Mughal Administration c12.s6.1

c12.s6.1

Apart from the position of *Jagat-guru* or the direct and personal religious preceptor of his subjects or an inspired and miracle-working saint, which was aspired to by Akbar and Ibrahim Adil Shah, and that of a darvish on the throne or living saint by which title Aurangzib loved to be called,—the Mughal Emperor, by constitutional law, filled the office of the executive head of the dominant creed. As the "Khalifa of the Age" it was his duty to enforce the orthodox faith, which was the Sunni form of Islam. Political considerations and the legacy of his more tolerant predecessors compelled Aurangzib to use the talents of many Shias,—both of Persia and Central Asia,—but their lot was not a happy one. In the war of succession with his brothers in the earlier years of his reign, he had owed much to Mir Jumla, a Shia; but in his old age his bigotry was intensified and made his Court no place for this sect. We find many illustrations of the anti-Shia feeling in this Emperor's letters and even in the official history of his reign.