58 rulers and claimants. 55 case trails. 59 linked source records.
All 20 emperors in the consulted Mughal main roster, four additional Mughal claimants, and 34 Delhi rulers/claimants, including the 1413–1414 interregnum. First-pass source screening; not an exhaustive catalogue of every act under these regimes.
A ruler’s name here is a research entry, not an accusation. Each case distinguishes a personal order, a commander’s action, a chronological association and unresolved attribution. Multiple publications repeating one chronicle are not independent witnesses.
Multan Sun Temple: three different questions
Early destruction: al-Biruni names Jalam. Maclean compares this with the 965 Fatimid letter and accounts describing a functioning shrine around 982–985, and proposes a possible later Ghaznavid destruction. The rival chronology remains unresolved.
Later destruction: Cunningham records a local tradition blaming Aurangzeb. Thévenot describes a shrine but does not name its deity; its identification as the reconstructed Sun Temple is an inference. There is no securely established demolition date in this review.
Location: the marker represents Multan city. The historical footprint is unknown, and this is a separate dossier from Prahladpuri.
“No case identified” means no named damage case was found in the consulted biography and indexed table. It does not mean an exhaustive search found none. Reigns are orientation dates; disputed succession and claimant status remain visible.
58 rulers and claimants
Babur
Mughal Empire · 1526–1530 AD Ruler in the main roster
Source trails or claims identified
See linked cases for attribution, the ruler’s actual role and access gaps. Linked cases are not a personal destruction count.
Biography sacred-site passages and the indexed Eaton table screened. This is a first pass, not an exhaustive archival review.
Delhi Sultanate · 1394 AD Ruler in the main roster
No case identified in this screen
No named temple-damage case identified in this limited screen. This does not establish that no damage occurred during the reign.
Biography sacred-site passages and the indexed Eaton table screened. This is a first pass, not an exhaustive archival review. The retrieved biography has no sources; roster chronology is separately listed.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. Aibak acted before his independent sultanate, in the Ghurid period.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. Aibak acted before his independent sultanate, in the Ghurid period.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Named attribution: Jalal al-Din Khalaji (sovereign)
Review: Indexed claim; underlying passage pending
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. This episode predates the associated ruler’s accession; the actor was then a prince or governor.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. This episode predates the associated ruler’s accession; the actor was then a prince or governor.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Named attribution: ‘Ala al-Din Khalaji (sovereign)
Review: Indexed claim; underlying passage pending
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. This episode predates the associated ruler’s accession; the actor was then a prince or governor.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. This episode predates the associated ruler’s accession; the actor was then a prince or governor.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. This episode predates the associated ruler’s accession; the actor was then a prince or governor.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. Chronology or geographic identification needs particular checking; do not select a familiar modern place merely by name.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. This episode predates the associated ruler’s accession; the actor was then a prince or governor.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order.
Indexed historical episode. The table names a locality, not necessarily an individually identified surviving temple; attribution remains to the named actor, not automatically to the ruler. The ruler link is administrative or chronological context; it is not evidence of a personal demolition order. Chronology or geographic identification needs particular checking; do not select a familiar modern place merely by name.
Named attribution: Jalam in al-Biruni; possible Ghaznavid attack in Maclean
Review: Competing accounts reviewed
The 965 letter and c. 985 shrine description conflict if both refer to the same temple. Mahmud’s involvement is a proposed explanation, not a settled finding. These rulers predate the Delhi Sultanate and the Mughals.
After 1666 AD, if the reconstructed-shrine identification is correct
Multan Sun Temple: later Aurangzeb attribution
Named attribution: Aurangzeb, in later local tradition
Review: Retrospective attribution; date and identity unresolved
Cunningham records local tradition in the nineteenth century. Thévenot does not name the deity. No contemporary demolition order was located in this review, and the exact historical footprint remains unknown.
Review: Event account read; chronology and modern identity pending
The account describes temple desecration and levelling buildings for a camp. Its date and temple identification need collation with the full edition; neither personal action by Akbar nor identification with a modern shrine is assumed.
Chronology and demolition attribution require separate review
Ayodhya: earlier structure at the Babri mosque site
Named attribution: Contested attribution; do not infer Babur’s personal order
Review: Research lead; underlying archaeological and court records pending
The earlier structure, when and how it ceased to exist, the mosque’s construction and the 1992 mosque demolition are distinct questions. No destroyed-temple marker is added from the biography alone.
Babur biography architectural discussion and its bibliography
The existing dossier or ruler bibliography is the discovery source; a new underlying-source chain has not yet been established.
Reference explorer
Select a case to see which works it draws on and which earlier documents they cite. An arrow means a citation or source dependency, not independent corroboration.
Source records and access
Selected passages were read in the listed editions. Unread originals are explicitly identified; retrieving an OCR file is not a full-book review. Translation choices and court rhetoric need comparison with original languages.
Richard M. Eaton: Instances of Temple Desecration, Frontline, 22 December 2000
Modern scholarly synthesis · Table and bibliography inspected
The 80 selected episodes are not a census or 80 individually identified temple buildings. A locality row can describe multiple losses. Attribution abbreviations distinguish sovereign, governor and commander.
Underlying work · Bibliographic entry captured; passage not independently read in this review
Edition and page references are retained on each episode. Some selected passages are followed to an accessed translation below.
Iqtidar Husain Siddiqui, tr., Waqi`at-e-Mushtaqui of Shaikh Rizq Ullah Mushtaqui (New Delhi, 1993)
Underlying work · Bibliographic entry captured; passage not independently read in this review
Edition and page references are retained on each episode. Some selected passages are followed to an accessed translation below.
