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The Sultanate of Delhi, 711–1526 A.D. c18: 12. Administration of the So-Called Slave Kings

The Sultanate of Delhi, 711–1526 A.D. c18

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12. Administration of the So-Called Slave Kings

Extent of the kingdom

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It is not generally known that the extent of the Turkish kingdom established in Hindustan by Muhammad of Ghur remained constant throughout the rule of the succeeding monarchs, known as Slave kings. If there was any change, it was one of contraction and not of expansion. None of the so-called Slave rulers made any appreciable additions to the territory conquered by Muhammad of Ghur and his lieutenant, Qutub-ud-din, before he became king. The Hindu rulers within the boundaries of the Sultanate of Delhi made repeated attempts during our period to throw off the Turkish yoke. Even a casual perusal of the contemporary authority, the *Tabqat-i-Nasiri* of Minhaj-ud-din Siraj, shows that year after year the Sultans had to undertake expeditions to put down refractory Hindu chiefs and recalcitrant Hindu peasantry. One and the same piece of land had to be conquered time and again by practically every Sultan. Under these circumstances the problem for the Slave kings was how to retain what had come to them from their predecessors and not to add to it by an aggressive warfare. The boundaries of the Sultanate of Delhi fluctuated from reign to reign. In general, it may, however, be said that the Sultanate was bounded by the Himalayan Tarai in the north and by a zigzag line on the south that included northern half of Bangal, north Bihar, part of Bundelkhand, Gwalior, Ranthambhor, Ajmer and Nagaur and passing north of Jaisalmer separated Gujarat from Sindh. In the east, half of Bangal up to a line falling much short of Dacca may be said to have been part of the dominion of the Sultanate. On the north-west the river Jhelam was usually the boundary which sometimes shrunk to the river Beas. Lahore was, generally speaking, included in the Delhi kingdom, and so also Multan and Sindh. The region of the Salt Range, the state of Jammu and Kashmir and the north-western and north-eastern corners of the modern Panjab were outside the limits of the Sultanate. But even within these limits there were many independent Hindu chieftains, particularly in the Himalyan Tarai, the northern portion of the Doab and in northern Rajasthan and Bundelkhand, which were never really completely subjugated. Hence, the so-called Slave kings did not enjoy absolute sovereignty within the limits of their kingdom.

The nature of the State

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The Turkish State in India, like all Islamic States, was a theocracy. It was based on the Islamic law as given in the *Quran* and expounded by jurists. The *Quranic* law was religious or Canon law and was known as *shariat* or the Law. All civil laws were merged in the *shariat*. The State had a religion of its own which was Islam. and, in strict theory, all the resources of the State were available for religious propaganda. In actual practice, however, this theory underwent many modifications. It was inevitable in a country like India, where a vast majority of the population was non-Muslim and where political conditions differed greatly from those contemplated by the Muslim jurists.

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According to strict Islamic theory, the real king of a Muslim state is God. The earthly ruler is only His agent, bound to enforce His will as revealed in the *Quran*. The sovereignty was based on election by the *millat*, that is, the entire body of male Muslims in the country; but this theory, which could not work successfully even in Arabia, was reduced to a farce in Hindustan. The early Turks, who came to our country, had no fixed law of succession and no recognised procedure that they might follow in the case of a disputed succession. The choice of the Sultan during the thirteenth century was, generally speaking, limited to the surviving members of the deceased ruler's family. Thus, birth, ability and nomination by the dead king and the support given by the nobles—these factors very often decided the election. It was, however, the decisive voice of the powerful nobles that determined the selection of a ruler. It is worthy of note that the topmost nobles usually preferred personal convenience to the interest of the State.

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The Sultanate of Delhi was a military State and was based on force, not on the consent of the people. The entire territory in its possession was held by powerful Turkish troops. There were established garrisons at the strategic places in the interior of the country. A line of forts was built and garrisoned with troops along its frontiers to serve as military outposts. The government being foreign, it concerned itself with two duties only, that is, the collection of revenue and the maintenance of law and order. It had little to do with the welfare of the public.

