Introduction :
The Mughal rulers governed India for more than 200 years. They reformed government, encouraged artistry, and tried to unite their subjects. The last Mughal emperors allowed the empire to break apart, however. As a result, the Mughal Empire came to an end, and India came under British control. The Mughals were a Muslim dynasty that lasted for seven generations. They were descended from the Turkic conqueror Timur Lenk and the Mongol ruler Genghis Khan. The empire was founded when a ruler from Turkestan, Baber, raided India, defeated the sultan of Delhi in 1526, and expanded his holdings. The next notable Mughal ruler perhaps the greatest of the dynasty was Baber's grandson Akbar, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. He made the Mughal throne more secure and greatly expanded the empire. India was difficult to rule because it was basically a Hindu culture governed by Muslims and because of the variety of languages and traditions of its people. Akbar succeeded because he reformed the government to make it fairer and allowed Muslims, Hindus, and Christians alike to practice their beliefs. He was also a great promoter of art and learning. To this day certain works dating from the empire are known by such names as Mughal painting, Mughal glass, and Mughal carpets. It was during the reign of Akbar that India entered into relations with Great Britain. Some present-day provincial governments in India and Pakistan are based in part on reforms made more than 300 years ago by Akbar. Akbar's son Jahangir ruled after him (1605-27), and his grandson Shah Jahan (1628-58) followed. Shah Jahan's son Aurangzeb (1658-1707) was the last great ruler of the empire. His rule began well, and he brought the Muslim Deccan kingdoms of Bijapur and Golconda under Mughal control. He was intolerant of other religions, however, and persecuted the Hindus. This led to rebellions, and the cost of suppressing these rebellions emptied the imperial treasury. When he died, the rulers that followed could not successfully regain control of the land. During the reign of Muhammad Shah (1719-48) the empire began to shrink, and within a few years the Mughals ruled only Delhi and a small area around it. By 1803 the British had taken control. The last Mughal was Bahadur Shah II, whose reign began in 1837. He was expelled from India for taking part in a mutiny against the British in 1857 known as the Sepoy Revolt.
Dateline: 1526AD-1857AD :
India had been without a major empire for almost a thousand years now, it had not been since the Gupta Dynasty that an all India empire had been created. The Mughal Dynasty was the last great empire of Indian history. Such was their greatness that not only did they leave a lasting impact on Indian history, the English word Mogul (derived from Mughal) means a powerful person. The Mughals were a remarkable dynasty, and at their peak they produced a successive set of capable rulers. It was also during their reign that some of the finest monuments of India were built, most notably one of the seven wonders of the world, the Taj Mahal.
The Mughal dynasty was founded by Babur, who was a ruler of a kingdom near Persia (modern day Iran). Babur a Turk, was related to the great Mongol conqueror, Chengiz Khan and the Turkish invader Timur. The increasing power of the Uzbeks of Central Asia, was a cause for Babur to want to leave his country. The Delhi Sultanate around this time existed merely in name, and the political scene was in total disarray. The Sultan in power was Ibrahim Lodi, but the nobles commanded a major portion of power. The entire system was very unstable, and finally it cracked. Daulat Khan, a powerful noble who was dissatisfied with Ibrahim Lodi actually requested Babur to come and invade India. Babur had long cherished a desire to conquer India, and he immediately grabbed the opportunity. He first conquered Afghanistan and then descended into India. His campaigns though initially faced some hiccups, turned out very successful and he captured a large section of North Western India. He then proceeded to Delhi where he fought the last remaining Sultanate ruler, Ibrahim Lodi at Panipat. Ibrahim Lodi possessed a much larger army, but Babur had greater amount of weapons and artillery as well as superb strategy and leadership. In just half a day, he defeated the Sultan and captured Delhi and its surrounding areas. The victory over Ibrahim Lodi however had only a nominal value, for the Sultanate was not a very powerful force in the country. Babur had to face many challenges from various Afghan, Turkish and native Indian rulers before finally he was able to assert his authority over a fairly large area, establishing the foundation of the Mughal empire. In the brief four years that he ruled he set the stage for the great empire. The Mughal empire was not firmly established in his time, in fact shortly after his son Humayun succeeded him, Sher Shah, temporarily threw out the Mughal power and set up his own empire. Upon his death however Humayun returned and re-established the Mughal empire. The greatest Mughal king, Akbar followed and he took the empire to its peak. When we talk of the Mugahl empire we usually refer to the reign of the greater Mughals: Babur, Humayaun, Akbar, Jehangir, Shah Jehan and Aurangzeb. The Mughal empire began to disintegrate during the reign of Aurangzeb and the Mughal emperors after him are collectively referred to as the later Mughals. The Mughal empire would be an important part of Indian history for the next two hundred years, before its disintegration would pave the way for the rise of the British in India.
