Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Jagmohan Mahajan
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : May 30, 2008
- Pages : 90
- Weight : 1600 g.
- Size : 17.3 x 11.4 x 0.6 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 8186569715
- ISBN-1 3: 978-8186569719
- Product Code : BK14271
Description:
Form the Jacket
One of the oldest inhabited cities in the world and the holiest in India. Varanasi has attracted pilgrims from all over India for over 2500 years. No account of the travels of Indian visitors and pilgrims to the city, however, is available because of the non-existence of the tradition of recording impressions of such visits by Indians
Nor is there any record of foreign travelers visiting Varanasi until four centuries ago. It was then that travelers form the West started visiting Varanasi on a regular basis, and left animated accounts their visit. Later a number of landscape artists, almost entirely from Britain, began coming to India towards the end of the eighteenth century, and made superb sketches of Varanasi when they visited the city.
The views of Varanasi by the visiting landscape artists gave not only the outside word but also the Indians themselves the first ever visual impression of the scenic splendours of the holy city,. Until then so such visual record existed because of the lack of the genre of landscape painting in an otherwise rich Indian art.
Assembled from public and private art collections in India and abroad, these views are now being published together, along with a short survey of travelers;' accounts of their visit to Varanasi, for the first time.
About the Author
Jagmohan Mahajan has written extensively on British landscape artists in India as also on Ganga. His publications include Picturesque India: Sketches and Travels of Thomas and William Daniell. The Raj Landscape: British Views of Indian Cities and the Ganga Trail: Foreign Accounts of the River Scene.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Rana P.B Singh
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : January 1, 2011
- Pages : 221
- Weight : 300 gm.
- Size : 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 8186569308
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186569306
- Product Code : BK14270
Description:
Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy (1947-76) was one of the best minds that India has produced in the twentieth century. Son of a Tamil father and an English mother, his life was a living example on how to build bridges between Eastern and Western cultures.
By profession an art critic and a museum curator, Ananda K. Coomaraswamy was also a masterful exponent of metaphysics. As much at home with Plato, Aristotle and Aquinas as with Shankara and the other Vedic commentators, familiar with the Scriptures of all the main religions and proficient in many languages, he used to teach metaphysical principles by explaining the symbolism of traditional works. In his writings Coomaraswamy never displays his vast knowledge for the sake of mere erudition, but rather uses his amazing scholarship for a well-crafted plan: to show that below the endless variety of art forms and traditional beliefs a common thread runs deep — the acceptance of the sacred as the ultimate means to validate the multiplicity of everyday experience.
This book is a compilation of quotations from his works and letters, and it constitutes a good introduction to his thought. His theories are here applied to concrete situations, related to the problems of modern India, and could still suggest a third way to avoid both the traps of modern technocracy and the temptation of fundamentalism. It should not surprise us that his views are still relevant to the present situation: his opinions are rooted in truths that are neither political nor historical, neither ideological, or simply religious, nor even merely intellectual. They are rather related to that inner wisdom that embraces, without crushing it, all the distinctiveness of human experience.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Mark S.G. Dyczkowski
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : 2000
- Pages : 58
- Weight : 150 gm.
- Size : 8.2 x 5.6 x 0.2 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 818656912X
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186569122
- Product Code: BK14267
Description:
This commentary is by Bhagavadutpala, also known as Utpala Vaisnava, who lived in 10th century Kashmir. It is important both because it is early and especially because it contains copious references to Pancaratra sources - the earliest dateable ones so far recovered.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Bithika Mukerji
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : January 1, 2009
- Pages : 126
- Weight : 150 gm.
