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KASHMIR

rest on a

firmer chronological foundation. After narrating the

pious benefactions and love affairs of the first of the dynasty

Kalhana sings the prowess of I^alitaditya Muktapida, a great

warrior, who about a.d. 740,

or twenty-eight years after the

Arab

conquest of Sind, defeated Yasovarman, King of Kanauj

.

He also conducted many victorious campaigns against the

Tibetans and Dards, and against the Turks, who had established

a kingdom to the north of Sind on the upper waters of the Indus

and in the Kabul valley. Ivalitaditya seems to have had some

family connections with the Turks of this region, for his

minister, Cankuna, who filled his treasury with gold by his

magical power, came from there, and Shahiya Turks, among

others, were appointed by the King to the five high offices of

State created to control the eighteen administrators of the

ancient Aryan regime instituted

by Asoka's son. In his

conduct towards his conquered foes, and in his political

testament bequeathed to his successors, lyalitaditya certainly

seemed to be inspired by

Turkish rather than

Indo-Aryan

principles :

Those who dwell there in the mountains difficult

of access should be punished, even if they give no offence

;

because sheltered by their fastnesses they are difficult to break

up if they have

once accumulated wealth.

Every care should

be taken that there should not be left with the villages more

food-supply than required for the year's consumption, or more

oxen than wanted

for the tillage of their fields ; because, if

they keep

more wealth, they would become in a single year

very formidable Damaras and strong enough to neglect the

commands of the King

" (iv, 346-348). Evidently here is the

secret of Cankuna's magical

power in filling the

King's treasury

with gold.

However,

I^ahtaditya, when not intoxicated, seems to have

been a wise and liberal ruler of his own people : both he

and his Prime Minister were active in promoting beneficent

public works of a reUgious and

economic character. He dis-

tributed the water of

the Vitasta to various villages by con-

structing a series of water-wheels. Cankuna's wife constructed

a well

"

the water of which was as pure as nectar and gave

ARYAN RULE IN INDIA

health to the ailing

" {Raj., iv,

; and the ruins of

the

famous temple

of Martand still remain as a record of the great

days of lyalitaditya.

After a reign of thirty-six years he

was followed by Kuvalaya-

pida, who soon found the cares of State too heavy for him and

took refuge in a forest

hermitage. Then followed a succession

of dissolute and avaricious sovereigns who disgraced the tradi-

tions of their

line and brought disorder into the country,

redeemed partly by

Jayapida, who at the close of the eighth

century

revived Sanskrit learning by attracting famous

scholars

and

poets to his court. But towards the close of his reign he

became the tool of

unscruptdous court officials, began to fleece

his subjects unmercifully, and to victimise the Brahmans

who

dared to reprove him. Finally one of the 'twice-born,' Ittila,

brought down

the wrath of heaven upon the reckless monarch,

and he died miserably, like Herod, eaten of

worms.

The character of I/alitapida, Jayapida's son and successor,

is summed

up by

the Brahman

historian of Kashmir in un-

qualified terms. He was

"

the slave of his passions and did

not attend to his regal duties ; the kingdom became the prey

of courtesans and was defiled

by

immorality. He squandered

the riches which his father, condemned to hell, had accimiulated

by wicked deeds, on buffoons, and the parasites who got a

foothold in the royal palace initiated him into the

arts of

whoredom

"

{Raj., iv, 661-663). The climax was reached when

Brihaspati,

his son by a low-caste concubine, succeeded him.

The government was seized

by

Brihaspati's maternal uncles,

and

" these low-born persons who knew no restraint in their

actions

"

conspired together to put their nephew to death.

They then

put

a puppet of the Karkota line

upon the throne,

and won popularity for themselves by patronage of religious

foundations and a lavish distribution of their ill-gotten wealth,

until the kingdom was torn to pieces by the quarrels of their

several factions. In the chaos which ensued the feeble remnant

of the Karkota line was almost exterminated, while the descen-

dants of Brihaspati's low-caste relatives increased their prestige.

