India Books
Books-Under-Review-->Society-->Law-->Services-->Lawyers and Law Firms-->Maritime and Admiralty Law-->Asia-->India-->15
Related Subjects:
More Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250
Related Subjects:
More Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250
India Books sorted by
Average customer review: high to low
.
The Great Moghuls
Published in Hardcover by Jonathan Cape (1971-10-07)
List price:
Used price: $12.00
Collectible price: $16.00
Collectible price: $16.00
Average review score: 
Great Book
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2006-01-03
Review Date: 2006-01-03
Provides a very readable yet comprehensive view of the great Indian rulers. Provides many rich facts but does not burden
the reader with too much detail. Must read.
The Beauty and the Grandeur
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2006-11-14
Review Date: 2006-11-14
The first advice I would give to anyone interested in Bamber Gascoigne's THE GREAT MOGHULS would be, "Buy it in the hardcover
edition, even if you have to buy it used." I once owned a brand-new hardcover edition and was foolish enough to sell it.
Later I found that it was no longer in print. Reading a paperback library edition, I could really see the difference. There
was the same excellent text by Bamber Gascoigne, but the gorgeous photographs by his wife, Christina-- many in full color--
were missing. This is a great defect for any book on the Great Moghuls, because this dynasty was particularly rich in art
and architecture. Moghul miniatures combine the vivid hues, attention to detail and exotic flavor of both Hindu Indian and
Persian miniatures with the realism of sixteenth-century Western art. As for Moghul architecture-- well of course everyone
knows about the Taj Mahal, one of the world's great wonders, and the culmination of a long tradition of excellence.
Equally interesting is the personalities of the Moghuls. One is led through the founder of the dynasty, Babur, who transformed his family from mere descendants of the merciless Jhengiz Khan and Tamerlane (the word "Moghul" is a corruption of "Mongol") to a leading agent of civilization in central Asia and later India. One thing Babur kept from his background was a love for the outdoors: thus he preferred to sleep in tents rather than palaces, and this led to the design of gardens which set a beautiful precedent for later Moghul achievements. More surprising for a man of such background was his love of the written word, for he wrote (or to be more precise, dictated) his own biography and thus set another precendent to be followed by his heirs. It is fortunate that he came under the influence of Persian culture, for it above all others had thrown off the ban on the depiction of human and animal forms which limited Islamic art elsewhere. The result was to be stunning. He was succeeded in power by his son, Humayun, to whom he left his greatest conquest, Hindustan. Humayun was a dissolute fellow who is best remembered as the father of the greatest Moghul, Akbar, of whom more later. As it strengthened its hold upon India, the Moghul Dynasty grew more cultivated until it reached its aesthetic height in the reigns of Jahangir and Shah Jahan, whose love for his wife Mumtaz Mahal inspired the Taj. Sadly, the dynasty was to end with a dour bigot, Aurangzeb, but his reign only represented a reaction to the tolerance and flowering of culture that his predecessors had presided over.
If the Gascoignes' book has a defect, it is its tendency to slight the greatest Moghul, Akbar. Unfortunately, they provide little information about or pictures of him, although such exist, and even give the wrong birthdate for him, October 15, which is the date officially assigned by courtiers fearful of hostile astrologers, not the real one which was a month later. This neglect of the dynasty's most memorable character is no doubt due to Bamber Gascoigne's own preference for Akbar's son, Salim, who assumed the name Jahangir or "Seizer of the World" on his ascension to the Peacock Throne. Jahangir is indeed a fascinating character, possessing an almost Western scientific curiosity and keenly interested in every detail of the natural world, which he recorded, often with illustrations by court painters, in his diary. Unfortunately he was also a sadist. Cruel punishments were standard practice in those times, and not only in the East-- as Queen Elizabeth herself had people drawn and quartered, one can hardly expect a 16th Century execution to end in mere beheading or a quick hanging. But the pleasure Janhangir took in devising and watching punishments in which people were tortured to death makes him repugnant to this reader.
How different was his father, who, as the biographer Vincent Smith says, never took pleasure in cruelty. Akbar was a contradictory ruler, athletic and warlike, with a fierce temper, yet also an unusual degree of compassion for his time, sensitivity to beauty, and a deeply mystical nature. He is above all remarkable for his religious toleration. Gascoigne notes Akbar's increasing hostility to the tyranny of the mullahs, who alone had the right to determine the correct way of doing everything in a medieval Islamic state. In place of their authority Akbar asserted his own. This may seem to us to violate the principle of "division of church and state", but we must remember that Akbar knew no such principle-- he only knew that under the mullahs his non-Muslim subjects-- Hindus, Parsis, Jains, and Christians-- were being oppressed. The author touches briefly upon Akbar's adoption of his own religion, the din-il-Ilahi, which he did not however attempt to force upon his subjects. He notes that Akbar was too much of a Hindu for the Muslims, and too much of a Muslim for the Hindus, without recognizing, as Smith does, that he was neither. In fact he had embraced Parsiism, perhaps the oldest scriptural religion in the world, which had first been annunciated by Zoroaster (Zarathustra) in the 12th century BCE, whose influence in the era of Mani (from whose name "Manicheanism" is taken) stretched from China to Rome, even influencing Christianity through Gnosticism, until it was suppressed as a heresy in the cruelty of the Albigensian Crusade (1209-1229 CE). Akbar worshipped the sun and fire, keeping an eternal flame as Parsis do in their fire temples. But ironically, he would have been rejected by the Parsi community of today, which, influenced by the particularism which flourishes so fatally on the Indian subcontinent and which Akbar tried to rise above, no longer accepts into their religion anyone whose father was not a Parsi.
In sum, one can say that THE GREAT MOGHULS serves up a lavish feast of fascinating history and elegant art, but for an understanding of its greatest subject, one must go elsewhere.
Equally interesting is the personalities of the Moghuls. One is led through the founder of the dynasty, Babur, who transformed his family from mere descendants of the merciless Jhengiz Khan and Tamerlane (the word "Moghul" is a corruption of "Mongol") to a leading agent of civilization in central Asia and later India. One thing Babur kept from his background was a love for the outdoors: thus he preferred to sleep in tents rather than palaces, and this led to the design of gardens which set a beautiful precedent for later Moghul achievements. More surprising for a man of such background was his love of the written word, for he wrote (or to be more precise, dictated) his own biography and thus set another precendent to be followed by his heirs. It is fortunate that he came under the influence of Persian culture, for it above all others had thrown off the ban on the depiction of human and animal forms which limited Islamic art elsewhere. The result was to be stunning. He was succeeded in power by his son, Humayun, to whom he left his greatest conquest, Hindustan. Humayun was a dissolute fellow who is best remembered as the father of the greatest Moghul, Akbar, of whom more later. As it strengthened its hold upon India, the Moghul Dynasty grew more cultivated until it reached its aesthetic height in the reigns of Jahangir and Shah Jahan, whose love for his wife Mumtaz Mahal inspired the Taj. Sadly, the dynasty was to end with a dour bigot, Aurangzeb, but his reign only represented a reaction to the tolerance and flowering of culture that his predecessors had presided over.
If the Gascoignes' book has a defect, it is its tendency to slight the greatest Moghul, Akbar. Unfortunately, they provide little information about or pictures of him, although such exist, and even give the wrong birthdate for him, October 15, which is the date officially assigned by courtiers fearful of hostile astrologers, not the real one which was a month later. This neglect of the dynasty's most memorable character is no doubt due to Bamber Gascoigne's own preference for Akbar's son, Salim, who assumed the name Jahangir or "Seizer of the World" on his ascension to the Peacock Throne. Jahangir is indeed a fascinating character, possessing an almost Western scientific curiosity and keenly interested in every detail of the natural world, which he recorded, often with illustrations by court painters, in his diary. Unfortunately he was also a sadist. Cruel punishments were standard practice in those times, and not only in the East-- as Queen Elizabeth herself had people drawn and quartered, one can hardly expect a 16th Century execution to end in mere beheading or a quick hanging. But the pleasure Janhangir took in devising and watching punishments in which people were tortured to death makes him repugnant to this reader.
