Modern India Research Articles

Vaidya Bhagwan Dash – a renowned clinician, researcher, and litterateur of Ayurveda

Abstract Vaidya Bhagwan Dash was a highly respected Ayurvedic physician and a distinguished luminary in Ayurveda who dedicated his life to preserving and promoting Ayurvedic knowledge. He has been a man of great acumen and erudition, with the capacity of felicitous literary expression of Ayurveda. These qualities place him in the pantheon of modern India as one of the greatest pioneers of Ayurveda. Vaidya Bhagwan Dash acquired proficient knowledge in Ayurveda, and his work has been recognized and awarded globally. His achievements serve as an inspiration to those who wish to contribute to the field of Ayurveda. He was a proponent of Ayurveda and recognized its growing importance in the international community. He believed that Ayurveda’s popularity stems from its accessibility, affordability, and potential to heal without toxic side effects. His books and writings provide insights into Ayurveda’s therapeutic potential and fundamental principles. He was a visionary who emphasized the need to understand traditional systems of medicine before exploring new drugs and played a pivotal role in encouraging people to adopt herbal remedies instead of modern medicine. His dedication to the field, extensive knowledge, and tireless efforts to promote Ayurveda globally have made him a highly revered and renowned figure. His contributions to Ayurveda through his translations, research, education, and establishment of research institutions have helped to promote the integration of Ayurveda into mainstream healthcare systems.

Heterodoxies of the Body: Death, Secularism, and the Corpse of Raja Rammohun Roy

Abstract In 1833, Rammohun Roy, the so-called “Father of Modern India,” died abruptly while traveling in England. Because cremation was then illegal in Britain, he was buried rather than immolated according to brahminical norms. This article situates the micro-history of his colonial corpse within the genealogy of secularism. I take secularism as a formation of the body in the most morbidly literal of ways—fused to embodied formations of race, caste, class, and gender and entangled with the transcolonial networks of nineteenth-century heterodoxy. Roy’s ritually indeterminate flesh was a site for cultural improvisation around a Victorian-colonial secularity formed in and through the body.

Writing History and Jain Literary Production in Early Modern South Asia

This article focuses on the social existence of the Jain community, as exhibited in literary production in early modern India. The existing historiography sometimes tends to make Jain epistemology subservient to contemporary political culture. One must be cautious in approaching the tension between identitarian stability and identitarian volatility and between social textures and cultural mobility beyond the binarities of literary cultures and mundane survival with reference to our existing knowledge of Jainology. The volatile world of religiosity in early modern India tended to shape circumstances that both enforced and drew upon polemical meanings arising out of hybrid identities and cultural intermediacy. Therein lie diverse and multiple possibilities of literary discourse on the multiple religious identities at the core of the histories of Jainism in early modern South Asia.

RIGHT TO PRIVACY IN INDIA: CONSTITUTIONAL BASIS AND IMPLICATIONS ON MODERN ISSUES

The right to privacy stands as a fundamental pillar of individual autonomy within the constitutional framework of India. This paper undertakes a comprehensive exploration of the multifaceted landscape surrounding the right to privacy in India, delving into its historical roots, constitutional foundations, contemporary challenges, and future outlook. Commencing with an examination of pre-independence cultural and legal landscapes, the study unfolds the constitutional basis of the right, predominantly enshrined in Article 21, exploring its evolution through landmark judicial pronouncements such as K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India (2017). The paper critically analyzes the limitations placed on the right, considering the delicate balance between individual privacy and societal interests. The research delves into the international dimension, conducting a comparative analysis with global standards and exploring the influence of international treaties and conventions on India's legal framework. Critiques of the right to privacy jurisprudence are discussed, alongside challenges in implementation and the nuanced task of balancing privacy with national security imperatives. The research concludes by underscoring the continued significance of the right to privacy in modern India and issuing a call to action for policymakers and stakeholders to fortify and adapt the legal framework in anticipation of emerging challenges.

