Review: History of Ancient India
Summary
This text contains two separate book reviews. The first reviews "History of Ancient India" by Rama Shankar Tripathi, published by Nand Kishore & Brothers in Benares in 1942. The subject of this book is a compendious account of the political and institutional history of ancient India, designed to update the late Dr. V. A. Smith's "Early History of India," whose latest edition appeared in 1924. The main argument of the review is that Dr. Tripathi, known for his critical mind and sound judgment from his work "History of Kanauj to the Moslem Conquest," has successfully prepared a carefully crafted, interesting, and useful volume. The reviewer, D. C. Sircar, notes that the author followed more comprehensive works like the "Cambridge History of India, vol. 1," and maintained an eye on the cultural life of the periods discussed. The evidence cited includes the 1949 discovery of records from the Vakataka dynasty ruling from Basim (ancient Vatsagulma), and the recent proof that the Andhra country was under the Visnukundins during Pulakesin II, not the Pallava king of Kanci. The reviewer points out minor defects, such as the history of Andhra and Odra being placed in the wrong section, and some passages about the Brhatphalayanas, Visnukundins, and Kadambas not being quite satisfactory due to reliance on outdated sources. Despite these flaws, the reviewer concludes that the defects are few and the work is valuable. The second review discusses "Buddha Porva Ka Bharatiya Itihasa (Part I)" by Rao Raja Dr. Shyam Bihari Misra and Rai Bahadur Pandit Sukadeva Bihari Misra, published by the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan, Prayag, in its third edition, Samvat 1996. The subject is the history of India prior to the rise of Buddhism, written under the joint pen name "Misra Bandhu." The main argument is that this is a pioneer attempt in Hindi to cover an obscure period beset with chronological uncertainties. The authors systematically tapped the Puranas, utilizing other sources and carefully analyzing the data to provide a connected account of pre-Buddhist India. The review notes that their conclusions, particularly regarding dynastic lists and synchronisms, often differ from predecessors and have broken new ground. The text highlights the importance of Paurinic evidence, referencing the labors of European Orientalists like Wilson and Pargiter, and Indian scholars such as Dr. Ray Chaudhuri and Dr. Pradhan, while acknowledging that much work remains to be done on these ancient sources.
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Conclusion
Dr. Rama Shankar Tripathi’s *History of Ancient India* offers a compendious and updated account of ancient India’s political and institutional history, successfully addressing the need to modernize V.A. Smith’s earlier work. While the book is well-researched and highly valuable for students and scholars, it faces the inherent challenge of keeping pace with the vast, rapidly expanding global literature on the subject. The reviewer notes minor geographical misplacements, such as the history of Kaliniga and Odra, and some reliance on outdated sources for certain dynasties. Nevertheless, these flaws are minor given the sheer scale of the endeavor. The work is praised for its comprehensive planning, alignment with broader historical frameworks like the *Cambridge History*, and its consistent focus on the cultural life of the era, ultimately making it an indispensable and welcome resource in the field.