Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri: The Jahangirnama

The Jahangirnama, also known as Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri, is the autobiographical account of the fourth Mughal emperor, Nuruddin Jahangir, who ruled from 1605 to 1627. Although “Tuzuk” derives from the Turkish word meaning “order” or “arrangement,” Jahangir never uses this term in the text. Instead, in the twelfth year of his reign, he refers to it as Jahangirnama, meaning “Story of Jahangir.” It offers an intimate and reflective narrative capturing his rule’s political and personal aspects.

Jahangir authored the memoir himself for the first 17 years, after which Mu’tamad Khan took over in 1622, but the text abruptly halts in 1624. Later, Muhammad Hadi continued it during Shah Jahan’s reign. Written in Persian—the Mughal court’s official language since Akbar—it also includes elements of Kashmiri, Turkish, and Hindustani, making the prose ornate yet accessible. Jahangir drew inspiration from Babur’s Baburnama, despite their linguistic differences, and followed the tarikh tradition, presenting events in a chronological, year-by-year format with details on administration, territory, and court officials.

One of the striking features of Jahangirnama is its vivid portrayal of the Indian environment, references to Hindustani poetry (including Tansen), and the inclusion of Rajput nobles, reflecting Mughal Indianization and cultural syncretism. Audrey Truschke aptly terms the Mughal Empire a “Culture of Encounters.” Jahangir begins by detailing the imperial administrative setup, listing sixteen subas (provinces), including Agra, Bengal, Gujarat, and Kabul, each governed by a subadar. Subas were subdivided into sarkars and parganas, overseen by faujdars and amils respectively, indicating Jahangir’s deep awareness of bureaucratic mechanisms.

The memoir mirrors Jahangir’s self-image and kingship. As Corinne Lefevre observes, it reflects his personal voice, balancing closeness with his subjects (through justice and public accessibility) and royal distance (via rituals and court etiquette). Jahangir sought legitimacy not through strict Islamic law but through adl (justice). While he aligned with conservative Muslims during his succession conflict with son Khusrau, he neither imposed sharia nor adhered to adab texts. His justice was symbolized by the zanjir-i-adl (chain of justice), and he viewed himself as a righteous monarch influenced by the legacy of Akbar, Timur, and Chingiz Khan.

Jahangir issued twelve imperial decrees that reflect his governing principles. These included prohibitions on extortion by jagirdars, ensuring safety on roads, protection of merchants’ goods, equitable inheritance laws, bans on alcohol and mutilation punishments, prevention of forced labor on peasant lands, restrictions on local marriages of officials, establishment of hospitals, and symbolic abstentions from animal slaughter on select days. These orders embodied his vision of justice, welfare, and effective governance.

Beyond politics, Jahangirnama also reveals his personality as a naturalist. He describes Kashmir’s floral beauty, animal behavior, and environmental observations with keen interest, reflecting a scientific temperament. His accounts of fauna, flora, and landscapes show a ruler deeply engaged with the world around him.

In essence, Jahangirnama is not merely a chronicle of Jahangir’s reign but a richly layered document offering insights into Mughal governance, Indo-Persian culture, kingship, justice, and Jahangir’s multifaceted personality. It stands as both a historical source and a personal portrait of a Mughal emperor who saw himself as both ruler and thinker.

The historical assessment of Emperor Jahangir has often been overshadowed by his father Akbar and son Shah Jahan, resulting in a skewed portrayal of him as a politically weak and indulgent monarch. However, a re-evaluation of Jahangir through his own voice in the Jahangirnama—his richly written and illustrated memoir—reveals a nuanced and capable ruler. Jahangir not only documented each year of his reign in detail, but also oversaw a visual imperial culture through paintings that depicted significant events such as his embrace with Shah Abbas, the birth of Prince Khurram, and public darbars. These were not mere artistic works but part of a broader imperial project showcasing his sovereignty.

Contrary to the belief that Jahangir was politically inactive, his reign faced fewer rebellions from nobility compared to Akbar, with Mahabat Khan’s revolt being the most notable exception. The main challenge to his legitimacy came from within the royal family, particularly during Khusrau’s rebellion. Interestingly, the religious elites (ulama) responded positively to Jahangir’s pragmatic and flexible rule, which helped restore their confidence in the monarchy.

Despite this, many colonial and post-colonial historians like Beni Prasad criticized Jahangir, portraying him as a weak ruler influenced heavily by Nur Jahan and her family—the so-called “Nur Jahan Junta.” Prasad argued that this group monopolized imperial power and was responsible for alienating Prince Khurram. However, historians such as Nurul Hasan challenge this view, asserting that the rise of Nur Jahan’s family occurred post-1616, not immediately after her marriage to Jahangir in 1611. Hasan also notes the presence of other powerful families, indicating that promotions in the empire were more widely distributed than the junta theory suggests. Similarly, Satish Chandra disputes the notion of a unified junta, arguing that Nur Jahan and Khurram had diverging motives.

Foreign accounts also played a role in distorting Jahangir’s image. Jesuit and European travelers divided his reign into three phases: from 1605–1611 as a just ruler (Xavier and Hawkins), from 1611–1622 as a ruler dominated by Nur Jahan (Thomas Roe), and from 1622–1627 as passive (Pelseart and Pietro della Valle). These views, designed for European audiences, emphasized Mughal weaknesses and influenced later historical interpretations.

Chronicles written during Shah Jahan’s reign, like Iqbalnama-i-Jahangiri and Maasir-i-Jahangiri, furthered this narrative, often downplaying Jahangir’s political contributions to legitimize Shah Jahan’s succession. However, modern historians such as J.F. Richards, Sajida Alvi, and Munis Faruqui have tried to restore balance by highlighting Jahangir’s contributions to imperial ideology, statecraft, and religion.

Recent works like Parvati Sharma’s Jahangir: An Intimate Portrait of a Great Mughal and Lisa Balabanlilar’s The Emperor Jahangir: Power and Kingship in Mughal India portray Jahangir as an ambitious and competent ruler. They emphasize his strategic alliances, strong notions of justice, and use of art, literature, and memoirs as tools of imperial power. The Jahangirnama thus emerges not merely as a memoir but a powerful political document, merging personal introspection with imperial governance.

It is crucial for historians to move beyond traditional binaries of “heroic” or “weak” rulers and assess each Mughal sovereign within their unique historical contexts. Jahangir deserves recognition for his role in sustaining the Mughal Empire and for leaving behind one of the richest autobiographical records in premodern India.