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Alphabetical Order
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Shah Jahan's vision of perpetual justice, divinely ordained and artistically etched, was channeled to his oldest son and successor, Dara Shikoh. He was a mercurial figure, trained in the military and diplomatic arts without which no dynasty could succeed, but at the same time genuinely committed to mystic pursuits.
Unlike his father, grandfather and great-grandfather, he seemed not only to engage saints in his service but also to submit himself to their guidance. While still a youth, he is said to have visited a famous Qadiri saint in Lahore when in the throes of a debilitating illness. He recovered, and credited his recovery to that saint, Miyan Mir. Later, in 1640 he became the disciple of one of Miyan Mir's major successors, Mullah Shah Badakhsi.
Dara, like his Great Grandfather Akbar, was secular in his viewpoints, his tolerance for other religions led him to study Gita and take tuitions in Sanskrit. Later on he was involved in a bitter struggle for the throne with his younger brother Aurangzeb, which culminated in his defeat and subsequent murder at the hands of Aurangzeb.
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