Thereupon a wise minister, Shura, one of the class of Damaras,

KASHMIR

or feudal landlords, took the part of

Avantivarman,

a grandson

of the eldest of Brihaspati's uncles, Utpala, and declared him

a fit person to rule the kingdom.

Avantivarman

(a.d. 855-883) fully justified the minister's

choice, for, after seating himself firmly

on the throne with

Shura's help, he restored peace and prosperity

to Kashmir,

causing learning,

whose flow had been interrupted, to descend

again upon this land." The extant works of the scholars of

his court occupy a prominent position in the Sanskrit hterature

of

old Kashmir.^ But Avantivarman's renown as a benefactor

of Kashmir

rests chiefly

on

the

great engineering and irrigation

works which he promoted through the skill of his able public

works minister, Suyya, who no doubt was one of the master-

builders versed in the Silpa-Sastras whose achievements in

works of this kind had done so much for the material prosperity

of India. Kashmir, says Kalhana, had been

but little produc-

tive before this time on account of the devastating floods from

the overflowing of the Mahapadma I^ake. King lyaUtaditya

had done something to improve matters, but under the mis-

government of his

successors the country had

reverted to its

former condition, and by the constant flooding of the land the

price of one khdri of rice had risen to ten hundred and fifty

dmnaras in times of famine, and two hundred in times of great

abundance. SQyya, who by his religious merit, says Kalhana,

achieved in a single birth the holy work which Vishnu accom-

phshed in four incarnations

—

^the raising of the earth from the

water

—

^by the granting of land to worthy Brahmans, the build-

ing of stone embankments to

hold

up

the water, and the

sub-

jugation of the

water-demon Kaliya, reduced the price of one

khari to thirty-six dinnaras [Raj., v, 144-146).

The

methods by which this great work was achieved are

summarised by Sir M. A. Stein as follows :

"

The systematic

regulation of the course of the Vitasta, down to the rock-

bound gorge where it leaves

the valley, largely induced the

extent of the water-locked

tracts along the banks of the river

and the damage to

the crops caused by floods. The construction

stein's Introduction to Rdjaiarangini, p. 98.

s

KASHMIR

and ignorance of politics, and the contempt he pours upon the

incompetence and vacillation of his caste-fellows in those days

may have been deserved. But to the historian the interest

Hes, firstly, in the fact that in spite of the corruption and

violence of the times an appeal was made to the traditional

law of kingship instead

of to

force of arms

; and, secondly,

in the unexpected result of the Assembly's vote, which was

that Kamala-Vardhana's claims were set aside in favour of

a Brahman candidate, Yashaskara, who was duly consecrated

as king by the ancient Vedic rite of abhisheka and reigned for

forty-seven years afterwards.

The choice, moreover, proved to be a happy one for the

country. Yashaskara, says Kalhana,

made the Krita Yuga

come back again." He purified the administration so that

the ofl&cials who had plundered everything found

no other

occupation

but to

look after agriculture.

..

. The Brahmans,

devoted to their studies, did not carry arms. The Brahman

gurus did not drink spirits as they sang their chants : the

ascetics did not get children, wives, and crops....

Astrologer,

doctor, cotmcillor, teacher, minister, Purohita, ambassador,

judge, clerk—none of them was then without learning

" {Raj., v,

8-13). But though generally a wise ruler he was not altogether

free from the vices of his predecessors, and allowed himself to

come under the control of a courtesan, Italia, and by the close

of his reign Kashmir was again plunged into disorder.

