Bestseller
Religious and Intellectual History of the Muslims in Akbar's Reign 1556-1605
Synopsis
This work examines the historical works and historiographical sources of Akbar's reign to strike a balanced evaluation of the relative importance of the works of Abu'l Fazl, and of the intellectual and political movements of his time. Full recognition is given here, for the first time, to Abu'l Fazl's influential contribution to epistolography, historiography and Islamic philosophy. The so-called "religion", the Din Ilahi, is discussed from the point of view, both religious and political, of Abu'l Fazl and the political elite, and many false assumptions often made are exploded by the force of evidence from contemporary sources. Contemporary and later mystical, philosophical and historical literature in Persian, Hindi and Arabic, to be found in libraries scattered throughout India, the Middle East, U.K. and Europe, is assessed. Thus the religious and intellectual history of the Muslims of Akbar's time can be considered against the wider perspective of the religious tensions in Muslim India from the thirteenth to the sixteenth centuries; and the nature of their response to contemporary challenges is discussed on the basis of firm historical evidence. New light is thrown upon some of Akbar's institutions; upon the 'Ibadat Khana, and the Translation Bureau (the Muktab Khana); upon the Declaration (Mahzar); and upon the composition and influence of the elite of his time, with a detailed analysis of the character and beliefs of such leading members as the sanctimonious and avaricious Shaikh 'Abdu'n-Nabi, the profuse yet orthodox Shaikh Farid Bukhari and that incomparable anecdotist, the able, fluent yet frustrated Mulla, 'Abdu'l-Qadir Bada'uni. In short, this work aims at giving an authoritative account of the life of Abu'l Fazl and of his contribution to a period which is still largely misunderstood even by its admirers.
Read more
16.20
14.58
$
18.00 $
Free delivery Wolrdwidе in 10-18 days
Ships in 1-2 days from New Delhi
Membership for 1 Year $35.00
Get it now and save 10%
Get it now and save 10%
BECOME A MEMBER
Bibliographic information