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Akbar religious policy

Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar who ascended the throne after Humayun to become the third
Mughal emperor, introduced religious policies that have stood the test of time and earned
him titles of being a liberal thinker.

His reign from 1556 to 1605 is stratified into 3distinct phases' depending upon hte religious
policies that eh had adopted ot govern the Mughal empire.

The 3 phases shows the evolution of Akbar's religious outlook the First from 1556-74, the
Second from 1574-80 and the Third from 1580-1605.

First phase 1556 74

In the first twenty years of his reign, Akbar made serious departures from the traditional
Sunni system of government

In 1562, the pilgrimage tax on Hindus was abolished.

Akbar also abolished the practice of enslaving families of prisoners' of war.

He also married rajput princesses without converting them into islam

Abul Fazl dates the abolishment of the jiziya to 1564.

S.A.A. Rizvi terms this as one of the greatest achievements of Akbar, which created a
common citizenship for all his subjects, Hindus and Muslims alike.

Despite these measures ni favour of the Hindus, in private conduct he behaved like an
orthodox muslim

Satish Chandra has argued that in the early part of his reign, Akbar was the orthodox Muslim
of his youth.

The nobility in this part was dominated by Muslims

In his early years, Akbar was influenced by orthodox Sunni scholars, which kept him aligned
with traditional Islamic practices.

He allowed ulama to maintain significant control over religious matters, reinforcing orthodoxy
in his court. This was a period ehen orthodox ulsma rued the court

The conquest of Godwana, the suppression of the Afghans of the Eastern provinces, the
conquest of Chittor and Ranthambhor, of Gujarat, Bihar, and Bengal; together with revenue,
military and other reforms, kept Akbar increasingly busy from 1564 to 1574.

During this period, the ulema dominated affairs and Akbar's concessions never satisfied
them. Under these orthodox elements deviant sects like the Mahdawis were persecuted.
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Five major rebellions occurred between 1562-67, al staged by Turani nobles.

He also faced the dangerous threat of the Afghans.

Thus Akbar had to search for new support groups and he turned to Rajputs as possible
allies.

According to Iqtidar Alam Khan, measures like abolition of Jizyah and pilgrimage tax were
dictated by the compulsions of State policy rather than religious tolerance.

The extension of state patronage ni the form of Madad-i-Maasih grants was one in a series
of steps of a similar nature to win the cooperation of the Shaikhzadas, the Muslim
socio-religious elite.

However, despite his liberal policy towards the Rajputs, none except the Kachchwahas of
Amber joined the Mughal court.

In 1567, Akbar took a more aggressive approach towards the Rajputs, notably attacking
Chittor, which resulted in significant resistance and approximately 30,000 civilian deaths,
described as a massacre. After this victory, he issued a decree declaring the battle a
subjugation of infidels and labeled the deceased as “ghazi.”

Iqtidar alam argues that the war was not a religious one as the kachwahas was fought on the
side of mughals .the chittor campaign had political and military reason

In 1569, he banned idol worship in certain regions and reintroduced the jiziya tax in 1575,
signaling a return to orthodox policies. His actions aimed to appease Muslim orthodoxy after
Uzbek rebellion,

After his victory at Chittor, Akbar visited the Dargah of Khwaja Muin-ud-din Chishti in Ajmer
to give thanks. He was closely connected to Shaikh Salim Chishti, a respected saint.
Supporting the Dargah was key to Akbar’s religious policy and helped him establish a strong
Mughal presence in Rajasthan, with Ajmer serving as the governor’s seat.

Phase 2 1974 to 80

: Akbar recognized that traditional Sunni dominance was affecting his rule and sought new
solutions.

: He began to be influenced by spiritual figures like jogis, qalandars, and sanyasis, who
rejected established religious norms.

This marks the shift in Akbar’s religious beliefs, moving away from strict orthodoxy.

This phase brought radical change in akbar religious views

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: Nizami describes this phase of Akbar’s reign as one marked by a disconnection from
traditional Islamic practices.

Ibadat khana

It was established in 1575 at Fatehpur sikri after Akbar Gujarat campaign

This was a large rectangular building built around the cell of sufi saint abdullah niyazi

notable members of the court, ranging from high officers to sufis, saints, ulema and
theologians in possession of great knowledge gather to conduct discussion and debate

The king was seated on a pulpit in the middle, from where he could clearly observe the
arguments made by any of the groups or individuals.

In the initial phase, the debates were only opened to Muslims and pertained to discussions
on Islam discourses; where each party was more inclined on asserting their intellectual
superiority over the other?"

One of the major topics that kept recurring was the question of marriage and how many
wives one could legally have.

After a mystical experience in 1578, Akbar allowed representatives of other religions and
faith- Hindus of various sects, Christians, Jains, Zoroastrians into the debates. This led to
further disagreement on basic questions

However, these contentious discussions brought to light, the groups' hostility and bigoted
attitudes toward one another. Furthermore, when Akbar realised how the Ibadat khana was
being used as a forum to gain his attention he became convinced of the futility of the
debates. The growing differences without the attempt to come at a common understanding
led him to close the Ibadat Khana in 1581 Although he claimed his purpose was "to ascertain
the Truth and discover the reality

the Ibadat Khana debates had profoundly impacted and duly altered Akbar's religious
outlook. It convinced him that - all religions are equally true and lead to the same Supreme
and led to the breach between him and bigoted ulema

This laid the groundwork for another important state policy, sulh-i-kul(Absolute Peace)- an
Arabic term that literally translates to 'peace for all'.

It was an ideology that placed all religion at the same plane and worked to unify the diverse
population of India.

Thus, it could be interpreted as a second attempt to reconcile religious differences,

something Akbar had hoped to accomplish through the Ibadat Khana debates. Gradually
Akbar assumed power in both religious and political spheres, delinking the ulema from the
administrational decisions for the empire.

Mahzar
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nI this period, we see Akbar clearly breaking away from the orthodoxy. nI 1579, he started
reading the khutbah himself. led the Friday prayers,

Case The Brahman of mathura had stolen some of the materials collected by the Qazi for
the construction of a mosque and used them to construct a temple. Furthermore, he had
been accused of making blasphemous remarks about the prophethood and criticising Islam.
In an enquiry commission set up by Akbar the guilt of the Brahman had been proved.
However, the commission was split down the middle on the question of punishment. A
section of the ulema advocated for the harsher punishment of death, while others (including
Akbar) favoured a lighter punishment Since he was a zimmi protected person and a heavy
fine and disgrace would tarnish his reputed public image in the socio-religious sphere.
Although Akbar was in favour of a lighter interpretation, he left it to Abdun Nabi who had the
Brahman executed, whic widened gulf between the two

Shaikh mubarak approached akbar told him that you are aimam and mujtahid why do u
need assistance of these ulamas in issuing your command whether religious or secular

This led to the outcome of an important document, Mahzar, in September 1579, that altered
the power dynamic and struck at the base of Mughal hierarchy

Thus, almost all of the ulemas except Shaikh Mubarak were coerced into signing it, as they
weren't eager to give up their authoritarian roles that easily.

The mahzar (a legal document) claimed that Akbar's position was higher than that of a
mujtahid, who interprets Islamic law.

Akbar could issue any orders as long as they didn't contradict the Quran.

: Akbar held important titles like Amir-ul-Munim and Badshah-i-Islam, which made him the
leader of all orthodox Muslims.

Anyone so opposing akbaris orders faced serious consequences, including damnation and
loss of property

Third phase

By this time in fact, the ulama were themselves deeply divided, with even the two leading
figures, Abdullah Sultanpuri and Shaikh Abdun Nabi, being openly ranged against each
other. In 1579, Akbar appointed Abdullah Sultanpuri and Abdun Nabi to lead the parties of
haj pilgrims to Mecca, with orders not to return without permission.
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The Third or final Phase of Akbar's Religious Belief and State Policy (1581-1605) is
characterized by the crystallization of Akbar's ideological belief

The cruz in akbars religious poilcy was his faith in din i ilahi or tauhid i ilahi uncompromising
monotheism

The growth of Din-i-Ilahi or Tauhid-i-Ilahi as a separate ideology (or religion) can be said to
sprout from the basic tenet of sulh-i-kul that demanded peace among religions and
propagated the unity of God.

: Akbar’s religious beliefs centered on uncompromising monotheism, known as Tauhid-i-llahi,

influenced by the philosopher Ibn-i-Arabi.

Tauhid refers to the “unity of God” and emphasizes divine monotheism.

Members of this belief system were expected to give up life honour property religion

Many believe that by asking followers to abandon their faith, Akbar was rejecting Islam, but
this is a misconception

The Din-E-Ilahi religion did not have many followers, and it remained that way till the end of
the religion. Akbar handpicked his followers of religions according to their allegiance and
devotion to him;

: Akbar promoted moving away from formal religious practices (taqlid) while encouraging
rational and practical belief (aql).

The days of initiation to discipleship were fixed on Sundays, where he enrolled them in
batches of twelve. The murid with the turban in his hand was to place his head at the feet of
the Emperor, which would denote that he had cast aside his conceit and selfishness. He was
then raised by the Emperor who handed over a shast (circular ring or emblem). The name of
God along with the motto 'Allah-u-Akbar' was engraved over the shast. There were various
rituals which an initiator was supposed to follow.

Badauni accused him for the establishment of a new religion,

K.A. Nizami in his book wrote about various rituals which a initiator was supposed to folow,
which includes

1) its folowers has ot exchange greetings with the words " Allah-O- Akbar" and Jala
Jalaluh",

2)Members also had ot give a feast on the day of their birth,

)3 not eat meat on that day and spend money in charity

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, 4) cohabition with old, pregnant or barren women and with girls under age of puberty was
forbidden rtc

. Also, due ot Akbar's strong association of light with divinity, initiation was done on Sundays
when the sun was believed to be at its peak. The entrant was supposed to rise above
sectarian differences and follow a path of Sulh-i-Kul, i.e., peace with all. He was to worship
the light and also supposed to pray 3 times a day. Tauhid-i-llahi however attracted only 18
followers

2. Abul Fazl’s View: Abul Fazl connects Tauhid-i-llahi to Akbar being a spiritual
guide, aiming to bridge religion (din) and worldly affairs (duniya).

3. Badauni’s Bias: Historian Badauni, with his biases, portrays Akbar as a

heretic who abandoned Islam.

4. Jesuit Confusion: Jesuit missionaries at Akbar’s court also seem confused

about the meaning and implications of Tauhid-i-llahi.

Nizami suggests that Akbar wanted to use religion for his political advantage. As the empire
expanded, it now included people of different faiths. So Akbar thought it necessary to
broaden the base of the empire. To achieve this, he tried to establish a composite governing
class and a state that would not discriminate on the basis of religion.

Akbar started enrolling disciples around 1580 the time when he was distracted by rebellions
in the east which was supported by dome of the orthodox ulama his brother advance into
punjab and the central asian uzbek power sldo became menacing

In this situation skbar wanted abscence of sectarian and religious strife in the country and
complete loyalty towards him