NEW INTERPRETATION OF ALAN-GHO’A IN AKBAR-NAME

Abstract

Alan-gho‘a was the legendary ancestress of the Chinggis Khan‘s Golden Lineage(Altan Urug) that retained the privilege of ruling in Central Asia throughcenturies. Akbar Shah, third ruler of Baburid (Mughal) Empire in India, claimedAlan-gho‘a being as his ancestress. This did not depend upon his blood kinshipwith the Chinggisids; instead, it was claimed that the main reason for theexistence of Alan-gho‘a was Akbar‘s divine entrance into the world; the reignsof Chinggisids and others were transitory until Akbar was born. Akbar Shahconstructed his ?splendid charisma? on this claim through a re-interpretation ofthe narrative of Alan-gho‘a in a sufi mystical way making his subject people whopossessed divergent religious and cultural values believe in his power andauthority and uniting them around his dynasty. In this way, Akbar Shah alsoplaced his Timurid ancestors and his lineage in a position that was superior tothe Chinggisids and all the other dynasties in the World. Alan-gho‘a‘s newinterpretation was made according to the new cultural values and socialstructure of his Empire which consisted of almost the whole Indiansubcontinent. In this article, how and why the narrative of Alan-gho‘a was reshaped in the Akbar‘s court is examined through a comparison with theChinggisid and Timurid traditions.