Tomb of Abdul Rashid known as Bajauṛi Baba in Peshawar

The mausoleum Abdul Rashid Bajauri Baba is located on the Kohat road and Said Hasan Pir road in Peshawar, near Government College of Technology.

A certain Akhundzada (who is notorious for making stuff up) is claiming in his article that Abdul Rashid Bajauri was a Tajik. But actually, there is no evidence that he was a Tajik.

 

1- Akhundzada blatantly lies that Mughal king Babur brought Abdul Rashid Bajauri in chains to Peshawar and made him subedar of Kabul-Peshawar province. Neither Babur nor any other Mughal historian mentions Rashid Bajauri. Akundzada is passing off his speculations as certain facts and is making up the story of Babur bringing him in chains to Peshawar and making him governor of Kabul province. Babur appointed his son Mirza Kamran, not some Bajauri, as governor of Kabul (including Peshawar). Mirza Kamran ruled Kabul till 1552.

 

2- Just because his father was named 'Sakhi Arab Khan', does not mean he was an Arab (or was claiming to be an Arab). It is not uncommon among Pashtuns to name their children after communities/ethnicities and cities; Baloch Khan, Arab Khan, Mughal Khan, Tajik Khan, Multan Khan, Ghazni Khan etc. There is no evidence to prove that the family of Abdul Rashid Bajauri belonged to the Arab community of Bajaur. 

 

3- Akhundzada has purposefully not mentioned the fact that descendants of Bajauri Baba in Peshawar claim to be Tarklanri Pashtuns.

 

4- Akhundzada writes: "Real students of history know that Babur was only Mughal monarch who had anything to do with Bajaur. No succeeding Mughal ever had concerns there — nor did they trouble themselves by sending troops there for any reason". 

 

The "real student of history" (Akhundzada) should know that Akbar's general Zain Khan operated in Bajaur for years and spent more time in Bajaur than Babur. Akbar had more concerns with Bajaur than Babur did.

 

5- According to archaeologists, the building of the tomb of Abdul Rashid Bajauri can be dated to last quarter of 17th century. (Reference: "Tomb architecture in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province (Pakistan)": An analytical study by Shakirullah, p-44). The reason Akhundzada insist that Abdul Rashid Bajauri was from Babur times, is because there was no trace of Tarklanri Pashtuns in Bajaur in the times of Babur. The tomb was built in last quarter of 17th century during the reign of Aurangzeb Alamgir and at that time Bajaur was an abode of Tarkanri Pashtuns. Moreover, Pashtuns in northern districts of KPK rather frequently refer to themselves by their district names; Bajauri, Diroji, Swati, Bunerwal, Swabiwal, Charsadewal etc. 

 

6- Tajiks/Parsiwans did not inhabit Bajaur and Swat. I have debunked this claim of Akhundzada in this article of mine. 

History of Gor Khatri of Peshawar city

Gor Khuttree is an important monument in the old city of Peshawar. It can be either appraoched from Chowk Yadgar or from Hastnagari Gate. In ancient times it was a Buddhist establishment which later assumed a Hindu character. The earliest account of the site is given by Babur. Both Akbar and Jahangir regard it as a place of jogis (Hindu saints who believe in quiet meditiation). It had become a place of Hindu pilgrimage and its fame had reached far and wide. In the year 1640 AD Jahan Ara Begum, daughter of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, converted the site into Serai Jahanabad and built also a Jami Masjid and a Hammam. During the days of Sikhs the mosque was destroyed, and a temple of Gorakhnath was built on its site. 

Gor Kattri, Peshawar city, 1910 (c). Photo by R.B.Holmes. 

Lord Curzon arrival at Gor Khatri, Peshawar, to receive the address from Municipality of Peshawar city, 1902. Photo by W.D.Holmes.

Hindu ascentics at Gor Khatri in Peshawar, 16th century. A folio from an Illustrated manuscript of Baburnama, ca.1592.

The avenue at the tomb of Mughal king Babur, Kabul, Afghanistan, 1840 (c)

The avenue at the tomb of Mughal king Babur, Kabul, Afghanistan, 1840 (c). Painting by James Atkinson.

