Its Luhani or Nuhani (لوحاڼي ) , not Lawani (لواڼي)

Nuhani or Luhani Pashtuns are erroneously referred to as "Lawani" in modern Pashto literature of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Abdul Hai Habibi and Abdul Shakoor Rashad (and many others who have followed them) have confused Nuhanis/Luhanis (a branch of Lodis) with Lawanis (a branch of Miyanas).

Khushal Khan Khattak calls them Luhani (لوحاني) in Swat-nama [1] :-

نور مې ځای په څوتره ، لوحاني دی
که څوک وي، نه ناکام د کرلاڼی دی


In the footnotes, Abdul Hai Habibi says that Nuhani or Luhani is Indianized form of Lawani (لواڼي) or Lawan (لوڼ). Abdul Hai Habibi is incorrect here. Nuhani is original. Makhzan-i-Afghani informs us that Luhanis are descendants of Nuh [2]. H.G.Raverty says that as in the case of some other Semetic words, the "n" in the Nuh is sometimes changed for "l", thus Luh and Luhani. According to Raverty, the last mode of writing is comparatively modern. [3]

Abdul Hai Habibi and other authors have confused Luhani with Lawani (a branch of Miyana tribe of Pashtuns) and Lawan (a branch of Panni tribe of Pashtuns). According to Makhzan-i-Afghani, Lawani was one of the 12 sons of Miyana [4]. While Lawan (لوڼ) was one of the sons of Panni. [5]

Dawlat Nuhani was 17th century Pashto poet and a follower of Bayazid Ansari. He has been erroneously referred to as Lawani by 20th century authors from Afghanistan (the error which is reproduced and repeated by authors from Pakistan) but he refers to himself as "Nuhani" (نوحاني) in his poetry. [6]

The earliest sources which mention Nuhani Pashtuns, are inscriptions of Lodi period. In an inscription dated to 1496 A.D, a Nuhani noble of Sikandar Lodi is mentioned. The mode of writing in that inscription is Nuhani (نوحاني), not Lawani [7]. Babur also refers to them as Nuhanis. [8]

Ameer Khan, a Lohani Chieftain', 1836. By Godfrey Thomas Vigne. Source

References

1- Swat-nama of Khushal Khan Khattak, edited and annotated by Abdul Hai Habibi, p-17
2- “History of the Afghans” by B.Dorn, p-50
3- “Notes on Afghanistan and part of Baluchistan”, by H.G.Raverty, p-486
4- “History of the Afghans” by B.Dorn, p-43
5- Tarikh Khan Jahani wa Makhzan-i-Afghani, Persian text, p-635
6- “Da Daulat Lawani diwan”, edited by Abdul Shakoor Rashad, p-232
7- “Lodi and Sur inscriptions from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh”,by W.H.Siddiqui, p-27
8- “Babur-nama”, translated into English by A.S.Beveridge”, p-455

Desecration of Pir Roshan's grave and dead body

Bayazid Ansari (Pir Roshan) died in 1572 AD. Bayazid was followed by his eldest son, Shaikh Umar. Akhund Darweza , along with his followers, continued his opposition, even after the death of Bayazid. He instigated the Gujjars (The Yousafzai's 'hamsaya') against Shaikh Umar. The Gujjars dug out the dead body of Bayazid. Shaikh Umar got timely information and before the Gujjars could take away the coffin, he reached the graveyard, intercepted the Gujjars, some of whom were able to escape while some were captured. He brought the coffin to his house. On interrogation, the captured Gujjars told them that they are Hamsayas (dependents) of Hamza Khan Akozaey Yousafzai. The followers of Shaikh Umar retaliated and took away the cattle belonging to Hamza Khan Akozaii . Consequently, because of Akhund Darweza's pressures, Shaikh Umar had to quit and cross over into the Mandar's territory. Hamza Khan chased him out to Khanpur. Shaikh Umar carried along his father's body also. He took refuge with the Dilazaks along the river Indus where he was betrayed and killed along with his staunch followers, namely Mullah Zikriya, Mullah Umar Kheshgi , Mullah Meru and Ayub. The Dilazaks threw away Bayazid's coffin in the river Indus. However, it was recovered by some followers of Bayazid.  They informed the surviving son of Pir Roshan Jalaluddin about it (the injured Jalaluddin had escaped Dilazaks by jumping into the river Indus). Jalaluddin buried his father's coffin in Idak at Tochi valley (North Waziristan). Reportedly, the bones of Bayazid were recovered and burnt and his widow, to humiliate her, was made to marry a menial drummer (dam). 