JUDICIAL & ADMINISTRATIVE SYSTEM DURING MUGHAL EMPIRES:
Judicial & Administrative system during Mughal empires was matchless, excellent and complete in all senses. Let us have a brief perusal of Mughal system as a whole. Though the Mughal Emperors had absolute powers, they appointed a number of officers in the different departments of the Government for the transaction of its multitudinous affairs. The chief departments of the State were:
(a) the Imperial House-hold under the Khan-i-saman,
(b) the Exchequer under the Deccan
(c) the Military Pay & Accounts office under the Mir Bakshi
(d) the Judiciary under the Chief Qazi,
(e) Religious Endowments and charities under the Chief Sadr or Sadr-us-Sudur, and
(f) the Censorship of Public Morals under the Muhtasib. The Diwan or wazir was usually the highest officer in the state, being sole incharge of revenues and finance, The Bakhshi discharged a variety of functions. While he was the Pay-master-General of all the officers of the State, who "theoretically belonged to the military department he was also responsible for the recruiting of the army, and for maintaining lists of mansabdars and other high officials, and when preparing, for a battle he has a complete muster-roll of the army before the Emperor. The Khan-i-Saman or the Lord High Steward had charge of the whole imperial house-hold "in reference
to both great and small things". The Muhtamibs or Censors of Public Morals
looked after the enforcement of the prophet's commands and the laws of
morality. The other officers, somewhat inferior in status to those mentioned
above, the Mir Atish or Daroga-i-Topkhana (head of the artillery), the Daroga of Dak Chowki (the correspondence department). the Daroga of the Mint, the Mir Mai or the Lord Privy Seal, the Mustayfi or the Auditer- General air the Nazir~i-luyulat or the Superintendent of the Imperial workshop, the Mushriff or the Revenue Secretary, the Mir bahri or the Lord of the Admiralty, the Mir Barr or the Superintendent of forests, the or News Reporters the Mir arz or the charge of petitions presented to the Emperor, the Mir Manzil or the Quarter master General, and the Mir Tezak or the Master of Cerensnies. We shall discuss first police, then Judicial and revenue system.
(l) The Police so far as the rural areas were concerned, Mughals introduced no new arrangement for the prevention and detection and crimes. These as from time immemorial under the headman of the village and his subordinate watchmen. The system, which afforded a fair degree of security in the local areas with only occasional disturbances in times of disorder, survived till the beginning of the nineteenth century. In the cities and towns, all police duties including the task of maintaining : order and decency, were entrusted to the, whose duties, as enumerated in the Ain-i AKbari, were multi farious (i) to detect thieves, (ii) to regulate prices and check weights measures, (iii) to keep watch at night and the City, (iv) to keep up registers of houses, frequented roads, and of citizens and watch the movements of strangers, (v) to employ spies from the vaga bands, gather information about the affairs of the neighbouring villages and the income expenditure of the various classes of people, (vi) To prepare aninventory of, and take charge of, the property of deceased or missing persons who left be heirs, (vii) to prevent the slaughter buffales, of oxen, bourses or camaels, and (viii) to prevent the burning of women Gainst their win,and circumcision below the age of twelve Sir J.N.Sarkar believes that this long list of the duties in the Ain represents " only the ideal the Kotwali" and not" the actual State But Mailed age gives from personal observation an exhaustive account of the Kotwals duties. It is,
however, certain that the Xotwali's main business was to preserve peace and
public security in the urba areas. In the districts or Sarkars, law and order were maintained usually by officers like the Faujddars "The faujddar, as his name suggests, was only the commander of a military force stationed in the country. He had to put down smaller rebellions, disperse or arrest robber gangs, take of all violent crimes, demonstrations of force to overawe, opposition to the revenue authorities, or the criminal judge, or the censor". The police arrangements were in some respects effective, though " the State of public security varied greatly from place to place and from time to time.
