The Origins and Development of the Tablighi-Jama'at (1920-2000): A cross-country comparative study
By Yoginder Sikand
Orient Longman, Hyderabad, 2002
pp xii+310, INR 595
ISBN 81 250 2298 8
Possibly the most widely followed Islamic movement in the world, the Tablighi-Jama'at (TJ) emerged in early 20th century north India as a reformist movement stressing personal virtue above social or political mobilisation. With a dedicated membership said to be active in more than 150 countries around the globe, its meetings are reported to attract the largest congregations of Muslims outside Mecca. Yet, with its emphasis on traditional Sunni jurisprudence and its disengagement from the modern world, the TJ is poorly understood by outsiders. In this work, a scholar of Muslim history traces the TJ's eight-decade rise from a local reform movement to a global force.
The Brick and the Bull: An account of Handigaun, the ancient capital of Nepal
By Sudarshan Raj Tiwari
Himal Books, Kathmandu, 2002
pp x+225, NPR 1150
ISBN 99933 43 52 8
Although the Kathmandu valley's urban settlements are generally viewed as Malla period (circa 1200 – 1768 CE) creations, organised human habitation dates back nearly two millennia. In this work, Tribhuvan University scholar Sudarshan Raj Tiwari examines archaeological evidence and cultural traditions specific to Handigaun, the valley's earliest known settlement which rides a ridge to the east of the ancient town of Kathmandu. He attempts to relate those finds to characteristics of Nepal's Kirat and Lichchhavi periods, of the first millennium CE and first millennium BCE respectively.