Baburnama Translated By
Jon Levatte
Babur was an educated Timurid prince, and his observations and comments in his memoirs reflect an interest in nature, society, politics and economics. His vivid account of events covers not just his own life, but the history and geography of the areas he lived in as well as the people with whom he came into contact. The book covers topics as diverse as astronomy, geography, statecraft, military matters, weapons and battles, plants and animals, biographies and family chronicles, courtiers and artists, poetry, music and paintings, wine parties, historical monument tours, as well as contemplations on human nature.[3]
Babur is at the centre of most scenes shown. As far as is known, no contemporary images of him survive, but from whatever sources they had Akbar's artists devised a fairly consistent representation of him, "with a roundish face and droopy moustache", wearing a Central Asian style of turban and a short-sleeved coat over a robe with long sleeves.[6] Coming from a period after Akbar's workshop had developed their new style of Mughal painting, the illustrated Baburnamas show developments such as landscape views with a recession, influenced by Western art seen at court.[7] Generally the scenes are less crowded than in earlier miniatures of "historical" scenes.
According to historian Stephen Frederic Dale, Babur's Chagatai prose is highly Persianized in its sentence structure, morphology, and vocabulary,[8] and also contains many phrases and smaller poems in Persian.
By 1519 Babur took control of Kabul and from there launched an invasion into north-western India. The final section of the Bāburnāma covers the years 1525 to 1529 and the establishment of the Mughal Empire over what was by his death still a relatively small part of north-western India, which Babur's descendants would expand and rule for three centuries.
The account of the decisive First Battle of Panipat in 1526 is followed by long descriptions of India, its people, fauna and flora. Various exciting incidents are recounted and illustrated. For example, Babur jumps off his horse just in time to avoid following it into a river, and when his army has formed its boats into a circle a fish jumps into a boat to escape from a crocodile.[12]
The original Chagatai language text does not seem to have existed in many copies, and those that survive are mostly partial. The copy seen in the Mughal Library in the 1620s, from which the Persian translation was presumably made, seems to have been lost.[13]
In this autobiography, Babur mentions a boy named 'Baburi' as a teenager, with whom he was fascinated and infatuated. This subtle feeling is expressed on pages 120 and 121 of "Baburnama", where he writes:
'yisha-sultan Begum whom my father and hers, i.e. my uncle, Sl. Aḥmad Mirzā had betrothed to me, came (this year) to Khujand and I took her in the month of Sha'ban. Though I was not ill-disposed towards her, yet, this being my first marriage, out of modesty and bashfulness, I used to see her once in 10, 15, or 20 days. Later on, when even my first inclination did not last, my bashfulness increased. Then my mother Khnīm used to send me, once a month or every 40 days, with driving and driving, dunnings and worry.
In those leisurely days, I discovered in myself a strange inclination, nay! as the verse says, 'I maddened and afflicted myself' for a boy in the camp-bazar, his very name, Bāburī, fitting in. Up till then, I had had no inclination for anyone, indeed of love and desire, either by hear-say or experience, I had not heard, I had not talked. At that time I composed Persian couplets, one or two at a time; this is one of them:
From time to time Bāburi used to come to my presence but out of modesty and bashfulness, I could never look straight at him; how then could I make conversation (ikhtilt) and recital (hikayat)? In my joy and agitation I could not thank him (for coming); how was it possible for me to reproach him with going away? What power had I to command the duty of service to myself? One day, during that time of desire and passion when I was going with companions along a lane and suddenly met him face to face, I got into such a state of confusion that I almost went right off. To look straight at him torments and shames, I went on. A (Persian) couplet of Muhammad Salih's came into my mind.
It was first translated into English by John Leyden and William Erskine as Memoirs of Zehir-Ed-Din Muhammed Baber: Emperor of Hindustan,[17] later by the British orientalist scholar Annette Beveridge,[18][19] and most recently by Wheeler Thackston, who was a professor at Harvard University.[20]
Akbar's ancestor Timur had been celebrated in a number of works, mostly called Zafarnama ("Book of Victories"), the best known of which was also produced in an illustrated copy in the 1590s by Akbar's workshop. A work purporting to be Timur's autobiography, which turned up in Jahangir's library in the 1620s, is now regarded as a fake of that period.[21]
His autobiography is one of those priceless records which are for all time, and is fit to rank with the confessions of St. Augustine and Rousseau, and the memoirs of Gibbon and Newton. In Asia it stands almost alone.[22]
His Memoirs are no rough soldier's chronicle of marches and countermarches... they contain the personal impressions and acute reflections of a cultivated man of the world, well read in Eastern literature, a close and curious observer, quick in perception, a discerning judge of persons, and a devoted lover of nature; one, moreover, who was well able to express his thoughts and observations in clear and vigorous language. The shrewd comments and lively impressions which break in upon the narrative give Babur's reminiscences a unique and penetrating flavour. The man's own character is so fresh and buoyant, so free from convention and cant, so rich in hope, courage, resolve, and at the same time so warm and friendly, so very human, that it conquers one's admiring sympathy.The utter frankness of self-revelation, the unconscious portraiture of all his virtues and follies, his obvious truthfulness and a fine sense of honour, give the Memoirs an authority which is equal to their charm. If ever there were a case when the testimony of a single historical document, unsupported by other evidence, should be accepted as sufficient proof, it is the case with Babur's memoirs. No reader of this prince of autobiographers can doubt his honesty or his competence as witness and chronicler.[22]
This article examines the translations of "Boburnoma", one of the great monuments of Eastern written literature, into European languages in different years. These translations are approached from the point of view of the period, some of their shortcomings are also pointed out.
