Cheetah: Cheetah was a means of showing prestige and bravery for the Mughal rulers, there was a Cheetah in Fatehpur Sikri A to Z Counsel

The steps of cheetahs brought from Namibia are lying on the soil of India after 70 years. Although more than a thousand cheetahs were reared in the hunting ground of Mughal emperor Akbar in Agra and Fatehpur Sikri, which was the Mughal capital 430 years ago. The Mughal emperors used to show their strength and courage in front of royal and foreign guests. When the Cheetah-e-Khas named Samand Manik and Chittaranjan came to the Mughal court, the drums were played in front of them. The emperor used to caress these special cheetahs near him and used to feed them with his own hands. The Mughal emperors Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan used cheetahs for hunting instead of dogs. Noor Jahan also used to go hunting with cheetahs.

uncle was welcomed with cheetahs

Padmashree KK Mohammad tells that when Akbar’s uncle Mirza Suleman came for the first time after Fatehpur Sikri became the capital, people welcomed him on both sides of the road from Agra Gate to Diwan-i-Khas. Specially trained cheetahs were raised in honor of uncle at the gate itself. At the same time, there was presence of cheetahs in Diwan-i-Khas also.

Leopards are featured in 89 Mughal paintings

There are 89 paintings related to the life of Mughal emperors, in which pictures of cheetahs have been engraved. It belongs to Emperor Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan during the hunt. There is no mention of rearing or hunting cheetahs during the time of Mughal emperor Babur. Tales of Cheetahs in Mughal Sultanate Akbarnama, Ain Akbari, Tuzuk-e-Jahangiri, Iqbalnama-e-Jahangiri, Tawakat-e-Nasiri, Tarikh-i-Firozshahi, Yasir-e-Jahangiri, Mirat-e-Ahmadi, Muntakhab-ut-Twarikh and is recorded in Majlis-e-Jahangiri. Jahangir has written that from the age of 12 to 50 he hunted 28,532 animals and 13,964 birds. In these, cheetahs were used in the hunting of animals, which was given the name of Kamargah.