Comprehensive Biography of Amir Khusro (1253-1325)

A reference may be made to Amir Khusro who died in the same year in which Ghazi Malik died. He was the greatest of all the poets of India who have written in Persian. He was born in 1253 at Patial and died at the age of 72. His father was a native of Kash in Turkistan but he was driven from his native land by the Mongols and found shelter in India.

The original name of the poet was Yamin-ud-Din Muhammad Hasan although he is commonly known as Amir Khusro. The Young poet entered the service of Ala-ud-Din Khalji but when he became a disciple of Shaikh Nizam-ud-Din Auliya, he gave up worldly ambitions and retired from worldly life.

However, he continued to write poetry. It is estimated that he wrote more than 4 lakhs of couplets. His couplets have been divided into four classes. To the first class belong his youthful effusions. to the second class belong poems of early middle age and those were written when Amir Khusro was giving up childish things and turning his thoughts towards religion.

To the third class belong those poems which were written when Amir Khusro had attained the dignity of a religious teacher. To the fourth class belong the poems of his old age. Each of the four classes bears the impression of his views on this world and the next, in the second class are to be found poems which were intended to please the Emperor.

The Historical Masnavis composed by Amir Khusro are of the greatest importance for purpose of history. Qiran-us-Sa’dain or “The Conjunctions of the Two Auspicious Stars” was written at the request of Kaiqubad. It has for its main theme the quarrel and reconciliation between Kaiqubad and Bughra Khan.

As Amir Khusro enjoyed the patronage of both the father and son and was himself and observer of the incident described by him, there is no reason to doubt the authenticity of his statements. Miftah-ul-Futuh, a portion of the Ghurrat-ul-Kamal or The Key to Success deals with the earlier successes of Jalal-ud-Din Firuz Khalji. The central theme of Ashiqa is the romantic love of Khizr Khan, the eldest son of Ala-ud-Din Khalji and Deval Devi.

It begins with the conquest of India by the Muslims and proceeds to give a detailed account of the victories of Ala-ud-Din in peace and war his successful campaigns against the Mongols, his expeditions to the Deccan, his triumph in Gujarat and his regulations which introduced peace and prosperity in the country.

Apart from its literary value, the Ashiqa is perhaps the most important of Amir Khusro’s works from the historical point of view. Here we have a contemporary account of the reign of Ala-ud-Din Khalji, written by a shrewed observer who personally knew all the principal actors in the drama.

Nuth Sipihr or “the Nine Skies” was written by Amir Khusro at the request of Mubarak Khalji to celebrate the glory of his reign. Incidentally the poet throws much light on the social and religious conditions prevalent in his age. Amir Khusro says that India is far superior to Khorasan.

The Indians are very proficient in all branches of philosophy and learning is widespread among them. While foreign scholars very often come to India for study, the people of India are so advanced that they never feel the need of going to other countries for the purpose of adding to their knowledge.

In Ghurrat-ul-Kamal, Amir Khusro gives us a very interesting discussion on the types and merits of poetry in general and incidentally dwells upon the beauty of the language and poetry of India.

Tarikh-i-Alai or Khazain-ul-Futuh is a short but very valuable History of the reign of Ala- ud-Din Khalji. The general accuracy of Amir Khusro is beyond doubt, but no modern historian can accept in full his estimate of the character and achievements of Ala-ud-Din. Amir Khusro gives us many interesting details and if we can follow the very difficult language in which the work is written, it will prove to be a veritable mine of information.

In his five Diwans, viz., Tuhfat-us-Sighar, Wast-ul-Tayat, Ghurrat-ul-Kamal, Bakiya-i-Nakiya and Nihayat-ul-Kamal, Amir Khusro often refers to incidents in his own carrer and many of the poems are in praise of his numerous patrons.

Amir Khusro had great respect for poet Sadi of Persia. When the latter visited India, he was very much entertained by Amir Khusro and the result was that Sadi praised Amir Khusro before Ala-ud-Din Khalji. In one of his verses, Amir Khusro admits the influence of Sadi in these words: “The volume of my verse hath the binding of Shiraz.”

According to Dr. A. C. Banerjee, “There are very few literary men in medieval Indian history who can lay claim to the wide personal knowledge of men and events during a period extending ever half a century which it was the privilege of Amir Khusro to possess.

Though he wisely confined his activities to the sphere in which his genius shone with unrivalled brilliance and never aspired after any direct participation in political affairs, yet his unique experience must have made him an acute observer of events.

This consideration enhances the value of his testimony with regard to the history of his times, because in dealing with an age from which little contemporary evidence has survived, the best material we can hope to seize is the version of an intelligent observer, who had access to all court intrigues and himself lived in intimate contact with some of the principal personages who controlled the destinies of the country.”‘