Megh Kalyanasundaram - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Videos by Megh Kalyanasundaram

Is Karma a Vedic concept or not? Is it the case that pre-Buddhist Vedic literature contains no tr... more Is Karma a Vedic concept or not? Is it the case that pre-Buddhist Vedic literature contains no trace of rebirth and karmic retribution? This paper explores answers to the above questions in the context of and in response to positions taken by Johannes Bronkhorst in his essays 'Karma in and after Greater Magadha' and 'Karma in Brahmanism'.

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Is Patañjali's Mahābhāṣya the earliest Indian source to attest to the word Kashmir? Does Kashmir ... more Is Patañjali's Mahābhāṣya the earliest Indian source to attest to the word Kashmir? Does Kashmir in the Mahābhāṣya occur in a context that only reveals information about rice cultivation in the valley? Is Kashmir not mentioned anywhere in the Vedic literature? Did Pāṇini call the people of Kashmir Kashmirikas? If one were to look for answers to these questions in the Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism--which claims in its preface that the depth and breadth of information provided in it are unmatched by any reference work on Hinduism--and Wikipedia, one will find statements that answer the above questions in the near-affirmative. This paper will foreground evidence from Aṣṭādaśavidyā texts (the lack of evidence in one case) and secondary literature that problematises answers to the above questions in the near-affirmative.

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Papers by Megh Kalyanasundaram

On the relevance of Bhārata and her Kāśmīra : Two new reasons from 2023 Preliminaries This paper ... more On the relevance of Bhārata and her Kāśmīra : Two new reasons from 2023 Preliminaries This paper has been shared in response to a note dated May 24, 2023 from the Dean and Head of the Department of Museology, National Museum Institute. It is based on my presentation on Bhārata and her Kāśmīra at the recently concluded National Conference & Seminar Sapt-Sindhu: Decoding the geo-cultural identity (with a focus on

Did religion play a significant part in Greek life before the common era? Were rituals present in... more Did religion play a significant part in Greek life before the common era? Were rituals present in that period in Greece? If the answers to these questions are yes, is it still possible to detect 'humanism' in Greek texts before the common era? In texts indigenous to the Indian subcontinent, is Humanism not to be explored in Dharma and Dhamma texts and be restricted only to the Cārvāka school of thought? Humanism in the Classical World by Charles Freeman and The Materialists of Classical India by Jeaneane Fowler together provide, in my view, evidence for near-affirmative answers to the questions listed above. Answers in the affirmative to all four questions present contrasting approaches to exploring Humanism in Indian-Vedic and Greek texts. In this paper, I compare the two essays using the case of Dike, highlighted by Charles Freeman, to foreground a somewhat similar concept in a Vedic text (part of the Aṣṭādaśavidyā knowledge system) from about the same time, or earlier, to make a case for a more equitable and fair reading of texts from Eastern non-Abrahamic texts.

Is Patañjali's Mahābhāṣya the earliest Indian source to attest to the word Kashmir? Does Kashmir ... more Is Patañjali's Mahābhāṣya the earliest Indian source to attest to the word Kashmir? Does Kashmir in the Mahābhāṣya occur in a context that only reveals information about rice cultivation in the valley? Is Kashmir not mentioned anywhere in the Vedic literature? Did Pāṇini call the people of Kashmir Kashmirikas ? If one were to look for answers to these questions in the Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism-which claims in its preface that the depth and breadth of information provided in it are unmatched by any reference work on Hinduism-and Wikipedia , one will find statements that answer the above questions in the near-affirmative. This paper will foreground evidence from Aṣṭādaśavidyā texts (the lack of evidence in one case) and secondary literature that problematises answers to the above questions in the near-affirmative. Finally, this paper will add a new data point to the considerations already present in a recently published paper (Landscape in the Nāṭyaśāstra and clues to its spatial origin: A study in 2019) that strengthens the case for Kashmir when thinking about the spatial origins of the Nāṭyaśāstra .

