plague of Agra when Jahangir was in Fatehpur Sikri, he says, "On January 1618, Mallika Mariam-uz-Zamani came from Agra to meet me and I attained the happiness of waiting on her. I hope that the shadow of her protection and affection will always be over the head of this supplicant." The courtesies and largesse demonstrate by Jahangir surface the proof of the amount of respect and love he held for his mother, Mariam-uz-Zamani. In the words of Edward Terry, a foreign traveller to the Mughal court, "Jahangir's affection for his mother Her Majesty Mariam-uz-Zamani were exceptional, and not seldom would he show many expressions of duty and display his strong affections for her". She had hosted many events at her own palace, several royal functions and events took place in the household of Mariam-uz-Zamani like Jahangir's solar and lunar weighings, all his birthday celebrations, Jahangir's marriage to the Amer princess, daughter of Kunwar Jagat Singh, Shahzada Parviz's wedding to the daughter of Sultan Murad Mirza and the henna ceremony of Ladli Begum, daughter of Nur Jahan and Shahryar Mirza. Powers and Influence The Empress held considerable freedom of speech in the political matters of court. She was one of the few wives of Akbar who had the privilege to attend and express her views on the matters of the court. One of the episodes recorded in the book of Badayuni notes that once on the execution of a Brahmin by a conservative Muslim courtier of Akbar while Akbar had ordered the investigation to be continued, the daughter of Raja Bharmal taunted Emperor Akbar publicly for failing to maintain the abidance of his order. She would exercise her influence to secure a pardon for offenders. The religious ulemas of Akbar's court were utterly displeased by the influence of Mariam-uz-Zamani and his Hindu wives on him in making him follow the rituals and practices of Hindu culture. Since his marriage with the daughter of Raja Bharmal, he is said to have complimented her by ordering the continuous burning of the hom in which occasionally he would join her during her prayers. Akbar taking note of the disapproval of Mariam-uz-Zamani and his other Hindu wives stopped eating beef as the cow was regarded as a sacred animal in their religion. His Hindu wives insisted that he must refrain from eating onions and garlic which Badayuni says he agreed to. They also exerted enough