Book Description

This Is The First Monograph On Yasovarman Of Kanauj, Dealing Comprehensively With All Aspects Of His History And Career. It Also Critically Surveys The Obscure Political History Of Northern India And Gives A Vivid Account Of The Social And Cultural Life Of The Period. The Work For The First Time Treats At Length The Ancestry And Date Of Yasovarman, The Identification Of The King Of Gauda Killed By Him, The Date Of Yasovarman'S Battle With Lalitaditya And Also Most Tantalizing Problem Of The Successors Of The Kanauj King. And The Author Has Considerably Improved The Earlier Views On These Problems. Dr. Mishra Has Chosen His Hero About Whom So Little Is Known, And He Has Made A Very Good Use Of Rather Scanty Materials At His Disposal. He Has Very Ably Marshalled All Facts That Could Be Culled From All Available Direct And Indirect Sources Having The Slightest Bearing On The Career And Period Of Yasovarman'S Reign, Classified Them In Proper Order And Presented A Very Cogent Story In A Lucid And Persuasive Style. His Presentation Is Very Good, Documentation Very Creditable And Analysis Logical And Critical. His Interpretation Of The Famous Passage In The Gaudavaho (Allegedly Mentioning Lalitaditya'S Invasion Of Kanauj), And Fixing The Date Of (Yasovarman'S) Battle With Lalitaditya Deserves Careful Consideration (Extracts From The Report Of Dr. B.P. Shinha, Professor And Head Of The Deptt. Of Ancient Indian History, Patna University . The Author Is Able To Reconstruct The Course Of Events In Greater Detail Than Before, By A Careful Study Of Recently Published Inscriptional Evidence And From Literary Sources Which Hitherto Have Been Little Noticed In This Context. Thus He Produces A Very Well Reasoned Analysis Of The Subject Which Forms A Very Positive Contribution Of Knowledge. In Social Life, The Nature Of The Material Is Such That Important Original Points Could Not Be Expected, But The Author Makes A Number Of Small Positive Contributions Especially Regarding The Status Of Women And The Dress Of The Period (Extracts From The Report Of Dr. A.L. Basham, Prof. Of Asian Civilization, Australian National University, Canberra).