Social Life
There was
little change in the structure of the Hindu society during this period.
Traditional caste system with the Brahmins on the upper strata of the society
was prevalent. The subservient position of women also continued and the
practice of sati was widely prevalent. The seclusion of women and the wearing
of purdah became common among the
upper class women. The Arabs and Turks brought the purdah system into India and it became widespread among the Hindu
women in the upper classes of north India.
During the
Sultanate period, the Muslim society remained divided into several ethnic and
racial groups. The Turks, Iranians, Afghans and Indian Muslims developed
exclusively and there were no intermarriages between these groups. Hindu
converts from lower castes were also not given equal respect. The Muslim nobles
occupied high offices and very rarely the Hindu nobles were given high position
in the government. The Hindus were considered zimmis or protected people for which they were forced to pay a tax
called jiziya. In the beginning jiziya was collected as part of land
tax. Firoz Tughlaq separated it from
the land revenue and collected jiziya
as a separate tax. Sometimes Brahmins were exempted from paying jiziya.
Art and Architecture
The art and architecture of the Delhi Sultanate period was distinct from
the Indian style. The Turks introduced arches, domes, lofty towers or minarets
and decorations using the Arabic script. They used the skill of the Indian
stone cutters. They also added colour to their buildings by using marbles, red
and yellow sand stones.
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