The Minqar-I Musiqar: Hazrat Inayat Khan's Classic 1912 Work on Indian Musical Theory and Practice

Hazrat Inayat Khan's classic 1912 work on Indian musical theory and practice.

The Minqār-i Mūsīqār is prized as much for the quality of its content as for its distinguished author. This book communicates the musical learning and enthusiasms of the twenty-five-year-old Inayat Khan, whose personal drive, ambition to engage with the wider world, and longing for the divine are palpable throughout.

In the Minqār-i Mūsīqār, we find a compilation of theory and practice current during Inayat Khan's time and taught in his family line. Its sections on theory are based on the teachings of the author's grandfather, Maula Bakhsh, and other late nineteenth-century sources. The songs at the center of the book are the author's compositions, and the poetry collection includes more than sixty choice Urdu and Persian ghazals. But, as valuable as it is for its musical content, the Minqār is equally fascinating in what it tells us about the writer and the times in which it was written.