愤怒的年代-印度气候大战入侵王朝

INDIA IN PREMODERN times was often regarded by foreigners as a paradise on earth. Typically, Abdullah Wassaf, an early fourteenth century Persian writer, states:

It is asserted that paradise is in India,

Be not surprised because paradise itself

is not comparable to it.

在前现代化时代，印度经常被外国人认为是地上天国。引用14世纪早期波斯语作家Abdullah Wassaf的陈述作为典型例证：

或有人言天堂在印度，

别惊讶，天堂本身无法与印度媲美。

长舌翁注：

Abdullah Wassaf是14世纪初，伊尔汗国的历史学家和宫廷赞歌诗人。宫廷赞歌是波斯诗歌的一个特殊体例。核心就是赞扬，甚至是违心得的谄媚。其重要的著作是为蒙古西道诸王撰写的《瓦萨甫史》。该史以辞藻华丽，歌功颂德著称。

This was a highly chimerical image of India, but not too different from the common premodern perception of India by foreigners. There was however another view of India by medieval foreigners, which, although it also saw India as a land of fabulous natural resources, regarded it as an uncongenial place to live in, because of its torrid climate. India, according to Khondamir, an early sixteenth century chronicler, ‘consumed the body as easily as flame melts a candle.

把印度比天堂是非常不切实际的幻想，但其他前现代时期外国人对印度的通常描述也差不多。但在中世纪的外国人看来，印度有不同一面。印度是一片富有资源的土地，但是他的热带气候实在不适于外来人的生活。据16世纪早期编年史作者Khondamir所说，印度热带气候如火融蜡烛一般摧残着人体。

长舌翁注：

Khondamir老先生是从阿富汗西北的赫拉特移民到印度北方的德里，并在印度北方住了7年直到因（热带）病去世。对印度气候的评述经得起推敲。

Khondamir是指Ghiyāth al-Dīn Muḥammad Khwāndamīr。此人是帖木儿王朝时期最伟大的历史学家。其祖父也是一位重要的帖木儿王朝历史学家。爷两都出生在阿富汗的赫拉特，用波斯语写作，作为一些大事件的亲历者记录了大量一手资料。 Muḥammad Khwāndamīr经历过昔班尼败死的木鹿城会战，又经历了老家赫拉特被波斯吞并。1528年，Muḥammad Khwāndamīr老哥逃到喀布尔投奔巴布尔国王。后随巴布尔从龙入关，辅佐巴布尔和胡马雍两位皇帝并参加了很多重要战役。他自1499年开始受突厥语诗人“Alī Shīr Navāʾī”的邀请撰写帖木儿王朝历史人物和现今人物的传记，一直撰写历史著作到去世。

其著作有帖木儿王朝通史（包括巴布尔和胡马雍两个印度皇帝）一部

完善其祖父的宗教人物历史一部

莫卧儿王朝的建筑营造史一部

That apprehension presumably was the reason why Mahmud Ghazni decided not to annex India and rule over it, even though he had the proven military capability to do that. 

这种对热带病的忧虑大概是Mahmud Ghazni决定不吞并印度，并在印度以外治理印度。即使Mahmud Ghazni用武力证明吞并印度可行

长舌翁注：

这个Mahmud Ghazni可能大家都不太熟悉。但一提到“苏丹”大家就不困了。

这位Mahmud Ghazni是伽色尼王朝的第三位君主（其实是第四位），也是人类历史上第一个以苏丹当皇帝名号用的狠人。他带着波斯封臣打败了自己合法继位的弟弟。然后以阿富汗为核心领土，向西北吞并波斯文化圈的伊朗。打下了阿拉伯帝国崛起之前波斯人控制的伊拉克。逼迫阿拉伯帝国的皇帝给自己加尊号。Mahmud Ghazni已经是埃米尔了，再往上就是阿拉伯帝国皇帝的“哈里发”尊号。阿拉伯世界就没有再高的尊号给他了。于是哈里发把地区总督“苏丹”衔给了Mahmud Ghazni。让伽色尼家族世袭阿富汗总督。

这个尊号既有面子（尊号高于埃米尔），又有里子（阿富汗作为一个边缘地区正式进入了伊斯兰世界的认同）。起初“苏丹”尊号是哈里发赐予，非常珍贵。后来哈里发本身一年一换，甚至到了，某一年，巴格达有四个哈里发同时在街上乞讨要饭。苏丹称号滥发严重，只要是个地方领主就敢叫自己苏丹。苏丹就迅速掉价了。