The twelve forts of Kasur (Punjab)

Qasuri, an Afghan of Kasur (in Punjab), 1825. From "Tashrih al-aqvam" by James Skinner. Source: British Library. Source

Qasur is plural of Qasr (قصر) which means fortress or castle in Arabic. The place was named so because of the twelve forts built by Pashtuns settlers in 16th century, majority of whom belonged to the Khweshgi (also spelled as Kheshgi) tribe of Pashtuns. The twelve forts were named after the heads of the twelve clans of Kheshgis. Seven of the twelve forts were still standing in 1871 as reported by Alexander Cunningham.

Those Pashtun settlers had accompanied the army of Mughal king Babur in 1526 and had fought on his behalf against the army of Sultan Ibrahim Lodi. As a reward for their services, Babur granted them the present territory of Kasur as jagir. It is said that Sher Shah Sur did not hold the Khweshgi Pashtuns of Qasur in favour, on account of them siding with the Mughals at Panipat. On the other hand, they were regarded with favor by Mughal emperors and many of them attained high ranks in the Mughal nobility.

The city of Qasur built and ruled by Pashtuns, was massive. William Barr saw the extensive ruins of Qasur (destroyed by Ranjit Singh) in 1839 and writes: "Kusoor, a large and ancient town, that in former days must have covered an extensive area, as its ruins are interminable".

A Khweshgi Afghan of Kasur and an Indian nursemaid from Arain caste, Punjab, 1810 (c).

From Fraser Album.

The people of Panjshir and Andarab were tributary to Siah Posh Kafirs (of present-day Nuristan) in medieval times

In 14th century the people of Panjshir and Andarab were raided and bullied by Siah Posh (black-clad) people of "Kafiristan" (present-day Nuristan). Siah-Posh "Kafirs" exacted annual tribute from the Muslims of these regions. Upon failure to pay the tribute, the Siah Poshan would slay the men, and enslave their women and children.

When Amir Timur arrived at Andarab, the chiefs of that country came and cast themselves at his feet, asking him to deliver them from the oppression of Siah-Posh Kafirs. This is reported by Zafarnama of Sharf al-Din Yazdi. 

The people of Panjshir (known as Panjhir پنجهیر in medieval times) were under the thumbs of Siah-Posh Kafirs even in the times of Mughal king Babur. The latter writes: " Panjhir is another tuman; it lies close to Kafiristan, along the Panjhir road, and is the thoroughfare of Kafir highway-men who also, being so near, take tax of it. They have gone through it, killing a mass of persons, and doing very evil deeds, since I came this last time and conquered Hindustan."

This drawing of a Siah Posh Kafir is from "The Illustrated London News", published on September 26, 1874.

Panjshir calley

Chilzina (forty steps) of Kandahar

 From British Library :-

"Chilzina is a rock-cut chamber on the northern side of the old citadel [of Kandahar] and is accessed by forty steps. A Persian inscription at the site reveals that the chamber was completed under the patronage of the Moghul Emperor Babur in the 16th century. The old citadel was destroyed by Nadir Shah Afshar of Persia in 1738."  1

Staircase of 40 steps (chilzina) leading to the entrance of a chamber carved in the mountain, near Kandahar, Afghanistan, 1915. From the album "Afghanistan" by Oskar von Nidermajer. Source

Rock chamber containing the inscription by Mughal emperor Babur, reached by forty steps (chilzina), near Kandahar, Afghanistan, 1915.. Published in the book Oskar von Niedermeyer "Afghanistan" (Leipzig, 1924). Source

Chihal Zina (the forty steps), Kandahar, Afghanistan, 1880. A man selling dry fruits in the foreground. Photo by Benjamin Simpson. Source

Tomb of Mughal king Babur, Kabul, Afghanistan, 1922

 

Tomb of Mughal king Babur, Kabul, Afghanistan, 1922. Photo by Lowell Thomas or Harry A. Chase.

Malot fort in India, a 15th century fort built by a Pashtun

Ruins of Malot fort on hill top (Hoshiarpur district, Indian Punjab). Source

Malot fort was founded in the reign of Sultan Bahlul Lodi by Tatar Khan Yousaf Khel Lodi. [1].

