Vice President Hamid Ansari today released an English translation of Sanskrit book 'Suleiman Charitra - Kalyana Malla' which, he said, was "the most fascinating exercise in cultural synthesis".
Translated by former diplomat A N D Haksar, the book is the first-ever English translation of 'Suleiman Charitra' - a Sanskrit rendering of Hebraic and Arabic tales composed about 500 years ago during the time of the Lodhi sultans who preceded the Mughal Empire.
In his address, the Vice President said different cultures have been brought together in the book.
Congratulating the translator and the publisher Penguin Random House for such a valuable book, he said it will make people think of the rich cultural legacy of India.
Kalyana Malla, an esteemed poet at the court of the Lodhi prince Lad Khan in eastern Uttar Pradesh at beginning of the 16th century, renders with typical Sanskrit embellishments, stories derived from Arabic, Biblical and Judaic sources.
"Now known only through the gardens which bear their name in this city, the book shows that the Lodhis also patronised the Sanskrit language," Haksar said.
The translator said the book had remained virtually unknown for half a millennium. "Academic text books on Sanskrit make no mention of it, nor has it been translated into any other language, as far as known," he said.
"The aspect most worthy of note today, at a time marked by increased cultural acrimony and cacophony, is message of cultural interaction and intermingling provided in this work.
"It brings out the wonderful biblical story of David and Bathsheba, and the fantastic stories of Alf Layla or the Arabian Nights into the world of Sanskrit, in a most vivid and readable manner. This at least is how I found them in the original, which I have tried as best as I could put in this translation for today's readers." he said.
Previous translations from Sanskrit by Haksar include 'The Shattered Thigh and Other Plays', 'Tales of the Ten Princes', 'The Kama Sutra', 'Three Satires from Ancient Kashmir' and 'The Courtesan's Keeper'.