History of Bala Hissar (Peshawar)

Bala Hissar means high fort in Persian. There are several other forts which are also named Bala Hissar. It is unknown as to when the Bala Hissar of Peshawar was erected. Chinese pilgrim, Hiuen Tsang makes a reference to it in 7th century AD when he uses the term "Kung shing" in the description of Peshawar City and its environs which means the "walled portion of the town, in which the royal palace stood". So to say, there was a fort in Peshawar when Hiuen Tsang visited it in the seventh century.

Chronologically the next reference to the fort of Peshawar is found in the Baburnama. Babur put the fort of Peshawar in order, stored corn in it and converted it into a Mughal military outpost. Sometimes after the death of Babur, Dilazak Pashtuns in the Peshawar valley destroyed the Bala Hissar and in 1552 Humayun found it in ruins. The latter rebuilt it and put Sikandar Khan Uzbek in charge of the fort. Later on, Gaju Khan (the head the of the Khashi tribes of Pashtuns) laid siege of the Peshawar fort but he could not capture it.

Bala Hissar under Mughals 

During Akbar's reign, Sayyid Hamid Bukhari was in charge of Peshawar fort and was tasked with guarding the road to Kabul. He was pressed hard by the Roshanias under their leader Jalal al-din Ansari (son of Pir Roshan), popularly known as Jalala. In 1586 Jalala invested the fort of Peshawar. Sayyid Hamid Bukhari suffered a defeat and was killed, and the fort was damaged. The Mughals repaired the fort and continued their struggle against Jalala till his disappearance from the scene. In the period under review, by chance fire broke out in the fort and a thousand camel loads of merchandise was consumed. Faridun was then the commandant of the fort. This incident appears to have taken place after the Roshanias attack on the fort. In 1592, the Pashtuns again invested the fort of Bala Hissar but Zain Khan Koka was able to relieve the fortress. In 1630 the Roshanias struck again and laid siege to Peshawar but could not succeed.

The fort remained in the possession of the Mughal emperors with varying degree of control. With the arrival of Nadir Shah in Peshawar in 1737, the Moghul governor surrendered the valley to him. Nadir Shah crossed the River Indus and concluded a treaty with Emperor Muhammad Shah, according to which the territory west of the Indus was transferred to him. Peshawar thus passed into the hands of Nadir Shah and became a seat of the governors appointed by him. The Governor, it is recorded, held his court at Bala Hissar. In 1747 AD, Ahmad Shah Abdali made full use of the strategic position of the fort and brought the entire Peshawar valley under his complete control. When Ahmad Shah died, his son, Taimur Shah Durrani, succeeded to the throne and made Peshawar his winter capital. The royal residence was, therefore, shifted to Bala Hissar. Raverty records that Shah Zaman Durrani almost entirely rebuilt Bala Hissar, who added to it a Hall of Audience, Zenanah, and various other buildings.

Destruction of Bala Hissar by Sikhs 

The Sikhs captured Peshawar on 20th November 1818. Soon after the occupation of the city, one of the first things that Ranjit Singh did was to set the Bala Hissar on fire, most probably for the reason that it was the seat of the Afghan Kingdom. As regards the destruction wrought by the Sikhs, William Moorcraft, who came here in 1824, records, " in the immediate vicinity of the town (Peshawar) the Sikhs had inflicted more mischief than many years labour could remedy, by destroying gardens and orchards, and demolishing the wells and channels of irrigation. The Bala Hissar, which, at the time of the British embassy, was the occasional residence of the king, and in which their audience took place, was a heap of rubbish, and the only use made of it by the rulers of Peshawar was as a quarry from whence to procure materials for dwellings of their own erection". Thus, many magnificent works of Mughal architecture which once existed in the Bala Hissar were a part of the quarry.