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The only citizens of the early Turkish state in India were Muslims, notably Turkish Musalmans. The Hindus, who formed a vast majority of the population of the Sultanate of Delhi, were not accorded full rights of citizenship. The non-Muslims were called *zimmis*, that is, people living under guarantee or contract. When the Turks conquered our country, they offered, like other Muslim conquerors, three alternatives to the conquered people, namely, conversion to Islam, or death, or living like a subject and degraded people on payment of the *jizya*. A vast majority of the conquered people agreed to pay the *jizya*, and they were allowed to live. Several disabilities were imposed upon the *zimmis* who were discriminated against in matters of state employment, civic rights, justice and taxation. Learned Muslim divines (*ulema*), who were supposed to be the custodians of Islamic law, were particularly hostile to the subject people. Their policy aimed at reducing the Hindus to the position political fiction, these new and independent Muslim States recognised the Khalifa, at least in theory, to be their political and religious head or suzerain. They had the Khalifa’s name on their coins and in the *khutbas*. This fiction continued even after the Buddhist Hulagu, the great Mongol leader, had taken Baghdad and put the Khalifa to death in 1258. An uncle of the last Khalifa took refuge in Egypt, where he was recognised as the spiritual head by the Sultans of that country. The fiction, thus, continued till the last of the nominal Khalifas resigned his theoretical rights in favour of Sultan Sulaiman II of Constantinople in the sixteenth century.

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Mahmud of Ghazni was given the title of Sultan by the Abbasid Caliph of Baghdad. Muhammad of Ghur, too, inscribed the name of the Caliph on his coins. It was in the interest of the early Turkish Sultans of Hindustan to pose as the nominees of the Khalifa. They did not like to disregard the tradition of the supposed unity of the Islamic State. Iltutmish was the first Turkish Sultan of Delhi to receive a formal investitute as Sultan from the Khalifa. He introduced the name of the Khalifa of Baghdad on his coins. None of his successors throughout the period of the so-called Slave dynasty was so invested by the theoretical sovereign of the so-called Islamic State. Yet all the rulers of the dynasty continued, in theory, to profess themselves to be the deputies of the Khalifa. It had become a fashion to do so.

The Central Government

The Monarch

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In actual practice the Sultan of Delhi was a full-fledged sovereign ruler, uncontrolled by any outside agency or authority. The Sultan was a thorough-going despot. He was the supreme executive-head of the kingdom. He was also the fountain-head of justice and the supreme interpreter of the law. Thus he was the temporal head and ruler of all the people in his dominions and the religious head of the Muslim section of the population. His powers were many and unlimited. In actual practice, however, these were circumscribed. He had to listen to the advice of the learned divines or *ulema*. There was always the fear of a rebellion by the people. The traditional unwritten law of the land had also to be respected; but, as in the final analysis the power of the Sultan depended upon the degree of his military strength, he could, if he was a powerful man, disregard all the above considerations and rule according to his will. Such rulers were, however, very few. Throughout our period there was only one such personality named Balban. All others, including Iltutmish, had to consult the nobles and to abide by their wishes.

Ministers

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The Sultanate of Delhi showed little planning. The central government was a haphazard growth. There were, however, four important ministers at the capital, namely, the *wazir*, the *ariz-i-mamalik*, *diwan-i-insha* and *diwan-i-rasalat*. The *wazir* may be designated as the chief minister. Besides having the charge of revenue and finance departments, he exercised a general supervisory authority over other ministers. The *wazir* was a civilian, but sometimes he had to command an army. He controlled the military pay office. He was assisted by a *naib* and had a large establishment consisting of a number of secretaries and dozens of clerks and accountants. There was a chief accountant or the *mushrif-i-mamalik* and an auditor-general or the *mustawfi-i-mamalik* under him. The second minister was the army minister or the *diwan-i-ariz*. He was in charge of recruitment of troops, their muster-roll, their equipment and efficiency. Besides, he was the paymaster-general of the army. It was his duty to hold reviews of the troops and to see that they were properly equipped and that they discharged their duties efficiently. The third minister was *diwani-i-insha* whose duty it was to draft royal proclamations and despatches. He had a large staff of secretaries and clerks under him. He used to accompany the king and to compile a record of all his activities. The fourth minister was the *diwan-i-rasalat*. He seems to have been in charge of foreign and diplomatic correspondence. His work was to keep in touch with ambassadors and envoys sent to, and received from, foreign courts.

