Question
‘‘Abul Fazal has given a vivid account of Akbar’s darbar.’’ Elaborate.
Solution
Akbar’s Darbar were as:
(i) The physical arrangement of the court, focused on the sovereign, mirrored his status as the heart of society.
(ii) Its centrepiece was therefore the throne, which gave physical form to the function of the sovereign as axis mundi.
(iii) The canopy, a symbol of kingship in India for a millennium, was believed to separate the radiance of the sun from that of the sovereign.
(iv) In court, status was determined by spatial proximity to the king. The place accorded to a courtier by the ruler was a sign of his importance in the eyes of the emperor.
