Alberuni's India: An Account of the Religion, Philosophy, Literature, Geography, Chronology, Astronomy, Customs, Law and Astrology of India about AD 1030 (2 Vols. Set)
Alberuni or Abu Raihan, was a contemporary of Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni, the first independent ruler of the Turkic dynasty of Ghaznavids ruling during ad 997-1030. Alberuni has left behind a monumental account in Arabic in the form of Tahqiq ma lil-Hind (ad 1030), more usually known in English as Indica. While the ruthless conqueror Mahmūd was plundering the cities and temples of India, the great Arabic scholar Alberuni engaged himself in studying the culture and civilization of the country. He has included in his account the religion, philosophy, literature, mathematics, astronomy, physics, chemistry, geography, customs, laws and astrology of Brahmanical India of those days. He had written his Indica with a view to make familiar anyone about India who wanted to converse with the Hindus, and to discuss with them questions on religion, science or literature on the basis of his own civilization. It can be visualized from Alberuni's account that he was conscious of not allowing a place to any kind of religious enthusiasm bordering on fanaticism and the racial superiority complex in his survey. Due to this character the account of Alberuni has proved to be the best among the records made by any foreigner.
