Alamgir ponders the afterlife Lithographs from India Emperor Aurangzeb lavished him with

Emperor Aurangzeb lavished him with titles and honours in an effort to secure his allegiance and cooperation in military operations against the powerful Maratha kingdom that was then on the rise in the Deccan

after an Armenian-American private collector

led to his downfall

soon after Akbar’s death in 1605

a lieutenant in the Bengal Infantry from 1782 to 1792

Alamgir ponders the afterlife Lithographs from India Emperor Aurangzeb lavished him withIn this painting we see, Aurangzeb, the devout Muslim ruler in profile, with a downward gaze, performing dhikr, with a tasbih held in his hands. Dressed in stark white garments, his appearance is in sharp contrast to the golden radiance of the halo and grandeur seen in earlier paintings of him. He only took to austerity as he grew older and moved to the Deccan. For him, there was no greater personal accomplishment than to memorise every verse and