A history of India upto 1300 AD introducing the beginnings of India's cultural dynamics

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgements Preface 1. The Antecedents The discovery of India; changing approaches to Indian history; the archaeological background 2. The Impact of Aryan Culture Sources of evidence; The political organizations of the Aryan tribes; caste and other social institutions; Vedic relgion 3. Republics and Kingdoms c. 600-321 B.C. Evolving political patterns; the rise of the kingdom of Magadha; the rule of the Nandas; North-western India and contacts with Persia; the growth of towns; the rise of heterodox sects; Jainism and Buddhism 4. The Emergence of Empire 321-185 B.C. The Mauryan kings; Mauryan contacts with neighbouring states; society and economic activity; Mauryan administration; Ashoka and his policy of Dhamma; the decline of the Mauryan empire 5. The Disintegration of Empire c. 200 B.C.-A.D. 300 The political fragmentation of the sub-continent: the Shunga dynasty, King Kharavela of Kalinga, The Indo-Greek kings, The Shakas, The Kushanas, The Satavhana dynasty, South Indian Kingdoms; trade routes and communications 6. The Rise of the Mercantile Community c. 200 B.C.-A.D.300 Guilds; Roman trade with south India; interation of Indian and Hellenic ideas in northern India; India's contacts with China and south-east Asia; changes in society; education and literature; Buddhist art and architecture; Mahayana Buddhism; developments in Hinduism; the coming of Christianity 7. The Evolution of the "Classical" Pattern c. A.D. 300-700 The rule of the Guptas; Hun invasions; some post-Gupta dynasties; the reign of Harsha; changing agrarian relations; trade; the pattern of living; education and learning; Hindu art and architecture; development in Buddhism; changes in Hinduism; philosophical schools; Indian contacts with China and south-east Asia 8. Conflict in the Southern Kingdoms c. A.D. 500-900 The Chalukya, Pallava, and Pandya conflicts; political organization and administration; the Agrarian system; the status of the brahman; the philosophy of Shankara; the growth of Tamil literature; the Tamil devotional cult; mural painting in the Deccan; temple architecture 9. The South in the Ascendant c. A.D. 900-1300 The rise of the Cholas; Chola administration; the village in the Chola economy; trade; the role of the temple in Chola society; the development of the languages of the peninsula; popular cults and sects; the philosophy of Ramanuja and Madhva; architecture and sculpture 10. The Beginnings of Regional States in Northern India c. A.D. 700-1200 Political struggle between the Rashtrakutas, Pratiharas, and Palas; the arrival of the Arabs in Sind; rise of new kingdoms; growth of Raiput power; campaigns of Mahmud of Ghazni; the Afghan army; Muhammad Ghuri 11. Feudalism in the Regional States c. A.D. 800-1200 Beginnings of regional loyalty; emerging pattern of agrarian relations; social structure; literature in Sanskrit and in the newly developing languages; temples and sculpture; changes in Hinduism, the devotional cult, and the Tantric sects; decline of Buddhism; the arrival of the Sufis 12. The Re-alignment of Regional Kingdoms c. A.D. 1200-1526 Source material on the Delhi Sultanate; the Slave dynasty and the Khalji dynasty; political organization; the Tughluq dynasty; relations between the rulers and the ruled; the Sayyid and Lodi dynasties; the kingdoms of Gujarat, Mewar, Marwar, and Bengal 13. Assimilation on Trial c. A.D. 1200-1526 Trends in the impact of Islam on India; balance of power between king and theologian; administrative structure of the Sultanate; the economy; the social framework; religious expression as seen in the Bhakti movement and the Sufis; new languages and literatures; miniature painting; Islamic architecture 14. The South Conforms c. A.D. 1300-1526>/b> The rise of the Vijayanagara and Bahmani kingdoms in the Deccan; changes in the socio-economic background; trade; religion Chronological table Glossary References to quotations General bibliography Bibliographical note on sources Index