83 
J. Wise —Notes on Sundry don, Eastern Bengal. [No. 1, 
I. —Ednch Pir Eargah, in Mahallah Bdghalpur .-—It is in a very ruin¬ 
ous state. The wall surrounding the enclosure has fallen down in places, 
and several large jungle trees grow close to the tombs, and will ultimately 
destroy them. The sepulchres of these five Pfrs are placed parallel to one 
another, and are raised about four feet from the ground. The river Brahma¬ 
putra must in former days have flowed past them. It was at one time 
intended to cover the tombs with a roof, but the pillars never rose higher 
than a few feet. The age of those graves, the names of the holy men, and 
the country whence they came, are unknown to fame; the natives are 
satisfied by telling that they came from the ‘ pachhim,’ i. e., west, and they 
cannot understand why anybody should wish to know more. At the south¬ 
west corner of the enclosure is a small uninteresting mosque, which, like the 
tombs, is rapidly falling into ruin. 
This dargali is considered so sacred that even Hindus salaam as they 
pass, and Muhammadan pilgrims resort to it from great distances. There 
are only two other shrines to which Muhammadans make pilgrimages in 
Eastern Bengal—one is the tomb of Shall ’All at Mirpur, a few miles north 
of Dhaka; the other is the dargah of Pir Badr Auliya at Chatgaon. The 
latter is the patron saint of all Hindu and Muhammadan boatmen and fisher¬ 
men in Eastern Bengal. 
II. —About five hundred yards south-east, on the edge of a filthy 
trench called “ Mag Diglii,” is the tomb of Ghiyasuddin A’zam Shah, 
king of Bengal, and correspondent of the poet Hafiz. This tomb has 
fallen to pieces. The iron clamps that bound the slabs together have 
rusted, and the roots of trees have undermined the massive stones. This 
mausoleum formerly consisted of a ponderous stone which occupied the cen¬ 
tre, surrounded by pillars about five feet in height. These stones are all 
beautifully carved, and the corners of the slabs and the arabesque tracery 
are as perfect as the day they left the workman’s hands. The stones are 
formed of hard, almost black, basalt. Vide pi. VIII.* 
At the head is a prostrate sandstone pillar half buried in earth. It was 
apparently used, when erect, as a chiraghddn, or stand for a light. 
This tomb might be easily repaired, and the cost of doing so would be 
inconsiderable. There is no old building in Eastern Bengal which gives a 
better idea of Muhammadan taste than this ruined sepulchre ; and there is 
none, when properly repaired, which would so long defy the ravages of time. 
The Muhammadans of Sunargaon are too poor to reconstruct it themselves. 
They take great pride in showing it, although they know nothing about it 
but the name of the Sultan who is buried there, and they take every care 
that none of the stones are carried off. Unless Government undertakes the re¬ 
erection of this handsome tomb, it is not likely that anything will ever be done. 
* The lithograph was made from a photograph taken by Mr. W. Brennand, 
Principal of the Dhaka College. 
