what religion was India ruled by?

[Ummu Sufyaan]

I know this isn't in the right section but I figured I'd get more of an accurate and educated answer here...
Thus far, my knowledge of history goes that before the English came to the subcontinent, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh was one entity (correct me if I'm wrong) so I'm wondering, at that time, which religion was india ruled by? Hindism or Islam?

[Eliphaz]

I think it was ruled by the Mughal Empire, which had become pretty weakened by that point.

['Abdul Rahmaan]

Hinduism or Islam?

Islam

[Rafeeq]

Ruled by Islam for more then 1000 years.

Before that, obviously, Hinduism.

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[Ummu Sufyaan]

:sl:
can you people direct me to some non-bias pro-British empire* articles/documentaries about its history and who it was ruled by?

*im not racist or anyhting but the stuff i so far have come across just seems really bias and i cant distinguish whats right from whats wrong...

[Fishman]

:sl:
Actually the Mughals had declined a lot by the time of the British arrival. The large Hindu Maratha Empire covered most of the subcontinent, with the remnants of the Mughal Empire confined mainly to Pakistan. Sikhs also had a small empire in the Punjab, and the area around Hyderabad in central India was Muslim.

:wa:

[OurIslamic]

I know this isn't in the right section but I figured I'd get more of an accurate and educated answer here...
Thus far, my knowledge of history goes that before the English came to the subcontinent, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh was one entity (correct me if I'm wrong) so I'm wondering, at that time, which religion was india ruled by? Hindism or Islam?

At THAT time, it was Hinduism. That is one of the main reasons Muslims wanted their own separate state (Pakistan).

['Abdul Rahmaan]

At THAT time, it was Hinduism. That is one of the main reasons Muslims wanted their own separate state (Pakistan).

Muslims wanted a seperate state just because of the fear that Hindues would be ruling over them after that brits quit India.

[Eliphaz]

I am just getting into studying Pakistan's history lately, so thought I would share a few bits from a pretty decent book I am reading:

'The fact is that Muslims constituted about one-quarter of India's population around the time the British arrived, concentrated in East Bengal and Sindh, Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP), and parts of Punjab. Muslims were a majority in East Bengal and parts of India's northwest, although it took the British nearly a hundred years to realise this.

The first British "government" in India was that of the crown-chartered East India Company. The Company gradually assumed responsibility for governance from the decaying Mughal (Muslim) Empire and layered a Chinese-inspired bureaucracy over existing Mughal and Hindu patterns. This was a major innovation in the history of South Asia.'

From The Idea of Pakistan by S. P. Cohen

Although the Mughals were Muslim, their downfall was caused by weak leadership and repeated invasions by the Persians, Afghans, and Sikhs. By the time of the British invasion came about, the Mughals only really controlled one city: Delhi. The last Mughal, Shah Alam II, was formally known as the 'King of Delhi', and was used as a puppet by the British until his death, at which point the EIC assumed full control.

There was a Mughal 'Golden Age' (during which the Taj Mahal was built) but this had long ended by the time the British arrived.

[OurIslamic]

Muslims wanted a seperate state just because of the fear that Hindues would be ruling over them after that brits quit India.

Exactly my point.

[alcurad]

if you look into it no religion really 'ruled' India, given such a vast territory and different peoples the rulers were more concerned with keeping their territory and invading others, not spreading religion, this is of course in a general sense.

notice that most 'Indian' religions are synthetic, and that the Mughul's never really followed Islam to that extent or encouraged it's spread, rather they were mostly concerned with ruling, hence while other areas such as Afghnaistan and Persia became majority Muslim states after a few cnturies India never did.

[waji]

:sl:

Pakistan, India, Bangladesh were under one ruler during the time of Ashoka whom
Qutub ud deen Aybaq(im doubtful about the name) defeated and after him no body ruled this whole part
Even Mughals never ruled the whole sub continent although they were ruling the
most part and they were strong entity.
That is also the reason that British easily occupied the subcontinent.