Ghazi Khan Lodi, son of Daulat Khan Lodi (Sikandar and Ibrahim Lodi's governor of Punjab) possessed a library of valuable books at Malot fort, which Babur handed over to Hamayun and Kamran after capturing the fort. [2]

During the reign of Sher Shah Sur, Hamid Khan Kakar was in charge of the fort of Malot. [3]


References

1- "The History of India", by Sir Henry Miers Elliot, Vol-4, p-415
2- Memoirs of Zehir-Ed-Din Muhammed Baber, translation partly by the Late John Leyden, partly by William Erskine, published in 1826, p-298
3- "The History of India", by Sir Henry Miers Elliot, Vol-4, p-415

Ormur tribe

The Ormur (Aor-marr اورمړ ) or War-mur, also known as Baraki, is an ancient tribe of Afghans. The name Ormuṛ literally means “fire extinguished” in Pashto. 'According to the genealogies, the Urmar Afghans are descended from Amar-ud-Din or Amar Din, son of Sharkabun, and are near kinsmen of the Duranis. Raverty cites the Afghan tradition as follow :

"The derivation of the name Aor-Mar is as follows, for it is but a by-name. His mother, who was his father's first wife, was the daughter of a blacksmith, or, rather, one who worked in iron; and his step-mother sometimes, in anger, when he did not do something or other to her satisfaction, would say, by way of reproach, “The blacksmith’s “fire (اور—aor) is gone out ( مړ شه — mar shah)”; and by degrees the name of “Aor-Mar clung to him.” [1]

According to Khulasatul-Ansab of Hafiz Rahmat Khan (1710-1774) ;

"Amerdin had one son, called Ormar : from Ormar, Amerdin's son, numerous issue sprang, which they call Ormar. The name of Amerdin, Ormar's father, has fallen into oblivion.'The Ormars have also khails among them ; but they have not been mentioned, because they are but little known. They all reside in the town of Kanigoram, contiguous to the Lohanis. Both the Bokies and Ziracks are descendants from him." [2]

Although Karni-Gram (South Waziristan) is within the Mahsud territory, it is inhabited by Ormur Afghans, who formerly possessed the country round, were ousted from all else besides by the Waziris. Kani-guram still contains representatives of five Ormur branches, viz., the Khaikani, Kharin Jani, Malatani, Bekani and Jerani. The remainder of the Ormurs, pressed by want and the encroachments of Mahsuds, left their early homes centuries ago and settled in Logar, 80 km south of Kabul, where they still hold the village of Burki-Barak, and elsewhere [3]. They also have their three villages named after them in Peshawar district near Nowhsera and Budbair.

The earliest information about Ormur or Baraki people comes from Babur (1483-1530). In his memoirs he writes ;

"There are many different tribes in Kabul country ; in its dales and plains are Turks and clansmen and Arabs ; in its towns and in many villages, Sarts ; out in the districts and also in the villages are the Pashai, Parachi, Tajik, Baraki and Afghan tribes." [4]

The author of Hayat-i-Afghani (completed in 1865) remarks ;

"Being widely scattered and without cohesion, they are lightly esteemed in Afghanistan, where their peaceableness and orderly industrious habits, win for them only contempt. Those of Logar are wholly engaged in tillage, to which those of Peshawar add trade. The Ormurs of Kani-guram are both agriculturalists and artisans (chiefly spearmakers), but are very poor and much down-trodden by the Wazirs (i.e Mahsuds) among whom they live."  [5]

Mountstuart Elphinstone who visited kingdom of Kabul in 1808, erroneously identified Barakis of Logar as Tajiks. He writes :

"The next class of Taujiks are the Burrukees, who inhabit Logur and part of Boot-Khauk. Though mixed with the Ghiljees, they differ from the other Taujiks, in as much as they form a tribe under chiefs of their own, and have a high reputation as soldiers. They have separate lands and castles of their own, furnish a good many troops to government, closely resemble the Afghauns in their manners, and are more respected than any other Taujiks. Their numbers are now about eight thousand families." [6]

