Land of seven rivers: History of India's Geography (33 page)

7.
China: A History
, John Keay. HarperCollins 2008.

8.
The Story of Asia’s Lions
, Divyabhanusinh Chavda. Marg
Publications, 2008.

9.
This continued into
much later times—Singapore was named after a lion whereas the animal in
question was almost certainly a tiger.

10.
The April 2010 census
showed that Gir has 162 mature females, 97 mature males and 152 cubs. This is up
from around 180 in the 1960s.

11.
The Story of Asia’s Lions
, Divyabhanusinh Chavda. Marg
Publications, 2008.

12.
The Penguin History of Early India
, Romila Thapar. Penguin, 2002

13.
It is difficult to
date this compendium but a version of this document probably existed by the third
century BC. The text clearly states that surgery was a well-established science by
the time the compendium was written. So, it is reasonable to say that this body of
knowledge was systematized in the late Iron Age. However, it appears to have been
repeatedly edited in later centuries. The current version of the text may be as late
as the fifth century AD.

14.
The Roots of Ayurveda
, Dominik Wijastyk. Penguin, 2001.

15.
The Invasion of India by Alexander the Great as described by Arrian, Q. Curtius,
Diodorus, Plutarch and Justin
. J.W. McCrindle, Archibald Constable
& Co., 1896. Reprinted 1984 by Eastern Book House.

16.
The Invasion of India by Alexander the Great as described by Arrian, Q. Curtius,
Diodorus, Plutarch and Justin
. J.W. McCrindle, Archibald Constable
& Co., 1896. Reprinted 1984 by Eastern Book House.

17.
Some scholars argue
that Kautilya and Chanakya were different people but I have stuck to the traditional
view here.

18.
The Invasion of India by Alexander the Great as described by Arrian, Q. Curtius,
Diodorus, Plutarch and Justin
. J.W. McCrindle, Archibald Constable
& Co., 1896. Reprinted 1984 by Eastern Book House.

19.
There is another
tradition that he remained a minister into Bindusara’s reign.

20.
The Story of India
, Michael Wood. BBC Worldwide, 2008.

21.
Presumably from
wounds and famine.

22.
Dhamma (Dharma) is an
important concept in both Hinduism and Buddhism. It is difficult to translate but
broadly relates to the duty to do the right thing.

23.
The Penguin History of Early India
, Romila Thapar. Penguin, 2002.

24.
The empire was larger
than modern-day India and its overall population would have been around
75–80 million. These are my own guesstimates.

25.
From Stone Quarry to Sculpturing Workshop: A Report on the Archaeological
Investigations around Chunar, Varanasi and Sarnath
, Vidula Jayaswal, Agam
Kala Prakashan, 1998.

26.
The Story of Asia’s Lions
, Divyabhanusinh Chavda. Marg
Publications, 2008;
The True Chronology of Ashokan Pillars
, John Irwin,
Artibus Asiae
, XLIV, IFA, NYU, 1983.

27.
Note that
Megasthenes’s
Indika
has been lost but sections have been
preserved in other Greek writings.

28.
The Penguin History of Early India
, Romila Thapar. Penguin, 2002; ASI (
http://asi.nic.in/asi_exca_imp_bihar.asp
)

29.
The Arthashastra
, Kautilya, (trans.) L.N. Rangarajan, Penguin, 1987.

1.
The Penguin History of Early India
, Romila Thapar. Penguin, 2002.

2.
The Story of India
, Michael Wood. BBC Worldwide, 2007 (as translated by Dr
Sivakkolundu).

3.
The Sanskrit Language
, Thomas Burrow. Faber & Faber, 1955;
‘Rigvedic Loanwords’,
F.B.J. Kuiper, in Studia
Indologica
, 1955.

4.
The Commerce and Navigation of the Erythaean Sea
and
Ancient India as
described by Ktesias the Knidian
’, John W. McCrindle.
Westminister Edition 1901. Reprinted by Eastern Book House 1987.

5.
http://www.archbase.com/berenike/ english6.xhtml

6.
Ancient India as Described in Classical Literature
, John W. McCrindle.
Westminster Edition 1901. Reprinted by Eastern Book House, 1987.

7.
By the time of Christ,
Hebrew was no longer the language commonly spoken. Its role was somewhat similar to
that of Sanskrit—a language for formal use. As with the Prakrits in India,
Aramaic dialects were the language of the common people. It is only in modern Israel
that Hebrew was revived as a language for common use.

