Ali Akbar Husain
The Courtly Gardens birth and rooted in the soil. Indeed, the poet
laureate of Bijapur’s Dakhni school, Mulla
Nusrati, makes no reference to him in his
of ‘Abdul’s Ibrahim Nama own masnavi about Sultan ‘Ali ‘Adil Shah II,
the ‘Ali nama, which was written in 1666,
half a century later, although he acknowl-
edges the poets of the Golconda school and
even their commentators.7
The Ibrahim nama is a poetical work illustra- As narrated by ‘Abdul in the Ibrahim nama,
tive of the early seventeenth-century cul- when Sultan Ibrahim ‘Adil Shah invited
ture of the sultanate of the ‘Adil Shahs him to compose a book of verses, ‘Abdul
centered at Bijapur in peninsular India. Its asked the sultan what medium of communi-
author — ‘Abdul — was a poet at the ‘Adil cation he could possibly use, as he is merely
Shah court and lived at a time of prosperity a Dehlavi (that is, of Delhi) who knows
and stability, the high point of cultural nothing of Arabo-Persian poetry and whose
activity at Bijapur. Little else is known of language is merely Hindavi, that is, of India
him. Written in Dakhni, a form of old (not Persian, we might add).8 In other
Urdu that came into literary use in the Dec- words, ‘Abdul professes that he has no
can primarily in the seventeenth century,1 claims to fame, unlike the renowned poets,
‘Abdul’s Ibrahim nama is an extended qasida for instance, Zuhuri, at the sultan’s court.
(panegyric) in praise of Sultan Ibrahim ‘Adil However, by referring to his medium of
Shah II using the poetical framework of the poetic expression as Hindavi, ‘Abdul associ-
Persian masnavi (verse narrative).2 The Ibra- ates himself indirectly not only with such
him nama, edited by linguist and scholar poets as Amir Khusrau, of north India, but
Masud Husain Khan, was first published in also with the Sufi writer Burhanuddin
the original Dakhni in 1969, as a special Janam of Gujarat, who called his language
issue of Qadim Urdu, a journal devoted to both Hindavi and Gujjari.9
scholarship in Old Urdu literature.3 Khan’s It appears that at the beginning of the
edition is based largely on one of two seventeenth century, when ‘Abdul com-
known manuscripts of the Ibrahim nama.4 posed his Ibrahim nama, there were no sub-
In his extensive foreword Khan observed stantial differences between the languages
that the Ibrahim nama is the first literary mas- in circulation in north India and peninsular
navi to be written in Bijapur in Early, or India. These various languages were com-
Old, Urdu, which would make ‘Abdul the monly influenced by the literary dialects:
founder of Bijapur’s Dakhni school of Braj Bhasha for devotional poetry composed
poetry.5 Surprisingly, the poet neither fig- by Krishna bhaktis (Krishna worshippers)
ures in contemporary histories of the Dec- and Khari boli of the nath pantis (wandering
can (tawarikh) nor in literary compendia of ascetics) for communicating the message
Urdu poets (tazkirat). The omission may be of Wahdaniyat (Unity of Being). Marathi
due to the poet’s own admission of his ori- also came to be assimilated in everyday
gins in Delhi6 and the failure to express any speech and literature, which accounts for
sense of belonging to the Deccan, which the abundance of Sanskrit words in
could not have endeared him to the poets of Dakhni.10 Although some key identifying
the Dakhni school, who were Deccani by characteristics of the Dakhni idiom are
82
missing in the Ibrahim nama, the grammati- poet to work toward “his country’s” Dec-
cal structure and base vocabulary are recog- cani identity. At the same time, by commis-
nizably the same as that of the Qutb Mushtari sioning ‘Abdul to compose a poetical work
a masnavi, by ‘Abdul’s contemporary Wajhi, on a “new subject,”15 the sultan is clearly
in Goloconda, and that of another masnavi, telling ‘Abdul that it is this “new subject”
Qisa-yi Benazir, of Sana‘ti Bijapuri, written that in fact will win him glory.
