What are the problems in using the Ain as a source for reconstructing agrarian history? How do historians deal with this situation?
(a)The Ain-i Akbari written by Abu’l Fazl in 1598 contains invaluable information for reconstructing the agrarian history of the Mughals. But it has its own limitations.
(b)Numerous errors in totalling have been detected. These are, however, minors and do not detract from the overall quantitative accuracy of the manuals.
(c)Another limitation is the skewed nature of the data. Data was not collected uniformly from all provinces. For example, Abu’l Fazl has not given any description regarding the caste composition of the zamindars of Bengal and Orissa (Odisha).
(d)The fiscal data collected from various sources is in detail yet some important parameters such as, wages and prices have not been incorporated properly.
(e)The detailed list of prices and wages found in the Ain-i Akbari have been acquired from data pertaining to the capital Agra and its surrounding regions. It is, therefore, of limited value for the rest of the empire.
(f)Historians have dealt with the situation by supplementing the account of the Ain by information got from the provinces. These include detailed seventeenth- eighteenth centuries revenue records from Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra. These have been also supplemented by records of the East India Company.
How were the lives of forest dwellers transformed in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries?
Discuss the ways in which panchayats and village headmen regulated rural society.
Examine the role played by zamindars in Mughal India.
On an outline map of the world, mark the areas which had economic links with the Mughal Empire, and trace out possible routes of communication.
To what extent do you think caste was a factor in influencing social and economic relations in agrarian society?
Discuss, with examples, the significance of monetary transactions during the period under consideration.
Describe the role played by women in agricultural production.
Examine the evidence that suggests that land revenue was important for the Mughal fiscal system.
To what extent is it possible to characterise agricultural production in the sixteenth-seventeenth centuries as subsistence agriculture? Give reasons for your answer.
Write a note on the Kitab-ul-Hind.
What have been the methods used to study the ruins of Hampi over the last two centuries? In what way do you think they would have complemented the information provided by the priests of the Virupaksha temple?
Explain with examples what historians mean by the integration of cults.
Describe the process of manuscript production in the Mughal court.
Compare and contrast the perspectives from which Ibn Battuta and Bernier wrote their accounts of their travels in India.
How were the water requirements of Vijayanagara met?
To what extent do you think the architecture of mosques in the subcontinent reflects a combination of universal ideals and local traditions?
In what ways would the daily routine and special festivities associated with the Mughal court have conveyed a sense of the power of the emperor?
Discuss the picture of urban centres that emerges from Bernier’s account.
What do you think were the advantages and disadvantages of enclosing agricultural land within the fortified area of the city?
Fig. 7.33 is an illustration of another pillar from the Virupaksha temple. Do you notice any floral motifs? What are the animals shown? Why do you think they are depicted? Describe the human figures shown.
Compare and contrast the perspectives from which Ibn Battuta and Bernier wrote their accounts of their travels in India.
What were the concerns that shaped Mughal policies and attitudes towards regions outside the subcontinent?
Describe the major teachings of either Kabir or Baba Guru Nanak, and the ways in which these have been transmitted.
Do you think Ibn Battuta’s account is useful in arriving at an understanding of life in contemporary urban centres? Give reasons for your answer.
Discuss the picture of urban centres that emerges from Bernier’s account.
In what ways would the daily routine and special festivities associated with the Mughal court have conveyed a sense of the power of the emperor?
What do you think were the advantages and disadvantages of enclosing agricultural land within the fortified area of the city?
What impression of the lives of the ordinary people of Vijayanagara can you cull from the various descriptions in the chapter?
Read any five of the sources included in this chapter and discuss the social and religious ideas that are expressed in them.