History · Ch 5 — Through the Eyes of Travellers — Perceptions of Society
A unique system of communication
A unique system of communication
The postal system: a marvel of efficiency
Ibn Battuta was deeply impressed by the Indian postal system, which he saw as a key reason for the state’s success in encouraging trade. The system was not just for official messages — it allowed merchants to send information, transfer credit over long distances, and even dispatch urgently needed goods. Its speed was astonishing: a journey from Sind to Delhi that took fifty days by normal travel could be covered by the postal system in just five days. Spies’ reports reached the Sultan at this remarkable pace.
Two kinds of post: horse and foot
Ibn Battuta describes two distinct systems:
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Horse-post (uluq): Royal horses were stationed every four miles. A courier would ride one horse to the next station, then switch to a fresh horse and continue. This was the faster option for longer distances, but still slower than the foot-post.
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Foot-post (dawa): This was the truly extraordinary system. Stations were set up every third of a mile — three stations per mile. At each station, three men sat ready in pavilions, with girded loins, holding a rod two cubits long with copper bells at the top. When a courier arrived from the previous station, he would hand the letter to one of these men, who would immediately sprint to the next station, shaking the rod so the bells rang. The sound alerted the next team, who would be ready to take the letter and run. This chain continued until the letter reached its destination.
Ibn Battuta explicitly states that the foot-post was quicker than the horse-post. It was even used to transport prized fruits from Khurasan to India — a sign of how reliable and fast the system was.
A strange nation? Abdur Razzaq’s mixed reactions
The travelogue of Abdur Razzaq, written in the 1440s, shows how travellers could hold contradictory impressions. On reaching the port of Calicut (modern Kozhikode) in Kerala, he was unsettled by the people he saw, calling them “a strange nation” — “a people the likes of whom I had never imagined.” This reflects the shock of encountering a completely unfamiliar culture.
Yet later, when he crossed the Western Ghats and reached Mangalore, he saw a bronze-covered temple that filled him with genuine admiration — a square idol-house with a golden, ruby-eyed statue so lifelike it seemed to see (see Source 10).
This passage shows how a traveller could move from discomfort to wonder, and how their descriptions could be both critical and admiring — sometimes within the same journey. …
Source 10 — A strange nation? Abdur Razzaq's travelogue (1440s) mixes distaste and admiration. At Calicut (Kozhikode) he found "a people the likes of whom I had never imagined", a "strange nation"; yet near Mangalore a temple filled him with wonder:
Within three leagues (about nine miles) of Mangalore, I saw an idol-house the likes of which is not to be found in all the world. It was a square, approximately ten yards a side, five yards in height, all covered with cast bronze, with four porticos. In the entrance portico was a statue in the likeness of a human being, full stature, made of gold. It had two red rubies for eyes, so cunningly made that you would say it could see. What craft and artisanship! …