Book review: Exploring the various aspects of 'Hinduism'
Subash Dutta-Roy, Dr. Ing. in his well-researched book titled 'Hinduism' explores the various aspects of the word Hindu and highlights its origin and how it evolved in the modern age.
The author was always interested in the origin of Hinduism and after his retirement, he has successfully turned his hobby into this remarkable book. Is Hinduism a religion like Islam, Christianity and so on or is it used to refer to a certain mass in India? The author raises this question and then discusses in detail about the various facets of it.
Divided into six major chapters, the book focuses on many themes and topics like the origin of the term, its modern interpretation, reference to Vedic age and literature, and also a short review on the Mahapuranas.
Ancient civilizations like Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro are highlighted in detail and many facts are inserted here to make the book all the more appealing to the readers.
The introduction of the book is well-written since it gives a glimpse of the content inside and also accelerates the attention of the readers. It is short, crisp and quite informative.
The archaeological sites can give authentic and unknown information about the place and this part is narrated very well by the author. As we may know, the Indo-Aryans or the Aryan race was a popular race and they occupied an important position as well, but the author has thrown light on its origin and its growth, which may be unknown to many.
Subash Dutta-Roy has taken reference from many popular and authentic books to give the readers several unknown information and help them to understand Hinduism from a broader perspective.
This book targets to appeal to those who are interested in ancient India and its culture, religion and history. It can also be used as a reference to write academic or research papers in this area. The language used is formal yet easy to understand.
Reviewed by Sayantani Sengupta
