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Transcript
- Lucas: So we've talked a lot about Aurangzeb and his policies toward Hindus and Sikhs, but there's one religious community we haven't touched on yet: Buddhists. Luna: Buddhists? I didn't think there were many Buddhists left in India by the Mughal period. Lucas: That's a common assumption, and it's mostly true — Buddhism had been in decline in the subcontinent for centuries. But there were still important Buddhist communities, especially in the Deccan and along the northwestern frontiers, in places like Ladakh and Kashmir. And Aurangzeb, true to form, had a complicated relationship with them. Lucas: The maasir i alamgiri records several instances where Aurangzeb ordered the destruction of Buddhist monasteries. One notable case is at Sannati, in present-day Karnataka, where a flourishing Buddhist complex was razed in the 1660s. The monks were given a choice: convert to Islam or leave. Most refused and were executed. Luna: Wait, the maasir i alamgiri actually says that? I thought it was a fairly dry court chronicle. Lucas: It is mostly dry, but it does include such orders, often in passing. The chronicler writes about the destruction as a matter of policy, not with any particular relish. And there's corroboration from European travelers. Niccolao Manucci mentions that Aurangzeb was particularly hostile toward Buddhist monks because of their perceived links with the Mongol and Tibetan polities — remember, the Mongols had embraced Tibetan Buddhism, and Aurangzeb was deeply suspicious of any potential alliance between Buddhist communities and his northern enemies. Lucas: There's also the case of the great monastery at Ratnagiri, in Odisha. That was already in decline, but Aurangzeb's governors finished the job. The stupas were dismantled, the statues smashed, and the site repurposed as a garrison. Luna: So he targeted Buddhists because of geopolitics, not just theology? Lucas: Exactly. Aurangzeb's religious policy was never purely theological. It was always intertwined with political calculation. Buddhists in the Deccan were seen as potential fifth columnists for the Marathas, who themselves had Buddhist influences. And in the northwest, the Buddhist kingdom of Ladakh was a buffer between the Mughals and Tibet, which was under Mongol influence. In 1664, Aurangzeb sent an army to subdue Ladakh, and part of the campaign involved suppressing Buddhist monasteries. Lucas: The chronicles say that the Ladakhi king, Deldan Namgyal, was forced to convert to Islam and demolish several gompas — that's the Tibetan word for monasteries. But later sources suggest the conversion was nominal, and the king quickly reverted once the Mughal army left. Luna: So it was more about control than conversion. Lucas: Right. And that's the pattern we see throughout Aurangzeb's reign. He used religious policy as a tool of political consolidation. Buddhism was a particular target because it was associated with foreign powers — the Mongols, the Tibetans, and even the Portuguese, who sometimes allied with Buddhist communities on the coast. Lucas: There's also the legal dimension. The fatawa e alamgiri, which Aurangzeb commissioned, codified Islamic law for the empire. It classified Buddhists as a protected community? Actually, no — Buddhists were not explicitly mentioned in the traditional dhimmi categories. That made them vulnerable. Without a clear legal status, local governors could treat them as polytheists and apply the full force of iconoclasm. Luna: So the Fatawa itself created a loophole for persecution. Lucas: Precisely. And that loophole was exploited. In Kashmir, for example, Aurangzeb's governor, Saif Khan, destroyed several Buddhist shrines and built mosques on their foundations. The local Buddhist population, which had been a significant minority, was reduced to a handful of families by the end of Aurangzeb's reign. Lucas: Now, I should say that not all Buddhists were treated equally. The monks of the Sakya sect in Tibet were actually respected by Aurangzeb's court? No, that's not true. There was a brief period of diplomacy when the Mughals sought an alliance with the Dalai Lama against the Uzbek Khanate, but that fell apart. Aurangzeb eventually saw Tibetan Buddhism as a threat and banned the construction of new monasteries in the empire. Luna: It's interesting how this fits into the bigger picture of Aurangzeb's reign. He wasn't just a zealot; he was a pragmatist who used religion as a weapon. Lucas: Absolutely. And this is why I wanted to cover this topic. The story of Buddhism under Aurangzeb complicates the simple narrative of a bigoted emperor. Yes, he persecuted Buddhists — but the reasons were as much political as religious. And the legacy is still visible today. Many of the great Buddhist sites in India, like Sannati and Ratnagiri, were already ruined by the time the British arrived, and Aurangzeb's policies contributed to that. Luna: And yet, there's a sort of irony here. Buddhism was practically extinct in India by the time Aurangzeb came to power. His persecution was almost... an overkill. Lucas: Yeah, it's like kicking a wounded animal. But it tells us something about his mindset — he saw any non-Muslim community as a potential threat, no matter how small. And that insecurity, that need to control, ultimately weakened the empire. Lucas: Speaking of weakening the empire — you know, it strikes me that if this conversation has been worth a coffee to you, that's the link. Buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Just a small way to keep these conversations going, no ads, just history. Luna: Yeah, honestly, it means a lot. So, back to Buddhism — what about the archaeological evidence? Do we have any physical remains of these destroyed monasteries? Lucas: We do. At Sannati, excavations in the 1990s uncovered a massive stupa that had been deliberately demolished. The stones were reused in local buildings. At Ratnagiri, the main stupa was found with its harmika — the top part — smashed, and the Buddha statues had their faces chiseled off. That's consistent with iconoclastic attacks ordered by Mughal officials. Lucas: There's also a fascinating account from a Tibetan pilgrim, Taranatha, who visited India in the early 1600s and saw thriving Buddhist communities. By the time another Tibetan, Sumpa Yeshe Peljor, came in the 1680s, he found only ruins. He blamed the "Mughal king" specifically. Luna: So the decline of Indian Buddhism was accelerated by Mughal policy. Lucas: Absolutely. The process had started centuries earlier with the Muslim invasions, but Aurangzeb's systematic targeting of Buddhist institutions was the final blow. By the time he died in 1707, Buddhism was effectively gone from most of the Mughal heartland, surviving only in the Himalayas and the far south. Lucas: One more detail: The maasir i alamgiri records that in 1669, Aurangzeb issued a general order to demolish all "schools and temples of the infidels." That included Buddhist viharas — the monasteries that also served as educational centers. The order specifically mentioned "idolaters," which in the context of the Deccan included Buddhists. Luna: So that's the same order that led to the destruction of Hindu temples, but it also wiped out Buddhist learning. Lucas: Exactly. And that's a part of Aurangzeb's legacy that often gets overlooked. When we think of his religious policies, we think of the jizya and the Hindu temple demolitions. But the Buddhist story adds another layer — a reminder that his intolerance was broad and systematic. Lucas: There's a coda to this. In the 18th century, as the Mughal Empire crumbled, some Buddhist communities tried to revive their traditions. But the damage was done. The monks were gone, the manuscripts were burned, and the stupas were rubble. It's a loss that still reverberates in South Asian history. Luna: It's a sobering thought. But I'm glad we talked about this. It adds so much nuance to Aurangzeb's reign. Lucas: And that's what we're here for — to dig into the corners that don't get the spotlight. Next time, maybe we'll look at something lighter, like Mughal cuisine. But for now, I think we've given Aurangzeb's Buddhist victims a little of the attention they deserve.