How different was his father, who, as the biographer Vincent Smith says, never took pleasure in cruelty. Akbar was a contradictory ruler, athletic and warlike, with a fierce temper, yet also an unusual degree of compassion for his time, sensitivity to beauty, and a deeply mystical nature. He is above all remarkable for his religious toleration. Gascoigne notes Akbar's increasing hostility to the tyranny of the mullahs, who alone had the right to determine the correct way of doing everything in a medieval Islamic state. In place of their authority Akbar asserted his own. This may seem to us to violate the principle of "division of church and state", but we must remember that Akbar knew no such principle-- he only knew that under the mullahs his non-Muslim subjects-- Hindus, Parsis, Jains, and Christians-- were being oppressed. The author touches briefly upon Akbar's adoption of his own religion, the din-il-Ilahi, which he did not however attempt to force upon his subjects. He notes that Akbar was too much of a Hindu for the Muslims, and too much of a Muslim for the Hindus, without recognizing, as Smith does, that he was neither. In fact he had embraced Parsiism, perhaps the oldest scriptural religion in the world, which had first been annunciated by Zoroaster (Zarathustra) in the 12th century BCE, whose influence in the era of Mani (from whose name "Manicheanism" is taken) stretched from China to Rome, even influencing Christianity through Gnosticism, until it was suppressed as a heresy in the cruelty of the Albigensian Crusade (1209-1229 CE). Akbar worshipped the sun and fire, keeping an eternal flame as Parsis do in their fire temples. But ironically, he would have been rejected by the Parsi community of today, which, influenced by the particularism which flourishes so fatally on the Indian subcontinent and which Akbar tried to rise above, no longer accepts into their religion anyone whose father was not a Parsi.
In sum, one can say that THE GREAT MOGHULS serves up a lavish feast of fascinating history and elegant art, but for an understanding of its greatest subject, one must go elsewhere.
Stupendous Work on The Most Magnificient Empire in The World
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2000-09-08
Review Date: 2000-09-08
Mr. Gascoigne's work is simply the best one can have. He gives an insight into the lives of the Moghul rulers. Being someone
who's not from the subcontinent, he is not overawed by the Moghul dynasty. The potrial of the figures is intimate and one
can almost feel the human beings inside those great rulers. The collection and presentation of facts is so beautifully done
that one has to remind himself from time to time that this is a chronicle of history, not a racy fiction novel. The facts
are so well connected and documented that the real persons can almost be seen by us. Their vices and virtues are laid out
and the author just places it before the readers in sequence so that they are not overwhelmed by the wealth of details this
work contain. He also manages to give a very impartial and practical account of the daily lives of the rulers, their court,
courtesans, wives and the administration too. It is difficult to imagine that he himself was not overawed by the grandeur
and magnificence of the Moghuls. But in true professional style, he kept himself aloof and presented to the world the life
of he Great Moghuls. He laid bare their wealth, gradndeur, decadence, virtues and vices. Such a great work can hardly be
duplicated or surpassed. It is simply the greatest work on arguably the greatest dynasty of Indian rulers.
The Moghul Emperors Come Alive
Helpful Votes: 8 out of 8 total.
Review Date: 2001-09-24
Review Date: 2001-09-24
This is a unique book of its kind, with the history of the Indian subcontinent stretching from Timur's attack of Delhi in
1398 to the banishment and subsequent death of Bahadur Shah in 1862. But the focus is on the glorious history of 181 years
of the six great Moghuls like Babur, Humayun, Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan and Aurangazeb. The book is very detailed with
their expansionist adventures and exploits, their ruthless family struggles and sporty pass-times, their patronization of
arts and architecture, their devotional practices along with their virtues and vices. Over and above all that, their strategies
of governance and approach to religion are in focus. Their acts of tolerance and benevolence are given due credit and their
cruelties are graphically portrayed. In short the great Moghul era comes alive with the descriptive and substantially accurate
account, accompanied by illustrations of 56 pages of color and 94 monochromes. Anyone interested in the history of the Indian
subcontinent cannot bypass this book.
Good history primer, but look for the hardcover edition!
Helpful Votes: 9 out of 9 total.
Review Date: 2008-09-20
Review Date: 2008-09-20
A previous reviewer made the same comment: the pocketbook version is only half the real thing. The texts are the same of course,
but if the visual presentations of architecture and paintings are missing, the book is only useful if read in front of a computer
to look up the images.
Contrary to the other reviewer, I kept my hardcover version, which I bought 30 years ago, and I even carried it with me during 3 decades of intercontinental moving about. Many of my books are lying somewhere in boxes. This one remained on the shelf throughout. That proves something.
The Moghul period is one of the most interesting in world history, and also in cultural history.
What motivated me to pick it up again from the shelf was my recent reading of Rushdie's latest novel, which is set partly at Akbar's court, partly in Florence, and partly in places between, like the Turkish court.
I am not reading it again, just skimming through the pages and looking at those fantastic places, like the palace and the tombs. And the paintings and mosaics!
What you get is a solid introduction into the time and its artifacts. As a bynote it also reminds me that most simplifications about history are misleading. Like the statement that Islamic civilizations contributed little to world culture. This one did, but one might of course argue that it did so because it was not fundamentalist, but a rather tolerant, in religious terms, period of rule.
(Is the author related to Gazza?)
Contrary to the other reviewer, I kept my hardcover version, which I bought 30 years ago, and I even carried it with me during 3 decades of intercontinental moving about. Many of my books are lying somewhere in boxes. This one remained on the shelf throughout. That proves something.
The Moghul period is one of the most interesting in world history, and also in cultural history.
What motivated me to pick it up again from the shelf was my recent reading of Rushdie's latest novel, which is set partly at Akbar's court, partly in Florence, and partly in places between, like the Turkish court.
I am not reading it again, just skimming through the pages and looking at those fantastic places, like the palace and the tombs. And the paintings and mosaics!
What you get is a solid introduction into the time and its artifacts. As a bynote it also reminds me that most simplifications about history are misleading. Like the statement that Islamic civilizations contributed little to world culture. This one did, but one might of course argue that it did so because it was not fundamentalist, but a rather tolerant, in religious terms, period of rule.
(Is the author related to Gazza?)
Hatha Yoga
Published in Paperback by The Divine Life Society/Rishikesh/India (1939-01-01)
List price: $13.00
New price: $13.00
Average review score:
The symbols of Hatha Yoga
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-10-23
Review Date: 2007-10-23
Lovely artistic interpretation of asana that only comes to light when one has fully embraced the practice.Nicely organized and detailed enough to explore one asana and how our mind reacts in that asana.
The copy I have has a front cover that has symbols on it rather than the person in posture, and I think that is a better reflection of the books content. camella Nair - Author of Aqua Kriya Yoga
Hatha Yoga: The Hidden Language
Helpful Votes: 10 out of 10 total.
Review Date: 2006-07-27
Review Date: 2006-07-27
Sometimes my body feels like it's speaking in tongues. That tight shoulder, the pain in my lower back - what does it mean?
What is my body trying to tell me? Originally published in 1988, Hatha Yoga: The Hidden Language details Swami Radha's systematic
approach to understanding the symbolism of the asanas and messages from the body.
I first encountered Hidden Language a couple of years ago during a morning Hatha Yoga class at an ashram. I was surprised when the instructor asked us to pull out our journals and write words we associate with trees before we lifted into the Tree pose. We came out of the pose and reflected further on the tree as a symbol, and then the instructor posed questions: Where are your roots? What nourishes you? We went into the pose again, reflecting on the questions and being receptive to insights. It seemed so mysterious and yet obvious: Hatha Yoga asanas are based on real, tangible things - trees, flowers, birds, structures. Of course these physical forms have the potential to function as metaphors as well.
"Hidden Language Hatha Yoga is both deeply personal and brilliantly universal," writes ascent columnist Swami Lalitananda in her introduction to the new edition. "Through attention to the symbolism of the asanas, we can discover layers of meaning and make connections that change our lives. Because we are listening to the body, our reflections take on an honesty and reality that the mind can't deny."
After that initial class, I bought the Hidden Language book and have worked with it on a regular basis. The questions and reflections on the poses have helped me translate the discordant dialogue between my body and mind. My copy of the book is dog-eared and covered in notes - this new edition is to be released just in time.
It's difficult to make a good thing better, but this new edition is a vast improvement on the original. Much remains the same: each chapter is a different asana, with twenty-two altogether - basics such as Tadasana (the mountain), Matsyasana (the fish) and Garudasana (the eagle) - and they are presented in the same order.