- Size : 6.9 x 4.3 x 0.3 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 8186569847
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186569849
- Product Code : BK14246
Description:
The “commentary” on the Taittiriyopanishad is entitled Taittiriyaka-vidya-prakashah, that is “the exposition of the teaching of the Taittiriyopanishad” . It is to be seen that almost all Upanishads propound the unity of the Self with Brahman in two ways, first, by negation and second, by the mode of indicative descriptions. Both these methods are to be met with in the Taittiriyopanishad. Indeed this Upanishad is the fountainhead for both methods which converge to the same point in the famous declaration: brahmavidyapnotiparam (the knower of Brahman attains the supreme). What Vidyaranya has accomplished in this independent work is best described as a “meta-commentary”, being not a mere gloss on the existing commentary, but an independent exercise in interpretation of the Upanishads themselves guided at every step by the turns in the commentary of Sankaracharya. In sum it may be viewed as the medieval counterpart of modern academic interpretations of the Upanishads vis-a-vis the exegesis of Sankaracharya.
The prevalent view is that Vidyaranya and the Vedic commentator Sayana were brothers. It is further believed that “Vidyaranya” (lit. forest of learning) is the ascetic name of Madhavacharya, the very powerful minister in the Kingdom of Vijayanagar which came into existence under his aegis in ce1336. He renounced the world when yet at the height of his worldly powers and became an ascetic, who was the thirty-third occupant of the prestigious seat of Sankaracharya at Sringeri.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : IP-Meera Grimes
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : October 31, 2011
- Pages : 268
- Weight : 270 gm.
- Size : 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-13 : 978-9381120019
- ISBN-10 : 9381120013
- Product Code : BK14245
Description:
Swami Vaidyanathan (1913-90) was an awakened and extraordinary individual of the modern age; a rare combination: master of music (both Indian and Western), science, and philosophy. True to the wisdom of the Upanishads, he was awakened by the sheer questioning of the meaning of the word “young”. He pondered, “What is young?” He looked at the photo of his childhood in his mind and then looked at his present body and questioned, “Who is me, this or that?” His deep deliberation took his mind backwards in time and at one point he went beyond where there was no sun, or moon. This happened when he was 23 years old, studying the atom under Lord Rutherford in Cambridge, England. Later, overpowered by compassion at seeing the world’s suffering, he dedicated his life to assuage the suffering of people and unite humanity. He found a solution and called his thesis, Masquism. He did not compromise on his principles even in trying circumstances. He lived as a walking messenger of God with the message that made him a world Guru. He loved humanity as a father would love his family, leaving his message as his offering and contribution to human welfare and unity. This book gives an overall biography of Remaji with his insight, struggles, and his last two years of letters to the author.
About Author:
Meera Grimes is a disciple of Swami Vaidyanathan and the custodian of all his writings. She was awarded the prestigious title Kalaimamani by the Tamil Nadu Government in 1983 for her outstanding performances on Harikatha. She is the author of two books: Harikatha and Offspring of God and the Play of God. Nowadays she spends all her time is preserving and editing Swami Vaidyanathan’s writings.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Stuart Rose
- Cover : Hardcover
- Edition : 2007
- Pages : 338
- Weight : 350 gm.
- Size : 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186569689
- ISBN-10 : 8186569685
- Product Code : BK14244
Description:
Sublime Love is an enquiry into the heart of all religions and spiritualities, into that which gives them their meaningfulness. In two parts, Sublime Love first meets with and illuminates spiritual love from every angle, and seeks to establish much more precisely than hitherto what spiritual love is, and what it entails. The second part is a comprehensive collection of this love’s most important non-mystical writings, which seeks to broaden and extend what has been found in the first part.
In the essay, first many questions are raised and responses given from a personal perspective — the only possible primary “evidence”. Then three well-known scriptural accounts of spiritual love are given in full with discussion: Krishna, Jesus, and the Buddha. Questions were put to authorities on spiritual love (priests, rabbis, monks, and the like), including: Are all neighbours to be loved? Does love always entail suffering? Through literature analysis and more questions, six nuances are explained. Is the experience the same for women and men? Is spiritual love unconditional? And what is the relationship between spiritual love and sexuality? Finally, four vital elements are met: Self, peace, beauty, and bliss. The essay ends with two parts illuminating spiritual love at its very highest.
