Kashmiri literature

Kashmiri language is undoubtedly one of the oldest languages of the world, emerged from 5th to 6th century from ancient linguistic group of Dardi. Soon Dardi was taken over by Sanskrit and Kashmiri language was influenced not only by Sanskrit but a number of other languages like Chinese, Tibetan, Russian, Persian, Arabic , Punjabi and English through different periods. These languages as thoroughly analyzed by Pandit Ram Chand Koul helped in building up Kashmiri language and in support of his analysis a wider list of words stands published in a popular news paper of the valley,”Hamdard” on 31 July 1938. Kashmiri language is undoubtedly one of the oldest languages of the world, emerged between 5th to 6th century from ancient linguistic group known as Dardi. Soon Dardi was taken over by Sanskrit and Kashmiri language was influenced not only by Sanskrit but a number of other languages like Chinese, Tibetan, Russian, Persian, Arabic , Punjabi and English through different periods. These languages as thoroughly analyzed by Pandit Ram Chand Koul helped in building up Kashmiri language and Mr. Koul has in support of his analysis published a reliable list of vocable similarities among these languages in a popular news paper of the valley,”Hamdard” on 31 July 1938. Estimated by one European linguist G. T. Venn, this language carries 50% words from Sanskrit,33% Tibetan or Dardi, 10% Persian, 5% Hindi and 2% Dogri. This enriched language locally referred as “Koshur” could not have its own permanent script till late 20th century. Koshur was either written in Sharda script or in Devnagri. As such, Koshur predominantly remained a spoken language among the masses and that made a serious setback in its development. Though a voluntary organization of young writers of the valley took up a mission to popularize Kashmiri script among the masses but it could have no fruitful results. In 1980 government finally included the language in academics and Kashmiri Department was established in Kashmir University but these efforts seem to be too late. At present, Kashmiri language is predominantly spoken by older people in rural areas while young generation in the valley does not feel comfortable in communicating in Kashmiri language. Besides, the last decade of 20th century brought about certain socio- cultural changes in the valley which shook very roots of this language culture and Mr. Braj B. Kachru, Professor of linguistics, University of Illinois, Urbana, USA has included this language among dying heritages of the world.

Kashmiri language literature

The use of the Kashmiri language began with the work Mahanayakaprakash (Light of the supreme lord) by Shitikantha (c.1250),^[1] and was followed by the poet Lalleshvari or Lal Ded (14th century), who wrote mystical verses in the vakh or four-line couplet style.^[2] Another mystic of her time equally revered in Kashmir and popularly known as Nunda Reshi wrote powerful poetry like his senior Lal Ded. Later came Habba Khatun (16th century) with her own style. Other major names are Rupa Bhavani (1621–1721), Arnimal (d. 1800), Mahmud Gami (1765–1855), Rasul Mir (d. 1870), Paramananda (1791–1864), Maqbool Shah Kralawari (1820–1876). Also, the Sufi poets like Shamas Fakir, Wahab Khar, Soch Kral, Samad Mir, and Ahad Zargar. Among modern poets are Ghulam Ahmad Mahjur (1885–1952), Abdul Ahad Azad (1903–1948), and Zinda Kaul (1884–1965).

During the 1950s, a number of well educated youth turned to Kashmiri writing, both poetry and prose, and enriched modern Kashmiri writing by leaps and bounds. Among these writers are Dinanath Nadim (1916–1988), Rahman Rahi, Ghulam Nabi Firaq Amin Kamil (1923-2014),^[3] Ali Mohd Lone,Autar Krishen Rahbar ( 1933- ), Akhtar Mohiuddin, {Sajood Sailani(1933- )Poet/Playwright}, Som Nath Zutshi, Muzaffar Aazim,^[4] and Sarvanand Kaul 'Premi'. Some later day writers are Hari Krishan Kaul, Majrooh Rashid, Rattanlal Shant, Hirdhey Kaul Bharti, Omkar N Koul, Roop Krishen Bhat, Rafiq Raaz, Tariq Shehraz, Shafi Shauq,Showkat Shehri , M H Zaffar, Shenaz Rashid,Shabir Ahmad Shabir, Nisar Naseem, ,^[5] Moti Lal Kemmu (playwright).

Contemporary Kashmiri literature appears in Sheeraza published by the Jammu & Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages, Anhar published by the Kashmirri Department of the Kashmir University, and an independent magazine Neab International Kashmiri Magazine^[6] published from Boston, Vaakh (published by All India Kashmiri Samaj, Delhi) and Koshur Samachar( published by Kashmiri Sahayak Sammiti, Delhi).

Ancient writers in Sanskrit

• Lagadha,^{[7][8][9][10][11][12]} between 1400-1200 BC. Wrote Vedanga Jyotisha, the earliest Indian text on astronomy.
• Charaka,^{[13][14][15][16]} c. 300 BC. One of the most important authors in Ayurveda.
• Vishnu Sharma, c. 300 BC. Author of Panchatantra.
• Nagasena,^[17][18] c. 2nd century BC. One of the major figures of Buddhism, his answers to questions about the religion posed by Menander I (Pali: Milinda), the Indo-Greek king of northwestern India (now Pakistan), are recorded in the Milinda Pañha.
• Tisata, c. 500 AD. A medical writer.^[19]
• Jaijjata, 5th century, a medical writer and probably the earliest commentator (known) on the Sushruta Samhita, later quoted by Dalhana.^[20]
• Kalidasa,^[21][22][23] c. 5th century. Widely regarded as the greatest poet and dramatist in the Sanskrit language.
• Vagbhata,^[24][25] c. 7th century. Considered as one of the 'trinity' (with Charaka and Sushruta) of Ayurveda.
• Bhamaha,^{[26][27][28][29]} c. 7th century
• Ravigupta, 700-725. "Ravigupta is, perhaps, the earliest among the Buddhist philosophers of Kashmir..."^[30]
• Anandavardhana, 820-890
• Vasugupta, 860-925
• Somananda, 875-925
• Vatesvara,^[31][32] b. 880, author of Vaṭeśvara-siddhānta.
• Rudrata, c. 9th century
• Jayanta Bhatta, c. 9th century
• Bhatta Nayaka, c. 9th-10th century, considered by Sheldon Pollock as the greatest author on aesthetics in the pre-modern period
• Medhātithi, c. 9th-10th century, one of the most influential commentators of the Manusmriti
• Utpaladeva, 900-950
• Abhinavagupta, c. 950-1020
• Vallabhadeva,^[33][34] c. 10th century. Wrote, amongst other works, Raghupanchika, the earliest commentary on the Raghuvamsa of Kalidasa.
• Utpala,^{[35][36][37][38]} c. 10th century. An important mathematician.
• Kshemendra, c. 990-1070
• Kshemaraja, c. late 10th century/early 11th century
• Kathasaritsagara, c. 11th century
• Bilhana, c. 11th century
• Kalhana, c. 12th century
• Jalhana,^[39] c. 12th century. He wrote the Suktimuktavali, an anthology quoting the work of 380 Sanskrit poets.
• Sarangadeva, c. 13th century. A musicologist, he wrote Sangita Ratnakara, one of the most important text when it comes to Indian music.
• Kesava Kashmiri Bhattacharya, c. 14th century, a major Vedantic philosopher.
• Mamatta
• Kaihata
• Jaihata
• Ralhana
• Shilhana
• Malhana
• Ruiyaka
• Kuntaka
• Ruchaka
• Udbhatta
• Sankuka
• Gunadhya
• Somvadeva
• Pingala
• Jayadata
• Vamana
• Kshiraswamin
• Mankha
• Pushpadanta
• Jagadhar Bhatta
• Ratnakara
• Manikyacandra

Writers in Persian

After Sanskrit and before the coming Urdu, because of the adoration and patronising policy of foreign culture by the Mughals, Persian became the literary language also of the region. Kashmir was very richly represented in that tradition, as already before the end of the 18th century "Muhammad Aslah's tazkira of the Persian-writing poets of Kashmir, written during the reign of the Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah (1131-61/1719-48), alone lists 303 poets".^[40] Late scholar from Pakistan, Pir Hassam-ud-Din Rashidi, edited, translated, and enlarged this work later, and had it published by the Iqbal Academy.

