’ V. C . SCOTT O CO NNO R

A UT H O R O F T H E S IL KE N E A ST

\VITH T\YO CATALOGUES O F ITS PERS IAN A ND ARABIC MAN USCR I PTS COMPILED BY KHAN SA H IB ABDU L MUQTAD I R A ND ABDU L H AM ID

GLA S GOW

PRINTED AT TH E UNI VERSITY PRESS BY B R MA L H N RO E T C E O SE A D CO . LTD. ’ M R . SC O T T O C O NNO R

has also writte n the following b ooks

’ TH E S IL KENE AS T a Reeora of life a nd Tra ve!

i n Burma .

M ANDA L A Y a nd otlz er Cities of Burm a .

TRA VE LS ! N TH E P YRE NE E S .

TH E S CE NE OF WA R persona l impressions

o tlze Great Wa r in Fra nce Ita l Greece f , y, ,

M acedon ia E t tit e S i na i Desert a nd t e , gyp , lt

M editerra nea n .

TH E CH A RM OF KA S HM IR superbly

illustrated. CONTE NTS

P A G E DEDICATION FOREWORD A T L A P RT I. HE IBR RY L IST OF DONORS OTHER THAN THE FOUNDER

A NOT E o N CAL IG RA PH ISTS

P I ART I . PER SI A N M ANUSCRIPTS BY A BDUL M UQTADIR ARABIC M ANUSCRIPTS BY ABDUL H AM ID S UPPLEMENT This First Editio n co nsists o f 1000 Co pie s

Copyriglzt S ’ v . C . COTT O CONNOR 1 920 L IST OF IL L U S TRA TIONS

IN S E P IA PA GE PORTRAIT OF KHAN BAHADUR KHUDA BAKSH Fa ci ng I THE DIWAN OF KAMR AN 26 THE Q URAN OF YAQ UT - A L - M USTASM I 39

THE M ATLA - UL - ANWAR TR AN SCRI BED BY M IR ALI - UL - KATI B TH E FUNER AL OBSEQUIES OF SHAH JAHAN

CO LOU RE D P LATES

A P SS E ROCE ION OF THE MPEROR , FROM THE

TA RIKH . I. KH A NDA N. I- TIM U RIAH

T F A B A HE LIGHT OF EATEN RMY, FROM THE TARI KH - I- KHANDAN - I - TIMU RIA H SAUSH RIDING H IS BLACKC OURSER THROUGH ! F S S A - N THE LAME , FROM THE H H AMAH MEDALLION FROM A PAGE OF THE S HAH NAMAH

NOTE The se coloured pla tes ha ve been reproduced from pa i n ti ngs expressly m a de for this hook by

R a meshwa r a nd Ilda ha oi r the descenda nts o a lon li ne , f g

of A rti sts of P a tn a . They a re fa ithful copi es ma de on t the el the spo from pri c ess origin a ls i n the L ibra ry . DEDICATED TO

LO RD H ARDINGE

O F PE NSHU RST

KH UDA BA KS H PART I

HE i t o T Khuda Baksh L brary , or give it the modest name it bears in the Trust Deeds drawn its P at na r P ub lic up by Founder , The O iental

! is o f e t he o f Library , one finest collections

Moslem literature in the world .

’ is as It lodged for ever , in so far a man s t he i o f wishes can shape the future , in C ty

fo r - fiv e h as Patna, which , twenty centuries , looked with varying fortunes into the face o f T — o f ime Patna , the city Asoka , the benevolent e hi s w Emp ror , who tried to rule world ith love o f his r grandfather Chandragupta the adventu er , who learnt from Alexander retreating from o f H das e s c the shores the y p , the se ret of eastern i o f Me asthe ne s Emp re g , the Envoy, who i i lav shed upon it eight years of his life , g ving to the Europe of his time a reasoned and vivid account of the life o f an Indi an city three hundred years before the birth of Chri st .

And here in its lanes , before it became a city , and while it s builders Were yet at work upon it s i saw foundat ons , men and looked upon t h e sorrowing Buddha as he passed to and fro i upon his quest through th s Middle Land , that is still held sacred be cause of him by four

hundred millions o f men .

The Library is thus happy in its environment . is it It not less distinguished in its character , for enshrines the memory o f vanished scholars and o f vanished kings o f lost causes of a culture that no w o r in though it be dying , nearly dead , has its i i i time profoundly influenced the world , nsp r ng some of its great masterpieces , from Cordova i i t o to Delhi ; nay , wh ch st ll continues foster ,

though alas less and less , a school of manners unsurpassed for it s distinction and charm ; to

produce types o f the most perfect courtesy . m who It embal s , at their best , for those care o f O to know about them , the ideals the ld

Moslem world .

Here then in this ancient place , upon the o f r edge a sto ied river, there are now gathered together as into a safe harbourage at last , these

o f - remnants a once mighty fleet , that put forth its sails of purple and vermilion and gold ’ ri to the breeze of a Sultan s pleasure , and car ed o f in i the pride Emperors , more stately the r day than any the world has known .

Here is no hyperbole , though some warmth o f imagery may well be pardoned in dealing i with so rich an oriental theme . For n truth there is nothing in the world to surpass the i i l exqu site cal graphy , the enamel ed gold , the

o f la i s - laz uli priceless miniatures , the colours p i i and vermilion , of nd go and scarlet , green , f o f o f purple , Cinnabar , and sa fron , some these

2 illuminated pages ; nothing more touching in it s way than the simplicity with whi ch they are lodged more human , than the vicissitudes through which they have bo rne their part ; now as the only volume o f some poor scholar o f Damascus o r E lA z har ; now as the gi ft o f an Emperor to a King now as the n az a r of some

' Khan - i - Khan an o r o f hi s o , Grandee C urt to the Great Moghul now as the revealer o f Fate to a Monarch in distress and profound nuoer tainty of mind ; now as the serious plaything of some exquisite and j ewelled Princess , herself i so o f o f l ke many her race , a Poet more than passing fame ; now as part of the spoil o f i i — V ctory , se zed by the Conqueror , with such other thi ngs as women and j ewels and cloth o f gold— whi le yet the vanquished own er lay new in his grave now the last treasure o f o n a decaying court , stolen , secreted , passed from hand to hand , wet by the rain , consumed by the white ant , and the worm that lives upon fine pages sold it might be to feed a hungry family ; and now at last— till their cycle o f repose is completed and a fresh dispersion begins

— gathered together into this their place of rest .

Of the formal history o f this collection there is thi s to tell . In the early years o f the ni ne t ee nt h w century , when the Moghul Empire as fallen into the dust , and the British peace a li t tle apt to b e under - valued now— was settling in it s i qu et maj esty upon the land , there lived in North Bihar ’ a Moslem gentleman of the o f o f name Mohamed Baksh , a family given t o letters and the law . One member o f it s a sisted , it is said , in compiling the Institutes o f - i - Alam i ri Aurangzeb , the Fatawa g ; and

Mohamed Baksh , scholar and poet , devoted himself in the leisure moments o f his career as an Advocate to the acquisition o f Oriental i o f books , of wh ch he left a brave company t o his so n fourteen hundred Khuda Baksh , the

Founder o f the Library . Three hundred o f t o his these had come down him from ancestors , the residue were added by himself . It was the f o ld last request o Mohamed Baksh , made upon

- i his death bed , that these should not be d spersed but rather that they should become the nucleus o f a great c ollection that might foster the cause o f - no w Oriental learning , somewhat shattered by the frontal assaults o f Macaulay and the more pervas ive influence o f the English tongue in c o f . i his ity Patna The son , w th no other patrimony than these volumes , fulfilled his

’ father s wish . In the pursuit o f his career as and an Advocate as a Judge , he met many men , he travelled extensively over India . The great i o f i o f cit es Delh , Hyderabad , of Lucknow , were familiar to him his fame as a collector spread amongst the owners o f treasured books . The Moslem East outside the borders of India was beyond his circ uit ; but where there is a will there is a way , and the ardent soul in the pursuit o f its ideals knows no frontiers . Khuda Baksh did no t hesitate t o entice away from a neigh b o uring Prince one o f the most accomplished o f hi s - as book collectors , and to employ yet another emissary in the cause upon whi ch his was heart set , an Arab , who , for eighteen years went about ransacking the Libraries o f Cai ro . o f e o f o f Damascus , of B irut ; Arabia , Egypt and of Persia— bringin g back every now and t o hi s then master , like a good retriever , the winged manusc ripts as they fell into hi s grasp . It is indeed at thi s stage that the fami liar and common process o f hi s acquisition becomes

- o i - c transmuted from the mere matter fa t , into that which h as the charm and flavour of Romance . The reminiscences of thi s Arab seeker after books , had they been written with fidelity , might now be reckoned amongst the most lively and entertaining of pe rsonal memoirs . i w For ne ther as he himself , nor was he the agent of, a rich man . His salary upon these adventures never exceeded forty pounds a year . t o It must have been the arts of persuasion , sou lesse t o of intrigue , of p ; (not speak of the hardihood that triumphs over mere difli culti e s of conscience) to infin ite patience and research , that this envoy of letters trusted for the successes he achi eved . Fo r a parallel to hi s labours one must go back to Europe in the o f i in Middle Ages , to some those hagiolog es which there is enshrined the record of the i m grations o f saintly bones . I am reminded o f o ne l , I know so well , which tel s with a pious and holy satisfaction o f the rape of the relics o f a Provencal Bishop from the sanctuary in whi ch they lay, for the benefit of a Catalan Abbey, by - a t - a party of monks and men arms , especially commissioned for the purpose and indeed where the end was deemed so worthy no one was ever troubled very much with anxious scruples over the means . A King of Burma about the time o f the Norman Conquest made war for a

T so c copy of the ripitaka , and , hanged the history of his world and to this day our gallant neighbours over the Afghan border will kill and enshrine their village Saint rather t han run the i his in t he his risk of los ng sacred bones , event of i m grat ion . ’ The Founder s sons relate with a dash of pride w o f not unmixed ith humour , that many the i manuscr pts in this Library were stolen . The

it i t he love of letters , is said , carr ed both Founder of the Library and his emissaries wit h an impetus was fine that stayed by no scruples , over the and shall we say the trivial - line that divides ’ one man s property from that o f another .

However that may be , the volumes are here they are an admirable collection they are the glory of the city of Patna and it is a fact w that their last o ner died a poor man , that he lavished his fortune upon their acquisition and upon the elegant building in which they are as stored , and that he left them for ever a gift i o to his c ountrymen . Much may be forg ven t piety of this kind and indeed it is doubtful if such a collection could ever have been brought

c c together , without some su h mysti impulse in

l his . the co lector and associates , as this o ne was The Librarian , is told , visited by

6

o f N m i there displayed for the inspection o an , who was a great authority . I sat there spell bound as each exhibit was taken up and examined . o f The pride the collector , the enthusiasm o f o f the connoisseur , the love antiquity beamed ’ Baksh s t o in Khuda face , and seemed play o o f No m ani up n the countenance , which at the moment looked to me the very embodiment o f Mohammedan erudition and Islamic culture . was After this , I a frequent visitor at Khuda B h ’ aks s house . Upon one occasion , when I referred with some hesitation to the sources he from which had obtained his collection , he was smiled at me , and there a merry twinkle in his eyes . ’ ‘ o f The Art Collection , he said , is one that soars above and defies the provisions of ’ the Penal Code . He capped this observation by adding that there were three classes of blind

. S men , viz , those who were bereft of ight ; those who lent valuable books even to a friend and those who returned such volumes , once they had pas sed into their possession ’ Khuda Baksh s passion for his books was indeed intense . The British Museum made him a magnificent offer for his collection ; but ’ he declined it . I am a poor man , he told me , and the s um they offered me was a princely fortune , but could I ever part for money with that to which my Father and I have dedicated ’ o ur lives ! and as he said this his clean - cut features betrayed a singular emotion his large luminous eyes welled up with tears .

8 ' ’ ai No , he s d , the collection is for Patna , and the gift shall be laid at the feet of the Patna pub hc f

h w as . As I knew K uda Baksh , he heroic 1 0 8 i o f In the year 9 , upon the complet on his - i K Sixty sixth b rthday, huda Baksh , who had been born at Chapra in Bihar , in that level tract o f country abo ut the Ganges skirts where the Vedic Hymns were compiled , died at Patna and was buried withi n the precincts o f the

Library , in a little open space crossed by the corridor that connects the two separate buildings of which it is composed . There is a plot o f grass there about the simple tomb , upon which i in the vivid eastern sunlight the eye l ngers , and where there is d ai ly laid an offering of crimson Amaranth and yellow Marigolds , upon ! it s ff . covering of a Sheet of sa ron silk There ,

hi s - ud- Din says son Salah , he rests at the ’ co m end of his life s voyage , in the exalted i pa n o nshi p o f the great writers o f Islam . The will o f the Founder requires that under no circumstance s Shall the Library be removed from its present habitation ; and there is an

- evident fitness in hi s resting place . But there i all i is more than th s . In the viciss tudes , so repeated often in the history of India , and likely it may be to be repeated again , men i have learnt to trust to one th ng alone , and that— though even t hi s hope has been too

t i - i of en d sappointed s the shelter o f the grave . From the general havoc which h as overtaken n the splendour of successive dy asties in India ,

9 little more survives now than the tombs of c f the departed , and in the ase o the Moslems , ’ who were a t times so scornful o f other men s

faiths , the places in which they worshipped their God . This tomb is a silent plea to those who may ’ come hereafter, to spare the dead man s bequest .

— Let us hope that it may fulfil that purpose .

Such is this wonderful Library in it s origin its i and in externals ; but books are l ke men , t o and those who wish know them , must take

' them one by o ne . The possible extent o f this labour may be gauged from the fact that since the year 1 90 4 a Catalogue of the Library has inco m been in preparation , and that it is yet

le t e . p The cataloguers , who , in the preface o f to the first the four published volumes , are referred to as young students in the course o f training for their task , have become middle o ld aged men , and may even grow before its completion . A great sum has already been spent upon their labours . The nature of their e xt a nt /v o lum e s task may be gathered from the , prepared by the Maulvis Abdul Muqtadir and

- Dr . A z im ud din Ahmad (to whom must now be added Abdul Hamid) under the general super vision of Doctor (now Sir Edward) Denison Ross . It is my lighter task with the help o f these u catalogues , and of the vol mes displayed before me , to expose their rarity , their beauty , their strange and even terrible vicissitudes ; their profound human interest and charm .

IO

as Here then , for it is unique , it is opulent

T - i - - i - Tim uri ah and superb, is the arikh Khandan , o r History of the Timurid family , to which the

great Moghuls belonged . It was a descent which lifted them abo ve the category o f mere hi hi lawfuu adventurers , a t ng of w ch they were y proud ; and you will find this pride displayed s in many of their seals upon these volume , upon whi ch the whole lineage in direct descent from

. Timur , the lame Tartar, is engraved Indeed their pedigree went further back than thi s and the truculent Timur was flattered by the words of a poet who described him as a Rose upon the Rose - bush of Chin ge z Kha n . AS a con t rib utio n to the hi story o f thi s great family is c there not mu h here that is new, the work being in the main a transcript from the Zafar

o f — ud- din Namah Sharf Ali Yezdi , and the famous Memoirs of Babar but o f the nineteen ’ o f Ak b ar s years reign of which he tells , the

- author writes as an eye witness . As a work o f art thi s volume is almost priceless . It is embellished with no less than I 33 illuminated o f folio pages , the work of some the most k ’ notable painters of A b ar s time . The names of these painters are inscribed at the foot of each hi page a t ng most rare in the East , where the o f i names the pa nters and the architects , whose genius h as done so much to immortalize great

emperors , are apt to be the last to be recorded . But at the courts of Akbar and of Jahangir the ai o p nter b re an honoured place . The most

hi z notable of them all , a native of S ra in Persia,

I I - who the Khwaj a Abdus Samad , taught Humayun f to write and paint , rose to high o fice in the

Empire under Akbar . His Skill of eye and

- m hand , testified to by the title of Shirin Qula him bestowed upon by his contemporaries , were so marvellous that he is recorded t o have written on a poppy - seed the much - venerated chapter 1 1 2

is o of the Koran , which reputed t be worth a

so n third of the whole book . His , inheriting ’ c his father s pla e , was raised t o princely rank as

Vizier and Premier Noble— Khan - i — Khanan— O i ’ Ak b a r s so n . the Empire by , Jehangir There is ’ no picture in this volume from Abdus S am a d s o wn hand but t here are many that were i painted by his pup ls , and very likely under his direction o r it may be that he was t o o proud hi s to affix name in the company o f lesser men . Many o f the pictures are designed by one artist and painted by another ; some o f the best of B them bear the names of a sawun and Misq uin .