thirty years later in 1645,11 when the term Of course, the “new subject” for a poeti-
“Dakhni” was used for the first time to cal work commissioned by the sultan was
describe the language of a poetical work. none other than the sultan himself. Master
Therefore, it may be added that not only was of the “sixty-four arts of Indian music,”
‘Abdul’s Hindavi acceptable as a language for as ‘Abdul’s panegyric records,16 the sultan
a poetical work at the sultan’s court, but also had been accorded the title of “Universal
that the language of his masnavi was recog- Teacher” ( jagat guru) by his Hindu subjects.17
nized as Dakhni, the local form of old Urdu. ‘Abdul also remembers him as Shah Nauras
That an obscure “Hindavi-speaking” poet (The King of the Nine Essences):18 the word
should be elevated to the Persian-influenced nauras, from rasa, a key concept of Indic aes-
court of one of the Deccan’s principal sul- thetics, had a special fascination for the sul-
tanates speaks both for Ibrahim ‘Adil Shah tan. Thus, nauras figured in Nauraspur, the
II’s patronage of the local idiom and for his town that the sultan had founded in 1603 as
encouragement of ‘Abdul and other promis- the sultanate’s new capital (much like the
ing poets, facts borne out by the Ibrahim Mughal emperor Akbar founded Fatehpur
nama itself. In 1611, when the sultan com- Sikri almost contemporaneously in north
missioned ‘Abdul to compose a poetical India). The sultan’s favorite palace in Nau-
work on a “new subject,” the Persian poets raspur came to be called Nauras Mahal for
at the sultan’s court (such as Zuhuri and its assemblies of music. And, among various
Malik Qummi) were past their prime. The other things, nauras also appears in the title
sultan wished to inject new life in his court of an anthology of songs, the Kitab-i Nauras
by replacing them with those who were (The Book of the Nine Essences) authored
familiar with the local language.12 Accord- by the sultan, which was based on the
ing to ‘Abdul, these newer poets were the melodic modes of Indian classical music.19
“budding flowers of the Sultan’s literary ‘Abdul’s masnavi is divided into twenty-
majalis [assemblies], on each of whom the eight sections, eight of which form an
Sultan’s gaze would linger to savor the elaborate introduction, and one a formal
unique fragrance and rasa [essence], rather conclusion to the book. The introductory
in the manner of a bhanvara [bumblebee] sections, in characteristically Sunni fashion,
hovering about a flower.”13 begin with praise of God and of the Prophet
As the Ibrahim nama records, ‘Abdul’s Muhammad and his Four Companions,
patron encouraged him to compose his and follow with praise of the poet’s murshid
poetical work in the local idiom, arguing (spiritual mentor) and the Deccan’s patron
that it is poetry that brings rup (form) to a saint, Gesu Daraz (Of the Long Locks), as
language; moreover, that poetry has as many well as with a poem in praise of Sultan Ibra-
faces, as many forms of expression, as does him ‘Adil Shah II. The introduction also
love, and must be enjoyed in its variety of serves to highlight the significance of Indic
forms, in various languages, rather than in aesthetics for the author and its imprint on
Persian alone.14 He further reasons with his work: it includes sections on verse com-
‘Abdul, telling him that the poet’s use of position (where ‘Abdul records the advice of
“his country’s language” would go a long the sultan, his ustad, or teacher), on the
way in promoting it as a medium of literary relation between “word” and “meaning” in
expression. In effect, the sultan urges the literature, and on the art of writing (titled
83
the “pen and paper”). A formal beginning to detail. For instance, the sultan’s throne on
the book then commences with another, a raised takht (dais), which is the centerpiece
longer, poem in praise of the sultan. Subse- of a hall laid out with jeweled floorspreads,
quent sections focus on the sultan’s gener- is animated with the imagery of surround-
