the mausoleum
erected over the remains of that righteous man.
The building originally was composed of the hard red stone, common to the
neighbourhood of Delhi, with an occasional mixture of red bricks of a very
superior quality; but considerable additions and ornamental improvements
of pure white marble have been added to the edifice, from time to time, by
different monarchs and nobles of Hindoostaun, whose pious respect for the
memory of the righteous Shah Nizaam ood deen is testified by these
additions, which render the mausoleum at the present time as fresh and
orderly as if but newly erected.
The style of the building is on the original, I might say, only plan of
Mussulmaun mukhburrahs--square, with a cupola. It is a beautiful structure
on a scale of moderate size. The pavements are of marble, as are also the
pillars, which are fluted and inlaid with pure gold; the ceiling is of
chaste enamel painting (peculiarly an Indian art, I fancy,) of the
brightest colours. The cupola is of pure white marble, of exquisite
workmanship and in good taste; its erection is of recent date, I
understand, and the pious offering of the good Akbaar Shah, who, being
himself a very religions personage, was determined out of his limited
income to add this proof of his veneration for the sainted Nizaam to the
many which his ancestors had shown.[8]
The marble tomb enclosing the ashes of Shah Nizaam ood deen is in the
centre of the building immediately under the cupola; this tomb is about
seven feet long by two, raised about a foot from the pavement; on the
marble sides are engraved chapters from the Khoraun in the Arabic
character, filled up with black; the tomb itself has a covering of very
rich gold cloth, resembling a pall.
This tranquil spot is held sacred by all Mussulmauns. Here the sound of
human feet are never heard; 'Put off thy shoes', being quite as strictly
observed near this venerated place, as when the mosque and emaum-baarah
are visited by 'the faithful'; who, as I have before remarked, whenever a
prayer is about to be offered to God, cast off their shoes with scrupulous
care, whether the place chosen for worship be in the mosque, the abode of
men, or the wilderness.
I was permitted to examine the interior of the mausoleum. The calm
stillness, which seemed hardly earthly; the neatness which pervaded every
corner of the interior; the recollection of those virtues, which I so
often heard had distinguished Shah Nizaam's career on earth, impressed me
with feelings at that moment I cannot forget; and it was with reluctance I
turned from this object to wander among the surrounding splendid ruins,
the only emblems left of departed greatness; where not even a tablet
exists to mark the affection of survivors, or to point to the passing
traveller the tomb of the monarch, the prince, or the noble,--except in
the instance of Shah Allum,--whilst the humble-minded man's place of
sepulture is kept repaired from age to age, and still retains the
freshness of a modern structure in its five hundredth year.
There are men in charge of Shah Nizaam ood deen's mausoleum who lead
devout lives, and subsist on the casual bounties gleaned from the
charitable visitors to his shrine. Their time is passed in religious
duties, reading the Khoraun over the ashes of the saint, and keeping the
place clean and free from unholy intrusions. They do not deem this mode of
existence derogatory; for to hold the situation of darogahs, or keepers of
the tombs of the saints, who are held in universal veneration amongst
Mussulmauns, is esteemed an honourable privilege.
In this sketch of my visit to the tombs at Delhi, I must not omit one very
remarkable cemetery, which, as the resting place of the last reigning
sovereign of Hindoostaun, excited in me no small degree of interest,
whilst contrasting the view it exhibited of fallen greatness, with the
many evidences of royal magnificence.
The tomb I am about to describe is that erected over the remains of Shah
Allum;[9] and situated within view of the mausoleum of the righteous
plebeian, Shah Nizaam. It is a simple, unadorned grave; no canopy of
marble, or decorated hall, marks here the peaceful rest of a monarch, who
in his life-time was celebrated for the splendour of his Court; a small
square spot of earth, enclosed with iron railings, is all that remains to
point to posterity the final resting place of the last monarch of
Hindoostaun. His grave is made by his favourite daughter's side, whose
affection had been his only solace in the last years of his earthly
sufferings; a little masonry of brick and plaster supports the mound of
earth over his remains, on which I observed the grass was growing,
apparently cultured by some friendly hand. At the period of my visit, the
solitary ornament to this last terrestrial abode of a King was a luxuriant
white jessamine tree, beautifully studded with blossoms, which scented the
air around with a delightful fragrance, and scattered many a flower over
the grave which it graced by its remarkable beauty, height, and luxuriance.