There are some new additions as well. The line drawings have been replaced by the artful photography of Derek Shapton. This is not to say that the changes are merely cosmetic - the new edition is much more user-friendly. The bibliography is updated and appendices on mantra, Kundalini Yoga and other spiritual practices have been added.
I am still trying to decipher the secret code of my body, and Hatha Yoga: The Hidden Language is an excellent guide. This book will satisfy long-time practitioners of Hidden Language Hatha Yoga and introduce a new generation of yogis to a brilliant approach to the deeper meaning and full potential of Hatha Yoga.
I first encountered Hidden Language a couple of years ago during a morning Hatha Yoga class at an ashram. I was surprised when the instructor asked us to pull out our journals and write words we associate with trees before we lifted into the Tree pose. We came out of the pose and reflected further on the tree as a symbol, and then the instructor posed questions: Where are your roots? What nourishes you? We went into the pose again, reflecting on the questions and being receptive to insights. It seemed so mysterious and yet obvious: Hatha Yoga asanas are based on real, tangible things - trees, flowers, birds, structures. Of course these physical forms have the potential to function as metaphors as well.
"Hidden Language Hatha Yoga is both deeply personal and brilliantly universal," writes ascent columnist Swami Lalitananda in her introduction to the new edition. "Through attention to the symbolism of the asanas, we can discover layers of meaning and make connections that change our lives. Because we are listening to the body, our reflections take on an honesty and reality that the mind can't deny."
After that initial class, I bought the Hidden Language book and have worked with it on a regular basis. The questions and reflections on the poses have helped me translate the discordant dialogue between my body and mind. My copy of the book is dog-eared and covered in notes - this new edition is to be released just in time.
It's difficult to make a good thing better, but this new edition is a vast improvement on the original. Much remains the same: each chapter is a different asana, with twenty-two altogether - basics such as Tadasana (the mountain), Matsyasana (the fish) and Garudasana (the eagle) - and they are presented in the same order.
There are some new additions as well. The line drawings have been replaced by the artful photography of Derek Shapton. This is not to say that the changes are merely cosmetic - the new edition is much more user-friendly. The bibliography is updated and appendices on mantra, Kundalini Yoga and other spiritual practices have been added.
I am still trying to decipher the secret code of my body, and Hatha Yoga: The Hidden Language is an excellent guide. This book will satisfy long-time practitioners of Hidden Language Hatha Yoga and introduce a new generation of yogis to a brilliant approach to the deeper meaning and full potential of Hatha Yoga.
Hatha Yoga and mind-body connections
Helpful Votes: 4 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2006-08-11
Review Date: 2006-08-11
This book is an amazing resource for taking your hatha practice deeper, not in the body, but in the mind. It has clear instructions
about how to work with an asana and how to really use it to learn about yourself, beyond the body, into the mind and spirit.
As a physical therapist, a Somatics practioner and a yoga teacher I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in taking
their hatha to a new level of understanding.
What Yoga Poses Do For You Emotionally
Helpful Votes: 7 out of 7 total.
Review Date: 2003-08-12
Review Date: 2003-08-12
I loved this book, took lots of notes, and review it often. It provides things to think about in yoga poses, symbolism and
possibilities. Great book! Covers about 12 poses.
Yoga to Reflect On
Helpful Votes: 9 out of 9 total.
Review Date: 2006-08-11
Review Date: 2006-08-11
I thought hatha yoga, the asanas, was about the body. Then I picked up this book and found out that the poses have a much
richer purpose than making my body feel good. I tried just standing in the Mountain pose, just standing still going nowhere
as Swami Radha suggests. Oh, I thought, that's easy, probably too easy. What does it feel like to stand still? Just standing
there. I can do that! Ten seconds later my foot's tapping the floor. And my mind's thinking, thinking, thinking--I got things
to do--I can't just stand here.
That was when I began to understand how the asanas reveal what my mind is doing. I've tried several of them now using Swami Radha's suggestions for reflection. Balancing on one leg in the Tree, asking, Can I bend like the willow or do I stand rigid like the oak? I waver and suddenly realize I'm hanging on, gritting my teeth. Bending forward in the Tortoise, looking for that quiet place within, I feel sheltered, protected, safe, and my body eases itself deeper into the pose. It likes this place. So does my mind. Triangle, reflecting on the cave of the heart. What are the three steps to the sanctuary? Patience, maybe? Compassion? The words start to flow, words to reflect on, words to think deeply about.
The way my body does the pose tells me what my mind is like.
This book takes hatha yoga to deep places inside. It's been a revelation to me.
That was when I began to understand how the asanas reveal what my mind is doing. I've tried several of them now using Swami Radha's suggestions for reflection. Balancing on one leg in the Tree, asking, Can I bend like the willow or do I stand rigid like the oak? I waver and suddenly realize I'm hanging on, gritting my teeth. Bending forward in the Tortoise, looking for that quiet place within, I feel sheltered, protected, safe, and my body eases itself deeper into the pose. It likes this place. So does my mind. Triangle, reflecting on the cave of the heart. What are the three steps to the sanctuary? Patience, maybe? Compassion? The words start to flow, words to reflect on, words to think deeply about.
The way my body does the pose tells me what my mind is like.
This book takes hatha yoga to deep places inside. It's been a revelation to me.
India My Love: A Spiritual Journey
Published in Hardcover by St. Martin's Press (2002-01-23)
List price: $27.95
New price: $7.99
Used price: $5.91
Collectible price: $55.00
Used price: $5.91
Collectible price: $55.00
Average review score:
India's connection with spirituality.
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-09-26
Review Date: 2007-09-26
This book is a great work of art, it shows the significance of India's contribution to the world of spirituality; spirituality
at its pinnacle, not magic or the occult arts. Enlightenment, the greatest contribution of India to the world. It's a good
book for any reader from any part of the world to read, easy reading and great illustrations.
Something not to miss out on.
Something not to miss out on.
Truly Indian Vision
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2004-08-14
Review Date: 2004-08-14
India My Love is one book that shine out in my Osho collection. The very fact is that I been sometimes gifting this book to
people who are fond of Osho Discourses. This book is a gem of Osho Insight and truly Indian vision because no other spiritual
leader has so vividly introduced the Real India and the spiritual beliefs. Osho speaks of yogis, fakirs, buddhist monks, jain
gurus and all about ancient India. This book is not only about stories of saints and osho transcript of talks but also has
great illustrated pics alongwith snippets about mystical India. The Krishna tales and Atista are topics that create a lot
of interest to read and the liberation goal of osho is defined as one read through these pages. Osho unfolds cultural and
spiritual aspects of the golden past of India. A good & Must Read for an Osho Fan. Great Pick.
An Amazing Book - Osho's brilliance is beyond ordinary words
Helpful Votes: 4 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2004-06-08
Review Date: 2004-06-08
"The real India is a quest of the inner most soul of man - not the geography, nor the political history, but the inner journey.
The journey of meditation is the real India. Mahavir represents it. Buddha represents it. Krishna, Christ and Nanak - they
represent the real India. And I have the heritage of all of them and much more," declares Osho.
A Pilgrimage to Real India with Osho
Helpful Votes: 4 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2004-03-11
Review Date: 2004-03-11
The very word "India" sounds differently to different people. Most of us may get an immediate view of images like one of these:
a herd of skinny cows scattered all over a barren, over-gazed field; people lined-up to a remote water tap to fetch drinking
water; trains and buses over crowded with people on its roof; naked yogis and sadhus in eye-unpleasant figures and shapes;
etc, etc.
Osho, in this book, India My Love, takes us to a totally different pilgrimage of India: the India of enlightened mystics and of spiritually awakened people. Osho unfolds the golden past of India by picking one story at a time, and explaining it in light of its spiritual and cultural values. There is no doubt that Osho has been one of the most brilliant educators and storytellers of our time. The West has not fully recognized his teachings and legacy yet.
India My Love, on the one hand, samples the wisdom of Osho, unsurpassable by any, and on the other hand, provides with a glimpse of an India, rare and unknown to many, that has a continuum legacy of 5000 years-old search for the enlightenment during all phases of the Indian history.
A mystic journey
Helpful Votes: 7 out of 8 total.
Review Date: 2002-08-12
Review Date: 2002-08-12
If you have been to India, you have to read this book. You'll find the echo to bring you back to India. If you have not
been to India, you have to read this book. It will bring you to India, the real India. Everyone has an inner yearning to
go to India, at least once in your life time. Don't delay. Start the spiritual journey led by OSHO.
