Chapter 1: Inscriptions of Some Early Mamluk Chiefs and Sultans of Bengal

Like the two previous inscriptions of Ruknu’d-Dīn Kaikā’ūs Shāh, these inscriptions, taken together, provide valuable historical information. Blochmann, who first noticed them, observed on the basis of the epigraphs that Ḥātim Khān was the Governor of Bihar at least from A.H. 709 to 715. Blochmann’s inference is confirmed by a reference – culled out by S. H. Askari – in a rare Malfūz̤, entitled Munisu’l-Murīdīn (which was compiled by one S̤alāḥ Mukhlis̤ Dā’ūd Khān, a disciple of the saint, and its text is being edited by M. Zahirul Hasan under the auspices of the Postgraduate Institute of Arabic and Persian Studies, Patna),  of Sharfu’d-Dīn Yaḥyā Manerī. It refers to king S̲h̲amsu’d-Dīn of Sonargaon and two of his sons, Ḥātim Khān, governor of Bihar, and Bahādur Shāh, the governor of Kamrup, and to the fratricidal struggle for succession in which both were worsted – the former due to his excessive generosity and mildness and the latter because of his haughtiness and ruthlessness. It is evident from this reference that Ḥātim continued to be the governor of the province of Bihar till A.H. 722, the date of death of Shamsu’d-Dīn Fīrūz. (Page 16).

Chapter 2: Inscriptions of the Tughluq Sultans

8. INSCRIPTION DATED 732 FROM BIHAR SHARIF.

The inscription, so long lying unidentified in the Calcutta Museum, was ‘discovered’ and identified by Prof. Q. Ahmad during a visit to the Museum in December 1963 in connection with the preparation of the present work. Blochmann first published the text but did not mention anything about the inscription except that it belonged to the Sakunat building which was the palace of Governor of Bihar and was already in ruins (JASB, xlii, 1873, p. 251; see also EI, ii, p. 292). S. H. Askari, writing a century later, added the information that a broken piece of the Sakunat inscription, once on the gateway of the Residency, had been set in the wall of a mosque in the Mohalla (CS, 1954, P. 11) of that name. (Page 26)

10. INSCRIPTION DATED 747 FROM BEDIBAN, DISTRICT CHAMPARAN.

The inscription, now preserved in the Patna Museum (Bearing Archaeology number 10841), is very important, being the earliest of the extant Tughluq inscriptions in north Bihar. It was first noticed by Cunningham (ASI, xvi, 1880-1, pp. 25-6, pl. iv.) who found it in village Bediban (Champaran district). It lies in the s̤adar subdivision of Champaran district, and is half a mile north-east of Pipra railway station of N.E. Rly. where it was kept in a temple and used as an object of worship-Bhagwān kā charan pad. Cunningham published a lithographic print of the text [pl. 5(b)] and a partial reading of it. He deciphered its date as A.H. 847 and ascribed it to Maḥmūd Shāh of Jaunpur (A.H. 844-63). It was ‘re-discovered’ in the same place and same position by the late F. Balkhi and Pandit V. Shastri, Research Assistants, Manuscripts Section of the Patna University Library, in 1952, and brought to Patna Museum by the efforts of S.V. Sohoni, then Divisional Commissioner of Trihut. The text has been edited by S.H. Askari and Z.A. Desai. S. H. Askari (CS, p.12, note 7) improved Cunningham’s reading, and corrected the reading of the date and the name of the king. Subsequently, Dr. Desai (EIAPS, 1961, p. 26, pl. vi (a) also clarified the portion naming the object of construction, namely, a well. However, even now a few points are not fully clear.  (PAGE 30).

14. INSCRIPTION DATED 761 FROM BIHARSHARIF.

The inscription is fixed in the northern wall of the chamber of the Sajjādah Nashīn of the dargāh of Shāh Qumais in Biharsharif (It was first noticed by S.H. Askari (CS, 1954, pp. 14-5) and subsequently edited by Dr. Desai, EIAPS, 1961, pp. 26-7, pl. vi(b)). The slab, partly broken on the right hand side, measures 2’.6”x1’.3”. The text, written in Thulth script, consists of two Persian couplets, inscribed in two lines, and records the construction of a domed dargāh of a saint whose name cannot be made out because of the slab being fragmentary. The slab contains some rosettes and other decorations. (PAGE 41 - NOTE 1)

Missing words (S. H. Askari in CS, 1954, p. 14, note 5 suggests the missing words as عدل افتاب (Sun of Justice) of the Persian text is given in the book. (PAGE 41 - NOTE 2)

16. INSCRIPTION DATED 765 FROM BIHARSHARIF.

The inscription is fixed below a chirāghdān by the side of a pucca grave in the courtyard of the Ambēr dargāh in Biharsharif. It was first noticed by S. H. Askari, (CS, 1954, p. 16, note 7. Surprisingly, it is not noticed by Blochmann. Perhaps, it was brought and set up in the dargāh later) who published its text in Roman characters. Subsequently it was edited by Dr. Desai (EIAPS, 1961, pp. 28-9, pl. vii(b)). The slab measures 3’.2”x1’.7”, and it contains three lines of Persian prose, written in an elegant Thulth style, recording the construction of a mosque by Khwāja Bangāl Khānī [sic] during the governorship of Asadu’l Ḥaq wa’d Dīn Dā’ūd Khān and the reign of Fīrūz Shāh on Rabi’l, 765 (8 December 1363). (PAGE 44)

The main point of interest is the date of the inscription. An old printed work, Irshādu’s Sālikīn read it as A.H. 760. The text partly is being reproduced as given by S. H. Askari, in Roman letters, (CS, 1954, p. 14, note. 3). However, the possibility of there being some other word before ستىن (60) cannot be ruled out; it will be safer to date it in the sixties of the 8th century A.H. We know about Fīrūz Tughluq’s visits to Bihar and, particularly, Kako. We also have an inscription of Maḥmūd Tughluq in Kako dated A.H. 799 (no. 29). Knowing the state of affairs under Maḥmūd Tughluq supremacy in Bihar took place during his reign. Obviously, Kako, like other parts of Bihar, must have been under Tughluq rule since the time of Fīrūz Tughluq, if not earlier. (PAGE 50)

21. INSCRIPTIONS DATED 774 FROM BIHARSHARIF.

This fragmentary inscription (CS, 1954, p. 16. It was published subsequently by Dr. Desai (EIAPS, 1961), pp. 29-30, pl. viii(a)) is fixed in the wall of the inner apartment of a private house situated opposite the S̤ughrā Waqf Estate building in Biharsharif. It was discovered, like so many others of the Tughluq period in Bihar, by S. H. Askari. The tablet is fragmentary, the right-side portion being lost. It measures 1’.8”x10” and the text consists of two lines of Arabic prose written in elegant Thulth style. The slab being fragmentary the purport of the epigraph cannot be determined; only the date and the name of the king is available. (PAGE 56).

25. FRAGMENTARY INSCRIPTION OF FĪRŪZ TUGHLUQ FROM BIHARSHARIF.

The last inscription of Fīrūz Shāh is a small fragmentary one let in the northern wall of the enclosure containing Fad̤lu’llāh Gosāīn’s tomb in maḥalla Baradari of Biharsharif. It was lying embedded in the plaster but was scratched out by S. H. Askari (CS, 1954, p. 15). (PAGE 62)

26. INSCRIPTION DATED 792 FROM BIHAR SHARIF.

The inscription, now preserved in the Calcutta Museum, originally belonged to a mosque in maḥalla Kabiruddinganj, Biharsharif. Blochmann, who first published the text in 1873 (JASB, xlii, 1873, p. 303) found the mosque extant, and has thus described it: ‘the mosque has three cupolas, the centre one circular the other octagonal. Two of its lofty minarets have fallen down.’ The inscription was subsequently studied by S. H. Askari and Dr. Desai (CS, 1954, p. 17; EIAPS, 1955-6, pp. 10-1, pl. ii (c)), who slightly improved Blochmann’s reading (PAGE 64)

28. INSCRIPTIONS DATED 799 FROM BIHARSHARIF.

The inscription was first published by Blochmann1, and, subsequently, edited by Dr. Desai. Originally belonging to a dargāh, to the construction of which it refers, Blochmann found it, “in cluster of religious buildings known in Bihar as Chota Takiya, ‘the small cloister’ in which there is the tomb of Shah Diwan Abdu’l Wahhab who is said to have died in 1906.”

It was there till 1954 when S. H. Askari wrote about it (CS, 1954, p. 17). but it is now lying in the compound of the house of Shāh Zaka Husain of maḥalla Daira, Biharsharif.. (PAGE 68)

30. INSCRIPTION DATED 810 FROM BIHARSHARIF.

The inscription was discovered by S. H. Askari, in village Chandpura, near Biharsharif, who published its text (CS, 1954, p. 17). It has since been published with a plate by Dr. Desai (EIAPS, 1961, p. 34, pl. x(b)). Fixed over the central miḥrāb of the local mosque (which itself is a modern structure) the slab measures 2’.8”x10”. It is partly broken on the left side, but the relevant historical information, names of the builder and the king, and the date, is available in the existing portion of the text. It comprises two Persian couplets recording the reconstruction of a mosque by Ḥājī Bū Bakr, son of Maḥmūd, in the reign of Maḥmūd Shāh on the 25 Jumada I, 810 (28 October 1407). (PAGE 71)

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Chapter 3: Inscriptions of the Sharqi Sultans

32. INSCRIPTION DATED 807 FROM BIHARSHARIF.

The inscription is fixed on the wall of small open mosque attached to the mausoleum of Sayyid Muḥammad Seīstānī in Biharsharif. First noticed by S. H. Askari (CS, 1954, pp. 17-8), subsequently edited along with some other Sharqī inscriptions in Bihar by W.H. Siddiqi, EIAPS, 1962, pp. 42 ff, pl. xii (a) and (c).The slab measures 3’.5”x10”, and contains two Persian verses recording the construction of a structure by Qut̤b Aḥmad ‘Ārid̤ (Siddiqi, op. cit., reads the name as Qut̤b (son of) Aḥmad ‘Ārid)  (Reporter) in the reign of Ibrāhīm Shāh in A.H. 807 (1404-5).

(PAGE 78 - NOTE 4)

The name of the builder is not specifically mentioned, but most probably the mosque was constructed by the maqt̤a’, Nas̤īr, whose name is mentioned in the preceding inscription, and also in the next one of this very date. As regards Aḥmad, the composer of this text, Blochmann took it as an appellation (Praised One) of the Prophet. However, S. H. Askari rightly identifies him with Aḥmad Balkhī Langar Dariyā (See biographical sketch in Wasila-i-Sharf-wa-Zariya’-i-Daulat, ed. M. Taiyyab Abdali, Allahabad, 1965, pp. 115-9) one of the important saints of the Firdaūsīa order in Bihar. He was also a poet and a copy of the diwān of his Persian verses and of his Malfūz̤, entitled Mūnisu’l Qulūb, is present in a valuable local collection of manuscripts (It belongs to Hakim Taqi Balkhi Sahab of Alamganj, Patna City). (PAGE 84)

INSCRIPTION DATED 859 FROM BIHARSHARIF.

The inscription originally belonged, according to Blochmann, to the ‘ruinous Paharpur Jami Masjid’ (JASB, xlii, 1873, pp. 306-7. The 4th and 5th verse and the second hemistich of the 6th verse were not deciphered by Blochmann. S. H. Askari with the help of Maulana Nur Alam Saheb of Biharsharif made considerable improvement on the previous reading, CS, 1954, p. 18, note 6. It is very difficult to decipher the text because the letters have become indistinct and also because of the peculiar manner in which the letters have been inscribed one upon another), but at present it is fixed horizontally on two short ornamented pillars of black stone in the courtyard of the dargāh Ambēr in Biharsharif. The text consists of Bismi’llāh, a Ḥadīth and seven Persian verses spread over two lines, each divided into 4 lined frames. It records the construction of a Jāmi’ mosque by Ashrafu’l-Ḥaq at the instance of Nas̤īr, son of Baha, the maqt̤a’ of the shiq of Bihar during the reign of Maḥmūd Shāh, son of Ibrāhīm Shāh, on 27 Ramad̤ān 859 (10 September 1455). (PAGE 85)

37. INSCRIPTION DATED 892 FROM BIHARSHARIF.

The inscription was first brought to light by S. H. Askari (CS, 1954, p. 18, note 9; JBRS, xli, pt. iii, 1955, p. 359. Siddiqi did not include it in his article on the Sharqī inscriptions in Bihar, but it has been edited, recently, by Dr. Z.A. Desai, EIAPS, 1968, pp. 25-7.), who found it set on the eastern gate of the dargārh of Fad̤lu’llāh Gosāīn in Biharsharif. The tablet is now, unfortunately, lost but its estampage, taken by S. H. Askari, is preserved in the Patna Museum. It is measured 3’.4”x9”. The extant text, written in two lines, consists of four Persian verses. It records the construction of a dome over some building during the reign of Ḥusain Shāh Sharqī in A.H. 892 (1486-7). (PAGE 87)

The inscription is historically important because it provides some definite information about the political geography of Bihar in the closing decades of 15th century. The period witnessed the fluctuating struggle between the Lodīs and Sharqīs. At the end of first round Bahlūl Lodī succeeded in driving out Ḥusain Shāh from his capital but the latter still retained the eastern part of his kingdom, including Chunar, Chaund and Bihar. The situation continued till the end of Bahlūl’s reign (1489) and during the early years of Sikandar Lodī’s. He was willing to maintain status quo provided Ḥusain Shāh did not harbor or encourage his enemies. But the latter, bent on recovering his kingdom, provoked the Lodī ruler with disastrous results for himself and the remaining part of his kingdom. (See also article by S. H. Askari in JBRS, xli, pt. iii, 1955). This inscription, along with that of Daryā Khān (no. 52), confirms the sequence, for they show that Bihar was under the control of Ḥusain Shāh in A.H. 892 (1486-7) but was annexed by Sikandar Lodī and put in charge of Daryā Khān in A.H. 901 (1495-6). (PAGE 89 - NOTE 2)

Chapter 4: Inscriptions of the Bengal Sultans in Bihar

40. INSCRIPTION DATED 897 FROM BHAGALPUR.

The inscription was first brought to light by S. H. Askari who found it lying detached in the Jāmi’ mosque in Champanagar in Bhagalpur. The slabs measure 2’.5”x10”, and is damaged at a few places. The text, in two lines of Arabic prose, records the construction of a mosque by Khān-i-Āz̤am Mu’tabar Khān, the Kārfarmān (officer in charge?) of Bazurai Hāṭ (?), in the reign of Muz̤affar Shāh on the 10 Muḥarram 897 (13 November 1491). (PAGE 98)

In the second line, the words after خان معتبر have been read differently by different writers. S. H. Askari reads it, tentatively, as وھا باز فرمان كار Ahmad asن بازوا فرمان كار (‘valiant commander’) and Kadiri as ھت راى بازو   فرمان كار (‘agent of Bazurai Hāṭ’). (PAGE 99)

43. INSCRIPTION DATED 907 FROM BHAGALPUR.

It was first noticed by S. H. Askari who published its text in Roman characters[1] (CS, 1954, p. 19).and was subsequently edited by Q. Ahmad (Ahmad, op. cit., 160) and Kadiri (EIAPS, 1961, p. 40). The slab, measuring 3’.9”x1’, is fixed over of the tomb of a 17th century saint, Shahbāz, in maḥalla Mullachak in Bhagalpur. The text consists of a single line of Arabic prose, recording the construction of a mosque by Sar-i-Lashkar, Majlis Maḥmūd, son of Yūsuf, in the reign of ‘Alāu’d-Dīn Ḥusain Shāh on the 12 Rajab in the year 907 (21 January 1502). (PAGE 103)

46. INSCRIPTION DATED 909 FROM NARHAN, DISTRICT SARAN.

Although an estampage of the inscription was obtained in 1906, when it was fully intact, it had remained unnoticed till S. H. Askari (JBRS, xli, pt. iii, 1955, p.364) brought it to light in 1955. It has recently been edited by Kadiri (EIAPS, 1961, p.41, pl. xiv (a)).  who has been able to establish the date, too, with the help of the old rubbing taken in 1906. It is quite similar in design, arrangement and the text to the previous one. (PAGE 109)

50. UNDATED INSCRIPTION FROM BEGUSARAI, DISTRICT MONGHYR.

The detached slab was discovered in village Matihani, P.S. Begusarai, district Monghyr. It was transferred to the Patna Museum (Archaeology, no. 10733) through the efforts of S. H. Askari who also published (CS, 1954, p. 20, note 1) its text in Roman characters. It has recently been edited by Kadiri (EIAPS, 1961, pp. 43-4, pl. xv (b)), who has made some improvement on the previous reading. Unlike the great majority of inscriptions of the Bengal Sult̤āns, its paleography as well as material is of an inferior quality. The slab measures 2’.2.5”x1’.2”, and the text written in three lines of Arabic prose records the construction of a Jāmi’ mosque by Nās̤ir Shāh, son of Ḥusain Shāh. (PAGE 114-115)