After a short context-setting introduction to each entry, the Anthology presents substantial extracts from 36 writings, including: Aquinas, Aurobindo, Bahya, Dionysius, Fromm, al Ghazzali, Gibran, Gurdjieff, Kierkegaard, Lewis, Maslow, Merton, Mo-tse, Plato, Plotinus, Tolstoy, and Vivekananda.
About Author:
Stuart Rose has a Ph.D. in Religious Studies, and has lived, travelled, and worked in many countries and organizations. He now lives simply, away from the world.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Boris Marjanovic
- Cover : Hardcover
- Edition : April 1, 2011
- Pages : 284
- Weight : 500 gm.
- Size : 8.7 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186569986
- ISBN-10 : 8186569987
- Product Code : BK14243
Description:
The Stavacintamani of Bhatta Narayana (late ninth-early tenth century ce) is a devotional stotra dedicated to the praise and worship of Shiva and his power (shakti), who is responsible for creation, maintenance, and dissolution. The stotra is an outpouring of the state of the mature mind of one who practised, experienced, internalized, and lived this system of monistic Shaivism. The quality of the verses and author’s personal fame suggest that Bhatta Narayana was not merely an ardent devotee, but a learned scholar, familiar with the esoteric secrets of the Shaiva philosophy and practice. Khsemaraja’s commentary is intended to reveal the esoteric meanings of the original devotional text while simultaneously integrating this work into the canon of non-dual Shaivism. His lucid commentarial style primarily focuses on translating Bhatta Narayana’s poetic devotional verses into the terminology of yogic states and experiences based on the Pratyabhina monistic philosophy. For example, in verse 4 he states: “The praise of the Lord is nothing but the realization that the Lord, who is identical with this universe—but appears in diversity — is in reality non-dual.”
In his Foreword to this book, Professor Rastogi observes “Marjanovic’s approach is constructive, at times comparative and felicity of language renders the overall presentation very lucid, more particularly some of his renderings of Sanskrit terms into English impress at the first sight. In his treatment of the philosophical and doctrinal issues he appears authentic and tries to articulate the inherent intend of Khsemaraja. This work fulfils a long-cherished need and serves as a welcome addition to the literature of Kashmir Shaivism in English. I am sure it will benefit not only students of Kashmir Shaivism but those of Indian spiritual traditions as well. With these words I commend this work to the readers for a rewarding trip to the Stavacintamani’s universe of devotion as understood and interpreted by Kshemaraja.”
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Dr Ashok Kumar Chattopadhyaya
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : January 1, 2005
- Pages : 223
- Weight : 350 gm.
- Size : 8.4 x 5.8 x 0.7 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-1 3: 978-8186569542
- ISBN-10 : 8186569545
- Product Code : BK14241
Description:
Spiritual Education is meant for parents, teachers, and all who are interested in education based on spiritual values.
Included in the book are the views of Swami Sivananda, Mata Amritanandamayi, Krishnamurti, Aurobindo and other great spiritual masters on education. Also included are many practical examples using mandalas, meditation, different yogas and storytelling as aids to spiritually value-based education. The author gives a detailed description of schools based on spiritual ideals in the West as well as in the East.
Born and trained as a social worker and a teacher in Holland, Purnima Zweers has lived many years in India, where she has studied with many great spiritual masters. Her great dedication to her own personal spiritual journey led her to write her graduate thesis on spiritual education. That paper has been greatly expanded to create this book.
Purnima’s experience of India’s ashrams and spiritual traditions, as well as her awareness of the importance of value-based education, makes her feel very strongly that no effort should be spared to build up a generation with strong character, ethical values and moral principles. The well-being of the world depends on the education of our children.
Purnima has exhibited an exceptional skill in translating her years of experience into an easily readable format. Anyone interested in spiritually-based education will surely appreciate this book.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Kāśīnātha Nyaupāne
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : 1994
- Pages : 160
- Weight : 500 gm.
- Size :
- Language : Hindi
- ISBN-13 : 9788186117002
- Product Code : BK14208
Description:
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Divyabandhu
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : 2016
- Pages : 331
- Weight : 500 gm.
- Size :
- Language : English
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186117248
- ISBN-10 : 8186117245
- Product Code: BK14207
Description:
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Kamalakar Mishra
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : 2011
- Pages : 203
- Weight : 750 gm.
- Size : 8.9 x 5.8 x 1.3 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 938112003X
- ISBN-13 : 978-9381120033
- Product Code : BK14205
Description:
Dr. Mishra’s comprehensive book is learned without being tedious; philosophical without being intellectually arid; and readable without being banal. Above all, it preserves the aroma of spiritual practice that is fundamental to the Pratyabhijna tradition. Anyone interested in the metaphysics of spiritual practice or in Yoga and Tantrism will read this book with immense profit.
— Georg Feuerstein, Ph.D.
(Author of Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Yoga)
In this work Mishra discusses the central themes woven throughout the whole of the Tantric system, making it accessible, practical, and inspiring as a means to self-realization. This book would be excellent reading for students of the Tantric tradition and philosophy.
— NAPRA Trade Journal Thorough exposition of the Tantric system. A full exploration of Kashmir Shaivism’s history and the special significance of Abhinavagupta whose brilliant and encyclopedic works established Kashmir Shaivism as an important philosophical school. Extensively referenced with notes to the text for source data or detailed elaboration. — Hinduism Today
A brilliant exposition of Tantric tradition. . . . Mishra profoundly explains a system which allows us to fully integrate spiritual inquiry and practice with the mundane goals of physical enjoyment [and] worldly involvement. For spiritual seekers of any sort, with a true interest in understanding the nature of Tantra... this book will finally provide true insight into the ways and means of Tantric philosophy.
— New Age Retailer
About Author:
Kamalakar Mishra, Ph.D., is a retired professor of the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Banaras Hindu University in Varanasi, India. He is also the author of The Significance of the Tantric Tradition.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Kashinath Nyaupane
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : April 1, 2013
- Pages : 263
- Weight : 300 gm.
- Size :
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 8186117172
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186117170
- Product Code : BK14204
Description:
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Gopinath Kaviraj
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : July 1, 2014
- Pages : 103
- Weight : 150 gm.
- Size : 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 8186117210
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186117217
- Product Code : BK14203
Description:
Jnanaganja is an oft-searched state indicated by all great yogis appeared on this earth. It is hard to find out and perceived by the ordinary eyes. The third or creative eye can have the eternal beauty of this place located somewhere in Himalayan valley assembled by all seers, sages and ascetics including one who has attained the supreme consciousness. This place truly exists and all spiritually enlightened yogis still remain there, known by yogis moving around in their mortal bodies. Only a yogi can tell us about this mystic place. And it was Pandit Gopinath Kaviraj who has written about for the first time about this place. Jnanaganja is appearing here for the first time in English. Gautam Chatterjee, great grandson of Pandit Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar is a poet and philosopher. Author of White Shadow of Consciousness, Gautam has translated the complete Tantraloka by Abhinavagupta for the first time in English. This book is translated from original Bengali for the first time.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : I.P. Meera Grimes
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : January 1, 2008
- Pages : 184
- Weight : 180 gm.
- Size : 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186569764
- ISBN-10 : 8186569766
- Product Code : BK14198
Description:
Harikatha (lit. stories of the Lord) is the exposition of a religious theme, usually the life of a saint or a story from one of India’s scriptural texts. Its purpose is to spread devotion to the Divine. Harikatha is a composite art containing story-telling, poetry, music, drama, dance, and philosophy. Any story about God, or scriptural incidents, or about saints, who are the living exemplars for the existence of God, is an appropriate subject matter for Harikatha.
The greatness of Harikatha lies in the fact that it provides one of the easiest; if not the easiest path to attaining lasting happiness and peace. Listening to stories about Divinity and divine individuals subtly makes the mind attached to, and permeated by Divinity. As one continues to listen to the stories of the Divine, one becomes pure in thought, word, and deed. As well, it cultivates one’s power of concentration and drives away doubt from a wavering mind. Not only does a katha please its listener, as other fine arts do, but it also comforts the mind and elevates the soul of the listener. Thus, as it entertains, it enlightens.
