Akbar (1542–1605)

Akbar (1542–1605)

Anup Mukherjee

Mughal emperor

Akbar was the grandson of Babur (1483–1530), who founded the Mughal rule (1526–1857) in India. Babur was succeeded by his son Humayun (1508–1556), during the first portion of whose reign (1530–1540) the territories conquered earlier by Mughals was lost to the Afghans. After an interregnum of rule by the Afghan dynasty of Sur, the Mughals were again able to set foothold over Delhi in 1555; yet until his death in 1556, Humayun was fighting on many fronts to recapture the empire. After Humayun's death the Afghans under their Hindu Prime Minister Hemu reoccupied Delhi. It was left to Akbar, Humayun's son, to build up the empire from scratch and raise it to glorious heights. Akbar was only fourteen years old when he was coronated, and under his command, Mughals defeated Hemu in the second Battle of Panipat (November 5, 1556) that is considered landmark in reestablishment of Mughal rule in India.

Akbar's leadership skills were not limited to war or to the expansion and consolidation of the Mughal empire; indeed, his most important contribution was the way that he molded the Mughal empire and created legitimacy for his rule that was based not on brute force, but on the consent of the governed. Despite Mughals being Sunni, Akbar refused to identify with any creed and followed an independent policy of enlightened toleration.

Religious Tolerance
Mughal rule under Akbar was largely an extension of his personality. Personally, Akbar was tolerant of other religions. He married Hindu Rajput princesses, but did not force them to convert to Islam; they were free to practice their own religion. In fact, Akbar was interested in exploring the essence of different religions, and to this end he built an ibadat-khana (house of worship) in his capital at Fatehpur-Sikri, near Agra to which he would invite spiritual leaders of different faiths for interfaith dialogues. Akbar also showed respect for other religions by celebrating their festivals. Perhaps the most significant signs of his religious tolerance were that he abolished the jizia, the tax that only non-Muslims were required to pay, and rescinded many of the restrictive laws regarding non-Muslim religious worship. His spiritual curiosity later translated into his founding a faith called din-i-ilahi (also called tahud-i-ilahi), meaning divine faith. This faith was in many ways a distillation of the teachings of the various religions to which Akbar had been exposed, and it was tolerant in nature. It laid stress on individual purity and ethical behavior.

Akbar never forced anyone to become a member of his din, and according to the Ain-i-Akbari (Laws of Akbar), written by Abul Fazl, there were only eighteen full-time adherents and no more than a few thousand followers.

Administration of the Mughal Empire
Akbar conquered all but the southernmost parts of the Indian subcontinent; his empire stretched from present-day Afghanistan to present-day Bangladesh. The most significant aspect of his extension of Mughal power was that in many of the areas formerly under Hindu Rajput rule, he would not annex the kingdoms, but on the princes' acceptance of Mughal soveregnty, he would let them rule their kingdoms as vassals of the Mughals. Further, he recruited the Rajput princes into the ranks of the Mansabdari, his military system of government administration. By thus incorporating his former enemies into his government, he won acceptance for his imperialism. In many of the subsequent campaigns of the Mughals, Rajput princes commanded the Mughal armies. The Rajputs also proved to be an important bulwark against the conservative Islamic elements in the Mughal court.

Under the Mansabdari system of administration, all government officials were incorporated into the ranks of the military, even if their functions were not military, and all were paid through the imperial army. This systematized government functions, and bureaucratized its operation, all the way from the imperial level down to the local level. Rule by whim was replaced by rule according to standardized procedures. For instance, the land tax structure was systematized on a scientific statistical basis with the objective to increase productivity and revenue. Also, procedures were developed for recruitment, for communication, and for a system of checks and balances between the government functionaries. Officials were regularly transferred to maintain the efficiency of the administration, but also to keep up the imperial control. An important aspect of Akbar's administration was that people of ability were assigned high ranks irrespective of their religious affiliation. Consequently, even Shias and Hindu Rajputs held important government positions.

