REVIEWS
Rajaji: A Study of His Personality. Two Volumes: By
Masti Venkatesa Iyengar. Jeevana Kavyalaya, Bangalore–19.
Price: Rs. 30.
Masti
on Rajaji: a unique conjunction. The subject is one of the great Lights of 20th
century Indian history. Lawyer and patriot, freedom-fighter and Satyagrahi,
Gandhiji’s ‘keeper of conscience’, hot-gospeller of prohibition, twice Chief
Minister of Madras, first Governor-General of Free India, elder statesman,
spokesman for human survival, classicist in letters, humanist and moralist and man of God: the ‘elements’ were
so mixed in him and made so complete a marvel of a man and a leader of mankind
that we are not likely to meet his equal again. As for the author, now
fourscore years and more, Masti is a revered Fellow of the Sahitya Akademi and
the President of the PEN All India Centre, the doyen of men of letters in the
country, and a man of the richest and most variegated achievement in Kannada
and English as novelist and short-story writer, as poet and dramatist, and as critic,
essayist and evangelist of our culture. Masti on Rajaji cannot but be a unique
conjunction.
Rajaji is not,
properly speaking, a comprehensive or orthodox biographical exercise. It is, confessedly, more of his study of his personality”, at once
a simpler and a more difficult undertaking. The first volume almost
stands by itself, for it efficiently covers Rajaji’s life in the course of six
brisk chapters, followed by the 50-page concluding chapter on ‘The Rajaji
Evangel’ bringing together his views on politics, religion, planning,
socialism, welfare state, official language, social reform, nuclear
proliferation and the need to halt it. Perhaps the chapter “The Last Phase” in
the second volume should be read immediately after the sixth chapter of the first
volume so as to have the complete story of his life at a stretch. Nothing
important relating to Rajaji’s political period, or his memorable spells of
office at
The second volume
follows a different strategy. The Rajaji-Rama Rao friendship, illustrated by
their correspondence, gets a whole chapter, and here we have unexpectedly
refreshing insights into Rajaji’s tremblingly human sensibility, his infinite
capacity for love and understanding, and his singular genius for friendship.
Likewise, another chapter lifts the veil over the Rajaji-Masti friendship
spread over thirty years, beginning really with Rajaji’s happy collision with
Masti’s great short-story, ‘Masumatti’ as rendered into English by Rama Rao. When Rajaji translated it from English into Tamil (as ‘Venuganam’),
the Rajaji-Rama Rao duumvirate in letters expanded into a Masti-Rama Rao-Rajaji
triumvirate with creepers of influence fanning out in several directions.
Then
follow chapters that illuminate Rajaji’s associations with his relatives and
with his political colleagues, and his services to Tamil and English letters.
The two chapters, ‘The Rajaji Image’ and ‘Characteristics’, which together
account for about 80 pages, form a pocket cyclopaedia on the numerous facets of
Rajaji’s personality and achievement, excepting that the entries here are not
arranged alphabetically. But each entry arrests and holds the reader’s
attention, and the divers traits are sometimes illustrated with citations from
his or others’ writings. Rajaji’s sense of humour, his tact in dealing with
public meetings, his skill in debate, his inconsistencies, his practical
religion, his courtesy, his interest in music and sports, his many exemplary
roles on the theatre of life, his preference for the simple life, his high
sense of duty, his tolerance, his unfailing charm of manners, his beautiful
calligraphy, his wide reading, his Gandhian ministry, his luminous thinking,
his deep wisdom, his innate godliness–these and a score of other facets of his
power and personality receive attention in these pages.
Having
thus assembled adequate evidence, Masti concludes that Rajaji was “a great
worker and leader, a fighter and administrator and parliamentarian, a great
thinker and teacher, a great idealist.” In the consciousness
that he had done his best and never spared himself, never tampered with weights
and measures, never knowingly sinned against the Light–in that consciousness
Rajaji said towards the very end of his immaculate and inspiring life: “I am
happy.” What was Rajaji’s final measure except that of a Rishi, a modern
Rishi? Although rather unconventional as a biography, Masti’s two volumes give
us an endearing and convincing portrait of Rishi Rajaji.
–DR K. R.
SRINIVASA IYENGAR
Indian National Congress: Its history and heritage: By
Sankar Ghose. All
This
is a chronicle of the main events in the history of the Indian National
Congress, which had its birth in the year 1885. There have been books written
of the important part played by the Indian National Congress by Dr Annie Besant
and Dr Pattabhi Sitaramayya, both of which have earned the gratitude of the
public as good representations of the great political work of the Congress till
the period of the lives of the authors. This volume takes it further to our own
times, namely that of Smt. Indira Gandhi. No doubt it is a praiseworthy attempt
to narrate the entire long history of the Congress without omitting any of the
significant changes that had happened in its evolution from a body of mere
memorializers to a foreign Government, to the actual legitimate holders of
ruling powers over a vast country, known as Bharat. Still, one has to reckon
with the need to present a tale which should be considered a fair, just and
authentic account. The author, here, has tried his best to mention in a short
canvas of nearly 223 pages what he felt as the selective events and important
documents worth knowing to a student of our freedom fight. Tracing the history
from its origins in 1885, the early period of its activities when there were
only resolutions passed with sufficient details of the country’s crying need
for a representative form of government on the model of the British Parliament,
the slow but steady transformation into a huge organisation with direct action
for liberation from the foreign yoke, under the lead of the Mahatma, naturally
becomes one of fascinating reading. The author has done well to make the
readers realise how from the first one running thread, namely the eradication
of poverty, has been one of the main items of the programme of many leaders,
consequent upon the resolutions passed in the annual sessions of the meetings
of the National Congress. We are even today on the same question of how to meet
the challenge of the distressing poverty of our millions.