[meer5sd]

mughals ruled only pakistan, bangladesh, northern india and some parts of south India for 400 years later british took control of entire subcontinent

[waji]

if you are talking about entire subcontinent then NWFP which is a province of Pakistan was not completely occupied or controlled by British

South Waziristan and North Waziristan remained in Tribal control even Britishers made an agreement that they will not go in their area and nor they will come

[waji]

if you are talking about entire subcontinent then NWFP which is a province of Pakistan was not completely occupied or controlled by British

South Waziristan and North Waziristan remained in Tribal control even Britishers made an agreement that they will not go in their area and nor they will come

[cat eyes]

:sl:
well its hard to say depends how far you actually want to go back.. i love history and always have. well india became a british colony in the latter half of the 18th century. the british rule lasted for 150years. they pretty much caused the separation between the hindu and muslims also and caused them to hate eachother thats why they could not live peacefully together as they were very good at doing that before british then it would have been muslims who ruled over the majority of hindus

[Fishman]

:sl:

the british rule lasted for 150years. they pretty much caused the separation between the hindu and muslims also and caused them to hate eachother thats why they could not live peacefully together as they were very good at doing that

'Muslim' rulers had been butchering Hindus for centuries before the British showed up. The west didn't cause the Hindu-Muslim conflict, it was much more to do with people like Arungzeb, Babur and Timurlane.

before british then it would have been muslims who ruled over the majority of hindus

Muslim rule over India have collapsed significantly before the British showed up. The Hindu Maratha Empire and its successors dominated the continent, Mughals were confined to a few scattered territories due to the combined efforts of the Marathas and the Sikhs.

[cat eyes]

:sl:
Your right there would have been problems going on before but british rule actually made it worse

[meer5sd]

:sl:



Muslim rule over India have collapsed significantly before the British showed up. The Hindu Maratha Empire and its successors dominated the continent, Mughals were confined to a few scattered territories due to the combined efforts of the Marathas and the Sikhs.

Maratha Empire was confined to some part of western INDIA,

Hyderabad kingdom which was largest kingdom in Indian subcontinent before independence was ruled by Muslim Nizams till 1948

[Fishman]

:sl:
Your right there would have been problems going on before but british rule actually made it worse

Yeah I'd agree there, to an extent.

Maratha Empire was confined to some part of western INDIA,

Hyderabad kingdom which was largest kingdom in Indian subcontinent before independence was ruled by Muslim Nizams till 1948

The Marathas look a lot larger than that in this map. But yeah, I would argree with you that there were still some strong Muslim states. However, the days when the Mughals ruled were long gone.

[Banu_Hashim]

InshaAllah I will be going to this lecture:


Can't wait! But I have read that the Mughals were the first to create a centralised government in India and therefore before the British, yes, the Muslims were in control. But I'll be more able to answer on such a topic after the course :).

[CosmicPathos]

The British rule was a blessing in disguise. The separate Muslim and Hindu identities, which are so obvious now, were nourished during the tumultuous and racist reign of the East India Company in the Indian Subcontinent which they called The Golden Sparrow. Muslim traitors also helped the East India Company to delve deep into Central South Asia. They had started from the extreme and entered through Bengal. The Nawab of Bengal Mir Jaffar is known for his treason. So much so that we use his name in Urdu as a metaphor for a traitor.

During the rule of the Mughal Emperors, there were different dynamics in each ruler's reign. Akbar was a perennialist while his successor Aurangzeb was an orthodox Muslim. So on and so forth. The strongest opposition to the Mughal rule came from the marahatta rebels. Sikhs also fought against Muslim rule but my grandmother tells me that the sikhs in her village used to live peacefully with them pre-partition. Yet misunderstanding during partition resulted in huge genocide committed by both Muslims and Sikhs.

Hindu Muslim conflicts always have been there. A Muslim is a But Shekan (destroyer of idols) while a Hindu builds and revers (Bhakti yoga) idols (not all Hindus can build them though, Shudras cannot for example). Hinduism is a system of diverse traditions. It strictly does not have a "political" entity like Islam. More or less the Brahmans were responsible for the political aspect of it. With some input from Kshatriyas. That is precisely why before the Muslim rule, India was controlled by different kings for centuries which go back to the Vedic period. Each king or "raja" had local areas. For example, Buddhism gained stronghold in ancient India because King Ashoka was a Buddhist. So before the Muslim rule in India, India was never united as it would later be during the initial Mughal rule.

