REVIEWS
Indian Contribution to World Thought and
Culture: Published by the Vivekananda Rock Memorial Committee,
Singarachari Street, Madras-5. Price: Rs. 150.
To
mark the Swami Vivekananda Centenary (1963) and the erection of the Rock
Memorial (1970), an influential committee of savants and distinguished students
of history and art, was formed some years ago. At the time of the inauguration
of the Rock Memorial, the labours of the committee in bringing out a monumental
volume of 700 odd pages with ample art plates and illustrations in colour were
achieving their expected fruition. We have before us a very sumptuous volume of
highly valuable matter in the shape of articles upon all aspects of Indian
influence in the various fields of human activity such as art, literature,
archaeology, religion, science and history. Thus both in ancient times as well
as medieval period, the great expansion of Indian thought and culture in distant
lands like the Philippines in the East and Africa in the West, not to speak of
nearer realms such as Java, Indonesia, Iraq, Egypt and others, bear distinct
traces of the Indian mind in vivid visual arts and culture. Eminent scholars
have vied with each other in swelling this tome with their researches which go
to prove how India and her ancient culture had permeated to a very great extent
the culture of other lands and yielded results which are of permanent interest to
the connoisseurs of art and the students of religion and science.
The
book commences with a tribute to Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa from the pen of
the celebrated historian, Arnold Toynbee. It is necessary to mention his own
words in order to make readers of the volume find themselves alive to the
immense significance he has attached to the Indian thought cherished for ages
here. He says: “The survival of the human race is at stake. Yet even the
strongest and most respectable utilitarian motive is only a secondary reason
for taking Ramakrishna’s and Gandhi’s and Asoka’s teaching to heart and acting
upon it. The primary reason is that this teaching is right–and is right because
it flows from a true vision of spiritual reality.”
It
is evident, the collaborators in this task have in their minds the objective “to
bring home to the minds of all, the forgotten, but very important, chapter in
the history of Indian culture in general and of Hindustan in particular, which
has been rescued from oblivion by modern researchers.”
There
are about 70 articles with adequate bibliographic appendices added to each of
them at the end, which clearly reveal what amount of earnestness has imbued the
Editorial Committee to present this volume to genuine students seeking
knowledge from these pages. The significant results of researchers in the fields
of religion, ethics, art, medicine, crafts, architecture, sculpture, philosophy
and literature have found a place here. We have the cult of Ganesa influencing
far away parts of the world like Tibet and Japan, the Niti literature obtained
in the Mahabharata and Chanakya’s Arthasastra or the Panchatantra and
Hitopadesa, which have been translated into many languages of other
countries, entering into the ethics and morals of the peoples of those
countries who have tasted them. The art of ship-building, the architecture of
temples, the impact of Indian tradition upon numismatics, the development of
scripts and a variety of similar subjects are arranged here with an eye to
their value in impressing their potentiality for emulation upon races and
traditions other than ours.
The
second section, whose pages are numbered in Roman numericals to distinguish
them from the earlier pages, the reports and pictures taken at the time of the
inauguration of the Rock Memorial are in extenso printed in order to give the
reader an idea of the importance that has been attached to the occasion.
The
third section contains some momentous writings pertaining to Swami Vivekananda’s
own mission of propagating Hinduism in our own as well as other countries. Swami
Ranganadhananda’s tribute to Swami Vivekananda id itself an illuminating
interpretation of the great work of the Swamiji and is a fitting culmination to
a volume of such varied and amply thought-provoking material.
–K. CHANDRASEKHARAN
Some Constitutional Problems: By K. Subba Rao.
Published by the Registrar, University of Bombay, Fort, Bombay-32. Price: Rs.
20.
The
Indian Constitution came into force on the 26th January, 1950, and since then within
two decades a number of amendments to the various articles have been effected.
Particularly Part III, containing Fundamental Rights, has been subjected to a
number of restrictions as a result of the amendments.
Sri
K. Subba Rao, a former Chief Justice of India, delivering the Sir Chimanlal
Setalvad Law Lectures of the year 1967, under the aegis of the Bombay University,
has made vigorous comments upon the manner of Parliament’s attempts to whittle
down some of the rights guaranteed as fundamental. He has also made valuable
suggestions as to working the Constitution without frequent recourse to
amendments. To hold the Constitution as sacred and inviolable and to instill
reverence in the hearts of the citizens of Bharat for maintaining it unsullied,
he has really very much to say.
In
a lengthy chapter on the judicial pronouncements of the Supreme Court in the
matter of safeguarding the rights of the citizens against inroads into their
guaranteed condition, Sri Subba Rao has not spared pains to prove by discussing
some of the important decisions of the Supreme Court during the period.
With
his experience as the head of the judicial administration of India for a number
of years, he has also many valuable ideas to improve matters pertaining to the
administration of justice in our country. Thus, he has ample suggestions to
offer regarding the constitution of benches in disposing of constitutional
matters, the method of appointment of judges and their salaries, the future
language of courts, the need for maintaining an All-India Bar and even in such
matters as the regulation of court dress of judges and advocates as well as the
publication of legal reports of cases. He is for the continuance of English for
higher courts and reports, as otherwise the vast legal literature in English
might be lost to the legal education of practitioners of the higher courts.