In 1837 Agha Mahmud of Sheraz visited Kaniguram and described it as follow :-

"26th Shawal— Arrived at Kaneeguram, which is the capital of the Wuzeeree country. The cultivation is carried on running streams. The inhabitants are Sayads (i.e Ormurs), who are the spiritual fathers of the Wuzeerees. The houses are upper storied, and amount to four hundred. There are two large towers for the protection of the town. There are thirty-two shops, as follow; viz. sixteen of Hindoos, seven blacksmiths and cutlers, three goldsmiths, two scabbard makers, and four dyers. The headmen are Durvesh Khan, Sarwar Khan, Mulook Khan, Abdukahman Khan, Raim Khan, and Noor Khan. The amount of fighting men is five hundred. The Sayads are farmers; the Wazeerees are independent, and are mostly herdsmen." [7]

Ormuri is also known as Baraki, the endonym of its speakers. The native designation Bargista seems no longer used for the language [8]. Muhammad Hayat Khan described their language as "a peculiar Pashto which is mixture of Persian, Pashto and Hindi"[9]. Ormuṛi together with Parachi constitutes the Southeast Iranian language group [10]. The Ormur men of Kanigram are all bilingual or trilingual, speaking Ormuri, Pashto, and Hindko [11].


See also

1- History of Pir Roshan and his successor

2- "The approaching end of the relict southeast Iranian language Ormuri and Paraci in Afghanistan" by Charles Kieffer


References

1- "Notes on Afghanistan", Raverty, p-383
2- "History of Afghans", B.Dorn, Vol-II, p-122
3- "Afghanistan and its inhabitants", p-82
4- "Babur-nama", English translation by A.S.Beveridge, p-207
5- Ibid, p-82
6- "An account of the kingdom of Caubul", p-315
7- "Journal of a tour through parts of the Panjab and Affghanistan", translated by Major.R.Leech
8-  Ormuri — Encyclopædia Iranica

9- "Afghanistan and its inhabitants", p-82

10-  Baraki Barak— Encyclopædia Iranica

11- "Sociolinguistic Survey of Northern Pakistan: Pashto, Waneci, Ormuri", p-59

Jirgah of Mahsuds and British , Kaniguram, Waziristan, 1919 (c). Photo by R.B.Holmes

Sayyids of Kunar

Sayyids of Kunar

For centuries, the long and narrow valley of Kunar, with Pashat as its main town, had been ruled by a Pashtunized Sayyid family of Arab descent. They were descendants of Sayyid Ali Tirmizi, popularly referred to as Pir Baba by Pashtuns. He had accompanied Zahir al-Din Babur from Tirmiz. His shrine in Pacha Killay (meaning “the village of the king” in Pashto) in Buner is venerated to this day.

Emperor Humayun, the son and successor of Babur, granted him Kunar free of revenue. His descendants in Kunar collected revenue at the rate of one-third of agricultural production, and in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries their annual income fluctuated between sixty and eighty thousand rupees. [1]

Kunar remained more or less independent until the early nineteenth century. Muhammadzai interference began in the 1820s, taking the form of annexation of regions near Jalalabad (Shewa), occasional plundering raids against the Sayyids, and intervention in rivalries within the ruling family. Nevertheless, the Sayyids continued to control their core possessions until the 1880s. During Amir Sher ‘Ali Khan’s reign, the ruling Sayyid received an allowance and acted as a middleman for the Amir in dealings with the more remote regions of Bajaur and Dir. [2]

---

Sayyid Mahmood, the “Badshah” of Kunar, 1879.

Syed Mahmud, 1879.

Sayyid Mahmud with Major Cavagnari.

Arrival of Sayyid Mahmood, Khan of Kunar, at Jalalabad, 14 January 1879. (Source)

References

1. A Political and Diplomatic History of Afghanistan, 1863–1901, M. Hasan Kakar, p. 69
2. State and Tribe in Nineteenth-Century Afghanistan, Christine Noelle, p. 205

Historical photographs of Kohat

The early history of Kohat is limited to the vaguest traditions. It is said that in Buddhist times two Rajas named Adh and Kohat settled along the northern border of the district. Raja Kohat gave his name to the town of Kohat, and Raja Adh to the ruins of an old fort on the hill side north of Muhammadzai, a village four miles to the west of Kohat. The remains of this fort, which is known as Adh-i-Samut, consist of the ruins here and there of the old ramparts.