Is the term Śiva, as a noun, attested only in the itihāsa-s and purāṇa-s, and therefore, in exist... more Is the term Śiva, as a noun, attested only in the itihāsa-s and purāṇa-s, and therefore, in existence supposedly only after around 500 BCE? Was Śiva a minor, non-supreme, figure in the text corpus indigenous to the Indian subcontinent before Śvetāśvataropaniṣad? Does clear and reliable evidence for organized sectarian worship of Śiva exist only after the beginning of the common era? If you were to look for answers to these questions in the entry for "Shaivism" in the Oxford Bibliographies-which sports a tagline "Your best research starts here"-or Wikipedia , you will find either answers or sources to answers, in the near affirmative, to all questions above. This paper will foreground evidence that problematizes answers in the affirmative to the above-mentioned questions. It will do so, in part, by foregrounding evidence about Śiva from Aṣṭādaśavidyā texts that appear missing in at least those essays considered "up-to-date introductions on the historical development of the Shaiva sectarian traditions'' by Peter Bisschop, the author of the entry for "Shaivism" in the Oxford Bibliographies.

Samīkṣikā-19, 2022

What does the landscape described in the Nāṭyaśāstra look like? How does it compare with the land... more What does the landscape described in the Nāṭyaśāstra look like? How does it compare with the landscape described in, for instance, the Mahābhārata? Can a reading of Bharata’s Nāṭyaśāstra in 2019 still yield clues about its spatial origin? Answers to these questions form the crux of this paper which also looks to a) address one of the many questions listed by scholar Kapila Vatsyayan (in her foreword to the 2016 book NĀṬYAŚĀSTRA—Revisited which contains her essay ‘NĀṬYAŚĀSTRA—A history of criticism’) and b) to take one small step in a research area identified by another scholar Bharat Gupt (in his essay in NĀṬYAŚĀSTRA—Revisited). In answering the questions specified above, this paper looks to contribute to ‘the critical analysis on the journey of the text of Nāṭyaśāstra’ (sub-theme 2 of the conference) and to foreground insights, from studying what seems like lesser-researched aspects of the text, insights, that would be relevant in the pursuit of the framework for a new critical edition of the Nāṭyaśāstra.

Can it be concluded with complete certainty that ध्यान (Dhyāna) originated in the श्रमण (śramaṇa)... more Can it be concluded with complete certainty that ध्यान (Dhyāna) originated in the श्रमण (śramaṇa) traditions? This is the central question that animates this paper. To look for an answer to this question, if you googled using the phrase "origins of dhyana", and if Google showed you exactly what it showed me, then the first search result you would also see is the Wikipedia page, titled, interestingly, Dhyāna in Hinduism, but with the following sentence highlighted: "The various concepts of dhyana and its practice originated in the Sramanic movement of ancient India,[3][4] which started before the 6th century BCE (pre-Buddha, pre-Mahavira),[5][6] and the practice has been influential within the diverse traditions of Hinduism." As can be seen from the sentence above, there is a conclusive declaration that the various concepts of dhyāna and its practice originated in the śramaṇ-ic movement of Ancient India. In this paper, the veracity of the reasoning cited to substantiate the above claim (footnotes [3] and [4]) is analyzed alongside the attested evidence for ध्यान (Dhyāna) from the knowledge system Aṣṭādaśavidyā that contains, and begins with, the वेद (Veda). Additionally, and to facilitate future research, pointers to the string ध्यान (Dhyāna) as found in 196 उपनिषद्-s (upaniṣad-s) are foregrounded.

प्राची प्रज्ञा (Prachi Prajna) ISSN 2348-8417, 2021

Sixth in a series of recent papers that have engaged with one or the other aspect of various chro... more Sixth in a series of recent papers that have engaged with one or the other aspect of various chronological postulations found in books that Indologist Patrick Olivelle has either himself written or has edited, this paper presents a pointed critical engagement with some of the contestable views related to the chronology of “rules for written contracts” in Gregory Schopen’s essay 'A Buddhist Monastic Code as a Source for Indian Law', which is an essay included in the recent book 'Hindu Law: A New History of Dharmaśāstra' published by Oxford University Press and edited by Olivelle and Donald R. Davis. Jr..