The work of each painter is characteristic , and the reader who becomes familiar with this work can soon learn to identify the style of each . The names of more than thirty painters may be gleaned from these pages and thirteen o f them ’ will be found in Abul Fa z ls list of the seventeen i ’ art sts of Akb a r s court . o f i Each the p ctures is crowded with incident , i u enamelled in gold , and exquis te with colo r i i the work of men to whom t me was noth ng , the will of their master all in all . Of the total

- i number , seventy n ne relate to the life of Timur , ! the Firebrand of the Universe , from the days

1 2

The boatmen bring to the victor the dead body o f T Faraj , the Governor . imur , relentless as any Hun , orders the sack of the city . Nizam

i - t i h as in his Sham , an eye wi ness of th s siege ,

- i Zafar Namah , written how the Tigr s was hidden from view by the victorious army c so swimming a ross it , that he could not tell the i i River from the Plain , and sa d to h mself , Wh at manner of men are these to whom water and land are alike Another page shows him of whom it is said t hat in his youth his heart was so tender that he i would not step upon an ant , mourn ng for the death o f his son Prince Muhammad Sultan .

o f t i The demise his Emperor , respons ble in his time for the death of millions of his fellow

i ic be ngs , is dep ted in its place , and the history so passes through his sons to the life and a dv e n o ne o f tures of Babar , those men in whom East and West meet , so that all find pleasure in his i company, rej o ce with him in his good fortune , and sorrow with him in his griefs . A superbly illuminated page depicts the festivities at the i hi b rth of s son , Humayun , for whom he was in the fullness of t ime to offer up his own life as a sacrifice . But here it is all splendour and feasting . The Emperor is seated upon a throne under a c anopy brilliant with gold and colours , half lean ing forward with the grace and urbanity o f a his prince who was also a gentleman , towards companions who are seated about him in a semi circle upon a Persian carpet , with wine before hi them , w le attendants come up with trays and

I4 dishes o f sumptuous fare . A peacock suns his

j ewelled plumage upon a neighbouri ng wall . Outside the castle gate there is a frenzy of re icin j o g amongst the lesser people , the bestowal o f alms and o f food under the stern eye o f t he

- Maj or Domo , and a clamour of trumpets and i is drums . It is a scene from Central As a that o n unfolded here and not e from India . An event yet more notable than this is chronicled in the coloured page that depicts o f the birt h of Akbar . Here is the whole tale

’ ’ ai a woman s trav l and of a man s grave rej oicing ,

told in simple yet magnificent terms . The mother in her plain green robe lies exhausted upon her couch— sh e was little more than a c hild herself — the infant in swaddling clothes o f o f is in the care a number eager attendants , is o f there a cradle in the corner the picture , and r i without the chamber , ve y lively rej oic ng amongst the singing and the dancing women . Mi dway in the picture the astrologers are t o be seen casting the horoscope of the Empe ror to - b e ; while a horseman hastens with the news to his father . Humayun is shown within is i his tent , seated upon a throne that la d upon e a sup rb carpet , outwardly tranquil and self t i in con ained , yet deeply nterested the words o f i i Be his Min ster , Tard g, whose robe , like that o f t the Emperor , provides the illuminator wi h an ext raordinary opportunity for the display o f his a rt . Thus is the Splendour where it should i c t in it s be and S mpli i y proper place . The symbolism is apt ; ye t was Akbar born under

IS harder conditions than these , and some even say wa that he s born in a field . H is father was at

the time a fugitive , in extreme poverty , though i ’ st ll a King , when he heard the news of his son s ! . i l birth He rose to the occas on . He ca led ,

- hi says his Ewer bearer , for a c na plate and a o d o f o f p musk , and having broken the pod i musk , he d stributed it among all the principal i is persons , saying , Th s all the present I can f o u o n t o f so n a ford to make y the bir h my , whose

fame will , I trust , be one day expanded all over as t h e no w the world , perfume of the musk fills ’ this apartment . A more fortunate hour fo r Humayun himself is depicted on the splendid page that records

his capture of the castle of Champaner . Th e Emperor who like all the earlier members o f his o f k o f race was a brave man , though a wea ness c haracter that all but lost him and his family w o f S his c the cro n India, is hown in ri h armour i st e e scar upon the walls , having cl mbed the p p o fthe rock at night with a handful of his followers . i i i a He is accompan ed by his great M n ster, Bair m , the Bismarck of the dynasty . Through the o f o n great gate the castle , his knights horse in back clad splendid armour , his footmen with hi swords and shields , are rus ng to the attack . It is a scene from the Middle Ages and with o ne o f less splendour , familiar to the Europe an earlier day - the Europe o f Froissart and o f Munt an e r

o ne o f Finally, to take but more the hundred

i - and th rty three pages of colour , that are the

1 6 T H E FLIGHT O F A B EAT EN A RM Y

f hi is hi s glory o t s volume , there Akbar in prime at the siege o f Chi tor a magnificent p ict ure of the proud city o f the Siso dhyi as in that hi s critical hour, when the Emperor seizing n musket , Shot dead upon the opposi g walls a was o f the heroic J imal , who the life and soul ai the defence ; that J mal , whose image upon an elephant still adorns one of the great gates hi of entrance to the Palace of Del , reconstructed t here by the painter Mackenzie , under the orders o f o as o f . L rd Curzon of Kedleston , Viceroy India o f The Raj put women , soon to enter the flames the dread sacrifice of the Johar , are weeping

a hi s . and l menting death Outside , the great guns of the besiegers are belchi ng their shot st at the ca le , the elephants and horsemen crowd t he o f to the attack , and there is all briskness a medi aeval siege super - added to the magni ficence and opulence o f the Eas t . Scenes such as these c arry o n e into the very heart of a life that h as vanished from the con t ine nt of India . For Chitor now broods mourn o f fully amidst the scenes her former greatness , and the Moghul is but the faint echo o f a once resounding name . The volume in whi ch these things a re con t a ine d bears upon it an inscription in the hand writing o f Shah Jahan in whi ch he states t hat thi s history o f Timur and hi s descendants

’ to the nineteenth year o f Akb a r s reign was composed in the time o f Shah Baba ; the a ffe c t io n at e name by which as a child and t o the end o f his days , he spoke of his grandfather . A

I7 number o f seals (Tahwil) and Ard - didah confirm i the authenticity of the volume , wh ch Khan Sahib Abdul Muqtadir would identify with the i Ch ngiz Namah , mentioned by Abul Fazl as one of the nine principal manuscripts illuminated

for the Emperor Akbar . The name of Francis

Gladwin , the historian and oriental scholar o f ’ i i is i i Warren Hast ngs t me , nscr bed upon a

’ corner o f the page bearing Shah J ah an s auto

graph . A note in Persian stat es t he cost of i 8 0 the manuscr pt to have been 0 0 rupees . As many thousand pounds would not purchase it t o - t day , for although its pain ings do not reach the highest levels of an art that could produce such masterpieces as Raj a Manohar Singh ’ s

o f Parting Jahangir and Shah j ahan , they are none the less exquisite and wonderful in t heir richness . t i in Next to h s in splendour , though a later

P a dshahna m ah o f style , is the , the history Shah

’ ahan s i i J re gn , whose illustrat ons , enriched i i t with the infin te toil of the pa n ers , reveal to us at a glance the c hange that had come into the blood o f the Moghuls ; for those who are here depicted amidst the wealth o f Ormuz and o f n o o f o f o f Ind , are longer the type Babar , o f Humayun , and Akbar ; but of a race that , has by intermarriage and climatic change , become Indian . One can se e it very clearly in i the r faces . The j oyous note of the Mongol , the lively air o f the knight - errant who swam every river in Hindustan in the course o f his i t o adventures after empire , g ve way here the

1 8

Let none place over my grave aught but r the g een grass , for it best becomes the sepulchre o f o ne who was of an humble mind .

She was herself a writer and a poet , and her

i - - l ttle Persian volume , the Munis ulArwab

o n Mo - in - ud- A mir din , the Chishti Saint o f j is still read in India . No other c opy of the Shahinshah Namah is t o known exist , and it is therefore reckoned to o ne o f e be the g ms o f the Library . Its paintings

are unlike those either o f India o r o f Persia . T here is a Byzantine influence in them , and some of the scenes they depict relate to the hi f story o the world . Here we see the Moslem armies under Mohamed the Second assaulting Constantinople their passage o f the Bosphorus and the Sultan Salim receiving the banner and the mantle o f the Prophet that were to confer upon the Osmanli Sultans the spiritual headship o f Mu awakhil Islam , from Mohamed t Billah , the f last o the Abbasid Caliphs of Egypt . Knights in European armour , and Janissaries in costumes o f that recall the vestments the Greek Church , here mingle with those who wear the turbans i and the sc mitars o i the East . Little wonder that the book was treasured at the Mogul Court . fitt in l Next to it , we may g y place another

c i - o f i magnifi ent fol o , the Shah Namah Firdaus , by which indeed it s author was inspired . The ’ great Persian poem is o ne o f the world s epics o f it s o f o f and the story origin , the survival its o f materials from the chances Fate , and of its

- five completion , after a labour of thirty years .

2 0 ’ is o f in the Poet s eightieth year , the very fabric

o f romance . Commissioned by Mahmud o f z ni e i o f Ga , who nriched h mself with the spoils o f Indi a in the course a dozen expeditions , it was not paid for in full by the parsimonious

hi s - Sultan until the Poet lay upon death bed , and the Royal messengers with their guerdon ’ entered the poe t s city o f Tus only to meet hi s ’ body being carried to the grave . The poet s ’ daughter de clined to accept the Sultan s gift . ’ o ne w Tis an old story , but that ill never be forgotten so long as bo oks are read and men of geni us are esteemed amongst the pri nces o f

mankind . The manuscript in this Library is incomplete

to the extent of verses , and it is no older

than the year 1 5 39 . It was presented to the Emperor Shah Jahan by the great Persian — o f nobleman , Ali Mardan Khan Governor o f s o f Kabul and Ka hmir , and the designer the

l— great Moghul cana s whose grave still lingers ,

. a shattered ruin , outside the walls of Lahore

The volume , worthy alike of him who gave it was and of him to whom it given , is embellished with a series o f the most beautiful Persian ! i . t m niatures Wri ten in firm , clear Nastq

- with four gold ruled columns , with two most sumptuous and elaborately decorated unwans

- - in the beginning , and a double page full sized miniat ure wit h exquisite borders ; its last two pages decorated throughout in gold headings wri tten in gold and coloured flo we rs — it is truly a princely thing with the magi c abo ut it that

2 1 ’ lift s one s im a gi nati on from it s cust omary e m i ro nm e nt ar it as , and c ries back upon a a r e t S t es 2 60 e C p of olomon , h e y ars , to the da y when it was offere d in open court t o t he m ost splendid pri n ce who h as ever sa t upon

t r . In t h e 1 1 I a t t h e i u ar a h one year 9 , Delh D rb , thi s volume already histori c was lai d before th e Kin g Emperor : a circumstan ce t o whi ch t h e s n t u His e t it wi t ig a re of Maj s y upon , bears ness t o fut ure a ges . There is anot her an d older and perhaps even

r ea t ul c t h e a - h t he mo e b u if opy of Sh h Nama , pages of whi ch are adorned wi t h wide rust i c o r i e e i e b rde s of Ch n se d s gn , of Cran s and Dragons ,

' i W I u n B rds and olves and Flowers . ts wa n in

e - ti t is c t inl e f as oliv n ed gold er a y more b auti ul , also is it s Old le at her bin din g with inlai d gold i in i m e dallions . As t o t h e p ct ure s this and n it s c an i t h e c is il omp on volume , onno seur w l find ffi it di cult a t t imes to cho os e between t hem .

T t il tra t t h e t it is hey of en lus e same heme , and m os t ple as ant an d int ere st ing t o c ompare t hem m t ea c t . m wi h h o her a world of splendour , of in o u t t t h e o m K gs and C r s , of Bat lefields and C ing of Spri n g in orchards and in t h e formal gardens t h e s t t r e al r c of Ea , hey ev He e are Polo Mat hes and Hunt ing scenes ; pict ure s of Lions an d

Elephan t s an d Snow - le opards ; Chinar Tree s in Aut umn an d birds in gold t re es Sohr ab and

u t in ea d fli t s i i hi s R s um d ly con c , Sau h r d ng blac k courser through t h e flames prett y la dies a t windows looki ng out upon a world of blue e an d li t t i e t ski s , odd le Ch n se clouds hat are

2 2

SAU SH RI DING TH ROUGH T H E FLAM ES sometimes whi te and sometimes like banners o f gold gardens full of cypresses and hollyhocks great gate - ways and courts enamelled wit h tiles o f l vermilion and he iotrope , blue , fawn , and Chintz ; Sieges and battles and men clambering i o f up walls , and dy ng under the sharp stress i sword and spear , and the mass ve thump of great stones flung down upon their! heads by the defenders . It is part of the benediction o f thi s Library that one loses one ’ s identity completely in the perusal o f its exquisite pages .

From the Shah - Namah I turn to the works o f o ne c who ame long after Firdausi , of Jami the o f Sufi Mystic , the last great classical Poet

Persia . Our Library is espe cially rich in fine ’ copies of Jami s works ; and no less tha n thi rty- two pages of the closely- printed catalogue lle c are needed to set forth their merits . This co o f l tion his poems , which riva s that for which

' St . Petersburg was famed before the war to what winds have they been scat tered Since

- o f and which it is said to be the other half, includes amongst other volumes the Silsilat - ud

Dahab , which takes a high place in the regard of connoisseurs because it was writ ten by the ’ Poet s own hand . In it he records the date o f t h e so n birth of his , and asks God , with a true

mi him hi s . Moslem hu lity , to forgive own sins The autographs and seals of former owners o f thi s rare little book have been obliterated t o w conceal the sources from which it as stolen , before it finally came here to rest . Of less

2 3 i ntrinsic value is a manuscript of the poem

- u - w a Salaman Absal , which s translated by 1 8 Edward Fitzgerald in 79 . But this cannot be said of the superb copy o f

- wa - n Yusuf Zulaykha , the Moslem versio of the ’ o f loves Joseph and Potiphar s wife , and the

most popular o f all the works o f Jami . It is

not only richly illuminated , but , what is more o f in Eastern eyes , it is a triumph penmanship , the work o f the famous caligrapher Mir Ali o f

Herat . It was transcribed by this prince o f penmen in the year 1 5 2 3 A .D . and wa s presented by the Khan - Khanan Abdur Rahim to his master the Emperor Jahangir ; an event o f such consequence that it was recorded by the contemporary hi storian o f the Imperial Court . Its value even at that time and before it had was gained fresh lustre from this donation , fixed

- at a thousand gold mohurs . The Khan Khanan ’ so n o f Akb ar s ai was the Minister , B ram a man

as famous for his litera ry achievements , which included a translation into Persian of the Turki

Memoirs of Babar , as he was in war and state

craft . Those who wish to see his tomb , will find it sad and forlorn and bereft of all it s marbles o f (sold by the Emperor Shah Alam , descendant

fo r the Great Moguls , the money they would fetch) hard by the Mausoleum o f Humayun at

Delhi . This is no t the only copy o f the poem there o f is another, which , if less consideration here , would rej oice the heart of any ordinary collector . It owes its existence t o the penmanshi p o f the

24 set forth the circumstances in which the little book was used t o plumb the secrets of Fate . Here is one by Humayun opposite a verse relati ng “ o ne to Joseph and his brethren , which helps t o z reali e , in a very human way , how keenly the Emperor , who almost lost his throne through i i f the r d sloyalty, suf ered from the unkindness o f hi s o wn w brothers . Again , when he as setting o ut for the reconquest o f Hindustan in the 1 his year 5 5 3 , eye lighted upon a verse that encouraged hi’m to proceed upon his dangerous enterprise .

His grandson Jahangir often used this volume , and upon o ne occasion in the year 1 609 his reference to it saved the life of one of his followers , o f o ld the son an servant of the dynasty , whom for his treachery he had sentenced to death . The delinquent escaped with the indignity o f a ss being led through the streets upon an , with O his face turned towards the tail . This de , the Emperor writes in the margin , came forth fo r the releasing of Fath Ullah , and I pardoned his faults . One does not need to be an expert in hand writing to distinguish at once the clear round hand of Humayun , the large voluptuous style o f Shah Jahan , from the fugitive and erratic , yet o f artistic penmanship Jahangir , who was so often in his cups that his hand trembled when he t wro e . Akbar , who came between Humayun and Jahangir , must have possessed , and may, if his strong mind permitted him to seek such aid , have used the precious little volume but

2 6

there is no written trace o f his ownershi p upon o r s it , upon any other of these superb volume s inscribed with the Imperial name for Akbar , o f the greatest them all , could neither read nor write . There are many other volumes of Hafiz in the

Library , splendid enough though less notable than this unique copy . Here is o ne from the i o f l brary of Qutb Shah , King Golconda , who relates that it was completed for hi m at H yde ra bad ih the Deccan by the scribe Muhammad

Mohsin in the year of the Prophet 1 0 2 3 . It h as t i a fron spiece illuminated in blue and gold , and the paper upon whi ch it is written is of a soft i dove grey, with the head ngs of the poems illuminated in white and red and gold . It must have fallen into the hands of the Emperor as t he o f Aurangzeb , part of spoils his victory over thi s last of the Moslem Sultans of the South . ’ And here I would mention a copy of J ahan gir s ai memoirs , obt ned upon the same occasion , whi ch is believed to be o ne of the four copies the Emperor presented to contemporary sovereigns . It bears t he seal of the same o f Sultan Golconda , with a further note , possibly ’ in the handwriting of the Conqueror s so n ’ that it was seized from the Sult an s Library . The tragic fortunes of Princes are yet more vividly recalled by the only original copy extant o f so n o f Bab a r th e the Diwan of Kamran , the , o f erring brother Humayun , who , after forgiving was him upon numberless occasions , at last compelled for his o wn safety and that o f the

2 7 throne to put o ut his eyes . The story has been told by those who knew Kamran well ; with ’ a tragic brevity by J auhar, the Emperor s ewer - bearer in his youth ; and by Gulb a da n

— Begam the rose - bodied Princess— daughter o f

Babar, whose Memoirs of Humayun open the ’ door of a woman s vision o n the lives o f these

restless and warring men .

