Question

There is a very rich travel literature in Indian languages. Find out about travel writers in the language you use at home. Read one such account and describe the areas visited by the traveller, what s/he saw, and why s/he wrote the account.

Accepted Answer

India has a rich tradition of travel literature. In Persian, which was widely used in medieval India, several travellers wrote detailed accounts of their journeys. One significant traveller was Abdur Razzaq Samarqandi, a diplomat from Herat who visited south India in the 1440s. He travelled to the city of Vijayanagara and wrote one of the most important descriptions of the city in the fifteenth century. His account dealt with affairs of the court, religious issues, and architectural features and monuments. As a diplomat, he wrote this account to record his observations about the land he visited. Another notable writer was Mahmud Wali Balkhi, who travelled very widely in the 1620s. He was fascinated by India and even became a sort of sanyasi for a time. These travellers wrote to share their experiences of distant lands. They saw India as a land of wonders and followed in the footsteps of earlier travellers like Al-Biruni and Ibn Battuta. — The question asks students to explore travel literature in their home language. Since the context provides information about Persian travelogues (which were significant in medieval Indian literary culture), this answer uses those examples. The context mentions Abdur Razzaq Samarqandi's visit to Vijayanagara, his role as a diplomat, and the subjects his account covered. It also mentions Mahmud Wali Balkhi's extensive travels. The answer addresses all three parts: areas visited, what was seen, and the purpose of writing.

Explanation

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