REVIEWS
Indian
Epigraphy and South Indian Scripts. (Bulletin
of the
Just
like any phenomenon or institution on this earth, the letters that constitute
the different scripts of our languages also have their own history and
evolution, a study of which is not only interesting out also an essential
pre-requisite for reading the ancient inscriptions which have contributed a
great deal to the re-construction of authentic Indian history–political,
social, religious and literary. A book showing at a glance the different
scripts in their different phases of development in chronological order is a
long felt need and this volume supplies it.
Sri
C. Sivaramamurti’s keen intelligence, patient
research, and wide learning are writ large throughout this valuable book. He
has laid under deep obligation students and scholars alike in Epigraphy. In the
first few pages, he explains how the inscriptions have supplied us with many
missing links in Royal dynasties, enabled us to fix the exact dates of some
kings, and revealed to us the nature of the political, social, and educational
institutions and irrigational and revenue systems of Ancient India. He then
gives vivid descriptions, with illustrations of manuscripts (documents),
signatures, seals with legends, ornamental letters and shell characters,
that we often come across in inscriptions. The literary value, and the influence
abroad, of Indian epigraphy have been exhaustively dealt
with. Each letter of the alphabet, with the aid of charts, is traced in its
different stages of development, beginning from the 3rd Century B.C. up to the
15th Century A.D. This is the most useful part of the book, and
any intelligent reader with the help of this can easily decipher
any inscriptions in Devanagari, Tamil, Telugu and
Kannada scripts. Select passages from inscriptions are given to enable the
student to make an attempt at reading them and to appreciate their literary
beauties. Plates representing some of the valuable originals in the epigraphical collections of the
There
is one slight error in the book which needs correction. Bhattiprolu
is now in the Guntur District, and not in the
Ramayana Triveni By K. Chandrasekharan
(with a Foreword by Dr. C. P. Ramaswami Aiyar (Publisher: S. Viswanathan, ‘
This
slender volume comprises six broadcast talks delivered by the author on the Ramayana,
and deals with a few episodes from the Epic story represented by Valmiki, Kamban (in Tamil), and Tulsi Das (in Hindi). The topics
chosen for this comparative study are Filial love, Felicity of marriage, Sita Swayamwara, Sita Swarnamriga, and
Vibhishana, prefaced by a chapter on ‘Universal
literature’, in which the author has given a brief estimate of Valmiki’s Ramayana as a work of universal value.
These
sketches, all-too-brief owing to the time limit set for broadcast talks,
contain illuminating comments on the three great literary masters chosen for
study. As the author says, the charm of Valmiki’s
narrative “is not only in its unimpeded limpidity of flow but in its ability to
stir humanity to the core of its being. The characters, all of them, in Valmiki’s are as nature has made them, never once appearing
to act their roles to the bidding of the poet,” so that even his perfect
characters like Rama and Vibhishana have their lights
and shades and are convincingly human. Fine examples have been given of Kamban’s treatment of episodes like Sita Swayamwara, his poetry being notable for its ‘fine filigree
work and rhapsody and to match these one has to go to Magham
and Naishadham of classical Samskrit according to the
view of the author. Tulsi Das, on the other hand, approaches the theme with the
reverence and self-surrender of a devotee, his model not being Valmiki (as
assumed by the author) so much as the Adhyatma
Ramayana, which treats of Rama as the Supreme Being going through the Leela of the Ramayana Story. The author rightly warns us
against the tendency to institute comparisons between great poets, and
pronounce judgments about the superiority of one over another.
Studies
such as Sri Chandrasekharan has attempted are a great
need in the interests of better mutual understanding and appreciation. The
sampling provided by the author whets one’s appetite for more comparative
criticism of the same kind from literary critics of perception like the
talented author. Dr. C. P. Rarnaswami Aiyar’s appreciative and weighty Foreword adds to the value
of the book.
K. S. G.
Great
Philosophers By
Thomas and Thomas (Published by the
The
fundamental objective of the Book University is to facilitate the study and
appreciation of the permanent values of Bharatiya
culture, so that the coming generations of Independent Bharat
may, while remaining true to, and deriving inspiration from, the stream of
their national culture, contribute also to the enrichment of the inevitably
synthetic civilisation of the human race of the near future. But this ultimate
objective requires for its realisation an acquaintance with, and appreciation
and assimilation of, the best elements of Western thought and culture.
