Abu Rayhan Beruni or Alberonius (Latin) was a Persian Scholar and polymath of the 11th century. He accompanied Mahmud Ghazani in his conquests to South Asia.Al Beruni was the First Muslim Scholar to study India and its Brahmanical tradition. He is called father of Indology and the first anthropologist. He is called one of the earliest and greatest polymath of the Islamic World.
The Mughal emperor Akbar established a Translation Department. The department was given the task of translating Hindu religious scriptures, such as the Atharvaveda, the Mahabharata, Harivamsa and the Ramayana into Persian.
The Jalagariteswara temple located within the Vellore fort is regarded by Percy Brown as ‘the richest and the most beautiful structure of its kind’. It was built by the rulers of Vijaynagara kingdom.