Indian Muslims: Who Are They c8.s1.18

c8.s1.18

Like U.P. functional groups many occupational groups in other parts of the country, especially in northern India, too went over to Islam in large numbers in medieval times. Now, did the ancestors of the above Muslim castes convert in medieval times because of the tyranny of the caste system? Let us take the Faqirs first. In Hindu society there is no caste of beggars. But any number of beggars would be born if they could get free food without doing any work. It is stated in almost every chronicle that in medieval times food was very cheap, even then, many idlers would have avoided to do work if they could get free food just for a change of name - religion of the poor being the proverbial bread. Muslim regime provided it and Faqirs flocked to it and to Islam. The number of Faqirs had grown so large by the time of Ghayasuddin Tughlaq (1320-25) that the sultan wanted to put a stop to a free treat to them and wanted them to take up some work, but his attitude was resented and the sultan maligned.²³ According to Ahmad Abbas 40, 000 beggars used to be fed by Ghayass successor Muhammad Tughlaq.²⁴ Muhammad Tughlaq sometimes even attended the funeral of Faqirs.²⁵ The Faqirs were so well paid under Firoz Tughlaq²⁶ that some nobles, who used to recommend them to the liberality of the sultan, did not fail to take a bribe out of their gains.²⁷ Generosity of kings and nobles towards Faqirs never slackened even during the Mughal period. A good number of people would have converted in medieval times to become Muslim Faqirs to form a caste in the Muslim social order in modern times.