Integral Yoga: Sri Aurobindo's Teaching & Method of Practice
Published in Paperback by Lotus Press (1993-01-01)
List price: $14.95
New price: $9.66
Used price: $8.50
Used price: $8.50
Average review score:
Has all the answers
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-02-10
Review Date: 2008-02-10
If you are the type of person who is seeking to understand the abilities of human consciousness beyond the day-to-day existence,
this material will provide you with that information.
It would appear that other books, self-help books in particular, have taken one piece of the totality of knowledge required to put into practice a desired existence inclusive of several realms of consciousness. They are not helpful in reaching these realms or levels.
The Integral Yoga is not "one piece" it is the totality. Within the pages of this book you will find the knowledge of a man, Sri Aurobindo, who, with continued practice, was able to reach realms or levels of consciousness unimaginable to most.
Clearly written, easy to understand and practice. It is a journey that is more fulfilling than any journey you might take in the world of matter.
It would appear that other books, self-help books in particular, have taken one piece of the totality of knowledge required to put into practice a desired existence inclusive of several realms of consciousness. They are not helpful in reaching these realms or levels.
The Integral Yoga is not "one piece" it is the totality. Within the pages of this book you will find the knowledge of a man, Sri Aurobindo, who, with continued practice, was able to reach realms or levels of consciousness unimaginable to most.
Clearly written, easy to understand and practice. It is a journey that is more fulfilling than any journey you might take in the world of matter.
The Integral Way
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2007-11-29
Review Date: 2007-11-29
Wow, there are great books, and there a books that leave you in somewhat a query, this book exceeds the "great book status,
and moves to the awesome book status. Aurobindo's awareness is rare, and certainly focuses on devotion to God, rather than,
acquiring knowledge. Aurobindo succeeds in relating liberation with the reality of actually knowing and wanting God.
"Your life is your yoga."
Helpful Votes: 15 out of 15 total.
Review Date: 2005-10-06
Review Date: 2005-10-06
If ever you've wondered how to integrate the living of your life into your spiritual practice so that your life can actually
become your practice, then Aurobindo's "The Integral Yoga" is for you. Here is one of the few recent sages who not only saw
beyond the beyond, but lived his life from that perspective. If you've been searching, but not finding answers, chances are
that Aurobindo's cogent comments will more than meet that need as he walks you through what it means to lead a deeply spiritual
life, and then shows you how to do it.
A rare find
Helpful Votes: 16 out of 16 total.
Review Date: 2002-02-19
Review Date: 2002-02-19
I've seen this book referenced more than a dozen times by Wilber in his books so when the book presented itself I jumped
at it. It's not a book written by Aurobindo but personal instruction to those who have written to him seeking guidance.
This book is packed with the knowledge of one of India's most accomplished saints. This book reveals valuable insights
for the spiritual traveler as well as a road map of the journey. A book I would say is indispensable for anyone on
the path.
at it. It's not a book written by Aurobindo but personal instruction to those who have written to him seeking guidance.
This book is packed with the knowledge of one of India's most accomplished saints. This book reveals valuable insights
for the spiritual traveler as well as a road map of the journey. A book I would say is indispensable for anyone on
the path.
Yogic Ways to Conquer the Battle Called Life!
Helpful Votes: 17 out of 19 total.
Review Date: 2003-02-23
Review Date: 2003-02-23
This book is for those who want to conquer their everyday problems for ever and not seek an escape from them. Unilke his other
books, the selections in this book are in easier prose.
You could open this book when Tylenol fails to bring sleep after a bad day, and pillow yourself with a good dream. Or you can read it first thing in the morning and allow yourself a great day ahead!
It is not a typical book that you must begin on its first page. It is a compilation of paragraphs and pages selected from his other writings, outlining the solutions arrived at by Sri Aurobindo after his experiments with Integral Yoga. Depending on what area of your life you are seeking to deal with on a given day, you can jump to the topic directly.
Whether you are seeking a higher peace or running away from your lower order problems, it is a book for you, for your spouse, for your child and for your parent. If you want to raise your purpose in this life to a higher possibility then this book is your waiting chance.
You could open this book when Tylenol fails to bring sleep after a bad day, and pillow yourself with a good dream. Or you can read it first thing in the morning and allow yourself a great day ahead!
It is not a typical book that you must begin on its first page. It is a compilation of paragraphs and pages selected from his other writings, outlining the solutions arrived at by Sri Aurobindo after his experiments with Integral Yoga. Depending on what area of your life you are seeking to deal with on a given day, you can jump to the topic directly.
Whether you are seeking a higher peace or running away from your lower order problems, it is a book for you, for your spouse, for your child and for your parent. If you want to raise your purpose in this life to a higher possibility then this book is your waiting chance.
The Land of Naked People: Encounters with Stone Age Islanders
Published in Hardcover by Houghton Mifflin (2003-08-01)
List price: $24.00
New price: $2.59
Used price: $1.46
Collectible price: $24.95
Used price: $1.46
Collectible price: $24.95
Average review score:
Discovering Stone Age Cultures in the 21st Century
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-07-12
Review Date: 2007-07-12
This is phenomenal book! There's a slight bit of difficulty with so many Indian names, which are unfamiliar to Western ears
and a bit difficult to keep track of. My solution was to turn around when I finished the book and immediately re-read it.
I was totally unaware that the Andaman and Nicobar Islands even existed until reading this book, and now I'm mad to see them
for myself. The story of the destruction of these ancient tribes over the last 200 years is one of the saddest things you
will ever read, and it makes you root even harder for those people on Sentinel Island, who have resisted all attempts at contact
by the "civilized" world and are shooting Stone Age arrows at our airplanes when they fly over. Let's hope they're able to
maintain their independence--
Important depiction of outsiders' effects on native peoples
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2004-01-16
Review Date: 2004-01-16
Madhusree Mukerjee's writing is so compelling I didn't want to stop reading. The historical background she relates is based
on solid scholarly research, but the book should easily appeal to popular audiences. Readers will admire the author's persistence
on her visits to the Andaman Islands in striving against bureaucratic resistance and other difficulties to search out, experience,
and report on the current situations of the aboriginals.
In reading the book, I continually found myself, as the author did, identifying with the native peoples in their confrontations and interactions with the invading visitors, settlers and administrators. Mukerjee has an excellent way with words, including the manner in which she describes the many ironies and the bunglings by the governing bureaucracies. Regarding the resulting messes, she uses perfect imagery: "One could always blame the previous administration, a long line of pointing fingers fading into history."
It's unfortunate and sad how, over much of the world, so-called civilized outsiders continue to arrogantly and ignorantly devastate other lands and their inhabitants, intentionally, unintentionally, and through greed and indifference. Even though the facts recounted in the book eloquently speak for themselves, the manner in which Mukerjee frequently relates her own reactions and feelings on her visits seems entirely appropriate. Hopefully, this book will draw considerable attention, both in India and worldwide among concerned citizens and officials positions to influence policies.
A world revealed
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2003-08-26
Review Date: 2003-08-26
The book is excellent, beautifully written, even poetic in places. The author describes the history of contact by the 'civilized
world' with the people of this lost world on the Andaman Islands, a world about which I knew nothing. She uses an interesting
novelistic device of weaving together past and current events to described the world of the Andamanese and of her trials and
tribulations of trying to work through an uncooperative bureaucracy to meet the fascinating original inhabitants. The cast
of characters is huge and includes historical figures from as far back as 1771 to people of today. The role of the author
is that of compassionate observer. Ultimately the tale is sad; thoughout I kept asking, "What are we doing?".
Excellent Book About an Endangered People
Helpful Votes: 4 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2004-02-15
Review Date: 2004-02-15
Discussions of endangered peoples often invokes stories about Amazonian natives, Kalahari Bushmen, and Australian aborigines
to name a few. The people of the Andaman and Nicobar islands are seldom mentioned however. Mukerjee does a great service
to the indigenous people of these islands by exposing the destruction wrought upon them by modern intrusions.