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Besides these, there were two other important dignitaries whose importance cannot be exaggerated. Their rank was next to that of the ministers. They were *barid-i-mamalik*, that is, the chief news-writer of the kingdom under whom there were a host of news-writers and spies, and the *qazi-mamalik* or the chief justice of kingdom. This officer was the head of the judiciary and also the incharge of the ecclesiastical department. In the latter capacity he was known as *sadar-i-jahan* or *sadar-us-sudur*.

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There were several other high officials at the capital, connected particularly with the royal household, but their rank was lower than that of the ministers. The most important among these was the *vakil-i-dar* who was something like the comptroller of the royal household. As such, he had to be very near the royal person and wielded considerable influence. The next was *amir-i-hajib*, that is, the master of ceremonies. He enforced the court etiquette and acted as an intermediary between the Sultan and the lower officers and the people. The Sultan granted an honour of interview to the people through this officer. The next officer was *sar-i-jandar*, that is, the commander of the royal bodyguard. Another important dignitary was *amir-i-akhur* or the master of the horse and still another *shahna-i-pilan* or the superintendent of the elephants.

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During the reign of some of the Sultans a new office of the *naib-i-mamalikat* was instituted. He was the royal deputy and, as such, enjoyed higher powers than the wazir or the prime minister. But, in normal times, there was no naib and, if there was one, as in the time of Balban, he enjoyed no powers except those that were delegated to him by the Sultan.

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The ministers of the central government were appointed by the king and were his servants. They were responsible to him only. They were not supreme in their respective departments, unless the king was a minor or was a puppet in the hands of his nobles. They could not influence a powerful ruler like Balban, and were there to carry out his wishes even in matters of detail.

The Provincial Government

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The government of the so-called Slave rulers was not a homogeneous entity but a decentralised system. The structure was loose and made up of military commands. The areas under the military commands were not uniform in size or population or even in income. They had come into existence at various times and were a haphazard growth. These commands carried with them territorial jurisdiction and were called *iqtas*. The term has been translated as *fief* by European writers. The *iqtas* may conveniently be designated as provinces, though the designation is not strictly correct. The holders of *iqtas* were known as *muqtis*. The *muqtis* were, for all practical purposes, governors of their respective jurisdictions and enjoyed great powers. There was no uniformity either of size or of administration in the *iqtas*. The degree of power, political or military, enjoyed by the *muqtis* differed from *iqta* to *iqta*. The *muqti* was free to carry on his own administration, subject, of course, to the traditional local usages, to employ his own officers, to collect revenues, to defray expenditure of his administration and to pay the surplus to the central government. In theory, he was subject to the central audit; but in practice he was almost independent. His main duties were the maintenance of law and order in his jurisdiction or province and to carry out the king's commands. He was required to furnish a contingent of troops to the Sultan whenever he was called upon to do so. The *muqti* enjoyed a high salary which was charged on the revenue of his province. He had an army of his own and a big official establishment. The important *iqtas* during our period were Mandawar, Amroha, Sambhal, Badaun, Baran (Bulandshahr), Koil (Aligarh), Awadh, Kara Manikpur, Bayana, Gwalior, Nagaur, Hansi, Multan, Uch, Lahore, Samana, Sunam, Kuhram, Bhatinda and Sarhind.

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The *muqtis* or governors were also required to collect revenue from the Sultan's vassals whose principalities were situated within their provinces. These chiefs were Hindu rulers who had been reduced to vassalage by the Sultans. They were required to pay *kharaj* or land revenue and also *jizya*. They, of course, acknowledged the suzerainty of the Sultan of Delhi, but were otherwise independent in their own principalities.

The Khalisah districts

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Besides the *iqtas* there were large areas comprising a set of districts which were governed directly by the central government and not by a *muqti*. These areas were known as *khalisah*. European writers called them crown lands, but they may, more correctly, be termed as 'reserve areas', that is, areas which were not given in assignments and the revenue of which was collected directly by the central revenue ministry. The cultivators in these areas paid their revenues directly to the government; of course, through the headmen of their villages.