Economic system of mughal period:
Agriculture continued to remain an important part of the economy, but the crops and techniques still remained largely unchanged. Irrigation was largely absent although some areas did have access to canals and water works. A variety of food and cash crops were grown. The textile industry was booming and hence there was tremendous demand for cotton and silk which were important cash crops. Tobacco, introduced sometime in 1604 also became an important cash crop. One negative aspect of the Mughal administration was that they did not make any major efforts in agricultural development. Hence the citizens were subject to various famines, which had devastating results. With no assistance from the centre, the situation was usually grim. Quite often severe famines led to large scale migration of the population within the empire, and in some cases they even left India. Some Mughal emperors did try initiatives to alleviate the problems, but most of the time it was a case of too little too late. These famines had a detrimental effect on the economy.
Industry had been developing and by the Mughal period was very diversified and involved a large number of people. The range and volume of products manufactured by Indian industries was very large, catering to not only a large domestic demand but also to a large international demand. The most important industry of this period was that of making cotton cloth. Several cotton manufacturing units were scattered across the country, catering to a huge demand. Bengal was renowned for its fine quality silk and cotton cloth. In fact it was said, that the amount of cloth produced in Bengal was more than most of the kingdoms of India and Europe put together. With the cloth industry so successful, the dyeing was also doing very well. Shawl and carpet weaving were also important industries, receiving major patronage during the time of Akbar. The ship building industry also remained important, although India was no longer a major maritime country. The State, while encouraging Industry did not directly support it financially, a task undertaken by various middlemen. This was regrettable, for the industrialists were often exploited by such middlemen. They were also exploited by corrupt nobles and officers who often forced them to sell goods at low prices. The irony of the situation was that although the craftsmen were being deprived of the fair value of their commodities, it was because of the nobles and officers that there was a demand for the work they produced. The nobles and officers having fine tastes encouraged the development of high quality work.
Currency also began to develop with the return of a stable power. Standardized coins were issued in gold, silver and copper. The coins were of superb quality and often had interesting artistic designs. The important matter ofcourse was that currency was now seen as a reliable method of exchange, with the Mughal coins being a respected unit of value.
India had flourishing trade relations with many parts of the world, with foreign trade being an important part of the Indian economy. The chief Indian imports of the time were, raw silks, gold, ivory, precious stones, perfumes, horses and slaves. Chief exports included textiles, spices, opium and indigo. The land routes usually went via Afghanistan, but land transportation was not very safe or reliable. River and sea transport were the popular choices. Customs duties during the period were very low, it was approximately 3.5% on all imports and exports. European traders were also beginning to play an important role in Indian trade, with many of them setting up warehouses and distribution points in the empire. Most European goods however were affordable only by the rich.
Education system of Mughal Period:
Under the Mughal rule special attention was given to education. During the Akbar’s reign important changes were introduced in the syllabus of education through the efforts of Shah Fathullah Shirazi.Islamic schools were attached to mosques, Khanqah of the Sufis and tombs. Special buildings were also constructed for imparting education. Their expenses were met from endowments.
During the Mughal period the principal centres of learning were at Lahore,Delhi,Ajmer,Sialkot,Multan,Ahmadabad,Allahabad,Lucknow,Murshidabad,Dacca.Many scholars were attracted to these institutions from Persia and Central Asia. Students received education free of cost. Famous scholars received fixed stipends from the royal treasury.
Provisions were made for the teaching of Persian; the official language of the government in the Maktabs.Nizamiyah system of education became popular during the later days of the Mughals. The aim of this system was to create such ability in the scholar so that he is able to acquire perfection in any branch of learning through self-study and personal efforts. While Muslims received education in Maktabs,Hindus had their pathsalas for imparting religious instructions.
Conclusion:
There are many facets to the Mughal Empire in India but most Muslims and other scholars have describe it as a glorious period in Indian History, but it was in many respects, for most parts, far from it.
It is wrong not to recognize and learn from history as it is; instead of ignoring it as have been the case in Pakistan for most of its existence and a short period in India. European and many Indian scholars view history of India from tenth to nineteenth centuries using the colonial mindset.
The most glaring omission that most historians and learned commentators make is to ignore destruction of Hindu India’s educational infrastructure by Muslims rulers of India starting with the Sultanate period (tenth to thirteenth centuries) and concluding with the Mughal period (sixteenth to nineteenth centuries). Not a single center of education was established by Muslims during almost nine hundred years as rulers of parts of India!
A mix of Wahabi and Deobandi followers in Pakistan are responsible for perpetuating political insecurities of South Asia and unleashing terrorism on a global scale by adopting fascism with a face of Islam propagated by radical and fundamentalist clerics, power-hungry autocrats and elites obsessed with inferiority of Muslim political power.
Isn’t it a South Asia tragedy that today’s generation is paying a price for neglect of education in India (or South Asia if that’s what Muslims prefer to call the area after partition,) for over nine hundred years, not to mention that many scholars have made cases to demonstrate a link in the decline of Muslim and Hindu powers in India and their woefully inadequate scholarship in areas of math, sciences and philosophy.
With the exception of Muslim and Hindu trading communities, all across South Asia the ghettoisation of the Muslim community and that of India’s disadvantaged lower castes is attributable to backwardness that came with a lack of adequate education to empower these segments of South Asians with a critical mass of creative-thinkers. Lacking creative-thinking abilities, semi- and uneducated masses develop blind faith. If you have good skills but for some reason are not motivated to deploy them – as is the case with South Asians of questionable scholarship, - you will reach conclusions and make decisions no more rationally than someone without those skills. One only needs to listen to the fundamentalist and radical clerics of any faith to see how blind faith can lead to disastrous consequences. People with a belief system that has stayed frozen in the past continue to live with blind faith in a cycle of generation of poverty and dream of premodern utopia.
Dateline: 1526AD-1857AD :
India had been without a major empire for almost a thousand years now, it had not been since the Gupta Dynasty that an all India empire had been created. The Mughal Dynasty was the last great empire of Indian history. Such was their greatness that not only did they leave a lasting impact on Indian history, the English word Mogul (derived from Mughal) means a powerful person. The Mughals were a remarkable dynasty, and at their peak they produced a successive set of capable rulers. It was also during their reign that some of the finest monuments of India were built, most notably one of the seven wonders of the world, the Taj Mahal.
The Mughal dynasty was founded by Babur, who was a ruler of a kingdom near Persia (modern day Iran). Babur a Turk, was related to the great Mongol conqueror, Chengiz Khan and the Turkish invader Timur. The increasing power of the Uzbeks of Central Asia, was a cause for Babur to want to leave his country. The Delhi Sultanate around this time existed merely in name, and the political scene was in total disarray. The Sultan in power was Ibrahim Lodi, but the nobles commanded a major portion of power. The entire system was very unstable, and finally it cracked. Daulat Khan, a powerful noble who was dissatisfied with Ibrahim Lodi actually requested Babur to come and invade India. Babur had long cherished a desire to conquer India, and he immediately grabbed the opportunity. He first conquered Afghanistan and then descended into India. His campaigns though initially faced some hiccups, turned out very successful and he captured a large section of North Western India. He then proceeded to Delhi where he fought the last remaining Sultanate ruler, Ibrahim Lodi at Panipat. Ibrahim Lodi possessed a much larger army, but Babur had greater amount of weapons and artillery as well as superb strategy and leadership. In just half a day, he defeated the Sultan and captured Delhi and its surrounding areas. The victory over Ibrahim Lodi however had only a nominal value, for the Sultanate was not a very powerful force in the country. Babur had to face many challenges from various Afghan, Turkish and native Indian rulers before finally he was able to assert his authority over a fairly large area, establishing the foundation of the Mughal empire. In the brief four years that he ruled he set the stage for the great empire. The Mughal empire was not firmly established in his time, in fact shortly after his son Humayun succeeded him, Sher Shah, temporarily threw out the Mughal power and set up his own empire. Upon his death however Humayun returned and re-established the Mughal empire. The greatest Mughal king, Akbar followed and he took the empire to its peak. When we talk of the Mugahl empire we usually refer to the reign of the greater Mughals: Babur, Humayaun, Akbar, Jehangir, Shah Jehan and Aurangzeb. The Mughal empire began to disintegrate during the reign of Aurangzeb and the Mughal emperors after him are collectively referred to as the later Mughals. The Mughal empire would be an important part of Indian history for the next two hundred years, before its disintegration would pave the way for the rise of the British in India.
