Experience of Ibn Battuta’s travels : –
🔹 By the time Ibn Battuta arrived in Delhi in the fourteenth century, the subcontinent was part of a global network of communication that stretched from China in the east to north-west Africa and Europe in the west.
🔹 Ibn Battuta himself travelled extensively through these lands, visiting sacred shrines, spending time with learned men and rulers, often officiating as qazi, and enjoying the cosmopolitan culture of urban centres where people who spoke Arabic, Persian, Turkish and other languages, shared ideas, information and anecdotes.
The Coconut and the Paan
🔹 Ibn Battuta described about coconut and paan which were completely unfamiliar to his people.
Description of coconut by Ibn Battuta : –
🔹 He described that the coconut trees were similar to date-palms but the difference was that while date-palms produced dates, coconut trees produced nuts.
🔹 The coconut’s fibre was used for making cords which were used to sew ships instead of using iron nails and they also made cables for vessels using this fibre.
Description of paan by Ibn Battuta : –
🔹 He also described another fascinating thing i.e. paan. He described that betel is a tree which has no fruit and was grown only for the sake of its leaves.
Description of Indian Cities by Ibn Battuta : –
🔹 According to Ibn Battuta, Indian cities were full of opportunities for those who had the necessary drive, Most cities had crowded streets and bright and colourful markets that were arranged with a variety of goods.
🔹 He described Delhi as a big city, with a great population, the largest in India. Daulatabad in Maharashtra was also equal in size with Delhi.
Ibn Battuta’s Views about Delhi : –
🔹 According to Ibn Battuta the city of Delhi covers a wide area and had a large population. The defensive wall around the city had no comparison. The breadth of the wall was eleven cubits. There were houses inside for night sentry and gate keepers. There were also store-houses for storing edibles, magazines, ammunition, ballistas and siege machines.
🔹 City of Delhi also had a fine cemetry in which graves had domes over them and those without dome had an arch.
Description of Indian market ( bazaars ) by Ibn Battuta:-
🔹 The bazaars were not only places of economic transactions, but also the hub of social and cultural activities. Most bazaars had a mosque and a temple, and in some of them at least, spaces were marked for public performances by dancers, musicians and singers.
Ibn Battuta’s views about Daulatabad : –
🔹 In Daulatabad there is a market place for male and female singers, which is known as Tarababad. It is one of the greatest and most beautiful bazaars. It had numerous shops and every shop had a door which leads into the house of the owner.
🔹 In the middle of the market place, there was a large domed building known as cupola which was carpeted and decorated. Here the chief of the musicians took his place every Thursday after the dawn (morning) prayers with his servants and slaves.
🔹 There were mosques in the bazaars where prayers were offered. Whenever a Hindu or Muslim ruler arrives at the domed building and passed by the market places, female singers would sing before them.
Ibn Battuta’s views about Indian Agriculture : –
🔹 Ibn Battuta found Indian agriculture very productive because of the fertility of the soil. This fertility allowed farmers to cultivate two crops a year. The subcontinent was well connected and integrated with inter-Asian networks of trade and commerce.
Ibn Battuta’s views about Trade : –
🔹 Indian manufactures being in great demand in both West Asia and Southeast Asia, fetching huge profits for artisans and merchants. Indian textiles, particularly cotton cloth, fine muslins, silks, brocade and satin, were in great demand.
🔹 Ibn Battuta informs us that certain varieties of fine muslin were so expensive that they could be worn only by the nobles and the very rich.
🔹 The state evidently took special measures to encourage merchants. Almost all trade routes were well supplied with inns and guest houses.
A unique system of communication : –
🔹 Ibn Battuta was also amazed by the efficiency of the postal system which allowed merchants to not only send information and remit credit across long distances, but also to dispatch goods required at short notice.
🔹 The postal system was so efficient that while it took fifty days to reach Delhi from Sind, the news reports of spies would reach the Sultan through the postal system in just five days.