The first historical mention of Kohat is to be found in the memoirs of the Emperor Babur. The district was then being taken possession of by the Bangashes and Khattaks who now hold it. Babur's annals, however, throw little or no light on the extent of their occupation. He narrates that in the year A.D. 1505, when at Peshawar, he was induced by Baki Cheghaniani to visit Kohat on the false hope of obtaining a rich booty. Babar had never before heard even the name of Kohat. He reached the town through the Kohat pass in two marches, and fell on it at luncheon time. After plundering it he sent foraging parties as far as the Indus. Bullocks, buffaloes and grain were the only plunder. He released his Afghan prisoners. After two days he marched up the valley towards "Bangash." When he reached a narrow part of the valley, the hill men of Kohat and that quarter crowded the hills on both flanks, raised the war shout and made a loud clamour. At last they foolishly occupied a detached hill. Now was Babur's opportunity. He sent a force to cut them off from the hills. About a hundred and fifty were killed. Many prisoners were taken. These put grass in their mouths in token of submission, being as much as to say "I am your ox," a custom which Babar first noticed here. Notwithstanding he had them beheaded at once. A minaret of their heads was erected at the next camping place. Babur gives us no further account of Kohat . He uniformly speaks of the inhabitants of the country as Afghans, making no mention of special tribes by name.

References:

1- "Report on the Settlement of the Kohat District in the Panjab" , 1884, by G. Tucker , p-35

"Mosque and Afridi hills", Kohat (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan), 1862 (c). Photo by Charles Patton Keyes.

A scene of Kohat, c.1900

Local People posing in front of a car at Kohat, 1929 (c)

General view of the cantonment including the church, Kohat, 1865. Photo by William Henry Baker.

Kohat, 1920's Aerial photograph

Usterzai village, Kohat, c.1900.

A view of Kohat Cantt, 1924

Cantt Bazar Kohat, 1945). Union Jack can be seen in the back ground.

Khushal-garh railway bridge, 1920's Aerial photograph

Entraining at Kohat, 1919.
 

Illustration from late 16th century manuscript (1590-1593) of Baburnama depicting foray to Kohat 

.....

Recommended Books

Swati tribe of Hazara

The Swatis were the former inhabitants of Swat valley. Yousfzais drove out them of Swat in the early 16th century. Swatis are numerous people, mostly settled in the districts of Mansehra, Battagram, Torghar and to some extent in Kohistan. They have settlements in Agror valley, Konsh and Bhogarmang glens of Mansehra District. Majority of them are bilingual and can speak Hindko in addition to their mother tongue Pashto; the further away a village is from the Indus on the eastern bank, the more Hindko and the less Pashto is spoken. The people of the adjoining Trans-Indus tracts and of the adjoining Swatis all speak Pashto only. Some of their kinsmen are settled in Kashmir. They strictly follow the Pashtun tribal code and call it Swatiwali.

When Babur crossed the Hindu Kush mountains and captured Kabul in 1504, the regions of Swat and Bajaur were peopled by Dardic ethno-linguistic groups commonly referred to as Dehgan or Degan, an ethnic community once spread over parts of Pakistan which are now populated by Khashi tribes of Pashtuns. The Dardic rulers of Swat and Bajaur were called Gibaris. The Gibari sultans of Swat, also referred to as Jahangiris, were the most powerful of several local rulers in the Dardic speaking regions. They not only ruled the Swat valley, Panjkorah and Buner, but through their Shalmani vassals they were also suzerains of the flat country bordering the mountains. Their capital was Manglawar in Swat. Their subjects, referred to as Dehgans or Kohistanis in Afghan histories, were comprised of tribes like Mutravi, Mumiali and Shalmani as well as other Dardic tribes from Chitral to Shangla, including those of Swat-Kohistan and Dir-Kohistan. According to Tarikh-i-Afghana of Khwaja Malezai, written in around 1623 AD, the Mitravi tribe of Swatis reckoned themselves to be descended from Yousafzais in 16th century, and contended that they were separated from Yousafzais in ancient times when the latter lived in the environs of Kandahar [1].