He
has closed his address with a brief survey of the powers of the President and
Governors under the Constitution. But underneath all his forceful analysis of
the Constitution and its unique emergence as a result of the labours of some of
the most responsible and richly-endowed intellectuals in the legal field of our
country, there runs a thread of thought that what has been claimed as the
achievement due to the amendments could have been won really with the same
effect, if not better, if only people had worked our original Constitution with
a ‘little more time, patience, expense and adaptability’.
–K. CHANDRASEKHARAN
The Philosophy of Man Making: By Santi L. Mukherji.
New Central Book Agency, Chintamani, 8/1 Das Lane, Calcutta-9. Price: Rs.20.
This
work is almost a reproduction of a thesis for the Doctorate degree in
Philosophy of the University of Calcutta. Swami Vivekananda’s social and
political ideas are compared, contrasted with those of the philosophers,
political thinkers and sociologists of both ancient and modern times. Swami’s
outstanding contribution to the Indian Renaissance in all its aspects is
brought to limelight. His influence upon the Indian luminaries like Mahatma Gandhi
and Sri Aurobindo is well-documented. Swami’s misinterpreters are corrected.
Swami
Vivekananda gave a practical bent to the age old Vedanta and it is known as
Neo-Vedanta or Practical Vedanta which has five characteristic features.
Universality, Impersonality, Rationality, Catholicity and Optimism. His
religion is at once theocentric and anthropocentric and this is his Vedanta.
Cult of growth–individual, social and
national–is the kernel of his philosophy. For the individual
it means his becoming the
perfection itself, or God.
Education according to Vivekananda is the manifestation of the perfection already in man and religion is the manifestation of his
inherent divinity or perfection and hence education and religion become more or less synonymous. In fact
there is nothing secular in his outlook. The idea of nationality is essentially spiritual in
character. Chapters on Society and
State and the Eternal in Vivekananda deserve a close study. Swamiji proclaimed
that “a junction of the great
systems Hinduism and Islam–Vedanta brain and Islam body–is the only hope for our motherland.” This and many other opinions of Swami Vivekananda have a
relevancy even to the modern India, and
they are worth hearkening to. This valuable work sheds a fresh light
on Swami Vivekananda’s
philosophy and is worth studying. The notes and references
and the indexes–all covering
about 60 pages–highly enhance the value of the book.
–B. KUTUMBA RAO
Laghu Prabandha Samgraha:
Edited by
Jayant P. Thaker. The Oriental Institute, Baroda. Price: Rs. 15.
We
congratulate the editor for having brought out these Prabandhas extending over 31 pages in all with a very critical
and comprehensive study, lemicographical,
cultural and historical. A
free English translation of the text is given. Subjects like the probable sources, relation with other Prabandhas, language and style, authorship, and cultural gleanings are adequately dealt with. It may be
noted here for the readers’
consideration, that the author
generalises that Prabandha is a form of literature of historical
anecdotes widely cultivated, specially
by medieval Jain Writers of
West India, written in a
regional style of Sanskrit which may be described as simple, popular, colloquial Sanskrit as contrasted to the Classical.
As
the learned Director, Sardesai, has
pointed out, this publication is useful in a variety of ways to the researchers of medieval Sanskrit literature and especially of its peculiar idioms
known among scholars as Jaina
Sanskrit, and also to
the students of medieval Indian History and Culture. While editing the text nothing
that is critical or informative
is left out by the
editor. In short this is a very
good model of a critical edition of
a text.
–B. KUTUMBA RAO
Indian Literature of the Past Fifty Years--1917-1967:
Edited C.
D. Narasimhaiah. Published by the
Director, Prasaranga, Manasa-gangotri,
Mysore 6.
This
jumbo volume comprises a seminar
contributions. The subjects dealt with are: “How major is our literature of
the past fifty years” and “Indian Writing
in English.”
The
works in English of a long line of authors from Dutts and Ghoshes down to
present day writers. R. K. Narayan, Raja Rao and others are discussed and
assessed. Similarly stalwarts who wrote in the vernaculars of different regions
are considered and appropriately sized up. It is doubtful whether the books,
mentioned in the papers, satisfy the critical canons, for a due evaluation. And
this is specially with reference to ‘Indian Writing in English’.
All
things said and done ‘Indian Writing in English’ will obviously be Indian. It
cannot be King’s English or Queen’s or ‘U’. It cannot have the colloquial ease
and the native gait of Dame English. It finds itself as one among the
Commonwealth hybrids.
Aesthesis,
the parent of which is Ananda, is said to be the prime characteristic of poetry
according to Sri Aurobindo. It can, as well, be extended to prose too. Any
great work–prose or poetry–should touch the kindred points of
heaven and earth. It cannot be mere communication of “concrete experience in a
vital language”, as spelt out by P. Lal (page 20.). Comparisons, anent art and
authors, are invidious.
