New Delhi

Dara Shikoh was the elder son of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. He was also named the heir apparent by the emperor but was killed by his brother Aurangzeb on 30th August in 1659 for the throne. Though the prince never became the ruler he was one of the leading lights of interfaith understanding, a philosopher, artist, architect, translator, poet, and administrator.

In order to remember Dara Shikoh and spread his message of syncretism a two-day International Conference on Dara Shikoh and Majma ul Baharain Conference was hosted at Moulana Azad National Urdu University - Hyderabad recently. The conference was attended by spiritual leaders and scholars.

Haji Syed Salman Chishty, Gaddinashin, (heir apparent) Dargah Ajmer Sharif, and Chairman of Chishty Foundation, addressed the inaugural session and launched the reprint of Sikoh's book Safinat ul Awliya.

In his inaugural address, Haji Syed Salman Chishty spoke about the Dargah Sufi Shrine of Hazret Khawaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishty popularly known as Khawaja Gharib Nawaz among the masses.

Teachings of Khawaja Gharib Nawaz, Chishty Sufi Order had a major impact on Dara Shikoh towards developing his spiritual longing and opening up towards the Interfaith Understanding as well as Dialogues among all faith spiritual, masters, teachers scholars, and elders during his time as he established research-based scholarly libraries in Kashmir, Delhi and the other part of the Indian Subcontinent.

Dara Shikoh is credited to have introduced interfaith dialogue in India. He invited Hindu Scholars from Banaras, Mirzapur to his court and himself went to Banaras to learn Sanskrit. He also invited Muslim and Christian scholars to initiate interfaith dialogue.

Prof. Tariq Mansoor, Vice-Chancellor, Aligarh Muslim University, said on Tuesday at the inaugural of the two-day International Conference on Majma-ul-Bahrain of Dara Shikoh—A Harbinger of Pluralistic Approach towards Religion and Spirituality organized by Department of Persian & Central Asian Studies (DP&CAS), Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU) to mark Silver Jubilee year of the university.

The conference is supported by the National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language (NCPUL). Majma-ul-Bahrain (Confluence of two oceans) is a path-breaking book written by Dara Shikoh). Mumtaz Ali, Chancellor, MANUU, delivered the keynote address, and Prof. Syed Ainul Hasan, Vice-Chancellor presided over the function.

Prof. Mansoor said that the translation of the Upanishad from Sanskrit to Persian by Dara Shikoh had a great impact not only in India but also in Europe. The religious thoughts of India were exposed to Europe for the first time. Dara Shikoh was also a philosopher, who manifested his thought in the book Majma-ul-Bahrain which is being discussed today, he added. Dara Shikoh who was made crown prince by Emperor Shah Jahan never occupied the throne but he left his footprints on various aspects of Indian Civilization such as thought, philosophy, tolerance, etc. Dara Shikoh has a multi-faceted personality and his thoughts are immensely relevant today. Mumtaz Ali reminded us that Dara Shikoh called himself a ‘Fakir’ (mendicant) in his biography.

He lived without the paraphernalia of royalty. His mind was always that of a mendicant. There are various other books written by Dara Shikoh but with his translation of Upanishad the Western world by and large came to realize a hitherto unheard culture of India. Dara Shikoh either saw or met people who are said to have the truth, it is from them that he became aware that ‘the truth’ is infinite.

This great understanding comes only when one has spiritual depth. Coming together of Two Oceans is worth looking into. “We have to live together in this country where it was declared 1000 years ago that truth is one and we called it by different names. Let us practice what we say and what we preach,” Ali who is popularly known as Shri M. Prof. Ainul Hasan said, “Dara Shikoh taught us so many things like language appreciation. His ancestral language was Turkish, his language of expression was Persian, the religious zeal of Arabic cannot be overlooked, Sanskrit, on the other hand, is the language of his ideas.”

The Vice-Chancellor described Dara Shikoh as a universal man who loves all and hates none. Often it is believed that had Dara Shikoh been the successor of Shahjahan, the socio-cultural, socio-religious chemistry of India would have been different. Had he been alive for another 20 to 30 years he might have become a Mahatma (super soul) for the benefit of humanity. Mahdi Shahrokhi, Consul General of the Iran, Hyderabad, and Sirajuddin Qureshi, President, India Islamic Cultural Centre, New Delhi also spoke.

Dr. Mir Asghar Hussain, Former Director, ED/EPS, UNESCO, Paris, Prof. SK. Ishtiaque Ahmed, Registrar, Prof. Azarmi Dukht Safavi, Advisor, Persian Research Institute, AMU, and others were also present occasions. Book, comprising letters of and addressed to Dara Shikoh, translated for the first time into Urdu by the Department of Persian, MANUU, and a documentary was also released on the occasion. Prof. Aziz Bano, Dean, SLL&I welcomed the guests.