Brought together here are ten essays, characterized by their dissent to the commonly accepted notions in the field, a first requirement for the growth of knowledge. Issues such as the dialectical process in the religious history of India; the much talked about Mauryan presence in south India; the contradictions in the construction of Kaliyuga in Puranic literature; political criticism in Sanskrit kavya poetry; regional identity and its varied perceptions; ...
The Zamorin-ruler of the kingdom of Koikkou in modern-day Kerala-left an indelible mark on world history when he welcomed Vasco da Gama in 1498. But a few centuries earlier, the Zamorin was only a local chief, heading a few villages. How did he become an independent ruler after the disintegration of the Ceras in the twelfth century? How did the Zamorin come to be recognised and legitimised as the ‘king’?
This story of the creation of an image of ...
Irreverent History brings together essays in honour of Professor M.G.S. Narayanan, a historian who brought about a veritable shift in the paradigm of historiography in Kerala. As much of his work has been on the history of Kerala, the bulk of writing here is on the history and culture of that state. He has, however, made lasting contributions to other areas of Indian history and epigraphy and hence, another section of this volume is devoted to epigraphy and ...
A major intervention in Indian historiography when it was first published, this book examines the power structure of the four monarchies of south India under the Pallava, Pallya, Cera and Colla kingdoms from the seventh through thirteenth centuries of the Common Era. In this revised edition, the author has added a new Introduction in which he addresses the question of when, chronologically, the process of formation of a state becomes visible in south India. He ...
A Festschrift Professor B. Sheik Ali, currently Vice-Chancellor of Goa University, the present collection is not only a tribute to one of the leading historians of the country but also a lasting contribution to historical scholarship. Eminent historicans as Romilla Thapar, Bipan Chandra, MG.S. Narayana,. R. Champakalakshmi, K.N. Panikaar, Y. Subbarayatu, Aniruddha Ray, M.P. Sreekumaran Nair, Rajan gurukkal and B.S. Shastry Nair, rajan Gurukkal and B.S. Shastry ...
Written over two decades, this distinctive collection explores--for the first time--the notion of 'early medieval' in South India. Presenting an alternative history of the deep south, Kesavan Veluthat re-examines the problems and patterns in the history of Tamilakam in general and early medieval Kerala and Karnataka in particular. Was there an 'early medieval' distinct from the preceding early historical formations in South India? What were the processes ...