01-24-2006, 02:36 AM
(This post was last modified: 01-24-2006, 02:44 AM by Bharatvarsh.)
The following is an account of Banda Singh Bahadur and the Sikhs by
Khafi Khan from "The History of India, as Told by Its Own Historians.
The Muhammadan Period Sir H. M. Elliot Edited by John Dowson", It is
in Muntakhabu-l Lubáb, of Kháfà Khán which is available online here:
http://erga.packhum.org/persian/pf?file=80201017&ct=61
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->THIRD YEAR OF THE REIGN, 1120 A.H. (1708-9 A.D.).
The Sikhs.
[Text, vol. ii. p. 651.] There is a sect of infidels called Gurú, more commonly known as Sikhs. Their chief, who dresses as a fakÃr, has a fixed residence near Láhore. From old times he has built temples in all the towns and populous places, and has appointed one of his followers to preside in each temple as his deputy. When any one of the sect brought presents or offerings for the Gurú to the temple, the deputy had to collect them, and, after deducting sufficient for his own food and expenses, his duty was to send the balance faithfully to the Gurú. This sect consists principally of Játs and KhatrÃs of the Panjáb and of other tribes of infidels. When Aurangzeb got knowledge of these matters, he ordered these deputy Gurús to be removed and the temples to be pulled down.
At the time that Bahádur Sháh marched towards Haidarábád, Gobind, the chief Gurú of the sect, came to join him with two or three hundred horsemen bearing spears and some footmen. After two or three months, he died from the wounds of a dagger, and his murderer was not discovered. When the news of his death reached the Panjáb, where the bulk of the Sikhs were living, an obscure member of the sect, about the name* given to whom there are various statements, gave out that in the course of transmi¬gration, which the Sikhs believe in and call avatár, he had taken the place of the murdered Gobind, who had come to life again as a bearded man in his body, for the purpose of taking revenge. This worthless dog, having published this statement, stirred up disaffection in the sect, and raised the standard of rebellion. By jugglery, charms, and sorcery, he pretended to perform miracles before credulous people, and gave himself the name of Sachá Pádsháh âTrue King.â
He began to plunder in the Panjáb and the country about Sihrind, and in the course of three or four months he gathered round him four or five thousand pony (yábú) riders and seven or eight thousand motley footmen. His numbers daily increased, and much plunder fell into his hands, until he had eighteen or nineteen thousand men under arms, and carried on a predatory and cruel warfare. He fought with two or three faujdárs who went out to punish him, defeated them and killed them. In many villages which he plundered he appointed thánádárs and tahsÃldárs to collect the revenues of the neighbourhood for him, and matters came to such a pass that with three or four thousand infidels who were leagued with him, he wrote orders to the Imperial officials and the managers of the jágÃrdárs, calling upon them to submit to him, and to relinquish their posts.
WazÃr Khán, Faujdár of Sihrind, had held the charge of the civil and revenue affairs of that district for a long time. He had some troops and treasure, and had obtained a reputation by his firm management. When he heard how districts in his charge had been ravaged and plundered, he set about collecting troops and warlike equipments. He joined with him four or five faujdárs and zamÃndárs of name, prepared lead and gunpowder, mustered five or six thousand horse and seven or eight thousand musketeers (barkandáz) and archers, and with these and some artillery and elephants he marched out to give battle and to punish that perverse sect. After marching three or four kos, he came up with the enemy.
The accursed wretches had got warning of the movement of WazÃr Khán, and advanced to meet him. All his followers kept shouting âSachá Pádsháhâ and âFath daras.â The battle began, and great bravery was shown on both sides, but especially by the confederate sectarians. They advanced sword in hand against the elephants, and brought two of them down. Many Musulmáns found martyrdom, and many of the infidels went to the sink of perdition. The Musulmán forces were hardly able to endure the repeated attacks of the infidels, when a musket-ball made a martyr of WazÃr Khán, and they were put to flight. Money and baggage, horses and elephants, fell into the hands of the infidels, and not a man of the army of Islám escaped with more than his life and the clothes he stood in. Horsemen and footmen in great numbers fell under the swords of the infidels, who pursued them as far as Sihrind.
Sihrind was an opulent town, with wealthy merchants, bankers, and tradesmen, men of money, and gentlemen of every class; and there were especially learned and religious men in great numbers residing there. No one found the opportunity of saving his life, or wealth, or family. When they heard of the death of WazÃr Khán, and the rout of his army, they were seized with panic. They were shut up in the town, and for one or two days made some ineffectual resistance, but were obliged to bow to fate. The evil dogs fell to plundering, murdering, and making prisoners of the children and families of high and low, and carried on their atrocities for three or four days with such violence that they tore open the wombs of preg¬nant women, dashed every living child upon the ground, set fire to the houses, and involved rich and poor in one common ruin. Wherever they found a mosque, a tomb, or a gravestone of a respected Musulmán, they broke it to pieces, dug it up, and made no sin of scattering the bones of the dead. When they had done with the pillage of Sihrind, they appointed officers to collect the rents and taxes in all the dependent districts.
Accounts of the calamity which had fallen upon Sihrind reached 'Alà Muhammad Khán, Faujdár of Saháranpúr, and he was terror-struck. Although a number of gentlemen and Afgháns gathered round him and urged him to act boldly and to put his fortifications in a state of defence, it was of no avail; he went off to Dehlà with his property and family. The men of the town assembled, and, moved by one spirit, they threw up breastworks all round. When the villainous foe arrived, they made a manful resistance, and fighting under the protection of their houses, they kept up such a discharge of arrows and balls, that they sent many of their assailants to hell. Many men of noble and respectable families fell fighting bravely, and obtained the honour of martyrdom. The property and the families of numbers of the inhabitants fell into the hands of the enemy, and numerous women, seeing that their honour was at stake, and captivity before them, threw themselves into wells. A party of brave gentlemen collected their wives and families in one spot, and kept up such a manful resistance that they saved the lives, the property, and the honour of their families.