This paper comprises findings from an engagement with two recent publications in Leadership and E... more This paper comprises findings from an engagement with two recent publications in Leadership and Ethics—1) ‘The Mind of the Leader’ (2018) and 2) ‘Virtue Ethics Between East and West’ (2019)—to identify and foreground some conceptual connections with aspects of an Indic Knowledge System (IKS) अष्टादशविद्या (Aṣṭādaśavidyā). One part of this engagement situates itself within some areas of future research specified in Virtue Ethics Between East and West, and, in that context, precipitate Indic insights of relevance, an undertaking which, at the very least, serves the purpose of initiating an inclusion of IKS into what appears to be intended as a global conversation on Virtue ethics, with a significant civilisational accent no less, and yet seemingly limited currently only to Greek and Chinese sources thus far. In another part of the engagement, an excellent listing (published in 2006) of Indic virtues—I call it The Bina Gupta listing of virtues from śrīmadbhagavadgītā—is updated to include one more virtue (also from the gītā) which, I reason, is related to one key component of mindfulness as posited in The Mind of the Leader, and hence draws at least commensurate significance. To avoid being totally limited only to isolated theoretical discussions, the recently-approved National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 is invoked as an appropriate policy touch-point, for a reality-check, to assess the current level of conceptual integration of some of the above theoretical considerations.

Does the earliest attestation of the term गृहस्थ (gṛhastha), in Sanskrit, date back only to aroun... more Does the earliest attestation of the term गृहस्थ (gṛhastha), in Sanskrit, date back only to around the third century BCE? Is it the case that the term gṛhastha is absent, in Sanskrit, prior to the earliest धर्मसूत्र (dharmasūtra)? How sound is the hypothesis that gṛhastha was a neologism in Sanskrit and that it underpinned the very necessity for the creation of the Dharmaśāstric genre of literature? Near-affirmative answers to all the above questions, with hence profound revisionist implications for the early chronology of Dharmasūtra-s and Dharmaśāstra-s, are found in recent essays by Patrick Olivelle and Stephanie Jamison in the books Hindu Law: A New History of Dharmaśāstra (2018) and Gṛhastha: The HouseHolder in Ancient Indian Religious Culture (2019), both published by Oxford University Press. In this paper, I foreground some of those statements, from these books, that constitute answers to the questions above, engage critically with them, and in doing so, put forth evidence that problematizes the revisionist implications of those statements vis-a-vis the early chronology of Dharmasūtra-s and Dharmaśāstra-s.

This paper presents an empirical case for inclusions of evidence from Indian Knowledge Systems in... more This paper presents an empirical case for inclusions of evidence from Indian Knowledge Systems into those history narratives of constitutional law that aspire to be inclusively global in their academic concern for, amongst other legal concepts, the early history of Separation of Powers. The aforementioned foregrounding of evidence is undertaken alongside a reading of (and in response to aspects of) 'The Crown and the Courts : Separation of Powers in the Early Jewish Imagination' published recently by Harvard University Press in 2020 and 'The First Constitution: Rethinking the Origins of Rule of Law and Separation of Powers in Light of Deuteronomy' published in 2006.

Was Roman law without doubt the most sophisticated legal system from Antiquity? Do the roots of v... more Was Roman law without doubt the most sophisticated legal system from Antiquity? Do the roots of vyavahārapadas lie outside the dharma tradition? Is it the case that the earliest explicitly legal use of the term vyavahāra was attested outside dharma literature? In this paper, statements found in two influential 21st century publications that appear to be answers in the affirmative to the above questions are foregrounded, critically analyzed and responded to. Thereafter, some aspects of three elements of Roman law are compared with their chronological peers (or predecessors) from a system of knowledge indigenous to the Indian subcontinent: the भारतीय अष्टादशविद्या (Bhāratīya Aṣṭādaśavidyā). In doing the above, and in the interest of a more inclusive global history (or histories) of law and jurisprudence, the ethical need for more open, comprehensive, rigorous yet sensitive engagement, sans eurocentrism (and more), is stressed, particularly when radical changes to any aspect of chronology of non-European, non-Mediterranean, non-Abrahamic traditions are posited.

