tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13069846239386426572024-03-24T02:40:57.913-07:00Time RiverA Time Traveller's tales .....
People,places and historyTime Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.comBlogger65125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-32348566408095679192023-01-21T05:07:00.003-08:002023-01-21T20:47:01.690-08:00Skandapuran and an Indonesian Lesson in Tolerance<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAWfUPsI6c-bOrN5ulto-uejC9z171UbBoM9hNCVGpWgRc408kUAgfQoA0Ww3VY1Jg3xsYLUXD1TLZvE4424fsMG2NaiLn2oC6fT7zJb4vtNshJXfdT4wBg52lMe2RbGmWxqJqBANzMeSbWv84z-3ioSXbCoKVdwePaKJMDzTa5sPzWj0_Sfep-XTF4A/s1280/WhatsApp%20Image%202023-01-21%20at%2016.41.07.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="1280" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAWfUPsI6c-bOrN5ulto-uejC9z171UbBoM9hNCVGpWgRc408kUAgfQoA0Ww3VY1Jg3xsYLUXD1TLZvE4424fsMG2NaiLn2oC6fT7zJb4vtNshJXfdT4wBg52lMe2RbGmWxqJqBANzMeSbWv84z-3ioSXbCoKVdwePaKJMDzTa5sPzWj0_Sfep-XTF4A/w400-h238/WhatsApp%20Image%202023-01-21%20at%2016.41.07.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: 13pt; text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 13pt;">At the entrance of the famous Prambanan temple complex just outside Yogyakarta, we were in our regular dilemma – whether to take a guide or not? But eventually we decided to go for one and for the next one and half hour or so, our guide was Yono, a middle-aged local guy. As he began with a story of Vishnupuran, we were a bit surprised.</span></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Yono explained
that this largest Hindu temple complex in the island of Java (and second
largest in South East Asia, after Angkor Wat) was established at the confluence
of two rivers, right at the base of Mount Merapi, an active volcano and at a
place, which was the most fertile land in the vicinity – that’s how the best of
three elements - water, fire and earth were combined here. The main temples,
dedicated to the <i>Trimurti</i> or Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva were built sometime
in the second half of the 9<sup>th</sup> century under the patronages of Hindu
Sanjaya kings, who succeeded the Buddhist Sailendra kings in this part of Java
(the Sailendras built the nearby Borobudur, the largest Buddhist temple in the
world).</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPdl-cmWZfmLkVnYe93TwPFj8SSG9BHoRW4fEtuqNx-jiQhJ5I3m53zUf2KhmjCw6arcdeJHLtOMAuQgWhp7zqGXjL4jWX4B4RDAUwHiO0Ko40TsQ7wftifQ7vMzRaWvqpsvRvcw4WG0x2UxCHaWkMmoAuSN9Qh_4_CdO80xte2QAmC-32TdASxFrRdw/s1280/WhatsApp%20Image%202023-01-21%20at%2016.45.21.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="484" data-original-width="1280" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPdl-cmWZfmLkVnYe93TwPFj8SSG9BHoRW4fEtuqNx-jiQhJ5I3m53zUf2KhmjCw6arcdeJHLtOMAuQgWhp7zqGXjL4jWX4B4RDAUwHiO0Ko40TsQ7wftifQ7vMzRaWvqpsvRvcw4WG0x2UxCHaWkMmoAuSN9Qh_4_CdO80xte2QAmC-32TdASxFrRdw/w400-h151/WhatsApp%20Image%202023-01-21%20at%2016.45.21.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Borobudur<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: 13pt;">Though the Mataram Court shifted out of this area after a century or so,
the complex continued to benefit from multiple patronage and at least 240
temples came up here. The entire complex suffered repeatedly due to earthquakes
and volcanic eruptions (major ones in the 11</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 13pt;"> and 16</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 13pt;">
century) before being abandoned. The complex is still being painstakingly
rebuilt since the first such efforts by the colonial Dutch government in the
early 20</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 13pt;"> century.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkHdGegoTFK9a-SR1Ar40Bek6eNVI8F-58ilhCht3ITQBwz2RSdk93UT_wX5spozttX1gDw2tRr42-Cv6jnrJiHb4pytniwGoK87s5VFMphIpC3Wgw5VcHjmFiLP-HWrGX-jvM9cUMm9FMerbUhlaauLIC5seRV2dUO9f7CXo2FAI69AWQXHAuFmKL8w/s1280/WhatsApp%20Image%202023-01-21%20at%2016.40.39.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkHdGegoTFK9a-SR1Ar40Bek6eNVI8F-58ilhCht3ITQBwz2RSdk93UT_wX5spozttX1gDw2tRr42-Cv6jnrJiHb4pytniwGoK87s5VFMphIpC3Wgw5VcHjmFiLP-HWrGX-jvM9cUMm9FMerbUhlaauLIC5seRV2dUO9f7CXo2FAI69AWQXHAuFmKL8w/w400-h300/WhatsApp%20Image%202023-01-21%20at%2016.40.39.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Yono
effortlessly went on explaining typical Indian architectural features, linking
those with various Puranic stories and the Hindu concepts of time (as explained
in Skandapuran), mandala, and re-incarnations. He drew simple diagrams on soft
soil with a small stick to explain architectural alignments or cosmological
features. We were two Indians and one Indonesian in our group – often he looked
at two of us and said you must be knowing this better than me and we exchanged
embarrassing glances with each other. He would turn then towards our Indonesian
friend and would explain the story/linkages with local legends or precise
Javanese expressions for the same.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I
tried to hide my embarrassment, I could not help thinking that in Java, Indic
religions have gone out of practice now for more than five-six centuries, yet
they have retained so much. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB9S-gOeygtCN-5qJjYxGATaKxUGyZyzIMIlVxjbpVdHiCbRPQntyapQH9q4dJ-wLk9-uikT-UtkP_8d3L_iaNg3unbH8TptvKsDubKYvX5MsyODzHSTdjF138aT5y11LtLsH-qtSvu9TNQbfgR8IAfNrXtamqMm-w0hKnSdyuVfZ1eZ3LOclRUTf_Aw/s1280/WhatsApp%20Image%202023-01-21%20at%2016.41.34.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1125" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB9S-gOeygtCN-5qJjYxGATaKxUGyZyzIMIlVxjbpVdHiCbRPQntyapQH9q4dJ-wLk9-uikT-UtkP_8d3L_iaNg3unbH8TptvKsDubKYvX5MsyODzHSTdjF138aT5y11LtLsH-qtSvu9TNQbfgR8IAfNrXtamqMm-w0hKnSdyuVfZ1eZ3LOclRUTf_Aw/w351-h400/WhatsApp%20Image%202023-01-21%20at%2016.41.34.jpeg" width="351" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: 13pt;">In the
evening, this Prambanan temple complex provides the backdrop for a
scintillating open air Ramayana ballet. Both the Indian epics occupy an
important part in Indonesian society and culture and today’s Muslim-majority
Indonesia takes great pride in celebrating such cultural heritage. Prambanan
itself has reliefs of Ram-Sita and the mythical bird, Garuda, which is
Indonesia’s national symbol. Garuda also lends its name to the Indonesian flag
carrier. All the performers in Ramayana ballet are Muslims, just like our
guide, Yono.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsn1YWbUDraIZuXXs8yT4a3fewC6u8-4rfbcpf4rGBDvzNdtAZRNM_zFPq_WN7y9bF2wolE6rDd2eTupslFXZxRPq7dKbBSBuwlXLRlQDyi3S07sHZDDgQPbOvmPmZdf38Q1FNpYaUwFu8oP1E-4oKa13JNNSnJVFTqQZ9XRks6bMyrfBiBRFCsfSGOA/s793/Ramayana-Ballet.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="793" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsn1YWbUDraIZuXXs8yT4a3fewC6u8-4rfbcpf4rGBDvzNdtAZRNM_zFPq_WN7y9bF2wolE6rDd2eTupslFXZxRPq7dKbBSBuwlXLRlQDyi3S07sHZDDgQPbOvmPmZdf38Q1FNpYaUwFu8oP1E-4oKa13JNNSnJVFTqQZ9XRks6bMyrfBiBRFCsfSGOA/w400-h272/Ramayana-Ballet.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pic Courtesy: https://www.javaheritagetour.com/category/ramayana-ballet-prambanan/</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 13pt;">Islam spread
in Indonesia through traders and Sufi saints and as such it has always been a
much more tolerant version. And of course, the unique Indonesian character has
also contributed to this. In the past also, they believed in syncretism and
even now, they believe in accepting and preserving the best of traditions and
different cultures.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In the heart
of Jakarta, in front of the National Museum, there is a magnificent statue of
Arjun with his chariot of eleven horses and Sri Krishna as his charioteer (Arjuna
Wijaya). ‘Siti’ (noble, virtuous lady) and ‘Dewi’ (goddess) are two of the most
popular female names in Indonesia even today (</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Wisnu, Surya, Indra, Putra also continue to be popular names)</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">. Indonesia, home to
the largest Muslim population in the world, is also an extraordinarily tolerant
multi-culture, multi-ethnic society. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOcuqDSsoAROX15_68yDmbzbnrPtgBe98mwQ8-ktz8TPoIWmhcB1DD6q0Ov0ELrrwzTLwr7_WaJgJIIFoMgFxWYpoVduUnmKCmAF3spwQiFFk2ghei9r2jvA-AqZn8MOFcKsbBfncF6tZBgQUxV0ks_q246-MZHbheIKGDV0TZyQqAlAOBESGWVhOUJw/s1200/1200px-Arjuna_Wijaya_chariot_statue_in_Jakarta.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="852" data-original-width="1200" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOcuqDSsoAROX15_68yDmbzbnrPtgBe98mwQ8-ktz8TPoIWmhcB1DD6q0Ov0ELrrwzTLwr7_WaJgJIIFoMgFxWYpoVduUnmKCmAF3spwQiFFk2ghei9r2jvA-AqZn8MOFcKsbBfncF6tZBgQUxV0ks_q246-MZHbheIKGDV0TZyQqAlAOBESGWVhOUJw/w400-h284/1200px-Arjuna_Wijaya_chariot_statue_in_Jakarta.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pic courtesy: Wikimedia Commons</td></tr></tbody></table><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%;">Indonesia’s
national language, <i>Bahasa</i> (comes from Sanskrit, <i>Bhasha</i>), contains
a number of Sanskrit words as they have preserved so many Puranic tales. </span><span style="color: #444444; font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%;">Indonesia’s state ideology is <em><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0cm;">Pancasila</span></em> (Five
Principles) and the state motto is <em><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0cm;">Bhinneka Tinggal eka</span></em> (Unity in Diversity). A
large number of national institutions have Sanskrit mottos, including its Army </span><span style="font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%;">(<i>Kartika Eka Paksi</i> - Unmatchable Bird with
Noble Goals), </span><span style="color: #444444; font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%;">Navy (<em><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0cm;">Jalasveva Jayamahai</span></em> -
On the Sea, We are Glorious), combined forces </span><span style="font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%;">(<i>Tri Dharma Eka Karma</i> - Three services, one determination)</span><span style="color: #444444; font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%;">, and National Police Force </span><span style="font-size: 13pt; line-height: 115%;">(<i>Rastra Sewakottama</i> - Serving the Nation).
Though it was withdrawn in 2008, but Between 1998 and 2008, Indonesian 20,000
Rupiah banknotes had the picture of Ganesha.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtsoQiXCv63FocT7A2-OLfzjph7NYHrJfy3ZtEKa6lRqw2Bh_JHOvymZrxwETbMSBXIjeB29BSiao8ksHSJwjcynkGtjOSWEeKq92PANPNFDIkjeo54JANHOegqIOpFUbrVbMYVc7IQvzyFH3HymwrgdVUAUySfy2WGMCsd60FcpFgBZzXkyYY8SLE6w/s692/garuda.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="692" height="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtsoQiXCv63FocT7A2-OLfzjph7NYHrJfy3ZtEKa6lRqw2Bh_JHOvymZrxwETbMSBXIjeB29BSiao8ksHSJwjcynkGtjOSWEeKq92PANPNFDIkjeo54JANHOegqIOpFUbrVbMYVc7IQvzyFH3HymwrgdVUAUySfy2WGMCsd60FcpFgBZzXkyYY8SLE6w/s320/garuda.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pic Courtesy Garuda Indonesia</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 13pt;">As we finished
going around the core temple complex, we profusely thanked Yono for such an
enlightening tour. With folded hands and a benign smile, Yono said he would
like to make a request – he has heard that in India not too many people read
Skandapurana and such epic literature anymore, can’t we do something to revive
interests in ancient Indian texts? We two Indians did not know where to hide our
face and said a quick goodbye to Yono and left for a long road trip back to
Jakarta. </span></p></span><p></p>Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-89753830080166357052022-12-23T22:08:00.001-08:002022-12-23T22:08:15.151-08:00How Indian Merchants and Sufi Saints Took Islam to Indonesia<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh3ACoYIAEkE3qIo-xzyKl5gH0lASwPe17fSDzGrZ0wUT_KKAbHM8nm5tl3AWKsMqtoNkefnVh5FWrrjs-OUBSo85YJZ4wBjLTy911tKcH3qiCd99A0_GW_kKuPoGDEXAreSTg7cGFXmUxK4hwG4nPnL8bGtkRKdWbEf6CtBYPENe4gxe8dWGzBV4qs0g" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="522" data-original-width="365" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh3ACoYIAEkE3qIo-xzyKl5gH0lASwPe17fSDzGrZ0wUT_KKAbHM8nm5tl3AWKsMqtoNkefnVh5FWrrjs-OUBSo85YJZ4wBjLTy911tKcH3qiCd99A0_GW_kKuPoGDEXAreSTg7cGFXmUxK4hwG4nPnL8bGtkRKdWbEf6CtBYPENe4gxe8dWGzBV4qs0g=w280-h400" width="280" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Whirling Dervishes, pic: Wikipedia Commons</td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;">While talking about
India-Indonesia civilisational ties spreading over two millennia, Hindu and
Buddhist influences are commonly mentioned but Indian merchants and Sufi saints
were, to a large extent, responsible for introducing Islam in Indonesia. Today Indonesia
is the largest Muslim nation in the world, but Islam took six hundred years to
grow roots in Southeast Asia. Though Muslim traders were a familiar sight for
long, the first Muslim state came up at Samudra Pasai at the eastern- most
corner of Indonesia,–at Banda Aceh, around 1300 CE. It was here at the eastern
most corner of Indonesia that the foreign merchants were most closely involved
in commercial operations as well as administration. Ibn Battuta, the inveterate
Maghrebi traveller (1304-1369) reached Aceh in 1345 and noted that Samudra
Pasai was the eastern most Islamic state in the world then. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In fact, the rise of Islam
created an unprecedented trading network in the Indian Ocean. Islam united the
Middle East with Persia on the one hand and Egypt and North Africa on the
other. There was a sort of Islamic colonisation of the East African coast,
leading to the rise of prosperous port cities and kingdoms at Malindi,
Mogadishu, Kilwa, and Zanzibar. As more and more people thronged Mecca for
annual Haj, Jeddah, prospered as the entry point and the market of Haj started
dominating the annual trading calendar of West Asia. At the other end of the
Ocean, the first mosque in China–Memorial Mosque or Huaisheng Mosque was
constructed in Canton/Guangzhou in 627 CE by Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas, an uncle of
Prophet. Modern historians doubt whether Waqqas had ever been to China but
there is hardly any doubt about Muslim presence in China from the mid-seventh
century. Probably Persian maritime traders had reached China directly long
before, though the first account of the Siraf-Canton maritime route comes from
the ninth-century Akhbar al Sin wa’l Hind (a description of India and China) of
Suleiman. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Merchants from Red Sea ports or
Persian Gulf coasts first stopped at Muscat or Suhar at Oman or Aden, and then
either came to Cambay in Gujarat or went straight to Koulam Male in Malabar
(Kerala). From there, mostly Indian Muslim (Gujarati Muslims, Mapillas from
Kerala, Chuliyas from Tamil Nadu coast) merchants sailed up to South East Asian
ports. Islam gave a tremendous boost to urbanisation all over Asia. In the
Western flank, a long period of stability and domestic economic expansion,
helped to create a large market. Similarly, in China, continuous movement of
people from North to South, closer to coast, created another large market for
consumption goods. A combination of this resulted in surging Asian commerce
from the tenth century onward. Spice trade remained the chief attraction for
foreign merchants but with large and stable empires, robust trade
infrastructure, close contact with both South Asia and China and maritime
Southeast Asia’s first standardised coinage, islands of Java and Bali were by
now ready for the age of commerce. Indian merchants, especially from the coastal
regions of Gujarat and South India were keen to participate in it. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Long before the rise of
international commercial law, the bond of a common religion helped these
merchant networks to conduct business across this vast geography, deal with the
ever-present danger of natural disasters or man-made violence or extortion of
local authorities (it also spawned a huge vocabulary of common maritime terms
which were in circulation from Middle East to South East Asia for centuries
like Nakhuda or the owner of the ship, Mu’alim or the pilot, Sahrang/Sareng or
mate, Tandill or the officer in-charge of the seamen or Khallasi/Khalasi,
Laskar or the crew - from Aden and Hormuz to Malacca–these terms became as
familiar as the annual arrival and departure of foreign merchants). There were
varieties of boats with exotic cargo but out in the water, they all were part
of the same culture. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="857" data-original-width="493" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgS_1v6lyuKSNYWsg1KVusA1DFeWKbXL8wgVXagjwIlijk0x4wuxsyTAdtKgkVmqwYwl6sQ4qhDQn1IrUTWFmkLxVis4pcFbD9XXQTe_7ANBIkvdX2utaA9qpEBFyWETXIk4FmCbJPEx09IzNvhu1JKEh1T0AC6w7q8TbufvpojN8pybPIVVHFbOaPeIg=w368-h640" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="368" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large; text-align: justify;">Tombstone of Sultan al Malik al Saleh, written in Arabic script and dated 1297 CE, Samudra Pasai – very similar to contemporary tombstones in Gujarat, particularly in Cambay, the principal port city</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgS_1v6lyuKSNYWsg1KVusA1DFeWKbXL8wgVXagjwIlijk0x4wuxsyTAdtKgkVmqwYwl6sQ4qhDQn1IrUTWFmkLxVis4pcFbD9XXQTe_7ANBIkvdX2utaA9qpEBFyWETXIk4FmCbJPEx09IzNvhu1JKEh1T0AC6w7q8TbufvpojN8pybPIVVHFbOaPeIg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">It was around the same time when
the Islamic state of Samudra Pasai came about in early 14</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: large;"> century
that the first series of Islamic tombs (barring an isolated case in the
eleventh century) appeared in Java. These tomb stones closely resemble the
style of similar tombs in contemporary Gujarat and in some cases, the tomb
stones might have come from the Gujarati port of Cambay. Similarly in Java,
Islam came through harbour kingdoms of Cirebon, Demok, Japara and Gresik, where
foreign merchants frequented in large numbers. Traditional Javanese accounts
attribute spread of Islam to the activities of a group of nine Saints,
collectively known as Wali Sanga–though the exact list of the nine is not above
dispute. The first of these saints (and his family dominates the list) was
Malik Ibrahim, who came from Gujarat (though he was probably of Persian origin)
and died at Gresik in 1419 CE.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="405" data-original-width="553" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhWELPAE4UCbEL9eFxrylMDbfuA7bw0bI4vsLUd60Q-EWwCOgtlv4hUqrT-PAxv_i4CIzQZXGcqgMijUHTn7I8z9-3z7Xn4gvL1UpJATboOuWBv-cHbojg6871xH7b2dFyG6Fvyh4m4UPLJk6YVbk-zF238NqQSbx4G-D_AU8YefpmQnoF-eg3rz9_UZQ=w400-h293" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large; text-align: justify;">The Great Mosque of Central Java, Semarang. Pic: Wikipedia Commons</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhWELPAE4UCbEL9eFxrylMDbfuA7bw0bI4vsLUd60Q-EWwCOgtlv4hUqrT-PAxv_i4CIzQZXGcqgMijUHTn7I8z9-3z7Xn4gvL1UpJATboOuWBv-cHbojg6871xH7b2dFyG6Fvyh4m4UPLJk6YVbk-zF238NqQSbx4G-D_AU8YefpmQnoF-eg3rz9_UZQ" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">Nuruddin ibn Ali ar-Raniri, a
mystic from Rander, near Surat, lived for many years at the court of the Sultan
of Aceh. His works are considered among the oldest Islamic scholarships in
Southeast Asia. In a sweet celebration every March at Padang in Sumatra, small
sachets of sugar are scattered from rooftops to celebrate the birthday of Sahul
Hamid, an Indian preacher credited with introduction of Islam in Sumatra
(festival of Serak Gulo). This is also a beautiful reminder of the Gujarati
commercial association of this saint - Gujarat once exported sugar around the
world (from the Sanskrit word khanda/khand, mainly used to denote pieces of
jaggery, comes Persian qand, Arabic qandi, French candi and English candy).</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Earlier it was believed that Islam
was introduced mainly by Indian/Gujarati traders but now most historians
believe that Islam came to Indonesia through multiple sources including
Chinese, South Indian, and Gujarati. But there is no doubt that Islam reached
Indonesia through maritime commercial sources and not riding on the back of a
victorious army unlike Western or Central Asia. What the Indian Sufi mystics
taught – a personal union with God – was not alien to what a Javanese Guru
would earlier be teaching to his disciples. It was perhaps both Sufi and
maritime influences that led to the blossoming of a moderate Islam in the
archipelago and that too, without constituting a break with their rich,
syncretistic social and cultural past, including Ramayana and other
Hindu/Buddhist traditions. </span><o:p></o:p></p>Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-6924292565499516152022-08-19T06:57:00.000-07:002022-08-19T07:31:35.485-07:00Hariprabha Takeda: A Bengali Bride in Early 20th Century Japan<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14pt; text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgujSUnFME9SAHOZ8q0hbK5SBxvFK6AWVP0YoZoTYWObF93vMtiNK7nFD69gZuovCSHYcSIUIo-Ho4VhMKph01QboS7dfTWGvFnQ2tsmzTTcxeWSqwtdgXhkHmADYWpt94-YYt0X4c1SPA2g0MewWLeYdiUy6ie61l_WE38HrU4QXueV9KwygrLVVvjvg/s320/Uemon_and_Hariprabha_Takeda.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="196" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgujSUnFME9SAHOZ8q0hbK5SBxvFK6AWVP0YoZoTYWObF93vMtiNK7nFD69gZuovCSHYcSIUIo-Ho4VhMKph01QboS7dfTWGvFnQ2tsmzTTcxeWSqwtdgXhkHmADYWpt94-YYt0X4c1SPA2g0MewWLeYdiUy6ie61l_WE38HrU4QXueV9KwygrLVVvjvg/s1600/Uemon_and_Hariprabha_Takeda.jpg" width="196" /></a> </td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">In 1907, Hariprabha Basu Mallick (1890-1972), a young Brahmo middle class
woman from Dhaka, fell in love and married Oemon Takeda (1875-1949), a Japanese
soap maker, who was hired as a manager by her father. Her progressive Brahmo
family strongly believed in constructive social work. Apart from establishing
this soap factory, they also ran a home for destitute women, <i>Matri Niketan</i>
in Dhaka. In fact, Hariprabha, before and after her marriage, was closely
associated with this home for women. It is not clear exactly how Oemon reached
India or Calcutta but during the Swadeshi movement (1905-11), a number of new
age soap factories came up in Dhaka, including the Bulbul Soap Factory, where
Oemon was employed. After their marriage, Oemon set up his own Dhaka Soap
Factory.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn7FOCg1mYgpTGZjLz9dVmnAZx7sk_3fmW83gMDlNfKDHnPOtsQ0Qa0ekyyEMP57ox-52-90G2t4N3O0NB8b60JA7KNFBQPGXNgmkq1yI9MD8ztkbJV_n-aSNM7_Z58QpjaEjVaQpY4H56C9KsBFOl1EMGXWM8kJnFhIo1jSN6XqACR52W2NJFVmd0EQ/s838/Tagore_in_Japan_1916.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="411" data-original-width="838" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn7FOCg1mYgpTGZjLz9dVmnAZx7sk_3fmW83gMDlNfKDHnPOtsQ0Qa0ekyyEMP57ox-52-90G2t4N3O0NB8b60JA7KNFBQPGXNgmkq1yI9MD8ztkbJV_n-aSNM7_Z58QpjaEjVaQpY4H56C9KsBFOl1EMGXWM8kJnFhIo1jSN6XqACR52W2NJFVmd0EQ/w400-h196/Tagore_in_Japan_1916.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rabindranath Tagore in Japan, 1916</td></tr></tbody></table></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">This unlikely marriage between a Japanese chemist and a young Bengali
woman in Dhaka needs to be seen in the overall context of Bengal’s fascination
with Japan at that point. Rise of Japan as an Asian power – as attested by
Japan’s victory against Russia in 1904-05 – had captured the imagination of
Bengal, then in the throes of the Swadeshi movement. Umpteen number of Bengali
children born around the turn of the century had their nicknames after prominent
Japanese war heroes and politicians. One of the major planks of Swadeshi in
Bengal was economic self-reliance through both traditional means and modern
technology. Japan appeared to be a role model in that respect too. Bengalis
collected money to send talented youngsters to Japan to learn new technologies.
Some of them came back to play pioneering roles in new industries like
machine-made potteries or chrome tanning. They also welcomed Japanese
technicians proficient in various trades like Oomen.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7XfV9WLaoHWSgBzr0r8sbp_wkt16nwRTf91JlslOA4qvTUotLZtCuKP34Ip0-Bj3D7ietwqHIfVZtzZZ0lbjVJzGmgFlPRFgLW2VKH2p0N8GJliqiYn0nui9Wo8XDDjA1Ex4BEWZTZQuTX--EESjk-Lsppj0D2zTt3s9jNZblEahov_iauFWXwlpXfg/s1010/Okakura_Kakuzo.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1010" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7XfV9WLaoHWSgBzr0r8sbp_wkt16nwRTf91JlslOA4qvTUotLZtCuKP34Ip0-Bj3D7ietwqHIfVZtzZZ0lbjVJzGmgFlPRFgLW2VKH2p0N8GJliqiYn0nui9Wo8XDDjA1Ex4BEWZTZQuTX--EESjk-Lsppj0D2zTt3s9jNZblEahov_iauFWXwlpXfg/s320/Okakura_Kakuzo.png" width="253" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Okakura Kakuzo (1863-1913)</td></tr></tbody></table></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">For Rabindranath,
Bengal’s premier cultural icon, Japan remained a lifelong obsession. </span><span lang="EN-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; font-size: 13pt; line-height: 107%;">Interaction between him and the famous Japanese artist and art critic Okakura in
Calcutta in the early twentieth century inaugurated the Indo-Japan relations in
modern times. Rabindranath visited Japan four times and was hailed as a symbol
of rising Asia (later on, his stringent criticism of rabid nationalism
compelled Japanese intellectuals in turn to criticise him and begin their own
introspection). Japanese culture left an indelible imprint on Rabindranath – he
started writing short poems in Japanese fashion (haiku) and introduced in
Shantiniketan, Japanese style ink and wash paintings, flower-designing
(Ikebana), marshal art (Jujutsu) and carpentry with Japanese teachers. Apart
from Rabindranath, Okakura Kakuzo (also known as Okakura Tenshin) developed
close friendship with stalwarts of Bengali socio-cultural life, including Swami
Vivekananda, Sister Nivedita and painters like Abanindranath and Gaganendranath.
Okakura also developed a romantic liaison with Priyambada Debi (1871-1935), a
leading Bengali poetess and she translated Okakura’s famous book <i>The Book of
Tea</i> in Bengali. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW0v5heZLUpHrINmXEHAH8YKlpwEFcuiPCOWBuDg5mvoao-BywZWhbYGrm6BRxBvyKNOVr0_xpmgAMFFWqhZDOb2BZsZ9r25Rb74n47sd8K3FwQfho2KSpNNeZWp1BngNH-EmyMw9Dpqd8r9lX0hz0OEnXNkgJGKdcQwZ0VXx4d-5Q-RjAwcSG9Z2kuQ/s4032/3024px-Rabindra_Okakura_Bhawan_in_Kolkata_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW0v5heZLUpHrINmXEHAH8YKlpwEFcuiPCOWBuDg5mvoao-BywZWhbYGrm6BRxBvyKNOVr0_xpmgAMFFWqhZDOb2BZsZ9r25Rb74n47sd8K3FwQfho2KSpNNeZWp1BngNH-EmyMw9Dpqd8r9lX0hz0OEnXNkgJGKdcQwZ0VXx4d-5Q-RjAwcSG9Z2kuQ/s320/3024px-Rabindra_Okakura_Bhawan_in_Kolkata_01.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; line-height: 107%;">Rabindra-Okakura
Bhavan in Kolkata, inaugurated by Prime Minister Abe in 2007, was a result of
lifelong efforts of Tagore scholar Prof Kazuo Azuma (1931-2011), who spent long
years in Shantiniketan</span></td></tr></tbody></table></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Five years after her marriage, Hariprabha sailed with her husband and
some of his Japanese friends to meet her in-laws. This was the first known
voyage of a South Asian woman to Japan in modern times. After a long journey,
they finally reached Oemon’s family in a village near Nagoya. Despite the
language barrier, Hariprabha was warmly welcomed by her mother-in-law and other
relatives of Oemon. Hariprabha, in turn, observed the Japanese social life
through her keen eyes. In those days, the Japanese, particularly outside the
major cities, had seen very few foreigners. Their visit had naturally been a
matter of popular interest and a Japanese newspaper, </span><i style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Kobe Yushin Nippo</i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">
had published an interview of the couple. Three years after her maiden voyage
to Japan, in 1915 she published what seems to be a rather straight forward
account of what she saw in Japan.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQToj_5GH7VBhHfTxAEurFec54S5-g1S5aH7sfJt_BkVbJVNiuKEHLRnwrakNChTqsmd1d_BGgBDA7g225wT504a_sEDZK1_0Oq4-tk-rgEuSUcsJ56AYydMlKs5Fc4Vr_vGOOojZmyOfc2wfYIVyBSVPAc-1STkKdPJiGLDyHfAJYS_5jMfItqchxzQ/s1140/Front_page_of_the_book_of_Bangla_mahila_Japan_jatra.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1140" data-original-width="788" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQToj_5GH7VBhHfTxAEurFec54S5-g1S5aH7sfJt_BkVbJVNiuKEHLRnwrakNChTqsmd1d_BGgBDA7g225wT504a_sEDZK1_0Oq4-tk-rgEuSUcsJ56AYydMlKs5Fc4Vr_vGOOojZmyOfc2wfYIVyBSVPAc-1STkKdPJiGLDyHfAJYS_5jMfItqchxzQ/s320/Front_page_of_the_book_of_Bangla_mahila_Japan_jatra.jpg" width="221" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First Edition of Hariprabha's book, proceeds were to be used for Matri Niketan</td></tr></tbody></table></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Published by her sister Shantiprabha, </span><i style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Banga Mahilar Japan Jatra</i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> (Journey
of a Bengali Woman to Japan) was not the first or the only account of Japan
travel in Bengali. At least two Bengalis had published their travelogues by
1910 – </span><i style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Japan Probas</i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> by Manmathanath Ghosh (1882-1944) and </span><i style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Japan</i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">
by Sureshchandra Bandopadhyay (1882-?). A
number of eminent Bengalis had visited Japan either before her or around the
same time – the list includes Swami Vivekananda, who was perhaps the earliest,
followed by scientist Jagadish Chandra Bose, historian Jadunath Sarkar and
social scientist Benoy Kumar Sarkar, who in 1923 published a large scholarly
book on Japan titled </span><i style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Nabin Asia r Janmadata Japan </i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">(Japan, the Mother of
New Asia). Rabindranath’s much-acclaimed account </span><i style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Japan Jatri</i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> (A Sojourn
to Japan) would come out in 1919, three years after her first visit to the land
of rising sun.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: arial;">But what sets Hariprabha’s story apart is her unique perspective – none
of the others could gain entry into Japanese social life as a family member.
