Explorations in Indian Philosophy

Mughal miniatures are a vivid account of the cultural, sociopolitical scenario of the Mughal era. Jalal-ud-Din Muhammad Akbar, the most powerful Mughal emperor, was a great aesthete and promoter of arts. Eminent Persian and Indian artists thronged his Royal Studio and were encouraged to paint numerous emotive miniatures of style and substance, communicating highly complex narratives. These miniatures are a beautiful manifestation of human expressions, vividly encapsulating moments of history for posterity.
This book combines the sources and methodology of history and art history of the Mughal era, and is an analysis of a select group of paintings of Akbar’s reign. The miniature paintings incorporate a wide variety of rich, vibrant and varied themes, ranging from durbar scenes, depicting Akbar in different moods and forms, the princes and nobles in their finery, hunting and battle scenes, elaborate scenes of royal births, construction scenes, ascetics, common man, and countryside scenes, to the flora and fauna. Individual analyses of these miniatures, shows the manner of their composition and the inherent value of their sociocultural content in a lively manner. These paintings became a passion and a diversion for Akbar, who had an innate aesthetic sense.
However, there are hardly any true-to-life paintings of women of the royal seraglio. This book thus attempts to cover some images of femininity, whether it is of Queen Alanquwa, Akbar’s mother, or of Madonna as sacred mothers, and women, per se, in different roles. These miniatures make one wonder how much these women contributed to the life of Mughal India.
This unique volume, having given transliteration and translation of the original Persian text of the miniatures, provides an insight into Akbar as an aesthete, and will help academics and laymen alike in appreciating the beauty and history of Akbar’s period.

The depiction of flora and fauna has been an intrinsic part of Indian painting traditions. The Mughals in their turn, in their fascinating paintings, used the bird and animal imagery to lend a special quality to their art of painting. This book, with over 70 illustrations, is a survey of the birds and animals used in Mughal paintings, especially during the reigns of Emperors Akbar and Jahangir. With historical details, it shows that the depiction of various kinds of birds and animals played a significant role in conformity with the context or the demands of the narratives. The artists painted both wild and domestic animals with equal competence. Outlining the differences in the paintings under the Mughal rulers themselves with regard to depiction of fauna, it notes that while Akbar was interested in historical, mythological or anecdotal events, Jahangir introduced album paintings and evinced interest in individual portrait studies of fauna. In all, it showcases the meticulous depiction of fauna in Mughal art and its persevering beauty. It mentions the names of a host of artists who executed the paintings and the many illustrated manuscripts — mythological, historical and on popular fables — that saw lavish use of paintings with faunal imagery. The book will interest historians especially those studying art history of the medieval period.