Page 32 - SST Class 07

He writes the inhabitants of Delhi were forced to raiding India was to seize the wealth of the Delhi
leave their homes and shift to Devagiri. When a Sultans. There was no
search was made, only a blind and a cripple one to stop this invasion.
person were found. At night, neither any lamp Timur’s army ransacked
could be seen nor any smoke. One could hear and plundered the various
the howling of the animals. towns on the way to
Delhi. Timur, then,
Al-Beruni
entered Delhi and looted
In 1017 AD, at the behest of Sultan Mahmud of
it, mercilessly killing
Persia, Al-Beruni (Aka Al-Beruni) travelled to
people.
India to learn about the Hindus and to discuss
Timur’s invasion com-
with them questions of religion, science and
pletely exposed the
literature and the very basis of their civilization.
weakness of the Delhi Timur
He remained in India for thirteen years, studying
Sultanate.
and exploring.
LODI DYNASTY
Al-Beruni’s scholarly work has not got the great
The Lodhi Dynasty under the Delhi Sultanate
recognition it deserves. Not for nearly eight
was the first Afghan Pashtun Dynasty in India
hundred years would any other writer match Al-
who ruled from AD 1451 to 1526. This dynasty
Beruni’s profound understanding of almost all
replaced the Sayyid Dynasty and it was a period
aspect of Indian life
of reforms in administration, strengthening the
Al-Beruni was a true genius, he was renowned as
army, gearing up the machinery of land revenue
a mathematician and an astronomer prior to his
administration, expansion and improvement of
India mission and had successfully captured the
the cultivation and welfare of the people.
time and meaning of India in his writing. For
instance, he gives the Hindu’s concept of God in SIKANDER LODI (1489-1517)
Chapter-II of his ‘Tarikh Al-Hind’ (History of The most important Lodi Sultan was Sikander
India) which is astonishingly faithful to the Lodi. He brought the nobles under his control.
complex definitions of the Hindus believes. He established efficient administrative system.
He laid great emphasis on justice and all the
Al-Beruni not only studied Sanskrit literature, but
highways of the empire were made safe from
also met many Indian mathematicians and
robbers and bandits. The prices of all essential
philosophers. It is rather ironic that some of the
most comprehensive study of Indian of the
middle ages is performed by an Islamic scholar.
In his notes, we find elaborate descriptions and
discussions of divinity, literature and mathemati-
cal equations.

TIMUR’S INVASION (1398)
The weakness of the Delhi Sultanate was made
even worse by Timur’s invasion of Delhi (1398
AD). Timur was a Turk, but he could claim a
blood relationship with changes. His motive for
Lodi Tomb

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