A Peep Into the Early HISTORY OF INDIA

A Peep Into the Early History of India is a classic scholarly work by the distinguished historian Sir Ramkrishna Gopal Bhandarkar, originally delivered as a lecture in Poona in 1910 and later published by the Royal Asiatic Society. This Maven Books reprint retrieves the seminal text, which serves as a "bird's-eye view" of India's political and religious evolution from the rise of Buddhism to the end of the Gupta Empire. Bhandarkar meticulously utilizes coins, inscriptions, and foreign travelogues to reconstruct the past, emphasizing a "dry truth" approach free from patriotic bias. The book examines the ethical impact of Buddhism on Indian politics, the administrative systems of the Maurya dynasty under Chandragupta and Asoka, and the subsequent invasions by the Yavanas, Sakas, and Kushans. It concludes with the Brahmanic revival and the great literary Renaissance under the Guptas, making it an essential introductory model of lucid writing for students of ancient Indian history.