The Empires of the Near East and India: Source Studies of the Safavid, Ottoman, and Mughal Literate Communities

III. The Occult Sciences at the Mughal Court During the Sixteenth Century

EVA ORTHMANN

In the Mughal Empire, as elsewhere in the Persianate world, the occult sciences were of utmost importance. In the memoirs of Babur (r. 1526–1530), the founder of the Mughal dynasty, a keen interest in omens and dreams already testified to a belief in cosmological correlations.¹ This situation gained momentum with his son Humayun (r. 1530–1540, 1555–1556), famous for his interest in astronomy and astrology, but who also was well versed in other fields of knowledge. His penchant for occult sciences and cosmology inspired him to undertake all kinds of strange inventions and innovations, which are recorded in the sole historiographic work commissioned by him, the Qanun-i Humayuni. We thus learn that he used to wear garments colored according of the respective planet of each day, that he built a talismanic building, and that he celebrated the so-called talisman feast.

Our understanding of these inventions and their symbolic meaning is rudimentary in many cases.² The emperor’s orientation toward occult sciences corresponded to widespread trends in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries and was supported by certain Sufi circles who integrated magic practices into their devotional exercises. Humayun’s son and successor Akbar (r. 1556–1605) picked up some of his father’s practices, such as dressing in each day’s planetary color, and further elaborated a specific sun worship.³ In particular, the writings of Akbar’s chief ideologue Abu l-Fazl ʿAllami (d. 1602) demonstrate the great extent to which the importance of astrological and lettrist notions persisted during that emperor’s reign and were mingled with messianic and millenarian ideas.

The texts chosen for translation reflect both the period of Humayun and Akbar and shed light on the role of lettrism, astrology, and astral-letter magic at the Mughal court as well as in Sufi circles. All the texts were penned by writers from the emperor’s entourage; two of them served as close advisers and confidants to their respective patrons. This close relationship points to the legitimizing function of the occult sciences, which were often used either to confirm the status of the ruler or to associate him with celestial powers.

MUHAMMAD GHAWTH GWALIYARI: THE FIVE JEWELS (K. AL-JAWAHIR AL-KHAMS)

Muhammad Ghawth Gwaliyari (d. 1563), the author of the following text, was an eminent Sufi in the time of the Mughal emperor Humayun (r. 1530–1540, 1555–1556). He belonged to the Sufi order of the Shattariyya, which traced its origins to Central Asia and spread to Northern India during the second half of the fifteenth century. When Babur, the founder of the Mughal dynasty, went to India, he came into contact with Muhammad Ghawth and his brother Shaykh Phul. Both acquired respected positions at court in the time of Babur’s successor Humayun. Shaykh Phul was so close to the emperor that during internal struggles between Humayun and his brothers Shaykh Phul was killed in 945 (1538–39) by Humayun’s opponents. When Humayun went into exile in Iran, Muhammad Ghawth moved to Gujarat where he stayed until Humayun reconquered Northern India in 1555. After Humayun’s death, Muhammad Ghawth and the Shattariyya lost their political prominence and he was reduced to a respected, but much less influential position.4

Muhammad Ghawth authored several texts. Among them his Persian and Arabic translations of the Amrtakunda (a Sanskrit treatise on Yoga)5 and his Kitab al-Jawahir al-Khams (Book of the Five Jewels) are the most famous. While the translations of the Amrtakunda belong to the realm of texts translated from Indian languages into Persian, The Five Jewels deals with five central aspects of Sufi practice: prayer (ʿibada), asceticism (zuhd), invocation (daʿwa), litany (dhikr), and action (ʿamal).⁶ The translated passage below is from the third chapter on invocations. These invocations are based on lettrist analyses of the Most Beautiful Names of God (asmaʾ Allah al-husna). Muhammad Ghawth lists forty-one divine names, each of them composed of several nouns and adjectives. These names are invoked either all together or separately according to specific rules, relating both to external circumstances during the invocation as well as to the mode of recitation, the repetition of words or single letters, and the total number of recitations. Muhammad Ghawth describes in detail the effect of each of these forty-one names. Many of these effects are quite spectacular, providing the invoker with tremendous power. The strangest and most peculiar effects, however, are those associated with the subjugation of the planets, by reason of which the Kitab al-Jawahir al-Khams is often referred to as an exemplar of astral magic.

While this is not true for the rest of the book, the invocation of these seven names do belong to the realm of astral magic, although the invocations and their expected effects are quite different from what we find in other such texts. Although planets are usually invoked and addressed directly, and then asked to fulfill a specific desire, in the case of the Kitab al-Jawahir al-Khams, the invocation is made via the recitation of one specific divine name. This invocation can be used for other ends as well, but by observing specific conditions, the invocation results in the subjugation of a planet, in the case given below, the Sun.

The specific interest of this text follows first of all from the close relationship between its author and Humayun, who himself was very interested in astrology and other occult sciences. Although no direct traces between what we know about Humayun and this text have yet come to light, it stands for the kind of texts adopted and perceived at court. Furthermore, the text mingles lettrist speculations with astral magic in a very peculiar way, which has not yet been observed in other texts, and demonstrates the extent of magic speculations made by certain Sufi groups in India in the sixteenth century.

