Ancient India Chronicled Through the Sands of Arab Travelers

This story is about two ancient travelers and their tales of exploration – Al Masudi was an Arab world historian, geographer, and adventurer. Ibn Faḍl Allāh al-'Umārī (1301 – 1349) was a Damascus-born Arab historian. This story about the two travelers helps us understand how ancient foreigners viewed India from their perspective.

Arab travelers in their pursuit Image source: middleeasteye.net

The world we see today is a confluence of cultures and stories. Throughout history, travelers from different countries have brought the culture of one place to another. The Western world influences the East and vice versa. The history of the Arab world is in the chronicles of travelers who have gone to great lengths to explore Central Asia and the Middle East.

Al-Masudi is widely regarded across boundaries as a generational gem born in Iraq around the death of the 9th Century, sometime before 896 AD. Due to the lack of primary sources, his exact date of birth is unknown but he was born in Baghdad. His descendant was linked to Abdullah Ibn Masud who was historically known to be an intimate companion of the Prophet. Masudi was not just an aficionado of geography and history but he was also a stalwart in the natural sciences of cosmology, meteorology, astronomy, oceanography, topography, and also fictional contexts such as Islamic law and jurisprudence, and Arabic Folklore.

Almost 20 published works of his are attributed to our ancient past but unfortunately, the majority of his contributions are now lost along the pages of our history. Some of those are on Islamic thought and sects, and on poisons. Kitab al-awsa ("Intermediate Book"), Muruj al-Zahab wa-ma-adin al-jawahir ("Golden Meadows and Gem Mine"), Kitab at-Tanbih wa-l-'Ishraf ("Book of Admonitions and Revisions"), and Kitab al-tanbih wa al-ishraf (“Notices and Verifications”) are some of his famous works.

These works are perhaps the most important primary sources in history with information about the Arab World. Syria, the Caspian Coast, Iran, Armenia, the Indus Valley, India, Sri Lanka, the east coast of Africa, from Oman to Zanzibar, and possibly Madagascar were among the places Masudi visited. He traveled far and wide in his youth until he settled in Fustat (now Cairo) around 947 AD. He died there in 956 AD.

Masudi was a well-known geographer and historian. He was given the name of the "Arab Herodotus," and was the first Arab author to combine historical and scientific geological knowledge in one work. Another Arab Historian, Ibn Fa'l Allh al-'Umr (1301–1349) was an Arab historian who was born in Damascus. His most important works are the at-Tafsir-al-musallas-sharif (She explains to Mashal Sharaf) which is about the Mamluk regime. The latter was translated by Maurice Gaudefroy Dumonbiness into French in 1927.

Ibn Fadlallah, a disciple of Ibn Taymiyya (a fervent polemicist who violently attacked oppressive religious institutions) went to Cairo shortly after Kankan Musa of Mali went to Mecca to make a pilgrimage. He recorded Kankan Musa's story about the former Mansa. Kankan Musa’s Hajj was described in detail by Fadallah and is thus revered in Malian history. Fadallah also recorded the claim that the earlier Malian ruler or Mansa was the first to reach the lands of America. He stated that Musa produced such a large quantity of gold that its value in Egypt decreased after a decade. The Mali Empire's wealth was frequently described using this tale.

This may be the truth because, for centuries, the triumphs of the East have been unrecognized.

It is evident that the writings of these travelers have the power to change the world order by revealing great, shocking truths about their experiences of the world.

Al Masudi Source: browsebiography.com