Abul Hasan Yamin-ud-Din aka Amir Khusrau (1253-1325 AD), known as 'Tutee-i-Hind', (Parrot of Hindustan) was a versatile talent. A poet, historian, singer, musician, Sufi saint, politician, linguist, lexicographer, bibliophile and philosopher. He witnessed the rise and fall of the Slave (Ghulam) dynasty, the Khilji dynasty and the rise of the Tughlaq dynasty. Eleven Sultans descended the throne of Delhi, out of which he remained under the patronage of seven. He was a scholar of Arabic, Persian, Turkish and Hindi and knew Sanskrit. Ziauddin Barani, a well-known historian, points out in 'Tarikh-e-Firoz Shahi' (1357) that:
"Emperor Jalaluddin Firoz Khilji was pleased with a playful Persian poem by Amir Khusrau and gave him the title of 'Amir', which was a matter of great respect in those days. In those days, those who received the title of Amir had their separate status and glory.”
Khusrau’s Masnavis and prose works also have great historical importance since they form 'direct and empirical' evidence for historians. Khusrau is considered the father of the Hindustani style of music – he conceived the sitar and the tabla. He was the first poet to write in Hindi and was also the first to use the word 'Hindavi'. Despite his proficiency and fame in Persian, he had felicity and proficiency in Hindi. He says:
“I am the daughter of India. If you want to know from me, ask in Hindi. I will be able to tell you unique things.”2
Khusrau regards India’s flora, fauna, clothes and beauty as superior to Persia, Rome and Russia. As a proud Indian he says: “This country is heaven, otherwise why would Hazrat Adam and Peacock have come here.”3 In ‘Nuh Sipar’ (1318) he wrote: “This is my birthplace and this is my motherland.”4 His hold on Indian public life was innate and inherent. Brajratan Das, a linguist and an eminent scholar of Persian, points out: “What was his heart, was a lute, which used to play intermittently without being played.”5 Khusrau, was an ardent disciple of Nizamuddin Auliya. He had no religious narrow-mindedness or radicalism, generosity was his forte. He often reiterated: “kafire- ishqam muslimi mara darkar nistahar rage-man taare gastah hajte-zunnaar neest”, that is - “I am an infidel of love, I do not need to be a Muslim. Veins, in my body have turned into wires, so I no longer need the sacred thread."
Alauddin Khilji became Sultan in 1296 AD by killing his uncle, Jalal-ud-Din. High regard for Amir Khusrau continued in court, he was bestowed with the title of Khusrau-e-Shairan (a poet par excellence) and increased his salary by one thousand tankas. Khusrau in ‘Khazain- ul-Fatuh’ (Tarikh-e-Alai) gives an eyewitness account of the historical events of that period.
Persian poetry in the hands of Amir Khusrau flourished. Mirza Ghalib had a high regard for Khusrau among the Persian poets of India. Praising his poetic excellence Ghalib says: “There is no other bona fide Muslim among the ahle hind (Indians) except Khusrau Dehlvi, Mian Faizi also comes into view out rightly at some places.”6 He wrote ninety-nine books in Persian, which contained approximately lakhs of couplets.
A versatile genius he also contributed in the field of history and music. Being a soldier and a warrior Khusrau often accompanied his patron rulers in their war campaigns. In his Masnavis, he has given direct and empirical details of the war campaigns of his patrons, which has a very important role in determining medieval Indian history.
Khusrau's Hindi poetry has been in use for centuries, but scholars are not unanimous about its authenticity. Khusrau used the word ‘Hindi’ five times and the word ‘Hindavi’ thirty times and named the Khadi dialect in a way:
“yush chuha gurvah billii maar naag
sejno rishta va hindi sui tag.”
Khusrau's accessible Hindi poetry can be classified into three categories. Firstly is his Diwan Ghurrat-ul-Kamaal (the Prime of Perfection), ‘Rubaiyat-e-Peshwaran’ and a Masnavi- Tughlaq Nama the poems which have the elements of Hindavi in his Persian poetry. His riddles are interesting :
paan sada kyun? ghora aada kyun?
“Why is the betel leaf rotten? Why the horse remained stubborn?
Answer: Not turned either way
and
jootaa kyun na pehnaa? samosa kyun na khaya?
[Translation ] Why didn't shoes were not put on? Why didn't you eat samosa?