osity, which are succeeded by poetical ing jeweled trees. The description includes
snapshots in praise of Bijapur (or Bidyapur- the glimmer of candles on golden trays, re
nagar, City of Learning, as the poet calls it, sembling lotus in a golden lake;25 lamps and
the new name it was given during Ibrahim torches hung about the palace angan (terrace)
‘Adil Shah II’s time). scattering ruby and musk; and the haze of
‘Abdul builds up his collection of images, incense in the angan when the lamps there
beginning with the might and splendor of appear to be star clusters and the palace itself
the ramparts and bastions girdling Bijapur’s resembles the moon.26
citadel, ark qila, the teeming life of the capi- ‘Abdul’s description of the advent of
tal’s bazaars,20 and the glittering palaces of spring, which ushers in a feast and celebra-
Nauraspur.21 He points to the mountain- tion in a forest grove, highlights the har-
like elephants outside the palace portals, mony of man and nature that is emphasized
whose tusks are like bolts of lightning; the in both Persian and Sanskrit literary tradi-
sea of camels and horses, each one from a tions. The allegory chosen by ‘Abdul to
different corner of the world; the throngs express such harmony may be linked via
of princes from chappan des (lit. thirty six Sanskrit narratives and Puranic literature
countries); the lines of courtiers, army to a mythical event, the return to life of
chiefs, and soldiers.22 ‘Abdul also draws atten Kamadeva, the Indian god of desire, who
tion to the more personal aspects of the sul- was sent by Brahma to penetrate Shiva’s
tan’s life, to Moti Khan, the sultan’s musical ascetic discipline and fill him with passion
instrument (tanbura), to Atash Khan, his for Parvati. Reduced to ashes by Shiva’s
favorite elephant, and to Chand Bibi, his fury, Kama returned to life in spring, albeit
beloved aunt and guardian and once a prin- formless, when his wife, Rati, pleaded
cess of the sultanate of Ahmadnagar. The with the great god.27 The Indian festival of
sultan’s reverence for the protectors of his spring, Vasantotsava (also known as Basant),
City of Learning — Saraswati, goddess of is a celebration of desire centering on the
music, and Ganapati, god of learning — is worship of Kama through rituals involving
noted, and the reader is told that the sultan’s trees.28 However, the “formless” Kama
world is peopled, importantly, too, with (eclipsed by the sultan’s beauty, “like the
singers and dancing girls from various parts moon made formless by the sun’s light”29)
of his sultanate. These, the flowers of his does not figure in ‘Abdul’s account of
music assemblies (majalis), grace these occa- spring. Instead, ‘Abdul recalls Kama’s com-
sions with the fifty-two fragrances of kadam panion, Vasanta, who, according to Indian
(kadam bas bavan)23 and are wholly acquainted Puranic tradition, runs ahead of the god of
with the “sixty-four arts” described in the desire, causing flowers to bloom and gently
Kamasutra,24 knowledge of which was tradi- scented breezes to blow, thereby preparing
tionally considered to be an important social men and women for Kama’s assault on their
accomplishment, especially for women. senses with his beautiful and sharp arrows.30
There is a section on preparations for the ‘Abdul calls him Basant Rao and Banpat
royal hunt, including the announcements, Rao, the Chief or Raja of Spring.
with cannons, heralding this occasion. ‘Abdul initiates his account of the spring
The ornamentation of the court for music feast with an elaborate commentary on his
assemblies and the costumes and jeweled patron’s greatness as a ruler of Deccan. He
ornament of the dancing girls at these compares the sultan to a tree with eight
assemblies are described in the greatest branches that links heaven and earth. The
84 Sultans of the South: Arts of India’s Deccan Courts, 1323 – 1687
Fig. 1. Vasanta Ragini, Second Wife of
Dipak Raga. Rajasthan, Amber,
ca. 1700. Folio from a Ragamala.
Ink, colors, and gold on paper, folio
11 ⅝ × 8 ¾ in (29.5 × 22.2 cm); paint-
ing 9 ½ × 6 ⅝ in. (24.1 × 16.8 cm).