All the assembled Khans and Sultans , she

says , high and low , plebeian and noble , e o f soldiers and the r st , who all bore the mark ’ i Ka m ra n s wi M rza hand , th one voice represented to His Maj est y Brotherly custom has nothi ng t o do with ruli ng and rei gning . If you wish to

as . o u act a brother, abandon the throne If y

wish to be King , put aside brotherly sentiment . ’ This is no brother . This is your Maj esty s fo e . It is well to lower the head of the breacher ’ o f a ki ngdom .

Humayun answered , Though my head ! . inclines to your words , my heart does not And o ne knows that it was so but he was compelled to consent . When he drew near

Rohtas he gave an order to Sayyid Muhammad , ! Blind Mirza Kamran in both eyes . ’ After receiving the King s command , says t o Jauhar , we returned the Prince , and Ghulam Ali represented to him in a respec tful and o condoling manner, that he had received p sitive orders to blind him . The Prince replied , I ’ would rather yo u killed me at once . Ghulam ’ o ur . Ali said , We dare not exceed orders He then twisted a handkerchief up as a ball fo r

2 8 thru sting into the mouth and b e with the farash sei z ing the Prince by the hands pulled hi m o ut

o f a hi m the tent, l id down and thrust a lancet w into his eyes (such as the wi ll of Go d) . ast m This they repeated at le fifty ti es , but did he bore the torture in a manly manner , and n o t n o ne o f utter a si gle groan , except when the im men who was sit ting o n his knees pressed h . ! sit Why, he said , do you upon my knees What is the use of adding to my pain was i t This all he sa d , and he ac ed with great u co rage , till they squeezed some lemon j uice

and salt in the sockets o f hi s eyes . He then

no t l could forbear , and ca led out

O L ord. 0 ! L ord m Go d wha tever si n s ! y , I m ay have commi tted have bee n a mply puni shed in thi s world ha ve com a ssi on u on me i n the , p p

next . The blind man became a pilgrim and went to

. Mecca , where he died some four years later r How interesting, says Mrs . Beve idge , who ’ h as hi s translated sister s Memoirs , how interest ing Kamran might have made a Book of Memoirs in which he set down hi s li fe from his o wn i point of view, his motives , amb tions , i w o opin ons of right and rong , and , ab ve all , if he had spoken his inner mind abo ut the religious i dut es he was enabled to perform before death , through hi s defeat and mutilation . We do not ! know all the truth about hi m .

Some at least o f his mind - for he was an accomplished scholar and was possessed o f a

2 9 good share o f the genius o f his race — we can learn from the pages o f this little volume of i poems , the only copy of that per od that exists . It is in the handwriti ng of the celebrated cali

- ush - i grapher Mahmud bin Ishaq Shihab of Herat , who was second o nlv t o his more famous co n Ali it was him temporary, Mir , and written by i i while Kamran still l ved . It conta ns within it , au tograph notes of the Emperors J ahangir and was i i Shah Jahan , it read by the br ll ant Nur i Jahan , and passed from her possession nto that o f successive princes and nobles o f the Imperial

Court . Beside it one m ight place an autograph copy o f the book of another Princ e of this gi fted and ’ c mi t he S a finat - ul- o r o f tragi fa ly , Auliya Lives i Shuk o h the Sufi Sa nts , by Dara , the favourite so n o f i magn ficent Shah Jahan , and his chosen successor ; ye t whose lot it was to die after i i i enduring the last hum l at ons , the utmost i o f hi s d stress , at the hands younger brother , T so n in Aurangzeb . hat story , well know India , h as been told , in words that can never be t in his forgo ten , by a Frenchman who met him i t h e as fl ght across burning desert of Raj putana, he himself was making his way to the Imperial Court (surely an amazing encounter) and was to

se e him again in his last hours at the Capit al .

It was considered necessary , wrote Monsieur i i Bernier to a fr end in Par s , to strike the people i with terror and aston shment , and to impress their minds with an idea of the absolute and irresistible power of Aurangzeb . The wretched

30

B o f oth these men , it should be remembered , o f were the sons one mother, the gentle lady over whose remains there still sta nds in its white

- f beauty, the dream fabric o the Taj . I gladly turn from these painful memories to volumes whose exquisite perfection o f colour and craft yield no other feeling but o ne o f the purest enj oyment .

Here , for example , are several fine manuscripts o f o f who in the Poems Sadi , lived the thirteenth t o f cen ury , and whom it is said , that though he ’ was the protége o f Princes— o ne of whom saw t o so a fle ct ed his education , while another was much by the Poet ’ s verses at an interview that he burst into tears— yet that he made the pilgrimage t o o n was Mecca fourteen times foot , and glad t o serve as a water - carrier at Jerusalem for the benefit o f the pilgrims and o f the humble . One o f these manuscripts of the fifteenth century , a o f o f i beautiful copy all the works Sad , is gay with sumptuous decorations and colours , and a whole series of Persian miniatures in the best style o f the period ; while its first two pages cont ain a table o f c ontents written in white . O o f c Another copy, the ldest all the opies in i i w th s L brary, is written in a hand riting that

- is exquisitely clear , upon gold sprinkled paper o f o f o f divers colours , the work a penman

Shiraz .

Yet another , being a series of selections from

c . The o f the Bustan , is ri hly embellished whole the double page o f its Unwan is illuminated

' in gold and in colours like a Persian carpet o f

3 2 the Palace . Even more lovely is its concl uding it s its page , with mingled blue and crimson , l its it s i o f ye low, grey, green ; wh le each the Poem he adings is emblazoned wi th minute flowers upon a terrai n o f gold . The handwriting is attributed to Mir Imad . difl e re nt a s Flowers , each to the other , and fresh as if they had been culled from a meadow

i - in spring , S milarly provide a resting place for the ey es as they wander over its companion i volume . A fourt h conta ns the text of the

Gulistan and the Bustan together , prose and i it is s verse ntermingled , and here the miniature

’ t hat captivate one s attention . One o f these shows Sadi as a Darwesh ; an o ld man wit h a elab ieh fresh face and a white beard , in a blue g t i with long sleeves hat hide his hands , danc ng round a Cypress tree wit h musicians and other e i dancers for company , and p ople clapp ng their i i m hands , while others look on w th ev dent ad ira

i a shm a ks t on and interest , and women in white y

. i i o f peer at the windows Another , a v s on blooming orchards , shows a great gateway and flying clouds and bo wmen loosing t heir arrows scenes that fill o ne with the nostalgi a o f t h e

Spring and of the Open Road . And here are some verses of Old Omar inter spersed with others of Hafiz the latter the main t t i t ex , the former in exquisitely m nu e letters t o t occupying little compartments right and lef , and chosen by some connoisseur who designed he t i t volume for he r appositeness to each other . n i in But the mi iatures in th s volume , and

33 t o f ano her about the same period , the seven t e ent h and eighteenth centuries— the Hamlah - i H da ri y , a poetical account of the Prophet and the early Caliphs — display an evident decline in taste and a falling away from the delicate beauty of the Persian School . It is an Indian style and here it is an inferior one . In the latter volume in particular , the pictures are crude and are badly drawn ; the floral decorations are lifeless and superficial ; the blue o f the lapis lazuli has

' passed into something far less exquisite . Not only was the impulse of Persian art losing its force but the Empire itself was hastening t owards it s decline . This transition is marked upon the same page in a volume o f the Lives o f o ne the Great Mystics and Lovers , by Sultan o f Tim uride s o f Husain , the last the Persia ’ (84 2 - 9 1 1 In the blue and gold Unwan o r o u i frontispiece , y have the original perfect on o n o f o n t the right , and a poor copy it the lef , to replace the leaf that was lost o r stolen . There is all the difference here between the beauty o f

i i . exquisite line and colour , and its base im tat on

But the rest o f the volume is o f the o ld style . o f it s Its caligraphy is by a penman Shiraz , full - page miniatures are o f great interest and i i charm . These are in blue and gold , in verm l on ,

green , scarlet , and mauve within exquisite borders of embossed gold . Here are flowers

i - painted from life , and fru t trees in bloom , done

o ne i by who had seen , and been se zed with , the beauty o f their tracery against a blue and vernal t sky . The people depicted in hese pages , their

34 u cost mes , figures , types of men and women , are

all interesting . The suggestion that lingers is

one of beautiful gardens , rich carpets , coloured and e nca ustic k e d walls and emblazoned portals and that early Chi nese influence from which the Persian mi niaturists drew their technique is

clearly apparent . There is a battle scene , an attack by horsemen in armour upon a fortress

h e n i z i J g Khan attacking Tabriz , the Sa nt

“ - hi s Naj mud Din Kubra , his hand to face in t o f lamenta ion in a corner the vivid scene , praying for the city . There is another of Shi rin

and her ladies on horse - back in search o f Farhad encountering like Nico le t e the toils and the dangers of t h e road ; wi th ibex and deer and i o leopards , and baboons fling ng great b ulders at the wayfarers . The creamy paper is fai ntly sprinkled with gold. Beside thi s volume is an Anthology from thirteen of the Poets written for the Sultan o f Qutb Shah Golconda , a circumstance that is recorded upon a gold medallion within a border containing the names o f the chosen few . It is an exquisitely wri tten and delicately illuminated c hi h as co unt e n opy , each page of w ch upon its i ance the mag c grace of Time . Fittingly associated with these po ems of

Persia , are several volumes of the Indian poet ,

- o f Amir Khusrau , the sugar tongued parrot i ! i H ndustan , whose prolific gen us still inspires i the Ind an people , and whose grave at the

i - ud- Shrine of N zam din Auliya , where Emperors seek a shelter from oblivion , is still to be seen

35 t o f six af er the lapse hundred years , covered w - ith fresh rose petals . Beside him in that exquisite sanctuary, there sleeps the historian Khwand Amir, the favourite of Babar, and the

o f Khula sat - ul- author the Akhbar , a general history o f Asia from the earliest times o f which the Library possesses a valuable copy .

’ Let me refer here also to Ba lam i s translation i into Pers an of the celebrated works of Tabari , o ne of the greatest hi storians of the Moh am e dan ! — o f h c East , w i h there are two volumes in the ’ Library . Tab a ri s m agnum opus in its first so edition , was , it is said , enormous in volume , that even his diligent Eastern pupils refused t o read it , unless it were abridged whereupon the author sadly exclaimed that enthusiasm for learning was dead . No complete copy o f the i manuscript ex sts anywhere , but many odd volumes are to be found in different parts o f the world . Of more recent works that are o f general interest , there is a Persian translation by the

- i Khan Khanan Abdur Rah m , of the Turki

/ Memoirs o f Babar ; the Sa wa nih - i - Akbari by i i Vasit i Bil ram i i Am r Haidar Husa ni g , a h story o f Akbar from his birth to the twenty — fourth year o f his reign , perhaps the only critical historical work written by a native o f India (a statement that is no longer true) ; the Me m o irs ~ o f the

Emperor Jahangir , written by him in the third year o f his reign ; and the Iqbal Namah - i in o f Jahangiri three volumes , which the first t wo are very rare ; an autograph copy o f the

36 ’ Siyar- ul- M ut a a khi rin of Gulam Husayn who i wrote of the decline and fall of the Mogul Emp re , together with a copy o f its translation into

’ English by M . Raymond , the French Creole , with annotations by the translator in his o wn

i - ul- o f hand the M rat Quds , being that life C hrist that was written at the request o f Akbar ! by Father Jerome avier , the Jesuit missionary who became the intimate friend of the Emperor and even cherished the great hope o f converting him to the Christian Faith also a very handsome c its volume in ream and gold , Persian words in its i was black, Gurmukh in red , that once the o f property of Ranj it Singh , the Maharaj ah the hi o f fi Panj ab , w ch contains the names his of cers i o f o f hi s and reg ments , and many men , with o f particulars the salaries they drew, and the expenses of the Sikh Army eighty years ago . If these Persian volumes carry us into the o f c society Prin es and of Poets , of those who loved o f and were loved , of Statesmen and Warriors S and picture to us all the imple beauty of flowers , the voluptuous elegance o f courts ; those that are in Arabic lead us for the most part t o graver theme s to the sacred Koran— the guide of life to hundreds of millions of men t o whom it is the very word of God— t o the extant Traditions of the Prophet— to the Commentaries o f learned t o i Divines , austere treat ses on Medicine and

Surgery , on Philosophy and on Science , written at a time when Arab culture surpassed and illum i nat e d o f it s that Europe , still groping in tunnel o f the Dark Ages ; above all into a region o f

3 7 Literary Biography that is perhaps the richest

. in the world There is no nation , says Dr . has Sprenger , nor there been any which like the Mo ha mine da ns has during twelve centuries recorded the life of every man o f letters . If the Biographical records o f the Musulmans were o f collected , we should probably have accounts the lives o f half - a - million of distinguished persons ; and it would be found that there is o f o f not a decennium their history , nor a place im po rt a nce which has not its representative . Of the four volumes o f the great Catalogue of h the Library that have itherto been published , n three relate to its Persia manuscripts , one to its Arabic works o n Medicine alone . The first o f these is an o ld and rare copy o f the Kitab - ul Mush a ar o f Masa wa c jj Ibn y in whi h , after o f stating the general rules the Medical Art , the author describes in detail each of the diseases known t o the profession in his time . A Syrian was Christian , he appointed by the Caliph

r - al- t ransla Ha oun Raschid , to superintend the f tion o ancient works , including many from the

Greek , and eventually became private physician t o t he Al- o f Caliph Mansur , and to several his successors . He died in the year 85 7 A .D . The

- - present volume , water stained and worm eaten , dates but from the fifteenth century . Then there is the Kitab - a l- Mansuri of Abu

al- z Bakr Ra i , the most eminent with Avicenna , o f o f the Arabian physicians , the Rhazes Euro pean writers , of whom it is said that when in his o ld age he suffered from cataract and was

38

- - I A PAGE FROM THE Q UR A N YAQ UT A L M U ST A S M . as ked to have his blindness removed by an

operation , he sadly replied I have seen so much of the world that I am ! wearied o f it . Of whom also it is said that when called upon t o select a site for a hospital in Baghdad , he caused pieces o f meat to be suspended in various a i and o ne i loc l ties , chose that , in wh ch after a i as was g ven time the le t putrefaction visible , thus anticipatin g the knowledge o f microbial infection . To him is at tributed the oldest account extant of small - pox and measles .

In the same category belongs the Kitab - ul H ash aish , an old copy written in the eleventh u o f o f cent ry , the Materia Medica Dioscorides the Botanist o f Cilicia in the time of Nero . In his i h h youth a sold er , t is man travelled t rough Greece and Asia Minor into Gaul collecting hi s spe cimens . His work became a model for subsequent ages . The present copy is embellished o with c loured illustrations , severely Simple f s in their design , with the names o the plant designated by their Greek names in Arabic , and occasionally in the Greek chara cters . as u Austere these Arabian man scripts are , the f Korans amongst them o fer a superb exception , and indeed there are o ne or two here which to some eyes might well seem the finest o f all the treasuries of the Library . I would draw atten tion in parti cular to a copy by Yaqut - a l- Mus t asmi , with his autograph at the close , and the ’ date 668 of the Prophet s Flight— 1 254 o f our era . On each page of this volume the words

39 in f are written three styles o penmanship ,

Naskh Ra ihan Suls o , , and the first f which was invented by the scribe himself . I find it difli cult t o imagine a more exquisite example o f the e b auty o f letters . It is further embellished with a nd gold the most delicate floral traceries , the heading of each Sura being written in letters f o gold . The writt en portion of the page is framed in a separate border o f red and blue and

- Yo u gold , and an outer gold lined page . can see ‘ is that this so , for where in places a single i letter proj ects beyond the vertical l ne , it is railed o ff within a little border of its own . There is a beautiful blue and gold frontispiece is in Tughra , the great decorative style that inlaid upon the Taj and other famous monu ments ; and in his illuminated autograph , the was o f Scribe , who of Baghdad in the time the Must a asim i e Caliph B llah , asks for the forgiven ss o f his sins . The colour o f the inner pages is o f a mellow ivory . For i sheer splendour , though not in its exquis te c raftsmanship , this copy of the Koran is sur passed by another o f the most princely magni fi ce nce , a large folio with a Persian commentary inscribed in letters o f blue upon its spacious margins . Nothing more sumptuous than this in the way o f a book can well be imagined .