Is Bhārata a discourse on space that does not allow a visual representation of that space? Is it ... more Is Bhārata a discourse on space that does not allow a visual representation of that space? Is it the case that on the basis of such a discourse, it is not possible to draw a map in the modern sense of the word? Is it methodologically inappropriate to identify Bhāratavarṣa with a concrete territorial unit and to take it to represent a geographical reality? What seem like nearly-unambiguous answers, in near-affirmative no less, to all the above questions appear in at least two recent essays "'India, that is Bharat…': One Country, Two Names' by Catherine Clémentin-Ojha and 'The Concept of Bhāratavarṣa and Its Historiographical implications' by B.D. Chattopadhyaya. Clearly, answers that are in the near-affirmative to the above questions are of consequence not just to any discussion on an idea of India but also to at least one important facet of being Indian: India's territory (and the past of that territory). In this paper, amongst other things, the statements that appear to be near-affirmative answers to the questions above are foregrounded and are engaged with critically, an engagement that looks to analyze and then present evidence that may render those near-affirmative answers as at least seriously contestable, if not as invalidated. In doing so, this paper will draw from some parts of an actual system of knowledge indigenous to the Indian subcontinent (and hence an Indic knowledge system) the Aṣṭādaśavidyā.

IGNCA Samikshika (Forthcoming), 2020

What does the landscape described in the Nāṭyaśāstra look like? How does it compare with the land... more What does the landscape described in the Nāṭyaśāstra look like? How does it compare with the landscape described in, for instance, the Mahābhārata? Can a reading of Bharata’s Nāṭyaśāstra in 2019 still yield clues about its spatial origin? Answers to these questions form the crux of this paper which also looks to a) address one of the many questions listed by scholar Kapila Vatsyayan (in her foreword to the 2016 book 'NĀṬYAŚĀSTRA—Revisited' which contains her essay ‘NĀṬYAŚĀSTRA—A history of criticism’) and b) to take one small step in a research area identified by another scholar Bharat Gupt (in his essay in 'NĀṬYAŚĀSTRA—Revisited'). In answering the questions specified above, this paper looks to contribute to ‘the critical analysis on the journey of the text of Nāṭyaśāstra’ (sub-theme 2 of the conference) and to foreground insights, from studying what seems like lesser-researched aspects of the text, insights, that would be relevant in the pursuit of the framework for a new critical edition of the Nāṭyaśāstra.

Who was the first to use the term ‘lekhya’ for a legal document? In which text is that usage atte... more Who was the first to use the term ‘lekhya’ for a legal document? In which text is that usage attested and how far back in time does that go? Sentences that appear to be fairly precise answers to the above questions are found dispersed in the scholarship of Patrick Olivelle[1], who has been hailed by Dominik Wujastyk[2] as “...the world's leading authority on the history of Indian dharma”[3]. In this paper, the above-mentioned sentences are foregrounded, analysed and responded to. This analysis seeks to present evidence of serious fallacies manifest in some of the statements alluded to above, and conclusions thereof, which have been presented as being significant not just for Indian jurisprudence but also for India’s cultural history itself. Finally, specific, case-based, evidence of demonstrably contentious statements featuring in a Murty Classical Library of India volume are provided in response to inputs invited, in public, by the individual who has reportedly set up Murty Classical Library with a $5.2 million endowment[4].

[1] https://minio.la.utexas.edu/colaweb-prod/person_files/0/836/A%20Olivelle%20CV.pdf. Accessed on Dec 02 2020

[2] https://ualberta.academia.edu/DominikWujastyk/CurriculumVitae. Accessed on Dec 02 2020

[3] See ‘Reviews’ in http://cup.columbia.edu/book/a-dharma-reader/9780231179560. Accessed on Dec 02 2020

[4] “I want to hear in which book we have published, in which line or page, there is a problem; and in what context, and why it is a problem. That is useful to me. Then, we can discuss.” https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/sheldon-pollock-is-central-to-the-classical-library-project-says-rohan-murty/articleshow/51238856.cms. Accessed on Dec 02 2020

Which is the earliest extant textual attestation of the word ‘dharmaśāstra’? Is the birth of the ... more Which is the earliest extant textual attestation of the word ‘dharmaśāstra’? Is the birth of the Dharmaśāstra genre causally linked, and incontrovertibly indebted, to the Buddha and emperor Aśoka? Patrick Olivelle’s 2016 book ‘A Dharma Reader - Classical Indian Law’ contains statements that appear to be pointed answers to the above questions, a pointedness that I find pregnant with serious revisionist implications of profound consequence not just to the textual history of the term ‘dharmaśāstra’ and the origins of the Dharmaśāstra genre but also to the history of the idea of Dharma itself and perhaps to some people of those traditions in which Dharma is seen as Sanātana. In this paper, I foreground aforementioned statements of Olivelle (who has been hailed by Dominik Wujastyk as the world’s leading authority on the history of Indian dharma), delineate some of their revisionist implications and present a critical analysis of some of his reasoning and conclusions thereof. In doing so, a case is made for the need to pay attention to attempts at altering chronology, particularly those that enable tendentious attributions through imagined cause-and-effect hypotheses accompanied by sweeping consequences.

