11

CHAPTER - I

INDO-ARAB RELATION THROUGHOUT THE AGES

UNIT- I

EARLY INDO-ARAB RELATIONS

India had never aspired to live in isolation and always kept its doors

open for the people and cultures from across the world. The philosophy of

tolerance and coexistence of all faiths and races had been the essence of its

civilization. It remained a melting pot for the world’s culture and

civilization. The intensive interaction between India and the Arab world

was dynamic, diverse and multi-dimensional. However, the impact of this

interaction was very much visible and lasting in the domain of culture and

thought. The main aim of this thesis is to focus on the cultural exchanges

between India and Arab World and the civilization affinities that existed

for several centuries. The cultural linkages in the past, in fact, have brought

these two regions more close to each other and provided the base to

maintain the relationship of similar sort in the contemporary times. Culture

and Civilization are the two coterminous terms, though each one possesses

a distinctive semantic domain with clearly defined meanings. There is a

burgeoning trend in the present religious-political context to use both

synonymously. Most of the discussions then tend to confuse culture with

civilization and civilization inevitably with religion. These discussions then

prepare ground for identifying the essence of culture in terms of

Civilizational Clash. Quite unfortunately these civilizational clash theories

never believe in an inter-civilizational dialogue and exchange of cultural

goods between two civilizations.1 So, there is a need for understanding

culture and civilization that travel beyond the contemporary civilizational

debate. In its simple definition, civilization denotes to the ways of living,

making nature bend to fulfill the needs of mankind. It also includes

organizing societies into socially and politically well-defined groups,

working collectively for improved conditions of life in matters of food,

dress and communication and so on. Anyway, civilization is a collection of

lived practices that enables a society to make sense of its existence.

Culture, on the other hand, refers to a set of values, customs, beliefs,

practices which constitute the way of life of a specific group.

Early Indo-Arab Relations:

Indo-Arab relations that can be dated back to antiquity speak of such

inter-cultural dialogues and exchanges between two age-old civilizations.

There are a lot of historical evidences for this time tested cultural tie up. As

we find in religious sources, the first human being, Adam is believed to

have landed in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and reached Arabia via India. Finally,

he met Eve in Saudi Arabia.2 Adam is believed to have landed in Dajna

1
. Ilias, M.H. Cultural Contours of India-West Asia Relations, Century Publications, New Delhi,
2007, p-2
2
. Ekram, Shiekh Md. Aabe Kausar, Feroz Sons Ltd. Pakistan, 1968, p-19
 15

(that is Dakshin in Hindi) which means south. Adam was landed in India

from the heaven of sky. He set his first step in Sri Lanka, which was a part

of the greater India. Several goods like perfumes and spices were move to

the Arab world from South India.1 The Old Testament bears ample

evidence of maritime mercantile relations between India and the Arab

world during Solomon’s period.

The Arabs had a close commercial and cultural relation with the

Indians in pre-Islamic period. The Indo-Arab friendship dates back to the

very ancient times in history when Indian and Arab sailors plied their ships

across the seas and established commercial links with each other. As a

result, Arab traders built their permanent settlements on the western coast

of India which played an important role in exchange of Indo-Arab cultural

relations. From the immemorial time, these two civilizations have been in

constant contact with the exchange of goods, ideas, cultures and people of

each other. At the end of history, Indo-Arab relations have been on a

distinctive trajectory with the massive movement of people from India to

the Arab world and vice-versa in the form of pilgrimage and labour

migration.

1
. Nadwi, Syed Suleiman. Arab-o-Hind ke Taluqat (Indo-Arab Relations), Darul Musannifin
Azamgarh, U.P, pp. 1-2
 16

The Indo-Arab connection predates the spread of Islam. Through the

regular commercial trips, they knew India long before the advent of Islam.

There was frequent Arab seafaring on the western and southern coasts of

India which culminated in Arab settlements in some parts of India. The

trading Arab groups established business communities in the south-west

coast of India. Indian goods were moved to Yemen, Syria and finally to the

markets of Egypt and European countries. Parallel to this, Indian maritime

traders made extensive voyages to the Arab world for the purpose of trade.

