Storia do Mogor 93.3

93.3

He also said that the other cause of his illness was the collection of taxes from pagodas, which are (be it said with due respect and without offence to our Christian religion) churches to which the Hindus resort to pray in front of some idol or other. For, every pagoda paid to the king every year a considerable sum. It was very undesirable, he said, to levy such a tax, for thereby it looked as if he approved of idolatry. He therefore directed that such a tax should never more be collected. It should suffice for every Hindu to pay five per cent. Afterwards he repented of such liberality, and, indeed, he wished some years afterwards to rescind what he had done; but for the sake of his credit, and also through his hypocrisy, he was prevented from carrying out this change. Therefore he invented a new device for getting money. He continuously reduced the pay of his generals and officers, and ordained [42 bis] that the rupees or coined money of silver, not worth more than fourteen sols (sous) of France, or thereabouts, should pass as worth twenty-eight sols. In carrying out this matter Aurangzeb did a thing which forms a lesson to princes as to the mode of making themselves obeyed. For the sarrāfs, who are the money-changers, resisted the royal orders, giving various excuses for disobedience, in spite of their being sent for several times by the king to explain that reasons of state required the alteration.