CHAPTER III

HISTORY AND RELIGION: TUGHLAQ AND THE DREAMS OF

TIPU SULTAN

TUGHLAQ

History and Religion in Tughlaq:

History takes a unique position in the writings of all ages. It throws light on the lives

of living people, of dead people, of belief system, of contemporary custom and so on.

Theorist like Hayden White in his work Metahistory: The Historical Imagination in

Nineteenth Century Europe, emphasizes on the elemental subjectivity in the historical

narrative and this subjectivity is constructed by the historian’s selection. History is

considered as a product of social and political formation. In Karnad’s plays Tughlaq

(1972) and in The Dreams of Tipu Sultan (2004), history is presented with religious

perspectives and it helps to give result in the multiple perspective of narration of

history. Tughlaq’s content is purely historical and it reveals a kind of existential

conflict of the protagonist Tughlaq and a sense of alienation is implied here. In the

play The Dreams of Tipu Sultan, Tipu Sultan is presented as a heroic figure of anti-

colonial resistance and he is a prototype of a legendary warrior and a Machiavellian

schemer.

Since the dawn of civilization religion has been considered as a force-cum-

agency of human community of all times. It has been the belief system for the

believers and a source of solace for people. Religion is a code of ethics and from time

to time it has been established as an institution as well as a bastion of evils also. It has

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extended its upper hand in its allied institutions like society, politics, family and other.

It helps to present morality and virtue of humanity too. From time immemorial,

philosophers and artists like Socrates, Charwak, Martin Luther King, Sant

Dyaneshwara, Mahatma Basweshwara, Sant Tukaram, Mahatma Kabir and Karl Marx

have shown the evils in religion.

Girish Karnad, one of the best Indian performing dramatists who being an

artist and a socio-political citizen , was very sensitive and mature and he did not

adhere to any political ideology. As a responsible artist, he gave vent over the

contemporary religious and communal tensions and through his drama Tughlaq, he

shows the animosity and conflict among all religions. In his historical play Tughlaq,

religion occupies an important place and it obviously makes a plea for religiousness in

this play. Here actually the playwright’s attempt is to mingle two religions Hindu and

Muslim into one unit and the protagonist Tughlaq’s endeavour is to juxtapose all

religions together but he becomes failed. Two plays of Karnad Tughlaq and The

Dreams of Tipu Sultan are concerned with Mughal kings, the former deals with the

history of Muhammad-Bin-Tughlaq and the latter deals with the various facets of

Tipu’s personality.

The history of Muhammad-Bin-Tughlaq is the product of the Medieval

Muslim and the colonial British traditions of historiography. In Tughlaq, Karnad tries

to maintain fidelity to the historical sources. In the book Tarikh-i-Firoz Shahi, Barani

defines history which forms knowledge which is essential for understanding the

salient aspects of Islam. Tipu sultan is a man of dreamer and Tughlaq is a man of

action who is benevolent, cruel and devoted to religion. Both the plays present the

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history of two protagonists who have sublime aim in case of building a glorious

kingdom but ends in utter violence. Karnad’s view about the most interesting feature

of the politics of the 1960s was expressed in his work Theatre: “the way the newly

enfranchised electorate was slowly becoming aware of the power placed in its hands

for the first time in history. The other equally visible movement was the gradual

displacement of pre-independence idealism by hard-nosed political cynicism”

(Karnad 342).

The kingdom of Tughlaq is presented as an “imagined community” of India

which is an independent nation in the mid 20th century. Tughlaq wants to build an

equal government for the whole country which is just like a fantasy for the whole

nation. Aziz scandalized: “A Muslim plaintiff against a Muslim king? I mean, where’s

the question of justice there? Where’s the equality between Hindus and Muslims? If

on the other hand the plaintiff’s a Hindu… well, you saw the crowds” (Karnad

8).Tughlaq deals with the great dreams of the most intelligent but “the most foolish

emperor of Delhi” – Muhammad-Bin-Tughlaq. If we go through the play Tughlaq, we

see that the main character Tughlaq is a neurotic. Being a king he is a great dreamer

but his behaviour appears abnormal at times and he is perceived as a mad man by the

common people. He is a Muslim by birth and heart with full faith in Holy Koran but

his liberality to another religion is beyond the comprehension of general people. He

dreams of promoting Hindu-Muslim unity into one authority which is based on

spiritualism, but his endeavour is taken as a crime by Muslim society. Besides, his

experiments at introducing copper currency is also shattered. Tughlaq wants to use his

power to a maximum extent but all his attempts become futile. However, there is a

huge gulf between the kingdom of his dreams and the real world. Tughlaq, being a

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Muslim emperor, radically and liberally deviates himself from the religious tenets in

case of continuation of kingdom’s administration and politics and he is liberal to all

kinds of religion and he gives no priority to Islam religion. He takes all religions with

equal view. So he has to fight against the rebellion of orthodox Muslim society. But

he is by heart an Islam emperor and he is the only Sultan “in whose time people read

the Koran in the streets like now?” (Karnad1).

His liberal attitude to Hindu religion is taken as an act against Islam religion.

His abolishment of ‘jiziya’ tax on the Hindus wounds the sentiments and emotions of

the Muslims as it is against the basic tenets of Koran.When Vishnu Prasad, a Brahmin

of Shiknar files a suit against his Merciful Majesty that his land had been seized

illegally by the officers of the state and he wants compensation for the loss of his land

and the privation resulting there from. Kazi-I-Mumalik considers the matter carefully

and declares: “in return for the land and in compensation of the privation resulting

from its loss the said Vishnu Prasad should receive a grant of five hundred silver

dinars from the State Treasury” (Karnad 2).This justice to Vishnu Prasad is not even

believed by Hindu society. Sultan Muhammad firmly tells that justice is the foremost

concern in his kingdom without any consideration of might or weakness, religion or

creed. Tughlaq promises his subjects to provide them “justice, equality, progress and

peace – not just peace but a more purposeful life” (Karnad 3). For gaining a more

comfortable and purposeful life, he takes the decision of shifting his capital from

Delhi to Daulatabad and so his subjects become surprised. He smiles and asks that

this surprise is natural. His minister takes the decision after so much thinking. His

empire is too large and it extends to the south and so he needs a capital which is

located on the heart of his kingdom. He explains to his subject:

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 Delhi is too near the border and as you well know its peace is never free from
the fear of invaders. But for me the most important factor is that Daulatabad is
a city of the Hindus and as the capital it will symbolize the bond between
Muslims and Hindus which I wish to develop and strengthen in my kingdom. I
invite you all to accompany me to Daulatabad. This is only an invitation and
not an order. Only those who have faith in me may come with me. With their
help I shall build an empire which will be the envy of the world. (Karnad 3-4)

His intention is to juxtapose all religions in one unit and it is Tughlaq who takes oath

to mingle all religions in one path and in case of doing this there is so much

ambiguousness which prevents him from becoming an idealist Sultan. It does not

mean that he neglects Islam religion. He, being an idealist and rationalist Emperor,

tries to convert his kingdom into an egalitarian society. In his kingdom there is too

much conflict between the Hindus and the Muslims and his heart and soul endeavour

is to bring harmony between them. As he shows equality to all religions, he is

considered by Muslims as a great enemy of Islam. Historian Romila Thapar gives a

more complex but no less discouraging account of the communal relations during the

sultanate period:

Orthodox Hindus and Muslims alike resisted any influence from the other
in the sphere of religion. Although the Muslims ruled the infidels, the infidels
called them barbarians. To the Muslim, a Hindu temple was not only a symbol
of pagan religion and its false gods, but a constant reminder that despite their
political power there were spheres of life in the country over which they ruled
to which they were strictly denied access… Exclusion, in turn, was the only
weapon which orthodox Hinduism could use to prevent assimilation, having
lost its political ascendancy. (Thapar 279)

He emphasizes the idea of brotherhood but this idea is neglected by the ecclesiastics

because it destroys political interests of them. The whole play is structured on these

opposites; the ideal and the real: the divine aspiration, deft and intrigue.

In the play Tughlaq, history of Tughlaq is presented but here Karnad has

presented history with a new construction in the post-independent India. Tughlaq

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combines religion, politics, secularism, equality and unity in a country. He tries to

make a secular empire and so he gives facilities to the Hindus and he is not able to

build secularism in his country. He plans to transfer his capital from Delhi to

Daulatabad, one of his ambitious dreams, and as a result, the cordial co-existence of

the Hindus and Muslims is at the back of his mind. His transference of kingdom from

Delhi to Daulatabad causes the death of thousands of Muslim lives. The whole of the

Muslim society bursts into anger as he chooses a Hindu capital like Daulatabad. But

his intention was only to make the bond between Muslims and Hindus. But his

intention is considered as a tyranny, a sheer tyranny. His subject Shihab-Ud-Din

angrily tells: “not to move the capital to Daulatabad. I am not from Delhi myself and

have no stake in it. But I know the people of Delhi are very unhappy about the move”

(Karnad 39). Such things never happened in his father’s days – may his soul rest in

peace. Now he’s got his father’s throne. He is warned by Sheikh Imam-Ud-Din as it is

considered that he is trying to be Almighty or Omnipotent disregarding the most

sacred Muslim religious book – Koran. He is considered as a wrong-doer, a sinner

who commits more crime than polytheism (the only pardonable sin in Islam) and he

tries to become God and the Sheikh protests against it. Everyone thinks that he is an

anti-religious person and they cannot identify the religiosity in his character. But he is

so religious that he goes to the mosque to pray even when procession has been

arranged. The old Sultan never used to go to procession at prayer time. But

Muhammad never misses a prayer. He considers same value to copper coins just as

silver dinars which encourages Hindus to produce counterfeit copper currency. In

Tughlaq’s reign, the whole kingdom is submerged in a chaotic situation which causes

disorder and it makes the kingdom puzzled. It is reminiscent of Pynchon’s The Crying

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of the Lot 49 where Oedipa Mass suffers from paranoia which is a psychological

disorder because she fears that she is caught in a labyrinth which becomes a hindrance

in the path of discovering truth. She wastes all her energies to the utmost level. But

this excess accumulation of all energies for one single work makes her confused.

Similarly Tughlaq’s situation is similar to the theory of entropy as his entire

endeavour is wasted for the developments of his kingdom and his subjects but

ultimately he gains nothing. From the very beginning of the drama, Tughlaq is

exhibited as such a religious character who implores his subjects to maintain a social

setting without any consideration of might or weakness, religion or creed.

Karnad’s projection of Tughlaq is as one who tries to build religious

differences in the hopes of embracing secularism. Secularism is a very powerful issue

in the drama. Tughlaq desires to unite a bond between Hindus and Muslims as a

significant part of his vision: “Daulatabad is a city of the Hindus and as the capital it

will symbolize the bond between Muslims and Hindus which I wish to develop and

strengthen in my kingdom” (Karnad 4). But all his aspiration collides with reality as

Tulghlaq fails in his destination. It is because of such a condition that Karnad suggests

that Tulghlaq is seen as a failure. In 1964, the time of composition of Tughlaq was

such a time when India had been less than two decades removed from Partition and

Independence. The whole nation was born from Gandhian principles but it was still

hopelessly locked in a sectarian violence and communal hatred and Karnad’s Tughlaq

probably has tried to overcome this hatred and violence in the drama.The theme of

political aspiration being limited by temporal reality is a significant theme in this

drama and in a historical condition, this play is composed. Tughlaq’s neutral

judgment about all religions is proved when he takes the decision to give a grant of

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five hundred silver dinars to Brahmin Vishnu Prasad and a post in the civil service to

ensure him a regular and adequate income. “… and in addition to the grant of five

hundred silver dinars has offered the said Vishnu Prasad a post in the Civil Service to

ensure him a regular and adequate income” (Karnad 3).