She wrote about the lives of ordinary Japanese women, their social and
child-rearing practices (and her implicit criticism of Bengali social mores) –
themes which were generally absent in our travelogues. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVtJY7dRI133CQcvllWtDX2K1xzORJ9WS46nxoaEy5lXwiiWRToQQzS8rGtLwSraRyKCjubyeP98iNtjUXIdVIcAEtWxMF9JCoBPCzZk8RgzQRLPuOg0t4BcQ0NzKc1flr69qgfGnR2kz-xXBZnuxIgTJs_o2-SIdTK66wqM8ZYcngAw-sCvKDbBD9wg/s782/Hariprabha%20with%20Netaji.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="573" data-original-width="782" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVtJY7dRI133CQcvllWtDX2K1xzORJ9WS46nxoaEy5lXwiiWRToQQzS8rGtLwSraRyKCjubyeP98iNtjUXIdVIcAEtWxMF9JCoBPCzZk8RgzQRLPuOg0t4BcQ0NzKc1flr69qgfGnR2kz-xXBZnuxIgTJs_o2-SIdTK66wqM8ZYcngAw-sCvKDbBD9wg/s320/Hariprabha%20with%20Netaji.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hariprabha (in dark saree) with Netaji</td></tr></tbody></table></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Even as the Second World War raged on, Hariprabha went back to Japan a third
time in 1941 under much strained circumstances (her second trip in 1924 was
undocumented). Plagued by illness, her husband had to close down his
soap-making unit and he was also afraid of being jailed by the British
government. Her writing paints a dark picture of war-torn Japan – death in
almost every family, food ration, broken roads, and a general atmosphere of
crisis. Amidst all these, Hariprabha risked her life to find money and medicine
for her ailing husband. When she writes about her experience of meeting
Rashbehari Bose or Subhas Chandra in Japan, personal recollections merge seamlessly
with the historical narrative. Rashbehari Bose offered her a job of Bengali
newsreader for Azad Hind Radio and every night, she walked through dark,
bomb-battered streets of Tokyo to go to the radio station.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Shortly after the end of the War, the couple shifted back to India (<a href="http://thetimeriver.blogspot.com/2010/11/judge-pal-japanese-hero.html" target="_blank">Judge Pal</a> of the Tokyo trial fame was among the well-wishers, who had helped them
with the passage money) and started living with one of her sisters in
Jalpaiguri. Oemon, physically unwell and completely heartbroken by the fall of
Japan, passed away soon after. Later in her life, Hariprabha shifted to Kalyani
with one of her nephews and eventually passed away in 1972 in Calcutta’s Shambhunath
Pandit hospital when hardly anyone remembered her story. Today, along with Rabindranath,
Okakura, Rashbehari, Judge Pal and Subhas Bose, her story is also counted as one
of the milestones of the Japan-India/Bengal relations. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQLrvNYiWvHdBAYoMgu1hQ2YEYb0eaUyE2IgzYoBhwM8fpcVg8ecFfVyx1x1yW_zR9PUyRo7KfHygNPSXmtBPCxY1ZGXQJNJ9EfhDMt7FolKtmVxQu8NkRbucYZXAMHYlElGMmBzaCfxSHKi6TsPthm7eoPWCNSGUSRP3c5SackkiN1rV631O0Bnp6_Q/s1039/docu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1039" data-original-width="684" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQLrvNYiWvHdBAYoMgu1hQ2YEYb0eaUyE2IgzYoBhwM8fpcVg8ecFfVyx1x1yW_zR9PUyRo7KfHygNPSXmtBPCxY1ZGXQJNJ9EfhDMt7FolKtmVxQu8NkRbucYZXAMHYlElGMmBzaCfxSHKi6TsPthm7eoPWCNSGUSRP3c5SackkiN1rV631O0Bnp6_Q/s320/docu.jpg" width="211" /></a></div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">A Bangladeshi scholar, Monzurul Huq located a copy of Hariprabha’s book
in London’s India Office library and published it in 1999. Since then, there
has been a lot of interests in Hariprabha’s extraordinary life and her writings.
A recent translation by Somdatta Mandal features her handwritten experience of
Second World War ravaged Japan and some other relevant pieces. In 2012, exactly
100 years after her epoch-making first visit to Japan, filmmaker Tanvir
Mokammel made a documentary on her life titled ‘Japani Badhu’ (The Japanese Wife).
In 2021, another documentary on her life titled </span><i style="font-size: 14pt;">Hariprabha Takeda: An Unsung
Traveller of Bengal</i><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> was produced by Eliza Binte Elahi.</span></p></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilVM4quvQLGpNUx06v-KZO-Z0GLIMrApE9v7kkrtgCa18ONtK5oxkkY34s-thZHJb8ajlAvY2lAKVh1ZiA5SaM41sAU_uSImor6ZtHNIvkv723ZeUnV-Bg8-tvG800dshQ6KxQUKmE3HbyEM3rEtzvsuYeldV1lwE-x4Ot8dltcLxR4teLqwrqLrOCZA/s631/Priyanka.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="631" data-original-width="416" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilVM4quvQLGpNUx06v-KZO-Z0GLIMrApE9v7kkrtgCa18ONtK5oxkkY34s-thZHJb8ajlAvY2lAKVh1ZiA5SaM41sAU_uSImor6ZtHNIvkv723ZeUnV-Bg8-tvG800dshQ6KxQUKmE3HbyEM3rEtzvsuYeldV1lwE-x4Ot8dltcLxR4teLqwrqLrOCZA/s320/Priyanka.webp" width="211" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Priyanka Yoshikawa Ghosh</td></tr></tbody></table></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In these hundred
years, both her homeland and Japan have undergone tremendous changes. Amidst
renewed interests in Hariprabha’s life, a fluent Bengali-speaking Priyanka
Yoshikawa Ghosh became Miss Japan in 2016. Her father is a Bengali settled in
Japan and her Japanese mother is a Bengali teacher by profession (Priyanka also
happens to be the great-granddaughter of Bengal’s first Chief Minister Prafulla
Ghosh). Excitement over her success briefly brought back the memories of
Bengal’s fascination with Japan more than a century back.</span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></span></p>Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-56715394180862084102021-04-11T04:41:00.001-07:002021-04-11T04:41:32.609-07:00A Brief History of Women in Jeans<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIJJvHpSvndFmdhvj7WGmIf7mLe5Hkd6ese4i4eLcjaHiZ7M5w5M212nf-mMxKhjtaGRc3TU_INjwHGvZG7JWWrI1tOD_B6cAeZZxYc4RbXEZQbydP7Md_cM238712pGQ03zAPcZv7pd8K/s2000/cindy.webp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="1500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIJJvHpSvndFmdhvj7WGmIf7mLe5Hkd6ese4i4eLcjaHiZ7M5w5M212nf-mMxKhjtaGRc3TU_INjwHGvZG7JWWrI1tOD_B6cAeZZxYc4RbXEZQbydP7Md_cM238712pGQ03zAPcZv7pd8K/s320/cindy.webp" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Timeless elegance of white on <br />blue: Cindy Crawford</td></tr></tbody></table></span></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Many
years ago, as evening was about to descend on a grey-coloured city, I saw a
girl in blue jeans and a crisp white shirt from a bus window. It was a small
road, more like a lane in Calcutta’s crowded Burrabazar area overflowing with
people (almost all working class male) and buses stuck in a nightmarish traffic
snarl, so typical of Calcutta in those days. All buildings, shops, everything
around were covered in soot and dust. There were small puddles in the road
after a sharp pre-monsoon shower and of course, no sidewalk. In the midst of
all that she walked in her blue jeans. Even then I did not really notice her
features but the timeless elegance and romance of a girl in blue jeans – in
this case, heightened by the unlikely surroundings of grimy working class
Calcutta is still fresh in my memory.</span></div><p></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jeans: A Riveting Story</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
word ‘denim’ came from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">de Nimes</i> (that
is from the French city of Nimes), where such twill fabric was originally
produced. French weavers were actually trying to reproduce a sort of cotton
corduroy much in vogue among the workers and soldiers of the Italian city of
Genoa (<span style="background: white; color: #202122;">Gênes in French, thus
‘jeans’). <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="background: white; color: #202122; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Almost all such denim cloth was daubed in indigo,
a plant-based dye from India (I have blogged about indigo <a href="https://thetimeriver.blogspot.com/search?q=indigo">here</a>). This shows
the British connection to blue denim. </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG9I7uWLrK1t0IRwLZ8wqIGp4pjLan9KPPpwfKuhHuC_haEeL74xnuGAOoZbylngs-0YQuEsa1wumqd5QjyxkbZ30x5oQHmx5DECliNNgufibljxiVmtNow_RvHiwxu0mJ4rAcfc5Fa-jd/s550/levis.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="348" data-original-width="550" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG9I7uWLrK1t0IRwLZ8wqIGp4pjLan9KPPpwfKuhHuC_haEeL74xnuGAOoZbylngs-0YQuEsa1wumqd5QjyxkbZ30x5oQHmx5DECliNNgufibljxiVmtNow_RvHiwxu0mJ4rAcfc5Fa-jd/s320/levis.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">As
the story goes, the modern jeans or denim trouser with metal rivets was
invented in California when a tailor Jacob Davis started making such trousers
for miners. Soon, Davis in partnership with his cloth supplier Levi Strauss
obtained a trade mark for their unique trouser on May 20, 1873. This was
however known as ‘overalls’ till the 1960s, when baby boomers started calling
them ‘jeans’.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrFgfpwE3fBK7pV-z33xoawW_oEaS2e5KtvnbjUlwltow-vaHT7Ei5kJAi32oO5uoG9d2s2DMfvYa5L1ESZYPWQiAqwXy_OHQRsmJhrwWudk07a5PtA_RsGukHrXMfmFAdoGUfqyxuzwFw/s700/miners2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrFgfpwE3fBK7pV-z33xoawW_oEaS2e5KtvnbjUlwltow-vaHT7Ei5kJAi32oO5uoG9d2s2DMfvYa5L1ESZYPWQiAqwXy_OHQRsmJhrwWudk07a5PtA_RsGukHrXMfmFAdoGUfqyxuzwFw/s320/miners2.jpg" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Romance in Blue</span></b></p></span></b><p></p><span style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: justify;"></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Patent
of Strauss and Davis expired in 1890s and by then blue denim overalls had
become the uniform of the American working class. In the First World War, Lee
Union-Alls jeans were the standard issue for all US military workers. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltoNADhiunyPoVR4-H5C9NEils7VV2dbt4GCpL_wCOwDIp7L1MhVY8JSYPrYvJkh4sqYufLkb9uT6sgyeAK5NkPzgUdhtBEY1LkjJ4QBREvUzc-zVaFL43bV7e8Hxb4SCQjoOmlr5bJ2j/s621/Gary+Cooper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="621" data-original-width="414" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltoNADhiunyPoVR4-H5C9NEils7VV2dbt4GCpL_wCOwDIp7L1MhVY8JSYPrYvJkh4sqYufLkb9uT6sgyeAK5NkPzgUdhtBEY1LkjJ4QBREvUzc-zVaFL43bV7e8Hxb4SCQjoOmlr5bJ2j/s320/Gary+Cooper.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gary Cooper: Denim by then became the favourite dress of Hollywood cowboys</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">In
the 1920s and 1930s, handsome Hollywood cowboys like Gary Cooper started
wearing blue denim trousers. This was the beginning of the romance with jeans.
During the Second World War (1939-1945), American soldiers introduced their
off-duty blue overalls to the World. This was how the global conquest of denim
began.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">But before we talk about the
women in jeans, we need to rewind a bit.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Freedom Machines<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Between
1880 and 1895, a women cycling craze swept through the western world. Riding
bicycles did not only give them the freedom of movement but also ushered in a
great change in women’s fashion. Women wearing trousers was something
absolutely dreadful for most of the 19<sup>th</sup> century in Europe and the
USA. In fact, in many US cities it was a punishable offence. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ63XOkCQpISLB4oB-nGMi9HPxd8GbnsI3LpLJBZ5HGrVnc2fYTvrMKGUWOUYYSstw68GqTfUlv1sBx2wRWNcHaLwhINwb6kSyefZHgCPvAUNhhdkIdCPT-f0zwWbVDz3X7HngNqJfrHN0/s537/women+cycling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="537" data-original-width="354" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ63XOkCQpISLB4oB-nGMi9HPxd8GbnsI3LpLJBZ5HGrVnc2fYTvrMKGUWOUYYSstw68GqTfUlv1sBx2wRWNcHaLwhINwb6kSyefZHgCPvAUNhhdkIdCPT-f0zwWbVDz3X7HngNqJfrHN0/s320/women+cycling.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Thanks
to this bicycle craze, soon the Victorian fashion of long gowns/skirts were
replaced by different types of leggings. For a while, conservative observers
struggled to decide what was worse – women smoking or showing their ankles in
public. Eventually this change paved the way for women wearing trousers in
western societies.</span></p></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4_mrG42LMYISg8SkCWBwl6N4LvxGAXJvqXIpVLoNrAPXRbqQESWnEwoB_eQdRuAH3wUHC3OdXqKRteRuSveKLngeBTXAfagEKYnEhHtJJxkfi3fNiSqSJwAXIwi0PPpscfngyKN9zo8JN/s726/ginger+rogers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="726" data-original-width="529" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4_mrG42LMYISg8SkCWBwl6N4LvxGAXJvqXIpVLoNrAPXRbqQESWnEwoB_eQdRuAH3wUHC3OdXqKRteRuSveKLngeBTXAfagEKYnEhHtJJxkfi3fNiSqSJwAXIwi0PPpscfngyKN9zo8JN/s320/ginger+rogers.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ginger Rogers in jeans</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">By
the 1930s, some of the top Hollywood icons including Gingers Rogers wore denim
pants, turning it into a fashion statement for women too.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Rebellious Jeans <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVk3hU3JSR0ZrmqTPFPZs-R9hKQbuNf1IUZds1h2nkIiqJb3_CdQQnoeeIigFCcBG6rlb9-KObB2ms01803JreATCRBpxvlCgWHLaFyMTVDcthAVA6Auk8v4QxNoVi8nXz53goAwl1zN-i/s335/james+dean.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="335" data-original-width="150" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVk3hU3JSR0ZrmqTPFPZs-R9hKQbuNf1IUZds1h2nkIiqJb3_CdQQnoeeIigFCcBG6rlb9-KObB2ms01803JreATCRBpxvlCgWHLaFyMTVDcthAVA6Auk8v4QxNoVi8nXz53goAwl1zN-i/w179-h400/james+dean.jpg" width="179" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">James Dean in <i>Rebel Without A Cause</i></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFfb8Cfec-3FBXUqyCg4AYf5mn9s9goEv7NUY0uM7bNLigxkZjAJ4iCSk782wYIJZ1p_9VzdU7OcPMYgMkYde1GYmclsDkA9cWXOc9Sl9O4a6xnnmRKI7PiRvvQUZe-1421om7jsqLKL1b/s1920/Brando.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1280" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFfb8Cfec-3FBXUqyCg4AYf5mn9s9goEv7NUY0uM7bNLigxkZjAJ4iCSk782wYIJZ1p_9VzdU7OcPMYgMkYde1GYmclsDkA9cWXOc9Sl9O4a6xnnmRKI7PiRvvQUZe-1421om7jsqLKL1b/s320/Brando.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Marlon Brando wore jeans on and off screen</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Post-War,
in the 1950s, denim trousers became the preferred leisure wear for the American
youth. With stars like Marlon Brando and James Dean wearing jeans on and off
the screen, denim trousers became a rage. In the 1960s, both the hippies as
well as the youth protesting against the Vietnam War were invariably
denim-clad. Now known as jeans, denim trousers emerged as the uniform of
protest. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyEDYImOxTtE4r5G0EXZCQYILVRNXhKCZAldWlPdt-2jIKmqqrK8L12W7pjo4Y40gP31RBdhcCp6zCtchp4FocFZIFVsetuedl3t8ivbHE7lho1kJ1GnaU15HPLRmY4kFSLJDss759MQw9/s1902/Madonna-in-Ripped-Jeans--12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1902" data-original-width="1470" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyEDYImOxTtE4r5G0EXZCQYILVRNXhKCZAldWlPdt-2jIKmqqrK8L12W7pjo4Y40gP31RBdhcCp6zCtchp4FocFZIFVsetuedl3t8ivbHE7lho1kJ1GnaU15HPLRmY4kFSLJDss759MQw9/s320/Madonna-in-Ripped-Jeans--12.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Madonna in ripped jeans</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Ripped
jeans also started life as part of this counter-culture trend sometime in the late
1970s- early 80s. Celebrities like Iggy Pop (who claimed to have pioneered this
in 1978), Sex Pistols and then Madonna popularized ripped jeans.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiihS9qwWELk78W-3sQztGcd81ez3uxj-JRUCI8twJCRFCFmOk7P3hgnMNvls4v3QvNfc5L6WC1z1R4ZXrKQ5Cmvxq_QSL-SEd52iERS7iP8eiqR_pey5s8JCS-j146C2MG389tOSH0Sq0e/s400/Brooke+Shields.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="299" data-original-width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiihS9qwWELk78W-3sQztGcd81ez3uxj-JRUCI8twJCRFCFmOk7P3hgnMNvls4v3QvNfc5L6WC1z1R4ZXrKQ5Cmvxq_QSL-SEd52iERS7iP8eiqR_pey5s8JCS-j146C2MG389tOSH0Sq0e/s320/Brooke+Shields.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nothing comes between me and my Calvins: The most scandalous campaign of that time</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">By
the end of the 1970s, jeans conquered the world of high fashion too. In 1976,
Calvin Klein became the first top designer to put denim on the ramp. And in
1981, when a 15-year old Brooke Shields famously declared that nothing comes
between her and Calvin Klein jeans, it came to the fashion centre stage.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jeans as Fashion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjf14uUWxerlSMR_moXzcGHM6BMsUPnpK5Itzqa3frmIwj73gdX56CFAQoY-gDBLtZIVVimfoDvC085UtdEEQmhblKSwSzvr-dvbSQ_PaSQZEjo5-Oz5CVZpBhRjWsiC4cAnl1PZFUE47G/s754/Amitav.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="503" data-original-width="754" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjf14uUWxerlSMR_moXzcGHM6BMsUPnpK5Itzqa3frmIwj73gdX56CFAQoY-gDBLtZIVVimfoDvC085UtdEEQmhblKSwSzvr-dvbSQ_PaSQZEjo5-Oz5CVZpBhRjWsiC4cAnl1PZFUE47G/s320/Amitav.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Youngsters
started sporting jeans in India from the late 1970s. Amitabh Bachchan was
spotted wearing a denim in </span><i style="font-size: 14pt;">Sholay</i><span style="font-size: 14pt;">
(1975). But teenagers in the 80s were mostly dependent on relatives bringing
them a fashionable pair from abroad. Before we graduated to Levi’s, Lee or
Wrangler, we all had Newport, Ruff & Tuff or Excalibur jeans (most of these
brands were from Arvind Mills, which by the mid-1990s emerged as the largest
denim manufacturer in the world).</span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Like
in the West, by the 1990s in India also, Jeans emerged as a truly democratic
fashion transcending social, economic and gender barriers. There were almost
seasonal changes in Jeans trends in the West (check out <a href="https://www.insider.com/jeans-over-the-years-2018-8#2010-boyfriend-jeans-made-their-move-45">here</a>),
but in India, we roughly remember the transition from classic fit to baggy
trousers of the 1990s to low-waist of the 2000s and then back to a more fitted
classic look. And of course, not to forget acid-washed or ripped varieties or
the embroidered ones for girls. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5IPMFBpOg-aelWgPrZJMwP1TyfxN5B0L2agU7MrBpayhijRkSGZ3gHrzr3g9OLskl5ugitR0hXx3Q0p5E4aAAVDUpx53SNuSSL_PtYzwzKKoTxpydFj41SEjX0j6672RQKRi1SuPx_AjN/s1280/Indian.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5IPMFBpOg-aelWgPrZJMwP1TyfxN5B0L2agU7MrBpayhijRkSGZ3gHrzr3g9OLskl5ugitR0hXx3Q0p5E4aAAVDUpx53SNuSSL_PtYzwzKKoTxpydFj41SEjX0j6672RQKRi1SuPx_AjN/s320/Indian.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">For
men, Khakis replaced jeans as the go-to leisure/casual trousers in the late
1990s. For Indian women, however, by then not only jeans were irreplaceable but
also perhaps the most versatile trouser option. Jeans could be paired with
white or simple tops for a casual chic looks or with kurti and bangles for an
ethnic look or with boots and stylish tops/jackets, jeans could also hit high
fashion notes.</span></p></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jeans as Freedom<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In
the 1920s, when a handful of progressive Indian women started cycling to
Lucknow’s Isabella Thoburn College or on the streets of Lahore, it was a shock for
the urban middle class India. Today even in the most socio-economically
backward states of the country, there are popular government schemes to provide
cycles to girls. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoXSFlmMCpB8wTNqfjLAvWQtnp0xjquJxKoJ5ZqgfvZXzlFDZ-S-8VmiYPZegD-RRTK-8dai4ZZpqP9EoLfrxp9M_WP9VF02wBwU8jIygFx2MdsTW9zQuPbhoBacL9TA2ek-yGktzoQaJ-/s1200/public+transport+jeans.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoXSFlmMCpB8wTNqfjLAvWQtnp0xjquJxKoJ5ZqgfvZXzlFDZ-S-8VmiYPZegD-RRTK-8dai4ZZpqP9EoLfrxp9M_WP9VF02wBwU8jIygFx2MdsTW9zQuPbhoBacL9TA2ek-yGktzoQaJ-/s320/public+transport+jeans.webp" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">There
is no better friend for most Indian women, especially students and working
women, than a pair of hardy blue jeans to travel in crowded Indian public
transport, braving water-logged streets in monsoon or numerous other
roadblocks. Bans announced frequently by some village/khap panchayats or college
principals on women wearing jeans are nothing but an expression of patriarchy,
crude attempts to curtail their freedom.</span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Look
beyond those (rightly) protesting on Twitter against a recent thoughtless
remark by a politician; every time you see a girl coming out of tenements or
rural areas to go to work in her denim trousers - like those ladies riding
cycles to their freedom decades back - you know she wants to give wings to her
dreams.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></p>Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-41947714771377277742021-01-09T01:40:00.000-08:002021-01-09T01:40:09.920-08:00Epidemic Goddess and the First “Tika”<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It
was a worship like no other. Amidst chanting of mantras and beating of drums
and blowing of conch shells, the priest specially called for this ceremony would
approach a child, make a small incision on her forehead and apply something he
brought with him. The child would then be isolated and given cold food for the
next few days. Women would draw alpanas/rangolis outside the room and often
break into songs or stories related to the goddess they worshipped in this
fashion. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As
the child contracted mild fever they would celebrate the success of their
effort – this was the surest sign that the child had been blessed by the deity.
Over the next few days, this fever would subside and the child would recover.
For the rest of her life, this goddess would protect the child and she would
carry that mark, ‘tika’ on her forehead. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA7w9kh5_0jCqhDtI4zRHiLa0zktixQaDkPwqOOWwJRyK71EczmARGje5uqnQCri-GBl5ZQvKH1fz_-jzU_YfBu1FSs_BxhvSwSncudJG4Uzdn88hkjC9RlimSV-95ryiHubh4j8EEaiQD/s487/Kalighat_Shitala.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="487" data-original-width="411" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA7w9kh5_0jCqhDtI4zRHiLa0zktixQaDkPwqOOWwJRyK71EczmARGje5uqnQCri-GBl5ZQvKH1fz_-jzU_YfBu1FSs_BxhvSwSncudJG4Uzdn88hkjC9RlimSV-95ryiHubh4j8EEaiQD/s320/Kalighat_Shitala.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px; text-align: justify;">Goddess Sitala, rides on a donkey and holds a broom to ward off disease and a pitcher of cold water – Kalighat Patachitra</span></td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #212121; font-size: 13.5pt;">The special priest (often
called ‘tikadar’) normally came from the lower castes like that of </span><i style="color: #212121; font-size: 13.5pt;">mali</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #212121; font-size: 13.5pt;"> (gardener) or </span><i style="color: #212121; font-size: 13.5pt;">napit</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #212121; font-size: 13.5pt;"> (barber) in Bengal and even when they were Brahman by caste,
they were often lower in status. Working between November and early March, they
collected pus from small pox patients, preserved it carefully in bamboo
containers and then diluted it to apply on children in exchange of a fee.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">This
was the unique ritual of goddess Sitala, the cold one, who promised to drive
away fever (more specifically small pox and measles). From the Puranas, which
described her as another form of Durga, who rose from a sacrificial fire along
with Jwarasura (the demon of fever), she was celebrated in folk stories and
medieval </span><i style="font-size: 14pt;">mangal kavyas</i><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> of Bengal.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><u><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Taming
Jwarasura<o:p></o:p></span></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Till
it was eradicated worldwide through vaccination in 1980, there was no cure for
small pox. For centuries, small pox outbreaks killed millions globally. But it
was known that the survivors of small pox did not contract the disease again.
This observation led to the invention of artificially inducing immunity. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
method of inoculation followed by the worshippers of Sitala is called
variolation (from variola or Latin for pox). It appears from the descriptions of
European observers in the 18<sup>th</sup> century that such inoculation was
widely prevalent in Sitala’s home territories of North and Eastern India. But
not so much in deep South, where goddess Mariamma takes over her role. Learning
from Brahman practitioners in Odisha and Northern Andhra, British doctors
started inoculating Europeans and Company soldiers in and around Madras in the
late 1780s. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1tcR-VHmaBIqi727czTZu0vKLc_6f7qlSHugKVoLr7mLfLfBZQd9G3pMIdIfvj0Rwoq7nNIOYHgQcVP-MoaD9AKEys38ncTZkdU4bcwCyOquO3DWvSAftTA0nfY9sSdYTGxzxgfSIhjv0/s700/China.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="368" data-original-width="700" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1tcR-VHmaBIqi727czTZu0vKLc_6f7qlSHugKVoLr7mLfLfBZQd9G3pMIdIfvj0Rwoq7nNIOYHgQcVP-MoaD9AKEys38ncTZkdU4bcwCyOquO3DWvSAftTA0nfY9sSdYTGxzxgfSIhjv0/w400-h210/China.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Variolation in China happened through blowing of powdered small pox material into nostrils</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">By
the 17</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> century, apart from India this was a common practice in China
(where the practice might have started around 1000 CE and we have documentary
evidence from around 1600 CE) and large parts of Africa. Variolation might have
originated independently in these three geographies or spread from one to
another.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJM9YDmupz05BkTZCh0Jvp1f7yqmCo4_yBJ7jjFA_2XNXmk9oYynCYtjyAnA2zWKwMUCBfb2vbVisCW9b-e3W7mjm78w4Ehde4SEDxQMuqmUxEBl7izhuFAGlzFqIK3bcC-eql8hBWehWw/s1200/montagu.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="628" data-original-width="1200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJM9YDmupz05BkTZCh0Jvp1f7yqmCo4_yBJ7jjFA_2XNXmk9oYynCYtjyAnA2zWKwMUCBfb2vbVisCW9b-e3W7mjm78w4Ehde4SEDxQMuqmUxEBl7izhuFAGlzFqIK3bcC-eql8hBWehWw/s320/montagu.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lady Mary Montagu</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Lady
Mary Wortley Montagu, wife of the British Ambassador to the Ottoman Court in
Istanbul in 1717 famously wrote a letter to her friend Sarah Chiswell in
England describing variolation practice she witnessed in Turkey. Lady Mary,
herself a victim of small pox, had her children inoculated and played an
important part in spreading the practice in England.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjBisQYh0aR65HUVvWUoqG7iAVq-PkYG5eFX7cn03erZEAvdjycreXEI1xmxN-yz63uE-8MvaKJUWn4sRG1kNUwuZPVWmo6ihpuebxV9j9oQX4AMwnv3z_S4RfkotP6N3JbnIvrlqwTfBH/s1800/Boston.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="690" data-original-width="1800" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjBisQYh0aR65HUVvWUoqG7iAVq-PkYG5eFX7cn03erZEAvdjycreXEI1xmxN-yz63uE-8MvaKJUWn4sRG1kNUwuZPVWmo6ihpuebxV9j9oQX4AMwnv3z_S4RfkotP6N3JbnIvrlqwTfBH/w400-h154/Boston.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dr Zabdiel Boylston inoculating patients in Boston 1721 after Cotton Mather learnt about inoculation in Africa</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Similarly
after a devastating small pox epidemic in Boston in 1721, a Puritan Minister
Cotton Mather promoted variolation – a practice he learnt from his West African
slave Onesimus.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><u><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Goddesses
of Plague<o:p></o:p></span></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Sitala
was not the first goddess of epidemic. Buddhist goddess of small pox, Hariti
appeared in Gandhara around two thousand years ago. Buddhist myths say, Hariti
(the name suggests someone who steals), was a child eating ogress but turned
into a protector of children after coming into contact with Gautam Buddha. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsI-wJwXZq-ibbfVq31k4Fr6qLO6T4iEO02yoRtkxYMClbBn4NM5NCEsp5OYGnNcv51E8ZEsRuRJq8KspCXOaifmKAXJ0jugbzlx6ChulKdVdJqTmP2MJQj2vl1rf9YSN8Dl2iQmEX8EW8/s642/Hariti_%2528Gandhara%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="642" data-original-width="317" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsI-wJwXZq-ibbfVq31k4Fr6qLO6T4iEO02yoRtkxYMClbBn4NM5NCEsp5OYGnNcv51E8ZEsRuRJq8KspCXOaifmKAXJ0jugbzlx6ChulKdVdJqTmP2MJQj2vl1rf9YSN8Dl2iQmEX8EW8/w198-h400/Hariti_%2528Gandhara%2529.jpg" width="198" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hariti Statue (Gandhar region - 1st-2nd century CE), her iconography was inspired by that of Greek Goddess Tyche</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Between
165-180 CE, a small pox or measles epidemic killed 5 million people across
Europe and Asia. In Roman history it was known as the Antonine Plague. At least
three decades before that a similar plague ravaged the Kushan Empire, leading
to a profusion of Hariti images in Gandhar region. Historians believe probably
the same epidemic travelled to Europe through the Silk Route.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Gradually,
Hariti transformed into both fever and fertility goddess and lived on for many
centuries across the subcontinent. Her images have been found from Afghanistan
to Rajshahi in present Bangladesh and also in Andhra. She even travelled to
Japan as goddess Kishimojin. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggq8A6Tt10dYbGRnuX33M0dM0JjT2oh_ilYn_Pn_u0iGQCwDE9L8BX_hytj4wFt2OvBAq3BCw7RpnfuGZ-jcb68D1UyiVHNMpXfzN4zw6ybqNAlwOqZtAMLvdfsJQSrCRgRw-8_XyvusGa/s838/Parnashabari.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="838" data-original-width="670" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggq8A6Tt10dYbGRnuX33M0dM0JjT2oh_ilYn_Pn_u0iGQCwDE9L8BX_hytj4wFt2OvBAq3BCw7RpnfuGZ-jcb68D1UyiVHNMpXfzN4zw6ybqNAlwOqZtAMLvdfsJQSrCRgRw-8_XyvusGa/w320-h400/Parnashabari.webp" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Parnashabari - 11th century statue from Bangladesh, a small Sitala visible as her companion at the bottom right </td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The
other Buddhist fever goddess was Parnashabari. Her name literally means
leaf-clad tribal lady. She was popular in Vajrayana/tantric Buddhism in Eastern
India. Interestingly Sitala initially appeared as her companion. Her cult
gradually disappeared or ceded ground to Sitala but even now she lives on as a goddess
in Tibetan Buddhism</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In
the absence of any effective treatment, it was normal all over the world to
invoke deities for relief from dreaded diseases. Bengal is still dotted with
temples or areas marked after Sitala or such other deities like Olai Chandi or
Ola Bibi (for Muslims) for cholera, goddess Raktabati for blood infection and
Ghe(n)tu for skin disease. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But
Sitala is different from all other deities in the sense that her worshippers
tried to address the disease through scientific intervention. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><u><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Variolation
to Covid Vaccine<o:p></o:p></span></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">English
physician Edward Jenner (1749-1823) is considered the father of vaccination. On
14<sup>th</sup> May 1796, Jenner inoculated (he took pus from cow pox blisters
of a milkmaid, Sarah Nelmes) his gardener’s 8 year old son James Phipps, who
had mild symptoms for a few days but recovered soon. Small pox did not have any
effect on Phipps during subsequent inoculations. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8kfCX5YdVkDVTBYUTCRL4jwS_3KbssT1F-2SEhImisav2JmQ-ilMS1X_tm4Gp_-tYEwoSoUaEViJz4KxVxofzKlbhAbF4SUvQZZGjt4BFCGBraYmYEiKAOAb8UNiLnyixrvVOsl0uw32j/s2048/Edward_Jenner..jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1694" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8kfCX5YdVkDVTBYUTCRL4jwS_3KbssT1F-2SEhImisav2JmQ-ilMS1X_tm4Gp_-tYEwoSoUaEViJz4KxVxofzKlbhAbF4SUvQZZGjt4BFCGBraYmYEiKAOAb8UNiLnyixrvVOsl0uw32j/s320/Edward_Jenner..jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Edward Jenner</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">In
rural England, many people noticed that dairymaids did not suffer from small
pox and that led them to think about a possible connection between cow pox and
small pox. We know at least two cases before Jenner (Benjamin Jesty in England
in the 1770s and Peter Plett in Germany in1791), where similar methods were
used to inoculate a few. But the credit for scientifically pursuing it and
convincing people for vaccination goes entirely to Edward Jenner (the word vaccine
came from “vacca” – Latin for cow).</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In
1879, Louis Pasteur came up with the first laboratory-made vaccine (for chicken
cholera). Since then vaccines for polio, tetanus, MMR (measles, mumps, rubella)
and other killer diseases have revolutionized not only medical science but also
human history. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: justify;">From
those early days of inoculation by Sitala worshippers to the latest Covid
vaccines, technology has changed immensely but the essential approach - of
inserting weakened antigens to trigger immune response - remains the same. And
the legacy of early small pox inoculation is preserved through the continuous
use of the word ‘tika’ in Bengali, Hindi and several other Indian languages.</span> </p>Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-61219478528962003792020-07-04T04:29:00.000-07:002020-07-04T22:54:08.925-07:00Biscuits: An Indian Love Story<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/thumbnails/image/2018/04/18/15/tea-biscuits.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The best biscuit for dunking into tea revealed | The Independent" border="0" height="150" src="https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/thumbnails/image/2018/04/18/15/tea-biscuits.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What
is the item we all have consumed most during the lockdown (other than
broadband)? Well, India in any case, is the largest biscuit-consuming nation in
the world and we just raised the bar even higher. Less than a year ago (August
2019), the makers of India’s most favourite biscuit said that the economic
conditions had deteriorated so much that they were struggling to maintain the
sales volume of even Rs 5 pack of Parle G. And in April this year, amidst lockdown,
Parle G recorded its highest ever sales! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.consumer-voice.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/RUSK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Best rusk | Milk Rusk | Britannia Rusk | Bonn Rusk" border="0" height="130" src="https://www.consumer-voice.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/RUSK.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baked left-over breads were the first biscuits - we now call them rusk</td></tr>
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<span style="clear: left; float: left; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Have
you ever wondered about the history of this humble yet indispensable
snack? The word ‘biscuit’ came from a
French word (bis-qui), which, in turn, had originated from a Latin word (biscotus)
– it basically means ‘twice baked’. There is no doubt that at least since the
Roman times, people had been baking the left-over bread again to preserve it.
This is what we call rusk today. This was handy for the soldiers and
long-distance travellers.</span></span><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">We
know for sure that since the time of the Crusades (1096-1271 CE), European
armed forces, especially navies, had been stocking up on biscuits. For more
than two centuries, till around 1840 (when canned beef was introduced), the
standard ration of the British Navy had two fixed elements – biscuits and a
drink, first beer and later rum. But these were hard (and quite inedible)
biscuits, which had to be dunked in some liquid first. These came to be known
as hard tack biscuits. The oldest preserved biscuit today is one such naval
issue from 1784. </span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA56oQpX3l3nfkVfhLZ3oXulgaQeEPqFPkxUAP7kVYqlyXVHqhLJ_RXJbu-2iJZ4lFQmoCtFTZEbabe0cq4mqsRuqntJwfWOcapfi8cp5WqPcaXrmOvCbmQdTuZJxUvl6CrZzD3DwGWtra/s1600/oldest.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1195" data-original-width="1280" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA56oQpX3l3nfkVfhLZ3oXulgaQeEPqFPkxUAP7kVYqlyXVHqhLJ_RXJbu-2iJZ4lFQmoCtFTZEbabe0cq4mqsRuqntJwfWOcapfi8cp5WqPcaXrmOvCbmQdTuZJxUvl6CrZzD3DwGWtra/s320/oldest.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">13th April 1784 - the oldest surviving biscuit in the world - today preserved in Britain's National Maritime Museum. A hard tack biscuit given to wood engraver Thomas Berwick</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Today
it is difficult to imagine that hardly 150 years back biscuit was an absolute
novelty for Indians. Just like bread, it was the Portuguese, who introduced
biscuits in Bengal (and perhaps in Goa/Western Coast also). The first known reference
to biscuits made in Bengal came from the famous French traveller and jeweller,
Jean Baptiste Tavernier (1605-1689), who wrote in the 1660s that the port of
Hooghly was a good place to stock up on biscuits for return journey. For the
next 100 years or so, the bakeries of Portuguese-influenced Hooghly, of Dutch
Chinsurah and French Chandannagar remained the main suppliers of bread and
biscuits to Calcutta.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4l9zfUvWLtHtjfhcGM1Z8KulqdvvneLY_n45lDR974C9AemDB6raxDESBWyjfrvWenvwKqoWeJqrr34Qyc0ArIDIsqtRkPU-F-X66B2UNB6Jz7R0YAjBqts-cEKvTLoKHZb3T9AM17W-h/s1600/rajnarayan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="395" data-original-width="330" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4l9zfUvWLtHtjfhcGM1Z8KulqdvvneLY_n45lDR974C9AemDB6raxDESBWyjfrvWenvwKqoWeJqrr34Qyc0ArIDIsqtRkPU-F-X66B2UNB6Jz7R0YAjBqts-cEKvTLoKHZb3T9AM17W-h/s200/rajnarayan.jpg" width="166" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rajnarayan Bose, ;eading intellectual of his generation and maternal grandfather of Sri Aurobindo - when he joined Brahmo Samaj in the 1840, celebrated the event with biscuits and sherry with his friends - having biscuits openly was an act of rebellion for them</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The
first commercial bakeries in Calcutta came up near the dock area and
Khidirpore. These bakeries were run by the Portuguese/people of European
descent first and then by Muslims. Right from the beginning, the majority
population of the city that is Bengali Hindus, found both bread and biscuits
irresistible in taste but these remained forbidden food items for long. In the
1840s, when a young Rajnarayan Bose (1826-1899) – one of the most famous
intellectuals of his generation and maternal grandfather of Sri Aurobindo –
took the oath to join the Brahmo Samaj, he celebrated it with his friends by
sharing biscuits and sherry!! It was an act of revolt for them. Revolutionary
leader, Bipin Chandra Pal (1858-1932) recalled in his autobiography that in his
childhood it was an exciting adventure to buy bread and biscuits from the only
shop (that too Muslim-owned) selling these items in Sylhet town and to consume
it at night once the entire household was asleep.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://i2.wp.com/www.wrock.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/29biscuit3.jpg?resize=662%2C497&ssl=1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Here ITC To Boroline: These 7 Iconic Brands Were Started In West ..." border="0" height="150" src="https://i2.wp.com/www.wrock.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/29biscuit3.jpg?resize=662%2C497&ssl=1" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">By
the 14</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> century, biscuits were well-known in England. However, from
the 17</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> century, British slave trading and subsequent sugar
plantations in the West Indies powered by slave labour made sugar easily
available and affordable. This completely revolutionized British baking – soon
there were great variety of cake and biscuits for every occasion. From the 18</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 14pt;">
century, tea, especially afternoon tea, became almost a British ritual and
biscuits found a pride of place there.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><img alt="Biscuit tin forgotten for 25 years found to be worth £1,500 | The ..." height="140" src="https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/thumbnails/image/2019/10/21/15/taking-the-bisc-426380-0.jpg?w968h681" width="200" /><img height="153" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Biscuit_tins_VA_2480.JPG/1280px-Biscuit_tins_VA_2480.JPG" width="200" /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">In
the 19</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> century, with the growing popularity of tea and travel, a
variety of easily consumable biscuits came to be manufactured in Britain. The
company, which represented the best of this tradition and one of the first
global brands – Huntley Palmers – started their operations in Bristol in 1822. By
1900, their products, perfectly preserved in beautiful tin boxes were to be
found all over the world from Tibet to heart of Africa and from North Pole to
New Zealand. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7os1N_uH7SrqyWYA0X-MM1psmon_-IeyjTGhGgyvT6APoRMf8TWG8IKOaoVOseX1F9nxO9INoppc2736Es3rJF8yJkxcCiLrTnp_WkpYQq_fNOCsaXuGG1k_ijFsgbUjfZHjh9-OluVYf/s1600/marie.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="393" data-original-width="280" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7os1N_uH7SrqyWYA0X-MM1psmon_-IeyjTGhGgyvT6APoRMf8TWG8IKOaoVOseX1F9nxO9INoppc2736Es3rJF8yJkxcCiLrTnp_WkpYQq_fNOCsaXuGG1k_ijFsgbUjfZHjh9-OluVYf/s320/marie.png" width="227" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grand Duchess Marie Alaxandrovna with her husband Prince Alfred</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">For
some time in the second half of the 19</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> century, biscuits enjoyed a
golden period. When Queen Victoria’s second son, Prince Alfred in 1874 married Tsar’s
daughter Grand Duchess Marie Alexandrovna, one of the leading British biscuit
manufacturers, Peek Frean, created a special biscuit called ‘Marie’.</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.tutorialathome.in/postimg/2019/03/pelitis-restaurant-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Pelitis Restaurant - The Legend of the Lost" border="0" height="140" src="https://www.tutorialathome.in/postimg/2019/03/pelitis-restaurant-02.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Federico Peliti opened Calutta's first stand alone fine dining restaurant with an in-house bakery in 1881</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Back
in Calcutta, there were more respectable options for the British now as hotels
like the Wilson’s started their own bakeries. In 1881, Federico Peleti opened
Calcutta’s first upmarket standalone restaurant along with an in-house bakery. </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">However,
the problem persisted for the Hindu upper caste till 1887, when a Bengali
gentleman named Girish Chandra Mandal and I do not know anything else about him
– opened a biscuit manufacturing unit in Central Calcutta. Soon the business
grew so fast that he had to request his neighbour Nalin Chandra Gupta, a lawyer
by profession, to help him out. Their venture was known as VS Brothers. Soon Mr
Gupta came to be the driving force behind the venture. The company was renamed
Gupta and Company and they set up a much bigger unit at Dum Dum and started
selling biscuits under the brand name of ‘Hindu Biscuits’. As you can well
imagine, during the Swadeshi days (1905-11), the company did roaring business.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In
1913, again under what circumstances I have no clue, this company took on board
an English gentleman by the name of C H Holmes and subsequently it was renamed
Britannia Industries during the First World War (1914-1919). <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81-6gERBZKL._SX679_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Britannia Marie Gold, 250g: Amazon.in: Grocery & Gourmet Foods" border="0" height="95" src="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81-6gERBZKL._SX679_.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">In
1970, three major British biscuit makers - Huntley and Palmers, Jacobs and Peek
Frean amalgamated to create Associated Biscuits. This Associated Biscuits held
a major stake in the Britannia Industries. Now you know how your tea time
favourite Britannia Marie came about - traversing the channels of colonial
commerce (in 1982, Nabisco acquired Associated Biscuits and in 1989, Nabisco
sold the Associated Biscuit brands to Danone; Britannia today is majority owned
by Danone and their Indian partner Nusli Wadia). </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="about:invalid#zClosurez" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Parle Performance Boost Amid Coronavirus Crisis | HW English" border="0" height="112" 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" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">World's best selling biscuit - it's an emotion, an identity to millions of Indians</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Parle
G is not just a biscuit but as it trended in twitter recently, it is an emotion
and an identity of our rootedness. Many of us would remember the original ‘Swad
bhare Shakti bhare’ Parle G campaign with a dadaji and his grandkids from the
1980s. With sales of more than 5000 crore for this single product, this is the
highest selling biscuit in the world. Parle Products baked their first biscuit
in the village of Parla, near Bombay in 1939 and right from the beginning
branded itself as a swadeshi product (</span><i style="font-size: 14pt;">bharat
ka apna</i><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> biscuit).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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" 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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">In
most cities of Punjab and North India, still there would be at least one
National Bakery, producing old style biscuits and other savouries. I do not know
much about them but I am quite sure that their origin was also somewhat like the
Hindu biscuits in Calcutta. Frontier Biscuit, today well known for premium eggless
biscuits in North India, was established in West Punjab in 1921 and probably
came from the same tradition.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSnl11CbACsPu-Bq8eiWGnwA-jfp0HNv_v3ir_KBQPEz7fykuoBW5WAou7yFNu3x1Zew0yk3NbOrYZ8FsK2Em-tQWLvpfbv79QwcRH03J5H73hCWL1_-9wytZPQOt2dgiBZI8rIYZ5JZbb/s1600/karachi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="505" data-original-width="679" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSnl11CbACsPu-Bq8eiWGnwA-jfp0HNv_v3ir_KBQPEz7fykuoBW5WAou7yFNu3x1Zew0yk3NbOrYZ8FsK2Em-tQWLvpfbv79QwcRH03J5H73hCWL1_-9wytZPQOt2dgiBZI8rIYZ5JZbb/s320/karachi.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In every major airport today, you will find Hyderabad's Karachi Bakery selling famous Osmania biscuit</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">West
Bengal is one of the top biscuit-consuming states (of course along with
Maharashtra, home of Parle G) and Calcutta continues to be the biscuit capital
of India. Britannia, ITC and Priya – three leading Indian biscuit manufacturers
are based in Calcutta today. </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">As
the famous Irani chai of Hyderabad is intrinsically linked with sweet and salty
Osmania biscuits, similarly, roadside tea stalls in Calcutta sell an enviable
range of local bakery-produced biscuits. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjPfdnlaS6xNa590KX98FhaRm3QeVXF4nygct0zs3qw8YGJVGi1YI-8FgnO8NunatTAyGmRWs0OxhfK6NJMzo3WAElzz62IzTEGSZUu4yens7g8B41DGikFGRgyYfSWwpXKcjKD8ZfUknE/s1600/WhatsApp+Image+2020-07-04+at+11.02.48.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjPfdnlaS6xNa590KX98FhaRm3QeVXF4nygct0zs3qw8YGJVGi1YI-8FgnO8NunatTAyGmRWs0OxhfK6NJMzo3WAElzz62IzTEGSZUu4yens7g8B41DGikFGRgyYfSWwpXKcjKD8ZfUknE/s320/WhatsApp+Image+2020-07-04+at+11.02.48.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Some of these are rusk (the famous
lero biscuit, to be dunked in steaming hot tea, served from a large brass
kettle into your earthen cup), biscuits flavoured with kalo jire (onion-seeds)
or the all-time favourite, projapoti (butterfly) biscuit (I just discovered
that there is a recent Bengali film by that name). </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://i0.wp.com/bestoftheyear.in/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/projapoti-biskut.jpg?fit=706%2C1000&ssl=1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Projapoti Biskut (Bengali) - Box Office, Cast, Budget & Reviews" border="0" height="200" src="https://i0.wp.com/bestoftheyear.in/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/projapoti-biskut.jpg?fit=706%2C1000&ssl=1" width="141" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">These biscuits taste
somewhat different from the regular ones – I am not sure why. My friend and
food blogger, Ranjini tells me, perhaps because they use dalda. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8jQlZIgq7sgmNTI8r9CNdjnrOXz9qUh8oqBCb-eZ-ocRFIQZsYXkvLHdW-WpEYuSHRBg5cxQvh_L6ri-0DU9oq15nVbe_X433v4FJrH-3Z0UppisMzbSKquk4mSE4hY-9CdAn2SP2pf55/s1600/WhatsApp+Image+2020-07-04+at+16.21.50.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="419" data-original-width="1263" height="106" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8jQlZIgq7sgmNTI8r9CNdjnrOXz9qUh8oqBCb-eZ-ocRFIQZsYXkvLHdW-WpEYuSHRBg5cxQvh_L6ri-0DU9oq15nVbe_X433v4FJrH-3Z0UppisMzbSKquk4mSE4hY-9CdAn2SP2pf55/s320/WhatsApp+Image+2020-07-04+at+16.21.50.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1306984623938642657" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">We have surely come a long way since those days when having biscuits could pose risk to one's religion and also the romance of Huntley Palmers, but our love affair with biscuits continues to deepen. </span></div>
</div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-26091504747892408782020-06-05T22:44:00.000-07:002020-06-10T03:17:15.785-07:00Half the Sky: Women in Lockdown<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrLMFRAZnHPrnyaST7bx1uUu3OxgZGEK1spnnYrW1eQlQlYBBKA-9-9PvjBTCdE3fxh_Q5CGjXMK4wA_rmRsytcu77RmeEXyoUuEYcY_ZDos5vo-Eu2uwRw2rt5tDTGqchMT12o7DIveVV/s1600/WFH.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="600" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrLMFRAZnHPrnyaST7bx1uUu3OxgZGEK1spnnYrW1eQlQlYBBKA-9-9PvjBTCdE3fxh_Q5CGjXMK4wA_rmRsytcu77RmeEXyoUuEYcY_ZDos5vo-Eu2uwRw2rt5tDTGqchMT12o7DIveVV/s400/WFH.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>WFH meant both work-from-home and work-for-hom</b>e</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As
the nationwide lockdown began, a complete disappearance of maids plunged
middle class households into an unprecedented crisis. For most working women,
WFH soon came to mean both work-from-home and work-for-home. A friend told me
that her husband’s main contribution (during normal times) used to be the
regular grocery and veggie shopping and now he was just doing the dishes. As
she was praying for an early return of her maids, she was right in thinking
that a disproportionate burden of household work had fallen on her. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">2001
Nobel laureate in economics, George Akerlof famously showed that when men do
all the outside work, they contribute on an average 10% to the household work.
But when their share of outside work falls, their share of housework never rises
to more than 37%. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In
fact, Indian women were not alone in their misery, it was widely reported that
during the lockdown, domestic violence has shot up globally. Since long ago I
read something about the condition of women during the Great Depression, I
decided to check out how their successors are dealing with the worst recession
since then.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNtLu8LrUJNk2K2RaiBNHJBh2r85ToUzntJE1GOWyeJJxRglCbk9aQjm7sVS-2rtmdS2TIlecFZsGTr4EDMdfHKTTXcxo4wt-UpaH2Mybxeytz2QYE2_6criqfF3yN4Rdyoq2L__896XOX/s1600/single+mom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="740" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNtLu8LrUJNk2K2RaiBNHJBh2r85ToUzntJE1GOWyeJJxRglCbk9aQjm7sVS-2rtmdS2TIlecFZsGTr4EDMdfHKTTXcxo4wt-UpaH2Mybxeytz2QYE2_6criqfF3yN4Rdyoq2L__896XOX/s320/single+mom.jpg" width="246" /></a></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In
recession, generally most job losses happen in male-dominated manufacturing and
construction. However, due to social distancing, this time a huge number of jobs
were lost in close contact professions and women dominate such jobs. 92% of
dental and medical assistants, 89% of home health aides, 89% of hair stylists,
and 80% of manicurists in the US are women. This is in addition to the job
losses in education, retail, hospitality etc where women have significant share
too. Overall, 60% of those who lost their jobs in the first two months were
women. This has been particularly hard for 15 million single mothers, many of
whom worked part-time and were the first to lose their jobs. As schools and day
care centres remained closed, it has put more demand on working women.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Great Depression for American women, on the other hand, was a catalyst for positive change. During the First World War, just a decade prior to the Depression, they gained entry into formal employment. Apart from teaching, they took up jobs in sales, as office secretaries, telephone operators and as clerks – soon these came to be known as ‘lace-collar’ jobs. During the Depression, at times their salaries were cut but mostly they managed to hold on to their jobs. But massive job losses in manufacturing adversely affected a very large proportion of working men. As a result, women became the primary earning member for many families.</span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixipWXDhQ0VXUxqhX1b0Mirj45VTgXhhdjgYj4IUbwD4j5Ah5wDHSMoCIuQEU05bjX0Q4sD7DuRp3oNgv5SI4ZTGYD52Y5NlUfKnv5khpblP00RtTJvo8cVCM1xtTGwj9Ze71HhjXVgWuN/s1600/women+in+1930s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="338" data-original-width="480" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixipWXDhQ0VXUxqhX1b0Mirj45VTgXhhdjgYj4IUbwD4j5Ah5wDHSMoCIuQEU05bjX0Q4sD7DuRp3oNgv5SI4ZTGYD52Y5NlUfKnv5khpblP00RtTJvo8cVCM1xtTGwj9Ze71HhjXVgWuN/s320/women+in+1930s.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Underpaid but employed, American working women in the 1930s</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 12.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Between 1930 and 1940, the number
of US women working outside their home actually increased from 10 million to 13
million. Far from looking at it as a progressive step, the contemporary
American society blamed them for robbing men of much-needed employment. Today
it appears impossible to believe but the US government had a formal policy of
not giving women any employment under the New Deal. And the government refused
to change this policy of completely banning women from public employment
programmes despite protests from the first lady, Eleanor Roosevelt. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background: white; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Even as they managed to improve their position outside,
within the household, it created new friction. Losing their traditional status
as the sole breadwinner, husbands started feeling insecure. This insecurity put
a serious strain on marriages and family life became more acrimonious. Though
they spent more time together but to cut cost, American families took to
contraceptives in a big way. Household budgets were limited and at times,
people lived in extended families. Women tried hard to save money by every
possible means – sewing clothes for family, preserving fruits etc. And of
course they had to do most of the cleaning and washing too.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background: white; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">World
has moved a long way since the Great Depression but still a recession is more
difficult for women than men. And this is because they continue to share higher
burden of family/household work and in general, they face more difficulties
outside and get paid less. And this is true across the world. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTl_IFKxSTKBxtayHRuNbU6oIVFlpYfmqaNcVhC416pjCyxndH4IbKSjXBom4fNgfqVfknam718d87RlQbCPhYaJQtR3Apf55GVr5CbdIWWwCnr24-RPS15a7aVTv1uVl7qAOciEFVJ7PJ/s1600/multitasking.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="207" data-original-width="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTl_IFKxSTKBxtayHRuNbU6oIVFlpYfmqaNcVhC416pjCyxndH4IbKSjXBom4fNgfqVfknam718d87RlQbCPhYaJQtR3Apf55GVr5CbdIWWwCnr24-RPS15a7aVTv1uVl7qAOciEFVJ7PJ/s1600/multitasking.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In
fact Akerlof is not alone, economists and social scientists have been trying
for a long time to understand why despite rising education and employment
levels, women still continue to do more household work than men (when both have
equal stake in efficiently running the house). A number of empirical studies
show that not more than 10-30% women prefer home over career by nature (don’t
go by matrimonial ads) and an equal proportion of women prefer career over
home. So most women take up additional household work because either they feel
more responsible for running the household or they simply want to avoid
friction. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another
friend, when she moved to the States many years back, noticed that the second
generation Indian girls were generally reluctant to marry boys from their own
community and the reason was not difficult to find. How much house work guys share
that is also a cultural trait (Indian women do more unpaid domestic and care
work than women of any country, except Kazakhstan). But things do change. In
the West, even in the 1970s, men did almost no housework. Today they do a lot
of cleaning and cooking though child care remains almost exclusively women’s
responsibility. Outside home, women’s work is far better recognized today but
parity eludes them even in the USA – for every one dollar a man earns, a woman
earns only 81 cents. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimAj4H6icoQZp_EpKL0eeLMySK7qBOkeQb3kT-pAWO5xC5Kl0wzU3d7lECdbkhpv9gGioyWnAQLGnHg3zppfDQypLdcYWIOlbLsQUnxn6muq_2KsDX24dkkaas-80oZbNB0fmL-Msolwpt/s1600/maids.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimAj4H6icoQZp_EpKL0eeLMySK7qBOkeQb3kT-pAWO5xC5Kl0wzU3d7lECdbkhpv9gGioyWnAQLGnHg3zppfDQypLdcYWIOlbLsQUnxn6muq_2KsDX24dkkaas-80oZbNB0fmL-Msolwpt/s320/maids.png" width="235" /></a></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 12.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">This lockdown has taught middle class Indians the value of household chores. Respect for maids has gone up considerably. A number of friends have promised to enhance their salaries. I do not know how many will keep that promise but definitely we are going to buy more robotic vacuum cleaners and such gadgets. A whole range of new cooks – more men but quite a few women too – made their kitchen debut recently. I guess a few are going to stick around as some men would remember their promise of helping their wives even after the lock down ends. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We know, cataclysmic events like the two World Wars and the Great Depression have fundamentally altered the traditional gender equation in the West. Will this lockdown prove to be a similar turning point for Indian middle class women?</span><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-63929538436795589952020-05-29T21:58:00.000-07:002020-05-29T22:01:04.735-07:00The Great Depression<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh27KhVDm-iuqqKyT0Bi1OMawBV2xMrW76fGww3ztUd4tF6SWxJ5AVUVMjy8qsn5mMlEts3YcERqByY9RFEJTfNuHXFSFF6SyRHNSigBic7tqgNasWXnKOy96gaAM1E0NENTk-EWOLlTd8v/s1600/Black.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="693" data-original-width="557" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh27KhVDm-iuqqKyT0Bi1OMawBV2xMrW76fGww3ztUd4tF6SWxJ5AVUVMjy8qsn5mMlEts3YcERqByY9RFEJTfNuHXFSFF6SyRHNSigBic7tqgNasWXnKOy96gaAM1E0NENTk-EWOLlTd8v/s200/Black.jpg" width="160" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Through
the “Roaring Twenties”, the urban and industrial US economy had a crazy bull
run. Europe was ravaged by the First World War (1914-19). As the Great War was
coming to a close, a spate of revolutions marked the end of the 19th century bourgeois liberalism. But unscathed </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">by these troubles, the USA
continued its dizzying rise to the summit of the industrialized world. This was
best epitomized by the emergence of New York as the world business capital,
where stock prices on Wall Street rallied more than four times between 1921 and
1929.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAqDF7dZwNzNRqfARb7aQC9YUZi_Mf2IkDRLaZsEKEllZ4qhyu-isg8xN36zoxJ3qR6wZnV2TmFLMe4wJiRQsBS4yigIhgGxcUK2X1LPJR-TskJgha8ErHBn6QrrETzkwwD0po135XQH2R/s1600/flapper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="514" data-original-width="266" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAqDF7dZwNzNRqfARb7aQC9YUZi_Mf2IkDRLaZsEKEllZ4qhyu-isg8xN36zoxJ3qR6wZnV2TmFLMe4wJiRQsBS4yigIhgGxcUK2X1LPJR-TskJgha8ErHBn6QrrETzkwwD0po135XQH2R/s320/flapper.jpg" width="165" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Flapper - the new woman in short (knee-length) skirt and bobbed hair defined a new modernity</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">People
started buying cars and installing radios and telephones at home. This decade
saw the first colour movie as well as the first ‘talkie’ (</span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Jazz Singer</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"> 1927). Both commercial aviation and commercial sports
(in newly built stadiums) took off. Fashionable young women, wearing short
(knee-length) skirt, bobbed hair and smoking in public defined a new modernity.
