Page:History of India Vol 6.djvu/334

270 APPENDIX whose chief pontiff, called Papa (Pope), promulgates his interpretations for the use of the people and issues mandates that even kings dare not disobey, brought their Gospel to King Akbar's notice, advanced proof of the Trinity, affirmed the truth of the Christian faith, and spread abroad the knowledge of the religion of Jesus. The king ordered his son, Prince Murad, to learn a few lessons from the Gospel, and to treat it with all due respect, while Shaikh Abu-1-Fazl was ordered to translate it. Instead of the prefatory Bis- millahy the following ejaculation was enjoined: " O thou whose name is merciful and bountiful." To this Shaikh Faizi added: " Praise be to God! there is no one like thee thou art he! ' The attributes of the abhorred Anti-Christ were ascribed to our holy Prophet by these lying impostors/ EUROPEANS GRANT PASSES FOR SHIPS TO MECCA The increasing number of Christians in India and the fact that they were in a position to exact and grant passes to Moslems who used their ships on the way to Mecca was curiously employed by some Moham- medans (not without scorn) as an argument against pilgrimages. Badauni holds such a view up to ridicule in describing a scene in Akbar's " Hall of Worship." [Elliot, vol. v, pp. 519 - 520.] ' One night during the year 983 A. H. (1575 A. D.) , Khan Jahan mentioned that Makhdum-al-Mulk had expressed an opinion that in those days it was not a religious duty to go on a pil- grimage, and that it was even sinful to do so. When