Eighty years ago I had seen the famous historical building known as CHAUBURJI situated on the west of Multan road, was the gateway of the garden of ZEB-UN-NISA, or ZEBINDA BEGAM. When the garden was complete, the royal lady bestowed it o MIAN BAI her favourite female attendant who had supervised its construction. One day as the garden was approaching completion, the princess was on strolling when she heard people saying that the royal lady was going to see MIAN BAI’s garden. Seeing that the garden was already known after the name of her slave girl, she resolved then and there to make her a present of it. The princess was the learned daughter of AURANGZEB whose poetic name was MUKHFI (concealed). She never married. Her charming diwan (collection of poems) is a work of great merit. She died in 1669 AD. Her chronogram was thus verified by a poet:
“Ah! Zeb-un-nisa, by the degree
of Providence,
Suddenly became concealed
from the sight,
A fountain of learning, virtue,
beauty and elegance,
She was hidden as JOSEPH (Yousaf) was in the well.
I asked reason the year of her death,
The visible voice exclaimed, “The moon became concealed”.
When I first saw it, it had only three minarets; one had been destroyed due to the passage of time. But now the concerned department has rebuilt the fourth minaret. It was one of the most beautiful edifices of Lahore, decorated with costly stones, and furnished with pavilions, fountains and reservoirs. The floor was of marble and latticed windows were of the same material but RANJIT SINGH divested the building of all of its valuable materials to construct his summer house of HAZURI BAGH and nothing of this once picturesque building now remains but the skeleton. On either side of the arches north and south of the middle arch, it inscribed the word ALLAH in blue Arabic letters, enclosed by a circle. There was a dome but a great portion of it had disappeared.
Zeb-un-Nisa had laid out an extensive garden at the spot where the village NAWAN KOT is now situated (but now is part of Lahore). There is no trace of the garden except for a few, old scattered banyan trees. Most of the gardens of the MUGHAL era have been mercilessly destroyed for firewood by the locals of the area. These avaricious people never realized that they were destroying history, definitely an unforgivable crime.
There is no trace of the garden of DILAWAZ across the river Ravi and the garden of MIRZA KAMRAN has also disappeared, where the Mughal Emperor used to stay with his harem as guests of ASIF KHAN the Prime Minister. However I found some pieces of old small sized bricks scattered here and there.
I went to see HIRAN MINARA situated in the outskirts of SHEIKHUPURA. It is said that a royal antelope (deer) called MANS RAJ, to which Emperor JAHANGIR had taken a fancy, died here in the second year of his reign. The Emperor ordered a handsome monument to be raised over its remains on which a life-size stone statue of the animal was placed. When I saw it the top of the MINARA was in ruins. The area around it looked deserted. Close to it a kiln baking bricks was located with ditches dug for mining clay here and there. The greedy has no regard for history.
During 1964 I was serving as GSOI of Adjutant General Branch GHQ and was sent on duty to JHELUM district to find out if the Army pensioners desired their pensions to be delivered by Money Order. I stayed in the TARAKI railway rest house for a couple of days. TARAKI railway track climbing the height in zig zag fashion is a feat of engineering and I was told the TARAKI hills (between DINA and SOHAWA) many deers had their abode in caves or under projected rocks. The chowkidar of the rest house was an old man who told me that some years ago he had caught a baby deer in the month of April and had kept it for a couple of years. The deer was very friendly and would not leave the rest house. One dark night two wolves attacked the deer and on hearing the noise the chowkidar went out with a lathi (stout stick) but by then the baby was badly injured so he sat near it. The deer tried to reach the feet of the chowkidar but could not and with a loud groan it expired. He dug a grave and buried it near the rest house. Perhaps if he had been a king like JAHANGIR he would have built a memorial for his deer.
On my request Maj ® NIWAZ, Secretary District Armed Services Board managed to catch a baby deer. My children named it BOEING; it was very friendly and my daughter ANJUM and son, SADI looked after it and the deer obeyed all their commands. The deer would not welcome strangers and if it was not tied down, it would run after and chase strangers. A few beggars and those wearing Dhoti were chased out of the compound many times. One night we heard shouting and cries so my son went out and saw a stranger was being chased by the deer. His shalwar had been torn and it transpired that he was a thief who was trying to climb the wall but the deer would vigorously chase him and attack him. The thief was caught and handed over to the police while the deer was rewarded with milk and better diet; the police also lauded the faithfulness of the deer.
I had seen the tomb of MADHO LAL HUSSAIN, situated north of BAGH BANPURA. In fact there are two tombs on a high platform, one of MADHO and the other of LAL HUSSAIN. The actual tombs are in an underground chamber. The platform is surrounded by a wall within which is reverentially kept the impression of the Holy Prophet’s (PBUH) foot (QADAM-I-RASUL) and to the west is a mosque which had been built by MORAN, the muslim queen of RANJIT SINGH. It is said that the fame of Saint LAL HUSSAIN flourished in the time of the Mughal Emperor AKBAR, he became enamoured of a Brahman boy named MADHO of SHAHDARA and his name forms the prefix to that of the Saint. MADHO had embraced Islam and his tomb is situated close to that of his religious preceptor. It is known that the Saint LAL HUSSAIN spent his night reciting the Holy Quran by heart in a standing position in the river Ravi.
