Eminent historian BD Chattopadhyaya passed away recently. Go through this article to understand his contribution.
Also, expect a question related to Early Medieval this year, esp the debate surrounding it's characterization as Feudal Age, it's economy as well as Emergence of Rajputs.
https://thewire.in/history/bd-chattopadhyaya-early-medieval-india-obituary
#feudalism #earlymedieval #historian #historyinnews #historiography #debate
Also, expect a question related to Early Medieval this year, esp the debate surrounding it's characterization as Feudal Age, it's economy as well as Emergence of Rajputs.
https://thewire.in/history/bd-chattopadhyaya-early-medieval-india-obituary
#feudalism #earlymedieval #historian #historyinnews #historiography #debate
The Wire
B.D. Chattopadhyaya: The Man Who Shaped Our Conception of Early Medieval India
Perhaps the secret to the historian's tremendous magnitude of work was embedded in his deep-rooted commitment to the idea of plurality as an alternative to singular or monolithic approaches to perceiving India's past.
Answer Writing Practice
Paper I: 14. Early Medieval India, 750-1200
Question 4
Evaluate Rajtarangini as a source of history. [2012, 10m]
#EarlyMedieval #Literature #Kashmir #Historiography #Sources #AnswerWritingPractice
@nikhilhistoryoptional
Paper I: 14. Early Medieval India, 750-1200
Question 4
Evaluate Rajtarangini as a source of history. [2012, 10m]
#EarlyMedieval #Literature #Kashmir #Historiography #Sources #AnswerWritingPractice
@nikhilhistoryoptional
Answer Writing Practice
Paper I: 14. Early Medieval India, 750-1200
Pointers for Answer 4
Comment - In this answer, do not focus much on the content of Rajtarangini. What it tells about Kashmir is less relevant. What is more important is the approach of Kalhana to history writing. Assessment of his idea of history and also the sources he assessed and utilized, the way he provided information, all these are more relevant to this answer.
———————————————
Rajatarangini Basic Facts
Chronicle of Kashmir region, written in Sanskrit
Consists of eight books/tarangas composed in verse
First three tarangas deal with the history of the region till the 7th century CE
Tarangas 4 to 6 carry the story forward till the 11th century
Last two tarangas (which are also the longest) deal with the 12th century
———————————————
Rajtarangini = Only one History book from ancient India?
• Since the time of William Jones, it has been repeatedly said that there was only one text from early India that could be regarded as historical writing: the Rajatarangini, a history of Kashmir written by Kalhan in 1148. Kalhan describes it as a kavya.
———————————————
Kalhana is aware of representing the past “as it was”, as itihasa.
• Unlike many other chronicles, Kalhana takes care to mention the sources that he has consulted. The work shows a familiarity not only with the Epics and Puranas, but with more historically-oriented writing, such as the historical biographies written by Bana, by Bilhana, an important local Purana (Nilamata Purana), and Ksemendra’s Nrpavali. Various local inscriptions, coin legends were consulted, and oral tradition preserved in popular legends were also utilized.
• Kalhana was familiar with court circles (his father Champaka was the minister in the court of the earlier king), even if not serving at the court himself. This distancing probably enabled him to make independent judgements on various rulers. Kalhana was not writing to pamper any particular patron.
• He is also concerned with understanding the inexplicable behaviour of kings just prior to the current dynasty. Hence, his criticism of the actions of kings who were his close contemporaries. His narrative is peppered with severe judgements on various groups who exploited Kashmir.
• The text narrates the history of Kashmir and incorporates into the narration legends, chronology based on written records, and details of events closer to the author’s time which are more authentic. He claims that he is correcting the chronology of his predecessors and giving a connected account of the past by partly filling in gaps and removing fictitious genealogies.
———————————————
#EarlyMedieval #Literature #Kashmir #Historiography #Sources #AnswerWritingPractice
@nikhilhistoryoptional
Paper I: 14. Early Medieval India, 750-1200
Pointers for Answer 4
Comment - In this answer, do not focus much on the content of Rajtarangini. What it tells about Kashmir is less relevant. What is more important is the approach of Kalhana to history writing. Assessment of his idea of history and also the sources he assessed and utilized, the way he provided information, all these are more relevant to this answer.
———————————————
Rajatarangini Basic Facts
Chronicle of Kashmir region, written in Sanskrit
Consists of eight books/tarangas composed in verse
First three tarangas deal with the history of the region till the 7th century CE
Tarangas 4 to 6 carry the story forward till the 11th century
Last two tarangas (which are also the longest) deal with the 12th century
———————————————
Rajtarangini = Only one History book from ancient India?
• Since the time of William Jones, it has been repeatedly said that there was only one text from early India that could be regarded as historical writing: the Rajatarangini, a history of Kashmir written by Kalhan in 1148. Kalhan describes it as a kavya.
———————————————
Kalhana is aware of representing the past “as it was”, as itihasa.
• Unlike many other chronicles, Kalhana takes care to mention the sources that he has consulted. The work shows a familiarity not only with the Epics and Puranas, but with more historically-oriented writing, such as the historical biographies written by Bana, by Bilhana, an important local Purana (Nilamata Purana), and Ksemendra’s Nrpavali. Various local inscriptions, coin legends were consulted, and oral tradition preserved in popular legends were also utilized.