The conflict between Hindus and Muslims aggravated due to the discrimination that Muslims encountered: both from the Hindu elites, who were always strong but further strengthened after the downfall of the Mughals, and the British rulers. But it was still at a local scale. Overall both Hindus and Muslims wanted to get rid of the Britishers as it is evident from the 1857 War of Independence. The polarity of Hindu vs Muslim strengthened later on and for the better. Even the leaders of Muslim League were struggling for United India against the British. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan is known for calling India a beautiful bride whose two eyes were Hindus and Muslims. He founded a modern college in Aligarh. In the late 1800s the anti-Hindu sentiment increased after witnessing events which Muslims felt were discriminatory. Ideologies such as Two Nation Theory etc were proposed. The founder of Pakistan, who was once struggling for a United India, became increasingly interested in a Muslim state. Such ideologies were further strengthened by the pro-Islamic poetry of Mohammad Iqbal, a remarkable Muslim philosopher and sufi of recent times. Connoisseurs of Urdu poetry must read his works. He also wrote Persian poetry. Rumi has been one of his inspirations.

Anyways, this is just history in brief. South Asian history is very interesting. I have been studying it till grade 12 from a Pro-Pakistani and a Muslim bias. At university level, I also got to read it from an Orientalist perspective. The fact remains that colonial Britishers have left a deep impact on the psyche of both Muslim and Hindus in South Asia. The Britishers hated the Jihadi movements that rose against them during their unjust rule and that is how the term Maulvi came to get negative connotations. Moreover, some have argued that the emergence of the fatalist Qadiyani sect was also supported by the British. The anti-Movli sentiments still prevail among the educated elite of Pakistan which is pathetic. I feel pity for them because they still have not completely attained freedom from British Masters.

Sorry for a disorganized post, I certainly am not in the mood to write eloquently here.

On that note, I'd suggest you to watch Mangal Panday characterized by Aamir Khan, a bollywood movie. It might not be completely accurate historically but it captures the general jist of the events leading to the War of Independence.

[Banu_Hashim]

The British rule was a blessing in disguise. The separate Muslim and Hindu identities, which are so obvious now, were nourished during the tumultuous and racist reign of the East India Company in the Indian Subcontinent which they called The Golden Sparrow. Muslim traitors also helped the East India Company to delve deep into Central South Asia. They had started from the extreme and entered through Bengal. The Nawab of Bengal Mir Jaffar is known for his treason. So much so that we use his name in Urdu as a metaphor for a traitor.

During the rule of the Mughal Emperors, there were different dynamics in each ruler's reign. Akbar was a perennialist while his successor Aurangzeb was an orthodox Muslim. So on and so forth. The strongest opposition to the Mughal rule came from the marahatta rebels. Sikhs also fought against Muslim rule but my grandmother tells me that the sikhs in her village used to live peacefully with them pre-partition. Yet misunderstanding during partition resulted in huge genocide committed by both Muslims and Sikhs.

Hindu Muslim conflicts always have been there. A Muslim is a But Shekan (destroyer of idols) while a Hindu builds and revers (Bhakti yoga) idols (not all Hindus can build them though, Shudras cannot for example). Hinduism is a system of diverse traditions. It strictly does not have a "political" entity like Islam. More or less the Brahmans were responsible for the political aspect of it. With some input from Kshatriyas. That is precisely why before the Muslim rule, India was controlled by different kings for centuries which go back to the Vedic period. Each king or "raja" had local areas. For example, Buddhism gained stronghold in ancient India because King Ashoka was a Buddhist. So before the Muslim rule in India, India was never united as it would later be during the initial Mughal rule.

