433:"Shortly afterwards, I began to get threats from unidentified callers asking me not to go ahead with the publication. Undeterred by all this Matrix Books, a new enterprising publishing house based in Delhi, mustered enough courage to publish the book promptly in the first week of August 2001. But some right-wing politicians and groups of religious fanatics, without reading a single page, termed it ‘blasphemous’, demanded my arrest and succeeded in obtaining a court order restraining the circulation of the book, and a self-appointed custodian of ‘Hinduism’ even sentenced me to death. The book was therefore published abroad by
411:, he alleged that cow formed part of the diet in ancient India. Cattle, including cows, were neither inviolable nor as revered in ancient times as they were later. Quoting from the Vedas and the Upanishads, he alleged that cattle were offered in sacrifice to various deities and that hardly any prayer was complete without animal sacrifice. He pointed out that during Ram's exile, Sita asked her husband for meat. And Ram obliged by getting her deer meat.
218:
resulting social and state setup. In some of his early works he studied revenue systems and linkages between economy and society in ancient India. His study was a breakaway from both imperialist historians who studied India from a colonial lens and nationalist historians who studied Indian history through folklore, wars, and royalties. In doing so, he was a group of historians who believed that post
44:
205:
director, state
Falaria control, Bihar health Services and died in 1990. His second brother died at very young age when he was in intermediate. His eldest sister Vimla Jha died in 2018. In 1975 he married RajRani Jha in Calcutta. Jha's eldest nephew Rajiv Jha works with CPI(M)'s central organ and is part of editorial team of Loklaher.
204:
Jha was born to
Devswaroop Jha and Gauri Devi. He was born at his maternal village Ganauli (Darbhanga District) Now it is in Madhubani District, Bihar. His paternal village was Haitibali. He had two brothers and one sister. His eldest brother Devendra Narayan Jha was doctor and retired as assistant
217:
specializing in ancient and medieval history. In a career of over three decades, he spoke against communal distortions of history. Through his works, he studied the socio-economic structures of early India and used India's ancient texts to draw linkages between culture and technology and the
299:
he made a case that beef was part of the early Indian diet and used also for medicinal purposes. He quoted religious and non-religious texts from ancient periods to dispel the prevailing belief that cow was holy and its meat not a part of historical Indian consumption. The book quoted
367:(2020) studied alcohol distillation and consumption in ancient India. He argued that there were more than 50 varieties of alcohol that were available and consumed by men and women of ancient India. He further quoted religious texts including the epics like
238:", and had claimed what he termed as Brahmanical intolerance since early India. He was credited with identifying inconsistencies in Indian history and his efforts to bring a contemporary relevance to ancient history.
177:
Jha completed his Senior
Secondary Schooling from Board of Secondary Certification, West Bengal with First Division. He did Intermediate Examination of Arts with first division and
422:
and Post-Vedic texts. Since Hindus consider the cow holy and deny the claims of beef consumption during Vedic period, the Hindu activist groups created controversy over his book.
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to argue that cattle were routinely offered in sacrifice to various ancient deities. He then argued that the sacred status afforded to cows was a much more recent development.
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356:, Jha responded that Shourie was distorting what he had said, and that Shourie's allegations of plagiarism are baseless. Jha also criticized Shourie's book
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India's nation building efforts hinged on a professional attempt at writing history. Jha had repeatedly taken a position against
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distortions of history including challenging popular beliefs of the sanctity of cow and Indian beef eating tradition.
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654:; a collection of critical essays by 20 specialists on medieval Indian society, politics, ideology and religion.
331:(320 CE to 550 CE) was the "golden age" of Indian history. He argued that the notion of a gilded age before the
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386:, at age 81. He had suffered a paralytic attack a few years earlier and had lost much of his hearing.
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and provided an ideological support to participants of the movement, but, served no purpose after.
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137:(1940 – 4 February 2021) was an Indian historian who studied and wrote on
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Jha discussed the events surrounding the publication in the introduction of the book
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Drink of immortality : essays on distillation and alcohol use in ancient India
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in which he outlined the practice of eating beef in ancient India as documented in
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a year later by right wing activists. The paper diverged in its findings from the
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He was a member of visiting faculty at the
Institute of Oriental Culture in the
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1316:"Prof D.N. Jha (1940-2021), a rare historian who wore his knowledge with ease"
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948:"Prof D.N. Jha (1940-2021), a rare historian who wore his knowledge with ease"
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676:"D N Jha was fearless in his evocation of pluralism, dissent and rationality"
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Drink of
Immortality: Essays on Distillation and Alcohol Use in Ancient India
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746:"Prof D N Jha: Iconoclast scholar who made ancient history contemporary"
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The Feudal Order: State, Society, and
Ideology in Early Medieval India
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1086:"'The cow was neither unslayable nor sacred in the Vedic period'"
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273:
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Ramjanmabhoomi-Baburi Masjid: A Historians’ Report to the Nation
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Ramjanmabhumi-Baburi Masjid: A Historians' Report to the Nation
810:
783:"D.N. Jha, a Doyen Among Indian Historians, Passes Away at 81"
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Society and
Ideology in India: Essays in Honour of Professor
587:
Against The Grain: Notes on
Identity, Intolerance and History
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He was an author of multiple history text books for India's
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to say that it was used in soups for intermittent fevers,
1059:"Cow Vigilantism: Politics of the Sacred and the Profane"
43:
459:
Economy and
Society in Early India: Issues and Paradigms
236:
tolerance is the very essence of 'Hinduism qua Hinduism'
243:
National Council of Educational Research and Training
213:
Jha was a professor at the history department of the
1331:"Holy Cow a Myth? An Indian Finds The Kick Is Real"
1004:"Eminent ancient history scholar DN Jha dies at 81"
670:
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327:He also challenged the notion that the age of the
260:In 1991, he wrote a paper, with other historians
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1084:MAHAPRASHASTA, AJOY ASHIRWAD (14 October 2015).
