Akbar

Akbar, "the Great," was born at Amarkot, on the edge of the deserts ofMarwar, about three years after the battle of Kanauj, when his fatherHumayun was a fugitive, driven from place to place by the adherentsof Shere Shah. At this time the treasury of the royal house was soreduced that, when Humayun indented on it for the customary presentsto his faithful followers, the only thing procurable was a single podof musk. With the cheerfulness which was the saving grace of Humayun,he broke up the pod, and distributed it, adding the pious wish, whichseemed like prophetic insight, that his son's fame might fill theworld like the fragrance of that perfume. Trained in the hard schoolof adversity, and inheriting the best qualities of his grandfather,Akbar was not long in restoring the faded fortunes of the Moguldynasty. Like Babar, he succeeded to the throne at a very earlyage, and found himself surrounded by difficulties which would haveoverwhelmed a weaker character. Humayun had, indeed, fought his wayback to Delhi and Agra, but he had by no means settled with all thenumerous disputants for the sovereignty of Hindustan, which SultanIslam's death had left in the field; and his departure from Kabulhad been the signal for revolt in that quarter. Akbar, accompaniedby Bairam Khan, the ablest of Humayun's generals, was in Sind whenhe received at the same time the news of his father's death and ofthe revolt of the Viceroy at Kabul He was then little more thanthirteen years old, but, like Babar under similar circumstances,he was prompt in decision and in action. Adopting Bairam's advice,which was contrary to that of all his other counsellors, he left Kabulout of account, and pushed on to Delhi against the forces of Himu, aHindu general, and the most powerful of his foes, who had assumed thetitle of Raja Bikramajit, with the hopes of restoring the old Hindudynasty. On the historic plains of Panipat Akbar completely defeatedHimu's army, and thus regained the empire which his grandfather hadwon on the same field thirty years before. This great battle was themost critical point in his career, and though Akbar had to undertakemany other hard campaigns before he was absolute master of the empire,his position from that time was never seriously endangered.

Until his eighteenth year Akbar remained under the tutelage of Bairam,an able general, but unscrupulous and cruel. The high-minded, generousdisposition of Akbar revolted against some of his guardian's methods,but he recognized that, for some years at least, Bairam's experiencewas necessary for him. In 1560, however, he took the administrationentirely into his own hands. Bairam, in disgust, took up arms againsthis young master, but was soon defeated and taken prisoner. With hisusual magnanimity, Akbar pardoned him, and sent him off to Mecca witha munificent present; but the revengeful knife of an Afghan put anend to the turbulent nobleman's life before he could leave India.

Akbar spent the rest of his long reign in elaborating theadministrative reforms which have made him famous as the greatestruler India has ever had. With the aid of able ministers, both Hinduand Muhammadan, he purified the administration of justice, keepingthe supreme control in his own hands; enjoined absolute tolerancein religious matters; abolished oppressive taxes, and reorganizedand improved the system of land revenue introduced by Shere Shah. Aminute account of Akbar's reign, of his policy, habits, and character,is given in the "Akbar-nama," the history written by his devotedfriend and Prime Minister, Abul Fazl. No detail of state affairswas too small for Akbar's personal attention. Ability and integritywere the only passports to his favour, while bigotry and injusticewere anathemas to him. Like Babar, he was fond of horticulture, andimported many kinds of fruit trees and flowers into India. Thoughhe could neither read nor write, he had a great library of Hindi,Persian, Arabic, Greek, and other books, and Abul Fazl relates thatevery book was read through to him from beginning to end.

