"A Muslim Pilgrim Learns a Lesson in Piety from a Brahman", Folio from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Amir Khusrau Dihlavi

Basawan|Muhammad Husain Kashmiri|Amir Khusrau Dihlavi

1597–98 · Image: Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper Margins: Gold on dyed paper · Islamic Art

The Khamsa (Quintet) of the Indian poet Amir Khusrau Dihlavi localizes its model, the Khamsa of Nizami, by rooting several of the stories in an Indian idiom. Likewise, the illustrations made for Akbar’s (r. 1556–1605) copy are set in typically Indian landscapes. Here, a Muslim pilgrim to Mecca meets a Brahman who travels to a Hindu temple by inching his way in a series of prostrations. Impressed by this religious zeal, the Muslim removes his own shoes and continues on his way barefoot.

Artist

Basawan|Muhammad Husain Kashmiri|Amir Khusrau Dihlavi

Date

1597–98

Medium

Image: Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper Margins: Gold on dyed paper

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Gift of Alexander Smith Cochran, 1913