These visits resulted in religious convergences of various sorts as there

were many things which were common between Hinduism and the pagan

religions existed in West Asia. Sages from India mingled with the Arabs

and started influencing each other’s way of life. In so far as the Gulf coast

was concerned a considerable number of Indians appear to have migrated

there in Pre-Islamic era, either to establish businesses, seek employment

with Arab traders or just to escape instability at home.1 The Indian groups

which migrated and enjoyed greater position in the Arab world, to name a

few were: Zatt, Maids, Sayabjah, Asawera, Ahamera, Bayasera and

1
. Ilias, M.H. Cultural Contours of India-West Asia Relations, Century Publications, New Delhi,
2007, p. 114
 17

Takakera. Apart from experiencing the life of West Asia, these groups

were also engaged in certain occupations.1

The Indus Valley Civilization was one of the world’s first known

civilizations with high amount of urbanization. This civilization flourished

in the vast plains of the Indus River and adjacent regions which are now in

Pakistan and western India. This civilization developed approximately the

same time as the early stages of Egypt and Mesopotamia. This urban

civilization spread over a vast geographical region from the high mountains

of Baluchistan and Afghanistan to the coastal regions of Makran, Sindh and

Gujarat. There are material evidences for the existence of trade contact

with the surrounding cultures in the Arabian Gulf, west and central Asia

and peninsular India, during the peak of this civilization. Arab historians of

different periods held the view that Sindh and Hind were two different

countries. Sindh was surrounded by the borders of Hindustan, Kirman and

Sajistan while other parts bordering China was considered Hindustan.

Hindustan was popularly known among the Arabs as Hind. These two

regions are now called India and Pakistan respectively. From the ancient

time both Makran and Sindh had been regarded as a part of India. Arabic

literature often conflates Sindh with Hind though there were references in
1
. Mubarakpuri, Qazi Athar. Arab-o-Hind Ahde Resalat Main, (Arab and India in the period of
Prophesy), Maktabatul Haq, Jogeshwari, Mumbai, p. 59
 18

Arabic literature to treating Sindh and Hind as separate geo-political

entities.1

The regular commercial interactions between Arabs and Indians

throughout this period culminated in influencing each other’s language and

culture. Some Indian goods, entered into the Arab world, were named after

the place of origin, al-Hind. Indian swords were very famous in Arab world

and they called it Hindi, Hindawani and Muhannad. It gained the reputation

of being very supple and sharp. Pre-Islamic Arabic poetry has many

references to this and many other Indian goods being popular among

Bedouins too.2

Many Indian words like sandal (chandan), tanbul (pan), karanfal

(peeper), narjeel (coconut) etc. were very popular and widely used among

the Arabs. Although the Quranic scholars are of different opinion about the

non- Arabic words used in the Holy Quran, the great Indian Islamic scholar

Maulana Syed Suleiman Nadwi, referring to Hafiz Ibn Hajar and Hafiz

Seuti’s works, asserts that we can be proud of having few Indian words like

1
. ……. Al-Hind, The Making of Indo-Islamic World, Vol-1, Brill Academic Publishers,
Boston, 2002, pp. 144-145
2
. Ibid
 19

misk (musk), Zanjabeel (Jinjer) and Kafur (kapur) have been used in the

holy Quran.1

Qazi Athar Mubarakpuri quotes several Hadith which says that

Indian goods like Musk, camphor, ginger, carnation, pepper, wood, swords

and clothes have extensively been used among the Arabs. Even Prophet

Mohammed (PBUH) and his companions were very much fond of Indian

goods. One can come across many references for the popularity of Indian

goods in Hadith.2

On the other hand, many Arab goods were imported to India like

palms and horses from Basra. King of Sri Lanka used to import alcohol

from Iraq. Precious diamonds and fishes were also imported to India.3

The cultural contacts were not confined to the linguistic interactions

only, but to a wide variety of activities ranging from menu to the naming of

individuals and clans. Many distinguished families of Arab world carry the

surname Al-Hindi. Hind is still a popular name being used extensively by

the Arab women. The Arabs have contributed even to the naming of this

1
. Nadwi, Syed Suleiman. Arab-o-Hind ke Taluqat (Indo-Arab Relations), Darul Musannifin
Azamgarh, pp. 71-72
2
. Mubarakpuri, Qazi Athar. Arab-o-Hind Ahde Resalat Main, Jamal Printing Press Delhi, 1982,
p. 31
3
. Mubarakpuri, Qazi Athar. Khilafat-e-Abbasia and Hindustan (Abbasid Caliphate and India),
Jamal Printing Press, Delhi, p. 356
 20