Los Angeles County Museum of Art,
Gift of Paul F. Walter (M.79.191.28)
tree’s extensive canopy is said to shelter gar- cast off their ornaments, the Raja of Spring,
dens where flowers of the intellect, filled Basant Rao (the Vasanta of the Bhavisya
with the rasa of wisdom, are to be found. Purana), sends his physician bees (tabib bhan-
The tree is a blessing for man, bird, and var) to examine the trees, to feel each pulse
beast and a sanctuary for an entire commu- and vein, and to ascertain the cause of their
nity.31 The fragrance of the sultan, of his distress. The “physicians” report that the
generosity and goodness, is savored by the withered trees are suffering from the afflic-
angels, and it is this fragrance, carried by tion of Love, the cure for which is not daru
the wind to a forest grove, that awakens the (medicine), but didar (vision). Accordingly,
forest trees from their winter slumber, cre- Basant Rao summons his messenger, the koel
ating a restlessness that can only be stilled (Indian cuckoo), to announce a visit to the
by the didar (vision) of the Deccan’s shah. As Deccan’s shah. Each forest tree thereupon
the forest trees fling away their clothes and leaps up with joy, its flag and banner flying.32
The Courtly Gardens of Abdul’s Ibrahim Nama 85
There follows an account of the traveling water to cause scent in the blossoms and
army of the Spring raja, which describes a fruit.34 The food samplers are the chashmi gir
collection of garden trees, both a delight to mali (gardeners), who hurry about sampling
the senses and an enjoyable presence. There each basin and adding pani sokhan (per-
are swaying, elephant-like amb jhar (mango fumed flavorings). Nourished and revived,
trees, Magnifera indica) decorated with flow- the trees arise in trains and rows and,
ers and ghungru mala (bell-strings, a refer- adorned in silken array, they assemble
ence to their fruit), while the elephant riders before the shah to present him khila‘t (robes
appear to be the swarms of nectar-hungry of honor). Ringed around hauz khana kadam
bhanvare (bumblebees) hovering above the (fragrant pools), their boughs rising and
flowers. Close upon these are trains of cam- falling, the trees appear to perfume them-
els, the tar jhar (fan-tailed palms, Borassus selves. Each fragrance-filled hauz khana,
flabbelliformis), as well as rows of horses, the lined with slender trees and reflecting the
mar jhar (fish-tailed palms, Caryota urens). ball of the sun and the white of the sky, is
The nalir jhar (coconut palms, Cocos nucifera) an image of the eye, as it were, and, as the
wave their green parasols (chhatriyan), and wind sets the water surface in motion, it is
their fruit clusters appear like the pompoms as if the senses are illuminated by ten thou-
(phundne) decorating these parasols. The sand fragrances.35
phannas jhar (jackfruit trees, Artocarpus integ- For an account of the private enjoyment
rifolia), their feet firmly planted, appear to of Vasantotsava, ‘Abdul shifts the scene to
be holding kuzdan (jars). The kele ke jhar the forest grove. According to several San-
(banana trees, Musa paradisiaca), their foliage skrit sources, most importantly the Ratnavali,
flying in the wind, are flags and banners, written in Harsha’s time, in the seventh
and the lines of sarv ke jhar (upright cypresses, century,36 this is the traditional venue for a
Cupressus sepervirens) are lines of lances and royal spring celebration in the Indic tradi-
spears. Also to be seen are swaying khajur tion. The shah and his ladies are assembled
jhar (date palms, Phoenix dactylifera), and the at one end of the forest grove, and Basant
imbliyan (tamarinds, Tamarindus indica) like- Rao and his trees take up the other end.
wise appear in rows, their pods resembling The poet points to the similarities between
the ankush (twisted iron goads) held by the the shah’s ladies, who are arrayed in gold
elephant riders. Dispersed among these and adorned in jeweled ornament, and the
rows and ranks are the paidal jhar (Indian blossoming spring trees: in fact, he adds, the
trumpets, Stereospermum suaveolens). The trees in their flush of foliage and opening
anar jhar (pomegranates, Punica granatum), blossoms are as if dyed in the colors of the
with their wind-scattered red and gold pet- ladies, who clearly outrival their cousins.37
als, seem like the nalle (fire fountains) Implicit in this account is the merriment
announcing a royal procession. Laden thus of song and dance that would have accom-
with all variety of trees and redolent with panied such a Basant celebration, as is sug-
bas bavan phulan (lit.: the fifty-two floral gested in the iconography of ragamala
fragrances), Basant Rao arrives at the feast subjects, such as in the painting Raga Bas-
hosted in his honor by the Deccan shah.33 anta (fig. 1), which is animated with the
The feast is laid out on makhmali (velvet) blossoms of the mango (recalling Kama-
