Calliope articles from November 2002

Calliope archives from November 2002

Musings.
November 1, 2002... THINK, FOR A MOMENT, ABOUT THE WORLD AND EACH PERSON GOING about his and her daily life--each one a part of a nation and a tradition. Think, too, of which nations wield the most influence--and of how few there have been through the centuries....

Shakuntala and the Ring of Recollection.
November 1, 2002... SHAKUNTALA, PERHAPS THE MOST FAMOUS SANSKRIT play, is about an enchanting young lady who captures the heart of the king while he is hunting near her forest borne. The king falls in love with Shakuntala as he watches her playing with friends in...

Kalidasa.(Sanskrit playwright and poet of Gupta empire)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Sanskrit drama and poetry were among the Gupta empire's major artistic achievements. Gupta rulers held poetic competitions and took great pride in the court scholars known as the "Nine Gems." Kalidasa, a master Sanskrit poet, was the greatest...

An inscription tells all: every 12 years, Hindu pilgrims travel to Allahabad for the religious celebration known as Kumbha Mela.
November 1, 2002... SAMUDRA IS HONORED AS INDIA'S IDEAL KING AND HERO. HE WAS THE SON OF KUMARADEVI, A LICCHAVI PRINCESS, AND CHANDRA Gupta, the founder of the Gupta dynasty. His name Samudra is symbolic. It means "ocean" in Sanskrit and refers to the fact that he...

The founding of a dynasty.
November 1, 2002... After a century of turmoil that saw several small kingdoms in north India fighting one another, the Gupta rulers took control and built a mighty empire that would last 200 years. Dreaming of greatness, the ruler known to history as Chandra...

Vedic horse sacrifice.
November 1, 2002... The Mauryan kings restored the ancient Vedic horse sacrifice ritual in the second century B.C. Known in Sanskrit as the ashvamedha (ASH-vah-MAY-dah), the practice fell into disuse with the decline of the Mauryans. Several centuries later,...

The dynasty continues.
November 1, 2002... There are many legends about Chandra Gupta II. According to one, he sought religious purification by living in poverty in a forest for 12 years before he became emperor at age 32. In another, Chandra so enriched his empire that he distributed...

A city on the move.
November 1, 2002... The army of ancient India was like a city on the move. Soldiers on foot, on horseback, and on elephants made up the huge force. It was Arrian, a second-century A.D. Greek historian, writing about the advance of world conqueror Alexander of...

Stories on cloth.
November 1, 2002... Pigments applied with a frayed twig to the walls of homes and temples were used to illustrate the religious epics and folktales of India. The practice of wall painting later developed into the creation of long scrolls of fabric with rich...

Religion in Gupta India.
November 1, 2002... A key to Gupta greatness was their leaders' openness and support of new ideas. While the Guptas favored Hinduism, they also supported Buddhism and Jainism and did not insist that Hinduism was the only route to God. Hindu deities flourished...

Cave sanctuaries.
November 1, 2002... IMAGE BUILDING A TEMPLE FROM THE TOP DOWN OR BY TAKING AWAY STONES RATHER THAN PLACING them one on another. That's just what artists and artisans did in India: They carved sanctuaries into and out of hills and mountains. In fact, they created...

The royals in action.
November 1, 2002... By the end of the fourth century A.D., Buddhism had spread from its beginnings in India across much of Asia. As it reached new regions, however, many of its teachings were lost or distorted in translation. To help correct this situation, a...

A keen observer.
November 1, 2002... THE CHINESE TRAVELER FAXIAN WENT TO INDIA TO STUDY THE ROOTS OF HIS FAITH, BUDDHISM, AND TO COLLECT COPIES OF ITS SACRED WRITINGS. It should not surprise us, therefore, that descriptions of Buddhist teachings, rituals, temples, and legends...

On record.
November 1, 2002... Faxian's writings have provided many clues about how particular buildings looked and where they were located. For historians, this is important, because many of the great buildings from the Gupta period have fallen into ruin or disappeared...

Ahead of its time. (An Advanced Society).
November 1, 2002... Today, the remains of India's great university at Nalanda cover 35 acres. Established during the fifth century A.D. by combining six Buddhist monasteries, the school was one of the world's leading centers of learning. In A.D. 500, its...

