Barani on Politics of the Delhi Sultanate

Barani on Politics of the Delhi Sultanate

The major book on the political philosophy of the Delhi Sultanate is the Principles of Government (Fatawa-i Jahandari) by the historian Khwaja Zia-ud-din Barani.
He was an aristocratic Muslim but was unable to get a post in the government of 'Ala-ud-din Khalji. Barani did serve in the court of Muhammad bin Tughluq from the tenth year of his reign; but when Firuz Shah became Sultan, the seventy-year-old Barani was imprisoned five months for supporting the rebellion of Khwaja-i Jahan and had his property confiscated.

Barani spent his last eight or nine years in poverty writing his famous history Tarikh-i Firuz Shahi, which covers the first century of the Delhi Sultanate up to 1357, and his political treatise. Because of his extreme poverty he had to write both of these works mostly from memory.
 Hoping to improve his situation, his history of Firuz Shah's early reign is filled with praise and flattery even for policies he criticized elsewhere. In his history Barani recalled specific conversations he had with Sultan Tughluq.
In one he was asked about capital punishment, and to the three crimes for which the Prophet prescribed capital punishment-apostasy, murder, and adultery-Barani added the four crimes kings must punish with the death penalty as conspiracy to rebel, rebellion, aiding the king's enemies, and disobedience that endangers the state.
Tughluq replied that he was executing people for every slight disobedience and planned to continue doing so until they perished or their rebellion ended. After the Sultan had crushed a rebellion in the Deccan, Barani wrote that he did not have the courage to say that he believed the Sultan's excessive capital punishments had caused hatred and the rebellion.
Barani complained that Tughluq appointed Hindus and men of low birth to high offices. He definitely looked at Muslim government from the perspective of his aristocratic class, and he very much resented the Muslim slaves(sultani) in the government and hated Hindus even more.
His bias was so strong that he even considered religious piety the privilege of good birth. He argued that state offices should be hereditary. Barani also hated philosophers, scientists, heretics, and low-born Muslims as well as Hindus, against whom he advocated war. Yet the economic system of India was primarily managed by the upper caste Hindus.
Although his own history was based on his personal observations and is respected, his erroneous ideas of other history seem to have been based on many histories that were fabricated to make money and which naturally have been lost as worthless.
In his work on government, Fatawa-i Jahandari, Barani used the sultan Mahmud of Ghazni as his spokesman and thus was not able to give examples later than the 11th century.
Barani emphasized the importance of good counsel and listed the conditions of good consultation as frank expression by counselors, who should be permanent, aware of state secrets, and have perfect security. The king should begin by keeping his opinions secret.
Discussion should be held before eating in order to have clear heads, and unanimous decisions by the counselors are recommended. To avoid tyranny the king should make correct determinations for the general welfare and avoid weakness in carrying them out.
Although rulers are not perfect, Barani believed they need force and authority to enforce justice among the people. A king is allowed some injustice in regard to expenditure in order to maintain himself.
Barani emphasized the importance of grading the ranks of the officials in order to elevate the worthy nobles, and he argued that elevating the base-born is a disgraceful mistake. Kings are obligated to appoint intelligence officers. Because of the demonic in the world, Barani believed that early days of the four pious Caliphs were past.
Barani believed that prices should be controlled according to the costs of production; this would especially aid the efficiency of the army as well as others.
 Barani wanted to establish Islamic truth at the center, but he knew that falsehood could not be completely destroyed. Yet to honor theism he advocated slaughtering the Brahmins in India.
He also urged prohibiting the education of the lower orders lest they become more capable. These offensive polices are contrasted to the qualities he listed that the wise have recommended for judges which begins with kinship with the oppressed, desire to protect the weak, hatred of the unjust, and enmity to oppressors.
A good judge has no feeling of revenge, does not tolerate wrongs, trembles lest the innocent be punished, is not influenced by anyone, does not seek approval, does not consider harm to himself, is incapable of self-deception, is stern for the claims of others but forgiving for one's personal concerns, does not obligate himself to others, and he instinctively rejects deceptions, lies, false excuses, and tricks.
A king must recognize the rights of the people. The king should not interfere with the punishments of Islamic law (shari'at), but the death penalty in political trials should only be inflicted in extreme cases.
The king must also establish and enforce permanent state laws. First, these must protect the religion of Islam. Second, sins and shameful deeds must be suppressed. Third, rules of the shari'at must be enforced. Fourth, justice must be enforced. Barani added to this the right of those of noble birth to govern, and he held that non-Muslims are to be considered enemies and could be plundered by force.
The permanent state laws should be made with the benefit of counsel from men of learning and intelligence. The king should be characterized by high resolve, which to Barani meant generosity not miserliness. He warned that if the king afflicts his subjects with exactions that are too harsh, they will be unable to comply and will rebel.
All religions consider severe exactions wrong, and they are injurious to the state. The king must have contradictory qualities in order to be able to handle the virtuous and the wicked.
To justify the privileges of the high-born, Barani argued that merits are apportioned to souls and that aptitude is hereditary. He believed that only those in the nobler professions are capable of virtues such as kindness, generosity, valor, truthfulness, keeping promises, protecting other classes, loyalty, justice, gratitude, and fear of God.
He held that protecting the old families was to the advantage of the king. The king should avoid the five mean qualities of falsehood, changeability, deception, wrath, and promotion of the unjust.
Barani noted that Mu'awiya established Muslim monarchy by organizing a governing class from noble Arab clans, by giving the ruler the right to nominate his successor, and by organizing a group of religious scholars. Although Barani favored hereditary rights, he was unable to define a noble family.