Who is the author of the book “Tahqiq-i-Hind”?
- (a)Ziauddin Barani
- (b)Amir Khusro
- (c)Al-Biruni
- (d)Abdur Razzaq
Correct — C, Al-Biruni. Al-Biruni (973–1048 CE), the Khwarazmian polymath who accompanied Mahmud of Ghazni's campaigns into India, learned Sanskrit and studied Indian philosophy, astronomy and society at first hand, and wrote “Tahqiq-i-Hind” (also called “Kitab al-Hind”) — an early, analytical account of Indian civilisation for a foreign audience, completed around 1030 CE.
- (a)Ziauddin Barani — A 14th-century Delhi Sultanate court historian (author of Tarikh-i-Firoz Shahi), writing about the Sultanate itself — not the 11th-century Al-Biruni's account of India.
- (b)Amir Khusro — A 13th–14th-century Indo-Persian poet and musician at the Delhi Sultanate court, celebrated for poetry and the qawwali tradition — not the author of Tahqiq-i-Hind.
- (d)Abdur Razzaq — A 15th-century Timurid envoy who visited the Vijayanagara Empire and left a travel account of that kingdom — a different traveller, place and period from Al-Biruni's Tahqiq-i-Hind.
Tahqiq-i-Hind is considered one of the earliest serious scholarly accounts of India by a foreign writer, distinguished from typical travelogues by its analytical study of Indian religion, science, astronomy and customs — Al-Biruni even compared Indian ideas with Greek philosophy he already knew.
MPPSC/UPSC often test 'traveller/scholar → book' pairs from medieval India (Al-Biruni → Tahqiq-i-Hind, Ibn Battuta → Rihla, Abdur Razzaq → his Vijayanagara account). The trap is confusing the 11th-century Al-Biruni, who arrived with the Ghaznavid raids, with later Delhi Sultanate court figures like Amir Khusro or Ziauddin Barani.
- Al-Biruni (973–1048 CE) accompanied Mahmud of Ghazni's raids into India and later studied Sanskrit and Indian sciences
- Tahqiq-i-Hind (Kitab al-Hind) is his account of Indian religion, philosophy, science and customs, written in Arabic
- Distinct from later Sultanate-era figures: Amir Khusro (poet-musician, Khalji/Tughlaq court) and Ziauddin Barani (historian, Tarikh-i-Firoz Shahi)
- Abdur Razzaq was a 15th-century Timurid ambassador who visited and described the Vijayanagara Empire, not northern India
- Confusing Al-Biruni (11th c., arrived with Ghaznavid raids) with later Delhi Sultanate writers like Amir Khusro or Ziauddin Barani
- Mixing up Abdur Razzaq's Vijayanagara account with Al-Biruni's account of northern India
MPPSC/UPSC frequently pair a medieval chronicler with their signature work — lock Al-Biruni to Tahqiq-i-Hind, Ibn Battuta to Rihla, and Abdur Razzaq to his Vijayanagara travelogue.
No directly related past PYQ was found.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Ibn Battuta, the medieval traveller who left a detailed account of India under Muhammad bin Tughlaq, was a native of:
- (a)Morocco
- (b)Persia
- (c)Venice
- (d)Portugal
Answer(a) Morocco — Ibn Battuta was a Moroccan traveller whose Rihla records his years in the Delhi Sultanate.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which 15th-century Persian envoy visited the Vijayanagara Empire during the reign of Devaraya II and left a valuable travel account of the kingdom?
- (a)Al-Biruni
- (b)Abdur Razzaq
- (c)Amir Khusro
- (d)Ziauddin Barani
Answer(b) Abdur Razzaq — the Timurid envoy whose account describes the Vijayanagara court.