The The Five Jewels was translated into Arabic early on and later also into Urdu. No edition of the original Persian version exists today, so this translation is based on the Arabic edition.⁷

Translation

THE THIRTEENTH NAME: “O BLAMELESS ONE DEVOID OF ANY EVIL BY HIS HOLINESS”

This is a name that belongs to the realm of beauty.⁸ It is especially apt to attain anything related to the heart and to subjugate demons and mankind (al-jinn wa-l-ins) and to summon them. You recite it for forty days, 15,000 times each day. You begin on a Saturday in the hour of Saturn on the ninth or the twelfth of the month.

Any person who performs his ablutions on a Wednesday and puts on clean and pure clothes and recites it in an empty house 2,051 times, to him seven chiefs from among the spirits (arwah) will appear. And if he gives up [eating] animals belonging to the realm of majesty and beauty some days before beginning with the recitation, his mind will be pure, so the spirits will like his company, and he will not be destroyed by the view of marvelous and strange things.

The sign by which they (that is, the spirits) can be recognized is that they are dressed like Turks, and that they are wearing the crown of sovereignty on their head, and that their faces are like moons, and that the walls are filled with light from the reflection of their gleam when they arrive and stand in front of the praying person and talk to him. The praying person however must not talk to them, but must busy himself repeating the name that he recites publicly until they say to him: “O creature of God, what is your need, what concerns you, what is your aim? Explain your situation to us!”

The praying person will then say to them: “O creatures of God, you have honored [me] and behaved in a friendly way and conferred a favor on me, may God be pleased with you because of your obedience to the name and your attendance to the prayer. My aim and my expectance from you is that you help me at X place and X time, or with respect to X occurrence happening to me, be it good or evil, from friends or adversaries. Empower me and look after me in friendship, do not deprive me of your kindness and benevolence, and fulfill all my needs.”

He then stands up and puts his right hand on his chest and says: “O beloved ones of God, may God honor you just as you have honored me. Give me the token to set my heart at rest, and to be a means to call for you at the time of need, so that you provide for my needs.”

They will respond: “You do not need any token henceforth. We will come at the time of need and provide for your needs.” He will then say: “Yes, you are like that for us, and you are capable of doing so, but I request a token lest I need the prayer another time.” And when they hear the name of the prayer, they give him the ring immediately. It looks like a bird’s egg with a green inscription on it. He treats it with reverence and rubs it with earnestness and says: “I ask you to teach me this script, so I can read it.” They then teach him the names written [on it] and explain to him the particularities of the script that they teach him, and advise him to protect the ring and to keep it from the eyes of menstruating women, those who are not his kinsmen, sinful people, and liars.

Then, he makes apparent to them [their] defeat and subjugation and says to them: “I grant you leave, and you are given honor. I commend you to the protection of God, and allow you now to return to your abodes and to come to me [only] in time of need.” And so they will: when he has any need, he recites the names written on the ring seven times, and they arrive. He must also make use of incense. They will then provide for his need, on the condition that he is ritually pure and clean at the time of prayer and commits no mistake.

Many secrets are related to this prayer, which he9 does not show for as long as possible. Any person who wants to recite this name to subjugate the Sun has first of all to focus his thoughts, perform an ablution and purge his interior (batin) from [attachment to] possessions, achievements, rank and worldly diffidence. He then embarks upon this prayer by reciting it continuously and uninterruptedly for up to 150 days for its effect to appear, without counting the number of recitations. Mostly and during the majority of hours, he will be facing the Sun, after finding a remote place and solitude. Whenever one of the secrets of the Sun is disclosed to him, he does not reveal it to anybody with whom he is not familiar, but hides it. This prayer is called the prayer of the Sun, and the subjugation of the Sun. In his heart, he shall always bear in mind that he subjugates the Sun, and he shall comply with this task and repeat the first and the last and say: “O Sun, fulfill my prayer to God Almighty.” He says [this] clearly in a strong and loud voice, while he recites the great name in a normal voice until the mentioned period has elapsed.

When it has elapsed, he will see with his own eyes that the Sun descends from the sky and approaches the praying person in a condition in which she¹⁰ looks bigger than usual. And when she comes close to the praying person, her figure is transformed into that of a cow’s head, and then she changes into a beautiful appearance and elegant form, whose sight rejoices the practitioner. He will be delighted by her beauty, and not bewildered by her approach. She behaves graciously toward the practitioner in the manner of friendship and love. And the Sun becomes his associate by talking to him, and she asks him: “What is your desire, O praying person?”

He then expounds his desire to her in a fluent and suitable tongue and recites the name in a beautiful and soft voice, and looks at the face of the Sun like a novice of the Sun (murid shamsi), until the Sun embraces him and sheds light on his presence, and speaks to him saying: “I have accepted you. Wherever you are and whatever you want, I will provide you with what you need, and I pledge that whenever you call me, I will come to you and fulfill your desire.” And when the witness of the sphere (shahid al-falak) addresses him with these words, the praying person knows for certain that she will come to him and does not lie. The praying person then stands up and places his hand on his chest to glorify the Sun and behaves very respectfully toward her until the one who has descended from the heavens reascends thereto. The praying person follows her with his eyes until she reaches her usual place. The praying person then observes her, and is at that moment in the presence of his observed object and does not turn to anybody else.