8.
A History of South-East Asia
by D.G.E. Hall, 4th edition, Macmillan,
1981.

9.
Literally means:
‘Memory of the Three Kingdoms’.

10.
‘Maritime
Heritage of Orissa’, Atul Pradhan, Utkal University (taken from the
official website of Orissa state government).

11.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/ 4302115.stm
&
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4312024.stm

12.
The World Economy: Historical Statistics
, Angus Maddison. OECD 2003.

13.
‘The Sewn
Boats of Orissa’, Eric Kentley, in
Maritime Heritage of India
,
(ed.) K.S. Behara, ABI, 1999.

14.
Travels of Fa-Hian and Sung-Yun
, (trans.) Samuel Beal, Trubner &
Co., London, 1869. Reprinted by Asian Education Services, 2003.

15.
When I revisited the
Iron Pillar in 2011, I saw what looked like a few rusty patches. The patches are
small and superficial, but
one wonders if acid rain may at last
be getting the better of this extraordinary example of ancient metallurgy.

16.
Travels of Fa-Hian and Sung-Yun
, (trans.) Samuel Beal, Trubner &
Co., London, 1869. Reprinted by Asian Education Services, 2003.

17.
‘Pleasure
and Culture’, Shonaleeka Kaul, in
Ancient India: New Research
,
(ed.) Upinder Singh and Nayanjot Lahiri, OUP, 2009.

18.
The Travels
, Marco Polo, (trans.) R. Latham. Penguin, 1958

19.
The report could also
relate to the Magh Mela—the smaller annual event at the same location.
However, Xuan Zang’s description suggest a grand affair that better fits
with the Kumbh itself.

20.
Buddhist Records of the Western World
by Hiuen-Tsiang, (trans.) Samuel
Beal, 1884. Reprinted by Oriental Books, 1969.

21.
Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwipa
, K. Kesavapany et al., ISEAS, 2009.

22.
Kalhana–the Chronicler
, K.N. Dhar, Shri Parmanand Research
Institute, Srinagar (
http://www.koausa.org/Glimpses/Kalhana.xhtml
).
Kalhana’s Rajataringini: A Chronicle of the Kings of Kashmir
,
vol. 1, Elibron Classics, Adamant Media, 2005.

23.
The Penguin History of Early India
, Romila Thapar. Penguin, 2002

1.
‘World’s Second Oldest Mosque is in India’,
Bahrain Tribune Daily
, 7 July 2006.

2.
Al-Hind: The Making of the Indo–Islamic World
, vol. 1,
André Wink. OUP, 1999.

3.
Al-Hind: The Making of the Indo–Islamic World
, vol. 1,
André Wink. OUP, 1999.

4.
The Great Arab Conquests
, Hugh Kennedy. Da Capo Press, 2007.

5.
Al-Hind: The Making of the Indo–Islamic World
, vol. 1,
André Wink. OUP, 1999.

6.
Not all Mappilas are
of Arab origin. It is a very diverse group that includes local converts as well as
non-Arab Muslim sailors.

7.
Means ‘Story
of Sanjan’. Sanjan was the name of a town in Khorasan from where the
refugees had come (it’s near Merv in modern Turkmenistan). The Parsis
probably named their first settlement after their lost homeland.

8.
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/ 2008-01-21/patna/27750686_1_muharram-procession-hazrat-imamhussain-month-of-islamic-calendar

9.
‘A newly
discovered founder population: the Roma/Gypsies’, Luba Kalaydjieva et al.,
Bio-Essays, Wiley, 2005.

10.
There is some reason
to believe that originally there were 64 shakti-peeths but I have stuck here to the
current convention.

11.
India: A History
, John Keay, Harper Collins 2000.

12.
Al-Hind: The Making of the Indo–Islamic World
, vol. 1,
André Wink. OUP, 1999.

13.
As quoted in
Ashoka
, Charles Allen. Little, Brown, 2012.

14.
The English
translation by John Briggs is available as
The History of the Rise of Mohammedan
Power in India
. Reprinted by Sang-e-Meel Publications, New Delhi, 1981.

15.
Rambles and Recollections of an Indian Official
, W.H. Sleeman, vol. II,
Asian Education Services (reprinted 1995).

16.
Gazeteer of the Delhi
District 1883–84, Sang-e-Meel Publications, Lahore (reprinted 2000)

17.
Delhi: A Thousand Years of Building
, Lucy Peck. Roli-INTACH, 2005.

18.
The Travels of Ibn-Batuta
, (ed.) Tim Mackintosh-Smith. Picador, 2002.

19.
India: A History
, John Keay. HarperCollins, 2000.

20.
One should not take
this literally as meaning a thousand pillars—it merely denotes a very
large number.

21.
A History of India
, vol. 2, Percival Spear. Penguin, 1990.

22.
India: A History
, John Keay. HarperCollins, 2000.

23.
The Baburnama
, (trans.) Wheeler Thackston, The Modern Library NY, 2002.

24.
The Baburnama
, (trans.) Wheeler Thackston, The Modern Library NY, 2002.

25.
Note that the process
of reconciliation with the Hindus had already begun with the Suris. The
commander-in-chief of the Suri army was Hemu, a Hindu.

26.
India: A History
, John Keay. HarperCollins, 2000.

27.
The Baburnama
, (trans.) Wheeler Thackston, The Modern Library NY, 2002.

28.
The Story of Asia’s Lions
, Divyabhanusinh Chavda. Marg
Publications, 2008.

29.
The Story of Asia’s Lions
.

30.
The Story of Asia’s Lions
.

31.
The Story of Asia’s Lions
.

32.
The Story of Asia’s Lions
.

33.
The Indian Renaissance
, Sanjeev Sanyal. Penguin, 2008,

34.
The Travels of Ibn-Batuta
, (ed.) Tim Mackintosh-Smith. Picador, 2002.

35.
A History of South-East Asia
, D.G.E. Hall, Fourth Edition. Macmillan,
1981.

36.
Admiral Zheng He and Southeast Asia
, (ed.) Leo Suryadinata. ISEAS,
2005.

37.
Cheng Ho and Islam in Southeast Asia
, Tan Ta Sen. ISEAS, 2009.

38.
Cheng Ho and Islam in Southeast Asia
, Tan Ta Sen. ISEAS, 2009.

1.
India Within the Ganges
, Susan Gole. Jayaprints, 1983.

2.
The Indian peninsula
does look somewhat like a roseapple. So, it is possible that the term Jambudwipa did
also have a geographical meaning. However, none of the texts that I read seem to
build on this in a systematic cartographic sense. It is possible that such texts did
exist but have been lost.

3.
The Riddle and the Knight
, Giles Milton. Hodder & Stoughton,
2001.

4.
The Riddle and the Knight
, Giles Milton. Hodder & Stoughton,
2001.

5.
The Travels
, Marco Polo (trans.) R.E. Latham. Penguin, 1953.

6.
Empires of the Monsoon
, Richard Hall. HarperCollins, 1998.

7.
Empires of the Monsoon
, Richard Hall. HarperCollins, 1998.

8.
Empires of the Monsoon
, Richard Hall. HarperCollins, 1998.

9.
The World Economy: A Millennial Perspective
, Angus Maddison. OECD,
2001.

10.
India Within the Ganges
, Susan Gole. Jayaprints, 1983.

11.
The Mapmakers
, John Noble Wilford. Pimlico, 2002.

12.
Hampi
, John Fritz, George Michell and John Gollings. India Book House,
2003;
A Forgotten Empire: Vijayanagar
, Robert Sewell, 1900. Reprinted by
Asian Education Services, 2007.

13.
Its construction has
been delayed for years. When work commenced in 2009, several workers were killed in
an accident.

14.
Hampi
, John Fritz, George Michell and John Gollings. India Book House,
2003.

15.
India Within the Ganges
, Susan Gole. Jayaprints, 1983.

16.
Travels in the Mogul Empire: AD
1656–1668, François
Bernier. Reprinted by Asian Education Services, 2004.

17.
Beyond the Three Seas: Travellers’ Tales of Mughal India
, (ed.)
Michael Fisher. Random House, 2007.

18.
Beyond the Three Seas: Travellers’ Tales of Mughal India
, (ed.)
Michael Fisher. Random House, 2007.

19.
India Within the Ganges
, Susan Gole. Jayaprints, 1983.

20.
Travels in the Mogul Empire: AD
1656–1668, François
Bernier. Reprinted by Asian Education Services, 2004.