From the blurb
Kashmir — Insurgency and After: Balraj Puri; Orient Longman, 1/24, Asaf Ali Road, New Delhi-110002. Rs. 215.
This publication in the “Tracts for the Times” series is a revised edition bringing the Kashmir story up to date. It attempts to understand the nature and historical roots of the insurgency in Kashmir, and examines the causes and consequences of the blood-soaked rupture between the Kashmiri people and the Indian state. It delves into the erosion of the basis for secular and democratic politics in the state by narrating the history of its alienation from the rest of the country. The author argues that the politics of secession and the militancy of the Kashmiri urge for freedom and democracy can be best contained by an unhindered extension of the processes of Indian democracy to the State. The author traces the story from 1947 when the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir acceded to India. Puri unravels the complex process through which the emotional ties between Kashmir and the rest of India were subsequently ruptured, the basis of secular and democratic politics in Kashmir was weakened, the legitimacy of the Indian state was destroyed, and terrorism gained ground. The tract ends with reflections on the logic of terrorism, secessionism and communalism in Kashmir.
Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra: Shyam Ranganathan; Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11, Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi-110017. Rs. 350.
Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra is the basic text of one of the nine canonical schools of Indian philosophy. In it the legendary author lays down the blueprint for success in yoga, now practised the world over. Patanjali draws upon many ideas of his time, and the result is a unique work of Indian moral philosophy that has been the foundational text for the practice of yoga since.
The Yoga sutra sets out a sophisticated theory of moral psychology and perhaps the oldest theory of psychoanalysis. For Patanjali, the present mental maladies are a function of subconscious tendencies formed in reaction to past experiences. He argues that people are not powerless against such forces and that they can radically alter their lives through yoga — a process of moral transformation and perfection, which brings the body and the mind of a person in line with their true nature.
Accompanying the translation is an extended introduction by the author that explains the challenges of accurately translating Indian philosophical texts, locates the historical antecedents of Patanjali’s text and situates Patanjali’s philosophy within the history of scholastic Indian philosophy.
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