Ibn Battuta’s views about Indian postal system : –
🔹 Indian postal system was of two types:
🔸 1. foot-post : – The other was foot-post called dawa, which had three stations per mile. In the foot-post system, a man carried a rod, two cubits of length, with copper bells at the top in one hand and letter in another. He runs at top speed shaking the rod all the while until he reaches the next dawa. This process continues till the letter reaches the destination.
🔸 2. horse-post : – The horse-post was called ulug which was ran by royal horses stationed at a distance of every four miles.
Description of India by Ibn- Batute ( in short ) : –
- Demand of Indian Goods in middle and Southern Asia.
- Efficient Postal system: Foot Post and Horse Post.
- Markets were Places of economic.
- Crowded and prosperous cities with colourful markets.
- Indian cities & were full of opportunities.
Description of slave system according to Ibn Battuta : –
- Slaves were openly sold in markets.
- These were regularly exchanged as gifts.
- When Ibn Battuta reached Sind he purchased “horses, camels and slaves” as gifts for Sultan Muhammad bin Tughlaq.
- Some female slaves in the service of the Sultan were experts in music and dance,and Ibn Battuta enjoyed their performance at the wedding of the Sultan’s sister.
- Female slaves were also employed by the Sultan to keep a watch on his nobles.
- They were generally used for domestic labours.
- Ibn Battuta found that mens services were used to carry rich women & men on palanquins.
- The price of slaves, particularly female slaves required for domestic labour, was very low.
Arrival of European travelers in India : –
🔹 Once the Portuguese arrived in India in about 1500, a number of them wrote detailed accounts regarding Indian social customs and religious practices. A few of them, such as the Jesuit Roberto Nobili, even translated Indian texts into European languages.
🔹 Among the best known of the Portuguese writers is Duarte Barbosa, who wrote a detailed account of trade and society in south India. Later, after 1600, we find growing numbers of Dutch, English and French travellers coming to India.
François Bernier : –
🔹 François Bernier, a Frenchman, was a doctor, political philosopher and historian. Like many others, he came to the Mughal Empire in search of opportunities.
🔹 He was in India for twelve years, from 1656 to 1668, and was closely associated with the Mughal court, as a physician to Prince Dara Shukoh, the eldest son of Emperor Shah Jahan, and later as an intellectual and scientist, with Danishmand Khan, an Armenian noble at the Mughal court.
Bernier’s Book ‘Travels in the Mughal Empire’ : –
🔹 Bernier’s book ‘Travels in the Mughal Empire’ has detailed observations, critical insights and reflection of Mughals. He compared Mughal India with contemporary Europe and stressed on the superiority of the Europe.
Features of Bernier’s writing : –
🔸 Note : – Bernier’s book written is Travels In Mughal Empire.
🔹 He dedicated his major writing to Louis XIV, the king of France, and many of his other works were written in the form of letters to influential officials and ministers.
🔹 In virtually every instance Bernier described what he saw in India as a bleak situation in comparison to developments in Europe.
Publishing of Bernier’s Works : –
🔹 Bernier’s works were published in France in 1670-71 CE and translated into English, Dutch, German and Italian within the next five years.
🔹 His account was reprinted in French eight times between 1670 and 1725 CE and by 1684 CE, it had been reprinted three times in English. As compared to it, Arabic and Persian accounts were circulated as manuscripts and were not published before 1800 CE.
Description of India by Francois Barnier in his book “Travels in the Mughal Empire” : –
🔹 Condition of India is inferior in compression to the development of Europe.
🔹 His representation of India works on the model of binary opposition.
🔹 Fundamental differences between Mughalo India and Europe was the lack of private property in the land in the former.
🔹 Bernier described Indian society as consisting of undifferentiated masses of impoverished people.
🔹 Bernier stated that between the poorest the poor and richest of the rich, there was no social group or Class.
🔹 “There was no middle state in India”, Barnier Confidently asserted.
Bernier Comparing East and West : –
🔹 Bernier travelled to several parts of India. He wrote accounts about what he saw and compared them with the situation in Europe in general and France in particular.
🔹 He described the situation in India as not hopeful and not so encouraging compared to the developments in Europe. His main focus was on things which were depressing and he wanted to influence the policy makers and the intelligentsia to make right decisions.