Appreciation,
for what it is worth and not prejudiced judgment, is the essence of evaluation.
It may be better left to hoary time to judge the works for humanity and accord
rankings. The fittest, always survive. And the catch-pennies write their own
obituaries.
–K. SUBBA RAO
Crisis of Crisis: By Sisir Kumar Ghose.
Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bombay-7 Price: Rs. 2-00.
The
author strikes the right note in saying that a crisis is not merely a challenge
but also an opportunity to work out a total change. It is in this light that he
highlights the crisis in modern society, be it in the field of education, gulf
between generations, pollution, etc. He invites attention to the several
attempts in progress to resolve these crises and underlines the need to draw
upon the extant Mystics. He argues that they can help in four significant ways:
“First,
they will correct our inadequate and mischievous world views. Secondly, they
will point to the right means to achieve the right ends. Thirdly, instead of an
escape from life they will provide new centres of awareness and centres of
self-activity. Finally, they will not be concerned exclusively with the inner
life of the elect or a band of peculiar people, but try to generalise the gnosis
in the life of the people, provide a model or nucleus for a society of the free.”
A
refreshing approach, optimistic and far-seeing.
–M. P. PANDIT
Vishnu Sahasra Nama: By Dr T. M. P. Mahadevan,
Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bombay-7. Price: Rs. 2-00.
In
the course of these two lectures, Dr Mahadevan expounds the role of Bhakti in
spiritual life, the importance of nama-smarana, remembrance of the name
of God, in Bhakti Yoga and the special reverence in which the various sahasranamas,
Thousand Names, are held. He speaks of the grades of worship, those with
form as the basis and those with name as the core. He cites from the scriptures
to prove that worship with repetition of name is of a higher type than that of
form. In an interesting passage he
writes:
“Bodhendra
offers six reasons for showing that the utterance of the Divine Name is
superior to the other disciplines taught in the scriptures. In the first place,
the repetition of the name, which is open to all irrespective of caste, stage
in life, and sex, involves no injury, to any living being. Secondly, it does
not stand in need of any ancillary aid. Thirdly, in producing its result, it
does not require the intercession of a third person. Fourthly, its practice is not
conditioned by the time factor; namajapa can be performed at any time.
Fifthly, there are no restrictions in regard to place. And, sixthly, there are
no ritualistic regulations for practising the repetition of the Divine Name.”
He
gives the background of the Vishnu Sahasra Nama as given in the Mahabharata and
goes on to analyse the names of the Lord in all interesting way. They describe
the Divine Godhead in his transcendent status, universal aspect and also in his
individual manifestation. Philosophical distinctions are reconciled and the way
is made easy for the aspiring mind to realise the Divine in the manner that is
natural to it.
A
simple and useful presentation.
–M.
P. PANDIT
Manu (The Origins of Social Thought): By Kewal Motwani. Bharatiya
Vidya Bhavan, Bombay-7. Price: Re. 1-00.
Dr.
Motwani has been a pioneer in the field of Indian Sociology and his work on
Manu is widely acclaimed. The present book is in the nature of an introduction
and serves its purpose very well. The doctor does not regard Manu as a
legendary person as many do. He is a human Rishi who has laid down the Law for
the governance of human society. And his counsel is not merely for the Hindus
but for all humanity. A separate section surveys the impact that Manu has had
on various peoples on the globe.
Summing
up the salient features of Manu’s social teachings, he writes: “A monistic
cosmology, assertion of the supremacy of the soul in man and the universe, place
of values and goals in social life, classification of human temperaments, their
functions in group and personal life, division of fruits of labour or
compensations of different groups, emphasis on self-transformation,
possibilities of social progress and social decay are some of them. Manu
considers the world meaningful in terms of the Spirit.”
–M. P. PANDIT
Glimpses of Greatness: By Yogacharya Hansara
Yadav. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bombay-7. Price: Rs. 5-00.
A
purposeful selection of stories from the Indian Mythology drawing attention to
the underlying wisdom in a way that would appeal to young impressionable minds.
Thus there is Ekalavya renowned for his devotion for the Guru Abhyasa, practice;
Prahlada a byword for devotion to God; Dattatreya who has twenty-four teachers
from whom he learns all that is to be learnt and so on. Lord Krishna, Savitri.
Nachiketas, Satyakama, Bhishma, Sri Rama, Anasuya, Shravan Kumar are the other
themes. Tastefully illustrated, the publication deserves to be prescribed for
reading in the secondary schools.
–M. P. PANDIT
Studies in the Proto-History of India: By D. P. Misra. Orient
Longman Ltd., New Delhi. Price: Rs. 20.
The
present work under review comes from the pen of D. P. Misra who is a scholar,
educationist and politician. The author attempts to correlate the ancient
Indian tradition contained in the Vedic and Puranic literature to the known
theories of Archaeologists in order to enlighten the early history of India.
Regarding
the vexed problem of the original home of the Aryans, Sri Misra brings to light
fresh evidence from ancient Indian Tradition to point out that the area north
of Hindukush constituted the original home. As to the habitat of the
Indo-Iranians, it is located in the region round about Bactria.
