Dr. Abdul Malik Al Rasoul Fauri
Assistant Professor, Department of Arabic Language, Zakir Hussain College, Delhi, University of
Delhi
Abstract
This article introduces an Indian entrepreneur Nawal Kishore who was very enthusiastic about publishing Arabic and Islamic literature. It also sheds light on the services of the Nawal Kishore Press in translating Arabic literature into Persian and Urdu. Moreover, it surveys several books, which were translated by the translation centre of this press and assesses the quality of these translations. The paper also discusses the history of the translated works published by this translation centre. Sometimes the translated work proves the level of the translator’s abilities. Some other times the name of the translator is considered sufficient to guess the quality of the translation. The article also includes short biographical notes on the translators who played an important role in the development of this translation centre.
Keywords
Nawal Kishore Press. Lucknow, early Indian translators.
Summary of the Article
The translation is a source of knowledge transmission and exchange of arts and literature. It is considered a gateway for cultural exchange as well. Like other countries, India also benefited from this source. Earlier. the translation activities in India used to be carried out individually and sometimes collectively under the patronage of some academies or institutions. Besides individual efforts, there were also some academies and institutions for the translation process such as translation units at Fort William College (Kolkata), St. George’s College (Madras; now Chennai), Delhi College (Delhi), and Dā’irat al-Ma‘ārif (Hyderabad) etc.
Besides these government institutions, some private publishing houses also established some units for translation. At the forefront of such publishing houses was a press in Lucknow namely Nawal Kishore Press. It established a translation unit on its premises and employed prominent translators of the time for the task of translation. It also outsourced the translation of some books.
Munshi Nawal Kishore returned from Lahore to Agra. He reviewed the conditions of Agra and its surrounding villages and realized that the place was suitable for establishing a printing press there. Therefore, he chose Lucknow for this purpose because it was a centre of sciences and knowledge. In 1858, he bought an old printing press with his unremitting effort.
This printing press printed about four thousand books and works in various languages, including books in Arabic written by 138 authors. Although Munshi was born into a Hindu family, he used to view all religions and sects with respect and printed religious books for different religions. However, he cared more about printing the Holy Qur’ān and other Islamic books than printing the books of any other religion. Nawal Kishore Press had a specific place where translators used to sit and do their work. Moreover, it provided translators with books and dictionaries, which they needed during translation. This publishing house hired well-known and prominent scholars for translation from Arabic to Urdu. Some important books that were translated from Arabic into Urdu are as follows:
Fatāvā-i ‘Ālamgīriyah, translated by Amīr ‘Alī;
‘Ain al-Hidāyah fī Sharḥ al-Hidāyah, translated by Amīr ‘Alī;
Ghāyat al-Auṭār Tarjumah-i Urdū Durr al-Mukhtār, translated by Shaikh Khurram ‘Alī al-Balhurī;
Fatḥ al-Bārī, translated by Amīr ‘Alī;
Sharḥ Jāmi‘ al-Tirmidhī, translated by Shaikh Fażal Aḥad,
and Maẓāhir-i Ḥaq Sharḥ Mishkāh al-Maṣābīḥ.
These books have been briefly introduced in this article along with their background and importance in the relevant field. Indian private printing presses did not lag in contributing to the development of literary culture in the country. Nawal Kishore Press printed many cultural and academic books and enriched the country’s libraries with its publications. Yet, it also played a prominent role in the field of translation.
