This study presents the findings of a first-hand, systematic archaeological survey conducted for the first time in the Lolab Valley of North Kashmir. The research elicited data through scientific investigation, employing a systematic field survey, interpreted through comparative analysis with material remains from established archaeological sites in Kashmir. The region is characterised by a rich historical narrative, along with a reliable archaeological record encompassing ancient ruins, traces of early habitation, memorial stones, ceramics, architectural remains, inscriptions and metallurgical debris, which collectively offer insights into its socio-cultural fabric. Significant archaeological material was recovered during preliminary surveys in and around the valley, indicating occupation from the post-Neolithic, early historic, early medieval and later historic phases. The evidence further reveals patterns of settlement organisation, ritual and commemorative practices, craft production, resource exploitation and technological adaptation. Finds associated with sacred sites and transit routes underscore the valley’s religious significance and its strategic position between the Kashmir Valley, the northern highlands and the historic Śāradāpīṭha corridor. These findings support the interpretation of Lolab Valley as an active node within wider cultural networks rather than a peripheral landscape, connecting multiple routes across the vast region.
The Indian freedom struggle is a living document of innumerable incidents of sacrifice, on the one hand, and the barbarism of British rulers, on the other hand. The shooting at Tarapur police station, which occurred on 15 February 1932, as a part of the Civil Disobedience Movement, is one such significant historical event. In this incident, many people were killed by police bullets, and many more were injured. This is considered the second Jallianwala Bagh incident, indicating a pre-planned attack on the satyagrahis by the district administration. Later, it was also discussed by the prime minister in his ‘Man Ki Baat’ radio address in January 2021. This article attempts to conduct a subtle investigation and analysis of the Tarapur police station shooting incident. In addition, this article attempts to highlight the contributions of the common people who did not hesitate to make supreme sacrifices in the service of the motherland. This article will further seek out and analyse the true nature of the national freedom movement and the extent to which common people participated in the movement in the context of the British administration’s authoritarian attitude.
Kashmir Śaivism, not Kashmiri Śaivism, is a unique religio-philosophical tradition that emerged in early medieval Kashmir, when, according to the tradition, a compendium of seventy-seven aphorisms, the Śiva Sūtras , was revealed to Ācaryā Vasūgupta (ninth century ce ). This religio-philosophical tradition is different, if not entirely, from the rest of the Śaiva traditions that are still prevalent and practised in South Asia, and is essentially triadic, tantric, monistic and non-dualistic in outlook. The existing scholarly writings on the subject mainly come from Indologists, Sanskritists, Philosophers and scholars of Comparative Religion. The writings of these scholars have essentially addressed the theological and philosophical nuances of the subject, with no effort to investigate its genesis in the various developments that occurred at then trans-regional levels. Thus, the present article endeavours to fill this gap in the existing scholarly writings on the theme and argues that Kashmir Śaivism did not emerge in insularity, but was a response to the wider political, socio-cultural, economic and intellectual connections of the space—Kashmir, which it developed widely from seventh century ce with the Indic mainland. Thus, this article essentially endeavours to investigate the theme from a historical perspective, and the same will be done by critically engaging with the diverse sources—literary and archaeological—through an approach called ‘connected history’.
This article compares Swami Vivekananda’s ethics of seva , disciplined character and universalist Vedānta with Subhas Chandra Bose’s project of sovereign state-making. It reads Vivekananda’s published speeches and letters, early issues of Prabuddha Bharata , and Swami Gambhirananda’s institutional history of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission alongside studies of the Indian National Army (INA), Azad Hind Radio and the INA trial. The argument is that religious and ethical vocabularies could authorise practices of collective responsibility: service, accounting, education, military training and public commitment. The Mission’s institutional development connected spiritual authority with civil association, while Bose mobilised duty and sacrifice through an army and a provisional government. Placing these institutional practices in comparison, and the Chicago addresses of 1893 beside the Red Fort proceedings of 1945–46, the article tracks resemblance and divergence. Bose’s documented engagement with Vivekananda does not establish a direct institutional genealogy from Belur to Singapore. Nor do ideals of service and chosen obedience establish that discrimination or coercion disappeared. Political theology is used here as an interpretive framework for examining how moral claims authorise association and command. The comparison illuminates the formation of public capacities under empire while preserving the distinction between religious service and the pursuit of state sovereignty.
