Indian Antiquary Vol 60

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Charles E A W Oldham, S Krishnaswami Aiyangar, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarka
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 41

FEBRUARY, 1031)
SIDI ALI SHELEBI IN INDIA, 1554-1556 AD.
Panjab between Humâyûn and the last of the Sûr dynasty claimants to the crown. Humayûn had started from Kabul in the previous November to regain his throne ; he had oooupied Lahore in February ; he had won a decisive victory near Sirhind on the 22nd June over Sikandar Khan Sør, the nephew of the great Sher Shah ; and had established himself in Delhi in July, only a month before Sidi 'Alî reached Lahore. In accordance with his usual practice, our author breaks off from the narrative of his itinerary to give a brief, but fairly accurate, summary of the political situation, which may be quoted here (as translated by Vambéry) as a fair sample of his notes on local political affairs :
"After the death of Selim Shah, a son of Shir Khan, the former sovereign of Hindustan, Iskender Khan had come to the throne. When the Padishah Humayun heard this, he immediately left Kabul and marched his army to India, took Lahore, and fought Iskender Khan near Sahrand. He won the battle and took 400 elephants, besides several cannon and 400 chariote. Iskender Khan escaped to the fortress of Mankut, and Humayun sent Shah Abul-Maali with a detachment of soldiers after him. Humayun himself proceeded to his residence at Delhi and despatched his officers to different places. The Osbeg, Iskender Khan, he sent to Agra, and others to Firuzahah, Senbel,60 Bayana and Karwitch.61 War raged on all sides, and when I arrived at Lahoro the Governor, Mirza Shah,69 would not let me continue my journey until I had seen the Padishah (Humayun). After sending the latter word of my arrival, he received orders to send me forthwith to Delhi. Meanwhile a whole month had been Wasted, but finally we were sent off with an escort."
Crossing "the river of Sultergur,"3 by which is here meant the Bias in its old channel), and marching via Firüzshah, Sidi 'Ali reached Delhi in twenty days towards the end of 2 a'l-qa'da, 6* that is to say about the middle of the month of October 1555. He tells us that out of respect for his monarch, the Sultan of Turkey, he was accorded a brilliant reception, the Khân-khânåns and other high officers with several thousand troops being deputed to meet him. The same evening the Khan-khânån gave a banquet for him and his party, and then he was granted an audience by the emperor. After being presented to Humêyîn, Sidi 'Ali offered some gift, accompanied by a chronogram upon the conquest of India and two ghazals, "all of which pleased the Padishah greatly." But when he begged permission to proceed on his journey, Humayun refused to grant this, wishing to retain him, and offered him an assignment of revenue amounting (as would appear from the translations at least) to & crore of rupees! Declining this, Sidi Alf expressed his anxiety to continue his journey, but Humayûn replied that he should stay at least for a year. The emperor even suggested that he might send an envoy to Constantinople, carrying an explanation from the admiral of his inability to return; but Sidi 'Ali wisely foresaw the light in which this would be regarded by his monarch. Ultimately HumAyûn consented to his leaving, provided he waited till the roads, then impracticable owing to the recent rains,66 became passable, and meanwhile taught him how to calculate solar and lunar eclipses and instructed him in other astronomical matters. As we know from other sources that Humayûn was interested in the heavenly bodies, this
39 The Travels and Adventures of the T'urloish Admiral Sidi Ali Reïs, p. 46. 60 1.e., Sambhal, now in the Moradabad district, U. P. 81 Scil. Kanauj: Dies writee Kenouidjeh.
03 This appears to have been Mahmud Sultan Mirza, son of Ulugb Mirza, to whom, according to Blochmann, Humayan gave the name of ShAh Mirza.-Ain-s-Akbart, trana. Blochmann, I, 461-62
69 so called from the then important place, Sultanpur, which lay on the high road from the northweet frontier to Delhi, and past which the Bills flowed. Sultanpur is now in the Kapurtala State, between the Bids and the Butlej, a few miles above their present junction. Boo also Babur-ndma, trans, Mrs. Bove. ridge, II, 465, from which it appears that the Sutlej then took a more southernly coume.
64 Z4'l-qa'da 962 A..., corresponding with 17th September to 16th October 1855. 68 The famous Bairam Khan was the Khan.banen at the time. Ho may have been at headquarters
64 The translations seem to be defective, as the rainy season WM over, though the roads would'still be in bad condition. Vambéry translates: “We are now close upon the three months of continuous (Binghagal)." In noto ho gives the word used in his MS. As J y adding : " binhegal, probably . Hindustani word "I Tho word used by Humayun, of course, was the Hindt baraha-kedl (Sans. T ) a term in general 180, and employed by so early a writer as Albfrank.