A Brief History of India, by Alain Daniélou

A Brief History of India by Alain Daniélou
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Alain Daniélou was a famous Indologist. He had an amazing life: read Shiv Sharan: Not Your Typical French Hindu.

I have read Part 1: Origins, which covers:

* The First Civilization: the Proto-Australoids (Munda)
* The Second Civilization: the Dravidians
* The Third Civilization: the Aryans

I have to say it's rather fanciful. Daniélou states that Shaivism predates the Vedas, whereas all other sources that I've read indicate the opposite. Furthermore, he perpetuates the Aryan Invasion Theory myth. He characterizes the Aryans as more primitive than the Dravidians. If the Aryans were that primitive, how did they develop a language as evolved as Sanskrit? Furthermore, he employs what I think is dubious etymology.

My other criticism is about Daniélou's characterization of the Mahabharata War. He describes it as a war between the (good) Dravidians, as represented by the Pandavas (of the Pandya dynasty) and the (bad) Aryans, as represented by Kauravas. Later on, however, he writes [p. 43]:

It appears that by the time of the Mahabharata war, the Aryans had already largely assimilated the ancient Dravidian civilization, and the Dravidians the Aryan institutions. The conflict was social, rather than cultural.

As I continue reading this book, I will share more insights with you.



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Simon Winchester's Calcutta

Simon Winchester's Calcutta by Simon Winchester
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The first part of Simon Winchester's Calcutta includes a history of Calcutta (Kolkata) written by Simon Winchester. Some readers might be turned off by Winchester's characterization of freedom fighter Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose as "buffoonish" and "one of the great villains." However, his assessment of Mother Theresa, which draws upon the work of Aroup Chatterjee and the late Christopher Hitchens, is spot on.

The second part of the book features excerpts about Calcutta from the works of a diverse group of writers that include N.C. Chaudhuri, William Dalrymple, Gunther Grass, V.S. Naipaul, Paul Theroux, Vikram Seth, Tagore, and Mark Twain. The different perspectives from these writers make this book worth reading.

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