One
inescapable feature of the writing is that the book looks a command
performance, which perhaps it cannot escape, having been sponsored by the All
India Congress Committee.
The
documents added towards the last pages certainly show the care with which they
have been selected and their bearing on the account in the earlier pages of the
narration.
–K. CHANDRASEKHARAN
Sardar Patel: In tune with the millions. Birth
Centenary Volume. Sardar Vallabhbhal Patel Smarak Bhavan,
Ahmedabad. Price: Rs. 25-00.
The
birth centenary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was marked by a project of the
Patel Smarak Bhavan, to bring out a series of five volumes in English and five
in Gujarati, of commemoration of his services to the nation. This is the second
of the series, the first having been already published under the title “This was Sardar.”
In
this volume the material in the shape of memorable speeches, broadcasts,
statements and letters during the period between 1947 and 1948, are either
collections or selections of them, edited by Shri Nandurkar and Smt. Manibehn.
The short notes under each title makes it easy for the
reader to have his pointed attention drawn to the matter below.
Going
through this book, anybody will be most likely struck by Sardar’s
self-confidence, his practical approach and his candour of utterances in every
difficult situation which confronted the formation of the Indian Union. The
story of his remarkable achievement in bringing round most of the Indian States
into the
His
appraising of a situation appearing too difficult for others to tackle boldly,
in his hands, shaped without much of energy wasted. Everything done to overcome
resistance seems to have been normal with him. His words of challenge to the
United Nations Organisation or to Mr. Winston Churchill in dealing with the
Kashmir and
Only
one possible criticism could be laid, if at all, against the editors of the
volume. The notes often under each chapter, while legitimately claiming credit
for the Sardar in every one of the matters detailed under, could have avoided
so many effusive epithets appearing superfluous; when the contents themselves
speak of the superior nature of the method handled by the Sardar.
–K.
CHANDRASEKHARAN
An Album of Indian Sculpture: By
C. Sivaramamurthi. National Book
Indian
sculpture is one of the finest phases of Indian culture. But the art of
sculpture is younger than that of painting. Indian sculpture is merely 5,000
years old while Indian painting is more than 20,000 years old. Yet, Indian
sculpture has obtained greater reputation in the world, than Indian painting.
The
album contains 82 rich plates consisting of more than 82 photographs of famous
Indian sculptures. C. Sivaramamurti, profound scholar and art-historian, has
contributed a scholarly introduction to this album. The history of Indian
sculpture in its various epochs has been meticulously revealed in the
introduction. Apart from the introduction, every picture in the album has its
own small note.
What
is the significance of Indian sculpture? The significance of Indian sculpture
lies in the absence of naturalism, in that of realistic anatomy, in the poetic
expression and supple execution. The Indian sculptors had paid little heed
towards realistic representation of the external forms and thus they followed
their own conventions stated in canons. Indian sculpture cannot be said to be
mere stylization; it is more than stylization. Indian sculpture is a sort of
poetic realism, if not a prosaic realism. Those sculptors paid greater
attention to creative conception than to critical perception.
It
is not so much the text as the illustrations that would really matter in a volume
of visual arts, yet, the text has got its own value as it helps the reader, to
a great extent, in properly appreciating the illustrations. This album is rich
both in text and illustrations alike.
The
origin of Indian sculpture goes to as far as the Harappa period about 5,000
years back. But it is deplorable no specimens of that remote period are
included in the illustrations of this album. No prehistoric sculpture appears
in this album; only the specimens of Indian sculpture of the historical periods appear in this
“Album of Indian Sculpture.” The art of the Maurya period of the third century
B. C., of the Sunga period of the second century B. C., of the Kushana period
of the first century A. D., etc., makes its advent in the album and passes
through the various historical periods of Satavahana, Ikshwaku, Gupta, Pallava,
Chalukya, Chola, Pandya, Kakatiya, Vijayanagara, etc.
Indian sculpture is not pure Indian sculpture
uneffected by the alien influences. It has undergone several influences from
the lands beyond the border of India; and among those influences the strongest
had been that of Greece. That is why the Greeco-Gandhara sculpture of the
North-Western India (now Pakistan) is peculiar in its style and technique
alike. It has greater realistic features than those of the Indian sculpture of
other periods. The sculpture of India has, thus, various styles belonging to
various traditions formed in various periods. Realism, idealism and expressionism,
etc., have found their full expression in the sculpture of India.
“Chauri-Bearer,”
a Mauryan sculpture of the third century B. C., reproduced in the present
album, is a fine specimen of the Mauryan period. The special feature of the
stone sculpture of the Mauryan period is its mirror-like smooth polish. The
facial expression and the structure of limbs are not so advanced as those of
the later periods.
Sculpture,
in general, is of two types–round and relief. Round sculpture could be viewed
from the back side also whereas the relief sculpture could be viewed from the
front only. Single figures are generally executed in round sculpture while
group compositions are done in relief sculpture. In contrast to the
above-mentioned “Chauri-Bearer” of the Mauryan period, “Music and Dance”
belonging to the Sunga period of the second century B. C., is a relief
sculpture representing a group of musicians and dancers full of rhythmic
movement. Another sculpture captioned “Vasantasena pursued by Sakaara”
belonging to the Kushana period of the first century A. D. is more realistic in
both form and expression. This fine piece of sculpture illustrates an incident
in the Sanskrit drama entitled “Mritchakatika” written by Sudraka. The physical
features of this sculpture are more robust than those of the sculptures of the
preceding periods. “The Toilet of Sundari” of the Greeco-Gandhara style of the
second century A. D., is quite different in style, technique, texture,
expression, etc., from all other Indian sculptures mainly because of its alien
influences.
