Bernier’s Account of India | History Optional for UPSC (Notes) PDF Download

Introduction

• François Bernier was a French physician, traveler, political philosopher, and historian who spent twelve years in India from 1656 to 1668. He was closely associated with the Mughal court, serving as a physician to Prince Dara Shikoh, the eldest son of Emperor Shah Jahan. After Dara Shikoh's demise, Bernier was attached to the court of Emperor Aurangzeb.
• Bernier wrote Travels in the Mughal Empire, focusing on the reigns of Dara Shikoh and Aurangzeb. His work is based on his extensive travels and observations, as well as information from prominent Mughal courtiers. He often compared his experiences in India with situations in Europe.
• In his writings, Bernier expressed a keen interest in science and technology. He shared new discoveries in areas like blood circulation with Indian nobles, but he criticized the lack of interest among Indian hakims and vaids in such advancements. He noted the absence of academies for scientific study in India, except for madrasas focused on religious education.
• Bernier's accounts also shed light on the jagirdar-peasant relations in mid-17th century India. He observed that the frequent transfers of jagirs led to a lack of concern for the peasantry's welfare. Jagirdars, governors, and revenue contractors exploited the peasantry without regard for the deteriorating state of agriculture.

His major observations

• In Mughal India, there was no private property in land. The emperor owned all the land, which he distributed among his nobles, who in turn allocated it to peasants.
• This system of crown ownership of land was seen as harmful to both the state and its people, unlike in Europe where private property was more common.

Consequences of Crown Ownership:

• Due to crown ownership, landholders in Mughal India could not pass their land on to their children. This discouraged long-term investment in agriculture and production.
• Bernier, a contemporary observer, described Indian society as divided between a small, powerful ruling class and a vast majority of impoverished people, with no middle class in between.

Bernier's Critique of the Mughal Empire:

• Bernier viewed the Mughal Empire negatively, describing its king as ruler over "beggars and barbarians" and its cities as ruined and unhealthy.
• He criticized the state of the land, noting that fields were overgrown with bushes and full of marshes.
• Bernier attributed these problems largely to the system of crown ownership of land.

Mughal Official Documents:

• Interestingly, official documents from the Mughal period do not support the idea that the state was the sole owner of land. This suggests a disparity between Bernier's observations and the official stance of the Mughal administration.

Evaluation of this observation

• Mughal official documents do not indicate that the state was the sole owner of land.
• Land revenue was viewed as “remunerations of sovereignty,” reflecting the ruler’s claim on subjects for protection, not as rent on owned land.
• European travelers may have perceived these claims as rent due to the high land revenue demands.
• However, land revenue was a tax on the crop, not rent or land tax.

Influence of Bernier’s Descriptions on Western Theorists:

• Bernier’s observations impacted Western theorists from the eighteenth century onwards.
• For example, French philosopher Montesquieu used Bernier’s account to formulate the concept of oriental despotism.
• Oriental despotism suggested that Asian rulers held absolute power over their subjects, who lived in subjugation and poverty.
• It was argued that all land belonged to the king and private property was non-existent.
• This notion portrayed a society where only the emperor and his nobles thrived, while others barely survived.

Development of the Asiatic Mode of Production by Karl Marx:

• Karl Marx further developed the idea of oriental despotism into the concept of the Asiatic mode of production in the nineteenth century.
• Marx contended that in pre-colonial India and other Asian countries, surplus was appropriated by the state.
• This led to the formation of a society with numerous autonomous and internally egalitarian village communities.
• The imperial court oversaw these communities, honoring their autonomy as long as the surplus flow was uninterrupted.
• This system was perceived as stagnant.

Reality of Rural Society in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries:

• Contrary to the stagnant perception, rural society during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries exhibited significant social and economic differentiation.
• At one extreme were big zamindars with superior land rights.
• At the other extreme were “untouchable” landless laborers.
• In between were big peasants who hired labor and engaged in commodity production, and smaller peasants who struggled to produce enough for subsistence.

A more complex social reality: No care for artisans

• Artisans' Lack of Incentive: Bernier believed that artisans in India had no motivation to improve the quality of their products because the profits were taken by the state. As a result, the quality of manufactured goods was declining everywhere.
• Flow of Precious Metals: Despite the decline in manufacturing quality, Bernier acknowledged that a vast amount of the world's precious metals, such as gold and silver, were flowing into India. This was because Indian manufactures were being exported in exchange for these precious metals.
• Prosperous Merchant Community: Bernier also observed the presence of a thriving merchant community in India. These merchants were actively engaged in long-distance trade, contributing to the flow of goods and precious metals into the country.

Mughal Cities: Camp towns

• Bernier described Mughal cities as "camp towns."
• He believed these cities thrived when the imperial court was present and declined when it moved out.
• Bernier estimated Shah Jahan's great camp to have a total strength of around 3-4 lakh people.

Evaluation of Urban Population:

• During the seventeenth century, 15 percent of the population lived in towns, which was higher than the urban population proportion in Western Europe at the time.
• There were various types of towns, including manufacturing towns, trading towns, port towns, sacred centers, and pilgrimage towns.
• The existence of these towns indicates the prosperity of merchant communities and professional classes.

Merchant Communities:

• Merchants often had strong community or kin ties and were organized into caste-cum-occupational bodies.In western India, these groups were known as mahajans, with their chief being the sheth or nagarsheth.

Urban Professional Classes:

• Urban groups included professional classes such as physicians (hakim or vaid), teachers (pundit or mulla), lawyers (wakil), painters, architects, musicians, calligraphers, and others.

Sati and women Labourers

• European travelers and writers often used the treatment of women as a key point of comparison between Western and Eastern societies. Bernier's detailed description of the practice of sati highlighted this difference. He observed that while some women appeared to embrace death willingly, others were coerced into it.
• However, the reality of women's lives encompassed much more than just the practice of sati. Women's labor was essential in both agricultural and non-agricultural production. Women from merchant families actively engaged in commercial activities, sometimes even bringing mercantile disputes to court.
• Given this involvement, it seems unlikely that women were solely confined to the private spheres of their homes.

Other observations

• In his book "Travels of Francois Bernier," the author provides a detailed account of Agra and Delhi, as well as the revenue resources of the Mughal Empire.
• Bernier observes that a significant portion of Aurangzeb's nobility was comprised of Persians.
• According to Bernier, the extravagant lifestyle of the Mughal nobles led to their financial downfall.
• He also offers a firsthand account of Imperial karkhanas(workshops) in Delhi.
• Bernier notes that wealthy merchants often appeared indignant to avoid being seen as "filled sponges" for exploitation.
• His travels in the Mughal Empire are characterized by meticulous observations, critical insights, and reflections.
• Bernier frequently compares Mughal India with contemporary Europe, generally highlighting Europe's superiority.
• He portrays India in contrast to Europe, presenting it as the opposite and hierarchically inferior.
• However, his assessments were not always accurate, reflecting a biased perspective.