Bibek Debroy (Set Of 5 Books): The Bhagavad Gita (Hardback) | Sarama And Her Children : The Dog In Indian Myth (Paperback) | Inked In India (Hardback) | Manmatha Nath Dutt (Hardback) | Grasping greatness (Hardback)

1. The Bhagavad Gita :-

The foundational text on dharma and Hindu philosophy, exquisitely rendered by one of our most eminent Sanskrit translators

As a spiritual guide, the Bhagavadgita is a mesmerizing account of the debate between right and wrong, and the bond between action and consequence. One of the core Hindu scriptures, it is part of the great Indian epic, the Mahabharata, and unfolds in the form of a dialogue between Krishna and the Pandava prince, Arjuna.

This beautifully produced bilingual edition is a masterful verse-for-verse translation, providing the original Sanskrit verses alongside the English rendition. Bibek Debroy’s deep familiarity with the text yields a treasure trove of insights that will delight the scholar and the lay reader alike, making this essential reading for anyone with an abiding interest in Indian scriptures.

2. Sarama And Her Children : The Dog In Indian Myth :-

The most recognized dog in Indian myth is the dog in the Mahabharata that accompanied the Pandavasnot actually a dog but Dharma in disguise. There are, however, several more references to dogs in the classical texts. Mentioned for the first time in the Rg Veda, the eponymous Sarama is the dog of the gods and the ancestor of all dogs. In Sarama and Her Children, the evolution of the Indian attitude towards dogs is traced through the vedas, epics, puranas, dharmashastras and niti shastras. The widespread assumption is that dogs have always been looked down upon in Hinduism and a legacy of that attitude persists even now. Tracing the Indian attitude towards dogs in a chronological fashion, beginning with the pre-Vedic Indus Valley civilization, Bibek Debroy discovers that the truth is more complicated. Dogs had a utilitarian role in pre-Vedic and Vedic times. There were herd dogs, watchdogs and hunting dogs, and dogs were used as beasts of burden. But by the time of the Mahabharata, negative associations had begun to creep in. Debroy argues convincingly that the change in the status of the dog in India has to do with the progressive decline of the traditional Vedic gods Indra, Yama and Rudra (who were associated with dogs), and the accompanying elevation of Vishnu, associated with an increase in brahmana influence. Debroy demonstrates that outside the mainstream caste Hindu influence, as reflected in doctrines associated with Shiva and in Buddhist jataka tales, dogs did not become outcasts or outcastes. Drawing references from high and low literature, folk tales and temple art, Sarama and Her Children dispels some myths and ensures that the Indian dog also has its day.

3. Inked In India :-

‘The exchange of the reed pen for the fountain pen is part of India’s economic transition and is reflected in the attitudes of these two great leaders, Gandhi and Ambedkar.’

In the early 1900s, a Bengali doctor created the first Indian fountain pen in Varanasi. Despite this early start, foreign-made pens dominate the Indian market, with no notable Indian brand available to customers.

Inked in India traces this journey of make and unmake, from a pre-Independence India with a strong manufacturing base for pens, nibs and ink, to the post-Independence economic policies which eroded that competitive advantage and led to economic churn and the exit of foreign firms from the country. Going beyond the nostalgia and lost sheen of fountain pens, it tackles economic transition and the impact of policy on local enterprise.

Just as there has been exit, post-liberalization, there has been entry too, in what is often perceived to be a sunset sector. The book takes stock of what it will take to transform the unmake in India to make in India, so that Indian fountain pens have a global presence. The first-ever documentation of all known fountain pen, nib and ink manufacturers, Inked in India will be of great interest to fountain pen aficionados and economic enthusiasts alike.

4. Manmatha Nath Dutt :-

Who is Manmatha Nath Dutt?

This question starts haunting Bibek Debroy when he finds that name imprinted on the translations of almost all ancient texts that he too wants to translate from Sanskrit text into English. While multiple translations are not uncommon, what were the chances of two translators invariably choosing the same set of texts? It was almost like Manmatha Nath Dutt had left a trail for Bibek Debroy to follow.

And that sets off Debroy on the road to discovering more about the translator extraordinaire who had largely remained ignored so far. Gathering material and sifting through clues, following various leads and discarding some, Debroy pieces together a jigsaw puzzle to reveal a picture of the prolific translator Manmatha Nath Dutt and of nineteenth-century Calcutta.

5. Grasping greatness :-

Since its independence in 1947, India’s leaders have sought to grasp the greatness that the country seemed destined for. India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, articulated these aspirations early on but, overwhelmed by development challenges, his successors focused largely on domestic concerns rather than on global leadership. The post-1991 era saw India positioned for the first time in many decades as an economic success, suggesting that it was on the cusp of breaking out as a global player.

The twenty-odd years following the 1991 reforms were heady for India. Based on the expectation that India was now poised to ascend as a major power, Prime Minister Narendra Modi-less than a year after he first took office in May 2014-expressed his desire that India assume a leading role: completing the transformation from being merely an influential entity into one whose weight and preferences are defining for international politics.

Grasping Greatness explores the various tasks pertaining to this push for eminence in world affairs. It elaborates the economic, state-building, and international dimensions of this ambition. Eminent thinkers like Rakesh Mohan, Ila Patnaik, Surjit Bhalla, Arjun Subramanian, and others reflect upon the tasks at hand and the desirable routes to achieve them.

Edited by Ashley J. Tellis, Bibek Debroy and C. Raja Mohan, Grasping Greatness is an important contribution to the intellectual debates as India enters into a new era on the world stage.