Jagadish Narayan Sarkar, Life of Mir Jumla (Calcutta, 1952)
Underlying work · Bibliographic entry captured; passage not independently read in this review
Edition and page references are retained on each episode. Some selected passages are followed to an accessed translation below.
Al-Biruni, India, Sachau translation, volume I
Near-contemporary account in translation · Chapter XI, pp. 116–117 read
Attributes the broken Multan image and killing of priests to Jalam. Written after the events, not an eyewitness report of the attack; translator spelling varies.
Derryl N. Maclean, Religion and Society in Arab Sind (1989)
Modern scholarship · Printed pp. 134–137 and relevant bibliography entries read
Compares the Fatimid letter with later geographical accounts. Questions whether the letter concerns the Sun Temple and proposes a possible Ghaznavid destruction. A historical argument, not a securely established replacement date.
Retrospective archaeological report · Multan discussion, especially printed p. 119, read
Records local tradition blaming Aurangzeb; Cunningham visited in 1853, long after the alleged destruction. His location is a conjecture based on gate/drain names.
Jean de Thévenot, Travels (1687 English edition), part III
Travel account · Chapter XXXII, printed pp. 55–56, read
Describes an important Multan shrine but says he does not know the deity’s name. Identification as the reconstructed Sun Temple is an inference. This passage alone does not establish that he personally visited it.
Firuz Shah, Futuhat-i Firuz Shahi, Elliot & Dowson III
Ruler’s account in colonial translation · Printed pp. 380–381, sections 11–13, read
Maluh temples demolished; Salihpur temple demolition ordered; Kohana worship objects and books burned. Do not turn the last statement into a demonstrated demolition of the building. Self-justifying court narrative; Persian original not collated.
Shams-i Siraj Afif, Tarikh-i Firuz Shahi, Elliot & Dowson III
Court chronicle in translation · Printed p. 314, Jajnagar episode, read
Reports removal of a stone Jagannath image from the ruler’s fort. Eaton identifies the episode with Puri. The passage is not a surveyed account of destruction of the whole present temple.
Amir Khusrau, Khazain al-Futuh, Elliot & Dowson III
Court victory narrative in translation · Printed pp. 90–91 read
Brahmastpuri raid and Madurai temple burning. Court rhetoric describes sweeping destruction; exact lost fabric needs archaeological comparison. The name Chidambaram comes through later identification.
Babur, Babur-nama, A. S. Beveridge translation, volume II
Ruler’s memoirs in translation · Printed pp. 611–612, Urwa narrative, read
Records an order to destroy the Jain images at Urwa during the 1528 journey. The order alone does not identify every damaged Gwalior sculpture or establish execution of every intended destruction.
Abd al-Hamid Lahori, Badshahnama, Elliot & Dowson VII
Court chronicle in translation · Printed p. 36 read
Reports demolition of 76 unfinished temples in the Benares district under Shah Jahan. The inspected paragraph does not name the 76 buildings; it remains one aggregate lead.
Saqi Mustad Khan, Maasir-i Alamgiri, Jadunath Sarkar translation (1947)
Court-based chronicle in translation · Selected entries: Kashi, Mathura, Khandela/Sanula, Udaipur and Chitor; pp. 55, 60, 107–108, 116–117
Written after Aurangzeb’s death using court records. Attributes commands and reports completed acts; each statement needs its own locator. A report date is not automatically the day a temple was demolished.
Nizamuddin Ahmad, Tabaqat-i Akbari, Elliot & Dowson extract, later reprint
Chronicle in translation · Printed p. 29 and surrounding Nagarkot campaign context read
Archive identifier resembles volume VII but this file is a differently paginated Tabaqat extract, not Lahori. Describes Husain Quli Khan’s forces and Mahamai at Bhun. Campaign chronology and modern temple identity need checking.
National Monuments Authority: Bijamandal, Bhilsa heritage by-laws
Official architectural description · Sections 3.1–3.4 read
Records a former Paramara temple, reused carved members, excavated fragments and a mosque said to be built by Aurangzeb. This does not by itself date the temple’s destruction or establish its destroyer.
Earlier source or edition · Identified through a citation; original not consulted
Known here through Maclean’s quotation of Stern’s editions. The quoted passage does not name the Sun Temple.
Al-Muqaddasi / Maqdisi, geographical account of Multan
Earlier source or edition · Identified through a citation; original not consulted
Maclean cites the 1877 edition, pp. 484–485, for the description associated with a c. 985 visit. Edition not directly read.
Hudud al-alam (982), 1970 translation
Earlier source or edition · Identified through a citation; original not consulted
Maclean cites p. 89 for a functioning shrine. Underlying translated text not directly read.
Yohanan Friedmann, The Temple of Multan (1972)
Earlier source or edition · Identified through a citation; original not consulted
Israel Oriental Studies II, pp. 176–182. Cited in Maclean and Wikipedia; original paper not directly read.
B. D. Mirchandani, Sun Temple of Multan (1968)
Earlier source or edition · Identified through a citation; original not consulted
Journal of Indian History 46(2). Wikipedia’s later reconstruction discussion cites it; original paper not directly read.
Gardizi, Zayn al-akhbar, 1948 edition
Earlier source or edition · Identified through a citation; original not consulted
Maclean p. 137, note 30 cites p. 637 as suggesting Mahmud’s destruction of one of two sun idols. Site identification remains an interpretation.
This is an expanding evidence inventory. Specialist historical review is still outstanding. Case trails, bibliography entries and rulers are different units; none is a total of destroyed temples.