Question

The son of Shah Jahan, who studied the New Testament, the writings of the Muslims suns, the Vedanta Philosophy, Upanishads, etc sought to find a meeting point between Hinduism and Islam was ____
A.Dara Shikoh
B.Murad
C.Aurangzeb
D.Shuja

Answer 1

Hint: The son who studied the aforementioned texts was designated as the crown prince and was the eldest son of Emperor Shah Jahan. His comparative study of Muslim mysticism and classical Hindu philosophy makes him extremely unique. He was a follower of the Qadiri order of Sufis and a disciple of Miyan Mir. He was later killed by his younger brother.

Complete answer:
Dara Shikoh (1615-1659) was the eldest son of the Mughal Emperor Shahjahan, a true follower of the ideas of his great grandfather, Akbar. From his early years, he had a keen interest in Indian religions and philosophy. Hindu religious-philosophical treatises- ‘Yogavasishatha’, Bhagavad-Gita, and mystic drama ‘Prabodha ‘Chandrodhaya’ were translated into Persian upon the demands of Dara Shikoh. He also had a good knowledge of Upanishads, Vedas, Jewish and Christian religious literature such as Pentateuch, New Testament, and Muslim Sufi writings. He also studied prominent Persian poets like Jalal-ud-Din Rumi, Abdul Majid Majadud Sanai, Nur-ud-Din Abdul Rahman Jami, and Khamsa of Nizami.
Dara’s objective was to find a common ground between Hindu and Islamic spirituality to create harmony among the two biggest religions in the Mughal Empire.
In Dara’s works, God was compared with the image of a limitless sea or ocean, a substance of great importance while humans and the world were waves, bubbles, and drops made by the movements of the God-ocean. We also find the glorification of man on the basis of reasons that man has developed himself into becoming divine, even for spiritual forces like angels.
He wanted to consolidate his empire on that basis. He was often declared as a heretic and traitor of religion by his contemporary fanatics and fundamentalists, which also served as the basis of criticism by his rival to the throne- Aurangzeb. However, he was defeated in battle by his younger brother, Aurangzeb.
So, the correct answer is Option A.

Note: Dara wrote a significant amount of literature. His early works books about life and works of Sufi saints include ‘Safinat-al- Aulia 1640, ‘Sakina- al-Aulia in 1642, ‘Risala-e-Haq Nama (1651-1653). His last three books are considered to be most valuable- Majma-al-Bahrain’( Mingling of the Oceans) (1653), and Ser-al-Asrar (the secret of the secrets) or Ser-al-Akbar (great secret) a translation of Hindu religious book Upanishad completed in 1657, and a collection of his poetry under title Akseer-e-Azam ( the mightiest Elixir).