But
of all the sculptures of various periods of India, the most poetic, the most
rhythmic and the most dynamic is the sculpture of the Satavahana and the
Ikshwaku periods belonging to Amaravati and Nagarjunakonda respectively. One of
these sculptures captioned “The Adoration of the Buddha’s Feet,” reproduced in
this album, of Amaravati, belonging to the second century A. D. (Satavahana) is
one of the most enchanting pieces of Indian sculpture, in the beauty of
balanced composition of figures, in the delineation of the living rhythmic
curves of the limbs of adoring women and in the concentrated contemplative
expressions of their faces. In the Nagarjunakonda sculptures are discerned the
reflections of those of Amaravati, but in a more refined and more lyrical
manner. In Nagarjunakonda sculptures, some of the Sanskrit poems are
illustrated.
“An
Album of Indian Sculpture” is a visual feast to be enjoyed by the artist,
art-lover, connoisseur and layman alike. But in order to appreciate the
sculpture critically, one must cultivate oneself in the knowledge of the
mysteries of pure form devoid of the historical background, cultural
enlightenment, emotional appeal, etc. One should learn how to appreciate the
form without content, for all content is perceived through the form alone.
–SANJIVA DEV
Spectrum (Song of
Descent-Ascent): By K. V. Suryanarayana Murti. Poet Press India, Madras, 17.
Price: $ 5. (Rs. 15 in India)
I
am substantially in agreement with Dr Amante Buontempo who, in his Preface to
this book of poems – or perhaps rather of a single long poem – has so aptly
categorized the thought-origins of Dr Murti’s mystical attitude to the
Universe. This attitude implies attunement, but an attunement that cannot be
won without the experiences of joy and suffering in the world at large, because
the human being remote from such experiences is all but inhuman and cannot have
compassion for his erring at times unhappy fellows. With great mastery of
language, Dr Murti has accomplished the seemingly impossible task of adding
beautiful, unforgettable pearls to the resplendent necklace which is the mighty
song of God, but he has achieved this feat with unquestionable originality of
expression.
I
am myself a scholar as well as a poet and deeply immersed in the study of all
forms of mystical religious belief and practice. (Mr. Cox is also the President
of the Melbourne Shakespeare Society, Melbourne Victoria, Australia.–Ed.) Thus
I feel bound to comment that, for the general public, Spectrum is perhaps a difficult book. It has happily now been followed
by Symphony of Discords, which comes
down to earth sufficiently for the ordinary man to taste a little more readily
of the divine ambrosia.
–DR P. BRAIN
COX
Broadcasting and the People: By
Miss Mehra Masani. The National Book Trust, India, New Delhi-16. Price: Rs.
10-25.
Time and again AIR has been the target of criticism of every kind from every quarter and this has been its unfortunate lot from its very inception. A service organisation which has perhaps the widest contact with the public everyday is bound to attract the attention of the people from every quarter. The radio has an intimate contact with the home and the family and people rightly consider the organisation responsible for this service as something vital in their lives. A better appreciation and assessment will be possible if the working of AIR is viewed with a perspective of the background, of how the organisation has been developing over a period of three decades. This is what exactly the author has done elaborately and she has also suggested some remedies when once the appropriate structure for our broadcasting system is decided.
This
book “Broadcasting and the People” by Miss Mehra Masani fulfils a long-felt
need as a reference and study book for not only the students of journalism but
for those who take broadcasting as a career, as well as for the lay man who is
interested on how All India Radio and TV work, function, what are their
potentialities and how they suffer from certain limitations. The author, a
retired Deputy Director-General of All
India Radio having served the Department in several capacities for over three
decades and having gained rich experience by attending national and
international conferences on broadcasting, has taken the opportunity to
consider the problems of Indian Broadcasting in a wider international setting.
As Sri S. Gopal says in his foreword, these problems “require consideration and
decision when normalcy returns and to that extent serves a social purpose.” The
National Book Trust of India is to be commended for publishing this useful work.
–P. SRINIVASAN
The Communications Revolution: By
Dr Narayana Menon. National Book Trust, India, A–5 Green Park, New Delhi – 16.
Price: Rs. 5-75.
To
perpetuate the memory of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, A I R has instituted as an
annual feature “Sardar Patel Memorial Lectures”. Dr Narayana Menon participated
as the speaker in 1975 and the subject was “The Communication Revolution.”
There cannot be a better choice as Dr Menon is a distinguished scholar, broadcaster,
musicologist, retired Director-General of All India Radio, presently the
Executive Director of the National Centre for the Performing Arts, Bombay and a
Trustee of the International Broadcast Institute and President of the
International Music School (UNESCO). His three lectures were comprised into a
book form published by the National Book Trust.
Dr
Menon has elaborated in detail how the communication between man and man
improved during the periods – from the spoken word to the written word; after a
long period of settling down to a common heritage to the printed word.
Dr Menon
explains how every new technology in communication creates a new way of life, a
new kind of man. The Radio could present the word to the whole world. The
spoken word was rehabilitated with full force. When the social attitudes of men
are altered by these innovations, they are starting off points for revolution
in social organization, in our living, and in our thinking. Dr. Menon suggests
that the social purpose of the future society should be the constant and
continuous theme and purpose of publicity. The principal aim should be to
prepare the minds of the people to meet the challenge of these new problems.
