In fact, Zibunnisa never made a pilgrimage to the holy places in Arabia. (3) Diwan-i-Mukhfi shows strong Shiaite tendency which Aurangzeb's daughter highly learned in Sunni doctrines and having been brought up from infancy in the same atmosphere, could hardly possess; and there is no historical evidence of her predilection to these Shiaite doctrines : زبان درکام کش مخفی و پائے صبر در دامن که آخر پنجه شاه ولایت دست من گیرد Translation "Mukhfi! draw thy tongue into the mouth and thy legs under the skirt, For, ultimately, the hand of the King of Friendship (Alithe head of the Shia sect) will hold thy arm." درستي با دشمن آل پیمبر چون کنم که لاف دوستي با آل حيدر می زنم Translation "How can I be friendly to the enemy of the descendants of the Prophet? When I boast of friendship towards the progeny of Haider (Ali). ” از گدایان توام شاه خراسان مددے که چو مرغان حرم در حرمت جاگیرم Translation "I am one of thy mendicants, O King of Khurasan (Imam Raza), Help! so that I may take refuge in thy sanctuary like the birds of an asylum." (4) But the most curious and amusing thing in connection with our present enquiry is the poet's reference to the death of his sons : مخفیا چند زجور فلک شعبده باز همچو یعقوب بدل داغ پسر تازه کنم 9 Bes. J. Translation-" O Mukhfi! How many times am I, through the unkindness of the changeable sky, To renew the wound of a son's loss in my heart, like Jacob ?" Well, it is well-known that Princess Zibunnisa remained a celibate all her life. (5) The writer of Diwán-i-Mukhfi is a panegyrist like other Persian poets and has praised big men of his time One of his panegyrics, for example, starts with the following lines: خراجه چتر مراد بر سر کش فر عروس زمانه در براش Tr." Master! Hold the umbrella of success on thy head : And take the bride of Time into thy arms; and another with هست تا آسمان بقائے تو باد چرخ دربان کبریائے تو باد Tr" Mayest thou live as long as the heavens: And may the sky be a porter at the gate of thy greatness." He praises a certain Firoz Khan Durrani with great enthusiasm : شکوه درات فیروز خان دراني Tr. "Firoz Khan Durrani, the pride of Fortune," and asks him to intercede on his behalf in order that he may get id of the duties of secretaryship which have been imposed on him by the order of the Sultan (Emperor, but which are not congenial to his tastes: خراب اسم عمل گشته ام را چه کنم که هیچ چاره ندارد ز حكم سلطاني برید دست قضار بدوخت طالع من يز عم جو هر ذاتم لباس ديواني Tr." I have been undone by the very name of the office, but what can I do? For, there is no remedy against the royal command. The Destiny cut off my hands and my star has sewn for me The garment of secretaryship, inspite of my natural talents." The above episodes cannot, evidently, fit into the story of Princess Zibunnisa's life and must be regarded as part of a different drama altogether. (6) Mukhfi also praises a certain Sultan, probably the same mentioned above: بردر سلطان عصر حیف ندارم دگر تا که رساند بعرض مقصد ارکان از ثانی صاحبقران بادشه انس و جان زرد بر خط فرمان او آنكه فلك سر Tr.-" Alas! I have nobody else at the gate of the Emperor of the time, Who can convey to his cars the objects of his servants. The second Sahib-qerán, the ruler of the men and of the genii; He, at whose command the sky bows its head." Now the second Sábib-qerán is the well-known title of Emperor Shahjahan, the first Sáhib-qerán being Temurlang. This gives us a pretty definite idea of the time when the author of Diwán-i-Mukhfi flourished. We can, therefore, safely assume that Firoz Khan Durrani who has been so lavishly praised by the poet is one of the officers of Shabjahan. At another place the poet again refers to the " Sultan": بو علی روزگارم از خراسان آمده از پئے اعراض بر درگاه سلطان آمده Tr.-"I am Bu-Ali (Ibn-i-Sina, the well-known philosopher) of the age, have arrived from Khurasan ; I have come to the Emperor's court for presenting my petition." These lines, however, take us to a more important question, that of Mukhfi's native home, for, there he says that he has come from Khurasan. In continuation of the same he goes on to say further: حیرت دارم که يارب اندرین گرداب هند طوطی فکرم پی شکر زرضوان آمده بمکه دریا د وطن نا دیده ماتم داشتم تا بدامان دلم چاک گریبان آمده Tr.—“I wonder, O God! that in this whirlpool of India As I have had unseen lamentations in memory of my The rift in my skirt has reached up to my heart." The above lines clearly indicate that the poet has come from Khurasan rather reluctantly to India under pressure of necessity and feels the separation very keenly. At another place, while praising Firoz Khan Durrani, Mukhfi alludes to the special claim he has got on him, having come from the same country as he : قلم درکش ز روی لطف به تقصیر من که با تو هست مرا نسبت خراسانی Tr.-" Kindly pen through (i.e., forgive) my fault; Then again he says in another place : دل آشفته مخفی بفن خود ارسطو پست بہند افتاده است اما خراسانست یونانی Tr." The stricken heart of Mukhfi is an Aristotle at his art; He has fallen into India, but Khurasan is his Greece (i.e., his native country)." There is one couplet, however, where the poet unequivocally declares his native home to be a certain place Istrakh in Khurasan: تو از های خراسانف وطن در اصطرخ داري بخواب شب اگر درد رغم هندوستان پینی Tr." Thou hailest from Khurasan and thy native place is Though thou beholdest afflictions and sorrows in The internal evidence produced above from Diwán-i-Mukhfi is, I think, enough to convince anybody who cares to go through it that the book is not the work of Zibunnisa Begum, but that its author was a Persian poet belonging to Khurasan, who came to India during the reign of Emperor Shahjahan for earning his livelihood by eulogizing the rich and powerful men of the time like other ordinary poets, met with difficulties in this country and was glad to leave it for good. |