27s

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(JNDER MUHAMMADAN RULE

To illustrate Part H

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CHAPTER I

MAHMUD OF GHAZNI

THE

preceding chapters have brought the history of

Aryan rule in India down to the end of the tenth

century, which saw Mahmud upon the throne

of Ghazni

and the beginning of Turkish domination in Islam. The

glory

of the Abbasid Khalifs had departed, for although the court of

Baghdad kept up as much pomp and ceremony as in the days

of Hartin-al-Raschid, the Khalif

was a tool in the hands of

his Turkish bodyguard, and the richest provinces of the

empire

no longer acknowledged his political supremacy. The power

of the sword, by which the Prophet sought to win converts to

his teaching, was turned against Islam itself

; for

though in

matters of doctrine the Musalman might bow to the ruling of

the Khalif, in the distribution of worldly goods, which his own

good sword might win, he claimed the freedom of the true

believer : the turbulent tribes of Central Asia, which Buddhism

had hardly tamed, were enthusiastic converts to a creed which

gave them unlimited scope for their predatory instincts.

In the first centuries after the death of Muhammad there

had not been wanting in Islam the strong and resolute leader-

ship necessary to control the forces let loose by the subversion

of the existing social order, and probably the stern patriarchal

discipHne imposed by the Arab rulers upon their

followers was

a more effective civiHsing influence

for many converts to the

Faith

than the idealism

of the Christian and Buddhist doctrine

imperfectly taught and learnt. But when the control of a

master-mind was wanting the inherent weakness of the social

theories of Islam became apparent,

and in the general scramble

for political power the most

unscrupulous and daring adventurer

had the

better chance

of the prize. The history of Islam at

ARYAN RULE IN INDIA

this period, as it is written by its own historians, is solely

occupied with the varied fortunes of these bold adventurers

—many of them men of

strong character and great

ability

—

and

of the dynasties they founded.

The overpowering

energy and enthusiasm with which Islam

prosecuted its campaigns undoubtedly had a regenerating effect

upon some of the old and

effete civilisations it sought to uproot,

and won it sympathy from many to whom its dogmatic teachir^

made no appeal. The Arab conquest had revived the national

spirit of Persia, and the

Persian converts from

Zoroastrianism

not only rivalled the Arabs in martial ardour, but contributed

a rich store of their old Iranian culture to the treasury of Islam.

Under the influence of Indian and Persian scholars the primitive

philosophy of the

Quran had been expanded

into the mystical

interpretations of the Sufi school,

by

which the poetry of Islam

became a lyrical version of the Vedanta. After the fall of the

Ommayad dynasty the Persians became the intellectual leaders

of Islam in Asia, with

the Arabs and Turks

as their disciples.

Before Mahmfld of Ghazni came upon the scene, three semi-

independent Persian dynasties

—

^the Tahirid, Saffarid, and

Samanid, had

ruled over some of the

richest provinces of

Central Asia, owing only a nominal allegiance to the Khalifate

of Baghdad. Under the dynasty of the Samanids—so called

from a Persian nobleman, Saman, a convert from

Zoroastrianism,

whose

descendants had

established themselves as rulers in

Transoxiania—Alptagln, a Turkish slave, had been promoted

to the governorship of Khurasan by Abdul

MaHk I (a.d. 954-

. On the death of the latter

there was a dispute regarding

the

succession, and

Alptagin, having supported the losing side,

thought it safer for himself and his retainers to leave

Khurasan.

They accordingly made a raid

toward the south and captured

the stronghold of Ghazni,

where he was able to defy the armies

which Mansur, Abdial Malik's son and successor, sent against

him. Sabuktagin, another Turkish slave, serving in Alptagin's

body-guard, who

through his ability had become commander-

in-chief, succeeded to the throne of Ghazni in 975,

and quickly

added Kandahar to his

dominions. He then began to harry

ARYAN RULE IN INDIA

in his conduct towards Firdausi, in cheating

him

of part of his

promised

reward ; and secondly in his exactions from his

subjects in the

latter part of his reign. ^ Nor does the story

his biographer tells of his treatment

of a citizen of Nyshapur

speak much for the great Sultan's sense of justice. Hearing

that this worthy person was immensely rich, Mahmud sum-

moned him to his presence and charged

him with being an

idolater and an apostate from the faith. The citizen replied that

he was neither

an

idolater

nor an apostate, but he was possessed

of much wealth. The Sultan might take his money, but he

should not rob him of his good name also. MahmUd agreed to

this proposition, and having fleeced

him

of all his property

gave him a certificate under the royal seal of the purity

of

his religious tenets!