Sri
Misra in the course of his work, argues that the Harappan civilization was
developed by the Asuras, a stock of Aryans who were driven by the Devas to this
region. The entry of the Aryans into India is placed in 2150 B. C. as against
the prevailing view of 1500 B. C. He further opines that the Aryan civilization
reached its maturity during Buddhistic civilization.
The
book is worth reading as it throws considerable light on the early history of
ancient India.
–Dr K. SUNDARAM
Popular and Unpopular Essays: By M. G. Gupta.
Chaitanya Publishing House, Allahabad. Price: Rs. 12.
The
forty-seven essays in this collection are grouped under six heads: Science,
Politics and World Politics, Indian Affairs, Miscellaneous, and General. In
these stimulating essays, Dr Gupta covers a wide range of themes, a large
number of which have a permanent interest, and a few have a topical interest.
The subjects chosen include serious ones like “Science and Religion,” lighter
ones like “Names and Name-Keeping,” and even utilitarian, ones like “Horticulture
and the Home.” Whatever the topic, Dr. Gupta’s amazingly rich scholarship,
delightful style and wit make each essay a unique intellectual experience. The
examples for his arguments are drawn from almost every branch of knowledge, a
fact which justifies the description of this book as a synopsis of human achievement
and human failure.
The
book is most useful to students
who prepare for competitive examinations. To the general reader who is
intellectually curious, these essays provide an exciting treat.
–Dr E. NAGESWARA RAO
Spinoza and The Upanishads. A Comparative Study:
By Dr M.
S. Modak. Published by the Registrar, Nagpur University, Nagpur. Price: Rs. 6.
“The
Hindus were Spinozites,” wrote Monier-Williams, “more than two thousand years
before the existence of Spinoza.” It is generally accepted that the outlook of
life as shaped by Spinoza’s philosophy shows a certain affinity with the Hindu
temperament in general. In this thought-provoking comparative study of Spinoza and
the Upanishads, the author drives home certain important points: The Upanishadic
thinkers start from “self” as the primary reality while to Spinoza, it is “substance.”
The self cannot be reached by mere intellect, it, could be grasped by intuition
alone. To Spinoza, intuition is merely “thoughtfulness matured to inspirations.”
The
author discusses the meanings attributed to the word ‘Maya and says that the world
of sense-perception is real according to Spinoza, for things are modifications of
the original reality; but they appear to us as finite because of our partial
understanding of them. If we overcome this defect in our understanding, there
is no danger of our misconstruing them. The world is no distortion of reality.
The
author concludes that the Scientia Intuitiva gives man his true place within
God while in the Upanishadic knowledge man realises that the Self is Brahman.
–S. SHANKARANARAYANAN
The West Looks at India: By Krishna Nand Joshi.
Prakash Book Depot, Bereilly, U. P. Price: Rs. 7.50.
This
volume forms part of a larger project, entitled “Studies in the impact of Indian
thought on English writers, 1750-1950”. By English writers is meant those who
wrote in English and they include American writers too.
From
Shelley, whose dream it was to visit the promised land of India, to James Joyce whose linguistic experiments and
intellectual formulations owed something to the involutions of Indian
philosophy; we have here a cross-section of
the Western response to Indian thought, as represented in the work of
eight writers. Shelley was drawn to Indian mythology and imagery as could be
seen in his works, “The Revolt of Islam”,
“The Indian Serenade” etc. Ruskin and Tennyson, both products of Western
materialism and victorian property, had but a superficial understanding of the
Indian spirit. The American trinity, Emerson, Thoreau and Whitman reveal a
deeper involvement with the ideas basic to Hindu philosophy, as found in the Bhagavad
Gita and Vishnu Purana, the Vedas and the Upanishads. Thoreau envisaged a mingling of the pure stream of Walden with the
holy waters of the Ganges. D.
H. Lawrence’s response to the East, as represented by India, was ambivalent–a
groping for the mystery of meditation,
combined with a revulsion against the more obvious manifestations. The author
would seem to think that Joyce showed a subtler grasp of the Indian approach, with particular reference to Sankhya, and a well-deserved scepticism for
later forms of spiritualism,
like Madame Blavatsky’s.
It
was just as well that some of these
Western seekers never set foot on India. It helped them to keep the glorious
image intact and save themselves from disillusionment.
–D. ANJANEYULU
Manu and Tiruvalluvar
(A
comparative study): By Swami Ramananda Bharati (Prof. K. R. R. Sastry). Sangam
Publishers, 11, Sunkurama Chetty Street, Madras-1. Price: Rs. 10.
