41. The Historical Background of the Cimani-Carita

A ROMANTIC LOVE-POEM BY A PUPIL OF BHATTOJI DIKSITA DEALING WITH THE LOVE OF THE DAUGHTERIN-LAW OF ALLAH VARDI KHAN TURKMAN (BETWEEN A. D. 1606-1659) Mr. Q. M. Moneer' has recently published three Persian inscriptions of Allah Vardi Khan Turkman from the ancient hill-forts in the Nasik District of the Bombay Presidency. They are engraved on rocks in the Satmala ranges on which are erected the ancient forts of Indra'i, Chandor and Dhodap. They were inscribed in the name of and very probably at the instance of Allah Vardi Khan himself, who conquered not only the forts on which they are carved, but thirteen other forts in the same area, which are mentioned by name in two of these three inscriptions. Allah Vardi Khan Turkman of the inscription claimed descent from a Sovereign of Central Asia of the name Sultan Sanjar (A. D. 1086-1157). The chronology of Allah Vardi Khan's life as recorded by Mr. Moneer (on p. 9) is as follows :A. D. Particulars. AVK = Allah Vardi Khan 1606-1627 AVK came to India. Through his brother Mukhlis Khan, already companion to Prince Parviz AVK was presented at the Court of Emperor Jahangir. 1626 -AVK, appointed Superintendent of hunting excursions. Poona Orientalist, Vol. VI, pp. 149-158. 1. Epi. Indo-Moslemica (1937-38), pp. 7-13. - 2. Ibid. Vide plate IV (a) at Chandor, dated 20 th March 1636, (b) at Indra'i (in the Chandor Taluka) dated 24 th March 1636, V (a) at Dhodap (in Kalvan Taluka) dated 29 th June 1636. Mr. - (Continued on the next page) (330)

A. D. 1627 1636 1653 1657 Particulars. A VK = Allah Vardi Khan -A VK, attached to Mahabat Khan, Khan Khanan for active service in the field.. -A VK appointed Warden of Lucknow, Muttra, and Delhi in succession. -A VK, accompanied Dara Shukoh for the capture of Qandhar from the King of Persia. -Shah Jahan deprives AVK of his title and rank but assigns to him the revenues of of Shankarpur paragana as pension. -A VK re-employed in charge of Elichpur and later made Governor of Berar. -A VK, involved in a misunderstanding and recalled and confined in his own house at Delhi. -Re-employed as administrator of Jaunpur and later made Governor of Bihar. -A VK, unwilling to oppose Shah Shuja, retired to Benares, where Shuja persuaded him to join his cause. When Shuja set out from Benares A VK changed his mind and with all his adherents returned to Benares and shut himself up in his house. Shuja returned and by false means got hold of A VK and his son Saitullah. The father and the son were then paraded on elephant's back through the City of Benares and put to death. The above history of A VK's career at the Mughal Court as recorded by Mr. Moneer shows AVK's importance at the Imperial Court, though unfortunately it had a sad end. This history is based on contemporary Persian Chronicles. I propose to record (Continued from the previous page) Moneer states (p. 13) that "barring a few minor variations the details embodied in them ( inscriptions) are faithfully corroborated by the relevent contemporary Chronicles of the reign of Shah Jahan, which were being registered at a great distance from the scene of the occurrences mentioned in these inscriptions.

in this paper some interesting information about the household affairs of A VK as revealed in a Sanskrit poem called the CimaniCarita,' composed by Nilakantha Sukla in A. D. 1656. I shall prove in a special paper, that this author is identical with Nilakantha Sukla, pupil of Bhattoji Diksita, who composed a grammatical work called the Sabda-Sobha in A. D. 1637.2 From these dates of the works of Nilakantha Sukla it is clear that he was a contemporary of AVK. This contemporaneity coupled with the contact of A VK between A. D. 1656 and 1657 with the City of Benares, where AVK and his son met their sad end, leads me to infer that Benares Pandits must have been well aware of the life-history of A VK then current in Benares academic circles which were in the favour of Dara Shukoh, who met his death almost in the same manner in which AVK and his son were put to death by Dara's brother Shuja. My inference further gets support from the contact of Dara with AVK in A. D. 1653, in which year A VK accompanied Dara to Qandhar to capture that city from the king of Persia. It is thus possible to suppose that Nilakantha Sukla residing at Benares and composing his works in A. D. 1637 and 1656 must have been fully aware of the personal history of A VK through some Pandits of Benares in direct contact with Dara Shukoh. If this position is accepted we can easily explain how Nilakantha Sukla composed his poem Cimani-Carita (in A. D. 1656'i.e. one year before the death of AVK at Benares) in which a Muslim noble of the name " alaha-virdikhana " is actually mentioned. In fact this romantic poem is based on a contemporary scandal developed in the harem of Alaha Virdi Khan mentioned in the poem. I am of opinion that the Muslim noble "fata" of Cimani-Carita is identical with Allah Vardi Khan of the inscriptions dated A. D. 1636, in which year Nilakantha composed his work at Benares called the Sabdasobha. Before I mention my points of identity it is necessary to give the reader an idea of the contents of this short poem called the Cimani-Carita in which Cimani³ is the heroine belonging to the harem of this " 1. Vide my paper on the date of Cimani-carita in Annals (B. O. R. Institute) Vol. IX, pp. 331-332. 2. Vide Annals (Tirupati Institute) Vol. I, Pt. 2, page 122 of my paper on the date of Bhattoji Diksita. 3. The name Cimani is often found in the Deccan as the name of a woman. Perhaps the heroine Cimani may have been a Hindu (Continued on the next page)

