The finely detailed miniature painting in an album created for the Emperor Jahangir (reigned 1605–1627) of the Mughal Empire in India shows a ceremony initiated by Jahangir's father, Akbar the Great (reigned 1556-1605), Jahangir's father. Twice each year on the first day of the solar and lunar years, at an hour calculated by the court astrologers, the emperor himself or one of his sons would be weighed in a great balance against gold, silver, or other metals to be given away to the poor as charity. In addition to the precious metal, trays of textiles were laid out on a cloth to be given as gifts. The ceremony was witnessed by attendants of the court and other dignitaries, while religious officials held the ropes of the scale and recited blessings and prayers for the son.

The boy on the scale in this painting is Khurram, who became Shah Jahan (reigned 1628-57), builder of the Taj Mahal. The emperor may have chosen to weigh Khurram to commemorate a milestone in his life, important in a time of high infant mortality, or it might have indicated his status as heir apparent. The ceremony took place in a pavilion, or gardened canopied space. The wealth of the Mughals was displayed in the form of precious items from China and rich Persian carpets, couches, and clothing. This may have been a part of the ceremony or an artifice of the painter. The association of charitable giving with children and birth is a custom that goes back to the sunnah, or practice of Prophet Muhammad, when charity was given at the aqiqa, or feast in celebration of childbirth. The child's hair was cut and an equivalent in charity was given away. The practice of bestowing textiles, or robes of honor, was also one associated with Islam for centuries, in which it was customary for heads of households or officials to present those under their authority with suits of clothing at holidays.

Mr Javeril Umiashankar Yajnik was a member of the Bombay Legislative Council and Chairman of the Bombay Public Meeting of the Hindoo Supporters of the Age of Consent Bill, held on February 22, 1891. On January 9, 1891, British colonial authorities had introduced a bill to raise the age of consent for unmarried and married Indian girls from 10 to 12 years. The law targeted the Hindu practice of child marriage. Once enacted, the law served to prohibit the consummation of marriage rather than the practice itself. In several high profile cases, husbands had caused the death of their child brides and the British public was outraged.

This approach represented a compromise, an attempt to address public indignation without breaching a commitment not to interfere in Hindu religious practices. Nonetheless, the bill provoked fierce opposition that rejuvenated nationalist politics in India. Even supporters of the bill framed their defense in terms of the issue of religious autonomy, as Yajnik did in this speech. His other argument drew on eugenic ideas to turn concerns about individual girls into a crisis for the Indian race. The bill became law in 1891, but further reform targeting child marriage stalled for more than 30 years.