At that time, many creatures appear to him and say to him in a loud voice: “Rise and place him (sic) on the throne! For you are our ruler today, because we have removed our former ruler. We accept your rule.”¹¹ All the creatures express agreement with these words. But the praying person must not pay attention to their words, and not sit down on the throne to avoid causing offense, because this is a great ruse; he must rather seat somebody else as his deputy in his place and wait for forty [days] until they come once more to request the praying person. At that time, he rises and takes his seat on the throne. His rule will then last for a long period by the decree of God Most High, and God Most High will give him success. And he will rule in every regard according to what pleases God, and he will be commissioned therewith. And if he desires his rule to last and the might of his prosperity to increase, he must act according to the requirements of the holy verse “And take provision; but the best provision is godfearing.”¹² So he accumulates provisions in this world and the next in order that by the blessing of his company, all his followers proceed successfully, and the people follow the religion of their rulers, and the godliness enables the praying person to stay on the right path. And God is the guide.

MUHAMMAD FADIL SAMARQANDI: JAWAHIR AL-ʿULUM-I HUMAYUNI

The Jawahir al-ʿUlum-i Humayuni (Jewels of Humayunic Sciences) is an encyclopedic work dedicated to the Mughal emperor Humayun. The encyclopedia thus belongs to the relatively small corpus of texts preserved from this emperor’s environment. Unfortunately, almost nothing is known about its author, Muhammad Fadil b. ʿAli b. Muhammad Miskini Samarqandi. He does not seem to have written any other book and is not mentioned in sources relating to Babur, Humayun, or Akbar.13 We therefore have to be content with the little information contained in the Jawahir al-ʿUlum, which shows him to be a man of vast knowledge who lived at least up to the time of Humayun’s return to India (1554).

Subdivided into three books (maqalat), the encyclopedia contains altogether 120 chapters on all kinds of subjects, including poetry, calligraphy, grammar, and logic, but also etiquette, jurisprudence, medicine, historiography, and—in the second part of the third maqala—occult sciences. We find therein, among other things, chapters on astrology, lettrism, talismans, geomancy, alchemy, and the subjugation of the planets.¹⁴ Although the encyclopedia has never been studied in detail, the author apparently copied entire chapters from earlier treatises; this is at least the case with his chapter on breath control, which corresponds to the chapter on ʿilm-i dam (science of breathing) and ʿilm-i wahm (science of imagining) from Amuli’s Nafaʾis al-Funun.¹⁵ The chapter on the subjugation of the planets is very similar to the invocations of the planets in the Ghayat al-Hakim, but shorter, rendering only the phrases with which the praying person addresses the planets directly. Because of such alterations, it is improbable that as-Samarqandi copied these passages directly from the Ghayat al-Hakim, but his model was certainly somehow related to that tradition.

The differences between as-Samarqandi’s (and the Ghayat al-Hakim’s) invocation of the planets and Muhammad Ghawth’s prayers are striking. In as-Samarqandi’s version, the planets are addressed directly. The praying person appeals to Saturn, Jupiter, and so forth by imploring the planet, which is first called by its name and then entitled with epithets. The request of the praying person and the effect of the prayer are not specified. The great names of God are irrelevant in these invocations but are mentioned in the chapter on daʿwat al-asmaʾ (invocation of the names) of as-Samarqandi’s encyclopedia. We may thus assume that these names were well known in the early sixteenth century but only exceptionally used for the invocation of the planets; maybe this use was even introduced by Muhammad Ghawth.

As-Samarqandi’s encyclopedia has not yet been edited. The text is preserved in three copies in the Ganj Bakhsh Library in Lahore (MS 301), in the Maulana Azad Library at the Aligarh Muslim University (MS University ʿulum-i farsi 87), and in the Khuda Bakhsh Library in Patna (MS 910); the latter, however, does not contain the parts on occult sciences. The two copies from Aligarh and Lahore both contain several misreadings and misspellings, resulting in uncertain interpretations. The translation has been based on the wording of as-Samarqandi’s text;16 only unintelligible words have been corrected in consideration of the reading in the Ghayat al-Hakim. Most of the original text is in Arabic; passages originally in Persian have been indicated in the translation.

Translation

EXCERPT FROM THE THIRD BOOK FROM THE JAWAHIR AL-ʿULUM-I HUMAYUNI ON THE SUBJUGATION OF THE SEVEN PLANETS

The invocation of Saturn:¹⁷ O lord whose name is mighty, whose significance is great, whose standing is elevated and whose degree is high! You are Saturn, the dry and cold, the one who brings oppression and bad luck, who is just in his words and his anger, single in his grief and sadness, who has relinquished joy, the most worthy by your great benefits and pleasure, the haughty, the holder of measurements, the rational, the just, the quick-witted, the old man who renders sad and unhappy the miserable, and happy whom he renders happy. I ask you, o guiltless father, by the right of your great benefits and your noble character, I ask you to fulfill my desire and my wish.

The invocation of Jupiter:¹⁸ O lord who is blessed and wise, and who is pious and self-denying, skillful and of great standing, the venerable,¹⁹ good and beneficent, who renders rich and who is true to his commitment, I ask you, o father, by the right of your praiseworthy character and your precious qualities, I ask you to fulfill my desire and my wish such and such. [In Persian]: This means that he here speaks his wish.

The invocation of Mars:²⁰ O lord who is eminent and oppressing, the dry with a brave heart who draws off the blood, the vanquisher²¹ and victor, experienced in the use of the palm branch,²² the one who brings torture and harm and imprisonment and sorrow and slandering,²³ the scarce one who is fortunate for somebody who comes to fight, the stupid and strange, the bearer of weapons who has married many times, I ask you to fulfill my desire and my wish such and such. [In Persian]: This means that he here speaks his wish.