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Is Patañjali's Mahābhāṣya the earliest Indian source to attest to the word Kashmir? Does Kashmir ... more Is Patañjali's Mahābhāṣya the earliest Indian source to attest to the word Kashmir? Does Kashmir in the Mahābhāṣya occur in a context that only reveals information about rice cultivation in the valley? Is Kashmir not mentioned anywhere in the Vedic literature? Did Pāṇini call the people of Kashmir Kashmirikas ? If one were to look for answers to these questions in the Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism-which claims in its preface that the depth and breadth of information provided in it are unmatched by any reference work on Hinduism-and Wikipedia , one will find statements that answer the above questions in the near-affirmative. This paper will foreground evidence from Aṣṭādaśavidyā texts (the lack of evidence in one case) and secondary literature that problematises answers to the above questions in the near-affirmative. Finally, this paper will add a new data point to the considerations already present in a recently published paper (Landscape in the Nāṭyaśāstra and clues to its spatial origin: A study in 2019) that strengthens the case for Kashmir when thinking about the spatial origins of the Nāṭyaśāstra .

Samīkṣikā-19, 2022

प्राची प्रज्ञा (Prachi Prajna) ISSN 2348-8417, 2021

IGNCA Samikshika (Forthcoming), 2020

What does the landscape described in the Nāṭyaśāstra look like? How does it compare with the land... more What does the landscape described in the Nāṭyaśāstra look like? How does it compare with the landscape described in, for instance, the Mahābhārata? Can a reading of Bharata’s Nāṭyaśāstra in 2019 still yield clues about its spatial origin? Answers to these questions form the crux of this paper which also looks to a) address one of the many questions listed by scholar Kapila Vatsyayan (in her foreword to the 2016 book 'NĀṬYAŚĀSTRA—Revisited' which contains her essay ‘NĀṬYAŚĀSTRA—A history of criticism’) and b) to take one small step in a research area identified by another scholar Bharat Gupt (in his essay in 'NĀṬYAŚĀSTRA—Revisited'). In answering the questions specified above, this paper looks to contribute to ‘the critical analysis on the journey of the text of Nāṭyaśāstra’ (sub-theme 2 of the conference) and to foreground insights, from studying what seems like lesser-researched aspects of the text, insights, that would be relevant in the pursuit of the framework for a new critical edition of the Nāṭyaśāstra.

[1] https://minio.la.utexas.edu/colaweb-prod/person_files/0/836/A%20Olivelle%20CV.pdf. Accessed on Dec 02 2020

[2] https://ualberta.academia.edu/DominikWujastyk/CurriculumVitae. Accessed on Dec 02 2020

[3] See ‘Reviews’ in http://cup.columbia.edu/book/a-dharma-reader/9780231179560. Accessed on Dec 02 2020

प्राची प्रज्ञा (Prachi Prajna) ISSN 2348-8417, 2020

Which text contains the earliest attestation of the use of technology to harness Sun's energy to ... more Which text contains the earliest attestation of the use of technology to harness Sun's energy to light a fire? Is there an implication of translating kaṃsaḥ as white copper for the global history of metallurgy? Which is the oldest attestation of at least the thought of complete gender equality in property inheritance? Based on evidence from Yāska's Nirukta, a case is made for the inclusion of Nirukta in global narratives of Technology, Science and Gender Equality in Inheritance that aspire to be inclusive, followed by a critical argument in response to some recent perspectives on the chronology of Dharmasūtra-s and Dharmaśāstra-s.

