PhD Research Scholar, Department of History, Central University of Punjab, “India.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21659/jsae/v3n1/v3n118
[Article History: Received: 15 April 2026. Accepted: 18 August 2026. Published: 26 September 2026]
Abstract
This paper examines Mulla Masih Panipati’s 17th-century Persian rendition of the Ramayana, Dastan-i Ram u Sita (Ramayan-i Masih), as a seminal work of cultural translation and syncretic adaptation in Mughal India. Moving beyond literal translation, Panipati’s work represents a profound reimagining of the Hindu epic for a Persianate, predominantly Muslim elite. We argue that Panipati executed a deliberate theological and literary recalibration, transforming Valmiki’s narrative into a vehicle for Islamic and Sufi values within the prestigious framework of Persian masnavi poetry. The analysis focuses on three core strategies of reimagination. First, it explores the theological transformation, wherein Rama is reconfigured from a divine avatar (Vishnu) into a monotheistic, prophet-like righteous king (qazi-e ilahi), and the epic’s cosmology is aligned with the principle of divine unity (tawhid). Second, it investigates the Sufi allegorization of the narrative, where Hanuman’s devotion symbolizes the disciple’s (mureed) self-annihilation (fana) in the spiritual guide (murshid), and Ravana’s tyranny embodies the struggle against the ego (nafs). Third, it analyses the literary re-mediation through Persian poetic devices, metaphors, and the masnavi form, which recast the Indian story into an Islamic aesthetic and ethical register. Situating the text within the context of Mughal cultural diplomacy, this paper contends that Panipati’s work was not merely an act of patronage but a creative intellectual project aimed at forging a shared moral lexicon. The Dastan-i Ram u Sita thus stands as a crucial testament to the dynamic, reimagining power of translation in a pluralistic empire.
Keywords: Mughal Translation, Persian Ramayana, Cultural Syncretism, Sufi Allegory, Indo-Persian Literature, Mulla Masih Panipati
