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Medieval Bharat
 
 
Introduction
   

History of Bharat can easily be divided into three sections-ancient, medieval and modern. The chain of events and the lifestyle in each period ofcourse is different. One can easily trace the dominant factor in each period and one can also study the stages of development. Amongst these Medieval Bharat suffered from both the sides. Invasions on Bharat dominate this period.

The period encompasses the span of around 700 years. While comparing the span with that of the ancient period, it seems too short. But the density and frequency of events- (those proven to be the turning point or landmark in the Indian history) is the highest in this period.

Medieval Bharat witnessed invasions starting from the Arab conquest of Sindh, to the formation of the Mughal Empire that lasted from 1526 to 1707.
This probably was the period when the gap between the two religions- Hindu and Muslims- prominently came to surface.

Before Muslims came to Bharat, there had been attacks from Iranians, Greeks, Parthians, Sakas, Kushanas and Huns. But they were absorbed in the Hindu society. But this never happened with the Muslims. One of the reasons for this was the inflexibility of Islam that did not permit any compromises with other religions.

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It is said that the Hindus in this period had become narrow minded as compared to their ancestors. But this was partly due to the rigidity of Islam. That is why, when faced with the Muslims, the Hindus adopted protective armor in the form of rigid socio-religious laws. Position of women deteriorated .

When at one end Medieval Bharat witnessed the negativities in the social and political field, at the other end it contributed a lot. All these negativities acted as impetus for Reform and Bhakti movement.
Traditional, irrelevant practices in the religion, which were tightening their hold and were proving to be healthy for the growth of Hindu society were abolished through the Reform movement.

Bhakti movement with its own outstanding philosophy, spread all over Bharat. Their view was that devotion to God was the only means of salvation. The movement was non-sectarian. Regarding the political awakening, various parts of Bharat produced great leaders like Shivaji. They dared to oppose the militant Islamic rule and gave the common man his voice.

Rise of Sikhism was the product of this period only. All these in detail will be covered in the topic. To make the reader absorb and sense the nerve of Medieval Bharat, we have divided it into some parts.

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