Rise of Jazz music, described as the classical music of the USA, culturally
marked the decade. </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">The Great Gatsby</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">
of F Scott Fitzgerald, who also coined the term ‘the Jazz Age’, best captured
the spirit of the “Roaring Twenties”.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw23fivrDB_HyApL1rXy7qQq1dJ0_eKzzWIFER3CvMPSG8MQCqAhnHMIb2LTEVDbSSXX1SpAti_e78AVXoHDhpCD2kTm5gsfjCO3CThf42NX_vYtVNmYOhtmob6mreRTD0BLmvWdKAC5Q1/s1600/The-Great-Gatsby-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="958" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw23fivrDB_HyApL1rXy7qQq1dJ0_eKzzWIFER3CvMPSG8MQCqAhnHMIb2LTEVDbSSXX1SpAti_e78AVXoHDhpCD2kTm5gsfjCO3CThf42NX_vYtVNmYOhtmob6mreRTD0BLmvWdKAC5Q1/s320/The-Great-Gatsby-5.jpg" width="191" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW9whF1-xajICHywKvYW6wNxXlGz8XnNft4b3aqWAX8D1KeztwO9WGJ0HLX0ch81OCMhTLINYVo9Wnfg0lSlAExllE32Ro3-qEllTi14WePtMRvhOgJa_w9MqKIyAhPEdYY_UJ7pqR7trs/s1600/jazz+age.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="300" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW9whF1-xajICHywKvYW6wNxXlGz8XnNft4b3aqWAX8D1KeztwO9WGJ0HLX0ch81OCMhTLINYVo9Wnfg0lSlAExllE32Ro3-qEllTi14WePtMRvhOgJa_w9MqKIyAhPEdYY_UJ7pqR7trs/s320/jazz+age.jpg" width="274" /></a></div>
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</div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Stock
prices crashed for the first time on the Black Thursday (24<sup>th</sup>
October, 1929). But at that moment, it
was difficult to imagine that this sounded the death knell of capitalism
itself. As the crisis spread from the financial market to the real economy,
demand collapsed completely, triggering a melt-down in the US housing market.
In two years, industrial production fell by a third and automobile production
halved. As plants closed down and small businesses followed suit, millions lost
their jobs. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgauSe-E0noAEKU1hMCFbv_5XkfVWQP-Red8OYTxMzJ91Z1ApC2243fcSwn4No76nJ_ksBhfGO5tdeif0-0UoE9LOKPKYAPd7Yaj5OCBFKZlSH2ayeSuWtL9AW080v8iQ07x830brhzwZXo/s1600/Wall+St.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="900" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgauSe-E0noAEKU1hMCFbv_5XkfVWQP-Red8OYTxMzJ91Z1ApC2243fcSwn4No76nJ_ksBhfGO5tdeif0-0UoE9LOKPKYAPd7Yaj5OCBFKZlSH2ayeSuWtL9AW080v8iQ07x830brhzwZXo/s320/Wall+St.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">As stocks continued to collapse through late October, crowd gathered everyday on Wall Street</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">As
all the major currencies were tied to the gold standard, the US price deflation
spread through it fast. The USA was also the largest exporter and second
largest importer in the world and the leading global lender. Between 1929 and
1932, as both the US import and export fell by 70%, global commodity prices
slumped. Cotton farmers were ruined in Gujarat as prices crashed to less than
half in Bombay, cocoa prices fell by as much as 90% in Ghana, forcing the
growers to stop import of basic food items like rice. And in Brazil, fearing a
complete price collapse, coffee growers forced the railways to buy coffee
beans. And in 1932, people looked, rather smelt, in astonishment as steam
engines ran on coffee instead of coal!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0i5M4k683HkNhAPOc_l5KRtfVCBMIEmWJGUxXKeNGOtBzbDvRDWNrvzlCuKsEpWgfqONdoDaTKGJrltuUHai12Rx1kD5e4lw_72FRXxwOU-dkELfAsVU8pnB6EspghWpgCzE1IPd0zHY5/s1600/bank.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="510" data-original-width="790" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0i5M4k683HkNhAPOc_l5KRtfVCBMIEmWJGUxXKeNGOtBzbDvRDWNrvzlCuKsEpWgfqONdoDaTKGJrltuUHai12Rx1kD5e4lw_72FRXxwOU-dkELfAsVU8pnB6EspghWpgCzE1IPd0zHY5/s320/bank.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Another bank run!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">This
was a truly unprecedented scenario but the policymakers tried to stick to their
traditional solutions. Even as national economies collapsed around them and world
trade fell by 60%, governments instead of spending more, actually tried to
balance their budgets by cutting costs (came to be known as penny pinching).
The US Federal Reserve did nothing to address the liquidity shortage, leading
to multiple waves of bank failures. Soon the dominant images in urban US were long
queues in front of soup kitchens, shuttered factories and shanty towns
(derisively named Hooverville, after President Hoover, who failed miserably to
address the situation). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-w85_S1fkI2vxMeP8zI5Lgj4G6YqiY3sqRqnC6ItvipdsBAuyKOknr2uyyi2YkvpBZ2YP6jeoMjfAo384RRa54-12OG8dkB5VszZZLYemH6SahWzFm2lCKAAesS50fyv84-nsPRLKXF1g/s1600/Hitler.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="1200" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-w85_S1fkI2vxMeP8zI5Lgj4G6YqiY3sqRqnC6ItvipdsBAuyKOknr2uyyi2YkvpBZ2YP6jeoMjfAo384RRa54-12OG8dkB5VszZZLYemH6SahWzFm2lCKAAesS50fyv84-nsPRLKXF1g/s320/Hitler.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Great Depression directly led to the rise of Hitler and Mussolini</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Meanwhile
in Europe, the issues related to the German reparation payment, hyper-inflation
and mass unemployment further precipitated the breakdown of the 19<sup>th</sup>
century laissez faire capitalism. Savings were wiped out and unemployment </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">skyrocketed everywhere. Such dire economic situation paved the way for the rise
of Hitler and Mussolini in Germany and Italy. By 1935 or so, Nazi Germany could
create enough jobs and re-ignite the economic engine. And on the left, the
Soviet Union powered ahead with planned economic development. It led a
generation of politicians/students to believe in state-led industrialization as
an alternative.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">President
Hoover in the US and the Labour governments in Britain and Australia sank
without a trace. Army Generals threw out the incumbents in many Latin American
countries. In the colonial world, this crash in commodity prices either fuelled
another round of anti-colonial struggle (like India) or led to the emergence of
it. As situation deteriorated everywhere, policymakers were not only forced to
innovate but even had to give up their fundamental beliefs. In 1931, in a
moment of great symbolic importance, Great Britain gave up free trade and gold
standard.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ1Duo5ZdRTyNzb8jSPlWd9JHRTI6UmPEKNQNlYbF7wX4U4JhlhIZso4V1c1nC0746DWl-R1PD7T2mIzxOj8JpuS9bioOJO-GHw1uIkXCoqLhXjs1Hz5u6F9Z-ri-Gcy2uIclXuW_POCqd/s1600/New-Deal.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="750" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ1Duo5ZdRTyNzb8jSPlWd9JHRTI6UmPEKNQNlYbF7wX4U4JhlhIZso4V1c1nC0746DWl-R1PD7T2mIzxOj8JpuS9bioOJO-GHw1uIkXCoqLhXjs1Hz5u6F9Z-ri-Gcy2uIclXuW_POCqd/s320/New-Deal.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In
1933, Franklin D Roosevelt became the 32<sup>nd</sup> President of the United
States and initiated his famous “New Deal’. He launched massive public works
programmes to provide employment. Securities and Exchange Commission was set up
(1933) to regulate stock markets and the Glass-Steagall Act was passed (1934)
to regulate the banks after one fifth of them failed in just two years. New
Deal envisioned <i>Welfare Capitalism</i> –
the land of unbridled capitalism, passed the Social Securities Act (1935) and
hiked tax on riches (New Deal and the Second World War took the top marginal
tax rate from 24% to 84%). <span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0mH3O63zxdHlDEzSuNWo1epeHSeflfghGb4ozTRvYn15SQMI69LSmBz4K0tdfDUEi0IlGcmljYtzihT6yrxUzuBbV4xTDBoHIcgRtPAqkGbnRBI_kJlGdkHmFVvD67RMG8VC1FOv0okP4/s1600/800px-Lange-MigrantMother02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1040" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0mH3O63zxdHlDEzSuNWo1epeHSeflfghGb4ozTRvYn15SQMI69LSmBz4K0tdfDUEi0IlGcmljYtzihT6yrxUzuBbV4xTDBoHIcgRtPAqkGbnRBI_kJlGdkHmFVvD67RMG8VC1FOv0okP4/s320/800px-Lange-MigrantMother02.jpg" width="246" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">One of the most famous photographs of the Great Depression - Migrant Mother - destitute pea-picker Florence Owens Thompson, age 32, mother of 7 children at Nipomo, California March 1936</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Even as the economy was slowly coming back on track, the
worst drought in modern times struck the Great Plains in 1934. This vast flat
region around Oklahoma turned into a ‘Dust Bowl” and more than 2.5 million people
were forced to flee. Most of them went to California in search of a better life
but the reality turned out to be quite different. John Steinbeck’s classic
novel, <i>The Grapes of Wrath </i>presents
perhaps the most vivid picture of this tragedy. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">At times it seemed that the American society was on the verge
of a total breakdown – children grew up quickly, teens drifted away, people
postponed marriages and babies, families just fell apart even without formal
divorce (it had a very different impact on American women but it would require
another post). The most popular tune of the time was “Brother, Can You Spare a
Dime?”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jobless
Americans turned to radio (first radio soap operas and comic shows took off in
the 30s) and then to television (Roosevelt, who used to do a popular half an
hour fireside chat in radio, became the first head of state to be live telecast
in 1935), inexpensive board games (<i>Monopoly</i>
was invented in 1935) and above all to Hollywood. As a famous historian noted -
giant movie theatres rose like dream palaces in the grey cities of mass
unemployment. These movies, made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer or Twentieth
Century-Fox, including the iconic ones like <i><span style="background: white;">Frankenstein</span></i><span style="background: white;">,
<i>It Happened One Night</i>, <i>Gone with the Wind </i>transported the
viewers to a dreamland and hardly ever portrayed the grim reality outside. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOLXKoCU6jPjFWrcJp-T9PD-htqLr62s4JdrRQHDh6Qy-aUyKc-DD_pk_TH6atjUE1Hgp88wqg7xpN9urejPz97SshaPePEsBZ0t6JXJ4NIDk2nNmQpdZkfcx8Vcbnp39BVtha3cm7WeOE/s1600/gone+with.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="1200" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOLXKoCU6jPjFWrcJp-T9PD-htqLr62s4JdrRQHDh6Qy-aUyKc-DD_pk_TH6atjUE1Hgp88wqg7xpN9urejPz97SshaPePEsBZ0t6JXJ4NIDk2nNmQpdZkfcx8Vcbnp39BVtha3cm7WeOE/s320/gone+with.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Vivian Leigh and Rhett Butler in Gone With the Wind - movies transported jobless Americans to a dreamland and hardly ever showed the grim reality outside</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<span style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The USA till then had never witnessed recession, poverty and deprivation
at this scale. The onset of the Second Word War (1939) and the subsequent US
involvement in it, plunged the economy into another crisis but at least,
resolved the unemployment problem. It was only in 1950, five years after the
end of the War that the economy was again fully back on track.</span></span></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-56570170911936610302020-04-25T06:39:00.000-07:002020-04-25T06:40:21.506-07:00Zero Dark 2020<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The day Mahendra Singh Dhoni and
his boys lifted the T20 world cup in September 2007, it was a defining moment
not only for the Indian cricket but for a generation. Indian economy was truly
booming (2003 to 2007 – for five consecutive years, GDP grew at a rate of
around 8%) and new enterprises in IT, telecom, pharma and other sectors were
out to conquer the world. Since the Y2K crisis of the late 1990s, Indian
professionals earned global recognition. Shining new airports, signature flyovers
and swanky malls altered our city-scape and ushered in a new consumer culture.
For those too young to remember the 1983 and grew up watching humiliating
defeats to Australia, England and especially to Pakistan, Saurav Ganguly and
then Dhoni’s boys represented a new era. As stock markets continued to soar (Sensex
crossed the 20000-mark for the first time in 2007) and there were regular predictions
of India soon becoming a global economic powerhouse, one of the newspaper
headlines screamed next day – <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">India
World Leader 2020!!</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A friend recently reminded me that
when we completed our graduation in mid/late 1990s, there was not even an iota
of doubt in our minds that we would do well in life. Whichever career you
chose, generally there was such an atmosphere of optimism all around! The world
was ready to welcome middle class India like never before. In 2003, Planning
Commission unveiled <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Vision 2020</i>, a
document prepared under the leadership of APJ Abdul Kalam. The book he
subsequently published was almost a compulsory reading for nearly a decade and
we all truly believed in that promise – India’s destiny to become an economic
superpower and ensure all round development for her entire population. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSHrIXEf9O6hDZSMzIUzhL8uqnWiyJ8c9c0jDPZUvh8f4vbnmQtoNkgtCPTr3tV5xLvcFIknFpGCYBmoJnswMmm5LhKZO0nkOmbtke76-cDPzst0MAu5ZKkn_XW1hK4k-vG3BjacaQmbRf/s1600/India.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="306" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSHrIXEf9O6hDZSMzIUzhL8uqnWiyJ8c9c0jDPZUvh8f4vbnmQtoNkgtCPTr3tV5xLvcFIknFpGCYBmoJnswMmm5LhKZO0nkOmbtke76-cDPzst0MAu5ZKkn_XW1hK4k-vG3BjacaQmbRf/s200/India.jpg" width="128" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Instead 2020 tuned out to be our <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Annus Horribilis </i>and that precious dream
now lies absolutely shattered. This year for the first time in four decades GDP
will contract. Zero growth is truly an unprecedented scenario in this country
of 1.3 billion. It also appears that 10 to 20 crore jobs/livelihoods will be
lost and an alarmingly large number of Indian businesses will go bankrupt. Even
before this pandemic struck, economy was in a serious structural crisis with
falling exports, decline in domestic demand and above all dwindling employment
opportunities. But now this lockdown completely flattens the economy. With this
the virtuous cycle that started on 24<sup>th</sup> July 1991 comes to an abrupt
but definite end. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">In 1991, Gulf War had sent oil prices
soaring. With hardly any foreign reserves, India was on the verge of a
sovereign default. Prudent fiscal management since 1991 and a large forex
deposit, however, ensures that the government does not face any such crisis
today despite a raging global recession far worse than 1991. But the government
does not command this economy any more. It’s the private sector and household
consumption that drive this large economy (in 1991, India’s GDP was a paltry
$320 billion, today it stands at $2.7 trillion). Battered by this unprecedented
lockdown most households and corporates now face a serious risk of bankruptcy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeNzB4IUJa1EeKR7L6PR3u-Q1hiw4o-LFQW_sZzVJoFH9sqQl-eyhI0bj_JJuVDqrnLdRSPtezUzONVjwZxidhfi3r5V0rypkGni3QWcOHPTtv6ux_8JjCYgQeyaWWbNXDCkxvU9mtm4s0/s1600/Screenshot_20200425-180342_2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1306" data-original-width="1440" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeNzB4IUJa1EeKR7L6PR3u-Q1hiw4o-LFQW_sZzVJoFH9sqQl-eyhI0bj_JJuVDqrnLdRSPtezUzONVjwZxidhfi3r5V0rypkGni3QWcOHPTtv6ux_8JjCYgQeyaWWbNXDCkxvU9mtm4s0/s200/Screenshot_20200425-180342_2.png" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFrebGK2O4P8edkeZe6ZGmgMAC9TQ7Jje08MoFAu1UuhehIj6JBQOGDEojvW86WcqyNiauia4Rc8tWtelHnJX8RRiM0k9wkRJekd6Nw4kRcVxdIrr19LVSRRcRWh91uLj6QXEcUvvivZh-/s1600/Screenshot_20200425-180556_2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="756" data-original-width="1440" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFrebGK2O4P8edkeZe6ZGmgMAC9TQ7Jje08MoFAu1UuhehIj6JBQOGDEojvW86WcqyNiauia4Rc8tWtelHnJX8RRiM0k9wkRJekd6Nw4kRcVxdIrr19LVSRRcRWh91uLj6QXEcUvvivZh-/s320/Screenshot_20200425-180556_2.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">To be honest, there were deep
fissures in our growth story. Politically, 1991 was essentially reform
unleashed under duress. All political parties subsequently refused to extend
reform more meaningfully to other areas, including politics itself. There was steadfast
refusal to invest in public health, education and agriculture. A substantial
segment, perhaps as high as 60% of those who are above poverty line remained
deeply vulnerable in the absence of any social security/safety net. Creaking
infrastructure and unpredictable government policy ensured that there was no
rapid industrialization. For years now, successive governments have failed to
address the banking mess and power sector woes. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Initially, the political class was
ready to give up their discretionary power and create new professional
regulators. Over time, not only they refused to move ahead with more
professionalization but even the robustness of the earlier institutions have
eroded. The most worrying is of course a precipitous decline in competition –
state monopoly has withered away but today in many critical areas of Indian
economy there are only 2/3 players left. Telecom, once a great sunrise sector, is
today a prime example of this unfortunate trend. In last decade or so, we have
hardly seen a single new enterprise comparable with Infosys or Sun Pharma or
Bharti. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">And who pays for it? If the state
does not invest in infrastructure or public health, citizens suffer. When
competition shrinks, consumers are forced to pay higher prices for poor
products and shoddy services. The lower you are in the pyramid, more you stand
to lose.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Any crisis of this magnitude – from
medieval Plagues to more recent World Wars – also presents great opportunities.
In fact, India’s response in 1991 itself is a great example of that. But
whether an economy is able to take advantage of a crisis or not, that depends
largely on policy response. Probably our greatest weakness today lies therein.
The stellar team that was responsible for drafting the economic policy in 1991
was mostly around in 2008 (Manmohan Singh, P Chidambaram, Montek Singh Ahluwalia
and C Rangarajan) and they did a commendable job of saving India from recession
in 2008 (as a recent book shows, Indian economy was dealt a more fatal blow by
the Mumbai terror attacks in the same year, which led to the removal of
Chidambaram from the Finance Ministry. Pranab Mukherjee, a politician with
pre-reform mindset took his place and failed to sustain the momentum). There is
a whole host of globally acclaimed Indian economists today but the government
does not seem to be interested to profit from their knowledge. And neither the
lessons of liberalization nor the spirit of competition has anyway affected the
bureaucracy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfMmS6Rr3urf2ucoq0_4E7jnGhCuIhnLLuG4XIDZpZgX-xjBWSv5jeY214HeRjrMEsHlKziwwm-nnfblon8y41Jf320rTx-UvHOGqXwAxfs3aIJT7QKF2GWPoCMEBsfhP1YSnUXNslJncn/s1600/four.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfMmS6Rr3urf2ucoq0_4E7jnGhCuIhnLLuG4XIDZpZgX-xjBWSv5jeY214HeRjrMEsHlKziwwm-nnfblon8y41Jf320rTx-UvHOGqXwAxfs3aIJT7QKF2GWPoCMEBsfhP1YSnUXNslJncn/s320/four.webp" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Blue sky, nearly empty neighbourhoods,
families huddling together in front of television to watch Ramayan/Mahabharat,
sharing home cooked Maggi instead of Domino’s Pizza – this idyllic picture of locked
down India brought back memories of our childhood in late 1980s. Except that we
could not go out for cricket/walk. Except that the apartment blocks where we
are cocooned today do not look anything like government/PSU/railway colonies or
university campuses some of us were privileged to grow up in. Our parents
aspired to build a modest house before their retirement with savings of their
lifetime. A lucky guy got posted/sent on tour abroad and brought sneakers/jeans/Walkman
for the youngsters. We spent half the month with a landline lying dead (and
called girlfriends in another city through astronomically priced STD calls in
tiny booths). Power invariably went off during an important cricket match or
Chitrahaar, during hottest summer afternoon or midnight. I wrote about it </span><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;">almost a decade back</span><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"> (</span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><a href="http://thetimeriver.blogspot.com/2011/07/bis-sal-baad.html">http://thetimeriver.blogspot.com/2011/07/bis-sal-baad.html</a></span>), <span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">but
honestly today hooked to my mobile, used to the convenience of net
banking/Makemytrip/Amazon Prime/BigBasket/Zomato, even I find it difficult to
imagine that life.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">We have entered a dark tunnel. We
will eventually come out of it but it would be a very different world. 8% plus
growth will not come back on a sustainable basis for a very long time. And now
the world would be far less globalized, deep recession always breeds insularity
and authoritarianism (Great Depression of 1929 led to the rise of Hitler and
Mussolini). By 2030, India’s demographic dividend will be largely over. This
way, it seems, India has fallen into that dreaded <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Middle Income Trap</i>, from where hardly any economy has ever
recovered. Still, most of our gains in middle class India are unlikely to
disappear. But even our lot will struggle with a serious job squeeze, stagnant/falling
income and asset erosion. It would be much worse for those entering the job
market now. Eventually perhaps both the demand for formal education and supply
of steady jobs would decline. Along with landline telephones, morning
newspapers, lifelong pensions, sari-clad mothers/teachers, a long list of
things/habits/practices are about to go out of our lives. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Living through a period of momentous
historical event is often a traumatic experience. Today we might find the
French Revolution (1789-99) a great inspiration or watching a Second World War
(1939-1945) movie very exciting but those, who lived through those cataclysmic
events had suffered unbearable pain and deprivation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNmm-l93pYGYoQkOVuUuLDA6OJLh3U-3Ssovzp_lGrgNVlGj_ggC_Ov9P6QTkTlQvZJtuXWM6GrSOZc1k3E3LT0zYVeON1Bk-E2mt9yzyoN4B-Mn8s5_TNYWdgZftYDjoFrQEDrxLSCHyl/s1600/migrants.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="489" data-original-width="670" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNmm-l93pYGYoQkOVuUuLDA6OJLh3U-3Ssovzp_lGrgNVlGj_ggC_Ov9P6QTkTlQvZJtuXWM6GrSOZc1k3E3LT0zYVeON1Bk-E2mt9yzyoN4B-Mn8s5_TNYWdgZftYDjoFrQEDrxLSCHyl/s320/migrants.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">For decades now, we have not seen
absolute poverty rising in this poor country. In fact, lifting millions out of
abject poverty has been one of the most important gains of 30 years of
liberalization. This picture, no doubt could have been far better but even this
achievement largely melts away now. Assuming a population of 15-20 crores below
official poverty line at the beginning of 2020, by the end of this year itself,
perhaps this number would double to 40-50 crores. This will be an absolute catastrophe
and, no doubt, will have very serious socio-economic ramifications, especially
in poorer and more populous Northern states. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Since the late 1990s and till
almost recently, a large proportion of Indians have truly believed that they
can significantly improve their own economic prospects. Curtain comes down on
that generation of hope. They would now be happy merely to latch on to the
gains of last two decades. And it would be an uphill battle for those who are
now going to arrive at the scene. We, globalized children of 1991, scattered
from New York to New Delhi, Boston to Bangalore, would look back at these
glorious decades now with a tinge of nostalgia and hope that those golden years
come back in our life time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-31879631673275671382019-06-08T03:14:00.000-07:002019-06-08T03:14:06.805-07:00Indigo Nation<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Francois Pelsaert, a Dutch merchant
from Antwerp, was posted in Agra for several years on behalf of the Dutch East
Indies Company. Near Agra, at a place called Bayana, he witnessed an
extraordinary scene during the first decade of the 17th century. At the
harvest time of the most important crop of the region, he saw Indian, Armenian,
and a few European merchants gathering at the local market and waiting for the
largest buyer to arrive. Peasants–as was the custom–left it to the largest
customer to decide the price of the commodity! Once the chief buyer had
exercised his privilege and others, who had placed advance amount earlier, had
collected their goods, Pelsaert and other Europeans had the option either to
buy at the spot price decided by the chief buyer or to pay advance for the next
year’s crop. The sophistication of this exchange, which so overwhelmed
Pelsaert, was over a plant, which produced a distinctive blue dye. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Blue is a colour almost unavailable in
nature and therefore, any product in blue colour commanded a great premium in
global market. Since, at least the Greco-Roman period, India was known as the
only supplier of indigo dye in world market (Greek word for dye was ‘indikon’
or Indian, which led to ‘indigo’ in English via Roman ‘Indicum’). Indigo was so
exclusive that worldwide–from the dress code of Yoruba elites in Nigeria to the
preferred colour of summer Kimono in Japan–it symbolised status. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihTnryLaI9FGtDxULmow4l5CehK8-MJW0UpcW4UJ7SM5T7OSK6N8BM-N46pXZzDV1alIALNi1DGFw6gdS147ZXezFr4Cc_97Z1CHHxRSzjRnmtmKX-3hpSjI-U2SMbJmz784fi1c_2bmCJ/s1600/blue-white-jar-xuande-perio.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="324" data-original-width="300" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihTnryLaI9FGtDxULmow4l5CehK8-MJW0UpcW4UJ7SM5T7OSK6N8BM-N46pXZzDV1alIALNi1DGFw6gdS147ZXezFr4Cc_97Z1CHHxRSzjRnmtmKX-3hpSjI-U2SMbJmz784fi1c_2bmCJ/s320/blue-white-jar-xuande-perio.gif" width="296" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The only other comparable product in
blue has been the famous blue-white Chinese pottery, made using cobalt imported
from the Middle East. In fact the concept of blue pottery itself came from the
Abbasid Persia but the Chinese porcelain in blue and white became world famous
and later imitated in Europe. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Bayana, near Agra and Sarkhej near
Ahmedabad were among the famous indigo producing areas. The British started
large-scale export of indigo from Calcutta after 1765, when the Northern plains
opened up for commercial exploitation. As the demand in the world market grew
exponentially, there was an indigo boom in Bengal and Bihar, fuelled by capital
investment of Calcutta agency houses. Again, using state-backed coercion; white
indigo planters unleashed a reign of terror–finally provoking an armed
rebellion in the late 1850s in Bengal. This Neel Bidroho or Indigo Revolt was a
landmark event, when common peasants, a few Indian landholders, a famous
newspaper editor (Harish Mukherjee of Hindu Patriot) and a host of others came
together to protest against this reign of terror. This finally forced the
colonial government to step in and end this sort of exploitation by the indigo
planters. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkuTrAf2-xDmSiQr7nCLYxHFNmTSiMfSGcQiTaeLHa_fvr_uXl18JPVOyNaDgKapCEtKyu1D1qYYQPwhCRZX-A3QnKhMSdvvPpjaEkqUwivQEXRhNrSKkK8TTgR3t1XzOPI_U_72Tm-hq2/s1600/indigo+plantation+in+bengal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="191" data-original-width="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkuTrAf2-xDmSiQr7nCLYxHFNmTSiMfSGcQiTaeLHa_fvr_uXl18JPVOyNaDgKapCEtKyu1D1qYYQPwhCRZX-A3QnKhMSdvvPpjaEkqUwivQEXRhNrSKkK8TTgR3t1XzOPI_U_72Tm-hq2/s1600/indigo+plantation+in+bengal.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Though indigo farming went on till
early twentieth century, particularly in Bihar, its exploitative character had
to undergo change. Meanwhile, the unprecedented textile boom necessitated
search for more reliable source of dyes leading to the accidental discovery of
first aniline dye, mauveine by William Perkin in 1856. Working for more than
two decades from 1865, German chemist Adolf von Baeyer produced indigo dye for
the first time in laboratory. However, this was far from perfect–this led to
further work on this in two German companies–BASF and Hoechst. Eventually, by
1910 or so, factory-produced indigo came to replace natural indigo and BASF,
Hoechst along with a host of British companies, which were eventually merged to
create Imperial Chemical Industries, led the chemical revolution. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibyISB5OQNQR6POsm44uALmWAGoz4OS9UknnDeJVU789mC1QoQrEE5aMdv2rRweWb1B6y8M8ZI_oVztFPIzN9PsiN1iRulBe8JlFyNUGybW_JZio3cPNoo1zR-BtHfsaMssDGv5K55uje0/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibyISB5OQNQR6POsm44uALmWAGoz4OS9UknnDeJVU789mC1QoQrEE5aMdv2rRweWb1B6y8M8ZI_oVztFPIzN9PsiN1iRulBe8JlFyNUGybW_JZio3cPNoo1zR-BtHfsaMssDGv5K55uje0/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more such stories related to Indian
business history, see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman
Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-31512193569942348322019-06-08T02:54:00.002-07:002019-06-08T02:54:14.074-07:00Shahs of Astrakhan<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEMtF5G9X-uhaX5b-tE_0VlCqCGqmHY97NBtRwjoskZiN0ZKjQRfsnn_RM2U8DnPuq6gBgQmKsa5GWgnGXYv3tg28N_gUXQThaRADGIDBdoEtPogelDaCTogGl1vjgp0AbMAPKqfJB17qP/s1600/astrachan2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="490" data-original-width="710" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEMtF5G9X-uhaX5b-tE_0VlCqCGqmHY97NBtRwjoskZiN0ZKjQRfsnn_RM2U8DnPuq6gBgQmKsa5GWgnGXYv3tg28N_gUXQThaRADGIDBdoEtPogelDaCTogGl1vjgp0AbMAPKqfJB17qP/s320/astrachan2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Astrakhan 1681</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‘Sutur’ was a leading Indian merchant
in the 17<sup>th</sup>-century Astrakhan. This Russian town has been the
traditional economic and cultural capital of the Caspian region. Consolidation
of Russian authority and expansion towards South under the Romanovs, opened a
new Asiatic route of commerce for Russia. The Muscovite state with its modest
trading class, then decided to welcome Armenians, Iranians, and Indian
merchants. A series of documents preserved in the Russian archives in recent
years helped to throw considerable light on this Indian diaspora, led by
merchants like Sutur.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Perhaps we would never get to know the
real name of ‘Sutur’ as all our information about this extraordinary Indian
merchant comes from Russian sources, where he is always identified as ‘Sutur’.
In a series of remarkable petitions submitted to the Tsar–and preserved in
Russian archives–Sutur mentions that he arrived at Astrakhan from Iran in the
1620s because of favourable business conditions. His brothers worked in
Northern Iranian cities as merchants. While generally praising the rule of law
under the Tsars, once he complained about a government functionary, who used to
harass merchants. His complaint led to quick removal of the officer concerned.
