After having read the book from cover to cover at least 3 times - I must say without doubt that it is indeed one of the best books available - not just on Tara, the great Mother Goddess / Bodhisattva embodying Lord Buddha's great skilful and active compassion - but also on Tibetan Buddhism and Buddhism in general - it provides accurate sadhana / practice texts on Tara at the end; provides accurate translation of Tara's popular Buddhist tantra in the content part of the book; especially, a wonderful translation of Tara's 21 Praises - one of the most popular ever - all my recommendation and congratulations to anyone who bought and read the book !

In Quest of God is the compelling tale of Swami Ramdas, a monk on an extraordinary spiritual journey throughout India. This book tells the remarkable story of how a penniless monk gave up all worldly possessions and placed complete faith in God. Readers of all walks of life will admire Ramdas' complete surrender to God and his lighthearted look at the world.

Traveling throughout India armed with nothing, Ramdas accepted no money but instead chose to live free from the restrictions money places on us. His magnificent tale includes a trek up the snow-covered Himalayas and trips to some of India's most awe-inspiring temples. This book not only provides a fascinating story of a man on a journey, but also gives detailed descriptions of some of India's most treasured places.

Told with a sparkling sense of humor, In Quest of God will make you laugh while showing you that life truly is how you look at it. By placing all his trust in God, Swami Ramdas shows us that life can be a series of surprises and joys where around every corner God gives you something to smile at.

This book depicts the adventures of a young American woman staying in a Tharu village in Nepal. While her husband was there as an Anthropologist, she was there as a visitor. The author tries to adapt to everyday life in the village, and in doing so gives us a unique insight into what it is like to be a young Tharu woman--as the author, herself, goes through a period of discovery about what it means to be a woman.

This is a work in the genre of Orwell's "Down and out in Paris and London." Immensely readable, despite the very serious nature of the work, this book is a must-read for anyone interested in development issues, untouchablity and in learning about how it must be to live in abject poverty. Kudos to the author for this fine contribution to the few works that exist on the subject.

good short comprehensive introductory book on India myth and mythology, with all major information in one compact book

The book opens with a map and a quick overview of important foods in India. It then proceeds to discuss each food type in a little more detail. The second half of the book continues to discuss food, but also the festivals and celebrations that go with it. Religion is also discussed, and there are recipes included with each. At the end of the book there is a glossary, a suggested reading list, acknowledgements and an index.

This upper elementary level book does not go in depth with each article it discusses, but the content is well laid out and thorough. The photos included are bright, colorful and appropriate for the items discussed on each page. Extra information is included in boxes on the sides of the pages. The recipes are easy to make and would be fun to share with a class or your family.

Richard Waterstone does an excellent job of making sense of the all the religions and customs of India. Excellents photos and text makes this a must have.

There very few good books that cover the entire Indian subcontinent, and this is one of them. The information is broken down by States and Cities and has detailed instructions on how to find the best hotels, where to eat, and what to see in each place. I've lived in India for two years and can only recommend this book as an excellent, practical book for anyone traveling there.

The year 1947 is a momentous year for India. After hundreds of years of repression under the foreign rule, she became free. For the next fifty years till date, India faced all kinds of trials and tribulations. In each experiment of her strength, she succeeded superbly. There was extreme drought, famine and other natural disasters apart from the major man-made calamities.Her neighbours ditched her faith and confidence.They had mistaken her generosity and friendship as weakness and fragility. China and Pakistan waged war against her time and again. But India gave them fitting reply both diplomatically and militarily

The West envious of her leaders and potential, supported her enemies both implicitly and explicitly. In spite of her hue and cry frequently for the international co-operation for the peace in the sub-continent,the West chose to support Pakistan. Especially in the United Nations. They had helped Pakistan with arms and ammunitions. On the other hand, Pakistan used all the Western aided arms against India through proxy war and sometimes open aggressions.

Weathering these storms of natural and foreign engineered troubles, India marched ahead with its strengths and weaknesses. Especially its billions of populations, millions of illiterate population and other handicappness.

The towering personality of Nehru gathered glory for India. His uncompromising democratic principles, scientific approach and secular image added more steel strength to India's development.

Prof.Bipan Chandra, Prof.Aditya Mukherjhee and Prof.Mridula Mukherjhee, the teaching fraternity in the History department of Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi (India) has come out with a marvelous volume on the history of Independent India.

It it a splendid work for many reasons.The most important among them are (1) it is comprehensive and clear history of independent India (2) It covers all the aspects of Indian society (3)the volume gives objective and unbiased account of the Independent India's history.

This volume is the best source book for anyone who wants to know the developments of Independent India society whether it is in polity or economy or women's development for the last 54years.

Miss not this great work. It goes like well written story. Time will fly. So take the flight to "India after Independence" by Bipin Chandra and others.

Two ancient civilisations, contemporaneous, both growing along the banks of rivers which flow down from mountains, through desert. Both rivers support crocodiles and both people worship river gods and crocodiles and worship cows and have a wonderfully developed cosmogony. Both have a form of caste system. Both have contributed immensely to world culture in almost every field. Surely they must have interacted despite the vast geographical distances involved. There is evidence to suggest contact between the two from around BCE 3000 with the findings of Indian muslin, cotton and dhania (coriander) in Egypt. We are on firmer ground from about the third century BCE. During the time of Ptolemy Euergetes an Indian sailor was found shipwrecked on the coast of the Red Sea. He was taken to Alexandria where, in exchange for hospitality, he agreed to show the Ptolemy's men a direct sea route to India across the Indian Ocean. Thus began a most profitable period of contact between these two nations. A short while later the discovery of the Monsoon winds and how they could aid sailing lent more impetus to trade and further contact from the African side. Indians and Arabs had been using these winds to advantage for a long time. During Emperor Ashok's reign ambassadors were exchanged. Contact continued until Egypt came under Roman Law. After a short hiatus renewed ventures were undertaken now bigger and powerful markets of Rome clamouring for goods. Although trade was the reason for exchange many ideas that influnced each other's art and iconography also passed back and forth. Egyptian scholars went as traders and proselytisers. Did Indian indeas influence Egyptian mosque minarets? Did Egyptian art assist in the development of Indian drama and music?

There is a large body of evidence which documents the close relatioships between these two countries. There has always been evidence to suggest indirect means of contact between these two; the book sets out to show a direct one. The authors have brought together eminent scholars to write about this contact . The book is a wonderful read for a lay person and a great guide to the history student or one wanting to pursue a more detailed examination of this fascinating exchange. The book is generouly illustrated and each chapter gives a well outlined reference guide.