Page:Akbar and the Rise of the Mughal Empire.djvu/153

 CHAPTER XII

The Principles and Internal Administration of Akbar

"The success of the three branches of the government, and the fulfilment of the wishes of the subject,' writes the author of the Ain-í-Akbarí, 'whether great or small, depend upon the manner in which a king spends his time.'

Tried by this test, the cause of the success of Akbar as a man and as a ruler can be logically traced. Not only was he methodical, but there ran through his method a most earnost desire to think and do what was right in itself and conducive to the great aim of his life, the building of an edifice which, rooted in the people's hearts, would be independent of the personality of the ruler. Before I attempt to state in detail the means he adopted to attain this end, I propose to say a few words on a subject which may be said to underlie the whole question, the conformation of his mind and the manner in which it was affected by matters relating to the spiritual condition of mankind. Than this there cannot be any more important investigation, for it depended entirely on the structure of his mind, and its power to accept