Muslim noble. 333 Her relation to Allah Virdi Khan is clear from the following stanza (52) of the poem :- "yasavasidalahaviradi jyestha bamdhostanuja bharyatvam calahabiradi jyesthasunorayasit | yata khyatim jagati cimanityaksaya ya gavakse devadesatkvacidatha dayadevamesa dadarsa || 52 || " Cimani was, therefore, the daughter of the elder brother of Alaha Virdi Khan and at the same time his daughter-in-law, being the wife of his eldest son. Her romantic love with Dayadeva mentioned in the above stanza is the theme of the poem. In Stanza 1 Dayadeva Sarma is introduced as a handsome youth. In St. 2 his beauty and youth are described as bewitching to the ladies of the harem of Alaha Virdi Khan. Dayadeva approached the Khan for some employment and was appointed as a tutor to the ladies of his harem (St. 3). The Khan ordered an old lady of the name Manika to attend during the time of instruction imparted to the young ladies (St. 4). Further as a precaution against the possibility of any workings of the Cupid in the harem, consequent upon such factors as the beauty and youth of the ladies, the presence of a Brahmin guru of a youthful age and the privacy of the harem, the Khan appointed a Chamberlain of the name Anisa to keep a watch during the time of the lessons (St. 5-6). But these arrangements of the Khan proved futile and the Chamberlain Anisa proved of no avail in preventing the mischievous activities of the God of Love (St. 7). The poet then describes these workings of the Cupid in a charming manner. In Stanza 52 we are introduced to the heroine of the poem viz. Cimani, the daughter of the elder brother of Alaha Virdi Khan, who was at the same time the wife the eldest son of this Khan. Cimani falls in love with Dayadeva Sarma and the poet describes their course of love in the latter half of the poem. In St. 67 we find two names mukhalisa and jhaphariya alaya or the house of Jafar (Continued from the previous page) lady or may have been the daughter of a Hindu lady admitted into the Muslim harem and then converted to Muslim faith. The sojourn of Allah Vardi Khan in the Deccan in A. D. 1636 for conquering the forts in the Nasik District may explain the Maratha name "Cimani of our heroine. Cimani" means a sparrow and by metaphor is applied to young ladies as a pet name. " "

" 334 STUDIES IN INDIAN LITERARY HISTORY (Khan). Mukhalis' was the elder brother of Alaha Virdi Khan while Jafar² was the name of Cimani's husband. Mukhlis is again referred to in St. 71 by the poet. Jafar mentioned in the Cimani-carita (St. 67) must be distinguished from Jafar Khan (mentioned by Bernier )³ who was the Prime minister of Aurangzeb. Bernier referes to the perfidy of one Allah-verdi-khan with Sultan Sujah. This Khan may be identical with AVK of the Cimani-carita and of Mr. Moneer's inscriptions of A. D. 1636. The love between Cimani and Dayadeva developed intensely in course of time but Cimani was curious to know if Dayadeva was really a Hindu :- 1. In the account of AVK given by Mr. Moneer we are told that Mukhlis Khan was the brother of AVK. This brother was companion to Prince Parviz between A. D. 1606 and 1627. Through Mukhlis Khan AVK was presented at the court of Jahangir. It seems that Cimani, the heroine of the Cimanicarita, was the daughter of this Mukhlis Khan mentioned by our poet. d, 2. Vide p. 186 of Bernier's Travels (1656-1668) Constable, London, 1891 - Among partisans of Aurangzeb Bernier mentions "the son of that Allah-verdikan, whose advice cost Sultan Sujah the battle, of Kadjoue, was made Governor of Scimdy. The Editor remarks: Jafar Khan, appointed Subadar of Allahabad, where he died in 1669 (Beale)" and identifies the son of AVK with Jafar Khan. If this identification is correct the Jafar of Cimani-carita was the son of AVK, husband of Cimani and the son-in-law of AVK's brother of Mukhlis Khan. The love of Cimani with a Brahmin youth Dayadeva was of course an extra-marital affair. " 3. Vide Bernier's Travels, p. 271-foot-note 4 - Jafar Khan entitled Umdat-ul-mulk was appointed Prime Minister by Aurangzeb (Alamgir) in 1662 and died in 1670 at Delhi. He was the son of Sadik Khan a cousin of Nur Jahan's who had married one of her sisters hence his kinship to Aurangzeb. " 4. Ibid, p. 77-footnote 1-" Aliwardi Khan Governor of Patna, who espoused the cause of Sultan Sujah, whom he followed to Bengal, where he was killed in July 1659." Cf. Mr.: Moneer's account of AV K's life where AVK is said to have been put to death in A. D. 1657 at Benares (Epi. Ind. Moslemica -1937-38, p. 9. Did AVK die in A. D. 1657 or 1659 ?