The Book Review, 2020

A limited review of Amiya P. Sen’s ‘Chaitanya: A Life and Legacy’ (2019; Oxford University Press;... more A limited review of Amiya P. Sen’s ‘Chaitanya: A Life and Legacy’ (2019; Oxford University Press; 216 pp., xxii; INR 795/-)

Cambridge-published Tirthankar Roy's (2012) book "India in the World Economy – From Antiquity to ... more Cambridge-published Tirthankar Roy's (2012) book "India in the World Economy – From Antiquity to the Present" is presented, amongst other things, as:

1. "global history written on India's terms,"
2. covering a period "from Antiquity to the Present".

The validity of these two claims is analysed in this critique.

श्रुतिस्मृति (śrutismṛti) | विद्यास्थानानि चतुर्दश अष्टादश (vidyāsthānāni caturdaśa aṣṭādaśa). ... more श्रुतिस्मृति (śrutismṛti) | विद्यास्थानानि चतुर्दश अष्टादश (vidyāsthānāni caturdaśa aṣṭādaśa).

Adapted from:
1. The Vedas [https://amzn.to/2RpGakz] attributed to Kānci Mahāperiyavā Śri Candraśekarendra Saraswati Swāmi
2. A Panorama of Vedas [https://bit.ly/2FJyLYC] by Korada Subrahmanyam

Keywords: Indian Knowledge Systems, Indic Knowledge Systems

Is Patañjali's Mahābhāṣya the earliest Indian source to attest to the word Kashmir? Does Kashmir ... more Is Patañjali's Mahābhāṣya the earliest Indian source to attest to the word Kashmir? Does Kashmir in the Mahābhāṣya occur in a context that only reveals information about rice cultivation in the valley? Is Kashmir not mentioned anywhere in the Vedic literature? Did Pāṇini call the people of Kashmir Kashmirikas? If one were to look for answers to these questions in the Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism-which claims in its preface that the depth and breadth of information provided in it are unmatched by any reference work on Hinduism-and Wikipedia, one will find statements that answer the above questions in the near-affirmative. This paper will foreground evidence from Aṣṭādaśavidyā texts (the lack of evidence in one case) and secondary literature that problematises answers to the above questions in the near-affirmative. Finally, this paper will add a new data point to the considerations already present in a recently published paper (Landscape in the Nāṭyaśāstra and clues to its spatial origin: A study in 2019) that strengthens the case for Kashmir when thinking about the spatial origins of the Nāṭyaśāstra.

Is the term Śiva, as a noun, attested only in the itihāsa-s and purāṇa-s, and therefore, in exist... more Is the term Śiva, as a noun, attested only in the itihāsa-s and purāṇa-s, and therefore, in existence supposedly only after around 500 BCE? Was Śiva a minor, non-supreme, figure in the text corpus indigenous to the Indian subcontinent before Śvetāśvataropaniṣad? Does clear and reliable evidence for organized sectarian worship of Śiva exist only after the beginning of the common era? If you were to look for answers to these questions in the entry for "Shaivism" in the Oxford Bibliographies—which sports a tagline "Your best research starts here"—or Wikipedia, you will find either answers or sources to answers, in the near affirmative, to all questions above. This paper will foreground evidence that problematizes answers in the affirmative to the above-mentioned questions. It will do so, in part, by foregrounding evidence about Śiva from Aṣṭādaśavidyā texts that appear missing in at least those essays considered "up-to-date introductions on the historical development of the Shaiva sectarian traditions'' by Peter Bisschop, the author of the entry for "Shaivism" in the Oxford Bibliographies.

In this paper, first, the mainstream Sustainable Development literature is studied to identify ke... more In this paper, first, the mainstream Sustainable Development literature is studied to identify key historical attributions of the concept currently in vogue. In light of specific evidence from the critical edition of the Mahābhārata, an Indic case is posited for revisiting one of the key attributions in the mainstream Sustainable Development literature.

Is Mindfulness one thing or many? What constitutes Mindfulness? Are components of Mindfulness (or... more Is Mindfulness one thing or many? What constitutes Mindfulness? Are components of Mindfulness (or Mindfulness itself) traceable, in part or otherwise, to concepts in Dharma traditions, in addition to Dhamma traditions to which they are often linked back to in contemporary publications? Taking the case of Mindfulness as articulated in The Mind of the Leader, this paper brings together some of the latest global research on Mindfulness vis-à-vis the above questions in moving towards beginning to answer them.

