Dara Shikoh And His Role in Translation and Dissemination of Sanskrit Texts in Persian

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to highlight about Dara Shikoh and brief survey of his works that has been translated into Sanskrit language. He has been considered as one of the best and prominent figure that used to lead a strong message between two communities to live in brotherhood. Here an attempt has been made to come into light with his contributions to fostering understanding between Hinduism and Islam mainly throughout his translations of Sanskrit texts. For his deep, commitment and broad knowledge he came into contact with the Hinduism scholars and they used to help him a lot in translating the works. His favorite translated works like Majma ‘-ul-Bahrain (1065 A.H.), Mukalama’-i-Baba Lal wa Dara Shikoh (1062 A.H.), Yoga Vasista written at his instance (1067 A.H., Sirr-i-Akbar (1067 A.H.), Bhagavat Gita (1067 A.H.) and the Majma-ul-Bahrain, or the Mingling of the Two Oceans are prominent one. Dara-Shikoh used to translate Sanskrit works into Persian for the deeper study of Indian culture and its development. By gaining proficiency in Sanskrit he sought to bridge the perceived divide between faiths, emphasizing their underlying unity.