Syncretic Islam is a fascinating and brilliant study of the religious thought and career of one of the doyens of Muslim traditionalism in South Asia, Imam Ahmad Raza Khan Barelvi. An Islamic scholar, jurist and an Urdu poet, Ahmad Raza Khan was the founder of the Barelvi movement whose defining feature of thought is the active veneration of the Prophet as the most exalted of all beings. This work overviews and analyses the multiple facets constituting Ahmad Raza Khan's intellectual life and, in extension, the Barelvi school of thought in an eminently accessible manner. It is the story of a remarkable revivalist, born in the North Indian town of Bareilly during British India, who grew up to be hailed by his followers as the mujaddid, or reviver, of Islam in nineteenth-century India. A Pathan by descent, Hanafi by religious mores, Qadiri by disposition and Barelvi by nativity, Syncretic Islam captures the astounding contribution of Ahmad Raza Khan and attempts to explain his spiritual influence that still binds millions of people in the Indian subcontinent.
A very enjoyable and educative book indeed. -Bibek Debroy Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister An unusual book. -Professor S. Irfan Habib Former Maulana Azad Chair, National University of Educational Planning and Administration, New Delhi The book is simply 'unputdownable'. -Rasheed Kidwai Visiting Fellow, ORF Congress leader Arjun Singh was aware of the imminent appointment of Dr Manmohan Singh as the prime minister. What did he do to sway the decision in his favour? Did Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar help the religious leader Chandraswami escape the dragnet of the Enforcement Directorate? What prompted the editor of Hindustan Times to publish an article titled 'National Shame' on the front page of the newspaper? How did a typo in a copy received by All India Radio lead to an inquiry by the Pakistani authorities regarding a 'mole' in their midst? Instant History is a brilliant insight into our recent history. A treasure trove for all those who believe that journalists write the first draft of history, this is an honest perspective on various issues in the context of many geographical complexities, political realities and social dichotomies. Narrated through short pieces and snippets, it unveils several incidents and exposes ground realities that afflict politics, bureaucracy and even journalism. Moreover, serving a slice of history, it documents changes India has witnessed across the last quarter of the preceding century, providing insights into the history of public administration. Anecdotal, humorous and often caustic, Instant History is a fabulous work on Indian journalism and politics recounted by a senior journalist with an insider view of affairs.
Rama, Maryada Purushottam, the king of Ayodhya, banished his beloved queen, in whose chastity he had complete faith, simply because his subjects disapproved of his accepting a wife who had spent a year in the house of her abductor. The king submitted to the will of the people though it broke his heart. Was his stand justified? Could Manthara be held solely responsible for the banishment of Rama and the subsequent death of Dasharatha? Was Ahalya an adulteress or a victim of sexual assault? Did the actions of the serial molester Ravana stand legal scrutiny? Was Lakshmana, a prince of Ayodhya, legally justified in mutilating Surpanakha? Was his elder brother Rama an accomplice in that action? It was said in ancient India, a king who, after having sworn to safeguard his subjects, failed to protect should be executed like a mad dog. Such a provision indicated that sovereignty was based on an implied social contract, and if the king violated the traditional pact, he forfeited his kingship. So, a king had to be just as justice trickled down from the crown. What happens though if the events of yore are retold and characters made to stand trial in today's time? Here is an attempt, unexplored so far, to retell the significant happenings narrated in the Ramayana through the legal prism of the Indian Penal Code. Each chapter comprises a prosecution version, citations of relevant provisions from the IPC, deposition of witnesses and the defence argument. Ramayana Revisited succeeds in bringing in all alternative perspectives, leaving the final judgement to the discretion of the reader.
Elections in India have been a stable and impressive feature of the country's political landscape. They provide the voiceless, the disempowered and the poorest the right to vote, equally with the mightiest, the richest and the most influential. And Indian political parties are surpassed by those of no other country in electioneering skill, dramatic presentation of issues, political oratory, or mastery of political psychology. In the decades after Independence, democracy in India has been confronted with various challenges, including radicalism, ultra-Left-wing activism, external threats and the vicissitudes of the polity or economy. The year 2020-21 brought an unprecedented challenge in the form of an unseen, unknown and silent enemy, the SARS-Cov 2 virus, that had to be fought simultaneously while upholding the democratic process of elections. The Power of the Ballot narrates the saga of Indian elections with stories ranging from digitisation of voting and the constant struggle with the malpractices to holding elections during pandemic.