The sole canopy that adorns Shah Allum's grave is the rich sky, with all
its resplendent orbs of day and night, or clouds teeming with beneficent
showers. Who then could be ambitious, vain, or proud, after viewing this
striking contrast to the grave of Shah Nizaam? The vain-glorious humbled
even in the tomb;--the humble minded exalted by the veneration ever paid
to the righteous.
I was persuaded to visit the ruins of antiquity which are within a morning'
s drive of Delhi. Nothing that I there witnessed gave me so much pleasure
as the far-famed Kootub, a monument or pillar, of great antiquity, claimed
equally by the Hindoo and Mussulmaun as due to their respective periods of
sovereign rule. The site is an elevated spot, and from the traces of
former buildings, I am disposed to believe this pillar, standing now erect
and imposing, was one of the minarets of a mosque, and the only remains of
such a building, which must have been very extensive, if the height and
dimensions of the minaret be taken as a criterion of the whole.[10]
This pillar has circular stairs within, leading to galleries extending all
round, at stated distances, and forming five tiers from the first gallery
to the top, which finishes with a circular room, and a canopy of stone,
open on every side for the advantage of an extensive prospect. Verses from
the Khoraun are cut out in large Arabic characters on the stones, which
form portions of the pillar from the base to the summit in regular
divisions; this could only be done with great labour, and, I should
imagine, whilst the blocks of stone were on the level surface of the earth,
which renders it still more probable that it was a Mussulmaun erection.
The view from the first gallery was really so magnificent, that I was
induced to ascend to the second for a still bolder extent of prospect,
which more than repaid me the task. I never remember to have seen so
picturesque a panorama in any other place. Some of my party, better able
to bear the fatigue, ascended to the third and fourth gallery. From them I
learned that the beauty and extent of the view progressively increased
until they reached the summit, from whence the landscape which fell
beneath the eye surpassed description.
On the road back to Delhi, we passed some extensive remains of buildings,
which I found on inquiry had been designed for an observatory by Jhy
Sing,[11]--whose extraordinary mind has rendered his name conspicuous in
the annals of Hindoostaun,--but which was not completed while he lived. It
may be presumed, since the work was never finished, that his countrymen
either have not the talent, or the means to accomplish the scientific plan
his superior mind had contemplated.
At the time I visited Delhi, I had but recently recovered from a serious
and tedious illness; I was therefore ill-fitted to pursue those researches
which might have afforded entertaining material for my pen, and must, on
that account, take my leave of this subject with regret, for the present,
and merely add my acknowledgments to those kind friends who aided my
endeavours in the little I was enabled to witness of that remarkable place,
which to have viewed entirely would have taken more time and better health
than I could command at that period. I could have desired to search out
amongst the ruined mausoleums for those which contain the ashes of
illustrious characters, rendered familiar and interesting by the several
anecdotes current in Native society, to many of which I have listened with
pleasure, as each possessed some good moral for the mind.
It is my intention to select two anecdotes for my present Letter, which
will, I trust, prove amusing to my readers; one relates to Jhaungeer,[12]
King of India; the other to Kaareem Zund, King of Persia. I am not aware
that either has appeared before the public in our language, although they
are so frequently related by the Natives in their domestic circles. If
they have not, I need hardly apologise for introducing them, and on the
other hand, if they have before been seen, I may plead my ignorance of the
circumstance in excuse for their insertion here.
I have already noticed that, among the true Mussulmauns, there are no
religious observances more strictly enforced than the keeping the fast of
Rumzaun, and the abstaining from fermented liquors. It is related, however,
that 'A certain king of India, named Jhaungeer, was instructed by his
tutors in the belief, that on the day of judgment, kings and rulers will
not have to answer either for the sin of omission or commission, as
regards these two commands; but that the due administration of justice to
the subjects over whom they are placed, will be required at the hands of
every king, ruler, or governor, on the face of the earth.
'Jhaungeer was determined to walk strictly in the path which he was
assured would lead him to a happy eternity; and, therefore, in his reign
every claim of justice was most punctiliously discharged. Each case
requiring decision was immediately brought to the foot of the throne; for
the King would not allow business of such importance to his soul's best
interest to be delegated to the guardianship of his Vizier, or other of
his servants; and in order to give greater facility to complainants of
every degree, the King invented the novel contrivance of a large bell,
which was fixed immediately over his usual seat on the musnud, which bell
could be sounded by any one outside the palace gate, by means of a stout
rope staked to the ground. Whenever this alarum of justice was sounded in
the King's ear, he sent a trusty messenger to conduct the complainant into
his presence.[13]
'One day, upon the bell being violently rung, the messenger was commanded
to bring in the person requiring justice. When the messenger reached the
gate, he found no other creature near the place but a poor sickly-looking
ass, in search of a scanty meal from the stunted grass, which was dried up
by the scorching sun, and blasts of hot wind which at that season
prevailed. The man returned and reported to the King that there was no
person at the gate.
'The King was much surprised at the singularity of the circumstance, and
whilst he was talking of the subject with his nobles and courtiers, the
bell was again rung with increased violence. The messenger being a second
time despatched, returned with the same answer, assuring the King that
there was not any person at or within sight of the gate. The King,
suspecting him to be a perverter of justice, was displeased with the man,
and even accused him of keeping back a complainant from interested motives.
It was in vain the messenger declared himself innocent of so foul a crime;
a third time the bell rang, "Go," said the King to his attendants, "and
bring the supplicant into my presence immediately!" The men went, and on
their return informed the King that the only living creature near the gate
was an ass, poor and manged, seeking a scanty meal from the parched blades
of grass. "Then let the ass be brought hither!" said the King; "perhaps
_he_ may have some complaint to prefer against his owner."
'The courtiers smiled when the ass was brought into the presence of the
monarch, who upon seeing the poor half-starved beast covered with sores,
was at no loss for a solution of the mysterious ringing at the bell, for
the animal not finding a tree or post against which he could rub himself,
had made use of the bell-rope for that purpose.
"Enquire for the owner of the ass!" commanded the King, "and let him be
brought before me without delay!" The order promptly given, was as readily
obeyed; and the hurkaarahs (messengers, or running footmen) in a short
time introduced a poor Dhobhie[14] (washerman) who had owned the ass from a
foal. The plaintiff and defendant were then placed side by side before the
throne, when the King demanded, "Why the sick ass was cast out to provide
for itself a precarious subsistence?" The Dhobhie replied, "In truth, O
Jahaum-punah![15] (Protector or Ruler of the World), because he is grown
old and unserviceable, afflicted with mange, and being no longer able to
convey my loads of linen to the river, I gave him his liberty."
'"Friend," said the King, "when this thine ass was young and healthy,
strong and lusty, didst thou not derive benefits from his services? Now
that he is old, and unable from sickness to render thee further benefits,
thou hast cast him from thy protection, and sent him adrift on the wide
world; gratitude should have moved thee to succour and feed so old and
faithful a servant, rather than forsake him in his infirmities. Thou hast
dealt unjustly with this thy creature; but, mark me, I hold thee
responsible to repair the injury thou hast done the ass. Take him to thy
home, and at the end of forty days attend again at this place, accompanied
by the ass, and compensate to the best of thy power, by kind treatment,
for the injury thou hast done him by thy late hard-hearted conduct."
'The Dhobhie, glad to escape so well, went away leading the ass to his
home, fed him with well-soaked gram (grain in general use for cattle), and
nicely-picked grass, sheltered him from the burning sun, poured healing
oil into his wounds, and covered his back to keep off the flies; once a
day he bathed him in the river. In short, such expedients were resorted to
for the comfort and relief of the ass, as were ultimately attended with
the happiest effects.