Seher-Edden Muhammed Baber. 1828. Denkwurdigkeiten des Seher-Edden Baber, Kaisers von Hindustan, von ihm selbst Dschagatai Turkischen verfast und nach der englischen Uber-setzung des dr. Leiden und W. Erskine deutsch bearbeitet von Kaiser A. Leipzig.
Zehir-Ed-Din Muhammad Babur. 1826. Memoires of Zehir-Ed-Din Muhammed Babur, Emperor of Hindustan written by himself in the Jaghatai Turki and translated partly by the late Leyden Dohn, partly by William Erskine. London.
Walters manuscript W.596 is a copy of the Baburnama. Recognized as one of the world's great autobiographical memoirs, the Baburnama is the story of Zahir al-Din Muhammad Babur (866 AH/AD 1483-937 AH/AD 1530), who conquered northern India and established the Mughal Empire (or Timurid-Mughal empire). Born in Fergana (Central Asia), Babur was a patrilineal Timurid and matrilineal Chingizid. Babur wrote his memoir in Chaghatay Turkish, which he referred to as Turkic, and it was later translated into Persian and repeatedly copied and illustrated under his Mughal successors. The present copy in Persian, written in Nasta'liq script, is a fragment of a dispersed manuscript that was executed in the late 10th century AH/AD 16th. The ordering of the folios as found here does not follow the narrative of the text. The Walters' fragment contains 30 mostly full-page paintings that are representative of the Mughal court style under the Mughal Emperor Akbar (reigned 963 AH/AD 1556-1014 AH/AD 1605). Another major fragment of this work containing 57 folios is in the State Museum of Eastern Cultures, Moscow. The dark green leather binding, which is not original to the manuscript, dates to the late 13th century AH/AD 19th or early 14th century AH/AD 20th.
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This historic document is unusual for a number of reasons. An autobiography, it was written in a culture and time where the genre was unknown.Written in Chagatay Turkish, the spoken language of the Timurids, it is "one of the longest examples of sustained prose in the language."And the author, the great Babur, is one of the leading figures of his time
The text is not complete, but great parts of it remain.Best known in its Persian version it has been translated into English before. Wheeler M. Thackston Jr.'s is a new translation, more scholarly in approach as well as with a considerably updated style. The Oxford University Press edition is a remarkable book, generously illustrated with pictures from the period and photographs of sites figuring in the text. Maps and genealogical tables also help the reader navigate through the bewildering array of people and places. Of particular use are also the extensive notes, well-positioned in the wide margins of the text. The presentation of the text is exemplary.
The text itself is also fascinating. In 1494, "in the province of Fergana, in my twelfth year I became king," Babur begins his chronicle. He describes the small state and how he came to be king, the first steps in an illustrious career that would take him far from this place. He is meticulous in recording the details of his life: here and throughout his autobiography Babur is careful to give a full picture of geography, history, nature, and the many people involved.
The chronicle provides a wealth of information about many aspects of the life and history of those turbulent times. Babur explains the conflicts and battles between nations and peoples, but he also gives detailed descriptions of the new lands and customs he comes across, a useful and vivid panorama of much of Central and South East Asia.
Babur is also forthright in his descriptions of himself, with little puffery. He acknowledges weaknesses and uncertainty as to certain actions (or, for example, shyness in his relationship with his wife when he first weds at a young age). There are attempts at poetry interspersed in the text. Alcohol and battle are soberly and humanly addressed.
Babur's great, lasting success was the conquest of Hindustan and the establishment of the Mughal dynasty there. Although he recognizes it as a triumph, it is also clear that he misses his Central Asian roots.
The text is not complete, but it gives a full picture of Babur's fascinating life. Wheeler M. Thackston Jr.'s extensive marginal notes also provide much of the additional information regarding the players and the actions addressed in the text.Many of the scenes (and Babur himself) come alive in the often gripping history.
There are some difficulties to the text, particularly Babur's penchant of providing too much detail. There are long lists of names, obscure lineages carefully traced, and natural descriptions that might not be of general interest. The text does not always read smoothly, though the presentation tries to make it as easy on the reader as possible.
A fascinating and beautiful book, it is not always an easy or enjoyable read. Much, however, is very impressive, and it is a great document of the times. Certainly recommended.