JUDICIAL & ADMINISTRATIVE SYSTEM DURING MUGHAL EMPIRES:
Judicial & Administrative system during Mughal empires was matchless, excellent and complete in all senses. Let us have a brief perusal of Mughal system as a whole. Though the Mughal Emperors had absolute powers, they appointed a number of officers in the different departments of the Government for the transaction of its multitudinous affairs. The chief departments of the State were:
(a) the Imperial House-hold under the Khan-i-saman,
(b) the Exchequer under the Deccan
(c) the Military Pay & Accounts office under the Mir Bakshi
(d) the Judiciary under the Chief Qazi,
(e) Religious Endowments and charities under the Chief Sadr or Sadr-us-Sudur, and
(f) the Censorship of Public Morals under the Muhtasib. The Diwan or wazir was usually the highest officer in the state, being sole incharge of revenues and finance, The Bakhshi discharged a variety of functions. While he was the Pay-master-General of all the officers of the State, who "theoretically belonged to the military department he was also responsible for the recruiting of the army, and for maintaining lists of mansabdars and other high officials, and when preparing, for a battle he has a complete muster-roll of the army before the Emperor. The Khan-i-Saman or the Lord High Steward had charge of the whole imperial house-hold "in reference
to both great and small things". The Muhtamibs or Censors of Public Morals
looked after the enforcement of the prophet's commands and the laws of
morality. The other officers, somewhat inferior in status to those mentioned
above, the Mir Atish or Daroga-i-Topkhana (head of the artillery), the Daroga of Dak Chowki (the correspondence department). the Daroga of the Mint, the Mir Mai or the Lord Privy Seal, the Mustayfi or the Auditer- General air the Nazir~i-luyulat or the Superintendent of the Imperial workshop, the Mushriff or the Revenue Secretary, the Mir bahri or the Lord of the Admiralty, the Mir Barr or the Superintendent of forests, the or News Reporters the Mir arz or the charge of petitions presented to the Emperor, the Mir Manzil or the Quarter master General, and the Mir Tezak or the Master of Cerensnies. We shall discuss first police, then Judicial and revenue system.
(l) The Police so far as the rural areas were concerned, Mughals introduced no new arrangement for the prevention and detection and crimes. These as from time immemorial under the headman of the village and his subordinate watchmen. The system, which afforded a fair degree of security in the local areas with only occasional disturbances in times of disorder, survived till the beginning of the nineteenth century. In the cities and towns, all police duties including the task of maintaining : order and decency, were entrusted to the, whose duties, as enumerated in the Ain-i AKbari, were multi farious (i) to detect thieves, (ii) to regulate prices and check weights measures, (iii) to keep watch at night and the City, (iv) to keep up registers of houses, frequented roads, and of citizens and watch the movements of strangers, (v) to employ spies from the vaga bands, gather information about the affairs of the neighbouring villages and the income expenditure of the various classes of people, (vi) To prepare aninventory of, and take charge of, the property of deceased or missing persons who left be heirs, (vii) to prevent the slaughter buffales, of oxen, bourses or camaels, and (viii) to prevent the burning of women Gainst their win,and circumcision below the age of twelve Sir J.N.Sarkar believes that this long list of the duties in the Ain represents " only the ideal the Kotwali" and not" the actual State But Mailed age gives from personal observation an exhaustive account of the Kotwals duties. It is,
however, certain that the Xotwali's main business was to preserve peace and
public security in the urba areas. In the districts or Sarkars, law and order were maintained usually by officers like the Faujddars "The faujddar, as his name suggests, was only the commander of a military force stationed in the country. He had to put down smaller rebellions, disperse or arrest robber gangs, take of all violent crimes, demonstrations of force to overawe, opposition to the revenue authorities, or the criminal judge, or the censor". The police arrangements were in some respects effective, though " the State of public security varied greatly from place to place and from time to time.
Economic system of mughal period:
Agriculture continued to remain an important part of the economy, but the crops and techniques still remained largely unchanged. Irrigation was largely absent although some areas did have access to canals and water works. A variety of food and cash crops were grown. The textile industry was booming and hence there was tremendous demand for cotton and silk which were important cash crops. Tobacco, introduced sometime in 1604 also became an important cash crop. One negative aspect of the Mughal administration was that they did not make any major efforts in agricultural development. Hence the citizens were subject to various famines, which had devastating results. With no assistance from the centre, the situation was usually grim. Quite often severe famines led to large scale migration of the population within the empire, and in some cases they even left India. Some Mughal emperors did try initiatives to alleviate the problems, but most of the time it was a case of too little too late. These famines had a detrimental effect on the economy.
Industry had been developing and by the Mughal period was very diversified and involved a large number of people. The range and volume of products manufactured by Indian industries was very large, catering to not only a large domestic demand but also to a large international demand. The most important industry of this period was that of making cotton cloth. Several cotton manufacturing units were scattered across the country, catering to a huge demand. Bengal was renowned for its fine quality silk and cotton cloth. In fact it was said, that the amount of cloth produced in Bengal was more than most of the kingdoms of India and Europe put together. With the cloth industry so successful, the dyeing was also doing very well. Shawl and carpet weaving were also important industries, receiving major patronage during the time of Akbar. The ship building industry also remained important, although India was no longer a major maritime country. The State, while encouraging Industry did not directly support it financially, a task undertaken by various middlemen. This was regrettable, for the industrialists were often exploited by such middlemen. They were also exploited by corrupt nobles and officers who often forced them to sell goods at low prices. The irony of the situation was that although the craftsmen were being deprived of the fair value of their commodities, it was because of the nobles and officers that there was a demand for the work they produced. The nobles and officers having fine tastes encouraged the development of high quality work.
