Alberuni’s India: Biography, Kitab-ul-Hind, Book and Legacy (UGC NET History Notes)

Abu Rayhan Alberuni, a Persian scholar, wrote the important historical narrative Alberuni’s India in the eleventh century. Alberuni visited India at the invitation of Mahmud of Ghazni and researched its philosophy, science, religion, culture, and society. His observations, which provide a thorough and critical perspective of Indian civilization, were collected in the book ‘Kitab-ul-Hind’. He approached Indian customs with respect and curiosity, seeking to understand rather than condemn, in contrast to many invaders. Alberuni's writings are still a great way for a foreign scholar to gain insight into medieval India. Alberuni’s account of India provides a detailed and objective study of Indian society, culture, religion, and sciences during the 11th century.

A significant portion of the UGC NET History syllabus covers literary sources of Indian History, and each year's exams include one or two questions from this section. So, In this article, we will examine Alberuni's Account and his life for the UGC NET History Exam.

In this article the readers will be able to know about the following:

• Alberuni's Biography
• Alberuni's Account of India: Kitab-ul-Hind
• Alberuni Book

Fig: Alberuni Accounts

Alberuni was born in Khwarizm, modern-day Uzbekistan, in 973. Alberuni was educated in Khwarizm, a significant center of learning, where he obtained the highest attainable instruction. 

• He was fluent in Sanskrit, Syriac, Arabic, Persian, and several other languages. Although he did not know Greek, he was familiar with the writings of Plato and other Greek philosophers. 
• Alberuni was one of the academics Sultan Mahmud brought back to his capital Ghazni after he attacked Khwarizm in 1017. He was taken as a captive when he first arrived in Ghazni, but with time he grew fond of the place and remained there for the remainder of his life, passing away at 70.
• Alberuni first became interested in India in Ghazni. It was not strange at all—Arabic translations of Sanskrit literature on astronomy, mathematics, and medicine date back to the eighth century. 
• Alberuni came to India with Mahmud of Ghazni during his invasions in the early 11th century.
• Contacts with the local populace during the period when Punjab was a part of the Ghaznavid empire contributed to developing a climate of mutual trust and understanding. 
• Alberuni studied religious and philosophical works for years while interacting with Brahmana priests and scholars, mastering Sanskrit. 
• Although his trip plans could be clearer, he likely visited many of the Punjab and other regions of northern India.
• Alberuni was impacted by this kind of influence and that of other countries, such as the Greeks, who inspired him when he turned to study philosophy. 
• He was fluent in Sanskrit, Khwarezmian, Persian, and Arabic and had a working knowledge of Greek, Hebrew, and Syriac. 
• He visited the Indian subcontinent in 1017 CE. 
• He lived a significant portion of his life in Ghazni, present-day eastern Afghanistan's capital of the Ghaznavid dynasty at the time. 

After learning about the Hindu religion, he wrote a study of Indian culture titled Tirkh al-Hind (History of India). He was a fair observer of the beliefs and practices of other peoples, and for his outstanding account of early 11th-century India, he was awarded the title al-Ustadh ("The Master").

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Alberuni: Kitab-ul-Hind

Alberuni's importance as an Indologist is mainly based on two writings. Alberuni investigated nearly every facet of Indian life, including religion, History, geography, geology, science, and mathematics, in his comprehensive work Kitab-ul-Hind or Tahqiq-i-Hind. 

• Punjabi Social Life: Qasim is a caste-based Hindu society. He listed the Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and Shudras as the four castes. Although they all lived in the same towns and villages, the classes were different in terms of hierarchy and duties. Widows were prohibited from getting married again, and marriages tended to occur at young ages when there was no divorce law. Blood-related marriages were frowned upon. Caste determines the type of marriage. Women from higher castes cannot be married. Hindus were narrow-minded and proud of their nation, monarchs, and faith. There was no love between the two communities, and Muslims were considered impure.
• Religious Conditions: As a result of internal character decay, Punjab's culture declined. They remained silent and unintelligent in the face of all the horrors committed against them. Numerous gods were worshipped by Hindus. In India, idol worship was common, and there were many temples. There are three distinct temples for each caste. Four vedas were also mentioned by AL Beruni. AL Biruni claimed that India was a Brahmin nation rather than a Buddhist one. Punjab's influence on Buddhism diminished significantly.
• Political Condition: India was split up into several states and was not united with any of them. Kashmir, Malwa, Kannauj, and Sind were the principal kingdoms. He opposed Mahmud Ghazni's pillage of India.
• Cultural Conditions: AL Beruni commended religious writings like the Gita and the Vedas as well as Indian philosophy. He also explained the Indian astrological and astronomical systems. Indian doctors researched anatomy and developed medicinal cures. In the medical field, Charak was considered the greatest author. AL Beruni commended Indian mathematicians for their discoveries of zero, symbols, and formulas. He also brought up Aryabhatta's theory. He also explained how Rajput kings constructed temples, water channels for irrigation, and exquisite baths. AL Beruni also commended Hinduism's literature.
• Economic Conditions: AL Beruni explained India's tax structure. The taxes were not too high. According to him, weight measurements varied depending on the location. The AL Beruni Yojana is equivalent to 32,000 yards or 8 miles. Bharat and Palas were used to measure weights. People in Punjab had amassed enormous wealth, making it a prosperous region. AL Beruni criticized Mahmud Ghazni's invasion of Punjab because of its enormous wealth and treasures.

Alberuni didn't pay much attention to India's military and political histories while travelling there. Instead, he wrote about Hindu life's more mainstream and academic aspects, such as culture, science, and religion. He examines religion in a vibrant cultural setting. He translates the writings of Indian sage Patanjali under the title Tarjamat ketāb Bātanjalī fill-ḵalāṣ men alertebāk and communicates his goals in plain language.

Alberuni On Caste System In India

Alberuni looked for analogies in other societies to try and explain the caste system. 

• He pointed out that four social classes were recognized in ancient Persia: those of knights and princes; monks, fire priests, and lawyers; doctors, astronomers, and other scientists; and lastly, peasants and artisans. He was trying to imply, in other words, that societal divides were not limited to India. 
• At the same time, he made clear that in Islam, all persons were seen as equal and only differed in their adherence to piety.
• Alberuni disagreed with the idea of contamination even if he accepted the Brahmanical depiction of the caste structure. He said that anything that deviates from its original state of purity tries to do so and succeeds. 
• The sea salt keeps the water from being polluted while the sun purifies the air. Alberuni argued that life on earth would not have been feasible if this were not the case. He believed the caste system's inherent notion of social pollution violated natural laws.

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Alberuni on Hindu Calender

The Hindu calendar was one of the particular facets of Hindu culture that Alberuni examined. 

• In addition to the perfection of his approach to the in-depth research he conducted, his scholarship on the subject showed exceptional tenacity and focus. 
• He created a system for converting Hindu calendar dates to those of the Greek, Arab/Muslim, and Persian calendars. These three were widely used in the Islamic nations of his day. 
• Biruni used difficult mathematical equations and scientific calculations to develop his theories. These were used to translate dates and years between other calendars.

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Alberuni’s Legacy

Beginning with Herodotus, Kitab al-Hind carried on the custom of gathering oral histories and folktales. Biruni's India was a pioneering attempt to comprehend another culture on its own terms, analytically, and in a way that could be confirmed or refuted in light of the evidence at hand.

Alberuni Book

As Alberuni created an index of his works until he was roughly 60 years old, listing his works is quite simple. However, he survived far into his sixties, and as this index only mentions some of the works still in existence, it is, at most, a partial list.

• Alberuni published over 145 works. Over 95 of these are devoted to astronomy, mathematics, and related topics like mathematical geography. 
• His faith influenced his astronomical studies. In Islam, worship and prayer depend on knowing the exact positions of holy sites. This was possible with the use of astronomical data.
• In the mainly English translation of Aryabhatta's work, Taḥqīq māli-l-Hind, he provided a lengthy commentary on Indian astronomy.
• Kitab al-saydala fi al-tibb, a work by Alberuni, is a pharmacopoeia. It provides Syriac, Persian, Baluchi, Afghan, Kurdi equivalents for drug names.
• One of the most significant Muslim experts on religious History is Alberuni. In addition to other religions, he studied Zoroastrianism, Hinduism, Christianity, Buddhism, and Islam.
• Alberuni categorizes Hindus into two groups: educated and illiterate. He characterizes the educated as monotheistic. These people rejected all forms of idolatry. They hold the idea that there is only one eternal and all-powerful God.

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Conclusion

Alberuni set up a catalogue of his own literary works up to his 65th lunar. He lists 103 works broken down into 12 categories. Major categories included astrology, mathematics and astronomy. Alberuni's work was not expanded upon or cited under the Ghaznavid dynasty or in the centuries following his passing.

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