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Title: The Baburnama: Memoirs of Babur, Prince and Emperor (Modern Library Classics) by Babur, Salman Rushdie, Wheeler M. Thackston ISBN: 0375761373 Publisher: Modern Library Pub. Date: 10 September, 2002 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 5
Rating: 5
Summary: A World Classic
Comment: I would compare this extraordinary memoir by an extraordinary man to The Tale of Genji - both of them are "firsts" in their culture. The descendants of Tamerlane were both ruthlessly crafty Central Asian kings and warriors, and ultra refined conoisseurs of art and architecture, poetry, food, gardens, and (alas for them) wine. The Baburnama has it all. To encounter the private thoughts of a great conquerer is a unique experience. The Baburnama is well-written and well translated. It is one of the great treasures of literature, and will give the reader a much better idea why Afghanistan and Central Asia are the way they are.
Rating: 5
Summary: Masterpiece
Comment: Babur, a descendant of both Timur and Genghis Khan, was a truly remarkable man: a soldier and a poet, an inspirational leader with a deep appreciation for the beauties of nature - and a sensitivity that seems striking to us in a warrior of his undoubted stature.
His memoirs are a detailed, entertaining, and highly personal view of a changing world. In leading his followers into northern India, he laid the groundwork for the Mughal Empire, one of the great Islamic powers of the early modern period - and it is this achievement that history primarily remembers him for. Yet the _Baburnama_ shows that there is considerably more to the story than its conclusion.
With unstinting and engaging honesty, Babur talks of his early struggles, his constant setbacks, and his lifelong desire to hold Samarkand, glorious seat of his ancestor Timur (Tamerlane). For Babur, India is only the consolation prize after his failure to reconquer the lands of his birthright; India is rich, yes, astoundingly so, but it is far removed from his fond reminiscences of home. Along the way, reports of skirmishes with his enemies, and the constant betrayals of his allies, share the page with descriptions of local flora and fauna, and fascinating observations on everyday life in the cities and towns that he spends time at - and it is here that the work's true enjoyment lies.
Bear with the initially confusing internecine squabbles of the Central Asian nomads, and you'll be richly rewarded. A comprehensive and compelling insight into both Central Asia at the turn of the sixteenth century, and the day-to-day pressures inherent in the leadership of an empire based on conquest.
Rating: 5
Summary: A True King
Comment: Babur was a king in the true sense of the word. His autobiography outlines his feirceness as a warrior as well as his compassion toward the people in his court. Although he lived in a time where one would think there would be little time for introspection, this is exactely what his narrative is: and introspective look at his own life, his shortcomings, his downfalls, his triumphs and tragedies. One is touched by Babur's humbleness, his sensitivity towards some of the most simple of things, and at his sense of awe and appreciation of beauty in the world around him. Although in some ways I prefered the AS Beveridge translation, this is also a wonderful translation with beautiful pictures and notes in the margins to help explain things. Even if you are not normally interested in this type of book, Babur leads you into his world and you are compelled to read on!
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Title: The Jahangirnama: Memoirs of Jahangir, Emperor of India by Jahangir, Wheeler M. Thackston ISBN: 0195127188 Publisher: Oxford University Press Pub. Date: November, 1999 List Price(USD): $65.00 |
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Title: Discoveries India and the Mug Hal Dynasty by Valerie Berinstain ISBN: 0810928566 Publisher: Harry N. Abrams Pub. Date: March, 1998 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: An Arab-Syrian Gentleman and Warrior in the Period of the Crusades by Usamah Ibn Munqidh, Philip K. Hitti, Richard W. Bulliet, Richard W. Bulliett, Usamah, Phillip K. Hitti ISBN: 0231121253 Publisher: Columbia University Press Pub. Date: 15 May, 2000 List Price(USD): $19.50 |
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Title: The Road to Oxiana by Robert Byron ISBN: 0195030672 Publisher: Oxford University Press Pub. Date: May, 1982 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: White Mughals: Love and Betrayal in Eighteenth-Century India by William Dalrymple ISBN: 0670031844 Publisher: Viking Press Pub. Date: 31 March, 2003 List Price(USD): $34.95 |
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