Currency also began to develop with the return of a stable power. Standardized coins were issued in gold, silver and copper. The coins were of superb quality and often had interesting artistic designs. The important matter ofcourse was that currency was now seen as a reliable method of exchange, with the Mughal coins being a respected unit of value.
India had flourishing trade relations with many parts of the world, with foreign trade being an important part of the Indian economy. The chief Indian imports of the time were, raw silks, gold, ivory, precious stones, perfumes, horses and slaves. Chief exports included textiles, spices, opium and indigo. The land routes usually went via Afghanistan, but land transportation was not very safe or reliable. River and sea transport were the popular choices. Customs duties during the period were very low, it was approximately 3.5% on all imports and exports. European traders were also beginning to play an important role in Indian trade, with many of them setting up warehouses and distribution points in the empire. Most European goods however were affordable only by the rich.
Education system of Mughal Period:
Under the Mughal rule special attention was given to education. During the Akbar’s reign important changes were introduced in the syllabus of education through the efforts of Shah Fathullah Shirazi.Islamic schools were attached to mosques, Khanqah of the Sufis and tombs. Special buildings were also constructed for imparting education. Their expenses were met from endowments.
During the Mughal period the principal centres of learning were at Lahore,Delhi,Ajmer,Sialkot,Multan,Ahmadabad,Allahabad,Lucknow,Murshidabad,Dacca.Many scholars were attracted to these institutions from Persia and Central Asia. Students received education free of cost. Famous scholars received fixed stipends from the royal treasury.
Provisions were made for the teaching of Persian; the official language of the government in the Maktabs.Nizamiyah system of education became popular during the later days of the Mughals. The aim of this system was to create such ability in the scholar so that he is able to acquire perfection in any branch of learning through self-study and personal efforts. While Muslims received education in Maktabs,Hindus had their pathsalas for imparting religious instructions.
Conclusion:
There are many facets to the Mughal Empire in India but most Muslims and other scholars have describe it as a glorious period in Indian History, but it was in many respects, for most parts, far from it.
It is wrong not to recognize and learn from history as it is; instead of ignoring it as have been the case in Pakistan for most of its existence and a short period in India. European and many Indian scholars view history of India from tenth to nineteenth centuries using the colonial mindset.
The most glaring omission that most historians and learned commentators make is to ignore destruction of Hindu India’s educational infrastructure by Muslims rulers of India starting with the Sultanate period (tenth to thirteenth centuries) and concluding with the Mughal period (sixteenth to nineteenth centuries). Not a single center of education was established by Muslims during almost nine hundred years as rulers of parts of India!
A mix of Wahabi and Deobandi followers in Pakistan are responsible for perpetuating political insecurities of South Asia and unleashing terrorism on a global scale by adopting fascism with a face of Islam propagated by radical and fundamentalist clerics, power-hungry autocrats and elites obsessed with inferiority of Muslim political power.
Isn’t it a South Asia tragedy that today’s generation is paying a price for neglect of education in India (or South Asia if that’s what Muslims prefer to call the area after partition,) for over nine hundred years, not to mention that many scholars have made cases to demonstrate a link in the decline of Muslim and Hindu powers in India and their woefully inadequate scholarship in areas of math, sciences and philosophy.
With the exception of Muslim and Hindu trading communities, all across South Asia the ghettoisation of the Muslim community and that of India’s disadvantaged lower castes is attributable to backwardness that came with a lack of adequate education to empower these segments of South Asians with a critical mass of creative-thinkers. Lacking creative-thinking abilities, semi- and uneducated masses develop blind faith. If you have good skills but for some reason are not motivated to deploy them – as is the case with South Asians of questionable scholarship, - you will reach conclusions and make decisions no more rationally than someone without those skills. One only needs to listen to the fundamentalist and radical clerics of any faith to see how blind faith can lead to disastrous consequences. People with a belief system that has stayed frozen in the past continue to live with blind faith in a cycle of generation of poverty and dream of premodern utopia.
* * *
No comments:
Post a Comment