First published in 1965, The Culture and Civilisation of Ancient India in Historical Outline is a strikingly original work, the first real cultural history of India. The main features of the Indian character are traced back into remote antiquity as the natural outgrowth of historical process. Did the change from food gathering and the pastoral life to agriculture make new religions necessary? Why did the Indian cities vanish with hardly a trace and leave no memory? Who were the Aryans – if any? Why should Buddhism, Jainism, and so many other sects of the same type come into being at one time and in the same region? How could Buddhism spread over so large a part of Asia while dying out completely in the land of its origin? What caused the rise and collapse of the Magadhan empire; was the Gupta empire fundamentally different from its great predecessor, or just one more ‘oriental despotism’? These are some of the many questions handled with great insight, yet in the simplest terms, in this stimulating work. This book will be of interest to students of history, sociology, archaeology, anthropology, cultural studies, South Asian studies and ethnic studies.

Complete digitally restored reprint (facsimile) of the original edition of 1937 with excellent resolution and outstanding readability. Illustrated with over 100 drawings, photos and maps. Alexander Alexandrovich Goldenweiser was born in Kiev, Ukraine, in 1880. He emigrated to the United States in 1900. He studied anthropology under Franz Boas, and earned his AB degree from Columbia University in 1902, his AM degree in 1904, and his Ph.D. in 1910. Professor Goldenweiser taught at the following institutions: Lecturer, Anthropology, Columbia University, 1910-1919; New School for Social Research, NY, 1919-1926; Lecturer, Rand School of Social Science, 1915-1929; Professor, Thought and Culture, Oregon State System of Higher Education, Portland Extension, 1930-1938; Visiting Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1937-1938; Professor, University of Washington, 1923; Visiting Professor of Sociology, Reed College, 1933-1939. He died on July 6, 1940, in Portland, Oregon.

Excerpt from The Primitive Culture of India, Lectures Delivered in at the School of Oriental Studies (Univ of London) Complexity of Indian Culture - Analysis of Fundamental Elements Dream Values and Social Life - Prepotency of the Past - Mind and Body - Belief in Reincarnation - Language as a Social Product Assimilation of Customs and the Relations of Higher with Lower Cul ture - Value in situ of Customs - The Selective and Comparative Method - Common Elements and Range of Variable Elements. Before I attempt to define the lower culture or to describe its geographical distribution in India, let me clear the ground by emphasising the fact that primitive characters are not to be looked for in Indian culture as it now is for existing savage races are not merely peoples who have been left behind in the stream of progress. They are not simply examples of early stages in the development of human culture beyond which other peoples have progressed. It can be shown that each one of them has a highly complex history in which rites and customs introduced from elsewhere, perhaps from some highly-advanced society, have blended with others of a really primitive or infantile kind Though existing cultures may not be primitive in the sense that they represent simple and uncontaminated stages of social development, we can safely accept the primitive character of their mentality and take them as guides to the history of mental development, though they are of very question able value as guides to the order of social development. (la). We must therefore dismiss from our minds such catch words as arrested development or continuity of progress. Let us remember the antiquity of India, the complexity of its social groupings, and the immense range of its culture. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.