Thinking with two heads: The poetics of asat in early-modern India

In early modern India, and particularly South India—from roughly the sixteenth century until the eighteenth—a new literary vogue emerged in all major literary traditions (Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Sanskrit, Persian). With remarkable salience, we find verses built around absurdity of various kinds and modes. Sometimes it is a matter of pushing the existing literary conventions and figures to an impossible extreme. In other cases, we find a fascination with asymmetry, disjunction, skewed causality, and irrealis or counter-factual linguistic forms. Although such experiments with absurdity have precedents in classical kāvya, the evident consistency and intertextual relations among outlandish poems in this period are very striking, as is the fact that the theoreticians of poetics found it necessary to posit a grammar for them (including for poems based on asat, that is, non-existence or sheer impossibility). This essay explores the forms and logical underpinnings that this fashion for the bizarre assumed; we also offer a tentative explanation for the new trend. The prabandha-based poems of absurdity need to be distinguished from the coded texts known in Kannada as beḍagina vacana and in early Hindi as ulaṭbaṃsi, in which an upside-down or inside-out world is created, the goal being to arrest intellection altogether. We also show the distinction between the poetry of the absurd in the early modern texts and the European Dada movement, which aims at unravelling language and enshrines a principle of pure randomality in the choice of words.

:Environmental History of Modern India: Land, Population, Technology and Development

:<i>Environmental History of Modern India: Land, Population, Technology and Development</i>

The Sepoy Mutiny (1857): A Landmark Event in the Modern Indian History

The Sepoy Mutiny (1857): A Landmark Event in the Modern Indian History

The Silenced “Other” Talks Back from Jungle: A Study of Hunting Ritual by Indigenous Women in Mahasweta Devi’s “The Hunt”

The idea of “nature” as something pure, pristine, untouched by humans, a pastoral piece of land, creates an exclusivist version of nature preservation. Likewise, performance is also thought to be exclusive, executed only on stage, removed from ordinary life, but in reality, the human body is continuously in a state of performance; we are continuously acting according to or “performing” our cultural beliefs, functions, gender roles, politics, etc. This paper intends to present a postcolonial ecocritical study of the short story “The Hunt” (1995) written by Mahasweta Devi, by focusing on the Indigenous ritual of hunting or performance of hunting named Jani Parab and its importance in the scenario of postcolonial environmentalism. At the “Jani Parab” festival, the tribal protagonist of this story hunts (or performs the hunting ritual) the capitalist broker who had been deforesting their land. This hunting alters several metanarratives regarding colonizer/colonized, hunter/prey, civilized/uncivilized, male/female. The story’s protagonist, an illegitimate, tribal woman, becomes “other” in every possible way. By hunting, she moves from being the “other” and becomes the hybrid subject. She becomes oppressor and oppressed, hunter and prey, nature and culture at the same time. She is the voice talking back from the jungle. This paper will focus on cultural and environmental issues, ecological and sociological aspects of tribal communities in modern India, and how they are structurally dehumanized altogether by the Caste system, capitalism, government corruption and colonial legacy. It brings together colonial inheritance, environmental issues, caste issues and capitalism – all the concerns of postcolonial ecocriticism very clearly.

Evolution of Federalism in Modern India

Evolution of Federalism in Modern India

Book review: Deepak Kumar, Science and Society in Modern India

Deepak Kumar, Science and Society in Modern India (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press), 2023, 220 pp. (Pb.).

Exploring the Intersection of Crime and Society in Deepti Kapoor’s Age of Vice

This paper analyzes Deepti Kapoor’s Age of Vice, which depicts the discourse of darker side of modern Indian society, where crime, corruption, and inequality are prevalent. It follows three characters: Sunny, a rich criminal; Neda, a journalist; and Ajay, a loyal henchman. The narrative reflects on the complex social and cultural issues facing India today, such as corruption, casteism, gender inequality, and political unrest. It also challenges the stereotypes of crime fiction by mixing literary and genre elements. The narrative uses trauma as a methodology to explore the psychological and emotional effects of crime and violence on the characters and their relationships. It shows how trauma can be both a strength and a weakness, and how it can influence the way people see themselves and others. The narrative finds that crime and society are deeply connected in contemporary India and influence and contradict each other in complex ways. It further identifies how crime is not just a personal choice or morality, but also a result of systemic injustices and inequalities. The narrative presents a persuasive and insightful examination of the correlation between crime and society in modern India. It urges readers to reconsider their opinions on crime, justice, and ethics, and to grapple with the intricate realities of Indian society.

