Brahmanic Vignettes is a boon to readers of all ages interested in Indias past, its traditions, as well as its possible future. The authors erudition in Sanskrit, English, and French has been used to illuminate his varied experiences first as student, then teacher, later as career diplomat, and after retirement, founder of a unique school in Mysore, India. The school emphasizes Sanskrit teaching; its students participate in a unique experiment called Dharmamananam (described in the book), introducing them to Vedantic values of ancient Indian culture. Glimpses of other countries, leaders, benefactors, and common folk are vividly brought to light, prompting the readers intellectual and moral involvement. His meetings with Dr. S. Radhakrishnan (scholar and former president of India), Jawaharlal Nehru (first prime minister of India, who chose him as a diplomatic recruit in the new Indian Republic), and many events and encounters with fascinating people from varied cultures have many interesting insights. The authors unique Brahmanic perspective of Indias foreign policy, Shakespeare, the Indian epic Ramayana, and the need to revamp society and education using the Gurukula model of ancient India and the Kibutzims of Israel makes for compelling reading. His personal involvement with and the account of the Portuguese enclaves and Goa becoming integral with the nascent Indian republic, describes the pulls and pressures of history and political reality with his own clarity of vision and immediacy. There are many such sketches meriting study and reflection.

Finalist for the 2014 Best First Book in the History of Religions presented by the American Academy of Religion Śaṅkara's thought, advaita vedānta or non-dual vedānta, is a tradition focused on brahman, the ultimate reality transcending all particular manifestations, words, and ideas. It is generally considered that the transcendent brahman cannot be attained through any effort or activity. While this conception is technically correct, in The Hidden Lives of Brahman, Joël André-Michel Dubois contends that it is misleading. Hidden lives of brahman become visible when analysis of Śaṅkara's seminal commentaries is combined with ethnographic descriptions of contemporary Brāhmin students and teachers of vedānta, a group largely ignored in most studies of this tradition. Du bois demonstrates that for Śaṅkara, as for Brāhmin tradition in general, brahman is just as much an active force, fully connected to the dynamic power of words and imagination, as it is a transcendent ultimate.

Red Money for the Global South explores the relationship of the East with the “new” South after decolonization, with a particular focus on the economic motives of the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA) and other parties that were all striving for mutual cooperation. During the Cold War, the CMEA served as a forum for discussions on common policy initiatives inside the so-called “Eastern Bloc” and for international interactions. This text analyzes the economic relationship of the East with the “new” South through three main research questions. Firstly, what was the motivation for cooperation? Secondly, what insights can be derived from CMEA negotiations about intrabloc and East‒South relations alike? And finally, which mutual dependencies between East and South developed over time? The combination of analytical narrative and engagement with primary archival material from former CMEA states, and India as the most prestigious among the former European colonies, makes this text essential reading for students and instructors of Cold War history, Economic History, and international relations more generally.

Heir to a diverse array of traditions, the Indian subcontinent boasts customs that are distinguished by a constant juxtaposition of the ancient and the modern. The omnibus culture that has resulted from a rich history reflects an accommodation of ideas from across the globe and over time. This inviting narrative examines the tapestry of major events and beliefs that imbue everyday Indian life with vitality, and it presents the remarkable achievements in writing and the arts that have influenced individuals throughout the world.