1.

Discuss how Ibn Battuta's travel and stay in India brings to light the contemporary socio-
political and geopolitical scenario under the Tughlaq dynasty's reign.
Muhammad Ibn Battuta (1304-1377 CE) or simply Ibn Battuta was a 14th-century scholar,
geographer, jurist, judge, and explorer who toured extensively in the lands of Afro- Eurasia,
mainly covering the Muslim world. He was born in Tangiers, Morocco into an affluent
family of Islamic legal scholars. In his early years, he was a Sharia law student and served
as an apprentice under various (religious) legal scholars in Baghdad, Cairo, and Damascus,
among other places. Battuta covered 73,000 miles over the span of thirty years. He explored
more than any other traveler in pre-modern history, surpassing Zheng He and Marco Polo.
Ibn Battuta started traveling at age 21. He left his home as a law student. Over the next
thirty years, he visited North Africa, the horn of Africa, the Middle East, Afghanistan, India,
and Central Asia, and then he came back home in 1354 CE. During the last years of his life,
he dictated an account of his travels, titled A Gift to Those Who Contemplate the Wonders of
Cities and the Marvels of Travelling. It is a travelogue documenting his lifetime of travel
and exploration of various places.
Ibn Battuta left an extensive account of the Tughlaq dynasty (AD 1320–AD 1412) that was in
power in the Indian subcontinent at the time he went there. The rulers who ruled substantial
parts of North India between AD1200 to AD1526 were termed as Sultans and the period of
their rule as the Delhi Sultanate. These rulers were of Turkish and Afghan origin. During this
period of around three hundred years, five different dynasties ruled Delhi. One of the
dynasties was the Tughlaq dynasty. It is inexact by which travel route Battuta arrived in India,
but according to David Waines, he may have come in via the Khyber Pass and Peshawar, or
further south. When Battuta set foot in India, Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq was in power.
The Sultan was known to be the richest man in the Muslim world at that period. He supported
various Islamic scholars, Sufis, qadis, viziers, and other officials in order to consolidate his
position as the supreme head of the empire. The Sultan was known for his generosity and
courage as well as cruelty. He was known to have used violence against those who opposed
his power. The territories of the Hindu kings or the infidels (kafirs) as mentioned by Battuta
were Sultan’s main target. The princesses of the slain Hindu kings were captured and turned
into musicians and dancers. It is exclusively mentioned that after their performance, they were
presented to Sultan’s amirs (nobles), foreigners, brothers, and kinsmen for sexual service. One
of the social issues of the time was the slavery system where not only women were enslaved
but also men (captives of war). From this account, it could be seen that the non-Muslims were
looked down upon with very little to no human rights.
The rulers of the Delhi Sultanate faced opposition from outside India as well. They were not
safe and Sultan Muhammad bin Tughlaq wasn’t either. They faced continued hostility and
were threatened with periodic Mongol incursions from the north. One such Mongol leader
Chagatay Khan (whom Battuta visited on his way to India) invaded India and threatened the
apital city of Delhi around 1323, but the imperial army of Sultan Muhammad Tughluq
chased them away, sidelining them across the Indus River.
Gradually India was becoming more inflexibly controlled by Muslim rulers. Many Hindu
people were adapting to Islam and found jobs in the (royal) government. These people
understood the economic advantages of accepting Islam: lower taxes and prospects for
advancement. The rural population majorly retained their Sanatan roots and continued to
oppose the Muslim government for its biased policies. To toughen his hold on India,
Sultan Muhammad Tughluq needed further scholars, judges, and administrators. He
looked for authors, poets, and artists to admire his leadership.
Therefore, Sultan turned to foreigners to fill these spots. He was skeptical of the Hindu
populace because of their rebellious attitude. He employed foreigners and pleased them with
magnificent gifts of jewels and high salaries. The Turks, Persians, and other Muslims came to
India looking for its rewards. Persian became the language of the elite Muslims. It was from
Sultan Muhammad Tughluq that Battuta desired to gain employment.
Battuta ingeniously assembled gifts like arrows, several camels, horses, and several slaves and
other goods for the king. Everybody knew that the sultan would give his foreign visitors gifts
of far greater worth in return. When Battuta set foot in Delhi, he received a hospitability gift
of 2,000 silver dinars and was put up in a comfortably well-appointed house.