himdu kadya vrajasi hrdayam kutra me corayitva 335 labdho'si tvam kathamapi maya mrgyamanasvirena || 87 || " Dayadeva replied that he was Brahmin and showed her his Yajnopavita (sacred thread) vipro'ham tat pranayapadavim te'dhigantum na yogyo " Cimani said :- $6 - mevam bruyah punarapi sakhe yogya evasi yasmat | Dayadeva :- 65 svanmayudha yadavadhi manomanamasinmamasam " vipro'ham tat prabhrti puratah pasya yajnopavitam || 88 || " The two lovers passed their time happily as stated in St. 101 which concludes the romantic poem :- " anunisamavasistam karttumasinna kimcit kimapi na krtameva pratyabhanuprabhate | yavanipatitanuje prosite bhagyabhajo- riti vividhavilasairvasarani vyatiyuh || 101 || " The poet is conscious of the beauty of this romantic poem as depicted by him :- " rasa eva sa isvarah srutaviti nirnitamato'bhidhiyate | cimanicarite rasasritam vacanam cenna mama sramah sramah || 102 || " The poem seems to be a true story based on a contemporary love affair developed in the harem of Allah Vardi Khan Turkman. Whether any echo of this love story is found in Persian Sources, I cannot say at present as I am not conversant with these sources. With a view to helping further investigation of this story I represent its historical back-ground with the persons concerned in it as follows:- -BrotherAllah Vardi Khan Mukhalis Khan | (1606-1627 A.D.) daughter cimani (in love with dayadeva sarma ) -married Jafar (died A.D. 1669) | (1606-1659 A.D. Saifullah (died A.D. 1657)

The following table will show persons indentified by me on the strength of Cimani-carita and other sources:Cimani-carita = CC (A.D. 1656) (1) Alaha Virdi Khan called mlecchadhisa, yavanapati in CC. (2) Cimani is called " alahabiradi jyesthabamdhoh tanuja " & " alahabiradojyestasunoh bharyam (in CC. St. 52) " (3) Mukhalisa (mentioned in CC, Stanzas 67, 71) (4) Jafar (mentioned in CC St. 67) Persian Sources (=P) and Nasik Inscriptions (=N) (1) Allah Virdi Khan Turkman (N and P) (3) Mukhalis Khan (P) companion to Prince Parviz (1606-1629 A.D.) (4) Jafar Khan, son of AVK (Beale). Bernier refers to Jafar but not by name. The occurrence of the names Alaha Virdi Khan, Mukhlis, and Jafar in the Cimani-carita composed in A. D. 1656 by a pupil of Bhattoji Diksita and their indentification in other sources dealing with the life-history of Allah Vardi Khan Turkman is not a mere coincidence. We are, therefore, fully justified in presuming that the author of this romantic poem was in full knowledge of the love affair of the daughter-in-law of the celebrated Muslim noble of Shah Jahan's court. It appears that this noble, who employed a Brahmin tutor for the ladies of his household, may have patronised another Pandit of the name Lal Bihari¹ who is the author of a Persian version of Mitaksara composed in A. D. 1657 or so. As the poem Camani-carita is not a historical Kavya we cannot expect any history in it pertaining to the careers of the members of the family of Allah Vardi Khan. In the foregoing study I have used two rare Manuscripts of the poem in the Govt. 1. Vide p. 228 of Archaeological Survey of India (1929-30) where Mr. Moneer has written a note on the Persian version of the Mitaksara. May I request Mr. Moneer to examine the possible identity of Allavardi, patron of Lal Bihari with Allavardi Khan Turkman ?