After a large booty of money, jewels, and goods of Sárangpúr had fallen into the hands of the enemy, they took measures to secure the surrounding country, and they sent severe orders to Jalál Khán, Faujdár of Jalálábád, who had founded the town and built the fort, and was famed for his boldness and valour throughout the country. When the letter of the accursed wretches reached him, he ordered the bearers to be exposed to derision and turned out of the place. He set his defences in order, collected materials of war, and did his best to protect the name and honour of those around him, and to get together a force sufficient to oppose the infidels. Intelligence was brought in that the enemy were only three or four kos distant, and they had attacked and surrounded two villages dependent on Jalálábád, the forts and houses of which were full of property belonging to merchants.
Jalál Khán sent out three or four hundred Afghán horse, and nearly a thousand musketeers and archers, under the com¬mand of Ghulám Muhammad Khán, his own grandson, and Hizbar Khán, to relieve the besieged places and drive off the infidels. Their arrival greatly encouraged the people who were assailed. Four or five hundred brave musketeers and bowmen and numbers of peasants, armed with all sorts of weapons, and with slings, came forward boldly to oppose the enemy, and the battle grew warm. Although the enemy fought with great courage and daring, and Hizbar Khán with a great many Musulmáns and peasants were killed, the repeated attacks of the Afgháns and other Musulmáns of name and station routed the enemy, and they fled, after a great number had been slain. Several fights afterwards took place between Jalál Khán, and the infidels received two or three defeats; but they still persevered with the investment of Jalálábád.
At length seventy or eighty thousand men swarmed together from all parts like ants and locusts. They brought with them two or three hundred movable morcháls made of planks, on which they had placed wheels as upon carts, and with them surrounded Jalálábád as with a ring. It is impossible to relate in full all the brave deeds done by the Afgháns in their conflicts with the enemy. The assailants advanced their morcháls to the foot of the wall, when they discharged arrows, musket-balls, and stones, and raising their cry of âFath daras,â they strove in the most daring way, with four or five hundred pickaxes and other implements, to undermine the wall, to pass over it by ladders, and to burn the gate. The Afgháns threw open the gate, and went out with their drawn swords in their hands, and shields over their heads, and in every attack killed and wounded a hundred or two of the infidels. Many Musulmáns also fell. Attacks were also made upon the enemy at night. For twenty days and nights the besieged could get neither food nor rest. At length the in¬fidels, having lost many thousand men and gained no advantage, raised the siege. They went off to reduce Sultánpúr and the par-ganas of the Jálandhar Doáb. They sent a letter to Shams Khán, the Faujdár, calling upon him to submit, to carry out certain instructions, and to come to meet them with his treasure. * *
Shams Khán, with four or five thousand horse and thirty thousand foot, armed with matchlocks, bows and all kinds of weapons, which they had possessed for a long time or newly acquired, went forth accompanied by the zamÃndárs. Gentlemen of every tribe, peasants, and mechanics, principally weavers, came forth boldly to stake their lives and property in resisting the in¬fidels. They pledged themselves to support each other, and con¬tributed their money for the general good. More than a hundred thousand men so assembled, and went forth from Sultánpúr with great display. The infidels, on hearing of these bold proceedings of Shams Khán, and of his coming forth with such an army and implements of war, moved with their whole force, amounting to seventy or eighty thousand horse and foot. They had with them the guns they had brought from Sihrind, their plank construc¬tions, bags full of sand for making lines, and lead and gunpowder. Plundering everywhere as they went, they came to Ráhún,* seven kos from Sultánpúr. There they had halted, and took post by a brick-kiln, all the bricks of which they used for making a sort of fort; and having thrown up lines all round, they made ready for battle. They sent out patrols in all directions, and they wrote threatening orders to the chaudharÃs and kánúngos calling upon them to submit.
Shams Khán had many thousands of brave Musulmáns on his right hand and his left, all animated with desire for a holy war and hope of martyrdom, who encouraged each other and said, âIf Shams Khán is defeated and killed, our lives and property and families are all lost.â Vying with and inspiriting each other, they advanced boldly to within cannon-shot of the enemy. At the close of the first watch of the day, the battle began with a discharge of guns and muskets. Ten or twelve thousand balls and stones from slings came rattling like hail upon the forces of Islám, but by God's mercy produced no great effect, and no man of note was killed. Shams Khán forbade haste and a useless dis¬charge of ammunition. He went steadily forward, and after a volley or two from the infidels, he sent forward an elephant supported by forty or fifty thousand Musulmáns who had come together from all parts. They raised their war-cry, charged the infidels, and killed and wounded great numbers.
The infidels, after fruitless struggles, were overpowered, and being discouraged, they took refuge in the fort of Ráhún, of which they had obtained possession before the battle. This was invested, and a general fire of muskets and rockets began. The garrison of the fort of Ráhún had left in it their warlike stores and provisions when they evacuated it, and of these the infidels took possession and stood firm in the fort. They were invested for some days; but at night parties of them came out, and attacked the forces of Islám, killing men and horses. Both sides were in difficulty, but especially the enemy. They evacuated the fort at night and fled. Shams Khán pursued them for some kos, and took from them a gun and some baggage, camels and bullocks, with which he returned to Sultánpúr.
