Did you know that princes of Persia (modern-day Iran) were given lessons of Panchatantra to control their pesky, wayward ways and groom them for royal governanceIJ The parables and stories got their attention than any formal tutors ever could. Royal education presented such a challenge that the 5th Century Sasanid king Khusrau sent his physician Burzuya to India, who translated the Sanskrit Panchatantra into the then prevalent Pahlavi language with five chapters and called it Kalileh-wa-Dimneh. So popular did it become that it was considered a work that inspired mankind and held in reverence by kings and princes for teaching polity and statecraft in an easy and humorous manner. It was translated later into Arabic and Persian illustrated versions and became a handbook of sorts, for both royalty and commoners.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be releasing the facsimile reproduction of the manuscript, calligraphed by Sultan Muhammad in the Timurid period and preserved in the Raza library at Rampur, UP, at a
never-before showcase of historical relations between India and Iran in Tehran during his forthcoming visit.
This is the first time that the cultural component is being elevated as a keystone of strengthening bilateral relations and emphasised in the same breath as the economic and trade ties.
Both countries will host reciprocal festivals of India and Iran later this year, followed by food fiestas and film pacts. Bollywood, after all, partly owes its origins to Parsi theatre.
Indian Council for Cultural Research president Prof lokesh Chandra, who has been putting the finishing touches on tracing the commonality of a shared heritage, believes that culture is power and the “natural relationship” between India and Iran would nourish people-to-people engagement in an enduring manner. “There has been a constant flow of ideas which needs to be celebrated,” he said.
Now that economic sanctions have been lifted, India is rushing in to claim the first mover cultural advantage as Iran opens up to the world. This is intended to softly cushion the geo-strategic implications of the connectivity corridor via Chabahar port and the energy partnership with respect to the Farzad gas block. Simultaneously, there is an attempt to build on an existing curiosity of India among Iranians. Culture is not only a way of building goodwill but encashing and reviving nostalgia. “They (Iranians) are so sensitive about the right projection of India that they even want to rectify and upgrade translated manuscripts in the most authentic manner,” Prof Chandra told The Pioneer. The ICCR has planned an elaborate show between May 23 and 25 at Farhangistan (IIC equivalent in Tehran), which includes display of more rare manuscripts, a conference on “Retrospectives and Prospects,” recitations by Indian and Iranian poets and a sitar and tar jugalbandi by Nishat Khan.
“India and Iran are the ‘we together’ in the glory of language, with similar divinities in classical times, the gathas and Vedic hymns, with mindprints in common essence. Iranians of Parthia and Sogdiana translated Buddhist sutras into Chinese, Iranian doctors cured Samba, the son of lord Krishna while Jivaka, the physician of lord Buddha, studied under ‘white-clad medicos.’ Pahlavi inscriptions of Kartir, who was a dominant figure in the Zoroastrian church in the reign of Bahram II (276-293), refer to Buddhists and Brahmans in Iran.”
But it was King Khusrau who ordered translation of Greek and Sanskrit works. “Several collections of andarz or ‘advice’ or ‘mirrors for princes’ were adapted like the Panchatantra. Moral precepts were an important genre in Sasanian literature. The Persian version of the Kalileh-wa-Dimneh, titled Anwar-i Suhayli, had the historic destiny of being the textbook for learning Persian to run the government of the day. Kalileh-wa-Dimneh inspired Iranian artists of the pre and post Mongol schools and there is a large number of illustrated manuscripts.
The 15th century manuscript we are releasing is a homage to the ‘cousin cultures’ of India and Iran. It reminds one of Emperor Akbar’s desire to come close to the Iranians and his efforts at helping Iranian intellectuals flourish in India. Persian became the courtly language and the official language of administration till the middle of the 19th century under the East India Company. Burzuya not only translated the Panchatantra but expanded it from other Indian sources, like the Mahabharata, after his meeting with many Indian scholars. The Sasanian kings came very close to India. Shapur I ordered the collection and translation of religious, astronomical, medical and philosophical texts from the Byzantine empire and from India,” said Prof Chandra.
The folio displays in Tehran will include Persian translations of royal lovers Nal and Damayanti, Ramayana and Mahabharata, commissioned by Akbar, examples of Persian art styles and stylised book-making in the Mughal era, a victory letter written in Persian by 10th Sikh guru, Guru Gobind Singh, modelled on Ferdowsi’s Shahnama, and poet laureate Rabindranath Tagore’s ode to Iran where he celebrated his 71st birthday, among others. Tagore wrote, “Iran, thy brave sons have brought/Their priceless gifts of friendship/On this birthday of the poet of a faraway shore/For they have known him in their hearts as their own/And in return I bind this garland of my verse/On thy forehead, and I cry: Victory of Iran!”
The wall carvings on the staircase of the Hall of Nations in Persepolis, the capital of the Achaemenids (550-330 BC) and the mural at Ajanta, cave No 4, showing the reception of an ambassador from the Sasanian king, are proof of the age-old relations between two cultures. The Sasanid period (224-651 AD) recorded minstrels and dancers from Gujarat and Rajasthan visiting Iran, which subsequently paved the way for a healthy exchange of scholars of Indic sciences and philosophy. What we know as Hindustani music today is actually a legacy of Indo-Persian music that can be traced to Amir Khusrau’s works. Did you know that all swords of Mughal India were sent to Iran to be finished and sent backIJ Or that fruits, food items and cotton were traded between the two countries on the silk route corridorIJ “The mission of the Indic civilisation has been to be friends with the world. India and Iran have historically maintained a close link in various areas despite the challenges of realpolitik,” says Prof Chandra. It is believed the historical links and a socio-cultural revival would go a long way in forwarding economic ties and restoring stability in the region.