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There were, perhaps, no sub-divisions like districts and parganas during the so-called Slave period. These divisions, probably, were recognised by the Delhi Sultanate in the fourteenth century.

The army

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The army was, of course, the most important branch of administration, as the power of the Sultan depended upon its strength and efficiency. But, curiously enough, there was no powerful permanent force at the capital which might be called a standing army. The Sultan had, no doubt, his bodyguards under the command of an officer called *sar-i-jandar*, but he depended mostly on the contingents of troops furnished by provincial governors or *muqtis*. The reason seems to be that when the Turks came to India all of them were members of the fighting forces. After, however, they had conquered a large territory and settled down to administer it, they found it necessary to divide the society on the basis of profession. A new class of professional soldiers, thus, came into existence. In the beginning, as all the followers of the invader were fighters, it was not considered necessary to have a standing army. This practice continued even after the invader was transformed into the ruler.

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The royal bodyguards increased in number with the expansion of the Sultanate so that with the passage of time they formed the nucleus of a large army. This army, though not permanent, was placed under the management of *ariz-i-mamalik* or the army minister who was responsible for its recruitment, efficiency and payment. The important branches of the army were cavalry and infantry. Most of the prominent soldiers and officers were slaves, such as, the *Muizzi* slaves (slaves of Muiz-ud-din Muhammad of Ghur), *Qutubi* slaves (those of Qutub-ud-din Aibak), and *Shamsi* slaves (those of Shams-ud-din Iltutmish). They were mostly cavalrymen and were considered to be valued troops. There was, of course, no scientific military training, no drill or regimental discipline in those days. The efficiency of the army, therefore, depended mostly upon the ability and attention of the *diwan-i-ariz* and the Sultan.

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Besides the central army, the provincial governors maintained their own contingents on the same footing as the king. The provincial army was the governor’s own force. He was free in the matter of recruitment, discipline and payment; but, as he was required to send a specified quota for service at the capital, his army must have been controlled to a certain extent by the *ariz-i-mamalik*.

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There were two other kinds of troops who may be called special recruits. The special recruits were of two kinds. Firstly, those troops who were enlisted on special occasions to fight a holy war (*jihad*)—naturally against the native princes. Such troops were exclusively Muslim. They were entitled to a share in the plunder according to the *shariat*. Their share was 4/5 of the plunder, 1/5 going to the Sultan. Secondly, there were the volunteers who joined the army of their own accord and brought their own arms and horses.

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The Sultan was the supreme commander of the army. In the provinces, the *muqtis* were the commanders of their troops. The *diwan-i-ariz* or *ariz-i-mamalik* was not required to act as the supreme commander, though he sometimes selected troops for a campaign. Only once during our period an army commander was appointed and that was in the time of Raziah. This was a temporary arrangement and after her death the office was abolished. The soldiers were paid mostly by assignments of land and, sometimes, in cash also. It is not clear whether the commander of an army drew his own salary and that of his soldiers or the soldiers were paid individually. Probably, the former was the practice.

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The army organisation was crude. If the force of the Delhi Sultan was more efficient than that of the indigenous princes, it was not due to its superior organisation or training, but to its unexampled religious solidarity, sense of a common brotherhood and, above all, its unity, being stranger in a new and foreign country.