Next day about a thousand of the enemy attacked the garrison which Shams Khán had placed in Ráhún, drove them out and occupied it themselves. The enemy then proceeded to plunder the neighbourhood of Láhore, and great alarm was felt in that city and all around. Islám Khán, the Prince's dÃwán, and náÃb of the súba of Láhore, in concert with Kázim Khán, the royal dÃwán, and other officials, after setting in order the fortifications of the city, went out with a large muster of Musulmáns and Hindús, and encamped four or five kos from the city, where he busied himself in cutting off the patrolling parties of the enemy. The people in Láhore were safe from danger to life and property, but the outskirts up to the garden of Shálimár, which is situated two kos from the city, were very much ravaged.
For eight or nine months, and from two or three days' march of Dehlà to the environs of Láhore, all the towns and places of note were pillaged by these unclean wretches, and trodden under foot and destroyed. Men in countless numbers were slain, the whole country was wasted, and mosques and tombs were razed. After leaving Láhore, they returned to the towns and villages of Shádhúra and Karnál, the faujdár of which place was slain after resisting to the best of his ability. Now especially great havoc was made. A hundred or two hundred Hindús and Musulmáns who had been made prisoners were made to sit down in one place, and were slaughtered. These infidels had set up a new rule, and had forbidden the shaving of the hair of the head and beard. Many of the ill-disposed low-caste Hindús joined themselves to them, and placing their lives at the disposal of these evil-minded people, they found their own advantage in professing belief and obedience, and they were very active in persecuting and killing other castes of Hindús.
The revolt and the ravages of this perverse sect were brought under the notice of His Majesty, and greatly troubled him; but he did not deem its suppression so urgent as the putting down of the Rájpút rebellion, so the royal armies were not sent against them at present. Giving the Rájpút difficulty his first atten¬tion, the royal army marched from Ujjain towards the homes of the Rájpúts.
The Sikhs.
[vol. ii. p. 669.] The Emperor came near to DehlÃ, and then sent Muhammad AmÃn Khán and * * * with a strong force against the Sikhs. His instructions were to destroy the thánas (military posts) established by the enemy, to re-establish the Imperial posts, and to restore the impoverished people of Sháhábád, Mustafa-ábád, Shádhúra, and other old seats of population, which had been plundered and occupied by the enemy. Forgetful of former defeat, the enemy had resumed his predatory warfare, and was very daring. On the 10th Shawwál, 1121 (5th Dec., 1709), the royal army was four or five kos from Shádhúra, and a party was sent forward to select ground for the camp, when the enemy, with thirty or forty thousand horse and countless numbers of foot, shouting their cry of âFath daras,â attacked the royal army.
I cannot describe the fight which followed. The enemy in their fakÃr clothing struck terror into the royal troops, and matters were going hard with them, when a party of them dis¬mounted from their elephants and horses, charged the enemy on foot, and put them to flight. The royal commander then went and took post in Shádhúra, with the intention of sending out forces to punish and drive off the enemy. * * But rain fell for four or five days, and the weather became very cold. * * * Thousands of soldiers, especially the DakhinÃs, who were un¬accustomed to the cold of those parts, fell ill, and so many horses died that the stench arising from them became intolerable. The men attributed it to the witchcraft and sorcery of the enemy, and uttered words unfit to be spoken. News also was brought in of the daring attacks made by the enemy on the convoys and detachments of the royal army, in which two or three faujdárs of repute were killed. Jumlatu-l Mulk Khán-khánán, with one son, and * *, were sent under the command of Prince RafÃ'u-sh Shán to repress the enemy.
After repeated battles, in which many men were killed on both sides, the infidels were defeated, and retreated to a fastness in the hills called Lohgarh, which is near the hills belonging to the Barfà Rája (Icy King),* and fortified themselves. * The Gurú of the sect incited and encouraged his followers to action by assuring them that those who should fall fighting bravely on the field of battle would rise in a state of youth to an everlasting existence in a more exalted position. * Continual fighting went on, and numbers fell. * * The provisions in their fortress now failed, and the infidels bought what they could from the grain-dealers with the royal army, and pulled it up with ropes. * * The infidels were in extremity, when one of them, a man of the Khatrà tribe, and a tobacco-seller by trade, resolved to sacrifice his life for the good of his religion. He dressed himself in the fine garments of the Gurú, and went and seated himself in the Gurú's house. Then the Gurú went forth with his forces, broke through the royal lines, and made off to the mountains of the Barfà Rája.
The royal troops entered the fort, and, finding the false Gurú sitting in state, they made him prisoner, and carried him to Khán-khánán. Great was the rejoicing that followed; the men who took the news to the Emperor received presents, and great commendation was bestowed on Khán-khánán. The prisoner was taken before Khán-khánán, and the truth was then discoveredâthe hawk had flown and an owl had been caught. Khán-khánán was greatly vexed. He severely reprimanded his officers, and ordered them all to dismount and march on foot into the hills of the Barfà Rája. If they caught the Gurú, they were to take him prisoner alive; if they could not, they were to take the Barfà Rája and bring him to the presence. So the Rája was made prisoner and brought to the royal camp, instead of the Gurú. Clever smiths were then ordered to make an iron cage. This cage became the lot of Barfà Rája and of that Sikh who so devotedly sacrificed himself for his Gurú; for they were placed in it, and were sent to the fort of DehlÃ.
