Dara Shikoh
Table of Contents
Who was Dara Shikoh?
Dara Shikoh was the eldest son of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. He was also the most favourite son amonst all and was a obvious next successor to the Mughal seat in Delhi. However, his younger brother, Aurangzeb, executed him in 1659. Had he became the emperor, the course of Indian history would have been altogether different.
Some Facts about Dara Shikoh
- Dara Shikoh was a liberal Muslim, exact opposite of Aurangzeb who was an orthodox.
- He believed in the philosophy of Sufism.
- He also translated Upanishads from Sanskrit to Persian.
- He was a patron of art and architecture.
- He was a polyglot. He knew Persian, Hindi, Arabic and Sanskrit.
- He was given the title of Shehzada-e-Buland-Iqbal (Prince of High Fortune) by Shah Jahan.
- He was appointed as the Governor of Province of Gujarat.
Succession Struggle with Aurangzeb
In September 1657, Shah Jahan fell severely ill. After the news came out, the succession struggled started among all the 4 sons of Shah Jahan. However, the powerful proponents for the Mughal seat were only two- Aurangzeb and Dara Shikoh. Aurangzeb marched from the Deccan to fight with Dara Shikoh in the Battle of Samugarh. In this battle, Aurangzeb defeated Dara Shikoh and then he dethroned his father, Shah Jahan and declared himself as the Mughal Emperor.
Death of Dara Shikoh
After the defeat in Battle of Samugarh, Dara Shikoh fled to Gujarat where the governor opened the gates of treasury for Dara Shikoh to fight Aurangzeb. Thereafter, he proceeded to Ajmer to convince Maharaja Jaswant Singh of Marwar to support him. But he encountered there the spies of Aurangzeb and fought with them in the Battle of Deorai in1659. However, He was defeated in this battle too.
After this, he fled to Sindh to take refugee from Malik Jeevan. But Malik Jeevan was the loyal follower of Aurangzeb and he handed over Dara Shikoh to Aurangzeb. Aurangzeb executed him and buried him in an unidentified grave in Humayun’s tomb.
Recent News about Dara Shikoh
Recently Ministry of Culture has asked Archeological Survey of India to locate the grave in which Dara Shikoh was buried by Aurangzeb.
FAQs
Dara Shikoh was the eldest son of Shah Jahan who was considered the obvious successor after Shah Jahan. But in a battle with his brother Aurangzeb, he died and Aurangzeb became the next emperor
Dara Shikoh was liberal and secular in his approach. He respected all religions unlike his father Shah Jahan and his brother Aurangzeb.
Aurangzeb buried Dara Shikoh’s dead body in Humayun’s tomb.
Autangzeb defeated Dara Shikoh in the Battle of Samugarh and Battle of Deorai and then he was finally executed.
Pingback: Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj