This work focuses on Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire in India. Drawing primarily on the descriptions contained in Baburnama, the memoirs left by Babur, the author examines the political circumstances of Babur’s era, his inner world and eventful life, his literary legacy and human character, as well as the historical significance of the period in which he lived. Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire, enjoys in his native Uzbekistan a level of popularity comparable to that of Oda Nobunaga in Japan. The work explores the reasons behind Babur’s enduring popularity, the literary and historical appeal of Baburnama, the distinctive characteristics of the age in which he lived, and the image of the Silk Road – the cultural and historical environment in which Babur was born and raised.
Author: Eiji Mano, born in 1939. He graduated from the Faculty of Letters at Kyoto University and completed the prescribed doctoral coursework at the Graduate School of Letters at the same university. His field of specialization is the history of Central Asia. He has served as a guest professor at Ryukoku University and as Professor Emeritus at Kyoto University, and holds a Doctor of Letters degree. His major publication, Babur and His Era (Shoshindo, 2001), received the Japan Academy Prize.