Tomb of Abdul Rahim Khan-I-Khana, Delhi, India

Tomb of Abdul Rahim Khan-I-Khana, Delhi, India

Abdul Rahim Khan-e-Khana (17,December 1556-1627) also known as Rahim was a composer in the times of Mughal emperor Akbar, and one of his main nine ministers (Diwan)in his court, also known as the Navaratnas; he is most known for his Hindi couplets and his books on Astrology.

The village of Khankhana, named after him, is located in the Nawanshahar district of the state

of Punjab in northwest India.

Biography

Bairam Khan's widow and child being escorted to Ahmedabad, in 1561, after his assassination, Akbarnama

Mirza Abdul Rahim Khan-i-Khana was the son of Akbar’s trusted caretaker, Bairam Khan who had Turk ancestry. When Humayun returned to India, from his exile, he is asked the nobles in court to forge matrimonial alliances with various zamindars, feudal lords, across the nation. While Humayun himself married the elder daughter of Jamal Khan of Mewat (present Mewat district of Haryana) , he asked Bairam to marry the younger daughter.

Abdul Rahim was born in Lahore (now in Pakistan) on 14th Çafar 964

After Bairam Khan was murdered in Patan, Gujarat, his wife and young Rahim were brought safely to Ahmedabad, from they brought to Delhi and presented to the royal courts of Akbar, who gave him the title of 'Mirza Khan', and subsequently married him to Mah Banu, sister of Mirza Aziz Kokah, son of Ataga Khan, a noted Mughal noble.

Later, Bairam Khan's wife became the second wife of Akbar, which made Abdul Rahim Khan-e-Khan his stepson, and later he became one of his nine prominent ministers, the Navaratnas, or nine gems.

Although a Muslim by birth, Rahim was a devotee of Lord Krishna and wrote poetry dedicated to him. He was also an avid Astrologer, and the writer if two important works in Astrology Khet Kautukam and Dwawishd Yogavali are still popular.

He is well known for his strange manner of giving alms to the poor. He never looked at the person he was giving alms to, keeping his gaze downwards in all humility.

His two sons were killed by Akbar's son Jahangir and their bodies left to rot at the Khooni Darwaza because Rahim was not in favor of Jahangir's accession to the throne at Akbar's death.

His tomb is situated in Nizamuddin on the Mathura Road ahead of Humayun's Tomb in New Delhi, it was built by him for his wife in 1598, and later he was himself buried in it in 1627 . Later, in 1753-4, marble and sandstone from this tomb was used for the making of Safdarjung's Tomb, also in New Delhi.