Page:History of Aurangzib (based on original sources) Vol 1.djvu/359

CHAP. XIII.] a religious cloak on their war of personal ambition, that his letters assume a sanctimonious tone calculated to raise a smile in those who knew of his private character. Taking the hint from Aurangzib, the gay reveller of Ahmadabad poses as the champion of Islam; he threatens Dara with extirpation as the enemy of the holy faith; he refers to his eldest brother as the Mulhid (Idolator),-the very term adopted by Aurangzib and his Court-historians; and he professes confidence about his future success in "reliance on the strong religion of Muhammad." In short, he was familiarising himself with the phraseology of one who would soon become a Padishah Ghazi, or Emperor waging war on infidels."

While his diplomacy was thus making haj progress and Shahbaz had sent him the first fruits of the loot of Surat city, Murad felt that further delay was a mere waste of opportunity. His action was also hastened by the astrologers who declared with one voice that at 4 hours 24 minutes after the sunrise of 20th November there was such a conjunction of auspicious planets as would not happen again for many years to come. The moment was too precious