Akbar The Great: Literature, Education, Fine arts, and Architecture

Akbar was fond of music, literature, paintings, and architecture. Great poets and musicians were part of Akbar�s court. Great examples of architecture can be seen even today. Akbar is known for his cultural achievements. It includes all the achievements made in the field of literature, architecture, and fine arts. Here are the achievements during Akbar�s reign:

 

Literature: Although Akbar was illiterate, he was fond of knowledge. He encouraged literature and it was during this time when rich literature was produced in Persian, Hindi, and other local languages. The Ramayana and the Mahabharata were translated from Sanskrit to Persian.

 

Tulsidas was a great Hindi poet and his Ramcharitmanas is read throughout the world today. Some of the other poets of his reign were Vallabhacharya, Keshavadasa, Rahim, Tulsidas, and Surdas. Abul Fazl and Faizi were the literary gems of Akbar�s court. Abul Fazl wrote Akbarnama which is a biographical account of Akbar written in the Persian language.

One part of the Akbarnama was named as Ain-i-Akbari which includes details of the administrative system of the empire and describes the condition of the people.

 

Paintings: Akbar was a patron of painting. A large number of painters lived in Akbar�s court who decorated books with beautiful miniature paintings. Basawan and Dasawant were two famous painters of Akbar�s reign who used a mixture of Indian and Persian styles. Various aspects of court life, hunting, and battle scenes were present in Akbarnama.

 

Akbar was fond of classical and instrumental music. Have you heard of Tansen?

 

He was a famous musician and singer of Akbar�s court who combined Indian and Persian musical styles to produce a distinct musical tradition. He sang many Hindustani Ragas, of which Raj Darbari and Deepak Rag are quite famous.

Architecture: Various forts, palaces, gates, mosques, and public buildings were constructed during Akbar�s reign. The architecture of Akbar�s reign was influenced by Indian, Persian, and Central Asian styles. The new capital at Fatehpur Sikri represents the blending of these styles.

 

Some of the buildings at Fatehpur Sikri are worth mentioning like The Diwan-i-Aam and The Diwan-i-Khas, The Panch Mahal, Jodhabai�s Palace, the Jama Masjid and Buland Darwaza.

 

Do you know which is the highest gateway in India?

 

Yes, Buland Darwaza is the highest gateway of India and one of the biggest in the world which was built to commemorate Akbar�s victory over Gujarat.

 

The Tomb of Humayun at Delhi is a good example of the architecture of this period which is built on a raised platform and is present in the middle of a garden. Akbar�s Tomb built at Sikandara was finalized by Akbar himself and it has no dome.

 

Akbar�s Religious Policy

Akbar followed a liberal religious policy and respected every religion. He believed that people from different religions should live together peacefully.

 

Akbar held liberal views on religion. He respected all religions and believed in the basic unity of all religions. He married Rajput princesses and allowed her to practice her religion. He was a secular ruler who participated in Hindu festivals like Diwali and Holi.

 

Akbar took the following steps which represented his views on religion:
� Akbar abolished �Jaziya� and �Pilgrim tax�.
� He stopped forcible conversion to Islam.
� Akbar let Hindus build their temples and translated religious books of Hindus into Persian.
� He allowed religious freedom to Hindus and to the people of other faiths.
� An Ibadat Khana was built at Fatehpur Sikri in 1575 AD which was a place for the discussion on religious subjects among religious scholars and teachers.

In 1582, Akbar suggested a new religious path based on the common truths and rules taken from all religions. It was named Din-i-Ilahi (the religion of one God).

 

Here are some basic principles of Din-i-Ilahi:

 

� Akbar became the spiritual guide of his people.
� He preached peace and tolerance and put forward the idea of �Sulh-i-Kul� or universal peace.
� He discouraged the killing of animals and advised that people should stop eating meat. He himself gave up eating meat.
� He disapproved of Hindu women performing Sati and cruel punishments such as mutilation of limbs of the criminals.
� He never forced anyone to accept or join Din-i-Ilahi. His own minister, Raja Man Singh, disapproved of it while Raja Birbal followed it sincerely.

 

Akbar The Great: MCQs 1

 

1. Where was Ibadat Khana built?
a) Sikandara
b) Mathura
c) New Delhi
d) Fatehpur Sikri

 

2. What does Din-i-Ilahi mean?
a) Disrespect other religions
b) Follow your own God
c) Unity in diversity
d) The religion of one God

 

3. Which of the following minister disapproved of Din-i-Ilahi?
a) Raja Birbal
b) Salim
c) Abul Fazl
d) Raja Man Singh

 

4. When was the Ibadat Khana built?
a) 1582 AD
b) 1572 AD
c) 1580 AD
d) 1575 AD

 

5. Din-i-Ilahi was based on __________.
a) different rules of one particular religion
b) common truths and rules from one religion
c) different rules of all religions
d) common truths and rules are taken from all religions

 

Akbar The Great: MCQs 2

 

1. Ramcharitmanas was written by _________.
a) Rahim
b) Valmiki
c) Surdas
d) Tulsidas

 

2. Which of the following is the highest gateway of India?
a) Gateway of India
b) India Gate
c) Rumi Darwaza
d) Buland Darwaza

 

3. Akbar�s Tomb is built at _________.
a) Fatehpur Sikri
b) Mathura
c) New Delhi
d) Sikandara

 

4. Who wrote the Akbarnama?
a) Basawan
b) Dasawant
c) Faizi
d) Abul Fazl

 

5. Which of the following was a famous painter of Akbar�s reign?
a) Tansen
b) Faizi
c) Abul Fazl
d) Basawan

Read More: Administration of Akbar: Central and Provincial Administration