Dr. Menon praises the potentialities of TV which
overtakes the spoken word, the visual element asserting itself again and is an
instrument of education, an instrument of socio-economic development of social
purpose. The versatility of a multi-purpose communication satellite can be
endless and when properly planned and can change the
social habits considerably. If only we could invest one-tenth of one per cent
of the money we spend annually on Education, Health, Family Planning and on
Agriculture in imaginative Television for informing, motivating and educating
the people on our problems, the results would be far beyond the investments. To
the often posed question “Can we afford TV?” Dr Menon’s answer is “Can we
afford not to have it?”
–P. SRINIVASAN
Dialogues on the Future of Man: By
Frederick Patka. Philosophical Library, New York. Price: $ 10.
The
volume under review is a refreshing presentation in the form of long dialogues,
between two characters Noecis and his friend Gynea from outer regions and men
on earth about several problems confronting man and the acute crisis he is
passing through. Man today stands at the crossroads of evolution and is facing
the terrific problems of atomic explosion. The alarming developments of nuclear
weapons and atomic energy spell not only the ruin of this nation or that nation
but the extermination of the entire humanity. How is one to escape it? Can he
do it in the present traditional ideological context? Can we effect a total
regeneration in the ways of man’s thought and avert the crisis by the adoption
of a new ideology which involves the discording of the outmoded ideas and worn
out concepts about family, marriage, education, life-style religion, that are
no longer functional and meaningful to us. In the place of these concepts, new
ideas are expounded to the visitors from the outer-space. The new ideas centre
round an imaginative ‘man-centered’, ‘this worldly humanism.’ In the place of
love between man and woman, a friendly relation which is non-possessive,
non-dominant and sincere is suggested. The concept of freedom and the reasons for
affirming authentic existence of man
are highlighted. The style of the book is delightful and easy reading
and is highly erudite without sounding pedantic. The theses discussed are the
criticisms of the current religious beliefs, organised theology, the changes in
the codes of morality, the disintegration of family life and the institution of
marriage, totalitarianism and freedom, etc. It is a substantial and enjoyable
volume on important themes that matter most to men and women. Chapters VII and
VIII are the plums in the pudding that are relished most. The dialogue form
aids effectively the communication of ideas and verifies them.
–DR P. NAGARAJA
RAO
The Seunas: By Shrinivas Ritti.
Published by the Department of Ancient Indian History and Epigraphy, Karnataka
University, Dharwar. 1973. Price: Rs. 25.
This
volume on the Yadavas of Devagiri is the third work on a dynasty which ruled
over the Karnataka region during l2th and 13th centuries. The author who worked
for sometime in the Government Epigraphist Office, now heads the Department of
Ancient Indian History and Epigraphy, Karnataka University, Dharwar.
The
source material for the study of the history of Yadavas is mainly
available in the form of inscriptions. Among the literary sources, Hemadri’s Chaturvarga
Chintamani is of primary importance to the Seuna history. Likewise, the
accounts of the Muslim chroniclers like that of Ferishta are useful. The author
made a thorough study of this source material and gives a connected account of
the history of dynasty.
In
the initial chapters, the origin and the name and the genealogy of the dynasty
are discussed. In the subsequent chapters, the political history is traced both
from the viewpoint of inter-state relationship as well as from the viewpoint of
the achievement of the individual ruler. The author points out that the
short-sighted policy of the rulers was responsible for the downfall of the
dynasty. Chapters on administration and culture bring to light the deep
scholarship of the author.
The
book is altogether a commendable performance in scholarship, lucidity and
presentation and is a welcome addition to the stock of publications on South
Indian History.
–Dr K. SUNDARAM
Asthma and Yoga: By John Merer. Bihar
School of Yoga, Monghyr.
The
author, a medical man, narrates how he came to be afflicted by this disease
from his very childhood. He analyses the causes that led to it and compares the
experiences of some others with his
own and points out how certain kinds of allergy caused by difficulties in
relationships bring about asthma. It is based on strained nerves and anything
that affects the nerves helps to bring these attacks. Medicines can be of help
but they have their own minus side. They introduce chemicals in the body and
their side-effects are irreversible after a stage. He describes how he came to
try the Yoga methods and found them helpful. He took to them as a regular
science under the guidance of Swami Satyananda Saraswati and is now completely
cured. He hopes to carry the message of Yoga to his native land, Australia, and
be of assistance to those who have found the disease incurable.
He studies in this book the main principles of Yoga
treatment, the practices to relieve suffering during acute attacks, the
relaxation techniques, Asanas and breathing exercises for curing the system,
etc. He discusses also other treatments like ayurveda, auto-urine treatment,
homoeopathy, etc. Why is coffee found helpful during asthmatic attacks? “The
caffeine in the drink helps to dilate the bronchi and stimulate the nervous
system, while the heat warms the chest.” Among the many helpful
hints he gives in these pages is that quite often an attack of asthma is caused
simply by the fear of having it.
Profusely
illustrated this handbook deserves wide circulation.
–M. P. PANDIT
Gems from the East: By H. P. Blavatsky.
Himalaya Prakashan, 37, 8th Cross, NR Colony, Bangalore-19.
Published
originally in New York in 1890 this book contains precepts and aphorisms–mostly
from Oriental literature–one for everyday of the year. The original edition had
drawings to illustrate some of the themes, but this reprint does not contain
them. Though the selections are more or less of a theosophical persuasion, they
have a gentle appeal to readers of all religions and beliefs. There is
something of religion, of culture, of spirituality, of practical wisdom. They
have an elevating effect. To take a few at random:
Flattery
is a false coin which circulates only because of our vanity.
The
road to sin is a wide highway; the way out of it, a steep and rugged hill.
Empty
thy mind of evil, but fill it with good.
Three
things can never be got with three things: wealth with wishing for it; youth
with cosmetics; health with medicine.
The motto is profound:
The
dew is on the lotus – Rise, Great Sun!
