Daulat Qazi

Daulat Qazi (c. 1600 – c. 1638) was a medieval Bengali poet, believed to have been born into a Qazi family in the village of Sultanpur in Rauzan, Chittagong. Not getting any recognition at home, he left for Arakan, where he seems to have been received warmly. He wrote in Bengali though he lived in Arakan.

Life and work

Qazi is believed to the first Bengali poet to write under the patronage of the Arakan court. His patron Ashraf Khan was a commanding officer of king Shrisudharma (Thirithudhamma), who ruled from 1622 to 1638. There is evidence in his poem, that both Khan and Qazi were Sufis.^[1] Ashraf Khan asked Daulat to render the Avadhi narratives of Lor, Chandrani and Mayana into Bengali. Daulat Qazi died before he could finish his work. It was completed years later by Alaol.

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