The Andamanese and Nicobarese have lived in isolation from the modern world in the Bay of Bengal for thousands of years. They were portrayed in travelogues, including Marco Polo's, as ferocious, cannabilistic, and uncivilized to the highest degree. These impressions were often based not upon direct interaction but rather on distant observation of a unabashedly naked people with a hunter-gatherer culture. When actual interaction did occur primarily by the British, the Andamanese and Nicobarese were often ferociously defensive as can be expected when confronted by an imperialist power intent on conquering and also gathering human specimens to study and display on the mainland. Even in the face of these dangers, they attempted to maintain some peaceable interaction with their conquerors and displayed the great attributes of their cultures.
Mukerjee spent some time in the islands in an attempt to interact with the Great Andamanese, Onge, Jarawa, Nicobarese, and Sentinelese and in the process, has exposed the Indian government's wrongheaded and destructive policies toward these indigenous peoples. It is apparent that most Indian bureacrats in the islands are there to live the easy life and make a quick buck, and the few who desire to make change often are faced with insurmountable obstacles in their attempt to improve policy toward the natives. Mukerjee describes her subjects in affectionate detail, and her love for them and her sorrow for their plight are evident throughout the book. Her feelings for them culminates as she approaches the Sentinel Islands, home to possibly the most undisturbed culture on earth. As her boat nears the islands, she begins to regret her intrusion and thinks to herself "Please please please, let us not destroy this last haven."
Unfortunately, disease and war has wiped out most of the islands' population. Construction and deforestation is wiping out native habitats. The islanders are impotent to change the situation, and the Indian government will ultimately be responsible for protecting these vulnerable and beautiful people.
I highly recommend this book to anyone concerned with the disappearance of a people who have not been able to fight back and are quickly disappearing from our earth.
Interesting account of a fascinating and doomed people
Helpful Votes: 5 out of 5 total.
Review Date: 2005-02-03
Review Date: 2005-02-03
_The Land of Naked People_ by Madhusree Mukerjee is an interesting and informative account of one of the last stone age peoples
in the world (or what is left of them), native peoples of the Andaman Islands, a archipelago located north of the Nicobar
Islands in the Bay of Bengal in the Indian Ocean, a people that according to archaeologists, linguists, and geneticists have
been isolated from the rest of the world for tens of thousands of years. Mukerjee interwove personal accounts of travels to
the islands and interviews with government officials, researchers, activists, local residents, and the tribesmen themselves
with vivid historical narratives of early contact situations, warfare with, and research on these aboriginal peoples.
The people of the Andamans, long known to Asian and European travelers, were feared for centuries as cannibals and headhunters. They were often referred to as "dog-people," as sub-human; in the nineteenth century some were displayed in the Calcutta zoo, where Bengali visitors took them to be descendents of the monkey god Hanuman, and as late as 1925 a paper published in _Man_, a journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, defined the Andaman as a new species of human, _Homo mincopoeus_. Simultaneously intriguing and repulsing Arab, Chinese, and British travelers by their casual nudity (the natives wore virtually no clothing), ferocity towards outsiders (many of the historical accounts are of hostile first encounters and "punitive expeditions" against islanders), and their physical features that were more African than Asian, the islanders were little bothered for centuries, the islands mostly unsettled despite being located on major trade routes between India and China. Though outside civilization has become increasingly dominant in the last 200 years or so, there are still remote areas in the archipelago; the one hundred or so individuals who make the island of North Sentinel their home are still very much a stone age people (though many technically no longer use stone but rather work metal from nuts and bolts that wash up on their shores into arrowheads) who may be among the most isolated humans on earth (though how long they will stay isolated is a matter of some concern).
Mukerjee divided the Andaman islanders into four groups. About ten tribes (at one time during colonial times comprised of as many as 5,000-8,000 people) made up a group called the Great Andamanese, occupying most of the Great Andamans (the South, Middle, and North Andaman Islands) and several adjacent smaller islands. They were at war with the elusive Jarawa, a small group that numbered at one time as many as 600, a group that lived in the dense western forest of South Andaman. Seven hundred or so Onge tribal members lived on Little Andaman, a sizable island farther south, and a hundred Sentinelese lived on the eighteen square miles of North Sentinel off to the west.
The author painted a vivid picture of an interesting group of people. Though only distantly related to the Congo Pygmies, they were originally similar in many respects; they lived in dense, moist tropical forests in small bands, had peppercorn hair, painted their naked bodies with clay (a practice which the author discussed at length), used bows, arrows, and nets to obtain food, and had extraordinary botanical knowledge. Hunter-gatherers, they subsisted on a variety of plant products, fish, sea turtles (a favorite), dugongs (now virtually extinct in the islands), and a number of forest animals, the most favored of which was the wild boar, believed by some to have descended from the southern Chinese pig. The natives cared greatly for children; among the Great Andamanese it was considered a compliment and a mark of friendship if a married man, after paying a visit, asked his hosts to adopt one of their children; these parents would in turn not only visit frequently their own but adopt others. Several of the groups had taboos against killing certain creatures. The Great Andamanese for instance ruled that it was taboo to kill a certain spider, a type of beetle, two bird species, two fish species, a certain mollusk, and two types of trees. Cicada grubs were much coveted in several of the islands as food, but many were fearful of upsetting Biliku, the northeastern monsoon wind, whom the cicada was the child of; the islanders would be "silent as a mouse" during early morning and late evening singing of the cicadas, not doing any work or making any noise.
Unfortunately much of the book is about the very sad state of the Andaman Islanders. Massive, often illegal, deforestation, even in the protected tribal reserves, has resulted in huge erosion problems, silt runoff that has killed nearshore corals and local fisheries, and deprived the islanders of much food and shelter on every island but North Sentinel. Only 42 Great Andamanese remain, most of them alcoholics (a dependency on alcohol and other substances in the past deliberately encouraged by the authorities), suffering from malnutrition thanks to a diet largely of oil and starch, and many of the children fathered by the welfare staff who are supposed to care for them, Mukerjee documenting how the social workers sometimes took cruel advantage of them. The remaining 100 or so Onge are only a little better off. Disease in the past devastated the islanders and still thins their numbers to this day as they are a people without previous exposure to such illnesses as pneumonia, mumps, and even the common cold. The Jarawa are famous for their resistance, having fiercely fought logging and road construction in their forests, killing laborers and travelers as recently as 1998. Much feared, laborers required guards, police had to escort travelers on the road through their forest; one person told the author, if asked if he ever saw a Jarawa, replied, no, "To see is to die." Though there have been some reverses in favor of the Jarawa in the end it seems that they are doomed to be assimilated into Indian culture if they don't perish from disease and deforestation first.
The people of the Andamans, long known to Asian and European travelers, were feared for centuries as cannibals and headhunters. They were often referred to as "dog-people," as sub-human; in the nineteenth century some were displayed in the Calcutta zoo, where Bengali visitors took them to be descendents of the monkey god Hanuman, and as late as 1925 a paper published in _Man_, a journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, defined the Andaman as a new species of human, _Homo mincopoeus_. Simultaneously intriguing and repulsing Arab, Chinese, and British travelers by their casual nudity (the natives wore virtually no clothing), ferocity towards outsiders (many of the historical accounts are of hostile first encounters and "punitive expeditions" against islanders), and their physical features that were more African than Asian, the islanders were little bothered for centuries, the islands mostly unsettled despite being located on major trade routes between India and China. Though outside civilization has become increasingly dominant in the last 200 years or so, there are still remote areas in the archipelago; the one hundred or so individuals who make the island of North Sentinel their home are still very much a stone age people (though many technically no longer use stone but rather work metal from nuts and bolts that wash up on their shores into arrowheads) who may be among the most isolated humans on earth (though how long they will stay isolated is a matter of some concern).
Mukerjee divided the Andaman islanders into four groups. About ten tribes (at one time during colonial times comprised of as many as 5,000-8,000 people) made up a group called the Great Andamanese, occupying most of the Great Andamans (the South, Middle, and North Andaman Islands) and several adjacent smaller islands. They were at war with the elusive Jarawa, a small group that numbered at one time as many as 600, a group that lived in the dense western forest of South Andaman. Seven hundred or so Onge tribal members lived on Little Andaman, a sizable island farther south, and a hundred Sentinelese lived on the eighteen square miles of North Sentinel off to the west.
