Dara Shikoh
On the 20th of March 1615, a son was born to Prince Shahib-ud-din Muhammad Khurram and his second wife Mumtaz Mahal in Ajmer, Rajasthan. The infant received the name Dara Shikoh, which translates from Persian as either "Of the Terror of Darius" or "Of the Grandeur of Darius." Historian Ebba Koch favors the latter meaning for the second part of the name. He became the first son and third child of the royal couple. His father later took the regnal name Shah Jahan after ascending the throne in January 1628 following the death of Emperor Jahangir. Dara studied the Quran, history, Persian poetry, and calligraphy as part of his formal education. He learned Hindi and Arabic before mastering Sanskrit later in life. By 1633, he had been appointed heir-apparent to his father. He shared a close relationship with his elder sister Princess Jahanara Begum. Both children were considered Shah Jahan's favorites within the imperial court.
Dara Shikoh devoted much effort towards finding a common mystical language between Islam and Hinduism. In 1657, he completed the translation of fifty Upanishads from their original Sanskrit into Persian so that Muslim scholars could study them. This work is often called Sirr-i-Akbar, meaning The Greatest Mystery. In the introduction, he stated boldly that the Kitab al-maknun mentioned in the Qur'an was none other than the Upanishads. His most famous work Majma-ul-Bahrain, or The Confluence of the Two Seas, was authored as a short treatise in Persian during 1654, 55. The book revealed mystical and pluralistic affinities between Sufic and Vedantic speculation. He followed the Armenian Sufi-perennialist mystic Sarmad Kashani and Lahore's famous Qadiri Sufi saint Mian Mir. Dara also developed a friendship with the seventh Sikh Guru, Guru Har Rai. Dr. Amartya Sen notes that it was Dara Shikoh's translation of the Upanishads that attracted William Jones to the texts. The library established by Dara still exists on the grounds of Ambedkar University in Delhi.
On the 10th of September 1642, Shah Jahan formally confirmed Dara Shikoh as his heir. He granted him the title Shahzada-e-Buland Iqbal, which means Prince of High Fortune. The prince received command of 20,000-foot soldiers and 20,000 horsemen. In 1645, he was appointed subahdar or governor of Allahabad. On the 18th of April 1648, he was promoted to a command of 30,000-foot and 20,000 horse. He became Governor of the province of Gujarat on the 3rd of July. His administrative roles included governing Lahore from 1635 to 1636. He served as governor of Illahabad from 1645 to 1647. Later he governed Malwa from 1642 until 1658. He also held authority over Multan and Kabul between 1652 and 1656. From 1657 to 1659, he ruled Bihar. These positions required him to manage rebellious factions across the empire.
On the 6th of September 1657, the illness of emperor Shah Jahan triggered a desperate struggle for power among four Mughal princes. Only Dara Shikoh and Aurangzeb had a realistic chance of emerging victorious. Shah Shuja declared himself Mughal Emperor in Bengal and marched towards Agra from the east. Murad Baksh allied himself with Aurangzeb against his brother. The conflict determined the future of the empire. Historians have conjectured that if Dara Shikoh had prevailed, India might have moved forward rather than turning back to medievalism. William Sleeman wrote in 1844 that poor Dara Shikoh possessed a generous heart and enlightened mind. He believed that such a ruler could have made the vast empire into a garden it deserved to be. The war ended with Dara's defeat by his younger brother Prince Muhiuddin, who later became Emperor Aurangzeb.
