Mughals and Mangoes

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 11 April 2022 " The overall class and pedigree of a group of people can be determined by its fondness for food and fruits." -Professor Sir Edward Gibbon, ' The Rise and Fall of Roman Empire ' "Kah Mukri " by 13th century Sufi Poet Amir Khusro : बरसा-बरस वह देस में आवे, मुँह से मुँह लाग रस प्यावे। वा खातिर मैं खरचे दाम, ऐ सखि साजन न सखि! आम।। Courtesy: Indo Islamic Culture/ Twitter ----- The aforementioned famous statement applies to the Mughals, who are, 'uncouth and barbaric plunderers' according to the neo-Hindus with half-baked knowledge and who keep spewing venom against Muslims and Mughals on various social platforms. Anyway, this is the season of mangoes, which is redolent of its fruity ripe aroma. Like all gourmets, Mughals were also very fond of mangoes. So much so that the Persian poet Urfi Shiraz, in the court of Akbar, called it, 'Sartaaj-E-Samar' (king of fruits, Samar : fruit in Urdu) and wrote in Persian, 'Dull would he be of soul and taste, who doesn't like mangoes.' Mughals not only loved mangoes, they patronised the fruit by owning mango orchards as far as Kandahar and today's Kohat (NWFP, also famous from its guavas and the great Urdu poet Ahmad Faraz)..While Babur had dismissed the mango (he loved muskmelons-Kharbooza-of Central Asia), Jahangir praised it, declaring that “notwithstanding the sweetness of the Kabul fruits, not one of them has, to my taste, the flavour of the mango.” It must be noted that 'throughout the reign of the Mughals, fruit occupied a special place in court culture as well as on the court’s table. Fruit served not only as a foodstuff, but also as an omnipresent statement of who the Mughals were and how they viewed their relationship with their Indian subjects. Fruit was an edible yardstick of civilization, the cultivation and appreciation of which was a key indication of civilized culture' (courtesy, National Museum of Asian Art, Oct. 12, 2012). Jahangir's father emperor Akbar was so fond of mangoes from Malihabad region (near Lucknow) that he ordered to preserve the slices of mangoes in honey to be relished in off-seasons! It's worthwhile to mention that honey is a great preservative. Interestingly, when Akbar was young, he was allergic to mangoes and his skin would develop rashes after consuming the juicy fruit. But he loved the taste. Fortunately, Faizi (the elder brother of Abul Fazl and one of the Navratnas in Akbar's court) came to his rescue as he (Faizi) was also a hakim. He advised Akbar to drink aam ka pana (I don't know, what is it called in English) with a pinch of asafoetida (Heeng). Akbar followed the instructions in toto and got rid of his allergy to mangoes! Akbar's court poets in Persian, Utbi and Naziri, wrote panegyrics on mangoes. Utbi wrote a long nazm on Akbar's fondness for mangoes and he also described the aphrodisiac attributes of mangoes. Akbar recommended the consumption of a ripe mango (most probably, the Chausa variety) an hour prior to conjugal intimacy. Raja Todarmal benefitted from the emperor's 'medical' advice. Mirza Ghalib's love for mangoes is part of our folklore . Courtesy: Indo Islamic Culture/ Twitter ---- Shahjahan used to relish different varieties of mangoes and loved Aamras (sans milk). So fond was he of mangoes that when his son Aurangzeb incarcerated him, he allowed Shahjahan to have at least this privilege during summers. The usually stern Aurangzeb was also very fond of mangoes and when he was in the Deccan (Aurangabad and Ahmednagar), he tried new varieties of mangoes and found them to be better than the mangoes of Shumaal (north). The last Mughal emperor BahadurSshah Zafar was also very fond of mangoes. Alas, the poor soul was deprived of it when the English exiled him to Rangoon (British-controlled Burma). Zafar is believed to have penned a Nazm in praise of mangoes but his mentor and poet Ibrahim 'Zauq' discouraged him to make it public as the Ustad-poet thought that it was unbecoming, nay infra-dig, on the part of an emperor to write on mangoes and eulogise the fruit! Zafar and Zauq's legendary coeval Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib's fondness for the king of fruits is a part of Urdu folklore. Now when mangoes are in the market, it's time to enjoy the fruit in all its tasteful splendour. Alas, Aam Aaj-Kal Aam Aadmi Ki Resai Se Baahar Ho Gaya Hai, ruefully observed Urdu short-story writer Intezaar Hussain. It's indeed out of the reach of common people. --- An occasional columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-culture/mughals-mangoes-ghalib-jahangir/d/126772 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism