Were Mughals not Indians?

Dunno what I will be labeled for saying this... I am not too sure how to put it but let's try.

When we spend our childhood or a significant part of our life at any place, that place owns a part of us. We go live our early career years in the USA only to acquire part of its culture. A foreign student who studied at Banaras Hindu University will keep coming back for those ghats, temples, and culture.



Based on the above deduction, I think it is alright if the Mughals ruled India for 800 years. Maybe Babar was an outsider, but he settled here in India, his following generations were born here and thus, are part of Indian culture.

They did force people to convert and many converted. But forced conversions still happen. Besides, we love Mughal structures - Taj Mahal, Red Fort, Qutub Minar, and Mughlai cuisine - Biryani, Haleem, etc. So, what's the point of hating them?

I think it's time we stopped seeing Mughals as outsiders and accept them as part of Indian culture. There may have been Mughals who hated Hindus, but they loved the overall Indian culture. It can be seen in the institutions they built, the kind of people they employed, and many other things.

I am not leaning toward the Left or something. I am just wondering how long and who we will hate. Nobody's going to benefit from that hate. Be it Muslims or Hindus following Sanatana Dharma, let's not hate each other. It will help only the power centers and induce bitterness in our lives.

Let's stop reacting foolishly to the stupid statements made by politicians and religious caretakers.

Disturbances were always there. Before the Mughals, there were looters like Mongols. Prior to that, Hindu kings were always at war with each other. Disturbances are part of any culture and are necessary to bring in change.

Let's not forget the past. But let's not cling to it either. We need to improve the quality of our lives. We are born to do something for humankind. Let it be something that binds us to sweeten our lives, not something that tends to increase the sourness already present in society.






~
Arun Kumar

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