THE HALF SMILE 143
embodiments of political theory, they are placed in a constellation of
characters such as the women and the princes.
How was this political theory of diverse social worlds, including
those of women and powerful Hindu nobility, reflected in contempo-
raneous accounts of the thirteenth century? Contemporary examples
of such worlds can be seen in Juzjani's Tabaqat-i Nasiri, which pro-
vides an eyewitness account of Razia, the eldest daughter of Illtutmish,
who ascended to the throne of Delhi and ruled for three years and six
days. Juzjani describes Razia as "a great king, with intelligence and
wisdom, who enacted justice on the world, nurtured the people and the
army, and in all possessed every quality that a king possessed."^25 She
governed during the lifetime of Iltutmish. When the oldest son, Na-
siruddin Mahmud, died from illness, Iltutmish declared her as his heir
to the throne. Juzjani notes that when Iltutmish gave that order, 'some
of his advisors asked whether it was wise to appoint a woman when he
had another son. Iltutmish replied, "My sons are busy with their youth
and luxury and do not possess the means to govern, and the state will
not function under them. When I am dead, you will realize.that there
is no one more fit to rule than my daughter." Then Juzjani adds, "It
happened exactly as the wise king had predicted."^26
Though Juzjani goes on to narrate the extreme political difficulties
faced by Razia-and her ouster-it is worth pausing and noting that
for Iltutmish and for Juzjani, there was no moral or ethical barrier to
Razia's kingship. Juzjani gives ample evidence of elite women who
manage the rise and fall of kings, including Razia's own mother as well
as the mother of Ruknuddin Feroz Shah. In Juzjani's account, they
manage the ascension to throne of all of Iltutmish's successors and act
as governors as well as advisors. The mother was central to the ascen-
sion of even Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah (r. 1246-1266), under whose
rule Juzjani completed the Tabaqat. These examples of Turkic and Arab
elite women demonstrate a thirteenth-century courtly culture where
women are full political agents, engaged in the struggle for political
control. What Chachnama demonstrates, however, is that as ethical
subjects women are key custodians of an ideal political theory that gov-
erns struggles of justice, alliances, accommodation, and recognition
of differential power.