Answer: Tala na tha (in Hindi tala means sole as well as fried)
Dhakosla is another type of rhyme, that attempts to give a meaningful form by combining different words; such as:
“kheer pakai jatan se, charkha diya chala, kuttaa aya khaa gaya, tu baithee dhol baja, laa paani pila”
[Translation] “cooked kheer with effort and spinning wheel moved, dog consumed the kheer, you went on beating the drum, come, give me water to drink.”
Amir Khusrau has written many songs based on Indian folk life and traditions. These songs are directly related to the lives of common people; such as –
“amma, merey baba ko bhejo ji ki saawan ayaa,
beti tera baba to budhii ri – ki saawan ayaa”
[Translation]
O! Mother please send my father to fetch me as monsoon is round the corner O! Daughter, your father is too old - now the monsoon has come.
Khusrau is the father of Qawwali (chorus rendering). It has been used more in religion, ritual, entertainment and worship. He has also composed Hindi-Persian mixed verses like Do Sukhan. His couplets in Persian convey the beauty, culture and similar things of India to the Persian countries; such as :
“turk-e-hindustanian man, dar hindavi goyam zaban.
shakkar e misri na daram ka, ja, aram goyam sukhan.”
[Translation]: I am an Indian Turk. I respond in Hindi. I don't have any sugar or dharma (currency) with which I can talk to the Arabs."
His Hindavi poetry has the highest number of puzzles. His Kah Mukriyan, Nisbat, Do Sukhne and others are also adaptations of riddles. Since the Rig Vedic period, riddles have been prevalent in the Indian tradition. In the seventh century, puzzles were found in Bana 7 and Kama Sutra. They have a tradition in other literary works in Sanskrit including Dandin's 'Kavyadarsh' and Vishwanath's 'Sahityadarpan'. Khusrau gave a new form to this popular genre. In the Indian tradition, Paheli (riddle) has been given a place in the Adham (low) category of poetry, because the expression of interest in it does not happen immediately and spontaneously. Muhammad Wahid Mirza has rightly written that “hardly anyone could compete with him at that time in oratory skills because apart from Persian, he was familiar with Turkish, Hindi, Sanskrit and many languages of India.” 8
The pride of Indian Persian poetry abroad is Khusrau, perhaps. the Persian lovers abroad billed him as 'Tutee-e-Hind'. He was a worldly wise poet who during his lifetime time witnessed the rulers in quick succession during the Sultanate period. He was not only patronised but also loved and favoured by everyone. With his poetic talent and skill, he challenged several of his contemporaries. During his times, some other poets like, Masood Saad Salman,9 who also started reciting Sher in Hindavi. Since Khusrau was drenched in the Indian folk lifestyle and was born and brought up in India unlike several Persian poets, his liberal sensibilities sans religious-communal prejudice is brought to light in his poetry. Khusrau’s poetic forte was the common man’s dialect, he drew symbols, metaphors and similes from the social milieu. During his time, there were several theological poetic languages and poetic aspirants could use only them. Khusrau was the man of the moment of the society he lived in.
Notes & References
1. Auer, Blain, (2015) ‘Pre-modern Intellectual Debates on the Knowledge of History and Ziy al-Din Barani’s Tarikh-i Firuzshahi’, Indian Economic and Social History Review, vol. 52 (2), pp. 207-223.
2. Khusrau, Amir. The Nuh Sipihr (1318) [Nine Skies]
3. Op.Cit
4. Op.Cit
5. Brajratna Das, Khusrau kī Hindī Kavitā (Kashi, 1922)
6. Gopi Chand Narang, Amir Khusrau ka Hindavi Kalam (Delhi: Photo Offset Printer, 1987) p.23
7. Bana, means something in Buddhism, Pali, Hinduism, Sanskrit, Jainism, Prakrit, the history of ancient India, Marathi and Hindi.
8. Muhammad Wahid Mirza. The Life and Works of Amir Khusrau, Lahore: Panjab University Oriental Publications, 1936 p.26.
9. Masood Saad Salman, a contemporary of Amir Khusrau, was a great but unfortunate poet of Lahore.
About the Author:
Pradeep Trikha, Professor and Head (Retired), Department of English, MLS University, Udaipur, is a poet, translator, literary critic, and academician. His expertise also lies in English, Medieval Literature and Indian Classical Literature. He has delivered lectures in the University of Washington, Seattle, Harvard University, and Boston. He has been a visiting fellow at the University of Sydney since 1999 and the University of Muenster, Germany since 2022. His latest book is Mediations on Memory: Poetics of Forgetting.
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