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Naheed Abidi
Indian scholar of Sanskrit and writer From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Naheed Abidi is an Indian scholar of Sanskrit[1] and writer. In 2014, she was honoured with Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award, for her contributions to the field of literature by the Government of India.[2] She has received many awards and accolades for her contribution to Sanskrit literature & philosophy, notable among them are: Nawab Raza Ali Khan Award, 2018 for Sanskrit Language by Hon'ble Governor UP, Sri Ram Naik ji.[3] The Late Smt. Chandrawati Joshi Sanskrit Bhasha Puraskar 2015 awarded by Gyan Kalyan Datavya Nyas, 6 Raisina Road, New Delhi. Janani Jagriti Darshan Samman by Ramayanam Trust, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh. Vikram Kalidas Puraskar by Kalidas Samiti, Government of M.P.; Dara Shikoh Sammaan & Yuva Pratibha Sammaan by Akhil Bhartiya Vidwat Parishad, Varanasi.
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Biography
Summarize
Perspective
Conferring Padma Shri award upon me is like honouring the Sanskrit world and it will inspire Muslims for Sanskrit learning. I am highly grateful to the scholars of Sanskrit and Persian who encouraged me in my objective of exploring the uniting the bond between the two faiths. Sanskrit is a rich language, which has the quality of promoting harmony and peace in the society. says Naheed Abidi[4]
Abidi was born in 1961, in a Shia Muslim zamindari family at Mirzapur,[5] in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.[6] Choosing Sanskrit as her subject, Abidi did her graduation at the Kamla Maheshwari Degree College and secured her MA from the K. V. Degree College, Mirzapur.[5]
She moved to Varanasi, an ancient seat of Sanskrit scholarship after her marriage with Ehtesham Abidi - a Senior Advocate in the city.[4][5] Varanasi is deemed holy by the Hindu text Garuda Purana.[7] She went on to secure a doctoral degree (PhD) from the Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith (MGKV), a public university in the city, and published her thesis titled as Vedic Sahitya Mein Ashvinon Ka Swaroop (The Utility and Form of Ashvin brothers in Vedic Literature) in 1993.[8] She received her D.Litt. degree from Lucknow University (Sanskrit) in 2009.
In 2005, Abidi started working as a lecturer without any pay at Banaras Hindu University. Soon after, she joined the Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith to work as a part-time lecturer on a daily wage scheme. However, the Sanskrit scholar, known as the first Muslim female to have worked as a lecturer in Sanskrit, had difficulties finding a regular job.[8] Her first book was published in 2008 and was titled Sanskrit Sahitya Mein Rahim - which is an account of the Sanskrit leanings of the renowned poet, Abdul Rahim Khan-e-Khana.[1] This was followed by Devalayasya Deepa,[9] a translation of Chirag-e-Dair, written by poet, Mirza Ghalib.[4] The third book was Sirr-e-Akbar,[10] a Hindi translation of 50 Upanishads, earlier translated by the Mughal prince, Dara Shikoh into Persian. She has published a Hindi translation of Vedanta, translated into Persian by Dara Shikoh and also the Sufi texts by the prince.[1][4][8][11]
Abidi lives with her spouse Ehtesham Abidi and her two children, a son and a daughter,[4][5] in V.D.A. colony in the Shivpur area of Varanasi.[12] She also serves as an Executive Council member at the Sampurnanad Sanskrit University.[5]
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Awards and recognitions
Abidi was conferred with Padma Shri, in 2014, by the Government of India, for her services to literature.[2] She has also been conferred DLitt by the Lucknow University.[5] Abidi met Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India on 9 September 2014 at the latter's residence and presented two of the books written by her.[13] The meeting was announced by Modi through a photo on his Google Plus page[14] and the video of the meeting was displayed on the personal web site of the Prime Minister.[11] In 2016, She was honored with the Yash Bharati Award by UP government at a function held in Lucknow.[6]
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Memberships/academic/social activities
- Member – NCMEI (National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions) MoHRD, GoI, 19 Jan to 7 April 2015, 7 December 2015 to 6 December 2020.
- Member – Academic Council, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh. 12 Feb 2020 to February 2022.
- Member – CBFC (Central Board of Film Certification), MoH&B, GoI • Member – CABE (Central Advisory Board of Education), MoHRD, GoI, CABE Resolution, 11 June 2015.
- Member – Selection Committee for selecting Maharishi Sandipani Rashtriya Ved Vidya Pratishthan Awaredee Nominated by Hon’ble HRD Minister, Ujjain, 31.05.2013.
- Member - Executive Council, (Chancellor's Nominee), Sampurnanand Sanskrit University, Varanasi (2007-09 & 2009-2011).
- Visiting Professor in various Central and State Universities and Post Grad. Colleges such as M.M.V. (B.H.U.), M.G. Kashi Vidyapeeth etc. since past 22 years till 2015.
- Promoting Muslim girls and boys to study Sanskrit. Providing academic help for promotion of linguistic harmony.
Literary contributions
- Naheed Abidi (2008). Devalayasya dipah. Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan. ISBN 9788186111536.
- Naheed Abidi (2006). Sanskrit Sahitya Mein Rahim. Hindi Book Centre. ISBN 9788186111321.
- Naheed Abidi (2021). Devalayasya Deepah 2nd Edition (2021). Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan. ISBN 8186111530
- Naheed Abidi (2022). Vartman Sandarbh Mein Vaidik Moolya[15] (2022). National Book Trust. ISBN 9789354916243.
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Books in press
- "Vaidik Sahitya me Ashwinav: Bhartiya evam P𝑎̅shch𝑎̅tya Mat".
- A comparative study between Ishavasyopanishad by Acharya Shankar and by Dara Shikoh.
- Raheemkavye Sanskritsahitasya Prabhavah etc.
Visits
Attended and presented in more than 200 National and International seminars and conferences: the most recent one being the World Conference organized by Madrasa Ayatullah Zafar-ul Millat (June 2018) in Iraq & Iran on the topic “Shia Azadari in India”, which also hosted many notable clerics & educationists.
See also
References
External links
Further reading
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