The most famous of them was Muhammad Tahir Ghani (d. 1669), better known as Ghani Kashmiri, whose poetry was recently translated into English, for the first time, by Mufti Mudasir Farooqi and Nusrat Bazaz as 'The Captured Gazelle' in the world-renowned Penguin Classics list. Ghani influenced many generations of Persian-and Urdu writing poets in South Asia including Mir Taqi Mir, Ghalib and most importantly, Iqbal. Ghani's "forte" lies in creating delightful poetic images, usually by stating an abstract idea in the first hemistich and following it up with a concrete exemplification in the other.He also stands out for his multi-layered poems, which exploit the double meaning of words.

Another name is the Sheikh Yaqub Sarfi (1521-1595), a 16th-century Sufi poet-philosopher who was internationally acknowledged and who had for students, amongst others, well-known religious scholar Ahmad Sirhindi (more particularly, he taught him hadith)^[41][42] and Persian-language poet Mohsin Fani Kashmiri (d. 1671 or 1672) (himself the teacher of Ghani Kashmiri and author of the pivotal work of comparative religion, the Dabestan-e Mazaheb).

Other of the well-known and influential Persian-language poets of Kashmir would include Habibullah Ghanai (1556-1617), Mirza Dirab Big Juya (d. 1707), Mirza Beg Akmal Kamil (1645-1719), Muhammad Aslam Salim (d. 1718), Mulla Muhammad Taufiq (1765), Muhammed Azam Didamari (d. 1765), Mulla Muhammad Hamid (1848) or Birbal Kachru Varasta (d. 1865), amongst a myriad. Of course, Kashmiri Pandits too played a role in that school, and one exceptional case was Pandit Taba Ram Turki (1776–1847), who was a celebrity as far as Central Asia.

Writers in Urdu

Despite being a numerically reduced community (less than one million), the Kashmiri Pandits are over-represented in their contribution to Urdu literature. One important early example is Daya Shankar Kaul Nasim (1811–1845), a renowned Urdu poet of the 19th century, and hundreds of others followed his path.^[43]

Some eminent Urdu literary personalities of Kashmiri origins (from both the Valley and the diaspora) include (in chronological order):

