Pagan flourished between the 11th and 13th centuries when artisans and monks from India; Tibet and Sri Lanka all combined to foster a unique indigenous cultural expression. For many years; Myanmar; the former Burma; was terra incognita in Southeast Asia; but the recent lifting of travel restrictions has made this
#1569938 in Books 2003-01-01PDF # 1 #File Name: 0967382319808 pages
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. A Must Read!By Yog AIt's shocking to learn how twisted our conventional history is. It is largely a product of anglo-manipulation designed to keep Indians from knowing their true history; and keep them mentally subservient to western materialistic philosophies. Swami Prakashanand ji cannot be thanked enough for bringing key pieces of evidence to light exposing the machinations of the British to distort our religion to keep us feeling negatively towards our own culture and follow theirs instead. A good chunk of Indian intelligentsia has fallen prey to it.3 of 7 people found the following review helpful. Hmmm...what do I think of this book?...Okay...Let me mention that...By Ginger_Alethis is a fairly well written book. It has some interesting material that I would want non-Indians and non-Hindus to be familiar with; especially when it comes to historical events in Indian history; the earlier Indians themselves; and the cultural; scientific; linguistic; and religious contributions that the ancient Indians made prior to the future societies. In general; the ancient Indians were also geniuses in terms of architecture; technology; and medicine. The author does a great job of defeating negative myths about our religion and culture. Although the encyclopedia helps me gain some knowledge of my Indian heritage; there are still a few cons about the book. He seems to lose track of emphasizing that Hinduism; since ancient times; has been a religion of acceptance; tolerance; oneness of God; and universalism; although he encourages interfaith peace and respect at the end of the book and a few times throughout his writings. I am nearly a conservative individual myself when it comes to religious values but I believe that the author comes from a Hindu sect that is different from the one that I belong to. At least a few of his religious beliefs and teachings contradict the ones that my Hindu sect teaches. In the book; he seems to put more focus on what his sect teaches instead of concentrating on Hinduism as a whole perspective. I am aware that the ardent supporters of this book will disagree with me completely regarding this but the Hindu faith does not just consist of one sect with one specific set of beliefs and practices. Like other religions; Hinduism has many sects with a variety of beliefs and practices. I am willing to look at additional sources the next time if I want more information regarding my Hindu culture and religious faith. Another thing that makes me feel uneasy about this book is that it is over priced. The author also needs to be more organized in how he presents material because he keeps going from topic back to topic throughout the book and he is redundant in mentioning information as well. Nevertheless; this is one of the books that I still recommend that an individual reads if he or she has a passion for studying cultures and religions of the world and wishes to gain access to the fair portrayal of Hinduism. In general; I wish that more and more people could positively view Hinduism with accuracy and not be mislead by negative stereotypes about us.8 of 22 people found the following review helpful. An Angry Book of Questionable WorthBy SpacemuppetI purchased this book based on the strong recommendation of an acquaintance on goodreads; but now that I have had a chance to look at it I am returning it to for a refund. I was really looking forward to a comprehensive; authoritative book on "The True History and the Religion of India;" but that's not even remotely what this book is about.A pair of Western scholars (Michael Witzel and Steve Farmer; "Horesplay in Harappa;" Frontline Magazine; 10/13/00) have observed: "In the past few decades; a new kind of history has been propagated by a vocal group of Indian writers; few of them trained historians; who lavishly praise and support each other's works. Their aim is to rewrite Indian history from a nationalistic and religious point of view. Their writings have special appeal to a new middle class confused by modern threats to traditional values. With alarming frequency their movement is backed by powerful political forces; lending it a mask of respectability that it does not deserve." I believe this is precisely one such book; and will be happy to have it out of my house.I recommend that readers new to the subject consult the works of Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami instead of this one -- Dancing With Siva: Hinduism's Contemporary Catechism is an excellent place to begin; and in addition to being offered for sale here on and elsewhere; all Subramuniyaswami-ji's writings can be read for free in their entirety on the Himalayan Academy website. As a general rule of thumb; I maintain that a Guru who does not show respect for any non-Indian cultures or religions does not represent the true Sanatan Dharma.