The conflict between Hindus and Muslims aggravated due to the discrimination that Muslims encountered: both from the Hindu elites, who were always strong but further strengthened after the downfall of the Mughals, and the British rulers. But it was still at a local scale. Overall both Hindus and Muslims wanted to get rid of the Britishers as it is evident from the 1857 War of Independence. The polarity of Hindu vs Muslim strengthened later on and for the better. Even the leaders of Muslim League were struggling for United India against the British. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan is known for calling India a beautiful bride whose two eyes were Hindus and Muslims. He founded a modern college in Aligarh. In the late 1800s the anti-Hindu sentiment increased after witnessing events which Muslims felt were discriminatory. Ideologies such as Two Nation Theory etc were proposed. The founder of Pakistan, who was once struggling for a United India, became increasingly interested in a Muslim state. Such ideologies were further strengthened by the pro-Islamic poetry of Mohammad Iqbal, a remarkable Muslim philosopher and sufi of recent times. Connoisseurs of Urdu poetry must read his works. He also wrote Persian poetry. Rumi has been one of his inspirations.

Anyways, this is just history in brief. South Asian history is very interesting. I have been studying it till grade 12 from a Pro-Pakistani and a Muslim bias. At university level, I also got to read it from an Orientalist perspective. The fact remains that colonial Britishers have left a deep impact on the psyche of both Muslim and Hindus in South Asia. The Britishers hated the Jihadi movements that rose against them during their unjust rule and that is how the term Maulvi came to get negative connotations. Moreover, some have argued that the emergence of the fatalist Qadiyani sect was also supported by the British. The anti-Movli sentiments still prevail among the educated elite of Pakistan which is pathetic. I feel pity for them because they still have not completely attained freedom from British Masters.

Sorry for a disorganized post, I certainly am not in the mood to write eloquently here.

On that note, I'd suggest you to watch Mangal Panday characterized by Aamir Khan, a bollywood movie. It might not be completely accurate historically but it captures the general jist of the events leading to the War of Independence.

Brother, I really enjoyed reading your post. You might be interested in visitng a site run by my uncle:

www.TwoCircles.net

[CosmicPathos]

Brother, I really enjoyed reading your post. You might be interested in visitng a site run by my uncle:

www.TwoCircles.net

jazakAllah khairun.

I had a glance at the About Us section of the website.

I am a Muslim and profoundly conscious of the fact that I have inherited Islam's glorious tradition of the last fourteen hundred years. I am not prepared to lose even a small part of that legacy. The history and teachings of Islam, its arts and letters, its culture and civilization are part of my wealth and it is my duty to cherish and guard them. But, with all these feelings, I have another equally deep realization, born out of my life's experience which is strengthened and not hindered by the Islamic spirit. I am equally proud of the fact that I am an Indian, an essential part of the indivisible unity of the Indian nationhood, a vital factor in its total makeup, without which this noble edifice will remain incomplete.

--- Maulana Abul Kalam Azad

With all due respect, I do no agree with the above quote. :) As Muslims, our nationhood is Islamic emirate, which is made up of Muslims from all cultural and genetic backgrounds.

I will search through the website in detail soon. Thank you for providing the link.

[Banu_Hashim]

jazakAllah khairun.

I had a glance at the About Us section of the website.

I am a Muslim and profoundly conscious of the fact that I have inherited Islam's glorious tradition of the last fourteen hundred years. I am not prepared to lose even a small part of that legacy. The history and teachings of Islam, its arts and letters, its culture and civilization are part of my wealth and it is my duty to cherish and guard them. But, with all these feelings, I have another equally deep realization, born out of my life's experience which is strengthened and not hindered by the Islamic spirit. I am equally proud of the fact that I am an Indian, an essential part of the indivisible unity of the Indian nationhood, a vital factor in its total makeup, without which this noble edifice will remain incomplete.

--- Maulana Abul Kalam Azad

With all due respect, I do no agree with the above quote. :) As Muslims, our nationhood is Islamic emirate, which is made up of Muslims from all cultural and genetic backgrounds.

I will search through the website in detail soon. Thank you for providing the link.

That's perfectly alright, you don't have to agree with it and least of all tell me :p. To be honest with you, I do not agree with the quote entirely myself. But the focus of the website, that I thought you may have been interested in the situation and history of Muslims in the Indian Subcontinent.

Fee Amaanillah.