|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Akbar: The Mighty Emperor JAlaluddin Muhammad Akbar was one of the most successful emperors of the Mughal Empire. He was crowned the King of Hindustan at the very young age of thirteen. His contribution in the fields of art, literature and religion has made him one of the most remarkable men in the Indian history, and is rightfully called Akbar the Great.
The book also provides the information about the Mughal Empire and the rest of the world in the 16th century. It explains many aspects of Akbar’s life, beginning from his birth to till his death. Akbar was born on October 15, 1542, to Emperor Humayun and his recently wedded wife, Hamida Banu Begum. On hearing the news of Akbar’s birth, Humayun broke a musk pod and as the fragrance wafted all over the camp, the new father hoped his son’s fame would similarly spread across the world. After the death of his father, Akbar was crowned the King of Hindustan in February 1556. Bairam Khan was appointed the guardian of this young King by his father Humayun. Due to the close relationship between them, Akbar even called his guardian ‘Khan Baba’. Under the guidance of Bairam Khan, who played an important role in Humayun’s recapturing of Delhi, Panipat and Agra, Akbar instantly began seizing more territory throughout Hindustan. His youth was spent in running and fighting rather than learning to read and write. However, these things never affected his interest in art, literature, music and architecture. The author also tells about Akbar’s respect for all religions. His court had the nine famous personalities from different walks of life, which were called ‘Nine Gems’. These included music maestro Tansen and intelligent statesman Birbal. During his lifetime, Akbar collected thousands of beautifully written and illustrated manuscripts. His collection of literary work includes Abul Fazl’s Akbarnama and Ain-i-Akbari. Beside this, he also designed and developed a number of marvellous buildings during his reign, including the Red Fort at Agra, and the city of Fatehpur Sikri, near Agra. At the end of the book, the author has provided many fascinating facts of history about the legendary Emperor’s life and his world. Among children, Akbar is best remembered as the partner of Birbal in their various stories. In Indian cinema, there are two films Anarkali and Mughal-e-Azam, which depict the love story of his son Salim (Jahangir) with Anarkali and his (Akbar’s) refusal to their marriage. This is an interesting
book both for children and adults, which gives them an opportunity to
know about this great ruler and thinker.
|
||
|
|
||
The
author has described Akbar’s rough and difficult childhood, and how
he struggled throughout his life to strengthen his empire well. She
has also explained the circumstances which led the Emperor to pass his
crown to his son, Jahangir.