The fort was rebuilt, according to Rai Bahadur Munshi Gopal Das, by Hari Singh after the battle of Nowshera, while Burnes notes that it was rebuilt in the time of Sardar Kurruck Singh. Raverty records, that the present fort was erected by Sher Singh, the son of Ranjit, on his father's orders, and in consequence, whatever remained of the old Bala Hissar was razed to the ground. It was built mostly of unburnt bricks, and was rather imposing in appearance, but of no great strength. The re-erection of the fort by the Sikhs appears to be military in nature as in order to control the Peshawar Valley, they raised fortifications at different places. Peshawar being the headquarters of the area, also needed a fortified place for the same purpose, and the site where formerly stood the Bala Hissar was suitable because of its strategic location. The fort, along with the valley of Peshawar passed into the hands of the British in 1848 AD. who completely renovated it, both internally as well as externally.

References 

1- Journal "Central Asia", 1982, pp.21-23 

2- Peshawar: Historic City of the Frontier, Ahmad Hasan Dani 

 3- The Guardians of the Frontier: The Frontier Corps, N.W.F.P., Mohammad Nawaz Khan 

4- 'Notes on Afghanistan and parts of Baluchistan' by H.G.Raverty 

5- 'Travels in the Himalayan Provinces of Hindustan and the Panjab' by Moorcraft

Bala Hissar in 1836. Painting by G.T.Vigne.

Earliest photo of Bala Hissar, taken in circa 1858. By John Burke. Source

Bala Hissar, Peshawar, 1950

History of Pir Roshan (Bayazid Ansari)

The real name of Pir Roshan was Bayazid Ansari. He was born in Pashtun-ruled Jalandhar (East Punjab, India) in 1524-25 AD. His family was living in both Kaniguram (in modern South Waziristan) and Jalandhar. He has been variously described as an Ormur and Ansari. His father Abdullah was a learned man and was a Qazi (judge) of his area. His mother's name was Aminah.

When Babur invaded India in 1526 and defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the Pashtun families in India suffered greatly at the hands of Mughals. The Pashtun families at Jalandhar including Bayazid's dispersed and sought refuge in Bihar (India) which was still in the hands of Pashtuns. From thence the family of Bayazid Ansari arrived to Kaniguram in 1530-31 AD.

Abdullah appointed his trusted friend and student Mullah Painda to tutor Bayazid in religious education. After acquiring the necessary religious education, Bayazid joined his father in business. He married his cousin Shamso, the daughter of Shaikh Khudadad. He traded in horses which he used to buy from Central Asia and sell them in India. During such business trips he happened to meet Mullah Suleiman from the town of Jalandhar. Bayazid became interested in the tenets of jogis and became a convert to Metapsychosis, or transmigration of souls. On these doctrines he engrafted some of his own doctrines., the most remarkable of which was that the complete manifestation of the Divinity were made in the persons of holy men. Since then, he started unorthodox belief which was bitterly resented by his tribe and family. 

He mediated for five years in a basement of his house. After completion of meditation, he claimed receiving divine massages. His father and brothers opposed him most strongly. His stepbrother Usman was his most active and bitter opponent whom Bayazid used to address as 'Shaitan'. His infuriated father once stabbed him; however, he survived the wound. Shaikh Farid, the chief of Burki clan, ousted him from Kaniguram. He, along with his wife Shamso, daughter Kamala, son Umar and few of his disciples, migrated first to Tirah, and later to Peshawar where he stayed in the tribe of Khalil.

Bayazid sent his Khalifas (disciples) to many courts and common people preaching his 'maslik'. One of his Khalifa, Mullah Daulat, visited Emperor Akbar and presented to him one copy of "Sirat-ul-Tawheed" authored by Bayazid Ansari. Similarly, another disciple, Yousaf was sent to the court of Mirza Suleiman of Badakhshan. He sent Khalifa Mullah Arzani Kheshigi to India to propagate his mission there. Khalifa Mawdud was sent to Kandahar to propagate his mission there. He also sent some Khalifa to Balkh and Bukhara.

