Popularity: 11% [?]

The Rashtrakutas left behind a creative legacy that celebrated rich and varied rock-cut cave art. Theirs was a reign which encouraged the structural and visual flowering of artistic achievement.

The post–Gupta epoch is marked by the rise of different regional powers among whom the Rashtrakutas in the Deccan, the Pratiharas in the North and the Palas in the East were dominant. The Rashtrakutas had humble origin; they claimed descent from Yadu, one of the sons of Yayati, and the founder of the eponymous clan of the Yadavas. According to some scholars their origins lie in the Rathikas, mentioned in Ashokan inscriptions, who were officers of the Empire. However, the first known historical personage of the Rashtrakuta family was Mananka who hailed from Manapura (present Mana, Dt. Satara, Maharashtra). Their early history is obscure, and it is only from Dantidurga (752 – 97A.D.) that we trace the beginning of their history till their end around 1000 A.D. Dantidurga’s name occurs in an inscription on the nandimandapa of Cave 15 (Dashavatara) at Ellora. He defeated Kirtivarman II, the Chalukyan king and became a sovereign ruler.

Popularity: 13% [?]

“People like to talk of me as the king or prince of Sarod, but actually I’m the slave of the Sarod,” maestro Amjad Ali Khan is reported to have commented. “I am devoted to it and I always want to try and find out what it wants to say.” Here he reflects on his beloved instrument and its rich tradition, tracing, in the process, the story of his own illustrious family and its contribution.

‘Sarod’ is a Persian word; in fact, the actual pronunciation is ‘Sarood’, which means music or melody. This instrument was modified (or invented) in India and its evolution goes back more than three to four hundred years.

Popularity: 13% [?]

She was a cult figure and a role model for generations of Indian women who saw her as a person of substance, defying stereotyped notions of womanhood. In the process she gained the admiration of British historians and contemporary British army officers who wrote about her exemplary courage and magnanimity. History has accorded her a special place in the annals of the struggle for Independence

During the first war of Independence in 1857, Rani Laxmibai challenged the domination of the East India Company. In response the Company brought in Major General Sir Hugh Rose to India to face her army. He had proved his superior capability as an army general, in the Syrian and Crimean wars and was known to be a responsible politician and a shrewd diplomat. Landing in the port of Bombay in March 1858 he went straight to Jhansi and camped his massive army outside the city walls.

Popularity: 5% [?]

Beyond caste and creed, beyond the barriers of time and difference, a pilgrimage to Sabrimala to honour the divine Lord Ayyappan celebrates the purity of discipline and devotion.
Every January streams of pilgrims wend their way to Sabrimala atop a tall peak of the Sahyaadris. They brave low-lying fog and the winter chill, crossing rough terrain, covering the final few miles on bare foot. Arriving before dawn they approach the great shrine of Lord Ayyappan, chanting ‘Swamiyee Saranamayyappa’, and climb the final hallowed eighteen steps carrying their Irumudikettu (sacred bundles) on their heads. Tucked inside these bundles they bring the most sacred offering – coconuts filled with ghee.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Metals and alloys played a significant role in civilization of man. Invention of iron implements led to the emergence of second urbanization world wide. The fabrication and use of iron products began in the Indian subcontinent around the second millennium B.C. It is further established that the origin of iron technology was a product of indigenous development and simultaneous beginning of Iron Age has occurred at more than one centre in the Indian subcontinent. It appears that the direct reduction method of iron extraction continued for a long time in Indian history showing that the ancient Indian metallurgists had mastered this method of iron extraction. The forging of wrought iron seems to have reached its zenith in India in the first millennium A.D. The earliest example of iron forging is the iron pillar at Delhi. Although this pillar has been the focus of several studies, there are other metallurgical monuments of India which are less investigated by scholars and not too many people are aware of the beauty of these objects. We hope to highlight some of these here.

Popularity: 4% [?]

The culture of Mewar evolved its own mode of entertainment and amusement patronized through centuries by the Maharanas. These are well recorded in historic texts and miniature paintings of Mewar.

In the medieval period, hunting was a favourite form of entertainment of the rulers and feudal princes of Rajasthan. Members of the royal family were trained in martial arts and in the use of guns, swords and other weapons since childhood. Horse riding and hunting were also an important part of this training. Every year the hunting expeditions used to begin with a royal festival known as ‘Muhurta ki Shikar’ in the month of ‘Margshirsh’ (November – December), and the first hunt used to be on an auspicious date. On this occasion nobles and courtiers of the kingdom were invited for a banquet in the Palace at the Baadi Mahal by the Maharana.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Cover photo of book 'Wari- Pilgrimage of Joy'. “Wari – Pilgrimage of Joy” by Sandesh Bhandare from Pune is a pictorial representation of the annual Pandarpur Yatra from Alandi to Lord Vithal Temple in Pandarpur. The book is released in English and French by Heritage India Communications Pvt Ltd.

