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[[File:Portrait of Akbar by Manohar.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|alt=caption|Portrait of Akbar by Manohar, a renowned artist of the Mughal school (late 16th century)]]
[[File:Portrait of Akbar by Manohar.jpg|thumb|upright=0.6|alt=caption|Portrait of Akbar (late 16th century)]]


Abu-ul-Fath Jalal-ud-Din Muhammad Akbar (1542–1605), greatest of Mogul emperors, an embodiment of the Ascended Master [[El Morya]].
Abu-ul-Fath Jalal-ud-Din Muhammad Akbar (1542–1605), greatest of Mogul emperors, an embodiment of the Ascended Master [[El Morya]].
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Akbar was born in 1542 at Umarkot. The sixteenth century Mogul Empire of India had been effectively reduced by fierce alien conquest until, in 1556, only the capital city, Delhi, remained when Akbar Jalal Ud-din Mohammed inherited the throne.
Akbar was born in 1542 at Umarkot. The sixteenth century Mogul Empire of India had been effectively reduced by fierce alien conquest until, in 1556, only the capital city, Delhi, remained when Akbar Jalal Ud-din Mohammed inherited the throne.
[[File:Kaiser Akbar bändigt einen Elefanten.jpg|thumb|upright|left|alt=caption|Akbar training an elephant]]


Not yet fourteen at his accession, the brilliant young Emperor Akbar set out to reconquer his realm. He became known throughout the world as Akbar the Great—the most powerful of the Mogul emperors. Tremendous physical stamina characterized Emperor Akbar and contributed to his extraordinary military success—he could ride 240 miles in twenty-four hours to surprise and defeat the enemy. Nevertheless, it took the major part of his long reign (1556–1605) to subject the rebellious princes of northern India and to secure peace by establishing sound provincial governments.  
Not yet fourteen at his accession, the brilliant young Emperor Akbar set out to reconquer his realm. He became known throughout the world as Akbar the Great—the most powerful of the Mogul emperors. Tremendous physical stamina characterized Emperor Akbar and contributed to his extraordinary military success—he could ride 240 miles in twenty-four hours to surprise and defeat the enemy. Nevertheless, it took the major part of his long reign (1556–1605) to subject the rebellious princes of northern India and to secure peace by establishing sound provincial governments.  
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By the end of his fifty-year rule in 1605, the small territory he had inherited was an empire that extended from the Hindu Kush to the Godavari River and from Bengal to Gujarat (present-day Bangladesh and most of Nepal, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan). Through Akbar’s military genius and vigorous leadership, the Mogul empire became one of the most powerful in the world. He implemented numerous administrative reforms that strengthened the governmental structure, abolished extortion, and centralized the financial system. Although he could neither read nor write, Akbar ably conversed with scholars and religious men and sponsored a renaissance in art and literature.  
By the end of his fifty-year rule in 1605, the small territory he had inherited was an empire that extended from the Hindu Kush to the Godavari River and from Bengal to Gujarat (present-day Bangladesh and most of Nepal, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan). Through Akbar’s military genius and vigorous leadership, the Mogul empire became one of the most powerful in the world. He implemented numerous administrative reforms that strengthened the governmental structure, abolished extortion, and centralized the financial system. Although he could neither read nor write, Akbar ably conversed with scholars and religious men and sponsored a renaissance in art and literature.  


[[File:Jesuits at Akbar's court.jpg|thumb|upright|alt=caption|Akbar holds a religious assembly in the Ibadat Khana (House of Worship) in Fatehpur Sikri; the two men dressed in black are the Jesuits. (Miniature painting by Nar Singh, ca. 1605)]]
[[File:Jesuits at Akbar's court.jpg|thumb|upright|alt=caption|Akbar holds a religious assembly in the Ibadat Khana. The two men dressed in black are the Jesuits. (ca. 1605)]]


== Religious tolerance ==
== Religious tolerance ==