Abu Fazal, the courtier of Mughal emperor Akbar informs us that sultans of Swat claimed to be descended from a daughter of Sultan Sikander-i-Zulqarnain. In Akbarnama he writes,

 "In this land (Swat and Bajaur) there was a tribe that had the title of 'sultani' and claimed to be descended from a daughter of Sultan Sikander-i-Zulqarnain. The Yousafzai for some time zealously served them and then became ungrateful and took possession of the choice lands" [2]

The exact year of invasion of Swat by Yousafzais is unknown. It had to have been between 1510 and 1518. It took the Yousafzai seventeen years to completely subdue the Swat valley, both Upper and Lower Swat. When Babur passed that way in 1519, the Yousafzais were in Swat, but Sultan Awais was still contending with them for control of the country. In the same year, Babur attacked the Gibar fort of Bajaur and conquered it on the 7th January of 1519. Its independent ruler, Sultan Haider Ali Gibari, committed suicide. The entire male Gibari population, numbering 3,000, including their sultans, were cruelly put to sword by the Mughals, and a pillar of their heads was erected. Their women and children were taken as slaves [3]. On hearing of these events, Sultan Awais of Swat sent to offer his submission, which was accepted. Sultan Awais retired northwards before the power of the Yousafzais, towards the sources of the Amu Darya. He, and his descendants, for several generations, ruled therein as far as the frontier of Badakhshan, after which they are suddenly lost sight of. The great probability is that the rulers of Chitral, Kashkar, Shighnan, Wakhan, and some other petty states on the upper Oxus, were their descendants; and, like them, they claimed descent from Alexander of Macedon [4].

Abdu Fazal writes, "Up to present day (1585 A.D) some of the former inhabitants (of Swat) spend their days in distress in the defiles and from love of their native land are unable to leave."[5].

In 1703 AD, the hard pressed Gibaris and other former inhabitants of Swat crossed the river Indus and conquered Pakhli under the leadership of Syed Jalal Baba, a grandson of Pir Baba of Buner. Having for the most part come from Swat, they were styled as Swatis by their immediate neighbors.

Read also: Jahangir sultans of Swat

References

1- Tarwaikh-i-Hafiz Rahmat Khan, Urdu translation by Roshan Khan, p-128
2-  Akbarnama, English translation by H.Beveridge, Vol-III, p-716
3- "Baburnama", English translation by A.S.Beveridge, p-370
4- "Tabakat-i-Nasiri", English translation by H.G.Raverty, p-1044
5- Akbarnama, English translation by H.Beveridge, Vol-III, p-716

Four young Swati tribesmen, c.1890. Photo by Bourne and Shepherd

Babur killed an infant son of Sultan Ibrahim Lodi

'Afsana-i-Shahan' [1] records Babur's Timurid instinct of shedding innocent blood, he killed Sultan Ibrahim Lodi's seven-year-old son.

'When Ibrahim was slain, his son, who was seven years old, was taken prisoner. As he was brought before Babur Badshah, the king asked for an ewer [2]. He gave it into his hand (and said), Help me in performing ablutions. He was the son of a king (and) had never observed how it was done. He could not help him in performing ablutions. The king flew into a rage, struck the same ewer on his head and the child died on the spot. [Hikayat thirty-eight] 

However, in his diary Babur says that he consigned Ibrahim Lodi's son to Kamran Mirza (Babur's son) who was in Kandahar. (See Babur-nama, eng.trans by A.S.Beveridge, p-544).

It appears that since Ibrahim Lodi's son disappeared from Indian scene, a rumour spread among Indo-Afghans that he was murdered by Mughals. Or it might be that Babur really did murder one of the sons of Ibrahim Lodi and another son was sent to the charge of Kamran Mirza in Afghanistan. This would explain attempt of Ibrahim Lodi's mother on life of Babur as a revenge for murder of her innocent grandson.

Babur and Humayun

Notes and References

1-  Afsana-i-Shahan, as title indicates, contains stories of kings, chiefly the rulers of Lodi and Sur dynasty with brief reference to Mughal sovereigns up to Akbar and Sultan Muzaffar of Gujarat. It was written by Muhammad Kabir Batani. The work appears to be completed towards the close of Akbar's reign.

2-  Ewer is large jug that is shaped like a vase and that was used in the past for holding water.

