Note 70 — The Thirteenth New Year’s Feast

Being without remedy, he (the brother) went to K͟hwāja Jahān at Agra, and told him the circumstances. He sent a detachment against that village to take him by force and bring him. The people of the village, seeing their own ruin in the mirror of the case, handed him over to him. This day he came to Court in chains. I gave an order for his execution. The man of wrath (the executioner) took him to the place of punishment with all haste. After a while, through the intercession of one of the courtiers, I gave him his life, and ordered his feet to be cut off, but according to his destiny (what was written on his head) before the order arrived he had been punished. Although that doomed man was deserving of punishment, yet I regretted70 the circumstance, and directed that whenever an order was given for anyone’s execution, notwithstanding that the command were imperative, they should wait till sunset before putting him to death. If up to that time no order for release arrived, he should without fail be capitally punished.