And
lift my leaf, and mix me with the wave,
Om
mani padme hum, the sunrise comes–
The
dewdrop slips into the shining Sea! (Edwin Arnold)
–M. P. PANDIT
Mystics and men of miracles in India: By
Mayah Balse. Heritage Publishers, M 116 Connaught Circus, New Delhi-1. Price:
Rs. 40.
As
an exercise into the exploration of the occult in India, this work is a fair
beginning. The author has met a number of men and women who wield certain
occult powers and are accessible to the journalist. For most of the occultists
shy away from inquisitive minds. But there is a genre which basks in publicity for various considerations. There
are quite a few of them here explaining to the author the feats they have done
or can do, especially in matters of healing, materialisations, telekinesis,
etc. There are miracle men like Kalika Prasad to whom liquor is God; Narayan
Baba who brings into existence idols and ashes and foretells your future by
just looking at you. And of course there is Satya Sai Baba who is largely
misunderstood, his own disciples being responsible for this unfortunate
development.
Occultism
is different from spirituality. Perhaps that is why some of the genuine saints
with God-conciousness do not find place in these pages. Broadly the writing
gives a garish picture of occult India which may titillate the Western tourist
but hurts the susceptibilities of the cultured Indian who sets little store by
these miracle-powers, who always looks to the quantum of spiritual
consciousness in the saints and sages he comes across. The difference between
white magic and black magic, the difference between those who perform miracles
by virtue of their own natural endowments and those who are under the control
of malevolent spirits, are some of the points to be considered at length before
one is in a position to assess the proper value and significance of these
performances and their performers.
–M. P. PANDIT
Sri Vachanabhushanam: By Sri Pillai
Lokacharya and Yatiraja Vimsati: By
Srimad Varavara Muni with an English glossary by Sri Satyamurtyswami. Copies
can be had from Sri Satyamurty Iyyengar, 150 North Chitra Street, Srirangam –
620006. Price: Rs. 5.
Sri Vachanabhushanam consisting
of 463 aphorisms is acclaimed to be the grandest one of the eighteen esoteric
works written by Sri Pillai Lokacharya. But the contents of the book not being
easily intelligible have become a closely guarded secret to many devotees. Sri
Satyamurtyswami has at last divulged and lets us into the secret by publishing
this work in charming English. A hidden treasure stands now exposed and brought
to our doors.
The
grandeur of Sri Mahalaxmi’s unsolicited grace as the unfailing mediatrix, the
efficacy of Prapatti or complete self-surrender as the sole means of attaining
the Lord, its superiority to other means, code of conduct to be followed by
Prapannas, the need and chief traits of an Acharya and the relationship that
should subsist between a preceptor and disciple and the redemptive grace of the
Lord are some of the important topics discussed here in unambiguous terms. All
points are illustrated from the epics Ramayana, Mahabharata and the lives of
Alvars.
“Yatirajavimsati,”
twenty verses in praise of Sri Ramanuja, is rendered into mellifluous English
verse and also commented upon with
full explanatory notes upon the significance of some important words like
“Rajahamsa.” “Love of God and God of Love” gist of two talks of the
commentator given at the end of this work, is a treat to read. A devotee cannot
close the book without completing the reading of it and without experiencing a
thrill of devotional ecstasy.
–B. KUTUMBA RAO
Meditations from the Tantras: By
Swami Satyananda Saraswati. Bihar School of Yoga, Monghyr. (Bihar)
There
are books and books on meditations but none of those can equal this gem of a
book either in the nature and quality of the contents or its practical
approach, or the treatment of the subject. Modus
operandi of many of the Tantric meditations of proven worth, but a sealed
book to those that are not initiated and are fast disappearing, are now for the
first time published, and thus given a fresh lease of life by the author to
whom our unstinted mead of praise goes. Scientific basis of Yoga and meditation
is explained. Method of practising of Ajapa
Japa, Nadayoga, Yoga Nidra and other practices are described step by step
with complete details and live class transcriptions. Important Asanas, Mudras, Bandhas, Pranayamas and Kundalini Kriyas are described and
illustrated wherever possible. Mantras of different religions like Buddhism,
Hebrew and Christianity and Mantras whose chanting fulfils desires are listed.
A glossary of technical terms is given. Nothing useful is left out. This
valuable book, a treasure trove of meditational practices is to be possessed by
all those that seek mental and spiritual peace.
–SANDILYA
The Rise of the Russian Novel: By
Richard Freeborn. Blackie and Son (India) Ltd., Bombay-1. Price: £ 2-40.
The
literary form of novel had a startling growth during the years 1830-’70. It
attained a remarkable diversity and richness, which won international
recognition. The author presents incisive and illuminating studies of the
novels of Pushkin, Gogol, Tolstoi, Dostoyevsky, Goncharov and other masters who
enriched it with new dimensions. The sociological as well as the psychological
aspect of the novel was thoroughly explored and exploited fully in order to
make the novel a human document of great value. The masterly studies contained
in this volume of nearly three hundred pages offer to the reader a deep insight
into the human predicament as it was portrayed by the celebrated novelists of
Russia who hold an honoured place among the great novelists of the world.
–Dr C. N.
SASTRI
Hymns of Existence: By Jayasudarshana.
Authors Workshop, 769, 5th Block Rajajinagar, Bangalore-10. Price: Rs. 7-50.
It
is a collection of poems. Each one stands by itself. But the poet’s creative
self runs through them all providing an invisible link. The poet selects the
caterpillar, the cactus, the turtle and transmutes them with the alchemic touch
which compels us to say that matter does not matter. These hymns reveal a
well-attuned poetic sensibility and a felicitous turn of expression. The poet
observes: “What interests me is the desire to know what makes the individuals,
each one of the tick.” He carries on the search with the heightened
sensitiveness of a poet who never descends to the level of doctrinaire and dull
philosophical abstractions.
