Ain a akbri

The Ain-i Akbari of Abu’l Fazl Allami

1. Ain-i Akbari is a compilation of imperial regulations and a gazetteer of the empire.
2. It is a part of the Akbar Nama and was completed in 1598, after having gone through five revisions.
3. The Ain gives detailed accounts of the organisation of the court, administration and army, the sources of revenue and the physical layout of the provinces of Akbar’s empire and the literary, cultural and religious traditions of the people.
4. The Ain is made up of five books (daftars), of which the first three books describe the administration.
5. The first book, called manzil-abadi, concerns the imperial household and its maintenance. The second book, sipah-abadi, covers the military and civil administration and the establishment of servants. This book includes notices and short biographical sketches of imperial officials (mansabdars), learned men, poets and artists.
6. The third book, mulk-abadi, is the one which deals with the fiscal side of the empire and provides information on revenue rates, followed by the “Account of the Twelve Provinces”.
7. The Ain remains an extraordinary document of its times. By providing fascinating glimpses into the structure and organisation of the Mughal Empire and by giving us quantitative information about its products and people.