region Hindustan. The name Hinduism is partly an Arab contribution. It

was the Arabs, Persians or Greeks that we owe the concept of the Hindu –

the people who live across the river Sindhu or Indus. No doubt the Indian

people were referred to as Hindus by the Arabs long before the Hindu

community began to identify themselves as Hindus.

UNIT- II

INDO-ARAB RELATIONS AFTER THE ADVENT OF ISLAM

Generally, the advent of Muslims in India is traced back to the Arab

conquest of Sind, though long before that the Arabs already had settlements

on the south-western coast of India. However, opinions differ on the advent

of Islam in India and there is a prominent version that there was Arab

presence in Sindh region before the Arab invasion of Sind. Although they

were small in number, but their presence was significant. The Arab army

headed by Muhammad bin Qasim invaded Sindh in 710 A.D. This invasion

led to a permanent occupation of Sindh and southern Punjab but the rest of

India was unaffected until the close of tenth century, when a fresh invasion

began under Mahmud Gaznawi.1

The spread of Islam fostered this linkage tremendously as Islam

reached in India mainly through the Arab traders who were active in

maritime trade on the coastal towns of India. In the seventh and eighth

centuries A.D. with the advent of Islam and spectacular growth of trade,

Arab Muslim merchants became very vital in the coastal trade of India and

began to challenge the predominance of south Asian merchants. The

Indians who visited the Arab world during this period included many

scholars, scientists and physicians who sojourned mainly in Baghdad which

1
. Hitti, P. K. History of the Arabs, Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2002, pp. 210-212
 23

was a great centre of intellectual and cultural activity. The oral history

revolving around the journey of Cherman Perumal, the last King of Chera

Dynasty of Kerala with the mission of meeting Prophet Mohammed

(PBUH) is very popular in south India. The opinions differ on his meeting

with the Prophet. Anyway, on his way back from Mecca, Cheraman

Perumal died in Oman and his body was buried in a place called Salala.

The Muslim rule in northern India led to far-reaching effects in the field of

culture and learning. Some Sindhi Muslim scholars were sent to Mecca in

order to learn Islamic Theology. In reciprocation, Arab Muslim scholars

came to India in order to learn mathematics, science, astronomy and

philosophy. The Arabs brought in some technological innovations and

introduced some new industries in Sindh. So, some methods were applied

by the Arabs in the field of agriculture. Gradually, Sindh acquired a great

prominence in Arab affairs for not only was it ruled militarily and

administratively by the Arabs from their capital in al-Mansura but a large

number of Arab merchants, travelers, missionaries and men of learning and

erudition migrated to this province and made it their permanent home also.1

The origin of South India’s cultural contacts with the Arab world

pre-dates even the genesis and spread of Islam in this area. India was a

1
. Ahmad, Maqbul. Indo-Arab Relations, ICCR, Popular Prakashan, Bombay, 1969, p. 6
 24

fulcrum of world trade and a meeting point of western and eastern trade

routes. And it is in the context of this great traffic of people and ideas that

we find the first appearances of cultural contacts. Cultural interactions, of

course, had made headway in this more liberal ambience of trade. The

Arabs had settled down in many parts of south India as merchant

communities, e.g. in Konkan (Maharashtra), Malabar (Kerala) and in many

of the coastal towns of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Mysore. The long

distance trade in essentially high value goods also spurred a number of

factors that operated in the promotion of cultures. Over the centuries, India

had been the melting pot of many cultures. From Rome, China, Arabia etc,

they made great voyage to India’s southern and western coasts in search of

spice. India had absorbed the best of all of these influences and remained as

a perfect repository of all diverse cultures for long centuries. Indian

maritime regions were more plural in their population in terms of ethnicity,

religion and culture. The societies were all comprehensively connected to

wide realms of trade, culture and politics. Give and take nature of the

cultures was the norms of the society. The religious orthodoxies prevalent

islands were brushed aside by this pluralism and there was openness to

innovations and new ideas.1

1
. Ibid, p. 7
 25

UNIT- III

SCIENTIFIC AND ACADEMIC INTERACTION BETWEEN INDIA

AND THE ARAB WORLD

The tie of India with the Arab world goes back to 5000 years.