He was appointed as a judge (qadi) by the sultan. Though, he found it problematic to impose
Sharia law (Islamic law) outside the sultan's court in Delhi, due to the dearth of Islamic appeal
in India. The citizens were majorly Hindus; hence it took him time to percolate. Most people
gradually accepted him as one of the subordinates of the Sultan.

He was very well-connected with the politics of the Delhi Sultanate. The sultan called Muslim
scholars from abroad to influence the common people of India through Islam. For the sultan,
religion is only a tool of hegemony. Battuta’s obligations to Islam made him a forceful agent
of the religion.
It is not just for the sake of religion but as a tool of oppression. There was religious
intolerance among Hindus and Muslims. Even Ibn Battuta, while working under him, gave
orders to execute 80,000 criminals. Like other foreigners, Battuta was given 5000 dinars (a
high salary). It was risky to work for the sultan. Battuta’s travel accounts about Tughlaq and
his practices were portrayed in a sugarcoated way. In some aspects, the sultan was portrayed
in a glorified way. There was no explicit criticism against the king. To work for the sultan
would bring great rewards, but to come under suspicion will bear nothing but harm. So, it can
be said that he is an unreliable narrator. The dark side of the sultan was not talked about much,
and instead spoke more about his education, generosity, courtly life and the showering of gifts
to people who appease him. There is one instance where Battuta shows that the sultan tried to
negotiate with the Hindu populace whose lands were taken by the Hindu and Muslim
nobles/citizens. Battuta states that Hindus could make petitions in court, and for this, no
verification was needed. So, whether a biased view could be seen or not raises the question of
authenticity in his narrative. There is performativity in his narration due to fear of
surveillance. Battuta was hell-bent to project the sultan as a pious Muslim who wanted to
follow Sharia law no matter how cruel it is. Also, Battuta writing a travel account is inviting
the readers to know him (a formulation of a specific reader base). Battuta’s sole purpose for
traveling was religious in nature. He first traveled to Mecca as a pilgrim and then he went to
different places. Also, in him, there is a duality of identity. On the one hand, he was a pious
Muslim who wanted to become a religious scholar/ judge, and on the other hand, he bohemian
lifestyle. His traveler /inquisitive self was attracted to the finer things in life like jewels,
clothing, and women. He was a pleasure seeker who had a finer sensibility for food and good
clothing. There is a good description of the food habits of North and South India. The food
habits were altered and modified with the coming of foreigners. He had a huge appetite.
Battuta liked mangoes. He came to India at the peak of his youth. Apart from passing
judgment as a judge, he also looked at the finer things in life.

In India, the culture he was exposed to was hybrid in nature. There is transcultural negotiation/
engagement. It means crossing one territory to another territory. Him traveling from Morocco
which comprises a homogenous culture/religion to traveling to a place of hybridity where all
kinds of cultures have been assimilated due to various invasions in the past. When Turks and
Afghans came, they did not come as a nation, but as a race. They came and settled and took
some indigenous culture of India, and India adopted some of them. It was a cultural
assimilation. Religion was the overwhelming factor over Battuta’s inquisitive mind. The
geographic factor plays an important role in shaping a country’s role in international relations.
The sultan invited and was greeted by various people from places like Iraq to strengthen their
relations in aspects of administration, military, religion, and trade.

Muhammad Tughluq in history is described as an eccentric, erratic, and violent monarch.