Sutur claimed that in 1646, at his invitation, his brothers and twenty-five
other Indian merchants arrived at Astrakhan with large amount of merchandise
and some of them settled down at Astrakhan. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In 1647, Sutur had obtained permission
to set up an Indian gostiny dvor, literally guest house but in effect, a
residential bazaar at Astrakhan. This dvor was completed in 1649, when a
government census found that twenty-six Indian merchants are living there. They
were substantial merchants–Sutur himself dealt in all sorts of commodities and
he sourced his stuff from Isfahan and Qazvin, where his brothers were settled.
At one point, he went ahead and created another base in Moscow, where he
himself stayed for three years. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUSUqJ8OevEelZDUesOD5veBz1PLykJI9En3U_WECNlBFUwQRtqUI3Y51tTVbAf4kzcNKEyVZb40-NVVGNB6NXcZltm_afnR9rs_3gkheAzsYplQ1-ScP3ipa3ovuHPPtVe7cYBtGmf4AB/s1600/Ateshgah+Baku.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="410" data-original-width="368" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUSUqJ8OevEelZDUesOD5veBz1PLykJI9En3U_WECNlBFUwQRtqUI3Y51tTVbAf4kzcNKEyVZb40-NVVGNB6NXcZltm_afnR9rs_3gkheAzsYplQ1-ScP3ipa3ovuHPPtVe7cYBtGmf4AB/s320/Ateshgah+Baku.jpg" width="287" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ateshgah or fire temple of Baku, used as a place of worship by Hindu and Sikh merchants</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Indian merchants and moneylenders were
present in significant numbers in Safavid Iran (1500-1722) and Uzbek Khanates
or Turan (1500-1920). This important trading diaspora is almost unknown to
modern scholarship as there is very little documentation available of them.
Merchants like Sutur did not go directly from India but advanced to Astrakhan
from his base in Isfahan or Qazvin. Indian diaspora in Iran and Turan not only had
the advantage of a common language (Persian) but also operated within the
common Timurid legacy in terms of political framework and a similar approach to
commerce. Russia was somewhat different but the Russian state welcomed the
Indian merchants as they had almost no mercantile class of her own. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For centuries, India dominated the
global trade by dint of its cotton exports and the picture was no different for
the 17<sup>th</sup>-century Persian or Russian markets. Varieties of cotton,
sugar, and indigo and a few speciality products formed the Indian export basket,
the principal imports items were horses, some silk and other luxury goods.
Overall, India enjoyed a positive trade balance made up by export of gold and
silver by Iran and Turan. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhctWI_2KWuQYAaM_76OdHksEzGFS2ZJILfgLRGJJxL6Qf8KQ7tXIfaz7lydshmVxMsi7em6Z7iC7CEwnzFnanISlDYYkypOxFU09zVs2nrT4IKqfVmPU9Ae8Db7i6C96MFH5FwOb_3WeAC/s1600/Shri+Ganeshai+Namo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="245" data-original-width="368" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhctWI_2KWuQYAaM_76OdHksEzGFS2ZJILfgLRGJJxL6Qf8KQ7tXIfaz7lydshmVxMsi7em6Z7iC7CEwnzFnanISlDYYkypOxFU09zVs2nrT4IKqfVmPU9Ae8Db7i6C96MFH5FwOb_3WeAC/s320/Shri+Ganeshai+Namo.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Invocation to Lord Ganesh, Baku Fire Temple</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Apart from Muslim Afghan merchants,
often from Lohani or Luharni tribes, those who were known as Multani or simply
as bania in Iranian and Russian records, were mainly Khattris and also Marwaris
and Jains. Their home base was Multan, where rich patriarchs, called Shahs,
deputed their underlings or gumasthas to trade in far-off places. In Isfahan
alone, there were 10,000 ‘permanently settled’ Indians during the
mid-seventeenth century. There were many others in Iranian and Afghan towns,
between Multan and Isfahan, their networks were spread all over cities and
towns of Afghanistan from Kandahar to Kunduz. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDuR2Lkf54KEylU6cGcHVSkCosmCcDmdhYPAv8_V1Ky9PsUAG0NMiAQt2GJPKOcTdTteczGBQ4bsPLvYm2KKYwwsdaVpqYA4AeiPUqhe2EKAwe8NtFf81kxGpZrFXwQY9DXxd6ecpaPHlf/s1600/Invocation+to+Adigranth.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="242" data-original-width="368" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDuR2Lkf54KEylU6cGcHVSkCosmCcDmdhYPAv8_V1Ky9PsUAG0NMiAQt2GJPKOcTdTteczGBQ4bsPLvYm2KKYwwsdaVpqYA4AeiPUqhe2EKAwe8NtFf81kxGpZrFXwQY9DXxd6ecpaPHlf/s320/Invocation+to+Adigranth.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Invocation to Sikh Adi Grantha, baku Fire Temple</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In 1727, an Indian merchant ‘Vishnat
Narmaldas(ov)’ died while on a business trip to Kizil Yar on the Terek River.
Before his death, he had asked another Indian ‘Ardial’ (Hardayal?) to take his
property back to his father and relatives in India, but a third Indian,
‘Narayan Chanchamal(ov)’ petitioned the Russian authorities not to allow Ardial
to leave the city of Astrakhan as he had claims against the deceased. This
petition, which was eventually sent back to the Indian community to settle as
per their customary law–presents a unique picture of an Indian mercantile
community in a far-off land. Living inside their gostiny dvor, rich Indian
merchants had their assistants and priests with them. They maintained their
traditional lifestyle including daily rituals, food habits, and concepts of
ritual pollution. They were praised for their fairness and hard work as well as
high degree of personal hygiene. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‘Sukhanant Dyrymdas’ was an
archetypical Multani Shah. He came to Astrakhan from Multan at the age of
seventeen, died in Moscow at the age of sixty in 1759. His estate, consisting
of cash, goods, letters of credit, and other valuables, was valued at three
lakh Roubles (this is at a time when a substantial Russian merchant’s worth was
around 1,000 Roubles). Most Indians traded in all kinds of goods and the larger
among them indulged in money lending, bill discounting, and other banking
activities. For Astrakhan Indians, their supply hinterland stretched up to
Multan, through Iran and Afghanistan and their forward trading networks
terminated either in Moscow or Nizhnii Novgorod. In 1684, twenty-one Indian
merchants were there in Moscow, where they shared a gostiny dvor with Armenians,
Bukharans, and Iranians. In Astrakhan itself, their number increased to 209 by
1725 and up to half of them were merchants and moneylenders, others were
relatives, assistants, and priests. Some of them, presumably Muslims, lived in
Bukharan dvor also. A few married local ladies and settled down outside
gostiny. There were rare examples of a few converting to Russian Orthodox
Church. Around the same time, there were around 300 Indian merchants in
Bukhara.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">From Moscow to Astrakhan and from
Isfahan, Balkh and Bukhara to Kabul and Multan–they were all linked through
kinship and hundi networks. The general practice was to advance another family
member or retainer to the next post. This family/kinship based agency
system–driven from their home base of Multan by wealthy patriarchs was in no
way different from their European contemporaries in Genoa or Pisa. In
pre-modern world, in the absence of a universal commercial law and state as an
implementing agency for enforcing commercial contract, it was this family/kinship
bonds and trust as well as fear of social sanction, in case a trust is broken,
used to ensure commercial compliance. Indian merchants like Sukhanant or Sutur
were at par or sometimes even better than their European counterparts in terms
of their business ethos and financial skills and ability to organise family
firms across the vast geography. Their organisational pattern as well as
business practices in many ways conformed to a common Eurasian merchant type.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In 1723, ‘Anbu Ram Mulin’ petitioned the
Tsar, Peter the Great to permit him to trade in St Petersburg and Archangel and
to transit through Russia to trade in Germany on the one side and China on the
other. This reflects the confidence of a trading community–which according to
the statistics of the next year–imported three times more to Astrakhan than
their nearest rivals, the Armenians. In the face of growing opposition from
emerging Russian business lobbies, he was denied such permission. His immediate
business prospect was, however, no way affected. But the rosy world of Anbu Ram
and his compatriots was about to crumble–and it was politics which was chiefly
responsible for that. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">A year before his remarkable petition, the
Safavid rule melted away in front of a ragtag Afghan army. The power vacuum
created by this Ghilzai sack of Isfahan lasted nearly seven decades. There were
already complaints about extortionate Persian bureaucracy, now the total
absence of order in their hinterland destroyed the supply chain of Indian
merchants of Astrakhan. They were dealt an even more severe blow as the Mughal
central authority went on a downward spiral and for decades, their home base of
Punjab remained seriously disturbed. In next two decades, Indian population in
Astrakhan was halved and by the turn of the century it was almost over. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw4LnoyGpTwd9ZwpnThpV1RDgIT_o5L2-KuUCdTut-A23x_A0D4otO6xOsRoR0fnO4iQiK8FDkagmQe-nHn9WcOavtccDtMMUilFzOKRslTrO1u3dy71mx30yNqrdslaPjrmg_54g1gDfR/s1600/Alexander_Burnes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="293" data-original-width="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw4LnoyGpTwd9ZwpnThpV1RDgIT_o5L2-KuUCdTut-A23x_A0D4otO6xOsRoR0fnO4iQiK8FDkagmQe-nHn9WcOavtccDtMMUilFzOKRslTrO1u3dy71mx30yNqrdslaPjrmg_54g1gDfR/s1600/Alexander_Burnes.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alexander Burnes</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In 1832, when Alexander Burnes arrived in
Kabul on his way to Central Asia, he reported on Hindu moneylenders in
Afghanistan. He was informed that Hindu merchants run their commercial
networks/agencies from Astrakhan and Meshid to Calcutta. He was offered bills
of exchange on Nizhnii Novgorod (on the Upper Volga region), Astrakhan, and
Bukhara–this was the last time we heard about traditional Indian merchant
establishments in Astrakhan and interiors of Russia. In Central Asia, of
course, they continued as the prime moneylenders till the Russian Revolution.
In fact, as the last vestiges of Multani networks, Hindu and Sikh moneychangers
were visible on the streets of Kabul even a few years back. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIcSLF_mcIgtartuN_wDUMSG4zJ4oHnwSVgZs6QFLHSt7Lkqtn3HadpJIaxIzo_WlTq-ltANihhyRZoELCCEzF-ArrQzXUG3LXrVTQTPNeW3E0ca3IbQUBQlqG2dLVki0jk1ScLVLpUqRt/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIcSLF_mcIgtartuN_wDUMSG4zJ4oHnwSVgZs6QFLHSt7Lkqtn3HadpJIaxIzo_WlTq-ltANihhyRZoELCCEzF-ArrQzXUG3LXrVTQTPNeW3E0ca3IbQUBQlqG2dLVki0jk1ScLVLpUqRt/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more such stories related to Indian
business history, see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman
Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018 </span><span lang="EN-IN" style="background: white; color: #993333; font-family: "Georgia",serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></span></div>
<br /></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-79358097772034932092019-06-08T02:25:00.001-07:002019-06-08T02:25:43.124-07:00Armenians in India<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Hovhannes Joughayetsi started
maintaining a detailed ledger from 19 December 1682. He was from a place called
New Julfa, a suburb of Persian capital, Isfahan. In 1605, Shah Abbas, who
reinvigorated the Safavid rule in Iran, forcefully shifted his Armenian
subjects eastwards. While battling with the Ottomans on the Western front, he
was also steadfast in his resolve to promote economic prosperity of his empire.
Shah Abbas thus took special care to settle prominent Armenian merchants on the
outskirts of his capital Isfahan. This new suburb came to be known as New Julfa
(as one of their most prosperous settlements before shifting was a village
called Julfa).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Hovhannes that is John in Armenian,
was son of a priest, David. When two rich merchants (Khoja Zakar and Embroom,
sons of Khoja Guerak) agreed to take him on as a junior partner, it was his
chance to make it big in life. With the capital (mostly cash but also some
English broadcloth, a total investment of 250 tuman) supplied by his wealthy
senior partners, he was expected to travel through India on condition that he
should get one-fourth of the profits. This agreement was concluded as per the
existing legal traditions of the Armenian merchant community. This legal
tradition enjoined upon a partner like Hovhannes to maintain a ledger
scrupulously–failure to do so would have invited jail, physical torture, and
social ostracism. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Christian Armenian merchants were well
known in the Old World for their trading skill, particularly in Chinese silk.
Armenian family business firms extended their trading networks from Ottoman
ports in the Mediterranean to deep inside China. Though there are evidences to
suggest that Armenians were familiar with India trading even in the twelfth
century, shifting of their headquarters to New Julfa in 1605 gave a boost to
the expansion of Armenian trade network in South Asia. In the backdrop of
regular movement of men and material between the Safavid Persia and Mughal
India, Armenian traders were invited to Agra by Emperor Akbar. They built the
first Church and the first Christian cemetery in Agra in 1562. Abd-al-Hayy,
Eskander and his son Zulqarnayn were among the prominent Armenian faces in the
Mughal Court. By the mid-seventeenth century, they were visiting major trading
centres like Hooghly, Patna, Hyderabad, Masulipatnam, and Lahore. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3ChXrz0Su3eXY2gJ-gWhFyOyWMY2Hj_R_H06bt4dwCSQLHQu88jCZeixgeKvST86zfG9NAW3XLwS3JQJCb5OMCSXGbNrne8Am83rpWfnT-lmdESUNOzVCWiNPTnd2WVeanPUkl05U93rw/s1600/Julfa+merchant.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="807" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3ChXrz0Su3eXY2gJ-gWhFyOyWMY2Hj_R_H06bt4dwCSQLHQu88jCZeixgeKvST86zfG9NAW3XLwS3JQJCb5OMCSXGbNrne8Am83rpWfnT-lmdESUNOzVCWiNPTnd2WVeanPUkl05U93rw/s320/Julfa+merchant.jpg" width="198" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ḵ<span lang="EN-IN" style="background: white; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">ᵛ</span><span lang="EN-IN" style="background: white; font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode", sans-serif; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">āja Petros
Voskan-Veliǰaneancʽ, Julfan merchant, painted in Madras, India, 1737</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Hovhannes begins his journey by
travelling to Bandar Abbas from Isfahan and then reaches Surat. During the
course of next eleven years, he travels to almost all the important cities and
towns in North and East India and Deccan including Aurangabad, Burhanpur,
Khairpur, Agra, Patna, and Hooghly and then travels up to Tibet, through
Kathmandu. He deals in a number of commodities–gold, silver, silk, textile, tea,
and musk among others. He operates like an archetypical Armenian trader, who
has been described essentially as an arbitrage trader. The ledger, which starts
with the signing of a partnership agreement, comes to an end on 6 December 1693
when after a long return trip from Lhasa, he finally reaches Calcutta (how this
document found its way to a Portuguese archive that is a mystery, which historians
are yet to resolve, though we know that contemporary Armenian businessmen were
present in Europe and it is quite tempting to believe that after exploring
inner Asia, an adventurous Hovhannes travelled to Europe!).</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTNb_d5TW_MQMfrvU6VvrAW_E8RcFT-Pt38c8Zw_OnrAcEoyr7hZoM95OwsgAr9zzmUTlxrjUtxur0RGAHxKjHwGCioHNhR4Y-7NEaxmDFbDYrkt-Wrx3CKncksfRdUXviJRYU__e5Ol2e/s1600/Holy+Nazareth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="402" data-original-width="600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTNb_d5TW_MQMfrvU6VvrAW_E8RcFT-Pt38c8Zw_OnrAcEoyr7hZoM95OwsgAr9zzmUTlxrjUtxur0RGAHxKjHwGCioHNhR4Y-7NEaxmDFbDYrkt-Wrx3CKncksfRdUXviJRYU__e5Ol2e/s320/Holy+Nazareth.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Church of Holy Nazareth Calcutta</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Holy Church of Nazareth, located
in one corner of Burrabazaar today on Armenian Street, was formally established
in 1724, though a temporary structure was perhaps in existence since the 1680s.
It was established next to an old Armenian cemetery and the oldest tombstone there
is dated 1630, sixty years before Job Charnock officially founded the British
city of Calcutta. This tombstone marked the death of a lady named Rezebeebeh Sookia. A small but important street in North Central Calcutta still bears the
name of this important Armenian trading family. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrTKlZvaAby6XnLLGbwSSFLRtT2Um7qE8XIzJWjp6EqDRUTFi-lelLxP26IWHG1EbfYV-FMwhOh65Y0Pv7BJTTYiLpygBzVksvLMRKdB9xj2_PHuTCFpbT7Cv2lXERntLHyHzI-tzHoCZN/s1600/263px-The_tomb_of_Rezabeebeh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="378" data-original-width="263" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrTKlZvaAby6XnLLGbwSSFLRtT2Um7qE8XIzJWjp6EqDRUTFi-lelLxP26IWHG1EbfYV-FMwhOh65Y0Pv7BJTTYiLpygBzVksvLMRKdB9xj2_PHuTCFpbT7Cv2lXERntLHyHzI-tzHoCZN/s320/263px-The_tomb_of_Rezabeebeh.jpg" width="222" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tombstone of Rezabeebeh Sookia</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">In fact, in the Mughal subah of
Bengal, Armenians played an important role in the economic and commercial life
of the province. During the 1740s and 1750s, Armenian merchant prince Khwaja
Wajid was one of the three most important players in the economy as well as
politics of Bengal (along with Jagat Seth and Umichand). Khwaja Wajid held two
lucrative monopolies under the Nawabs–monopoly over Salt and Salt Petre. Based
out of Hoogly port, he had absolute control over the internal commerce of the
province. Till his businesses were ruined and he ended his life in English
captivity, he was the most resourceful supplier for all the European companies
in Bengal–the English, the French, and the Dutch. In fact, before 1757, both
the concessions secured by the British East India Company were negotiated by
the Armenians and a grateful East India Company promised to help them in trade
everywhere – that’s the reason why Hovhannes came to Calcutta to despatch his
stuff to Bandar Abbas through English ships. The East India Company also
promised to build and maintain in perpetuity a church in every location with 40
or more Armenians.</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAnfar7jpg7egsQFK9aHL6Y-RbtwqvlAZjqtTffyOWXMPKpx2TtEaqb2CPDDC-7m8xILHGJVQeunQa88NslGrigH0PDI9XFuQeM9vglI-rWkzSuoGTH1ddtZYGYrw0A_69Rme1qKNyWBd6/s1600/Armenian+College.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAnfar7jpg7egsQFK9aHL6Y-RbtwqvlAZjqtTffyOWXMPKpx2TtEaqb2CPDDC-7m8xILHGJVQeunQa88NslGrigH0PDI9XFuQeM9vglI-rWkzSuoGTH1ddtZYGYrw0A_69Rme1qKNyWBd6/s320/Armenian+College.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Armenian College Calcutta</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Despite their small numbers, they did
exceedingly well as businessmen and professionals in colonial Calcutta. From
the present Grand Hotel to Stephen Court to Chief Justice’s residence – a
number of landmark buildings in Calcutta were actually built by the Armenians. A
small community of around 100 Armenians, mostly centred around a small school
and college still remain in Calcutta though they are a largely forgotten
community in today’s Calcutta. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The other Indian city, which had a
close association with the Armenians was Madras. In the first quarter of the
sixteenth century, it was a group of Armenian merchants living in Pulikat who
guided Portuguese traders to the tomb of St Thomas, the Apostle in the small
town of Mylapore. Probably it was the Armenians, who built the old Church there
near the tomb. The first Armenian Church in Madras was built in 1712 and this
city remained the unofficial headquarters of the Armenians in India for more
than two centuries. The first Armenian newspaper Azdarar would also be
published from Madras towards the end of the eighteenth century. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHpXmwtQZHWa3fhoC1z4irEftDYZNZXVZSG66tbx3Fcm0sMjMYE3OP0tBW90dBuIqWghO0UDcbsNyB1DbhE0xiXxAIjbLbI0nD_rHqCMg2RX_adp7DTaEUAVFnaUz2x-juGNq6Wq_AtzUS/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHpXmwtQZHWa3fhoC1z4irEftDYZNZXVZSG66tbx3Fcm0sMjMYE3OP0tBW90dBuIqWghO0UDcbsNyB1DbhE0xiXxAIjbLbI0nD_rHqCMg2RX_adp7DTaEUAVFnaUz2x-juGNq6Wq_AtzUS/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more such stories related to Indian
business history, see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman
Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-81118613458175479572019-06-08T01:40:00.000-07:002019-06-08T01:40:30.633-07:00Jagat Seth<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJGkiFjkCktT6T_-iV2A4KDoqggSto4A7twaeMmzcmsdASmmeB-Uw0eEYC0J7AXBRlPKdptGw65Q7BSIqEJ9TK6YDsa3EQBh3IJaXO8N8o-_h72hTEMrgHjh8fQJ_sxuwuJA_NPb3dGSXy/s1600/this-main-entry-of-jagat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="413" data-original-width="550" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJGkiFjkCktT6T_-iV2A4KDoqggSto4A7twaeMmzcmsdASmmeB-Uw0eEYC0J7AXBRlPKdptGw65Q7BSIqEJ9TK6YDsa3EQBh3IJaXO8N8o-_h72hTEMrgHjh8fQJ_sxuwuJA_NPb3dGSXy/s320/this-main-entry-of-jagat.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The instrument of hundika (later
hundi) or bill of exchange might have originated from royal orders asking
merchants/bankers to pay a certain amount, which would be reimbursed–with or
without interest–later on. Kalhan’s Rajtarangini mentions such raj-hundikas
given normally as payment to a local military caste, tantrin. Two examples of
raj-hundika quoted in Lekhapaddhati are from 745 and 1231 CE, respectively.
Post-tenth century, in the backdrop of ever-expanding trade, this instrument
was adopted with greater efficiency by merchants in Western India as mentioned
in Medhatithi’s legal commentary and Lekhapaddhati. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">A general consensus is that the bills
of exchange have originated in China during Tang times (608-906 CE) but became
popular for transfer and exchange of cash and commodities during the Sung
period (tenth to thirteenth century). There are also evidences of bills of
exchange in the Middle East (Softa) from around the eighth century onward. As
evidences suggest, as a system of remittance as well as a negotiable financial instrument,
Indians have been using hundi from around the same time, if not earlier. It is
also interesting to note that the extensive use of hundi is reported for the
first time from Western India, merchants from this area would eventually create
the most sophisticated and elaborate hundi network in the late Mughal-British
period. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The use of hundi was elevated to a
different level by the descendants of Hiranand Sahu, a Jain from Marwar, who
started his life as a trader of modest means in Patna in the last decade of the
seventeenth century. Patna was then an important administrative centre as well
as a centre of riverine trade between North India and Bengal. As Rajput Princes
joined the Mughal service and moved to different regions as governors or
military commanders, their bankers also started moving with them. Their initial
business was financing warfare or providing provisions to the military during
peacetime. Gradually they found more lucrative opportunities in trading (both
luxury goods like jewels and bulk goods like grains) and banking. After Agra
and its satellite towns, they moved to eastern UP and then Bihar. As his
trading and later on, money lending expanded rapidly, by the time of
Aurangzeb’s death (1707), Hiranand Sahu emerged as one of the important wealthy
men in Patna. One of his seven sons, Manekchand, settled down in Dhaka, where
he struck a close bond with the Mughal Governor of Bengal, Murshid Quli Khan as
his prime financier. Naturally, when Murshid Quli decided to relocate the
capital to Murshidabad in 1703, Manekchand also shifted base there. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This was the real turning point for
the family. Manekchand was soon given the sole minting rights in the province,
which alone, as per one estimate provided him with an annual income of Rs 3.5
lakh and of course, complete control over money supply and interest rates in
the wealthiest province of the Mughal Empire. The entire province was divided
among a number of zamindars, who were responsible for the collection of land
revenue in their areas. They were required to deposit the government’s share on
a specific date, which was virtually impossible for them. Manekchand stood
surety for them in exchange for 10 per cent commission and provided the
governor with the required cash and the zamindars paid him later on. This
provided him with an additional annual income of Rs 10 lakh. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Governor Murshid Quli Khan himself
depended on him to remit his revenue to Delhi every year. The entire revenue of
Bengal moved through hundis from Bengal to Delhi. Through his gaddis at Delhi,
Patna, Murshidabad and Dhaka, Manekchand–who was soon given the title of Seth
by the Mughal Emperor–came to control money supply and interest rates between
Delhi and Dhaka. Manekchand’s adopted son, Fateh Chand, was given the key of
Bengal treasury by the Mughal Emperor Farukhsiyar along with the title of Jagat
Seth, given to the family in perpetuity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jagat Seth Fateh Chand, by some
estimates, the richest individual in the contemporary world, decided not to
issue any hundi worth less than one lakh rupees under his signature! Even when
his kothi was plundered twice by the Marathas and he lost a great deal of
money, he had no hesitation in signing darshani hundi worth one crore for the
Bengal government (a darshani hundi entitled the bearer of the hundi to show it
to any of the branches of Jagat Seth any time and demand one crore in cash; a
muddadi hundi, on the other hand, was a date-specific hundi). When Nadir Shah
plundered Delhi in 1739, the representative of Jagat Seth was given the highest
respect by Nadir Shah as he alone was capable of providing surety for the
Mughal nobles.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBem0rDHQvG0sPjnoYfi4yCSXEuDUGvwpKZNn2DbnVAIjiyYBX24E9GNazAZnLpo9jNMra05u1YzHzAwIheruyxg6SRu1uTuyQG345CQ9kkuESY6i7925dSXZJwpr-FfkCo6u6N9_-V21e/s1600/220px-Siraj_ud-Daulah.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="295" data-original-width="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBem0rDHQvG0sPjnoYfi4yCSXEuDUGvwpKZNn2DbnVAIjiyYBX24E9GNazAZnLpo9jNMra05u1YzHzAwIheruyxg6SRu1uTuyQG345CQ9kkuESY6i7925dSXZJwpr-FfkCo6u6N9_-V21e/s1600/220px-Siraj_ud-Daulah.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nawab Siraj-ud-daula</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jagat Seth Fateh Chand and his
successors, Mehtab Rai and Swarup Chand, came to dominate not only the economy
but also politics of Bengal. Successors of Murshid Quli had to depend on them
to pay the Mughal Emperors on their behalf and secure the throne for them. When
the Jagat Seth did not like Sarafraz Khan, he was replaced with Alivardi Khan as
the new Nawab of Bengal. So, when Siraj-ud-daula, the successor of Alivardi
displeased them (along with almost every important noble and financier) and
thrown them into prison, Siraj’s fate was sealed. In a conspiracy, primarily
hatched by the Jagat Seths, Siraj was thrown out (Battle of Palashi, 1757) and
replaced by Mir Jafar. Jagat Seths were immediately back in the saddle but
their decline had started. Mir Qasim, who replaced Mir Jafar, tried to assert
his independence. Mir Qasim wanted the Jagat Seths to finance his campaign
against the British. As the Jagat Seths resisted, both Mehtab Rai and Swarup
Chand were killed in Munger, Mir Qasim’s new capital and their body parts were
fed to animals. The fortunes of the House of Jagat Seth declined rapidly thereafter.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In a period, when there was greater
monetisation of land revenue (through revenue farming or izaradari system) than
ever before, Jagat Seths, though preeminent, were not alone. The house of
Daddas was the principal banker for Jodhpur, Bikaner, and Jaisalmer; they were
also present in Indore and Hyderabad. The Pittys and the Ganeriwalas dominated
in Hyderabad. In various other Princely states of Rajasthan and Central India,
the Bapnas, the Lodhas and other Marwari (mostly Jain) families predominated.
There was Kashmiri Mull in Lucknow and the house of Gopaldas Manohardas in
Banaras. Not only for the Nawab and Zamindars of Bengal, for all the European
Companies in Eastern India–English, French, Dutch, and Danish, the Jagat Seth
was the most important source of credit. We know how the British in Bombay were
bankrolled by Surat-based bankers like Arjunji Nathji Travady and others. Some
of these firms, like the Dagas of Bikaner and the Malpanis of Jabalpur
continued to be important for the British in the same way. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEije1e4tya6VxvnoDA1mSiu19Dh9643Ncx3Pz7BU_w45gwPkgUPlNQV-tT-NWRV2QMHTfA0axjuME6xb7Gc36cP0DGoiNwg0cLbss9bt9YQVC15R_qbdthOnXiIMI1VsrO0x3sxphoperN2/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEije1e4tya6VxvnoDA1mSiu19Dh9643Ncx3Pz7BU_w45gwPkgUPlNQV-tT-NWRV2QMHTfA0axjuME6xb7Gc36cP0DGoiNwg0cLbss9bt9YQVC15R_qbdthOnXiIMI1VsrO0x3sxphoperN2/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more such stories related to Indian
business history, see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman
Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></span></div>
<br /></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-27494536035692911492019-06-08T00:02:00.001-07:002019-06-08T00:02:28.425-07:00Nagarseth of Ahmedabad<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgow-QJKU6GvEEWrHlk6DTZRjb8YRGJYxdYU96sfSMw5yfJ2RZ4cjC7U2KwINkpoyO8LuwOHHebcrD2_0vhkUdgnbtvEC97AZJypF4Zgssq-bpFo2WkkQZ2PE58uwAEMU1Rl1V0ZD26lpZG/s1600/Ahmedabad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgow-QJKU6GvEEWrHlk6DTZRjb8YRGJYxdYU96sfSMw5yfJ2RZ4cjC7U2KwINkpoyO8LuwOHHebcrD2_0vhkUdgnbtvEC97AZJypF4Zgssq-bpFo2WkkQZ2PE58uwAEMU1Rl1V0ZD26lpZG/s1600/Ahmedabad.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Shantidas Jhaveri started building the
Chintamani Parshvanath temple in Ahmedabad in 1622. Son of an Oswal Jain
merchant from Marwar, Shantidas (1580-1649) was the leading jeweller, bullion
trader and moneylender of Ahmedabad. As the richest man of his times and as the
jeweller of preference for the Mughal Imperial household, he enjoyed immense
prestige. Shantidas was not only a devout Jain but he was also quite active in
internal religious politics of the Jains and tried to promote his gaccha
(religious faction) and his preferred religious leader as acharya (chief
priest). The temple was completed in 1638 at a cost of more than nine lakh
rupees. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In 1645, Aurangzeb, young and abrasive
new governor of Gujarat, desecrated the temple. Shantidas appealed to Emperor
Shah Jahan and an imperial firman restored the temple back to Shantidas. When a
matured Aurangzeb replaced Shah Jahan after a war of succession, he not only
returned some of the money Shantidas was forced to lend to Murad (one of the
competitors for throne, defeated by Aurangzeb) but also requested Shantidas to
convey his goodwill to the business community and residents of Ahmedabad–a clear
indication of the leadership role of Shantidas in the civic life of Ahmedabad. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Founded in the early years of the
fifteenth century, Ahmedabad emerged as a major commercial centre during the
Mughal period. It was the principal centre of textile trade (with indigo coming
from the nearby town of Sarkhej) as well as a centre of bullion and jewellery
trade. The tradition of craft-specific guilds was part of the commercial
landscape of Ahmedabad, in line with similar traditions in other Gujarati
cities. But it was in this city, during the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries, the unique institution of Nagarseth developed for the first time.
