Bahadur Shah Zafar - Ya Mujhe Afsar

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• published: 09 Nov 2010
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Abu Zafar Sirajuddin Muhammad Bahadur Shah Zafar also known as Bahadur Shah or Bahadur Shah II (October 24, 1775 -- November 7, 1862) was the last of the Moghul emperors in India, as well as the last ruler of the Timurid Dynasty. He was the son of Akbar Shah II by his Hindu wife Lalbai. He became the Mughal Emperor upon his father's death on September 28, 1838, already a purely symbolic and titular role while the British East India Company exercised real power. Technically, the British were the Emperor's agents. What residual political authority he had was confined to the City of Delhi, where he lived on a British pension in the Red Fort. Somewhat derisively, the British referred to him as the "King of Delhi." Zafar was his nom de plume (takhallus) as an Urdu poet. He is recognized as one of the greatest poets in this language of his day, some say he is the greatest ever. His poetry lamented loss and India's debasement. As a result of reluctantly giving his name to the revolt of 1857, he was tried for treason by the British and exiled to Burma, where he died. How a sovereign could rebel against himself remains a puzzle. At the end, Shah Bahadur cut a sad and tragic figure, whose eulogy mourned that he could not even be buried in "two yards" of his beloved homeland. Yet to describe him as weak or as presiding over the end of his empire is unfair. No Mughal had exercised real power since Alamgir II, himself a puppet of the Afghan king, Ahmad Shah Durrani. Within the limited domain of Delhi's social life, however, Bahadur Shah II did preside over a period of flourishing cultural life. Relations between different religious communities, which would become increasingly strained under Britain's "divide and rule" policy, were very cordial, with a great deal of interaction and sharing of festivals. Later, he was transformed into a symbol of Indian anti-British resistance. This reads too much back into history. Yet he does deserve credit for leading where he could, culturally, poetically and as a champion of inter-religious harmony in a land that has prided itself on its inclusiveness and tolerance Cultural Leader In his 2007 biography of Shah Bahadur II, William Dalrymple describes Delhi, where his court was home to poets and literati, as a thriving multi-cultural, multi-religious society roughly half Muslim and half-Hindu. The son of a Hindu mother, Shah Bahadur took part in Hindu festivals, as did other Muslims. Bahadur Shah II himself did not interest himself in statecraft or possess any imperial ambitions. Indeed, it is difficult to see how he could have entertained any such ambitions. Arguably, what he did do was lead where he could, in championing the type of multi-cultural society over which, at their best, his predecessors—not withstanding periods when Hindus and Sikhs were persecuted—had ruled. Poets such as Ghalib, Dagh, Mumin, and Zauq (Dhawq) gathered at his court. The British accused him of extravagance and of living a profligate life. There appears to be little evidence to support this. Using his penname, Zafar, he was himself a noted Urdu poet—some say the greatest—writing a large number of Urdu ghazals. He was also a musician and calligrapher. While some part of his opus was lost or destroyed during the unrest of 1857-1858, a large collection did survive, and was later compiled into the Kulliyyat-i Zafar. A sense of loss haunts his poetry. He is attributed—although this attribution has been questioned—with the following self-eulogy. India has issued a postage stamp bearing the Urdu text in honor of Bahadur Shah II. Even if he did not pen this poem, it expresses what must have been his own sentiments: My heart is not happy in this despoiled land Who has ever felt fulfilled in this transient world Tell these emotions to go dwell elsewhere Where is there space for them in this besmirched (bloodied) heart? The nightingale laments neither to the gardener nor to the hunter Imprisonment was written in fate in the season of spring I had requested for a long life a life of four days Two passed by in pining, and two in waiting. How unlucky is Zafar! For burial Even two yards of land were not to be had, in the land (of the) beloved." Another of the verses reads: Zafar, no matter how smart and witty one may be, he is not a man Who in good times forgot God, and who in anger did not fear Him