In Lahul And Spiti And Kinnaur Districts Of Himachal Pradesh Buddhism Has Been A Living Religion Of The Major Bulk Of The Population. In This Book For The First Time An Integrated Socio-Political And Religious History Of This Region Has Been Attempted.

This collection of essays is the outcome of a symposium hosted by the International Institute of Advanced Studies, Shimla (15th-18th April 2009). An international group of scholars, collaborating in the project The Cultural History of the Western Himalayas from the 8th Century (sponsored by the Austrian Science Fund, NFN S98), present here some of their own specific research on various areas, archaeological sites, monuments and centres of learning that, in various degrees, have studded the region along the centuries. The complex morphology of the Western Himalayas has favoured quite a number of dynamic interactions with their bordering countries (present day U-tsang and Chang-thang in the TAR, Nepal, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu-Kashmir, North Pakistan and beyond) that is here followed through the study of iconographic elements in the coinage of Nezak Shah (Pfisterer and Uhlir) or portable cult objects from Khotan (Forte), items that, like manuscripts (Tauscher), often travelled over long distances. Like art-historical evidence surviving in Lahul (Widorn), they help to trace Buddhist pilgrimage routes and recover religious maps. The consideration of the historical, cultural and social background of the Buddhist sculptures in ancient Uddiyana, where Indian motifs interlace with local elements (Filigenzi), gives yet another view of such a landscape. The theme of Tibetan Himalaya Style in the art of the Western domains, thoroughly analysed in the larger context of the surrounding regions and in consideration of an impressive number of artistic productions, contributes to a social history of these regions (Klimburg-Salter). The role of Kashmir as a privileged centre of learning, particularly during the last centuries of the first millennium CE and the following two centuries, is here investigated through the work and life of the philosopher Sankaranandana (Eltschinger), the Buddhist theory of universals (McAllister), the practices of translating Buddhist texts (MacDonald), and the aesthetic theory discussed by Saiva and Buddhist philosophers (Mukherji). The intellectual life is also viewed through practices related to the written, e. g., the use of palimpsests on inscribed murals in Zhalu (Tropper and Scherrer-Schaub). Besides micro-historical data about the founder of the Guge-Purang dynasty in Western Tibet, Ye ses 'od, gathered from a recently discovered manuscript (Samten Karmay), and a first-hand account of the culture and religious practices of modern Dolpo (Phuntshog Nyima), three ritual texts for summoning good fortune are analysed by studying the role of the deer as a structuring principle in Bon po rituals (Ramble). Finally, new methodological approaches are presented in an introduction to the use of new technology to map history (Cartwright), the project of an on-line cartographic information system elaborated at the University of Vienna (Pucher and Kriz), and the use of a GPS data acquisition tool (Schobesberger), followed by the example of the 3D visualization of the temple complex at Nako, Kinnaur (Nausner and Schobesberger).

Study on the folk arts of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Uttaranchal.

"The volume thoroughly examines the origins and principal types of Buddhist architecture in Asia primarily between the third century BCE-twelfth century CE with an emphasis on India. It aims to construct shared architectural traits and patterns alongwith the derivative relationships between Indian and Asian Buddhist monuments. It also discusses the historical antecedents in the Indus Civilization and the religious and philosophical foundations of the three schools of Buddhism and its founder, Buddha. Previously obscure topics such as Aniconic and Vajrayana (Tantric) architecture and the four holiest sites of Buddhism will also be covered in this comprehensive volume. The author further investigates the influences of Buddhist architecture upon Islamic, Christian, and Hindu architecture that have been overlooked by past scholars."

A Detailed And Comprehensive Study On Snake Cults And Traditions In Western Himalayas-Traces The Genesis Of Snake Cults Among Pre-Historic Committies Of North Indian Mainland-How It Spread To Western Himalayas. 8 Chapters-4 Appendices-Bibliography-Index-75 Illustrations Mainly In Colour With Some In Black And White.

Tibet, the Himalayan State, had been in controversy between India and China. India has always looked upon Tibet as an autonomous buffer state. The Chinese thrust in 1950 took India almost unawares and this was serious warning to the Indian government. The Dalai Lama s flight to India along with numerous Tibetans became Nehru s problem. The Indo-China war resulted into a serious debacle for our armed forces and this led to the China s occupation of Tibet. The Dalai Lama, well-settled in India, sought the support of the United Nations as well as goodwill of other powers to regain his political status. The theme is well-weaved into 14 Chapters and problems have been dealt with comprehensively.

“Lively and engaging . . . raises important questions about how Eastern religions are often co-opted, assimilated and misunderstood by Western culture.” —Publishers Weekly Donald Lopez provides the first cultural history of the strange encounter between Tibetan Buddhism and the West. Charting the flights of Western fantasies of Tibet and its Buddhist legacy, Lopez presents fanciful visions of Tibetan life and religion, ranging from the utopian to the demonic. He examines, among much else, the politics of the term “Lamaism”, a pejorative name for Tibet's religion; the various theosophical, psychedelic, and New Age purposes served by The Tibetan Book of the Dead; the strange case of the Englishman with three eyes; and the unexpected history of the most famous of all Buddhist mantras, om mani padme hum. Throughout, Lopez demonstrates how myths of Tibet pervade both the products of pop culture and learned scholarly works. In his new preface to this anniversary edition, Lopez returns to the metaphors of prison and paradise to illuminate the state of Tibetan Buddhism—both in exile and in Tibet—as monks and nuns still seek to find a way home. Prisoners of Shangri-La remains a timely and vital inquiry into Western fantasies of Tibet. “Proceeding with care and precision, Lopez reveals the extent to which scholars have behaved like intellectual colonialists. . . . Someone had to burst the bubble of pop Tibetology, and few could have done it as resoundingly as Lopez.” —Booklist “Lopez's book shows that . . . when the West has looked at Tibet, all that it has seen is a distorted reflection of itself.” —Ben Jackson, Times Higher Education Supplement “A fine scholarly work.” —Kirkus Reviews

On temple architecture of Chamba District and religious life of Gaddis, Indic people; a study.