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Mughals Celebrated Diwali and it was Magnificent By RKB

In Author 1, Blog, Bollywood, Featured, Mumbai, Rajiv K Bajaj
December 30, 2019
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??DIWALI CELEBRATIONS FROM MOHAMMED BIN TUGHLAQ TO AKBAR TO BAHADUR SHAH ZAFAR
??AND SHAH JAHAN strengthened THE TRADITION OF FIREWORKS ON DEEPAWALI
??THIS IS MY INDIA
??ISN’T IT YOURS?
??Muhammad bin Tughlaq, who ruled Delhi from 1324 to 1351, was the first non-Hindu emperor to celebrate a Hindu festival at the court. It was celebrated modestly with pleasantries and good food, organized by Tughlaq’s Hindu wives.
??This tradition continued down generations till Emperor Akbar recovered his father Emperor Humayun’s empire and insisted that Diwali become an official grand festival of the Mughal court.
??The Rang Mahal in Fatehpur Sikri was the designated centre for the royal celebrations of Jashn-e-Chiraghan (festival of lights) as Diwali was called then, and the festivities were carried out under the Mughal king himself.
??Badshah Akbar also began the tradition of giving sweets as Diwali greetings. Chefs from across kingdoms cooked delicacies in the Mughal court for the occasion.
??The ghevar, petha, kheer, peda, jalebi, phirni and shahitukda became part of the celebratory thali that welcomed guests to the palace for Diwali celebrations.
??On Diwali in Akbar’s court, the Ramayana was read, followed by a play depicting Lord Ram’s return to Ayodhya. This tradition strengthened Akbar’s empire, (noted by his biographer Abu’lFazl in Ain-i-Akbari), as it helped the king bond better with his Hindu subjects, and encouraged many Muslim merchants to take part in the festivities.
??Shah Jahan took the celebrations a step further by incorporating the Persian new year festival “Navroz” into Diwali, making it a joint biggest festival of the empire.
??He invited chefs from all over India and imported ingredients from Persia, for the chefs to prepare the most delicious sweets for ChhappanThal (consisting of sweets from 56 kingdoms) which became a Diwali tradition.
??The much maligned Emperor Aurangzeb also continued the tradition of sending sweets to noblemen (both Hindu and Muslim, and in one case even to the Christian Catholic Portuguese Ambassador to the Mughal Court) on Diwali.
??Another ritual that marked Diwali during the Mughal empire was the lighting of the Surajkrant, the empire’s permanent source of fire and light.
??According to historian R Nath, the process began at noon. When the sun entered the 19th degree of Aries, the royal servants exposed a round shining stone called the Surajkant to the sun’s rays. A piece of cotton was held near the stone, which would then catch fire from the heat.
??This celestial fire was preserved in a vessel called Agnigir (fire-pot) and later used to light up “Akash Diya” (sky lamp) which was a giant lamp on top of a 40 yard high pole, supported by sixteen ropes.
??Emperor Shah Jahan began the Akash Diya tradition when he set up the city of Shahjahanabad.
??The tradition of fireworks during Diwali is also attributed to Shah Jahan who put up an elaborate fireworks display on the banks of the Yamuna every Diwali.
??Even the last of the Mughal emperors, Bahadur Shah Zafar organised plays to be performed around the theme of Diwali at the Red Fort, along with Laxmi Puja, which was open to public.
??Fireworks would also be set off near the North Gate of the Jama Masjid, Delhi, for the occasion. William Dalrymple’s book, ‘The Last Mughal: The Fall of Delhi, 1857’, says, “Zafar would weigh himself against seven kinds of grain, gold, coral, etc and directed their distribution among the poor”
??Just a thought; but the Mughal tradition of fireworks on the banks of the Yamuna on Diwali should be resurrected
??It will be a fabulous tourist attraction
??THIS IS MY INDIA
??ISN’T IT YOURS?