Nine of India’s 14 prime ministers have been elected from constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, the country’s most populous state and most complex political battleground.The road to Delhi is said to go through Lucknow. Hence, elections in UP are among the most hotly debated and closely watched political contests in the nation. With the UP Legislative Assembly elections scheduled for the first quarter of 2022, UP Elections 2022: More Than a State at Stake raises the all-important question: who will emerge winner in UP in 2022? How will this victory impact the general elections in 2024? In the 2017 Assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) registered a massive win in UP, bagging 312 seats in the 403-seat Assembly. The Samajwadi Party (SP) won 47 seats and its ally, the Congress, only seven.The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) ended up with 19 seats, its worst tally ever. In UP Elections 2022: More Than a State at Stake, well-known journalist and political commentator Anil Maheshwari analyses the caste and religious factors that colour electoral outcomes while taking a hard look at the political alliances gearing up to wrest power back from the BJP. Teeming with insightful predictions about the future of UP, and by extension, the nation, this book is a must-read for those who are invested in Indian democracy.
Aligarh, As The Microcosm Of The Muslim Community, Can Aptly Be Called An Index Of The Status Of Muslims In India. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, The Founding Father Of Pakistan, Eulogised Aligarh In The Pre-Partition Days As The 'Arsenal Of Muslims India'. Though It May Not Have Remained The Only Centre Of Muslim Politics After The Partition Of India, It Still Occupies A Pivotal Place In The Country'S Politics, Its Communal Contours As Well As The Social And Political Mobilisation Of Muslims. Aligarh Muslim University (Amu) Has Been Listed As An Institute Of National Importance In The Seventh Schedule Of The Constitutions. Despite The General Impression That The Amu Of Old Had Fulfilled Its Function And Had Become More Of A 'Problem', Aligarh Continues To Be The Hub Of Muslim Ethnicity In North Indian States - Uttar Pradesh And Bihar In Particular. Though The Catchment Era For Attracting Students Has Shrunk With The Mushroom Growth Of New Educational Institutions And Universities In Almost Every Corner Of The Country, Amu Has Retained Its Significance. No Wonder It Has Attracted Friends And Foes In Equal Measure.
This is a concise and conversational textbook in the growing field of Data Analytics. Easy to read and informative, this lucid book covers important concepts with concrete examples, and invites the reader to join this field. This book is designed to provide a learner with the intuition behind this evolving area, along with a solid toolset of the major data mining techniques and platforms. Learners across variety of academic discplines, including business, computer science, statistics, engineering, and others attracted to the idea of discovering new insights and ideas from data will enjoy this book. The chapters in the book are organized for a typical one-semester course"--Back cover.
Anil Sharma in his book The Practice of Self Enquiry has come out with a detailed exposition on the teachings of his guru Sage Sri Ramana In December 1993 the author of this book Sri Anil Sharma experienced the rising of cosmic currents in his body- a result of which for the next seven years he experienced the various states of higher consciousness. This book is a dedication to his satguru Sri Ramana Maharshi.Maharshi especially for people who are seeking enlightenment and making an effort to know the various concepts pertaining to birth-death-rebirth and realizing : Who am I? In easy and understandable terms, Anil Sharma has flawlessly described to aspirants who are in search of meaning of life and its earthly existence.The author explains, "Our consciousness of our own being, that is 'I am', alone can be our real self. The non-dual and indivisible consciousness of our own being is our true consciousness, indeed it is our true self, our essential being, of what we really are.This is always present in all our three states : waking, dream and sleep, and in all the three divisions of time: past, present and future. This is what the Sage taught one and all, the simple practice of self-attentiveness which is the path of atma-vichara, 'self-inquiry' or self-investigation. And, whatever Sage Ramana said through his teachings, that is the only way by which we can experience perfect peace and bliss that is our own true nature, our own real being.
