
Author: Eminent Contributors
Editor(s): Suniti Kumar Chatterji/Priyadaranjan Ray et al
Publisher: Ramakrishna Mission
Year: 2001
Language: English
Pages: 4249
ISBN/UPC (if available): 8187332050
Description
The First historic work, this 6-volume Encyclopedia of Indian Culture, is a combined intelligence of all India giving a complete and connected story of her culture and civilization. It is a monument of Indian co-operative research in history, philosophy, religion, fine arts, exact sciences, economics, politics, literature and sociology.
COMMENTS:
This is the first and at present the only systematic, and so far as it goes, authoritative encyclopedia of Indian culture. The printing and the get-up are simply superb.
—The Philosophical Quarterly, India
One of the most notable enterprises of its kind yet attempted in any Asiatic country reached fruition in India recently with the publication of three volumes in which a survey is made of the whole field of India religion, history, and culture.
—The Straits Times, Singapore, S.S.
The Cultural Heritage of India is a monumental compendium of the treasures of Indian thought of centuries.
—Romain Rolland
The volumes are a contribution of these volumes will prove to be of great serving not only to India, but also to the rest of the world, where ignorance of India and Indian culture has been a very great obstacle to the due appreciation of the part played by India and Indian in the civilization and progress civilization and progress of the world.
—General J.B.M. Hertzog, sometime Prime Minister
of the Union of South Africa
A work that is encyclopedic in scope. . . The vigor with which India is asserting her individuality and cultural importance points towards a renaissance that will enrich not only India, but the rest of the world as well.
—The New York Times, New York
We get from the encyclopedic book the impression of a people who at their best display the most exquisite refinement of feeling, the subtlest grace, the nicest delicacy . . . And it may happen that it will be to India, as well as to Palestine, that we shall have to look for the spirit which will unite men in building a Kingdom of God upon earth.
—The Times Literary Supplement, London
Contents
VOLUME I
Publisher’s Note
THE SPIRIT OF INDIA
Rabindranath Tagore
INTRODUCTION TO THE FIRST EDITION
Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
EDITORS’ PREFACE
Suniti Kumar Chatterji, M A, D LIT
A D Pusalker, M A, LLB, PH.D.
Nalinaksha Dutt, MA, B L, PH.D., D. LIT.
PART I
THE BACKGROUND OF INDIAN CULTURE
The Geographical Background of Indian Culture
Race and Race Movements in India
Regional Structure of India in Relation to Language and History
Linguistic Survey of India: Languages and Scripts
Contributions from Different Language-Culture Groups
PART II
PREHISTORIC INDIA
The Stone Age in India
Indus Valley Civilization
The Origin of the Indo-Aryans
Cultural Interrelation Between India and the Outside World Before Asoka
PART III
VEDIC CIVILIZATION
The Religio-Philosophic Culture of India
The Vedas and their Religious Teachings
Vedic Culture
Vedic Society
Vedic Rituals
The Vedangas
Yaska and Panini
Vedic Exegesis
The Dawn of Indian Philosophy
A Bird’s Eye View of the Upanisads
Mystical Approach in the Upanisads
Upanisadic Meditation
PART IV
JAINISM AND BUDDHISM
Sramana or Non-Brahmanical Sects
Jainism: Its History, Principles, and Precepts
Jainism: Its Philosophy and Ethics
Some Fundamental Principles of Jainism
Some Aspects of Early Buddhism
Schools and Sects of Buddhism
Emergence of Mahayana Buddhism
Mahayanic Pantheon
Karma
Nirvana
Buddhism in Relation To Vedanta
Buddhism in Indian Life and Thought
