भारतीय इतिहास के ६ स्वर्णिम पृष्ठ (वीर सावरकर - विदेशी आक्रान्ताओं पर विजय गाथा)

religion or those of his nation! Victory graced him in his bitter war with
Adilshah, whereupon, the treaty he effected with the Adilshahi Sultan, laid
down such acid terms as completely crushed down the Muslim swaggering
claims of invincibility, established the superiority of the Hindus, and were
accepted by the abject Muslim rulers with great reluctance.
893. His army was vast and powerful. It comprised seven hundred
thousand foot, twenty-two thousand cavalry and five hundred and fifty-one
elephants, ever prepared for war.
894. The glory of Vijaynagar reached its zenith in the times of Maharaja
Krishnadevrai, which can be proved beyond doubt by the various detailed
accounts written by many foreign travellers, who visited his court. Many of
them have even described his appearance. He was very handsome to look
at, a man of action and a very powerful personality to impress at first sight
any visitor.
895. He was a Vaishnav himself, yet he gave the same sympathetic and
tolerant treatment to the Vedic Hindus, who were in a majority, and to the
other minorities like the Jains, Lingayats, Mahanubhavas and other Hindu,
sects, avoiding every sort of clash of dissentient opinions and thus tried to
cultivate amongst the Hindus the feeling of oneness by means of his
compromising attitude. From the inception of the Empire of Vijaynagar, the
great Hindu leaders like the Shankaracharya Vidyaranyaswami and
Sayanacharya and others had adopted a wise policy of assimilation, equality
and tolerance that precluded every sort of clash between any two religious
sects, while their religious preaching fostered high respect for their Hindu
religion and their Hindu national sentiment. Foreign travellers refer most
admiringly to this religious tolerance and the sense of equality that the
Vijaynagar kings always showed.
Prosperity and Glory of Hindu Empire of Vijaynagar
896. Foreign travellers have very highly praised not only the civic and
religious liberties that the people of Vijaynagar enjoyed, but also its overall
prosperity and glory and the powerful influence that it wielded far and
wide. For instance, when the Portuguese traveller, Duarte Barbose, visited
Vijaynagar and stayed there for a while, he was very much astonished to
see its exceptional wealth and glory.
897. The ambassador from the Shah of Persia has clearly said, “The like
of this city is nowhere to be found on the face of this earth.” Adjoining the
royal palace, there were four-fold extensive market places for jewellery and