Dara Shikoh
Dara Shikoh, also known as Dara Shukoh, (20 March 1615 – 30 August 1659) was the eldest son and heir-apparent of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. Dara was designated with the title Padshahzada-i-Buzurg Martaba ("Prince of High Rank") and was favoured as a successor by his father and his elder sister, Princess Jahanara Begum. He had been given the title of 'Shah-e-Buland Iqbal' by Shah Jahan. In the war of succession which ensued after Shah Jahan's illness in 1657, Dara was defeated by his younger brother Prince Muhiuddin (later, the Emperor Aurangzeb). He was executed in 1659 on Aurangzeb's orders in a bitter struggle for the imperial throne.
| Dara Shikoh | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Shahzada of the Mughal Empire Padshahzada-i-Buzurg Martaba Shah-e-Buland Iqbal Mirza | |||||
Prince Dara Shikoh by Chitarman, c. 1654 | |||||
| Heir apparent of Mughal Empire | |||||
| Subahdar of Multan | |||||
| Reign | 1652 - 1658 | ||||
| Badshah | Shah Jahan | ||||
| Subahdar of Kabul | |||||
| Reign | 1652 - 1658 | ||||
| Badshah | Shah Jahan | ||||
| Subahdar of Gujrat | |||||
| Reign | 1648 - 1658 | ||||
| Badshah | Shah Jahan | ||||
| Subahdar of Allahabad | |||||
| Reign | 1645 - 1658 | ||||
| Badshah | Shah Jahan | ||||
| Born | 20 March 1615 Ajmer, Rajputana, Mughal Empire | ||||
| Died | 30 August 1659 (aged 44) Delhi, Mughal Empire | ||||
| Burial | |||||
| Spouse |
Nadira Banu Begum
(m. 1633; d. 1659) | ||||
| Issue |
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| House | House of Babur | ||||
| Dynasty | Timurid dynasty | ||||
| Father | Shah Jahan | ||||
| Mother | Mumtaz Mahal | ||||
| Religion | Sunni Islam | ||||
Dara was a liberal-minded unorthodox Muslim as opposed to the orthodox Aurangzeb; he authored the work The Confluence of the Two Seas, which argues for the harmony of Sufi philosophy in Islam and Vedanta philosophy in Hinduism. A great patron of the arts, he was also more inclined towards philosophy and mysticism rather than military pursuits. The course of the history of the Indian subcontinent, had Dara Shikoh prevailed over Aurangzeb, has been a matter of some conjecture among historians.