Mahzar

Also called: Infallibility decree · Topic: The Mughal Empire: Babur to Aurangzeb · NCERT: Beyond NCERT

Meaning

The Mahzar (1579) was a written declaration signed by leading ulema (Muslim religious scholars). It gave Akbar, as an Imam-i-Adil (just ruler), the right to choose one opinion when the scholars disagreed on a point of Islamic law. He could also issue new orders, as long as they agreed with the Quran and helped the people.

It matters because it moved the final word on religious disputes from the ulema to the emperor. That gave Akbar room to follow sulh-i-kul ("peace with all") in a mixed empire.

Explanation

Background: why Akbar wanted it

By the 1570s Akbar was in the middle, mostly peaceful phase of his reign. In this phase his policy shifted from conquest to conciliation.
His court was at Fatehpur Sikri (1572–1585) [1]. There he built the Ibadat Khana (House of Worship). This was a hall for religious debates.
The debates went badly for the ulema:
At first only Muslim scholars took part. They quarrelled openly and insulted each other.
Akbar saw that the scholars who claimed to know the law could not agree among themselves.
Later the hall was opened to scholars of other faiths too.
Two senior ulema held great power in religious and legal matters:
Makhdum-ul-Mulk
Shaikh Abdun Nabi (the sadr, the chief religious officer)

Akbar wanted to reduce this power.

What the Mahzar said

Mahzar means a formal statement that witnesses attest by signing it.
It was drafted by Shaikh Mubarak, the father of Abul Fazl and the poet Faizi.
Its main points:
Akbar is an Imam-i-Adil (just ruler). God thinks more highly of such a ruler than of a mujtahid (an expert who interprets Islamic law).
If the mujtahids disagree on a religious question, Akbar may choose the view that is best for the people and the state. His choice is then binding on everyone.
Akbar may issue a new order, but only if it is not against the Quran and is for the good of the people.
It was signed by the leading ulema, including Makhdum-ul-Mulk and Shaikh Abdun Nabi. According to Badauni, many of them signed unwillingly.

How it worked and what followed

In the same year, 1579, Akbar himself read the khutba (the Friday sermon, normally read in the ruler's name) at the Jami Masjid of Fatehpur Sikri. This was a sign that he now led in religious matters as well.
Its limits were real:
Akbar could only choose between opinions that already existed among the scholars.
Any new order still had to fit the Quran.
So it did not make him infallible or a prophet.
Results:
The power of the orthodox ulema fell. Makhdum-ul-Mulk and Abdun Nabi were soon sent away to Mecca.
Akbar was now free to try out wider ideas, which later led to Din-i-Ilahi (c. 1582).
It angered orthodox groups. Their unhappiness fed into the revolts of the early 1580s in Bengal and Bihar.

Time, place and evidence

When: 1579, in the middle phase of Akbar's reign (1556–1605).
Where: Fatehpur Sikri, Akbar's capital from 1572 to 1585 [1].
Dynasty / ruler: the Mughals under Akbar.
Key people:
Akbar
Shaikh Mubarak, who drafted it
Makhdum-ul-Mulk and Shaikh Abdun Nabi, the orthodox ulema who signed
Abul Fazl, Akbar's court historian and biographer
How we know:
Badauni's Muntakhab-ut-Tawarikh keeps the text of the Mahzar. Badauni was an orthodox critic of Akbar, so his account is hostile.
Abul Fazl's Akbarnama gives the court's own version, which praises Akbar.
The British historian Vincent Smith called it the "Infallibility Decree". Most later historians think that label goes too far.

Don't confuse with

Din-i-Ilahi: the Mahzar (1579) was a legal declaration signed by ulema. Din-i-Ilahi (c. 1582) was a small spiritual circle of disciples around Akbar. It was not a law, and it was not a new religion forced on anyone.
Ibadat Khana: this was the building at Fatehpur Sikri where the debates took place. The Mahzar was the document that came out of the quarrels held there.
Sulh-i-kul: this was Akbar's overall policy of tolerance for all faiths. The Mahzar was a single legal tool that made that policy easier to follow.
"Infallibility Decree": this is only a later name for the Mahzar (Vincent Smith's term). Akbar never claimed to be free from error. He could only choose among the scholars' existing views, within the limits of the Quran.

Prelims Hooks

Mahzar: issued in 1579 at Fatehpur Sikri under Akbar.
It was drafted by Shaikh Mubarak, the father of Abul Fazl and Faizi.
It called Akbar Imam-i-Adil (just ruler), with the power to choose when the mujtahids disagreed.
Correct order: Ibadat Khana debates → Mahzar (1579) → Din-i-Ilahi (c. 1582).
The text survives in Badauni's Muntakhab-ut-Tawarikh.
Trap: the name "Infallibility Decree" comes from Vincent Smith. The Mahzar did not give Akbar power to override the Quran.

Mains Points

It moved religious authority from the ulema to the emperor.
The Ibadat Khana debates showed that the ulema were divided.
The Mahzar let Akbar settle their quarrels himself.
This made the state the final judge and cleared the way for sulh-i-kul: abolishing the jizya, giving high posts to Hindu officials, and holding debates between faiths.
Historians disagree about what it was.
Vincent Smith saw it as a claim to be infallible.
Most historians today read it as a limited legal step, because Akbar could act only where scholars disagreed and only within the Quran.
The sources pull in opposite directions: Badauni was a hostile critic and Abul Fazl a court insider paid to praise Akbar. A good answer reads them side by side.
It changed policy, but Akbar's ambition stayed the same.
Like the move from the siege of Chittorgarh to marriage alliances, the Mahzar was a political tool for ruling a mixed empire.
Its cost was orthodox anger, which helped cause the revolts of the early 1580s.
It is a useful contrast with Aurangzeb, who later relied on the ulema and brought back the jizya.

Related concepts

Akbar: conquest to conciliation (1556–1605)

Sources

1Fatehpur Sikri — Archaeological Survey of Indiaasi.nic.in · tier 1