This book discusses the period from 1000 BC to the end of the sixth century AD. Divided into five thematic sections, the first section discusses questions like perceptions, historical consciousness, and approaches to the study of ancient Indian history. The second and third parts give a detailed account of changes in society and economy and the evolution and transformation of the political formations from ancient times. The segment on religion presents information on development in the field of religion and philosophy while the last section underlines changes which paved way for new socio-economic and political formations. The new Introduction updates research on the subject and explains the various themes discussed in the volume.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Romila Thapar
Romila Thapar was born in India in 1931 and comes from a Punjabi family, spending her early years in various parts of India. She took her first degree from Punjab University and her doctorate from London University. She was appointed to a Readership at Delhi University and subsequently to the Chair in Ancient Indian History at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, where she is now Emeritus Professor in History. Romila Thapar is also an Honorary Fellow of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford and has been Visiting Professor at Cornell University and the University of Pennsylvania as well as the College de France in Paris. In 1983 she was elected General President of the Indian History Congress and in 1999 a Corresponding Fellow of the British Academy. Among her publications are Ashoka and the Decline of the Mauryas, Ancient Indian Social History: Some Interpretations, From Lineage to State, History and Beyond, Sakuntala: Texts, Readings, Histories and Cultural Pasts: Essays on Indian History as well the children's book Indian Tales.
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