This drama is actually a political allegory which is in the face of a temporal

reality. This play has a puzzling quality which exists from the ambiguities of

Tughlaq’s character and it proves Tughlaq’s complex personality. This play is really

very interesting with its intricate plot with comic characters like Aziz and Azam (the

Akara and Makara of Natak Performances), to which theatre audiences quickly

response. Tughlaq is such a play where Karnad shows that communities are marked

by political inequality and religious difference. The whole theme of the play is based

on history. The word ‘prayer’ is taken as ‘leitmotiv’ of the play and the word ‘prayer’

is very symbolic because the Muslim chieftain along with Sheik Shams-Ud-Din, a

pacifist priest, conspires to murder Tughlaq while he is at prayer. Similarly the use of

prayer for murder is reminiscent of what Tughlaq himself did to kill his father. The

religious word ‘prayer’ is used to show that life is corrupted by its facts. But in the

Scene Two of the drama, Muhammad prays to the Almighty to save him from sleep.

All day long he has to worry about tomorrow but it is only when the night falls that he

can sleep beyond all that: “Let’s pray till our bodies melt and flow and our blood turns

into air. History is ours to play with – ours now! Let’s be the light and cover the earth

with greenery. Let’s be darkness and cover up the boundaries of nations” (Karnad 10).

It means ‘prayer’ is a key word of the drama and Muhammad even prays to his step

mother to not tell him to go and get married and breed a family because he wouldn’t

sleep.

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 In spite of his good endeavour, Tughlaq becomes failed and he is always

neglected by everybody. Muhammad thinks that Sheikh believes that he is an

historian, but Barani informs that the Sultan is a disgrace to Islam who has committed

such a crime like murdering his father and brother at prayer time. It is really

unbelievable that a person like Tughlaq can commit crime like parricide and

fratricide! The whole Muslim society thinks that he is a violator of Islam community

as he gives equality to Hindu religion. Tughlaq invokes a significant element in

modern Indian political and cultural society by presenting an ostensibly polemical and

self-sufficient historical narrative. This play is a social and political application that

has also evolved over the past three decades as post-independent Indian politics which

have taken unprecedented directions. Tughlaq is criticized by Najib because Sheikh

criticizes him publicly. Sheikh thinks that Muhammad is incompetent as a ruler. Najib

very sharply explains why he gave up Hinduism:

Do you know why I gave up Hinduism? Because it didn’t speak of salvation of

society.It only talked of the soul – my individual soul – while a poor, frenzied
world screamed in agony around. So I became a Muslim. Islam is worried
about this world, I said, it’ll bring the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. But I
know now – it won’t work. There’s only the present moment and we must
grasp it firmly. (Karnad 14)

He shows affection but asks with irony what does the present moment demand from

him. Najib thinks that they all might surrender to Ain-Ul-Mulk. But Barani thinks that

Ain-Ul-Mulk is a good man and he worships Muhammad and he isn’t a treacherous

type. He gives no time to understand all these matters and he gives concentration only

on moving to Daulatabad, though it is a Hindu capital.When Tughlaq refers to Ain-

Ul-Mulk as “my fellow champion in chess”, it means Ain-Ul-Mulk is the only

intellectual match for him. He says that Barani is interested in only playing with the

shadows of the dead and Najib is too busy to breathe life into the pawns of chess and

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believes on Ain-Ul-Mulk. But Ain-Ul-Mulk hurts Muhammad.Though Muhammad

gives priority in Hinduism, he does not neglect Islam as he asks question to Imam-

Ud- Din “Would you believe me if I told you I have never consciously tried to go

against the tenets of Islam?” (Karnad 20).He never denies the word God and

compares God with bread and drink. “My kingdom has millions – Muslims, Hindus,

Jains. Yes, there is dirt and sickness in my kingdom. But why should I call on God to

clean the dirt deposited by men?” (Karnad 20). But it is Imam-Ud-Din’s advice that

only God’s voice which is the “Holy Word” can clean the dirt of his kingdom. Imam-

Ud-Din is also religious as he thinks that Muhammad is one of the most powerful

kings on earth today as he can spread the kingdom of Heaven on earth. The mercy of

merciful God has provided the king everything i.e., power, learning, intelligence and

talent and Imam-Ud-Din asks that Sultan will do that without the guidance of Koran

as he is trying to become another God and committing this kind of crime is worse than

parricide. But Muhammad by heart is a theist who always thinks that his position is

just like a slave under God and he wants to find a new world and this world is not

found in the Arabs or even in the Koran and always he is willing to make a peaceful

kingdom. His rejection of ‘jiziya’ – a discriminatory poll tax on Hindus prescribed in

the Koran, the most sacred religious book which shows a judicial process in which he

can be sued by his subjects. So naturally he goes against the whole Musilm society.

Tughlaq actually wants to build such a spiritual state where Hindu and Muslim will

live with fraternal unity.

Here Karnad’s hero is comparable to Erikson’s term for Gandhi, a “religious

actualist” whose very passion and power make him actual for others and this is what

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actualizes him. It is Erikson’s assessment of Gandhi that Karnad’s early

characterization of Tughlaq can be best understood:

The great leader creates for him and for many other new choices and new
cares. These he derives from a mighty graveness, an intense and yet flexible
energy, a shocking originality, and a capacity to impose on his time what most
concerns him – which he does so convincingly that his time believes this
concern to have emanated ‘naturally’ from ripe necessities. (Karnad 395)

Tughlaq always wants to do something good but his endeavour always goes

against his thinking. The whole kingdom goes into Utopian movement. Tughlaq’s

futile attempt is to be just and liberal towards a majority of Hindu population that he

is obliged as an Islamic ruler to persecute. The only one person who gets benefit from

the utopian movement is a low-caste Muslim washerman Aziz who assumes the

identity of a poor Hindu Brahman to win a false judgment against the sultan and

secure a position at the court. Another irony is Tughlaq’s sadistic and manipulative

impulses and he undercuts his image of himself as an exemplary ruler. In the

character of Tughlaq, there is a complex ambivalence and the central crisis of the play

shows social inequalities and religious differences. Muhammad-Bin-Tughlaq has

followed the rules of Ala-Ud-Din-Khilji to some extent. Following Khilji’s rule, he

attempts to rule and to administer justice with secular humanist lines neglecting

Islamic Shariat or the Canon law. In case of doing all these he has to antagonize all

the religious leaders and scholars i.e., the Sayyids and the Ulemas and so naturally he

is totally alienated and isolated from all his Muslim subjects as he has built up

Muslim ruling elite in a cultural crisis which indicates the play’s analogical potential.

Tughlaq actually tries to juxtapose communal harmony but it takes the nature of

communal conflict. Tughlaq is such a protagonist who being a Muslim ruler ignores

the Koranic injunction to proselytize actively and he refuses to impose a monolithic

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order on his people as the Greek philosophers have instilled in him a troubling

plurality of vision:

I still remember the days when I read the Greeks – Sukrat who took poison so
he could give the world the drink of gods, Aflatoon who condemned poets and
wrote incomparably beautiful poetry himself – and I can still feel the thrill
with which I found a new world, a world I had not found in the Arabs or even
the Koran. (Karnad 21)

Noticing that Tughlaq is going beyond Islamic rule, the theologian Imam-Ud-Din

reminds Tughlaq of the duties that is fixed in Koran for an Islamic ruler to build a

strong Muslim Dynasty and Imam thinks that the separation of religion from politics

is a “verbal distinction”. Karnad’s communities with political inequality and religious

difference survive through negative equilibrium. In this play, Karnad’s main purpose

is to create a harmony and friendship between Hindu and Muslim community.

Tughlaq always wants to be just towards Hindu. But in return he gains nothing and

there is only a person who plans to assassinate Tughlaq during prayers is Ratan Singh

who belongs to Hindu community. Tughlaq’s decision to employ Hindu soldiers helps

to seize the conspirators in his palace though these soldiers are not required to

participate in the prayers. But his liberality towards Hindu takes the shape of

counterfeit. According to Barani, in Tughlaq’s reign every Hindu household becomes

an illegal mint for producing counterfeit currency, as though in collective revenge

against an alien king. So there is no harmony between Hindu and Muslim community,

only in case of despising Tughlaq, Hindu and Muslim make a bold relationship

between them. After 1947 with the the partition of our country, communal politics in

the country remains in a silent position. But in 1989, communal politics in the country

has become more prominent. For Karnad’s purposes, the secular thinking is just like

Nehru’s thinking. Even, Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of Nation, seeks to foster

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“Hindu-Muslim unity”, but he firmly confesses in The Story of My Experiments with

Truth that his South African experience compels him to realize that: “there was no

genuine friendship between the Hindus and the Musulmans… [and] it would be on the

question of Hindu-Muslim unity that my ahimsa [non -violence] would be put to its

severe test” (Gandhi 398).

Jahwarlal Nehru, in The Discovery of India, has depicted the idea of Indian

culture as assimilative and pluralistic. He comments an “inner urge towards synthesis”

which is the dominant feature of Indian culture and even “racial development”, and

this feature has succeeded in absorbing each “incursion of foreign elements”. In

Nehru’s view religious bigotrism and dogmatism – both are undesirable because these

are the main hindrances in the path of progress and assimilation. Hence he wants such

a religion with meaningless ceremony and cultural stagnation concluding that religion

“tends to close and limit the mind of man” (Nehru 513). Nehru depicts his view about

religion by approving the idea of Syed Ahmad Khan (founder of Muhammedan

Anglo-Oriental College which today is known as the Aligarh Muslim University - one

of the major cultural modernizers of Islam). Syed Ahmed Khan’s view is: “religious

differences should have no political or national significance [,]… because the words

Hindu and Mohammedan are only meant for religious distinction” (Khan 345).

According to Nehru, Muhammad Ali Jinnah who is the founder of Pakistan is a

“willing prisoner of reactionary ideologies”, since “despite his external modernism, he

belonged to an older generation which was hardly aware of modern political thought

or development” (Jinnah 389).

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 Tughlaq was full of political impulsiveness and the communal motivations of

his subjects find stronger correspondences in the events of last two decades. Conflict

and cruelty between religions is very prominent in all ages and it always causes

horrendous problems. Similarly, in the play Tughlaq, we find that so many problems

are created by the peculiarity of Tughlaq’s personality caused by complex

circumstances of two contradictory religious beliefs of his people. Tughlaq is not only

an idealist, who is influenced by Greek philosophers like Plato and Socrates, but also

such a personality who can perform the role of a ‘Krishna’ or ‘Allah’ without

possessing the place of Omnipotent or place of Almighty God. His heartiest desire is

to juxtapose fraternity between Hindu and Muslim but in case of doing so, he

becomes unsuccessful. His main inability is to reconcile the polarities between all

religions and it creates various types of problems. As the kingdom of Tughlaq belongs

to a heterogeneous culture, Tughlaq has to face all these difficulties. The schism in his

nature is aggravated by the schism that divides his people. He tries to build up a

society of multicultural attitudes, values and expectations. But the antagonism

between two religions creates problem in Tughlaq’s reign andTughlaq tries to

reconcile between the stubbornly polar groups. It is true that Tughlaq wants to be kind

to the Hindus but he can’t even dream that Aziz, a Muslim can take advantage of the

situation and deceive him with mischief and hypocrisy.

