“Statesmanlike Statecraft in Ancient and Medieval Hunza” – Part II
By Karim Khan
Origin of the Trakhan Dynasty at Gilgit, to which Chushaig Boto’s ancestry is traced, pertains to one Persian prince Azar Jamshed from the just king Jamshed who happened to come to Gilgit and killed Shri (Sri) Badat, the man-eater (Adam Khorr) cruel king there. He was ultimately successful in his efforts to establish his rule there. He first managed to make freinds with Sri Badat’s only daughter who disclosed to him her father’s secret that fire is his only weakness and his sole enemy to be killed. Thus in order to set foot on the soil of Hunza to expand and consolidate the Trakhan Dynasty’s rule in Hunza in front of the neighboring Nager as dominion or fief, Chushaig (or Tushaig) Boto managed to reach Hunza. All respected oral historians and writers too do attest to this historic fact. The names Malik e Dala and Malik e Qabur at the two ancient ex-royal headquarters villages of Altit and Baltit respectively bear eloquent testimony to Azar Jamshed’s family’s traces at Hunza like names Suu Malik who was one of Azar Jamshed’s family man the Persian Prince who came to Gilgit.
He nurtured and trained Girkis as the deputy of Gilgit’s Trakhan clan or tribe or family’s princes who was brought by Chushaig Boto as the Prince and to be Tham of Hunza as a Princely State. His actual name was Sahib Khan. Thus both were having the same family background in genealogy at different stages of their genealogy. Thus Girkis, who was made the Prince of Hunza by his Statesman Boto’s and great Barcha Mamusing’s backing and background role, as the young prince could not do so on his own and needed his family foster-father’s hand behind all this strategic and tactic plans of Statesmanly and pioneering leadership role, given that age’s settings.
Due to all this, the Trakhan Prince of Hunza had to face the jealousy and wrath of his elder brother Mughlot of Nager because of Hunza Princely State being allotted to Girkis by Chushaig Boto and Bercha Mamusing of Ganish clan and thus it had become the bone of contention or apple of discord between both brothers as both were intent upon to rule there. Thus a feud (quarrel) ensued which unfortunately culminated in a plot by Mughlot, foster-father of the rival and neighbouring another great State of Nager, whose Prince was Mughlot as just mentioned. Foster father of Mughlot named Shushro Mughul Bek thus plotted (intrigued and planned) to kill the younger brother Prince of Hunza near Shanex at Ganish near the bank of River Hunza through pre-planned geese hunting game by both brothers who now were the rival princes of both the states separately. So, Prince Girkis offered his elder brother Mughlot to shoot the arrow first from his bow at which Mughlot exclaimed. “No, after you, as it is you who has has first selected to choose Hunza to rule” meaning which he wanted to choose instead. So after that, Mughlot’s foster-father Shuro Mughul Bek carefully shot Prince Girkis instead of aiming at the swimming geese in the river because of their pre-planned plot and conspiracy hatched out. Soon, Mughul Bek made good his escape.
Thus, now saddened at this, Chushaig Boto firmly resolved to take revenge of his Prince-ruler’s bloodshed. He chased Shushoro Mughul Bek all along the way to the left bank of River Hunza himself as a tactic and, with the aid of Hindi’s (present day Nasirabad) Tarto Gono’s help in navigating or reaching the killer Shushro Mughul Bek’s direction, managed to kill his enemy at Khanechi (present day Sikandarabad, Nager). He thus succeeded in his carefull and tactful military strategy of having pretended to call his army of brave Hunzukutz just as a tactic, as actually he himself was there on the spot with the secret help of Tarto Gono to the right bank in telling him about Shuro Mughul Bek’s whereabouts.
Thus triumphant in his manly revenge of his slain Prince, Chushsig Boto brought back the liver of his slain enemy as revenve for having assassinated his nominated Hunza Prince Girkis. This was as evidence to show Prince Girkis’s (Sahib Khan’s) only daughter Nur Bakht or Nur Begum at Altit Thaang (Fort), which used to be the palace of Hunza and Nur Bakht was the interim or caretaker ruler whom Chushaig (Tushaig) Boto who helped ascend the throne of Hunza like the way he had helped her slain father Girkis ascend that coveted throne, which Mughlot was eying to get it as his state or dominion. Nur Bakht is said to have in hatred chewed in her grief and agony her enemy’s liver in under her teeth. Wazir Boto, who was her military chief and main advisor and foster-father, was in the backgound managing and monitoring all the affairs of the State he had established after a heroic and statesmanlike struggle through the background help and support of his Burong tribe who were then residing the near present day Burongshall at Baltit (Karimabad) apart from the other three ancient clans or tribes of Shano Haraig, Mamo Haraig and Safpar Haraig. Burong thus have the honour to their credit, of having their pioneering great role in establishing the State of Hunza. But as just mentioned above, owing to jealousy and ignorance the tribe of Burong is thought to be junior and outsider or inferior or not wise despite such a great pioneering role in history.
Consequently, when the Princess as heir to her father Girkis’ (Sahib Khan) throne, reached the age of fourteen, Chushaig Boto along with some other senior courtiers suggested her that she now should get married. So, he, in search of a best matching prince somewhere, set out and according to one account, he is said to have reached so far and away as Central Asia’s Shighnan and Darwaz cities of their time. There he is said to have found a young boy playing along with his friends in an open place. On finding some required leadership traits in that young boy, he picked him up and brought back home to Hunza. Some other accounts and oral traditions hold the view that Boto got a young prince who had left Hunza or fled away. Yet others are of the view that he brought back his own ancestral prince from somewhere. That prince was later married to Princess Nur Bakht. Before that, the rival but neighbouring Nagerkux used to pass sarcastic remarks and comments as Hunzukux in the meanwhile did not have a male ruler as Girkis had no male issue after him to rule.
By now, the brave Hunzukux under the visionary leadership role of Chushaig Boto, were happy and one day, they were celebrating the happy coronation ceremony of the just found young Prince Mayur whom they still remember as not only their Tham (King) but the one who descended down from the heavens through the efforts and leadership role of Chushsig Boto. They wre feeling happy and jubilant and from near the nearby Hunza River at Ganish, the clever Nagerkux sarcastically remarked as to what was going on at Hunza. You once were so silent of not having a ‘turban’ (of honour—meaning you did not have a king or tribal ruler). The now again proud Hunzokux joyfully exclaimed that now they have got a ‘Prince from the Skies’ their Ayasholoom Ayashoo. So, they were happy and from Ayasho (I), the Daynasty or House of Ayashkutz has remained ascended on the covetted throne of Hunza for almost long one thousand years when in 1974, Prime Minister of Pakistan annulled the great State of Hunza under his rural reforms package. There were and still are some underlying factors behind this that will be discussed in another article by this author.
