The Mughal emperor Akbar had a Sanskrit book called the Dvdas Bhv translated to Farsi. Dismembered pages or painted folios from this manuscript were dispersed in auctions. This is the first time this book has been put back together and translated into English. The study reveals how the thirtheen paintings that interspersed this text were intrinsic to communicating its meaning.
This was not the first or last Sanskrit work to be translated to Farsi or be illustrated for a Muslim monarch in Hindustan. The Mughals (and some of the Sultans before them) recognized the significance of Indian knowledge traditions. This book however, provides insight into what went into such translations. Who decided which text should be translated and what governed the decisions?
Acknowledgements
List of Figures
Note on Transliteration and Other Scholarly Conventions
Introduction
1 The Narrative of Mrignk
2 The Dvdas Bhv: Exploring Its Patronage, Sources and Reception
1Who Was the Patron of the Dvdas Bhv?
2The Dvdas Bhv: Search for a Source
3The Dvdas Bhv: Written Source or Oral Transmission?
4The Kathsaritsgar for AkbarFantasy Tales for an Emperor
5Another Version of the Kathsaritsgar
6Reception of the Dvdas Bhv
3 Manuscripts for Edification and Pleasure
1Translation of Indic Knowledge Traditions
2Akbars Translation Bureau
3Sanskrit Texts Translated for Akbar
4 The Translator, the Translation and the Politics in Translation
1The Translator
2The Translation
3Political and Ethical Norms Embedded in the Dvdas Bhv
5 The Paintings and Painters: Their Style
1The Imperial Mughal Atelier in the 1590s
2Style of the Dvdas Bhv Paintings
3The Dvdas Bhv Painters
4The Paintings of usayn Naqqsh in the Dvdas Bhv
5The Paintings of Mull Shh Muammad and Nr Muammad in the Dvdas Bhv
6Collaborative Efforts
7Illumination by diq?
Epilogue: Multiple Shades of Engagement
1The Knowledge Economy
2Sanskrit TextsPedagogy for Princes and ikmh for Nobles
3The Big Picture
4An Immersive Experience
Appendix A: Translation of Twenty Three Pages of the Dvdas Bhv
Appendix B: Transcription of the Dvdas Bhv
Glossary
Bibliography
Index
Dr Anjali Duhan-Gulia, Ph.D. (2017), Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, is Assistant Professor of Art History in the Maharshi Dayanand University, Haryana. She was a Fellow of the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla.
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