Financial administration

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The income of the Sultanate of Delhi was derived from the five main sources sanctioned by the *shariat*. They were : (1) *Kharaj*, (2) *Ushr*, (3) *Jizya*, or poll tax, (4) *Khams*, and (5) *Zakat*. Besides, there were a few other taxes, such as, income from mines and treasure-trove, heirless property and customs and excise duties. *Kharaj* was a land tax realised from Hindu chiefs and peasantry. The ratio of the state demand to the gross produce of the soil was not constant. In fact, it seems that the *kharaj* was calculated on guess work or on the basis of old revenue records of the Hindu times. The *ushr*, too, was a land tax. It was charged on land held by a Muslim and watered by natural means. Usually it was one-tenth of the produce, and that is why it is called *ushr*. Some modification in the land tax from Muslim cultivators had to be made, for when a large number of non-muslims were converted to Islam it was found unprofitable to retain the old rate, that is, one-tenth of the produce. The *jizya* was a tax on *zimmis* or non-Muslims. For purposes of this tax the entire Hindu population was divided into three grades or classes. The first grade paid at the rate of forty-eight *dirhams*, the second at twenty-four and the third at twelve *dirhams* for each soul living. Women, children, hermits and beggars were exempt from this tax. *Khams* was one-fifth of the booty captured in war from the infidels. Four-fifth went to the army. The *zakat* was a tax on Muslims. It was one-fortieth of their income and it had to be spent on specified items for the benefit of Muslims only, such as repair of mosques, defraying the cost of religious endowments and the pension to the *ulema* and on other religious and charitable purposes. The customs duty was on goods that came from outside. Its rate was 2½ per cent in case of Muslims and 5 per cent in that of non-Muslim merchants. There were a number of transit duties and tolls charged on ferries, roads, bridges, etc. According to the *shariat*, the ruler was entitled to all the underground treasures and mines.

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These sources brought in a huge annual income to the Sultan. The most profitable source of income seems to have been the Sultan's share of the booty which brought in lakhs of rupees worth of spoils from Hindu territories. We have no means of ascertaining even the probable income of the Sultanate during this period. It must, however, have been a very considerable sum indeed, for we hear of accumulation of huge wealth from reign to reign.

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There was no privy purse for the Sultan those days. The entire income of the State belonged to him in practice, though not in theory and he could use it for the benefit of the State or spend it on his household and personal requirements.

Administration of justice

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The Sultan was the fountain-head of justice. He had not only to provide for an equitable administration of justice but was also required to hear and decide cases himself. Thus the Sultan was the highest court of appeal in the country. But sometimes he decided cases in the first instance also. In cases arising out of religious disputes he was assisted by the chief *sadr* and the *mufti*, while in other cases he sat with the chief *qazi*. The next highest judicial authority in the Sultanate was the chief *qazi* who was appointed by the Sultan. The historian, Minhaj-ud-din Siraj, held this office for a long time. He lived at the capital and decided cases. The chief *qazi* was also the *sadr* of the kingdom and was called *sadr-i-jahan* in that capacity. In his capacity as the chief *qazi* he supervised and controlled the lower judges in the provinces and heard appeals coming from their courts.

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There were *qazis* in the provinces and also in important cities. They were appointed by the chief *qazi*. There was another officer known as *dad-i-bak* or *amir-i-dad*. His office corresponded to that of the modern city magistrate. The cases in which Hindus alone were involved were generally decided by their *panchayats*, but those cases in which Muslims and Hindus were parties were decided by the qazis. The *kotwal* was the head of the police department in the towns. Besides being the police officer, he was also a committing magistrate. Criminal law was very severe. Torture and mutilation were common punishments. The so-called Slave kings followed the policy of minimum interference with the lives of the people of rural areas. The State made no arrangements for administering justice in the villages where the people had their own courts or *panchayats*.

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The ruling class was composed of Turks belonging to various tribes. There were other foreigners besides them, such as, the Persians, the Afghans and the Arabs. The Turks suffered from superiority complex. They believed in the theory of racial purity and racial superiority and did not associate the Indian Muslims, whose number was growing, with the administration of their kingdom. But, inspite of this complex, there was a considerable mixing of the different races with the result that the Muslim population in Hindustan in the thirteenth century was becoming hybrid. Inter-marriages with the native Muslims and refugees from Central Asia and also Mongols, newly converted to Islam, became common and brought about a fusion of the various races of Muslims in the land.