Though Shantidas strode the business world of Ahmedabad in the first half of
the seventeenth century as a titan, it is doubtful, whether he was ever
formally acknowledged as Nagarseth. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In 1724, amidst a general atmosphere
of chaos and lawlessness, Ahmedabad fell to the invading Maratha marauders. As
the petrified city waited for absolute plunder, head of the jewellers guild and
grandson of Shantidas, Khushalchand came forward and paid an enormous ransom
out of his own pocket to send the Marathas back. A grateful city, particularly
the business community hailed Khushalchand as the saviour and decided that
Khushal and his family would receive a small share of each business transaction
in the city in perpetuity. There have been many claimants and much politics for
civic leadership in Ahmedabad since the demise of Shantidas but this bold and
gracious act of Khushal settled the question forever. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Throughout his life, Khushal had to
make many sacrifices–fleeing to Delhi or other cities even enduring multiple
prison sentences–but in the end, it was his sacrifices as well as a steadfast
resolve for ethical business and governance, which earned his family the moral
right to leadership for generations. After his death (1748), he was succeeded
by his son Nathusa (1720-1793), followed by Nathusa’s younger brother
Vakhatchand (1740-1814), Vakhatchand’s son and grandson, Hemabhai (1785-1858)
and Premabhai (1815-1887). The long line came to an end in 1977 when the last
male member of the Nagarseth family died without an heir (from a splinter line
of the family, Dalpatbhai Bhagubhai, came the Lalbhais or today’s Arvind
Group). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjHPbtd-6NbjZ8EklgymU8DMPDr_PvjD4CCbevesLUiA__QMmONrCIa7uoAE_3pOYeP0P_M6FEdc0ZiYXcZJAuxz3i_pzZeCS6CySQwheJmqrHt3I7xFGChM_nzNYPXqZmTP5nQuVpdwm0/s1600/Kasturbhai.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="271" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjHPbtd-6NbjZ8EklgymU8DMPDr_PvjD4CCbevesLUiA__QMmONrCIa7uoAE_3pOYeP0P_M6FEdc0ZiYXcZJAuxz3i_pzZeCS6CySQwheJmqrHt3I7xFGChM_nzNYPXqZmTP5nQuVpdwm0/s320/Kasturbhai.jpg" width="260" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kasturbhai Lalbhai</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Nagarseth did not head any corporate
body of merchants in Ahmedabad. He was formally the head of his own trading
guild and a guardian of the city. He was the bridge between the rulers and the
most influential group of citizens of Ahmedabad. He also adjudicated among different
guilds or merchants. As the ceremonial head of the city, he led the community
in some of the religious or social ceremonies. Some of the other cities of
Western India came to have Nagarseths following the example of Ahmedabad.
Laldas Vitthaldas Parak was the famous Nagarseth of Surat, leading financier to
the English and the principal advisor to the merchants in 1732 when they raised
an army against the Mughal governor. Pune came to have one from around the last
quarter of the eighteenth century after large-scale migration of Gujarati
banias and moneylenders to the city.</span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1wMF549QZbLFCbJlnqex7z9dK1ZKcWvfyxxOSeaqfYG1lym5mX9WsgYY61Ub6ZD-jDtcg4p5GGebSwwjE_NSGW3iANPQPUPsFHkn_6eRdfIq-CkfMhxaSldvzgeSvVXWRwhRn1Yz-i4Ut/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1wMF549QZbLFCbJlnqex7z9dK1ZKcWvfyxxOSeaqfYG1lym5mX9WsgYY61Ub6ZD-jDtcg4p5GGebSwwjE_NSGW3iANPQPUPsFHkn_6eRdfIq-CkfMhxaSldvzgeSvVXWRwhRn1Yz-i4Ut/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-IN; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For
more such stories related to Indian business history, see Laxminama: Monks,
Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury
2018 </span><br />
<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-IN; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-IN; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></span></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-61014953766344648352019-06-07T23:08:00.001-07:002019-06-07T23:08:51.600-07:00Nuruddin Firoz at Somnath<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx-zuBZxbSv6iBrA0vcJWjt_STHBl5_nGgpAIsnR34RmKmDH5ISXwiYuZrakoWRdSoMnpMvexYaxrzs3DTbj01nikXoMJCYVAt1Tr7h7t0GUOi-YF9Wi9Ht1m2JGmF7IKvK9D2C1hNFBMd/s1600/Somnath.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="565" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx-zuBZxbSv6iBrA0vcJWjt_STHBl5_nGgpAIsnR34RmKmDH5ISXwiYuZrakoWRdSoMnpMvexYaxrzs3DTbj01nikXoMJCYVAt1Tr7h7t0GUOi-YF9Wi9Ht1m2JGmF7IKvK9D2C1hNFBMd/s320/Somnath.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Modern Somnath temple</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Nuruddin Firoz, a Nakhuda from Hormuz
established a mosque at Somnath in Gujarat in 1264 CE. Two inscriptions–one in
Arabic and the other in Sanskrit–set up to mark this event give us a unique
perspective into the trading world of a rich Persian merchant of the thirteenth
century and his interaction with the host society. In this case, it was
merchants as well as prominent citizens and religious leaders at the famous
Saivite centre of Somnath. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Nakhuda means a ship-owning merchant
(khuda or lord of the ship, nau; nauvittaka in Sanskrit–both the terms started
appearing for the first time around 1000 CE in the context of trade between Red
Sea/Persian Gulf to Western coast of India). Somnath, today, is known mostly
for its sacred character but in the thirteenth century, along with Diu, it was
one of the secondary ports of Gujarat (Cambay/Khambat being the main port).
Nuruddin, who was at Somnath due to some work (not specified in the
inscriptions), purchased the land just outside the city limit, what appears to
be the settlement of the merchants (mahajanapally). The land was purchased from
the temple of Somnath as the mahajanapally itself was the property of the
temple. To provide a regular income to the mosque, he also purchased another
piece of land (this time inside the city and purchased from the Bakulesvara
Temple and negotiated by two priests from two other temples), a few shops in
the market, and an oil mill. The entire transaction was facilitated by a group
of leading merchants of Somanth–all Hindus as their names are mentioned in both
the inscriptions. The most prominent among these merchants was Shri Chada, who
was described as Nuruddin’s dharmabandhav or righteous friend in the Sanskrit
version. The entire transaction was ratified by the town council, Panchakula,
headed by the great Pasupata priest Virabhadra, before being ratified by the
local representative of the Chaulukya King. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The language used in the Sanskrit
inscription, which is also the longer one with full details, shows familiarity
with Islam as it describes the mijigiti (masjid) as a place of worship,
festivals of baratisab (Sab-e-barat) and khatamaratri (whole night recitation
of Koran–both festivals considered important for ship-owners and shipmen) and
the jamat or the congregation at Somnath (interestingly apart from the foreign
merchants and shipmen, it consisted of lime workers, oilmen, etc). The language
is also remarkably similar to donative inscriptions at Hindu/Jaina temples and
even some of the epithets used for Allah actually remind one of Shiva (Viswarupa
and Viswanatha; also Sunyarupa). So, here is the story of a Muslim ship owning
merchants from Hormuz constructing a mosque at a sacred Saiva site with active
help from his Hindu merchant friends on a piece of land purchased from the
temple of Somnath itself. This in a microcosm encapsulates the tolerant,
multicultural, and cosmopolitan trading world of India’s western seaboard in
the thirteenth century. The most remarkable aspect of the whole business was
complete absence of any malice or antagonism towards a Muslim merchant even at
Somnath, which was devastated and desecrated two centuries ago by Sultan Mahmud
of Ghazni. In another thirty years, Alauddin Khilji would conquer and annex
Gujarat, and there would be another round of devastation at Somnath itself. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Gujarat was a curious case where time
and again the rulers fought with the Arabs or the Turks on sea and land but
always welcomed Muslim merchants. In an instance quoted by a contemporary
Muslim writer, Chaulukya King Siddharaja (thirteenth century) himself went in
the disguise of a trader to Cambay to probe an incident of attack on a mosque.
Once satisfied with their claim, he granted the Muslims of Cambay compensation
to rebuild the mosque and also ordered guilty to be punished. Though we, at
times, hear of the presence of Indian merchants in ports of Siraf, Hormuz or
Aden, there were perhaps very few merchants like Jagadu, who maintained his own
agents in all major ports abroad. Overall dominance of Arab traders was so
overwhelming in the Western sector that perhaps in states like Gujarat or
Kerala, there was no option but to welcome them. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0DooQG6cgYOmM3FHqGHOMp0VuVlMOfYQpfH3PC0F_tzTUtzzE3C8LzeHAGNqkc02o7wrieqCyJ7WEUQBklxkhWRUAxT3wtyttHKhSOUS2jRexxlGPdbuLMrAhk78cahOgTZisOlzswiY4/s1600/Bohra.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0DooQG6cgYOmM3FHqGHOMp0VuVlMOfYQpfH3PC0F_tzTUtzzE3C8LzeHAGNqkc02o7wrieqCyJ7WEUQBklxkhWRUAxT3wtyttHKhSOUS2jRexxlGPdbuLMrAhk78cahOgTZisOlzswiY4/s1600/Bohra.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bohra Men</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Apart from the mainstream Sunni
Muslims, Gujarat is also the original home for a number of smaller, often Shia
Muslim sects. The term Bohra itself originated from Gujarati Vehru meaning
trade. The language spoken by more than one million Dawoodi Bohras across the
world (mainly in Western India, Karachi, East Africa, and the USA and Canada)
is essentially a dialect of Gujarati with a large number of loan words from
Arabic, Persian, and other languages. Their religious headquarters, dawat, has
been located in India since the seventeenth century. Bohra men, always attired
in their distinctive white dress, are mostly traders and naturally their
headquarters has always been at a mercantile centre–Ahmedabad, Surat, and now
Mumbai. They have always placed high premium on education and equal
participation of women (in recent times, they have opened community kitchens in
Mumbai to supply meals twice a day to all Bohra families to free their women
from daily chores). However, unfortunately they remained the only community in
India to still practice female genital mutilation–a vestige of their North
African origin. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibY-0wRzgcTM2YSDT7OiBP3TN9LYtTmFH2ZQdwst8vBqe55xXJldpxQjRBunDaaXjbDhnWsC8AhLHmjIvGAn_r2zbcDL8glt679ici33rbXp1RDhYSjfggExttcxPxZZqDcBQQlUInRE5q/s1600/Aga+khan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1185" data-original-width="1600" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibY-0wRzgcTM2YSDT7OiBP3TN9LYtTmFH2ZQdwst8vBqe55xXJldpxQjRBunDaaXjbDhnWsC8AhLHmjIvGAn_r2zbcDL8glt679ici33rbXp1RDhYSjfggExttcxPxZZqDcBQQlUInRE5q/s320/Aga+khan.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Present Aga Khan</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Khojas (from Persian Khwaja or
honourable gentleman) were converts from the Hindu Lohana caste. Though they
have always been part of the Ismaili Shia traditions, they have also preserved
their Hindu pasts. Some of their earlier spiritual leaders took Hindu names to
attract more followers, their belief system closely resembles Vaishanvite
thoughts with their main religious text Dasavatar, celebrating Vishnu’s avatars
along with Ali. However, since the arrival of Aga Khan (originally Imam of
Nizari Ismailis) to India in the nineteenth century and Aga Khan’s emphasis on
Ismaili identity, these beliefs have been in retreat. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Bohra, Khoja, and other such
communities in their foundational myths, always refer to Pirs coming from the
West as the starting point of their faith. Trading links are clearly
discernible in the emergence of these communities. All of them were initially
connected with the Shia Fatimid Caliphate that ruled Egypt from 909 to 1171 CE
from Fustat or Old Cairo. Destination of exports from Gujarat was Egypt
(Cairo/Alexandria, from where Venetian or Genoese merchants took spices and
textiles to Europe), though often the gateway was Aden. Local converts in India
came from the Hindu trading castes such as Lohana, thus they still maintain
similar business ethos and inheritance laws, which prohibit too much division
of family wealth (many of these communities are still legally governed by the
Hindu laws of inheritance). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What exactly prompted them to change
their faith is perhaps difficult to answer and would vary from individual to
individual but the obvious connection was trading links. In a rare first-hand
account, Buzurg bin Shahriyar, maritime merchant and author of the tenth
century Ajabul Hind wrote about his meeting at a Gujarati port with a Hindu
Pilot, who had recently embraced Islam and amassed wealth by piloting ships. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7jGWmZWT-nwB7l5-A-1GHVxu2jUebrtMG_6FT4fm5ImTaexVUJyqxI0Fn2RuuGQZF1oGO3vMg_lbu4VqEq5GmYG3ijuRRaT9CqDyV953DShtW8qU-_kh6EIaAOTxWahnd9jhovOB4G7_g/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7jGWmZWT-nwB7l5-A-1GHVxu2jUebrtMG_6FT4fm5ImTaexVUJyqxI0Fn2RuuGQZF1oGO3vMg_lbu4VqEq5GmYG3ijuRRaT9CqDyV953DShtW8qU-_kh6EIaAOTxWahnd9jhovOB4G7_g/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more such stories related to Indian
business history, see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman
Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></span></div>
<br /></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-85533651322840710302019-06-07T22:11:00.000-07:002019-06-07T22:11:56.647-07:00Baghdadi Jews in India<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1oWnm7GFW_Vjhx_631sQdSjZzWCTTH8nTHF7c592nFeAkDAgvbEKlJhLZKwE5LfOqSsj_qO6rkjQ_Sn-Flahmqwrk5CpDKv1DJ9Px36ql3ffoGnO9cV8tYDAEX-udHjbn59atdyTumwyC/s1600/Reuben.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="385" data-original-width="685" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1oWnm7GFW_Vjhx_631sQdSjZzWCTTH8nTHF7c592nFeAkDAgvbEKlJhLZKwE5LfOqSsj_qO6rkjQ_Sn-Flahmqwrk5CpDKv1DJ9Px36ql3ffoGnO9cV8tYDAEX-udHjbn59atdyTumwyC/s320/Reuben.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In 2016, Sunday Times ranked David and
Simon Reuben as Britain’s richest people with a net worth of more than GB£13
billion–a fortune made in a variety of business including London property
market and Russian aluminium market. Since mid-nineteenth century, the Reuben
family–like many other rich and enterprising Baghdadi Jews–lived in Bombay,
where the brothers were born in the 1940s. They immigrated to England sometime
in the 1950s and started with metal scrap (David) and Carpet (Simon)
business–eventually making enough money to enter the London commercial market
in a big way. In making this transition from Baghdad to Britain via Bombay,
they were following a well-trodden path, most remarkably marked by the Sassoon
family, the Rothschilds of the East. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhWQT6wQ4Q1DDzajM-5R17qostISnUCWTQx1Dejz7fpMM5mGpse7tu4pp_Kxj7BF8-FSL5QM2ph1Qn8Ja4DRPnv2JrSOglYi1qqF8-fguwyBQXE_VqoSRigdsMKiRNoLBx0NTy1Owa1nxl/s1600/David_Sassoon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="265" data-original-width="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhWQT6wQ4Q1DDzajM-5R17qostISnUCWTQx1Dejz7fpMM5mGpse7tu4pp_Kxj7BF8-FSL5QM2ph1Qn8Ja4DRPnv2JrSOglYi1qqF8-fguwyBQXE_VqoSRigdsMKiRNoLBx0NTy1Owa1nxl/s1600/David_Sassoon.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">David Sassoon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Though the Jews from Persia have been
coming to India regularly at least since the seventeenth century, the last
significant wave of Baghdadi Jews reached Bombay in the first half of the
nineteenth century. David Sassoon (1792-1864) belonged to a distinguished
family of merchants, who were also the treasurers of Pasha of Baghdad. A change
in political atmosphere in Baghdad forced him to flee to Bombay with his large
family. Soon, he built a vast trading business across Asia. The most prominent
opium merchant of his day, he and his eight sons built Asia’s first wet dock in
Bombay, Sassoon Docks and in Shanghai Bund, Sassoon House became a landmark.
Known for his charity across continents, his inheritors became close friends
with the English royal family, became conservative peers, married into the
Rothschild family and supplied one of England’s foremost First World War poets,
Seigfried Sassoon.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyPSYhoXlP1DUT1a6-W8IXeRnxiigRrlARf4lTw70EA5vizCnhPKDFh_DpZRIbu8e5DdZiLobT0KEc8Ct2DIJoilCux7bU6oj3J40ZtexVnfojk-u-FFM6DgKKunsMnoqouxBEoOVzQDeh/s1600/IMG_5309.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyPSYhoXlP1DUT1a6-W8IXeRnxiigRrlARf4lTw70EA5vizCnhPKDFh_DpZRIbu8e5DdZiLobT0KEc8Ct2DIJoilCux7bU6oj3J40ZtexVnfojk-u-FFM6DgKKunsMnoqouxBEoOVzQDeh/s320/IMG_5309.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Meanwhile, much of Shanghai opium
trade and real estate was dominated by their relative by marriage, Edward Isaac
Ezra. Similarly, David Joseph Ezra had a larger-than-life presence in
commercial and community life in the 19<sup>th</sup>-century Calcutta. The last
famous Baghdadi Jew of Calcutta was General JFR Jacob, hero of the Bangladesh
War. Nahoum and Sons, the last Jewish bakery of Calcutta–through its
century-old decor, an ambience of fading glory and fabulous food–somehow has an
organic connection with Irani cafes of Bombay, almost similar in appearances. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiobYdVFOr2WYYibk8OMQU3WlQWHRRPBzOzRqnqD2TNnEAmT1L7l20IE2YGT1nGubyPmiw6poiahJhURrS6VpACEA_POwm-QdY3TfNCSraUWgHWw49vq6HfFL-PeOnkc6mc2WRbNI9tML2f/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiobYdVFOr2WYYibk8OMQU3WlQWHRRPBzOzRqnqD2TNnEAmT1L7l20IE2YGT1nGubyPmiw6poiahJhURrS6VpACEA_POwm-QdY3TfNCSraUWgHWw49vq6HfFL-PeOnkc6mc2WRbNI9tML2f/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more such stories related to Indian
business history, see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman
Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></span></div>
<br /></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-62186879974203742372019-06-07T21:52:00.000-07:002019-06-07T21:52:03.348-07:00Barmaks in Baghdad<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Sometime in the first century CE,
while coming back from the great assembly of Buddhists organised by Kanishka, a
Tokharian monk, Ghosaka established the Western Vaibhasika school of Buddhist
philosophy in Balkh. It was a philosophical sub-division of the Sarvastivadin
School, which thrived in Kashmir. The new monastery he established, Nava
Vihara, soon became the leading centre of Buddhist learning on the Silk Route. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbOCq1S2K80cq55mrJX12qMA-JWx11f0OaQdsxkJR-Ww6pBT27glkSF3pV0LOe73Jt3dP2huPGmBFWlXC4A6mBbT1XqNyG0vd6XwFX899STiKQZHHROyRyoglMYO4MMSyb_GFoZ8mtbYll/s1600/Nava+Vihar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1064" data-original-width="1600" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbOCq1S2K80cq55mrJX12qMA-JWx11f0OaQdsxkJR-Ww6pBT27glkSF3pV0LOe73Jt3dP2huPGmBFWlXC4A6mBbT1XqNyG0vd6XwFX899STiKQZHHROyRyoglMYO4MMSyb_GFoZ8mtbYll/s320/Nava+Vihar.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ruins of Nava Vihar, Balkh</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Around 230 CE, Sassanids threw the
Kushans out of Balkh. After the Sassanids, Balkh was ruled by the White Huns
and Turki Shahis but Buddhism, in general, and Nava Vihara, in particular,
continued to flourish. In 630 CE, on his way to India, Xuanzang, the famous
Chinese traveller, reported that there were thousands of monks at Nava Vihara
and the monastery was well known for beautiful statues of Buddha, draped in
silks and adorned with rare jewels. In 663 CE, the Umayyad armies attacked
Balkh. Either by force or by choice some local people converted to Islam. But
most of the population still remained Buddhist and Nava Vihara was reported to
be functioning normally in 680 CE by another Chinese pilgrim Yijing.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For centuries now Nava Vihara was
headed by one priestly family, who appears to be of Kashmiri origin. These
hereditary chiefs were known as Pramukhs or in local pronunciation, Barmak.
Among the recent converts was one of the Abbotts of Nava Vihara. In 708 CE,
Turki Shahis were back in power again and they beheaded the Abbott, who had
converted to Islam. The only remaining child of the family was earlier taken to
Kashmir by his mother. There in Kashmir the next Barmak grew up learning
astrology, medicine, and philosophy. By 715 CE, the Umayyad armies overran
Balkh decisively and inflicted massive damage on Nava Vihara. Barmak, now
converted to Islam–perhaps to save his life along with his family–ended up at
the Umayyad Court, where his knowledge of medicine helped him to gain
prominence. His skills in astrology rewarded his family even more as he seemed
to have predicted the eventual victory of the Abbasids (745 CE). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF-qFqXSeF1OOAUrQWpePBys_sCw4hOLzzlU-k5uGnOBVkPE5iu4dPkmh2DRTYJ2JzcCg9rpBLPAtgbLrXcjznbxIYoVG18Jhyv1u4d713neT_uagANShu3vRwQegnJWP1ynTFcBJmj8X_/s1600/house-of-wisdom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="882" height="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF-qFqXSeF1OOAUrQWpePBys_sCw4hOLzzlU-k5uGnOBVkPE5iu4dPkmh2DRTYJ2JzcCg9rpBLPAtgbLrXcjznbxIYoVG18Jhyv1u4d713neT_uagANShu3vRwQegnJWP1ynTFcBJmj8X_/s320/house-of-wisdom.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">House of Wisdom, Baghdad</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Barmak’s son Khalid ibn Barmak
occupied important administrative positions under the first two Abbasid Caliphs
and even their families grew very close. Khalid’s son Yahya was tutor to young
Harun al Rashid and eventually became Vizier or Prime Minister of Harun al
Rashid. His two sons, Abu-Fadl and Ja’far, also rose to occupy important
positions. The vizier, who walks into many of the Arabian Nights stories, is
none other than Ja’far. Before the family fell from grace–perhaps because of
Ja’far’s relationship with Harun’s sister, Abbasa–in 803 CE, the Barmakids were
the second most important family of Baghdad after the Caliph.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But history remembers this half a
century of Barmakid influence for very different reasons. Khalid constructed
the city of Mansura (Brahmanabad) in Sindh, the first planned city of the
period and shortly thereafter he was chiefly instrumental in designing the new
capital of Baghdad, which supposedly had many Indian design elements. The Barmakids
were legendary for their lavish lifestyle (the word for most lavish dinner in
Persian is still barmaki) and patronage of art and culture. It was at their
residence at Baghdad the first paper mill of the Islamic world came up. They
also set up the first hospital in Baghdad, following their Buddhist heritage.
Yahya ibn Barmak was responsible for sponsoring translation of Sanskrit works
on astronomy, philosophy, and medicine–clearly the family tradition continued.