Once his followers from Toi tribe of Afghans plundered the trading caravan en-route from India to Kabul. Mirza Hakim, the ruler of Kabul, sent 500 men to punish the Toi tribe. The Mughal army killed men of Toi tribe and took women and children as prisoners of war. Bayazid, knowing the situation, wrote to Mizra Hakim, requesting him to release women and children, since their men had been punished for their offence. This infuriated Mirza Hakim, and he wrote to Masum Khan, the then governor of Peshawar, to kill him if he refuses to surrender. When the news reached Masum Khan, he had in his company Painda Khan and Bahar Khan, the chiefsof Muhammadzai tribe and followers of Bayazid. Painda Khan passed this news to Bayazid. Bayazid left Hashtnagar along with his followers and went to Yousafzai region to seek shelter from Mughals. Masum Khan's army pursued him and besieged at the foot of the hill. A battle took place in which Bayazid got victory.

After this, Bayazid went to Tirah and stayed there for some time. While Bayazid was in Tirah, Mirza Suleiman, the ruler of Badakhshan, came from Kabul with the intention of meeting Mughal emperor Akbar. When he arrived at Khyber Pass, some of the Afridis attacked him and robbed him of his possessions and goods. Bayazid, after hearing about this incident, was shocked and angry with the people who had attacked the caravan. Then the governor of Peshawar took a huge army and went to Tirah in pursuit of Bayazid. Afridi, Orakzais and Tirahi tribes blocked their way. Mughal army could not reach Tirah and thus returned to Peshawar. However, Akhund Darweza claims that a battle took place in which Mughals gained victory over Bayazid. Bayazid went to the region of Yousafzai and stayed there for some time. He died there in 1572. Halnama says that he died a natural death in the Yousafzai region and and was buried there but Akhunda Darweza says that Bayazid collected his army and went to Nangarhar and attacked Baru village. After this attack, he went towards mountains. The Mushsin Khan came from Jalalabad and attacked him in Tur Ragha. They defeated him and killed a number of his followers. Bayazid fled and took position in the mountains. He was affected by the hot wind and severe thirst. He then made his way to Hashtnagar, and as he had been affected by hot winds, he died in Hashtnagar and was buried there.

References:

1- Abr Nahrain- Volumes 6-9
2- "The Rowshnites and Pushto literature" by Yar Muhammad Maghmum Khattak
3- Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, Volume 47
4- Imperial Gazetteer of India, v-19
5- History of the Pathans, by Haroon Rashid, Vol-1
6- New Indian Antiquary, Vol-2, p-568
7- "Family of Bayazid Ansari" by Afzal Hussain, PIHC, 1994.
8- "Rowshni Movement: Bayazid Ansari's Life and teachings" by Mir Wali Khan Mahsud
9- Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri: or Memoirs of Jahangir
10 -"The Roshanis and the Mughals" by Fatima Zehra Bilgrami, PIHC, 1995
11- "A Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West", Volume 3

Pir Roshan

Abdullah Khan Uzbek hawking, near Samarkand, 1618's painting. Victoria and Albert Museum

The perilous and painful march of Man Singh Kachwaha through Khyber Pass

In 1586 Mohmands and other Ghoria-Khels acknowledged Jalala (son of Pir Roshan) as their leader and rose in revolt against Mughals. They invested the Bala Hissar of Peshawar. Sayyid Hamid, who was faujdar of Peshawar, sallied forth from the fort and engaged in combat with Ghoria Khels but he got killed. 

Raja Man Singh, the celebrated general of Mughal emperor Akbar, marched from Jalalabad towards the Khyber but he caught fever at Pish-Bolak, and he halted there for some time. 