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Broadly speaking, the Muslim society of the thirteenth century was divided into two classes, namely, the men of the sword and the men of the pen. The Turks belonged to the former category, while the theologians and literary men, who were mostly non-Turks, formed the latter group. They provided to the state the class of teachers and preachers. The Muslim aristocracy was predominantly of Turkish blood. It was a hierarchy with a series of ascending ranks at the top of which were *amirs*, *maliks* and *khans*. The highest title was *Ulugh Khan* and there was only one *Ulugh Khan* at a time. Slaves were gradually promoted and could become amirs and maliks. None of them, except Balban, was promoted to the rank of Khan. The Muslim society was mainly urban. It must have included, besides soldiers and administrators, traders, artisans, shopkeepers, clerks and beggars. An influential class was that of the slaves, most of whom had been born of non-Muslim parents, but had been sold as slaves, converted to Islam and brought up in the houses of their Muslim masters. The Muslim population was predominantly Sunni. Shias mostly belonged to Multan and Sindh. Quite a large number of the latter class lived in Delhi and other cities in the Turkish dominion. There was no sympathy between the followers of the two sects. In fact, the Shias were hated by the Sunnis who were in power. The Shias made more than one attempt during our period to capture power, but were ruthlessly punished. There was a third religious group the members of which were known as *Sufis*. They were Muslim mystics who were men of learning and believed in direct communion with God. They practised piety and poverty and lived far away from the society of the townsmen. The *sufi* saints had many followers whom they initiated into *sufi* practices. They had two important orders among them, namely, the Chishtia order and the Suhrawardia order, founded, respectively, by Muin-ud-din Chishti at Ajmer and Bha-ud-din Zakariya at Multan. These two saints had many disciples who were instrumental in gaining a large number of willing converts to Islam.

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The vast majority of the population was, of course, Hindu. As has been said before, a Hindu was called *zimmi* or a protected person and was required to pay a special tax called *jizya*. He suffered from many disabilities and was not accorded rights of full citizenship. His existence and that of his religion were tolerated as evils.¹ A considerable number of the Hindus were masters of the land and were fairly well-to-do. There is evidence to believe that some of the Hindu merchants and bankers advanced loans to the Muslim nobles. They did not, however, exercise any influence on the politics of the day except indirectly, as they could not be easily repressed and weeded out. Much of the business, industry and commerce were in their hands. Most of them were cultivators. Most of the Hindus lived in villages and hardly came into touch with the ruling minority.

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¹ *For the status of non-Muslims in an Islamic state, see* Sir Jadunath Sarkar's *History of Aurangzib*, Vol. III, pp. 251-57 and 263-64.

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During this period the contact between Hinduism and Islam had begun to exert some influence on the followers of the two creeds. The Hindu convert to Islam naturally retained some of his Hindu habits and mode of life. He readily took to the practice of worshipping saints and shrines, as he was accustomed, while Hindu, to the worship of local and tribal deities. *Sufism* provided a common ground to the followers of the two creeds. Among the intellectuals of the two creeds, however, there was not much of cultural or religious contact.

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Some of the Turkish rulers were patrons of learning and gathered around themselves theologians, historians, and men of letters in general. Balban particularly had many a literary light at his court. The greatest among the literary lights of the period were Amir Khusrav and Amir Hasan of Delhi both of whom wrote in Persian and whose works were read even outside India. We are told that many valuable works of history, theology and fiction were produced in the thirteenth century. There was some arrangement also for the education of children. In every Muslim colony there were two educational institutions. They were the *maktab*, that is, the primary school attached to the mosque and the *madrsah* or a seat of higher learning. Some of the Sultans founded colleges at Delhi and other places and richly endowed them. Iltutmish is said to have built a college at Delhi and another at Multan. Generally two arts were practised. They were architecture and calligraphy. The Turks were fond of fine buildings and they imported Muslim architectural ideas and designs from Central Asia. We have already seen that Qutub-ud-din Aibak, Iltutmish and Balban built several notable edifices, particularly mosques. Though taboo for the orthodox, music could not have altogether been neglected. Some of the modern Muslim writers describe the Sultanate of Delhi as a culture state. This, however, is a tall claim. If some of the rulers were fond of literature, they were also ferocious tyrants for the vast majority of their subjects; and if there was any real culture, it was confined to the court and the capital. The cultural activity was that of the classes and not of the masses. The Sultanate of Delhi was, in fact, a military state. It held the country by means of powerful military garrisons established at various strategic places. It concerned itself with two duties only, namely, the maintenance of law and order and the collection of revenue. It did not care for the cultural, moral, physical and even material welfare of the people. Such a state could not deserve the designation of a culture state. Inspite of its duration of about eighty-five years, it was definitely a foreign State on the Indian soil.

Cites (8)