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| The Rigveda: A Historical Analysis | |
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| Author | Shrikant G. Talageri |
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| Country | India |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Aditya Prakashan |
| Publication date | 2000 |
| ISBN | ISBN 81-7742-010-0 |
The Rigveda: A Historical Analysis is a book by Shrikant G. Talageri (b. 1958). It was published by Aditya Prakashan, New Delhi (India) in 2000.
The book gives Talageri's examination and interpretation ot the Rig Veda. In the eighth chapter Talageri discusses the interpretations of the Rig Veda by scholars and philosophers like Ralph T.H. Griffith, F.E. Pargiter, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Ambedkar, Vivekananda, Dayananda Sarasvati and Aurobindo. In the ninth chapter he gives a critique of Michael Witzel's interpretation of the Rig Veda. Witzel responded in turn in a later review.
Talageri gives also his views on controversial topics like the chronological order of the Mandalas. Talageri's order for the first seven Mandalas is as follows: 6, 3, 7, 4, 2, 5 and 8.
Talageri argues in this book that the Indo-Iranian Airyanem Vaejah lies in Kashmir. He suggests that the Indo-Iranians migrated from there to the Punjab and later to Central Asia. According to Talageri, the rigvedic Aryans lived in Haryana, from where they migrated to the Sarasvati River region.
Contents |
Contents
- Preface
- I. The Rigveda
- 1. The Anukramanis
- 2. The composers of the Rigveda
- 3. The chronology of the Rigveda
- 4. The geography of the Rigveda
- 5. The historical identity of the Vedic Aryans
- II. Beyond the Rigveda
- 6. The Indo-Iranian homeland
- 7. The Indo-European homeland
- III. Appendices
- 8. Misinterpretations of Rigvedic history
- 9. Michael Witzel--an examination of western Vedic scholarship
- 10. Sarama and the Panis--a mythological theme in the Rigveda
Talageri-Witzel controversy
Talageri's first book (1993) was strongly criticized by the linguist Michael Witzel and by Erdosy in 1995, as being "devoid of scholarly value", and it was characterized as belonging to a "lunatic fringe".[1] On the basis of Witzel's mis-citation of Talageri's book's title as one (and the consistent misspelling of Talageri's name) in his bibliography and elsewhere, Talageri asserts that Witzel criticized the book in a 1995 paper without having read or seen it.[2]. Talageri noted that "this strong condemnation of a book, unread and unseen by them, is both unacademic and unethical.“ [3]
Talageri wrote a critique of a number of scholars such as Griffith, Pargiter, Tilak and Aurobindo in his book on the Rig Veda[4]. In the same book (Chapter 9), he wrote a critique of Michael Witzel's (1995) interpretation of the Rig Veda. This chapter, in the words of Talageri[5] "shows Professor Witzel inventing evidence, suppressing inconvenient data, following an inconsistent methodology, retrofitting data into pre-conceived notions, contradicting himself again and again, and using misleading language". Witzel didn't write a rebuttal of this chapter in his review on Talageri's book, but only stated that it is "a long and confused ‘analysis’ in Talageri’s book of my same 1995 paper” and that the “angry assault on my 1995 paper…. can thankfully be passed over here”. Talageri later considered his criticism of other scholars as unnecessary, and he writes that other scholars like N.S. Rajaram "reprimanded" him for chapters 8 and 9, which Rajaram "felt were superfluous and unnecessary and detracted from the value of my [Talageri's] work." [6]
After the publication of his book on the Rig Veda (2000), Talageri was offered on 17 June 2000 the possibility to do advanced study or a Ph.D. with Witzel in Harvard, "provided he [Talageri] is open-minded and flexible in his views, and does not show himself to be intransigent or predisposed to certain ideas".[7] Talageri declined this offer "for purely personal reasons as much as in view of the blatantly fishy proviso".[8]
References
- ^ The Indo-Aryans of Ancient South Asia: Language, Material Culture and Ethnicity edited by George Erdosy, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin-New York, 1995. Page x. Cf. also pp. xviii, 111, 116, 123. Talageri's book was also "firmly categorised together with the books by Paramesh Choudhury".
- ^ (see Talageri 2000: chapter 9)
- ^ Talageri 2000. Talageri writes that Witzel and Erdosy constantly cite the work incorrectly, using the wrong book data that was earlier used in a review of the Times of India. (see Elst 1999, Talageri 2000)
- ^ (2000: Chapter 8)
- ^ (2001: Chapter 2)
- ^ (Talageri 2001: Chapter 1)
- ^ (Talageri 2001: Chapter 1)
- ^ (Talageri 2001: Chapter 1)
External links
Talageri - Witzel flamewar
- The Rigveda - A Historical Analysis, ch.9: Michael Witzel - An Examination of Western Vedic Scholarship Shrikant G. Talageri
- review by Michael Witzel (pdf version) Electronic Journal of Vedic Studies Vol. 7 (2001), issue 2 (March 31).