In this sect it is deemed a great sin to shave the hair of the head or beard. Many of the secret adherents of the sect be¬longing to the castes of Khatrà and Ját were employed in service with the army, at the Court, and in public offices. A pro¬clamation was issued requiring Hindús in general to shave off their beards. A great many of them thus had to submit to what they considered the disgrace of being shaved, and for a few days the barbers were very busy. Some men of name and position committed suicide to save the honour of their beards.
FOURTH YEAR OF THE REIGN (1126 A.H., 1714 A.D.).
War with the Sikhs.*
[Text, vol. ii. p. 761.] The violence [of the Sikhs] passed all bounds. The injuries and indignities they inflicted on Musul-máns, and the destruction of mosques and tombs, were looked upon by them as righteous meritorious acts. They had built a fort at Gurdáspúr in the Panjáb, ten or twelve days' journey from DehlÃ, and extended its limits so that fifty or sixty thousand horse and foot could find protection. They strengthened the towers and walls of the place, took possession of all the cultivated land around, and ravaged the country from Láhore to Sihrind, otherwise called Sirhind. 'Abdu-s Samad Khán Diler Jang was appointed Súbadár of Láhore, and was sent thither with * * and with a select army and artillery. 'Abdu-s Samad engaged the vast army of the Gurú near his fort. The infidels fought so fiercely that the army of Islám was nearly over¬powered; and they over and over again showed the greatest daring. Great numbers were killed on both sides; but Mughal valour at length prevailed, and the infidels were defeated and driven to their stronghold.The infidels on several occasions showed the greatest boldness and daring, and made nocturnal attacks upon the Imperial forces. 'Abdu-s Samad Diler Jang, while lying in front of their poor fortress,* was obliged to throw up an intrenchment for the defence of his force. He raised batteries, and pushed forward his ap¬proaches. The siege lasted a long time, and the enemy exhibited great courage and daring. They frequently made sallies into the trenches, and killed many of the besiegers. To relate all the struggles and exertions of 'Abdu-s Samad and his companions in arms would exceed our bounds. Suffice it to say that the Royal army in course of time succeeded in cutting off from the enemy his supplies of corn and fodder, and the stores in the fort were exhausted. [Great straits and sufferings of the besieged.]
Being reduced to the last extremity, and despairing of life, the Sikhs offered to surrender on condition of their lives being spared. Diler Jang at first refused to grant quarter; but at length he advised them to beg pardon of their crimes and offences from the Emperor. Their chief Gurú,* with his son of seven or eight years old, his dÃwán, and three or four thousand persons, became prisoners, and received the predestined recompense for their deeds. 'Abdu-s Samad had three or four thousand of them put to the sword, and he filled that extensive plain with blood as if it had been a dish. Their heads were stuffed with hay and stuck upon spears. Those who escaped the sword were sent in collars and chains to the Emperor. * * 'Abdu-s Samad sent nearly two thousand heads stuffed with hay and a thousand persons bound with iron chains in charge of his son, ZakarÃya Khán, and others, to the Emperor.
In the month of Muharram, the prisoners and the stuffed heads arrived at DehlÃ. The Bakhshà I'timádu-d daula Muhammad AmÃn Khán received orders to go out of the city, to blacken the faces and put wooden caps on the heads of the prisoners; to ride himself upon an elephant, place the prisoners on camels, and the heads on spears, and thus enter the city, to give a warning to all spectators. After they had entered the city, and passed before the Emperor, orders were given for confining the Gurú, his son and two or three of his principal companions, in the fort. As to the rest of the prisoners, it was ordered that two or three hundred of the miserable wretches should be put to death every day before the kotwal's office and in the streets of the bázár. The men of the Khatrà caste, who were secretly members of the sect, and followers of the Gurú, sought by the offer of large sums of money to Muhammad AmÃn Khán and other mediators to save the life of the Gurú, but they were unsuccessful. After all the Gurú's companions had been killed, an order was given that his son should be slain in his presence, or rather that the boy should be killed by his own hands, in requital of the cruelty which that accursed one had shown in the slaughter of the sons of others. Afterwards, he himself was killed.Many stories are told about the wretched dogs of this sect, which the understanding rejects; but the author will relate what he saw with his own eyes.
When the executions were going on, the mother of one of the prisoners, a young man just arrived at manhood, having obtained some influential support, pleaded the cause of her son with great feeling and earnestness before the Emperor and Saiyid 'Abdu-llah Khán. She represented that her son had suffered imprisonment and hardship at the hands of the sect. His property was plundered, and he was made prisoner. While in captivity, he was, without any fault of his own, introduced into the sect, and now stood innocent among those sentenced to death. Farrukh Siyar commiserated this artful woman, and mercifully sent an officer with orders to release the youth. That cunning woman arrived with the order of release just as the executioner was standing with his bloody sword upheld over the young man's head. She showed the order for his release. The youth then broke out into complaints, saying, âMy mother tells a falsehood: I with heart and soul join my fellow-believers in devotion to the Gurú: send me quickly after my companions.â
It is said that I'timádu-d daula Muhammad AmÃn Khán, when he had an interview with the Gurú, said to him, âThe marks of sense and intelligence are visible in thy countenance: how is it that you never thought about the recompense of your deeds, and that in a short span of life with a dreadful futurity you have been guilty of such cruelty and of such detestable actions to Hindús and Musulmáns? He replied, âIn all religions and sects, whenever disobedience and rebellion among mortal men passes all bounds, the Great Avenger raises up a severe man like me for the punishment of their sins and the due reward of their works.