Overview Policies, Problems and Prospects of Higher Education in India

Indian education system traditionally served a particular segment of the society belonging to selected groups and elites. Colonial rule under the British Government developed concept of a modern state, modern economy and modern education system. After Independence, Jawaharlal Nehru visualized India as a secular democratic state. School curriculum was based on twin themes of inclusiveness and national pride, ensuring that India’s different communities could live together peacefully as one nation. Higher education through institutions like IITs and IIMs formed a major contribution to the Nehruvian vision of a selfreliant and modern India. Drawing on Nehru’s vision and articulating most of his themes, the Kothari Commission was set up in 1964 to formulate a coherent education policy for India. Kothari Commission felt education is meant to improve productivities, promote national and social harmony, consolidate democracy, modernize the country and develop social, moral and spiritual values. Attainment of this objective is possible only through the education policy which would provide free and compulsory education to all children up to the age of 14. According to Kothari Commission, Education policy must feature development of languages, equality of educational opportunities to all social groups and development and prioritization of scientific education and research. The Commission also lay emphasis on the removal of illiteracy and provision of adult education. The theme of the present paper is Policies, Problems and Prospects of Higher Education in India. The main objective of the present paper is to be analyze the policies, problems and prospects of Higher Education in India.

Cultural Background in Meena Alexander’s Nampally Road

In the present age, the world seems to be given very little place to women in terms of freedom and security. The second most populous India is the seventh biggest homey in the world which has matured frequent socio-political dilemma of its individual. Meena Alexander’s Nampally Road focuses on feminism and topics as disparate as political terrorism and cultural preservation. It is a multi-locational work of fiction that explores the identity of the protagonist. Mira while also discussing the challenges she faces as an immigrant. Although the story of this novel takes place in India; Indian culture is seen through the lens of western culture. Mira bid to transfer her observation from western literature to the legislative space. Her ideas represent a fusion of Indian and American culture. But this peace and tranquility of modern India is quickly overshadowed by the reputation of new urbanity and depraved governments. The destination of this commodity is to evaluate the issues related to the clash between women and culture.

Role of Ayurveda medicines in the management of Alcoholic Liver Disease

Due to faulty food habits and altered lifestyles, non communicable disorders are commonly occurring in modern India. Alcoholic liver disease is caused due to intake of excessive alcohol for prolonged period. The alcohol taken undergoes metabolic changes and acetaldehyde is formed which damages the liver. Initially liver cells get studded with fat droplets and leads to inflammation of the liver called Alcoholic hepatitis. If further alcohol is taken in excessive amounts, it leads to Alcoholic cirrhosis. In this condition some of the hepatocytes undergo necrosis followed by abnormal regeneration and formation of multiple nodules and extensive fibrosis. There will be decrease in liver function followed by emaciation of the body and ascites in alcohol liver disease. Ayurveda medicine has a better role and outcome. Use of hepatoprotectives, hepatic stimulant, Rasayana drugs. Choalaganges, Tikta and Madhura Rasayukta drugs, Mootrala drugs and protein supplementation are found effective in the management of Alcoholic liver disease. Present paper highlights the role of Ayurveda medicines in the management of Alcoholic liver disease.

VISUALIZING CASTE IDENTITY: AN ANALYSIS OF 'PARIYERUM PERUMAL' TAMIL MOVIE

Cinema is the most significant form of art and the most profound communication tool. Pariyerum Perumal is a thought-provoking Tamil film directed by Mari Selvaraj. This film looks deeply into the persistent caste myths in Indian society, particularly on the suffering of the Dalit group (formerly known as "untouchables"), the story of Pariyan, a young Dalit student who wants to be a lawyer. Pariyan struggles with the harsh reality of prejudice and caste-based discrimination in a rural Indian setting while he pursues his education. In the story, Pariyan is isolated from his upper-caste colleagues in college and experiences violence and humiliation due to the sharp caste-based division pervasive in society. The film Pariyerum Perumal shows underprivileged groups' tenacity and struggle to claim their identity and dignity. Pariyan is adamant about overcoming trials and obstacles to achieve his goals and free himself from caste oppression. The movie fiercely refutes the idea of caste superiority and exposes the sneaky prejudices based on caste, even among those who appear progressive. This article focused on how Pariyerum Perumal portrays the caste-based problems afflicting modern India painfully and realistically. It sparks crucial dialogues on caste prejudice, violence, and the pressing need for societal transformation to destroy the antiquated caste myths that still exclude and oppress millions of people in the nation.

