Akbar was born in 1542, he was the son of Humayun, Babur’s grandson, and became the third mongolian emperor . Although the first part of his reign was spent in military campaigns, Akbar shows great interest in a wide variety of cultural, artistic, religious and philosophical ideas. Akbar was also known for his religious tolerance and, despite being a Muslim, he took an active interest in other religions.
Akbar came to the throne, aged 14, after the death of his father Humayun. For the next 20 years, he had to fight to defend and consolidate the Mongol empire. He faced threats from Afghans in the north and from the Hindu king, Samrat Hemu.
As Akbar was very young to ascend the throne, the leadership of the Moghul Kingdom was left to Bairam khan an Afghan Shiite Muslim. Bairam was a great military leader and helped secure the Mughal empire. However, he was not liked by many of them because of the absolute power he wielded and also the fact that he was not a Sunni Muslim. At one point he was encouraged to go on a pilgrimage to Mecca. Akbar sent an army to escort Bairam Kham, but Bairam was upset about being sent on a pilgrimage. Therefore, he turned to Akbar’s army and was later captured.
Bairam was taken to Akbar, where many wanted him to be executed. However, Akbar refused to execute Bairam and had done much for him in the past. He forgave Bairam and allowed him to live at the expense of the court. Throughout his life, Akbar often used mercy and forgiveness for his enemies, not least his own brother who plotted against him.
Akbar is known to have had many good qualities. He was brave in battle and willing to risk his life. He was generous to his friends and loyalty rewarded. In his diet he was very frugal, preferring a vegetarian diet. He had a great interest in religion and encouraged representatives of different religions to come to his court to discuss religious ideas.
Akbar considered that the various religions were compatible with each other, offering different approaches to the same goal. Towards the end of his life, he tried to create his own religion, an amalgam of different religious traditions. However, it never extended beyond his personality and suddenly vanished after his death.
Akbar died around 1605 and was buried near Agra.