ABSTRACT
148 The Vijayanagar rulers, without exception, were tolerant of all religions and of the different sects within the Hindu fold. There is no mention in any of the Muslim, Jewish, or Christian records of the desecration or demolition of a single place of worship or prayer of those religions by any Vijayanagar ruler. An occasion of a religious dispute between the Jains and the Vaishnavas was used by Bukka I to issue an edict, copies of which were displayed in important places, “proclaiming that from the standpoint of the State, all religions were equal and entitled to protection and patronage. The policy of religious concord indicated in this edict, was followed by all his successors.” (page 151)
