History of the Qaraunah Turks in India c12.23.2

c12.23.2

It was impossible for a man of his rational frame of mind to submit to the cramping influence of a narrow sectarianism, and his mind, liberalised by his wide culture and contact with men of different nationalities, refused to give assent to what was inconsistent with public interest and his own authority. He laid his hands freely upon the members of the clerical party when he found them guilty of sedition or embezzlement of public funds in utter disregard of the inviolability which they claimed. Ibn Batūtah has recorded several instances in which the members of this sacrosanct order were severely punished by the Sultan and in some cases the severest penalties were inflicted upon them. The Sultan's view was sound, for how could he govern his large empire with its conflicting interests according to the canon law? He saw clearly the mischief which the adoption of ecclesiastical dogmas was likely to cause to the administration. War with the *‘Ulama* was inevitable. They could not approve of the acts of an administration which placed them on a level with the unbelievers. Their lament finds clear expression in the *Tarikh-i-Firuz Shahi* of Zia Barani which is full of references to the ‘irreligious projects’ of the Sultan and the degradation of the priestly class brought about by his policy.