A History of India

by Michael H. Fisher

Streaming video, 2016

Status

Available

Call number

954

Publication

Great Courses (2016), 18 hours, 36 lectures, 338 page booklet

Description

History. Nonfiction. HTML: Over 5,000 years, India has been home to a rich tapestry of peoples and cultures. Two of the world's great religions - Hinduism and Buddhism - have their origins in South Asia, and the lands east of the Indus River have long been a central hub for trade, migration, and cultural exchange. Today the subcontinent contains 20 percent of the world's population and is a thriving center for global business, making this region one of most significant economic powerhouses in the world.Go inside this thrilling story with A History of India, a breathtaking survey of South Asia from its earliest societies along the Indus and Ganges rivers through the modern challenges of the 21st century. These 36 sweeping lectures enable you to understand the epic scope of the subcontinent's history. Perhaps the most important facet of this history is how diverse the region truly is. Roughly the size of continental Europe, India - along with its neighbors Pakistan and Bangladesh - contains a myriad of ethnic groups, socioeconomic classes, religions, and cultural mores.In this wide-ranging investigation, you'll:- Meet the many religious communities that have coexisted in India, including Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, Muslims, Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians.- Delve into the legacies of the Mauryan Empire, the Mughal Empire, and British colonialism, three of the few governments that ever unified the subcontinent.- Witness the fight for independence from European powers and the partition of the region into the countries of India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh in the 20th century.- Consider the challenges and opportunities faced by this area today, from expanding urbanization to the vast need for energy sources to the ongoing, heated debates about national identity.Professor Fisher, who has traveled and taught in South Asia for decades, reveals this complex narrative with skill and compelling insights. By the end, you will understand the full scope of the region and its cultures, across time and today..… (more)

Language

English

Original language

English

Local notes

[1] Earliest History of the Indian Subcontinent [2] Migration and the Adivasi [3] Indus Valley Civilization [4] Indo-European Vedic Culture [5] Caste: Varna and Jati [6] Epic Literature: Ramayana [7] Epic History: Mahabharata [8] Dharma in the Bhagavad Gita [9] Origins and Rise of Jainism [10] Origins and Rise of Buddhism [11] Mauryan Empire [12] Ashoka's Imperial Buddhism [13] Deccani and Southern States [14] Northwest and North India [15] Brahmanic Synthesis [16] Indian Parsis, Jews, and Christians [17] Islam Comes to India [18] Indian Sultans [19] Early Mughal Empire [20] Reign of Emperor Akbar [21] Later Mughal Emperors [22] Mughals and the Marathas [23] Competing European Empires [24] British East India Company [25] Issues and Events of 1857 [26] British Raj and Early Nationalism [27] India and Indians in the World [28] Mahatma Gandhi [29] Nationalists Ambedkar, Bose, and Jinnah [30] Partition of 1947 [31] West and East Pakistan [32] New Pakistan [33] Independent Bangladesh [34] India under Nehru [35] Modernizing India [36] South Asia into the 21st Century