Persian literary sources of medieval India reflect the spirit of the age. Comment. (UPSC IAS Mains 2020 General Studies Paper – 1)
With the arrival of Mughals, Turks and Afghans,the Islamic and Indian culture interacted and influenced each other. During the medieval period, Persian was the most popular language and it replaced Sanskrit in those parts where the Muslims ruled.
Persian littérateurs and literary sources reflecting the spirit of the age:
Amir Khusrau is credited with prominent workslike Panch Ganj, Matla-ul-Anwar, Shirin wa Khuarav, Laila wa Majnun, Aina-i-Sikandari and Hasht Bihisht.
- He, for the first time, made use of Hindi words and idioms and wrote on Indian themes.
- In his ghazals, he employed alternate hem-stitches in Persian and Hindi.
Shams Siraj Afif wrote Takih-Firoz Shahi which is of immense value to understand the reign of Firoz Shah Tughlaq (14th century).
- Afif has given a detailed account of the policies of Firoz.
- The book talks about irrigation tax (1/10 of produce) paid by the cultivators who used waters from canals constructed by Firoz Shah Tughlaq.
- Firoz had a great liking forthe laying out of gardens, which he took great painsto decorate. He formed 1,200 gardens in the vicinity of Dehli.
Khawaja Najm-ud-Din Hasan wrote Fawaid-ul-Faud which records a conversation with the great saint Nizamud-Din Aulia.
- This work is considered a valuable document on Sufi philosophy because it containsthe discourses of Nizamud-Din Aulia in chronological order.
Abu’l Fazl is credited with writing Akbarnama and Ain-i-Akbari, the masterpieces depicting the Mughal era.
- Akbarnama is embedded with miniature paintings. Itis an importantsource to study Mughalstyle paintings. For example: “Emperor Akbar on Elephant Hunt” and “Ran Bagha crossing the River Jumna”. Paintings are also a source to understand the prevalent dress and fashion style.
- Akbarnama and Ain-i-Akbari provide a holistic picture of the policies adopted by Akbar for religious and social tolerance. For example, Akbar, with his Sulh-e Kul, wastrying to calm down the tension and drive the society into peace and harmony.
- Ain-i-Akbari also describesthe administrative system of the Empire as well as containsthe famous “Account of the Hindu Sciences”. It also deals with Akbar’s household, army, the revenues and the geography of the empire.
Dara Shikoh, son of Mughal Emperor Shahjahan, has been credited with translating many Hindu scriptures from Sanskrit to Persian.
- Sirr-i-Akbar is the Persian translation of Upanishads which he completed in 1657.
- Dara tried to find commonalities between Hindu and Islamic traditions. He also translated Bhagavad Gita into the Persian language.
With the coming of the Muslimsto the subcontinent, Persian, an Aryan tongue and sister language of Sanskrit, came to India, which isthe confluence of diverse faiths, languages and cultures and which has a tradition of adopting and blending and then producing a composite cultural unity in diversity.
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