Politics, Law, and the Arts
The most important aspect of Akbar's kingship was that unlike other Muslim rulers, he did not consider the caliph (the supreme Islamic religious authority) to have political authority over him. Akbar did not consider himself subordinate to anyone. Although empires are often associated with particular religions (for example, the Byzantine empire is associated with Eastern Orthodox Christianity, the Ottoman empire with Sunni Islam, the Persian Safavid dynasty with Shi‘a Islam, and so on), Akbar liberated the Mughal regime from any such religious affiliation and placed his subjects on an equal footing. He created a state of sulh-i-kul, that is, a state of peace and reconciliation among all. This was quite in contrast to the wishes of orthodox theologians, whose power was undermined by such measures. Until Akbar's time, the highest title an Islamic king had claimed for himself was zil-i-allah-fil-‘arz (“shadow of God on earth”). Akbar went further and adopted the title farr-i-izdi (“divine effulgence or light of God”). Thus Akbar claimed to derive his power directly from God.

In an empire in which Qur'anic laws took precedence, Akbar took the innovative step of assuming the powers of religious interpretation. By a proclamation Akbar was certified to be an imam-adil (just ruler), and by virtue of that status his interpretation of religious law was declared to be superior to that of the mujtahid (learned scholars or jurists). In other words, the monarch, not the ulama (Islamic scholarly community), was the source of legislation and of interpretation of that legislation should any dispute arise. This appropriation of religious as well as legal authority made it possible for Akbar to restrict the influence of the orthodox ulama.

A similar universality of outlook is visible in Akbar's patronage of the arts. It is very interesting to note that during his reign painting were totally devoid of religious symbolism. He would patronize artists without being concerned with their religious affiliations. It was in his time that a form of Indo-Islamic architecture that was a synthesis of Islamic as well as Hindu traditions became part of the landscape. Thus in every aspect of life Akbar promoted religious tolerance and liberalism. He not only had a deep impact on the Mughal empire, he furthered a liberal Indian tradition that has been present in Indian civilization over the centuries.

Another View: The Real Akbar, the (Not So) Great
The addition of the adjectival phrase “the great” to the names of famous leaders such as Akbar, Alexander, and Peter is rarely without controversy. What is great to some is horrible to others. Akbar is a good example of this, as he is revered by Muslims but considered less than great by some modern Hindus as indicated by the text from a website reprinted below.

Akbar is considered as the great Mughal emperor who put the Mughal empire on a firm and stable footing, with a reliable revenue system and with expansion of its borders deeper into Indian heartland. There is a belief prevalent in the present day India that Akbar's rule was secular and tolerant of the native Hindu faith. This belief is fostered by the Indian history texts, Hindi movies like Mughal-eAzam, a TV serial on Doordarshan and the fictional tales of Akbar and his Hindu court jester Birbal. Although Akbar did abolish two obnoxious taxes on Hindus namely the pilgrimage tax in 1563 CE and Jizya (a tax stipulated in the Koran to be paid by Zimmis or unbelievers) in 1564 CE, his rule was better compared ONLY to the other Mughal and Turko-Afgani rules. This article illustrates this with two specific historical events. First, Akbar like all Mughal rulers had the holy Muslim title of GHAZI (SLAYER OF KAFFIR—infidel). Like Timur Lane and Nader Shah, AKBAR HAD A VICTORY TOWER ERECTED WITH THE HEADS OF THE CAPTURED/SURRENDERED ARMY OF HEMU after the second battle of Panipat. Later, AKBAR AGAIN SLAUGHTERED MORE THAN 30,000 UNARMED CAPTIVE HINDU PEASANTS AFTER THE FALL OF CHITOD ON FEBRUARY 24, 1568. The Hindu Universe. Retrieved September 29, 2003 Anup Mukherjee 10.4135/9781412952392.n7 Further Reading Majumdar, R. C. (1973). The History and Culture of Indian People: Vol 7. The Mughal empire. Bombay, India: Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan. Pandey, A. B. (1990). Later medieval India (1526–1761 A.D.). Allahabad, India: Central Book Depot. Rizvi, S. A. A. (1987). The wonder that was India: Vol 2. 1200–1700. London: Sidgwick & Jackson. Smith, V. (1919). Akbar the great Mogul, 1542–1605. Oxford, UK: Clarendon Press. Spear, P. (1968). History of India: Vol 2. London: Penguin. Tripathi, R. P. (1956). Rise and fall of Mughal empire. Allahabad, India: Central Book Depot.

Source : Encyclopedia of Leadership George R. Goethals & Georgia J. Sorenson & James MacGregor Burns