Tughlaq actually tries to balance the power of the Delhi-based Muslims with

that of the Daulatabad-based Hindus. The main reason of his introduction of copper

currency in the place of silver coins is to suggest economic astuteness but he has no

vision to see the possibility of misuse of the whole experiment. Aziz and Azam are

the two swindlers who always try to exploit the situation and they are able to sabotage

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the entire economic system of the kingdom. Sultan tries to project a public image of

impartiality. He not only wants to do something good for the subjects of his kingdom

but he also wishes to be known far and wide for having done something good for his

people. But he is not boastful in case of expressing his defeat and weakness. For

example, he makes announcement that Vishnu Prasad, a Brahmin from Bikaner, has

won a suit against the Sultan himself. This kind of praising for Hindu Brahmin

becomes intolerable for Muslim rulers. Similarly, his invitation of the holy man

Sheikh Imam-Ud-Din and his permission of the latter to admonish him publicly

proves how kind and just he is. But Tughlaq is clever also as he captures Sheikh in his

fundamentalism and he compels him totally to act as his royal envoys to Ain-Ul-

Mulk. The Sultan is ruthless and cruel and in his kingdom prayer is compulsory but

when attempt to murder is carried out on the sultan Tughlaq, he totally bans prayer in

his kingdom. But at the same time, the Sultan is just and religious who compares each

and every human being in the same way. E.g., when his step-mother conspires in the

murder of Najib, he orders death by stone-pelting to his step-mother whom he loves

whole-heartedly. So in case of giving punishment he considers all as equal.With his

self confidence and self awareness he is able to make such a world in which he has

the freedom to choose anything and the freedom to act on his own impulses. It is such

a world in which one finds the centrality of ‘angst’ as experience and in which one

can make such a world which will help him to choose such circumstances which

ultimately will alienate him from the environment. So in case of religion Tughlaq

takes such a choice which will alienate him from the emirs and imam of the land. He

is an atheist by heart who has full belief on God who even prays help from God in the

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following words:

God, God in Heaven, please help me. Please don’t let go of my hand. My skin
drips with blood and I don’t know how much of it is mine and how much of
others. I started inYour path, Lord, why am I wandering naked in this desert
now? I started in search of You.Why am I become a pig rolling in this gory
mud? Raise me. Clean me. Cover me withYour infinite Mercy. I can only
clutch at the hem of Your cloak with my bloody fingers and plead. I can only
beg – have pity on me. I have no one but You now. Only You. Only
You…You …You…You… (Karnad 67)

Tughlaq’s belief on God proves religiosity of this play. Though it is a historical play

but religiosity is also present in this play.

Epiphanic Revelation in Tughlaq’s Life:

The very word epiphany means the concept of self-awareness through revelation.

Epiphany is very personal and it is a self-experience. In this play Tughlaq has an

epiphanic revelation in his life when he is standing in loneliness and frustration which

he calls “that rare moment” and this moment has its symbols, its questions and

answers and he has stood naked and calm with the stars throbbing in his vein. He feels

that he “was the earth, was the grass, was the smoke, was the sky!” (Karnad 53). This

is such a moment in which he goes through experience of vacuum or nothingness with

his search for meaning and through the fragments of thoughts and sensations. He lives

his life with existential angst. His character changes into another kind of maturity.

This epiphanic revelation of Tughlaq’s character reminds us of Stephen’s

epiphany in James Joyce’s novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. In this

novel, Stephen’s self-emergence and consciousness undergo a bildungsroman (a

novel which shows an artist’s development from childhood to maturity) which goes

through epiphanies. It is a moment where truth is revealed and understanding is truly

forged. At the end of the novel, Stephen himself understands his self-development and

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sense of awareness which will reflect the impact of life and the economic hardships of

his family’s confrontation. The reader becomes aware and conscious of the change in

Stephen’s character and this drives the plot of the novel. Epiphanies permit Stephen to

advance both his own consciousness and greater understanding as is revealed to us in

terms of voice as a result of epiphanies. Through Joyce’s use, Stephen’s epiphanies

help Stephen better to understand himself and help the reader better to understand

Stephen perfectly. By the end of the novel, reader becomes surprised to see the

change of Stephen’s character. So Tughlaq and Stephen’s characters are parallel to

each other.

Tughlaq as an Existential Character:

Tughlaq is a religious person but he suffers and yearns for deliverance. He gives

priority to all religions and he wants to build an empire on the basis of religion but his

endeavour one after one is doomed to fail so he suffers from existential crisis.

Tughlaq becomes such a personality who is devoid of speculation and ethical base

and he is totally characterized by emotional instability and despotic authority. He is

personified in such a situation in which the subjects are made pawns and misery is

inflicted on them. The most striking aspect of Tughlaq’s character is the complexity

that arises from his split personality. Tughlaq is an idealist who is benevolent, cruel

and devout. He is a dreamer, a man of action but at the same time a crafty politician

and a tyrant who has murdered sleep which is inevitable for each and every human

being and he is even haunted by supernatural solicitations.Tughlaq leads a life with

authentic existence. Authentic existence means freedom to choose anything and

freedom to act on one’s own impulses. By authentic existence one makes choices that

ultimately alienate one from environment. Similarly Tughlaq’s decision of choosing

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religion alienates him from emirs and imams of the land. He leads a life which is full

of alienation and isolation. He is entrapped by alienation. Alienation is not a solitary

confinement in a prison or being marooned on an island like Robinson Crusoe.

Alienation can be differentiated from solitary confinement because unlike the latter it

is always an unwelcome feeling to which one is subject out of some external or inner

compulsion. It is beyond one’s control. It is not that solitude which one likes to enjoy

far from the madding crowd. Now-a-days, man faces alienation and isolation because

of fast changing social and economic conditions of Modern times. But alienation was

prominent from earlier times as we find alienation in the character of Tughlaq.

Alienation is a kind of phenomenon which is prominent in Tughlaq’s character.

Tughlaq suffers from a kind of existential dilemma and existentialism enters into the

dramatic mode of situation. Existentialism is defined by Jean Paul Sartre in his work

Being and Nothingness: An Essay on Phenomenological Ontology where he says that

the central proposition of existentialism is that existence precedes essence which

means the most important consideration for the individual is the fact that s/he is an

individual– an independently conscious being who is totally free and it does not

matter what other levels or other preconceived category the universe fits for him. In

the whole world freedom is the choice of human being and it is a discovery of the

world. ‘Existentialism’ is contradictory to ‘Idealism’. ‘Idealism’ means stress on

‘Consciousness’, ‘Spirit’, ‘Reason’, ‘Idea’ and over ‘Soul’. In this world each and

every human being wants to enjoy absolute freedom. Human being is considered as

the first and foremost being of flesh and blood and he lives in a concrete world. A

human being exists in the world as a being of flesh and blood who cannot be detached

from his concrete existence. Existence is constituted by possibilities from which man

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may choose his or her own desire and through which s/he can project himself or

herself, i.e., his or her own existence. It ultimately remains up to each one of us to

decide who and what we are through our own actions. Existentialists try to resolve the

existential dilemma through faith in the Power of Being. Man alone acts in the

existential sense of the world because man makes his own choices. He has the

freedom to choose his favourable course of action which is essential for him and the

action which he commits will help to give a shape of his character influencing further

actions. A man can only become something by his actions. Existentialism is

prominent in Tughlaq’s character. To choose anything is vital for Existential

philosophy. By making choices man proves that he has free will. By choosing one

option over another, man projects his personality through his action. If he makes the

opposite choice in similar circumstances, he shows that his personality has changed.

Every time man can make a choice through his free will and this freedom can be taken

away only by his death.

Tughlaq is a person who wants to lead his kingdom peacefully and he follows

the principles of non-violence. But whenever he is considered as a reason of violence,

at that time he suffers from his own identity crisis.He thinks that war means a

slaughter of Muslims at the hands of fellow-Muslims. In Scene Four, we see that he is

so religious and kind-hearted because after the death of Imam-Ud-Din when his body

is brought into his tent, he wishes as he should have been there in the place of Imam-

Ud-Din. But he is always considered as a criminal and wrong-doer as Ratansingh

says: “I have never seen an honest scoundrel like your Sultan. He murders a man

calmly and then actually enjoys the feeling of guilt” (Karnad 28). It is true that Sultan

murders a man calmly but after committing this crime he remorses for committing

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such guilt. Ratansingh thinks that Sultan is totally responsible for the death of Hindus

and Muslims. But Shihab-Ud-Din himself admits that Muhammad has done a lot of

good works, he has built schools, roads and hospitals through the good use of money.

Muhammad is a king who has the title of Sultan. But being a king he himself asks the

question that what gives him the right to call himself a king? He asks all other

members of his kingdom: “Am I a king only because I am the son of a king? Or is it

because I can make the people accept my laws and the army move to my commands?

Or can self-confidence alone justify it? I ask you – all of you – what would you have

me do to become a real king in your eyes?” (Karnad 38).Shihab-Ud-Din gives the

news that his father even distrusts Muhammad. But it is Sultan who kills Shihab-Ud-

Din in a minute. But he accepts to Barani that his reign is nothing more than a tortured

scream which will destroy the night and melt away in silence. In Scene Seven,

Muhammad gives instructions to all the citizens to go to the Daulatabad otherwise

they will be punished. Then a woman with sick child comes to take permission of

going to take his child to a doctor. But the woman cannot get this permission. At the

end of the play, the Hindu woman’s child is dead. Aazam tells that a Hindu woman

will complain against him. Aziz replies that as she is a Brahmin so any complaint will

not be taken by the woman to a Muslim officer. So, many injustices are always going

on Sultan’s kingdom. So many dead bodies are guarded in the palace - yard and dead

bodies mean those are executed by the Sultan. Even it is instructed that the relatives of

the dead have to pay fine before taking the dead bodies for cremation. So, this kind of

cruel attitude is totally against religion. At the one hand he is religious but on the

contrary he violates religion. Any religion in the world cannot support this inhuman

attitude. So, no one has agreed to pay for the dead body of their relatives, both the

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poor people and the rich folk come at night and steal the dead body of their relatives.

But Muhammad is always alert about the condition of his kingdom. He has the

information of more news which is going on surrounding his reign, e.g., in Ma’bar

Ehsanshah has declared himself as an independent ruler. Bahal-Ud-Din Gashtasp is

collecting an army against Muhammad. The drought in Doab is spreading from town

to town and is burning up the country. Sultan becomes aware that only one industry

flourishes in the kingdom, only one that is of making counterfeit copper coins. He

thinks that every Hindu home has become a domestic mint and traders are just waiting

for sultan to close his eyes and in his whole kingdom there are only two people on

whom Muhammad has full trust. They are Ain-Ul-Mulk and Shihab-Ud-Din’s father.

Remaining in kingdom he is always searching for peace. He himself says: “I have

often thought of that myself – to give up this futile see-saw struggle and go to Mecca.

Sit there by the Kaaba and search for the peace which Daulatabad hasn’t given me.

What bliss! But it isn’t that easy. It isn’t as easy as leaving the patient in the

wilderness because there’s no cure for his disease” (Karnad 55-6). He is also aware

about people’s comment on himself. He tells to Barani: “You know what my beloved

subjects call me? Mad Muhammad! Mad Muhammad! (Suddenly pleading) How can I

become wise again,Barani?” (Karnad 56). He understands that his subjects ironically

and laughingly tell him Mad. He feels urgency to give something, to teach something

which may open the eyes of history and he has to perform this within his lifetime. But

sometimes he goes against religion because when he says to his step mother: “… I

love you more than I have loved anyone in my life” (Karnad 66) – these words

indicate that he has incestuous relationship with his Step- Mother. Muhammad also

goes against religion as he commits crime like patricide and fratricide. But he

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confesses his crime and says that there is an ideal behind this crime and he is suffering

from curse for this reason. Now Sultan has only three friends – Step Mother, Najib

and Barani. His own mother does not speak to him as he has murdered his father. But

at the same time he tries to respect all the religions and his endeavour is to create a

bond of fraternity among all religions.When he comes to the throne, at first he

declares the brotherhood of all religions.

