I was flipping through last month’s Economist while flying to the US and ran across an article on Babur, an Afghan king who conquered India and became the first Mughal Emperor*. I thought this excerpt was rather interesting:
“Babur stayed in Delhi to consolidate his power, but he hated India. His list of complaints offers a good indication of the things that mattered to a 16th-century emperor:
Hindustan is a country of few charms. There are no good-looking people, there is no social intercourse, no receiving or paying of visits, no genius or manners. In its handicrafts there is no form or symmetry, method or quality. There are no good horses, no good dogs, no grapes, musk-melons or first-rate fruits, no ice or cold water, no good bread or food cooked in the bazaars, no hot baths, no colleges, no candles, torches or candlesticks.
The only things Babur liked about India were the abundance of gold and silver and the weather after the monsoon….His friends could not stand the heat, and went back to Kabul. As ruler, he was stuck there, pining for the jollity of the old days. In 1528 he wrote to one of his oldest friends, Khwajah Kalan, “With whom do you spend time? With whom do you drink wine?”
Word. With whom do I drink wine?
Read the full article here: http://www.economist.com/node/17723207
*Incidentally, this is the same man who is the great, great grandfather to Shah Jahan, builder of the Taj Mahal.
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