Deriving from the emphasis on social harmony, peace and Jainism in the title of the seminar for w... more Deriving from the emphasis on social harmony, peace and Jainism in the title of the seminar for which this paper is being written, this paper will present findings from a comparative exercise to map concepts found in some recent global academic publications that concern themselves with sustainable societal peace and leadership through the application of virtues, with concepts found in jaina dharma.

The parinirvāṇa of Gautama Buddha is a milestone of singular consequence in Indic chronology, ser... more The parinirvāṇa of Gautama Buddha is a milestone of singular consequence in Indic chronology, serving as the landmark for dating most events which compose the timeline of our history. In this paper, the authors use astronomical methods to comprehensively compile, analyse, define constraints and determine the unique solution which meets the criteria considered for the most probable year for the death of Buddha. Subsequently, in light of recent archaeological evidence, not only do we demonstrate how key archaeology-related conclusions in Heinz Bechert edited 'When did the Buddha live?' are acutely less tenable in 2019, but also deduce and propose a terminus ante quem (546 B.C.) for Buddha's death. Thereafter, in the philology section, through a critical synoptic analysis we identify problematics that, in our assessment, vitiate the so-called corrected long chronology, short chronology and Bechert's proposal. We believe this paper addresses a crucial void in the post-1995 literature pertaining to Buddha's chronological epoch in being perhaps the first substantive critical assessment of some aspects of the Bechert volume, from an Indic lens, underpinned by a scientific approach.

'ABC of Indian chronology' is a framework we authors introduced in a paper written in 2016 dealin... more 'ABC of Indian chronology' is a framework we authors introduced in a paper written in 2016 dealing with some aspects of ancient Indian chronology. ABC here is an acronym: A - Aryan, B - Bhārata (i.e. Mahābhārata) and Buddha-Gautama, C - Candragupta. Our paper 'Sarasvatī in the Mahābhārata - A study', presented first in 2019, is one of the four original papers that are currently a part of the ABC framework. Adopting a multi-disciplinary approach, we present some of our findings in the context of new publications after 2019 to (re)emphasize, amongst other things, the urgent need for a holistic approach to the text of Mahābhārata when dealing with Sarasvatī river related evidence and the potential perils of cherry-picking only parts of the entire corpus of evidence to reach hasty conclusions of consequence to Indian chronology.

The mammoth significance of the Mahābhārata to Indic Chronology is readily seen in the copious sc... more The mammoth significance of the Mahābhārata to Indic Chronology is readily seen in the copious scholarship dedicated not only to examining its epoch but also in particular to dating of river Sarasvatī. While there are several works studying Sarasvatī in the earliest Sanskrit texts and drawing inferences and arguments from textual evidence to address critical issues plaguing early Indic chronology, a similar effort—to comprehensively document, from 89000+ verses of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (BORI) critical edition of the Mahābhārata and analyse it in its context to draw inferences that could be of relevance to early Indic chronology—forms the crux of this paper. The authors’ work consists of a database of 222 verses of Sarasvatī from the BORI critical edition of the Mahābhārata. This database enables study of the qualifiers associated with the river, including vitality, an especially crucial factor when considered with the geographical markers associated with it, thus providing a framework against which contemporary scientific research draws greater perspective. We particularly look at the verses that indicate vitality of the river in the light of scientific evidence from fields including geology, geomorphology, geohydrology to explore the possibility of a terminus ante quem for the textual material. The authors believe that their database, when combined with the parameter of geographical coordinates, fills an important place in textual analysis of the epic with regards to the timeline of the Sarasvatī itself, and by extension the chronology of the events of the Mahābhārata.

Whether posited as an invasion by or migration of Aryans, these variant forms—of an into-India hy... more Whether posited as an invasion by or migration of Aryans, these variant forms—of an into-India hypothesis (supposed movement into India around the second millennium BCE)—are underpinned by one constant: the consequence that the earliest forms of Vedic culture and Sanskrit are not indigenous to India. Written in 2017, this paper examines, in three dimensions, whether such a hypothesis, given its startling consequence to Indic history, can remain a preserve of only one domain (linguistics) before demonstrating not only an absence of proof for such a consequence, amongst other related questions, in key Indic texts through a study of the terms ārya and drāviḍa but also specific problematics in the development of this hypothesis in historical linguistics.