The author painted a vivid picture of an interesting group of people. Though only distantly related to the Congo Pygmies, they were originally similar in many respects; they lived in dense, moist tropical forests in small bands, had peppercorn hair, painted their naked bodies with clay (a practice which the author discussed at length), used bows, arrows, and nets to obtain food, and had extraordinary botanical knowledge. Hunter-gatherers, they subsisted on a variety of plant products, fish, sea turtles (a favorite), dugongs (now virtually extinct in the islands), and a number of forest animals, the most favored of which was the wild boar, believed by some to have descended from the southern Chinese pig. The natives cared greatly for children; among the Great Andamanese it was considered a compliment and a mark of friendship if a married man, after paying a visit, asked his hosts to adopt one of their children; these parents would in turn not only visit frequently their own but adopt others. Several of the groups had taboos against killing certain creatures. The Great Andamanese for instance ruled that it was taboo to kill a certain spider, a type of beetle, two bird species, two fish species, a certain mollusk, and two types of trees. Cicada grubs were much coveted in several of the islands as food, but many were fearful of upsetting Biliku, the northeastern monsoon wind, whom the cicada was the child of; the islanders would be "silent as a mouse" during early morning and late evening singing of the cicadas, not doing any work or making any noise.
Unfortunately much of the book is about the very sad state of the Andaman Islanders. Massive, often illegal, deforestation, even in the protected tribal reserves, has resulted in huge erosion problems, silt runoff that has killed nearshore corals and local fisheries, and deprived the islanders of much food and shelter on every island but North Sentinel. Only 42 Great Andamanese remain, most of them alcoholics (a dependency on alcohol and other substances in the past deliberately encouraged by the authorities), suffering from malnutrition thanks to a diet largely of oil and starch, and many of the children fathered by the welfare staff who are supposed to care for them, Mukerjee documenting how the social workers sometimes took cruel advantage of them. The remaining 100 or so Onge are only a little better off. Disease in the past devastated the islanders and still thins their numbers to this day as they are a people without previous exposure to such illnesses as pneumonia, mumps, and even the common cold. The Jarawa are famous for their resistance, having fiercely fought logging and road construction in their forests, killing laborers and travelers as recently as 1998. Much feared, laborers required guards, police had to escort travelers on the road through their forest; one person told the author, if asked if he ever saw a Jarawa, replied, no, "To see is to die." Though there have been some reverses in favor of the Jarawa in the end it seems that they are doomed to be assimilated into Indian culture if they don't perish from disease and deforestation first.
Laxmi's Vegetarian Kitchen: Simple, Healthful Recipes from India's Great Vegetarian Tradition
Published in Paperback by Harlow & Ratner (1995-12)
List price: $18.95
New price: $18.00
Used price: $10.95
Used price: $10.95
Average review score:
Excellent book for simple vegetarian recipes.
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-03-13
Review Date: 2007-03-13
This book is a must have for all nri's who are away from home.
It not only gives simple healthy recipes but there are some tips as well.
Purna
It not only gives simple healthy recipes but there are some tips as well.
Purna
wonderful
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2006-02-24
Review Date: 2006-02-24
the word is wonderful-the food is delicious!!! highly recommend this cookbook for the adventurous cook.
Delicious Indian Food!!!
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-09-30
Review Date: 2007-09-30
My newly vegetarian daughter found this book at the library! We have made numerous recipes out of this book. Excellent, spicy,
delicious food...even the Naan bread is wonderful! There is an excellent introduction on Indian culture and how food is prepared
and served... All around a great cookbook for those interested in authentic Indian cooking! I have since purchased this fantastic
book!!!
Outstanding intro to Indian cooking!
Helpful Votes: 4 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2005-04-24
Review Date: 2005-04-24
I had always been intimidated by the ingredients lists in many Indian cookbooks then I took a class with the author. WOW!
This book is incredible. Instruction is easy and clear with wonderful serving suggestions. The ingredients are easy to find
in my grocery store. My favorite recipe is homemade paneer cheese (p. 165). It is super easy to prepare and always looks elegant
in any dish. The paratha (Calcutta Plain Flakybread - p.82) is also very easy and tastes wonderful! This is an outstanding
book for vegetarian and non-vegetarian alike.
Great Instructional Book for Beginners
Helpful Votes: 4 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2004-11-02
Review Date: 2004-11-02
I have cooked Indian food for about 10 years now using recipes from an Indian cooking class my mother took, but this book
has given me a much better understanding of how Indian meals come together, techniques in making different types of dishes
and the Indian names for the recipes and many of the ingredients, which makes them easier to shop for at the Indian grocery
I go to.
Directions are clear and comprehensive, and written in a very easy, conversational style. Most ingredients have been easy to find at the regular grocery, but I prefer going to the Indian market for quality and better prices, especially on the many spices used in great quantity.
The recipes are absolutely DELICIOUS! Everything is extremely tasty, healthful and filling. I feel so much better eating this food than almost any other. I've tried recipes from pretty much every section of the book, and some have become permanent features in my regular repertoire. You MUST buy this book!
Directions are clear and comprehensive, and written in a very easy, conversational style. Most ingredients have been easy to find at the regular grocery, but I prefer going to the Indian market for quality and better prices, especially on the many spices used in great quantity.
The recipes are absolutely DELICIOUS! Everything is extremely tasty, healthful and filling. I feel so much better eating this food than almost any other. I've tried recipes from pretty much every section of the book, and some have become permanent features in my regular repertoire. You MUST buy this book!
THE LEOPARD'S CALL
Published in Paperback by AuthorHouse (2005-03-29)
List price: $17.50
New price: $10.85
Used price: $16.85
Used price: $16.85
Average review score:
The Leopard's Call
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-08-09
Review Date: 2007-08-09
As I read "The Leopard's Call", I was pleasantly engaged in the rich colors and texture of the landscape, the taste of the
food and the ever present natural tranquility. I was very moved and inspired by the sense of adventure that enabled this young
family to take on an ambitious challenge with courage and spiritual grace. When the author writes about his wife and children,
one can feel the depth of their mutual respect and support for each other. Their experiences reflect that human desire to
strive for something better. It is beautiful to imagine how shared experiences have fueled and sustained their relationship.
On living the simple life
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2005-11-05
Review Date: 2005-11-05
In the Washington Post of July 22, 2001, I wrote about the setting of this story titled "Life is Short: Autobiography as Haiku."
I wrote then: "My wife and I spent the happiest years of our life teaching at an agricultural high school on the border between
India and Bhutan. It was a simple life: no electricity, a hand pump for water and one telephone for all. One day after our
meal I gave my children a treat of peanuts. There weren't many peanuts in the can and I informed my four children that they
would each get just a few that day. My oldest son, Mike, just five, happily placed his little hands around his share, and
looking up at me prouldy announced, "Daddy, today I have lots of little!"
A Lovely Book
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-01-26
Review Date: 2007-01-26
This beautifully written volume can be enjoyed by various readers who need not have previous interest in India or the Bhutanese
frontier region where the Rev. Mr. Shires and Mrs. Shires, a nurse, established an agricultural high school not so very long
after Independence. The author's style is lucid and genuine, the reader introduced to Human Beings including, of course, the
area's little known tribal people. One quite understands why the Shires and their children continue to think of Falakata,
a place altogether lacking in amenities, and in their time, isolated. In keeping with assorted missionaries in India, the
Shires were immersed in their place apart, their hearts with the people they lived amongst as much as the peoples' were with
them. Black & White photographs add to what Mr. Shires relates of an area somewhat changed. The book is a testament to an
Anglo-Indian reputation for service-minded projects in out of the way locations, the Shires proving they could go to a district,
contribute something of value, all the while, feeling they gained far more from the experience than they gave. The Leopard's
Call is India in fond detail -- before Cell Phone Raj. One begins to read, and continues.
A Compelling Story
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2005-10-22
Review Date: 2005-10-22
"The Leopard's Call" incorporates humor, romance, drama, action, adventure, and a sense of the importance of family and community
into a vivid portrayal of frontier life in rural India. The well-paced plot is entertaining and compelling, offering a wide
variety of experiences that depict the remarkable courage, dedication, adaptability, and optimism of these pioneers in education.
an enthralling memoir
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2006-04-11
Review Date: 2006-04-11
Rebeccasreads highly recommends THE LEOPARD'S CALL as a glimpse of a different place from another time.
Reginald Shires, an Anglo-Indian Christian clergyman, with his wife, Norma, set out from Southern India to live in the wilderness grasslands of West Bengal, at the foothills of the Himalayas, just south of Bhutan. There they built a high school for students from local tribes.
