Ganges: The Many Pasts of an Indian River
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- Create Date：2021-04-18 11:58:03
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Sudipta Sen
- ISBN：030011916X
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Summary
A sweeping， interdisciplinary history of the world’s third-largest river， a potent symbol across South Asia and the Hindu diaspora
Originating in the Himalayas and flowing into the Bay of Bengal， the Ganges is India’s most important and sacred river。 In this unprecedented work， historian Sudipta Sen tells the story of the Ganges， from the communities that arose on its banks to the merchants that navigated its waters， and the way it came to occupy center stage in the history and culture of the subcontinent。
Sen begins his chronicle in prehistoric India， tracing the river’s first settlers， its myths of origin in the Hindu tradition， and its significance during the ascendancy of popular Buddhism。 In the following centuries， Indian empires， Central Asian regimes， European merchants， the British Empire， and the Indian nation-state all shaped the identity and ecology of the river。 Weaving together geography， environmental politics， and religious history， Sen offers in this lavishly illustrated volume a remarkable portrait of one of the world’s largest and most densely populated river basins。
Originating in the Himalayas and flowing into the Bay of Bengal， the Ganges is India’s most important and sacred river。 In this unprecedented work， historian Sudipta Sen tells the story of the Ganges， from the communities that arose on its banks to the merchants that navigated its waters， and the way it came to occupy center stage in the history and culture of the subcontinent。
Sen begins his chronicle in prehistoric India， tracing the river’s first settlers， its myths of origin in the Hindu tradition， and its significance during the ascendancy of popular Buddhism。 In the following centuries， Indian empires， Central Asian regimes， European merchants， the British Empire， and the Indian nation-state all shaped the identity and ecology of the river。 Weaving together geography， environmental politics， and religious history， Sen offers in this lavishly illustrated volume a remarkable portrait of one of the world’s largest and most densely populated river basins。
Reviews
Revanth Ukkalam
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Sudipta's Ganga tells the cultural history of the Ganga river。 To most Indians， all the waters that inhabit the subcontinent could be called Ganga。 In such a scape how has the river played in political articulation？ Also what did the river simply witness？ The book has a lovely review by Pranay Lal who has written one of the best Indian books。 He calls it a huge undertaking and that the author pulled the feat off with charm。 Huge undertaking sure it was。 The book begins at an excellent note。 The Sudipta's Ganga tells the cultural history of the Ganga river。 To most Indians， all the waters that inhabit the subcontinent could be called Ganga。 In such a scape how has the river played in political articulation？ Also what did the river simply witness？ The book has a lovely review by Pranay Lal who has written one of the best Indian books。 He calls it a huge undertaking and that the author pulled the feat off with charm。 Huge undertaking sure it was。 The book begins at an excellent note。 The author looks at writings and depictions - several foreign - of Ganga， to locate the river exactly in Indian imaginings。 And then he goes on to do a survey of the mythology of origin of Ganga。 This is arguably the author at his best。 He looks at multiple Puranas and their various declensions。 Here is perhaps where the charm truly is - in the nuances and slight differences between the tales。 And sometimes radical differences。 The early sections on the history of the Ganges valley seems fresh and engaging until the book becomes a rough political history of India。 Sometimes it is difficult to trace the presence of the river in the dense and long passages。 Also - the second portion of the book feels rushed。 The author spends much longer talking about empires and kings up till the Guptas but after that too much history is crammed in too little space。 Before one even realises one has made a jump from the Kanauj tripartite struggle to the exploits of the Sultans of Delhi。 Clearly Sudipta's editors at Penguin were on his back at that time。 。。。more
Sumit Satarkar
，
Like the river， this book meanders and touches many different topics。 It discusses geology， mythology， religions， history， geography， and administration。 The chapters on religion and mythology definitely sometimes veer into very academic language。 I struggled sometimes with what the author was trying to say。 But the rest of the book is really great。 I thought I knew India;s history reasonably well but the book taught me many new things。 The book's strongest point is definitely the coverage of ma Like the river， this book meanders and touches many different topics。 It discusses geology， mythology， religions， history， geography， and administration。 The chapters on religion and mythology definitely sometimes veer into very academic language。 I struggled sometimes with what the author was trying to say。 But the rest of the book is really great。 I thought I knew India;s history reasonably well but the book taught me many new things。 The book's strongest point is definitely the coverage of many empires and kingdoms on the shores of Ganga and its tributaries。 A couple of hiccups aside （pretty sure the author mentioned Akbar in 17th century）， this was a great listen。 I would recommend it to anyone who wishes to learn about not just Ganga， but also India。 。。。more
Priya
，
I picked this book up on a whim - browsing through the new releases at the library I thought learning about the Ganges through the mythology， art， and history would be fun。 Sudipta Sen pulls together a variety of sources to show how the River developed， not just geologically but through human interaction and conflict。 He documents some of the miraculous elements of the water's properties， and also shows representation through visual and material culture。 All of these pieces together provide a gl I picked this book up on a whim - browsing through the new releases at the library I thought learning about the Ganges through the mythology， art， and history would be fun。 Sudipta Sen pulls together a variety of sources to show how the River developed， not just geologically but through human interaction and conflict。 He documents some of the miraculous elements of the water's properties， and also shows representation through visual and material culture。 All of these pieces together provide a glimpse of the complex history of a river that means so much to so many。 。。。more
Ajay
，
Quite a detail account on Ganga river。 So many information is there。 I wish i had ample amount of time to make notes。 I will re read it again。 Scholarly work and well researched work done by the writer。
William T
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Published by Yale University Press， this book has an academic tone that makes it a bit of a slog。 At times， I am absolutely enthralled， and at other times， I just want to be done with it。 I think it is too ambitious and could have been better focused。 Is it about the Ganges， or is it about Buddhism， Hinduism， Jainism or Islam， or is it about India？ Of course， nothing is inseparable， but …。 By the way， it is obvious that the author is erudite and passionate about all things India。 That is a good Published by Yale University Press， this book has an academic tone that makes it a bit of a slog。 At times， I am absolutely enthralled， and at other times， I just want to be done with it。 I think it is too ambitious and could have been better focused。 Is it about the Ganges， or is it about Buddhism， Hinduism， Jainism or Islam， or is it about India？ Of course， nothing is inseparable， but …。 By the way， it is obvious that the author is erudite and passionate about all things India。 That is a good thing。Visiting with Sudipta Sen is a privalege， but not one to be taken lightly。 。。。more
R。J。 Gilmour
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