The Buddha and the Sahibs
The men who discovered India's lost religion
Failed to add items
Sorry, we are unable to add the item because your shopping basket is already at capacity.
Add to cart failed.
Please try again later
Add to wishlist failed.
Please try again later
Remove from wishlist failed.
Please try again later
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Listen with Audible free trial
New to Audible Prime Member exclusive: 2 credits with free trial
1 credit a month to use on any title to download and keep
Listen to anything from the Plus Catalogue—thousands of Audible Originals, podcasts and audiobooks
Download titles to your library and listen offline
₹199.00 per month after 30-day trial. Cancel anytime.
The Buddha and the Sahibs
Narrated by:
Sam Dastor
Buy Now for ₹667.71
-
Narrated by:
-
Sam Dastor
-
Written by:
-
Charles Allen
For nearly 1,000 years, from the destruction of temples and monasteries by Muslim invaders in the 11th and 12th centuries, followed by Hinduism’s increasing power, Buddhism vanished from the country of its origin. Though hugely influential throughout Asia, the religion was forgotten in India.
This is the story of the men from the British Raj who rediscovered the history of the Buddha and his teachings and the role played by key Buddhist rulers such as Ashoka. British rule brought soldiers, administrators and adventurers to India.
From the late 18th century, a handful of remarkable individuals, amateur linguists, archaeologists and explorers - who became known as the Orientalists - began investigating the subcontinent’s lost past. By deciphering scripts, excavating and dating massive stone ruins and discovering huge and richly decorated monastic cave complexes, these men returned Buddhism to its place in Indian history.
Charles Allen's audiobook is a mixture of detective work and storytelling, as this acknowledged master of British Indian history pieces together early Buddhist history to bring a handful of extraordinary characters to life.©2002 Charles Allen (P)2015 Ukemi Productions Ltd
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
Charles Allen has been a favorite author for telling the stories of the erstwhile Raj from the days of reading 'Ashoka'. He tries to walk this grey part of the history without being judgmental and that's what makes this book fascinating.
I've read the stories about James Prinsep, Alexander Cunningham, "Oriental" Jones and quite a few of the interesting individuals who came here to conquer and ended up uncovering a large portion of Indian history which was neglected and unknown for reasons which are not relevant here.
'Buddha and the Sahibs' tells the story of the re-discovery of Buddhism in India in the late 18th and 19th centuries and the people who did that. The book reads like a detective fiction and expertly puts together the pieces of the discovery.
The story of Buddhism is an inspiring one and above all, the story of the King 'Devanampiya Priyadasi' - the most humane of all kings ever ruled otherwise known as Ashoka is another that defies belief. And what is more amazing is the way the king was identified after the masterly deciphering of the Ashoka Brahmi script by James Prinsep. This is a story that can be read again and again.
More than my infatuation with Ashoka, the book introduces a host of characters who are unbelievable to start with and astoundingly curious and meticulous to the end. James Prinsep who started as the assay master in the Benaras Mint and ended up deciphering the Ashoka Brahmi and identifying the King Ashoka as the Devanampiya Priyadasi of the inscriptions and dying by his 40. Alexander Cunningham - in between his constant part in the frontier wars - manages to trace the entire travel route of Huan-Tsang and identify a host of lost cities and write a long series of books as well.
They may be the product of the imperial era and may have had their prejudices (which are common to that era) but like William Jones - who founded the Asiatic society and be a judge as well - are all driven by the scientific curiosity of the day and there is no just reason for not being thankful to them at all. It is not just those who are named here, I actually went through a collection of the Journal of Asiatic Studies (JAS) published by the Asiatic society founded by Jones and most of those who wrote about the flora and fauna of the country or the ruins of some regions are all local tax collectors and soldiers with some regiments. It is a testament to their interest that they not only observed what was around them, they recorded them as well.
The discovery of Buddhism in the Indian main land by all these people and the discovery of the ruins and location of the holy sites makes for very interesting reading. Charles Allen goes through the steps and the way the entire story unfolded with exciting discoveries. The various events and the unlikely heroes (Hastings or Curzon, anyone?) and of course, M.K.Gandhi and Ambedkar make a cameo as well.
The one part that I find missing is the how Buddhism was obliterated in the country where it was born and how the holy sites were laid waste or taken over by the local Mahants. That is a story that gets mentioned in the passing - like the story of the discussion between the Lama and the Shankaracharya - but is not pursued. I thought that would've made the book more complete.
Overall, a very interesting book..
Interesting book
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Rediscovering India’s history
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The great Buddha
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Absolute delight.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.