–Dr C. N.
SASTRI
Modern Hinduism (An account of the
religion and life of the Hindus in Northern India): By W. J. Wilkins. Rupa and
Co., Calcutta. Price: Rs. 16.
The
book under review is a remarkable presentation of the life and ethos of the
Hindus as found in Northern India, especially in Bengal, where the author W. J.
Wilkins was a Pastor of Union Chapel for four years and dedicated Missionary
for another thirteen years. It is a companion volume to his earlier work Hindu Mythology: Vedic and Puranic, published
in 1882. The first edition of the present book appeared in 1887. Rupa and Co.,
deserves our thanks for having brought out a second edition now. Its
publication is timely because the book will administer a shock treatment to the
complacent and proud Hindus and instil a new sense of religious awareness in
them. The book was written by a foreigner for the foreigners, but it can be of
immense value to the modern Hindus who in a way are as foreign to the essential
spirit of the religion as any foreigner can possibly be. It makes a very
interesting reading, the language being simple and effective. The observations
and experiences of the author on which the book is mainly based are true and
authentic. The sources from which he quotes to support his viewpoint at times
are genuine and authoritative. The whole book is informed by a spirit of
dedication and honesty. It is largely free from the Christian bias which mars
the worth of many a book of this kind.
Though
we gladly grant objectivity and sincerity of purpose on the part of the author,
we cannot but observe that the picture he gives of the Hindus is spoiled by
lack of proper perspective and understanding. It seems he has no proper idea of
Hindu Dharma and view of life. While he concedes that, for a Hindu, life and
religion are one, he fails to notice the relation between Hindu philosophy and
Hindu religion. Hindu religion derives from Hindu philosophy whose roots are in
the Vedas and Upanishads. It is wrong to dub Dwaita, Adwaita and Visishtadwaita
as mere religious. Nor is it correct to say that in India original Vedic
religion was lost and modern Hinduism is a poor substitute for the original
Vedic religion. True, the Puranic religion has done considerable damage to the
prestine Vedic thought by encrusting it with meaningless ritual and inseparable
superstitions which characterise it still. But it does not mean there is a
break in the continuity of religious thought and practice in India.
Despite
the inherent limitations of the Western mind in understanding the vast varied
all-inclusive system of Hindu thoughts, which defies analysis, Wilkins’s
attempt to portray the Hindu society as it was is a commendable one. Though its
value as correct assessment of Hinduism is doubtful, its value for the modern
Hindu to know where he stands is really inestimable. If the Hindus live a life
of depravity in spite of the essential nobility and loftiness of their
scriptures the fault cannot be laid at the door of religion. Has any foreigner
who visited India before the Mohammedan invasion written that the Hindus were
irreligious rabble steeped in irredeemable superstition, forever fallen?
–DR GANTI
SREERAMA MURTY
Autobiography of Dayananda Saraswati: Edited
by K. C. Yadav. Manohar Book Service, New Delhi. Price: Rs. 25.
This
attractively got-up autobiography of Swami Dayananda Saraswati comprises three
chapters written by Dayananda, another on his beliefs, and a short introduction
by Dr. Yadav.
The
first chapter outlines the religious climate in his family. Dayananda’s father
was a fanatic Shaivaite, and forced his reluctant son to observe the Shivaratri
fast and vigil. But the young boy’s faith was severely shaken by his noticing
when all the others were asleep, a mouse climbing on to the linga and eating away the akshata. This started the boy on his personal quest for religious truth. This crucial
incident is narrated in unsophisticated, flat prose. But despite this, the
agonized dilemma in the boy’s mind comes through to the reader. This lack of
texture and the curious feeling of social
vacuum despite the myriad names of places and persons mentioned, persists
through the book, and makes it more a chronicle of events in the Swami’s life
rather than a biography or autobiography, in any real sense.
The second chapter
“Wanderings and Studies: 1845.1863” recounts the young Dayananda’s escape from his family and his quest for true knowledge.
His accounts of his encounter with the meat-eating Brahmin Pandits at Rishikesh
(P. 28) in 1855 and his disgust with the Tantric literature which approved of
incest, meat-eating and nude worship sound authentic and convincing. His young
mind responded with horror to these obnoxious practices. The whole chapter is
propelled by the energy of Dayananda’s irresistible quest for truth. Such
patterning of experience as we notice in these chapters is rudimentary. The
second chapter brings to an end Dayananda’s education, with his learning
Sanskrit grammar under Vrijananda at Mathura, where he remained till 1863.
The
third chapter entitled “Public Ministry: 1863-1883,” is concerned mainly with
his wanderings in quest of knowledge and truth, and his philosophical
disputations with the leaders of various Hindu sects. Here we are forced to
admire the gusto with which Dayananda propagated his ideas, though he provides
few details about the battles with his opponents. There is also a fourth
chapter called “My Beliefs and Disbeliefs.” This is included by way of an
appendix.
Two
useful and valuable features of the book are a chronology of the events of the
life of Dayananda, and a Bibliography of works by and on Dayananda Saraswati.
The dust-jacket bearing a portrait of the Swami and the hard cover inside
printed in saffron, are pleasingly suggestive of the nature of the book and
blends with its tone.
–DR D.
LAKSHMANA RAO
Nehru and Science: Edited by P. K.
Ravindranath. Nehru Centre, Annie Besant Road, Worli, Bombay – 400018. Price:
Rs. 6.
Papers
read at a symposium on ‘Nehru and Science’ were compiled in this slim volume.
It
may be said that science has its uses and abuses. It can be instrumental to
social and economic development of a nation and can as well wipe out life off
the face of the earth.
The
power of science is double-edged. There are lethal lasers in its Pandora’s Box
and industrial plenty in its cornucopia.
Nehru’s
interest in science and the latest advances in the fields of medicine, biology
and other disciplines are vividly brought out by eminent participants.
Science
and Technology are a ‘must’ for any under-developed country to consolidate
itself and rise in the world.
The
panacea for the present day ills is not militarism or blocism but the pursuit
of Walpole’s famous dictum ‘Let the sleeping dogs lie.’
To
be explicit Nehru’s Panchsheel has relevance even today and tomorrow too, and
it ushers in a millennium, if followed with dedication by power-mad democracies
and benighted dictatorships.
–K. SUBBA RAO
India’s Empire of Mind: By Sudhansu
Bimal Mookerji. Lakshmi Narain Agarwala, Agra-3. Price: Rs. 15.
The
achievement of Ancient India, in the realms of Matter and Spirit, its cultural conquests,
and trade and commercial relations with Rome, Greece, Egypt, Babylon and
countries nearer its borders, constitute the theme of this scholarly work.
Bharatavarsha
is the home of several immigrant races who got absorbed into its body politic,
completely Indianised in outlook on life. This outlook or perspective is the
emanation, so to say, from racial fusion and cultural synthesis.
Vedas,
which reflect the highest reaches that the mind can get, form the bedrock of
Hinduism, which is a way of life; and a happy amalgam of religion and
philosophy. But the Puranic version of it, with its image worship, Bhakticult,
and Karmakanda (rituals) appealed to the masses unlike its Upanishadic
counterpart, with its arid intellectual approach.
And
to attain the last of ‘Purusharthas,’ i.e., Moksha, it enjoins the adoption of
a golden mean, between ‘Pravritti-marga’ and ‘Nivritti-marga.’ It is therefore
as clear as daylight that it is not worldly life but enslavement to it that
Hinduism repudiates. A nice balance is struck between sensuality and
self-mortification. Its rebel offspring, Buddhism, lays down an eightfold path
to arrive at the stage of ‘Nirvana’ to say in other words, extinction of desire
for existence whereas Jainism points to a threefold path, to attain
‘Siddhasila.’
Side
by side with this development on the religious and spiritual planes, India
forged ahead and wrought miracles which no country can dream of in the fields
of architecture, sculpture, music and dance, and painting. The temples of
the North and the South built in Dravidian, Hoysala and North Indian
styles, the sculptures of Buddha, and Brahmanical Divinities, the frescoes of
Ajanta and Ellora, the stupas at Amaravati and Nagarjunakonda, all symbolic of
the prevalent culture, presuppose expert knowledge of engineering, technical
competence, and grandeur of artistic conception of exacting standards.
In
the matter of secular and religious literature a faithful barometer of social
evolution of the period India is second to none with its scintillating galaxy
of master-minds: Panini of ‘Ashtadhayi’ a grammatical treatise, Kalidasa of
‘Sakuntala’, Sudraka of ‘Mrichakatikam’, Vishnusarma of ‘Panchatantram’,
Valmiki of ‘Ramayana’, Vyasa of
‘Mahabharatam’, Sankara of ‘Advaitam’, Ramanuja of ‘Visishtadwaitam’ and
Madhvacharya of ‘Dwaitam’ stand unequalled in their respective spheres of
literary and philosophical endeavour.
The
Indian concepts and speculations about Matter and Spirit propagated by religious missionaries once held sway over large
tracts of South-East and Central Asia which Empire or Mind, assiduously built
up by apostolic fervour, is now a thing of a relentless past and adorns the
pages of history.
The book presents a bird’s-eye-view of the cultural
heritage of ancient India, and will be of immense help to any lover of history.
–K. SUBBA RAO
Muttuswami Dikshitar: Published by
the National Centre for the Performing Arts, Nariman Point, Bombay-400021.
Price: Rs. 15.
Sri
Muttuswami Dikshitar: A special issue of the Journal of the Indian
Musicological Society, Jambu Bet, Dandia Bazzar, Baroda-390001.
As
part of the programme in commemoration of the 200th anniversary of the great
composer Muttuswami Dikshitar, the National Centre for the Performing Arts,
Bombay, has devoted the September, 1975 number of its Quarterly Journal to his
life and work. Dr V. Raghavan, the well-known Sanskrit scholar and musicologist
of Madras, was the Guest Editor of the number and has written up the entire
material all by himself.
The
first article, running to 24 pages, sums up the life of Dikshitar, his
pilgrimages, his spiritual evolution and the distinct quality of his music. It
is self-contained and hardly leaves any aspect of Dikshitar uncovered. The
later articles are on the two brothers of Dikshitar, on Subbarama Dikshitar,
the outstanding musicologist of this century and on the Sishyaparampara of
Dikshitar. These are followed by an extensive Dikshitar bibliography and a
selective discography of Dikshitar’s works.
The
Navagraha kritis of Dikshitar have been presented in the Devanagari script with
notation by Vidwan B. Krishnamurti of the Madras Music Academy. An index to the
songs composed by the members of the Dikshitar family rounds off this
sumptuously produced special number. The year of Dikshitar’s demise should be
1835 as shown on page 1 and not 1134 as given on page 14.
Quite
a different kind of tribute to Dikshitar has been paid in the September issue
of the Journal of the Indian Musicological Society of Baroda. This special
number contains articles on the different facets of the composer by a band of
nine musicologists. The present reviewer was the Guest Editor of the issue. The
articles cover the life of Dikshitar, his contemporaries and disciples, the
contribution of the members of his family to Karnataka music and the literary
excellence of his compositions. The distinguished writers include Smt. Vidya
Shankar, Sri T. Sankaran, Dr. S. Sita, Dr. T. S. Ramakrishnan, Sri B. V. K.
