The Peacock Throne: The Drama of Mogul IndiaEpics of history are rare and The Peacock Throne is one of them. No royal lineage offers such a spectacle of high drama as the Mogul Dynasty of India which created the world`s most famous monument-the Taj Mahal. Not since Greek tradedy has there been so stark a revelation of the excesses of human behavior: incest, fratricide sons revolting continuously against fathers and the madness of uncontrolled aggression. These are the forces animating The Peacock Throne which brings India to both Eastern and Western readers as never before. |
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Page 20
... seemed for the moment neutral- ized by regional division , jealousy , and mistrust . It was all an ethnic beehive : heroic Rajput clans , fierce tribes swarming over Afghanistan plateaus , sturdy Jats , bearded Sikhs of the Punjab with ...
... seemed for the moment neutral- ized by regional division , jealousy , and mistrust . It was all an ethnic beehive : heroic Rajput clans , fierce tribes swarming over Afghanistan plateaus , sturdy Jats , bearded Sikhs of the Punjab with ...
Page 27
... seemed to be accelerating . Jahangir's rebellion against Akbar merely preluded his own paternal troubles , which now came only a few months after his acces- sion : his eldest son Khusrau fled and revolted in turn . Again the independent ...
... seemed to be accelerating . Jahangir's rebellion against Akbar merely preluded his own paternal troubles , which now came only a few months after his acces- sion : his eldest son Khusrau fled and revolted in turn . Again the independent ...
Page 28
... seemed peacefully assured , but Mogul themes had al- ready become too well established . It was only a question of time before the standard of revolt would be raised again . 2 Henna and Intrigue I N THE SPRING OF 1612 [ 28 ] THE PEACOCK ...
... seemed peacefully assured , but Mogul themes had al- ready become too well established . It was only a question of time before the standard of revolt would be raised again . 2 Henna and Intrigue I N THE SPRING OF 1612 [ 28 ] THE PEACOCK ...
Page 33
... seemed limited to carp , but a great store of fruits embraced oranges , muskmelons , and raisins from Persia . An observant East India Company clerk would soon fer- ret out other markets— " not so commendable , yet much fre- quented and ...
... seemed limited to carp , but a great store of fruits embraced oranges , muskmelons , and raisins from Persia . An observant East India Company clerk would soon fer- ret out other markets— " not so commendable , yet much fre- quented and ...
Page 34
... seemed to shudder , while trumpets added to the din . If Mumtaz Mahal's imminent royal bridegroom looked out on all this panorama , it could hardly have been from in- side the precincts of the Red Fort : prevailing etiquette had already ...
... seemed to shudder , while trumpets added to the din . If Mumtaz Mahal's imminent royal bridegroom looked out on all this panorama , it could hardly have been from in- side the precincts of the Red Fort : prevailing etiquette had already ...
Contents
A Lovers Farewell | 270 |
Pursuit in the Punjab | 280 |
Enigma in Arakan | 303 |
FALL OF THE HOUSE OF TIMUR | 329 |
Fate of the Innocents | 387 |
A La Tour Abolie | 413 |
This Stupendous Caravan of Sin | 467 |
Epilogue | 488 |
67 | |
FAMILY PORTRAIT | 91 |
Intermezzo at Agra | 93 |
A Voice from the Womb | 106 |
The Smell of Apples | 116 |
Martial Airs | 131 |
9 | 144 |
10 | 161 |
Paradise on Earth | 179 |
THE WAR OF SUCCESSION | 193 |
12 | 195 |
An Invasion of Cobras | 210 |
The Crystal Tower | 228 |
The Battle of Samugarh | 244 |
A Game of Finesse | 258 |
Acknowledgments | 495 |
K1 ix | 499 |
29 | 506 |
67 | 515 |
93 | 517 |
106 | 522 |
116 | 524 |
144 | 525 |
160 | 548 |
210 | 550 |
228 | 553 |
244 | 554 |
270 | 556 |
303 | 559 |
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Common terms and phrases
Agra Agra fort Ajmer Akbar already army artillery Asaf Khan Aurang Aurangzeb Bakhsh battle became become Bengal Bernier Bijapur brother Burhanpur camp cavalry cited SAB command crown prince Dara Shikoh Dara's daughter dead death Deccan defeat Delhi elephant emperor enemy English eunuch European father forces fortress Ganges Golconda gold Gujarat harem head Hindu Hindustan holy horse ibid imperial India Islam Itibar Jahanara Jahangir Jai Singh Jaswant Singh Jumla Jumna Kandahar Khalilullah Khan Khan's Khusrau King Koran ladies Lahore later letter Mahabat Khan Malik Jiwan Manucci Maratha miles military Mir Jumla Mogul court Mogul Empire Mohammed Sultan Moslem Mumtaz Mahal Murad mystic nobles Nur Jahan officers palace Parwiz Persian Princess prisoner province Punjab rajah Rajput rangzeb Raushanara Begum rebel Red Fort river royal rupees Samugarh Sarmad seemed sent Shah Jahan Shuja soldiers soon Sufi Sulaiman Shikoh Surat thousand throne tion tomb troops zeb's
Popular passages
Page 412 - There is no God but Allah, and Mohammed is his prophet.
Page 85 - Jahangir, by general consent Shah Jahan was proclaimed at Lahore, and the khutba was read in his name. Dawar Bakhsh, whom the supporters of Shah Jahan had deemed it advisable to set up in order to...
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Page 108 - Life was offered for a loaf,* but none would buy ; rank was to be sold for a cake, but none cared for it; the ever-bounteous hand was now stretched out to beg for food ; and the feet which had always trodden the way of contentment walked about only in search of sustenance.
Page 154 - Through these perverted opinions he had given up the prayers, fasting, and other obligations imposed by the law. ... It became manifest that if Dara Shukoh obtained the throne and established his power, the foundations of the faith would be in danger and the precepts of Islam would be changed for the rant of infidelity and Judaism.
Page 154 - He was constantly in the society of Brahmans, Jogis and Sannyasis, and he used to regard these worthless teachers of delusions as learned and true masters of wisdom.