Shah Jahan Receives His Three Eldest Sons and Asaf Khan During His Accession Ceremonies

The painting is a single page illustration by the painter named Bichitr, who signed it with an inscription in Persian written from right to left which reads "work of the most insignificant slave Bichitr." It is located vertically beneath the feet of the Shah and should be read as a sign of his humility rather than his literal social position. This painting is from the Mughal manuscript known as the Padshahnama (Book of Emperors), a history of the reign of Emperor Shah Jahan. It commemorates a historical event, the accession ceremony of Shah Jahan, when he formally received his three eldest sons.The scene is set in the Hall of Public Audience, the Diwan-i-Am, of the Agra Fort in spring 1628. The text accompanying this painting describes how the emperor's three eldest sons kissed the ground before the feet of the emperor and gave him a symbolic offering of gold coins. Bichitr has depicted the very moment that the eldest son Dara Shukoh is kissing the ground before the emperor. The idea of this painting is one of dynastic continuity. Shah Jahan is shown seated in a balcony at the far end of the hall, elevated above the assembled court. Around his head is a gold halo representing divine light, the light transmitted from God to kings. At the very top of the composition, in the shamiana, the awning above the emperor's head, is the huma bird, the Persian bird of paradise. According to Persian tradition, whoever's head the huma flies over will become a great king. Directly below the balcony where the emperor is sitting is an image of a globe with two mullahs, Muslim clerics, on either side. They represent religious authority. Directly between them is a gold chain with bells, representing the chain of justice. Supposedly a real chain hung from the Agra Fort down to the river so that anyone from across the whole Mughal empire could come and ring the bells to attract the emperor's attention, symbolising Shah Jahan's commitment to justice. Below that, two lions and a lamb lie peacefully together, symbolising the harmony of the Mughal state under Shah Jahan's rule. There are no known paintings of Shah Jahan in anything other than strict profile. The figure of the emperor does not engage with anyone except his son, creating a boundary between the viewer and the emperor. The golden platform in front of the emperor is where the mullah will come to read the Friday sermon in the emperor's name for the first time, a declaration of sovereignty. From here, the sermon will be issued to all mosques across the Mughal empire to inform them of Shah Jahan's accession. The composition reflects the power dynamics of court. On the highest register are the imperial family. Next are the nobles and highest members of the court, separated from the lesser nobles by a gold railing. If you look at the gazes of the figures, they almost zigzag up and across. Only people allowed to look directly at the emperor are members of the imperial family. The rigid formality of the ceremony is captured in the painting. It is a very balanced composition with a strong vertical axis, and almost every element on the left is mirrored by an element on the right. On the left-hand side at the top are a group of musicians providing oral accompaniment for the ceremonies. The most important instruments among them are the kettle drums and the trumpet, because when these are played it is a signal that the emperor is present. Their positioning above the walls of the fort provides an audible link between the emperor inside and those beyond the city walls. The artist uses both the hyper-real and illusion to recreate the glory, the opulence and the power dynamics of the Mughal court. This image was created by Shah Jahan himself, who closely supervised all of his artists and kept them under strict control as to what they could paint and how they could paint it. The idea was to make manifest Shah Jahan's imperial ideals. Set amidst the architecture of palaces and forts, the formal composition of the illustration denotes the strict hierarchy of the Mughal court and creates a masterfully controlled rhythm of pattern and colour. It is the artists' delight in the tiniest details, the texture of lavish fabrics and arrangement of fantastic jewels, that gives the pages of the Padshahnama their extraordinary intensity.