He is portrayed in different shades. He is shown to be a philosopher. He used to write
Persian poetry and learned the art of calligraphy. The sultan could also debate legal and
religious matters with scholars. He is known to have showered gifts on intellectuals and
Muslims whom he found reliable.
The sultan was infamous for being a depraved administrator. His implementation process has
become a subject of criticism. He made some terrible decisions (about which battles to take
part in, where to establish his capital, the financial indecisions which almost ruined his
treasury, and how to manage the legal system). He was accountable for punishing rebels and
thieves with cruel deaths, and Muslim scholars and holy men were no exception. Anyone who
questioned him about his strategies faced dreaded fate. The sultan was paranoid of any
criticism.
One of the controversial measures of Muhammad bin Tughlaq was that he transferred his
capital from Delhi to Deogir (Daultabad). The entire population was not asked to leave only
the upper classes consisting of shaikhs, nobles, ulema were shifted to Daultabad. No attempt
was made to shift the rest of the population. Though Muhammad bin Tughlaq built a road
from Delhi to Deogir and set up rest houses but the journey was extremely harsh for the
people. A large number of people died because of rigorous traveling and the heat. Due to
growing discontent and the fact that the north could not be controlled from south, Muhammad
decided to abandon Daultabad. Another controversial project undertaken by him was the
introduction of “Token Currency”. It is to tide over the shortage of Silver.
However, this scheme failed causing great financial loss to the sultanate. Dinars were use
for financial transactions. It was made of silver/ gold/ or copper. In order to remove poverty,
the sultan gave orders to treat copper/ silver coins with the same value as gold coins. This led
to an economic breakdown under his rule. He also led several unsuccessful campaigns in his
lifetime. The sultan proved to be an inefficient statesman. He had a complex persona. Ibn
Battuta also witnessed the sultan’s gradual loss of appeal from the ruling nobles.
Battuta became a witness to all these issues and the information he provided became an
important source of knowledge for the upcoming historians. His account of the Tughlaq
dynasty throws some light on the socio-political and geopolitical scenario and how the Sultan’s
inefficient administration justifies the fact that he was an erratic king, his fickle-mindedness
influencing the policies of the empire.

