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Akbar: A Syncretistic and Rational Approach to Religion

From Marbaniang, Domenic. Secularism In India: A Historical Analysis (2009). 

Akbar was born in on October 15, 1542 A.D[1] in Amarkot, Sindh (now in Pakistan). He is  often considered the true founder of the Mughal Empire. He reigned over his Mughal  Empire in India from 1556 A.D. to 1605 A.D. By now, in addition to Hinduism, Buddhism,  and Jainism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, and Sikhism were also religions that the  Muslim rulers had to tackle. Akbar stands distinctively from all other Muslim rulers in  his policy towards the religions of his kingdom. His policy of inclusivism, religious  tolerance, and inter-religious respect and endeavour towards an empire based on unity  and equality led to Jawaharlal Nehru calling him the ‘the Father of Indian  Nationalism.’[2] As Thapar points out, Akbar ‘won the allegiance of the Rajputs, the  most belligerent Hindus, by a shrewd blend of tolerance, generosity, and force; he  himself married two Rajput princesses. Rajput princes were given high government  ranks, and by 1583 all Rajput states had accepted Akbar as ruler.’[3] His religious policy  towards the Hindus was in such a time when religious intolerance was on high and  Muslim rule over Hindus was more often of an oppressive kind.[4] 

It is conjectured that Akbar’s Hindu policy was greatly influenced by the many Hindu  wives that he had.[5] Akbar himself was a regular audience of Hindu saints and  philosophers. Some consider that a probable influence behind Akbar’s Hindu policy  could be Sufism that is said to have inspired him towards a more liberal approach  towards Hinduism. Others think that Akbar’s Hindu policy was politically motivated.[6] 

In 1562, Akbar banned the forceful conversion of war prisoners. In 1563, he abolished  the pilgrimage tax which, immediately, prompted Hindus all over India to construct  numerous temples. He also set up a department of translation for the translation of  Hindu texts into the Persian language, towards building a common ground for unity  between the two cultures. In 1564, Akbar abolished the zazia tax imposed over the  Hindus. Earlier on, only the Muslims were treated as citizens. But Akbar gave equal  citizenship status to both Hindus and Muslims. His policy didn’t admit political

differentiation on the basis of religion. In 1603, he declared a royal decree by which  Christians were allowed to convert others.[7] 

Akbar opposed child-marriages and encouraged widow re-marriages, which the Hindu  law disallowed. In his reign, the Hindus prospered greatly since most Rajputs were given  high posts and Hindu warriors formed a large part of the Mughal army. Akbar himself  also endorsed much of Hinduism by participating in their festivals. 

It is also said that Akbar learned Hindu doctrines from Hindu Brahmins, Jain thought  from Heera Vijay Suri, Vijaysen Suri, Bhanuchandra Upadhyaya, and Jinchandra;  Zoroatrian beliefs from Dastur Meherji Rana, and Christian doctrines from the Pastors  called in from Goa.[8] 

By the Infallibility Decree of 1579, Akbar became the supreme arbiter over all religious  matters of his subjects. By this decree, Akbar became the Imam-E-Aadil and the sole  arbitrator of Islamic Law.[9] The decree shows that though the laws were based on  reason, the state itself was not separated from religion totally in the modern sense of  secularism. However, it must be kept in mind that the above decree, especially in  relation to Islam, was in order to prevent Islamic religious authority from tampering with  the religious policies of Akbar. This decree prevented fundamental and communal  forces from influencing in any way the Emperor’s decisions. By positioning himself  above the Islamic religious leaders, getting declared himself as a Judge most beloved  on the Day of Judgement, and conditioning his laws to be in line with the Quran, Akbar  was able to gain a religious backing for furthering his syncretistic and rational religious  policies. 

It has been conjectured that these policies of Akbar grew out of more his syncretistic  and pluralistic mind than his adherence to any particular religion. One Portuguese Jesuit  of the group that Akbar had invited to teach him of Christianity when he was in search  of truth reported that the Emperor was not a Muslim; in fact, he was skeptical of all  religions and was of the opinion that there was not one religion on earth that was  specially instituted by God and that there could be found things in any religion that was  inconsistent in its own rationality. The Jesuit also reported that Akbar had found  Christianity more interesting than all other religions and that he was close to  conversion. He said that there were some in the court who argued that Akbar was a  Hindu who worshipped the sun; some believed that he was a Christian, and others that  he was starting a whole new religion (Din Ilahi) himself. The Jesuit reporter said that  there were differences of opinion even among the subjects: some said he was a  Muslim; some, Christian; others, Hindu. The wiser men of understanding, the Jesuit

continued, believe that he was neither a Muslim, a Hindu, nor a Christian; and that they  only considered him a Muslim who was outwardly interested in gaining the approval of  all religions.[10]

Akbar’s pluralism is also reflected in the impact Zoroastrianism had on him. In 1578, the  Zoroastrian scholar Dastur Meherji declared to Akbar the specialties of this Parsee  religion. Consequentially, from 1580 onwards Akbar began to worship the Sun and Fire  before his subjects and his courtiers began standing up in respect on the lighting of the  evening lights. According to Vincent Smith, it was Jainism that influenced Akbar to stop  eating meat and to impose a ban on all kinds of animal sacrifice.[11] 

Srivastava considers Akbar to be a true rationalist who carried on his investigation into  truth in a scientific spirit by which he concluded that sensible men and abstemious  thinkers could be found in all religions and that if some true knowledge was thus  everywhere to be found, why should truth be confined to one religion or creed like Islam  which was comparatively new and scarcely thousand years old.[12] Akbar rejected the  Islamic doctrines of Resurrection and Judgement. He also rejected the doctrine of  revelation.[13] On the basis of such rational attempts to understand truth, Akbar took to  study of different religions and absorbed several ideas from them. 

Thus, it can be concluded that Akbar’s religious policies of religious freedom and  religious tolerance flowed out of his syncretistic, liberal, rational, and pluralistic way of  looking at things. His integrative perspective prevented him from siding with any  particular community and thus helped him to inculcate in his subjects a spirit of mutual  respect and good will. This pluralistic attitude also grew out of his comparative study of  the various religions and people as well as his own belief in the power and value of  reason in understanding and judgement. On such grounds, therefore, it can be stated  that though Akbar’s policies did not totally conform to all the elements of modern  secularism, they contained the secular seeds of state-sanctioned religious freedom and  dignity. His claim for Supremacy over religious matters in a monarchial government that  was far removed from the modern concept of democracy and constitutionalism,  however, limited his policies only to his period. Later successors, especially  Aurangazeb, reverted more intensively to the methods of fundamentalism, intolerance,  and forced conversions. Thus, though Akbar promoted religious freedom in his own  time, he could not provide a mechanism by which his policies could be followed on even  after him. This truly shows the importance of a written constitution, a democratic form  of government, the separation of powers, and a total separation of state and religion for  the future of secularism in any pluralistic context.

[1] Ashirbadi Lal Srivastava, History of India (1000-1707A.D.) (Agra: Shiva Lal Agarwal &  Co., n.d.), p. 434. 

[2] Laxminarayan Gupta, History of Modern Indian Culture, p.24. 

[3] Romila Thapar, Akbar, Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia(Microsoft Corporation: 2001).  [4]Vidyadhar Mahajan, Muslim-Kalin Bharat (Muslim Rule in India) (Delhi: S. Chand & Co.  Ltd., 1979), part II, p.103. 

[5] Ibid, p. 104. 

[6] Ibid, p. 107. 

[7] Ibid, p. 108. 

[8] Ibid, p. 110. 

[9] Ibid, p. 110. 

[10] Ibid, p.139. 

[11] Ibid, p. 142. 

[12] Ashirbadi Lal Srivastava, History of India (1000-1707A.D.), p. 471.  [13] Ibid, p. 471.

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