MIRZA ZU-L-QARNATN, A CHRISTIAN GRANDEE. 169 



Fr. Manoel Figueredo, S.J., a Missionary in Mogor and a contemporary of Bibi 

 Anna Dessa, has left us a short account of Zu-1-Qarnain. Written as it was 75 years 

 or so after Zu-1-Qarnain's death, it distorts already considerably the real facts. It 

 must rest on the traditions current in 1735, since, as the Father remarks, the earliest 

 documents of the Agra Mission had been plundered. 1 



cc On the death of Akbar, Joanquir [Jahanglr] ascended the throne and reigned 

 23 years. During his reign, a young Armenian, born of Christian parents and called 

 Tulkarnet [sic; Zu-1-Qarnain] was brought up at the court. As the boy advanced in 

 years, his zeal for the faith grew greater, although the Emperor often tried with manifold 

 caresses and repeated menaces to gain him over to his sect. Once, pointing with his 

 finger to the highest tower of the Royal Palace he threatened the youthful Christian 

 athlete that, unless he abandoned the law of Christ, he would have him thrown from 

 the top. The boy immediately ran away from the Emperor and mounted the tower. 

 After some hours the Emperor asked for his Tulkarnet; and, being told that he had 

 run away for fear, he ordered to make a search for him and bring him to his presence. 

 They found him on the said tower, and, as the Emperor wished to know why he had 

 fled thither, the boy said quite eagerly, f To be the quicker ready for Heaven, when 

 Your Majesty would give the order to throw me down.' — ' Are you not afraid of 

 death, then?' asked the King. 'No,' answered the youth, f for who dies for God 

 lives for ever in Heaven. '* This answer pleased the King so greatly that he prevailed 

 on his sons to accept Tulkarnet as their brother ; as for him, he made him later an 

 Amire or Ombrau, that is, a I v ord of the first rank, and gave him quite generously 

 the revenues belonging to that dignity. 



f( Now, Tulkarnet received some information about the zeal of our Missionaries; 

 he asked, therefore, the Reverend Fr. Provincial of the Goa Province to send him 

 some Priests. His request was willingly granted and he received them with the great- 

 est affection. 6 Tulkarnet founded for them from his income a College at Agra, whence 

 soon many Apostles were sent through the Kingdom, who laid the foundation-stone 

 of the Mogor Mission; all this with the Emperor's consent, which the cherished cour- 

 tier + had obtained from him. 



" After Joanquir's death, his son Sachajan ascended the throne. He was as 

 well inclined towards Tulkarnet as his father had been. Once this Emperor sent a 

 Jesuit from the town of Lahor into misery because he had disputed too hotly with the 

 Mahometans on religious matters. As soon as Tulkarnet was informed of this, he 

 went to the Emperor and asked him where was his Birtzadak (which means a son of 

 the most just). 6 The Emperor answered that he had fled from the country. There- 

 upon Tulkarnet shook a pillar of the Emperor's throne and said with great earnestness : 



Preposito qeral da Companhia de Jesus, by Fr. Joseph Freire, S.J., Goa, 27th December 1678. MS. in my possession, 

 fol. 88t». 



' Cf. Joseph Stocklein and others, S.J., Der N eue-W eltbott ... (38 vols., 1728-61), jister Theil, No. 595, i.e., letter 

 from Mogor, 1735, to Maria Anna, Queen of Portugal, pp. 2, 3 



2 This story of the tower is not to be found in the very ample letters of the Jesuits between 1600-1610. 



•' A flagrant anachronism, as we know. 



* The cherished courtier ( der beliebte Hoff-Herr) was either Zu-1-Qarnain or 'Asaf Khan, the former rather. 



5 Birtzadak (heist einen Sohn des Gerechtesten). 