At the end Muhammad thinks that justice is as simple as he thinks and logic is

as beautiful as he has hoped and life will be so much clearer. Barani thinks that all he

needs now is for him and his madness to prance in a field is eaten bare by scarecrow

violence. Now he can share his madness to only one i.e., the omnipotent God. For

taking care of his kingdom, he has not even slept for five years. After five years, sleep

has come back.Tughlaq’s attitude proves that always he thinks for the welfare of his

country and when he becomes failed for his country’s improvement, he suffers from

existentialism. So as a ruler, he always wants to perform his duty perfectly for his

country and only a religious person performs his duty sincerely so religiosity of

Tughlaq’s character is present here. Tughlaq’s always thinking for his country’s

benefit makes him a perfect religious character.

Religion, Politics and National Identity in Tughlaq:

Creation of the play Tughlaq by Karnad is a tragedy which focuses on religion,

politics and national identity of Tughlaq’s life. Karnad actually shows a combination

of national identity with cultural sensibility. Before independence, being inspired by

the secular, visionary and impractical rule of Nehru, Karnad composes the play.

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Within the Shade of the Nehruvian dream, the drama Tughlaq draws sharp parallels

with the then political scenario.

Religion is such a ritual which is tightly knit in public announcements and

community prayer and it functions as dramatic situation of cultural and historical

resonance. Tughlaq is a well-established dramaturgy which envisions an art form

which is not mimetic. Tughlaq’s historical source is – Tarikh-i Firoz-Shahi written by

Zia-Ud-Din Barani who spends 17 years at Tughlaq’s court. This play shows

Tughlaq’s unsuccessful attempts to become a liberal religious king. At the very first

scene of the play, in Delhi in 1327, Tughlaq welcomes people to celebrate a new

system of justice. Muhammad says:

My beloved people,you have heard the judgement of the Kazi and seen for
yourselves how justice works in my kingdom – without any consideration of
might or weakness, religion or creed.May this moment burn bright and light
up our path towards greater justice, equality, progress and peace – not just
peace but a more purposeful life. And to achieve this end I am taking a new
step in which I hope I shall have your support and cooperation. Later this year
the capital of my empire will be moved from Delhi to Daulatabad. (Karnad 3)

So, in Tughlaq’s reign justice is given priority and at the same time religion is

established in his kingdom. In this play, Karnad tightly binds religion and politics in

one branch. At first politicians use religion to befool the common men and religion is

polluted for dirty political motives. But religion preaches morals and in this play

religion stands as a symbol for virtue, righteousness, justice and moral goodness and

politicians are compelled to accept this. Tughlaq is an example of “par excellence”

which has borrowed so many theatrical devices from “Parsi theatre”, e.g., Deep

scenes and Shallow scenes. Through the presentation of the character Tughlaq,

Karnad actually reveals the disillusionment and failure of Indian Political History.

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Tughlaq tries to build a society whose purpose is to build an arena with Hindu-

Muslim unity and it becomes a future for the whole India.

It is Tughlaq’s dysfunctional politics by which he minutely projects his

observation of post independence policy and disillusionment in socio-political

realities in Tughlaq. In this drama Tughlaq is seen as an idealist who gives same value

to Hindu and Muslim religions. Aziz is a Muslim dhobi who disguises himself as a

Brahmin Vishnu Prasad and he files a case against the Sultan as his land is

confiscated by the state. He wants compensation for the loss of his land and privation.

With great surprise his suit is considered seriously and Kazi- I- Mumalik declares that

the Brahmin’s claim is just and for this the Brahmin gets his land back and he is paid

five hundred dinars. Tughlaq wants to prove that there should not be any

differentiation in between Muslims and Hindus because in the eyes of Tughlaq, both

are same.

Tughlaq is such a drama which combines religion and politics of an idealist

and visionary Sultan Muhammad-Bin-Tughlaq. This play shows how the idealism of a

ruler will ruin the idealist. Even today in India, many people are led away by the

saints and religious leaders. Rural people or even urban people keep faith on the

religious leaders than a politician. People worship Allah, God and Goddesses only for

their belief on religion. So the belief on religion is very prominent and it is revealed

through the worshipping of Allah, God or Goddesses. Sometimes it is seen that people

is befooled in the name of religion. Befooling of people is also prominent in the reign

of Tughlaq. Sometimes it is also seen that people pollute religion by misusing it for

fulfilling their dirty political motives. Religion stands for goodness, righteousness,

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virtue and moral conduct while politics thrives on craftiness, dishonesty, intrigue and

deceit. The case of Tughlaq is of no exception. In Tughlaq, Karnad shows that the

idealist and his idealism do not go hand in hand with a politician and his politics.

What he gains, as he tells: “Not words but the sword – that’s all I have to keep my

faith in my mission” (Karnad 66) and “– power, strength to shape my thoughts,

strength to act, strength to recognize myself. What did your little murder give you?”

(Karnad 66).

Tughlaq is a follower of religion but at the same time he is a criminal who

commits patricide, fratricide and wipes off the religious and political leaders like

Imam-Ud-Din and Shihab-Ud-Din only to retain his kingship. Tughlaq explains the

reason of murdering to his Step-Mother in a simple way: “They couldn’t bear the

weight of their crown. They couldn’t leave it aside. So they died senile in their youth

or were murdered.” (Karnad 11) But when she argues, “It was easier than killing

one’s father or brother. It was better than killing Sheikh Imam-Ud-Din” (Karnad 65).

Muhammad replies: “…I killed them for an ideal. Don’t I know its results? Don’t you

think I’ve suffered from the curse? My mother won’t speak to me – I can’t even look

into a mirror for fear of seeing their faces in it” (Karnad 65).But a person who is

religious, how can he commit such crimes like patricide and fratricide? Muhammad

tries to create a kingdom full of peaceful religion but it becomes “a kitchen of death”.

He cannot save religion in his kingdom and he is also responsible for this. This

situation alienates Tughlaq and disables him from any kind of communication with

his subjects. This stagnant situation makes him cruel and self-indulgent. He is

entrapped in his own activities. The whole play is designed like a game of chess.

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Muhammad-Bin-Tughlaq was one of the most brilliant sultans to ascend the throne of

Delhi and he faces so many failures in his kingdom.

It is Tughlaq who announces his plans one by one in a steady and stodgy

progression, he creates a kind of equality for Hindus and Muslims and this equality

helps to move the capital from Delhi to Daulatabad. But at the end of Tughlaq, it is

seen that Tughlaq is proved as a failure Sultan. Though he is religious by heart but he

cannot succeed to establish himself as an ideal Sultan. Religion and politics – both are

intermingled with the character of Tughlaq.The Muslim Saints like Bokhan of Delhi

and the Iman of Garib Nawaz of Ajmer are propagating the views of their party so

they become more than a politician. Life of the people is corrupted by the nexus

between the saints and the politicians. People, even today, become victims of this type

of corruption and they suffer as they suffered during the reign of Tughlaq.

In Tughlaq, Karnad depicts the predicament of Muhammad-Bin-Tughlaq, the

fourteenth century monarch of Delhi. The idealism of Tughlaq and the subsequent

political disillusionment of the period are often compared to those of the era of Nehru.

Tughlaq actually has shared an overambitious dream to build a glorious empire of

India. Tughlaq forsook his rest and sleep to fulfill his dream. His idealism and vision

were probably ahead of his times and his subjects could not fit into his scheme of

things, resulting in widespread social, economic and political upheaval and chaos.

Tughlaq wants to destroy violence and cruelty for the implementation of his idealistic

plans and these are necessary for public welfare. The later phase in Tughlaq’s career

is bearing a resemblance with the rule of Indira Gandhi and this later phase of his life

is in contrast to the earlier phase that resembled the Nehru era. The characters like

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Aziz, Barani, Najib and Sheikh Imam-Ud-Din are just like the various facets of

Tughlaq’s personality. Tughlaq derives a sense of a multiple and constructed self

from various discursive locations of religion, history, law, politics and morality. In

Tughlaq, Sheikh Imam-Ud-Din, Najib and Barani are the persons who stand for

various types of symbols. Sheikh symbolizes religion, Najib politics and Barani both

history and spirituality. Nevertheless, each of the characters has an independent

existence and they are the representatives of various types of personalities of Tughlaq.

Tughlaq proves his religiosity through the whole play and even at the end, he thanks

Heaven and he takes Omnipotent God for his companion to whom he can share his

madness.The whole play Tughlaq is centred round the history of sixties and it

followed the Nehru era. The play figures two general political issues – the first is the

idealistic and visionary politics in Nehru’s The Discovery of India and the second is

Mahatma Gandhi’s My Experiments with Truth where the politics of power relations

between groups is poised between the secular and the fundamental ideologies. In the

play Tughlaq, both religion and communalism are inherited to thwart the construction

of a national perspective which is presented in the history. Historian Homi K. Bhabha

speaks of the movement from “the problematic unity of the nation to the articulation

of cultural difference in the construction of an international perspective” (Bhabha 5).

According to Lindenberger, “one of the simplest ways a writer can achieve such

continuity is to play on the audience’s knowledge of what has happened in history

since the time of the play” (Lindenberger 5).

In this play, history is presented but at the same time, religion, politics and

national identity are weaved with the same tune. Sultan Muhammad’s brotherhood of

all religion is declared when he came to the throne. So, Aziz says: “I was a poor

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starving dhobi, when Your Majesty came to the throne and declared the brotherhood

of all religions” (Karnad 81). Religion means belief on God and in this play belief on

God is presented through the characters who take the name of God because they have

complete belief on God.Tughlaq takes God’s name by saying, “the Omnipotent God!”

(Karnad 85) and even at the end servant Muezzin takes God’s name: “Alla-Ho-Akbar!

Alla-Ho-Akbar! Ashahado La Elaha Illilah…” (Karnad 86) and the play ends.

Ending of this play with God’s name proves that belief on God is present

among the characters of the play, so religiosity is present in the play. As a ruler or as a

king, Tughlaq always wants to perform his duty sincerely for his country. He always

thinks about something good for his country. Meaning of Gita’s religion is to perform

our duty sincerely and perfectly and here Tughlaq performs his duty as a ruler very

sincerely. So Gita’s religion is presented here. Religion also means communalism and

caste-violence. Communalism and caste-violence i.e., the conflict between two

religions Hindu and Muslim are presented here.

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 THE DREAMS OF TIPU SULTAN

Attitude of Tipu Sultan towards Religion:

The Dreams of Tipu Sultan is based on the history of monarch Tipu Sultan of Mysore

(India) who reigned from 1782-1799. This historical play The Dreams of Tipu Sultan

(2004) was earlier produced as a radio play and was broadcast by the BBC to

celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of Indian Independence. It was the essence of India’s

colonial era and battle for independence.