From the first page of this charming account of living a simple life & raising a family in a jungle, you are immediately drawn into both a hilarious & moving true story of their unforgettable world.
Reginald Shires, an Anglo-Indian Christian clergyman, with his wife, Norma, set out from Southern India to live in the wilderness grasslands of West Bengal, at the foothills of the Himalayas, just south of Bhutan. There they built a high school for students from local tribes.
From the first page of this charming account of living a simple life & raising a family in a jungle, you are immediately drawn into both a hilarious & moving true story of their unforgettable world.
Mother Teresa
Published in Hardcover by Margaret K. McElderry (2005-01-25)
List price: $19.95
New price: $7.97
Used price: $7.94
Used price: $7.94
Average review score:
Great Book!
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-09-17
Review Date: 2007-09-17
This was a great purchase! The pictures are wonderful and the biography was very interesting. The only drawback I found
was that it was too long and detailed for the audience I was reading to-8-10 year olds. Definitely one of my favorite subjects
and will continue to be read in my home!
Touches all ages
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2006-11-20
Review Date: 2006-11-20
This is a beautiful book, in words, deeds, and art. The story of Mother Teresa is told in a spirit that is appropriate to
the woman herself. The words tell an amazing story simply, just as she lived... telling where she went, how she followed her
calling, and how God unfolded miracles in the lives she touched because she was obedient and loving. It is the simplicity
of the telling that allows the story to be so powerful. The drawings are authentic to the cultures in which she lives, an
artistic feast that is always just right, honest, and beautiful. The story is accessible to children, but is richly satisfying
to teens and adults who can enjoy it on another level altogether. It is reverent, loving, and beautiful, like the woman it
honors.
Carol D. Reiser Book Award 2006
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2006-10-20
Review Date: 2006-10-20
This book was awarded one of the top two recognitions for 2006 by the Metro Atlanta Corporate Volunteer Council. This award
honors children's books that inspire community service and volunteerism in children.
A beautiful book celebrating life!
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2005-08-09
Review Date: 2005-08-09
This was such a wonderful book to read and share, her story is beautifully told and prayers are inspirational. The artwork
takes you to a place that brings the emotions of her story to life.
Channeling Peace, Beauty and Spirit
Helpful Votes: 9 out of 9 total.
Review Date: 2006-01-25
Review Date: 2006-01-25
It's not often the words "work of art" and "biography" go together in the same description. In fact I'd have to say that
up until recently I was of the general opinion that children's biographies tended to be dull and uninteresting-mostly written
for the purpose of providing children with the pedestrian facts they require on research assignments. Authors/ illustrators
like Demi have served to change that opinion drastically. And her latest title, Mother Teresa, is a picture book biography
that is also a true work of art.
Those readers who already know Demi will immediately recognize her stylistic and vividly colored illustrations in this book. Rich gold ink and brilliant scarlet make the pages come to life with a dramatically Eastern flair. Each illustrated page is a marvelous picture in its own right. Its no wonder Demi is an award-winner illustrator. She's illustrated more than 130 books for children, and her artwork appears not only in books and galleries, but also in the dome of St. Peter and Paul's church in Wilmington. I can only say that she truly brings the biography to life. This picture book account provides young and older audiences alike with the story of Mother Teresa, her mission to help the poor and her influence around the world. While the actual text is fairly brief, due to the format, it provides dates and events highlighting the turning points and important themes of Mother Teresa's life. Added to the text are prayer quotes, biblical quotes and quotes from Mother Teresa herself. These help to break up the life events, and add perspective and beauty to the book.
At the very end of the book, Demi includes a listing of what is necessary for Mother Teresa to be declared a saint as well as a list of awards and honors that she was given in her lifetime. While, as I have said, the format prevents this from being an exhaustive account, it is an excellent introduction to Mother Teresa and the life she lived. The religious and spiritual aspects of the biography are handled with grace and respect without the book becoming preachy or judgmental about how that faith is expressed. And Demi's masterful art pulls the text together to create a wonderful tribute to a woman who had such a profound influence on the world.
This book will probably be a bit complex for younger readers, unless a parent chooses to read it to them. The site recommends this book for ages 4-8, but I would amend that to closer to ages 6-12 with the added suggestion that this is a book that adults can appreciate as well. For more thorough exploration of the subject, readers may want to look for other books, but this is a good starting point. Those of you who enjoy this biography may want to look for Demi's other biographies that include such figures as Gandhi, Muhammad, and Buddha. I don't think you'll be disappointed!
Happy Reading! ^_^ Shanshad
Those readers who already know Demi will immediately recognize her stylistic and vividly colored illustrations in this book. Rich gold ink and brilliant scarlet make the pages come to life with a dramatically Eastern flair. Each illustrated page is a marvelous picture in its own right. Its no wonder Demi is an award-winner illustrator. She's illustrated more than 130 books for children, and her artwork appears not only in books and galleries, but also in the dome of St. Peter and Paul's church in Wilmington. I can only say that she truly brings the biography to life. This picture book account provides young and older audiences alike with the story of Mother Teresa, her mission to help the poor and her influence around the world. While the actual text is fairly brief, due to the format, it provides dates and events highlighting the turning points and important themes of Mother Teresa's life. Added to the text are prayer quotes, biblical quotes and quotes from Mother Teresa herself. These help to break up the life events, and add perspective and beauty to the book.
At the very end of the book, Demi includes a listing of what is necessary for Mother Teresa to be declared a saint as well as a list of awards and honors that she was given in her lifetime. While, as I have said, the format prevents this from being an exhaustive account, it is an excellent introduction to Mother Teresa and the life she lived. The religious and spiritual aspects of the biography are handled with grace and respect without the book becoming preachy or judgmental about how that faith is expressed. And Demi's masterful art pulls the text together to create a wonderful tribute to a woman who had such a profound influence on the world.
This book will probably be a bit complex for younger readers, unless a parent chooses to read it to them. The site recommends this book for ages 4-8, but I would amend that to closer to ages 6-12 with the added suggestion that this is a book that adults can appreciate as well. For more thorough exploration of the subject, readers may want to look for other books, but this is a good starting point. Those of you who enjoy this biography may want to look for Demi's other biographies that include such figures as Gandhi, Muhammad, and Buddha. I don't think you'll be disappointed!
Happy Reading! ^_^ Shanshad
My Gifts from India
Published in Paperback by Authorhouse (2003-10)
List price: $15.50
Used price: $99.01
Average review score:
A very special book
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2004-02-28
Review Date: 2004-02-28
Fran Abbott's first book is remarkable. In this journey she takes you back to her abusive childhood, thru her struggling
times as a single mother, and to her purpose in life. This is a remarkable book about a remarkable woman. The largest part
of the book is about Frances fighting to adopt a child from India. A must read for those who have adopted and those who plan
to adopt. I felt I was fighting right along aside her to bring Kannu home. This book will make you an advocate for adoption
and children everywhere.
My Gifts from India
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2003-12-05
Review Date: 2003-12-05
I found this book difficult to put down and read it in a single evening. Frances Abbott is an engaging writer with important
messages for prospective adoptive parents and adoption professionals. With perseverance and love, Abbott and her husband navigated
the conviction that their daughter was meant for them. Readers will be emotionally charged as Abbott depicts her family's
frustrating trials and ultimately realizes the triumph of bringing her daughter home. Despite the discussion of some difficult
and sobering challenges, Abbott's book is absolutely a positive advocate for building a family through adoption.
I liked it!!
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2005-09-18
Review Date: 2005-09-18
I just read Frances Abbott's, My Gifts From India. I enjoyed the read and I found it particularly informative when discussing
the challenges of adopting from India. In the begining of the book, the author talked about her abusive childhood, which is
really not the important part of the story. So just skim this part and get to the real story, about a mother's determination
to bring her child home from a state sponsored orphanage in India. Unlike the private orphanges, this orphanage was more like
a "concentration camp". June Spearing, RN
(mother of a 10 year old adopted form India in 2002)
(mother of a 10 year old adopted form India in 2002)
A MUST READ........................
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2004-01-25
Review Date: 2004-01-25
This writer is amazing. Her story is real and well written. But the message it sends is important to everyone who inhabits
the earth - that what happens to one human being affects all human beings. She knows first hand what abuse and neglect mean
to a child, but her journey to rise above it and become an advocate for these children all over the world will forever affect
how you think about this subject. After reading this wonderful story in some small way you may never be the same again. Thank
you Fran Abbott for sharing your pain and triumphs so thoughtfully.
