Studies in History, Volume 38, Issue 2, Page 182-185, August 2022.
Radhika Singha, The Coolie’s Great War: Indian Labour in a Global Conflict, 1914–1921, Harper Collins, New Delhi, 2020, 396pp., ₹699
Category Archives: Studies in History
Book review: Kanad Sinha, From Dasrajna to Kuruksetra: Making of a Historical Tradition
Studies in History, Volume 38, Issue 2, Page 180-182, August 2022.
Kanad Sinha, From Dasrajna to Kuruksetra: Making of a Historical Tradition, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, 2021, pp. 548, ₹1795. ISBN: 9780190130695
Kanad Sinha, From Dasrajna to Kuruksetra: Making of a Historical Tradition, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, 2021, pp. 548, ₹1795. ISBN: 9780190130695
Transforming the Female Body: Gender Dialectics in Early Buddhism
Studies in History, Volume 38, Issue 2, Page 111-132, August 2022.
Scholars have long debated the woman question in Buddhism, in terms of the social spaces and gendered attitudes revealed by texts and traditions. In the opinion of some, Buddhism in its essence does not discriminate between male and female forms. It is the cultural baggage of the practitioners that has led to discriminatory behaviour based on the body. But others have questioned this understanding as being too simplistic and essentializing. The discourse around gender has multiple layers and contexts corresponding to developments (both philosophical and sectarian) within Buddhism. This article attempts to look at the evolution of this discourse from Early Buddhism to the early stages of Mahāyāna Buddhism and, subsequently, within Mahāyāna Buddhism. To do so, this article utilizes Mahāratnakūṭa Sūtras, and Prajñāpāramitā Sūtras, juxtaposing them to analyse the evolution of the gender discourse in the philosophical world as well as in the narrative world. This study reveals that while Mahāyāna Buddhism philosophically stands upon the concept of Śūnyatā, that is, emptiness, which extends to include the illusory nature of the human body, the narrative literature carries reservations about the female body. Mahāratnakūṭa Sūtra employs a narrative device of ‘sex transformation’ as part of the show of the enlightened state of the female practitioner. Despite the claims made by all these practitioners about the emptiness of the body, all these stories end with female practitioners acquiring a male body and immediately receiving their Buddhahood. This study reveals a more complex picture of conversations and interactions between Early Buddhism and Mahāyāna Buddhism.
Scholars have long debated the woman question in Buddhism, in terms of the social spaces and gendered attitudes revealed by texts and traditions. In the opinion of some, Buddhism in its essence does not discriminate between male and female forms. It is the cultural baggage of the practitioners that has led to discriminatory behaviour based on the body. But others have questioned this understanding as being too simplistic and essentializing. The discourse around gender has multiple layers and contexts corresponding to developments (both philosophical and sectarian) within Buddhism. This article attempts to look at the evolution of this discourse from Early Buddhism to the early stages of Mahāyāna Buddhism and, subsequently, within Mahāyāna Buddhism. To do so, this article utilizes Mahāratnakūṭa Sūtras, and Prajñāpāramitā Sūtras, juxtaposing them to analyse the evolution of the gender discourse in the philosophical world as well as in the narrative world. This study reveals that while Mahāyāna Buddhism philosophically stands upon the concept of Śūnyatā, that is, emptiness, which extends to include the illusory nature of the human body, the narrative literature carries reservations about the female body. Mahāratnakūṭa Sūtra employs a narrative device of ‘sex transformation’ as part of the show of the enlightened state of the female practitioner. Despite the claims made by all these practitioners about the emptiness of the body, all these stories end with female practitioners acquiring a male body and immediately receiving their Buddhahood. This study reveals a more complex picture of conversations and interactions between Early Buddhism and Mahāyāna Buddhism.
Corrigendum
Studies in History, Volume 38, Issue 2, Page NP1-NP1, August 2022.
Corrigendum
Studies in History, Volume 38, Issue 2, Page 192-192, August 2022.
Remembering a Date in the History of the Indian Subcontinent
Studies in History, Volume 38, Issue 2, Page 162-179, August 2022.
In light of the seventy-fifth year of India’s independence from colonial rule and the Indian government’s announcement that 14 August will be commemorated as ‘Partition Horrors Remembrance Day’, this article connects the histories of the three nations in the Indian subcontinent: India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Using inputs from archives and oral testimonies, this article will revisit the important date of 15 August 1947, to preserve the multiple meanings of the day as portrayed in official and public memories.
In light of the seventy-fifth year of India’s independence from colonial rule and the Indian government’s announcement that 14 August will be commemorated as ‘Partition Horrors Remembrance Day’, this article connects the histories of the three nations in the Indian subcontinent: India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Using inputs from archives and oral testimonies, this article will revisit the important date of 15 August 1947, to preserve the multiple meanings of the day as portrayed in official and public memories.
Muslim Minority Against Islamic Nation: The Shias of British India and the Demand for Pakistan, 1940–45
Studies in History, Volume 38, Issue 2, Page 133-161, August 2022.
This article analyses the relationship between British colonialism and Islamic sectarianism, and its consequent impact on the Shias, the largest Muslim minority in British India. In the critical decade leading up to independence and partition in 1947, politics in British India were dominated by the Muslim League’s demand for Pakistan. However, leading Shia organizations were opposed to the League’s idea of an Islamic nation and supported India’s independence without partition. Instead, they demanded that the British recognize the Shia as a Muslim minority, and thereby confer statutory protections from Sunni domination. The British government arbitrarily and unjustly ignored Shia entreaties for constitutional protections. Imperial realpolitik required the colonial state to acknowledge the Muslim League as the sole political representative of all Muslims, thus, rendering Pakistan a fait accompli. The intersection of the colonial government’s political calculations with the League’s political ambitions compelled both to discard the Shias. This study of the complex issue of minorities and their uncertain position in the nation promised for all Muslims has relevance for current debates on the nation and nationalism, on minorities and their rights, on sectarianism and majoritarianism, and on the politics of identity.
This article analyses the relationship between British colonialism and Islamic sectarianism, and its consequent impact on the Shias, the largest Muslim minority in British India. In the critical decade leading up to independence and partition in 1947, politics in British India were dominated by the Muslim League’s demand for Pakistan. However, leading Shia organizations were opposed to the League’s idea of an Islamic nation and supported India’s independence without partition. Instead, they demanded that the British recognize the Shia as a Muslim minority, and thereby confer statutory protections from Sunni domination. The British government arbitrarily and unjustly ignored Shia entreaties for constitutional protections. Imperial realpolitik required the colonial state to acknowledge the Muslim League as the sole political representative of all Muslims, thus, rendering Pakistan a fait accompli. The intersection of the colonial government’s political calculations with the League’s political ambitions compelled both to discard the Shias. This study of the complex issue of minorities and their uncertain position in the nation promised for all Muslims has relevance for current debates on the nation and nationalism, on minorities and their rights, on sectarianism and majoritarianism, and on the politics of identity.