Archaeological excavations across the region regularly yield evidence of

the Arabs intimate maritime and commercial links with our civilizations in

Harappa and Mohenjodaro. There is evidence of relations between the

Harappan Civilization and the Dilmun Society. In pre-Islamic times, Arab

traders acted as middlemen in trade between Bharuch in Gujarat and

Pondicherry and the Mediterranean through Alexandria.

India’s relations with the Arab world in southern India have been on

different trajectory. In north, the Arabs came as conquerors and exercised

their political might while in the south; they had an altogether different

history of arrival. They came in south as travelers, merchants and

occasionally as missionaries. Indo- Arab relations were not based on

political antagonism but on friendship. This lively spread of Islam through

the friendly merchants provided the opportunity for deep-rooted cultural

exchanges and intellectual communications. It also led to the regular

movement of scholars and cultural goods from each side.

Some scholars trace the beginning of studies on Hadith by the

Indians to the early days of the arrival of Islam in southern India in the 7th

century and in north in the 8th century. Islamic scholars from the 8th
 27

Century A.D. to Al-Beruni (d.1048 A.D.) have, in their writings,

documented Indo-Arab cultural links including Indian contributions to

Arab thought and culture. Travelers between India and the Arab world

were the vehicles not only for scholarly exchanges but also for cultural

interactions at a popular level.

The direct and deeper cultural linkages and scientific exchanges

between the Arabs and the Indians trace its genesis to a century after the

rise of Islam, specifically, with the foundation of Abbasid Caliphate in the

middle of 8th century. This period marked as the beginning of a long history

of cultural contact which lasted several centuries. The process of cultural

exchange was reciprocal and there has been dissemination and diffusion of

maximum amount of knowledge in the sciences, arts, religion, philosophy

and social and cultural ideas and values. Translations of Indian works were

undertaken by the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad where, especially under

Harun al-Rashid, Indian concepts in secular subjects ranging from

medicine to mathematics and astronomy were translated into Arabic.

It is worth mentioning here that India, in ancient times, was far ahead

of the world in science, philosophy and literature. Chess was invented in

India. As a result of age old relations between India and Arab world, the

Arabs have become acquainted with some facts of rich intellectual heritage
 28

of India. They had a very high opinion of the Indians. After the rise of

Islam when Arabs developed a keen sense of intellectual curiosity and a

voracious appetite for learning, they were naturally attracted to the

intellectual legacy of India which served as a source of knowledge to them,

especially in the fields of astronomy, mathematics, medicine, philosophy,

wisdom and literature.1

India can boast of a long history of over 5000 years since the time of

Indus Valley Culture. Over the centuries, it has gained such rich experience

and developed such a massive fund of knowledge that when Al-Beruni

came to India in 11th century, he listed quite a few branches of learning that

impressed him highly such as philosophy, medicine, mathematics,

astronomy, logics, lexicography, drama, fiction, poetics, administration and

matrimony. As early as 8th century, the Muslims were interested in all the

learning of Hindus. The great Abbasid caliphs, Harun Al-Rashid and

Mamun, set up an Academy to know the heritage of past, particularly

Greeks and the Indians. They invited the pundits from India, who liberally

showed their learning in mathematics, medicine, astronomy and

metaphysics. The Arabic numerals which the world knows today are in

1
. Vohra, NN. History, Culture and Society in India and West Asia, Shipra Publications, Delhi,
2003, p. 2
 29

Indian philosophy, the Muslim world of Psya of Nyaya School, the

Mimamsa-sutra of Jaimini of the Mimamsa School, the Laukayata of

Charvaka School and the Vedanta school of Indian philosophy contained in

Upanishads.1

In fact, the Arabs had started translation of scientific ideas and

knowledge into Arabic after the rise of Islam, but it was confined only to

religious sciences and books of Tafsir, Hadith, Fiqh and history. The only

ruler, who paid some heed towards medicine and chemistry during this

period was Khalid bin Yazeed bin Muawiya but with the establishment of

Abbasid caliphate in Baghdad. Abbasid Caliph Mansur was very much

interested in sciences. He received a delegation of mathematicians from

Sindh led by a Pundit that reached Baghdad with a Sanskrit book Surya

Siddhanta. The Caliph himself monitored the translation of this work into

Arabic with the help of a mathematician of the court, Ibrahim Al-Fazari.

