Indian History

·          Badauni was a famous Mughal historian who flourished at the court of Akbar. He disapproved of Akbar’s religious views.  An orthodox Sunni, Badauni prepared a list of charges against Akbar and dubbed him enemy of Islam.   ·          Mughal princess Zeb-un-Nisa, the eldest child of sixth Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, wrote under the pen name of Makhfi (meaning Hidden One in Persian) and was poetess of considerable merit. She produced a brilliant collection of beautiful poems which were published after her death in 1702 as Diwan-i-Makhfi . ·          Aurangzeb prohibited the practice of placing tika or tilak on the forehead of Hindu rulers by the Mughal emperor.

From 500 AD onwards Huna power was in ascendancy in Western India for next thirty years.  Hunas came from Central Asia in the 5th century AD and have been referred to as Hephthalites or White Hunas by the Byzantine historians.  Toramana was a famous Huna king in India and was succeeded by his son Mihirakula (Mihiragula, meaning sunflower) in 515 AD. Mihirakula, a follower of Shaivism, has been described by 7th century Chinese traveler Huen – T- Sang as a tyrant who fiercely persecuted the Buddhists by destroying their monasteries and killing them. He is supposed to have destroyed fourteen hundred Buddhist monasteries, His ferocity and cruelty has been also been recorded by the 12th century Kashmiri historian Kalhana in his magnum opus, Rajatarangini (Chronicle of Kings).   Mihirakula’s capital was at Sakala (modern Sialkot in Pakistan’s Punjab). He built up a vast empire which extended up to Gwalior.  However, Mihirakula suffered at the hands of Gupta ruler Nasimhagupta or Baladitya by

"Hazar-dinari" was nickname of  Malik Kafur, lieutenant of Alauddin Khilji, the most powerful Khilji ruler of the Delhi Sultanate.  He was a Hindu turned Muslim slave captured by Nusrat Khan, Alauddin commander, during the conquest of Gujarat in 1299. Kafur soon rose in ranks and was given the exalted title of malik naib (regent). He successfully executed his master’s expeditions to the South India and brought immense wealth from the South Indian kingdoms after demolishing many temples. With the passage of time Kafur became Alauddin’s Man Friday and so much so that the Khilji Sultan came under his complete influence.   Alauddin died in 1316. His eldest son Khizr khan was the claimant to the throne. However, on the second day of Alauddin’s death, Kafur placed five or six year old Shihabuddin Umar, another son of Ala-ud-din, on the throne and himself became his regent by producing a will of late Sultan. Then began the thirty five day criminal rule of Malik Kafur marke

Alauddin Khilji The second ruler of the Khilji dynasty of the famed Delhi Sultanate, Alauddin Khilji was a militarist and imperialist to the core. He was very ambitious. In a haste to be the Khilji Sultan, he usurped the throne for himself by killing treacherously his loving uncle and father-in-law Jalaluddin Firuz Khilji, the founder of the Khilji Dynasty. It is natural for a self-willed and ambitious ruler to embark on the path of annexation of new territories to his kingdom. Alauddin, whose original name was Ali Gurshap, loved to style himself “the Second Alexander” (Sikander-i-Sani). As a matter of fact, with the assumption of power at Delhi begins ‘the imperial phase of the Sultanate’. Conquest of Gujarat The kingdom of Gujarat was then ruled by king Karna Dev of the Vaghelas who were feudatories of the Solanki Rajput rulers also called Chalukyas. The Gujarat kingdom was famed for vast fortunes which it acquired from sea-borne trade with Arabs and Persians. In 1

Vikram Samvat or the Vikrama Era is the most important of the India’s many systems of dating that were or are in use in India. It was traditionally introduced by the legendary King Vikramaditya of Ujjaini who drove the Sakas out of Ujjain and thus founded the era to mark his victory. Since Chandra Gupta II (c. 376-415) of the Gupta Dynasty is the only king who assumed the title of Vikramaditya and drove the Sakas out of Ujjain, he cannot be person who introduced the Vikrama Era which began in 58 BC. It is so because the Gupta King lived some 400 years after the beginning of this era. So the legend is certainly incorrect.   There is a school of thought which says that Era of Vikram was founded by the Malava tribe identified with the Malloi referred to by the Greek historians. It was after the Malavas that the region around Ujjaini, north of the Narmada River, got its name and came to be known as Malwa.  Some scholars credit Azes, an early Indo-Scythian king, for founding the Vikram

British library is organizing an exhibition in London where more than 200 exquisite objects of art belonging to the Mughal period from 16 th to 19 th century have the potential of overwhelm the visitors. The exhibition, which will run until 2 April 2013, is showcasing historical accounts, paintings and portraits of the Mughal emperors who were equally adept in imperialism and promotion of art and culture. A portrait of Prince Dara Shikoh [1615-59], the liberal son of Emperor Shah Jahan and brother of orthodox Aurangzeb is one of the highlights of the exhibition. The portrait depicts Dara listening to a debate between two persons of different persuasions. A portrait of later Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah depicting him in a love making act is one of the works of art displayed at the exhibition, titled the 'Mughal India: Art, Culture and Empire'. The visitor can find here a photograph of Bahadur Shah II , the last Mughal Emperor who was sentenced by the British to exi

The Goddess Durga (Mahishasuramardini) destorying the Buffalo Demon, Mahisha, Mamallapuram. 7th century / Image Credit Today, the seaside village of Mamallapuram in Chengalpattu district of Tamil Nadu is witness to some of brilliant works of architecture by the Pallavas who ruled from A.D. 300-900 in the region south of Krishna-Tungbhadra rivers. Kanchi (modern Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu) was the capital of their Kingdom. Pallava dynasty was one of the most powerful and famous kingdoms of South India. The rulers of this dynasty are known to be the creators of one of most exquisite pieces of temple architecture in India. During the rule of the Pallavas, Hinduism was in a state of flourish and they are responsible for introducing Aryan institutions in South India to a great measure. Early Pallavas Nothing much can be said with certainty about the early history of the Pallavas.  We learn that in about the middle of the 4 th century AD a Pallava king named Vishnugopa was c