The most remarkable of all this remarkable man's intellectualactivities were his attempts to bring about a reconciliation of allthe discordant religious elements of his empire. Badayuni, one ofhis contemporary historians, but, unlike him, a bigoted Musalman,comments thus on Akbar's religious views: "From his earliest childhoodto his manhood, and from his manhood to old age, his Majesty has passedthrough the most various phases, and through all sorts of religiouspractices and sectarian beliefs, and has collected everything whichpeople can find in books, with a talent of selection peculiar to himand a spirit of inquiry opposed to every (Islamite) principle. Thus afaith based on some elementary principles traced itself on the mirrorof his heart, and, as the result of all the influences which werebrought to bear on his Majesty, there grew gradually, as the outlineon a stone, the conviction on his heart that there were sensiblemen in all religions, and abstemious thinkers and men endowed withmiraculous powers among all nations. If some true knowledge were thuseverywhere to be found, why should truth be confined to one religion,or to a creed like Islam, which was comparatively new, and scarcely athousand years old; why should one sect assert what another denies,and why should one claim a preference without having superiorityconferred upon itself?"

Near to his palace at Fatehpur Sikri he built an Ibadat Khana, orHall of Worship, for the discussion of philosophy and religion. Therehe received representatives of all religious sects, Muhammadans,Brahmans, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, Jews, and Christians, and listenedattentively to their arguments. He studied deeply religious books,and had the New Testament translated into Persian. He also invitedJesuit priests from Goa, and not only allowed them to build a churchat Agra, but even attended a marriage service and interpreted thewords of the sermon to the bride. Badayuni says that "his Majestyfirmly believed in the truth of the Christian religion, and wishingto spread the doctrines of Jesus, ordered Prince Murad (his son)to take a few lessons in Christianity by way of auspiciousness." TheJesuits, however, did not succeed in making Akbar a convert, for whenhis religious convictions were at last settled, he proclaimed as thestate religion a kind of eclectic pantheism called Din-i-ilahi, or"Divine Faith," with himself as the chief interpreter. Dispensingwith all forms of priesthood, he simply recognized One God, theMaker of the Universe, and himself as God's vicegerent on earth. Herejected the doctrine of the Resurrection, and accepted that of thetransmigration of souls. The Islamite prayers were abolished, andothers of a more general character were substituted for them. Theceremonial was largely borrowed from the Hindus.

The "Divine Faith" had no hold on the people, and its influenceceased with the death of its founder. It is even said that Akbar,on his death-bed, acknowledged the orthodox Muhammadan creed, but theevidence on this point is unreliable. Akbar's religious system had animportant political bearing, for the keynote of his whole policy wasthe endeavour to unite with a bond of common interest all the diversesocial, religious, and racial elements of his empire. He overlookednothing which might further the object he had in view. He chose hisministers and generals indiscriminately from all his subjects, withoutdistinction of race or religion. He allied himself in marriage withthe royal Hindu families of Rajputana. He sat daily on the judgmentseat to dispense justice to all who chose to appeal to him, and,like the famous Harun-al-Rashid, he would at times put on disguisesand wander unattended among the people, to keep himself informed oftheir real condition and to check the malpractices of his officials.

Though Akbar unavoidably had bitter enemies among the more bigoted ofhis Muhammadan subjects, his wise tolerance of all beliefs and thegenerosity of his policy for the most part disarmed hostility fromall sides. Certainly no ruler of India before or since succeeded sofar in carrying out his object. He is still one of the great popularheroes of Hindustan; his mighty deeds in war and in the chase, hiswise and witty sayings, the splendour of his court, his magnanimityand his justice, still live in song and in story.

Akbar died in the Fort at Agra on October 13, 1605, in the fifty-firstyear of his reign, aged 63. He was buried at Sikandra, in the mausoleumcommenced by himself, and finished by his son and successor, Jahangir.

Akbar's connection with Agra:

The modern city of Agra, as stated previously, was founded by Akbarin 1558, opposite to the old city on the left bank of the river. Hebuilt the Fort, on the site of an old Pathan castle, and part of thepalace within it. Agra was the seat of government during the greaterpart of his reign. He also built the great mosque and the magnificentpalaces and public buildings of Fatehpur Sikri, which are among themost famous of the antiquities of India.