Caliph Mansur received an embassy from Sindh which consisted of Indian

Pundits who presented him several treaties on mathematics and astronomy.

These works were later on translated into Arabic with the help of pundits

by the order of the Caliph. Thus from about the middle of eighth century,

an era of Indo-Arab scientific cooperation is said to have begun. The

scientific literature of India that was introduced in Baghdad actually

belonged to the Maurya and Gupta periods.1

India’s scientific literature was first introduced to the Arabs in

Baghdad where Sanskrit works were made available by the Indian

delegation. Quoting famous Arab writer Al-Jahiz, Syed Suleiman Nadwi,

points out that many Pundits and medical practitioners like Manka, Balha,

Bazgar, Falbarfal and Sindhbad were invited to Baghdad by Yahya bin

Khalid al-Barmaki.2

The Abbasids established the Baitul Hikmah in Baghdad, where

scholars sat together and translated ideas and scientific knowledge from all

across the world into Arabic. Many classic works of antiquity would have

been forgotten if they were not been translated into Arabic. During this

period the Muslim world was a cauldron of cultures which collected,

synthesized and significantly advanced the knowledge gained from the

ancient Mesopotamian, Roman, Chinese, Indian, Persian, Egyptian, North

African, Greek and Byzantine civilizations. In pursuance of his policy, Al-

Mamun established Baitul Hikmah (House of Wisdom), a combination of

library, academy and translation bureau which in many respects proved the

1
. Ahmad, Maqbul. Indo-Arab Relations, ICCR, Popular Prakashan, Bombay, 1969, p. 10
2
. Nadwi, Syed Suleiman. Arab-o-Hind ke Taluqat (Indo-Arab Relations), Darul Musannifin
Azamgarh, pp. 130-131
 31

most important educational institution since the foundation of the

Alexandrian Museum in the first half of the third century B.C.1

Closely parallel to this, the city of Mecca served as a Center of trade

in Arabia. The tradition of the pilgrimage to Mecca became a site for

exchanging ideas and goods. The influence held by Muslim merchants

operated from Mecca over African-Arabian and Arabian-Asian trade routes

was tremendous. Arab-Islamic civilization grew and expanded to then

unknown maritime world alongside its merchant network. Astronomy was

one of the first sciences introduced in the Arab world at the end of 8th

century through the Indian Sanskrit book Sidhhanta. With the translation of

this book, Arab scientists became acquainted with the developments taken

place in India in the field of astronomy. After this, Indian astronomy was

studied by the Arabs with greater effort and interest. The other Sanskrit

astronomical works introduced in the Arab world at that time include:

Aryabhattya (in Arabic Arjabhad) by Aryabhat of Kusumpura;

Khandakhadyaka (in Arabic Al-Arkand) by Brahamagupta. The Arab

traveller cum author Al-Bairuni has made some substantial reference on the

enormous amount of popularity gained by astronomy among Indians.

1
. Hitti, P. K. History of the Arabs, Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2002, p. 310
 32

Astronomy became popular in the Arab Word when the second

Abbasid Caliph, Mansur took over the throne. He was very much fond of

astronomy so when he decided to build city of Baghdad, he made it

according to astronomic rules.1 A number of Arab astronomers engaged

themselves in the study of Indian works and translated with greater amount

of improvisations on the basis of their own observations. Ibrahim bin Habib

al-Fazari who wrote Kitab al-Zij based on Surya Sidhhanta, Mohammed

bin Musa al-Khawarizmi and Habash bin Abdullah al-Marwazi constituted

a long array of astronomers who were really inspired by the Indian

scholarships. The contribution of India in the growth of Arab astronomy

was both conceptual and philological. Many Sanskrit astronomical terms

were Arabisized and freely used by Arab astronomers in their treaties:

kardaja (Karamajya, Sanskrit) was used and later replaced by Arabic Witr

Mustawi then Jib (Jiva, Sanskrit), auj (Uch, Sanskrit) were used by earlier

Arab astronomers. Like astronomy, Indian mathematics was also

introduced to the Arabs towards the end of 8th century. Ibrahim bin Habib

al-Fazari himself endeavored the translation of many Sanskrit mathematical

treaties into Arabic. Through these works, Indian numerical system and the

concept of zero became known to the Arab world. The Arabs learnt
1
. Nadwi, Syed Suleiman. Arab-o-Hind ke Taluqat (Indo-Arab Relations), Darul Musannifin
Azamgarh, p. 153
 33

mathematics from Indians and they called it Indian mathematics or

numbers. It was via the Arabs, the Europeans learnt mathematical

innovations originated in India and they called it Arabic figures. It is

difficult to come to a conclusion when Arabs learnt it but it is said that the

translation of Surya Sidhhanta in Arabic that contained mathematics and

numbers in its 13th and 24th chapters, introduced mathematics in the Arab

world. Indian system of medicine was known to the Arabs probably from

the early times. The Quraysh tribe of Mecca handled the drug and spice

trade and hence came in to frequent contact with India and Persia. The drug

merchants had to supply not only directions for use but possibly medical,

pharmacological, botanical and mineralogical explanations as well.1

Translation of some medical books from Greek language to Arabic had

already started in the Umayyad period in early 8th century but it developed

fully with the establishment of Abbasid caliphate in Baghdad. Indian

medical science (Ayurveda) was however properly introduced to the Arab

world only after several of the classical Indian works on the subject were

translated into Arabic under the patronage of early Abbasid caliphs.

The introduction of Indian medicine in the Arab world is related to

the illness of Caliph Harun Rashid. When he suffered from a serious

1
. Ahmad, Maqbul. Indo-Arab Relations, ICCR, Popular Prakashan, Bombay, 1969, p.16
 34

disease, Arab physicians were unable to cure him. So, an Indian physician

named Manka was called in by the Caliph at the suggestion of his courtiers.

He treated the Caliph and cured him. He was rewarded and later attached to

the hospital of Baramika. He was a very famous physician of that time,

who had translated several medical works into Arabic. Other Indian

physicians who got a wide acclaim in the Arab world were Ibn Dahn

probably a descendant of Dhanapati and Salih the son or descendant of

Bhela. The famous Indian works translated into Arabic were Charaka

Samhita, Susrud, Astanka Hridya, Sindhsan (Siddhyoga), Nidan and Kitab

al-Summ. Among these translated books, two require special mentioning

here; one is Susrud (Arabs called it Sasru) comprising on 10 chapters with

the details of symptoms of illness and the medicine for its treatment; and

the other is Charaka Samhita by famous Indian physician Charaka.

Charaka Samhita was first translated into Persian and then into

Arabic by Abdullah Ibn Ali. The book Nidan explains only the signs of 404

illnesses, not the treatment.1 Besides, several other works on different types

of snakes and their poisons, drugs, treatment of pregnant women,

intoxicants, disease and medicaments, effects of mania and hysteria were

1
. Nadwi, Syed Suleiman. Arab-o-Hind ke Taluqat (Indo-Arab Relations), Darul Musannifin
Azamgarh, p. 148
 35

1
also rendered into Arabic Quite interestingly, the works of an Indian

woman physician, Rusa had been translated into Arabic that exclusively

deals with women’s diseases.

1
Ahmad, Maqbul. Indo-Arab Relations, ICCR, Popular Prakashan, Bombay, 1969, p-17
 36

UNIT- IV

LITERARY AND CULTURAL INTERFACES

Music was the other major avenue, where quite lots of interactions

were taken place. Jahiz, in his writings, has praised Indian music. It is said

that no book related to Indian music have been translated into Arabic in

Baghdad but the Spanish historian, Qazi Sayeed Andalusi (1070) has

mentioned about a book on Indian music. The book is Nafar, which

linguistically means fruits of wisdom, has reached to the Arabs. According

to him this book contains Raag and Sur (music). By all possibilities, it may

be the Persian book Nauber, which means new fruit, reached to the Arabs

through the translation from Persian. Quoting one of his Hindu friends,

Syed Suleiman Nadwi reiterates that it could be Nad that means sound in

Sanskrit.1 Indian singers from Sindh were very famous among the Arabs.

