Political violence in ancient India

By:

Singh, Upinder

Material type: Text

TextPublication details: London Harvard University Press 2017Description: xvii,598p. 25 cmISBN:

9780674975279

Subject(s):

DDC classification:

303.60934 23 SI-P

LOC classification:

DS451 .S5698 2017

Contents:

Foundation -- Transition -- Maturity -- War -- The wilderness.

Summary: Political Violence in Ancient India argues that the idea of a nonviolent India is an artificial twentieth-century construct deeply influenced by Gandhi and Nehru. Ancient Indian history is marked by considerable violence of various kinds, as is the history of other parts of the world. However the issue of violence was debated in India with greater intensity than elsewhere. There was a recognition of the possibility of necessary force veering into violence, and of the strong tension between violence and nonviolence in the political sphere. This book looks at the evolution of the theory and practice of kingship and the attitudes towards political violence between c. 600 BCE and 600 CE by examining a vast array of texts, inscriptions, artistic representations, and numismatic and archaeological material. These include the ideas of Buddhism and Jainism; the emperor Ashoka; the Sanskrit epics, the Ramayana and Mahabharata; the political treatise, the Arthashastra; and the poetry of Kalidasa. The book examines how the problem of the relationship between kingship and violence was addressed in general as well with reference to punishment, war and the forest.--

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Holdings
Item type	Home library	Collection	Shelving location	Call number	Status	Notes	Date due	Barcode
Print	FOBJGU Sonepat- Campus	Special Collection - Arjun Sengupta	FOB Library	303.60934 SI-P (Browse shelf(Opens below))	Available	Donated by the family of Arjun Sengupta		026908
Print	OPJGU Sonepat- Campus	General Books	Main Library	303.60934 SI-P (Browse shelf(Opens below))	Available			136687

Includes bibliographical references (pages 555-584) and index.

Foundation -- Transition -- Maturity -- War -- The wilderness.

Political Violence in Ancient India argues that the idea of a nonviolent India is an artificial twentieth-century construct deeply influenced by Gandhi and Nehru. Ancient Indian history is marked by considerable violence of various kinds, as is the history of other parts of the world. However the issue of violence was debated in India with greater intensity than elsewhere. There was a recognition of the possibility of necessary force veering into violence, and of the strong tension between violence and nonviolence in the political sphere. This book looks at the evolution of the theory and practice of kingship and the attitudes towards political violence between c. 600 BCE and 600 CE by examining a vast array of texts, inscriptions, artistic representations, and numismatic and archaeological material. These include the ideas of Buddhism and Jainism; the emperor Ashoka; the Sanskrit epics, the Ramayana and Mahabharata; the political treatise, the Arthashastra; and the poetry of Kalidasa. The book examines how the problem of the relationship between kingship and violence was addressed in general as well with reference to punishment, war and the forest.--

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