Who was Sultan Sher Shah Suri?
Sultan Sher Shah Suri (1486–1545), born Farid Khan bin Hasan Suri Al-Afghani, reigned over a large part of north India from 1540-1545. He was a formidable military strategist and the founder of the Suri Empire in North India. Rising from relatively modest origins as an Afghan commander in the Lodi army, he eventually ousted the Mughal Emperor Humayun in 1540. He established a brief but profoundly impactful reign from his capital in Sasaram, Bihar, before his accidental death at the siege of Kalinjar.
Though his rule lasted only five years, Sher Shah is celebrated as one of the subcontinent’s most brilliant administrators. He laid the groundwork for modern Indian infrastructure and economics by introducing the silver ‘Rupiya’ —the precursor to the modern rupee—and rebuilding the ancient Grand Trunk Road, which he outfitted with ‘sarais’ (rest houses), mosques, and wells to comfort travelers of all backgrounds.
Sher Shah is historically revered for his unwavering commitment to justice and civic welfare. He implemented strict laws to protect peasants from agrarian exploitation and held his own nobles to the same ethical standards as commoners. His governance was marked by religious tolerance and personal piety; he famously viewed the dispensation of impartial justice as a ruler’s highest religious and moral duty.
Here we will be mentioning some anecdotes from his life, may Allah have mercy upon him.
#1. Under Sher Shah Suri, the roads were said to be so safe that even a frail old woman carrying a basket of gold ornaments could travel unharmed. This security rested on strict justice: local officials were held answerable for robbery and violence in their areas, and travelers could halt even in lonely places without fear. (Summarized from Encyclopedia Britannica)
#2. A notable welfare-and-justice tradition about Sher Shah Suri says that along his great roads he had sarais (rest houses) built at regular intervals, and in those sarais he arranged separate kitchens and lodging for Muslims and Hindus. The striking part of the narration is that he reportedly gave a general order that every traveler, regardless of religion, should be hosted from the state treasury. In other words, hospitality on the road was not left to chance or charity alone; it was made part of governance.
(Ghair Muslim Riayah Ke Sath Sher Shah Suri Ka Adl o Insaf, Darul-Uloom Deoband)
#3. Sher Shah Suri used to say that, “Where the peasant is ruined, the king is ruined”. He therefore tried to protect farmers from abuse by soldiers and revenue officials. He removed corrupt officers, and checked revenue accounts to reduce oppression. (Summarized, Britannica Encyclopedia.)
#4. One deeply moving account says that after Sher Shah’s victory at Chausa (1539), when confusion spread and the defeated Mughal camp was exposed, he did not allow the women and children of Humayun’s household to be treated as spoils. Instead, he is reported to have dismounted in respect, consoled the royal ladies, and ordered his heralds to proclaim throughout the army that no one was to capture or dishonor any Mughal woman or child. They were to be escorted safely to a protected enclosure and given proper provisions. In that moment, his justice appeared not only as punishment of wrongdoing, but as restraint, dignity, and mercy toward the defeated. (Abbas Khan Sarwarwani, Tarikh e Sher Shah.)
#5. Before the Battle of Chausa, Sher Shah Suri is described as gathering his commanders, assessing the moment, and then turning to du‘ā with deep intensity. He called upon Allah as “Qādir-o-Quddūs” and “Khata-Bakhsh” (All Powerful and Purified, and Forgiver of Sins) , asking for steadfastness against the enemy and for divine help in the coming confrontation.
During the hard fighting of the Marwar/Samel campaign, Sher Shah was remembered as reading the Qur’an in his tent while battle raged, using recitation and trust in Allah to steady himself before acting. (Sher Shah and His Times, Kalikranjan)
#6. Sher Shah Suri kept his court open to qāḍīs, muftis, and learned ‘ulama, and whenever a scholar presented a religious or legal matter, he listened with great adab and humility. The same account says he would ask them for du‘ā, consult them so that his rulings would not go against Sharī‘ah, and showed special regard to figures such as Qāḍī al-Islām Mawlānā ‘Ubaydullāh, from whom he is said to have benefited in hadith and fiqh. It also reports that he convened gatherings of scholars for discussion of religious and legal questions. (Sher Shah Suri aur Is Ka Ahd)
#7. After the fatal explosion at (the Battle of) Kalinjar, when news of victory reached him, his last reported words were: “Praise be to Allah! This was my desire.” Now when Sher Shah Suri was mortally wounded, he asked the ‘ulama and amirs around him to recite the Qur’an in his presence and to help him repeat the shahādatayn. In his final moments, he is said to have repeated the Kalima again and again, while weeping and asking Allah for forgiveness. The people close to him described him as habitually careful about wudu and the five daily prayers, frequently praying Tahajjud, making this deathbed scene the culmination of a life remembered for disciplined devotion. (Sher Shah Suri aur Is Ka Ahd)
#8. After Humayun (bin Babur) was defeated and forced to flee, Sher Shah Suri’s army chased him and they could finish him forever. But Sher Shah Suri gave a royal order: Humayun must not be killed. He was just to be driven out of Hindustan instead. For Sher Shah, victory was already complete — he had taken the throne, broken his rival’s power, and shown his strength to all. So in that moment, he acted like a confident ruler: not thirsty for revenge, but satisfied to send his enemy out of the land. (Sher Shah Suri aur Is Ka Ahd)
On a side note, if Sher Shah Suri had killed Humayun then and there. It would probably be the end of the line of Mughals and we’d never see Akbar, Jehangir, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb etc.
May Allah have mercy upon Sher Shah Suri.
(Compiled by Mohammed bin Thajammul Hussain Manna.)
Saheehus-Seerah 