Notes, Guide and Study material
Diamond Dust” is a novel by Anita Desai published in 2000. The story takes place in the fictional town of Kasauli, India, and revolves around a family that has fallen on hard times. The novel is divided into three parts, each exploring different aspects of the Jha family’s lives and their interactions with the enigmatic … Read more
Riders to the Sea- A one-act play and a Tragedy Riders to the Sea is a one-act play that is widely regarded as a tragedy. The play’s success can be attributed to its writer, John Millington Synge, who had a gift for condensing significant issues of life into a single act. Despite being limited to … Read more
The poem “We meet and part now over all the world” is a powerful and poignant reflection on the fleeting nature of life and love. The speaker, who is a member of a “lost company,” describes how they come together in the night to forget their troubles and find happiness in each other’s company. Despite … Read more
The Magadha Empire was founded when the four Mahajanapadas – Magadha, Kosala, Vatsa, and Avanti – were engaged in a struggle for domination from the 6th century BC to the 4th century BC. Magadha has drawn the attention of historians for the last two hundred years because it had become the nucleus of the political … Read more
For a long time, till 1837, not much was known about Ashoka. In that year, James Prinsep deciphered a Brahmi inscription referring to a king called Devanampi. Piyadasi (Beloved of the Gods). Further, study of Mahavamsa made it clear that this epithet referred to Ashoka Maurya. Ashoka succeeded his father Bindusara upon his death in … Read more
The period between about the 3rd century BC and the 3rd century AD in South India (the area south of the Krishna and Tungabhadra rivers) is known as the Sangam period. It is named after the Sangam academies organized during that time, which flourished under the royal patronage of the Pandya kings of Madurai. Eminent … Read more
Samudragupta left his vast empire to his successor, Chandragupta II (375-414 AD). Our knowledge of Chandragupta is derived from inscriptions such as the Mehrauli Iron Pillar, Udaygiri Mathura, Sanchi stone plate, and the account of India given by Fa-hien. Samudragupta had extended his frontier east and southward. His expansion westward halted at Eastern Malwa, and … Read more
The main strands of the Hindu Civilization are the gift of the Aryans’ minds. The most striking feature of Aryan culture is its stability and continuity, even to this day. It is therefore interesting to know whether the Aryans were indigenous peoples or if they came from outside of India. This leads to the problem … Read more
The Origins of the Indo-Greeks Bactria is the ancient name of the area lying to the south of the Oxus river and northwest of the Hindukush mountains, and corresponds to the northern part of modern Afghanistan. The Greeks of Bactria were originally satraps (subordinate rulers) of the Seleucid Empire of West Asia. In about the … Read more
Architecture is an important aspect that defines the mind of people, the art, and science of designing building structures. ‘Architecture should speak of its time and place, but yearn for timelessness’ – Frank Gehry. This quote perfectly defines the architecture of the Indus Valley Civilization, which is well known for its unique style and lack … Read more