Towards
the provision of this necessary equipment, the present volume should contribute
not a little, containing, as it does, the lives and thoughts of over twenty of
the most famous of the Western philosophers, from Socrates to Santayana, in a
simple and informal and yet vivid and engaging manner. The presentation is well
calculated to hold the attention of the general reader, as the unique
contribution of each of these philosophers, in meta
physics and ethics, is presented through his personality and the events of his
life. The sequence reveals the heartening feature of a continuous purpose of
the happiness of human life through the co-operation of mankind. Each section
is, no doubt, a living biography and a fascinating adventure in the realm of
ideas and ideals in company with the pioneers of world thought. The lively
expression and alert sense of humour of the authors
add considerably to the attractiveness of the volume.
The Integral Yoga of
Sri A urobindo By
Rishabh Chand (Published by
Sri Aurobindo Ashram,
Of
the manifold contributions of the many-sided genius that was Sri Aurobindo, the
most unique and original is the system of Integral Yoga which he evolved,
practiced, and bequeathed to humanity. The author, a renowned writer on Sri Aurobindo’s philosophy, presents in this volume of essays
which originally appeared serially in ‘Mother India’ the fundamentals of the
Integral Yoga against the background of the spiritual heritage of India, and in
the context of the irrepressible urge in humanity towards a harmonious
perfection and fulfillment in life. Through all the confusion and conflicts of
modern times, it was given to the far-seeing Sage to preserve undimmed his
faith in the progress of humanity towards the conquest of the spiritual truths
of existence and a new social order of unity and harmony. The Integral Yoga was
evidently designed to accelerate the evolutionary advance of individual and
collective humanity through the formulation and practice of a synthetic
spiritual culture which reconciles Matter and Spirit, Light and Life, Heaven
and Earth, and transfigures man into a god.
This
exposition of the Yoga of Sri Aurobindo should be welcome to the lay reader
desirous of a brief introduction to the fundamentals of the main achievement
and unique contribution of the Master.
Kannada Sahitya Charitre By R. S. Mugali, M.A., B.T., Professor of Kannada. Willingdon College, Sangli
(Published by Usha Sahitya Mala,
Mysore, Price Rs. 8. page 462)
The
three volumes of the ‘History of Kannada Poets’ by the late R. Narasimhachar, a great archaeologist and scholar, has long
remained almost the only source-book and authoritative work of reference for
the history of Kannada literature; and though during the last two decades there
has been a great deal of critical writing, the need has remained for a
comprehensive History of Kannada Literature such as would present the material
in proper perspective with critical insight and prove useful to College
students and others interested in the subject. The present book attempts to
fill this need and Prof. Mugali deserves to be
congratulated on the industry, the competence and the literary perception with
which he has carried out his task. The book deals with the history of Kannada
literature from the earliest times, i.e., about 7th Century A.D. to about 1900
A.D. The Professor has made full use of the writings of scholars, many of these
being magazine articles, dealing with particular periods or particular writers,
and has discussed briefly, in most cases, the evidence regarding the dates of
writers. Many of these discussions may prove uninteresting and unnecessary to
general readers who are more interested in the conclusion to be arrived at
rather than the views of different scholars. Such discussion, however, seems to
be inevitable in the present state of our knowledge. One might demur also at
the assiduity of the author in quoting, perhaps too often and too extensively,
the critical estimates about ancient Kannada authors given by various
contemporary scholars. The Professor’s own final estimates might have been
deemed adequate. Reading lists appended are valuable to students and give some
indication of the amount of literary criticism that has been produced in recent
years.
The
author, following the model of some histories of English literature where great
writers like Shakespeare. Milton, Johnson, Wordsworth, and Tennyson are made
the central figures of particular epochs, has divided his history into the
Epochs of Pampa, Basava,
and Kumaravyasa, instead of calling them as usual by
their religious denominations as Jaina, Veerasaiva, Brahmana
respectively. The main writers who flourished in every epoch and their works
are dealt with. The political and social mileu of
these epochs has also been sketched, though rather briefly, and the author has
presented his critical estimates in well chosen words.
Professor
Mugali is in his own right a man of letters; and his
contributions to contemporary literature as a short story writer, critic and
poet have not been inconsiderable. He wields a facile pen, and his presentation
of what might be looked upon as a dry subject is characterised
by lucidity, and vigour of expression.
K. S. G.