The invocation of the Sun:²⁴ O lord who is dry and hot, the enlightening one, entrusted with wisdom, you dominated the fight of the stars so they obey you and you became manifest for them, and this [implies that] when you go away from them, they come back to you. By your light, they take fire and by your shining, they radiate. You have superiority over all of them. You are the king over them and they are lucky when you look at them, and unlucky when you join them [through combustion]. And when you mix the knowledge of your favor, you obtain evil by it. I ask you to fulfill my desire and my wish such and such.

The invocation of Venus:25 O lord who is blessed, the wet and temperate one, the fragrant one with beautiful characteristics, the laughing one, possessor of jewelry and adornment and happiness and gold and silver and entertainment and [good] temperament and joy and recitation by which the lutes are set in motion. And the associate of amusement and [good] temperament, the victorious and futile and dreadful, the moving one, the beloved and [?], the one with good wedding, the master of happiness, I ask you to fulfill my desire and my wish such and such with regard to such and such.

The invocation of Mercury:²⁶ O lord who is outstanding and sincere, the just, intelligent, endowed with reason, and with bright understanding,²⁷ the savant and writer who takes into consideration the news from the skies and from earth, with little joy, who brings financial advantages²⁸ in trade. Master of malice, slyness, and hypocrisy, the one on whom people rely, the vigilant, the sincere, the one who is congruous with great and trivial things. No characteristics of yours are known, by God. You were not created with a description, and did not obtain one. You are fortunate with the fortunate and inauspicious with the inauspicious, male with the male and female with the female. And with what happens during the daytime, you are related to the day, and with what happens during the night, you are related to the night; you adapt yourself to them in their natures and resemble them in their similarity to you. I ask you to fulfill my desire and my wish such and such.

The invocation of the Moon:²⁹ O lord who is auspicious, the cold and wet, the beautiful and merry, judge in the regulation of love and entertainment and joking and amusement, master of letters and information, summit of concealment, the full moon (badr) and the liberal, the merciful and wise. Your sphere is the closest one to us among them, and you are the one with the greatest benefit and damage. You are the one who unites the stars, the virtuous one who brings together some of them owing to their light. Because of your goodness, everything becomes right, and because of your weakness, everything is spoiled. And God provides you with mercy, honor and precedence. I ask you to fulfill my desire and my wish this and that.

[In Persian]: It is necessary to write down this spell at the end of every spell he composes out of two names and to produce it according to the number of these letters. It is the following: I set ablaze³⁰ and I burnt and I awakened affection in the heart of this woman, daughter of so-and-so, by the right of this composite word and the spirits and by the right of “ya hayy ya qayyum”³¹ toward me and the earth and the heavens and by the right of these obscure letters. Haste, haste, now, now, hurry, hurry!

ABU L-FAZL ʿALLAMI: AKBAR-NAMA

The Akbar-nama of Abu l-Fazl ʿAllami (d. 1602) is probably the best-known and most famous account of the reign of the Mughal emperor Akbar (r. 1556–1605).32 Abu l-Fazl, the author of this chronicle, was the chief ideologue at Akbar’s court. Born in 1551 in Agra, he encountered persecution at an early stage when his father, Shaykh Mubarak, was accused of heresy. In 1574, he came to the court of Akbar where his brother Fayzi had already served earlier as poet laureate. He soon won the confidence of the ruler and became his close adviser.³³

Abu l-Fazl had a profound influence on the development of Akbar’s religious doctrines and was crucial in shaping his imperial ideology, the so-called din-i ilahi (divine faith). One cornerstone of this ideology consisted in depicting Akbar as the “perfect man” (insan-i kamil), a concept deeply rooted in Islamic mysticism and elaborated especially by Ibn ʿArabi in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. This “perfect man” was imagined as a human being of the highest moral and ethical standing and distinguished by having reached the final goal of mystical experience, the essential oneness with God. His rank was considered similar to that of prophets.³⁴ In the time of Akbar, the notion of the “perfect man” was projected onto the emperor to legitimize the outstanding and quasi-superhuman position he assumed not only in worldly affairs but also in religious matters. Abu l-Fazl actively helped in promoting this imperial image and did so not least in the Akbar-nama. The portrayal of Akbar as a “perfect man” pervades this book, impregnating the representation of the emperor from the very first to the very last page: Akbar is described as the most perfect creation, long expected and announced, he assembles all positive characteristics in his person, is illuminated by the divine light, he has a higher spiritual standing than any Sufi master, and so on.³⁵

The four passages selected here are good examples of the presentation of this imperial image. In all four of them, the superiority of the ruler and his chosen nature are demonstrated by referring to occult sciences. In the first case, the author refers to lettrism. Lettrist speculations about the attribution of the planets, the zodiacal signs, and the four elements (fire, earth, air, and water) to the twenty-eight letters of the alphabet, and calculations based on the numerical value of the letters are applied here to the name of the emperor Akbar. According to Abu l-Fazl, Akbar’s name is distinguished by two specifics: first, each of the four letters of his name belongs to a different element. His name thus comprises the four elements in perfect equilibrium. And second, the numerical value of Akbar corresponds to the numerical value of aftab, or Sun. The specific importance of this equation must be understood in the context of the high prominence of the Sun and its veneration in the time of Akbar. The emperor virtually symbolized and represented the sun on earth and imitated its daily and annual course by specific acts. The numerical equivalence of Akbar’s name and the word aftab was thus perceived as further proof of this close relationship. It is important to note that the numerical value can only by equated here when we do not take the “normal” numerical value of the word aftab, but the so-called indications of its letters.

