Leiden University Student Repository

Babajee, Siegfried (2016)

The Religious Aspect of Akbar

Bachelor thesis | Religiewetenschappen (BA)

The personality of Akbar has caught the fascination of historians and poets. The legend of his openness and tolerance towards the other religions of the Indian subcontinent has been both lauded and disputed. Whereas most historians saw his progressive policies of tolerance as a form of Enlightenment in the East, others have reduced the Emperor's tolerance to nothing more than a thought through political strategy which only served the material interests of the Mughal state. This paper will evaluate these differing views on Akbar and the role religion played in his reign, in order to see that both personal and political interests were served in Akbar's career.

Akbar

Mughal

Religion

Din-i-Ilahi

Sufism

Bhakti

Jesuits

Author

Babajee, Siegfried

Faculty

Faculty of Humanities

Specialisation

pre-master Religiewetenschappen

Supervisors

Jong, Albert de

ECTS Credits

10

Language

en