Arab poets and educated persons were also entertained by them. The Arab

poet Abu Jamil employed a famous singer Mutriz Sindi Madni for the

recitation of his poems. He was a famous poet of Mahdi Era (775-785).

Khumar Qandaharya was a renowned Indian female singer whom Abdullah

bin Rabi bought and brought in to Arabia for two dirham.2

1
. Nadwi, Syed Suleiman. Arab-o-Hind ke Taluqat (Indo-Arab Relations), Darul Musannifin
Azamgarh, p. 158
2
. Mubarakpuri, Qazi Athar. Khilafat-e-Abbasia and Hindustan (Abbasid Caliphate and India),
Delhi, pp. 390-391
 38

As compared to the Indian scientific literature, literary works in

Sanskrit were less known to the Arabs. There were hardly any Arabic

translations of the classical works. What little was translated is well known

and became popular literature in the medieval times. The reason may be

that by the time, Arabs became aware of Indian literature, Arabic literature

had sufficiently advanced in both forms of prose and poetry.

Similarly, the great Indian epics and philosophical works like

Upanishads and Ramayana remained untranslated in Abbasid period

probably on account of their religious content but they had been rendered

in Arabic later on. The Indian literary work which gained a wide fame was

Panchatantra- a collection of fables containing wise sayings. It was

originally written in Sanskrit by a great Hindu scholar, Pundit Vishnu

Sharma. However, it was lost and perished in the sands of time after being

translated into Pahlavi (literary Persian) language in the 6th century.

Thereafter, it was translated into Arabic in the 8th century by Abdullah bin

al-Muqaffa and it was christened as Kalila wa Dimna. The Arabic

translation made it well known all over the Europe and it was then

translated into Hebrew, Latin, Spanish and Italian. During the reign of
 39

Nushirwan (531- 579), Buzurjmihr was specially sent to India (Ganges) to

procure a copy of the Fables of Bidpai (also known as Kalila wa Dimna).1

Indian stories and tales were famous among the Arabs in Abbasid

period. During this period, along with the translations of Indian books in

sciences and mathematics, many stories were also rendered in to Arabic.

Some of the famous books fall in this category are: Kalila wa Dimna,

Sindbad Kabir, Sindbad Sagheer, Kitabul Badd, Kitab Baunasef wa

Balohar, Kitab Bonasef, Kitab Adabul Hind wa al-Sindh, Kissa Hubute

Adam, Kitab Turuk, Kitab Dabak Hindi (on Man and women), Kitab

Suwerum, Kitab Shanaq fid Tadbeer, Kitab Baidba (on wisdom and

knowledge) and Kitab Utur Mashrubat.2

Arab scholars, merchants and travelers had visited many parts of

India but it seems they were either experts of Islamic science or were

interested in religious propaganda. But there is no evidence to show that

Arab scientists of this period visited India.3Al-Beruni (973-1048) although

was not an Arab, was one of the first Muslim scientists who visited India in

the beginning of 11th century. In his well known book Kitab fi Tahqiq

1
. Ahmad, Maqbul. Indo-Arab Relations, ICCR, Popular Prakashan, Bombay, 1969, p. 18
2
. Mubarakpuri, Qazi Athar. Khilafat-e-Abbasia and Hindustan (Abbasid Caliphate and India),
Delhi, p. 390
3
. Ahmad, Maqbul. Indo-Arab Relations, ICCR, Popular Prakashan, Bombay, 1969, p. 28
 40

ma’lil Hind (Researches on India), he didn’t record the military and

political history of India in any detail but wrote its cultural, scientific,

social and religious history, thus showing that he had as wide a concept of

history as that of modern historians. He had rendered a great service to

India by presenting its ancient cultural and scientific legacy to the Arabic

speaking world of his time.

