Source: Sanjay Subrahmanyam
The work in question is the Fath Nāma- i Nizām Shāh (“Account of the Nizam Shah’s Victory”), and its author, Hasan Shauqi, remains quite obscure. He appears to have been active in the later sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, and he is briefly mentioned by some other poets from the mid- seventeenth century as their predecessor. ….
The scene then shifts to the darbār of Ramraj, where a conversation is in progress. The Vijayanagara ruler brings in his wazīrs to prepare for the fight against the Nizam Shah. Having first praised the courage and intelligence of Husain, Ramraj then unveils his plan. It has been weighing on Ramraj that while the whole world calls him a king, only this “Turk” denies him such a tribute. Ramraj now cynically provokes the religious sentiments of the wazīrs against the Nizam Shah, saying that he does not acknowledge the Vedas or Puranas, only the Quran. The wazīrs become enthusiastic about the prospect of war, and say:
How can one compare Ramraj to Shah Husain?
Or compare the Red Sea with two cups of water?
The Vijayanagara court decides that the best way to go about starting a war would be to demand an elaborate and insulting tribute from Husain Nizam Shah: this would include camels from Kabul, ambergris, aloes, musk, a large silver bell, a golden flute, cash and precious goods, powerful maces, and Bahmani daggers. So Ramraj composes an insolent letter making these and even more outrageous demands: jade pitchers, ruby cups, diamond cubes, and the foot bracelets of Malika Khunza Humayun, the wife of Husain Nizam Shah (in what is potentially a sexually loaded reference). He also asks that some of the principal Deccani notables such as Rumi Khan, Makhdum Khwaja Jahan, and Asad Khan be sent to him.
Finally, he demands that Husain stop eating beef, turn away from Mecca, and instead pray to the Saiva ascetics or *jangamas. * If Husain does not do this, Ramraj threatens the direst of consequences.
I’ll spare neither Turk nor Turkish bow
If there’s a Rustam in this time, I dare him to come forth, From the Bhima’s waters to the Narmada’s edge
I’ll spare neither the rich nor the poor.
I will not spare the brides of Hind
Nor will I spare the brides of Sind
I won’t spare a single Maulana or faqīr
Neither aged nor youth, neither young man nor old.
I’ll expel the foundations of Islam far off
Only those who accept Ram will be spared.Na turkān ko chhorūn na turkī kamān
Agar gyo Rustam hāzir zamānZe āb-i Bhimwar tā lab- i NarbadāNa chhorūn tawangar
na chhorūn gadāNa chhorūn kidhain kadkhudāyān-i Hind
Na chhorūn kidhain kadkhudāyān-i Sind
Na chhorūn mulānā na chhorūn faqīr
Na barkā na larkā na barnā na pīr
Karūn dūr buniyād Islām
kījo māne dorāhe jagat Rām kī.