Абуль-Фазль: Визирь Акбара и летописец империи Великих Моголов

Grand vizier of Mughal emperor Akbar from 1579 to 1602

Abu'l Fazl ibn Mubarak, also known as Abul Fazl, Abu'l Fadl and Abu'l Fadl 'Allami (14 January 1551 – 22 August 1602), was an Indian writer, historian, and politician who served as the grand vizier of the Mughal Empire from his appointment in 1579, until his death in 1602. His notable works include the Akbarnama, Ain i Akbari, and a Persian translation of the Bible. Abul Fazl was initially appointed into Akbar's court as a military commander serving in Deccan, where he was held in high regard. He was popularly known for his theory Padshahat which stated the established owner, the emperor, could not be overthrown, as he was an agent of God for the welfare of his subjects and maintains peace and harmony in his empire. Abul Fazl is often referred to as one of the Nine Jewels of Akbar's royal court and the brother of Faizi, the poet laureate of Emperor Akbar.

Abul Fazl ibn Mubarak was of Sindhi descent and a descendant of Shaikh Musa, who lived in Rel near Siwistan (Sehwan), Sindh, until the close of the 15th century. His grandfather, Shaikh Khizr, moved to Nagaur which had attained importance as a Sufi mystic center under Shaikh Hamid ud din Sufi Sawali, a khalifa of Shaikh Muin ud din Chisti of Ajmer. His ancestors allegedly hailed from Yemen. However, it was common during the Delhi Sultanate and Mughal Empire for individuals to embellish their ancestral heritage to raise their stature. At Nagaur Shaikh Khizr settled near the tomb of Shaikh Hamid ud din.

Abul Fazl's father, Shaikh Mubarak was born in 1506 at Nagaur. Soon after Abul Fazl's birth, Khizr travelled to Sindh to bring other members of his family to Nagaur but he died on the way. Khizr's death and a famine and plague that ravaged Nagaur caused great hardship to the destitute Mubarak and his mother. Despite these hardships, Mubarak's mother arranged a good education for him. One of Mubarak's earliest teacher was Shaikh Attan who was known for his piety. Another important teacher who influenced Shaikh Mubarak was Shaikh Fayyazi, a disciple of Khwaja Ubaidullah Ahrar. Later he went to Ahmedabad and studied under Shaikh Abu'l Fazl Gazruni (who adopted him as a son), Shaikh Umar and Shaikh Yusuf. Yusuf advised Mubarak to go to Agra and set up a madrasah there. Mubarak reached Agra in April 1543 and on the suggestion of Shaikh Alawal Balawal set up his residence at Charbagh, which was built by Babur on the left bank of Yamuna. Mir Rafi'ud din Safavi of Inju (Shiraz) lived close by and Mubarak married a near relative of his. Mubarak established his madrash in Agra where his special field of instruction was philosophy and he attracted a number of scholars to his lectures such as Mulla Abdul Qadir Badauni. He also spent some time in Badaun, holy land of Sufism. The Orthodox group of Ulama criticised Mubarak and accused him of changing his views. Khwaja Ubaidullah, who was brought up in the house of Shaikh Mubarak's daughter, was of the opinion that Mubarak's views changed with the change in the political climate and he adopted the religious attitudes of rulers and nobles of those days out of expediency. For example, he was a Sunni during the reign of Sultan Ibrahim Lodi, became a Naqshbandi during the Sur period, was a Mahdavia during the reign of Humayun and a protagonist of liberal thought under Akbar.

Shaikh Mubarak's first son, the poet Abu'l Faiz and his second son Abu'l Fazl were born in Agra. Abul Fazl's education began with Arabic and by the age of five he could read and write. His father started teaching him about all the branches of Islamic sciences (manqulat) but Abul Fazl could not adhere to conventional learning and he sank in a state of mental depression. A friend rescued him from this state and he resumed his studies. Some incidents from his early life reflect on his brilliance. A dictionary of Ishafani, which had been eaten by white ants came under his observation. He removed the parts that had been eaten and joined blank paper to the rest. He discovered the beginning and end of each fragment and eventually penned a draft text. Subsequently, the entire work was discovered and on comparison to Abul Fazl's draft the original differed in only two or three places. He came to Akbar's court in 1575 and was influential in Akbar's religious views becoming more liberal into the 1580s and 1590s. In 1599, Abu’l Fazl was given his first office in the Deccan, where he was recognized for his ability as a military commander, leading the Mughal imperial army in its wars against the Deccan Sultanates. Akbar also records witnessing the passage of the Great Comet of 1577.

The Akbarnama is a document of history of Akbar's reign and his ancestors spread over three volumes. It contains the history of Akbar's ancestors from Timur to Humayun, Akbar's reign up to the 46th regnal year (1602), and an administrative report of Akbar's empire, the Ain i Akbari, which itself is in three volumes. The third volume of Ain i Akbari gives an account of the ancestry and life of the author. The Ain i Akbari was completed in the 42nd regnal year, but a slight addition was made to it in the 43rd regnal year on the account of the conquest of Berar.

Abul Fazl said that sovereignty was not restricted to a particular faith. As the king was considered an agent of God, he cannot discriminate among various faiths present in society and in case the king discriminates on the basis of caste, religion or class then he would not be considered a just king.

Abu'l Fazl was assassinated while he was returning from the Deccan by Vir Singh Bundela (who later became the ruler of Orchha) between Sarai Vir and Antri (near Gwalior) in a plot contrived by Akbar's eldest son Prince Salim (who later became the Emperor Jahangir) in 1602, because Abu'l Fazl was known to oppose the accession of Prince Salim to the throne. His severed head was sent to Salim at Allahabad. Abu'l Fazl was buried at Antri. Abu'l Fazl's son Shaikh Afzal Khan (29 December 1571 – 1613) was later appointed governor of Bihar in 1608 by Jahangir.