The
object of this book is stated
to be to curb the growing marked tendency in India to develop regional independence and to
strengthen the centripetal forces
in Bharat by taking up
an integral topic, as a
comparative study or Manu of Northern India an Tiruvalluvar
(1st century B. C.) of the
South. The book has 63 pages divided into 10 chapters. The first chapter is Introductory,”
the second deals with the special features of Manava Dharma Sastra the third, leans in favour of fixing the date of Tiruvalluvar as the first century
B. C., the fourth is headed “As Foreigners See Him.” The fifth chapter refers
to the 49 impromptu verses by 49 poets in praise of Tiruvalluvar and the Kural, called Tiruvalluvarmalai. The sixth chapter deals with
the plan of the Kural containing
133 chapters of ten venbas each, making 1330 couplets. The
seventh chapter refers to the nine principal commentaries which have
interpreted the Kural. We
now come to the main chapter of the book, the eighth, which makes a comparative
study and points out “that the administrator-transformed sage, Tiruvalluvar,
had an uncanny grounding in the Upanishads, the Epics, the Manusmriti, the
Arthasastra and Kamasutra, is well established by reference to
the texts.” The Tamil and the corresponding Sanskrit texts given, make the
parallel and similarity striking. No wonder therefore that in chapter nine, the
author draws the conclusion “A comparative study of the first-two parts of
Sacred Kural dealing with Aram (Dharma) and Porul (Artha) has brought
out clearly the genesis for 19 Kurals in Part I and 40 Kurals in Part II either
in the Mahabharata or the Manu Niti and in the close adapter of all these,
viz., Kautilya in his monumental Arthasastra.”
Many
of the conclusions drawn by the learned author, the parallels quoted by him are
also to be found in two Tamil books, one by Dr P. S. Subrahmanya Sastri
Balarurai (1939) referred to by the author in the select Bibliography and the
other–Ttrukkural Nootrettu, published by Sri Kamakoti Kosasthanam
(1950).
The
author has rendered a distinct service to the English reading public by this
comparative and valuable study.
–T. V. VISWANATHA AIYAR
Lenin Through Indian Eyes: By K. P. S. Menon. Vikas
Publications, Delhi-6. Price: Rs. 12.
As
the founder of the first Socialist State in the world and as a master
theoretician of the Communist creed, Lenin had brought about a revolutionary
transformation in international society. He gave a new dimension to Marxist
theories and had applied Marxist principles to a predominantly agricultural
society in a manner not visualised by Marx himself. His influence on Indian
Nationalism was profound, Tilak was an admirer, so was Mahatma Gandhi, and
Nehru followed many of his theories. Gandhi chose to be influenced by Tolstoy
and Nehru by Lenin. The Russian revolution shook India to the core at a time
when the Indian people were striving to come into their own.
The
book under review makes no reference to the way Leninist theories influenced
the Indian thought and revolution. There is not even a passing reference to the
split in the International Communist Movement between Troiskeyists and
Leninists and its consequent effect on the Indian Communist Party. Though Lenin’s
judgment of Mahatma Gandhi as a true revolutionary leader of Indian Nationalism
is referred to, there is no attempt to discuss in depth the influence that
Lenin exerted in the shaping of the nationalist thought and movement in India.
There is a passing reference to Mahendra Pratap and his revolutionary
government in exile. The eminent author is a former Ambassador to the U. S. S.
R., and is known to be an admirer of the Soviet State. Much more was expected
from the facile pen of the author. The book can be considered an introduction
to the subject taken up for treatment.
–T. C. A. RAMANUJAM
The History of Literary Criticism: By Dr P. S. Sastri.
Published by Lakshmi Narain Agarwal, Agra. Price: Rs. 12-50.
Parallel
to the process of creative
literature runs the process of the
evaluation of literature: the criticism. No
history of literature can ever be just a record, a bare statement of fact about the creative literature.
It is bound to include some elements of
criticism.
Similarly,
a history of criticism will
also be a criticism of criticism,
to a great degree. In such works, the author need be doubly cautious to ensure that his own critical zeal
does not encloud the soul of his
subjects’ point of view.
Dr.
Sastri’s work is a pretty and spacious window on the world of literary
criticism, extending from Plato to Eliot. Though he has taken into account the
whole Western world, accent is naturally on the English critics and schools of theories propounded by them.
–MANOJ DAS
Serpent and Columbine: By Santhi Padhi.
Published by Orient Longman, Ltd., New Delhi. Price: Rs. 5-50.
One
of the most intriguing and,
fascinating personalities in English Letters is Francis Bacon. As the author of
this book observes, epitomes of Bacon’s character by various critics have given
him protean shapes: Prometheus, Janus, Faustus, Apollo, Hercules, a new
Machiavelli, a Prophet and a new Moses, so on and so forth.
Dr
Padhi’s work is constituted of four
academic observations on Bacon: reflections on his life, a study of his
thought, a study of his style and an evaluation of his wit.
Dr
Padhi’s’ studies are learned yet not heavy. Most interesting of the
four chapters is the last one, “Flashes of Merriment”. Indeed, “the wine of Bacon’s wisdom being generally
labelled a dry wine, one is agreeably surprised to find the persistent dash of
humour that inspirits his writings, perhaps least restrainedly in The Advancement
of Learning.”
–DEVAPRIYO
Insects: By Dr M. S. Mani. Nationa1 Book Trust, New
Delhi. Price: Rs. 5-25.