- Each chapter here begins with a double page , in superbly illuminated in blue and gold , lapis i in o f lazul , turquoise , and ultramarine ; hues scarlet and vermilion and each of these double pages is o f an individuality distinct from the

40 next . The heading of each chapter is written in white letters ; the beginning o f each S ura in

- white letters upon a dark blue ground . There is a series of borders , in which the precious words as r are enclosed , if to seclude them still fu ther from the common world . Thus there is the Commenta ry with it s corner scrolls o f a floral o f pattern in plain gold , each which upon each page is different from its neighbour ; there are minute floral designs in colour ; there is a wide margin , an inch in width , embellished in white and gold ; there are medalli ons in blue and green and red and gold each o f the full stops is sun o f a gold , and finally there is the Holy t ext in large bold lett ers in black an inch in width . In thi s volume you perceive the difle re nce between t he hand of the gifted Artist— hi s eye and brain and heart behind each page and lett er — l ni and the du l u formity, the mechanism of the printing press . The paper h as the polish and light ness of fine silk ; yet the weight of the wi maj estic volume , laden as it is th refined gold , cannot be less than twenty pounds . It is no t ho w it is known , or whence came here ; yet it certain that such a volume could only have come into being in an epoch of magni ficence and o f r leisure , for the gratification some g eat

Prince perhaps for him who built the Taj . e it as w B side , there lies before me I rite a small i ti duodec mo , dark with me , whose only ornament o f i i c o r consists l ttle s mple flower tra eries , one two upon the margin of each page . It is enclosed

o ld - within an worm eaten cover of leather, and

4 1 has the binding given way . From the absence c i of dots over the Arabi letters , it is attr buted to the third century of the Maho m e da n era and it is the oldest volume in t he Library . Splendid o r simple , these Korans contain all that can guide the footsteps of the pious Musalman through the troubled ways of this world into the presence of his God ; the Compassionate the

Merciful Allah . Besides the Koran itself there are almost e t numberless volum s of the Hadi h , or Traditions , o f the Prophet , of the deepest interest to the

Moslem scholar . The Prophet , in the words o f c Professor Ni holson , had no Boswell ; but almost as soon as he began to preach he was a marked man whose o bi ter di cta could no t fail to be treasured by hi s companions and whose actions were attentively watched . Thus during the c o f was o f first entury Islam , there a multitude living wi tnesses from whom traditions were collected , committed to memory and orally i handed down . Thus while every impart al student will admit the j ustice of Ibn Qut ayb a s c laim that no reli gion has such historical attesta tion as Islam , he must at the same time cordially assent to the observation made by another o Muhammadan , In nothing d we see pious

‘ ! men more given t o false ho o d than in tradition . is o ne o f Here before me , written in the year the 1 1 Prophet 9 , at q alah , near Dacca, for the

Sultan Hussain Shah of Bengal . It is a fine u quarto in three volumes , written in a bea tiful Naskh , an example to those who use a pen of

42 extreme patie nce neatness and skill . Each paragraph is marked by a circular gold medallion ll upon the margin , with i uminated rays ; and in the text itself the chapter headings are written in deli cate letters o f gold ; the beginning o f

ha di th o f each in red , the words the Koran in

- blue . Large full stops in gold , like moles upon t he e li the cheek of b loved , are a further embel sh ment of thi s princely volume . How did it come here It seems that after many vicissitudes , when Sultans had ceased s o f to reign in Bengal , it pa sed into the keeping a distinguished Arabic scholar and landowner f i o the Wahab sect , whose doctrines brought him into conflict wit h the State . H is lands were hi s confiscated , and this amongst others of s o f posses ions , passed into the hands another , and so into the common treasury of the Library .

Another, and older , but less opulent volume

—u - - u- on the same theme , the Musnud Abi Wanah , was but recently acquired from an itinerant

c - e s holar, who travelled from the North W st se e hi hi Frontier to t s Library , of w ch he had i i hi m heard , and left th s volume beh nd , in exchange for 1 00 rupees . Possibly he stole it from some other library possibly it was right

hi s o wn was . The fully , and he merely hungry book contains the autographs of eminent Arabia n scholars , who lived with it and wrote in it from ce ntury to century .

There is another of the same kind , presented r as to the Royal Libra y at Dam cus , by the c ali ra hi st - ud- bin g p himself, one Shams din

4 3 - ud- o f Ala Din , a scholar that city in the year 8 70 A .H . An illuminated page records this gift wi th the condition that it is never to be removed c from the Library, and the Donor alls upon God to punish hi m who might be guilty o f the i o f i sacr lege disregarding h s bequest . It is a o small octavo volume , b und in an old brown in i o f leather cover, stamped arabesque des gn the ki nd you will find in Moorish Spain upon tiles and mural decorations . It is loose in its

' - . No o ne cover , and worm eaten in places , knows how it got here ; but we may suspect the hand o f the Arab book- hunter who travelled so far a - fie ld fo r the good of his patron and o f

Ma ho m e dan letters at Patna .

I will refer here also to the Sawat Ilham , a “ commentary o n the Koran by t he ce le b ra t e d i i Faiz , the brother of Abul Fazl , the ntimate friend and servant of Akbar the extraordinary feature o f which is that the author deprived himself of the use of all letters of the Persian alphabet (more than half of the total number) which have points . The exquisite page is i therefore free from these fam liar dots , save in

’ the c ase o f those words only that are quoted from the Koran— for the Koran as containing the ipsissima verba o f God may not be t rifle d with . Notwithstanding this singular abstention , the language o f the writer is no t lacking either in style o r in distinction . It is a feat of mental contortion— a monument to the superfluous labours o f a man who was one o f the most eminent and industrious scholars o f hi s time .

44 it s special interest from the fact that it was bequeathed to the Madrasa constructed by him at Mecca in the year 1 494 A .D . by a Mameluke

Sultan of Egypt . There is his dedic ation upon i the illuminated page , with the signature bes de it o f the keeper o f the Madrasa . Two seals are

o n - o ne f defaced the title page , but su ficiently survives to indicate that it was placed there by the Sultan Ashraf himself .

>k

To enter this Library then is to pass from o ut i of the common world of the bazaar , humm ng i c c beside its gates , nto the so iety of Prin es and Divines from a world shaken to its foundations i by the terr fic event of the hour , into a world it s that was no less troubled in day , but is now at peace ; to wonder at industry to which no toil when inspired by the soul was excessive ; to realize that in man there still runs the twi n river of the God and of the Beast , to look upon the strange pageant of life , as it were from an aloof corner , and to ask what the answer shall i be to that r ddle , which seems so insoluble , the ultimate destiny o f man . Here the passing of Empires is like a little picture upon a screen ; o ne can see how they came into being , how they

. in grew, and how they passed away And a Iand where the migration of the soul is a common b elief ; where the great rivers gather up the r i i a n , and swell and d minish and swell again ,

— se e ever building up , ever destroying one can th e process each day at work from the roof - top

4 6 o f the Library— o ne is brought to reali z e that the enj oyment of this company of books is but for a s sea on , that gathered here together , a happy t multitude , some great , some humble , the j e sam t he of swirl of Time , they must some day face once more a voyage upon the great se a of Chance .

One is glad to meet them in their quiet hour . to profit by the devotion of those who made them , t he o f t love the Craf sman , the passion of the r Poet , the urbanity of the g eat Prince , who in the midst of wars and tumults and the clashi ng of arms had yet t he heart to water his garden f of culture , and help Man out upon his di ficult road

DONORS TO THE L IBRA RY OTH ER

TH AN THE FOUNDER .

i - 1 . D van i Hafiz :This the celebrated copy o f was Mo ulav i the Emperors , presented by

- i o f Subha nullah Khan , Ra s and Zamindar

Go rakhpo re . ‘ - - 2 . Matla ulAnwar presented to the Library by Sayyid Khurshaid Na wa b Sahib of Patna city . This elegant volume contains four pictures by the Persian painter Mahmud , which in the estimation o f Sir Edward Denison ROSS are the most valuable in the Library .

— . o n 3 Quran Sharif, a parchment roll written in mi nute Naskh and throughout sprinkled with gold - dust— presented t o the Library by Syed

Khurshaid Nawab Saheb . He finally presented his entire collection o f 1 2 5 manuscripts t o the i i L brary n 190 4 .

4 . Two more collecti ons consisting of manu scripts and printed books in the Persian and

Arabic languages , were added to the Library in 1 90 4 and 1 9 1 5 by the late Syed Safdar Nawab Sahib o f Patna and Sayyid Maulavi Abdul

Maj eed Sahib of Patna respectively . The former collection com prises 66 and the latter 68 manuscripts .

49 The stones a re like out - lined letters the trees li/ee

a rcha ic script “ In the dra wing of the Ba mboos each of the six

m ethods is employed.

H e who is able to apprehend the mea n ing of these

H a s rea lised tha t Ca ligraphy a nd Pa inti ng a re ! funda mentally the sa me.

C G - U HAO ME N F .

50 A NOTE ON SOME OF THE CAL IGRA PH ISTS SP ECIMENS WH O SE CRAFT , OF

ARE TO BE FOUND IN THE L IBRARY .

’ - - i 1 . Jamaluddin Abu d Du Yaqut al Must asm l wri bin Abdul ah Rumi , whose Quran tten in

688 .H i t he A . is one of the princ pal treasures of

in i A .D . Library , flourished the th rteenth century o f Must a asimb illa h Ab aside at the Court , the last

Caliph o f Baghdad . Though the Naskh char acter was invented by Ibn - i - Muqlah it owes to Yaqut the perfection and elega nt finish which iff d erentiate it from other characters . ’ — 2 . Mir o f s Ma m u a o r Ali Tabriz , who e j

c o f S — colle tion elect poems is in the Library , his o f traced descent from Husain , the hero li Karbala . In the biographies of c a graphe rs by

Ghulam Mohammad (Tad — kirah - i - Khush - Navi it san) , it is stated that this wr er by combining the Naskh and Tali q st yle o f writing happily succeded in arriving at the st yle which is term ed

i . t was t o ra c Nastal q This s yle known , and p ‘ t ise d cali ra he rs Mir Ali by , g p before , but they were far from being methodi cal . ‘ Mir Ali o fi , on the contrary , worked n de nite

5 1 lines and softened the roughnesses found in the w i ’ ork o f h s predecessors . Thi s touch o f Mir Ali s genius was highly appreciated by hi s contem po rarie s and led t o the foundation o f a school ‘ o f Caligraphy o f which Mir Imad and others

became the subsequent masters . ‘ Mir Ali o f Tabriz flourished in the reign o f Tamerlane ( 1 352 - 1 40 5 Books in his i handwrit ng are very rare , and the present ’ - manuscript bears Shah J ahan s autograph . ‘ . Mir o f i i 3 Imad Husain Qazwin , specimens o f whose art are to be found in the Library , ’ wrote a Nasta liq hand o f great excellence . ‘ f Shah Abbas Sa wi I . o f Persia greatly desired to possess a copy o f the Shahn am ah transcribed ‘ Mi r o f hi s by Imad , and as an earnest desire sent the Artist the sum of 70 t um ans . A was year having elapsed , a messenger sent to

him t o enquire if t h e work had been completed . ‘ Mir Imad h anded him but seventy couplets which he had copied from the beginning o f the Shahnam ah a nd t th e re m une ra , intima ed that , tion he had received had only sustained him

thus far . Shah Abbas , being vexed at this

reply , sent back his pages and demanded the ‘ ‘ return o f his money . Mir Im érd thereupon cut the couplets into seventy pieces and handed c them to his seventy disciples , ea h of whom f him o n e so t o of ered tuman , and enabled him ’ return the king s fee . Thi s small incivility enraged the Shah , and the unfortunate cali

grapher paid for it with his life . He was ’ su a murdered by the king s slave , Man re Misg r ,

5 2

A .H. 1 02 1 62 h n e in 4 ( 5 Shah j a a , mor o n appreciative , used , it is said , to c fer upon any ‘ ’ o ne who presented hi m with any of Imad s i t f o r productions , the dign y o a centurion ( commander o f an hundred horse) .

- . i os 4 Abdur Rashid Dailam , wh e beautiful Nast was q is to be seen in the Library , better ‘ ‘ ’ ’ - known as Aqa Rashi d . He w as Im ad s sister s son as well as his pupil . He improved upon ‘ ’ Mir Ali s style and gained a wide repute in ‘ Persia for his art . After the murder of Imad he travelled to India and was employed by Shah

h as ri t - hi - J a an w ing master to s son , the ill fated

i i 1 0 8 1 H . Dara . He d ed n A . ‘ - 5 . Sayyid Ali Khan Jawahi r R a q a m bin Aq a i was Moqim came from Tabriz to Ind a , and employed by Aurangzeb to teach the art of caligraphy to the princes o f the Royal Family .

‘ He wrote after the style o f Mi r Imad and Aqa

i w as t o . Fo r Rash d , and not inferior them some time he was also the Curator o f the Imperial

Library . He died a ma dman in the Deccan 1 H = 09 4 A . . 1 683

5 3 PART II

A LIST OF' THE MORE VALUABLE PER E SIAN MSS . IN TH LIBRARY . COMPILED FOR THIS VOLUME BY KHAN SAHIB

MAULVI ABDUL MU QTUADIR .

HISTORY .

‘ ’ — - 1 . Tarikh i Tabari . Ba la mi s translation (c . ’ H = D 6 f a b a ri s . .H . 1 0 . A . . 35 2 A . . 9 3) o I (d A 3 A D 2 1 . . 9 ) general history, in two vols . Dated

H 0 . A . . 74 . (No

- - - i l in 2 . Muj m ali Fa s hi . A very usefu and t e re tin s g compendium of prominent events , arranged in chronological order since the date ’ 8 = A .D. of the Prophet s birth down to A .H . 45

- - 1 1 i ul ti . 44 , by Fas h Khawa A rare , correct and

w .H . . . neatly ritten copy , dated A 9 9 3 (No

- - m 3 . Kh ulasat ulAkhbar . An excellent co e ndium o f Khwand i p Asiatic history , by Am r

H = 1 D . (d . A . . 9 4 I . An old and correct

t .H 66 . . copy , da ed A . 9 (No

- - 4 . Tarikh i Abul Ii hayr Kh ani . A general history with a detailed account o f the reign o f

5 4 a r o f i é Abul Q y Khan Q pgi q , composed by ‘ order o f the Uzbek king Abd - ul- Lati f Bahadur ‘ - .H . = A .D . 1 0 s _K_han (A 9 47 9 59 54 by Ma ud ‘ bin Usman Kfihistani . A very rare and correct

d .H . . No . copy, ated A 99 9 (

- - . Tu fat ul . A h 5 h kiram general istory , with

80 = A .D a special hi story o f Sind (c . A .H . 1 1 . ‘ ‘ by Mir Ali Shir Qani o f Tatt ah . A very neat

and beautiful copy , written by Muhammad Isma il of Shiraz for Muhammad Na Sir Khan o f

H 1 2 . . Persia , A . . 33 (No

- - - - i 6 . Ta rj um ah i Ma ulfid un Nab . A Persian ‘ .H 60 = A .D. 1 8 o f i translation (0. A . 7 35 ) Sa d ‘ ’ - - 8 = A .D bin Mas ud ulKaz arfini s (d . A .H . 75 . ‘ 1 6 i o f 35 ) history of Muhammad , by Af f (son ‘ i . o ld r .H . 8 1 . Sa d) An and co rect copy, dated A 4

(No .

- - 7 . Burj ud Durar . A detai led hi story o f ‘ i - ud- Din . Muhammad , by As l Abd Ullah (d

.H 88 = A .D A . 3 . A very rare copy .

(No .

- - 8 . Manaq ib i Murt adawi . The life and virtues ‘ o f Ali i .H 10 6 1 , the fourth Caliph , by Kashf (d . A .

A .D . .H . A valuable copy , written A ’ 1 0 6 Le 7 , . fifteen years after the author s death . (NO 49 4)

9 . Raudat - ush- Shuhada . A detailed history ‘ o f Ali Muhammad , , Fatimah , Hasan , Husayn

n Kashifi . and other martyrs , by Husay (d

.H . 1 0 = A D . A 9 . A fine copy , dated

H . 6 A . 9 7 . (No .

- - 1 0 . Hayat ulQulfib . A history of the pro

he t s h i . .H . 1 1 1 1 = A .D. p , by Baqir Mai s (d A

$ 5 A valuable copy , written during the ’ A .H . 10 0 . author s life time , 9 (No .

1 1 . . o f Mukhtar Namah A history Mukhtar, ‘ i A : the avenger of Husayn bin Al (0. .H . 9 46

‘

D . A . by Abu Dar Salm zi n . An extremely rare , correct , and valuable copy , written by the famous caligrapher Murshid - ul- Katib o f Shiraz in A .H . 9 47 . (No . ‘ ‘ - - - - 1 2 . Tarikh i Alam Ara i Abbasi (Sahifah

- History of the first thirty years (A .H . 9 9 6 1 0 2 5 ‘ - f A .D . 1 5 88 1 6 1 6) o the reign of Shah Abbas the 8 = Grea t o f Persia (c . A .H . IO 3 A .D. by i Iskandar Beg Munsh . A valuable copy written

A .H . 1 0 Le . v e a rs in 43 , only four after the date o f composition . (No .

1 3 . Hasht Bihisht . History o f the first eight o f i sovereigns the Ottoman dynasty, by Hak m

- - = ud Din Idris ulBidli si (d . A .H . 9 2 6 A .D . ’ in three vols . Author s autograph . A very rare work . (Nos . 532

- - z i 1 4 . Sirak i Fi rfi Shah . An unique history of ’ the earli er part o f Firfi z Shah s reign with a o f his m unifice nce detailed account virtues , , hi o f s buildings , monuments , and works public utility, etc ., by an anonymous author who wrote

A H 2 = A .D . 1 0 Le . t it , . . 77 37 , the twen ieth year ’ o f the emperor s reign . Dated A .H . 1 002 .

(No . 547 ’ - - i 1 5 . Tarikh i Da fidi . A history o f the Lod o f and dynasties , from the time Bahlul ’ 6 8 Lodi to the death o f Da ud Shah (A .H . 9

A .D . composed during the reign o f Jahan ‘ ir . . No . g , by Abd Ullah A rare work (

5 6 . ‘ - - Wi i a t i B i . P o f 1 6 . z q abur ersian translation ’ ‘ Bab ur s - i h autobiography , by Abdur Rah m K an

K . z mi fo r hanan A good copy , written at Ga n

’ the library of a certain Amir . (No .

- - 1 7 . Tari kh - i Kh andan i Tim firiyah . A hi thert o unknown his tory o f Ti mur and hi s suc ce sso rs in Iran , and of Babur , Humayun and Akbar down t o the twenty - second year of k ’ A b ar s reign . An exceedingly valuable and interesting c opy contai ni ng 1 1 2 mi ni atures ’ painted by nearly sixt y painters of Akb ar s

Co urt for the emperor himself . The MS . bears an autograph note of S hah J ahan and the signat ure o f Fran01s Gladwin . (No . 55 1 .

- - 8 S wa i 1 i . i f 1 . a n h Akbar A H story o Akbar from hi s birth to the end o f the twenty - fourth f H 8 : i year o hi s reign (A . . 9 7 A .D . by Am r l Haydar Husayni o f Ba gram . A rare work .

The MS . bears valuable notes in the handwriting o f . Bl chm n . . J H . o a n (No 1 9 . J ahangi r Namah . The earliest version o f i ’ Jahang r s memoirs , written in the third year o f . MS . A .H . 1 0 20 Le his reign The , dated , . the o f t he sixth year reign , bears a note by Prince so n o f Aura n z ib Muhammad Sultan (the eldest g ) , who to ok possession o f it from the library of

- ul- Qutb Mulk at Haydarabad . The seals o f Muhammad Qutub Shah and ' Aled Ullah

Qutub Shah are found o n the fly- leaf . (No.

“ - - 2 0 . Iqbal Namah i J ahangin . History o f ‘ ahan r Mu t a m ad h . A .H . 1 0 . J g , by K an (d 49 A D . . divided into three volumes . The

5 7 r fi st two volumes , containing the history o f i ’ Jahang r s ancestors , are extremely rare .

2 1 . Shah J ahan Namah . A complete history

o f o f Shah Jahan , consisting four parts , each the f work of a dif erent author . A valuable and c orrect copy , written at the desire of Mirza ’ Sultan Nazar of Aura ngz ib s time and bearing o f L e wrs the seals and signatures Da Costa ,

Francis Gladwin and Maj or Pooler . (No . 565 )

2 2 . Padishah Namah . Another complete c o f history of Shah Jahan , onsisting two parts

by two different authors . Contains twelve

miniatures painted in the highly- finishe d Indian o f u style the later M gal period , and seven o f coloured drawings of buildings , mosques , etc .,

’ e . Shah J ahan s time . Th MS was seen by their Maj esties the King Emperor and the Queen Empress o n the occasion o f their visit to Delhi

1 - in 9 1 1 . (No . ’ - - kh r f 2 3 . Siyar ulMut a a kh i in . A history o India from the time o f the Kauravas and

A . 1 1 = A .D . 1 8 1 Pandavas down to H . 9 5 7 , together with a d e tailed account o f transactions in 1 1 1 1 Bengal from A .H . 1 1 5 1 to A .H . 9 5 9 5 ’ i . A .D . 1 78 1) by Gulam Husayn Tabataba A correct copy , supposed to be an autograph of the author . ‘ - - rat i ah . 2 4 . Fathiyah i Ib y An account of the disastrous campaign of Mir J um lah in Kfi ch Bihar and Assam in the reign o f Aurangz ib

A H - ud- Din (c . . . 1 073 by Shihab

MS . was A .H . 1 1 8 1 Talish. The written , , by the

58

second century o f the Hi j rah down t o the ’ t o the author s time , by (according preface) ,

Sultan Husayn Baiq a ra (d . A .H . 9 1 but accord

- ing to other reliable authorities , by Kamal ud

Din Husayn .

3 2 . An exceedingly valuable and beautiful o f ni 2 copy , the above contai ng 3 illustrations in the finest Persian style and written in a beautiful ‘ Nasta liq by the scribe Ahmad - ul- H afiz o f

S hiraz .

- - 33 . Safinat ulAwliya . Biographies o f famous h o f _S_hay_k s from the beginning Islam to the ’ A H . 1 0 author s time , composed , . 49 , by Prince

Shikfih . Dara A valuable copy , revised and

collated by the author himself, whose autograph

note is found at the beginning o f the MS . ‘ - i - 34 . Ma asir Rahimi (concluding portion) . . ‘ ’ Notices o f Abd - ur- Rahi m Khan Khanan s c m i onte porary ph losophers , physicians , learned cali ra he rs men and g p , military officers under his command and poets who addressed laudatory ‘ - A .H . 0 2 ul poems to him , composed 1 5 , by Abd

Baqi Nahawa ndi .

35 . A very valuable and rare work . The copy contains valuable marginal notes and emenda tions and once belonged to Aman - ullah Khan Firfiz so n o f Jang , the famous Mahabat Khan ’ anah o f b Z a m Akbar, Jahangir, and Shah Ja an s time .

- - i 36 . Kalimat us Sadiq n . Notices o f saints b i c A H 10 2 who were buried in Di l , omposed . . 3 , by Muhammad Sadiq Hamadani . A very valu “ able and extremely rare work.

60 ’ - - i i i . 37 . M r at Madar Life of Shah Madar , the

o f s .H . 1 06 popular saint India , compo ed A 4 , ‘ - - by Abd ur Rahman Chishti . A rare work .

8 - - 3 . Yad i Bayda . Noti ces o f ancient and

s A .H . 1 1 8 modern Persian poet , composed 4 , ‘ by Gulam Ali Azad . A valuable and correct

t t . copy , writ en mos ly by the author himself ‘ - - i 39 . q i Surayya. Notices of some Pers an

o in— p ets who flourished , chiefly India , from the ‘ i t o t me of Muhammad Shah that of Shah Alam ,

A .H . 1 1 U rdfi composed 9 9 , by the famous poet

Mushafi . Rare . ‘ - - 4 0 . G uli Ra na . A biographi cal dictionary o f the Moslem and Hindu poets of India , com

.H . 1 1 82 i i . posed A , by Lachhm Narayan Shaf q

Very rare .

’ - - b i 4 1 . Makhzan ulGara i . An exhaust ve bio i 1 8 graph cal dictionary of 3 4 Persian poets , ‘ A H 1 2 1 8 Ali composed . . , by Ahmad Hashim , in

two A H 1 2 2 Le . volumes , dated . . 4 , five years

after the composition .

2 l - - s i 4 . Khu asat ulA h ar . A portion o f Taq ’ Kashi s H 0 6 i l (d . A . . 1 1 ) famous b ographica t f dic ionary o Persian poets . Thi s copy contains t H ’i no ices from Hafiz (d . A . . 79 4) to Fana (d .

.H . i A The work s very rare . ‘ ‘ - - . U raffi l i 43 t u Ashq in . A most extensive t o f i biographical dic ionary Pers an poets , com

.H . 1 02 2 i Auh a di . posed , A , by Taq The work i s extremely rare .

- . i - i Khwusl fi V l 44 Saf nah __1g ( o . Notices o f contemporary poets , by composed 1 1 = A .H . 4 7 A .D . 1 734 . This valuable copy is the

6 1 second part of the very rare and important third volume o f the work . It was written by the ‘ o f Ali A Bil rami A .H . 1 1 8 2 . order Gulam zad g ,

POETRY.

. Shé h i i H 1 1 45 Namah , by F rdaus (d . A . . 4 A D . . A beautifully illuminated copy containing fine Persian illustrations painted in ‘ gold and colours . Written in fine clear Nasta liq by the famous ca ligraphist Murshid - ul- Katib o f

i .H . 2 . . t o Sh raz , A 9 4 The MS was presented the ‘ Ali emperor Shah J ahan by Mardan Khan , governor o f Kabul and Kashmir . (No .

46 . Sh ah Namah . Another beautifully illu m ina t e d copy of the same , with fine Persian miniatures painted within light gold ornamented borders depicting forest scenes . (NO . ‘ i - u - i - ud- Din 4 7 . Mant q t Tayr , by Far d Attar

H . 6 2 = A .D . o ld (d . A . 7 An copy , dated

A .H . 842 . (NO . ‘ 8 t - i - - ud- Din Bakh a rz i 4 . Ruba iya Sayf , by

- - = A D Sayf ud Di n o f Bakharz (d . A .H . 65 8 . .

A very rare and beautifully written copy .

Apparently 9t h c entury A .H . (No .

- - - - i . 6 6 4 9 . Diwan i Asir i Awm an (d . A H . 5

A .D . A b eautiful and somewhat rare ‘ H 1 0 1 i o f copy , dated A . . 5 , bear ng the seal Abd i o f Ullah Qutub Shah , the s xth king the Qutub

- Shahi dynasty o f Golconda . (NO .

- - i i . . . 5 0 . Ma snawi o f J alal ud D n Rum (d A H = ‘ i 6 72 A .D . Written in minute Nasta l q

62 o f i .H . 8 6 . by Muhammad bin Hasan K rman, A 5 (NO

- - o f 5 1 . Diwan i Imami . A somewhat rare copy

i . 6 86 = A .D . the poems of Imami Haraw (d . A H .

(NO . ‘ - - f 5 2 . Kulli yat i Sa di . A beautiful copy o the ‘ H 6 1 = A .D . works o f Sa di (d . A . . 9 con i in tain ng m iatures in fine Cashmere style , within gold borders illuminated and embellished in arabesque colours throughout . (No . ‘ - - i 5 3 . Shash Risalah i Sa d . A valuable copy

' ‘ o f the six rzrdla fis o f Sa di bearing the auto ‘ graphs o f Shah Jahan and Abd - ur- Rahim h h so n K an K anan . Written by Baqir, of the ‘ famous Mi r Ali . (No .

5 4 . Gulistan and Bustan (bound in o ne volume) . Written by Hidayat Shirazi in fin e ‘ i and clear Nasta li q . Contains fine min atures .

(N0 .

‘ ’ . Bfistan . t i 55 A selec ion from Sa d s Bustan , ‘ in i i i written exqu s tely minute Nasta l q , probably ‘ Mir A H by Imad (d . . . (No . 6 i ‘ ’ 5 . Gul stan . A valuable copy of Sa di s

‘ i i t li o n Gulistan , wr tten in a very m nu e Nasta q various coloured and gold - sprinkled papers by

- ul- am o f i H 0 Muhammad i Sh raz , A . . 9 9 . (No .

5 7 . Gulistan . Another fine copy o f the t Gulis an , written by Hidayat Ullah Zarrin

R a a m .H . 1 1 1 q , A 5 . (No .

8 - - 5 . Sharh i Gulistan . An exceedingly valu ’ S urfiri s A H = able copy of (d . . . 9 69 A .D . 1 56 1) t o n commen ary the Gulistan , written in a learned

6 3 Nas H 6 1 g by the commentator himself, A . . 9 , i e . . only eight years before his death . (No .

59 . Nfirast an . An autograph copy o f a ‘ ’ commentary o n Sa di s Gulistan by Muhamm ad s i i h Wa il Kurd Salar , composed during t e reign o f = Bahadur Shah I 1 2 4 A .D .

(No .

6 0 - - . Haft Band i Kashi . A very beautiful o f i H copy of the Seven Stanzas Ka_sh (d . A . . = D 7 IO A . . written in beautiful bo ld ‘ ‘ ‘ i Ali z Ra am Nasta l q by Muhammad I j a q , 0 A .H . 1 20 . (No .

- 6 1 . Haft Band - i Kashi . Another beautiful o f fo r o f copy the same , written the founder this

library . The handwriting is an exceptionally

fine specimen o f modern Indian caligraphy .

(No .

- - 6 2 . Gulshan i Raz . A very beautifully hm Sh ’ written copy o f M a fid ab ist ari s (d . A .H .

= D 0 - i - 7 20 A . . 1 3 2 ) Gulshan Raz . (No .

- - i 63 . Diwan i Khusraw . A very splend d and ’ interesting copy o fAmir Khusraw s (d . A .H . 7 2 5 A D 1 2 i t o . . 3 4) d wan , which once belonged ’ ‘ H um a fin s Saki nah mi y daughter Ba , dated

8 No . A .H . 9 7 . (

- - 64 . Khamsah i Khusraw . A finely illuminated ’ o f Khusra w s Kha msah copy , written by two

.H . . No . scribes , A 9 74 ( ‘ - - 65 . Matla ulAnwar . An exceedingly valuable ’ ‘ co o f Kh usraw s - u1- py Matla Anwar , transcribed ‘ Mir Ali B by the famous caligrapher , in ukhara , ‘ ‘ - - A .H . ul i o f B k . 947 , for Sultan Abd Az z u hara

64 - - T . c hi fini she d he MS ontains four full page , ghly

illustrations in the best Persian style . (No .

66 . Duwal Rani Kh idr Khan . A very ’ interesting copy of Kh usra w s poeti cal narrative o f t h so n o f the love adven ures of Q idr K an , ‘ l - ud- Din i Su tan Ala Muhammad Shah Khilj , i R a k aru and Duwal Ran , the daughter of y , the

Raj ah o f Guj arat . Writ ten at the instance of Shihab - ud- Din Ahmad Kh an (Governor o f Guj arat during the reign of Akbar) at Ahmada

.H . r t bad , A 9 9 5 , and cor ec ed and compared under the superv ision o f the poet Muh ammad Shari f ‘ Wa q fi i . (No .

i - - 6 7 . D wan i Hasan . A splendid copy o f the

i l wi . . = A D poems of Has an D h a (d . A H 7 2 7 . . transcribe d by the famous cali grapher M u

iri .H . 1 0 1 0 hammad Husayn Kashm , A , for the h i i library of Shay_k Far d Bukhar , a general of

’ Akbar . (No .

68 . Diwan - i - Salman . The oldest known copy o f . H : the lyrical poems of Salman (d A . . 7 78

A .D . in fi ne Nas kh written a minute ,

’ - .H . 8 1 1 i .e . t r A , hirty th ee years after the poet s

death . (No .

69 . Mihr wa Mushtari . A be autifully written ‘ ’ o f A s ar . .H . 8 = A .D 82 copy s s (d A 7 4 . 1 3 ) Sun Mah m fid o f and Jupiter written by Bukhara ,

.H . 1 0 1 VVa li A 7 , for Muhammad , probably the i second k ng of the Astrakhan dynasty . (No .

’ - - - - 7 0 . Diwan i Rukn i Sa in . A very rare and

’ beautifully written copy o f Rukn - ud- Din Sa in ’ H a rawi s . .H . 6 = A .D . 1 6 2 i (d A 7 4 3 ) D wan , dated

A .H . 883 .

65 7 1 . Diwan- i - Héfiz . An exceedingly valuable and interesting copy o f the poems of Hafiz

. i (d . A H . 79 1 bearing marg nal notes n o f a n i in the ha dwriting Humayun d Jahang r, who , after consulting the odes , made notes o n the margin which explain in most instances the particular reasons for consulting the odes and the results that followed aft er consulting them .

(No .

- - 7 2 . Diwan i H afiz . Another beautiful c opy o f the sam e writ t e n by the famous caligrapher ’

A .H . 1 . . Nurak , 9 7 (No

- i - 73 . Diwan Hafiz . An interesting copy of the Diwan of Hafiz with a short glossary o f the ‘ ‘ R ub a is o f poems , and a collection of the Umar

Q ayyam . Several beaut iful Ta dmins on some o f the Gazals o f Hafiz and illustrations in the

Indian style are found in the copy . (No .

i - i - 74 . D wan Hafiz . Another valuable copy o f e t the abov , wri ten by the famous caligrapher A H 1 0 2 u Muhammad Hasan , . . 3 , for S ltan

Muhammad Qutub Shah of Golconda , whose note appears at the beginning o f the copy . (No .

75 . A beautiful copy o f the lyrical poems of the celebrated poet Kamal— ud- Din Kh uj a ndi = D (d . A .H . 803 A . . written in a very clear ‘ - H 886 i .e . Nasta liq , A . . , only eighty three years ’ after the poet s death . (No . f i 76 . A beautifully written copy o the D wan

8 = .D o f Qasim Anwar (d . A .H . 37 A . dated ‘ clca r A .H . 9 33 , written in a fine Nasta liq by the ‘ i ca ligrapher Abdi o f N shapur . (No . o f 77 . A very splendid copy Hal Namah , an

66

8 . o f 5 Another good copy the same work , dated

H . 28 . A . 9 (No .

- - 86 . Silsilat ud i Dahab , by Jam . A very fine

o A .H . . . c py, dated 9 9 5 (No

- 87 . An autograph copy of Jami s Silsilat ud I Dahab ( st Dafter) and his Diwan . (No . 88 . A very fine , but undated , copy of the

i l - - S lsi at ud Dahab . (No . 8 o ld 9 . A very , though undated , copy of ’ - - i T f ul N . Jam s uh at Ahrar . ( o

9 0 . Another fine copy o f the same . (No .

9 1 . A valuable and delicately illuminated copy ’ o f i S ule h a t - ul- Ab rar hi s J am s , written by con l temporary, the ca igrapher Sultan Muhammad

Nfir A .H 1 . , . 9 9 (No .

