A concise introduction to ancient Indian society, architecture, philosophy and history, by a woman who lived in Calcutta. Illustrated with lovely wood engraved plates and in-text illustrations, and one fold-out map.
Contents include:
BOOK I
Chapter 1: The Vedas, Address to the Sun, Indra, Horse Sacrifice, Forest, Mountains, Plains, Medicine, Five Castes
Chapter 2: Changes, Four Castes, Brahmans, Religious Ideas
Chapter 3: Location of Brahmaical Hindus, Code of Manu, Education, Marriage, King and Government
Chapter 4: Epic Poems, City of Ayodhya, Himalaya, Rama
Chapter 5: Mahabharata
Chapter 6: Poems and Code, Custom Deities of Aborigines, Village communities free cooperations
Chapter 7: Agriculture, Iron, Steel, King Solomon
Chapter 8: Women in the Rig-Veda, Upanishads
Chapter 9: Philosophy, Vedas superseded
BOOK II: Buddhism
Chapter 1: Vedic Period, Brahmanical Period, Alexander the Great, Greek & Bactria
Chapter 2: Hindu history, Greek Kings
Chapter 3: Inscriptions
Chapter 4: The Edicts of King Piyadasi, Buddhist Books of Ceylon and Nepal, Sakyamuni
Chapter 5: More on Sakyamuni
Chapter 6: More of Sakyamuni
Chapter 7: Buddhist Council, Asoka, Ceylon
Chapter 8: Life of King Asoka
Chapter 9: Division of Asoka’s kingdom, Scythians, Buddhist council in Kashmir
Chapter 10: Chinese Buddhists visit India
Chapter 11: Buddhist architecture
Chapter 12: Buddhism rejected by Sanskrit or Aryan Races
BOOK III
Chapter 1: Brahmanism from the period of Alexander the Great, Kalidasa, stories of Shiva
Chapter 2: Shiva adopted by Indo-Scythians and Brahmans, Shiva the highest member of the Trimurti,
Chapter 3: Drama, including Kalidasa’s Sakuntala
Chapter 4: Succession of Dynasties
Chapter 5: Puranas
Chapter 6: Effects of Brahmanical schemes, institution of the four castes a failure, Free women of India, Retrospect