MSS Library at the B. O. R. Institute viz. No. 357 of 1884-87 and No. 698 of 1886-92. One of these MSS is dated Samvat 1764 = A. D. 1708 while the other is dated Samvat 1800 = A. D. 1744. I propose to publish the text of this poem after some time in collaboration with my friend Dr. Har Datta Sharma. I read the Mss of this poem about 15 years ago but I could not then determine with certainty its historical background. Contemporary Kavyas, though not exactly of the historical type have a value of their own in giving to the history of a period that colour which is sometimes lacking in the dynastic and political history of the same period. Poetry as a reflection of contemporary life cannot fail to enrich the cultural history of a period, provided we are able to penetrate the gossamer of the poet's idealized narration and plant our feet on the terra firma of historical truth. I feel confident that close students of the Persian sources of the Mughal period will throw more light on the subject of this paper than what I have been able to do by presenting some new material regarding the household affairs of Allah Vardi Khan Turkman. The Oriental Biographical Dictionary by Thomas William Beale (London, 1894), p. 47 contains biographies of three persons of the name Alahwirdi Khan (or more correctly Ilahwirdi Khan). Two of these persons are mentioned in Cimani-carita as Alaha Viradi Khan and Jafar respectively. Their biographies as given by Beal may be recorded here:- (1) "Alahwirdi Khan - a nobleman of the reign of Emperor Jahangir. He was raised to the rank of 5000 in the time of Shah Jahan and held several offices of importance. He was appointed Governor of Patna and espoused the cause of Sultan Shuja, brother of Aurangzeb A. D. 1658 (A. H. 1068) and after the defeat of Shuja accompained him to Bengal where he was slain together with his son Saif-ullah, by order of that prince in July A. D. 1659 (Zil-qa'da A. H. 1069). " (2) "Alahwirdi Khan or more correctly Ilahwirdi Khan, title of Jafar Khan, the son of Ilawirdi Khan the first. He was raised to the rank of an Amir by 'Alamgir' with the title of Ilahwirdi Khan 'Alamgir-Shahi'. He was appointed Subadar of Allahabad where he died in A. D. 1669 (A. H. 1079). He was an excellent poet and has left a Diwan. " The date recorded in this paper amply proves that the poem Cimani-carita is based on a true story of the love affair of the daughter-in-law of Allavardi Khan Turkman. The chronology pertaining to the author of the poem and the historical persons S.I.L.H.22

connected with the poem may be represented as follows to enable the students of Persian sources of the Mughal history to trace, if possible, any references to this love affair in these sources say between A. D. 1620 and 1660 :A. D. Particulars AVK Allah Vardi Khan. NS Nilakantha Sukla. = 1606-1627 AVK came to India and was presented to the Mughal Court through his brother Mukhliskhan 1626 1627 1636 1637 1653 1656 1657 1659 C. 1659 1669 AKV made Superintendent of hunting excursions. AVK attached to Mahabat Khan for service in the field. AVK conquers Nasik forts acccording to inscriptions. NS composed his work on grammar called the Sabdasobha. AVK accompained Dara Shukoh to Persia for the capture of Qandhar. NS composed Cimani-carita which mentions Alla Vardi Khan, Mukhlis, Jafar. AVK was captured by Shuja at his house in Benares and put to death along with his son Saifullah for faithlessness. According to Beal AVK and his son Saifullah were slain in Bengal by order of Shuja. Aurangzeb raises Jafar Khan to the rank of an Amir. (Beale) Death of Jafar Khan at Allahabad, where he was Subadar. In the present paper I have presumed that Jafar Khan, the son of AVK was the husband of Cimani, the heroine of the CimaniCarita. Jafar Khan's brother Saifullah and his father AVK were

slain by Sultan Shuja either in A. D. 1657 at Benares or in A. D. 1659 in Bengal. Jafar died in A. D. 1669 i.e. about 10 or 12 years after the death of his father and brother. He was in the favour of Aurangzeb. The Cimani-carita describes the love of Cimani with the Brahmin' tutor Dayadeva Sarma but we have no information in this romantic poem about the relation of Jafar with Cimani subsequent to her clandestine love with her tutor. The Cimani-carita reminds us of Tennyson's Launcelot and Guenever. 1. The Cimani-carita, depicting the love of a Muslim girl for a Brahmin tutor, reminds us of (1) Jagannatha Panditaraya and his yavani and (2) Lolimbaraja and his Ratnakala. Jagannatha flourished in the middle of the 17 th century while Lolimbaraja lived during the last quarter of the 16 th century (Vide my paper on Lolimbaraja and his Works Indian Culture, Vol. VII, No. 3, pp. 327 ff. -