2 . c 9 Another good , but slightly defective , opy o f A .H . 2 . . the same , dated 9 7 (No

.H . . 9 3 . Another good copy , dated A 9 35

(No . o f 9 4 . Another good copy the same , written ’ o f s by a caligrapher the author native country ,

.H 80 . N dated A . 9 ( o .

9 5 . An extremely valuable copy o f Jam 3 u wa Z ula a Y suf yg , once worth one thousand ‘ Muh urs ; presented to Jahangir by Abd - ur t Rahim Khan Khanan , writ en by the celebrated ‘ - - Mi r Ali ul .H . 0 . . caligrapher Katib , A 9 3 (No

6 . o f 9 Another fine copy the same work , ‘ Mir written by the famous caligrapher Imad ,

A .H . 1 0 1 8 . (No . ’ i Nafahat - ul- 9 7 . A valuable copy of Jam s Uns , written for the library o f Sultan Din Muhamm ad o f A .H 1 00 . . Samarqand , . 3 (No

68 - - i i wa h Hat ifi . A .H . 2 9 8 . Sh r n K usraw, by (d 9 7

A .D 1 2 1 t A .H . 6 . . 5 ) a fine copy, da ed 9 7

(No . o f 9 9 . Another fine copy the same , dated

H . A . . 9 73 . (No f ’ i 1 00 . A splendid copy o f H ati i s T m fir

Namah . (No .

- - 1 0 1 . ulH a ram a n i i Futuh y , by Muhy Lar

H = A .D . (d . A . . 9 33 The copy , written in i Mecca , conta ns gold and beautifully painted i drawings represent ng the Harem , mosques , i e wells , mounta ns , and the tombs of the des en dants and relatives of the prophet . Dated H A . . 9 79 . (No .

1 0 2 . A splendid copy o f the rare Diwan o f

i .H . 1 = . . .H 2 Lisan (d . A 9 4 A D dated A . 9 7 , ‘ written in fin e clear Nasta liq only thirty - o ne ’ years after the poet s death . (No .

1 0 3 . A very rare Diwan o f Shari f Tab ri z i

H 6 = A .D .H . (d . A . . 9 5 . dated A . 9 9 4 . (No

1 04 . A good c opy of a somewha t rare Diwan of i t K l H the lliterate poe Haydar a fij (d . A . . 9 5 9

A .D . i t H 6 i .e wr t en A . . 9 7 , . only seven years ’ in after the poet s death , a beautiful minute ‘ ‘ Nasta liq . Several seals of Abd - ur- Rashid i ‘ i Daylam , Inayat Khan and of other Am rs ’ o f Shéh b Ja an s court , are affixed on the title page . (No .

0 - - 1 5 . Diwan i Kamran . An exceedingly valu able and uni que copy of the Diwan o f Mirza H um a fin Kamran , brother of the emperor y , bearing the autographs o f the Emperors Jahangir

69 :i and S_ h h Jahan , and the seals and signatures of many distinguished nobles and offi cers of the o f i courts Akbar , Jahang r , Shah Jahan and others , written by the celebrated caligrapher ‘ Mahm fid o f Mir Ali . , pupil the distinguished (NO 2 3 7)

1 06 . A splendid copy o f the Diwan o f Sharaf- i

- i - a z - i i r Jahan Q w n , w itten by the caligrapher u o f as M hammad Rida M hhad . (No . 1 0 7 . Another valuable copy of the same , ‘ t he written by famous caligrapher , Inayat i i H 8 1 i e Ullah Sh raz , A . . 9 , . . only twelve years ’ after the poet s death . (No .

1 0 8 . A rare and beautiful copy o f Qasim ’ Arslan H = A D 1 86 i . s (d . A . . 99 5 . . 5 ) D wan . (No 2 49 )

1 09 . A splendid copy o f the lyrical poems of i H 1 00 = A D i Fayd (d . A . . 4 . . wr tten by the order o f Nawwab Shir Jang Bahadur . (No .

1 1 0 . An unique and exceedingly valuable copy o f the Shahinshah Namah , containing a poetical account o f Sultan Muhammad III . o f Turkey i fo r whom it was written . It is richly llustrated o f in the Persian style , and bears several seals some o f ‘ the distinguished nobles o f the Mugal o is o f C urt , the most interesting of which that

J ahan Ara Begam . (No . ‘ ’ I z i s . . . 1 00 1 1 1 . A very rare copy of j (d . c A H 4

(No . ’ 1 Sahab i s .H . 1 0 1 0 1 2 . A splendid copy of (A

A D 1 60 1 i .H . 1 0 8 1 . . . . ) quatra ns , dated A (No

70 i ‘ A 1 1 3 . A very rare copy o f the D wan of li

1 0 2 = A .D . 1 60 Naqi of Kamrah (d . A .H . 1 3)

(No .

1 1 4 . A very rare and beautiful copy of the ’ f 1 quatrains o Mu min Husayn (d . A .H . 1 0 9

A .D . (No . ‘ ’ 1 1 5 . A good copy o f Mirza J a far Beg s

- - H 1 02 1 = . 1 6 1 2 h wa iri (d . A . . A .D ) K usraw Sh n , written by the famous caligrapher Mulla M u hammad Husayn Kashmiri . (No .

i l - 1 1 6 . A rare and Splend d copy o f H u yah i o f Shah Jahan , containing a poetical description the physical features of Shah Jahan . i 1 1 7 . Bayad. A profusely illum nated and e co o f a b autifully written py a Persi n anthology , ‘ h t o f Mir Ali Tab ri z i in the andwri ing , bearing the autograph o f Shah J ahan .

1 1 8 . Another exceedingly valuable and beauti

c ful opy of a Persian anthology, bearing an autograph note o f Prince Khurram (afterwards Shah Jahan) who wrote it in the fourteenth year o f his age .

MISCELLANEOUS .

i - i - 1 1 9 . K miya Sa adat . The famous work o n Asceticism and Sufism by t he celebrated Imam i Gazal (d . A .H . An exceedingly valuable copy written mostly by the author hi mself . T s i s l r st hi probab y the ea lie P ersi a n M S . i n thi s lib ra ry.

- - 1 20 . s ul h . Sufic Fa l K itab A work, by

h i . H Khwaj ah Mu ammad Bukhar (d A . .

7 1 A very valuable copy , bearing numerous notes by several scholars o f great fame and dated

A .H . 845 .

1 - - 2 1 . R fih ulJ inan . A commentary o n the i Quran , by Husayn Muhammad Raz , in three volumes (incomplete) . Dated A .D . 734 .

- - 1 2 2 . i u alib in . Sfifi c An s t T A work , composed

A .H . 1 Th e MS . 79 , by Salah bin Mubarak , A H 8 6 i o f dated . . 5 , is due to the penmansh p the c elebrated Jami . ‘ S - - - - 1 23 . harh i Safr us Sa adat . A commentary ‘ ‘ o n S fifi c - us- - ul the work Safr Sa adat , by Abd Dihla wi c Haqq . An autograph opy , dated

A .H . 1 033 . ‘ 1 - - o f 24 . Ta rj um ah i Arba in . A collection

i o n t . seven treat ses heology , Sufism , etc , by

‘ - ul- Dihlawi i Abd Haqq , rev sed and collated by him with his autograph note o n the fly- leaf .

7 2

A LIST OF ARABIC MANUSCRIPTS IN THE

ORIENTAL PUBLIC LIBRARY AT PATNA , I NCL UDING RARE AND BEAUTIFUL AUT O G P H S AND O L D OP I ES IVI E NT O RA C , D D D I SUBJ ECTS A ND MANUS CRI P T S O F E ACH S U B E CT N N G E O N G To TH E J , A D ARRA D ACC RDI TES O F THE NS P T ON BY B UL DA IR TRA CRI I , A D

M B T L O G UE O F THE B Y . HA ID , ARA IC CA A R LI RAR

’ QIR AT , OR VARIOUS READINGS AND ’ ORTHOGRAPHY OF THE QUR AN .

A - T i ir- fi - I . t a s Qirat . A work on the various i ’ Ab fi ‘ read ngs of the Qur an , by Ummar bin

‘ - - i a d . .H . = A .D Sa d Dani (d A 44 4 . The

i .H 8 present copy s dated A . 45 . The chapter

n h as . It is headi gs are in gold , and it gold stops o n creamy paper wit h a gold a nd blue frontis pi ece recording that it was written by Ahmed ‘ Ali t h e bin Husain bin , the Imam of Madrasah Ma nsfiri ah o f y Egypt , for the Royal Library of o ne o f t h e o f Mameluke Sultans the Fort,

- Z éhi r ak m ak .H 8 2 = A D 1 8 A .II Sultan J (A . 4 . . 4 3 . = 857 A .D .

73 - - - 2 . At Tahdib filQirat . A work o n the various ’ o f H readings the Qur an by the same (A . . 444

A .D . o f The work is rare , only one copy the work is mentioned as being in the Library o f St . Sophia at Stambul . Written in good

Naskh .H 2 6 i , dated A . 7 . !It is a humble l ttle i o n volume in appearance , wr tten coarse yellow wi i s paper, thout embell shment , and has evi dently been much used . It has many marginal comments .)

Al- l- an- o n 3 . Khi Nasih , a treatise Qirat by ‘ i al i - Ibrah m J a bar , the well known author and H = D 2 scholar who died in A . . 73 2 A . . 1 33 . The present copy bears an autograph sanad dated H 6 u A . . 7 2 granted by the author to his p pil i i l ‘ i : Sh h ab udd n Ahmad a Ba l (d . A .H . 74 7

A .D . the sc ribe of the present treatise . !It t is a very small pocke volume , whose value resides in the autograph ]

TAFSiR— COMMENTARIES ON TH E ’ QUR AN .

’ - - - l- n 1 . AlMaj az fi a Qur an . A commentary o ’ ‘ ‘ Iz z uddin Ab da ssalam . .H . the Qur an , by (d A = 660 A .D . The present copy dated H 6 8 A . . 7 was compared with the original copy by the scribe himself . The work is rare only one copy o f it being mentioned in the British

Museum Catalogue .

- - - o n 2 . Sharh u alTawilat . A commentary ’ = Mat uridi s . .H . . . T i (d A 333 A D 9 4 4) work aw lat ,

74

H 8 i ’ A . . 5 7 , was partly transcr bed by the author s

in - l- H 8 8 pupil Muhammed b Fahd a Makki (d . A . . 5 “ A .D .

- u - c o n 3 . Sharh Muqaddimah , a ommentary ’ 6 = A .D . 1 2 i Ibn Salah s 43 4 5) Muqadd mah , ‘ a work on the s cience o f tradition by Abdar ‘ i a l i - i rah m Iraq , a well known author who d ed i H 80 6 = A D 1 0 . Th e n A . . . . 4 4 present copy was ’ b in corrected by the author s son , Ahmed

‘ Ab da rrahim .

PHILOSOPHY .

sh — i i 1 . Al I arat a ph losophi cal treat se by

’ ‘ in i .H 2 8 = A .D Ab i i Abdallah b S na (d . A . 4 . Th e Na sira ddin work, with its commentary by

- i H 6 = A .D . is at Tfis (d . A . . 72 repeatedly b u t is th e printed , the present copy , which of H 2 6 i work itself, dated A . . 5 , is of value as hav ng been compared four times with the text o f the i autograph commentary by Tus . ‘ - — ic 2 . Hikmat a l Ain a work on metaphys s ‘ and physics by Ali bin Muhammed a l Qazwini

H 6 2 = A .D . (d . A . . 7 For its commentary

i 6 c .H . 2 se e R eu 7 2 . The present opy dated A 7 3 ‘ i o f Im ada ddin was written for the L brary , a

o f i in .H . = A .D . noble Damascus , who d ed A 75 7 I 3SS

ASTRONOMY .

- k 1 . Nihaya a l Idra . A work on astronomy

- = a H 6 2 . . by Nasir ddin at Tusi (d . A . . 7 A D

7 6 i 6 0 Thi s copy was c ompared n A .H . 9 with the ‘ autograph copy by Muh ammed bin Mas ud a sh

- H 1 0 = A .D Shirazi (d . A . . 7 . a well kn own

t - author and pupil o f Nasira ddin a Tfisi .

LOGIC .

1 Ta ri d- fi - al- t Na sira ddin a t . At j Man iq , by

i .H 2 = . 1 2 it s Tfis (d . A . 67 A D . 73) with commentary

.H . 2 6 = . . o n by Hilli (d . A 7 A D A rare work t he logic , only one copy being mentioned in

British Museum Hand Lis ts . The present the volume belonged to Waj id Ali Shah , last

Kin g of Oudh .

- - - - 2 . Al ust a s fi al Mu Q Mantiq , by Shamsuddin b in c hamed Ashraf, a s holar of the seventh

r .H . o n i o ne centu y A A rare work log c , only

copy of whi ch is mentioned as being in Berlin . 6 The copy bears a sanad dated A .H . 7 1 granted by Muhammed bin Muhammed bin Yousuf a z ‘ hi s Ali Zangi to pupil Yahya bin , both scholars

.H of the eighth century A .

ASTROLOGY .

‘ - I . al- Naj m Ulum , a work on astrology by a s Ash Iby Sayyid Sharaf on astrology , of the ‘ Ali ‘ A i i H 6 time of d l Shah of B j apur (A . . 9 5 = 9 87 A .D . 1 5 5 7 Th e author in the preface says that he composed the presen t work ‘ ‘ Ali A i The for d l Shah . work is unique , not

’ being ment ioned in any catalogue . Th e king s name is written in gold .

77 MATHEMATICS .

I . al n Gunyat Hisab , an unique work o ‘ Ali mathematics , by bin Sabat , a mathematician o f H the sixth century A . . The present copy 86 dated A .H . 7 bears the seal o f Qutub Shah of

Go lco ndah .

SUFISM .

- - 1 . fi at - Ta awuf. o n Kitab s A work Sufism ,

t o i - H afi believed be unique , by B shr , an eminent

a h .H 2 = A .D Sufi who died in B g dad A . 2 7 . 84 1 .

.H 8 The copy is dated A . 4 3 .

- - - 2 . Ar Risalat a lQusha iriyah . A work on ‘ - a l- i - l- i i H Sufism by Abd Kar m a n ha r (d . A . . 465

A .D . i Th s work has been printed , but

.H 8 the present copy dated A . 4 3 and written in ’ i in the author s lifet me , is the oldest volume the

Library . !It is a large volume , very handsomely o n c written brown paper , with bold black hapter headings and quotations from the Koran in red .]

ETHICS .

— - 3 . Mawarid alKilam . A work on ethics by

i i o f . Fa d , the friend Akbar All words which necessitate the use o f do ts have been eliminated

from this c omposition . It bears an autograph note o n the title - page in which Faidi says that he presented the present work to Ahmad bin

Muhammed o f Yaman .

78

HISTORY OF ALE! ANDRIA .

1 . - a l- Ilm am f Kitab , a history o Alexandria by Muhammad bin Qasim al Maliki al Iskan

i H . 0 daran , who died after A . 7 7 . The author , after touching upon events connected with Alexandria from the time o f the Islamic c o n o f quest, gives space to the description events 0 0 H accruing between 76 and 77 A . . The work o f d is rare , only one copy it being mentione as at

Berlin .

LOCAL BIOGRAPHY .

’ 1 . - U - - 1 Askir Ta rikh Ibn , a biographical work with notices o f eminent persons of Damascus

- - l . 1 = by Abu a Qasim bin Asakir (d A .H . 5 7 A .D . The entire work is in no less than 80 volumes , of which two are in the Library , viz .

‘ Vol . I which contains the names under the

a in . letter , and Vol II which contains the names under the letter mi ni . No complete copy o f the work is mentioned in any Library . These two volumes bear the notes o f the scholars i 6 who stud ed the work under the author in 5 3 A .H .

BIOGRAPHY OF TRADITIONISTS .

- - 1 . Tahdib alKamal . A biographical work o f i dealing with the accounts the tradition sts , by ‘ Jamal Uddin Abu - a l- H ajj zi j bin Ab da rrah m an l i H = A D The a M zzi (d . A . . 74 2 . . entire

80 T work is in thi rteen volumes . he present volume deals with the names under the letter m im .H . 1 8 , and in A 7 it was compared with the autograph copy , in the presence of the

i al- Muh andis author by Muhammad bin Ibrah m , D h i o ne o f the teachers o f a ab (d . A .H . 740

A .D .

SUFI BIOGRAPHY .

- - 1 . Ikhtiyar ar Rafiq . A work dealing wi th t he biographi cal noti ces of em inent S ufis by

- - i . 6 Ahmad bin Salamah a lMa q d si (d . A H . 7 9 A D is The work unique , and is not mentioned in any catalogue . There is a complete se t of biographi cal works dealin g with the lives of the followers of the H um b ali school founded by Imam Ahmad bin

H u .H = 8 H . t o m b al(d . A . 2 4 1 A .D . 47) from A . 2 4 1

A .H . 1 29 5 . This Library alone possesses the complete set .

1 . - al- H a m ab ila u Tabaqat , by Abu Yala M

ai . H . hammad bin Muhammad bin Huss n (d A .

2 6 = A .D 1 1 1 H . 2 1 H 1 2 5 . 3 ) from A . 4 to A . . 5 . The H 6 6 present very correct copy is dated A . . 3 . is o ne it The work very rare , and only copy of is mentioned as being in the Buhar Library attached to the Imperial Library at Calcutta . But that copy is apparently dated the thirteenth century A .H .

2 . Continuation o f the abo ve work by Abdar

.H = D rahman bin Raj ab (d . A . 79 5 A . .

Two copies o f the work are mentioned in Broc k .

8 1 3 Continuation o f t h e abov e by Muhamm ad

‘ ‘ Na di a t bin Ali an j , scholar of the hirteenth

.H . .H 8 H century A (from A . 75 to A . . No i copy of the work is ment oned in any catalogue .

ORTHOGRAPHY AND VARIOUS READ ’ INGS O F TH E QUR AN .

' ‘ - 1 . AI H u a h Ali a l i i . H jj , by Abu Far s (d A . . = D 3 77 A . . in two volumes . Dated appa r ntl .H . e y 5th century A Rare . ‘ ‘ - 2 . Al U fin Ab fi i a l i y , by Tahir Isma l Muqr = H (d . A .H . 455 A .D . Dated A . . 652. Rare . ‘ Sha ib i a h 3 . Sharh ush t y , by Abdullah bin ,

i l i . 6 6 Muhammad b n Hasan a Fas (d . A H . 5

A .D . Dated A .H . 669 . Rare . ‘ AIMust a nir Ab fi Ali 4 . , by Tahir Ahmad bin

i . .H 6 = A .D . a l Bagdad (d A . 49 Dated

A .H . 7th century . ‘ ’ - ul- Li ali Ab ii M u 5 . Al q , by Hayyan i a l i hammad b n Yusuf Andalus (d . A .H . 745

D .H . . . A . . Dated A 7 16 Rare

6 Nuk at - ul- i . An Amal , by Abu Hayyan

f l i . . Muhammad bin Yfisu a Andalus (d A H . 745

= .H . 1 . . A .D . Dated A 7 6 Rare ‘ Nuz h at i a l 7 . An , by Ibrah m bin Umar ‘ H = A D .H . 16 . J a bari (d . A . . 73 2 . . Dated A 7 ‘ ‘ 8 AI Tahdib Ab fi um ar i . , by bin Sa d ad

H = A .D . .H . 726 . Dani (d . A . . 444 Dated A

(No . Rare .

8 2 by Muhammad bin Hamza (who died after

.H . 00 = A .D H A 5 . Dated A . . 747 . ‘ 1 . R a i ah a l Kashshaf i i 9 Al g y Ala , by T b

. .H . = A D H (d A 74 3 . . Dated A . . 767 .

' ‘ 2 0 . Ka shshaf a z Al , by Mahmud bin Umar

Z am a kh shari .H 8 = D (d . A . 5 2 A . . Dated

A .H . 834 . Neat and beautiful c opy dated

A .H . 834 .

2 1 . Tidkar al At , by Muhammad bin Ahmad

art a .H 8 = D H Q b i (d . A . 66 A . . Dated A . .

840.

’ 2 2 . Tib an fi A a m ala ti - al At y dabe H Qu ran , ’ uhi u i N w i H 6 = A D . by M dd n an a aw . (d . A . . 76 . H Dated A . . 847 .

2 . a l 3 Kashf Asrar Bayan , by Muhammad ‘ a l Bi a i bin Hasan q , a scholar of the ninth century A .H . Autograph copy . ‘ 2 4 . H a q aiq as Salami by Abu Abdurrahman

H . 2 = . bin Muhammad (d . A . 4 1 A .D Dated

A .H . 9th century . ‘ 2 . It an 5 Al q , by Jalaluddin Abdurrahman

i i . . 1 1 = . . b nAbi Bakr as S uyut (d . A H 9 A D

Dated A .H . 915 .

2 6 . Ad Durr an Nazi m by Ibn Khashshab H 6 = A D (who died after A . . 5O . . Dated

H . A . . 991. Neat and beautiful copy ‘ - l hk am a l Mu 2 7 . Al J ami u A Qur an , by

’ i . . 668 hammad bin Ahmad a l Qartab (d . A H

A 1 0th .H . .D. Dated apparently century A

Rare . 2 8 Ahkam al Ab fi . Qur an , by Bakr Ahmad '’ l .H 0 = A .D . .H . a Jassas (d . A . 37 Dated A 1136 . Rare .

84 ‘ ‘ 2 a l - z 9 . Bayan Burhan , by Abdul A im bin

. .H . 6 = A D Ahmad (d A 5 4 . . Dated 11th H cent ury A . . Rare . 0 al i b in M u 3 . Jawahir B har , by Ahmad

c o f .H hammad , a s holar the twelfth century A .

Autograph copy .

TRADITION .

As I . .H . 0 = 3 1 . Sunan by Nasa (d A 3 3 A .D .

H 4 . Dated A . . before 5 1 ‘ i Turm u i . = A D 3 2 . Al Jam by d (d . A H . 2 79 . . H Dated A . . 5 72. ’ . As Da fid . H . 2 33 Sunan by Abu (d A . 75

A D t .H . . . . Da ed A before 584 ‘ i i H 2 6 1 3 4 . Al J ami us Sah h by Musl m (d . A . .

A D .H . . Dated A . before 586 .

As i a Da r ut ni . . . 8 _ 35 . Al g y by q (d A H 4 5

A D .H . . Dated A . 6th century apparently .

Rare . 6 Kifa h i a l i H 3 . Al ya by Khat b Bagdad (d . A . .

6 = A .D. H 4 3 Dated the 6th century A . . apparently . Rare . h ’ ‘ ‘ 37 . S arhu M a ani il Asar by Ab II J a far Al = D h av i H . 2 1 A . H Ta (d . A . 3 . Dat ed A . .

6th century apparently . i 38 . Mushk l ul Hadi§ by Abu Bakar Mu in P H 06 hammad bin Hasa n b urak (d . A . . 4

A D .H . . Dated A . 607 . Rare . ‘ 39 . Al Mula kh kh as by Abu l Hasan Ali bin

.H 0 = D Muhammed bin Khalaf (d . A . 4 3 A . . i Beaut ful copy . Dated A .H . 628.

8s 40 . Al Musna d by Imam Ahmad bin Hambal

. .H 2 1 = . H (d A . 4 A D . Dated A . . before 633 .

1 . H 4 Al Muqaddimah by Ibn Salah (d . A . .

6 = A .D . .H 43 Dated A . 638 .

4 2 . Sharh ul Muslim by Muhi uddin an

Na wa wi . H 6 6 H (d A . . 7 Dated A . . 683 . S lT dih 4 3 . hawahid u a w by J ayani (d . A .H . 672 A D H . . Dated A . . 691.

44 . Al Musn a d by Ab fi Da ud Tayalsi (d .

.H . 2 = A D . .H . 7th . A O4 , Dated A century ’ Ma shikh at Ab fi l A 45 . Al by Hasan bin hmad

l i i H 6 0 = A .D a M aq d s (d . A . . 9 . Dated

H . . A . . 7th century Rare ‘ - h 46 . Kitab ul Firdaus by Abu S fij a (d . A .H . = 609 A .D . Dated 7th century . 6 4 7 . Sharh us sunnah by Bagawi (d . A .H . 5 1

D .H . h . A . . Dated A 7t century

Il m i . .H 0 2 48 . Al m a by Ibn Daq q (d A . 7

A D .H . 1 . . . Dated A 7 5 ‘ Mu la a i . .H . 49 . Sharh u Ibn Maj ah by g t (d A

Autograph copy dated A .H .

732. Rare . ‘ ib ar i i . .H . 8 50 . Al I t by Haz m (d A 5 4

.H . 2. . A .D . Dated A 73 Rare

Ba wi .H . 1 6 5 1 . Misbah us sunnah by g (d . A 5

D .H . 786. A . . Dated A ‘ ‘ ul m . .H . 5 2 . J ami ul fi by Ibn Raj ab (d A 79 5

D .H . 90. A . . Dated A 7

ul Fakihani . .H . 1 0 53 . Riyad Afham by (d A 7

D .H . 92. . A . . Dated A 7 Rare ‘ l lfi ah 5 4 . Sharh u A y by Abdur Rahman bin SO 6 = A D Husain Iraqi (d . A .H . . . Dated

1. A .H . 80

86

‘ 65 . Ar Raudah by Muhi uddin an Nawa wi

.H . 6 6 = A D H (d . A 7 . . Dated A . . 669 .

66 . Mukh t a sar ul usfil by Jamaluddin Abu ‘ ‘ ‘ i H 6 2 Umar Usman bin Umar b n Haj ib (d . A . . 4

A .D . Dated apparently 7th century A .H . l ‘ 67 . - A Hawi a lKabir by Abul Hasan Ali bin

a lM arwardi . .H 0 = . . Muhammad (d A . 45 A D

Dated apparently 7th century A .H . Kiféya t at Ta nb ih by Ahmad Ab fi ar ‘ H 1 0 = A D .H Raf ah (d . A . . 7 . . Dated A . 7 08 . ‘ 69 . Al Khiz anat ul Akmal by Yfisuf bin Ali a l i o f eth bin Muhammad J urj an , a legist the

.H . 7 12. century , dated A ‘ ’ ‘ 7 0 . Sharh ul H am by Alau ddin Ali bin ‘ i a l finawi H . 2 = A D Isma l Q (d . A . 7 7 . .

H . Dated A . 738. ‘ 7 1 . Al Iqlid by Taj uddin Abdurrahman bin i H 6 0 = A D Ibrah m (d . A . . 9 . . Dated appa l H re nt y before A . . 742. ‘ ‘ Tuhfat ul t a Ali 7 2 . Muh ] by Umar bin bin b in al Ahmad Muhammad Ansari , commonly l ul in H 80 = called Abu a M aq q (d . A . . 4 A .D .

Autograph copy dated A .H . 753. ’ AIH a a i a lMan fim ah Mahmfid 73 . q q z , by bin a l L ului H 6 2 = A D Muhamad (d . A . . 7 . .

H . . Dated A . 77 0 Tak m il ud 74 . At by Fadlullah bin Mas , a

H .H 2. scholar of the 7th century A . . Dated A . 77

Rare . ‘ ‘ u ss aa . .H . 75 . Maj m a l Bahrain by Ibn (d A

6 = A D H . 94 . . Dated A . . 772 ‘ ul .H . 6 6 76 . Shara i Islam by Hilli (d . A 7

A H . A .D . in two volumes . Dated . . 772

88 77 . Sharh ut Tamb ih by Muhammad bin ‘ uz Z a rk ashi H Bahadur bin Abdullah _ (d . A . . 79 4

D .H . . A . . Dated A 77 6 A Ab rar 78 . Al Anwar li mal Lil by Jamaluddin ‘ i ash Shaf éii H Yfisuf bin Ibrah m (d . A . . 79 9

A D .H . . . . Dated A 776 i ‘ i 79 . Al Jam as Sagr by Imam Muhammad H 1 8 1 = A D (d . A . . . . A neat and beautiful copy dated A .H . 783 . 80 Al un t a kh ab H usam uddi n . M by Mahmud i H 6 = b n Muhammad (d . A . . 44 A .D . Dated

.H . A 789 . s 8 1 . Al M ahssalfi u 111 alfiq h by Fakhruddi n

H 6 06 = A .D ar Razi (d . A . . . Dated appa re nt l .H r . y A . 8th centu y ’ 8 u Da i i . H 1 2 . Kanz d q a q by Nasaf (d . A . 7 0 D A . . Neat and beautiful copy dated apparently A .H . 8th century . ‘ ‘ 8 AI Tah i i H 0 3 . q q by Abdul Az z (d . A . . 73

A D .H . . . . Dated A 801 8 T l ’ 4 . aq rir a Fawa id by Ibn Raj ab (d .

H .H A . . 79 5 Dated A . 809 . Rare .

85 . Al Mukh tar by Ma j duddin al Ma usali

H 6 2 = A D . i (d . A . . 7 . Neat and beaut ful copy dated A .H . 858.

- 86 . Al Fath ul Qadir by Ibn Humam (d . H 86 1 = A D H A . . . . Dated A . . 854 .

8 - ul M ukh ta ar a l u fil 7 . Sharh s s by Qadi ‘ A z u in H 6 = A D d dd (d . A . . 75 . . Dated

A .H . 860.

- - 88 . Sharh ulMukht a sar by S ulai m éin bin Z ak ara a o f Ahmad bin y , a scholar the 7th century

.H h A . Dated 9t century apparently .

89 ‘ 8 . S al a Ab dulla if Firisht a 9 harh Mn r by t bin , o f th H a scholar 9 century A . . Dated 921. Rare . ‘ ’ 9 0 . Al Tahb ir by Ala uddin al Mardawi

. .H . 88 : A .D H (d A 5 . Dated A . . 924 .

Rare . ‘ 1 . Ifa at a l b 9 d Anwar y Muhammad Ala uddin , f 1 1 th H a scholar o the century A . . Autograph H 0 copy dated A . . 1 54 .

THEOLOGY .

’ 2 . Shifa ul As am Ta iuddin a s i 9 q , by q Subk H 6 = H (d . A . . 75 A .D . Dated A . . before 74 0. ‘ a l a Mahm fid a l i 9 3 . Matali Anz r , by Isfahan

.H . = . . .H . . (d . A 749 A D Dated A 7 4 0 ‘ ut ‘ 9 4 . Sharh Tawali , by Abdullah bin ‘ l i . .H = A D Muhammad a Ibr (d A . 743 . .

H 2 - Dated A . . 77 . Rare .

Mufa al i i . .H . 6 9 5 . Al ss , by Qazw n (d A 75

D .H . . A . . Dated A 8th century apparently

Rare . 6 Minh a Ta im i ah 9 . j us Sunnah , by Ibn y

H 2 8 = A .D . .H . 1 . (d . A . . 7 Dated A 81 ‘ ul Wé fi Ab fi 9 7 . Ar Radd , by Abdullah ‘ ‘ Muhammad bin Ali b in Abi Bakr ash Shafi i

H 8 2 = . .H . . (d . A . . 4 A D . Dated A 865 8 ul Ma wa if i al 9 . Sharh q , by Sayyid Shar f

8 1 6 = A D . . Jurj ani (d . A .H . . . Dated A H

968.

‘ A i it Ta rid 9 9 . l Hash ya Ala Sharh j , by

i D wwani .H . 0 = . . Muhaq q q ad a (cl. A 9 7 A D

H . Dated A . . 9 74

9 0

i .H th H who d ed in A . 7 century . Dated A . . 839 .

Rare .

’ ‘ 1 1 1 . Séi rin Ab i al Manazil us , by u Isma l

i . .H . 8 1 = H Ansar (d A 4 A .D . Dated A . . 839 . ‘ 1 1 2 . - u - a l H ik a m Sharh Fusus , by Abdur

a l i . H 8 8 = rahman J am (d A . . 9 A .D . Auto H 8 6 graph copy dated A . . 9 . ‘ 1 1 . Adab ul Muridi n Ab fi i 3 , by an Naj b as

’ S ah a rwa rdi . .H = . (d A . 573 A D . Dated H 888 A . . .

ETHICS .

1 1 - ut Ta wwab in Muwa ffi - uddin 4 . Kitab , by Q

H 6 2 0 = A .D H t (d . A . . . Dated A . . 7th cen ury apparently . Rare .

1 1 . a l i i 5 Al Fakhr Mun r , by Lakham , a

c l o f t he H . s ho ar 7th century A . . Autograph copy

Rare . ’ 1 1 6 Mawa iz ulAb rar Baib a rs a l s . , by Mun uri

H 2 = A .D . .H . (d . A . . 7 5 Dated A . 738 ’ - 1 1 ul L a a if . .H . 7 . Kitab t , by Ibn Raj ab (d A = D H 795 A . . Dated A . . 840. Rare . ‘ 1 1 8 . AI ul i b i . .H . Qawl Bad , ySakhaw (d A

= A D .H 9 0 2 . . Dated A . 866 . ‘ 1 1 . un Nuffis Ta iuddin . .H . 9 Qama , by q (d A

= A D .H 829 . . Dated A . 887 . ‘ 1 2 0 i ul i a l . J awah r q a n , by Abdullah

H 1 = .H . . B usani (d . A . . 9 1 A .D . Dated A 897 ‘ ‘ 1 2 1 . ul i J awami Kilam , by Ali Muttaq = A D (d . A .H . 9 75 . . Autograph copy .

1 2 2 ul Fai i . .H . 1 00 . Mawarid Kilam , by d (d A 4

— D .H 1 4 . A . . Dated before A . 00

9 2 PHILOSOPHY.

‘ 1 2 . Ishara t i 3 Al , by Abdullah bin S na

H 8 = A .D .H . 2 0 . (d . A . . 4 2 . Dated A 5

1 2 . ul Ishérat i 4 Sharh , by Imam Fakhrudd n

.H 6 6 = A .D . .H . ar Razi (d . A . O Dated A apparently 7th century .

1 2 . ut i a Kawi urrah 5 Sharh Taw l t, by Ibn

H 6 6 = A .D t wo . t (d . A . . 7 . in vols Da ed

A .H . 7th century apparently . ‘ 1 2 6 . ul i i . .H . 6 Hikmat Ain , by Qazw n (d A 75

1 2 6 H . 7 Dated A . . 732

1 2 S - u - a akil Nut u 7 . harh H y an , by Jalal ddin

D wwa ni .H .H . . ad a (d . A . Dated A 917

LOGIC .

1 2 8 . ust as i as Al Q , by Shamsudd n Samar

th c .H . t qandi , a scholar of the 7 entury A Da ed

H . A . . 716 Rare .

1 2 . ul S 9 Sharh Qustas , by the same hamsuddin

S am ar andi . .H . c . as q Dated A 9th entury . Rare

1 0 . Na id r ut Ta ri d 3 Al J awhar an d (Sha h j ) , by H H Hilli (d . A . . Dated A . . loth century .

Rare .

MATHEMATICS .

‘ 1 1 . ul 3 Gunyat Hisab , by Ali bin Sabat , who

D D . . died in the Sixth centu ry A . . ated A H . 786

Rare .

9 3 1 2 . ul Mu ni H 3 Sharh q , by Ibn Haim (d . A . .

8 1 = A .D . .H . 8 1 0 5 Dated A . Rare .

1 . a l a wa id a l 33 Asar Q , by Kamaluddin o f 8th H Farsi , a scholar the century A . . Dated

.H . 8 1 A 9 . Rare .

1 . Sha m s ls 34 Sharh ust y , by Abu Ishaq

o f lo th .H . Abdullah , a scholar the century A

Autograph copy dated 9 63 . Rare .

ASTRONOMY .

- - 1 . Niha at ulIdrak - - 35 y , by Nasiruddin at Tusi

. H 6 2 = . . H 6 0 (d A . . 7 A D Dated A . . 9 .

1 6 . ut Ta dkirah a l 3 Sharh , by S ayyid Sharif

. H 8 1 = A D .H . Jurj ani (d A . . 6 . . Dated A

842.

ASTROLOGY .

1 . Mudkha l Kushi a r 3 7 Al , by Abul Hasan y ,

f h c . an astrologer o the 4t entury A H . Dated

H . . A . 871 1 8 Mudkhal a l Ba lakh 3 . Al , by Abu Mashar

H 2 2 = . . .H . . (d . A . . 7 A D Dated A sth century

1 - ul- ul- 39 . Naj m ulum , by Ibn Sayyid Sharif, an astrologer o f the lo th century A .H . Dated the loth century . Rare .

MEDICINE .

1 0 Kit ab ulH a ai 4 . g gh, a revised and improved translation from the Greek into Arabic , by

9 4

R asulids H 2 1 - 6 = D of Yaman (A . . 7 4 A . . 1 32 1

Dated 992. Rare .

1 . - ul i Ab u 53 Kitab Mansur , by Muhammad H = D Zakariya ar Razi (d . A . . 3 20 A . . Dated

A .H . loth century .

1 . fi a l b y 54 Kitab Waba Qusta bin luqa , who flourished at the end o f the fourth century

A .H . Dated A .H . 1053 . Rare .

1 . fi if ihh at 55 Kitab H z as s , by Qusta bin lfi a . l q , mentioned above Dated apparent y lltk century A .H l Rare

1 6 Yah a rah — u i 5 . Kitab Man La d t Tab b , by

i . 1 1 = A .D . Zakariya Raz (d A .H . 3 Dated apparently 11th century A .H . (NO .

- 1 . ul i al anfin 57 Sharh Kull yat Q , in two vols S a iduddin a l Gaz arfini l o f by d , a scho ar the

H .H . 1 1 0 2 . . eighth century A . . Dated A Rare ’ ’ 1 8 Dast fir ul- A a ib Da fid i 5 . j y , by Antak

H 0 8 = A D . (d . A . . 1 0 . Dated apparently

A .H . 12th century . Rare .

Kit a u Talwih - i Fa kh aruddin 1 59 . b v t Tibb , by a lKhu a ndi o f i .H . j , an author the e ghth century A

Dated A .H . 1312. ‘ 0 Ta db ir il i Ab fi 1 6 . Kitab u Habal , by Abbas

80 = A .D. A hmad bin Muhammad (d . A .H . 3

Dated apparently 13th century A .H . Rare .

NATURAL HISTORY .

‘ 6 — ulAh a r U arid 1 1 . Kitab j , by t bin Mahmud a l o f .H . Hasib , an author the third century A Dated apparently 7th century A .H . Rare .

9 6 ’ ‘ 1 6 2 . z h - ulAfk ar Ab nl A ar , by Abbas Ahm ad

Tifa i i . .H 6 1 = bin Yusuf at i (d A . 5 A .D .

8 . Date d A .H . 39

1 6 - ul 3 . Hayat Hayawan , by Kamaluddin ad

m ri . .H . 808 = A .D H Da a (d A . Dated A . .

839 .

HISTORY .

‘ ‘ 1 6 . Wasilat - ul M ut a ab b idin 4 , by Umar bin u al n i o f 6th M hammad Ma sal , a scholar the century . Six vols . o ut of eleven . Dated apparently 6th century A .H . Rare .

1 6 . Dalail uh Nab b awat 5 , by Hafiz Abu ‘ i . H 0 = A D .H . 602 Na m (d A . . 4 3 . . Dated A .

1 66 . - ul Ilm am Kitab , by Muhammad bin és im Nuwai ri o f Q an , a scholar the eighth century

.H H . A . Dated apparently 8th century A . . Rare ’ 1 6 . i - uz Yfisuf Sib t - u 7 M r at Zaman , by Ibni = J auz i (d . A .H . 654 A .D. One v o l. o ut o f thirteen . Dated apparently 8th century A .H .

Ra re . ’ 1 68 . Mukht a ar u z s Mir at Zaman , by an f author o the eighth century A .H . Dated 8th century apparently . Rare . ‘ 16 - ul i Ab fil - al 9 . Kitab M raj , by Qasim i H 6 = 880 n air (d . A . . 4 O A .D . Dated

A .H . Rare . r il 1 70 . Al Mukh t asa min Sirati Sayyid ‘ ’ Dim a i . .H . Bashar , by Abdul Mu min ad y t (d A = 705 A .D . the Fifth Part o ut o f five parts .

Dated A .H . 887 . Rare .

1 1 . Bidé ah si De mish i 7 Al y , by Ibn Ka r ad q

9 7 . . . : A .D (d A H 774 . One v o l. o ut o f ten

. H 8 vols Dated A . . 9 2 .

1 2 . Alm a wahib ulL a dunn ah us filani 7 y , by Q t

. . 2 = D (d A H . 9 3 A . . Autograph copy dated H A . . 898 . ’ ‘ 1 . ul Yafi i A H 68 73 Mir at J anan , by (d . . . 7 A D . . Dated 9th century A .H .

1 . a mh a rat - ul 74 J Ansab , by Abu Muhammad ‘ Ali l 6 = A .D a Fasi (d . A .H . 45 . Dated 9 H th century A . . Rare . ‘ 1 . i Ali 75 Tarikh Salat n Usman , by an f the anonymous author o loth century A .H .

H . Dated A . 9 2 7 . Ra re .

- 1 6 . ul Ma afil a al 7 Bahj at h , by Abu Zak ria ‘ A i H 8 = A .D . .H . . mir (d . A . . 9 3 Dated A 932 1 ul i i 77 . Raud Manaz r, by Muhibbudd n

. H 8 = .H . . (d A . . 1 5 A .D . Dated A 992

1 8 ki l h - ul Sib 7 . Ta d ra t u K awas Ummat , by t

a l z H 6 = A .D Ibn J a u i (d . A . . 54 . Dated

.H . A 1070. Rare . ’ ‘ 1 i Ab fi l s 79 . R asu Malin Nad m, by Abba ‘ Ah o f mad bin Ali bin bana, an author the fifth

.H 11 century A . Dated apparently th century

A .H . Rare . ‘ ‘ 1 80 . - ul B i al i q Jumman , by adrudd n Ain

H = Vo l. . o ut o f . (d . A . . 855 A .D . II six vols

Dated A .H . 1 1 43 .

BIOGRAPHY .

f 1 8 1 . A Fragment o a biographical work a 5th dealing with the traditionists , d ted ce ntury A .H .

98

1 Nuk at - ul um an Slahu i 9 5 . H y , by dd n a s

i . .H 6 = A D H Safad (d A . 7 4 . . Dated A . .

1223 .

- 1 6 . ul Mufassirin 9 Tabaqat , by Muhammad ‘ ’ Ali Da fidi . H = A D bin Ad (d A . . 9 45 . . H 1 2 Dated A . . 9 3 . Rare .

1 . ul H a nab ilah 9 7 Tabaqat , by Ibn Raj ab

.H = A .D (d . A . 79 5 . in two vols . Dated

H 1 2 . A . . 9 7 . Rare

1 8 . ul a néb ilah 9 Tabaqat H , by Muhammad ‘ i f bin Abdullah an Naj d , a scholar o the thir

.H t e e nth century A . Rare .

1 . Ta u i 99 j t Tabaqat , by Am n bin Muhammad i o f H as Salih , a scholar the thirteenth century A . .

- - .H 1 1 In twen ty two vols . from A . 3th century .

H 1 . . Dated A . . 3th century Rare ‘ 2 00 . R afa ul . .H . 8 2 Isr , by Ibn Haj ar (d A 5

.H . . A .D . Dated A 1310. Rare

GRAMMAR .

ul a 20 1 . Sharh J um l , by an anonymous A H author . Dated . . 575 . ‘ Idéh Ab fi Ali a l i 2 0 2 . Al , by Husain Faris

= A .D . .H . 599 . . (d . A .H . 377 Dated A Rare ‘ ‘ ul m Ukb uri H 6 1 6 20 3 . Sharh lu a , by (d . A . .

H . 11 . . A D . Dated A 6 Rare ‘ i H. 2 0 . . A . 4 Al luma , by Ibn Jinn (d 393

H 620. A .D . Dated A I ul Mufa al 2 0 5 . Al dah Sharh ss , by Ibn

6 = A .D . .H . 6 . Héjib (d. A .H . 64 Dated A 72

R are .

IOO ‘ 2 06 . Mah siil ul u fil Al Sharh F s , by Husain

i .H . 6 8 1 = A .D . .H . . Bagdéd (d . A Dated A 674 ‘ 2 0 . Bu a t ul A 7 gy mal, by Abu J a far Ahmad ‘ Ali H 6 I = A D bin Yfisuf bin (d . A . . 9 . .

.H 6 0 . Dated A . 9 . Rare 2 08 Sharh ul Kafiah i i . , by Jamaludd n Jayan

H 6 Z = A .D . .H . 1 . (d . A . . 7 Dated A 7 6 ‘ 2 0 Mu rib s . .H . 66 9 . Al q , by Ibn U fur (d A 3 D H 2 A . . Dated A . . 75 . 2 1 0 Sharh ul L ub ab utub uddi n Mu . , by Q ‘ ii hammad bin Ma s d , a scholar of the seventh century A .H . Dated A .H . 7 57 .

2 1 1 - h ulKafiah i who . Shar , by Rad , compiled

H 68 = A .D . 1 2 8 . . the work in A . . 3 4 In three vols ‘ H 8 2 i . H 8 = A .D . Dated A . . 2 Ain (d A . . 5 5 a

- n e o f well know author , is the scrib the present commentary .

RHETORIC .

‘ 2 1 2 i al i i a z a ri . Al Jam Kab r , by Ibn As r J

.H 6 8 = A D A H (d . A . 3 . . Dated . . 7th century . Rare . ‘ 2 1 . ul ulfim S a kk aki . .H . 6 2 6 3 Miftah , by (d A

A D H . . . Dated A . . 7 22

2 1 . i i a l i 4 Al M sbah , by Jamaludd n Jayan

H 6 2 = A D .H . 2. . (d . A . . 7 . . Dated A 73 Rare ‘ ’ 2 1 . AI Muta ww al i Ta ft é z zini 5 , by Sa dudd n

H 1 = A D t .H . . (d . A . . 79 . . Da ed A 749

2 1 6 Tib a n i i . .H . = A .D . . Al y , by T b (d A 743

H . c . Dated A . 8th entury . Rare ‘ 2 1 . H ash a a lM ut awwa l 7 Al y Ala , by Sayyid

H 8 1 6 = A .D . .H . . Sharif (d . A . . Dated A 854

10 1 ‘ 2 1 8 . AI a a Ala Mu aw- a H ghy t wal , by Hus in

. .H 88 = bin Muhammad (cl A . 6 A .D. Dated

.H . A 962. ‘ 2 1 . a a al Mu awwa l 9 Al H §hy Ala t , by ‘ i H 0 = D Nizamudd n Usman (d . A . . 9 1 A . .

.H Dated A . 967 .

LE! ICOGRAPHY.

‘ 2 20 . Tahdib - ul L u - a t Ab 11 Ma nsfir g , by ' i H 0 Muhammad bin Ahmad Azhar (d . A . . 37 D A . . Two vols . o ut o f nine vols . Dated

A .H . 6th century . Rare .

- 2 2 1 . auh ri . .H . As Sihah , by Abu Nasar J (d A = A D 39 3 . . Dated A .H . 632. ' ‘ - 2 22 . u b Ab fi Mu Kitab s Sifat , y Abdullah ‘ 6 20 hammad bin 13 5. (d . A .H .

Dated A .H . 648. Rare . ‘ 2 2 - u G a rib ain Ab fi 3 . Al Jama Bain Al , by ‘ Ubaid Ahmad Al H a ra v i (d . A .H . Dated

A .H . 667 . Rare .

2 2 M u addm ah Z am a kh sha ri . 4 . Al q , by (d H = A D H A . . 5 38 . . Dated A . . 676 . ‘ 2 2 . H il a Ali 5 Al y , by Muhammad bin bin

Ké mil o f .H . , a scholar the seventh century A H 6 Dated A . . 9 7 . ‘ 2 26 . Na am ul Isa hi z Garib , by bin Ibra m

H = D .H . h (d . A . . 480 A . . Dated A 7t H century A . . ‘ ‘ 2 2 - ul Ab ri Ma nsfir 7 . Fiqh Lugat , by Abdul

S = A .D . Malik bin Muhammad (d . A .H . 3 5

Dated 8th century A .H .

10 2

2 0 . Mu a mat UI 4 Al q Jazariyah , by Saduddin al a z a ri o f H J , a scholar the eighth century A . . H Dated 8th century A . . ’ 2 1 . Nah ulBala ah Ab fi l Al- 4 j g , by Hasan Razi

. .H . = A .D . .H (d A 39 5 Dated A . 8th century .

Beautiful copy .

2 2 . ur 4 Anwar Rabbi , by an anonymous

. .H . author Dated A 8th century . ‘ 2 ul 43 . Salwan Muta , by Shamsuddin as

S a a li . .H . 6 = A D . .H 8 q (d A 5 5 . Dated A . 4 2 . ‘ ‘ - 2 . u i 44 Diwan Ab al Ula , by Abul Ulla

. .H . .H 8 (d A 449 Dated A . 49 . ‘ 2 . i asida t il 45 Al Hash ya Ala Q Burda , by

Z ark shi H = A D . .H a (d . A . . 794 . Dated A .

856 . ‘ 2 46 . Anwa rul Uq fil (commonly called Divan

Ali u ub uddin R awa ndi . ) , arranged by Q t ar

c .H . 858 . Beautiful opy , dated A ‘ 2 Nuz ha t un - Nuffis b in Sudfin 4 7 . , by Ali ,

wh H 8 0 = A .D . o died about A . . 4 Dated

.H 86 . A . 3 ‘ 2 8 Ma réit i ul- Ga z lan 4 . , by Muhammad bin

H 8 = . . .H . 88 . Hasan (d . A . . 59 A D Dated A 7 2 U ala ul Ma ami n M u 49 . q j , by Hasan bin

. H 6 = A .D . hammad (d A . . 4O Dated

.H . A 9 th century . ‘ - 2 0 . u] Ali u 5 Diwan Wafai , by bin M hammad a l H . SO = A .D . th Wafai (d . A . 7 Dated 9 cent ury .

104 SUPPLEMENT BY DOCTOR AZ IMUDDIN D D D A MA , P H . .

PHILOLOGY :(a ) LE! ICOGRAPHY .

’ ‘ - 1 . Adab u l l . ut aib Katib , by Abdul ah b Q a

6 = A .D . (d . A .H . 2 7 An apparently old and th oroughly reliable copy fully vocali sed . ’ 2 - u l- a mh a rah m . Kitab J , by Muha mad b .

Du .H 2 1 = A .D ld raid (d . A . 3 . o and reliable fully vocali sed . ’ - - . Tah ib u l b 3 d Luga , by Muhammad b .

- - H 0 = A D in m Ahmad alAzhari (d . A . . 3 7 . . co le t e l p copy , but apparently very old . Ful y vocalised . ’ ’ ’ Kit éb u l- Garib ain fi l - it 4 . Qur an wa l Had h ,

- - . l H by Ahmad b Muhammad a Harawi (d . A . . = 40 1 A . D . very good copy . ‘ ‘ - . Sham sul Ulfim . i a l 5 , by Nashwan b Sa d

im a ri . H . = . . H y (d A . 5 73 A D a good copy . i Th s work Should be published . ’ ’ - - 6 . i u l ulum . D ya H , by Muhammad b Nash

. T m wan his , with the following , for s a complete se t for an edition o f No . 5 . ‘ ’ - 7 . L a wém i n u Nuj um . Author unknown .

(b) GRAMMAR .

’ ’ ’ - 8 . Kit ab u l h s fi n - K a a is Nahw, by Abu l Fath ‘ t . i ni .H . 2 = . U hman b J n (d . A 39 A D . Very hi good copy , worth publis ng .

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