Dhāt (lit., personal) was one of the two numbers—the other being suvār (cavalry)—that denoted the manṣab (rank) of an individual serving in the Mughal administration. It reflected his position in the government hierarchy and determined the salary he received for himself and his household according to meticulously prepared schedules of pay scales and after mandatory deductions. The manṣabdār (rankholder) was remunerated separately for recruiting a fixed number of horses and mounted soldiers as per the suvār component, which accounted for the larger share of his total sa…