It was Al-Biruni, who perhaps was the first scientist to translate

Arabic scientific works into Sanskrit. Quoting from Sachu, Maqbul Ahmad

says that his work as a translator was a double one. He translated from

Sanskrit into Arabic and from Arabic into Sanskrit. He wants to give

Muslims an opportunity to study Indian sciences of India and on the other

hand, he called upon to spread Arabic learning among Hindus. He

translated Samkhya by Kapila, the book of Patanjali, Paulassasiddhanta and

Brahma Siddhanta by Brahmagupta and Brihatsamhita and Laghujatakam

by Varahamihira into Arabic. He also translated into Sanskrit the following

books: Euclid’s Elements, Ptolemy’s Almagest and a treatise of his own on

the construction of astrolabe.

The establishment of Muslim kingdoms in the north and in the south

and the introduction of Arab educational system and the Sharia brought a

large number of Arab theologians, jurists and men of learning to India

throughout the medieval period and some Indian Muslim scholars also

visited Arab world and acquired eminent positions in their respective

fields. The history has witnessed the exchange of scholars between the two

regions on a large scale. According to a Sikh Guru Nanak (1469- 1539) is

said to have visited Arabia and Iraq. He met many religious scholars and

gave lectures in many places.1 Some Arab travelers, such as Ibn Batuta of

Morocco occasionally found themselves elevated to positions of power by

their hosts. Ibn Batuta, for a while, was made the Qazi of Delhi, even

though he was unfamiliar with the school of Islamic jurisprudence used in

India. Indian scholars have also documented the compilation of a large

number of Indian works in Quranic studies over the last 500 years as also

in Islamic jurisprudence over a slightly longer period. Perhaps less

remembered today is the contribution of Indians to Islamic scholarship in

the medieval period. After the Abbasid period, literary interactions

declined. But the cultural renaissance known as Al-Nahda in Egypt in the

late 19th and early 20th century led to a renewed encouragement of

translation of Arabic works into Indian languages and of Indian books into

Arabic. Works by personalities such as Rabindranath Tagore and Allama

1
. Ahmad, Maqbul. Indo-Arab Relations, ICCR, Popular Prakashan, Bombay, 1969, p. 30
 42

Muhammad Iqbal were translated into Arabic by scholars from Egypt and

other Arab countries.

Tagore’s award winning book Geetanjali was translated by Wadie

Haqqi in Lebanon. Syed Sulaiman Nadvi’s famous book on Indo-Arab

relations and Shibli Nomani’s Al-Farooq have been recently translated in

Arabic by Dr. Suhaib Alam and Jalal Sayeed Hafnavi respectively.

Premchand’s Gaodan had also been rendered into Arabic. Rampur Raza

Library in Rampur has published a well researched book about India in

Arabic. The book presents the picture of India as depicted in Arabic poetry.

Egyptian scholar Tharwat Okasha prepared an encyclopedia of

Indian arts in Arabic in recent times. India’s contribution in promotion of

Arabic language and literature in India does not need any introduction. The

history of learning and teaching of Arabic language in India starts with the

arrival of Islam. It came as the language of Arab traders who were in the

region in visible numbers. It was further boosted by the invasion of

Mohammed bin Qasim in 710 A.D. Teaching of Arabic started traditionally

in Mosques and Madrasas which were established to study on Qur’an,

Hadith and other aspects of Islamic studies. People learnt Arabic because it

was the language of Qur’an and was necessary to understand the basic

theory of Islam. These Madrasas played an important role in promotion of

Arabic language and produced famous scholars of Qur’an, Hadith, Fiqh

and Islamic history.

In the recent times, cultural and literary encounters between India

and Arab world are on a large scale, particularly after the establishment of

Indo-Arab Cultural Centre at Jamia Millia Islamia in New Delhi. This

Centre is regularly engaged in fostering the age-old cultural relations by

organizing Arab cultural programs in India as well as promoting Indian

culture in Arab world. Literary encounters between the well known Indian

and Arab writers are taking place on regular basis. The Centre, during the

last two years has successfully translated and published more than 20

books of well known Indian authors including A. P. J Abdul Kalam (former

President of India), Amartya Sen and Prof. Mushirul Hasan into Arabic.

Likewise, a number of Arab literature have been translated several Indian

languages. The process of literary and cultural exchanges between India

and Arab world is on large scale under the ambiance of this Centre.