Scholarly worlds and popular texts: The Bhagavad Gðtå’s vernacular communities in early modern India

The Bhagavad Gītā is often thought of as the popular religious text par excellence in modern Hinduism. A substantial amount of scholarship has argued that its modern status as the central text of Hinduism is grounded in its 19th-century colonial and nationalist receptions. However, recent work on late premodern Indian philosophy has raised the possibility of constructing alternative genealogies for modern religious textual practices, though the methodologies that may allow the characterisation of premodern texts as ‘popular’ canonical works remain uncertain. This article asks how we may further interrogate the idea of the Gītā’s status as a classic or canonical text by looking at the ways in which this status was historically constructed, maintained and mediated in 18th-century North India. In order to reflect on the conditions that historicise the idea of the Gītā as scholarly, public or popular text in premodern and modern India, this article engages with two different approaches to the question of the Gītā’s social worlds during that period. One, it analyses histories of production and circulation, and two, it examines the genres of some Gītā adaptations. It does so by drawing from manuscripts containing translations and adaptations of the Bhagavad Gītā from Sanskrit into Hindi that were copied and composed between the 16th and 18th centuries.

Becoming the Father of Modern India: Rammohun Roy and the Politics of Paternity

Abstract This article examines the posthumous reception of India’s most famous religious reformer, hailed as the ‘Father of Modern India’, Raja Rammohun Roy, from the 1830s to the present decade. During the late colonial period, the British administration and Bengali elites used class networks and print capitalism to establish Roy as the father to show compradorship amidst calls for independence. After independence, the INC retained Roy to counter the rise of more popular Hindu movements. In the period of INC decline, the BJP elevated Swami Vivekananda instead of Roy as a representative of majoritarian Hinduism. Economic and political coalitions in control of legitimating institutions elevate and sustain fathers as positive cultural symbols in response to competing claims. By emphasising party competition and issue ownership within multi-national federalism, this article complements decolonisation, cult-of-personality, and regime change as explanations for the rise and fall of public fathers.

Islamic modernism in India in the second half of the 19th century and Sayit Ahmed Khan

In the 19th century, when the industrial revolution was taking place in Europe, and the major powers were colonizing the world continent, there were religious changes in the Indian subcontinent. These processes are closely related to the above two factors. Because in 1857, India officially came under British rule. During this period, the Muslims, who were a minority in the Indian subcontinent, were under the pressure of the Christianization of the British authorities on the one hand, and the Indian missionaries on the other hand. Muslims lost their political power in the Indian country, which they had ruled for centuries, and the Islamic education system collapsed. Indian Muslims sought a way out of this difficult situation from religious traditionalism, religious fundamentalism, and also religious modernism. It is the latter that interests us in this article. Modernists sought to reform religious dogmas on the basis of rationality and reason. They believed that the way out of the deadlock was to return to the basic, that is, to the Qur'an. Modernists divided the Qur'anic rulings into two types: permanent, which must be fulfilled, and transitory, which is not considered mandatory. Indian modernists criticized medieval Muslim scholars and encouraged the Muslim community to benefit from Western science and technology. And in political matters, they often supported the British government or took a passive position. The article comprehensively covers the innovative ideas of 19th-century Indian modernists on religion, Islamic law, and Islamic history, including the views of Sayyid Ahmed Khan, considered the leader of Islamic modernists in India. We will also focus on the critical views of groups such as Deobandism and Hadithism, which were against the modernist direction.

From Myth to Mythya: A Study on the Metamorphosis of Ramayana in Modern India

From Myth to Mythya: A Study on the Metamorphosis of Ramayana in Modern India

ТОЛКОВАНИЕ И ИНТЕРПРЕТАЦИЯ ПРАВА: ОТЛИЧИЕ ПОНЯТИЙ И ПРАВИЛА ОСУЩЕСТВЛЕНИЯ В СОВРЕМЕННОЙ ИНДИИ

The purpose of this article is to analyze the concepts of interpretation and construction of legal norms in modern India, as well as the rules for their implementation. To achieve this goal, the author sets himself the objectives of defining and correlating the concepts of interpretation and interpretation of law, as well as characterizing the general rules for their implementation.To solve these objectives, the author uses comparative legal and logical methods, as well as systemic and structural analysis.As a result of the research, it is shown that in Indian legal science and law enforcement, the difference between the concepts of «interpretation» and «construction» does exist, and this is connected differentiation mainly with the broad powers of the judiciary to issue judicial precedents.Conclusion. The concepts of «interpretation» and «construction» of law in India should not be identified with the concepts of clarification and clarification. Interpretation involves theoretical activity aimed at determining the meaning of a rule of law, and interpretation is associated with the process of implementing the law through its adaptation to existing social relations.