Jalal-ud Din Muhammad Akbar

Akbar, in full Abū al-Fatḥ Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Akbar, (born October 15, 1542, Umarkot [now in Sindh
province, Pakistan]—died c. October 25, 1605, Agra, India), the greatest of the Mughal emperors of India. He
reigned from 1556 to 1605 and extended Mughal power over most of the Indian subcontinent. In order to
preserve the unity of his empire, Akbar adopted programs that won the loyalty of the non-Muslim populations
of his realm. He reformed and strengthened his central administration and also centralized his financial system
and reorganized tax-collection processes. Although he never renounced Islam, he took an active interest in other
religions, persuading Hindus, Parsis, and Christians, as well as Muslims, to engage in religious discussion
before him. Illiterate himself, he encouraged scholars, poets, painters, and musicians, making his court a centre
of culture.

Akbar was one of the mighty and powerful rulers of the Mughal dynasty. He was known for remunerating
ability, devotion, and judgment, paying little mind to the ethnic foundation or religious practice.

1. Religious Policies

The Emperor presided over a Hindu-Moslem cultural synthesis which culminated in a golden age
of culture. Though he never learned to read or write, he was a cultivated man, and surrounded himself
with the best minds of his generation. He patronized liberal Moslem intellectuals such as Shirazi, Faizi,
and Abul Fazl, the author of Ain-i-Akbari and Akbar Nama, two important Mogul historical works.
Akbar welcomed to his court mystics such as Salim Chishti and engaged in dialogues with Jesuit priests.
He also invited Abul Fatah Gilana, who had written a commentary on Avicenna, to his court.

Committed to the policy of universal tolerance (sulahkul), Akbar considered himself the ruler of
all his subjects and the Commander of the Faithful. Through his marriages with Rajput princesses, he
brought Hindus to the ruling dynasty and gave three of the highest positions in his cabinet to Hindus. He
abolished taxes such as the jizya, a poll tax, that discriminated against non-Moslems. Akbar patronized
Indian music and arts, and in many buildings, notably at Fatehpur Sikri, near Agra, he adopted Hindu
elements in architecture. Every week he appeared in public, and he held an open court.

Akbar participated in the religious festivities of all groups, allowed the Jesuit fathers to establish
a church at Agra, and discouraged cow slaughter. In 1575 at Fatehpur Sikri he built a house of worship
to which Moslem, Hindu, Jain, Christian, Parsi, and other theologians were invited for dialogue. In 1582
he promulgated a new religious movement, din-i-ilahi, which did not attract many converts.
Literary works during Akbar Reign

1. He started a department for translation of works: Mahabharata, the Ramayana, the Atharva –Veda, the
Bhagavad Gita and the Panchatantra were translated from Sanskrit to the Persian language.
2. Ramayana and Singhasan Batisi were translated by Mulla Abdul Qadir Badayuni into Persian.
3. Panchatantra was translated in Persian by Faizi.
4. Atharva Veda was translated by Ibrahim Sirhindi.
5. Rajataringini was translated by Maulana Shah Mohammad Shahabadi.
6. Abul Fazl wrote the Ain-i-Akbari and Akbar Nama.
During his rule, Akbar managed to crucify almost all parts of the Indian Subcontinent, with the remaining areas
becoming tributary states. He introduced a number of military reforms like Mansabdari system accompanied by
innovations in cannons, fortifications, and the use of elephants to consolidated Mughal rule in the Indian
subcontinent. He also introduced a new fair system of taxation which was based on the estimation crop yield.
He was a great patron of architecture, art, and literature. Hence, the Akbar period was popularly known as 'the
renaissance of Persian literature'.

Mughal Painting: The school developed by Akbar during the Mughal rule act as a centre of production.
European Painting: Portuguese priest introduced European painting at the court of Akbar.
Rajasthan School of Painting: This form of painting involves the combination of the present ideas and the
former traditions of western India and the of Jain school of painting with different style of Mughal paintings.
Pahari School of Painting: This school sustained the Rajasthan styles of painting and had played an important
role in its development.
Music:
This proved to be the one and only intermediate of the Hindu-Muslim unity, during the Mughal Rule. Akbar
patronizes Tansen of Gwalior, in his court. Tansen was a person who was credited with composing of many
new Melodies and Ragas.

Architecture and Culture

Akbar commissioned the building of several forts and mausoleums during his reign and established a distinct
architectural style that has been dubbed as Mughal architecture by connoisseurs. Among the architectural
marvels commissioned during his rule are the Agra Fort (1565–1574), the town of Fatehpur Sikri (1569–
1574) with its beautiful Jami Masjid and Buland Darwaza, Humayun’s Tomb (1565-1572), Ajmer Fort
(1563-1573), Lahore Fort (1586-1618) and Allahabad Fort (1583-1584).

Akbar was a great patron of art and culture. Although he himself could not read and write, he would appoint
people who read to him various topics of art, history, philosophy and religion. He appreciated intellectual
 discourse and offered his patronage to several extraordinarily talented people whom he invited to his court.
Together these individuals were referred to as the Nava Ratnas or the Nine Gems. They were Abul Fazel,
Faizi, Mian Tansen, Birbal, Raja Todar Mal, Raja Man Singh, Abdul Rahim Khan-I-Khana , Fakir Aziao-
Din and Mullah Do Piaza. They came from various backgrounds and were revered by the emperor for their
special talents.

Besides being a dedicated ruler Akbar was also a great patron for art and culture. He enjoyed the company of
poets and singers and all types of artistic people. His forts and palaces in and around Delhi are great
masterpieces of unmatched workmanship. Few amongst those are Fatehpur Sikri, Allahabad Fort, and Agra Fort
etc. He was also a great lover of music and poetry, his durbar was a unique amalgamation of great artists,
scholars, poet, and singers etc. who kept the aura happy. This love for culture made him collects his ―Nine
Jewels or Naurattans‖ who excelled in their fields of art and knowledge, they were as following—

1. BIRBAL (Mahesh Das) the court Jester.