Paper short abstract:

Short Abstract Critical review of the relationship of Aurangzeb with the Kachvahas as expressed in literary sources.

Paper long abstract:

Long Abstract

Currents of estrangement had been underlying the relationship between the Kachvaha kings of Amber/Jaipur with the Mughal court especially since the late 1660s. This expressed itself in symbolic and practical political action, in diplomatic correspondence, and in literature. The written records are in Indic languages, Persian, and English.

Whereas the contribution will review those various ways of representing the relationship, it will mainly dwell on its literary expression. In sources from the Kachvaha milieu, writing about the strained relationships took usually place much after the actual events, at a time when the Kachvaha state was vigorously asserting its identity as a Hindu kingdom vis-à-vis the weakened empire. If they take sides, these sources break down political complexity to encounters between heroes or heroes and villains, as the case may be. As for the undated bardic literature, it treats the issue in a peculiar literary form that neutralizes events and makes actions and acting characters almost interchangeable. The emphasis of the contribution is therefore on the examination of literary and other norms of expression that govern the sources at our disposal.