About Author:
Meera Grimes (also known as Balameera Chandra) is well known in India for her Harikatha performances. She is one of the leading artists in this field, an artist of the Music Academy, Air India Radio, and Television. At the age of twelve Meera gave her first public Harikatha performance on Saint Dhruva (Dhruvacaritra) and since then has been presenting kathas around the world, both in Tamil and in English. Meera is also a Bharata Natyam dancer and teacher.
Specification:7
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Nyaupane Kashinath
- Cover : Hardcover
- Edition : December 1, 2012
- Pages : 191
- Weight : 450 gm.
- Size : 8.7 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186117101
- ISBN-10 : 8186117105
- Product Code : BK1419
Description:
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Arvind Sharma
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : December 31, 2007
- Pages : 170
- Weight : 240 gm.
- Size : 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186569696
- ISBN-10 : 8186569693
- Product Code : BK14196
Description:
Godesses and Women in the Indic Religious Tradition goes beyond the traditional sources that lie at the basis for determining the position of goddesses and women in India. Following the lead of a “hermeneutics of surprise” the book identifies, indeed, surprising new material — and conclusions; for example the analysis of Vedic Shrauta ritual. Or by offering surprising conclusions, when the location is obviously one involving women and goddesses, or anthropology discovers that the worship of the Great Goddess temporarily elevates the position of women. Other examples of the effectivity of the “hermeneutics of surprise” are seen when applied to the role of dakinis, Shakti worship, the Marathi Sant tradition, and to Shankara’s commentaries.
About Author:
Arvind Sharma, Ph.D. (1978) in Sanskrit and Indian Studies, Harvard University, is Birks Professor of Comparative Religion in the Faculty of Religious Studies at McGill University, Montreal, Canada. He has edited several volumes on the position of women in the world’s religions.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Translated by Rai Bahadur Srisa Chandra Vasu
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : January 9, 2012
- Pages : 111
- Weight : 300 gm.
- Size : 6.9 x 4.7 x 0.4 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186117149
- ISBN-10 : 8186117148
- Product Code : BK14195
Description:
Hatha-yoga is one of the most important forms of yoga in which attempt is made to attain concentration or samadhi by purification of the body and physical exercises. The Tantrik Sanskrit text Gheranda Samhita, which is in the form of dialogue between the sage Gheranda and on inquirer Chanda Kapali, teaches yoga under heads or sadhanas. The book, containing three hundred and fifty verses, is divided into seven chapters, in each of which are given the directions for the purification of the body, asanas or postures, mudras, pratyahara, pranayama, dhyana, and samadhi. The present translation of the Gheranda Samhita from original Sanskrit into English is an important contribution to the literature on yoga and should be of great use to those interested in the subject.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Jagmohan Mahajan
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : January 1, 2003
- Pages : 152
- Weight : 300 gm.
- Size : 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 8186569405
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186569405
- Product Code : BK14194
Description:
The Ganga occupies an unrivalled position among the rivers of the world. No other river is so closely identified with a country as the Ganga is with India. Nor has any river elsewhere in the world influenced to a greater extent the life of the country through which it flows. Cities and pilgrimage centres teeming with temples and shrines have sprung up all along its course — milestones in the history of the land and the growth of Indian civilization. The Gangetic plain has indeed been the pole towards which the political, economic and religious life of the country has gravitated.
It is little wonder, therefore, that the river should have caught the imagination of the multitude of foreign visitors to the country through the ages. Travellers of different nationalities and religions visiting India from abroad could not but take note of the Ganga. They have left fascinating accounts of the river scene observed for over two millenia. The information provided by them is vast and varied, and we find detailed and delightful descriptions of customs and ceremonies, periodical fairs and festivals, flora and fauna and the picturesque spots and pilgrimage centres which they came across in the course of their travels along the Ganga.