He also sent his people to procure all the information about India and invited
a large number of Ayurvedic doctors from Sindh and Kashmir, the most famous of
them was Manka or Kanka. He also patronised the great Bukhtishu family of
Nestorian Christian doctors from Gundeshapur. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV8_5Gwzsq70SDlqdQFRnPdLz1JfchpCeo_gCdeVeBaqXB53F902dEQNjrYpnb_tS2jY2ETAkGWk-aCe756OG5YzKnsMbEcjyfut78dOYeDC06KE9SeiiPWxzGtM4cGrF0emur3l8DeHzU/s1600/Indian-Numerals.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="520" data-original-width="1180" height="141" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV8_5Gwzsq70SDlqdQFRnPdLz1JfchpCeo_gCdeVeBaqXB53F902dEQNjrYpnb_tS2jY2ETAkGWk-aCe756OG5YzKnsMbEcjyfut78dOYeDC06KE9SeiiPWxzGtM4cGrF0emur3l8DeHzU/s320/Indian-Numerals.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Though the translation bureau and famous
libraries of Baghdad continued till the Mongols sacked the city in 1258 when
Tigris reportedly turned black from the ink of thousands of books thrown into
the river (now we know that most of the books were taken away and carefully
examined by the Mongols rather than destroying them), none showed the zeal of
Yahya Barmak to translate books from Sanskrit (till at least Al Beruni, two
centuries later). Although the Ayurvedic system was soon ignored in favour of
Galen’s Greek (Unani) medicine but the Arab scholars learnt the Hindu numerals
and place-value system, including the use of zero. This new system was soon to
revolutionise mathematics around the world, reaching Europe by early thirteenth
century through Fibonacci. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLbhMXBP8t9j4BNv7prkdErwZETthlfJH160R2GGaW7J_OVX2YnypGXz1U9KY7IGOCUL80C4dLbQX4Jya2I2a-CAjLJMcn3AqbXrurYf0ou_BwZvu_YuWX7zVAyh-7N9czkEudpEgnu-Ng/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLbhMXBP8t9j4BNv7prkdErwZETthlfJH160R2GGaW7J_OVX2YnypGXz1U9KY7IGOCUL80C4dLbQX4Jya2I2a-CAjLJMcn3AqbXrurYf0ou_BwZvu_YuWX7zVAyh-7N9czkEudpEgnu-Ng/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more such stories related to Indian
business history, see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman
Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></span></div>
<br /></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-6114344695769824382019-06-07T07:16:00.000-07:002019-06-07T07:16:17.408-07:00The Golden Buddha<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC-BFffDy-APYIOuwJvfkcHVgB8dGu4EEvFnHRZQ2KQfi-e7twxjGa0ZJ6wVXmDFePBLMXll6szA-VwAdhqaylv9CtrV1nib-7JeHUb_0BkN0MUqWnPf6pL3TFlrOMiasI32CBVjqagXip/s1600/Mes+Aynak.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="873" data-original-width="1552" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC-BFffDy-APYIOuwJvfkcHVgB8dGu4EEvFnHRZQ2KQfi-e7twxjGa0ZJ6wVXmDFePBLMXll6szA-VwAdhqaylv9CtrV1nib-7JeHUb_0BkN0MUqWnPf6pL3TFlrOMiasI32CBVjqagXip/s320/Mes+Aynak.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In Afghanistan’s biggest ever foreign
investment project, China Metallurgical Group has signed a massive $3 billion
agreement to mine copper at Mes Aynak. But they are unable to start work due to
constant threats, buried mines, and persistent international demand for saving
the heritage of Mes Aynak. Several centuries back, this was at the heart of
Silk Road and possibly availability of copper (evidence of copper smelting is
there for 2,000 years) made it economically more attractive. In the last few
years, archaeologists have dug out two forts, four Buddhist monasteries, a
Zoroastrian fire temple, and other structures in what is now the largest
archaeological complex in Afghanistan. Apart from several Kanishka-era coins
and other artefacts, what caught worldwide attention were the beautiful images
of almost gold coloured Buddha, a few with sublime expressions of compassion (</span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span lang="EN-IN"><a href="http://www.savingmesaynak.com/">http://www.savingmesaynak.com/</a></span></span><span lang="EN-IN">).</span><span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkVA7-Rrl3Zz2zhxcwFnyq49qRT9fihjo7niqRuBIYMa69brthIgvjSP64GeJb8RMOcUqccnN4ILgqFUIR0MBQdrcYDMieFypCGOk7oXBt8F2WBBLLsUC-iAGa9FR8ZBmU0nfQvQv1GhgX/s1600/Gandhara+Buddha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="226" data-original-width="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkVA7-Rrl3Zz2zhxcwFnyq49qRT9fihjo7niqRuBIYMa69brthIgvjSP64GeJb8RMOcUqccnN4ILgqFUIR0MBQdrcYDMieFypCGOk7oXBt8F2WBBLLsUC-iAGa9FR8ZBmU0nfQvQv1GhgX/s1600/Gandhara+Buddha.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">At least seven centuries after the
Mahaparinirvana, first Buddha images were made in Gandhara. Perhaps it was the
need to present the imagery to an audience of new converts or to reinforce the
greatness of their faith in front of a constant stream of foreigners. The
Gandhara School of Art with Indian imagination and storytelling and Greco-Roman
imagery and technique, produced arguably one of the most fascinating artistic
lineages of all times. Gandhara Buddha with its Greek himation/Roman toga-like
dress, beautiful drapery over a robust body, curly Mediterranean hair, and a
top knot was modelled after Apollo and Zeus. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht73WNf2XG1hlF7TGCQJcCq5-02CUMYvqcLV3Y9eOH3XBxe_6PGDk7LcSXrFM_zTug71iG3JpCJZzGbS4J2UIJ78RXoBZhjy9lWaaS6HAWoTNtBoFtgOaL_izAp9HejjXX2zAzfGkvzM_a/s1600/BimaranCasket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="370" data-original-width="300" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht73WNf2XG1hlF7TGCQJcCq5-02CUMYvqcLV3Y9eOH3XBxe_6PGDk7LcSXrFM_zTug71iG3JpCJZzGbS4J2UIJ78RXoBZhjy9lWaaS6HAWoTNtBoFtgOaL_izAp9HejjXX2zAzfGkvzM_a/s320/BimaranCasket.jpg" width="259" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bimaran Casket</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Till date, the first specimen of this
new art is the Bimaran Gold Casket, which could be dated to mid-first century
BCE but the halcyon days of the Gandhara School came around the Kushan Empire,
two centuries after the domination of the area by the Indo-Greeks. The most
acceptable explanation of this gap between the political domination of the
Greeks and the flowering of Hellenistic style is the prosperity of the Kushan
period. The style, the craftsmanship was available there for quite long but it
was the rich patronage of the Kushan period, which led to the creation of this
extraordinary artistic tradition. The Gandhara School was active from the
second to the fifth century CE, with some continuation till at least the
seventh century. The spread of Islam in Afghanistan led to severe damages to
such heritages that continued till the recent times as evidenced in the
destruction of colossal Bamiyan Buddhas by the Taliban in 2001.</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbXQdWdQLTWQDYslRQ43zncwrYMNwKa66wIftzHNnpfbAt9bRNXsoC2e0O6j-wJq8hv03AAtuku7TF0Ylz_Mn5ioQUGi9vueVOIyz4Pfl2wvQ-HniSI-dwRpy8MXRKZet8u1sWQFu_EIkc/s1600/Mathura.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1281" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbXQdWdQLTWQDYslRQ43zncwrYMNwKa66wIftzHNnpfbAt9bRNXsoC2e0O6j-wJq8hv03AAtuku7TF0Ylz_Mn5ioQUGi9vueVOIyz4Pfl2wvQ-HniSI-dwRpy8MXRKZet8u1sWQFu_EIkc/s320/Mathura.jpg" width="256" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mathura Buddha</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT4yvaOzWJkCMw0QHfofTIix3Kj1RE74RWE76PHKS2AyZ3ZMgwvgaTIn8FKKYkFgIC1wj6JUOw0i3QZCVZHKx3iTRQlPzCrSPHRprOzNLOggfbIqXFatnPO7mifW3u9kWwKrPg8XWT6tF9/s1600/Kamakura.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT4yvaOzWJkCMw0QHfofTIix3Kj1RE74RWE76PHKS2AyZ3ZMgwvgaTIn8FKKYkFgIC1wj6JUOw0i3QZCVZHKx3iTRQlPzCrSPHRprOzNLOggfbIqXFatnPO7mifW3u9kWwKrPg8XWT6tF9/s320/Kamakura.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kamakura Buddha</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">The popularity and widespread
acceptance of the Buddha and Bodhisattva images created in the second-century
CE Gandhara could be gauged from the fact that it spread around the subcontinent
in no time. Near contemporary Buddha images from Mathura show the same drapery
and hairstyle, finely delineated body structure, halo and same poses of Buddha
albeit with more Indianized face and often with lighter clothing. More than
1,000 kilometres away at Amaravati and Nagarjunikonda in Andhra or at
Kanganahalli in Karnataka, this iconography was adopted by third century CE. In
Western India, first such Buddha images were created at Kanheri probably using
wood and other perishable material, graduating to massive stone images by fifth
century at Ajanta. The style spread to rest of Asia along the Silk Road and to
South East Asia and Sri Lanka probably through the sea route, geographically
culminating in the giant Kamakura Buddha of Japan in the twelfth century.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC2TKeKgbxhKHEtUk4VXc93DQ-TWlmdtfGlw1bKw1FmMZaOi_SUzHMTrD0SgllHgIDSZWl_7XVqlG57DZVO1nPNm36gv5_f0wzURVE3t0o9psiPLPIS0w46ZlzoEt0kSdJjAvuq9WGqvqx/s1600/Sanchi.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="775" data-original-width="1600" height="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC2TKeKgbxhKHEtUk4VXc93DQ-TWlmdtfGlw1bKw1FmMZaOi_SUzHMTrD0SgllHgIDSZWl_7XVqlG57DZVO1nPNm36gv5_f0wzURVE3t0o9psiPLPIS0w46ZlzoEt0kSdJjAvuq9WGqvqx/s320/Sanchi.webp" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sanchi<br /><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvau8leqxAn4OkVyotSGdevYzeeAViPQ4A_mvV4SQnsnvwOR2cBTh_zzFTGpHWq9fDyXrhYP3Xptj6Up71DVswN5uNt1BjA04aYCwR4HYzjPyHz3jLY5hxUqVuYJ9ZUFPCmKVZs8Q5ExE7/s1600/Amravati.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="405" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvau8leqxAn4OkVyotSGdevYzeeAViPQ4A_mvV4SQnsnvwOR2cBTh_zzFTGpHWq9fDyXrhYP3Xptj6Up71DVswN5uNt1BjA04aYCwR4HYzjPyHz3jLY5hxUqVuYJ9ZUFPCmKVZs8Q5ExE7/s320/Amravati.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Depiction of Amravati Stupa, from the ruins of Amravati</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjT_ZqDEHZHexbSKKCEm0a3onhANK7-IvoOshGLMblT3VCKxfUnh6SPO0PTWRfaOgqZnBVXC19mYnuRBIQtsNYCkXKs3tHCOrZ-RzouyhIRtaFWOfbYUe7JGLgGb45Q2EYcIjE-bgu54-d/s1600/Takht-i-Bahi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjT_ZqDEHZHexbSKKCEm0a3onhANK7-IvoOshGLMblT3VCKxfUnh6SPO0PTWRfaOgqZnBVXC19mYnuRBIQtsNYCkXKs3tHCOrZ-RzouyhIRtaFWOfbYUe7JGLgGb45Q2EYcIjE-bgu54-d/s320/Takht-i-Bahi.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Takht-i-Bahi, Peshawar</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">In earlier Buddhist traditions, relics
were venerated. Stupas were built over these relics–the tradition of building
stupas probably predated Buddha–and then stupas themselves came to be
worshipped. Ashoka was one of the main propagators of this stupa cult. Early
decorations of these stupas were more symbolic with representations of trees,
animals, wheels, etc. in relief sculptures. Huge stupa-monastery complexes came
to be located close to major cities or along the main trading routes–Mrigadava (Sarnath)
outside Kashi, Dharmarajika outside Takshashila, Sanchi outside Vidisha,
Amravati outside Dharanikota (Satavahana capital), and Nagarjunikonda outside
Vijayapuri (Ikshvaku capital). From third century CE, small and large images of
Buddha came to adorn such places of worship and the same model was taken abroad
as Buddhism travelled along the Silk Road. Monastery-stupa complexes at
Peshawar (Takt-i-Bahi), all over Afghanistan, in Bactria, at Khotan, and
Kashgar all attest to the continuation of the same tradition.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwfuA4uNaTh8GjbLt7xP-Hf8J_k1W7PLuxgXqrJjP2tj3hu7cVdi4_hD8tAQmtBE9O43L66II_8WTlGfmvrqS1Vu0WWWMrCVwtXGTwJnhY7F079byFc7YA6SJp8eGBO43xstQQJ01gdOX0/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwfuA4uNaTh8GjbLt7xP-Hf8J_k1W7PLuxgXqrJjP2tj3hu7cVdi4_hD8tAQmtBE9O43L66II_8WTlGfmvrqS1Vu0WWWMrCVwtXGTwJnhY7F079byFc7YA6SJp8eGBO43xstQQJ01gdOX0/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more such stories related to Indian
business history, see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman
Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-27320529213436871462019-06-06T22:43:00.003-07:002019-06-07T07:06:43.866-07:00Mystery of Headless Kanishka<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVAraEheYk-4m5z7Mriu1FoMSAeNpiCvvX2enEHtfuqU7qWl61_Vy2SgNwkfHq4oJiio6fEmNFpGKg-F82tfQvLBBp1u5SeGzfmMeXpKgBqlen7MiWJQXSv-IDGr6Qvcyd_I9DENJpbIPx/s1600/KanishkaCoin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="988" data-original-width="1024" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVAraEheYk-4m5z7Mriu1FoMSAeNpiCvvX2enEHtfuqU7qWl61_Vy2SgNwkfHq4oJiio6fEmNFpGKg-F82tfQvLBBp1u5SeGzfmMeXpKgBqlen7MiWJQXSv-IDGr6Qvcyd_I9DENJpbIPx/s200/KanishkaCoin.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In one of the famous kakababu-Santu
adventure stories written by Sunil Gangopadhyay in Bengali, ace detective
kakababu finally manages to nab the criminals in a thrilling chase but at the
last moment they throw the invaluable packet into a river. The packet contained
the severed head of the Kanishka statue and thus the head gets lost forever. It
is not difficult to understand why an entire adventure story has been built
around the severed head of Kanshka statue. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOnbljRZvW6C5UZEf7SzpB1ck2hkdDtFI9_KVDw12dt9C0x2BaF-YF7pTTNLO9FIpImOyqyly4oJANqBMnluaym-h4HxONbbyqJEJTm9DHifn3HTmWSRMXEERw9qat_FAqYcApH_0wvV8b/s1600/Kanishka.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="331" data-original-width="220" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOnbljRZvW6C5UZEf7SzpB1ck2hkdDtFI9_KVDw12dt9C0x2BaF-YF7pTTNLO9FIpImOyqyly4oJANqBMnluaym-h4HxONbbyqJEJTm9DHifn3HTmWSRMXEERw9qat_FAqYcApH_0wvV8b/s320/Kanishka.jpg" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Headless Statue of Kanishka, Mathura</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">For long, the history of the Kushans
in India was defined by two events in the beginning of the twentieth century.
In 1911, Pandit Radha Krishna found the famous headless statue of Kanishka in a
village called Mat near Mathura (we now know Mat was one of the devakulas of
the Kushans, where along with deities, images of Kushan Kings–in this case Vima
Kadphises, Kanishka and Huvishk–were also placed though we do not know for sure
that these images were worshiped).</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxIyPQOqxNLSu1GJgT8_fFMtwfgaS_4WeLnM_Ax0bL4DPTxCIqLfmMDG6Ye6rOWOXGZv0PSFdcG_GVZNG_aRq9u7Tjde4jSpZiElYbSvRE5W1j4shU0iRq7ptIGncp-fQegs6PxXMqCI7a/s1600/KanishkaCasket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1182" data-original-width="789" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxIyPQOqxNLSu1GJgT8_fFMtwfgaS_4WeLnM_Ax0bL4DPTxCIqLfmMDG6Ye6rOWOXGZv0PSFdcG_GVZNG_aRq9u7Tjde4jSpZiElYbSvRE5W1j4shU0iRq7ptIGncp-fQegs6PxXMqCI7a/s320/KanishkaCasket.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kanishka Casket</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">The second discovery happened almost
around the same time in Peshawar. Following the descriptions of Chinese
pilgrims–Faxian and Xuanzhang, archaeologists excavated a mound known as Shah-ji-ki-dheri
and dug out the remnants of what was described by the Chinese pilgrims as the
largest stupa in India. They found the famous Kanishka Reliquary Casket, which
now is understood to have been donated by two royal officials during the rule
of Kanishka rather than the King himself (the casket is now kept at Peshawar
Museum, and the relics at Mandalay, the site itself was lost and re-identified
in 2011 in a slum on the outskirts of the city). Both Peshawar (Purushpura) and
Mathura were tentatively identified as twin capitals of what was understood
then as an essentially North-north-western Indian empire. Since then a series
of discoveries–mainly in Afghanistan has completely changed our understanding
of this empire.</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibwLRGtWrCL6JvDWbptjUxwbBMMBaTCNsdIJUvW1pYbzOfmauBKiLcdbdaLKxxfJ3LAA8fSBmWHzTqJD2k55O5EkwECDxYj5rHpuRfzwgj_K5VCijXAbpmzpDau_CfwmuCa18EcWgYYIta/s1600/Rabatak_inscription.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="798" data-original-width="1280" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibwLRGtWrCL6JvDWbptjUxwbBMMBaTCNsdIJUvW1pYbzOfmauBKiLcdbdaLKxxfJ3LAA8fSBmWHzTqJD2k55O5EkwECDxYj5rHpuRfzwgj_K5VCijXAbpmzpDau_CfwmuCa18EcWgYYIta/s320/Rabatak_inscription.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rabatak Inscription</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">The most dramatic of these discoveries was
made when in 1993, when Sayyid Jafar, the Governor of Baghlan, called a British
Aid Worker Tim Porter and urged him to photograph the remains of a temple found
at a village called Rabatak (this was just on the opposite side of the hill,
where another Kushan devakula was discovered at Surkh Kotal). Among the
discoveries was a 23-line inscription of Kanishka, written in the Bactrian
language and Greek script–an inscription, so important that it has been
described as the ‘Great Kushana Testament’. This was perhaps another Kushan
devakula (the site before it could be adequately investigated was destroyed
during the Afghan Civil War), which was established by an official named
Saphara at the command of King Kanishka, who has been described as a Great King,
the King of Kings and the son of God. Here also, along with Nana and other
Zoroastrian deities, images of Kushan Kings were installed. But the two most
important pieces of information are–first, the Kushan bloodline is clearly
established as Kanishka describes Kujula Kadphises as his great-grandfather,
Vima Taktu as his grandfather and Vima Kadphises as his father. Second,
Kanishka claims that his empire included Kaundiya (Kaundinyapura on the banks
of Wardha in Maharashtra), Saket, Kaushambi, Pataliputra, and even Sri Champa
(Bhagalpur, Bihar). He also makes this exaggerated claim that the entire India
was under his command.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For around two and half centuries, ending
around 230 CE, the Kushans built an extraordinary and intriguing empire. It
spread from North of Bactria to eventually most of North India and provided
great stability to commerce and economy over a large landmass. It was a
multi-ethnic, multi-religious society and their success, indeed their
prosperity was possible because of their tolerance and cosmopolitan outlook. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdkDJL043MTLMbb9RSrRiZ-qaThdPZYobBg-GFTbmLrBhWxo6G1C7aAJWZkQHGBeVvqb1f-eB3eS41-ktfF0XyHz3lNId3FMRQks0v0CPxQloP48X34wHi0EXo1RDzXz3_GtIahhr2Y1x5/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdkDJL043MTLMbb9RSrRiZ-qaThdPZYobBg-GFTbmLrBhWxo6G1C7aAJWZkQHGBeVvqb1f-eB3eS41-ktfF0XyHz3lNId3FMRQks0v0CPxQloP48X34wHi0EXo1RDzXz3_GtIahhr2Y1x5/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more such stories related to Indian
business history, see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman
Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></span></div>
<br /></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-59705045738531024122019-06-06T07:42:00.001-07:002019-06-06T07:42:43.976-07:00The Medical Buddha<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyD05w9rTvwza33LbYREEfj9sF7YoLwFkzRQwsch5l_M0R-XCNmLTAw-sWQl8p4fPMF6gQQwiWbC5o2nwLjeJe9c8t8qJkx4tpDY-Zqjxem4FXIpqCJgDQTCYoyM_n-D2v63LxHJhSlr4W/s1600/sangye+menla.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="202" data-original-width="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyD05w9rTvwza33LbYREEfj9sF7YoLwFkzRQwsch5l_M0R-XCNmLTAw-sWQl8p4fPMF6gQQwiWbC5o2nwLjeJe9c8t8qJkx4tpDY-Zqjxem4FXIpqCJgDQTCYoyM_n-D2v63LxHJhSlr4W/s1600/sangye+menla.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sangye Menla or Buddha of Medicine</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Perhaps no other religion put so much
emphasis on providing medical care as Buddhism did. Buddha himself nursed
individuals on the deathbed or suffering from serious diseases and instructed
all his disciples to always provide medical help and care to every individual
even if they do not know the sufferer personally. Four noble truths (there is
sorrow, there is reason for it, there is cessation of sorrow, and there are
paths leading to the cessation of sorrow) of Buddhism have appeared to many as
fundamental principles of a medical system. In fact, Buddhist monks were part
of wandering ascetics with deep knowledge of herbs and other natural medicines.
Traders–the most important class of patrons for the early Buddhists–were also
frequent travellers and as such they must have also added to the wealth of
medical knowledge at monasteries. Long-distance exchange of medicinal plants
and herbs had always been a lucrative trade as well. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Recent research suggests that Ayurveda
developed in Buddhist monasteries. Not only Buddha himself placed great
significance on it, but medicine was made part of Vinaya Pitaka or Monastic
Rules early on. Contrary to popular belief, it has now been clearly established
that the Vedic system of healing was magico-religious (1700-800 BCE) and there
was no serious link between Atharvaveda and later day empirico-rational
traditions of Ayurveda (developed between 800 BCE and 100 CE). This knowledge
of Ayurveda came from close observation of wandering monks and their knowledge
of plants, herbs, roots, etc. gathered in the course of their wandering
careers. This was systematically developed in monasteries. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Though initially this knowledge was
utilised only to treat monks but from the third century BCE onward, it was
extended to lay disciples as well. There was mention of a separate hall for
sick near a forest in Vaishali. Faxian saw hospitals funded by rich citizens of
Pataliputra and run by Buddhist monks. One such centre might have been the
place next to Kumrahar in Patna, where seals containing the name of Sri Arogya
Vihara Bhikshusanghasya, have been unearthed. Similarly, a separate structure
resembling a hospital has been found at Nagarjunikonda. Various objects
commonly associated with the preparation of Ayurvedic medicine have been found
from almost all the Buddhist monasteries including those at Sarnath and Sirpur.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM7GgoUFy-Cr5K2k1vA46W6BX8L3VMPXjxBlJZ6n_DsTCoOK6MJeqzhJQX3DlxagxDlRCUMoj9a03NhQD1bJ9DMEXeHEiHnRkSK1-ctG86AJawhQdmWkX7qOvl4j7IM0ZB3TUuzRURvJws/s1600/DSC03664.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM7GgoUFy-Cr5K2k1vA46W6BX8L3VMPXjxBlJZ6n_DsTCoOK6MJeqzhJQX3DlxagxDlRCUMoj9a03NhQD1bJ9DMEXeHEiHnRkSK1-ctG86AJawhQdmWkX7qOvl4j7IM0ZB3TUuzRURvJws/s320/DSC03664.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Padmapani Vihar Sirpur, utensils for preparing medicine</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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</div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Buddhism was perhaps the single
biggest factor in crystallisation of early medical knowledge in India.
Integration of medical doctrines in monastic traditions and emergence of
monk-healers immensely helped in the spread of Buddhism. It also led to the inclusion
of medical sciences in the curriculum of monasteries and then eventually in
large Buddhist universities such as Nalanda. Realising the importance of
medicine, Hindu traditions assimilated this knowledge in the form of Charak (in
fact, there are strong reasons to believe that the Charak Samhita was the work
of a school of wandering doctors as the name itself is likely to have come from
‘char’ or to wander) and Sushrut Samhitas. Hindu temples also started having
hospices and infirmaries from the tenth century onward–various inscriptions
found in Bengal, Andhra, Tamil Nadu mention establishment of arogyashala,
prasutishala (hall for pregnant women) and employment of doctors, surgeons,
nurses, etc. An inscription dated 1493 CE from the famous Srirangam temple in
Tamil Nadu mentions restoration of an arogyashala there, which was originally
set up in either the eleventh or twelfth century.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Knowledge of Ayurveda travelled with
Buddhism to Sri Lanka, Burma, and Southeast Asia, where for centuries and even
now Buddhist monks have been providing medical care to local communities. It
did not find much acceptance there, but even in China (Yaoshifo) and Japan
(Yakushi), the concept of Bhaisajyaguru or the Buddha of healing and medicine
was well known. In Tibetan Buddhism (and by extension in Ladakh, Nepal, Bhutan,
and other areas, which follow the Tibetan traditions), medicine has always been
accorded supreme importance. Sangye Menla or medical Buddha is a common form of
worship in Tibetan Buddhism. A number of Sanskrit medical classics were
translated in Tibetan by tenth and eleventh centuries and the basic principles
of Ayurveda are well preserved in the present tradition of Tibetan medicine or
Sowa Rigpa (also accepted officially in India as one of the traditional medical
systems along with Ayurveda, Unani, etc). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOVI2j7jePoX5wU5bOInR7SRmWVTSOtKh8T9lP4gzg2xL33FgqLpLQ8h7qaiuRL5BFhmwYKpUrH5VCkC5BS9icX7YPCPWwoj1CHgWEUUYYNAuibvjN5laf6OEg_IZ8bTEW9xinr81BHf-E/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOVI2j7jePoX5wU5bOInR7SRmWVTSOtKh8T9lP4gzg2xL33FgqLpLQ8h7qaiuRL5BFhmwYKpUrH5VCkC5BS9icX7YPCPWwoj1CHgWEUUYYNAuibvjN5laf6OEg_IZ8bTEW9xinr81BHf-E/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more such stories related to Indian
business history, see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman
Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></span></div>
<br /></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-14472570079267031192019-06-05T23:41:00.000-07:002019-06-05T23:41:18.395-07:00Brahmi Script<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqsgbsnR0-snJtpUF1Emx-luxBs1B4VS9zQU_VOHAtJ3zT7XQQmkXYnK11Sd3qz_Apn3zOysjBNQjNcl5jUXR4DAUu7ZuwnBfnh7MqvaEpvs8QqL64iePZarc8LR-_EwAEquAaeZM552l7/s1600/Brahmi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqsgbsnR0-snJtpUF1Emx-luxBs1B4VS9zQU_VOHAtJ3zT7XQQmkXYnK11Sd3qz_Apn3zOysjBNQjNcl5jUXR4DAUu7ZuwnBfnh7MqvaEpvs8QqL64iePZarc8LR-_EwAEquAaeZM552l7/s320/Brahmi.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brahmi Inscription from Sarnath</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">By the second half of the eighteenth
century, British scholars in Calcutta knew about several polished pillars
across North India, all of them having inscriptions in an unknown script.
Towards the end of the century, the great linguist and scholar William Jones,
while pouring through the inscriptions of these pillars, described them to be
the work of some Ethiopian conqueror or law-giver! The writing on these
pillars–by now found at other places as well–most famously on a hill at Girnar
(Gujarat) and at Dhauli, near Bhubaneshwar–remained un-deciphered for more than
four decades after the passing away of Sir Jones in 1795. While going through
the coins of Indo-Greek rulers Agathocles and others, a Norwegian scholar,
Christian Lassen was the first to read a few letters of this unknown script
correctly in 1836. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">James Prinsep, Mint Master and as Secretary to
Asiatic Society of Bengal, intellectual heir to Sir William Jones, was actually
arranging a set of votive inscriptions found at Sanchi in the same script when
the Eureka moment stuck him. Noticing that all one-line inscriptions were
ending with the same combination of two and a half letters, Prinsep guessed
that this word stands for donation–danam. In Prinsep’s own description, rest of
the alphabet fell into places within minutes. Thus, finally in 1837, thanks to
the efforts of Prinsep and his Pali-knowing Sinhalese assistant Ratna Pala, the
mystery of the Ashokan Brahmi script was resolved.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi83V983SMiyOIw5R3aaK4GLoembLp3Kcji_Rg_1By6FJzqTJwqnqEQMLbTF7n2Y_MiNY5U5aPC9C7GGNTNZ1AB_b3g7qf4fURunmZ7iekApno9x9xe8ndFAH8XBzvTq1hwwovzn17ITZ1p/s1600/James_Prinsep.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="204" data-original-width="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi83V983SMiyOIw5R3aaK4GLoembLp3Kcji_Rg_1By6FJzqTJwqnqEQMLbTF7n2Y_MiNY5U5aPC9C7GGNTNZ1AB_b3g7qf4fURunmZ7iekApno9x9xe8ndFAH8XBzvTq1hwwovzn17ITZ1p/s1600/James_Prinsep.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">James Prinsep</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Till the 1880s, this script was variously
known as pin-man or stick-figure script in English till Albert Etienne Jean
Baptiste Terrien de Lacouperie correctly identified this as the Brahmi lipi,
the first in a list of scripts mentioned in the Buddhist text of Lalitavistara.
Subsequently this has been found to be mentioned in other Buddhist and Jain
texts as well. Some texts have mentioned that the name Brahmi came from Lord
Brahma, who was said to have gifted this script. Most scholars, however, agree
that the close association of Brahmins with the writing in this script led to
this nomenclature.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The origin of Brahmi script is
disputed; one of the possible theories about this origin mentions that Indian
traders came across written documents in Babylon and devised Brahmi script to
suit their mother tongue of Prakrit. The earliest well-accepted evidence of
Brahmi, dated to fourth century BCE, has been found at Anuradhapura in Sri
Lanka in a mercantile context (another find of Tamil Brahmi dated to as early
as sixth century BCE from Palani is yet to receive broad acceptance). Ashokan
Brahmi burst forth across the subcontinent as a fully developed script. The
other script used in Ashokan inscriptions, Kharosthi was definitely a
derivative of the Aramaic script and it disappeared by the 3-4<sup>th</sup>
Century CE. As for the foreign origin theory is concerned it is difficult to
understand why there should be two completely different derivatives from the
same Aramaic/Middle Eastern script. And most scholars are unanimous that Brahmi
alphabets could not have originated from the Greek script. On the other hand,
we have no material evidence to track the development of Brahmi as an
indigenous script before it became widely available on Ashokan inscriptions. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Once it emerged, however, Buddhist
institutions carried it forward in a big way. Buddhist Monasteries were repositories
of general and trade information and of knowledge systems like writing and
bookkeeping. In practical terms, the largest beneficiary group of this process
were the traders. Buddhism and Buddhist Sangha were the most important patrons
of learning in the Indian sub-continent for many centuries. Numerous stories of
writing and depiction on early sculptural panels along with an almost
sub-continental spread of Brahmi script clearly establish the contribution of
the Buddhist Sangha in the propagation of writing systems. For centuries, in
Central, South, and Southeast Asia Buddhist monks were the primary and also
most dedicated community of scribes. In fact, almost all early manuscripts
connected with Indian civilisation are of Buddhist origin. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The importance of Brahmi script in the
world of knowledge was widespread. North Indian or late Brahmi of Gupta period
diversified into Siddha, Sarada, and Devanagari scripts. Grantha and Vatteluttu
of South India, Tibetan and Tocharians in extreme North, Baybayin of the
Philippines, Old Javanese of Indonesia, Khmer of Cambodia, and the Mon script
of Burma also emerged from the Brahmi script. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPhAhGig2E3L9Qt3cbRbKeKUP9UzfEOXU_GufzL7Nc_2ytjaz6ubdUoOPL80466kQnQL7u7SYaIwESmvIk1tGa4tBYKpBqNeBYu92ph6LH709RsQcPuuYezSbJoqhYb0UyjaoxgMuvPDx_/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPhAhGig2E3L9Qt3cbRbKeKUP9UzfEOXU_GufzL7Nc_2ytjaz6ubdUoOPL80466kQnQL7u7SYaIwESmvIk1tGa4tBYKpBqNeBYu92ph6LH709RsQcPuuYezSbJoqhYb0UyjaoxgMuvPDx_/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more such stories related to Indian
business history, see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman
Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></span></div>
<br /></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-69468663255305064292019-06-05T22:20:00.000-07:002019-06-05T23:17:48.917-07:00Gobekli: Beginning of Religion<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1HDb9s2uzHlD9jsRl0XnaaIwACHtVtHnTysEwaeR92GKhOEPL-6sz7M5SB_7eVxsJ0Xdc3DDVYSJRuBizYKfRzmQ_escA6KrTEGoUL6OPDjUKHD0bwHCHUAKlHrm8R7P-TiO87yB7ZHn9/s1600/Gobekli_Tepe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="420" data-original-width="850" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1HDb9s2uzHlD9jsRl0XnaaIwACHtVtHnTysEwaeR92GKhOEPL-6sz7M5SB_7eVxsJ0Xdc3DDVYSJRuBizYKfRzmQ_escA6KrTEGoUL6OPDjUKHD0bwHCHUAKlHrm8R7P-TiO87yB7ZHn9/s320/Gobekli_Tepe.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-IN" style="background: white; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-IN" style="background: white; line-height: 107%;">Gobekli Tepe (literally Potbelly Hills), situated in South-Eastern
Turkey, near the Syrian border, is now acknowledged as one of the
archaeological wonders of the recent times. As it sat for centuries overlooking
a prosperous countryside, culminating in the city of Urfa (ancient Edessa), it
concealed in its ‘belly’ perhaps the oldest known temple of the human history.
Before we delve further into the history of Gobekli Tepe, it would not be out
of place to recall that Urfa was the hometown of Abraham, who is regarded as
the progenitor of three important religions–Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. </span><strong><span lang="EN-IN" style="background: white; font-weight: normal; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></strong></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-TT" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gobekli Tepe
was excavated for the first time in the 1960s, when the archaeologists,
assuming it to be a vast medieval burial complex, abandoned the site. Around
two decades ago, a German archaeologist Klaus Schmidt for the first time
connected the limestone fragments scattered there with nearby Neolithic sites.
But he and his team did not have the slightest idea that they have stumbled
upon the earliest and one of the largest temple complexes ever built. Once they
started clearing the site, they came across the first T-shaped stone pillar,
reminiscent of Britain’s Stonehenge. These pillars with an average height of
sixteen feet and weight of more than sixty tonnes were arranged in a circular
fashion, again like Stonehenge. The largest pillar found so far towered at
sixty-five feet and some of these pillars have carved images of dangerous
beasts, vultures, and scorpions. These pillars were chiselled with the stone
hammer and other stone tools, long before metal tools were invented. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-TT" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Scientific
investigations have come to the conclusion that this gigantic stone cathedral
is 6,000 years older than the Stonehenge–which means it was erected nearly
11,000 years back. A ground-penetrating radar survey revealed that the site,
spread over twenty-two acres, has sixteen huge Stonehenges buried beneath it.
It must have taken generations of workmen to complete this gigantic monument.
If the archaeologists continue their dig at the present speed for the next
fifty years without a break, then they would be able to unearth just a fragment
of this humongous temple. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-TT" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lack of
tell-tale signs of human habitation (domestic fire, garbage dump, building
foundations, etc) confirms that it was just a temporary meeting place for the
nearby communities, most probably a temple or a place to leave dead bodies
(motifs of carrion birds and venomous animals are possibly indicative of that)
and subsequent ancestral worship. Archaeologists, however, found a large number
of animal bones with signs of slaughter–perhaps sacrificed at the altar. This
hints that the temple site most probably belonged to hunter-gatherers. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-TT" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The wonder of
Gobekli does not stop at its antiquity or its mammoth size. Within a few
kilometres of Gobekli Tepe, archaeologists have found the earliest signs of
domesticated wheat cultivation, which started at least 500 years after the
temple construction begun (about 10,500 years ago). Within the next 500 years,
they were able to domesticate pigs, sheep, and cattle. For a long time, it was
believed that large man-made structures emerged only after primitive farming
communities could gather enough organisational ability and produce economic
surpluses to build and sustain such structures. Gobekli Tepe, located within
the fertile crescent of human civilisation, stands testimony that massive food
requirements for the labourers assembled there for many decades, if not
centuries, directly led to the transition from foraging to settled agriculture.
