Rana Hammeer of Ranthambor
July 13th, 2003 Amongst Rajputs the name Hammeer has extraordinary weight power and significance. It is a name to conjure with.
Category: Itihaas Articles
These are articles published under the Itihaas heading over multiple decades and in different newspapers
Remembering The Freedom Struggle
January 17th, 2001 The Tehelka tapes showed clearly that the BJP and the Samata are “open to offer”. Corruption in India is now great enough to cause the wheels of commerce and industry to slowly grind to a halt. What can be done to prevent utter hopelessness from enveloping our individual beings? Although all poetry… Continue reading Remembering The Freedom Struggle
Sufism, the Splendour of Indian Islam
November 18th, 2001 There is much more to Indian Islam than Wahabism or ‘fundamentalism’. In the commonly held view amongst Muslims themselves there are no less than seventy-two forms in which Islam is practiced in India. Each sect considers all others heretic, who will, on the Day of Judgement, be consigned to the flames of… Continue reading Sufism, the Splendour of Indian Islam
Mourning The Dead
November 6th, 2001 The rituals of death are elaborate and most complicated especially for the families of the dead who belong to the majority, Hindu community. The chief mourner has to shave the hairs of the head wear special dresses and eat special food. All those who attend the obsequies are required to go straight… Continue reading Mourning The Dead
How the Mughals integrated Afghan Rebels into the Imperial system
Nov 4, 2001 Here is a lesson from Mughal History. The only way to integrate any people into a larger whole is to make sure that the talented ones get employment at the level they deserve and that troublemakers are given quick and condign punishment.
Book Review: Remembrance of Days Past: Glimpses of a Princely State During the Raj. By Jahanara Habibullah
Nov 1, 2001 Book Review For Biblio. Remembrance of Days Past: Glimpses of a Princely State During the Raj. By Jahanara Habibullah (Oxford University Press 134 pages). The title is reminiscent of a Marcel Proust classic. The present book essays a different kind of nostalgia with far fewer pages[134] and quite as many as seventy-five… Continue reading Book Review: Remembrance of Days Past: Glimpses of a Princely State During the Raj. By Jahanara Habibullah
Communal Riot 1720 AD (Part I)
August 13th, 2001 Communal riots: did they occur earlier than the British Period of Indian History [1757-1947]? Is it right to hold the British responsible for creating and nurturing the Hindu-Muslim divide which led to the Partition of India in August 1947? While the entire blame for the Hindu-Muslim divide cannot be ascribed to the… Continue reading Communal Riot 1720 AD (Part I)
Communal Riot in 1720 Part II
August 12th, 2001 When the Mughal Empire fell into disarray the Emperor lost power. 1719 saw as many as four Princes become Emperor. In such troubled times hotheads and self seekers use religion to carve out a constituency for themselves. Mahtawee Khan Abdun Nabi a scholar of Islamic law raised the standard of revolt in… Continue reading Communal Riot in 1720 Part II
The Hindu Kingdom of Nepal 1843-47
August 8th, 2001 As the majority in India is Hindu by birth and increasingly aggressive about being so we shall take an example from the history of this community to show that being Hindu by itself does not make people better. Nepal is the only Hindu monarchy in the world. The ruler or King is… Continue reading The Hindu Kingdom of Nepal 1843-47
Silk in Mauritius: A failed enterprise
July 29th, 2001 The India trade was the most lucrative and rewarding commercial activity from ancient times. Spices and sugar textiles and handicrafts dancing girls and musicians made a rich and resplendent cargo which excited the people with money anywhere in the world and gold flowed into the country. This situation continued until the 18th… Continue reading Silk in Mauritius: A failed enterprise