The Religious Policies of Aurangzeb

Check here: UPSC CSE 2023 Final Result

Who was Aurangzeb?

Aurangzeb was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire. He was the son of emperor Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal, born on 3rd November 1618 in Dahod, Gujarat. He was a very ambitious, conservative, and aggressive ruler. Often he is considered the last effective Mughal emperor. He ruled for almost 49 years and expanded the territory of the Mughal Empire to the widest in history. During his reign, the Mughal empire expanded the almost entire Indian subcontinent. The real name of Aurangzeb was Muhi-ad-Din Muhammad, and his regnal title was Alamgir. The word Aurangzeb has its origin in the Persian language and means ‘Ornament of the Throne’. During his reign, the Mughal empire experienced sharp development in economic aspects too. 

Check out the complete UPSC Syllabus

Religious Views of Aurangzeb

Aurangzeb is known for his strict and aggressive religious opinions and policies. Though there are two schools of thought which differ in their analysis of the religious nature of Aurangzeb, many reports suggest that, indeed, Aurangzeb was a very orthodox, conservative Islamic. It is believed that he had memorized the complete Quran, the holy book or scriptures of Islam. He had learned Hadiths and observed rituals of Islam keenly. He transcribed the Quran into other languages also. Also, some studies claim him as the anti-Hindu emperor for the entire Mughal empire history. Though his great-grandfather was a supporter of pluralism and secularism, his grandfather had given new directions toward Islam’s dominant regulations. Aurangzeb was similarly and more actively involved in expanding his political as well as religious dominance over the Indian subcontinent. His religious policies dictate more about his conservative nature. Here we will overview some of his religious policies.

Visit to know more about UPSC Exam Pattern

Religious Policies of Aurangzeb

As mentioned above, there are two groups of scholars with contradictory perspectives and theories who put forward their respective available proofs and justify the actions of Aurangzeb noted in history differently. We will see both of these perspectives:

• From the Perspectives of Critics

According to critics of Aurangzeb, his religious policies had the pure aim of converting the entire Indian subcontinent into an Islamic nation/empire. He was even against the Shia Muslims. Thus to fulfil this aim, his religious policies are thought to be imposed considering two aspects. One was to support, promote and expand the Islamic community, and the second was to adopt anti-Hindu steps. 

There were various policies taken by Aurangzeb which support this theory-

• Establishment of Islamic Law

He declared Fatawa-e-Alamgiri, which is a compilation of ethics, laws, and rules which are completely based on Islam. He was among the very few Mughal emperors to establish a complete Sharia law and Islamic economics. 

Also read about Tips for UPSC Preparation

• Temple and Hindu Idols Destruction

It is reported by several historians that Aurangzeb ordered and destroyed many temples and Hindu idols. Among these included the Vishwanath temple, Chintamani temple, Somnath temple, and many others. Some studies state that in Mewar alone, he destroyed around 240 temples! 

• Reimposition of Jaziya

Jizya was the taxation collected from permanent non-Muslim habitants of the empire. Akbar, being secular, discontinued this taxation during his rule. Aurangzeb reimposed this tax with much more strict orders and rules. This is believed to have the secondary hidden objective of manipulating Hindu citizens to convert to Islam. 

Other than these, there were some general anti-Hindu policies reported to be taken by Aurangzeb. These include-

• Removal of the Hindus from Government jobs
• Conversion of Hindu citizens into Muslims through various means
• Different social restrictions make life harder for Hindu people

All these policies eventually led to various conflicts between the Mughal empire and non-Islamic kingdoms. These conflicts include conflicts with Jats, Sikhs, Rajputs, Marathas, and Satnamos. 

• From the perspective of supporters:

Supporters of Aurangzeb have quite a different story to tell and try to justify some of his actions and religious policies. These scholars state that Aurangzeb was a true imperialist and an ambitious ruler rather than a conservative, anti-Hindu Islamic person. 

Among this group of scholars, it is believed that strict actions taken by Aurangzeb for the expansion of Islam were, in fact, the result of hatred in Hindu’s minds towards him as a ruler. They propose that his missions against Shia Muslims were also for the same reason. 

Re-imposition of Jaziya taxes was only to raise revenue for the betterment of the Empire, as per the propositions from supporters of Aurangzeb. They claim that, since Hindus were larger in number, it was logical to collect a higher amount of taxes from this community. 

Some also propose that Aurangzeb built more temples than he destroyed. But till now, there is no proof or argument which can justify his destruction of temples and idols of Hindus. 

Critics, on the other hand, have three letters of Aurangzeb to his sons to offer as proof of his pro-Islamic, conservative and anti-Hindu nature. But, even today, these conflicts of thoughts persist and demand more research on the timeline and sequence of events during Aurangzeb’s reign.

Conclusion

Aurangzeb, the sixth emperor of the Mughal empire, was a very ambitious and aggressive ruler. He was very capable of military affairs and expanding his empire. During his reign, it is believed that the Mughal Empire expanded over the complete Indian subcontinent. Many people and studies say that he was an orthodox conservative Muslim and a true anti-Hindu person. His religious policies were very strict and quite conflicting. He destroyed many temples and Hindu idols and established complete Islamic regulations & laws. But even today, there are two schools of thought and opinions about his religious nature, and actions and clashes continue.