到了本书所评述的历史时期（13世纪-16世纪），蒙古人给西道诸王下属所有部落首领都封了埃米尔。城市总督都能叫苏丹。有黄金家族血统的贵族都是米儿咱。从设拉子到大玉孜，真是千王逐鹿康居城。而同时期，东道诸王后裔在察哈尔和科尔沁，称王的蒙古贵族，不过二十家。

Similarly, Timur also decided against occupying India—although he swept through a good part of North India, plundering its wealth and slaughtering its people, he remained in India only for about six months, and quickly sped back to his home in Central Asia, heeding the advice of one his top nobles, who warned him: ‘If we establish ourselves permanently therein, our race will degenerate and our children will become like the natives of those regions, and in a few generations their strength and valour will diminish.’

同时，帖木儿也不准备占领印度，即使他拿下来了一大块被印度的土地。帖木儿掠夺了北印度的财富，杀戮了北印度的人民。帖木儿只在印度待了6个月，然后快速返回中亚老家。帖木儿听从了他首席贵族的劝告（兀鲁伯别吉？）：如果我们永久地留在印度，我们的蒙古-突厥血血性纯度会降低。我们的子孙会越来越像印度的原住民。几代人之后，我们后代的坚强和勇猛会丧失殆尽。

长舌翁注：

这话应验了。帖木儿兰的子孙巴布尔建立了莫卧儿帝国。巴布尔的子孙到最后狂嫖滥赌，抽大烟。天天沉迷于打猎、宫廷宴游和男宠。把一个帝国整的只剩德里一个市。

These views about the debilitating effect of Indian climate were highly exaggerated, just as the contrary views about India as a paradise were highly exaggerated. But Indian climate did certainly have an enervating effect on its people, as is evident from the fact that all the invaders who settled in India were in turn, after a couple of centuries, defeated and displaced by fresh invaders—Arabs by Ghaznavids, Ghaznavids by Ghuris, Ghuris by Mughals, and Mughals by Persians and Britishers

这些对印度气候能虚弱人体效力的诋毁是异常夸张。而对印度如同天堂的赞美也是如此夸张但印度的气候肯定会使得印度居民丧失活力。有一例证可以说明：入侵印度并定居的侵略者最终，无论过去了多少世纪，总会被击败并被新的入侵者替代。

阿拉伯入侵者被伽色尼王朝的波斯化突厥人替代。伽色尼王朝被古尔王王的波斯化突厥人取代。古尔王朝被莫卧尔王朝取代。莫卧尔最后被波斯人和英国人的夹击下被代替。

长舌翁吐槽：

作者把朝代和人种混用。用古尔王朝代替德里苏丹国的统治，实在有失妥当。

But why did some invaders choose to settle down in India, while others disdained to do so? The crucial factor in this seems to have been that the invaders who chose India as home were mostly those who had been driven out of their homeland—or were in imminent danger of being driven out—by their more aggressive neighbours. They were taking refuge in India as much as invading it.

但为什么要写入侵人选择在印度定居，而另一些入侵者觉得抢完就走？有一个至关重要的因素。留在印度的入侵者并把印度当家的入侵者，很多是被从老家驱逐或者有巨大被从老家驱逐（被他们更有侵略性的邻居们）的入侵者。他们一边入侵印度一边拿印度当避难所。

These migrant invaders chose India presumably because they saw it as a soft target, and also because of its reputation for fabulous riches. But why did the medieval Indian kingdoms, many of them ruled by Rajputs renowned for their martial valour, succumb so abjectly to Turks, even though the armies of the rajas were invariably much larger than those of Turks? And then again why were Turks so easily routed by Mughals, and Mughals in turn by Persians and Britishers? Why did each new invader rout the previous invader? India had never in its several millenniums long history prevailed over invaders, except in a couple of minor cases. Why?

这些入侵者很可能视印度为好打的软柿子并且也为了印度丰富的资源。但为什么中世纪印度邦国们直接向突厥人投了。很多邦国是由于武德充沛的拉杰普特族统治的。很多邦国王公的军队比突厥人的军队多很多。突厥人也被后来的莫卧尔王朝打爆了。最后莫卧尔王朝被波斯人和英国人一块打爆。

为什么新来到入侵者能打爆旧入侵者。

印度在其几千年的漫长历史中基本没有打败过入侵者，只有几次例外。这是为什么？

预告下一回内容：

为什么印度王公打不过入侵者。