Ewer of Mughal period

3-  Baburnama, English translation, A.S.Beveridge , II, 543-544


4-  "Afsana-i-Shahan, a critique", Hussain Khan

Bibi Mubaraka Yousafzai

In 1519, Babur came into Yousafzai country with a large army. He devastated their lands but could make no impression on their sangar. In order to better judge the intentions of the Yousafzai , he disguised himself as a qalandar (religious ascetic) and went with friends one dark night to the Mahura hill where the Yousafzai stronghold was located, being just a day’s journey from his (Babur’s) camp at Diaroon. It is here that Babur happened to see Bibi Mubaraka, daughter of Malik Mansur who was distributing beef amongst the poor as Khairat (charity) so that the calamity brought by Babur might pass off. He was impressed by her. He was also given food, which he hid nearby.

He returned to camp in perplexity as to what he saw he could not take the Yousafzai ‘sangar’; he was ashamed to return to Kabul without achieving anything. Moreover, he was in the fetters of love. He therefore wrote a friendly letter to Malik Ahmad (the chief of all Yousafzais) and proposed for Mubaraka, the daughter of Shah Mansur, son of Shah Suleiman. The tribal notables severely objected and quoted earlier misfortunes accrued to Yousafzai by Ulugh Beg (Babur’s uncle) to whom they had given a Yousafzai lady in marriage. They even said they had no daughter to give. Babur replied with a ‘beautiful’ royal letter, wrote of his disguised visit to Shah Mansur’s house, of his seeing and as token of the truth of his story, asked them to search for the food he had hidden. They searched and found the concealed food at the place revealed by Babur. Ahmad and Mansur were still averse, but the tribesmen urged, as before they had always made sacrifice for the tribe so should they do now, for by giving the daughter in marriage they would save the tribe from Babur’s wrath. The Jirga accepted the plea for the good of the tribe. The wedding took place on 28^th Muharram 914 H. Runa the nurse who was in-charge of Malik Mansur’s household, with two other nurses and many male and female servants, accompanied Bibi Mubaraka to the royal camp. The bride was made to sit with all honour at a large tent in the middle of the Babur’s camp. In due course of time Bibi Mubaraka made an appeal to Babur , her husband. She said: -

“Think that the whole Yousafzai tribe is enfolded in my skirt and pardon their offences for my sake.”

Babur replied,”

“I forgive the Yousafzai all their offences in thy presence and cast them all into thy skirt. Hereafter I shall have no ill feeling to the Yousafzai”

Bibi Mubaraka remained childless and lived with his stepson Emperor Humayun throughout her life. She accompanied him when Sher Shah Suri defeated him. She was addressed as ‘Afghani Agha Chah’. Gul Badan (sister of Humayun) in her “Humayun Nama” often mentions Bibi Mubaraka. It was she who came to the assistance of Humayun to fulfill his father Emperor Babur’s last desire. In accordance with Babur’s will, his body was to be conveyed to Kabul and buried in a grave open to the sky, with no building over it. Gul Badan Begum informs us that after the battle of Chausa , Humayun visited the grave of his father in Agra in 1539 A.D. Annette narrates that the body was conveyed to Kabul before 1544, at which date Humayun in Kabul spoke with displeasure of Kamran’s incivility to ‘Bega Begum’ the ‘Bibi Mubaraka’, who had conveyed their father’s body to the place. Annette S.Beveridge writes that the widow who performed this duty was the Afghan lady Bibi Mubaraka. The Babur’s family had left Agra under Hindal’s escort, after the defeat at Chausa (7^th June 1539 AD). Bibi Mubaraka who took charge of the body to be conveyed to Kabul returned at some later date to fetch it. Sher Shah Suri guaranteed her security and rendered assistance in her task. Her brother Mir Jamal had joined Mughal service and remained with her sister in India. She led a very respectable life and died in the reign of Emperor Akbar. Mir Jamal became a noble of the Mughal court. His sons and grandsons were also appointed on high posts in Mughal courts. He also died in the reign of Akbar. (page 40 and 41)



(Excerpt from 'History of the Pathans Volume-II, by Haroon Rashid, page-40 and 41)

Babur Riding a Raft from Kunar Back