Social Science Baha announces:
The Mahesh Chandra Regmi Lecture 2009 to be delivered by Romila Thapar
3 pm · 14 October, 2009 (Wednesday) · Russian Cultural Centre, Kamalpokhari
The Vamshavali from Chamba: Reflections of a Historical Tradition
Abstract
It is commonly said that Indian civilisation lacks a sense of history. Why this idea was given currency needs to be considered and countered. This is the context of the lecture. Using the example of the Vamshavali from the hill state of Chamba (in the present-day Indian state of Himachal Pradesh), it is argued that this category of texts constitutes one form of the many historical traditions of the sub-continent. The historical background to the emergence to this kind of text might explain why it was so widespread as a genre. The contents of this Vamshavali and its form reflects the process of its composition both in drawing from earlier traditions and in making a statement about later events.
Among the world's foremost experts on ancient Indian history, Romila Thapar earned her doctorate under A.L. Basham at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London, in 1958. She is Professor Emerita of Ancient Indian History at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi. Prof Thapar's major works include Asoka and the Decline of the Maurya; Ancient Indian Social History: Some Interpretations; Recent Perspectives of Early Indian History (editor); A History of India Volume One; and Early India: From the Origins to AD 1300.