One further issue is worth bearing in mind: it is highly probable that the lettrist symbolism of Akbar’s name was not accidental but intentional. Because it was not Akbar himself who chose his name, but his father Humayun, this lettrist symbolism confirms the great importance of lettrism in the time of Humayun and thus bears further witness to the relevance of this science under Akbar’s predecessor. In spite of what Abu l-Fazl wants us to believe, the lettrist symbolism of the name has much more to do with Humayun’s expertise in this field and his deep interest in occult sciences than with Akbar’s “chosen” nature.

Humayun’s expertise is all the more apparent in the other passages, which are all related to the ascendant and the horoscope of Akbar. Although reduced to the role of a passive observer who rejoices at the future greatness of his son, the second Mughal emperor’s knowledge of astrology is reflected in his preparation and explanation of the horoscope. By claiming that a divine intervention delayed the moment of birth, and by ascertaining that Akbar’s ascendant is even better than that of Timur, the ancestor of the Mughal dynasty and so-called lord of conjunction,36 these passages from the Akbar-nama³⁷ artfully depict Akbar’s support by occult forces and his superiority over all mankind.

Translation

THE LETTRIST SIGNIFICANCE OF AKBAR’S NAME

When this sublime feast³⁸ was over, [Humayun] named this holy jewel according to a vision of the unseen world and a divine indication, as has already been explained, with this highest surname and greatest name,³⁹ and had it fixed and inscribed on the pages of felicity and on the flagstones of dominion. After two years and four months, the interpretation of this truth-adorned vision thus became evident.⁴⁰

God be praised, what a sublime name and precious talisman that came down from the heaven of magnificence and the sphere of light and dark!⁴¹ From east to west, the splendor of this name and the ray of its holder encompasses [the world].

Among the many noble things related to this name of marvelous disposition, one is what my elder brother who unites perfections of the terrene and the spiritual world, the poet laureate, Shaykh Abu l-Faiz Faizi, has demonstrated in one of his marvelous writings, namely, that it belongs to the rare correspondences related to the mysteries of letters—which are the words of the sublime existences and whose influences are manifest to the fullest in the world of isolation and assembly pursuant to the differences in the degrees and steps of binding and connection⁴²—that the indications of the letters of the word aftab (Sun), whose numerical value is 223, correspond to the numerical value of the letters of the word akbar (the greatest).⁴³

The light that manifests from the world-adorning Sun

Also manifests from the face of the exalted great king.

For Akbar is related to the Sun:

This mystical signification is manifest in the indications of the names.

It furthermore belongs to the mysterious meanings of this illustrious name that those who are versed in the signs of jafr and taksir [methods of divination] and who know about the signs and combinations of letters and who recognize the dispositions of articulate sounds and words—who are aware of the secret stations of the [divine] essence and the manifest ones of revelation and have knowledge about the bright or dark condition of the letters by considering them free of dots and dotted—have attributed to each of the four elements seven of the twenty-eight letters of the alphabet. The well-balanced letters of this sublime name assemble all four grades (that is, elements) and thus provide information on the entirety of degrees of beauty and greatness and all other attributes of excellence and perfection. Thus, the letter alif (ا) belongs to fire, kaf (ك) to water, ba (ب) to air, and ra (ر) to earth. Whenever a name is composed of letters belonging equally to all [four] elements in such a way that no element is missing and none repeated, this name is within the boundaries of its essence in perfect equilibrium. And this is an innate equilibrium that affects the bearer of that name by [providing him with] a good temperament, a healthy body, a long life, a prospering fortune and long-lasting happiness.

Within this [context], another point has also found access to the window of perception: because of this great fortune,44 no matter how many enemies appear, they will be annihilated and scattered, because the letters of this name are composed and arranged in such a way that kaf and ba constitute its middle letters. Kaf belongs to water and removes its upper enemy, the fire, and ba, belonging to air, scatters its lower enemy, which is the earth.⁴⁵ Those who are aware of the subtleties of the secrets must acquire knowledge of the symbols of sublime signs of this marvelous name and aid in the spread of felicity and blessings by its bearer.

AKBAR’S BIRTH AT A MOST AUSPICIOUS MOMENT

A rare event that happened shortly before the manifestation of the light of good fortune was the following: before this auspicious moment, nature required to give birth. Mawlana Chand, the astrologer, who, by royal order, was present at the threshold of chastity to determine the ascendant, became agitated [and said]: “Just now, the moment is inauspicious. However, in a few hours,⁴⁶ an auspicious moment will arrive such as happens only once in 1,000 years. I wish the birth could be delayed!” The people present at the assembly made light of this, [saying]: “What benefit is there in this? These things cannot be chosen!” At that instant, the requirement ceased. To some extent, his (that is, Mawlana Chand’s) mind was put at ease with the inauspicious moment’s passing.

The outward reason for this great gift was the following: at that time, they brought a midwife to take on responsibility for this service. Because she was ugly in countenance, the holy spirit of her majesty Maryam Makani⁴⁷ expressed aversion at the sight of her. And her well-balanced temperament became disturbed, so that this urgency did not persist in her nature.

And when the chosen moment was coming close, the Mawlana became anxious that this moment should not pass. The intimates of the holy haram48 let him know: “Her majesty of the most eminent cradle has found some rest after much labor and is sleeping. It would not be appropriate to waken her. Whatever the incomparable God in His will has decreed will happen.” While they were talking in this way, a violent pain awoke her majesty Maryam Makani. And at that auspicious moment, this peerless jewel of the caliphate whose fortune is awake appeared.