2. Ethnography, culture, contacts

Ans. Ethnographical studies come out of travel narratives. It is a scientific study that deals
with actual exploratory narratives. It is a part of anthropological studies. It is about how a
set of people lived. Ethnographers or explorers discover certain places and people, their
flora and fauna. They recorded their experiences in a foreign land and their habits (food,
culture, and customs). They give descriptions of people, their nature, religion, forms of
government, and language. It talks about own culture and emphasizes it with others related
to the foreign land. At the grassroot level, it talks about culture, habit, political, religious
worldview and comparing it with other ethnicities. Ethnography does give information/
facts, but all kinds of knowledge are in some way compromised. Ibn Battuta’s travelogue A
Gift to Those Who Contemplate the Wonders of Cities and the Marvels of Travelling gives a
secondary type of knowledge to the readers. It is a travelogue documenting his lifetime of
travel and exploration of various places.
We can see ethnographical evidence even before the travel narratives of various European
explorers documenting foreign people, their temperament, culture and traditions.
The ethnographical aspect could be found in 14 th century text like Battuta’s travelogue.
Battuta starts his journey from Morocco, Africa. In 14 th century religious travel texts, we see
ethnographical evidence even before 16th century travel writing produced in Europe. Part of
this travel account, Battuta gives description of the type of language, customs, forms of
government during the Tughlaq dynasty’s reign. He mainly talked about the colloquial life
and talked mainly of extraordinary events. We see he does not talk about everyday/ ordinary
things. It is not a mere journaling, but a proper travel account. Ibn Battuta was a scholar,
geographer, jurist, judge, and explorer who toured extensively in the lands of Afro- Eurasia,
mainly covering the Muslim world. He was born in Tangiers, Morocco into an affluent
family of Islamic legal scholars.
Ibn Battuta started traveling at age 21. He left his home as a law student. Ibn Battuta left an
extensive account of the Tughlaq dynasty (AD 1320–AD 1412) that was in power in the
Indian subcontinent at the time he went there. When Battuta set foot in India, Sultan
Muhammad bin Tughluq was in power. The Sultan was known to be the richest man in the
Muslim world at that period. He supported various Islamic scholars, Sufis, qadis, viziers, and
other officials in order to consolidate his position as the supreme head of the empire. The
Sultan was known for his generosity and courage as well as cruelty. The territories of the
Hindu kings or the infidels (kafirs) as mentioned by Battuta were Sultan’s main target. The
princesses of the slain Hindu kings were captured and turned into musicians and dancers.
One of the social issues of the time was the slavery system where not only women were
enslaved but also men (captives of war). From this account, it could be seen that the non-
Muslims were looked down upon with very little to no human rights. Gradually India was
becoming more inflexibly controlled by Muslim rulers. Many Hindu people were adapting to
Islam and found jobs in the (royal) government. These people understood the economic
advantages of accepting Islam: lower taxes and prospects for advancement.
To toughen his hold on India, Sultan Muhammad Tughluq needed further scholars, judges,
and administrators. He looked for authors, poets, and artists to admire his leadership.
Therefore, Sultan turned to foreigners to fill these spots. He was skeptical of the Hindu
populace because of their rebellious attitude. He employed foreigners and pleased them with
magnificent gifts of jewels and high salaries. The Turks, Persians, and other Muslims came
to India looking for its rewards. Persian became the language of the elite Muslims. It was
from Sultan Muhammad Tughluq that Battuta desired to gain employment.
He was appointed as a judge (qadi) by the sultan. Though, he found it problematic to impose
Sharia law (Islamic law) outside the sultan's court in Delhi, due to the dearth of Islamic
appeal in India. The citizens were majorly Hindus; hence it took him time to percolate. Most
people gradually accepted him as one of the subordinates of the Sultan.
He was very well-connected with the politics of the Delhi Sultanate. The sultan called
Muslim scholars from abroad to influence the common people of India through Islam. For
the sultan, religion is only a tool of hegemony. Battuta’s obligations to Islam made him a
forceful agent of the religion.
Battuta’s travel accounts about Tughlaq and his practices were portrayed in a sugarcoated
way. In some aspects, the sultan was portrayed in a glorified way. There was no explicit
criticism against the king. To work for the sultan would bring great rewards, but to come
under suspicion will bear nothing but harm. So, it can be said that he is an unreliable
narrator. The dark side of the sultan was not talked about much, and instead spoke more
about his education, generosity, courtly life and the showering of gifts to people who appease
him. There is performativity in his narration due to fear of surveillance.
European impetus of travel writing was embedded in imperialism and colonization. For
Battuta, it had a religious personal impulse.
He first traveled to Mecca as a pilgrim and then he went to different places as an Islamic
scholar/judge. Also, there is a duality in his character. On the one hand, he was a pious
Muslim who wanted to become a religious scholar/ judge, and on the other hand, he liked
bohemian lifestyle. He liked to experience things. He was attracted to the idea of travel.
Battuta covered 73,000 miles over the span of thirty years. Over the next thirty years, he
visited North Africa, the horn of Africa, the Middle East, Afghanistan, India, and Central
Asia, and then he came back home in 1354 CE. His traveler /inquisitive self was attracted to
the finer things in life like jewels, clothing, and women. He was a pleasure seeker who had a
finer sensibility for food and good clothing. There is an epicurean nature within him. There is
a good description of the food habits of North and South India. The food habits were altered
and modified with the coming of foreigners. He liked mangoes. He gave description of
various food like “bread (in thin round cakes); large slabs of meat (sheep); round dough
cakes made with ghee (clarified butter)”
In India, the culture he was exposed to was hybrid in nature. Him traveling from Morocco
which comprises a homogenous culture/religion to traveling to a place of hybridity where all
kinds of cultures have been assimilated due to various invasions in the past. When Turks and
Afghans came, they did not come as a nation, but as a race. They came and settled and took
some indigenous culture of India, and India adopted some of them. It was a cultural
assimilation. The geographic factor plays an important role in shaping a country’s role in
international relations. The sultan invited and was greeted by various people from places like
Iraq to strengthen their relations in aspects of administration, military, religion, and trade.
The sultan is portrayed in different shades. He is shown to be a philosopher. He used to write
Persian poetry and learned the art of calligraphy. The sultan could also debate legal and
religious matters with scholars, and was infamous for being a depraved administrator.
Battuta describes one of the controversial measures of Sultan Muhammad bin Tughlaq was
that he transferred his capital from Delhi to Deogir (Daultabad). The entire population was
not asked to leave only the upper classes consisting of shaikhs, nobles, ulema were shifted to
Daultabad. He also talked about all the resting places made by the sultan in the route of Delhi
to Daulatabad.
Battuta became a witness to all these issues and the information he provided became an
important source of knowledge for the upcoming historians. The places he had gone and, in
some way, or the other, getting influenced by his own custom/culture and vice versa. In this
way, some kind of cultural exchange is happening.