On Tuesday, the 26th, I went to see the Jāmiʿ mosque, and gave with my own hand in alms to the fakirs who were present there about 500 rupees. This mosque was one of the memorials of Sult̤ān Aḥmad, the founder of the city of Ahmadabad. It has three gates,[100] and on each side a bazar. Opposite the gate that looks towards the east is the mausoleum of the said Sult̤ān Aḥmad. In that dome Sult̤ān Aḥmad, his son Muḥammad, and his grandson Qut̤bu-d-dīn are laid to rest. The length of the court of the mosque, excluding maqṣūra (the holy of holies), is 103[101] cubits, and its breadth 89 cubits. Round this they have made an aywān (portico), in breadth 4¾ cubits. The flooring of the court is of trimmed bricks, and the pillars of the portico of red stone. The maqsura contains 354[102] pillars, above which there is a dome. The length of the maqsura is 75 cubits, and its breadth 37 cubits. The flooring of the maqsura, the mihrāb (arch towards which the face is turned in prayer), and the pulpit are made of marble. On both sides of the main arch (pīsh-t̤āq) are two polished minarets of cut stone, containing three āshyāna (stories) beautifully shaped and decorated. On the right-hand side of the pulpit near the recess of the maqsura they have made a separate seat for the king. The space between the pillars has been covered in with a stone platform, and round this up to the roof of the maqsura they have put stone cages[103] (in which women sit so as not to be seen). The object of this was that when the king came to the Friday service or the ʿĪd he went up there with his intimates and courtiers, and performed his devotions. This in the dialect of the country they call the Mulūk-k͟hāna (King’s chamber). This practice and caution were on account of the crowding of the people. Truly this mosque is a very noble building.[104]
On Wednesday,[105] the 27th, I went to the monastery of S͟haik͟h Wajīhu-d-dīn, which was near the palace, and the fātiḥa was read at the head of his shrine, which is in the court of the monastery. Ṣādiq K͟hān, who was one of the chief Amirs of my father, built this monastery. The Shaikh was a successor of S͟haik͟h Muḥammad G͟haus̤,[106] but a successor against whom the teacher disputed. Wajīhu-d-dīn’s loyalty to him is a clear proof[107] of the greatness of S͟haik͟h Muḥammad G͟haus̤. S͟haik͟h Wajīhu-d-dīn was adorned with visible excellencies and spiritual perfection. He died thirty years ago in this city (Ahmadabad), and after him S͟haik͟h ʿAbdu-llah, according to his father’s will, took his place. He was a very ascetic dervish. When he died his son S͟haik͟h Asadu-llah sat in his place, and also quickly went to the eternal world. After him his brother S͟haik͟h Ḥaidar became lord of the prayer carpet, and is now alive, and is employed at the grave of his father and grandfather in the service of dervishes and in looking after their welfare. The traces of piety are evident on the forehead of his life. As it was the anniversary festival of S͟haik͟h Wajīhu-d-dīn, 1,500 rupees were given to S͟haik͟h Ḥaidar for the expenses of the anniversary, and I bestowed 1,500 rupees more on the band of fakirs who were present in the monastery, with my own hand in charity, and made a present of 500 rupees to the grandson (?) of S͟haik͟h Wajīhu-d-dīn. In the same way I gave something for expenses, and land to each of his relatives and adherents according to his merit. I ordered S͟haik͟h Ḥaidar to bring before me the body of dervishes and deserving people who were associated with him, in order that they might ask for money for expenses and for land. On Thursday, the 28th, I went to look round the Rustam-K͟hān-bāṛī, and scattered 1,500 rupees on the road. They call a garden a bāṛī in the language of India. This is a garden that my brother S͟hāh Murād made in the name of his son Rustam. I made a Thursday entertainment in this garden, and gave cups to some of my private servants. At the end of the day I went to the little garden of the ḥawālī (mansion) of S͟haik͟h Sikandar, which is situated in the neighbourhood of this garden, and which has exceedingly good figs. As picking the fruit with one’s own hand gives it quite a different relish, and I had never before plucked figs with my own hand, their excellence in this respect was approved. S͟haik͟h Sikandar[108] is by origin a Gujarati, and is not wanting in reasonableness, and has complete information about the Sultans of Gujarat. It is now eight or nine years since he has been employed among the servants (of the State). As my son S͟hāh Jahān had appointed to the government of Ahmadabad Rustam K͟hān, who is one of his chief officers, at his request I, in accordance with the association