[ʿAllami, Akbar-nama, 1:18–19]⁴⁹

PREPARING THE HOROSCOPE OF AKBAR

The authorities of science, whom Alexander himself would have estimated,⁵⁰ and the specialists in the astrolabe, who fix the astronomical tables and constantly take part in the assembly of the occult as the confidants of the heavenly secrets, turned the horoscope of the ascendant for this fortunate birth into a mirror of the illumination-receiving mind: they reported on the aspects of the planets and the total conjunctions and the details of the astrological decrees and the consequences of their influence with regard to the duration of life and the height of progress on the ladder of rule and the degrees of caliphate. An abridged draft of these tables will be reproduced.

They compared the marvelous conclusions and deductions regarding the indications of the horoscope of this divine model, which were based on his majesty the paradisaical world-protector’s (jahanbani jannat-ashyani) own investigation—who had a high standing in the mathematical sciences and whose thoughts attained the celestial spheres, because the discerning mind of his majesty was the exhilarating mirror of Alexander and the world-revealing cup of Jam—with the results that the other specialists had discovered from the occult signs with regard to the effects of the simple spheres and the consequences of the substances and bodies. They found everything in perfect mutual accordance.

[ʿAllami, Akbar-nama, 1:21]⁵¹

EXPLANATION OF THE WISDOM IN THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE GREEK PHILOSOPHERS AND THE ASTROLOGERS FROM INDIA WITH REGARD TO THE AUSPICIOUS ASCENDANT OF HIS MAJESTY, THE SUPREME KING

Some of the scholarly authorities of these days surmised that the disagreement between the astronomers of India and the sphere measurers of Greece—the former indicating that his majesty’s ascendant is in Leo, and the latter in Virgo—occurred because of the scholars’ discrepancy with regard to the precession…. Those who discern the inner truth and who understand the heavenly secrets are perplexed because of this disagreement and these sources of variance. But now that the leading scholar of our days, ʿAdud ad-Dawla Amir Fathullah Shirazi,52 has established the fortunate ascendant of the supreme king by Greek rules and Persian precepts and has confirmed it to be Leo—as has been shown—it becomes apparent that the source of this difference was not what they surmised, especially not that the scholars from India do not acknowledge the existence of celestial spheres, as will be explained in the second volume.⁵³ Rather, the divine wisdom and zeal required that the situation of this rider on the field of magnificence and resident of the secluded place of greatness should be hidden and concealed from the thoughtful sight of those who know and see the smallest subtleties, as well as from the eye of evil thinkers whose heart is blind.

It is for this reason that his majesty the paradisaical world-protector (that is, Humayun)—who among the enthroned people with insight into subtle distinctions had superior knowledge about the exact use of the astrolabe and the realities of astronomical tables (zij) and observations and who was a second Alexander the Greek—was not able to determine the ascendant of the lord of time in spite of much endeavor and effort. And in the same way, the other people who know the secrets of astrology remained behind the curtain of contradiction and did not cooperate with respect to this rare matter.

For all the conformity between the rules of computation and the research of right-thinking calculators—because today’s experts show less disagreement in these things—by the requirement of divine zeal, the truth of the holy horoscope remained hidden behind a veil and covered in contradiction.

Altogether, with each of these horoscopes—whose drafts will be shown—if considered with impartiality, it becomes obvious that with regard to knowledge of God and divine understanding and with regard to elevated standing and rank as well as both outward and inward eminence, there cannot be a second one like him. Although the horoscopes differ from each other, they agree in [him being] the outer and inner ornament of the state, and congratulate the possessor of this ascendant for his supremacy in the outer and the inner [world].

People close to his majesty the paradisaical world-protector, whose outer and inner being was adorned with rightness and propriety, were heard saying that when his majesty looked at the horoscopes with the auspicious ascendants and studied them, it sometimes happened that in the retirement of his private rooms, with the doors closed, he fell to dancing out of sheer affection and moved in circles out of emotion.

Yes indeed, those sitting in the highest place at the court of true delight and the cupbearers at the table of eternal knowledge, who receive the delights of the sweetness of divine ecstasy and knowledge—why should they not be out of their senses from gratitude at attaining these pleasures? And why should they not murmur in excessive love and ecstasy from excess of joy and cheerfulness? For accession to the eminent degrees of these perfections is tantamount to knowledge of God.

And because of his perfect essence, his majesty the paradisaical world-protector perceived the flashings of the things to come and future circumstances, and the perfection and good fortune of this most holy royal being. All these lights became visible in the mirror of this marvelous horoscope before they came into effect. Repeatedly, he explained to those worthy of his speech that with regard to some sublime matters, the ascendant of this luminary of good fortune is several degrees better than the ascendant of the Lord of Conjunction (sahib-qiran),54 as is evident to those who look closely at the tables of astrological rules. And if one compares these two precious documents of bliss and weighs the effects of the planets and the auspicious [influences] of the upper planets with respect to each other with careful consideration, one discovers what information is contained in the horoscope of the Lord of Conjunction vis-à-vis that in these holy horoscopes.

[ʿAllami, Akbar-nama, 1:41–43]⁵⁵

NOTES

1. Azfar Moin, The Millennial Sovereign: Sacred Kingship and Sainthood in Islam (New York: Columbia University Press, 2012), 60–74.