and zarbaf (gold-woven) kanduriyyan (floor- deva) and the flush of new foliage. Red, it
spreads) in a palace garden. Each tree at this may be added, is the color of passion. It may
reception is surrounded with a golden rattan also be noted here that the connection of
ala (basin) filled with khushbui pani (per- women with trees, “alternately laden with
fumed water), a reference to the practice buds, blossoms, and ripening fruit,” is a
of making earthen basins around trees and theme widely celebrated in Indian literary
shrubs that were filled with perfumed and pictorial traditions.38 In such traditions,
86 Sultans of the South: Arts of India’s Deccan Courts, 1323 – 1687
trees are depicted as conscious beings and ‘Abdul acknowledges the central signifi-
objects of worship. They are also believed cance of “word” and “speech” (bachan) in
to crave contact with women, whereby the creative arts in the Indian tradition. He
their buds may open and burst into flower.39 calls bachan the “fragrance of the flower of
In this way, according to popular belief, Intellect”45 and elaborates on the relation
the productivity of the trees comes to be between bachan (word) and artha (meaning),
transferred to the women with whom they using the analogy of a tree whose branches
are in contact.40 represent the “word” and the fruit they
‘Abdul does not dwell on such beliefs, nor carry its “meaning.”46 He recounts his dis-
does he provide an explicit account of the cussion with the sultan on the subject, add-
festivities heralding spring, limiting himself ing that his guru would have him strive for
to a description of the season’s sensory de meaningful expression in his poetical work
lights. Being a poet at the royal court, he with words that are filled with meaning as
would of course have witnessed all such the pomegranate is with seeds.47 Combining
events that testified to his patron’s pursuit brevity with meaning was the essential
of srngara (pleasure) with kamini and tanbura instruction — ‘Abdul was being asked to
(beautiful women and song).41 The Ibrahim develop a sense of word-pictures — more, a
nama concludes with the birthday celebra- sense of phraseology designed to please the
tions of the sultan and songs from Bud Par- ear and mind, rather in the manner of riti
kash, another collection of songs to be sung kal,48 a type of court poetry that put essen-
in court, to which ‘Abdul refers in one of tial emphasis on delivering rasa.
his couplets.42 To conclude, it could be said that, despite
Bijapur’s grandeur in the time of Ibrahim its excessive use of hyperbole, the Ibrahim
‘Adil Shah II is well documented in the Ibra- nama remains a realistic portrayal of Bijapur
him nama, and ‘Abdul’s observations of cul- in the early seventeenth century. Even the
tural life in the capital are borne out by the allegory of Basant Rao’s visit to the sultan,
accounts of various travelers at the turn of serving to emphasize the admiration the
the sixteenth century, including the Mughal sultan inspired in all (including the Raja of
envoy, Asad Beg. Commenting on the Ibra- Spring), takes place in what appears to be
him nama, the Dakhni Urdu scholar Sayyada an actual garden setting composed almost
Jafar observes (in agreement with Masud entirely of Indian trees in ranks and rows,
Khan) that ‘Abdul’s imaginative rendering in the way perhaps that gardens were laid
of historical truths lends a fictionlike charm out in early seventeenth-century Bijapur.49
to his narrative, providing, as Ibrahim prob- ‘Abdul’s focus on court festivities, par-
ably wished, many insights into the life ticularly music assemblies and the attire and
and activities of the Bijapur. She considers ornament of women, is in keeping with
‘Abdul’s descriptive ability to be his particu- Ibrahim ‘Adil Shah II’s love of music and
lar strength and believes that it is largely beautiful women. In listing the colors of
because of this ability that his portrayal of the attire of the various dancing girls of the
early seventeenth-century Bijapur has been music assemblies and bazaars, and the fra-
preserved for posterity.43 grances and jewels they wear, ‘Abdul is, as
Following upon the Kitab-i Nauras of his it were, describing a garden full of flowers;
patron and guru, to which reference was indeed, the analogy of a flower garden is
made earlier, ‘Abdul’s masnavi is inevitably used for the literary assemblies of the sultan,
influenced by the language and style of that while resemblances are noted between the
work — by the novelty of simile and meta- jeweled trees of the palace terrace, their
phor in it, the allusions to Indian mythol- foliage shaken by the breeze, and the slen-
ogy, and the emphasis on theories of Indic der girls in ornament and finery waving
(Sanskrit) aesthetics.44 Like his patron, handkerchiefs.50
The Courtly Gardens of Abdul’s Ibrahim Nama 87
In his consideration of nature, the poet and the efforts of Sayyid Sabir Ali Hashmi, the
Trust’s Secretary.
