Interpreting India Indigenous and Foreign Perceptions

Origin of the name India  India as a land beyond Indus  Hindustan as a land beyond Sindhu  Myths and the reality of Indian self identity  Indian notion of sub- continental geography  Notion of al-Hind as part of Dar-ul-Islam

Imagining India  India in Ancient Greek Imagination  India in Arab/ Central Asian Imagination  India in the imagination of European Travelers in pre- colonial era  India In Chinese Imagination  India as an imagined land and Reality of Cultural Encounters

Colonial Construction of India  British Cartographic construction of India  Oriental Despotism  Village Self Republic  Natural Leaders  A mélange of mutually exclusive hostile communities held in bay by the British  A civilizing Mission to restore Ancient Glory

Nationalist Imagining of India  Ancient Civilization based on rural self sufficiency  Harmonious social organization based on Varnashram dharma (Caste system) through a Hindu vision of division of labor  India as an end product of centuries long cultural synthesis

Visions of New India  Communitarian, Stateless Rural social Organization based on the principle of non-violence  Secular democratic socialist India  Proud Hindu India with aggressive cultural identity backed by military might