Q.Select a small section of the Ain (10-12 pages, available online at the website indicated below). Read it carefully and prepare a report on how it can be used by a historian.

Imagine you find an old diary written by your great-grandfather. It describes a grand family feast — but you know from other relatives that there was a huge fight that day, and the feast was cancelled. Would you trust the diary completely? Probably not. You’d ask: Who wrote this? Why? What did they leave out?

That’s exactly what source criticism is — but applied to historical documents. And Ain-i-Akbari is one of the most famous sources we have for Mughal history.

What is the Ain-i-Akbari?

The Ain-i-Akbari (literally “Institutes of Akbar”) is the third and final volume of the Akbarnama, the official history of Emperor Akbar’s reign. It was written by Abu’l Fazl, Akbar’s close friend, courtier, and ideologue. The book is not a story — it’s a detailed administrative manual. It lists everything: the empire’s provinces, revenue rates, army organisation, prices of goods, salaries of officials, even the emperor’s daily routine and the number of elephants in the stables.

For a student of commerce or humanities, think of it as a government annual report — but from the 1590s. It tells you how the Mughal state wanted to be seen: efficient, rational, and all-powerful.

Why do we need to “criticise” such a detailed source?

Because no source is neutral. Every document has a purpose, a perspective, and a context. The Ain-i-Akbari was written to glorify Akbar and justify his policies. Abu’l Fazl was not an independent journalist — he was a loyal servant. So when you read it, you must ask:

• Who is the author? Abu’l Fazl was a scholar, a Sufi mystic, and Akbar’s chief propagandist. He believed Akbar was a divinely guided ruler.
• What was the purpose? To show Akbar as a perfect king who brought order and justice. The book was meant to impress both the Mughal elite and future generations.
• What is included? Everything that made Akbar look good: efficient revenue collection, religious tolerance (the Sulh-i-Kul policy), a well-organised army.
• What is left out? Rebellions, famines, peasant suffering, the brutal wars of conquest, and the voices of ordinary people. The Ain is silent on the human cost of empire.

What does the NCERT textbook say?

The NCERT Class 12 History textbook (Themes in Indian History – Part II) discusses the Ain-i-Akbari in detail. It emphasises that:

• The Ain is a normative text — it describes how things should be, not necessarily how they were. For example, the revenue rates it lists were ideal targets, not always what was actually collected.
• Abu’l Fazl used a specific format (the Ain or “regulation”) to present information. This format itself reflects Akbar’s desire for centralisation and control.
• The textbook asks students to compare the Ain with other sources, like the Muntakhab-ut-Tawarikh (written by a critic of Akbar, Badauni) or the accounts of Jesuit missionaries at Akbar’s court. This comparison reveals contradictions and biases.

How to apply source criticism to the Ain-i-Akbari (a quick checklist)

When you read a passage from the Ain, ask yourself:

1. Who is speaking? (Abu’l Fazl, a court insider) …