After the success over Sayyid Hamid, the Mohmands, Khalils and others of the Ghoria-Khels entered Khyber Pass and blocked it with sangars. Some of them also went to Tirah. Sukat Singh, son of Man Singh, tried to make a forced march through the Khyber but was unable to do so because the path was closed; and now Yousafzais and other Pashtuns, joined the confederacy.

By the time Kunwar, Man Singh, had recovered from illness, the forces dispatched from Lahore, on the news of outbreak and death of Sayyid Hamid had not yet reached their destination. They were at Attock, but unable to proceed. Man Singh, therefore selecting 3,000 from his force, and leaving the rest as an escort for Mirza Suleiman, late ruler of Badakhshan, who was on his way to Akbar's court, proposed to march into Tirah, and thence to fall upon the Afridi Afghans, who were the yeast of disturbances in that quarter, after which he would suddenly advance through the Shadi Dara'h to Ali Masjid, in order that the different bodies of troops might effect a junction there , and open the Khyber route , which had been completely closed by the rebels.

Man Singh, accordingly, without encumbering himself with much baggage, marched at night from his camp at Pish-Bolak, and at daybreak reached the Kotel of Chhar-Jo-e. The Kotel was encumbered with snow - it was early in December - and the ascents and descents were great. With much difficulty the defile was cleared.

Man Singh halted at Bazarak, the diminutive form of Bazar, for a short time , and the following day a force, led by Muhammad Quli Beg, fell upon Afridis and captured a great deal of booty. Some of his officers wished Man Singh to return, in order that they might conduct their booty to a place of safety, but he would not hear of it. He continued his advance, and, by the Darah of Jzawarah (the Pashto for deep) reached the hills on which the Mohmands and Khalils, and others of the Ghoria Khels had taken up their position. Upon this the rebels tendered their submission, and thereby saved themselves. But no sooner had the Badshah's troops penetrated these mountain tracts and defiles than Jalala and his Tarikis (Roshnais) fell upon their rear, and the whole of the Afghan tribes round about rose. Takhtah Beg, the officer in command of the rear guard, and other warriors, showed great gallantry upon this occasion, and fought with determined obstinacy, but being hard pressed they had to close up on the main body, and be relieved by another detachment of troops. After a deal of fighting the enemy gave up their attacks.

The Kunwar, Man Singh, now turned his face towards Ali Masjid and gave the command of the rear guard to his eldest son, Jagat Singh. Observing this retrograde movement, the Afghans again assembled in great numbers, and the affair assumed a very serious aspect. (Author's note: The Afghans invariably follow the retreat of troops , and attack their rear if possible, it is their universal tactics, and had been for centuries, and should always be expected and provided for). There was no open ground for the troops to act and get at the enemy , and, amidst volleys of stones and showers of arrows , the men had to mount the hills and grapple with enemy as best as they could , and every now and again they made vigorous onsets upon them.

 At last more open ground appeared in sight , and there Man Singh, contrary to the advice of some of nobles with him, resolved to make a stand. Takhta Beg and a body of Kabulis in his force, in their turn now became the assailants and attacked the Afghans ; and after some severe fighting the enemy was defeated and compelled to retire to their fastnesses in the hills.

Some of the officers were of opinion that, as the day had nearly closed, they should bivouac for the night on the scene of their success, but others were for pushing on to Ali Masjid without delay. This was done ,and ,without halting the Mughal force reached that place by the Shadi Darah.

Jalala and his Tarikis followed them very quickly. About two hours before mid-night he reached the vicinity of Ali Masjid and took up a position where he and his followers lay in wait in battle array for an opportunity to molest the Badshah's troops.

Some of the leaders under Man Singh were for sallying out upon the enemy at daybreak, but the troops were too much knocked up from the long march and their exertions to be able then to do so. At midday, Madhu Singh, appeared in sight with Raja Bagwandas's division of troops from the side of Peshawar, which had been detached from the Badshah's army, but as previously mentioned, had been detained at Attock. At the sight of the reinforcements, the Tarikis dispersed in all directions.



 

Man Singh

Fort Jamrud, at the foot of the Khyber Pass," a photo from c. the 1920's*; also *a view of the Khyber Pass