notes both the symbolic and the sensory
4. According to Khan (M. Khan 1969, pp. 60 – 61),
aspects of Indian trees. In his analogy of the older of the two is housed in the Directorate
Ibrahim as the eight-branched tree linking of Archives of Maharashtra State, Mumbai, pre-
heaven and earth, ‘Abdul is clearly thinking viously known as the Department of Archives
of the “verticality” and “centrality” of and Historical Monuments, Bombay; the other is
in the Salar Jung Library, Hyderabad. The edi-
canopy-forming Indian trees and their
tion consists of an extensive muqadimma (fore-
associated shade and shanti (tranquility). word), pp. 1 – 67, and the masnavi itself, pp. 1 – 135,
Such a symbolic association with large Indian which is numbered separately. The older manu-
forest trees may be traced to the cosmic tree script, on which Khan’s publication is largely
of Vedic mythology that propped up heaven based, came from a private collection in the
Aundh district of the state of Maharashtra. It
at the dawn of Creation.51
consists of eighty-three pages, 6 x 4 inches with
‘Abdul conveys a sense of enjoyment of nine lines on each page, and is written in naskh
nature for its own sake, a delight in the sen- script. The name of the transcriber is entered as
sory qualities of trees and the accompanying Sayyid Abdur Rahim ibn-i (that is, son of ) Sayyid
flow of rasa. The role of trees as markers of Yusuf. Sayyid Yusuf is known to have been a
royal scribe at the court of Sultan Ibrahim ‘Adil
the seasons, a stock subject of Sanskrit court
Shah II, and Khan presumes that the manuscript
epic, is well understood. Finally, ‘Abdul’s was ordered by the sultan himself. The manu-
account of spring’s advent and celebration script was made public for the first time in Janu-
speaks of the harmony that becomes mani- ary 1932 by Sri Bhagwat Dyal Varma in Risala
fest at that time of year between nature and Hindustani, a discontinued journal published in
Allahabad. The second manuscript, in the Salar
man. The poet draws parallels between
Jung Library, consists of sixty-two pages, 8 x 5 in.,
women and trees toward the end of this with nine lines per page. It is written in nasta‘ liq
account, suggesting that the sultan’s merri- script. Though it is believed to date from the
ment with his ladies in the forest grove, re nineteenth century, it is not considered to be a
flecting that of Basant Rao with his legion copy of the Aundh manuscript.
5. M. Khan 1969, p. 36. Earlier masnavis, such as
of trees, is a natural response of man to
Nizami’s Kadam Rao Padam Rao, Ashraf ’s Nau sar
nature’s productivity in spring, a time har, and Burhanuddin Janam’s Irshad nama, are
when “humans become subject to the laws said to be religious, moralistic, or Sufic in tone,
of nature and nature comes to be viewed without any literary merit in terms of style or sub-
in wholly human terms.”52 Though such an ject matter.
6. Ibrahim nama, p. 19 (98). Khan proposes that
idea may derive from the Sanskrit rather
‘Abdul may have arrived in Bijapur from the
than the Persian tradition, it is nevertheless region around Delhi at a very early age, or that
a reflection of the time in which this work he was born in Bijapur of parents who migrated
was composed, a product of the patronage from the Delhi region; in either case, he was
of Deccani and local culture in the sultan- not a native of the Deccan, but had lived long
enough in the Deccan to assimilate the local
ate of the ‘Adil Shahis in the early seven-
vernacular. Page numbers immediately following
teenth century. references in notes to Ibrahim nama are to the
page of the Dakhni edition (M. Khan 1969);
numbers in parentheses are to the verses of the
masnavi. The English translations are by the
1. In his foreword Khan writes (M. Khan 1969, author of this essay.
p. 47) that Dakhni is the local name for Early, or 7. M. Khan 1969, p. 40.
Old, Urdu and that, linguistically, Dakhni does 8. Ibrahim nama, p. 19 (98).
not have a separate identity. 9. M. Khan 1969, p. 51.
