between Persia and India and made Delhi one of the most important centers
of culture in Asia. By the mid-sixteenth century at least, Delhi was a major
center for libraries and learning. Medicine flourished thanks to the com-
bining of Arabic and Indian forms of medicine. Delhi housed at least five
observatories.^12 Indo-Islamic forms of architecture, music, and dance flour-
ished, practiced by Muslim and Hindu alike. Akbar(1556–1605), Ba ̄bur’s
grandson, was, by most measures, a ruler of great skill and sensitivity. As
a boy, he was open to Shı ̄ite teachings and the mysticism of Persian poets.
Early in his reign, however, his advisers were Sunnı ̄s, some of whom
persecuted Shı ̄ites, thereby incurring the emperor’s wrath. This led to his
sacking the Sunnı ̄ advisers and replacing them with Su ̄fı ̄s.
In 1562 Akbar married a Ra ̄jput princess and the tenor of his reign was
set. He was a charismatic leader concerned more with efficient organization
than with Islamic orthodoxy. The result was an efficient central authority;
the appointment of various local leaders, including many Hindus to be “gov-
ernors” in outlying areas; and a minimum of corruption. Akbar’s authority
was enhanced by several other developments, including the increased
manufacture of paper, which increased administrative efficiency; enhanced
travel and income from European merchants; and the death of Iran’s
Sha ̄h in 1522, encouraging Akbar to declare his sovereignty over a wider
area. His religious perspective was eclectic, trying the patience of the Sunnı ̄
‘ulama ̄‘. He permitted Hindu practices within his court, including certain
festivals, patronized Hindu arts and culture, and encouraged translations
of such texts as the Artharva Veda,Ra ̄ma ̄yana, and Maha ̄bha ̄rata. With mixed
success, he sought to abolish certain “excesses”: child-marriage; large dowries;
and the immolation of widows (satı ̄). He was known to have presided over
inter-religious discussions in his court, in which Hindu pandits, Jains,
Zoroastrians, even Catholic priests from Goa participated. He finally created
his own sect in 1585: Dı ̄n-ila ̄hı ̄ (“Divine Faith”), known for its eclectic
character and for making him the center of the sect and thereby further
legitimating his status as emperor.
His son Jaha ̄ngı ̄r(1605–27) decentralized the administration he inherited
and increased the influx of Persians and Persian art and culture during
his reign. His bureaucracy grew rapidly, expenditures increased, as did cor-
ruption. He was far less tolerant than his father of other religions as he
patronized Islamic institutions more and restored the conservative ‘ulama ̄‘
to the role of court advisers. He was known to have persecuted Jains and to
have had the Sikh guru Arjunexecuted in 1606. Jaha ̄ngı ̄r, who had bestowed
honors on certain Muslim dignitaries, nonetheless distrusted Sikhs (who had
supported an uprising against him), and Sikhs indeed became increasingly
alienated from the Mughal court. (A more systematic discussion of the Sikh
movement will follow in the next chapter.)
128 The Coming of Islam