Reconfirmation and Reinforcement of the Indus Script Thesis: A Logical Assessment and Inquiry as
to the Elusive
and Enigmatic Nature of This Script
-- Sujay Rao Mandavilli
The earliest known example of an Indus seal dates back to 1873 in the form of a drawing published
by Alexander Cunningham. Since then thousands of examples of the Indus script have been discovered,
and the Indus script has been subject to a very serious analysis by many scholars across the world and
still continues to fascinate, enchant and frustrate innumerable researchers who have made many a
vain attempt to understand its true nature and meaning. The nature of the Indus script remains elusive
and there are currently many different schools of thought—some think it represented a Dravidian
language, some think it represented an Indo-Aryan language, while some are convinced that it belongs to a
third language group. Some argue that it represented a language while others argue it was only a
complex `symbol system', either with or without a linguistic content. In an earlier paper, "Syncretism
and Acculturation in Ancient India; A New Nine Phase Acculturation Model Explaining the Process of
Transfer of Power from the Harappans to the Indo-Aryans", which was published in two parts, a method
was proposed to reconstruct the languages of the Harappans with `smoking guns', and it was concluded
that the Harappans spoke neither a Dravidian language nor Sanskrit but were multi-linguistic and
spoke several languages which included remote ancestors of languages which much later came to be known
as Prakrits. In this paper, a parsimonious approach has been taken with regard to the Indus script,
an attempt has been made to understand its nature, to examine the logical flaws of current theories
with regard to the Indus script and it is concluded that it is impossible to draw any hasty conclusions
about the nature of the Indus script without building rock solid theoretical models and that the Indus
script issue is probably less simple than the most simplistic of theories make it out to be. More importantly,
we also refute `Sproat's smoking gun' which cannot prove that the Indus writing system was not stable,
that it was not a writing system or that it did not have a linguistic component.
© Sujay Rao Mandavilli. All Rights Reserved.
Contemporary Trends in
National Media Ownership:
Revisiting Political Economy Approach
-- I Sumanth
India has witnessed exponential growth in the media and communications sector following
liberalization and opening up of skies. Who has gained from such explosive growth? This paper argues for the
continued relevance of Political Economy approach in the study of contemporary Indian media. In the era
of globalization when we talk of multiple flows of culture, capital privileges seem to be blurring. This
paper argues that a more realistic assessment would have to look at media ownership patterns to see who is
at the helm. There is no single beneficiary in this process. The interests of established global and
Indian business houses with deep pockets are facing competition from new Indian business, which have
benefitted from their political clout. Together they are shaping our mediascape and history.
© 2011 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
Role of Jagannath in the Process of Legitimacy of
the Kingdom of Khurda, Orissa
-- Brundabana Mishra
This paper attempts to find out the role of Jagannatha cult in the process of Bhoi legitimacy over
the kingdom of Khurda in the coastal part of Orissa during the
16th and 17th centuries. Their legitimacy
was based upon the protection and patronage to the regional deity, Jagannatha. An analysis has been
done on the ritual relationship between the king and the God, particularly Jagannatha.
To arrive at a definite historical conclusion, the author has not only consulted the Sanskrit
contemporary as well as authentic document of
18th century Sanskrit work Katakarajavamsavali, but also other sources like translation of the
16th century Persian work Akabarnama, Oriya sources like Madalapanji, Chamu Chitau and British accounts are used adequately.
© 2011 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
BOOK REVIEW
Decolonising the Revolt of 1857:
Colonial Order, Rebel Order, Rebel Vision and the Shakespearean Weltanschauung of the Bengali Babu
-- Kaushik Chakraborty
Laxman D Satya
© 2011 All Rights Reserved. The IUP hold the copyright for the review. |