Besides exhaustive extracts from the foreign travellers’ accounts included in this anthology, the book is also illustrated with some of the fascinating sketches of the river scene made by the landscape artists among them as they went up and down the river.
About Author:
Jagmohan Mahajan has been engaged in a study of the Ganga for the last several years. He is the author of The Ganga Trail: Foreign Accounts and Sketches of the River Scene and the text of the illustrated The Eternal Ganga, besides several articles in various well-known magazines and newspapers in India and abroad. His other main interest is the work of British landscape artists in India. He has written extensively on this subject, and his publications include Picturesque India: Sketches and Travels of Thomas and William Daniell; The Raj Landscape: British Views of ndian Cities; The Grand Indian Tour. Travels and Sketches of Emily Eden, Annexation of the Punjab; and Splendid Plumage: Indian Birds by British Artists.
Specification:1
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Rana P. B. Singh
- Cover : Hardcover
- Edition : June 15, 2004
- Pages : 370
- Weight : 650 gm.
- Size : 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 8186569456
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186569450
- Product Code : BK1419
Description:
This book expounds in a colourful way the diverse literary images that Banaras, the city known as the Cultural Capital of India and the holiest city for Hindus, has inspired and continues to inspire in different writers in the course of history. Few other cities in the world have so sparked the imagination of the artists as this paradoxical and undescribable city which seems to integrate all contradictions.
Kabir, Tulsidas, Mirza Ghalib, Bhartendu Harishchandra, Rudra Kashikeya, Bishma Sahni, Raja Rao, Shivprasad Singh, Abdul Bismillah, Kashinath Singh and Pankhaj Mishra, all wrote about the Banaras of their time or of the past. Rana P.B. Singh analyses their literary images and the cultural traditions described therein, interpreting them in the purview of cultural symbols and lived traditions which have maintained their continuity since the ancient past. Each of the fifteen essays describes a time in the history of the city along with its culture, illustrated with Puranic sources. This work will certainly be helpful to understand the complexity and multiplicity of belief systems, and the historical perspectives of metaphor, symbolism and milieu.
About Author:
Rana P.B. Singh is Professor of Cultural Geography at the Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India, and Founding President of the Society of Heritage Planning and Environmental Health, as also of the Society of Pilgrimage Studies. He has been studying the city of Banaras/Varanasi/Kashi for most of his life, and is today an undisputed authority on the culture, geography and history of the city.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Richard Lannoy
- Cover : Hardcover
- Edition : 2002
- Pages : 419
- Weight : 650 gm.
- Size : 8.6 x 5.7 x 1.3 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 8186569251
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186569252
- Product Code : BK14190
Description:
This major contribution to the study of urban culture, first published in 1990 as the magnificent photographic book Benares Seen from Within, is now issued in a more accessible format, its text substantially revised.
This book is the most inclusive presentation of this extraordinary city ever attempted. It is the fruit of a lifelong interest in Benares from 1953 until the present day by an author well known for his unusual combination of reflective thought, scholarship and poetic sensibility.
Lannoy shows how the populace of Benares lives within a historical environment spanning at least three millennia of continuous habitation. Though now beset with all the characteristic urban ills of the age, it is arguably the oldest living city in the world to retain its original cosmic orientation. A centre of learning since antiquity, its way of life has not essentially changed until the last few years.
The variety and range of themes is remarkable. Lannoy explains the metaphysical substructure of the city orgazised as a microcosm of the universe. He shows how the extremely ancient cults of the pillar and the sun-wheel survive and continue to underpin the society’s ritual calendar in unbroken continuity for millennia, and gives a vivid account of how the Buddha’s life and teaching two thousand five hundred years ago had a profound influence on Benares. The city’s association with Yoga as well as with thriving commerce and weaving, the location of the uniquely central burning ghat — all under the aegis of Shiva and Kala Bhairava — the importance to the city’s economy of the pilgrim trade, are shown here to foster a distinctive blend of spirituality and worldliness.
