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Jain temple at Ranakpur

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The Jain temple at Ranakpur in Rajasthan honours Adinath, the first Tirthankar. I read about it in Kiran Nagarkar's novel Cuckold and made up my mind to make it the first halt in my next trip to Rajasthan. Here is how he describes it. 'The temple was built during the golden age of architecture in Mewar. .. At the extreme corner of the building are round bulwarks as at any fort except these are much shorter. Ranged across the entire plinth are enclosure walls that are really a series of miniature temples housing subsidiary luminaries from the Jain pantheon. Four beautifully proportioned central gateways interrupt the shrines on all four sides. It is impossible to gauge how stupendously large and complex the temple is until you get to the very heart of the edifice. And yet, that too is a limited and partial view for one has not yet climbed to the first and then the second storey. Jain saviours in the panels stand or sit, stiff and erect, compellingly directing one's attention...
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Rajaraja Chola: Interplay Between an Imperial Regime and Productive Forces of Society

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With the accession of Rajaraja Chola, the land of Tamils entered upon centuries of grandeur. He has left a stupendous legacy behind him, which has not lost its sheen even after a thousand years. I have tried to present the social and economic underpinnings of this regime. Hope it is interesting reading. Rajaraja Chola: Interplay Between an Imperial Regime and Productive Forces of Society https://www.amazon.in/Essay-Letter-Special-Current-Event/dp/9354581145 22 Indra Srinivasan, Balasubramanian Ananthanarayan and 20 others
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Pallava architecture

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  While researching for my book on Rajaraja Chozha, being published by @Leadstart, I did some comparison of the architecture of stone temples between the Pallava and Chozha periods from narratives available in a few excellent publications on the subject. This was the time when architecture, art and painting reached a zenith. Towns and cities were mushrooming. New productive forces were being unleashed. The imagination of the craftsmen was taking full flight. Early temples were structures of brick and mortar, unable to withstand the ravages of nature. When the Pallavas in the time of Mahendravarman built rock-cut temples, that signified a big advancement. Within another two centuries, the Pallavas perfected the art of erecting structural temples of stone. The Kailasanathar temple at Kanchipuram, built in the late 7th century, is believed to be the first structural temple in stone built in  South India . Narasimhavarman II  (Rajasimha) started the construction and ...
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Rajaraja Chola: Interplay Between an Imperial Regime and Productive Forces of Society

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  It took a long time. But it was worth it. To be released soon. It recreates the history of a South Indian king and his imperial empire. Hope it appeals to academia and the wider public audience! #rajarajacholan #leadstart #southindianhistory #asianhistory #medievalhistory #biography #yugantar #yugantarbharatavarsha #bookstagramindia #cholasculpture #cholacoins #medievalindianhistory #cholahistory #leadstartpublishing https://www.instagram.com/p/ CTgiNnWLj9r/?utm_medium=share_ sheet
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Author Interview - Raghavan Srinivasan - Author of Yugantar

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https://www.bookishelf.com/raghavan-srinivasan/ TBE: Tell us about your book, can you share with us something about the book that isn’t in the blurb? Raghavan Srinivasan:  Yugantar is not just a  historical fiction . It deals with several philosophical trends popular at the time of the rise of the Mauryan Empire in the north, north-west and south of the subcontinent. It also weaves in an assessment of the political, scientific and technological advancements being made at that time. TBE: What brought about the idea for Yugantar and why did you want to write it? Raghavan Srinivasan:  The idea is that though the Indian subcontinent was divided into republics and kingdoms, a fabric of popularly accepted philosophies and cultures has always held it together. Whenever fanaticism and obscurantism raised their head, the subcontinent became vulnerable to internal dissensions and external aggression. Material and spiritual deterioration set in. I took up writing this novel because ...
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Mṛcchakatika (मृच्छकटिका), The Little Clay Cart – A Sankrit drama par excellence

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  For reconstructing life in Ujjayini in my novel Yugantar, I relied on Mṛcchakatika  ( मृच्छकटिका ) , The Little Clay Cart . It is a ten-act  Sanskrit drama  created by  Śūdraka , a playwright of the 5th century CE. The play is set in the ancient city of  Ujjayini  during the reign of the King Pālaka, near the end of the  Pradyota dynasty  that made up the first quarter of the fifth century BCE. The central story is that of a noble but impoverished young  Brahmin , Cārudatta, who falls in love with a wealthy courtesan, Vasantasenā . Despite their mutual affection, however, the couple's lives and love are threatened when a lecherous courtier, Samsthānaka, begins to aggressively harass Vasantasenā. The drama is rife with romance, comedy, intrigue and a political subplot around the overthrow of the city's despotic ruler by a shepherd. The play is notable for its focus on a fictional scenario rather than on a classical tale or ...
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Sushruta Samhita – An awesome 2500 year old Sanskrit text on medicine and surgery!

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  The Sushruta Samhita is among the most important ancient medical treatises. It is one of the foundational texts of the medical tradition in India, alongside the  Charaka-Saṃhitā , the Bheḷa-Saṃhitā, and the medical portions of the  Bower Manuscript . The Sushruta Samhita was composed after  Charaka Samhita , and except for some topics and their emphasis, both discuss many similar subjects such as General Principles, Pathology, Diagnosis, Anatomy, Sensorial Prognosis, Therapeutics, Pharmaceutics and Toxicology. The Sushruta and Charaka texts differ in one major aspect, with Sushruta Samhita providing the foundation of surgery, while Charaka Samhita being primarily a foundation of medicine. The Sushruta Samhita, in its extant form, is divided into 186 chapters and contains descriptions of 1,120 illnesses, 700 medicinal plants, 64 preparations from mineral sources and 57 preparations based on animal sources. The Sushruta-Saṃhitā is div...
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