The State in Ancient India: A Study in the Structure and Practical Working of Political Institutions in North India in Ancient Times c21.2

c21.2

The close of the twelfth and the beginning of the thirteenth century A.D. saw the destruction of Hindu independence and the establishment of Musalmân rule over the greater part of North India. After another century the daring Khilji leader Alâ-ud-dîn planted the Muslim standard on the southern edge of the peninsula. The four or five centuries which follow may be designated ‘the Medieval Period’ of Indian history, in preference to ‘Mohammadan Period’ which term implies a serious underrating of the presence and strength of the Hindu elements all through. It may be admitted at once that the military strength of the Islamic dynasties was the dominating factor in Indian politics for five centuries but Hindu culture, literature, art and social life were never swept away. They received some influences from Islam but in their turn they exercised yet deeper influence on the higher life of the Muslims.¹ Nor did the influence of Hindu political ideas and institutions die out with the thirteenth or fourteenth century. There were regions where the Hindu administration survived, though in a modified form, while it was vital enough to affect the political arrangements of the Musalmâns all over the country.