Indian Life: Cults, Customs and Superstitions of India

In the history of exploration and travel writing certain individuals have appeared from time to time whose work has a unique and profound quality which differentiates them from their contemporaries. John Campbell Oman certainly belongs as a member of this freternity. He travelled a great deal throughout India, from the Vale of Kashmir to the tropical uplands of extreme South, from the historic border of the Indus to the forest covered banks of the Brahmaputra. He resided in almost all the provinces of Northern India from Assam to Punjab and from this intimate knowledge he understood the Character and intellectual condition of the people of India.John Campbell Oman relates the experiences of his travels throughout India and reveals the many facets of life in this country. Chapters on Hindu Ascetism, Yogis and Mahatmas and their super human powers, Buddhism, Temples and Monasteries of Hindus and the Buddhists, strange cults in Islam, Golden Temple of the Sikhs, Arya Samaj and Brahmo Samaj, Indian Theatre, Hindu Fairs and Festivals, Islamic saints, superstitutions, witchcraft and fortune tellers give the reader crystalline glimpses of Oman’s manyfold vision of the vast panorama of his life journey. Compulsive travellor, Oman perceived the subtler qualities of the people he came in contact with, and it is this record that is the vital force of his writing.This edition is the reprint of the first edition which was published in 1889 from London.