Scientific
books by Indian authors meant for general readers are indeed very few in our
libraries. Dr Mani, an internationally known high-altitude entomologist from
Agra, has accepted the challenge and compiled one on Insects, the most familiar
of the animals we come
across in our daily life and yet of
which we know very little. With his command over language and
authority on the subject he has successfully completed his mission of creating
an abiding interest in Insect life in India.
At
the outset, referring to the insects as the architects of our landscape and
patrons of our agriculture, industry and civilization, the author describes the
body construction of these fragile hexapods (6-footed animals), traces their,
fossil history to the Palaeodyctiopterans and gigantic cockroaches of the
carboniferous period (300 million years ago) and emphasises the abundance of
insects in number of species and individuals on earth from earlier times 23
orders of a total of 34 including the more familiar and important insects are
described in brief. ‘Child welfare in Insects’ makes interesting reading to a
general reader and a specialist alike since it depicts the varied ways of
egg-laying and construction and provisioning of brood-nests and in general the
solicitude of the insects for their offspring which is in no way inferior to
that in humans. A survey of the familiar insects like the Grasshoppers, the
Crickets, the Bugs, the Beetles, the Wasps and Bees and Butterflies and Moths
frequenting our gardens is of special interest to any Nature Lover.
In
discussing the place of insects in human society, the authors though he
condemns outright the injurious ones like the Crop-pests and
disease-transmitters, urges us to understand the role of useful and beneficial
insects and appreciate the happy balance in Nature that has come to exist
between insects and man in India generations ago. To substantiate his
observations, he reminds us of the role of insects in pollination of flowers
without which we can never grow our Pulses, Oilseeds, Cotton, Mango, Orange and
such resulting in acute malnutrition wiping out more than a half of the total
human population in a short time. He deplores the modern trends of our specialists
who in their haste to “grow more food” decry the traditional practices of the
Indian cultivator who had established a more or less stable and dynamic
equilibrium in Nature with the insects from time immemorial into which all
other animals fitted themselves. In short, the author feels of the insects and
men as inseparable, integral and interdependent cogs in the same wheel of life.
The
unique feature of the book, profusely illustrated, is that it deals with Indian
insects alone. Personal observations of the author presented here and there and
the easy-to-understand style with emotional poetic expressions peeping into the
text at relevant places make the book all the more interesting.
–A. G. R. SAI SASTRY
My Years
with Nehru 1948-1964: By B. N. Mullik. Allied Publishers, New Delhi. Price: Rs.
25-00.
This
is B. N. Mullik’s third in his autobiographical trilogy. The first two volumes
have received wide publicity all over the country. Mullik was the Intelligence
Chief for a long time and in that capacity not only did he have a highly distinguished career but also
enjoyed the confidence of India’s top leaders including Jawaharlal Nehru. That is why whatever Mullik
says bears the stamp of authority.
In
the first chapter entitled ‘Nehru and I’ the author establishes legitimacy for
the title of the book. In the chapters that follow, Nehru’s views on and
approaches to security and intelligence operations are elaborately analysed. It
was commonly and perhaps erroneously believed in our country that Nehru was
averse to much attention being paid to the question of security and intelligence.
But Mullik’s book gives a convincing proof to the contrary. Nehru did spend
much time and energy on these problems in spite of his multifarious duties.
There are chapters on different topics ranging from Telangana to the Chinese
invasion. All of them throw light on the problems and tasks faced by the
Government of India with regard to law and order and national security and how
the Government tackled them.
Liberal
use of the first person singular and projection of the author’s own personality
are quite common in most modern autobiographies. But they do not appear too
obvious in this book as the author does justice to the roles of the other
personalities also. The author’s presentation of facts and interpretation of
events are the main assets of the book. The get-up and almost flawless printing
enhance the value of this highly readable and important work.
–Dr. A. PRASANNA KUMAR
Span of Life (An astrological thesis on Longevity.
Second edition, Revised and Enlarged 1971): By Jyotishacharya Govindu Sri Rama
Murthi, Director: Bharat Astrology Institute, 7-2-28, New Colony, Srikakulam
(A. P.) India. Price: Rs. 9. (India) Deluxe Rs. 12. Sh. 18 (Sterling area) $
4-50 U. S. A. (Dollar area)
The
author had done yeoman–service to the astrological world by the publication, in
1949, of his excellent monograph on longevity, the “Span of Life”. The present
thesis is the second edition of the same, revised and enlarged, after nearly
two decades.
The
first four chapters of the book deal with nearly 130 planetary combinations or
Yogams for Baalaarishta or death in infancy, about 40 yogams which annul the
evil effects of the above; special combinations for death at different ages
viz., short, middle and long lives; and, many of the traditional general rules
for the assessment of the three types. The next ten chapters present ten of the
more important, different methods of working out the longevity, propounded by
the ancient sages, Paraasara, Jaimini, Kaalidaasa and others. These methods are
explained in good detail with calculations and fully worked-out illustrative
examples most, useful to the beginner, the advanced student and the researcher or
practitioner as well. The last
chapter gives six example
horoscopes together with the judgment of their
longevities. The scanty and passing reference to the Western method of determination or longevity, at the end of the conclusion, smacks of lip-service to the method and could well have been avoided.