It is based on the history of the eighteenth century India and but here history is

recreated in a new way. This play recreates a noble character like Tipu Sultan and it

also presents the inner life of the warrior Tipu. It shows the status of Tipu Sultan, his

psychology and his struggle for peace. It shows Tipu Sultan’s strategic resistance

when other princely states were struggling for their individual hegemony and the

British were consolidating for their Empire. In The Dreams of Tipu Sultan, Karnad’s

main aim was to highlight Tipu’s visionary zeal, political strategies, the battle field

maneuvers and religiosity of Tipu’s character. Karnad’s The Dreams of Tipu

Sultan (2004) actually re-writes the tragic decline of Tipu Sultan who governed the

Kingdom of Mysore in the southern parts of India. During the last two decades of the

eighteenth century it presents how a king is transformed from a barbaric to a civilized

one. Karnad has recreated history from past eighteenth century to a new Postcolonial

perspective and he has presented his ideological polemics from objective point of

view to the then socio-political paradigms.

Actually the play The Dreams of Tipu Sultan is a blending of dreams, action

and thought process and in this play M.H. Abrams had found “the Stream of

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Consciousness” technique which exhibits an ability to “capture the full spectrum and

flow of a character’s mental process, in which sense perceptions mingle with

conscious and half-conscious thoughts, memories, feelings and random associations”

(Abrams 156 -7). The representation of Tipu by Karnad is as a dreamer of peace and

progress who yokes ethics with economics. This play gives focus on the dreams

which are seen by Tipu Sultan and all these dreams help Tipu to protest against the

wrongs, evils, misdeeds and also help Tipu to protest against the British and persuade

him to raise wars against them. This is the reason for which he is hailed as the

“Freedom Fighter” who is inspired by his “real dreams”. Being a monarch he never

justifies any division and rule policy among different religions and castes. In the book

preview, Tipu Sultan addresses people of Mysore saying:

The Koran holds that there can be no compulsion in religion…Koran requires

you to say to people, ‘we believe in that which has been revealed unto us and
revealed unto you; our God and your God is One and unto Him we surrender’.
We hold this God-given law dear to our heart, based as it is on human dignity,
reason and brotherhood of man. With reverence, we read also Hindu Vedas
proclaiming faith in universal unity and belief that God is one though He bears
many Names. We hold this God-given Law dear to our heart, based as it is, on
human dignity, reason and brotherhood of man.We therefore hold it unlawful
for anyone to discriminate against express the belief that God is one though
He bears many names. We hold this God-given Law dear to our heart, based
as it is, on human dignity, reason and brotherhood of man. We therefore hold
it unlawful for anyone to discriminate against any person on basis of religion,
caste or creed. (N.P.)

Tipu’s justification for all religions makes him religious by heart. He always gives

same priority to all religions.This play deals with the life history of Tipu Sultan of

Mysore and history presents a unique account of the ruler Tipu who struggles for war

to free his nation from the hands of British. Tipu Sultan nurtures a kind of perfidious

hatred for British and he fights in many wars with British and similarly he praises

British’s improved technologies and administrative technologies. He never justifies

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any rule or regulation for any different religion. Karnad favours writing on Tipu

Sultan and in order to support his work, he thinks that Tipu Sultan has been

misrepresented in the history book as a fanatic. But his words were actually promoted

by the British who had a bitter treachery against him.

The play is a summation of dreams, thought process and actions. In Sanskrit,

Dream is called ‘swapna’. Dreams have always been the core of inquisitiveness and it

has been widely discussed in “Brahma Sutra”, “Atharva Veda”, ‘Chhandyoga’,

‘Brihadaranyak’, ‘Prasna’and in other Puranas like “Agni Purana” and “Matsya

Purana”. The genesis of dreams is clarified in the “Brahma Sutra” (3/2) as “the result

of transition of mind from the conscious to the unconscious state, or from a state of

cognition to that of subtler impulses of mental activity” (N. P.). The literal meaning of

the word ‘dream’ is to see or experience something as real which is not seen in the

real world. Today we are familiar with the great psychoanalyst named Sigmund

Freud. Freud’s book On Dreams begins like this:

In the following pages, I shall demonstrate that there exists a psychological

technique by which dreams may be interpreted and that upon the application
of this method every dream will show itself to be a sense full of psychological
structure which may be introduced into an assignable place in the psychic
activity of the waking state. (Freud 1)

Sigmund Freud, one of the modern psychologists, has worked on the extensive

analysis of the effect of bodily, mental and emotional conditions on dreams in his

book Theory of Dreams which concludes the suppressed emotions, unfulfilled desires

and aspirations in professional and personal life which generate reactions in the

conscious and unconscious realms of mind. Dreams are materialized in the imaginary

world of human beings. After all, hopes, visions, desires, plans, projects and wishes –

all these are the sisters of dreams.

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 Karnad mingles both dreams and real incidents into one plot and it enables

him to cross the area of days and events to explore the psycho-logic section of a

visioner. At the same time, it is a well-known fact that Islam has a long history of

dream interpretation. E.g., medieval philosopher-theologians like Ibn Arabi (1164-

1240) and Ibn Khaldun (1332-1402) developed the earlier teachings of Ibn Sirin (d.

728). According to them, the best dreams are those which come directly from God

and without symbolic ambiguity. Such dreams are mentioned in the Koran and in the

Hadiths and the sayings of the Prophet Muhammed are mentioned by his earliest

followers. Dreams, which are bizarre, emotionally upsetting or morally improper, are

classified as demonic. The individual who has such dreams is encouraged to ignore

them. Dream which terrifies us is called nightmare. According to Ibn Khaldun,

“confused dreams” are from Satan, because these dreams give us futile thinking and

Satan is the source of futility. On the other hand, according to Ibn Arabi, there is

another type of dream that is called ‘khayal’ which represents something between the

real and the phenomenal world just like our imaginings. He also represents ‘khayal’ as

anything that provides a symbol for either reality or for some hidden meaning. There

are so many Muslims in the contemporary world who still pay close attention to their

dreams. They are hoping for signs of divine favour and they are guarding against

demonic temptations. A study of dreams is taken as a key in the understanding of

Muslim culture and in the topic of historical continuity from the ancient age to the

present age. In this play, Karnad has successfully adopted the technique of “Stream of

Consciousness” to capture the flow of thought of Sultan Tipu which morphs into the

conscience of the readers crossing the limitations of time and space. Here memory

with nostalgia serves as a clue in an attempt of soul-searching. The historian Mir

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Hussain Ali Khan Kirmani, who has worked on Tipu Sultan’s life, firmly admits that

working on Tipu’s life gives him pain and there is no healing balm so the wounds are

still fresh. It is interesting to perceive that the opening scene (Set in 1803) puts side by

side in the Western and in the Oriental ways of reading history. Mackenzie, who is

studying Arthashastra, is a sticker of evidences and facts; on the contrary, Kirmani,

an old court historian, believes in the authenticity of Tipu’s dreams. The play covers

the life of Tipu Sultan, which constitutes a large spectrum of incidents in the pages of

history. S. Bageshree took an interview with Girish Karnad that was printed in The

Hindu dated July 15, 2004 entitled “Visionary’s Dreams” where Karnad says: “Look

at the last 150 years. A state such as Maharashtra produced Tilak, Phule, Ambedkar.

… But in Karnataka there is no equivalent. The only person I can sense as not an

intellectual but an intelligent man is Tipu” (Bageshree 7).

Tipu Sultan was really a perfect fierce ruler with a formidable strength and

marvellous courage. He was a powerful animal just like a tiger for the protection of

his kingdom and he was always ready to pounce if anyone presents his evil intention

towards his kingdom. Even the dead Tipu Sultan frightens the English in the play.

Wellesley wants to be sure before touching his body. WELLESLEY: “Is that Tipu

Sultan, Qilledar Sahib?” NADEEM (broken Voices): “Jee han”. WELLESLEY: “So

that’s the Tiger of Mysore” (Karnad 188). Kirmani also blames Mackenzie for

playing with history: “For you, he’s made up of bits of evidence, bits of argument that

prove that your side was right. And that’s what I don’t understand. You have your

version of history, all worked out. Why do you want my side? Why do you care?”

(Kirmani182).

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 Though Tipu Sulan was the king of the 18th century, Karnad has presented him

in the context of the post-Independent India. In this play Tipu’s personality is

misinterpreted as Tipu was a Muslim fanatic who forcibly converted Hindus to Islam.

In an interview with Shonali Muthalaly, Girish Karnad comments about Tipu Sultan.

This interview is presented in the newspaper The Hindu titled “Karnad and the King”

dated August 19, 2004 where Karnad’s opinion is: “about the forced conversions, he

never really converted his own subjects – only the Nairs of Kerala and the Coorgs.

That was one way he punished his enemies…and it was rather humane, considering

how enemies were treated at the time… The Marathas burned and raped their

enemies” (Muthalaly11).Tipu understands the pang of partition and it is realized when

Haider Ali tells Tipu that, “You have maimed me, Tipu.You have cut off my limbs

and handed them over to the enemy” (Karnad 224). Tipu’s reply reverberates with the

guilty exposure of the nationalists who held themselves responsible for division when

he says, “My body still bears those welts – such scars that I’m ashamed to undress in

front of anyone” (Karnad 225).

Though Tipu is sometimes criticized by historians but Tipu’s attitude and

thinking for his country really makes him religious by heart.

Religion through Dreams:

In the play The Dreams of Tipu sultan Karnad uses the concept of dreams that helps to

indicate the downfall of Tipu sultan. In history, Tipu sultan has thirty seven dreams

which are recorded in his dream book Khwab-nama and these dreams were found by

Colonel Patrick and these thirty- seven dreams are recorded from April 1786 to

January 16, 1799. These dreams tell us that Tipu was just like a normal human being

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and his dreams present inner reflection of his personality and these dreams are the

mirrors of his unconscious self. His dreams are examples of political allegories. These

dreams cover almost twelve to thirteen years of his reign and through his dream it is

proved that Tipu was really very religious by heart.

The play The Dreams of Tipu Sultan is divided into two acts. The scenes are

shifted from one place to other and from one time to other and there is a flux between

dream and reality. The focus is on certain dreams. The Mysore’s tiger had recorded a

dream in a secret diary.Karnad uses a kind of dramatic technique which is unique in

The Dreams of Tipu Sultan and he keeps in mind the requirement of a radio play. The

play The Dreams of Tipu Sultan presents Tipu’s dreams in which thought process and

action are merged together. Here Tipu’s mind strives to grasp a dream which is

emerged from the unconscious stage of mind and a person with conscious mind

cannot imagine this dream. In this play, Girish Karnad gives focus on such dreams

which were seen by Tipu Sultan because the whole play is centered on his dreams.

These dreams were inspirations for Tipu Sultan because these dreams help to motivate

him to justify the right one. These dreams are the main sources which help Tipu

Sultan to fight against his enemies who attack his nation. Karnad uses some of the

dreams seen by Tipu Sultan and applies them to his play. He tries to show that these

dreams were the predictions only but however these take the shape of reality and these

dreams are only narrated through Kirmani in the play.In the very first scene, Karnad

speaks about his dreams which were recorded by Tipu in a letter and these dreams

were given to his loyal employee Kirmani before his death. But after his death,

Kirmani betrays him and expresses his dreams to Colonel Mackenzie: “I forgot all

about the letter. Naturally, with all that followed. Next day, I found it in my pocket.

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Reluctantly, I broke open the seal. Inside was a paper on which he had recorded the

dream he had had the previous night.His last dream.With that my history ends.Yours

begins” (Karnad 183).