'At the expiration of the forty days, the Dhobhie set off from his home to
the palace, leading his now lively ass by a cord. On the road the
passers-by were filled with amazement and mirth, at the manners and
expressions of the Dhobhie towards his led ass. "Come along,
brother!--Make haste, son!--Let us be quick, father!--Take care, uncle!"
'"What means the old fool?" was asked by some; "does he make his ass a
relation?"--"In truth," replied the Dhobhie, "my ass is a very dear old
friend, and what is more, he has been a greater expense to me than all my
relations latterly: believe me, it has cost me much care and pains to
bring this ass into his present excellent condition." Then relating the
orders of the King, and his own subsequent treatment of the beast, the
people no longer wondered at the simple Dhobhie's expressions which had
prompted them at first to believe he was mad.
'The King, it is related, received the Dhobhie graciously, and commended
and rewarded him for his careful attention to the animal; which in his
improved condition became more useful to his master than he had ever been,
through the King's determination to enforce justice even to the brute
creation.'
The second anecdote, translated for me by the same kind hand, is often
related, with numerous embellishments, under the title of 'Khareem
Zund'.[16]
'Khareem Zund ruled in Persia. One day he was seated in the verandah of
his palace smoking his hookha, and, at the same time, as was his frequent
practice, overlooking the improvements carried on by masons and labourers,
under the superintendence of a trusty servant. One of the labourers, who
was also named Khareem, had toiled long, and sought to refresh himself
with a pipe. The overseer of the work, seeing the poor man thus engaged,
approached him in great wrath, rated him severely for his presumption in
smoking whilst he stood in the presence of his sovereign, and striking him
severely with a stick, snatched the pipe from the labourer and threw it
away. The poor wretch cared not for the weight of the blow so much as for
the loss of his pipe: his heart was oppressed with the weight of his
sorrows, and raising his eyes to Heaven he cried aloud, "Allah
Khareem!"[17] (God is merciful!), then lowering his eyes, his glance
rested on the King, "App Khareem!" (thou art named merciful!), from whom
withdrawing his eyes slowly he looked at his own mean body, and added,
"Myn Khareem!" (I am called merciful!).
'The King, who had heard the labourer's words, and witnessed with emotion
the impressive manner of lifting his eyes to Heaven, had also seen the
severity of the overseer to the unoffending labourer; he therefore
commanded that the man should be brought into his presence without delay,
who went trembling, and full of fear that his speech had drawn some heavy
punishment on his head.
'"Sit down," said the King.--"My sovereign pardon his slave!" replied the
labourer.--"I do not jest; it is my pleasure that you sit down," repeated
the King; and when he saw his humble guest seated, he ordered his own
silver hookha to be brought and placed before the poor man, who hesitated
to accept the gracious offer; but the King assured him in the kindest
manner possible it was his wish and his command. The labourer enjoyed the
luxury of a good hookha, and by the condescending behaviour of the King
his composure gradually returned.
'This King, who it would seem delighted in every opportunity that offered
of imparting pleasure and comfort to his subjects of all ranks and degrees,
seeing the labourer had finished his second chillum[18] (contents of a
pipe) told him he had permission to depart, and desired him to take the
hookha and keep it for his sake. "Alas, my King!" said the labourer, "this
costly silver pipe will soon be stolen from me; my mud hut cannot safely
retain so valuable a gift; the poor mazoor[19] inhabits but a chupha (or
coarse grass-roofed) hut."--"Then take materials from my store-houses to
build a house suited to your hookha," was the order he received from the
King; "and let it be promptly done! I design to make you one of my
overseers; for _you_, Khareem, have been the instrument to rouse _me_ to
be Khareem (merciful); and I can now approach Allah with increased
confidence. Who is the only true Khareem!"'
[1] Akbar Shah II, King of Delhi, A.D. 1806-37.
[2] _Mahall_.
[3] _Darvesh_, 'a religious mendicant'.