2. Eva Orthmann, “Court Culture and Cosmology in the Mughal Empire: Humayun and the foundations of the din-i ilahi,” in Court Cultures in the Muslim World: Seventh to Nineteenth Centuries, ed. Albrecht Fuess and Jan-Peter Hartung (London: Routledge, 2011), 203–9; Moin, The Millennial Sovereign, 113–25.

3. Heike Franke, Akbar und Ǧahangir: Untersuchungen zur politischen und religiösen Legitimation in Text und Bild (Schenefeld: EB-Verlag, 2005), 224–31; Orthmann, “Court Culture and Cosmology,” 209–12.

4. For information on Muhammad Ghawth, compare Carl W. Ernst, “Persecution and Circumspection in Shattari Sufism,” in Islamic Mysticism Contested: Thirteen Centuries of Controversies and Polemics, ed. Frederick de Jong and Bernd Radtke (Leiden: Brill, 1999), 418–24; Scott Kugle, “Heaven’s Witness: The Uses and Abuses of Muhammad Ghawth’s Mystical Ascension,” Journal of Islamic Studies 14, no. 1 (2003): 7–12, 24–35; Eva Orthmann, “Lettrism and Magic in an Early Mughal Text. Muhammad Ghawth’s k. al-Jawahir al-Khams,” in The Occult Sciences in Pre-Modern Islamic Cultures, ed. Nader el-Bizri and Eva Orthmann (Beirut: Ergon-Verlag 2018), 224–26.

5. Carl W. Ernst, “The Islamization of Yoga in the ‘Amrtakunda’ Translations,” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society 13, no. 2 (2003): 203–5.

6. Carl W. Ernst, “Jawaher-e Kamsa,” in Encyclopaedia Iranica, vol. 14 (New York: Bibliotheca Persica Press, 2008), 608–609; Orthmann, “Lettrism and Magic.”

7. Muhammad Ghawth al-Hindi, al-Jawahir al-khams, ed. Aḥmad ibn al-ʿAbbas, (Cairo: Muḥammad Rifʻat ʻAmir, 1973), 1:165–68.

8. Divine names are divided into names belonging to the realm of beauty (jamal) and names belonging to the realm of majesty (jalal). A third category consists of names belonging to both realms: Ghawth al-Hindi, al-Jawahir al-Khams, 2:112–16.

9. The subject of this sentence is not evident.

10. In Arabic, the sun is feminine. For this reason, I use “she” in the following instead of “it.”

11. It would make more sense to translate: “rise and place yourself on the throne, because you are our ruler today,” but in both the Arabic and the Persian version, the imperatives in this sentence are in the plural form, whereas the rest of the sentence is in the second person singular.

12. Qurʾan 2:197, respectively, 2:193. English translation: Arthur John Arberry, The Koran Interpreted (London: Allen Unwin, 1963, 1971), 1:55 (here: Sura 2:193).

13. Muhammad Husain Tasbihi, “Jawahir ul-ʿulum-i Humayuni,” in Wahid 211/212 (1356/1977), 34–35.

14. For an overview of the chapters, see Tasbihi, “Jawahir ul-ʿulum-i Humayuni,” 40–42, and “Manuscript Catalogue: Persian Volumes,” Khudabakhsh Library, 9:144–50, http://kblibrary.bih.nic.in/.

15. I owe this information to Kazuyo Sakaki who is currently working on that text.

16. Qadi Muhammad Fadil as-Samarqandi, Jawahir al-ʿulum-i Humayuni, MS Ganj Bakhsh No. 301, fol. 498b–499a, and MS Maulana Azad Library, MS University ʿulum-i farsi 87, fol. 741 a–b.

17. Compare with Maslama b. Ahmad al-Majriti, Ghayat al-Hakim wa Haqq an-Natijatain bi t-Taqdim, ed. Hellmut Ritter: “Picatrix”: Das Ziel des Weisen von Pseudo-Maǧriti (Leipzig/Berlin: B.G. Teubner, 1933), 203: 10–16.

18. Compare with al-Majriti, Ghayat al-Hakim, 205: 5–10.

19. I read الشیخی instead of الشخی.

20. Compare with al-Majriti, Ghayat al-Hakim, 211: 13–212: 3.

21. القاهر, epithet of Mars.

22. Instead of النطاس بالجرید, al-Majriti has الطیاش الحاد = the inconstant and impetuous, which probably makes more sense.

23. I read النمیمة instead of الثمیة, which does not make any sense.

24. Compare with al-Majriti, Ghayat al-Hakim, 217: 15–218: 4.

25. Compare with al-Majriti, Ghayat al-Hakim, 219: 10–18.

26. Compare with al-Majriti, Ghayat al-Hakim, 221: 18–223: 8.

27. I read شاطر instead of ساطر.

28. I read مفید instead of مفسد.

29. Compare with al-Majriti, Ghayat al-Hakim, 223: 18–224: 11.

30. The text has هجت instead of هججت

31. Vocative particle with the epithets of God, hayy = living, qayyum = everlasting.

32. For the Akbar-nama, see, for example, Richard M. Eaton, “Akbar-Nama,” in Encyclopædia Iranica (New York: Bibliotheca Persica Press, 1985), 1:714–15; Stephan Conermann, Historiographie als Sinnstiftung: Indo-persische Geschichtsschreibung während der Moghulzeit (932–1118/1516–1707) (Wiesbaden, Germany: Reichert, 2002), 159–73.

