Amir Khusrau

(1254-1325)

   Besides his widely acknowledged contributions to Indian classical music and folk culture of the Hindustani-speaking people, Amir Khusrau is counted among the leading Persian poets of all times and is believed to have given rise to a distinct Indian style in the Persian literary tradition. Born into a family of Turkish emigrants serving the Delhi sultanate in the Gangetic Doab at Patiali, Khusrau received his early schooling at Delhi where he became a disciple of Shaikh Nizam al-Din Auliya at a young age. On entering the service of Sultan Ghiyas al-Din Balban (1266-1286), Khusrau became a companion of the latter's favorite son, Muhammad. During his stay at Multan in Prince Muhammad's retinue during 1280-1286, Khusrau earned wide notice as a rising litterateur. It was during this time that he first met Amir Hasan Sijzi and the two became lifelong friends.

   In 1286, a Mongol invading army defeated and killed Prince Muhammad near Lahore. Khusrau was carried away as a prisoner, but he soon escaped from Mongol captivity and came to reside at Delhi. There in 1289 he wrote Qiranus sa'dain, the famous rhymed story of a meeting between Sultan Kaiqubad (1287-1290) and his father, Bughra Khan, the governor of Lakhnauti.

   Sultan Jalal al-Din Firuz Khalji (1290-1296) appointed Khusrau to the high military rank of an amir and also assigned him the position of the "keeper of the royal Quran." Around this time, he wrote Miftah al-futuh, a versified history of Jalal al-Din Firuz's military campaigns. After 'Ala al-Din Khalji ascended the throne by assassinating Jalal al-Din Firuz (1296), Amir Khusrau did not hesitate to join the new sultan as his courtier. The 20 years of 'Ala al-Din Khalji's reign (1296-1316) was the most productive period of Amir Khusrau's life. During 1298-1300, he completed his well-known romantic versified stories, namely, Matla' al-anwar, Shirin-Khusrau, Majnun-Laila, A 'in-i Sikandari, and Hasht bihisht. Subsequently, he wrote two books in prose; one, Khazain ul-futuh, was a history of 'Ala al-Din's military exploits and the other, 'Ijaz-i Khusravi, was a five-volume work dealing with figures of speech.

   From the latter years of Jalal al-Din Firuz Khalji's reign (1290-1296), Khusrau became very close to Shaikh Nizam al-Din Auliya. One of his long poems of this period, Nuh sipar, an account of Sultan Qutb al-Din Mubarak Shah Khalji's reign (1316-1320), reflects a new creative sensitivity. The deeply sympathetic and humane depiction of Indian culture and people in this work is noteworthy. Amir Khusrau died in Delhi in 1325 soon after the passing away of his preceptor, Shaikh Nizam al-Din Auliya.