of his name, presented him with (the garden) Rustam-bāṛī. On this day Rāja Kalyān, zamindar of the province of Īḍar, had the good fortune to kiss my threshold, and presented an elephant and nine horses as an offering; I gave him back the elephant. He is one of the most considerable zamindars on the frontier of Gujarat, and his country is close to the hill-country of the Rānā. The Sultans of Gujarat constantly sent armies against the Raja of that place. Although some of them have professed obedience and presented offerings, for the most part none of them have come to see anyone personally. After the late king Akbar conquered Gujarat, the victorious army was sent to attack him. As he understood that his deliverance lay in obedience and submission, he agreed to serve and be loyal, and hastened to enjoy the good fortune of kissing the threshold. From that date he has been enrolled among the servants (of the State). He comes to see whoever is appointed to the government of Ahmadabad, and when work and service are necessary appears with a body of his men. On Saturday, the 1st of the month of Bahman, in the 12th year of my reign, Chandar Sen, who is one of the chief zamindars of this country, had the good fortune to kiss the threshold, and presented an offering of nine horses. On Sunday, the 2nd, I gave elephants to Rāja Kalyān, zamindar of Īḍar, to Sayyid Muṣt̤afā, and Mīr Fāẓil. On Monday I went out hawking, and scattered nearly 500 rupees on the road. On this day pears came from Badakhshan. On Mubārak-s͟hamba, the 6th, I went to see the “garden of victory” at the village of Sair-khaiz (Sarkhej), and scattered 1,500 rupees on the way. As the tomb of S͟haik͟h Aḥmad K͟haṭṭū[109] is on the road, I first went there and the fātiḥa was read. K͟haṭṭū is the name of a town in the Sarkar of Nāgor, and was the birthplace of the Shaikh.[110] The Shaikh lived in the time of Sult̤ān Aḥmad, who founded the city of Ahmadabad, and the latter had a great respect for him. The people of this country have a strange belief in him, and consider him one of the great saints. Every Friday night a great crowd of people, high and low, go to visit his shrine. Sult̤ān Muḥammad, son of the aforesaid Sult̤ān Aḥmad, built lofty buildings in the shape of mausoleums, mosques, and monasteries at the head of his tomb, and near his mausoleum on the south side made a large tank, and surrounded it with stone and lime (masonry). This building was completed in the time of Qut̤bu-d-dīn, son of the aforesaid Muḥammad. The shrines of several of the Sultans of Gujarat are on the bank of the tank by the feet of the Shaikh. In that dome there have been laid at rest Sult̤ān Maḥmūd Bīgara, Sult̤ān Muz̤affar, his son, and Maḥmūd, the martyr, grandson of Sult̤ān Muz̤affar, and who was the last of the Sultans of Gujarat. Bīgara, in the language of the people of Gujarat, signifies ‘turned-up moustache,’ and Sult̤ān Maḥmūd had a large turned-up moustache; on this account they call him Bīgara. Near his (S͟haik͟h K͟haṭṭū’s) tomb is the dome of his ladies.[111] Without doubt the mausoleum of the Shaikh is a very grand building and a beautiful place. It is estimated that 500,000 rupees were spent on it. God only knows what is true.
After performing this visitation I went to Fatḥ-bāg͟h (garden of victory). This garden is situated on the ground on which the Commander-in-Chief, K͟hānk͟hānān Ātālīq fought with and defeated Nabū (Nannū? Nanhū?), who gave himself the title of Muz̤affar K͟hān. On this account he called it Bāg͟h-i-fatḥ; the people of Gujarat call it Fatḥ-bāṛī. The details of this are that when, by means of the good fortune of the late king Akbar, the country of Gujarat was conquered, and Nabū fell into his hands, Iʿtimād K͟hān represented that he was the son of a carter. As no son was left by Sult̤ān Maḥmūd, and moreover there was no one of the descendants of the Sultans of Gujarat whom he could raise to the throne, he (Iʿtimād) had accepted the most available course, and had made out that this was the son of Maḥmūd. He gave him the name of Sult̤ān Muz̤affar, and raised him to the sovereignty. Men from necessity consented to this. As His Majesty considered the word of Iʿtimād K͟hān of weight, he ignored Nabū, and for some time he did duty among the servants, and the king paid no attention to his case. In consequence of this he ran away from Fatḥpūr, and coming to Gujarat lived for some years under the protection of the zamindars. When S͟hihābu-d-dīn Aḥmad K͟hān was turned out from the government of Gujarat and Iʿtimād K͟hān installed in his place, a body of the servants of S͟hihābu-d-dīn K͟hān, who were attached to Gujarat, separated from him, and remained