Through the Eyes of Travellers | Class 12 History Notes
By ConceptScroll Team · Published on 17 July 2026 · 3 min read
Through the Eyes of Travellers – this guide gives you a concise, exam-ready overview of Through the Eyes of Travellers from Class 12 History, written by ConceptScroll editors and reviewed against the latest NCERT textbook.
Ibn Battuta's Rihla
Ibn Battuta, born in 1304 in Tangier, Morocco, was a scholar and judge who valued experiential knowledge gained through travel. His travelogue, the Rihla, written in Arabic, offers rich details about 14th-century Indian society and culture. He traveled extensively across Africa, West Asia, Central Asia, India, and China, often serving as a qazi (judge). He arrived in Sind in 1333 and journeyed to Delhi, where Sultan Muhammad bin Tughlaq appointed him qazi. His travels were perilous, including attacks by robbers and bouts of illness, yet he persevered, traveling by caravan and ship. Ibn Battuta's descriptions emphasize unfamiliarity and curiosity, such as his detailed accounts of the coconut and paan, which were novel to his North African audience. He described Indian cities like Delhi and Daulatabad as populous, prosperous, and vibrant, with bustling markets, mosques, temples, and cultural activities including music and dance. He also noted the efficiency of the postal system and the integration of Indian agriculture and trade within wider Asian networks. His narrative blends personal experiences with observations of social life, urban prosperity, and cultural diversity, making his Rihla a valuable historical source.
📊 Diagram: Figure 5.3 depicts a sixteenth-century Mughal painting showing robbers attacking travellers, illustrating the dangers faced by travellers like Ibn Battuta.
🧪 Activity: Discuss the reasons some passengers carried arms during travel and the hazards faced by travellers.
🔗 Connection: Leads to the next section on the literary and cultural impact of Ibn Battuta's travels and subsequent travellers.
Frequently asked questions
1. Write a note on the Kitab-ul-Hind.
Kitab-ul-Hind is a detailed account of India written by Al-Biruni, a scholar from Uzbekistan who visited India in the early 11th century. The book provides a comprehensive study of Indian society, culture, religion, and science. Al-Biruni's work is notable for its objective and scholarly approach, as he tried to understand Indian customs and beliefs from an insider's perspective, despite being an outsider. The Kitab-ul-Hind remains an important source for historians studying medieval India.
2. Compare and contrast the perspectives from which Ibn Battuta and Bernier wrote their accounts of their travels in India.
Ibn Battuta and Bernier wrote their travel accounts from different cultural and temporal perspectives. Ibn Battuta, a 14th-century Moroccan traveller, wrote from the viewpoint of a Muslim scholar and jurist, focusing on Islamic practices, law, and the Muslim rulers of India. His accounts often emphasize religious and social customs, and he sometimes judged Indian society by Islamic standards. Bernier, a 17th-century French physician in the Mughal court, wrote from a European and secular perspect
3. Discuss the picture of urban centres that emerges from Bernier's account.
Bernier's account depicts urban centres in Mughal India as vibrant hubs of economic activity, craftsmanship, and cultural diversity. He notes the presence of skilled artisans producing exquisite goods such as muskets, fowling-pieces, and gold ornaments. The cities were well-organized with markets, workshops, and administrative buildings. Bernier also highlights the high quality of Indian workmanship, sometimes comparable or superior to European standards. His observations suggest that urban cent
4. Analyse the evidence for slavery provided by Ibn Battuta.
Ibn Battuta's accounts provide evidence that slavery existed in medieval India, though it might have differed from the chattel slavery known in other parts of the world. He mentions slaves in various roles, including domestic servants and laborers. Some slaves were war captives or purchased from markets. However, Ibn Battuta also notes that slaves could sometimes gain freedom or rise in social status. His observations suggest that slavery was integrated into the social and economic fabric but wa
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