Lannoy’s survey extends right up to the present, with a searching critique of the city’s troubled history of conflict between Hindus and Muslims, the politicization of the crisis between religion and secularism, and a lively account of leading personalities from Shankara to Kabir and Tulsidas, Gandhi and Anandamayi Ma. Lannoy has pondered deeply over a lifetime the significance of this venerable city, infusing these pages with the sagacity of lived experience.
Illustrated with many photographs by the author.
About Author:
Richard Lannoy is the author of several books on India, including The Speaking Tree: A Study of Indian Culture and Society, published by Oxford University Press in 1971 and still in print in India. He was on the founding staff of the ICA, London (1950-52), where he set up a celebrated forum, the Independent Group. He became a freelance photographer working for various international magazines, and on assignment for United Nations to the Palestinian refugee camps in Gaza (1952). He became seriously interested in India back in 1947, but began his work there, and particularly in Benares, in 1953, and on several subsequent visits until 1960, returning again in the Eighties, but completing his magnum opus on Benares in 1999. His thinking on Benares has never ceased for close on half a century, despite the infrequency of opportunities to reside there. He lives in Bath, and equally regards his work as author, photographer and painter as ways to advance a holistic view of life.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Dilip Kumar
- Cover : Hardcover
- Edition : September 10, 2014
- Pages : 220
- Weight : 650 gm.
- Size : 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186117187
- ISBN-10 : 8186117180
- Product Code : BK14189
Description:
Banaras: Cosmic Space of Life, Light and Twilight presents a short survey of a unique city which can be seen as various dimensions — A place of oldest civilization, A kingdom of Hindu pilgrimage, the River Ganga, A Centre for Oriental and Sanskrit studies, etc. It gives useful quantity of information and insight on the city, its history, culture; daily activities of typical inhabitants of Banaras and many more. As other tourist points located in other parts in India or the world are very much visible, in Kashi/Varanasi/Banaras people need to dive deep into its occult ocean of knowledge for true experience of ever vibrant settlement on this planet. No matter it is fade out or luminous. Enjoy Banaras!
About Author:
Dilip Kumar heretically the inhabitant of Kashi studied in Banaras Hindu University presently running a prestigious bookshop in Varanasi. Proud to say that his greatest grandfather’s family have been building contractors and helped making many of Grand Mansions and Forts in those times for those kings and Royal families of Banaras by bringing stones and boulders from Chunar mountains.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Rana P.B. Singh
- Cover : Hardcover
- Edition : January 1, 2009
- Pages : 457
- Weight : 650 gm.
- Size : 8.5 x 5.2 x 1.1 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186569856
- ISBN-10 : 8186569855
- Product Code : BK14188
Description:
This book describes various facets of geography, history and heritage of Varanasi, the heritage city of India, on/about which a vast historical literature is available. The section on Geography covers the general background of the topography, climate, soils, vegetation, and human landscape. The History section gives a general brief outline of history, from the ancient to the modern, including a chronological chart. The issue of inscribing the heritagescapes, especially of the riverfront ghats, on the line of UNESCO Heritage criteria, has also been fully described.
The Bibliography, by far the most complete up to day, contains 1,276 entries classified into 16 groups: Books, mostly in English; Research papers & essays; Persian works; Urdu sources; Sanskrit sources; Books/articles in Hindi; Marathi sources; Bengali sources; Published reports/ Government documents; Electronic publications; Films (English); Japanese sources; Unpublished dissertations; Unpublished reports; Unpublished reports (Varanasi: Inscribing Heritage Zones for WHL UNESCO); Unpublished (Undergraduate) fieldwork projects.
This book will serve as a major resource for Banaras studies, urban history, cultural geography, and heritage studies, and can also be used as model frame for similar heritage cities in other parts of the world.