Bibliography
Index
VOLUME II
Publisher’s Note
INTRODUCTION
Dr. C P Ramaswami Aiyar
PART I
THE TWO GREAT EPICS
Classical Sanskrit as a Vehicle of Indian Culture
The Ramayana: Its History and Character
The Culture of the Ramayana
The Mahabharata: Its History and Character
The Mahabharata: Some Aspects of its Culture
Religion and Philosophy of the Epics
The Influence of the Epics on Indian Life and Literature
The Ramayana and the Mahabharata in South-East Asia
PART II
THE GITA LITERATURE
The Bhagavad-Gita: A General Review of its History and Character
The Teaching of the Bhagavad-Gita
The Religion of the Bhagavad-Gita
The Bhagavad-Gita: Its Synthetic Character
The Bhagavad-Gita: Its Early Commentaries
Imitations of the Bhagavad-Gita and Later Gita Literature
PART III
THE PURANAS
Indian Mythology
The Puranas
The Upapuranas
The Ethics of the Puranas
PART IV
THE DHARMA-SASTRAS
The Dharma-Sotras and the Dharma-Sastras
The Smrtis: Their Outlook and Character
The Manu Samhita
The Nibandhas
Penances and Vows
The Hindu Sacraments (Samskaras)
The Historical Background and Theoretic Basis of Hindu Law
The Hindu Judicial System
PART V
ARTHA-SASTRA, NITI-SASTRA, AND OTHER SOURCES OF POLITICAL AND SOCIAL ORGANIZATION
A General survey of the Literature of Artha-Sastra and Niti-Sastra
Political Organization: The Monarchical States
Political Organization: Republics and Mixed Constitutions
The State in Relation to Religion in Ancient India
Some aspects of Social and Political Evolution in India
Some Basic Ideas of Political thinking in Ancient India
The Tiru-K-Kural
The Indian Social Organization: An Anthropological Study
Some Aspects of Social Life in Ancient India
Monasticism in India
Some Aspects of the position of women in Ancient India
Some Reflections on the Ideals of Indian Womanhood
Foreign Elements in Indian Population
Some Experiments in Social, Reform in Mediaeval, India
Ancient Indian Education
Economic Ideas of the Hindus
Guilds and other Corporate Bodies
Bibliography
Index
VOLUME III
Publisher’s Note
Preface
INTRODUCTION
PART I
THE PHILOSOPHICAL SYSTEMS
Rise of the Philosophical Schools
The Samkhya
Yoga Psychology
Nyaya-Vaisesika
Navya-Nyaya
Purva-Mimamsa
Materialists, Sceptics, and Agnostics
PART II
THE VEDANTA
Brahma-Mimamsa
Essentials of Vedanta
Philosophy of the Advaita
The Philosphy of Sankara
The Advaita and its Spiritual Significance
Post-Sankara Advaita
Philosophy of the Bhagavata
The Visistadvaita of Ramanuja
Madhva’s Brahma-Mimamsa
The Nimbarka School of Vedanta
The School of Vallabha
Bhedabheda School of Vedanta
The Acintya-Bhedabheda School
PART III
THE RELIGIOUS PHILOSOPHIES
The Philosophy of Saivism
The Path of Yoga in the Gita
Philosophy of the Yogavasistha
Philosophy of the Tantras
The Philosophy of Mysticism
Philosophy in Popular Literature
PART IV
THE PROBLEMS OF PHILOSOPHY
Religion of the Nyaya and Vaisesika
Nature of the Soul
Nature of the Physical World
Nature of Mind and its Activities
Extra-Sensory and Super conscious Experiences
PART V
THE PHILOSOPHICAL SCIENCES
Indian Theism
Indian Epistemology
The Art of Philosophical Disputation
Indian Psychology
Types of Human Nature
Indian Ethics
Philosophy of Values
Bibliography
Index
Illustrations
VOLUME IV
Publisher’s Note
Preface
Introduction
PART I
RELIGIOUS SECTS AND CULTS
Evolution of Religio-Philosophic Culture in India
An Historical Sketch of Saivism
Kashmir Saivism
Virasaivism
Early History of Vaisnavism
Bhagavata Religion: The Cult of Bhakti
The Vaikhanasas
Historical Evolution of Sri-Vaisnavism in South India
A Survey of the Caitanya Movement
Sankara Deva and the Vaisnava Movement in Assam
Evolution of the Tantras
Tantra as a way of Realization