Seeing stars. (An Advanced Society).
November 1, 2002... Since the earliest days, mankind has to the heavens in wonder. The sun, moon, and stars were mysterious, and many thought they possessed answers to questions about life here on Earth. The people of India were among the world's foremost...

Try your hand at Gupta math. (Activity).
November 1, 2002... IMAGINE ADDING THE ROMAN NUMERALS CCXIII AND CCXXXVIII. How ABOUT DIVIDING XXXIX BY XVI? THAT'S WHAT MATHEMATICIAN5 IN THE LATE ROMAN EMPIRE WERE DOING. BUT NOT GUPTA MATHEMATICIANS! THEY CREATED THE CONCEPT OF ZERO, WHICH REVOLUTIONIZED...

Loot. (Word Origins).
November 1, 2002... By definition, the word "loot" refers to goods stolen or taken by force, usually from a captured enemy city in wartime, by a corrupt official, or by rioters. Its root is easy to trace: the Hindi word lut, which means "something robbed."

Bungalow. (Word Origins).
November 1, 2002... The word "bungalow" traces its roots to the Hindi word bangla, which refers to "a thatched house." Bangla actually translates "of Bengal," an area in India where this type of one-story dwelling with, usually, a wide, sweeping porch was common....

Bandanna. (Word Stories).
November 1, 2002... One of the methods used to dye cloth in India is known as bandhnu. It involves tying a piece of cloth in knots so that certain areas will retain their original color and not be affected by the dye into which the entire piece is being placed....

Punch. (Word Stories).
November 1, 2002... Legend traces the root of the English word "punch" to the late 1600s. At the time, a certain drink was popular among English and other European sailors who had been visiting and exploring Indian waters. According to the earliest known recipe...

India ink. (Expressions).
November 1, 2002... By definition, India ink is a solid black pigment (like lampblack, for example, which is a fine soot produced by the incomplete combustion of oils and other forms of carbon) that is mixed with a gelatin-type substance and dried into cakes or...

Ancient History. (Calliope's World).
November 1, 2002... Ancient History Times of old, their luster gold Shining in relics and memories, the evidence of past dynasties The days and people who will never live again No desert sands will yield the dead they contain ...

I Am. (Calliope's World).
November 1, 2002... I Am I am a traveler and love to help people. I wonder what tomorrow will bring. I hear people around the world that need help. I see the hurt in people around the world. I want to help the people as much as I...

The Day Earth Fell. (Calliope's World).
November 1, 2002... The Day Earth Fell The day came, thousands of years ago: Atlas suddenly felt old and weak. The world felt heavy on his shoulders; he wanted to let go. He called out desperately for more than a week. But...

Books. (Off the Shelf).
November 1, 2002... Cultural Atlas of India by Gordon Johnson (Facts On File, 1996) includes a wealth of colorful illustrations and one- to two-page special features on such topics as sacred architecture, natural history painting, and Indian dress. With its great...

On the net. (Off the Shelf).
November 1, 2002... For an excellent site on Gupta history with many photos, maps, and links to related sites, go to: 222.historyteacher.net/GlobalHistory-1/WebLinks-Gupta%20Empire.htm For more information about the Ajanta and Ellora caves with many links...

Cobblestone resources. (Off the Shelf).
November 1, 2002... Materials that complement this theme's topic, "India's Gupta Dynasty," and ate available from Cobblestone Publishing include: CALLIOPE "Lost Cities" (May/June 1991), "The Treasures of Mohenjo-Daro," pages 8-9 CALLIOPE "Hinduism"...

A flourishing economy.
November 1, 2002... Trade and commerce flourished as a result of political unity under the Guptas. Military conquests by Samudra Gupta and his son added vast amounts of land to the empire and increased the degree of prosperity and security enjoyed by their...

The Gupta legacy. (From Past to Present).
November 1, 2002... Chandra Gupta II continued his father's military program and through conquests extended the empire's borders to the west, northwest, and east. His son, Kumara Gupta, began his 40-year reign in A.D. 413. He organized the vast empire's...