âWhen He wishes to desolate the world,
He places dominion in the hands of a tyrant.â
When He desires to give the tyrant the recompense of his works, He sends a strong man like you to prevail over him, and to give him his due reward in this world: as you and I can see.â<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Khafi Khan from "The History of India, as Told by Its Own Historians.
The Muhammadan Period Sir H. M. Elliot Edited by John Dowson", It is
in Muntakhabu-l Lubáb, of Kháfà Khán which is available online here:
http://erga.packhum.org/persian/pf?file=80201017&ct=61
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->THIRD YEAR OF THE REIGN, 1120 A.H. (1708-9 A.D.).
The Sikhs.
[Text, vol. ii. p. 651.] There is a sect of infidels called Gurú, more commonly known as Sikhs. Their chief, who dresses as a fakÃr, has a fixed residence near Láhore. From old times he has built temples in all the towns and populous places, and has appointed one of his followers to preside in each temple as his deputy. When any one of the sect brought presents or offerings for the Gurú to the temple, the deputy had to collect them, and, after deducting sufficient for his own food and expenses, his duty was to send the balance faithfully to the Gurú. This sect consists principally of Játs and KhatrÃs of the Panjáb and of other tribes of infidels. When Aurangzeb got knowledge of these matters, he ordered these deputy Gurús to be removed and the temples to be pulled down.
At the time that Bahádur Sháh marched towards Haidarábád, Gobind, the chief Gurú of the sect, came to join him with two or three hundred horsemen bearing spears and some footmen. After two or three months, he died from the wounds of a dagger, and his murderer was not discovered. When the news of his death reached the Panjáb, where the bulk of the Sikhs were living, an obscure member of the sect, about the name* given to whom there are various statements, gave out that in the course of transmi¬gration, which the Sikhs believe in and call avatár, he had taken the place of the murdered Gobind, who had come to life again as a bearded man in his body, for the purpose of taking revenge. This worthless dog, having published this statement, stirred up disaffection in the sect, and raised the standard of rebellion. By jugglery, charms, and sorcery, he pretended to perform miracles before credulous people, and gave himself the name of Sachá Pádsháh âTrue King.â
He began to plunder in the Panjáb and the country about Sihrind, and in the course of three or four months he gathered round him four or five thousand pony (yábú) riders and seven or eight thousand motley footmen. His numbers daily increased, and much plunder fell into his hands, until he had eighteen or nineteen thousand men under arms, and carried on a predatory and cruel warfare. He fought with two or three faujdárs who went out to punish him, defeated them and killed them. In many villages which he plundered he appointed thánádárs and tahsÃldárs to collect the revenues of the neighbourhood for him, and matters came to such a pass that with three or four thousand infidels who were leagued with him, he wrote orders to the Imperial officials and the managers of the jágÃrdárs, calling upon them to submit to him, and to relinquish their posts.
WazÃr Khán, Faujdár of Sihrind, had held the charge of the civil and revenue affairs of that district for a long time. He had some troops and treasure, and had obtained a reputation by his firm management. When he heard how districts in his charge had been ravaged and plundered, he set about collecting troops and warlike equipments. He joined with him four or five faujdárs and zamÃndárs of name, prepared lead and gunpowder, mustered five or six thousand horse and seven or eight thousand musketeers (barkandáz) and archers, and with these and some artillery and elephants he marched out to give battle and to punish that perverse sect. After marching three or four kos, he came up with the enemy.
The accursed wretches had got warning of the movement of WazÃr Khán, and advanced to meet him. All his followers kept shouting âSachá Pádsháhâ and âFath daras.â The battle began, and great bravery was shown on both sides, but especially by the confederate sectarians. They advanced sword in hand against the elephants, and brought two of them down. Many Musulmáns found martyrdom, and many of the infidels went to the sink of perdition. The Musulmán forces were hardly able to endure the repeated attacks of the infidels, when a musket-ball made a martyr of WazÃr Khán, and they were put to flight. Money and baggage, horses and elephants, fell into the hands of the infidels, and not a man of the army of Islám escaped with more than his life and the clothes he stood in. Horsemen and footmen in great numbers fell under the swords of the infidels, who pursued them as far as Sihrind.
Sihrind was an opulent town, with wealthy merchants, bankers, and tradesmen, men of money, and gentlemen of every class; and there were especially learned and religious men in great numbers residing there. No one found the opportunity of saving his life, or wealth, or family. When they heard of the death of WazÃr Khán, and the rout of his army, they were seized with panic. They were shut up in the town, and for one or two days made some ineffectual resistance, but were obliged to bow to fate. The evil dogs fell to plundering, murdering, and making prisoners of the children and families of high and low, and carried on their atrocities for three or four days with such violence that they tore open the wombs of preg¬nant women, dashed every living child upon the ground, set fire to the houses, and involved rich and poor in one common ruin. Wherever they found a mosque, a tomb, or a gravestone of a respected Musulmán, they broke it to pieces, dug it up, and made no sin of scattering the bones of the dead. When they had done with the pillage of Sihrind, they appointed officers to collect the rents and taxes in all the dependent districts.
Accounts of the calamity which had fallen upon Sihrind reached 'Alà Muhammad Khán, Faujdár of Saháranpúr, and he was terror-struck. Although a number of gentlemen and Afgháns gathered round him and urged him to act boldly and to put his fortifications in a state of defence, it was of no avail; he went off to Dehlà with his property and family. The men of the town assembled, and, moved by one spirit, they threw up breastworks all round. When the villainous foe arrived, they made a manful resistance, and fighting under the protection of their houses, they kept up such a discharge of arrows and balls, that they sent many of their assailants to hell. Many men of noble and respectable families fell fighting bravely, and obtained the honour of martyrdom. The property and the families of numbers of the inhabitants fell into the hands of the enemy, and numerous women, seeing that their honour was at stake, and captivity before them, threw themselves into wells. A party of brave gentlemen collected their wives and families in one spot, and kept up such a manful resistance that they saved the lives, the property, and the honour of their families.
