Central Asians, Arabs, Portuguese, French, Dutch, and British—all came to trade and rule, and India managed to find room enough for all of their cultural influences. During its more confident periods, South Asian Islam was expansive and open, absorbing influences from both West and East. Centuries of living alongside Hindus had fostered a Muslim culture of saints and shrines, flowering alongside orthodox madrasas. The Muslim emperor Akbar had even designed a syncretic faith of his own, the Din-i-Ilahi, which aimed to braid together the best elements of South Asia’s various religions. Even
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