Influence of Iranian Literature on Indian Literature....I

The post-Islamic introduction of Iranian literature into India begins with the reign of Sultan Mahmud-e-Ghaznavi who took the work of his father Saboktagin seriously and began the conquest of Northern India. Although the major aim of his expeditions were the propagation of Islamic faith and the capture of spoils of war, however, with these expeditions Farsi (the Persian language) began to penetrate into India.

With the defeat of Sultan Mas’ud-e-Ghaznavi from the Saljuk Turks, the successors of Mas’ud came to reside permanently in India and shifted, their capital to Lahore. We find three Iranian poets of the time settling in Lahore. These were Abul-Faraj Runi who died in 1099 in that city, Mas’ud Sa’ad Salman, a native of Gurgan who was imprisoned by his patron, Sultan Ibrahim Ghaznavi, for 12 years and died in 1131, and Hakim Sanaii of Ghazni, who is the first of the great mystic poets, who died also in Lahore in 1131 A.D.

Then we have a succession of poets, writers, historians who arrived into India during the Slave dynasty from 1206 to 1526. Among these one can mention Juzjani the author of "Tabaqat Nasiri", (1260), Mohammed Aufi of Bukhara who wrote "Lubab-al-Al-bab," the oldest biographical work in Iranian literature, and "Jawami’ al-Hekayat", Nizam addin Hassan Nizami Nishaburi (son of the famous Nizami Aruzi), Fakhruddin Mobarakshah the author of "Silsilat al-Ansab and "Adab-al-Harb".

In 13th and 14th centuries several noted poets flourished in India. Then comes Amir Khusro Dehlavi, the parrot of India, who won the title of the Indian Hafiz. He was the first Urdu poet, but he sometimes wrote mixed poetry, one line being in Farsi and the other in Urdu.

Before we come to the Golden Age of Iranian literature in India during the Mughal emperors, we must mention the patronage of Iranian literature by two Indian Muslim Kings. Kashmir was conquered from the Hindus by Muslims in 1339. One of the Muslim Kashmiri kings who promoted the diffusion of Persian literature in Kashmir was Zayn-al-Abedin (1417 - 1467). He was, like most Iranians, tolerant in religious matters. He ordered the translation of various works from Sanskrit, Arabic and other languages, into Farsi.

During the Slave dynasty, Farsi was indeed the language of the Court in Delhi. Ibn Battuta who traveled in India in the 14th century tells us how Farsi words and expressions were being used everywhere even in the most Southern parts of India and in Ceylon. (F. C. Davar, Iran and India through the ages, pp. 160-161)

However, the true Golden Age of Iranian literature in India came with the advent of the Mughals.

Babar was sixth in descent from Taymur, and had succeeded his father in the petty kingdom of Forghana at the age of 12. He was a Turk on his father’s side and a Mongol on his mother side. Early in his life, and three times, he captured the city of Samarqand and lost it. He was defeated by Sheibak-khan in 1510 A.D., but with the help of Shah Isma’il Safavi (who defeated and killed Sheibak-khan) and with the help of Iranian troops, Babar regained his lost cities.

However, soon not satisfied with this, he took advantage of the state of unrest in India, and through Panjab, entered into India defeating its  unpopular king, Ibrahim Lodi.

Babar became king of India and soon built a great empire for himself and settled down in that vast continent. Unfortunately he did not rule long in India, and died four years after his conquest. His son Homayun was defeated and expelled out of India by Sher Shah Sur in 1540.

Again the Iranian King, Shah Tahmasp the son of Shah Isma’il came to his rescue and after giving him asylum for several years, he was sent back with Iranian troops to India in 1555 and regained his throne of Delhi from Sikandar Sur.

These two instances established a real concord between the two dynasties and led to progressive cultural relations between Iran and India. Iranian scholars, poets, artists, and statesmen, found in the Mughal Court appreciative patrons and soon they were attracted to India. This was enhanced by the change of creed in Iran. Safavids were fervent Shiites and most of their time was spent in the propagation of the new faith, fighting with the Sunni Ottoman Emperors.

Safavid Kings had little time for promotion of cultural pursuits. They were intolerant in religious matters and even Sufis who were not of Shi’a faith found no favor with the Safavid Kings. So most of the Sunni mystics and poets found their way to other appreciative courts such as Mughal court in Delhi or Ottoman Court in Istanbul. In Humayun’s court we come across two Iranian poets, Maulana Mohammed Qasim Kahi, and Mir Abdol Latif Qazvini.

According to the historian Badayuni in his "Muntakhib at-Tawarikh" in the court of Akbar, there were 167 poets, most of whom sang in Farsi or claimed Iran as their motherland.

Among poets and historians who worked in the court of Akbar one can name Faizi who translated an abbreviated version of the Mahab-harata as well as Lilavati into Farsi. His brother Abul Fazl wrote the famous "Akbar-Nameh." The poet Urfi came from Shiraz and the Iranian Mohammad Hussein Naziri came over from Nishapur to Agra but later settled down in Ahmadabad.