In other words, to paraphrase an archaeologist associated with the excavation
at Gobekli, ‘socio-culture led to agriculture’. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-TT" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A
third-generation priest of a large South Indian temple complex or a fourth
generation Imam of an East Bengal Sufi dargah would have laughed at our
ignorance–without even knowing the history of Gobekli. They would have asked,
who brought the farmers here? When my predecessor was granted this brahmadeya
or inami iqta, this was a barren land…..they came and settled and prospered
here because this temple/dargah showered its benevolence on them. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-IN" style="background: white; line-height: 115%;">If we could go
back to a Christian monastery in Greece or Egypt of say, 400 CE, through a time
machine, we would have been welcomed with freshly-baked bread, wines from its
own vineyard and preserved food items, all grown and processed by monks of the
monastery. Some of the oldest food preservation techniques are traceable to
such monasteries.</span><span lang="EN-IN" style="background: white; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8kPXs9icXlB095coWZvy55dZfSTOLoh3WwBlc9Bbw_xmPHHU1recyDp6OEjwqmnY4dl-ScnuGWIWodGWqUkOVH_H0T_BXwqNe_aA5paOer-d_7_VMAcdZ_-Tce0J_Pn-63ZzY3c1_u8ss/s1600/stonehenge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="176" data-original-width="287" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8kPXs9icXlB095coWZvy55dZfSTOLoh3WwBlc9Bbw_xmPHHU1recyDp6OEjwqmnY4dl-ScnuGWIWodGWqUkOVH_H0T_BXwqNe_aA5paOer-d_7_VMAcdZ_-Tce0J_Pn-63ZzY3c1_u8ss/s1600/stonehenge.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Stonehenge</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span lang="EN-IN" style="background: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">In the latest
twist to the incredible history of Gobekli Tepe, Scientists have very recently
found that through genetic studies that the ancestors of the people, who built
Stonehenge in Britain actually came from Turkey! They reached Britain around
4000 BCE (Stonehenge was built around 3000 BCE). They were part of outward
migration from Anatolia, Turkey, which started around 6000 BCE and these
Turkish immigrants were responsible for introducing agriculture to Europe <b>(</b></span><span class="MsoHyperlink" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-IN"><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-47938188">https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-47938188</a></span></span><span lang="EN-IN" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">)</span><br />
<span lang="EN-IN" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQvB2OjxZ1OjMQ31u1MmGkW39w_zeDtLIYfUbkrX7aGNZvsFlqFuNS9NbhyphenhyphenV6K2P9tXIqszlDf4V6sTbfkEOeCOszsOegNWMDwqMTdqNDiyOytvTsT1Kn_AY_SVLzC4qdgKrNmOhCZQqmp/s1600/laxminama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQvB2OjxZ1OjMQ31u1MmGkW39w_zeDtLIYfUbkrX7aGNZvsFlqFuNS9NbhyphenhyphenV6K2P9tXIqszlDf4V6sTbfkEOeCOszsOegNWMDwqMTdqNDiyOytvTsT1Kn_AY_SVLzC4qdgKrNmOhCZQqmp/s200/laxminama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
<span lang="EN-IN" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For more such stories related to Indian
business history, see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman
Tiwari and Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018 <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br />
<a href="https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782">https://www.amazon.in/Laxminama-Monks-Merchants-Money-Mantra/dp/9387146782</a></div>
<br /></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-50100631722515616572019-04-22T23:36:00.000-07:002019-06-05T22:12:42.510-07:00Gujarati Traders: Power, Politics, and Patronage<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG6_cA8xi_MWg9dArfB4kx5no9qQ0lizP6KzOTccZgwikAWxYHT3v_xdoJc_FHAYXxWbNYVIjKFznYHCTeja5aMJXxxdLbDSGbrwKu-vL7fmyQRtEyvJMc1D038HwNC-HxrTCXEBJYeFN0/s1600/gujarat-map.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="451" data-original-width="800" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG6_cA8xi_MWg9dArfB4kx5no9qQ0lizP6KzOTccZgwikAWxYHT3v_xdoJc_FHAYXxWbNYVIjKFznYHCTeja5aMJXxxdLbDSGbrwKu-vL7fmyQRtEyvJMc1D038HwNC-HxrTCXEBJYeFN0/s200/gujarat-map.png" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The close connection between political power and business elite in
Gujarat goes back at least one thousand years. When Lavananprasada, the Vaghela
Chief wanted</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">to revive his sick empire in the early 13</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> century, he
asked fellow King (nominally his overlord) Bhima II for a minister, who at the
same time would be proficient in both replenishing the treasury and winning
battles. Bhima II lent him the services of two brothers, Vastupala and
Tejahpala. Through their military as well as financial success and patronage of
religion and literature, they soon overshadowed their political masters.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Vastupala, as the governor of Cambay, managed to curb piracy and greatly
contributed to growth of commerce at the premier port, resulting in huge
increase in revenue collection. He also defeated the ruler of South Gujarat or
Lata. As a result of this success, he was elevated to the post of the Prime
Minister, which he continued to occupy till his death. Tejahpala defeated the Chieftain
of Godhra, thereby extending the eastern boundary of the state and opening up
new trade routes. After Vastupala’s death in 1238 or 1241 CE, Tejahpala
succeeded him as the Prime Minister and continued till his death (either in
1247 or 1251 CE). More than anything else, it was their prudential fiscal
management, which helped Gujarat to become a rich state during this period and
greatly encouraged internal and external trade.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A large number of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">prabandhs</i>
(essays), <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">prasastis</i> (panegyrics),
plays and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">kavyas</i> (poetic
compositions) attest to the stellar role these two brothers played in
development of the state and culture in the first half of the thirteenth
century. Their contemporary, Jagadu was perhaps more important as a merchant,
who maintained his representatives in all major ports in Western India and
Middle East, including Hormuz in Persian Gulf. His life has been celebrated in
his biography, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jagaducharit</i>. Once
when harvest failed, he opened his granary to feed the poor. He renovated old
temples and even built a mosque for Muslims.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH8CWByNIIm5-cH0uDvLEStO25jmkRxLKxqHcyiQKV-YBG0i9iQohwLmKFFIxFpgHOqQjfwSjTfsJ6NwYaeMh-4qw0-zi6XIPPNLg1wfu9EKNNtA77RTMdvo_BtGZcDL1CZa4hFUQhTgo0/s1600/Vastupala+Vihara+Girnar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="162" data-original-width="220" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH8CWByNIIm5-cH0uDvLEStO25jmkRxLKxqHcyiQKV-YBG0i9iQohwLmKFFIxFpgHOqQjfwSjTfsJ6NwYaeMh-4qw0-zi6XIPPNLg1wfu9EKNNtA77RTMdvo_BtGZcDL1CZa4hFUQhTgo0/s320/Vastupala+Vihara+Girnar.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Vastupala Vihar, Girnar</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Vastupala and Tejahpala were born in a family of aristocratic merchants
of Anahilavada. Their maternal grandfather, a Pragvata merchant, also served as
governor. This shows how a tradition established during the time of Vanaraja,
founder of the Chavada dynasty in the eighth century expanded over the next few
centuries. Vanaraja was helped to the throne by merchants and he symbolically
acknowledged their help by asking Sridevi, sister of a merchant to apply </span><i style="font-size: 14pt;">tilak</i><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> on his forehead during his
coronation. He also appointed Jamba Sresthi as his Prime Minister. Vanaraja
invited merchant prince Ninnaya to the capital Anahilavada. Ninnaya eventually
became his prime counsellor and his family supplied a long list of ministers
and senior government officers for more than three centuries.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">During the reign of Jayasimha Siddaraja (1093-1143), a number of Jain
merchants-turned-ministers like Sajjan (from the family of Jamba), Udayana,
Santu, and Munjala played the most important role in military-administrative as
well as financial matters. King Kumarpala (1143-1172) came to the throne with
the assistance of leading Jain merchants like Udayana and to defray the cost of
regular warfare, continued to depend on their resources. Though a Hindu, he
showed great reverence to Jain temples and preachers as Jain merchants
continued to be his main pillar of support. Merchants gained social status by
joining royal service at the highest level and probably this helped them to
expand their businesses too. On the other hand, the state benefitted from their
overall managerial and financial skills.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhud438kBRNoP0WdVx5Q3RjN8eIDi9k6CEcNB33cLOleB5ZwkiG5k2bWOqoymGmV9zwsscWyC8STq6KWwHphWog-UBh-wnLb-TY5Xs5gP_lJiSfwSBV8jL2UPpTlcKHICsEJJob5lxLZ3G8/s1600/Dilwara-Jain-Temples-Mount-Abu1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="643" data-original-width="1018" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhud438kBRNoP0WdVx5Q3RjN8eIDi9k6CEcNB33cLOleB5ZwkiG5k2bWOqoymGmV9zwsscWyC8STq6KWwHphWog-UBh-wnLb-TY5Xs5gP_lJiSfwSBV8jL2UPpTlcKHICsEJJob5lxLZ3G8/s320/Dilwara-Jain-Temples-Mount-Abu1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Dilwara Temple, Mt Abu</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Extraordinary commercial success in the post-10<sup>th</sup>-century
period also led the Gujarati traders to systematically train their next
generations. Most of the rich merchants employed home tutors but there are also
mentions of schools (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Vidyamatha</i>) and
arrangements for imparting basic education at Jain <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mathas</i>. A compilation of essential commercial documents–<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Lekhapaddhati</i>–establishes beyond doubt
the existence of a class of highly proficient clerks, who used to draft loan
agreements and bills of exchanges. Jain teachers, particularly Jinesvara Suri
and Hemachandra, advised merchants never to cheat on either weight or quality.
They also advised maintaining a close relation with the King and always flatter
the King in public as his support was crucial for business.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Though it is doubtful whether every businessman followed the path of
ethical business as we have enough examples from contemporary texts about
unfair means adopted by greedy merchants, but the general impression was that
of an industrious and enterprising business community. Nearly half a century
after Vastupala, Marco Polo echoes this while describing the Gujarati merchants
as the best business community in the world. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">In Gujarat, trading castes like Pragvatas and Srimalas produced major
poets, men of letters and patrons of art. The greatest Gujarati scholar of this
period, Hemachandra, who wrote a new grammar, new metrics, new logic and a
defining work on the biography of Jinas, was son of a Modha merchant. Vastupala
was a noted poet himself and a large number of literary works were inspired by
him. Unusual for his age, he built three public libraries in Anahilavada,
Cambay, and Broach and an auditorium solely for staging dramatic performances.
Tejahpala’s famous wife Anupama, well known for her intelligence, composed a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Kankana Kavya</i> or verse for women. The
miniature paintings found in well-illustrated Jain manuscripts of this
period–executed under the patronage of rich merchants–provide one of the
earliest examples of the Indian miniature paintings. Prominent Gujarati
merchants spent a considerable part of their fortunes for construction of
temples, tanks, and other public utilities. Even after so many centuries, some
of the examples of their munificence at Mount Abu, Girnar, Palitana, and other
places still bedazzle us. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWdnYocJgLae2ZZG-KKNkUkcN0m_7R1wbKdA8khNznenRoKQPam1Kx7I4ZdzNV7SgWeZZysgGCtoXF2t31KnDBnKiyY0RjWMiKg0sWUGzTPAcfBguSwVH7IRI3-FxRbrI9yZjQUS6mHch/s1600/laxninama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="327" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWdnYocJgLae2ZZG-KKNkUkcN0m_7R1wbKdA8khNznenRoKQPam1Kx7I4ZdzNV7SgWeZZysgGCtoXF2t31KnDBnKiyY0RjWMiKg0sWUGzTPAcfBguSwVH7IRI3-FxRbrI9yZjQUS6mHch/s200/laxninama.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For more such stories related to Indian business history,
see Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman Tiwari and
Anindya Sengupta Bloomsbury 2018<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://www.amazon.in/dp/B07FLWFGP2/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1">https://www.amazon.in/dp/B07FLWFGP2/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1</a></div>
<br /></div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-64598175507749405062015-09-18T00:31:00.000-07:002015-09-18T00:32:04.215-07:00Aurangzeb: History as Nationalist Projects<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV339ypXUqjaz9CbKFOYOqXVUACiwwaxCbLEdKLB_Ly6337dVTio-QbtSMuIqAzBU4_vyB5L4znw-xT6uqCXlcnNJ7Kq7sxWktrO8e2FuZXiYqF_EVnE18y07ZaM1eVkVEwaO52-GUU6Su/s1600/Aurangzeb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV339ypXUqjaz9CbKFOYOqXVUACiwwaxCbLEdKLB_Ly6337dVTio-QbtSMuIqAzBU4_vyB5L4znw-xT6uqCXlcnNJ7Kq7sxWktrO8e2FuZXiYqF_EVnE18y07ZaM1eVkVEwaO52-GUU6Su/s320/Aurangzeb.jpg" width="246" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">He tossed a
coin and it fell on the floor and the packed audience looked at the speaker in
curious anticipation. It was at the Physics Lecture Theatre or PLT1 at the Presidency
College, Calcutta – sometime in the 1960s. It was the turn of this science
student to proclaim the superiority of science over arts. His opponent had just
finished a highly intellectual and passionate defence of humanities, swaying
the audience with his erudition. Then he started slowly – “as you have just
seen, the coin dropped as it drops everywhere all the time, it fell the same
way in Dhaka too. But when I studied history at my Dhaka school a few years
back, I was taught Aurangzeb was the best Mughal emperor and Akbar the worst
and then I was forced to undertake a bus journey to this side of the border and
my friends here taught me that Akbar was the greatest of all and Aurangzeb was
a bigot”.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-TT" style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Re-naming
of streets, cities, universities and institutions is a typical Indian
affliction – we are always eager to erase vestiges of colonialism, to pamper
so-called local or community sentiments etc. If road names are to be reviewed
on the basis of their deeds then it would be a particularly difficult task for
the civic authorities in New Delhi. Lodhi Garden and Lodhi Road should be
renamed first as they were not only inept but notoriously cruel (forget about
common people, one Lodhi Prince was skinned alive for rebellion and then his
flesh was cooked with rice and forced fed to his widow and children). I don’t
know Tughlaq Road is named after sadistic and whimsical Muhammad Bin or bigoted
Firoz (son of a Hindu mother, destroyed temples and tortured Brahmins at places
as far off as Kangra and Orissa) but either way we must rename this
thoroughfare immediately (additionally one has to think about renaming Feroz
Shah Kotla Stadium). And when you start digging, such problems are endless –
why not re-name QutabMinar, where physical evidences of temple destruction are
visible even today. Why only Muslim rulers, even the record of Ashok, before
the Kalinga war, was terrible – in comparison to Aurangzeb’s three, Ashok
killed 99 brothers/claimants to the throne. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-TT" style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0J4RcWGKA1HqcjIS2RLliTkPOvU55jO3UvXgUOPYUzlLNCg-PHMxPeVfwewlTJP3XhT2OeRo0HtDYIJR2saSFIA9cztFn9YO4XCWYYL29iUKBhaDvMEjR0vJ8DP6etTnFtIV7-pjFWqPL/s1600/aurangzeb-road-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0J4RcWGKA1HqcjIS2RLliTkPOvU55jO3UvXgUOPYUzlLNCg-PHMxPeVfwewlTJP3XhT2OeRo0HtDYIJR2saSFIA9cztFn9YO4XCWYYL29iUKBhaDvMEjR0vJ8DP6etTnFtIV7-pjFWqPL/s320/aurangzeb-road-main.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-TT" style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Finding
another important stretch of road in the heart of New Delhi to name after APJ
Abdul Kalam was not that difficult. We have important roads named after foreign
leaders, completely rejected in their homelands (Tito or Nasser), long
forgotten or hardly known anywhere else outside their home country (Archbishop
Makarios – from Cyprus or San Martin – Argentine liberation hero). But the
point is of course to erase the legacy of a bad Muslim leader and replace him
by a good Muslim – a sentiment that would have shocked Kalam more than anyone
else, had he been alive.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-TT" style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">When
Pakistan was created in 1947, the ruling elite wanted a history of their own –
as different from history of Hindustan. As a perfect example of nations as
“imagined communities” – they tried to erase or ignore memories of centuries of
shared living and found myths of two different nations through the ages. In
some of the extreme cases, beginning/creation of Pakistan was pushed back to
Muhammad Ghori or Mahmud of Ghazni and even to Muhammad Bin-Qasim, who
conquered Sindh briefly in early 8<sup>th</sup> century. Historians of eminence
like I H Qureshi (taught at St Stephen’s before Partition) and A H Dani(received
Ph D in Sanskrit from BHU) led this effort to Islamize the history of
sub-continent. And it resulted in proclaiming Akbar as someone, who let down
the cause of Islam and Aurangzeb as the true Islamic hero, who had to face the
Hindu backlash. It was the historiography of a nation born opposing the
so-called Hindu hegemony. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-TT" style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Aurangzeb
ruled over the largest ever Indian empire before the British. His rule stretched
from Kashmir in the North to Gingee in deep South and from
Hindukush-Balochistan in the West to Assam in the East. Though the stories of
him earning his own expenses by stitching caps etc are exaggeration but he was
austere in his lifestyle in marked contrast to his predecessors. After Akbar, among
the Mughal Emperors, he was the only other military genius. As a stern ruler,
deeply committed to justice, he was indefatigable – a European traveller was
amazed to see how Aurangzeb then in his late eighties, was reading every
petition without any glass <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a>and writing answers himself,
mostly on the petition itself. Neither his sons nor any noble could dare to
disobey his orders, for misconduct, he kept one of his sons in jail for 14 long
years. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-TT" style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">As someone,
who ruled such a vast empire for nearly half a century, Aurangzeb, no doubt was
an extraordinarily capable person but at the same time he was a complicated
character. Often he did what suited the situation and his interest at that
particular point in time. So it is meaningless to argue whether he destroyed
temples or provided grants to them (both actually) or he employed more Hindus
(factually correct) than even Akbar in higher administration or he drove them
away (perhaps gave less importance to Rajputs later on but welcomed more
Maratha and Deccani Hindu elite into Mughal service). More than anything else,
he was an autocratic ruler of 17<sup>th</sup> century, when in most of Europe,
it was impossible for anyone to have a religion other than the King’s religion
and Spaniards were indulging in worst genocide in recorded history by wiping
out whole continents in the New World. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-TT" style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">In his
personal life, he was a narrow-minded Muslim that at times provided a certain
colour to his actions, which otherwise also he would have done – like seeking
ulema’s sanction (after defeating but ) before killing Dara or declaring war
against (Shia-ruled) Bijapur and Golconda as Jihad. But mostly his religious
belief did not interfere with his hard-nosed approach to real politics.
Aurangzeb saw himself as the divinely ordained ruler of Hindustan, something
all his nobles – irrespective of their own religious belief – acknowledged. He
underestimated Shivaji merely an upstart zamindar (perhaps undermining
Shivaji’s support base) but he cannot be faulted for not recognizing him as a
nationalist hero – there was surely no concept of nation for either Aurangzeb
or Shivaji. Similarly his most successful commander against Shivaji, Jai Singh
(highest ranking Hindu noble ever under the Mughals at 7000 zat/7000 sawar and
the only person outside the immediate royal family to hold the post of viceroy
of Deccan) could not even imagine allying with Shivaji on the basis of common
religion. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfSmVLygKxNOe25SI8wQpbOS4bHzVi9c0Bde4dGM2lFNOnK4OcupxZywka3Ixz5kjy-HteDVyCNcE3hIrdJ6x7lX363A82JGzXKfw_mbQkf1Nnqy1lmrFcQYfXTItEmQhW6nev9H0pJjfR/s1600/Pak+studies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfSmVLygKxNOe25SI8wQpbOS4bHzVi9c0Bde4dGM2lFNOnK4OcupxZywka3Ixz5kjy-HteDVyCNcE3hIrdJ6x7lX363A82JGzXKfw_mbQkf1Nnqy1lmrFcQYfXTItEmQhW6nev9H0pJjfR/s320/Pak+studies.jpg" width="246" /></a></div>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-TT" style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Standard
Pakistani history text books merely relegate Akbar to a cursory mention between
a brilliant Babar at Panipat in 1526 (though he defeated a fellow Muslim,
Ibrahim Lodhi) and the eventual Mughal hero, Aurangzeb. It is our wishful
thinking that we can change the course of history by re-writing text books or
re-naming streets. Past cannot be re-made through our coloured vision of
present – neither Akbar was the father of national integration nor was Aurangzeb
a Pakistani hero – the real problem is our failure to accept the past as it
was. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1306984623938642657.post-3899619270400501892013-09-22T22:19:00.002-07:002013-09-22T22:20:13.082-07:00No Country for Fallen Soldier: Remembering Ghadar Heroes<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTK_vtbq0w1Jh4qPe01hew4wI89bmNRB8elFMPk8xw7Ggh0Olf9CW1KkKyNq1ZeSoWHwTydxkkzPdgkJ7iC7FXmvriknPa6cWcpvCyQqu6J2fq4H-hUXSR9cKZknVrLoRDkV9yeOUDq7nB/s200/Ghadar.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="141" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ghadar Newspaper</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTK_vtbq0w1Jh4qPe01hew4wI89bmNRB8elFMPk8xw7Ggh0Olf9CW1KkKyNq1ZeSoWHwTydxkkzPdgkJ7iC7FXmvriknPa6cWcpvCyQqu6J2fq4H-hUXSR9cKZknVrLoRDkV9yeOUDq7nB/s1600/Ghadar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTK_vtbq0w1Jh4qPe01hew4wI89bmNRB8elFMPk8xw7Ggh0Olf9CW1KkKyNq1ZeSoWHwTydxkkzPdgkJ7iC7FXmvriknPa6cWcpvCyQqu6J2fq4H-hUXSR9cKZknVrLoRDkV9yeOUDq7nB/s1600/Ghadar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">What is our name? Ghadar(Revolution).
What is our work? Ghadar. Where will be the revolution? In India…within a few
years – thus started the first issue of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Ghadar, </i>published from San Francisco on 1 November, 1913. With the
publication of this weekly magazine in Urdu and Punjabi began the Ghadar
movement. In its famous masthead it carried the caption – <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Angrezi Raj ka Dushman. </i>And in their ever so dramatic style, always
carried an appeal – <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">wanted brave
soldiers…to stir up rebellion in India. Pay – death, price – martyrdom, pension
– liberty….</i></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmzzfoQUMdLnAK-_Dw6qaAg3fyMGQoxnnUpU7eUUrEj0gV3lJMTKzbiwa9d1o5UZgiyhm943epjNEvzXqp5VMO82cdQ7mWmVvgGN_a2RliY1b-YLdD0vCOU2BiRaRGzD9lRskKumUrAIZI/s1600/Sohan+Singh+Bhakna.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmzzfoQUMdLnAK-_Dw6qaAg3fyMGQoxnnUpU7eUUrEj0gV3lJMTKzbiwa9d1o5UZgiyhm943epjNEvzXqp5VMO82cdQ7mWmVvgGN_a2RliY1b-YLdD0vCOU2BiRaRGzD9lRskKumUrAIZI/s1600/Sohan+Singh+Bhakna.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sohan Singh Bhakna</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">By 1914, 15000 Indians – mostly
Sikhs – were living in British Columbia (Canada) and US Pacific Coast. Faced
with legal hassles and racial abuse, they started organizing themselves. They
were joined by two groups of Indian students – one from Portland, Oregon led by
Pandurang Khankhoje and Taraknath Das and another group of Indian students from
UC Berkley (Kartar Singh Sarabha, V G Pingle). Together they founded the
Pacific Coast Hindustan Association, which became Ghadar Party, with Sohan
Singh Bhakna as President and Lala Hardyal as the main driving force. The
turning point came with the First World War and the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Komagata Maru</i> incident in 1914. Canada by then had effectively shut
new Indian immigrants out. When a group of 400 Sikhs travelling in a ship
called <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Komagata Maru</i> tried to reach
Vancouver, there was a long stand-off. Finally the ship was escorted back to
India and in November 1914, when it reached Budge Budge near Calcutta, there
was a riot between the immigrants and British police, resulting in 22 deaths. With
the onset of the War, thousands of Ghadarites started coming back to India,
mostly via China, Japan and South East Asia, where they established contacts
with Sikh soldiers posted there. War forced the government to remove most of
the white soldiers from the subcontinent and the Ghadarites wanted to take
advantage of the situation with a joint civil-military uprising. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWwVc8Ff7GIOuUHxFuxpFOfu9Wnsu5YQ7Y2h8qvOlBB2F7fMp7ABJT__4b3LIteyv6cobeC76IMmy814wQ21HDdiMwRwCJ0TB9M1T-LiYfPVYR2_xoHJhcguPtHPeRy8thU0J2x8p0QI43/s1600/Lala+Hardyal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWwVc8Ff7GIOuUHxFuxpFOfu9Wnsu5YQ7Y2h8qvOlBB2F7fMp7ABJT__4b3LIteyv6cobeC76IMmy814wQ21HDdiMwRwCJ0TB9M1T-LiYfPVYR2_xoHJhcguPtHPeRy8thU0J2x8p0QI43/s200/Lala+Hardyal.jpg" width="144" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lala Hardyal</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Pingle and Sarabha along with Satyen
Bhushan Sen (who was known to Jatin Mukherjee) came to meet Jatin and Rash
Behari Bose. Rash Behari was initially skeptical, so he sent his trusted aide
Sachin Sanyal along with Pingle to Punjab. Sanyal came back and confirmed that
a huge number was waiting for a revolt in Punjab. Things moved very quickly
from thereon. Sarabha and others organized revolts in army units in Ferozepur,
Lahore and Rawalpindi; Sachin Sanyal in Benaras and Danapore and Jugantar
revolutionaries in Bengal. Meanwhile, Jugantar group, led by Jatin Mukherjee,
popularly <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Bagha Jatin</i> (Tiger Jatin),
achieved a great success in August 1914 by stealing a huge cache of arms and
ammunition from Rodda company godowns in Calcutta. It was decided to launch a
coordinated rebellion across cantonments on 21 February, 1915. The date was
brought forward to 15<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> February but the treachery of one Kirpal
Singh alerted the police, leading to arrest of most of the leaders though Rash
Behari managed to escape. However Punjabi soldiers rose in Singapore led by
Jamadar Chisti Khan, Jamadar Abdul Ghani and Subedar Dawood Khan – British forces
finally managed to quell it after putting to death at least 37 soldiers. In
Bengal, Bagha Jatin with his comrades were waiting near Orissa coast for German
arms to arrive, when British Police tracked him down. Jatin with his four
comrades fought with a large police force till their ammunition ran out. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvkRqooB4kiiDX-dq9p-wsieL27PxDUp-DjYtePoaA2OYR_UrlSHlytBF3TqNxEzOPBxYFVuRmFIuggFItRN9nDQUbdUnXQBwr4kP-Hf_1TFNikavkeN_-ANHg4wcKTuS_oin_2EFcgKWP/s1600/Bagha_jatin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvkRqooB4kiiDX-dq9p-wsieL27PxDUp-DjYtePoaA2OYR_UrlSHlytBF3TqNxEzOPBxYFVuRmFIuggFItRN9nDQUbdUnXQBwr4kP-Hf_1TFNikavkeN_-ANHg4wcKTuS_oin_2EFcgKWP/s200/Bagha_jatin.jpg" width="171" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">[Jatin in Balasore hospital, just before his death – saluting his bravery,
Police Commissioner of Calcutta, Charles Tegart, said that had Jatin been an
Englishman, his statue would have been erected next to Nelson’s at Trafalgar
Square]</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Student leaders of the Ghadar
Party were responsible for forging important links with Indian revolutionaries
in Europe. During the war years Berlin became the main centre for sending arms
to India. With the active support of the German Foreign office, under the
Zimmerman Plan, leaders like Birendranath Chattopadhyay, Bhupendranath Dutta
and Lala Hardyal set up Indian Independence Committee. Through Turkey, Raja
Mahendra Pratap, Obaidullah Sindhi and Maulvi Barkatullah went to set up an
Interim Government of India in Kabul. Ghadar leaders like Ramchandra, who were
still in the USA, were also trying to send money and arms to India. After 1915,
Rash Behari and Abani Mukhopadhyay tried the South East Asian routes for the
same purpose. But after the debacle of 1915, there was hardly any organization left
in India to facilitate large-scale armed uprising. When the USA decided to
enter the War, Hindu-German conspiracy case led to the end of Ghadar activism
in the States. </span></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMzVmEz3hgZ9hNWCtbasrNMttwP_Mgdx1pZkyZBjYxtY889EW3HdCAd2jhkElYld8ljsXWJmEC1ZLaSY2w_RW999KensyfM6mP0LuS47FXnekbtAmJ7WCtxxJ-KUvi-7q8ZeDaJzlRUb5x/s1600/Sarabha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMzVmEz3hgZ9hNWCtbasrNMttwP_Mgdx1pZkyZBjYxtY889EW3HdCAd2jhkElYld8ljsXWJmEC1ZLaSY2w_RW999KensyfM6mP0LuS47FXnekbtAmJ7WCtxxJ-KUvi-7q8ZeDaJzlRUb5x/s200/Sarabha.jpg" width="151" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shahid-e-Azam Kartar Singh Sarabha</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Though it failed but their
greatest legacy was definitely rekindling the spirit of nationalism. Till then,
this was the largest armed uprising since 1857. In Punjab in 1914-15 for the
first and only time, revolutionary terrorism achieved something of a mass base.
The government was scared as the revolutionaries tried to incite the armed
forces, much like 1857. Nearly 50 freedom fighters were executed by the British
and a large number were deported to Andaman, where they were made to suffer
inhuman torture for years. It was Sachin Sanyal – detained in Andaman - whose
moving autobiography <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Bandi Jibon</i>
(Life in Captivity), inspired next generation of revolutionaries most. Among
those, who went to gallows uncelebrated was one Abdulla, only Muslim among a
group of soldiers executed in Ambala. Rejecting the government’s offer to turn
approver against his non-Muslim colleagues, he retorted that only the company
of “these kafirs” would open the door of heaven for him. Two of the brightest
stars – V G Pingle and Kartar Singh Sarabha were sent to gallows. Sarabha, hanged
when he was just 19, famously told the judge that he would prefer death over
life sentence so that he could be born again - …<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">as long as India does not become free, I would be born again and again
and would be hanged for my country</i>. Bhagat Singh was deeply inspired by
Sarabha. Compared to Congress leaders or even to Bengali revolutionaries,
Ghadar martyrs are today largely forgotten. One hundred years later, it is
perhaps time to salute their pioneering spirit of selfless nationalism. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">P. S. </i>Most of the surviving Ghadar and revolutionary terrorism
leaders turned to communism. In 1912, Lala Hardyal wrote an essay on Marx in
Calcutta’s Modern Review – this is the earliest piece of writing in India on Marxism.
Jugantar leader Narendranath Bhattacharya, who went to Java in search of
weapons, changed his name to M N Roy and went on to become one of the founders
of Communist Party of Mexico. Birendranath Chattopadhyay, Chatto (elder brother
of Sarojini Naidu) joined the German Communist Party and was eventually
executed by Stalin in the 1930s. Other early converts to communism included Bhupendranath
Dutta (younger brother of Swami Vivekananda), Pandurang Khankhoje (also went to
Mexico, where eventually, he became a pioneer of Mexican agricultural
revolution), Abani Mukhopadhyay and Sohan Singh Bhakna, later a pillar of the Kishan
Sabha movement in India. Lala Hardyal (taught Indian philosophy in Europe and
USA) and Taraknath Das (taught Political Science in Columbia) went back to
academics. Sachin Sanyal, sent to Cellular Jail twice died of TB in Gorakhpur
Jail. Rashbehari Bose, who fled to Japan and worked for India’s independence
from there, prepared the ground for Subhas Bose’s INA. Bose, married to a
Japanese lady, ran a restaurant along with his family and was also responsible
for introduction of Indian cuisine in Japan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
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Time Travellerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02855573858730080091noreply@blogger.com0