Tipu’s first dream in the play is the dream of his dream book. The first dream

which is recorded in the play is the one which was occurred to him on the 3rd day of

the month of Thamari and the last night of the month of Ramzan. The next day was Id

when he was returning from Farrukhi near Salamabad with his army. He dreams that

he had been on an elephant shikar and on his way back was walking with Poornaiya,

the Finance Minister when they saw a big temple which was in a dilapidated state and

he asks Poornaiya to look at the structure which looked quite mysterious. Tipu saw a

strange building with several human images and asked: “Poornaiya, what idols are

these? Are they some gods you recognize?” (Karnad 192). Poornaiya thought that

they were not Gods. Tipu understood that they did not seem to belong to any religion.

After that they discovered that among those stone images, there were two living

women and the rests were merely images. These two living women were praying to

God and sought their salvation. Tipu wanted to help them but they wanted only “total

isolation”. Tipu Sultan did not disturb them and assure to rebuild the temple so that

these seekers after God were not disturbed.

In the first dream, Tipu’s belief on God and religion prove that he is religious

by heart. Tipu’s endeavour of projecting a collapsed temple and his belief on God and

fraternity prove that he is religious by heart. This kind of thinking about religion, God

and fraternity show a religious aspect in Tipu’s character. It reminds us of Swami

Vivekananda’s ideals of religiosity and fraternity. Vivekananda preaches the essential

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unity of all religions and he shows the need to eschew sectarianism and fanaticism

and according to Swami Vivekananda, a country’s future depends on its people,

stating that “man making is my mission”. Religion plays a central role in this mission

of man-making, stating to preach mankind their divinity and helps to manifest in

every movement of life. Swamiji wants to build universal faith in “Adwaita Vedanta”

which is for him the most scientific religion and the fairest flower of philosophy in the

world. Swamiji preaches the principles of ‘Jnana’, ‘Karma’, ‘Bhakti’ and “Raja

yogas”. Tipu dreams of defeating the British with the assistance of his employees like

Mir Sadiq, Poornaiya, Nadeem Khan and Qammaruddin who in reality deceives him.

Karnad beautifully portrays this dream.

In the second dream, he saw two old men with long beards dressed in flowing

silk gowns are approaching them. Besides, they have two elephants and several

footmen who are carrying spear and guns. After that he dreams that two old men who

presented him a white elephant and some horses as a token of friendship and met the

envoys of the Emperor of China and he requested them to take a seat in the Diwan-i-

Aam but they rejected it. Tipu knew from Nizami’s book, Sikandar-namah that the

Emperor of China had sent a present of a white elephant, a horse and a female slave to

the Great Alexander. The interpretation of his dream is that God Almighty and his

prophet will make him another Alexander. In the second dream, belief on God also

proves that he is religious by heart.

The third dream in the play is dream thirteen out of his thirty- seven dreams.

This dream reveals the dangers from his natives. It occurred on the sixth day of the

Khusrawi month in the year of Busd when he was preparing for a night attack on the

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Maratha armies with three-hundred men under general Hari Pant Phadke at Shahnur

near Devgiri. He had a dream. The interpretation of the dream is that may it please

God that though the Marathas are dressed in male attire, they will in fact prove to be

women because a handsome young man fair-skinned and light-eyed approached him

and he had a woman’s voice.

The last dream shows his victory over the British. Sultan was staying in the

caravanserai on the northern ramparts. After his victory, Hubbub says:

“Congratulations, sir. God be praised! We have done it” (Karnad 238). Tipu’s words:

“Today we celebrate. We pray and thank God. With the Marathas and the Nizam on

our side, we can chase the English into the sea any day” (Karnad 238). In the last

dream, we also find the mentioning of the word God again and again. Mentioning of

the word God proves that he is really very religious by heart. In all his dreams, his

endeavour was to drive out the British from the native land India to the far sea off

land to make our motherland free. Each of the four dreams is the example of political

allegory of his kingdom. His dreams are encompassed by some imaginary characters

and some historical figures like Lord Cornwallis and Haidar Ali. He was a patriot as

well as a religious person who wanted to free our nation from British hands and his

last dream was fulfilled after one hundred and fifty years of his death. So the seed of

patriotism is weaved by Tipu which reminds us of the patriot leaders like Mangal

Pandey, Bhagat Singh or Sukhdev. Tipu’s death is considered just like the death of a

true warrior as Thomas Beckett in the Archbishop of Canterbury in Chaucer’s The

Canterbury Tales or like Joan of Arc who preferred to be burnt at the stake in G.B.

Shaw’s play Saint Joan.

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 Last two dreams also show belief on God inTipu’s mind. Tipu Sultan’s dreams

are full of preoccupations and influences. His dreams present political events and

battles and these also allude to religious symbols. The last dream is very poignant and

this dream is not a nightmare but a fantasy of victory in the midst of death and defeat.

The insertion of the dream text into history makes this play a historical play but here

history is reconstructed and this reconstruction of history gives the play a new

perspective through its polyphony of voices.The dream-vision convention was widely

used in the European literature from Latin times until the fifteenth century. Generally

a dream vision is a literary genre or a literary convention in which a narrator falls

asleep and dreams. Generally in any kind of dream, there is usually a guide who

imparts knowledge (often about religion or love or anything else) that the dreamer

could not have learned before. After awaking, the narrator resolves to share this

knowledge with other people. If the dream vision includes a guide that is a speaking

inanimate object, it employs the trope of prosopopoeia. Freud describes dreams in his

work Interpretation of Dreams in this way:

The idea that the dream concerns itself chiefly with the future events whose
form it surmises in advance – a relic of the prophetic significance with which
dreams were once credited – now becomes the motive for translating into the
future the meaning of the dream which has been found by means of symbolic
interpretation. (Freud 1)

Symbols are language of dreams. A symbol can invoke a feeling or an idea and it

often has a much more profound and deeper meaning than any one word can convey.

At the same time, these symbols can leave you confused and wondering what that

dream was all about. Dreams are the creation from the unconscious mind. If only they

were written in the language, we use these dreams in making reality.

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 In his play The Dreams of Tipu Sultan, Karnad mainly uses the concept of

dreams to indicate the downfall of Tipu Sultan through his dreams. These dreams of

Tipu can be interpreted as symbols or an indication and it focuses on his downfall in

the future and the Marathas call it “women in a men’s garb”, i.e., as those who cannot

save themselves from the clutches of the British. Tipu Sultan’s thought process

morphs into the conscience in which the spectators and the playwright succeed to

make a kind of conscience in which an emphatic attention must be attained.Tipu

nurtures a kind of deep love for his own land, for his own country and for his own

culture which merge the Indian culture and the Western culture together and this

merging culture spread its influence over the subcontinent.

In this play all dreams of Tipu sultan show the presence of God. Religion

means belief on God and in this play, there are so many characters who believe in

God and in their words, God is mentioned. E.g., in Act One, Hasina says: “May the

Lord Protect Your Majesty” (Karnad 210). Tipu’s words: “May God’s will be done”

(Karnad 211). Act Two commences with an emotional scene i.e., queen’s death. In

Act Two, queen has been ill for a while and she has a fever that refuses to come under

control and the hakims do not know what the ailment is? At that time all people pray:

“God save the King! God grant the Queen a long life! Tipu also prays – Inshallah!”

(God willing) (Karnad 213). Ruqayya’s words: “May it please God it is not the

disaster I fear it is” (Karnad 211). Poornaiya’s words: “May God bring victory to

Your Majesty” (Karnad 236). Nadeem’s words: “News only of God’s smile, Your

Majesty” (Karnad 237). Hubbub: “Congratulations, sir. God be praised! We have

done it” (Karnad 238). Tipu: “May it please God, …” (Karnad 204).

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 Tipu gives thanks to God after gaining victory – this also proves him religious.

Besides, so many characters take the name of God. It means they have complete faith

on God. So in the play, from the very beginning to the end, belief on God is present.

Belief on God means belief on religion, so religion is prominent in this play.

According to Gita, religion means to perform our duty perfectly and sincerely. As a

ruler, Tipu always wants to do something good for his country and through his dreams

his deep love for his land and for his own country is depicted. So, as a ruler he

performs his duty very sincerely, so religiosity is depicted in Tipu’s character.

Tipu’s Business Policy and Religion:

Tipu is a man who has a sharp mind, sharp frame and his desire is to learn and move

ahead in life. He knows the policy of business very well. Throughout the whole play,

Tipu’s admiration for Europeans is noteworthy. According to the Government

Statistics 2010, India is the world’s largest democratic country. India’s position is the

second world’s largest populated nation. The problem with our country is that it has

no faithful residents though there are a few residents but they are not properly

encouraged and promoted. Tipu’s dilemma is the dilemma of modern developing

country India. Tipu is projected as a man with modern sensibility when he deals with

a majority of issues. His aim is to keep his subjects free from fear, malice, poverty,

treachery, atrocity and from the patronage of British.Tipu knew that the English men

were thriving in India because of their keen political machinations and trading skills.

Tipu says: “The English will not harm our children. They’ll not poison them or kill

them, for there’s no financial profit in it” (Karnad 217). He moves us to think of the

John Company – “how they came to this country, poor, cringing, and what they have

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become in a mere fifty years. They threaten us today. It’s all because of their passion

for trade” (Karnad 200).

Tipu’s business policy reminds us of the policy of the Gandhian ideology

(“Swadeshi Movement”) in terms of nationalizing the commodities. He nationalized

and controlled the trading of sandalwood and ivory. In Act One he declares: “This

land is ours and it’s rich, overflowing with goods the world hungers for, and we let

foreigners come in and rob us of our wealth! Today the Indian princes are all

comatose, wrapped in their opium dreams. But some day they’ll wake up and throw

out the Europeans” (Karnad 210).Today the foreign companies are looting us. The

company like East India Company has changed to the multinational firms that are on

their mission to destroy Indian economy. They want to establish their monopoly in

Indian markets. They always become successful by supplying their materials in our

country. They charge the double amount in comparison to Indian companies and lure

the customers in the name of the imported items. When any Indian company seems to

challenge their monopoly, they seize it. However, there are some Indian firms which

have the international brands but they are very few. India is famous as a watermelon

for American, Korean and Japanese companies. We can see that our markets are full

of Chinese goods and Chinese foods which are endurable and unreliable in quality

and still they are ruling over us. The foreign investors recruit young Indian business

trainees and technical graduates in order to enrich their wealth because our companies

are unable to pay them proper salary.Tipu always thinks about profit in business of his

country.

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 Tipu’s prediction for the future of India is as a slave country under the British

reign.Tipu as Subhash Chandra Bose, Chandra Shekhar Azad and many other

revolutionaries have attempted to defeat and check the growing influence of West in

every field. Karnad is influenced by Tipu Sultan’s passion of developing India as a

developed land. Though he was religious but he was a perfect businessman. Tipu

addresses the conference and praises the apples which were brought from Kashmir.

He then talks about the silkworms and eggs: “So where were we? Ah, yes! To the list

drawn up for our delegation, add silkworms and eggs from the island of Jezeriah

Diraz near Muscat–” (Karnad 195). Tipu also says:

… We need glass. We need guns. We need cannons. Shall we keep buying

them from abroad? Even for that we need money. And shall we be content
with the pittance we get by taxing our businessmen when we have ivory and
sandalwood freely available? Can an individual trader deal in Sandalwood?
For centuries we begged and borrowed silk from the Chinese. And everyone
predicted disaster when I got a few eggs from China. And now we have a
flourishing industry of our own. (Karnad 195-6)

Tipu also explains the functions of Ther-mo-meter to all in the same scene: “Ther-mo-

meter! It is quicksilver in a glass tube. When placed in the hands of a sick man, the

quicksilver rises to a certain number of degrees and indicates the height of his

disorder. That helps the hakim decide on the treatment” (Karnad 199). On hearing

about it, Poornaiya reacts excitingly: “Pardon me, sir. But can such a thing be

possible?” (Karnad199). “I look forward to seeing this wonderful instrument, Your

Majesty” (Karnad 200). Tipu plans to include a gardener and varieties of trees,

flowers and bushes to be brought along. A doctor, a surgeon, a smelter, a carpenter, a

weaver, a blacksmith, a locksmith and a cutter etc. are included in the list to be

brought from France. He brought the silk industry back from China.

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 Tipu sent delegations to China, France and Istanbul to strengthen the economy

and build a trading empire. He wanted to open the doors of Mysore to modernization,

on the foundation of his administrative efficiency and commercial policies including

agricultural development, sericulture, gold-mining, refining, paper-making, glass

manufacturing, ship-building, pearl-culture, silk worms, foreign trade, rocketry and

development of military technology etc. He tried to resist the influence of traders in a

market by centralizing the commodities and thus stopped the smuggling of items. His

regime owned various warehouses, shops and stores to decrease the dearness. Karnad

successfully interprets this dream in the words of Tipu: “In the meantime morning

dawned and I rose. My interpretation of the dream is that God Almighty and our

Prophet will make me another Alexander … and the many faiths in my Kingdom will

depend upon me for protection and succour” (Karnad 194).

The dialogues exchanged between Nana Phadnavis, the Maratha statesman

and Charles Malet, representative of Lord Cornwallis concern the tactics of English

urging the native rulers to enmesh with Tipu Sultan. They plan to vandalize a

country’s strength and then to rule over the country. Malet begins in planting the seed

of suspicion by stating that they wished to assure the Maratha rulers that they were

good friends who could be relied upon in the moment of crisis. Malet becomes

successful in gaining confidence from other rulers and Malet involves them in the

conspiracy against Tipu Sultan. The scene that follows the next visualizes Tipu Sultan

with his family. The children appreciate the French toy as ingenious and life-like. His

vision of progress and eagerness draw our attention when Tipu says that he had two

teachers in his life. One is his father who taught him war and the other is English who

taught him trade. They taught him that the era of the camel was over and it was now

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the age of the sailing ship and they disliked me for being so adept a pupil. His modern

outlook has made him to introduce a cannon-founding, paper making, glass

manufacture, ship building, rearing of silk worms, pearl culture and the import of fine

assets from Arabia. His optimism sparkles in every aspect of his life. His business

policy really makes him a good ruler.A religious person performs his duty perfectly as

a good ruler. Tipu is really religious because he performs his duty sincerely and Tipu

rules his country perfectly through his business policy.

Tipu as a Religious Human Being:

The employees working under the service of Tipu sultan upon whom Tipu believe but

they betray Tipu and his most trusted employee Poornaiya has also deceived him.

Stein remarks Poornaiya as:

In 1792-93 and again in 1799, when Séringapatam was finally captured and
Tipu killed, the Company received substantial help from scribal, commercial
and gentry groups inside Mysorean territory itself. Indeed, following Tipu’s
death and the restoration of the Hindu dynasty that Haider had replaced,
financial administration of the kingdom was left in the hands of Tipu’s own
dream, the brahman Pumiah, who shortly afterwards received the reward of a
substantial jagir for his services to the English. (Stein 210)

Kirmani also has betrayed him. The Marathas and the Nizam have assisted the British

to vanish Tipu Sultan. In fact this was the only reason which laid Tipu Sultan to his

death bed. Karnad has not lost the chance even to reflect its fine imagery in the play.

Kirmani, a disloyal servant to Tipu in the play says to the British:

Mir Sadiq’s conduct of the war was so openly treacherous that his own troops
lynched him. Nadeem khan, the Qilledar, had ordered a pay parade for his
troops at the very moment of British assault, thus taking them away from the
battlefront. Poornaiya slipped with alacrity into the post of Prime Minister
under the new regime. Qamaruddin was by his side. The battle of
Seringapatam was lost before it had begun. (Karnad 238)

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But, after some years, British destroyed their power also. Fisher records the history in

his book Indirect Rule in India and he says that after the conquest of Tipu in 1799,

British defeated the Marathas in 1818 with the defeat of Peshwa Bajirao II. But Tipu’s

predictions came true because India became independent in 1947. Thus, this history

proves that “honesty is the best Policy” because it would bring disaster to the disloyal

also. But, here Karnad skips to describe about the perishable stage of his disloyal

servants after his death. He does not talk about what happens to them after they had

participated inTipu’s assassination. Even Marathas and Nizams are not shown in

details. However he gives a very short statement about his sons in the postscript that

is: “When India became independent in 1947, the families of maharajas who had

bowed and scraped before the British masters were granted sumptuous privy purses

by the Government of India while the descendants of Tipu Sultan were left to rot in

the slums of Calcutta” (Karnad 239).

Tipu was a real political diplomat. The vast bulk of Tipu’s negotiations with

French Republic, General Malartic and Napoleon in order to root out the British from

India prove his foresightedness and political diplomacy. Tipu knows his duty even for

his country and he wants to do everything just like an ideal patriot and this is also an

example of his religious nature. He used to say, “If you will assist me, in a short time

not an Englishman shall remain in India” (Kausar 173) – it is a slogan of Tipu which

is reminiscent of Shubhas Chandra Bose’s slogan. In the year1944, to the members of

the Indian National Army, Subhas Chandra Bose gave a speech with a famous line:

“Give me blood and I shall give you freedom” (Bose). Tipu always tries to free our

country from the British dominancy, so Tipu is a true patriot.Tipu was so courageous

and like Rani Laksmi Bai he was on the campaign to wipe out the sign of English

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from the Indian-territory, but both the warriors were defeated by their own people,

which the nation has to pay with a heavy cost – a long imprisonment under the British

Regime. Tipu has always invited the rational and logical percepts from the Western

countries. The earlier Sultans before him cultivated the romantic notions for their

reigns but Tipu knew the nerve of success that was the scientific approach towards

life and it was the way adopted by the foreigners. He brought ther-mo-meter, guns,

cannons, pistols, all kinds of machines, gardeners and many more from Europe that

make it so wonderful i.e., “full of new ideas” (Karnad 199). He wants to make his

country just like Europe which is full of all kinds of machines and bursting with

energy. His curiosity like a youth questions, “Why don’t we in our country think like

them?” (Karnad199).

The play scrutinizes the game of power politics. It unveils the real story

behind the curtain that how the people hatch the plot to attain the position in the world

and suddenly they become successful within a night while the deserving is

misunderstood and remain empty handed at last. Mornington hatches a plot against

the tiger:

I shall destroy Tipu. I shall decimate Seringapatam, within six months. If

that’s not merit, I don’t know what public service is. Surely, it would entitle
me to the same rank as Cornwallis. Arthur, the eyes of the world will be
focussed on Seringapatam and I want my brother there – at the centre. The
commandant of the Fortress! After that, it’s up to you. (Karnad 234)

Tipu was betrayed by his own people who at the threshold of war confirmed their

loyalty, support and confidence in him. At the end of the play, Poornaiya expresses

his faith in Tipu: “When your father picked me up, I was a mere clerk in a small god-

forsaken town. I am what I am today because of the kindness of your family. No,

Your Majesty, we will not yield. We’ll fight the English to the last drop of our blood”

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(Karnad 235). In the mean time, Mir Sadiq comes along with a letter from the Nizam,

showing his favour for Tipu. He further adds that Marathas too have decided to

support him. At the same time, Qamaruddin - the Commander in Chief, brings the

good news: “The English are withdrawing. They’re in total disarray. Total confusion

rules the ranks of the foreigners. I saw English generals squabbling like women in the

market–” (Karnad 237). Amidst the cheers and congratulations, Tipu asks everyone to

celebrate: “Today we celebrate. We pray and thank God. With the Marathas and the

Nizam on our side, we can chase the English into the sea any day” (Karnad 238). It

was Tipu’s vision of the future which could not meet its fate. Kirmani tells us:

“That was Tipu’s last dream.

That afternoon he was killed in battle” (Karnad 238).

The fourth dream is a very shocking reality which is in contrast to the dream. Tipu

was killed in a battle. Mr Sadiq’s conduct of the war was so openly treacherous that

his own troops lynched him. Nadeem Khan, the Qilledar, had ordered a pay parade for

his troops at the very moment of British assault and thus taking away from the battle

front. Poornaiya was slipped with alacrity into the post of Prime Minister under the

new regime. Qamaruddin was by his side and the battle of Seringapatam was lost

before it had begun. Mackenzie rightly says: “The tigers of the palace were shot dead

while the mechanical tiger was shipped off to London” (Karnad 239). With this

achievement, Richard Wellesley, Governor General of the British possessions in the

East Indies wrote a letter to the Board of Directors of the East India Company saying,

“it should show the Indian princes the danger of inviting foreign invasion – against

the British power” (Karnad 239). His younger brother Arthur Wellesley was launched

on a spectacular career because he is crowned as the Duke of Wellington, the

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conqueror of Napoleon, Prime Minister of England. His promotion was ultimately

culminated in his appointing as the Duke of Wellington, the conqueror of Napoleon

and the Prime Minister of England.The sons of Tipu Sultan under strict observation

were moved out of Seringapatam and were killed in Calcutta, where they could be

kept under surveillance. Within twenty years, the British had annexed the Marathas

Empire. All is well that end is well and here nothing is well as the end is not well.The

play ends at the remark of Kirmani: “It was not Tipu’s dreams but his predictions that

came true” (Karnad 239) because India became independent in 1947.

But Tipu through his dream imagines his own victory. He always remains

courageous and honest to his country and his patriotism for his country bounds no

limit. The play The Dreams of Tipu Sultan is caught in an ethical dilemma.Tipu

Sultan is a perceptive Indian king who keeps on wavering between India and Indian’s

nationalistic sentiments. Tipu is full of patriotism for his own nation. He envies the

British Nationalism because of their love for England and their steadfastness. Tipu

accepts the demands of British only for the sake of his country. Only a religious

person can sacrifice his son for his country, so Tipu is really a patriot. Besides, Tipu’s

belief on God is also presented in this play. After death he is probably thankful to God

as he wants victory. So from the very beginning to the end the existence of God as

well as religion is dominating in the play and through honesty, courage and

patriotism, Tipu’s religiosity is also expressed. Besides, Tipu’s mentioning of religion

in his dreams proves that he is really very religious by heart. The last dream is the

most poignant because it is a fantasy of victory and this victory is in the midst of

defeat and death. This dream text of Tipu Sultan is inserted into history and it is a

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kind of experience than memory and it makes The Dreams of Tipu Sultan a poetic

play.

The outcome of the play is that no one can dare to touch the honour of any

nation, but unfortunately, it is the mentality of few authoritarians that decide the

future of it. India plated with gold and the land of warriors was not defeated by any

foreign assaults, but by our own people’s betrayal. At present, India is struggling with

inter-state commotions and corruptions which is an issue of concern. It is the magic of

Karnad’s artistic form that has turned history into a humanistic text. This play focuses

on the decline of moral values of the contemporary world. Though Tipu is a person of

towering personality but Tipu’s personality is mocked when the soldiers treat dead

Tipu as a mere carcass: “if the bastard’s really lying dead somewhere here, we should

let him rot in the sun – feed him to the dogs!” (Karnad185). They behave grotesquely

by chopping one of his moustaches and first soldier promised to present this to his

friend Dr. Cruso. So, Kirmani rightly comments on it: “So the Tiger of Mysore had at

last been hunted down. And the first salutation he received from the hunters was to

have his whiskers chopped off” (Karnad 189). Mackenzie becomes angry and he

shouts: “What are you doing, man? What in the name of the Devil are you doing?

