Tracing Mewati origins of Abdul Rahim—one of Akbar’s nine gems
SYNCRETIC TRADITION Although a Muslim by birth, Hindi poet Abul Rahim Khan-eKhana was a life-long devotee of Krishna and all his works are dedicated to Him. Researchers say this influence was due to his Mewati origin
Most of us are familiar with the famous Hindi poet Abdul Rahim Khan-eKhana, popularly called Rahim, who was one of the nine gems in Emperor Akbar’s durbar (court). His historic tomb in Nizamuddin is conserved meticulously by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC) as part of its Nizamuddin Urban Renewal Initiative. The AKTC has hosted festivals for him and has recently launched a book on his works in February 2019 in the presence of the culture minister of India as the chief guest. Although Rahim is a household name across India and his dohas (couplets) are recited by one and all, not many of us in Gurugram or elsewhere know about his Mewati origin.
As stated in the Gurgaon District Gazetteer of 1983, “The most famous of names associated with Meo poetry is that of Abdur Rahim KhanKhanan, whose tomb now dominates the bridge separating Nizamudin from Bhogal on the Mathura Road in South Delhi. His father is said to have been a Turk and his mother was a daughter of the Mewat area. Both apparently shared some literary talents and the mother wrote in both Persian and Mewati.” Rahim was the son of Akbar and Humayun’s trusted minister, Bairam Khan who had Turkic ancestry. When Humayun returned to India from his exile, he asked the nobles in his court to forge matrimonial alliances with various zamindars and feudal lords across India as a strategy for expansion of his empire through such alliances. While Humayun himself married the elder daughter of Jamal Khan, belonging to the family of the Khanzadas of Mewat region, he asked his minister Bairam Khan to marry the younger daughter. Khanzadas, the royal family of Muslim Jadon Rajputs, accepted Islam due to their association with the Sufi saints. Khanzada is said to be the Persian form of the word, Rajput, and became the title of representatives of the ancient Jadubansi (Yaduvanshi) royal Rajput family, descendants of Krishna.
After Bairam Khan was murdered while on duty in Patan, Gujarat, his wife and son Rahim were brought safely back to Delhi and presented at the royal court of Akbar. Emperor Akbar gave him the title of ‘Mirza Khan’, and subsequently married him to Mah Banu. Later, Bairam Khan’s other wife Sultana Begum became the second wife of Akbar, which also made Rahim his stepson. However, he finally emerged as one of the nine gems in Akbar’s court on his own merit. Although a Muslim by birth, Rahim, who was a devotee of Lord Krishna, wrote poetry dedicated to him. Researchers have mentioned that this influence was due to his Mewati origin. As mentioned by historian professor Raghavan from Jawaharlal Nehru University, “In Mewat, Abdur Rahim’s maternal home, where he spent his childhood years, a rich syncretic tradition persisted.” Raghavan argues that the influence of Rahim’s Mewati relatives, as well as the Rajputs at the court, quite possibly influenced his choice of poetic forms and subjects. One of his earlier works is ‘Barvai Nayika Bhed’, which is written in short couplets and explores a range of emotions felt by women in love. This work is remarkable as it is written by a Mughal nobleman, who is writing a Hindi poem in a form popular in Sanskrit.
It is also mentioned that his inclination for writing in Hindi and Sanskrit besides Persian was reinstated because of an incident associated with Maharana Pratap. Once, during the war between Akbar and Pratap, the latter’s son Amar Singh launched an attack on the camp of Abdur Rahim Khan-e-Khana, who was the general of the Mughal army. He took away his wives and women as hostages. When Pratap came to know about his deed, he rebuked him and ordered to release all the women. Rahim was very thankful for this gesture on the part of Maharana and is said to have pledged not to raise a single weapon against him from then onward.
So, it is worthwhile to recall this link of the great poet Rahim with Mewat (earlier, part of Gurugram district), while visiting his wellconserved tomb, which is said to be inspired by the design of emperor Humayun’s mausoleum and serves as a precursor to the Taj Mahal.
HISTORIAN PROF. RAGHAVAN, FROM THE JNU, ARGUES THAT THE INFLUENCE OF RAHIM’S MEWATI RELATIVES, AS WELL AS THE RAJPUTS AT THE COURT, QUITE POSSIBLY INFLUENCED HIS CHOICE OF POETIC FORMS AND SUBJECTS