Sastry, Sri Rajanikanta Rao, Smt. S. A. Durga and Dr S. Ramanathan. Dikshitar’s
compositions in Desya ragas and the influence of Venkatamakhi on his music have
been discussed in two scholarly articles. Eight representative kritis of
Dikshitar in Devanagari script with an English translation by this reviewer have
been printed in this number as also several photos connected with Dikshitar.
–T. S. P
ARTRASARATHY
Sri Aravinda Makaranda: By R. S.
Mugali. Usha Sahitya Male, Mysore-1. Price Rs. 10.
Dr.
Mugali is a writer of fame in Kannada and the subject he has chosen is one
after his heart, Sri Aurobindo. The book is more than a biography. It is
history, study and assessment. The first part deals with the early life of Sri
Aurobindo in England, his work as an educationist and a revolutionary in India
(on his return at the age of 21), the transforming spiritual experience he had
in Alipore Jail and his subsequent retirement to Pondicherry where he developed
his Philosophy and Yoga of Life Divine. His meeting with his collaborator,
the Mother and the founding of the Ashram and its work till the physical
withdrawal of the teachers, are described in brief but without leaving out any
important point.
The
second part is devoted to an exposition of the teachings of Sri Aurobindo and
the Mother on: Education, Culture, Indian Tradition, Social Development, Human
Unity, Integral Yoga, The Steps of Sadhana, Surrender and Grace, Freewill and
Determinism, Death and Rebirth, Food, Health and Illness. The last chapter
consists of gems from the writings of
both.
A
welcome addition to Sri Aurobindo literature in Kannada.
–M. P. PANDIT
Narayaneeyam: By Mappathur Narayana
Bhattatiri, with English translation by Swami Tapasyananda. Sri Ramakrishna
Math, 11 Ramakrishna Math Road, Madras – 600004. Price: Rs. 15.
Bhattatiri
was an ardent devotee of the Lord Srikrishna of the Guruvayoor temple, and also
a prodigy and versatile scholar in Sanskrit. Narayaneeyam is a marvellous and dexterous epitome of the Bhagavata Purana in 1036 verses written
in eighteen popular metres and divided into 100 chapters. On completion of this
work the poet was cured of his deadly disease–paralysis. He prays the Lord, at
the end of every canto to relieve him of his illness. Bhakti is the dominant
sentiment. Pathos is also there. There is a galore of alliterations and easily
understandable ‘yamakas.’ Sound and metres match with the sense, as is
evidenced by chapters 24, 25, 68 and 69 describing the incarnation of
Naarasimha, Krishna’s reunion with Gopikas ‘Rasa Lila.’ Being of the outcome of
a suffering heart, this poem evokes devotional feelings in a reader, and
pleases his ears by the jingling and resonant language. The outstanding
grammarian in the poet is seen in all the verbal forms in particular and a
reader is struck by the poet’s command of the language. Descriptions are very
natural and the poet’s appeals to the Lord are moving. The translation is
excellent. The long introduction covering more than forty pages and the
elaborate notes at the end, dealing with the life of the author, the merits of
the poem and the “Bhagavata: a perspective of its contents” and “its teachings
on the theory and practice of Bhakti” are immensely useful for a proper
understanding of the essence of the poem. The Ramakrishna Math has done singular
service to the devotees and lovers of Sanskrit literature by publishing this
precious work.
–B. KUTUMBA RAO
Kavitraya Kavitaa Vaijayanti: 1915-1970.
Vardhamana Samajam, Nellore. Price: Rs. 20.
In
the Telugu literary field Nellore occupies a unique place. Tikkana, one of the
three great poets who ‘transcreated’ the great epic Mahabharata from Sanskrit, hailed from this place. To commemorate
his memory the Vardhamana Samajam of Nellore started celebrating the Tikkana
Jayanti in 1915 and is continuing the celebration every year by inviting
distinguished poets and scholars to deliver lectures on the Mahabharata. It is noteworthy that
beginning with the late Chilakamarti Lakshminarasimham, Sripada Krishnamurti
Sastri, Chellapilla Venkata Sastri, Vedam Venkataraya Sastri, Kasi
Krishnacharya, Dr. C. R. Reddi, and a galaxy of stalwarts of the last century,
the Samajam is inviting poets and scholars of today and honouring them all
these years.
The
whole credit for the venture goes to that doyen of patrons of Telugu
literature, late lamented Sri Tikkavarapu Rama Reddi. He met the expenses every
year for honouring the scholars. Not only that he endowed a handsome amount and
created a trust so that the celebrations could continue in the same dignified scale
even after his passing away. It is laudable that Dr B. Gopala Reddi who is the
son-in-law of Sri Rama Reddi and President of the Kavitraya Jayanti Sangham,
gave a new and better turn to the celebrations from 1957 by inviting three
scholars instead of one and thus commemorating the trio (Kavitrayam –Nannaya,
Tikkana and Yerrapraggada) instead of one poet, viz., Tikkana.
The
volume under review contains all details pertaining to the celebrations for
over half a century, and brief sketches about the learned speakers and
presidents of the functions and also a gist of the speeches delivered. Varied
topics have been covered by the eminent speakers and they are of lasting value.
The editors deserve our compliments for the pains they have taken in gathering
the material from reports of various journals. It would be still better if the
written speeches are published in toto. There is no doubt that the Vardhamana
Samajam would continue to render the great literary service they are doing all
these years and earn the esteem and gratitude of the lovers of literature.
–BHAVARAJU