AKBAR'S POLICY OF RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE

Akbar has a very important and everlasting place in Indian history as empire-builder, the real founder of the Mughal Empire in India, upholder of religious tolerance and creator of innovative cultural tradition. He recognized India not only as his own home but also a country with variety of political and cultural personalities. He laid the foundation of a secular nation-state in India. He separated religion from politics, rejected the Islamic theory of state, and declared himself the national monarch of India.[i] Akbar was, however the first among the monarch of medieval India who raised the policy of Religious Toleration to the pinnacle of secularism. He included the Rajputs and other Hindus in the administration and used their power to expand the Mughal Empire and in his reign there was no place for racialism, regionalism, or any of religious prejudices. Akbar, just like emperor Asoka, made a sincere attempt to promote the spirit of love and harmony among his subjects. He created a political unity and it was also consolidated by the establishment of uniform system of administration and created a good environment for economic prosperity and socio-cultural harmony. That is why the Mughal period is the evidence of synthesis of Hindu-Muslim culture and shaping the composite Indian Culture. Akbar is mainly responsible for creating the environment of cultural harmony in India. The attempt here is to look into the various aspects of Akbar’s policy of religious tolerance and the development in this regards.