• Nawab Mir Tafazzul Hussain Khan Kashmiri (1727-1800), originally from Kashmir,^[44][45][46] born in Sialkot^[47] where his parents moved and himself based in Lucknow where he served as Prime Minister (or diwan) to the Nawab of Oudh Asaf-ud-Daula thanks his erudition. He was called "khan-e-allama" (the Scholarly Khan)^[48] due to his deep scholarship on many subjects but is best known today for having translated Sir Isaac Newton's Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica from Latin into Arabic.^[49]
• Mufti Sadruddin Khan 'Azurda',^[50] 1789-1868, apart from being the Grand Mufti of Dehli, he was also a personal friend to Ghalib (whose own mother was from Kashmir)^[51] and himself a poet of note in Urdu as well as in Arabic and Persian. He also wrote a tazkira (biographical anthology of poets).
• Momin Khan Momin, 1801-1852, considered one of the three pillars of the Delhi school of Urdu poetry, with Ghalib and Zauq.^[52] Other fields where he was competent included mathematics, geomancy, astrology, chess or music.^[53][54][55]
• Daya Shankar Kaul Nasim, 1811–1845
• Ratan Nath Dhar Sarshar, 1846-1903
• Pandit Brij Mohan Datatriya Kaifi, 1866-1955
• Muhammad Iqbal, 1877–1938
• Agha Hashar Kashmiri, 1879–1935 (called "the Shakespeare of Urdu" for his works as playwright)
• Brij Narayan Chakbast, 1882–1926
• Aziz Lucknawi, 1882-1935
• Dr Khalifa Abdul Hakim, 1896-1959 (a philosopher who has the honour of writing the only book on the metaphysics of Persian mystical poet Jalaluddin Rumi)^[56]
• Patras Bokhari, 1898–1958
• Ghulam Mustafa Tabassum, 1899–1978
• Justice Anand Narain Mulla, 1901-1997
• Dr Muhammad Din Taseer, 1902-1950 (short-story writer, literary critic and Iqbal scholar. Father of slain Pakistan's Punjab governor Salman Taseer and first individual from the Sub-continent to get a PhD in English Literature from Cambridge University)^[57]
• Shaikh Abdullah, 1905–1982
• Bashir Ahmed Dar, 1908-1979 (a philosopher and Iqbal scholar)
• Meeraji, 1912-1949
• Saadat Hasan Manto, 1912–1955
• Aariz Kashmiri, 1916-1965
• Agha Shorish Kashmiri, 1917-1975
• Zaheer Kashmiri, 1919-1996
• Razia Butt, 1924-2012
• Anwar Shemza, 1928-1985
• Hakeem Manzoor, 1937–2006
• Obaidullah Aleem, 1939-2008
• Muhammed Amin Andrabi, 1940-2001, a scholar who belonged to the Traditionalist School of metaphysics, inspired by authors like Ibn Arabi, Muhammad Iqbal, Frithjof Schuon, Seyyed Hossein Nasr and Henry Corbin.^[58]
• Allama Mustafa Hussain Ansari, 1945–2006
• Mirza Muhammad Zaman Azurdah, b. 1945, influential contemporary writer from the Valley
• Abid Hassan Minto
• Muhammad Asim Butt
• Muhammad Younis Butt, writer of the most popular political satire show in Pakistan, Hum Sub Umeed Se Hain
• Rasheed Amjad
• Shahid Nadeem
• Dr. Tabassum Kashmiri, one of Pakistan's foremost specialists on Japan and Japanese literature

Writers in Hindi

• Amar Nath Kak
• Chandrakanta (author)
• Omkar N. Koul
• Rattan Lal Shant
• Hari Krishen Kaul
• Shashi Shekhar Toshkhani
• Bhushan Lal Koul
• Shiban Krishen Raina
• Agnishekher
• Maharaj Krishan Santoshi

Writers in English

• I. K. Taimni
• Chiragh Ali
• Taufiq Rafat, called the 'Ezra Pound of Pakistan'^[59] for both his innovative writings and his position as one of - if not the - greatest English-language poets of Pakistan.
• Jawaharlal Nehru
• Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit
• Krishna Hutheesing
• Gopi Krishna
• Gopinath Raina
• Ram Nath Kak
• Nayantara Sahgal
• M.J. Akbar
• Salman Rushdie
• Hari Kunzru
• Lalita Pandit
• Muneeb Faiq
• Kailas Nath Kaul
• Agha Shahid Ali
• Mohammad Tabish
• Basharat Peer
• Hamid Naseem Rafiabadi, contemporary philosopher, affiliated with the University of Kashmir, specialist of Islamic philosophy
• Abdur Rashid Bhat, contemporary philosopher, affiliated with the University of Kashmir, specialist of al Ghazali and Shah Waliullah

See also

• List of Kashmiri poets
• List of topics on the land and the people of Jammu and Kashmir
• Kashmir Shaivism - philosophy gives Kashmir its soul, God is universal, in all equally.
• Kashmiriyat - a socio-cultural ethos of religious harmony and Kashmiri consciousness.
• Swami Lakshman Joo Raina, Ishbher. - last original philosopher of the old school, loved all, teacher of all.

