Emperor Jahangir's multi-faceted personality

The first six emperors of the Mughal Empire are rated to be remarkably talented displaying multifarious personal tendencies.

The Mughal dynasty was generally known to be open-minded and willing to accommodate almost every point of view and, at times, appeared to encourage unconventional ideas and discourses. They were keenly aware of the limitations on their rule as they were minority rulers and their dominance and sustainability required more than decisive and exclusive dependence on military power and resultantly always explored avenues of cumulative consensus and tried to rule through even hand.

The widening remit of the Mughal rule corresponded with equally active efforts to look for widespread participation in governance.

Though these efforts were not always successful but the Mughals kept on trying to bring in all segments of population together and they somewhat succeeded in doing that.

Keeping in view the divinity associated with kingship the Mughal emperors were no exception and rules with plenty of arbitrariness in their actions.

Noor-uddin Muhammad Salim known as Emperor Jahangir was the fourth in line of the great Mughals and was the most mercurial of the lot. He reigned on the legacy of the grandeur and authority bequeathed by his illustrious father Akbar to the Mughal Empire.

He was the first Mughal ruler who was born in the security of a safe throne and was accordingly trained in the affairs of state. He was a pampered child as the circumstances of his birth had become legendary during his lifetime.

Though his father was rather tough with Jahangir and his siblings yet the fact was that he adored Jahangir as his firstborn. Though trained rigorously, Jahangir proved not as active as his father and preferred a languid lifestyle and was hedonistic in outlook.

He was in awe of his father and never took much interest in the affairs of state in his early age. He however became conscious of his status in the Empire when his son Khusrau became the favourite of his father and was reported to be considered for succession instead of Jahangir.

He rebelled but was quickly made to surrender ultimately succeeding his father. What was important that he did not cross the red line that would have compelled his father to use all resources of the empire to crush him.

Jahangir had a childlike tendency to inquire and was inquisitive about every matter but was more inclined towards understanding mysteries of nature. He is widely acknowledged to be the first scientist emperor in very rudimentary terms but his interests undoubtedly were honed by experimenting before forming an opinion.

He was keener to develop into a naturalist and most of his inquisitiveness was directed towards natural phenomena. He conducted many experiments that have been recorded in Mughal chronicles and in his autobiography.

Observing by the record, Jahangir comes out to be a person who could not be easily convinced to do anything because he demanded proof for everything instead of believing.

He loved his pet animals very much and would get upset and mourn for days if he lost them and also build them tombs such as HiranMinar in Sheikhupura. His pet lions and tigers he fed with his own hands sometimes.

But he also was a prolific hunter!

He was a naturalist who observed nature and animals and gave details of flora and fauna around him with great interest. His observations pertained to numerous things and are quite entertaining in their detail. Jahangir correctly observed that an elephant’s gestation period was 18 months and it was confirmed later in the 20th century.

Once a deer was thrown into his tiger’s cage for meal and they became friends. The deer would sleep keeping its head on tiger’s chest and the tiger licked it like a parent and showered attention. The emperor was informed about it and was awe struck and decided to conduct an experiment on animal psychology. He removed that deer from the cage and brought a similar deer and put it in its place. The tiger immediately killed and ate it. Then a sheep was put inside and it met the same fate. When the original deer was put in back, the tiger treated it with the usual love and affection licking its face and allowing it to sleep by placing its head on his chest making the emperor to observe that love is a natural faculty that may be provoked in highly unlikely situations.

Jahangir did cross-breeding of animals and once cross-bred Markhor goats with Barbary goats and lion with a tiger and proudly showed the offshoots of his experiments. He was very fond of dissecting animals to discover what was inside them and often dissected reptiles, crocodiles, birds, lions and tigers.

Once he had a lion dissected to check from where it derived its strength and courage and concluded that it was because of its gall bladder enclosed in its liver. In another experiment
of the same breed his conclusion was that its strength was held in its paws.

Once the emperor was shown bitumen brought to him from Persia and it was reported that it helps mend broken bones but after conducting experiments the emperor was convinced that the claim was false.

He conducted experiments on soil from various locations and concluded that some places like Gujarat had fertile lands than places like Agra.

Once a man claimed that laughter arises because people eat saffron and if eaten in excess it could cause death. The emperor was fascinated by this claim and got a hardened criminal to eat half a kilo of saffron and nothing happened making the emperor to ridicule the claimant.

In yet another experiment a Yogi claimed that he can devour any amount of arrack but always remains in his senses so the emperor got him a drink it and when he passed out after few pints, threw him out of his presence.

For five years Jahangir kept two Saras-cranes with him and observed them and recorded all their behaviour in such a detail that could make any zoologist proud.

He recorded his experiments in his superbly kept diary known as Tuzk-e- Jahangiri that is a valuable emulation of his worthy great-grandfather’s momentous autobiography but the vital difference is that Jahangir’s book is full of observations about the natural world with which he was fascinated.

All the animals that Jahangir encountered including gifts from foreign lands, he records their details with unusual meticulousness. It could very well be inferred from his detailed accounts that he possessed in abundance the curiosity of a true naturalist.

He observed a python with a large belly and got it cut open and found that it had swallowed an entire deer (a la Discovery Channel). He tried to force the animal again down the python’s mouth without success and then had the corners of the snake’s mouth slit open but still the deer’s carcass does not fit. He recorded the event in a state of excitement.