It is stated that MADHO had expressed a desire to go on a pilgrimage to the river GANGES but LAL HUSSAIN could not bear to part with him, said “The Ganges will itself come to thee, why then take the trouble of traveling such a long distance?” He then told the boy to close his eyes and when he did as asked, he found himself on the banks of the Ganges. In fact he enjoyed a bath in the river in the company of his parent who had already gone there. On reopening his eyes he found himself in the house again. The parents, on their return confirmed the fact of MADHO having bathed with them on the banks of the Ganges on the appointed day. MADHO was so much affected by the miracles that he embraced Islam forthwith. Thereafter he was called Shaikh MADHO.
The Saint LAL HUSSAIN died in 1599 AD and was buried at SHAH DARA. A few years later, as predicted by the Saint the grave was swept away by the overflow of the river RAVI. MADHO exhumed the corpse and with due formalities buried it in the present locality. A fair is held every year in memory of the Saint (MADHO LAL HUSSAIN).
TODAR MAL the great financier and Revenue Accountant was in the service of Emperor AKBAR. His private residence in Lahore was in Bazar Hakiman, Bhati Gate. As a student of Matric I was spending my summer vacations with a colleague of my father (KHAN AHMAD HUSSAIN KHAN, retired judge, editor of SHABAB-I-URDU and author of many books) residing in Bhati Gate opposite UNCHI MASJID who showed me the old house of TODAR MAL. It was in a deplorable condition.
Emperor JAHANGIR had ordered shady trees to be planted on both sides of roads. A minaret was built from AGRA to LAHORE at every KOS (bigger than a mile) for the guidance of travelers. About seventy years ago I saw a minaret in ruin, hidden in the bushes on the side of a road between MEERUT and BAGHPAT. It was of solid stone, about 3 feet high and dug in the ground. No marks were visible on it and upon enquiry some locals told me that even their forefathers had seen it.
More about Anarkali
ANARKALI was the title given to NADIRA BEGAM or SHARIF-UN-NISA. She was a favourite of the harem of Emperor AKBAR. One day the Emperor was seated in an apartment lined with glasses where Anarkali was attending him. The Emperor saw from her reflection in the mirrors that she returned Prince Salim a smile. It had also been reported to the Emperor that both often used to meet secretly. The Emperor suspected her of criminal intrigue with Salim (later JAHANGIR) and ordered her to be buried alive. Prince Salim felt intense remorse at her death and when he became Emperor he built the tomb in her memory. The sarcophagus is made of block of pure marble of extraordinary beauty and exquisite workmanship. According to a foreign expert, “one of the finest pieces of carving in the world”. On the top are inscribed the 99 attributes of ALLAH and on the sides is engraved ‘profoundly enamoured SALIM, son of AKBAR’. The inscription shows how passionately fond SALIM had been of ANARKALI and how deeply her death had grieved him. On the north side of the sarcophagus is the following inscription: “MAJNU – SALIM AKBAR”.
The building (tomb) was used as the Protestant Church and known as St. James Church. When it was about to be used as a church, the body was exhumed and buried under one of the turrets. The marble sarcophagus which covered it beneath the central dome was at the same time removed and know kept locked up in a side chamber. The date is 100 AH (1599 AD) which refers to the death of ANARKALI. The British had been as vandalistic and as treacherous as the Sikhs of RANJIT SINGH. The building is circular in shape and roofed with a vast lofty dome supported inside by eight massive arches, 12 fee, 3 inches thick. It is a masterpiece of solid masonry work of MUGHAL period. In the time of RANJIT SIGH it was occupied by KHARAK SINGH, the heir apparent but subsequently given to an Italian officer of the Sikh government; with the passage of time it has lost its beauty and grandeur. Now only its vestige remains – seen by me. Surely the soul of Prince Salim (Jahangir) must be cursing those vandals.
The Mausoleum of ALLAMA IQBAL
The Mausoleum of ALLAMA HAZRAT MUHAMMAD IQBAL, the poet of the East and philosopher of international eminence is situated by the side of the BADSHAHI Mosque. I offered Fateha with great reverence at the Mazar and stood for many minutes reciting some of his poems. I remember by heart many of his poems and as a student had been melodiously reciting them in functions that were attended by eminent personalities. I feel it is relevant to mention that I was a Primary class student when my late father entered the house with a newspaper. He look sad and wept bitterly, saying, “ALLAMA IQBAL has died!” I had seen him weeping only once before – when he was narrating his childhood. Overtaken by emotion, the whole family joined him in shedding tears. My father loudly recited ALLAMA’s last RUBYA.
The Mausoleum was completed in 13 years at a cost of about one lac. It was designed by Nawab ZAIN YAR JUNG in consultation with the ‘IQBAL TOMB COMMITTEE’, presided over by Chaudri Mohammad Hussain. The long period taken in completing the construction was due to the unsympathetic attitude of the non-Muslim members in the Government of the Province. The Committee had decided that no contribution from either the government of the rulers of Indian States would be taken. After independence the work remained suspended because of the non-availability of red stone and marble which were supplied from JAIPUR and MARKANA (RAJPUTANA) respectively. After some time the import of these material started from India to complete the construction. It has two gates of teak wood inlaid with marble work. The TA’WEEZ is highly expensive stone of AFGHANISTAN and is a gift from the AFGHAN government. On the inside walls of the mausoleum, many of Iqbal’s couplets, taken from his books, are written. When I visited the Mazar there were many other people who had come to offer Fateha, among them were Iranian, Afghani and Egyptian nationals. Members of diplomatic corps and visiting dignitaries from all over the world consider it a privilege to visit the Mazar to pay homage to the great poet.
[To be continued ….]
NOTE:
The above is based on my memory and some books.
