‘Our ancient humour deserves an audience’
As a career diplomat and former ambassador to Portugal and Yugoslavia, words were his stock in trade. Aditya Narayan Dhairyasheel or A.N.D. Haksar is now wielding words in a different way. Since he retired 30 years ago, Haksar, who is based in Delhi and now nearing 90, has spent hours translating Sanskrit works into English, to make them accessible to more readers.
He’s translated the Hitopadesa (1998), Narayan Pandit’s collection of fables compiled circa 850 CE; the Simhasana Dvatrimsika (2000), tales of the 4th-century king Vikramaditya, compiled circa 1200; Subhashitavali (2007), an anthology of verse compiled by Vallabhadeva in 15th-century Kashmir; and Chanakya Niti (2020), aphorisms by the 3rd century BCE strategist and philosopher, among other works.
His most recent translation, Anthology of Humorous Sanskrit Verses (Penguin Random House India; May 2022), features 200 hasya or humorous verses drawn from various works of Sanskrit literature ranging from the millennia-old Bhagavad Gita and Mahabharata to compilations from the 13th and 14th centuries.
“Sanskrit is mainly associated with religion, philosophy, myths and legends and other didactic material. But it also has other dimensions to it, like ancient humour, that deserve a wider audience,” Haksar says. Excerpts from an interview.
How did you become interested in translation?
I had some free time on my hands once I retired in 1992. That’s when I decided to revisit Sanskrit texts that I had studied in school. In order to master the language, I began translating works. My first translation was Tales from the Panchatantra (1992) which I thoroughly enjoyed. I then decided to take on more complicated ones.
Why Sanskrit?
Sanskrit literature does a remarkable job of depicting the intermingling of cultures. Several of the stories and fables can be traced back to roots in Arabic, Persian and Middle-Eastern folklore as well. For example, Kathakautukam (A Tale of Wonder; translated by Haksar in 2019) is a Sanskrit adaptation by poet Srivara in 15thcentury Kashmir of a Persian poem that narrates the love story of a princess called Zuleikha and Yusuf, who is a well-known prophet in Christianity and Islam.
Suleiman Charitra by 16th century Hindu poet Kalyana Malla, is a retelling of the Biblical story of David and Bathsheba, and brings together Hebraic and Arabic tales.
In the pandemic, when I was confined to my house, these humorous passages kept me entertained. So I thought, why not share them with the world?
A.N.D. HAKSAR, translator
How did you fix upon humour as the focus of your latest book?
I am fortunate to have a prized collection of about half a dozen compilations of ancient Sanskrit literature, which I keep going back to every once in a while. During the pandemic, I was confined to my house for several months. It was these humorous passages that kept me entertained, so I thought, why not share them with the world? I started looking for humour in Sanskrit texts from Kashmir to southern India, and was surprised to find so many verses that reflected the earthy humour of medieval poets in the most subtle ways. The project kept me both occupied and at peace during those trying times.
How difficult has the process of translation been?
Translation is a stimulating and challenging process. To find words that convey both the literal sense of the words as well as the poetic content isn’t easy at all. One needs to focus on conveying both the spirit and flavour of the text. As with most Sanskrit works, there are heavy layers of embellishment that one has to navigate to get to the essence of the piece, which takes time, patience and sometimes several rounds of drafting and redrafting.
What are you working on next?
I want to follow all the eight rasas or sentiments evoked in Sanskrit drama and poetry, to create more such anthologies. After hasya, I want to explore raudra (rage), shringara (the erotic), bibhatsa (horror), vira (heroic).