Swadeshi Indology Conference III (IIT Madras), 2017

There could be many ways to respond to the pronouncement that Sanskrit is supposedly dead. One wa... more There could be many ways to respond to the pronouncement that Sanskrit is supposedly dead. One way would be to assess the pronouncement empirically. Doing so could entail thinking about questions such as: 1) Has anything new and original been published in Sanskrit after it was pronounced dead? 2) If yes, is there a published bibliography of original Modern Sanskrit Literature and which one is the most comprehensive? 3) Are there any trends to observe in contemporary Sanskrit publications? 4) If yes, what has already been identified?

The first part of this lecture series will look to foreground answers to these questions (and more) from published sources to respond empirically to the pronouncement about Sanskrit’s supposed death. The second part will commence by invoking the role of Sanskrit as “the Great Integrator” (as seen by Dr V. Raghavan) before diving deeper into some facets of that idea using the prism of a recent Sanskrit music album: Bhārata and her Kāśmīra.

is the oldest attestation of the word Bhārata? Are there historical textual descriptions of Bhāra... more is the oldest attestation of the word Bhārata? Are there historical textual descriptions of Bhārata, which, when plotted on a map, encompass the entire mainland territory of today's India, and of which Kashmir was described to be a part? Deriving its genesis from these questions, the purpose of the Sanskrit album Bhārata and her Kāśmīra was to simply set to tune a) some of the oldest, if not the oldest, historical, primary-source based attestations of the term Bhārata (that is, India) and Kāśmīra (that is, Kashmir) and b) historical, primary-source based attestations that clearly establish that Kashmir was described to be a part of Bhārata. The texts that are the source for the lyrics of the six songs in this album are ऋग्वे द (ṛgveda), वष्णु पु राण (viṣṇu purāṇa), महाभारत (mahābhārata), पा ण न अष्टाध्यायी (pāṇini aṣṭādhyāyī), भरत मु न नाट्यशास्त्र (bharata muni nāṭyaśāstra) and कल्हण राजतरं गणी (kalhaṇa rājataraṃgiṇī). The Ministry of Culture Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) has recently issued a letter accepting to list (process ongoing) these songs in an app they maintain called Sangam. This research-based album, which owes its genesis also to the Oxford-published book The Making of Early Kashmir (2018) by the cultural and intellectual historian Dr. Shonaleeka Kaul, was recently featured in ISB's literary fest Odyssey (2021).

In this talk, Manogna and Megh share original published findings pertaining to the epoch of Buddh... more In this talk, Manogna and Megh share original published findings pertaining to the epoch of Buddha’s Parinirvāṇa, a part of their framework ABC of Indian Chronology. Amongst what perhaps differentiates this work is its multi disciplinarity and the void in post-1995 literature pertaining to the epoch of Buddha it addresses by being perhaps the first critical engagement with Heinz Bechert’s influential volume.

Presented on October 25 2020.

Presented on August 03 2020.

"However, some historians argue that the events and characters associated with the Mahabharata re... more "However, some historians argue that the events and characters associated with the Mahabharata reflect a slightly earlier period than those of the Ramayana." (Singh 2008:19)

The Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute critical edition (BORI) of Aṣṭādaśavidyā Itihāsa Mahābhārata contains at least 2 occurrences of Rāmāyaṇa.

(Singh 2008:19): "However, some historians argue that the events and characters associated with t... more (Singh 2008:19): "However, some historians argue that the events and characters associated with the Mahabharata reflect a slightly earlier period than those of the Ramayana." [Singh, Upinder (2008). A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India. New Delhi: Pearson]

The Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute critical edition of Aṣṭādaśavidyā Itihāsa Mahābhārata contains atleast 40 occurrences of Rāghava.

This two-pager lists some of the textual data from Itihāsa Mahābhārata critical edition, as evide... more This two-pager lists some of the textual data from Itihāsa Mahābhārata critical edition, as evidence, to posit that neither Kerala nor Āndhra was part of Draviḍa in the Mahābhārata.

Initial response to the paper 'An Ancient Harappan Genome Lacks Ancestry from Steppe Pastoralist... more Initial response to the paper 'An Ancient Harappan Genome Lacks Ancestry from Steppe Pastoralists or Iranian Farmers' from the point of view of the Aryan problem.

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