The Mughal era marked a significant flourishing of Indian literature. This period witnessed the pinnacle of Indian literary achievement, with the creation of exquisite and insightful works in Persian. The Mughals produced captivating pieces of Persian literature that not only matched but occasionally surpassed the beauty and excellence found in Iranian Persian literature.
Literature in Mughal Empire
- During Akbar’s rule, Persian prose and poetry flourished, reaching their zenith. Abdul Fazl, a renowned scholar in Akbar’s court, pioneered a prose style emulated for generations.
- Faizi, the leading poet of the era, contributed significantly by supervising the completion of the Mahabharata translation in Akbar’s translation department.
- Persian poets Utbi and Naziri migrated from Iran to India, establishing the Mughal court as a cultural center in the Islamic world.
- Hindus played a role in advancing Persian literature. In addition to literary and historical works, the era saw the compilation of famous Persian dictionaries.
- The period witnessed the production of exquisite lyrical poetry in regional languages, enhancing the stability and maturity of those languages.
- The romantic tales of God Krishna with Radha and stories from the Bhagawat Gita were written in lyrical poetry and translated into regional languages, fostering cultural diversity.
- Malik Muhammad Jaisi’s “Padmavat” used Alauddin Khilji’s attack on Chittor as an allegory to explore Sufi and Hindu ideas, reflecting the synthesis of cultural and religious influences.
- Mughal emperors, including Akbar, patronized medieval Hindi in the Brij form. Hindi poets, like Tulsidas, became associated with the Mughal court during this time.
- Abdur Rahim Khan-i-Khanan, a Mughal noble, blended Bhakti poetry with Persian ideas, marking the convergence of Persian and Hindi literary traditions.
- Tulsidas, a prominent Hindi poet, emphasized humanistic values and advocated for a modified caste system based on individual qualities. His works had a profound impact on Hindi literature.
- Important literary works during the Mughal era included Abdul Rahim Khan’s Persian translation of Babarnama, Abdul Fazl’s Akbarnama and Ain-i-Akbari, Jahangir’s Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri, and Shahjahan’s biography, Padhanamah, authored by Abdul Hamid Lahori and Inayat Khan.
Conclusion
During Akbar’s reign, a plethora of original and translated literary works flourished in various languages, including Persian, Hindi, Sanskrit, Urdu, and several regional dialects. Akbar’s decision to designate Persian as the state language played a pivotal role in fostering the growth of literature during this period. The rich literary landscape that emerged was not limited to Persian alone but extended to embrace diverse linguistic expressions, contributing to a vibrant and culturally diverse literary heritage.
Read Also: Mughal Emperor Akbar (1556-1605)