^ On the other hand, when his ruling

passion was not touched,

Ferishta gives us to understand that

Mahmud was a man of his word and would deal even-handed

justice even when his own near relatives were the transgressors.

It

must also be said

that Mahmud's avarice

was not the sordid

greed of a miser. I/ike other great war-lords he had a strongly

developed

' will to power,' and money, won by fair means or

foul, was the way to power.

I^ike Babur he was fond of laying out pleasure-gardens in

the Persian and Indian fashion, and had such catholic tastes

that he admired immensely the Hindu temples of Mathura,

and, to the disgust of his devout followers, refrained from

destroying them

completely —

^probably, as Ferishta says,

because

the labour of doing so would have been excessive,

and because he had richer spoil in view. After his return

from this expedition,

laden with immense booty

from the

plundered

temples, he followed the usual custom of emplojnuQg

the Indian craftsmen who were among his prisoners in making

his own capital vie in splendour with the great cities of India

he had despoiled.

Thus the Great Mosque of Ghazni,

known

by the name of

'the Celestial Bride,' was built of marble and

granite,

furnished with rich carpets and with lamps and

» Ferishta, Briggs' translation, vol. i, p. 33.

' Ibid., p. 85.

MAHMUD OF

GHAZNI

candelabra

of gold and silver. Near

it Mahmud founded a

tmiversity, and with the zeal of the modem opulent curio-

htmter furnished it with

a vast collection of curious books

in various languages," and established

a miiseum of natural

curiosities," probably a zoological collection such as the Great

Moguls were

fond of.

" When," says Ferishta,

the nobiHty of

Ghazni perceived

the taste of their kii^ evince itself in architecture, they also

endeavoiired to vie with each other in the magnificence of

their private palaces, as well as in public buildings which they

raised

for the embeUishment of the city. Thus, in a short

time, the

capital was ornamented with mosques,

porches,

fountains, reservoirs,

aqueducts, and

cisterns, beyond any

city in the East." Fergusson, the historian of Indian archi-

tecture, with a singular lack of critical judgment, classifies the

buildings made for Mahmud and his parvenu nobles as Pathan,

and much exuberant rhetoric has been lavished on the artistic

genius of the

' Pathan builders.' On the s^me principle, the

Shah-ndma, the

great epic of Mahmud's court poet, Firdausi,

might be called

' Pathan literature.' It may be conceded that

Mahmud, like many of the meanest of his subjects, was apt in

the improvisation of a Persian verse, and could argue theo-

logical points with his muUas as ably as the

' Defender of the

Faith ' in our own Tudor times. But there is no warrant for

giving either Mahmud, or any of his promiscuous soldiery,

credit for higher artistic or Hterary culture than other Turks,

Tartars, or Pathans of his time possessed.

Mahmud exploited the culture of India and Persia as sys-

tematically and zealously as he plundered the temples of the

' infidels

'

; but he had no constructive genius as a statesman

nor profound reHgious convictions. He would

have sacked

Baghdad

with as httle compunction as

he plundered Sonmath, if

the undertaking had seemed as profitable and as easy, for he

did not hesitate to threaten the Khalif with death when the

latter refused to give him Samarkand.^ Like every other

successful Turki adventurer of obscure origin, he was anxious,

' Ferishta, Briggs' translation, vol. i, p. 53.

