Forgotten Kings by Changez Jan

Author:Changez Jan [Jan, Changez]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9789392099014
Publisher: SimonSchuster
Published: 2022-09-15T05:00:00+00:00

The Battle in the Snow, the First Battle of Lamghan

In 986/987 CE, Jayapala prepared to take a proactive step and oust Subuktigin. He collected an army that included numerous elephants and decided to deal with the threat of the Turks by marching into their territory. Subuktigin, getting intelligence of this, marched out to meet Jayapala.

Jayapala’s armies must have marched from his capital through Peshawar and the Khyber Pass into present-day Afghanistan. The two armies met near Lamghan and once within sight of each other, they started skirmishing. For a few days, the armies battled with each other where both sides fought with great courage. This was one of the first engagements involving Subuktigin’s son and future King Mahmud who was 15 years old at the time.

There is a story20 credited to Akhund Derveza21 describing a people that were fighting on the side of Jayapala, who were native to Kabul. These people were known to perform a piercing and fierce scream. This was a cry in chorus which they normally performed when they would dance and sing at their festive gatherings. They used the same terrifying cry in battle which bewildered Subuktigin’s soldiers. The latter named these people ‘Afghan’ which in their language meant ‘to cry’.22

Disaster struck the two armies in the form of a sudden snowstorm. The situation is described as being very grim—there were black clouds and whirlwinds. The mountain tops turned dark and heavy rain started pouring down. Both armies suffered the loss of soldiers. There was loss as well in the livestock that accompanied the armies. But the loss was more severe on the Indian side as the soldiers were mostly from the plains whereas the troops of Ghazni, being from the mountains, were hardy and accustomed to these conditions.

There is a famous legend regarding the cause of the snowstorm quoted by Ferishta23 and also by Utbi that involves a fountain of water in a ravine by the mountain where the Sahi army was camped. The mountain is called ‘Ukba Ghuzak’24, referred to as ‘Ghuzak’ by Alberuni, and its water is one of the tributaries of the Kabul river.25 One day, a woman of the neighbourhood came to Mahmud26 and told him that there was a spring not far off in the mountains which had powerful properties. If filth were cast into it, the sky became overcast, snow and storms followed and the weather became so cold that no one in these parts could endure it. This cold and foul weather would last if the filth remained in the fountain. Upon learning of the magical attributes of the water, Mahmud sent his men to locate it and after the water was contaminated, it had the intended effect.

Setting these fantastic legends aside, it is probable that the Indian army suffered heavily and perhaps more than the Turks due to the storm that most likely arose as a natural phenomenon. Jayapala sued for peace, sending messengers to the Muslim camp. Amir Subuktigin was inclined towards making peace, but his son, Mahmud, addressed the messengers harshly and refused the peace offering, vowing to victory.

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