The exact date of the composition of the Dasakumaracharitam is not known. It is supposed to have been written about the end of the eleventh century; and was left unfinished by the author. Some of the incidents correspond with those of the Arabian Nights; but the stories on the whole are quite different from anything found there. Unscrupulous deception; ready invention; extreme credulity and superstition; and disregard of human life. . . . The belief in the power of penance; which was supposed to confer on the person practicing it not merely personal sanctity; but even great supernatural powers; was very generally entertained among the Hindus; and is often alluded to here; as is also transmigration; or the birth of the soul after death in a new body; human or brute. . . .-- P.W. Jacob
#779409 in Books 2015-07-28 2015-07-28Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.16 x 1.22 x 5.28l; 1.00 #File Name: 1598533789995 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy P MarshallI cannot give this series a better 5 star recommendation.0 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy John BurnsLoved the book4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. The American Revolution Pamphlet Debate -- 2By Robin FriedmanThe Library of America has published a two-volume box set of writings from the pamphlet debate on the American Revolution from the years 1764 -- 1776. The volumes were prepared and edited by Gordon Wood; a highly regarded historian of the American Revolution. I have reviewed the box set here on The American Revolution: Writings from the Pamphlet Debate 1764-1776; but I wanted to follow-up with reviews of the individual volumes. This review is of the second volume which includes 20 pamphlets written between 1773 -- 1776 from a variety of perspectives on the relationship of the Thirteen Colonies to Great Britain. The first volume of the set includes 19 pamphlets covering the years 1764 -- 1772. The pamphlets begin after the conclusion of the French-Indian War. Tensions between Britain and the colonies rose as Britain tried to tax and regulate the lives of Americans without American representation in Parliament.The division of the set into two volumes is somewhat arbitrary (the final pamphlet of volume 1 leads directly into the opening pamphlet of volume 2); but on the whole the pamphlets in this second volume present the issues between the colonies and Britain more sharply and are easier to read than the pamphlets in the first volume. The history of the three year period 1773 -- 1776 will be more familiar to most readers as will be more of the authors of the pamphlets. This volume begins with the records of a debate between the Loyalist governor of Massachusetts; Thomas Hutchinson; and the members of the Council and the House of Representatives of Massachusetts. The candid exchange of views in this pamphlet is valuable for understanding the division between Britain and America. The volume concludes with a second pamphlet by Hutchinson. By August 1776; Hutchinson had moved to London. The Declaration of Independence had just become available in Britain; and Hutchinson wrote an extensive section-by-section critique. This pamphlet is also valuable in showing the response of a Loyalist long-term resident; historian and official of the colonies to the momentous events of the American Revolution.This volume includes the most famous of the pamphlets and a revered document of American independence. Thomas Paine ignited the population's desire for independence with his 1776 pamphlet; "Common Sense" which went through at least 25 editions and proclaimed: "The birthday of a new world is at hand; and a race of men; perhaps as numerous as all Europe contains; are to receive their freedom from the events of a few months." Much less familiar than "Common Sense" is a reply to Paine written by Charles Inglis and also included in this collection. One of the valuable features of this collection is that it includes many instances of pamphlets written in response to each other.Other famous pamphlets in this volume include Edmund Burke's 1775 speech urging conciliation with the colonies. This speech was for many years taught as a model of rhetoric and argumentation and it still deserves to be studied. An early and highly radical work by Thomas Jefferson; "A Summary View of the Rights of British America" written in 1774 is included. This short; sharply written pamphlet helped establish Jefferson's reputation. Another famous writer; Samuel Johnson; wrote a pamphlet at the behest of the Crown; "Taxation no Tyranny" written in Johnson's inimitable style and highly critical of the Americans. A reply to Johnson by an anonymous author follows Johnson's pamphlet.Some of the best writing in the volume is by writers who are less well-known. These include pamphlets taking various positions written by James Wilson; Samuel Seabury; Thomas Chandler; Philip Livingston; and Charles Lee; which effectively form a set. Taken together; they offer an overview of the debate between Patriots and Loyalists. I also enjoyed reading the pamphlet by Moses Mather; the descendant of a long line of Puritans; in fervent support of American independence. Although not a main theme in the volume; several authors; both Patriot and Loyalist; notice the irony involved in the American quest for independence and freedom while keeping their slaves in chains. The Patriot writer and minister Ebenezer Baldwin; was highly troubled by this aspect of the American position. Baldwin wrote:"The present alarming situation of things therefore loudly calls upon us to examine what sins in particular have provoked heaven thus to come out in judgment against us; and perhaps there cannot be a better rule of determining than to enquire what sins these calamities are properly retributive of; and by this rule will not the enslaving the poor Africans in the colonies stand forth in front of the dreadful catalogue? Are not the colonies guilty of forcibly depriving them of their natural rights? Will not the arguments we use in defense of our own liberties against the claims of the British parliament; equally conclude in their favour? And is it not easy; to see there is something retributive in the present judgment of heaven? We keep our fellow men in slavery -- heaven is suffering others to enslave us."The volume includes an opening essay; valuable introductions to each pamphlet by Wood; a chronology of the First British Empire; notes on the publication history of each pamphlet; and a short biography of each writer. This material is highly useful in helping to understand the pamphlets in their historical context. This book and its companion volume provide a valuable way for readers to think about the nature of the American Revolution and its continued significance. The Library of America kindly provided me with a review copy of the box set.Robin Friedman
