Greater India

The concept of a world-community where a nation’s interest is to be subordinated to the general welfare of the mankind has, of late, been driven home by the UNO. It may be a puzzling novelty to pronounce that this gospel of the UNO has been a time-honoured facet of India’s foreign policy in the distant past. Thus while the west stood for "my country, right or wrong," India forged ahead to harness permanent benefits for the universe. No wonder, the umbrella of Indian cultural influence got inside it far-flung lands and islands both in the east and the west that came to be rightly named "Greater India." India has been the king-pin in this cultural knot. A large number of standard books in French and Dutch languages held the field to begin with. Works in English came rather late. There has always been the need for a quick survey of the entire subject in a brief compass and within an easy reach. The present study is rather a gamut that couches the entire field and material in a systematic, easy and balanced historical narration to cater to the needs of the students and the general readers alike.