INSPIRING!!
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2003-11-17
Review Date: 2003-11-17
This book will inspire you to the core! I could not put the book down-it was an absolute page turner. It is not everyday you
see someone put into action their beliefs and dreams and make their vision a reality to share with the rest of the world.
This book will definitely change your view on the contraversial issue of adoption, and especially, the view of what makes us a family in todays world.
This book will definitely change your view on the contraversial issue of adoption, and especially, the view of what makes us a family in todays world.
My Life as an Explorer
Published in Hardcover by Asian Educational Services,India (1996-01-01)
List price: $95.00
New price: $67.79
Used price: $49.03
Used price: $49.03
Average review score:
Real Life Adventure Like Few Others
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-07-25
Review Date: 2007-07-25
When you think of an "explorer" you think of a guy like Hedin. From an early age he ventured again and again into large swatches
of Asian geography where few or no Europeans had ever trod. Hedin graphically and realistically portrays his travels with
such detail that you can feel the cold, the heat, the parched throats, the curious indigenous eyes and the scenery staggering
in its beauty. When you come to the end of this book, you will be all "adventured" out, for on almost every page there is
a suspenseful, fascinating episode. Hedin was truly an explorer's explorer. His greatness is dimmed, however, by his fervent
support of Naziism during WWII. As someone has writen elsewhere, Hedin knew about the death camps and never disavowed them.
He was a solid Nazi partisan. In an epilogue to this book, author and admirer Peter Hopkirk urges us to look at Hedin's many
and major contributions and to forgive his pro-German activities in both world wars. I'm not quite willing to forgive, but
I will segment my views of Hedin into Hedin the explorer and Hedin the Nazi sympathizer. Anyhow,if you're looking for a fascinating
book about exploration in the most forbidding sectors of our planet at the turn of the 20th century, this is a book for you.
A well written, great adventure book
Helpful Votes: 10 out of 10 total.
Review Date: 2003-11-28
Review Date: 2003-11-28
(This refers to the National Geographic Reprint edition)
This is truly a great book, full of the amazing adventures of an
incredible explorer. You have to admire Hedin's determination and stubborness, although sometimes I wonder about his planning.
It seems like every trip all his animals die, and the men are on the verge of starvation. And as for his trips in the desert,
I would have thought the concept of "take some extra water" would have occured at some point!
Hedin is a fine writer,
and his descriptions are not only accessible to the average reader, but often quite poetic as well.
Nevertheless, I only
reluctantly give this a full 5 stars, because I feel that National Geographic missed a great opportunity to make this an almost
perfect book, and it wouldn't have been that difficult to do. As a previous reviewer mentioned, some good maps could have
helped. There's almost no excuse for NG not to have included some decent maps of Central Asia in their edition. Furthermore,
one tends to forget (although Hedin mentions in the text), that he also took photographs on many of his travels. These might
have been included as well. (To see some, refer to the Photos section of the website of the Sven Hedin Foundation, "http://www.etnografiska.se/hedinweb/htmsidor/organi.htm").
Aside from the simplistic drawings that are included, Hedin also did many detailed sketches and potraits on his travels. Now
one can assume that none of these were included in the original, and this is only a reprint, but nevertheless, it is a missed
opportunity. The introductory chapter by A.Brandt also adds little insight, and might as well have been left out as well.
However,
despite the lost opportunities, this book is highly recommended.
The Last Great Explorer
Helpful Votes: 13 out of 13 total.
Review Date: 2005-04-09
Review Date: 2005-04-09
The Swede Sven Hedin was the last great explorer we will see on this well-traveled planet. Hedin was born in 1865 and this
autobiography describes his life up until 1908. Hedin's career was hardly finished, however, as he continued to traipse down
the old Silk Road in Central Asia until the 1930s when he was 70 years old.
In a happy trait that should be copied by more auto-biographers, Hedin doesn't spend much time on his childhood. By the third page of his narrative he is 20 years old and off to the Caucasus Mountains which only whets his appetite for the little-known peaks and deserts of Tibet and Central Asia. He spent the years between 1893 and 1908 exploring these regions and filling in blank places on the map.
National Geographic's "Traveler" magazine put this book on its list of 100 best adventure books and, truly, the tales of Hedin's adventures make for good, exciting reading. Hedin displays both charm and generosity in his account. He traveled without the company of other Europeans and he enjoyed the companionship of his local helpers and the dogs he adopted along his way. He draws many clever portraits of the people he met in his travels. Hedin, however, was no mere adventurer. He was a serious, sober scholar who produced dozens of scientific studies of his findings.
One of the most hair raising tales in the book concerns Hedin's first expedition into the sands of the Takla Makhan (desert) of China in which he and his companions nearly died of thirst. A second high point of the book is the account of his attempt to visit Lhasa, the forbidden capital of Tibet. He failed after getting nearly to the gates of the city and was denied the honor of becoming the first foreigner to visit Lhasa in half a century. Amidst the plethora of adventures, the stoic Swede brushes over incidents others would consider high -- or low -- points of their lives. "Fever kept me in Kashgar a long while" is his complete description of one serious illness.
The book is illustrated with many of Hedin's drawings, including his hand drawn maps. I suggest that you read the book with a good modern map at hand so as to trace his routes with more precision as his constant tooing-and-froing can be confusing.
Smallchief
In a happy trait that should be copied by more auto-biographers, Hedin doesn't spend much time on his childhood. By the third page of his narrative he is 20 years old and off to the Caucasus Mountains which only whets his appetite for the little-known peaks and deserts of Tibet and Central Asia. He spent the years between 1893 and 1908 exploring these regions and filling in blank places on the map.
National Geographic's "Traveler" magazine put this book on its list of 100 best adventure books and, truly, the tales of Hedin's adventures make for good, exciting reading. Hedin displays both charm and generosity in his account. He traveled without the company of other Europeans and he enjoyed the companionship of his local helpers and the dogs he adopted along his way. He draws many clever portraits of the people he met in his travels. Hedin, however, was no mere adventurer. He was a serious, sober scholar who produced dozens of scientific studies of his findings.
One of the most hair raising tales in the book concerns Hedin's first expedition into the sands of the Takla Makhan (desert) of China in which he and his companions nearly died of thirst. A second high point of the book is the account of his attempt to visit Lhasa, the forbidden capital of Tibet. He failed after getting nearly to the gates of the city and was denied the honor of becoming the first foreigner to visit Lhasa in half a century. Amidst the plethora of adventures, the stoic Swede brushes over incidents others would consider high -- or low -- points of their lives. "Fever kept me in Kashgar a long while" is his complete description of one serious illness.
The book is illustrated with many of Hedin's drawings, including his hand drawn maps. I suggest that you read the book with a good modern map at hand so as to trace his routes with more precision as his constant tooing-and-froing can be confusing.
Smallchief
An Adventure Story Like No Other
Helpful Votes: 6 out of 6 total.
Review Date: 2002-02-14
Review Date: 2002-02-14
This is a tale wonderfully told of an explorer's quest to fill in the blank spots on the map of Asia. Not only does Hedin
present a clear and highly entertaining view of his travels, but he also gives us a portrait of his character. He shows us
that he is a man with high goals and is undeterred in achieving those goals, even when all odds are against him. He shows
us that he is also a very caring man, very much concerned about the welfare of his men and his animals. He also is a man
that is awestruck by nature and is very concerned about not unduly intruding upon it or unnecessarily destroying it.
But most of all, this is an adventure story that is just plain fun to read.
A suggestion to readers who are not very familiar with the geography of central Asia would be to have on hand some good maps as the ones Hedin draws are quite limited and often fail to give the perspective that may be desireable.
The best travel book I have read too.
Helpful Votes: 9 out of 11 total.
Review Date: 1999-08-13
Review Date: 1999-08-13
I concur with NDylanRay@aol.com. This book is exceptional. I could hardly put it down. You feel the excitement and intensity
of his adventures, you begin to understand the force that drives him (and you respect him for it), and you meet the people
and the places that make Turkestan and Tibet 100 years ago like no place that you could ever imagine.
Books-Under-Review-->Society-->Law-->Services-->Lawyers and Law Firms-->Maritime and Admiralty Law-->Asia-->India-->15
Related Subjects:
More Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250
Related Subjects:
More Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250