The
determination of longevity is at
once the most fundamental, intricate and
intractable problem of Natal Astrology. Accuracy in it is at best an asymptotic
approach to the truth which often eludes even the most learned and experienced
of veteran astrologers not gifted
with intuition, so characteristic
of the Rishis of old. Hence
the supreme need and place of such a valuable compilation as this which helps the earnest astrological
student and practitioner scale such asymptotic heights and approach the truth as near as one can. The author is to be congratulated for
having carved out a strategic niche in
the temple of astrological fame by the
publication of this extremely useful book.
–P. Y. NARAYANA
Discovering Indian Music: By Raghava R. Menon. Somaiya
Publications Private Limited, Bombay, Price:
Rs. 24.
“Music
is the universal language” said
Emerson. Mainly intended for
the information of his modern countrymen, who of late have been earnestly
appreciating the universality of Indian music, is this slim volume of eighty-seven pages by an able critic
who has a first-hand understanding of both Karnataka and Hindustani music on the one hand and of Western music on
the other.
An
honest attempt has been made at a plausible correlation of the Western ‘time’ and Indian ‘taala’. Otherwise, throughout the book a flamboyant approach to the subject
was so apparent that mere readability seemed to have been preferred to
intelligibility.
Even
this readability at times took
liberties with grammatical precision, For example, in saying “If I tell you, a Raaga is alive like you or I, your
scientific mind will rebel”, the author was not so much concerned with the interpretation as with the mystification (unfortunately
this is the unconscious motive behind the whole process of “discovery”)
of Raaga.
Enough
attention has been given to Shruti but not to the all-important Laya. Much space has been expended on the varieties of Veena and of the
percussion instrument, but the most typical Indian instruments, Shehnai and
Sarangi, were overlooked. Subramania
Bharati was included among the “saint-composers of the nineteenth century”
(though he was born in that
century, all his compositions were written in this century).
The
book is beautifully illustrated.
TAMIL
Namadu Panpadu: By K. C. Kamaliah
Published by Tamil Puthakalayam, 576, Pycrofts Road, Madras-5. Price: Rs. 5.
This
is a collection of essays in Tamil written by the author, who certainly knows
his job and can efficiently execute his undertaking, especially when he has a
sound knowledge of literatures both in Tamil and English. In twenty-six topics
in this volume, the author has ably surveyed aspects of Tamil classics, such as
Sangam literature, Kamba Ramayanam, Divya Prabandhams, Devarams, Bharati’s
writings and later poets like Bharati Dasan. In a sweep of absorbing dives into
them he has brought out beauties which lie hidden in the enticing field of
Tamil literature. More than that, he has also touched upon literary minds of
unfailing interest when he has scanned the Vagmarken of Dag Hammerskjold,
who was the Secretary-General of United Nations and met with a tragic death,
after having served in his office with great integrity and awareness of his
responsibility. It requires, indeed, much of a heart filled with wide
sympathies to have included such a human and spiritual outlook, as that which
held the departed statesman in its grasp, in a collection devoted mainly to
literature of the recognised kind. Avoiding pedantry of any kind, the author has
not only enjoyed himself writing these reflections of wholesome nature but has
enabled his readers to share them with him with little effort. It is a book to
possess.
–K. CHANDRASEKHARAN
TELUGU
Dasaratharaja Nandana Charitra (Niroshtya
Ramayanamu): By
Maringanti Singaracharya. Edited by Srirangacharya Published by Andhra Pradesh
Sahitya Akademi, Kala Bhavan, Hyderabad-4. Price: Rs. 4.
In
Telugu, the tradition of citra kavita has been extant since Nannaya. Composition sans labials is only
an offshoot of this tradition. However it was Nachana Somanatha (Circa 1285 A.
D. 1355 A. D.) who made a beginning in this regard by composing a verse in his Uttara
Harivamsa. Rhetoricians like Vinnakota Peddana and Appakavi have mentioned niroshtya
composition. Later poets have resorted to this mode of composition only
occasionally. Thus Koravi Goparaju (Circa 1400 A. D.), Mudumba Lakshmanacharya
and Govardhanam Venkata Narasimhacharya (1856-1935) have composed niroshtya
Dandakas. Ramarajabhushana, Ganapavarapu Venkata Kavi, Kankanti Narasimha Kavi,
Citrakavi Singaracharya, Kaanaadam Peddana (1770), Kankanti Paparaju, Maringanti
Narasimhacharyulu, Madabhushi Venkatacharyulu have composed verses sans labials
in their works.