References

1. Sisir Kumar Das (2006). A history of Indian literature, AD.500-1399: from courtly to the popular. Sahitya Akademi. p. 193. Scholars consider _Mahanayakaprakash_ (Light of the supreme lord) by Shitikantha (c.1250) as the earliest work in Kashmiri language.
2. Lal Ded; Ranjit Hoskote (tr.);. I, Lalla : Poems of Lal Ded. Penguin 2011.
3. "Amin Kamil - Kashmiri literature, Kashmiri poetry". Kamil.neabinternational.org. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
4. http://kashmirilanguage.com. Missing or empty |title= (help)
5. "Welcome To the Homepage of LALDED". Lalded.8k.com. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
6. Neab International Kashmiri Magazine
7. Debiprasad Chattopadhyaya, History of Science and Technology in Ancient India, Firma K.L Mukhopadhyaya (1986), pp. 486-494
8. Satya Prakash, Founders of Sciences in Ancient India (part II), Vijay Kumar (1989), p.471
9. B.S. Yadav & Man Mohan, Ancient Indian Leaps into Mathematics, Birkhäuser (2011), p. 78
10. M. I. Mikhailov & N. S. Mikhailov, Key to the Vedas, Minsk-Vilnius (2005), p. 105
11. Sures Chandra Banerji, A Companion to Sanskrit Literature, Motilal Banarsidass (1989), p. 59
12. Helaine Selin, Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures, Kluwer Academic Publishers (1997), p. 977
13. Martin Levey, Early Arabic Pharmacology: An Introduction Based on Ancient and Medieval Sources, Brill Archive (1973), p. 10
14. P. N. K. Bamzai, Culture and Political History of Kashmir - Volume 1, M D Publications (1994), p.268
15. S.K. Sopory, Glimpses Of Kashmir, APH Publishing Corporation (2004), p. 62
16. Krishan Lal Kalla, The Literary Heritage of Kashmir, Mittal Publications (1985), p.65
17. Guang Xing, The Concept of the Buddha, RoutledgeCurzon (2005), p. 26
18. Phyllis G. Jestice, Holy People of the World: A Cross-cultural Encyclopedia, ABC-CLIO Ltd (2004), p. 621
19. Encyclopaedia of Indian Medicine: Historical perspective, Popular Prakashan (1985), p. 100
20. Ramachandra S.K. Rao, Encyclopaedia of Indian medicine : volume 1, Popular Prakashan (2005), p. 63
21. Ram Gopal, Kālidāsa: His Art and Culture, Concept Publishing Company (1984), p.3
22. P. N. K. Bamzai, Culture and Political History of Kashmir - Volume 1, M D Publications (1994), p.261-262
23. M. K. Kaw, Kashmir and It's People: Studies in the Evolution of Kashmiri Society, APH Publishing Corporation (2004), p.388
24. Claus Vogel, Vāgbhaṭa Aṣṭāṅgahṛdayasaṃhitā. The First Five Chapters of Its Tibetan Version, Franz Steiner (1965), p.13
25. Anna Akasoy & co., Islam and Tibet: Interactions Along the Musk Routes, Ashgate Publishing Limited (2011), p.76
26. Richard Pischel, A Grammar of the Prakrit Languages, Motilal Banarsidass (1999), p. 43
27. Satya Ranjan Banerjee, The Eastern School of Prakrit Grammarians: A Linguistic Study, Vidyasagar Pustak Mandir (1977), p. 31
28. Kamaleswar Bhattacharya, India & Beyond, Routledge (2009), p. 2
29. John E. Cort, Open Boundaries: Jain Communities and Cultures in Indian History, State University of New York Press (1998), p.57
30. Kolar Sesha Iyer Nagarajan, Contribution of Kashmir to Sanskrit literature, V.B. Soobbiah (1970), p. 426
31. R.N. Rai, Karanasara Of Vatesvara, Indian National Science Academy (1970), vol. 6, n. I, p. 34