[4] Mansur 'Ali Khan, Safdar Jang, Nawab of Oudh
(A.D. 1739-56), his successors being--his son, Shuja-ud-daula
(1756-75); his son, Asaf-ud-daula (1775-97); his reputed son Wazir
'Ali (1797-8); Sa'a dat 'Ali Khan, half-brother of
Asaf-ud-daula (1798-1814); his son, Ghazi-ud-din Haidar
(1814-37). The tomb of Safdar Jang is near that of the Emperor
Humayun. 'This tomb in one of the last great Muhammadan
architectural efforts in India, and for its age it deserves perhaps
more commendation than is usually accorded to it. Though the general
arrangement of the tomb in the same as that of the Taj, it was not
intended to be a copy of the latter' (H.C. Fanshawe, _Delhi Past and
Present_, 1902, 246 f., with a photograph). For a different
appreciation, see Sleeman, _Rambles_, p. 507.
[5] _Subahdar_, the Viceroy or Governor of a Subah or Province of
the Moghul Empire.
[6] Ghazi-ud-din announced his independence of Delhi under the
advice of his Minister, Agha Mir.
[7] Shaikh Nizam-ud-din. Auliya, one of the noblest disciples of
Shaikh Farid-ud-din Shakkarganj; born at Budaun, A.D. 1236,
died at Delhi, 1325.
[8] The entrance to the Dargah was built by Firoz Shah, and bears
the date A.D. 1378. The structure over the tomb has been rebuilt by
many pious donors, and little of the original work is left (Fanshawe,
op. cit., 235 ff.; Sleeman, _Rambles_, 490 ff., 507).
[9] Shah 'Alam II, King of Delhi, A.D. 1759-1806. 'Three royal graves
in the little court to the south side of the mosque lie within a
single marble enclosure--that on the last is the resting-place of
Akbar Shah II (died 1837 A.D.); the next to it is that of Shah
Alam II (died 1806), and then beyond an empty space, intended for
the grave of Bahadur Shah, [the last King of Delhi], buried at
Rangoon, comes the tomb of Shah Alam Bahadur Shah, a plain
stone with grass on it' (Fanshawe, 281 f.; Sleeman, _Rambles_, 500).
[10] Qutb, 'the polar star'. The pillar, 238 feet in height, was begun by
Qutb-ud-di Aibak (A.D. 1206-10), and there are inscriptions of
Altamsh or Iltutmish, his son-in-law. It is entirely of Muhammadan
origin, and was primarily intended to serve as a minaret to
Qutb-ud-din's mosque adjoining it; but its name refers to the saint
Qutb-ud-din, buried close by. (Fanshawe, 265 ff.; Sleeman,
_Rambles_, 492 ff.)
[11] This observatory was built by Raja Jai Singh of Jaipur (A.D.
1693-1743) in 1724. He also erected similar observatories at Benares,
Multan, Ujjain, and Jaipur (Fanshawe, 247).
[12] Jahangir, eldest son of the Emperor Akbar, reigned A.D. 1605-27.
[13] 'The first order that I issued was for the setting up of a Chain of
Justice, so that if the Officers of the Courts of Justice should fail
in the investigation of the complaints of the oppressed, the injured
person might come to this chain and shake it, and so give notice of
their wrongs. I ordered that the chain should be made of pure gold,
and be thirty _gaz_ [yards] long, with sixty bells upon it. The
weight of it was four Hindustani _mans_ [8 lb.] of 'Irak.
One end was firmly attached to a battlement of the fort of Agra, the
other to a stone column on the bank of the river' (_Memoirs of
Jahangir_ in Sir H.M. Elliot, _History of India_, vi. 284). It
does not appear that this silly contrivance was ever used, and it was
meant only for parade. Raja Anangpal had already set up a
similar bell at Delhi (ibid. vi. 262, iii. 565).
[14] _Dhobi_.
[15] _Jahan-panah_.
[16] Karim Khan, of the Zand tribe, defeated the Afghans and
secured the Kingdom of Fars or Southern Persia, with his capital at
Shiraz. He died at an advanced age, A.D. 1779 (Sir J. Malcolm,
_History of Persia_, 1829, ii. 58 ff.).
[17] _Allah Karim, Ap Karim, Main Karim_.
[18] _Chilam_, the clay bowl of a water-pipe: its contents.
[19] _Mazdur_, a day labourer.