The Spirit and Culture of the Tantras
Sakti Cult in South India
Tantrika Culture among the Buddhists
The Cult of the Buddhist Siddhacaryas
The Natha Cult
Some Later Yogic Schools
The Doctrinal Culture and Tradition of the Siddhas
Skanda cult in South India
The Religion of the Sikh Gurus
Cult-Syncretism
PART II
THE SAINTS AND THEIR TEACHINGS
The Saiva Saints of South India
The Vaisnava Saints of Karnataka
The Maharastra Saints and Their Teachings
The Mediaeval Mystics of North India
Tulasidasa and his Teachings
Sakti-Worship and the Sakta Saints
PART III
RELIGION IN PRACTICE
Religious beliefs of the Indian Tribes
A Glimpse into Hindu Religious Symbolism
Rituals of Worship
Indian Hymnology
Festivals and Sacred Days
Pilgrimage and Fairs: Their Bearing on Indian Life Swami Paritrananda
Methods of Popular Religious Instruction in South India
Diffusion of Socio-religious Culture in North India
PART IV
RELIGIONS FROM BEYOND THE BORDERS
Zoroastrianism
The Rise and Growth of Christianity in India
Islamic Culture
Islam in India
Sufism
PART V
SOME MODERN REFORM MOVEMENTS
The Brahmo Samaj
The Arya Samaj
What Theosophists Believe
PART VI
SRAI RAMAKRISHN AND SPIRITUAL RENAISSANCE
Sri Ramakrishna and Spiritual Renaissance
Bibliography
Index
VOLUME V
Publisher’s Note
Preface
Introduction
PART I
RELIGIOUS LITERATURE OF ANCIENT INDIA
Literature of Brahmanism in Sanskrit
The Greta Epics
The Puranas
Dharma-Sastras
Saiva Literature
Vaisnava Literature
Sakta Literature
Ganapatya, Kaumara and Saura Literature
Literature of Jainism
Prakrit Language and Literature
Buddhist Literature
PART II
SANSKRIT AND SANSKRITIC LITERATURE
Sanskrit Kavya Literaute : A General Survey
Sanskrit Drama: General Characteristics
Sanskrit Prose
Sanskrit and Sanskritic Fables
Sanskrit Histories and Chronicles
Sanskrit Poetics
Sanskrit Metres: Their Evolution and Principles of Division
Sanskrit Grammar
The Spiritual Outlook of Sanskrit Grammar
Sanskrit Lexicography
Political and Economic Literature in Sanskrit
Scientific Literature in Sanskrit
Philosophical Literature
Inscriptions: Their Literary Value
PART III
MAJOR LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES OF MODERN INDIA
Assamese
Bengali
English
Gujarati
Hindi
Kannada
Kashmiri
Malayalam
Marathi
Oriya
Punjabi
Sindhi
Tamil
Telugu
Urdu
PART IV
ADIVASI AND FOLK LITERATURES OF INDIA
Adivasi Languages and Literatures of India
Folk-Literature of India
PART V
INDIAN LITERATURE ABROAD
Nepal
Central Asia (Including Northern Afghanistan)
Tibet, Mongolia, and Siberia
China, Korea, and Japan
Ceylon and South-East Asia
Western Countries
Bibliography
Index
VOLUME VI
Publishers Note
Preface
Introduction
PART I
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL INDIA
Geographical Knowledge in Ancient and Medieval India
Vedic Mathematics
Post-Vedic Mathematics
Astronomy in Ancient India
Astronomy in Medieval India
Physics and Mechanics in Ancient and Medieval India
Botany in Ancient and Medieval India
Zoology in Ancient and Medieval India
Chemistry in Ancient and Medieval India
Ayurveda
Agriculture in Ancient and Medieval India
Mining in ancient and Medieval India
Shipbuilding in ancient and Medieval India
Engineering and Architecture in Ancient and Medieval India
India and the Ancient World: Transmission of Scientific Ideas
PART II
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN MODERN INDIA
Mathematics
Astronomy
Physics
Chemistry
Botany
Zoology
Medical Sciences
Geology and Mining
Geophysics
Meteorology
Agriculture and Animal Husbandry
Food Technology
Atomic energy in India: An Historical Perspective
Nuclear Energy in India: Growth and Prospects
Space Research
Defence Research
Bibliography
Index