Nine of India’s 14 prime ministers have been elected from constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, the country’s most populous state and most complex political battleground.The road to Delhi is said to go through Lucknow. Hence, elections in UP are among the most hotly debated and closely watched political contests in the nation. With the UP Legislative Assembly elections scheduled for the first quarter of 2022, UP Elections 2022: More Than a State at Stake raises the all-important question: who will emerge winner in UP in 2022? How will this victory impact the general elections in 2024? In the 2017 Assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) registered a massive win in UP, bagging 312 seats in the 403-seat Assembly. The Samajwadi Party (SP) won 47 seats and its ally, the Congress, only seven.The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) ended up with 19 seats, its worst tally ever. In UP Elections 2022: More Than a State at Stake, well-known journalist and political commentator Anil Maheshwari analyses the caste and religious factors that colour electoral outcomes while taking a hard look at the political alliances gearing up to wrest power back from the BJP. Teeming with insightful predictions about the future of UP, and by extension, the nation, this book is a must-read for those who are invested in Indian democracy.
A very enjoyable and educative book indeed. -Bibek Debroy Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister An unusual book. -Professor S. Irfan Habib Former Maulana Azad Chair, National University of Educational Planning and Administration, New Delhi The book is simply 'unputdownable'. -Rasheed Kidwai Visiting Fellow, ORF Congress leader Arjun Singh was aware of the imminent appointment of Dr Manmohan Singh as the prime minister. What did he do to sway the decision in his favour? Did Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar help the religious leader Chandraswami escape the dragnet of the Enforcement Directorate? What prompted the editor of Hindustan Times to publish an article titled 'National Shame' on the front page of the newspaper? How did a typo in a copy received by All India Radio lead to an inquiry by the Pakistani authorities regarding a 'mole' in their midst? Instant History is a brilliant insight into our recent history. A treasure trove for all those who believe that journalists write the first draft of history, this is an honest perspective on various issues in the context of many geographical complexities, political realities and social dichotomies. Narrated through short pieces and snippets, it unveils several incidents and exposes ground realities that afflict politics, bureaucracy and even journalism. Moreover, serving a slice of history, it documents changes India has witnessed across the last quarter of the preceding century, providing insights into the history of public administration. Anecdotal, humorous and often caustic, Instant History is a fabulous work on Indian journalism and politics recounted by a senior journalist with an insider view of affairs.
Syncretic Islam is a fascinating and brilliant study of the religious thought and career of one of the doyens of Muslim traditionalism in South Asia, Imam Ahmad Raza Khan Barelvi. An Islamic scholar, jurist and an Urdu poet, Ahmad Raza Khan was the founder of the Barelvi movement whose defining feature of thought is the active veneration of the Prophet as the most exalted of all beings. This work overviews and analyses the multiple facets constituting Ahmad Raza Khan's intellectual life and, in extension, the Barelvi school of thought in an eminently accessible manner. It is the story of a remarkable revivalist, born in the North Indian town of Bareilly during British India, who grew up to be hailed by his followers as the mujaddid, or reviver, of Islam in nineteenth-century India. A Pathan by descent, Hanafi by religious mores, Qadiri by disposition and Barelvi by nativity, Syncretic Islam captures the astounding contribution of Ahmad Raza Khan and attempts to explain his spiritual influence that still binds millions of people in the Indian subcontinent.
“This book is a splendid and valuable addition to this subject. The whole book is well written and I have no hesitation to recommend that this can be adapted as a textbook for graduate courses in Business Intelligence and Data Mining.” Dr. Edi Shivaji, Des Moines, Iowa “As a complete novice to this area just starting out on a MBA course I found the book incredibly useful and very easy to follow and understand. The concepts are clearly explained and make it an easy task to gain an understanding of the subject matter.” -- Mr. Craig Domoney, South Africa. Business Intelligence and Data Mining is a conversational and informative book in the exploding area of Business Analytics. Using this book, one can easily gain the intuition about the area, along with a solid toolset of major data mining techniques and platforms. This book can thus be gainfully used as a textbook for a college course. It is also short and accessible enough for a busy executive to become a quasi-expert in this area in a couple of hours. Every chapter begins with a case-let from the real world, and ends with a case study that runs across the chapters.
Elections in India have been a stable and impressive feature of the country's political landscape. They provide the voiceless, the disempowered and the poorest the right to vote, equally with the mightiest, the richest and the most influential. And Indian political parties are surpassed by those of no other country in electioneering skill, dramatic presentation of issues, political oratory, or mastery of political psychology. In the decades after Independence, democracy in India has been confronted with various challenges, including radicalism, ultra-Left-wing activism, external threats and the vicissitudes of the polity or economy. The year 2020-21 brought an unprecedented challenge in the form of an unseen, unknown and silent enemy, the SARS-Cov 2 virus, that had to be fought simultaneously while upholding the democratic process of elections. The Power of the Ballot narrates the saga of Indian elections with stories ranging from digitisation of voting and the constant struggle with the malpractices to holding elections during pandemic.
Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba is ever-existent, ever-vibrant, and ever-radiant. He has declared, "I am within you always." This is addressed to all living beings in the world. Even when His physical frame is not there now, this is true and He proves His existence beyond doubt to all seekers of Spiritual Truth. Prof. K. Anil Kumar, the chosen translator of Bhagawan's Divine Discourses, who echoes "His Master's Voice", elaborated Bhagawan's teachings and philosophy, the glory and significance of Swami's 'Maha Samadhi', and guidance for further carrying on Sai's Mission with zeal and zest, in his lectures in foreign countries and to foreigners in Prasanthi Nilayam in this volume, titled "Divine Vibrations". Readers will find this volume all absorbing, inspiring, and spiritually elevating.
Random Walks In Solitude Glimpses of Religion and Spirituality through the Eyes of Modern Science The ‘Random Walks in Solitude: Glimpses of Religion and Spirituality through the Eyes of Modern Science’ is a collection of articles published by the author since 2006 AD. The topics include some of the most complex and enigmatic subjects as ‘Concept of Prana’, ‘Universal Consciousness’, ‘Scientific basis of Samudra Manthan the Proverbial Churning of Cosmic Ocean’, ‘Lord Dattatreya’, ‘Ardha-Nari-Nateshwara’ and ‘Science behind ‘Yogic Samadhi’. While doing so, the author does not claim that his interpretations on some of these enigmatic concepts are exactly true, but in the absence of any serious attempt done so far, they feel refreshing and he has attempted to re-validate religion and spirituality on scientific logic and reasons. Otherwise, we as a community were just holding them dear to our hearts for thousands of years as fanciful stories. These concepts were conceived and described by our ancient ‘Rishis’ in native terminologies and language and since then, have remained a part of our psyche in our life. Today, as professional scientists, we need to re-look to these concepts afresh from modern scientific perspective, identify and correlate them with current scientifically analogous terminologies, without losing their original perceptive meaning, they conveyed to our minds. In this respect, the logical scientific interpretations of the concepts of ‘Soul’, ‘Rebirth’, ‘Work’ and the ‘Law of Karma’, published earlier by the author, have received considerable attention and appreciation. In the same spirit, the author hopes that the readers would find this book also equally interesting, innovative, refreshing and scientifically logical to realize the continued relevance of the ‘Sanatan Vedic Philosophy’ even in the twenty first century.
About the Book: This book is an attempt to show how technology guided by spirituality can lead to happiness, and in the process, it may lead to the understanding of the Universal Consciousness or the Mind of God. The book is divided into three sections. The first section deals with how to make the mind powerful to gain inner peace. A happy and contented mind then sees the world in a different light. The second section dwells on how to improve the environment through technology, so it becomes liveable and sustainable. And the last section is about exploring space — the last frontier which can help in joining the individual with universal consciousness and understanding the mind of God. The book has been inspired by Patanjali’s Yoga sutras where it is shown that a Yogi after attaining supernatural powers can accelerate his path to liberation and everlasting happiness. About the Author: Anil K. Rajvanshi is a spiritual engineer! A mechanical engineering graduate of IIT Kanpur in early 1970s he went to U.S. for higher studies. In a fit of madness and arrogance, he left a very lucrative career in U.S. and came back in 1981 to rural India thinking that he will change India! India did not change but he changed. In the process of developing renewable energy technologies for rural areas he discovered himself and the great spiritual traditions of India. He runs a small rural NGO called Nimbkar Agricultural Research Institute in Phaltan, Maharashtra and does R&D in renewable energy, rural and sustainable development. For his work on renewable energy and sustainable development he has won many prestigious national and international award. In 2022 he was given one of India’s highest civilian award – Padma Shri. He also has a passion for writing articles on the interplay of spirituality and technology and has published more than 200 articles in various newspapers and news lines. He is passionate about teaching youngsters and gives inspirational lectures all over India and abroad.
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