at Ahmadabad in the hope of service with Iʿtimād. After Iʿtimād entered the city they had recourse to him, but had no good luck with him. They had not the face to go to S͟hihābu-d-dīn, and had no prospects in Ahmadabad. As they were without hope they thought their remedy lay in betaking themselves to Nabū, and in making him an excuse for disturbance. With this intent 600 or 700 horsemen from among them went to Nabū and carried him off along with Lonā Kāthī, under whose protection he was living, and proceeded to Ahmadabad. When he arrived near the city many wretched men on the look out for an occasion joined him, and nearly 1,000 horsemen, Mughals and Gujaratis, collected together. When Iʿtimād K͟hān became aware of this he left his son S͟hīr K͟hān in the city, and hastened off in search of S͟hihāb K͟hān, who was proceeding towards the Court, in order that with his help he might quiet the disturbance. Many of the men had separated themselves from him, and he read on the faces of those who were left the signs of unfaithfulness, but S͟hihābu-d-dīn, in company with Iʿtimād K͟hān, turned his rein. It happened that before their arrival Nabū had entered the fort of Ahmadabad. Those who were loyal drew up their troops near the city, and the rebels came out of the fort and hastened to the battlefield. When the army of the rebels showed itself, those of the servants of S͟hihāb K͟hān who were left took the wrong road and joined the enemy. S͟hihāb K͟hān was defeated and hastened towards Paṭan (Pātan?), which was in the possession of the royal servants. His retinue and camp were plundered, and Nabū, bestowing mansabs and titles on the rebels, went against Qut̤bu-d-dīn Muḥammad K͟hān, who was in Baroda. The servants of the latter, like the servants of S͟hihāb K͟hān, took the road of faithlessness and chose separation, as is related in detail in the Akbar-nāma. In the end, after giving his word to Qut̤bu-d-dīn Muḥammad, he sent him to martyrdom, and his goods and property, which were equal to the treasure of his courtesy and grandeur, were plundered. Nearly 45,000 horsemen collected round Nabū.
When this state of affairs was represented to H.M. Akbar he sent against him Mīrzā K͟hān, son of Bairām K͟hān, with a force of brave warriors. On the day when Mīrzā K͟hān arrived near the city, he drew up the ranks of good fortune. He had about 8,000 or 9,000 horse, and Nabū met him with 30,000, and drew up his host tainted with ruin. After prolonged fighting and slaughter the breeze of victory blew on the flag of the loyal, and Nabū, being defeated, fled in wretched plight. My father, in reward for this victory, gave Mīrzā K͟hān a mansab of 5,000 with the title of K͟hānk͟hānān and the government of the country of Gujarat. The garden that K͟hānk͟hānān made on the field of battle is situated on the bank of the River Sābarmatī. He founded lofty buildings along that eminence on the river, and made a strong wall of stone and cement round the garden. The garden contains 120 jarīb of land, and is a charming resort. It may have cost 200,000 rupees. It pleased me greatly. One may say that in the whole of Gujarat there is no garden like this. Arranging a Thursday feast, I bestowed cups on my private servants, and remained there for the night. At the end of the day, on Friday, I entered the city, scattering about 1,000 rupees on the road. At this time the gardener represented that a servant of Muqarrab K͟hān had cut down some champā trees above the bench alongside the river. On hearing this I became angry, and went myself to enquire into the matter and to exact satisfaction. When it was established that this improper act had been committed by him, I ordered both his thumbs to be cut off as a warning to others. It was evident that Muqarrab K͟hān knew nothing of this affair, or otherwise he would have punished him there and then. On Tuesday, the 11th, the Kotwal of the city caught a thief and brought him. He had committed several thefts before, and each time they had cut off one of his members; once his right hand, the second time the thumb of his left hand, the third time his left ear, and fourth time they hamstringed him, and the last time his nose; with all this he did not give up his business, and yesterday entered the house of a grass-seller in order to steal. By chance the owner of the house was on the look out and seized him. The thief wounded the grass-seller several times with a knife and killed him. In the uproar and confusion his relatives attacked the thief and caught him. I ordered them to hand over the thief to the relatives of the deceased, that they might retaliate on him.
“The lines of the face show the thought of your head (?).”
