Dara Shikoh

Dara Shikoh (Hindi: दारा शिकोह), (Urdu: دارا شِكوه‎), (Persian: دارا شكوه ‎‎) M 20 March 1615 – 30 August 1659 Julian/9 September 1659 Gregorian) was the eldest son and the heir-apparent of the fifth Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. His name دارا شكوه in Persian means "as magnificent as Dara". He was favoured as a successor by his father and his sister Princess Jahanara Begum Sahib, but was defeated by his younger brother Prince Muhiuddin (later, the Emperor Aurangzeb) in a bitter struggle for the imperial throne.

The course of the history of the Indian subcontinent, had Dara Shikoh prevailed over Aurangzeb, has been a matter of some conjecture among historians.

Early life

Dara Shikoh was born near Ajmer on 28 October 1615, the eldest son of Prince Shahab ud-din Muhammad Khurram (Shah Jahan) and his second wife, Mumtaz Mahal. When he was 12, his grandfather, Emperor Jahangir, died, and his father succeeded as emperor.

On 1 February 1633, Dara Shikoh married his first cousin, Nadira Banu Begum, the daughter of his paternal uncle Sultan Parvez Mirza. By all accounts, it was an extremely happy and successful marriage. Both Dara Shikoh and Nadira were devoted to each other, so much so that Dara Shikoh never contracted any other marriage after marrying his cousin Nadira. The couple had eight children, of whom two sons and two daughters survived to adulthood.