After a large booty of money, jewels, and goods of Sárangpúr had fallen into the hands of the enemy, they took measures to secure the surrounding country, and they sent severe orders to Jalál Khán, Faujdár of Jalálábád, who had founded the town and built the fort, and was famed for his boldness and valour throughout the country. When the letter of the accursed wretches reached him, he ordered the bearers to be exposed to derision and turned out of the place. He set his defences in order, collected materials of war, and did his best to protect the name and honour of those around him, and to get together a force sufficient to oppose the infidels. Intelligence was brought in that the enemy were only three or four kos distant, and they had attacked and surrounded two villages dependent on Jalálábád, the forts and houses of which were full of property belonging to merchants.
Jalál Khán sent out three or four hundred Afghán horse, and nearly a thousand musketeers and archers, under the com¬mand of Ghulám Muhammad Khán, his own grandson, and Hizbar Khán, to relieve the besieged places and drive off the infidels. Their arrival greatly encouraged the people who were assailed. Four or five hundred brave musketeers and bowmen and numbers of peasants, armed with all sorts of weapons, and with slings, came forward boldly to oppose the enemy, and the battle grew warm. Although the enemy fought with great courage and daring, and Hizbar Khán with a great many Musulmáns and peasants were killed, the repeated attacks of the Afgháns and other Musulmáns of name and station routed the enemy, and they fled, after a great number had been slain. Several fights afterwards took place between Jalál Khán, and the infidels received two or three defeats; but they still persevered with the investment of Jalálábád.
At length seventy or eighty thousand men swarmed together from all parts like ants and locusts. They brought with them two or three hundred movable morcháls made of planks, on which they had placed wheels as upon carts, and with them surrounded Jalálábád as with a ring. It is impossible to relate in full all the brave deeds done by the Afgháns in their conflicts with the enemy. The assailants advanced their morcháls to the foot of the wall, when they discharged arrows, musket-balls, and stones, and raising their cry of âFath daras,â they strove in the most daring way, with four or five hundred pickaxes and other implements, to undermine the wall, to pass over it by ladders, and to burn the gate. The Afgháns threw open the gate, and went out with their drawn swords in their hands, and shields over their heads, and in every attack killed and wounded a hundred or two of the infidels. Many Musulmáns also fell. Attacks were also made upon the enemy at night. For twenty days and nights the besieged could get neither food nor rest. At length the in¬fidels, having lost many thousand men and gained no advantage, raised the siege. They went off to reduce Sultánpúr and the par-ganas of the Jálandhar Doáb. They sent a letter to Shams Khán, the Faujdár, calling upon him to submit, to carry out certain instructions, and to come to meet them with his treasure. * *
Shams Khán, with four or five thousand horse and thirty thousand foot, armed with matchlocks, bows and all kinds of weapons, which they had possessed for a long time or newly acquired, went forth accompanied by the zamÃndárs. Gentlemen of every tribe, peasants, and mechanics, principally weavers, came forth boldly to stake their lives and property in resisting the in¬fidels. They pledged themselves to support each other, and con¬tributed their money for the general good. More than a hundred thousand men so assembled, and went forth from Sultánpúr with great display. The infidels, on hearing of these bold proceedings of Shams Khán, and of his coming forth with such an army and implements of war, moved with their whole force, amounting to seventy or eighty thousand horse and foot. They had with them the guns they had brought from Sihrind, their plank construc¬tions, bags full of sand for making lines, and lead and gunpowder. Plundering everywhere as they went, they came to Ráhún,* seven kos from Sultánpúr. There they had halted, and took post by a brick-kiln, all the bricks of which they used for making a sort of fort; and having thrown up lines all round, they made ready for battle. They sent out patrols in all directions, and they wrote threatening orders to the chaudharÃs and kánúngos calling upon them to submit.
Shams Khán had many thousands of brave Musulmáns on his right hand and his left, all animated with desire for a holy war and hope of martyrdom, who encouraged each other and said, âIf Shams Khán is defeated and killed, our lives and property and families are all lost.â Vying with and inspiriting each other, they advanced boldly to within cannon-shot of the enemy. At the close of the first watch of the day, the battle began with a discharge of guns and muskets. Ten or twelve thousand balls and stones from slings came rattling like hail upon the forces of Islám, but by God's mercy produced no great effect, and no man of note was killed. Shams Khán forbade haste and a useless dis¬charge of ammunition. He went steadily forward, and after a volley or two from the infidels, he sent forward an elephant supported by forty or fifty thousand Musulmáns who had come together from all parts. They raised their war-cry, charged the infidels, and killed and wounded great numbers.
The infidels, after fruitless struggles, were overpowered, and being discouraged, they took refuge in the fort of Ráhún, of which they had obtained possession before the battle. This was invested, and a general fire of muskets and rockets began. The garrison of the fort of Ráhún had left in it their warlike stores and provisions when they evacuated it, and of these the infidels took possession and stood firm in the fort. They were invested for some days; but at night parties of them came out, and attacked the forces of Islám, killing men and horses. Both sides were in difficulty, but especially the enemy. They evacuated the fort at night and fled. Shams Khán pursued them for some kos, and took from them a gun and some baggage, camels and bullocks, with which he returned to Sultánpúr.