About Author:
Prof. Rana P.B. Singh (b. 1950), PhD (1974), Professor of Cultural Geography & Heritage Studies since January 1999 at Banaras Hindu University, has been involved in studying, performing and promoting heritage planning, sacred geography and cultural astronomy, pilgrimage studies, eco-tourism and development in the Varanasi region for the last three decades, as consultant, project director, collaborator and organiser. He is widely recognized as one of the main authorities on the city of Banaras.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Rana P.B Singh, Pravin S. Rana
- Cover : Paperback
- Edition : January 1, 2006
- Pages : 401
- Weight : 550 gm.
- Size : 8.4 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-13 : 978-8186569245
- ISBN-10 : 8186569243
- Product Code : BK14187
Description:
This book is the first compendium of cultural sites in and around Varanasi. It covers a very wide range of places and subjects and provides a huge quantity of information, being a veritable small encyclopaedia of the Banaras region.
The first section includes Setting, Historical background, Religious landscape, Cosmogony, Festivities, Riverside landscape, and seven detailed Area walks along the ghats and the old city. There are also sections on the cosmic circuit of Panchakroshi, Ramanagar, Sarnath, the Jain places, the Muslim sacredscapes, and the rural landscape.
The second section “Around Banaras” covers the sites lying at less than 80 km, like Chunar and its medieval fort; Ahraura, with an Ashokan inscription; Lekhania, having pre-historic rock paintings; Vindhyachal, the Goddess’s area; Kaithi, an ancient Shiva temple; Shitala Dham, a site of a folk goddess; Jakhini, the site of a pre-Aryan goddess; Bhadohi, a centre of carpet weaving; Sitamarhi, a site of Puranic antiquity; Jaunpur with its important Muslim monuments; Chandraprabha and Kaimur Wild life sanctuaries.
The third part covers the places in the range of 100-300 km, like: Allahabad, the city of the Kumbha Mela festival; Ayodhya, the place of Sri Rama; Chitrakut, Lord Rama’s halting site; Khajuraho, the city of lived monuments; Banvasi Seva Ashram, an NGO; Mundeshvari, a seventh century goddess temple; Sasaram, with a sixteenth century royal tomb; Ballia and Sonepur, sites of sacred bath and cattle fairs; Varanasi to Vaishali by road — via Ballia, Sonepur and Hajipur; Deo and Madanpur, the twelfth century Sun temples; Gaya the City of Ghostscape; Baijanath Dham, city of Shiva.
Rana P. B. Singh is professor in the Dept. of Geography, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, and Founding President, Society of Heritage Planning & Environmental Health.
Pravin S. Rana is a visiting faculty in the Dept. of History of Art & Tourism Management, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi.
Specification:
- Publisher : Indica Books
- By : Rai Anand Krishna, Manu Krishna, Anand Krishna
- Cover : Hardcover
- Edition : 2003
- Pages : 24
- Weight : 550 gm.
- Size : 11.8 x 7.6 x 0.6 inches
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 8186569294
ISBN-13 : 978-8186569290 - Product Code : BK14186
Description:
The riverside of the holy city of Banaras has always attracted the attention of people. From the late eighteenth century onwards, both amateur and professional European painters were drawn to paint the panoramic scenic beauty of its ghats (“holy landing places”, used also for ritualistic bathing). The ghats are a vast area of space for the religious and cultural life of the city, serving also as the “lungs” of the thick population of the city which they fringed. These were gradually stone-paved and steps leading to the river were built; this trend mainly started in the second half of the sixteenth century. This great architecture movement was initiated by the Rajputs and subsequently followed by Maratha donors. In the present illustration folder, the core of this chain of ghats was already built while the flanks were yet to come.
Pilgrims taking ablution in the holy waters of the Ganga, dhobis washing clothes, corpses being cremated, cows and horses roaming, and such daily scenes as can still be seen today on the banks of the river have been treated with rare insight and humour. The river is replete with many types of boats, a principal mode of locomotion, such as goods-laden boats, ferry boats, pleasure boats of different denominations with liveried boatsmen, rowing boats, sail boats, boats drawn upstream by ropes. . . .
These paintings are the work of a “Company School” local painter, working in a localized tradition of British landscape water colour. The scenes are mostly naturalistic and present an authentic account of the riverfront.