33. For biographies of Abu l-Fazl, see, for example, Richard M. Eaton, “Abu’l-Fazl Allami,” in Encyclopædia Iranica (New York: Bibliotheca Persica Press, 1985), 1:287–89; Conermann, Historiographie als Sinnstiftung, 96–101.

34. Gerhard Böwering, “Ensan-e Kamel,” in Encyclopædia Iranica (New York: Bibliotheca Persica Press, 1998), 8:457–61.

35. Historiographical concepts and narrative strategies in the Akbar-nama are described in detail in Conermann, Historiographie als Sinnstiftung, 159–73.

36. Babur was on his father’s side a descendant of Timur Lenk or Tamerlan (r. 1370–1405). Sahib-qiran, lord of conjunction, is an honorific title bestowed on Timur that points to his astrological preeminence.

37. Abu’l-Fadl ʿAllami, Akbar-nama, ed. Agha Ahmad ʿAli and ʿAbd al-Rahim, 3 vols. (Calcutta: Baptist Mishan Press, 1877–1886), 1:21–22.

For a partial translation of this text into German, see Franke, Akbar und Ǧahangir, 232–33; for a complete translation into English, see Abu’l-Fadl ʿAllami, The Akbarnama of Abu’l Fazl: History of the Reign of Akbar Including an Account of His Predecessors, trans. Henry Beveridge (Calcutta: The Asiatic Society of Bengal, 1897–1921), 1:64–68; Wheeler Thackston, trans., The History of Akbar (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2015), 1:77–79.

38. Just before the translated passage, the author describes a feast arranged by Humayun on the news of his son’s birth.

39. The expression “greatest name,” اسم اعظم, is usually applied to the greatest name of God, Allah.

40. The text refers here to a vision that occurred, according to the Akbar-nama, on the fourth of Rabiʿ ul-awwal 947, that is two years and four months before the birth of Akbar on the fifth of Rajab 949. In this vision, Humayun learned about his glorious son and his name: Abu’l-Fadl ʿAllami, Akbar-nama, 1:13.

41. According to lettrist notions, letters are at the heart of the universe and belong to the first and innermost grade of the world. Such ideas are described, for example, by Muhammad Ghauth al-Hindi, al-Jawahir al-Khams, Ed. Ahmad ibn al-ʿAbbas (Cairo: MuHammad Rifʻat ʻAAmir, 1973), 2:120.

42. This again refers to lettrist notions: the primordial letters take shape in the existing world in the form of the twenty-eight letters of the alphabet. They can both be isolated or assembled into words. Letters are said to have different degrees (darajat): k. al-Jawahir al-khams I, 98.

43. The numerical value of the word akbar is: a (1) + k (20) + b (2) + r (200) = 223. The expression “indications of letters” (بینات الحروف) refers in the context of lettrism to a specific method of calculation: first, the single letters are written out, in the case of aftab, we thus get الف – فا – تا – الف – با. Then, the first letter of each written-out letter is discarded, resulting in لف – ا – ا – لف – ا. Finally, the numerical value of these letters is calculated: l (30) + f (80) + a (1) + a (1) + l (30) + f (80) + a (1) = 223. Compare wih ʿAli Akbar Dihkhuda, Lughat-nama, ed. Muhammad Muʾin et al., 16 vols. (1377; repr., Tehran, Tehran University Publications, 1999); see also ʿAllami, The Akbarnama of Abu’l Fazl, 1:65n4.

44. Play on words, in Persian, it is این سعد اکبررا, which also means because of this fortune of Akbar. سعد اکبر is furthermore an epithet of Jupiter.

45. “Upper” and “lower” in this context are related to the notion that earth and water are lower elements, and air and fire are upper elements, the former tending toward earth, and the latter tending toward the sky.

46. Beveridge points to a different reading in another edition and translates this as “in a short time”: Allami, The Akbarnama of Abu’l Fazl, 1:56n1.

47. Literally the dweller in the place of Maria, Akbar’s mother.

48. The women’s quarters.

49. For an English translation of this passage, see ʿAllami, The Akbarnama of Abu’l Fazl, 1:56–57; Thackston, The History of Akbar, 65–67.

For a discussion of these passages and the four horoscopes, see Eva Orthmann, “Circular Motions: Private Pleasure and Public Prognostication in the Nativities of the Mughal Emperor Akbar,” in Horoscopes and Public Spheres: Essays on the History of Astrology, ed. Günther Oestmann et al. (Berlin: De Gruyter, 2005), 101–14.

50. This refers to Alexander the Great, who is considered a seeker of knowledge in Persian tradition.

51. Fathullah Shirazi was an eminent astronomer at Akbar’s court and responsible for the calculation of the ilahi-era, Akbar’s own calendar: Sharif Husain Qasemi, “Fath Allah Širazi, Sayyed Mir,” in Encyclopædia Iranica (New York: Bibliotheca Persica Press, 1999), 9:421.

52. English translation by Beveridge: ʿAllami, The Akbarnama of Abu’l Fazl. 1:64; Thackston, The History of Akbar, 77–79.

53. This probably refers to Abu’l-Fadl ʿAllami, Aʾin-i Akbari, ed. Heinrich F. Blochmann (Calcutta: Baptist Mishan Press, 1872–1921), 3:7.

54. This epithet is particularly associated with Timur, ancestor of the Mughal emperors.

55. English translation by Beveridge: ʿAllami, The Akbarnama of Abu’l Fazl, 1:119–24; Thackston, The History of Akbar, 139–45.