This blog is a comprehensive and in-depth guide to the events, people and places throughout the history of India
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Doctrine of Lapse of Lord Dalhousie
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Veer Savarkar, Great Revolutionary of India
In 1910 he was arrested in London, brought to India and tried in the Nashik Conspiracy case. He was sentenced to two consecutive life transportations, which meant fifty years. He spent ten years in the Andaman jail-from 1911 to 1921 and three years in other prisons. After his early release from prosin in 1924 he organised a movement of social reforms and also joined the Hindu Mahasabha. He was elected president of the Hindu Mahasabha for five consecutive years, 1937-42.
Veer Savarkar was tried for his role in the assasination of Mahatma Gandhi but he was acquitted by the court for lack of evidnce.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Foreign Visitors to Vijayanagar
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Preserve the Gandhara Civilization
It all started with the defacing of a 23-foot high statue of the Buddha by Fazlullah’s militants on October 8, 2007 on the pretext that Islam permits no graven images. This 7th century seated Buddha is carved in a rock in the lap of a mountain in Jehandabad village in the region.
During the rule of great Mauryan Emperor Ashoka, Buddhism became a force to reckon with in the Swat valley. The region is full of Budhist stupas, monasteries, pottery and coins. The world famed Gandhara art flourished under the Buddhist Kushan dynasty. Today Batkara Stupa in the Swat Valley is in a state of disarray due to the neglect of the authorities concerned. Beautifully situated in the serene ambience of Jambil Valley the Batkara Stupa is one of the most famous and oldest seats of Buddhist learning in Swat Valley.
It is high time the people at the helm of affairs in Pakistan should come forward to preseve this great civilization that is an asset not only to Pakistan but also to the world.
Friday, December 31, 2010
Faqir Uprising of Bengal
Soon after the annexation of Bengal, in 1776-77 a group of wandering Muslim religious mendicants known as faqirs, started against the British authority an agitation which came to be known as Faqir Uprising of Bengal. Manjum Shah was the pioneer of this revolt, these faqirs under his leader began to levy tax on the zamindars and peasants. This was in defiance of the British authority. After Manjum Shah’s death, Chirag Ali Shah became the leader of the group and under his leadership the uprising spread to the northern districts of Bengal. The uprising was supported by the Pathans, Rajputs and disbanded Indian soldiers.
The Hindus also actively participated in the faqirs uprising. Bhawani Pathak and Devi Chaudhurani were among the prominent Hindu leaders who lent their support to this movement. The faqirs, led by Chirah Ali Shah, gained considerable strength and attacked the English factories and succeeding in seizing their goods, cash and ammunition. The faqirs and the company’s troops entered into a number of skirmishes. The faqirs uprising was finally crushed at the beginning of the 19th century.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Mir Taqi Mir, Great Urdu Poet
Reekhta kay tumhi ustaad nahi ho Ghalib
Kehte hain agle zamane me koi Mir bhi tha
You are not the only master of poetry, Ghalib
They say there used to be a Mir in the past
Known as Khuda-e-Sukhan'(God of poetry), Mir Taqi Mir was born in Agra in 1723 and died in 1810 in Lucknow. This year marked the 200th death anniversary of Mir. He moved to Delhi at the age of 11 after his father's death.
When the prestige of the Mughal Empire began to wane and chaos began to reign supreme due to the constant invasions from the foreign powers including Ahmad Shah Abdali, Mir moved to the court of Asaf-ud-Daula Nawab of Oudh in Lucknow.
In 1782 Mir came to Lucknow, where he breathed his last on September 21, 1810.
One of Mir’s ghazals, `Dikhaai diye yun ke bekhud kiya, hamen aap se bhi juda kar chale’ has been rendered to music by Khayyam, one of the leading lights of Bollywood music in the movie Bazaar. Enjoy the song.
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Ashokan Inscriptions
The importance of Ashokan inscriptions is immense. This can be gauged from the fact that till the decipherment of the languages of the his inscriptions by James Prinsep, the world had been cracking their brains as to historicity of this great king, referred to as ‘Piyadassi’ in the Sri Lankan chronicles Dipavamsa and Mahavamsa.
James Prinsep, an official of the Calcutta Mint and secretary of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, was able to read the inscriptions in 1837. In fact, the inscriptions of Asoka are the oldest surviving written documents of any historical significance. These inscriptions comprise a series of edicts engraved on rocks and pillars throughout different places in his empire which stretched from the valley of Oxus to Kaveri delta in south India. The Asokan edicts are in the nature of official pronouncement of policy, and instructions to his officers and subjects.
The inscriptions of Ashoka are written in two scripts known as Brahmi and Kharosthi. Like the European scripts, Brahmi is written from left to right, the Kharosthi is a cursive script read from right to left. Kharosthi script has been used in the inscriptions found at Shahbazgarhi (in Mardan District of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan) and Manshera (in Pakistan).
Cosmas Indicopleustes
World map by Cosmas Indicopleustes / Image Credit: upload.wikimedia.org Cosmas Indicopleustes (literally: "who sailed to India") ...
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Books Authors Abhigyan Shakuntalam (Recognition of Shakuntala) Kalidasa Aihole ...
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Amir-i-Chahalgani, known variously as Turkan-i-Chahalgani and Chalisa (The Forty), was a group of 40 faithful slaves which came into existen...
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Women occupied a very honourable position in the Viajayanagr society. Some of them were very learned and were eminent litterateurs. Monogamy...