The Founding Father of the modern Indian state

by Guest Thu Mar 07, 2013 5:36 pm

Renowned economist Prof. Amartya Sen deliberated on the importance of university education, whether academics is a precursor to success, and the antecedents of secularism...

Prof. Sen also believes that the Indian secular state is based on Emperor Akbar's ideas of secularism. “Emperor Akbar's radical departures in religious tolerance, his line of thinking that religion must not be denied to have a secular state and that tradition must be based on reason…one can imagine how revolutionary these ideas were in the 1590s.”

Prof. Sen concluded by firmly re-affirming his belief on the Indian secular state being based on Emperor Akbar's ideas.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-newdelhi/article2722541.ece

by Guest Thu Mar 07, 2013 5:38 pm

From Amartya Sen's book 'The Idea of Justice':

Taking note of the religious diversity of his people, Akbar laid the foundations of secularism and religious neutrality of the state in a variety of ways; the secular constitution that India adopted in 1949, after independence from British rule, has many features already championed by Akbar in the 1590s. The shared elements include interpreting secularism as the requirement that the state be equidistant from different religions and must not treat any religion with special favor. ....

The question of secularism is only one of the great many cases in which Akbar insisted that we should be free to examine whether reason does or does not support any existing custom, or provides justification for ongoing policy; for example, he abolished all special taxes on non-muslims on the ground that they were discriminatory since they did not treat all citizens as equal.

by Guest Thu Mar 07, 2013 5:46 pm

The Emperor Akbar
The architect of modern India was the great Mughal Emperor Akbar who gave equal respect to people of all communities and appointed them to the highest offices on their merits irrespective of their religion, caste, etc. Emperor Akbar was perhaps the greatest ruler the world has ever seen.

The Emperor Akbar held discussions with scholars of all religions and gave respect not only to Muslim scholars, but also to Hindus, Christians, Parsis, Sikhs, Jains, etc. Those who came to his court were given respect, and the Emperor heard their views, sometimes alone, and sometimes in the Ibadatkhana (Hall of Worship), where people of all religions assembled and discussed their views in a tolerant spirit. The Emperor declared his policy of Suleh-e-Kul, which means universal tolerance of all religions and communities. He abolished Jeziya in 1564 and the pilgrim tax in 1563 on Hindus and permitted his Hindu wife to continue to practice her own religion even after their marriage. This is evident from the Jodha Bai Palace in Fatehpur Sikri which is built on Hindu architectural pattern.

In 1578, the Parsi theologian Dastur Meherji Rana was invited to the emperor’s court and he had detailed discussions with Emperor Akbar and acquainted him about the Parsi religion. Similarly, the Jesuit Priests Father Antonio Monserrate, Father Rodolfo Acquaviva and Father Francisco Enriques etc. also came to the Emperor’s court on his request and acquainted him about the Christian religion. The Emperor also became acquainted with Sikhism and came into contact with Guru Amar Das and Guru Ram Das.

Thus, as stated in the Cambridge History of India (Vol. IV- The Mughal Period) Emperor Akbar conceived the idea of becoming the father of all his subjects, rather than the leader of only the Muslims, and he was far ahead of his times. As mentioned by Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru in ‘The Discovery of India’, “Akbar’s success is astonishing, for he created a sense of oneness among the diverse elements of India.”

In 1582, the Emperor invited and received a Jain delegation consisting of Hiravijaya Suri, Bhanuchandra Upadhyaya and Vijayasena Suri. Jainism, with its doctrine of non-violence, made a profound impression on him and influenced his personal life. He curtailed his food and drink and ultimately abstained from flesh diet altogether for several months in the year. He renounced hunting which was his favourite pastime, restricted the practice of fishing and released prisoners and caged birds. Slaughter of animals was prohibited on certain days and ultimately in 1587 for about half the days in the year.

Emperor Akbar was a propagator of Suleh-i-Kul (universal toleration) at a time when Europeans were indulging in religious massacres e.g. the St. Bartholomew Day massacre in 1572 of Protestants, (called Huguenots) in France by the Catholics, the burning at the stake of Protestants by Queen Mary of England, the massacre by the Duke of Alva of tens of thousands of protestants for their resistance to Rome and the burning at the stake of Jews during the Spanish Inquisition. We may also mention the subsequent massacre of the Catholics in Ireland by Cromwell, and the mutual massacre of Catholics and Protestants in Germany during the thirty year war from 1618 to 1648 in which the population of Germany was reduced from 18 million to 12 million. Thus, Emperor Akbar was far ahead of even the Europeans of his times.

Emperor Akbar himself abstained from eating meat on Fridays and Sundays and on some other days, as has been mentioned in the Ain-i-Akbari by Abul Fazl.

It was because of the wise policy of toleration of the Great Emperor Akbar that the Mughal Empire lasted for so long, and hence the same wise policy of toleration alone can keep our country together despite so much diversity.

http://kgfindia.com/kalidas-ghalib.php

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The Founding Father of the modern Indian state

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