MAHMUD OF GHAZNI

The whole series of marauding expeditions was, moreover,

organised with great military foresight. Having made his

capital secure by the conquest of the

Hindu kingdoms in the

upper valley of the Indus, Mahmud turned

his arms against

the

Arabs in

the northern part of Sind,

which was then divided

into two provinces with their respective capitals at Multan

and Mansura. The Amirs of Sind were independent of the

Khalifate of Baghdad. Multan had, it is said, paid tribute to

Sabuktagin, but had subsequently renounced the suzerainty

of Ghazni : Mahmud, by suddenly appearing before the city

in loio, not only forced the

Amir, Abul Fath Daud,

to

pay a

heavy contribution to the Ghazni treasury, but secured an

invaluable base for his subsequent expeditions. Thus, though

Mahmud always preferred the hills of Afghanistan to the

plains of India for his headquarters, he was in a position four

years

later to venture an

attack

upon Thaneshar, which

promised rich booty, for it was held in the same veneration

by the idolaters as Mecca by the faithful.^

The news of the approach of the Musalman army roused all

the neighbouring

Hindu states

to combine for the defence

of

the sacred city, but before they had time to do so MahmQd

had swooped down upon its temples, plundered them of their

gold

and

silver

images and

the vast wealth of their treasuries,

and returned to Ghazni with 200,000 captives to fill the harems

of the faithful and furnish forced labour for the Sultan's pubUc

works. FMahmud's capital thereafter, says Ferishta,

appeared

Hke an Indian city, no soldier of the

camp being without

wealth, or without many slaves." It was after this successful

foray that Mahmud sent a letter to the Khalif, Al Kadir BiUa-

Abassy, requesting that his governors should surrender to him

that part of Khurasan which still remained subject to Baghdad.

Finding the Khalif complacent he followed

it

up with a peremp-

tory demand for

the cession of Samarkand, supplementing this

with a threat that in case of refusal he would march to Baghdad,

put the Khalif to death and bring his ashes to Ghazni. This

was too much, even for the weak successor of Harun-al-Raschid,

• Ferishta, Briggs' translation, vol, i, p. 50.

ARYAN RULE IN INDIA

and

the laconic but spirited reply which he sent had the

effect of

preventing MahmUd from again urging the

request."

Possibly the

disastrous issue of his campaign in 1015,

when

he tried to penetrate into the valley of Kashmir, sobered the

royal freebooter for a time. He failed in his attempt to storm

the fortress of I^ohara,

and on its homeward march his army,

being misled by guides, fell into extensive morasses and many

of his troops perished. But three years later he collected an

army of 100,000 Turki and Afghan horsemen, and 20,000 foot,

and set out with still richer loot in view

— ^Mathura, the sacred

city of Krishna, and proud Kanauj, which "raised its head to

the

skies and which

in strength and beauty might boast of

being unrivalled." This daring project involved a three

months' march from Ghazni, and there were seven formidable

rivers to be crossed, but Mahmud's skilful strategy

was equal

to the occasion. He had prepared for the expedition carefully

by sending spies to survey the country,^ and he found efficient

guides among the Indians

serving in his army. In order to

conceal his real objective he marched along the foot of the

Himalayas until the Jumna was reached, and crossing it

captured the fort of Baran, the

modern Bulandshahr. Then

pushing rapidly southward he appeared before the gates of

Mathura, and having forced his way into the city with very

little difficulty he gave it

over to plunder, rapine, and

massacre.

A vast quantity of gold, sUver, and priceless gems was found

in the temple treasuries, besides

numbers of gold and silver

images,

which

were

broken up for the sake of the precious

metal. The magnificence of the buildings, constructed of fine

masonry and riveted with iron, excited Mahmud's

admiration,

especially the principal temple in the middle of the city, re-

garding

which he wrote to the governor of Ghazni :

If any

should wish to construct a building equal to this, he

would not

be able to do it without expending

an himdred thousand

thousand red dinars, and

it would occupy two hundred years,

Tdrlkh Yamtnl, Elliot's History of India, vol. ii, p. 41.