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We have already mentioned some documents in the research of Karnataka's history that are local to the state. Indian writers who have written about their kings have been the official state litterateurs of their respective provinces. These people might have overstated their respective kingdoms' political scenario in order to please their rulers. There is a possibility that they could have glorified their kings and vilified the enemies in their writings. To research this & get to the facts is difficult. In such a situation, we also have to look at outsiders' literary works. This is where the books written by the ancient foreign visitors could be useful.
Foreign writers have played an important role in the creation of Karnataka’s history. In 120 AD, Greek geographer Ptolemy has described Karnataka's Banvasi, Badami, Aihole, Pattadakallu and Punnata in his book "Discovery of Earth". Another anonymous Greek, in "Periplus of Erythraean sea" has described coastal South India and it's people's interaction with outsiders for trade and communication. Even before Ptolemy, Pleeni, who visited the western coast of India, has written about Karnataka in detail.
In the 3rd century AD, Chinese traveler Huen Tsang had spent some time in King Harsha's empire. During that time, he traveled around Karnataka & has described its religious & social conditions in his book "Si-yu-ki". He has also written about the battle between Thaneshwar's Harshavardhana & Pulikeshi. About the splendor of Pulikeshi's kingdom, he writes "The pious Pulikeshi's empire spreads far & wide. People in his kingdom accept his sovereignty without question. They are religious, hard working, fair, loyal, enthusiastic, kind and selfless". This book helps understand the social conditions during the reign of the Chalukyas.
The Arab scholar, Sulaiman, who visited India in the mid 9th century AD, has contributed a lot in establishing the history of the Rashtrakuta kings. After him, came another Arab traveler named Al-Masudi. He has also described the glory of the Rashtrakutas. One of the more famous travelers was Ibn Batuta who hailed from the Tangier province of Morocco. He has written a factual report on the brutalities and the invasion of Delhi's Sultan Mohammed Mallikafur on the kingdom of Devgiri & Hoysala's Ballala-III.
One of the first European travelers who came to India was Venison Marcopolo. He has written about the South Indians’ love for sea-travel in his books. Later, a number of European missionaries toured the Deccan & the West Karavali, like St. Thomas, St. Odus, St. Jordan amongst others. These Christian priests have written about the Hindu way of life.
The writings of foreigners have provided an invaluable foundation for establishing the history of the Vijayanagar Empire. These visitors have written about their experiences from a fair perspective. Among them, Venice's Nicolo Conti (1420), Persia's Ambassador Abdul Razak (1442), Portugal's Durate Barbosa, Domingo Paes and Italy's Pietro della Valle are well known. We learn about Bahumani Sultan from Russia's Athanasius, who visited the Deccan in the 1470s.
The foreign scholars, tradesmen, ambassadors, missionaries and travelers who came to India have described what they have seen & experienced, in their books. These are as useful in establishing Karnataka's history as they have been in Indian history. In the next part, we will learn about the basis of Ancient Studies.
To be continued..
Translated by Vani Srikanta
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