The present work Aspects of Political Ideas and Institutions in Ancient Indian discusses different views on the origin and nature of the state in ancient India. It also deals with stages and processes of state formation and examines the relevance of caste and kin-based collectivities to the construction of polity. The Vedic assemblies are studied in some detail, and developments in political organisation are presented in relation to their changing social and economic background. The book also shows how religion and rituals were brought in the service of the ruling class.

The Book Covers University Syllabi In Political Science In The Papers Of Hindu Polity, Indian Political Thought And Modern Indian Political Thought Etc. Divided Into Three Parts The Ancient, The Modern And The Contemporary, This Book Analyses Indian Political Thought From Manu To M.N. Roy. In Order To Keep It Brief And Precise Only Selected Thinkers Have Been Included While Those Of Only Historical Importance Have Been Left Out. The Method Followed Is Construction Through Criticism So That Besides Knowing The Thought Of Eminent Indian Political Thinkers, The Reader May Develop An Insight Into Political Processes, Their Causes And Consequences. While Matter Has Been Drawn From Authentic Sources, It Has Been Narrated In Simple Language. A Balanced Holistic Approach Has Been Maintained In Controversial Matters.The Authors Have Left No Stone Unturned To Make This Book An Ideal Textbook For Students And Reference Book For Teachers.

About The Book The idea of politics hardly finds an expression elsewhere as clearly as in Mahābhārata. This work thus investigates the political thought explicit in Śānti-Parva and emphasizes that Mahābhārata is a text in the study of politics, apart from the perception of it being a great epic and a text of high literary value. Whatever be the notion of politics we contemplate upon, it finds an articulation in Mahābhārata. As the Greek tradition of thinking is the base of Western politics, Śānti-Parva of Mahābhārata represents the Indian notion of political thinking, though there remain many similarities and dissimilarities between the two systems. This volume navigates one to how to read Mahābhārata as a political text; the idea of political thoughts, the constituting principles of politics and the political institutions in Śānti-Parva; and the relevance of these political thoughts in modern time. Topics such as daṇḍanīti, origin of state, the seven elements of state, functions of state, types of state, kinship, judiciary and administration are discussed in detail, among many other issues of political importance. The book collects, analyses and examines the internal evidences from Śānti-Parva and also from other parvans of Mahābhārata to reach a decisive conclusion, making the work a composite result of textual analysis, related literature and subjective contemplation. It clearly shows that the idea of politics is not separated from the idea of ethics. Rather they are intertwined. About the Author Dr Priyanka Pandey is an upcoming Sanskrit scholar with a penchant for serious researches on Indian classics. She got her PhD for the thesis, “Perspectives of Rājadharma in Mahābhārata: A Critical Analysis” from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. This book Rājadharma in Mahābhārata with Special Reference to Śānti-Parva is an offshoot of her research project. Dr Pandey has presented articles in many national and international seminars and has ten articles published in journals/books of repute to her credit.

Saiva Philosophy is an outgrowth of the religion characterized by the worship of the phallic form of God siva. Saivasm as a religion has persisted since the pre-historic time of the archaeological finds of Harappa and Mohenjodaro. It has a continuous history of at least five thousand years. It is a living faith praciced all over India. AN OUTLINE HISTORY OF SAIVA PHILOSOPHY first appeared as part of Volume III of Bhaskari in 1954 in the Princess of Wales Saraswati Bhavan Texts Series. The work is now reprinted as an independent volume to meet an increasing demand of the interested readers and scholars.

It is a work of unusual breadth and depth that will attract readers in religious studies, comparative literature, Sanskrit, Asian studies and humanities in general. The book is a thorough study of the great Indian hero, the Achilles of India, Arjuna, as portrayed in the epic poem Mahabharata, including its world-famous subsection, the Bhagavadgita. Different aspects of Arjuna's Character has been discussed.

The authors of Indian Political Thinking set out to critically compare and contrast the major ideas and frequently used terminology of classical and contemporary Indian political thought. It examines the Ramayana as well as the Mahabharata from the perspective of ancient Indian thinking, paying particular attention to the perspectives of Manu as well as Kautilya. This then goes on to classify the major political schools of thought within contemporary Indian philosophy. When introducing each school of thought, we discuss the major theoretical questions at play in that school's methodology and the significant intellectual contributions made by individual thinkers. In addition to Mahatma Gandhi, Subhas Chandra Bose and Jawaharlal Nehru, the social and political ideas of Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Swami Vivekanand, Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Pt. Deendayal Upadhyay, Tarabai Shinde, Savtribai Phule, Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay, M.N. Roy, Japaprakash Narayan, Sri Aurobindo, Ram Manohar Lohia, Pandita Ramabai, and Dr. Ambedkar have also been highlighted. It really is hoped that an unbiased and impartial evaluation of the contributions of various thinkers and schools of thought may be achieved. This book has been written in quite an accessible and straightforward manner, and it includes a number of special elements that will appeal to its target audience. It is written with both Indian university students and the casual reader in mind.

Papers presented at a seminar organized by Anthropological Survey of India in collaboration of the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla.