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Emperor
Akbar
The Great Mughal Emperor, Akbar was
a great devotee of Khwaja Sahib and was the most blessed ruler of India. He visited
the shrine several times, and many of his visits are of historical importance.
From Agra, he travelled on foot to Ajmer when he was blessed with a son, Prince
Salim. Akbar erected several buildings at Ajmer which include Akbari Mosque of
the Shrine.
He also presented to the Shrine a big cauldron (Deg) sufficient
to cook food for 5000 people and two large beating drums, besides offering huge
cash and land grants for the maintenance of Dargah, and for the upkeep of the
Khuddam families. Emperor
Jahangir
His son Jahangir also visited the Holy Shrine several times.
The first time was in 1022 A.H./1613. Again in 1024 A.H./1615, he visited the
Shrine and took part in the annual Urs Sharif of Khwaja Saheb.
During one
of his stays at Ajmer, Jahangir fell seriously ill and he prayed for his own health
at the shrine. He recovered very soon after that and to show his gratitude to
Khwaja Sahib he started wearing golden earrings. Emperor
Shahjahan
Shahjahan too followed his ancestors and visited the Shrine
many times and spent a good-deal of his time at Ajmer. His daughter, Princess
Jahan Ara was also a great devotee of Khwaja Sahib and wrote a book on the great
saint known as Munis-ul-arwah.
The Buildings of Shahjahan remain unrivalled
to this day. In the compound of the Shrine, he constructed a big matchless mosque
of pure white marble. Near the Ana Sagar lake, Shahjahan constructed buildings
of white marble and lovely garden which is still called Daulat Bagh. These buildings
are an eloquent proof of the magnanimity of this Great Mughal ruler and a token
of his devotion of Khwaja Sahib. Emperor
Aurangzeb. | Maharajas,
Rajas and Nawabs | Almost
all the Maharajas, Rajas (Rajputs, Marathas etc.) and Nawabs of princely states
of India before independence often visited the Holy Shrine and paid their homage
to the divine soul. Several of them presented gifts, Jagris and got buildings
constructed as a token of their devotion to Khwaja Sahib and fixed yearly amount
as Nazar for Dargah and for Khuddam from their respective states. Queen
Mary, Empress of England, at the time of her coronation in India in 1911 AD paid
a visit to Ajmer to express her feelings of reverence towards Khwaja Sahib. In
memory of her visit she constructed a roof over a tank (Hauz) near Mehfil Khana
for ablution. Lord
Curzon, viceroy and Governor General of India paid a visit to the shrine and expressed
his feelings in these words:
"The personality of the Great Khwaja was a standard
of greatness and excellence, to-day his shrine caries the same standard. It is
an undeniable fact that in India his Shrine virtually rules."
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