2. Ibid., p. 15. Jafar and Cand 1998, vol. 1, p. 418. 10. Khan relates (ibid., p. 50) that, according to Asad
3. This journal, according to Matthews 1993, p. 94, Beg, the Mughal envoy whose impressions of
maintains a “high standard of textual criticism.” Bijapur are on record, Sultan Ibrahim ‘Adil Shah
Khan notes (M. Khan 1969, pp. 60 – 61) that the II spoke fluent Marathi with his courtiers.
Qadim Urdu publication was made possible by the 11. Ibid., pp. 40, 57. Khan notes that there are
support of H.E.H. The Nizam Charitable Trust many commonalities in the languages used by
88 Sultans of the South: Arts of India’s Deccan Courts, 1323 – 1687
Janam, Wajhi, Sana‘ti, and ‘Abdul. Qissa-i 34. This practice is mentioned in Indian horticultural
Benazir of Sana‘ti Bijapuri, edited by ‘Abdul texts, which have been examined by the author in
Qadir Sarwari (Hyderabad: Osmania University, his studies of Deccani gardens: A. Husain 2000
1938), p. 26. and 2010a.
12. M. Khan 1969, p. 22; Jafar and Cand 1998, 35. Ibrahim nama, pp. 91 – 93 (547 – 566).
vol. 1, p. 211. 36. Anderson 1993, pp. 15, 29.
13. Ibrahim nama, p. 65 (378 – 380). 37. Ibrahim nama, pp. 94 – 95 (567 – 578).
14. Ibid., p. 20 (100 – 103). 38. Nugteren 2005, p. 103.
15. Ibid., p. 18 (94). 39. Anderson 1993, p. 51.
16. Ibid., pp. 32 – 33 (175, 182). 40. Nugteren 2005, p. 105.
17. Ibid., p. 18 (91). 41. Reference is made here (M. Khan 1969, p. 16) to
18. Ibid., p. 15 (76). one of the songs in the Kitab-i Naurus, where the
19. Ibid., p. 155. For the Kitab-i Nauras, see the essay sultan expresses his desire for “only two things in
by Navina Haidar in this volume. this world — song and beautiful women.”
20. Ibid., pp. 41 – 47 (225 – 278). 42. Ibrahim nama, p. 99 (606).
21. Ibid., pp. 55 – 59 (312 – 346). 43. Jafar and Cand 1998, vol. 2, p. 414; M. Khan
22. Ibid., pp. 53 – 54 (296 – 311). 1969, p. 37.
23. Ibid., p. 63 (381). 44. Ibrahim nama, p. 38.
24. Ibid., p. 51 (288). 45. Ibid., p. 22 (117).
25. Ibid., pp. 60 – 61 (347 – 359). 46. Ibid., p. 26 (143).
26. Ibid., pp. 66 – 67 (392 – 395). 47. Ibid., p. 26 (144).
27. Anderson 1993, p. 60, referring to the Bhavisya 48. Ibid., pp. 39 – 4 2.
Purana. See also Nugteren 2005, p. 103. 49. These have been illustrated in the author’s studies
28. Anderson 1993, p. 51. According to Anderson, of the gardens of the Deccan (A. Husain 2000 and
“the specific ritual with which Kama is associated 2010a) and at the various symposia on the art of
is known as dohada.” the Deccan’s sultanates that have been held, in
29. Ibrahim nama, p. 65 (383). Hyderabad (2007), Oxford (2008), and New York
30. Benton 2006, p. 32. (2008).
31. Ibrahim nama, pp. 80 – 81 (484 – 492). 50. Many such analogies are to be found in the
32. Ibid., pp. 83 – 87 (493 – 526). Anderson 1993, p. 39, Gulshan-i ‘Ishq (Flower Garden of Love) of Mulla
makes note of the references to koel, bhanwara, and Nusrati. See A. Husain 2010b.
mango in the Ratnavali. 51. Nugteren 2005.
33. Ibrahim nama, pp. 87 – 9 0 (527 – 546). 52. Ingalls 1968, p. 112.
The Courtly Gardens of Abdul’s Ibrahim Nama 89