For
a full scale niroshtya composition, Dasaratharaja Nandana Charitra by
Maringanti Singaracharya–the work presently under review–is the first in
Telugu. The author flourished during the middle
of the 16th century. He is stated to
have composed his Varadaraja
Stuti in his ninth year. His niroshtya compositions alone are
said to be twenty in
number Out of 36/37 works he composed. Unfortunately,
only two of his works are
extant, the present work on
hand and Suddhandhra Niroshtya Seethakalyanam. Dasaratharaja Nandana Charitra,
it is understood, was first published
as far back as 1917 and was not
available for scholars for a long time.
The present publication by the Andhra Pradesh Sahitya Akademi has been very
timely in the sense that it saved the work from complete oblivion. Singaracharya,
being the author of Suddhandhra Niroshtya Seethakalyanam and a
contemporary of Ponniganti Telaganarya could have been the originator of niroshtya and achcha
Tenugu traditions; for, it is said that Telaganarya had the help of Maringanti Appalacharya, elder brother of our
author, in dedicating his work
to Amir Khan. Singaracharya has
eschewed only the labial consonants in his
composition. This is in accordance with Vinnakota Peddana’s delienation of niroshtya.
The
work is in
five cantos al1d on a modest scale by being a straight narrative of Ratnayana. Despite the odd nature of
its composition the work has a quaint charm. When we know that these twin traditions of Suddhandra and Niroshtya
compositions coupled with
nirvacana has been carried into the middle of this century the importance of the first full scale work in Niroshtya tradition
cannot be over-emphasised. It is well-known that Kandukuri Veeresalingam Pantulu and Sripada Krishnamurthi
Sastry have composed Suddhandra Niroshtya Nirvacana Naishadhamu (1883) and Achchandhra
Niroshtya Nirvacana Harischandra Charitra (1938), respectively.
The
editor’s able and extensive introduction
as well as the index at the end are very informative
and useful. The editor Singaracharya and the A. P. Sahitya Akademi are to be congratulated for their
dedicated service in the cause of this not so popular a branch of poetry.
–PROF. SALVA KRISHNAMURTHI
Mahodayam:. By K. V. Ramana Reddi.
Vishalandhra Publishing House, Eluru Road, Vijayawada-2. Price: Rs. 15.
This
full-length study of Gurajada
Appa Rao comes from the pen of Sri
K. V. Ramana Reddi who has distinguished himself as a poet and critic of the progressive school. It runs to nearly 550 pages
and contains eight chapters. Prompted by an ardent admiration of Gurajada’s works, the author has
probed deep into the texture and structure of his poems, stories and dramas. He has conducted extensive as well as intensive research into the social and political factors
which got reflected in Gurajada’s works. He has carried to its culmination the critical endeavour that was initiated
by the late Avasarala Surya
Rao. The study is marked by critical acumen and perceptive assessment of the
diverse facets of Gurajada’s literary genius. By the birth of Gurajada the
literary world has taken a leap forward. He has blazed a trail that is picked
up by writers of later generations. Preserving all that is wholesome in
tradition, Gurajada has thrown overboard literary conventions that stifled the
creative spirit which always seeks “fresh woods and pastures new.” He has
pleaded for a happy and healthy blending of the old and the new. He is aware of
the past, alive to the present and unafraid of the future, as all creative
artists ought to be. Sri Ramana Reddi’s critical study is aptly named the Great
Dawn, as Gurajada happens to be the chanticleer who heralded a new trend in modern
Telugu literature. When the eye grew sick of gazing at static dolls of wood he has
presented dynamic, shining emblems of art infusing into every character the
warmth, the verve and the grim pathos of life. Sri Reddi dwelt with loving care
upon all the aspects of Gurajada’s literature that lend it a distinctive stamp.
–DR C. NARASIMHA SASTRY
Mahati: Indian Independence Silver Jubilee Publication.
Published by Yuvabharati, 5, Kingsway, Secunderabad-3. Price: Rs.20.
(Pre-publication Rs. 7)
This
is a handy volume containing one hundred essays covering the progress of Telugu
literature since India attained independence. The Editorial Board consisting of
Dr G. V. Subrahmanyam, I. Krishnamurty and V. Viswanadham has done a good job
in selecting some of the leading scholars, poets and writers in Andhra Pradesh
and getting valuable articles written by them.
The
Yuvabharati which was started just a decade ago in Hyderabad has done yeoman
service in resuscitating the interest of the youth in attending lectures on
Telugu literature and in reading and appreciating Telugu classics. It has
published quite a good number of valuable books in Telugu, and popularised them
amongst the reading public by placing the books in their hands at incredibly
low prices.
The
volume under review is replete with very valuable articles written by eminent.
writers like Professor M. Venkatarangaiya, Dr Viswanatha, Dr D. V. Avadhani, M.
Kodandarama Reddi, Dr K. Virabhadra Rao, Sri Sri, K. V. Gopalaswamy, Dr G. N.
Reddi, Dr S. V. Joga Rao, Dr Krishnakumari–to mention only a few.
One
cannot however help remarking that the number of writers could have been
restricted to make the volume an ideal one.
The
Yuvabharati deserves all praise and encouragement in its laudable efforts in the
promotion and development of Telugu literature.
–BHAVARAJU
21st December, 1973