The story reads like a movie script: a defeated emperor wanders the desert, while his pregnant wife goes into labor in a Rajput fort. It was the night of October 14, 1542. History was going to change this night, but destiny was taking some more time. Astrologers had predicted that if the baby was born now, his future would be normal, but if he was born a few hours later, his luck would shine. And that’s exactly what happened… A few hours later, the child was born and went on to become the Emperor of India.
Hamida Bano’s labor pain worried Maulana
This is the story of the birth of Mughal emperor Akbar. His father Humayun, who was then wandering after his defeat at the hands of Sher Shah Suri, had a deep faith in astrology. It is said that he never took any major step without consulting his royal astrologer Maulana Chand. According to a BBC report and Akbarnama, when Humayun’s wife Hamida Banu Begum went into labor, Maulana Chand was immediately informed. But when they saw the positions of the planets and stars in the sky, they became worried.
Could the birth have been postponed for some time?
Maulana suggested that it would be better to wait a little. According to him, the sidereal conjunction occurring a few hours later occurs once in thousands of years, and if a child is born during this conjunction, his fate will be unique. But the question was whether birth could be avoided. When he asked the midwives if this was possible, they replied that it was in God’s hands; Humans cannot interfere in this.
In this way Akbar’s birth was postponed by five hours
Maulana Chand was not a believer. He made his own move. He made a scary face in the dark and asked a midwife to show it to the queen. As soon as Hamida Bano saw this face, she fainted with fear and the labor pains stopped. A few hours passed and when the auspicious time came, Maulana said, “Now wake up the queen.” Hamida Bano woke up and her labor pains started again. At exactly 1:06 am on October 15, 1542, almost five hours later, Akbar was born.
Akbar ruled the country for a long time
It is said that soon after the birth, Maulana Chand sent a message to Humayun, warning him that this child would rule the empire for a long time and his fortune would be greater than that of Sher Shah. In fact, this prediction proved true. Akbar later became one of the most influential rulers of India, whose policies and foresight still shine in the pages of history.
