The Punjabis : The People, Their History, Culture and Enterprise (3 Vols-Set)

Contents: Vol. I. Perspectives on History and Culture of the Punjabis: 1. The region and the people. 2. The social revolution in ancient Panjab. 3. The era of foreign invasions and imperial movements. 4. The Punjab and the outbreak of 1857. 5. Contribution of the Punjab in the first World War. 6. Natural resources and population. 7. Beginnings of communal tension. 8. Ghadr, agrarian unrest and the firing at Jallianwala Bagh. 9. Social institutions.

Vol. II. Religion, Society and Culture of the Punjabis: 1. The general characteristics of the Punjabis. 2. Religion and religious movements. 3. Myth and mythology. 4. The religious beliefs. 5. Customs and traditions. 6. Manners and society. 7. The village life. 8. Fairs and festivals. 9. Folk music and dances. 10. Magic and religion. 11. Punjabi language and dialects. 12. Oral literature. 13. Education. 14. Other arts.

Vol. III. Punjabi Enterprise: 1. Punjabi enterprise. 2. Militarisation. 3. Extraction. 4. Production. 5. Cultural materialism and culturology. 6. Class and culture. 7. A martial species. 8. Organismic conceptions of culture. 9. Culture in the making.

“The great central watershed which constitutes eastern parts of Punjab has ever been the battleground of India. The great Aryan and Seythian swarms which in successive waves of migration left their arid plateaux for the fruitful plains of the land of the five rivers—from which Punjab takes its name—the conquering armies of Alexander, the peaceful Chinese pilgrims in search of the sacred scriptures, the Muhammaden invaders who came, driven by the lust of territory, to found one of the greatest Muhammaden empires the world has ever seen, the devastating hordes led successively by Tughlak, Timur, Nadir Shah and Ahmad Shah, the armies of Babar and of Humayun—all alike entered India across the wide plains of the Punjab.

This unique and rare study of the Punjabis provides a wealth of material which includes their historical and cultural traditions, the customs, rituals and superstitions, their religion, cults and caste arrangement, festivals and social institutions.

The Punjabis is the first authoritative and responsible book on the Punjabi people, and as such fills a colossal gap in documenting this glorious race. It will be welcomed not only by the scholars but also lay readers interested in the Punjabis.” (jacket)