706:"Why the cow is worshipped in Hindutva politics"
665:
346:of distorting the history of the destruction of
165:(2004). Through his works he argued against the
1322:
917:"Eminent Historian D.N. Jha passes away at 81"
915:Mahaprashta, Ajoy Ashirwad (4 February 2021).
280:(1991) which he co-wrote with The mosque was
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414:Jha has received death threats over his book
312:, while the fat was used in the treatment of
1190:"Votes do not guide intellectuals: D N Jha"
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506:Holy cow: beef in Indian dietary traditions
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288:'s findings and was later dismissed by the
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42:
454:, Anupama Publications, ASIN: B0006E16DA.
350:in 12th century AD. In an article in the
1440:"Brahmanical Intolerance in Early India"
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847:"Brahmanical Intolerance in Early India"
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452:Studies in early Indian economic history
335:was a creation of historians during the
1261:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
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620:Feudal Social Formation in Early India
573:Brahmanical Intolerance in Early India
1531:Presidency University, Kolkata alumni
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1138:"How history was made up at Nalanda"
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639:(Munshiram Manoharlal, Delhi, 1996).
489:Ancient India: In Historical Outline
234:. He was critical of the view that "
155:Ancient India: In Historical Outline
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1366:Reddy, Sheela (17 September 2001).
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379:mentioning of alcohol consumption.
342:Jha was accused by BJP politician,
145:. He was a professor of history at
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1163:"Grist to the reactionary mill"
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972:Jha, Dwijendra Narayan (2004).
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382:Jha died on 4 February 2021 in
1511:21st-century Indian historians
1506:20th-century Indian historians
1136:Shourie, Arun (28 June 2014).
1110:SALAM, ZIYA US (23 May 2018).
978:. Verso. pp. preface:xi.
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531:Early India: A Concise History
286:Archaeological Survey of India
185:and then his MA in history at
163:Early India: A Concise History
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1:
1536:University of Calcutta alumni
1305:. London/New York: Verso 2002
1034:. People's Publishing House.
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474:Society and Ideology in India
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153:. Some of his books include
98:Presidency College, Calcutta
27:Indian historian (1940–2021)
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1418:"Tribute: Professor DN Jha"
1214:edited by D.N. Jha (2020).
1028:Sharma, Ram Sharan (1991).
10:
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224:Hindu nationalist ideology
189:where he was a student of
1370:. Outlook. Archived from
559:Rethinking Hindu Identity
363:His last published book,
297:The Myth of the Holy Cow,
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1301:Jha, Dwijendra Narayan.
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416:The Myth of the Holy Cow
409:The Myth of the Holy Cow
396:The Myth of the Holy Cow
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316:. He used text from the
181:(honours) in History at
159:The Myth of the Holy Cow
126:The Myth of the Holy Cow
1521:Patna University alumni
1368:"A Brahmin's Cow Tales"
886:"A Brahmin's Cow Tales"
337:Indian freedom movement
292:in 2019 as an opinion.
247:Indian History Congress
704:Roychowdhury, Adrija.
509:. Matrix Books. 2002.
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290:Supreme Court of India
183:University of Calcutta
1277:"What the gods drank"
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401:Further information:
135:Dwijendra Narayan Jha
36:Dwijendra Narayan Jha
18:Dwijendra Narayan Jha
545:Myth of the Holy Cow
365:Drink of Immortality
249:and a member of the
149:and a member of the
48:Jha in November 2012
1516:Historians of India
519:; paperback (2004)
255:University of Tokyo
1438:Jha, D.N. (2016).
1335:The New York Times
1318:. 5 February 2021.
1281:The Indian Express
1254:has generic name (
1142:The Indian Express
845:Jha, D.N. (2016).
750:The Indian Express
711:The Indian Express
680:The Indian Express
358:Eminent Historians
348:Nalanda University
295:In his 2001 book,
62:Darbhanga district
1526:People from Bihar
1227:978-93-90035-21-2
1194:Business Standard
1063:Open The Magazine
1041:978-81-7007-138-9
985:978-1-85984-424-3
752:. 5 February 2021
682:. 6 February 2021
567:978-1-84553-459-2
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16:(Redirected from
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373:Mahabharata
262:R.S. Sharma
228:communalism
194:R.S. Sharma
57:1 July 1940
1495:Categories
1378:18 October
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191:Professor
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115:Historian
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1464:24890281
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167:communal
157:(1997),
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390:Works
384:Delhi
377:Vedas
318:Vedas
83:Delhi
1452:ISSN
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1263:link
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