Popularity: 84% [?]

Grace, power and stealth combine to create the tiger – India’s national animal. Feared, respected and worshipped, this masterpiece of Nature has now been reduced to pitiful numbers as rampant poaching and loss of natural habitat has played havoc. Our survival depends on the survival of the tiger.

While travelling through tiger country with the intention of spotting a wild tiger, you will often hear locals claim that you will only see the tiger if he wants to be seen; evidence of the awe that this creature inspires.
How has this reputation come about?

Even though it is the largest of Asian felids, the tiger can move through the jungle without making a sound. His unpredictable and secretive nature endows him with the ability and habit of appearing out of nowhere and vanishing into thin air, eluding watchful eyes. They call him ‘ghost of the jungle’ and fear his almost supernatural ways. Nevertheless, everyone knows he is made up of real flesh, muscle and blood, combining grace, beauty and strength – attributes that have made him ‘nature’s masterpiece’.

The basic colour of his fur is reddish orange to ochre, fading as it moves down from the back and flank. Throat, belly, inner limbs are white. The solid black stripes take shape as bands on the tail. Interestingly, the stripe pattern is unique to each tiger. Scientists use this as a way of identifying each tiger.

A male can reach up to 3-3.5 meters in length (snout to tail tip) and weigh up to 260 kg. He stands taller at the shoulders than the rear (about a meter high at shoulders). Heavily muscled and supremely powerful, the creature can subdue and kill large prey because of a combination of stealth, agility and strength.

Despite the mass of bone and muscle, the tiger cannot run fast for long distances, but can cover 8-9 metres in a single leap. Equally comfortable on land and in water, the adult of the species rarely climbs trees. However, light-bodied and more motivated tigers are known to climb trees. A man-eating tiger outside a national park climbed almost 25 feet and pulled down a man in full view of about forty people who later gathered courage and retrieved the corpse. The tiger, upset about losing his kill, followed the mob to their small village and kept growling and circling the small house where the body was kept for the whole night. This also shows how bold the creature can get although they are known to be extremely secretive.

Popularity: 10% [?]

From its birth as a dance form of celibates in cloistered Sattras to its recognition as a classical form, the Sattriya of Assam has evolved dramatically with the support of teachers, performers and those who believe in its true worth.

In the 15th Century the strife-ridden region of Assam was gathered into the folds of peace by the neo-Vaishnivite movement led by Sankardev. He preached a faith which promoted the allegiance to one God, characterized by the absence of rituals which were practiced by the Brahmins and Saktas. Using the principle of equality, he succeeded in removing caste barriers. There is no idol worship in the Sattras or monasteries which were established by him, instead a manuscript of Bhagavat is placed on a wooden simhasana, a platform at the Namaghar, the congregation Hall where prayers are held and also meetings to resolve various issues of the community. A seat of justice during the day, it becomes a theatre on religious and festive occasions, when plays are staged.

Sankardev had travelled throughout India for more than twelve years and had seen the performing arts at many places. A poet and a dramatist, well versed in the arts of music, dance, theatre, he wrote several plays. And with a theatre form Ankiya Nat (one act play) with origins in Sanskrit theatre, along with Bargeet, hymns, using mythological stories he impressed upon people the victory of good over evil. Painting, music, dance, dialogue, costumes, abhinaya, expressions through face and body, hand gestures, hasta mudras, employing Brajbuli, a language combining elements of Braj, Assamese, Hindi and Mythili languages, he made his plays accessible to the people. He was also a social reformist.

The Sattra covered a vast land. On each side there is one continuous line of thatched roof rooms. They enclose from four sides the congregational temple in the middle. Each person has a room allotted in the colony and on the periphery, a cattle shed and an acre of land to grow vegetables. The Sattradhikar has four assistants called Mukhtyars and they have their rooms in the centre of each row of apartments, marked by a portico in the front, occupying four sides of the colony. Members of the Sattra are called Udaseen Bhagats and at one time they could not marry and women were not allowed inside the Sattra.

Parents would offer a child in dedication to the elderly person. The child would then be initiated into the order. The acolytes would get regular training in dance under the Nritya Mukhtyar and in music under the Gayan Mukhtyar. The female roles would be played by young acolytes. For example they play the roles of the Gopis dancing the Jhumura in which their frenzied search of Lord Krishna (when he disappears from the scene during the Rasalila) is depicted.

Popularity: 9% [?]