Gem In The Lotus

A comprehensive and compelling portrait of ancient India

In Gem in the Lotus, Abraham Eraly, author of The Last Spring, the best-selling and critically acclaimed history of the Mughals, identifies and explores the significant milestones in the evolution of ancient India. Beginning with an enquiry into the enigma that was the Indus Valley civilisation, he writes of the progression from the Vedic Aryan culture to the age of religious and philosophical ferment, culminating in the tenets of Jainism; the founding and consolidation of Buddhism; Alexander’s advance into India; the rise of the Mauryan empire; and Ashoka’s unusual political career. In the final section of the book, he describes the ‘clockwork state’ of the Mauryas depicted in Kautilya’s Arthasastra and in ancient Greek accounts.

‘‘ ‘Eraly has managed a very difficult task very efficiently: He has made Indian history user-friendly...The reader wants entertainment as well as education, and Eraly provides a judicious mixture…It cannot be said of any history what the Mahabharta claims for itself: “Whatever is found here may be found somewhere else, but what is not found here is found nowhere”; but Eraly’s approach comes close to it.’ —Tehelka Literary Review ‘The book covers a great deal of fascinating material about everyday life in a period not yet touched by subaltern studies. The author has not just chronicled history but portrayed life as best as can be made out from the primary sources…The book is a veritable tour de force…which simultaneously enlightens and reads almost like a novel.’ —Business Standard ‘Gem in the Lotus deserves to be read by those interested in a theme otherwise forbidding…A readable book on a wide canvas.’ —India Today ‘Eraly writes lucidly and has a great story to tell.’ —Indian Review of Books