Khusro, Jaina and Maharashti Literature

Did look at this a bit based on books I have and simple web searches. Findings below:

 

Amir Khusro(w) was -- as far as I can tell -- mostly a Sufi poet primarily in Persian around 1300. Generation-wise, roughly speaking, "sandwiched" between Sadi/Rumi and Hafez - the key figures in Persian sufi poetic efflorescence. Thus, it is really hard for me to imagine that in a a maximum list of authors that I would ever compile (now I put that figure at 36x5=180), Khusro(w)'s name would be one of them. May be ... but not likely.

 

On Jaina literature, I was not able to find much discussions. Partly, scholarship about Jainism is much weaker than Buddhism (only natural given the small practising Jains nowadays). Another reason is the split in Jainism early on, it looks like the northern culture (e.g. around Gujarat) has been fairly distinct from the southern branch (e.g. in Karnataka). Of the Tamil epics, I read that many there are explicit Jaina work - e.g. Sivaga-sindamani. Even the most "acclaimed" Tamil Epic, Silappadigaram ("The Jewelled Anklet"), has a tradition of the author being a Jain - in the story a Jain nun was an important (but not the main) character. R.C. Majumdar's History of India, have several pages on Jaina literature, though I haven't been able to read that on Google Books - just happens that those are pages not for preview. I found a translation by Alain Danielou probably in 1967 on Amazon Shilappadikaram (The Ankle Bracelet).

 

On Maharashti Pakrit literature, it is easier - Hala's Saptasataka was considered the most significant work by Basham. I have been able to find a recent English translation named Poems of Life and Love in Ancient India: Hala's Sattasai.

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