house of translation

A house of translation was a special centre set up by a ruler where scholars worked together to translate important books from one language into another.

• Why Akbar created it: Akbar wanted people in his court to understand ideas from different religions and regions, so knowledge could be shared more widely.
• How it worked: Teams usually included Sanskrit scholars (pandits) who explained the text and Persian writers who rewrote it clearly in Persian, the main language of Mughal administration and culture.
• Why Persian mattered: Translating into Persian made these works readable for nobles, officials, and educated people across the empire who did not know Sanskrit.
• What it achieved: It helped create a shared intellectual culture—people could discuss stories, ethics, and philosophy across religious boundaries.
• A concrete example: The Persian version of the Mahabharata was called the Razmnama (“Book of War”), showing how translators sometimes chose new titles and explanations to fit the audience.

In Akbar’s time, translation was not just about language—it was a tool for governance, dialogue, and cultural exchange in a diverse empire.