230 The Kiran-us-Sctdain of Mir Khusrau. [No. 3, 



marches and his time is chiefly occupied in festivities and hunting- 

 parties. The action of the poem now moves very slowly too, and we 

 wade painfully through a long series of descriptions, the varying 

 scenery of every month being minutely described, and the different 

 employments of the young King and his courtiers. His first stage is 

 Kilu Khari ((SJ-^j^f) where a grand castle, belonging to the 

 King, is described, as well as the festivities in which he indulges on his 

 arrival. While lingering here, he receives news of the invasion of 

 his North Western territories by an army of Moghuls. 



By the violence of their torrent as it burst in, 

 The glory (yJ\) of Lahore passed over to Multan. 

 The king despatches 30,000 chosen horsemen to meet this new 

 foe under the command of an officer named Khan Jahan Barbik.* 

 They march to the Punjab and soon disperse the enemy. We have 

 the names of several of the Moghul leaders mentioned, such as Tamur 

 (j+i ), Sarmak, Kill, Khajlik and Baidti. 



These transitory but desolating Moghul incursions are a continual 

 feature in the Indian annals of this period, reminding us of those 

 devastating inroads by the Danish pirates in our own Saxon period. 

 We learn from Ferishta that such an invasion actually occurred at this 

 time, and the poet has strictly kept to truth in narrating it ; but 

 he omits to mention, what is little to his hero's credit, that alarmed 

 lest the many Moghul soldiers in his service should side with their 

 countrymen, he assembled their chiefs and had them treacherously put 

 to death, — a singular parallel to Ethelred's murder of the Danish hus- 

 carles in a somewhat similar juncture. 



When the Sun entered the bull (the signs of the Zodiac forming 

 the poet's usual calendar,) the king seems to have commenced the 

 campaign in a more business-like manner, and he makes his second 

 start in the middle of the month Iiabi'-ul-Awwal.f 



Ferishta gives Khan Jahan and Mullik Yarbeg (in the printed textt_£wjta 

 Birlas as the leaders. General Brigg says elsewhere that Barbik is a Turkish title 

 for one of the classes of the gold stick ; it may be rendered by the title " gentle- 

 man usher in the courts of Europe." (Ferishta, i. p. 281.) 



t This month began April 16th in the year A. H. 686, A. D. 12S7. 