32. Vaṭeśvara, Vaṭeśvara-siddhānta and Gola of Vaṭeśvara: English translation and commentary, National Commission for the Compilation of History of Sciences in India (1985), p. xxvii
33. P. N. K. Bamzai, Culture and Political History of Kashmir - Volume 1, M D Publications (1994), p.269
34. Sheldon Pollock, Literary Cultures in History: Reconstructions from South Asia, University of California Press (2003), p. 112
35. Bina Chatterjee (introduction by), The Khandakhadyaka of Brahmagupta, Motilal Banarsidass (1970), p. 13
36. Lallanji Gopal, History of Agriculture in India, Up to C. 1200 A.D., Concept Publishing Company (2008), p. 603
37. Kosla Vepa, Astronomical Dating of Events & Select Vignettes from Indian History, Indic Studies Foundation (2008), p. 372
38. Dwijendra Narayan Jha (edited by), The feudal order: state, society, and ideology in early medieval India, Manohar Publishers & Distributors (2000), p. 276
39. P. N. K. Bamzai, Culture and Political History of Kashmir - Volume 1, M D Publications (1994), p.269
40. Collective, The Cambridge History of Iran, Volume 6, p. 980
41. Anna Zelkina, In Quest for God and Freedom: The Sufi Response to the Russian Advance in the North Caucasus, C. Hurst & Co. Publishers (200), p. 88
42. Irshad Alam, Faith Practice and Piety: An Excerpt from the Maktūbāt, Sufi Peace Mission (2006), p. 20
43. Shri Ram Bakshi, Kashmir: Valley and Its Culture, Sarun & Son (1997), p. 165
44. Hamid Afaq Qureshi, The Mughals, the English & the rulers of Awadh, from 1722 A.D. to 1856 A.D., New Royal Book Co (2003), p.79
45. Amaresh Misra, Lucknow, fire of grace: the story of its revolution, renaissance and the aftermath, HarperCollins Publishers India (1998), p. 57
46. Purnendu Basu, Oudh and the East India Company, 1785-1801, Maxwell Company (1943), p. 22
47. Simon Schaffer, The Brokered World: Go-Betweens and Global Intelligence, 1770-1820, Science History Publications (2009), p. 53
48. Surendra Mohan, Awadh Under the Nawabs: Politics, Culture, and Communal Relations, 1722-1856, Manohar Publishers & Distributors (1997), p.80
49. Edited by Bernard Lightman, The Circulation of Knowledge Between Britain, India and China, BRILL (2013), p.67
50. Abida Samiuddin, Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Urdu Literature, Global Vision Publishing House (2008), p. 94
51. Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib, Persian poetry of Mirza Ghalib, Pen Productions (2000), p. 7
52. K.C. Kanda, Masterpieces of Urdu Ghazal from the 17th to the 20th Century, Sterling (1992), p. 182
53. K.C. Kanda, Masterpieces of Urdu Ghazal from the 17th to the 20th Century, Sterling (1992), p. 182
54. Ali Jawad Zaidi, A History of Urdu literature, Sahitya Akademi (1993), p. 181
55. D.J. Matthews, Urdu Literature, South Asia Books (1985), p. 86
56. A website on Dr Khalifa Abdul Hakim maintained by a relative and with a lot of bibliographical resources
57. Punjab’s Kashmir connection
58. A Scholar-Intellectual
59. "Taufiq Rafat - the Ezra Pound of Pakistan". The Nation. 2009-11-09. Retrieved 2014-04-18.

External links

• Modern Kashmiri Dictionary: Android based electronic Kashmiri Dictionary
• Shehjar e-journal - Online magazine on Kashmir history, literature & politics.