On Wednesday, the 12th, 3,000 rupees were handed over to ʿAz̤amat K͟hān and Muʿtaqad K͟hān, that they might go the next day to the tomb of S͟haik͟h Aḥmad K͟haṭṭū, and divide it among the fakirs and indigent people who had taken up their abode there. On Thursday, the 13th, I went to the lodging of my son S͟hāh Jahān, and held a Mubārak-s͟hamba entertainment there, and distributed cups among my private servants. I gave my son the elephant Sundar Mathan,[112] which was superior to all my private elephants in speed and beauty and pleasant paces, and competed with horses, and was the first among the elephants, and one much liked by King Akbar. My son S͟hāh Jahān had a great liking for him, and frequently asked him of me, and seeing no way out of it I gave it to him with its gold belongings of chains, etc., together with a female elephant. A present of 100,000 of darbs was given to the wakils of ʿĀdil K͟hān. At this time it was represented[113] to me that Mukarram K͟hān, son of Muʿaz̤z̤am K͟hān, who was the governor of Orissa, had conquered the country of K͟hūrdā, and that the Raja of that place had fled and gone into the Rājmahendra. As he was a k͟hāna-zād (houseborn one) and worthy of patronage, I ordered his mansab, original and increase, to be 3,000 personal and 2,000 horse, and honoured him with drums, a horse, and a dress of honour. Between the province of Orissa and Golconda there were two zamindars, one the Raja of K͟hūrdā and the second the Raja of Rājmahendra. The province of K͟hūrdā has come into the possession of the servants of the Court. After this it is the turn of the country of Rājmahendra. My hope in the grace of Allah is that the feet of my energy may advance farther. At this time a petition from Qut̤bu-l-mulk reached my son S͟hāh Jahān to the effect that as the boundary of his territory had approached that of the King, and he owed service to this Court, he hoped an order would be issued to Mukarram K͟hān not to stretch out his hand, and to acquire possession of his country. It was a proof of Mukarram’s valour and energy that such a one as Qut̤bu-l-mulk should be apprehensive about his (Mukarram) becoming his neighbour.
On this day Ikrām K͟hān, son of Islām K͟hān, was appointed faujdār of Fatḥpūr and its neighbourhood, and presented with a dress of honour and an elephant; Chandar Sen, the zamindar of Haloẕ (Halwad?),[114] was given a dress of honour, a horse, and an elephant. An elephant was also given to Lāchīn Qāqs͟hāl. At the same time Muz̤affar,[115] son of Mīrzā Bāqī Tark͟hān, had the honour of kissing the threshold. His mother was the daughter of Bārha (Bhārā), the zamindar of Kachh. When Mīrzā Bāqī died and the government of Thatta went to Mīrzā Jānī, Muz̤affar was apprehensive of Mīrzā Jānī, and he took refuge with the aforesaid zamindar. He had remained from his childhood until now in that country. Now that the fortunate retinue had reached Ahmadabad, he came and did homage. Though he had been reared among men of the wilds, and was unfamiliar with civilized ways and ceremonies, yet as his family had had the relations of service with our exalted dynasty from the times of Timur[116]—may God make his proof clear!—I considered it right to patronize him. For the present I gave him 2,000 rupees for expenses, and a dress of honour. A suitable rank will be given to him, and perhaps he will show himself efficient as a soldier.
On Thursday, the 20th, I went to the “Garden of Victory,” and contemplated the red roses. One plot had bloomed well. There are not many red roses (gul-i-surk͟h) in this country, so it was pleasant to see so many here. The anemone[117] bed, too, was not bad, and the figs had ripened. I gathered some figs with my own hands, and weighed the largest one. It came to 7½ tolas. On this day there arrived 1,500 melons from Kārīz. The K͟hān ʿĀlam had sent them as a present. I gave a thousand of them to the servants in attendance, and five hundred to the women of the harem. I spent four days in this garden in enjoyment, and on Monday eve, the 24th, I came to the city. Some of the melons were given to the Shaikhs of Ahmadabad, and they were astonished to see how inferior were the Gujarat melons. They marvelled at the goodness of the Deity.
On Thursday, the 27th, I held a wine-feast in the Nagīna[118] garden, which is inside the palace grounds, and which one of the Gujarat Sultans had planted. I made my servants happy with flowing bowls. A pergola (tak͟hta) of grapes had ripened in this garden, and I bade those who had been drinking to gather the bunches with their own hands and partake of them.
On Monday, the 1st of Isfandārmuẕ, I left Ahmadabad and marched towards Malwa. I scattered money on the road till we reached the bank of the Kānkriyā tank, where I halted for three days. On Thursday, the 4th, the presents of Muqarrab K͟hān were laid before me. There was nothing rare among them, nor anything that I took a fancy to, and so I felt ashamed. I gave them to my children to take into the harem. I accepted jewellery and decorated vessels and cloths to the value of a lakh, and gave him back the rest. Also about one hundred Kachhi horses were taken, but there was none of great excellence.