Next day about a thousand of the enemy attacked the garrison which Shams Khán had placed in Ráhún, drove them out and occupied it themselves. The enemy then proceeded to plunder the neighbourhood of Láhore, and great alarm was felt in that city and all around. Islám Khán, the Prince's dÃwán, and náÃb of the súba of Láhore, in concert with Kázim Khán, the royal dÃwán, and other officials, after setting in order the fortifications of the city, went out with a large muster of Musulmáns and Hindús, and encamped four or five kos from the city, where he busied himself in cutting off the patrolling parties of the enemy. The people in Láhore were safe from danger to life and property, but the outskirts up to the garden of Shálimár, which is situated two kos from the city, were very much ravaged.
For eight or nine months, and from two or three days' march of Dehlà to the environs of Láhore, all the towns and places of note were pillaged by these unclean wretches, and trodden under foot and destroyed. Men in countless numbers were slain, the whole country was wasted, and mosques and tombs were razed. After leaving Láhore, they returned to the towns and villages of Shádhúra and Karnál, the faujdár of which place was slain after resisting to the best of his ability. Now especially great havoc was made. A hundred or two hundred Hindús and Musulmáns who had been made prisoners were made to sit down in one place, and were slaughtered. These infidels had set up a new rule, and had forbidden the shaving of the hair of the head and beard. Many of the ill-disposed low-caste Hindús joined themselves to them, and placing their lives at the disposal of these evil-minded people, they found their own advantage in professing belief and obedience, and they were very active in persecuting and killing other castes of Hindús.
The revolt and the ravages of this perverse sect were brought under the notice of His Majesty, and greatly troubled him; but he did not deem its suppression so urgent as the putting down of the Rájpút rebellion, so the royal armies were not sent against them at present. Giving the Rájpút difficulty his first atten¬tion, the royal army marched from Ujjain towards the homes of the Rájpúts.
The Sikhs.
[vol. ii. p. 669.] The Emperor came near to DehlÃ, and then sent Muhammad AmÃn Khán and * * * with a strong force against the Sikhs. His instructions were to destroy the thánas (military posts) established by the enemy, to re-establish the Imperial posts, and to restore the impoverished people of Sháhábád, Mustafa-ábád, Shádhúra, and other old seats of population, which had been plundered and occupied by the enemy. Forgetful of former defeat, the enemy had resumed his predatory warfare, and was very daring. On the 10th Shawwál, 1121 (5th Dec., 1709), the royal army was four or five kos from Shádhúra, and a party was sent forward to select ground for the camp, when the enemy, with thirty or forty thousand horse and countless numbers of foot, shouting their cry of âFath daras,â attacked the royal army.
I cannot describe the fight which followed. The enemy in their fakÃr clothing struck terror into the royal troops, and matters were going hard with them, when a party of them dis¬mounted from their elephants and horses, charged the enemy on foot, and put them to flight. The royal commander then went and took post in Shádhúra, with the intention of sending out forces to punish and drive off the enemy. * * But rain fell for four or five days, and the weather became very cold. * * * Thousands of soldiers, especially the DakhinÃs, who were un¬accustomed to the cold of those parts, fell ill, and so many horses died that the stench arising from them became intolerable. The men attributed it to the witchcraft and sorcery of the enemy, and uttered words unfit to be spoken. News also was brought in of the daring attacks made by the enemy on the convoys and detachments of the royal army, in which two or three faujdárs of repute were killed. Jumlatu-l Mulk Khán-khánán, with one son, and * *, were sent under the command of Prince RafÃ'u-sh Shán to repress the enemy.
After repeated battles, in which many men were killed on both sides, the infidels were defeated, and retreated to a fastness in the hills called Lohgarh, which is near the hills belonging to the Barfà Rája (Icy King),* and fortified themselves. * The Gurú of the sect incited and encouraged his followers to action by assuring them that those who should fall fighting bravely on the field of battle would rise in a state of youth to an everlasting existence in a more exalted position. * Continual fighting went on, and numbers fell. * * The provisions in their fortress now failed, and the infidels bought what they could from the grain-dealers with the royal army, and pulled it up with ropes. * * The infidels were in extremity, when one of them, a man of the Khatrà tribe, and a tobacco-seller by trade, resolved to sacrifice his life for the good of his religion. He dressed himself in the fine garments of the Gurú, and went and seated himself in the Gurú's house. Then the Gurú went forth with his forces, broke through the royal lines, and made off to the mountains of the Barfà Rája.
The royal troops entered the fort, and, finding the false Gurú sitting in state, they made him prisoner, and carried him to Khán-khánán. Great was the rejoicing that followed; the men who took the news to the Emperor received presents, and great commendation was bestowed on Khán-khánán. The prisoner was taken before Khán-khánán, and the truth was then discoveredâthe hawk had flown and an owl had been caught. Khán-khánán was greatly vexed. He severely reprimanded his officers, and ordered them all to dismount and march on foot into the hills of the Barfà Rája. If they caught the Gurú, they were to take him prisoner alive; if they could not, they were to take the Barfà Rája and bring him to the presence. So the Rája was made prisoner and brought to the royal camp, instead of the Gurú. Clever smiths were then ordered to make an iron cage. This cage became the lot of Barfà Rája and of that Sikh who so devotedly sacrificed himself for his Gurú; for they were placed in it, and were sent to the fort of DehlÃ.
In this sect it is deemed a great sin to shave the hair of the head or beard. Many of the secret adherents of the sect be¬longing to the castes of Khatrà and Ját were employed in service with the army, at the Court, and in public offices. A pro¬clamation was issued requiring Hindús in general to shave off their beards. A great many of them thus had to submit to what they considered the disgrace of being shaved, and for a few days the barbers were very busy. Some men of name and position committed suicide to save the honour of their beards.
