The Dabistán, or School of manners, Volume 2 (of 3): translated from the original Persian, with notes and illustrations
Religion
The Dabistán, or School of manners, Volume 2 (of 3): translated from the original Persian, with notes and illustrations
Iran -- Religion; Religions
The Dabistan gives here a Persian translation of the Genesis, from the
beginning to chapter VI, verse 8; at the end of which the author says
that this is the only portion of the sacred book of the Jews which he
had an opportunity of examining. According to Eichhorn (see Einleitung
in das alte Testament, 4th edit., vol. II. p. 329) the five books of
Moses were translated into Persian by the rabbi Jacob, son of Joseph,
after the ninth century; the translation contained in the Dabistan is
said to have been executed by Abhi Chand; we cannot say whether it was
made from the Hebrew original, or from the Arabic, or any other
language. We are informed by the baron Hammer-Purgstall (see
Gemaldesaal moslimisher Herrsher, p. 57) that Werka ben Nafil, a
cousin of Khadija, Muhammed’s wife, and a Christian priest, translated
the Old and New Testament from the Hebrew into Arabic; this
translation appears however to have been but little known. Eichhorn
says (loco citato, p. 231), that the first certain traces of a
translation of the Hebrew sacred books into Arabic are to be found in
the tenth century. Pocock mentions (pp. 34, 361) Sâadias, a learned
Jew, who lived from 892 to 941 A. D., as translator of all the books
of the Old Testament into Arabic; and another Jew (not named) who made
a version of the book of Kings into the same language.
The Persian translation of the fragment under our consideration was
revised by the author of the Dabistan, and by Sarmed, who was a Jew
and a Rabbin, converted to Muhammedism, most probably in the first
half of the seventeenth century. As it was undoubtedly executed from
another original copy than that which had served to the translators in
Europe, it appeared interesting enough to examine whether the Persian
version of the Dabistan differs in any material point from the
translations known in Europe. For that purpose I have consulted the
following copies of the Bible:
I. The polyglot Bible, printed at Paris, 1645, in which I
chiefly compared the Arabic translation.
II. The Persian translation, published by the Bible Society
in 1825.
III. The German Bible, translated by Martin Luther.
IV. The English Bible, appointed to be read in Churches, 1837.
V. The English translation from the original Hebrew, by John
Bellamy, 1818.
VI. The French translation from the original Hebrew, by S.
Cahen, 1831.
VII. The French translation, by Messrs. Glaire and M. Frank,
1835.
Here follow some variations which I have remarked in the Persian
translation compared with the text of the versions just enumerated.
(References are made to the respective copies, by repeating the Roman
numbers prefixed to each.)
GENESIS, CHAP. I.
V. 2. II. III. IV. V. VI. read: “the spirit of God;” I. the
Arabic translation has “the winds of God;” VI. “un vent
violent (divin) agitait la surface des eaux;” the Dabistan,
وباد خدا مى وزيد بہ روي آب
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