A History of Agriculture in India v2.c54.s1: India in the Eleventh Century
A History of Agriculture in India v2.c54.s1
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India in the Eleventh Century
v2.c54.s1.1
Al Idrisi was born at Ceuta, in Morocco, towards the end of the eleventh century. He travelled in Europe and eventually settled in Sicily. He gives the following description of the Indians and their country.
v2.c54.s1.2
'The Indians are divided into seven castes. The first is that of the Sakriya. These are the most noble; from among them kings are chosen, and from no others. All the other castes pay homage to them, but they render homage to no one. Next come the Brahmans, who are the religious class. They dress in the skins of tigers and other animals. Sometimes one of them, taking a staff in his hand, will assemble a crowd around him, and will stand from morn till eve speaking to his auditors of the glory and power of God, and explaining to them the events which brought destruction upon the ancient people, that is, upon the Brahmans. They never drink wine nor fermented liquors. They worship idols (whom they consider to be) able to intercede with the Most High. The third caste is that of the Kastariya, who may drink as much as three ratls of wine, but not more, lest they should lose their reason. This caste may marry Brahman women, but Brahmans cannot take their women to wife. Next comes the Sharduya, who are labourers and agriculturists, then the Basya, who are artisans and mechanics; then the Sabdaliya (or Sandaliya), who are singers, and whose women are noted for their beauty; and, lastly, the Zakya, who are jugglers, tumblers, and players of various instruments.'
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Commenting on the character of Indians, Idrisi states, 'The Indians are naturally inclind to justice, and never depart from it in their actions. Their good faith, honesty and fidelity to their engagements are well known, and they are so famous for these qualities that people flock to their country from every side; hence the country is flourishing and their condition prosperous.' Among other characteristic marks of their love of truth and horror of vice, the following is related: 'When a man has a right to demand anything of another, and he happens to meet him, he has only to draw a circular line upon the ground and to make his debtor enter it, which the latter never fails to do, and the debtor cannot leave this circle without satisfying his creditor, or obtaining the remission of the debt.'
v2.c54.s1.4
Commenting on the country, its climate and crops, Idrisi wrote, 'The climate is hot. The country produces dates and sugarcanes in abundance. There are hardly any other fruits, if we except one, a sort of fruit called laimun, as big as an apple and of a very sour taste, and another which resembles the peach both in shape and taste. Mansura in Sind, that of which we are now speaking, is great, populous, rich, and commercial. Its environs are fertile. The buildings are constructed of bricks, tiles, and plaster. It is a place of recreation and of pleasure. Trade flourishes. The bazars are filled with people, and well stocked with goods. The lower classes wear the Persian costume, but the princes wear tunics, and allow their hair to grow long like the princes of India. The money is silver and copper. The weight of the drachma (dinar) is five times that of the (ordinary) drachma. The Tatariya coins also are current here. Fish is plentiful, meat is cheap, and foreign and native fruits abound.
v2.c54.s1.5
'East of Sindan there is an island bearing the same name and dependent on India. It is large and well cultivated, and the cocoa-nut palm, kana, and rattan grow there.
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'Saimur, five days from Sindan, is a large well-built town. Cocoa-nut trees grow here in abundance; henna also grows here, and the mountains produce many aromatic plants, which are exported.
v2.c54.s1.7
'Five miles by sea (from Kulam Mali) lies the island of Mali, which is large and pretty. It is an elevated plateau, but not very hilly, and is covered with vegetation. The pepper vine grows in this island, as in Kandarina and Jirbatan, but it is found nowhere else but in these three places. It is a shrub, having a trunk like that of the vine; the leaf is like the convolvulus, but longer; it bears grapes like those of the Shabuka, each bunch of which is sheltered by a leaf which curls over when the fruit is ripe. White pepper is what is gathered as it begins to ripen, or even before. Ibn Khurdadba states that the leaves curl over the bunches to protect them from the rain, and that they return to their natural position when the rain is over—a surprising fact!
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'Kambaya, Subara, Sindan and Saimur form part of India. The last named belongs to a country whose king is called Balhara.
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'Baruh (Baruch, Broach) is a large handsome town, well-built of bricks and plaster. The inhabitants are rich and engaged in trade, and they freely enter upon speculations and distant expeditions. It is a port for the vessels coming from China, as it is also for those of Sind. In all Nahrwara and its environs there is no other mode of travelling except in chariots drawn by oxen under the control of a driver. These carriages are fitted with harness and traces, and are used for the carriage of goods.
v2.c54.s1.10
'The inhabitants of Nahrwara live upon rice, peas, beans, haricots, lentils, mash, fish, and animals that have died a natural death, for they never kill winged or other animals. They have a great veneration for oxen, and by a privilege confined to the species, they inter them after death. When these animals are enfeebled by age, and are unable to work, they free them from all labour and provide them with food without exacting any return.
v2.c54.s1.11
'Opposite the sea-port town of Baruh lies the island of Mullan, which produces pepper in large quantities, and is two days' journey from Sindan. From Sindan to Balbak is also two days. Balbak produces cocoa-nuts, figs, bananas and rice. It is here that vessels change their courses for the different islands of India.
v2.c54.s1.12
'Fandarina is a town built at the mouth of a river which comes from Manibar (Malabar), where vessels from India and Sind cast anchor. The inhabitants are rich, the markets well supplied, and trade flourishing. North of this town there is a very high mountain covered with trees, villages and flocks. The cardamom grows here and forms the staple of a considerable trade. It grows like the grains of hemp, and the grains are enclosed in pods. From Fandarina to Jirbatan, a populous town on a little river, is five days. It is fertile in rice and grain and supplies provisions to the markets of Sarandib. Pepper grows in the neighbouring mountains. From Jirbatan to Sanji and Kaikasar two days. These are maritime towns near to each other; the neighbourhood produces rice and corn. From hence to Kilkayan one day. From Kilkayan to Lulu and to Kanja one day. The vicinity is fertile in rice and wheat, and produces sapan wood abundantly. The growth of this tree resembles that of the oleander. Cocoa-nut trees abound.'