Listening to Amīr Ḳhusraw in the Mughal Court: Indian Sultanate Epistemologies of Persian Music and the Construction of Hindustani Music History in the Mughal Imaginary

Abstract: The history and development of North Indian (Hindustani) classical music is still viewed today as the result of a process of synthesis, syncretism, and hybridity between Indian and Persian systems of music. Central to this narrative is the Indo-Persian poet and courtier Amīr Ḳhusraw (1253–1325), often seen as the father of Sufi qawwālī and the classical ḳhayāl genre. This article both offers a reconsideration of the traditional historiography surrounding Ḳhusraw and his role in the development of Hindu-stani music tradition through his own writings on music and locates our modern-day understanding of his musical innovations in the Mughal reception of his legacy.