• Kalhana was familiar with court circles (his father Champaka was the minister in the court of the earlier king), even if not serving at the court himself. This distancing probably enabled him to make independent judgements on various rulers. Kalhana was not writing to pamper any particular patron.
• He is also concerned with understanding the inexplicable behaviour of kings just prior to the current dynasty. Hence, his criticism of the actions of kings who were his close contemporaries. His narrative is peppered with severe judgements on various groups who exploited Kashmir.
• The text narrates the history of Kashmir and incorporates into the narration legends, chronology based on written records, and details of events closer to the author’s time which are more authentic. He claims that he is correcting the chronology of his predecessors and giving a connected account of the past by partly filling in gaps and removing fictitious genealogies.
———————————————
#EarlyMedieval #Literature #Kashmir #Historiography #Sources #AnswerWritingPractice
@nikhilhistoryoptional
Tagore in 1903 on the state of history writing in India:
"The History of India that we read and memorize to sit for examinations is only a narrative of nightmares. [It is a tale] of who came from where, ceaselessly fought each other, of which sons and brothers wrestled for the throne, of the disappearance of one group and its replacement by the other. The confusing congeries of the Pathans, the Mughals, the Portuguese, the French and the English have made the nightmare more and more complicated…
Where the Indians are, these histories do not answer. As if, only those who have engaged in battles and assassinations alone exist, Indians do not…. It one's youth, it is history which makes one familiar with his own country. It is exactly the opposite in our case. It is our history which has hidden our country in obscurity."
“On a stormy day, the storm itself is not the only event of the day… For human beings, the events of births and deaths, joy and sadness taking place on that day are more important. But a foreigner sees only the storm, because he is outside the houses, not inside. That’s why, in the history written by foreigners, we only see stories of that dust and storm, not of the homes. When we read that history, it seems there was no India then, the Mughals and Pathans, raising their flags, just marched around from north to south and west to east… It wasn’t like there were only Delhi and Agra then. There were Kashi and Nabadweep (birthplace of 15th century Vaishnava saint Chaitanya Mahaprabhu) too. The life stream flowing around that time in the real India, the waves of efforts that were rising, the social changes that were happening, we don’t find any description of that in history.
Tagore asserted that Indians are not “branches and shrubs” but “our hundreds and thousands of roots through centuries have occupied prime position in India. But the kind of history we are made to read makes our children forget all this. It seems, we don’t exist in India, only the visitors do,” he wrote.
#Historiography
@nikhilhistoryculture
"The History of India that we read and memorize to sit for examinations is only a narrative of nightmares. [It is a tale] of who came from where, ceaselessly fought each other, of which sons and brothers wrestled for the throne, of the disappearance of one group and its replacement by the other. The confusing congeries of the Pathans, the Mughals, the Portuguese, the French and the English have made the nightmare more and more complicated…
Where the Indians are, these histories do not answer. As if, only those who have engaged in battles and assassinations alone exist, Indians do not…. It one's youth, it is history which makes one familiar with his own country. It is exactly the opposite in our case. It is our history which has hidden our country in obscurity."
“On a stormy day, the storm itself is not the only event of the day… For human beings, the events of births and deaths, joy and sadness taking place on that day are more important. But a foreigner sees only the storm, because he is outside the houses, not inside. That’s why, in the history written by foreigners, we only see stories of that dust and storm, not of the homes. When we read that history, it seems there was no India then, the Mughals and Pathans, raising their flags, just marched around from north to south and west to east… It wasn’t like there were only Delhi and Agra then. There were Kashi and Nabadweep (birthplace of 15th century Vaishnava saint Chaitanya Mahaprabhu) too. The life stream flowing around that time in the real India, the waves of efforts that were rising, the social changes that were happening, we don’t find any description of that in history.
Tagore asserted that Indians are not “branches and shrubs” but “our hundreds and thousands of roots through centuries have occupied prime position in India. But the kind of history we are made to read makes our children forget all this. It seems, we don’t exist in India, only the visitors do,” he wrote.
#Historiography
@nikhilhistoryculture
Allahabad school of history.
Just got this book. It seems very interesting. The contribution of great historians of the 1920s to 1950s, just before the Marxist school started to become prominent. Details of Beni Prasad and Ishwari Prasad are quite fascinsting.
While answering UPSC questions in Optional, if you have an inkling of politics Behind the Question, it becomes earlier to tackle it properly. Students are not advised to go through such books. It is for us teachers to keep reading and updating.
In our regular Behind the Question (BTQ) series on Youtube, we dig down deeper to find out what is in the mind of UPSC when they ask any particular PYQ. Stay tuned.
#historiography #behindthequestion
Just got this book. It seems very interesting. The contribution of great historians of the 1920s to 1950s, just before the Marxist school started to become prominent. Details of Beni Prasad and Ishwari Prasad are quite fascinsting.
While answering UPSC questions in Optional, if you have an inkling of politics Behind the Question, it becomes earlier to tackle it properly. Students are not advised to go through such books. It is for us teachers to keep reading and updating.
In our regular Behind the Question (BTQ) series on Youtube, we dig down deeper to find out what is in the mind of UPSC when they ask any particular PYQ. Stay tuned.
#historiography #behindthequestion