After being comprehensively routed in the battle of Deorai near Ajmer on the 11th of March 1659, Dara fled to Sindh. He sought refuge under Malik Jeevan, an Afghan chieftain whose life had been saved by the prince previously. Junaid held Dara Shikoh by his wrist and seized him. Then he gave news to Aurangzeb that he had captured the heir. Aurangzeb sent his army to take control of the situation. On the 10th of June 1659, Aurangzeb's army captured Dara Shikoh. He was brought to Delhi and placed on a filthy elephant for a public parade through the streets of the capital in chains. A Venetian traveler named Niccolao Manucci recorded details of the death. Aurangzeb ordered his men to bring up Dara's head and inspected it thoroughly. He then further mutilated the head with his sword three times before ordering it put in a box. Shah Jahan received the box during dinner and fell unconscious upon opening it. Dara Shikoh was killed by four of Aurangzeb's henchmen in front of his terrified son on the night of the 30th of August 1659.
The exact burial location of Dara Shikoh remained a mystery for over two centuries until 2020. Sanjeev Kumar Singh, an engineer at the South Delhi Municipal Corporation, identified the grave among several marked and unmarked graves in Humayun's Tomb in Delhi. After four years of research, Singh concluded that the grave lies under one of three unmarked cenotaphs in the northwestern chamber beneath the dome. His claim is based on the Alamgirnama, a biography of Aurangzeb which mentions that Dara was buried below the dome alongside Akbar's sons Danyal and Murad. At least five of seven members of the Archaeological Survey of India team acknowledged and supported Singh's research. Retired ASI Additional Director General Dr. B.R. Mani and retired ASI Joint Director General Dr. K.N. Dikshit were among those who agreed with the findings. Professor Harbans Mukhia stated that Singh appeared to have definitively located the grave with no reasonable doubt left.
In 2017, the New Delhi Municipal Council decided to rename central Delhi's Dalhousie Road to Dara Shikoh Road in his honor. The building originally constructed as a library by Dara in 1637 now serves as the Partition Museum Cultural Hub. This facility is India's second partition museum following the one in Amritsar. A digital library containing all written works by and about Dara Shikoh has been created through recommendations from the AMU Centenary Dara Shikoh Conference held in December 2021. Vaquar Sheikh played him in the 2005 Bollywood film Taj Mahal: An Eternal Love Story directed by Akbar Khan. Mohsin Hamid named the protagonist of his 2000 novel Moth Smoke after the prince. Bengali writer Shyamal Gangapadhyay wrote a novel on his life titled Shahjada Dara Shikoh which received the Sahitya Academy Award in 1993. The Indo-Iranian society awards the Dara Shikoh award annually. Sheila Dixit former Delhi CM was a recipient in 2010.
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Common questions
When was Dara Shikoh born and where?
Dara Shikoh was born on the 20th of March 1615 in Ajmer, Rajasthan. He was the first son and third child of Prince Shahib-ud-din Muhammad Khurram and his second wife Mumtaz Mahal.
What major religious works did Dara Shikoh write to bridge Islam and Hinduism?
Dara Shikoh completed the translation of fifty Upanishads from Sanskrit into Persian in 1657, a work known as Sirr-i-Akbar. He also authored Majma-ul-Bahrain or The Confluence of the Two Seas during 1654 and 1655 to reveal mystical affinities between Sufic and Vedantic speculation.
How did the Mughal war of succession end for Dara Shikoh?
The conflict ended with Dara Shikoh's defeat by his younger brother Prince Muhiuddin who later became Emperor Aurangzeb after the battle of Deorai near Ajmer on the 11th of March 1659. Dara fled to Sindh but was captured and brought to Delhi where he was executed on the night of the 30th of August 1659.
Where is the grave of Dara Shikoh located today?
The exact burial location remained a mystery until 2020 when engineer Sanjeev Kumar Singh identified the grave within Humayun's Tomb in Delhi. His research concluded that the grave lies under one of three unmarked cenotaphs in the northwestern chamber beneath the dome.
What modern honors and memorials exist for Dara Shikoh in New Delhi?
In 2017, the New Delhi Municipal Council renamed central Delhi's Dalhousie Road to Dara Shikoh Road in his honor. The building originally constructed as a library by Dara in 1637 now serves as the Partition Museum Cultural Hub.