FOURTH YEAR OF THE REIGN (1126 A.H., 1714 A.D.).
War with the Sikhs.*
[Text, vol. ii. p. 761.] The violence [of the Sikhs] passed all bounds. The injuries and indignities they inflicted on Musul-máns, and the destruction of mosques and tombs, were looked upon by them as righteous meritorious acts. They had built a fort at Gurdáspúr in the Panjáb, ten or twelve days' journey from DehlÃ, and extended its limits so that fifty or sixty thousand horse and foot could find protection. They strengthened the towers and walls of the place, took possession of all the cultivated land around, and ravaged the country from Láhore to Sihrind, otherwise called Sirhind. 'Abdu-s Samad Khán Diler Jang was appointed Súbadár of Láhore, and was sent thither with * * and with a select army and artillery. 'Abdu-s Samad engaged the vast army of the Gurú near his fort. The infidels fought so fiercely that the army of Islám was nearly over¬powered; and they over and over again showed the greatest daring. Great numbers were killed on both sides; but Mughal valour at length prevailed, and the infidels were defeated and driven to their stronghold.The infidels on several occasions showed the greatest boldness and daring, and made nocturnal attacks upon the Imperial forces. 'Abdu-s Samad Diler Jang, while lying in front of their poor fortress,* was obliged to throw up an intrenchment for the defence of his force. He raised batteries, and pushed forward his ap¬proaches. The siege lasted a long time, and the enemy exhibited great courage and daring. They frequently made sallies into the trenches, and killed many of the besiegers. To relate all the struggles and exertions of 'Abdu-s Samad and his companions in arms would exceed our bounds. Suffice it to say that the Royal army in course of time succeeded in cutting off from the enemy his supplies of corn and fodder, and the stores in the fort were exhausted. [Great straits and sufferings of the besieged.]
Being reduced to the last extremity, and despairing of life, the Sikhs offered to surrender on condition of their lives being spared. Diler Jang at first refused to grant quarter; but at length he advised them to beg pardon of their crimes and offences from the Emperor. Their chief Gurú,* with his son of seven or eight years old, his dÃwán, and three or four thousand persons, became prisoners, and received the predestined recompense for their deeds. 'Abdu-s Samad had three or four thousand of them put to the sword, and he filled that extensive plain with blood as if it had been a dish. Their heads were stuffed with hay and stuck upon spears. Those who escaped the sword were sent in collars and chains to the Emperor. * * 'Abdu-s Samad sent nearly two thousand heads stuffed with hay and a thousand persons bound with iron chains in charge of his son, ZakarÃya Khán, and others, to the Emperor.
In the month of Muharram, the prisoners and the stuffed heads arrived at DehlÃ. The Bakhshà I'timádu-d daula Muhammad AmÃn Khán received orders to go out of the city, to blacken the faces and put wooden caps on the heads of the prisoners; to ride himself upon an elephant, place the prisoners on camels, and the heads on spears, and thus enter the city, to give a warning to all spectators. After they had entered the city, and passed before the Emperor, orders were given for confining the Gurú, his son and two or three of his principal companions, in the fort. As to the rest of the prisoners, it was ordered that two or three hundred of the miserable wretches should be put to death every day before the kotwal's office and in the streets of the bázár. The men of the Khatrà caste, who were secretly members of the sect, and followers of the Gurú, sought by the offer of large sums of money to Muhammad AmÃn Khán and other mediators to save the life of the Gurú, but they were unsuccessful. After all the Gurú's companions had been killed, an order was given that his son should be slain in his presence, or rather that the boy should be killed by his own hands, in requital of the cruelty which that accursed one had shown in the slaughter of the sons of others. Afterwards, he himself was killed.Many stories are told about the wretched dogs of this sect, which the understanding rejects; but the author will relate what he saw with his own eyes.
When the executions were going on, the mother of one of the prisoners, a young man just arrived at manhood, having obtained some influential support, pleaded the cause of her son with great feeling and earnestness before the Emperor and Saiyid 'Abdu-llah Khán. She represented that her son had suffered imprisonment and hardship at the hands of the sect. His property was plundered, and he was made prisoner. While in captivity, he was, without any fault of his own, introduced into the sect, and now stood innocent among those sentenced to death. Farrukh Siyar commiserated this artful woman, and mercifully sent an officer with orders to release the youth. That cunning woman arrived with the order of release just as the executioner was standing with his bloody sword upheld over the young man's head. She showed the order for his release. The youth then broke out into complaints, saying, âMy mother tells a falsehood: I with heart and soul join my fellow-believers in devotion to the Gurú: send me quickly after my companions.â
It is said that I'timádu-d daula Muhammad AmÃn Khán, when he had an interview with the Gurú, said to him, âThe marks of sense and intelligence are visible in thy countenance: how is it that you never thought about the recompense of your deeds, and that in a short span of life with a dreadful futurity you have been guilty of such cruelty and of such detestable actions to Hindús and Musulmáns? He replied, âIn all religions and sects, whenever disobedience and rebellion among mortal men passes all bounds, the Great Avenger raises up a severe man like me for the punishment of their sins and the due reward of their works.
âWhen He wishes to desolate the world,
He places dominion in the hands of a tyrant.â
When He desires to give the tyrant the recompense of his works, He sends a strong man like you to prevail over him, and to give him his due reward in this world: as you and I can see.â<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->