<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This section does not cite any sources . Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (May 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> Humayun decided it would be wise to withdraw still further . He and his army rode out through and across the Thar Desert, when the Hindu ruler Rao Maldeo Rathore allied with Sher Shah Suri against the Mughal Empire . In many accounts Humayun mentions how he and his pregnant wife had to trace their steps through the desert at the hottest time of year . Their rations were low, and they had little to eat; even drinking water was a major problem in the desert . When Hamida Bano's horse died, no one would lend the Queen (who was now eight months pregnant) a horse, so Humayun did so himself, resulting in him riding a camel for six kilometres (four miles), although Khaled Beg then offered him his mount . Humayun was later to describe this incident as the lowest point in his life . </P> <P> Humayun asked that his brothers join him as he fell back into Sindh . While the previously rebellious Hindal Mirza remained loyal and was ordered to join his brothers in Kandahar . Kamran Mirza and Askari Mirza instead decided to head to the relative peace of Kabul . This was to be a definitive schism in the family . Humayun headed for Sindh because he expected aid from the Emir of Sindh, Hussein Umrani, whom he had appointed and who owed him his allegiance . Also, his wife Hamida hailed from Sindh; she was the daughter of a prestigious pir family (a pir is a Shia or Sufi religious mystic) of Persian heritage long settled in Sindh . En route to the Emir's court, Humayun had to break journey because his pregnant wife Hamida was unable to travel further . Humayun sought refuge with the Hindu ruler of the oasis town of Amarkot (now part of Sindh province). </P> <P> Rana Prasad Rao of Amarkot duly welcomed Humayun into his home and sheltered the refugees for several months . Here, in the household of a Hindu Rajput nobleman, Humayun's wife Hamida Bano, daughter of a Sindhi Shia family, gave birth to the future Emperor Akbar on 15 October 1542 . The date of birth is well established because Humayun consulted his astronomer to utilise the astrolabe and check the location of the planets . The infant was the long - awaited heir - apparent to the 34 - year - old Humayun and the answer of many prayers . Shortly after the birth, Humayun and his party left Amarkot for Sindh, leaving Hamida and her child in the custody of their Hindu hosts . A couple of years later, at Humayun's behest, Hamida would leave her infant son in the safety of remote Amarkot and join her husband as he fled into Persia, where her Shia and Persian background would bring influence . The infant Akbar was to live for more than five years, all alone, in the care of a Hindu, Rajput foster - family . This was to have a profound, indelible influence on his views and personality, and a momentous effect on the subsequent history of India . In particular, Akbar developed a strong affinity for the Rajputs, going out of his way to forge alliances (including marriage alliances) with them, and they would form the bedrock of support for his dynasty for two centuries . </P>

The great became emperor of the mughal empire when his father died after falling down