Stop that lunatic–” (Karnad 189) and Mackenzie requests: “Arrest that damned fool!”

(Karnad189).Kirmani also expresses his regret for Tipu’s destruction: “Not his

death.The way he was destroyed” (Karnad 182). After the death of Tipu, in our

society havoc destruction occurs. Kirmani describes it: “Every house looted. Every

available woman raped. Soldiers throwing away precious jewellery because they

could not carry any more” (Karnad 190). The situation reminds us of the horrendous

condition, disharmony and the mutual hatred prevailing in 1947, after the partition of

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India and Pakistan. In the year 1947, communalism, caste violence, conflict, terror,

atrocity, brutality, horror and havoc destruction spread away in the whole country. If

we go through Kushwant Singh’s Train to Pakistan, the first line of the fiction

presents the horrific situation after India-Pakistan division. The chaos and bloodshed

also remind us of the mutinies that broke out in Islamic countries including Tunisia

and Egypt. It also echoes the disorder spread in India after the assassination of

Mahatma Gandhi and after the assassination of our late PM Mrs. Indira Gandhi. Kabir

Kausar rightly writes in his work Secret Correspondence of Tipu Sultan: “The torch

was lit that desolate night. He had fallen in a heap or so they thought, but in truth he

leapt up astride the Pegasus of his dreams. In one final mighty push he had left behind

the murky ground of unawakened patriotism and burst into that eternal motherland”

(Kausar 337).When a great persona was assassinated in our country, naturally a chaos

was created at that time. Kirmani rightly says:

Doors and windows in the city had already been torn down by the British
soldiers. Most houses were roofless. And now, through the night, the rain
lashed with a fury that made the soldiers’ rampage seem like child’s play. It
destroyed all my papers.Wiped away every word written in ink.Within a night,
all my recorded facts became memory. (Karnad 191)

So, the playwright exposes the naked realities of the aftermath of the war. No one can

forget the horrendous condition of Nagasaki and Hiroshima during the Second World

War in 1945. Now the world is marching ahead in the pursuit of the Third World War,

sometimes in the name of oil, water or land resources and sometimes for some

political issues, we have not learnt from our past. The recent attacks on Iraq and

Afghanistan by America and its allied nations put an end to several innocent lives.

The political ambiance which was existed during the reign of Tipu is still affecting

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India, acquiring a different magnitude and intensity. Karnad exploits the fable of Tipu

Sultan to ponder over the fractured Indian polity and its consequent enslavement.

The Queen’s death followed by the four conditions imposed by the British was

really very heart rending. Only a person like Tipu Sultan could face such dire

confrontations with perseverance and with outstanding bravery. The first condition

demanded by the English was the release of all English prisoners unconditionally. The

second condition impelled the cession of half of his domain which is adjacent to the

territories of the English, the Marathas and the Nizam. After second condition when

Tipu takes the preparation to bound English attack, Qamaruddin says: “For two years

we have fought and fought well. The soldiers are now tired. For weeks, they’ve been

sleeping on their feet. I do not know how long they can hold out” (Karnad 214). Then

Tipu answers with the word God. Tipu’s answer: “So we have no alternative but to

sue for peace? God’s will be done. Please, do not expend your energies on these

matters. Territories come and go. We fight, we gain, we lose. Proceed” (Karnad 214 -

15). Tipu’s answer with the mentioning of the word God proves that his belief on God

is very firm. A person who takes the name of God is obviously a religious person

because a non-religious person cannot take the name of God. After that English wants

an “indemnity of six crores”, (Karnad 215) and at this point the English asked to

produce their revenue receipts and Chief Peshkar produced them.The last condition

which the English wants from him was his two sons as hostages to be handed over to

the English to be kept with them until the terms of the treaty are duly filled. To hand

over his two sons to the English is really a matter of challenge for a father. Instead of

demanding two particular sons, English would accept any two of Tipu’s sons. Tipu

first thinks that he would send Fath Haidar who is the eldest son and old enough to be

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sent, though he is dear to Tipu. But Tipu thinks that English will not accept Fath

Haider because his mother was not his legal consort. The shattering news declares the

names of two sons Abdul Khaliq who is only eight years old and Muizuddin, only a

few months younger because “other children are still at their nurses’ breasts” (Karnad

216). Britishers’ motive depicts their solidarity in fighting for a cause or selfish

motive which the Indians do not possess. The English Lord in all kindness assures the

Marathas “that having only one son himself, he experienced the affection of a parent

in more than an ordinary degree; but even his own child could not be received by him

with greater tenderness than ours” (Karnad 216).

Tipu wants to save his kingdom from plunder and prepare for the attack. He

does not bow before the English but sends his sons like heroes of the war. The sons

too face the situation bravely. Tipu thinks that God has been angry with him and he

was late for meeting because he had to bid goodbye to Begum Ruqayya Banu who left

them this morning. At that time Poornaiya also prays: “God save us!” (Karnad 218).

When Abdul asks for his mother, Gulam says: “Abdul Khaliq, God has left us no

choice. He has taken your mother to his bosom. And you have to go to the English for

a few months only. Now, your father will be here any moment. He is already shattered

– by everything, but more at the thought of losing you. You have to give him courage.

Will you?” (Karnad 221). Gulam’s word proves that he also believes on God like

Tipu Sultan and Poornaiya. Belief on God is probably inherent in Tipu’s soul because

he takes the names of God for many times. Tipu is a person who is religious as well as

brave. He does not bow before the English but sends his sons like heroes to the war.

When Muiz, Abdul Khaliq and Fath Haidar are sent, the sons too face the situation

bravely. They register their keen apprehension of the tension, division tricks and

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injustice that surround them. Observing that they were left alone inside the tent, the

sons found them busy examining their mechanisms. Kirmani bears witness to the

intellectual genius of the prince who desires to develop a sophisticated understanding

of the developments around them. Tipu Sultan’s personality presents the spirit of

oneness and the internal conspiracy among the natives. Due to Lack of a strong

camaraderie Tipu Sultan had to struggle against both internal and external force. Yet

he approaches Hari Pant to caution him. The discussions held by Mornington,

Kirkpatrick and Richard Wellesley accompanied by his younger brother Arthur

Wellesley illustrate unrelenting demands that aim at ruining Tipu Sultan. Conspiracy

is hatched for he poses a danger for their existence in India. His growing strength is

viewed with an intention to curb. The English return his two sons aged seven and

eight after two years of imprisonment. The English’s next demand was four of his

sons as hostages and half of his kingdom again. The third dream illustrates his

frustration over parting with his son as hostages to the British. Tipu’s love for his son

proves him an affectionate father. Tipu accepts the demands of British through

departing of his son only for the sake of his country. It proves him as a courageous

persona. He sacrifices his sons only for his country’s sake and only a patriot can do

this. So, Tipu’s patriotism for his country also makes him a religious person.

Usually, a well-established culture makes a cultural invasion encroachment. In

this drama, we can see that Islam and its culture become a part of Indian culture and

when the Muslim rulers settle in India, they fight against the British. Karnad captures

this type of sentiment only to substantiate and add a kind of strength to the theme of

the play. To Tipu Sultan, an independent state is worth for living and dying for

gaining of independency for one’s own country is really a matter of proud. Only for

234
the sake of a country, he even sacrifices his paternal affection. It is proved when he

becomes agree for sending his boys as a ransom for the British. He adds human

dimension to such figure which is painted into the fading murals of history. His aim

seems to highlight his visionary zeal, political strategies, battlefield maneuvers,

modernizing impulses and the populist trade and commerce policies. In this drama,

Karnad interweaves dream and reality but there is no demarcation line between these

two. Dream and reality – these two are mingled without really defining the boundaries

between the two. The reality glides into the dream world and back so seamlessly that

in the closing scene, we almost believe that Tipu has won the Fourth War of Mysore

until the scene shifts back to Kirmani. Tipu’s death is the death of a pride man.

Though his moustache is vandalized but his sword, his portrait and above all his

personality cannot be vandalized. His personality helps to establish him to a standard

legendary valour.

In this play, Karnad actually juxtaposes both political matter and religious

differences which are exposed through a kind of negative equilibrium. Tipu witnesses

both the atmosphere of anarchy and heavy bloodshed. Religion preaches morals and

expects morality from the people. Politics, which is far from religiousness, thrives on

craftiness, insidiousness, intrigue and deceit. Tipu Sultan is spiritually lonely and he is

tortured within the situation.The play The Dreams of Tipu Sultan is actually a tragedy

of an Indian hero as well as a wise king who in his whole life time was very conscious

about the encroachment of the colonists. He always thinks for the welfare of his

country. His death establishes him as a fearless warrior. Tipu’s thinking for the

welfare of his country makes him a religious person. Act One of this play concludes

with Mackenzie and Kirmani’s description of the war in 1790 and the English

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disheartens retreat. Karnad rescues Tipu from colonial perceptions and he presents

Tipu Sultan not as a king but reconstructs his character into a completely different

perspective of Independent India. Joining hands with the Marathas, Seringapatam is

attacked and Tipu Sultan is forced to sue for peace. Through his whole life, his

activities for his country really prove him as a religious person.

236
Karnad’s View of Religion in Tughlaq:

In the introduction portion of my thesis, I have said that religion means communalism

and caste-violence, religion also means belief on God and meaning of Gita’s religion

is to perform our duty sincerely and perfectly. Karnad’s presentation of communalism

and caste-violence is really appropriate with the context of this play Tughlaq. In the

play Tughlaq, Karnad presents religion from the perspective of communalism.

Communalism is an ideology which refers to conflict between two or more religions

specially conflict between Hindus and Muslims. This term denotes attempt to

construct religious or ethnic identity. Communalism is a social issue in Bangladesh,

India, Pakistan and Srilanka. From the ancient time, the emergence of communalism

has been considered as a reason for the establishment of Muslim rule in India.

Through the writing of Karnad’s Tughlaq, caste-violence and conflict between Hindu

and Muslim in Medieval India is characterized by strife and confrontation. In the

reign of Tughlaq, Karnad presents religion perfectly.

At the end of the play God’s name proves that belief on God is present among

the characters of the play, so religiosity is also present in the play. As a ruler or as a

king Tughlaq always wants to perform his duty sincerely for his country. He always

thinks about something good for his country. So Gita’s religion is also present here

because in the twelfth chapter of Gita named “Bhakti Yoga”, Srikrishna says that

religion means to perform our duty sincerely and perfectly. In this play, Tughlaq, as a

ruler, performs his duty very sincerely. So Gita’s religion is established here.

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Karnad’s View of Religion in The Dreams of Tipu Sultan:

In The Dreams of Tipu Sultan, from the very beginning to the end, Karnad presents

the existence of God as well as religion and Tipu’s mentioning of religion in his

dream proves that he is really very religious by heart. From the very beginning to the

end, the existence of God as well as religion is dominating in the play and it makes

Tughlaq a religious play. In the whole play, Tipu’s endeavour is to think for the

welfare of his country and to free his country from the hands of the British. As a ruler

Tipu tries to perform his duty perfectly.

In the introduction portion of my thesis, I have mentioned Gita’s religion.

Meaning of Gita’s religion is to perform our duty sincerely and perfectly without

attachment. But we obviously will keep some expectations from our work. Tipu

performs his role as a ruler with the expectation that one day his country will be free

from the hands of British and after his death, his dream becomes successful. So,

Karnad here presents religion through the character of Tipu who always as a ruler

tries to perform his duty sincerely and perfectly for his country, so Gita’s religion is

presented in this play.

238
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