The Mughal World: Life in India's Last Golden AgeThe Mughal emperors were larger-than-life figures, men written on a supra-human scale who exercised absolute power. The three centuries of their rule mark one of the most crucial and fascinating periods of Indian history. This study looks beyond the story of the empire's rise and fall--an exotic growth that was transplanted to India from Islamic Persia--to bring the world of the Mughal ruler and Hindu subject vividly into focus. Blending contemporary sources and detailed description, an India full of strangeness and contrast is introduced: sacred harems and suttee rites, brutal war and cultural and artistic refinement, staggering opulence, deviant indulgences, and abject poverty. The bizarre religious cults, the Mughal fondness for formal gardening, the murderous female bandits, the sex lives of the nobles, and beyond--almost every aspect of life is examined, making this a comprehensive and absorbing introduction to India's last Golden Age. |
Contents
The People | 21 |
The Right Royal Lifestyle | 39 |
A Movable City | 55 |
Living and Partly Living | 79 |
The Amir at Play | 100 |
Gilded and Other Cages | 123 |
The Womans Lot | 147 |
Producers and Predators | 163 |
Masters and Slaves | 219 |
All the Emperors Men | 238 |
Sacred Laws Profane Justice | 258 |
The Flabby Giant | 290 |
The Razors Edge | 313 |
Sword is God | 332 |
A Crore for a Song | 354 |
The Mughal Legacy | 383 |
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Common terms and phrases
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