Din-I-Ilahi and Akbar’s Religious Policy in Social Context

Abstract

Akbar the Great (1556-1605) is widely accepted as the greatest Mughal ruler of the Sub-continent. He tried his best to unite all religions of India under his supervision. For this purpose, he introduced many policies and one of his most prominent policies is the Akbar Rajput Policy, and the other one is Akbar’s religious policy. Din-i-Ilahi was an important constituent of Akbar’s religious policy. It occupies a historical place in Mughal History. This work is aimed at describing Din-i-Ilahi as part of Akbar’s religious policy, its objectives, rules, principles, its beliefs, followers, and opponents. It also discusses the religion of Akbar, his ancestor’s religion, and other religions of the Sub-continent. It sheds light on the conspiracies of Akbar’s supporters and opponents regarding his religious thoughts.  The work is based on critical, interpretive, and evaluative scanning of the selected original works and the critical literature available on the topic.