Trübner's Oriental Series.
KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH, TRÜBNER & CO. LTD
DRYDEN HOUSE, GERRARD STREET, LONDON, W.
"A knowledge of the commonplace, at least, of Oriental literature, philosophy, and religion is as necessary to the general reader of the present day as an acquaintance with the Latin and Greek classics was a generation or so ago. Immense strides have been made within the present century in these branches of learning; Sanskrit has been brought within the range of accurate philology, and its invaluable ancient literature thoroughly investigated; the language and sacred books of the Zoroastrians have been laid bare; Egyptian, Assyrian, and other records of the remote past have been deciphered, and a group of scholars speak of still more recondite Accadian and Hittite monuments; but the results of all the scholarship that has been devoted to these subjects have been almost inaccessible to the public because they were contained for the most part in learned or expensive works, or scattered throughout the numbers of scientific periodicals. Messrs. Trübner & Co., in a spirit of enterprise which does them infinite credit, have determined to supply the constantly-increasing want, and to give in a popular, or, at least, a comprehensive form, all this mass of knowledge to the world."—Times.
The late Oriental scholar, Mr. Romesh C. Dutt, C.I.E., says:—
"I wish to say a word about this series, because I am in a special degree indebted to it. Professor Max Müller, who has, by his lifelong labours, done more than any living scholar to elucidate ancient Hindu literature and history, has now conceived the noble idea of enabling English readers to go to the fountain source, and consult Oriental works in a series of faithful translations. More than thirty volumes, translated from the Sanscrit, Chinese, Zend, Pahlair, Pàli, Arabic, &c., have already been published, and more volumes are expected. I take this opportunity to own my great indebtedness to the volumes of this series which relate to Indian History. I have freely quoted from them—allowing myself the liberty of a verbal alteration here and there; and I have seldom thought it necessary to consult these original Sanscrit works which have been translated in this faithful and valuable series."
In Two Volumes, post 8vo, cloth, pp. 426 and 460, price 25s. net.
ALBÊRÛNÎ'S INDIA.
An Account of the Religion, Philosophy, Literature, Geography, Chronology, Astronomy, Customs, Laws, and Astrology of India about a.d. 1030.
An English Edition, with Notes and Indices.
By Dr. EDWARD C. SACHAU,
Professor in the Royal University of Berlin, and Principal of the Seminary for Oriental Languages; Member of the Royal Academy of Berlin, and Corresponding Member of the Imperial Academy of Vienna Honorary Member of the Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, London, and of the American Oriental Society, Cambridge, U.S.A.
EXTRACT FROM PREFACE.
Albêrûnî, or, as his compatriots called him, Abû Raihân, was born a.d. 973, in the territory of modern Khiva, then called Khwârizm, or Chorasmia in antiquity. Early distinguishing himself in science and literature, he played a political part as councillor of the ruling prince of his native country of the Ma'mûni family.
In the opening of his book Albêrûnî gives an account of the circumstances which suggested to him the idea of writing the Ίνδικά. Once the conversation with a friend of his, else unknown, ran on the then existing literature on the history of religion and philosophy, its merits and demerits. When, in particular, the literature on the belief of the Hindus came to be criticised, Albêrûnî maintained that all of it was second-hand and thoroughly uncritical. To verify the matter, his friend once more examines the books in question, which results in his agreeing with our author, and his asking him to fill up this gap in the Arabic literature of the time. The book he has produced is not a polemical one. He will not convert the Hindus, nor lend a direct help to missionary zealots. He will simply describe Hinduism, without identifying himself with it. He takes care to inform the reader that he is not responsible for whatsoever repugnant detail he has to relate, but the Hindus themselves. He gives a repertory of information on Indian subjects, destined for the use of those who lived in peaceable intercourse with them, and wished to have an insight into their mode and world of thought.
The author has nothing in common with the Muhammadan Ghâzî who wanted to convert the Hindus or to kill them, and his book scarcely reminds the reader of the incessant war between Islam and India, during which it had been prepared, and by which the possibility of writing such a book had first been given. It is like a magic island of quiet, impartial research in the midst of a world of clashing swords, burning towns, and plundered temples. The object which the author had in view, and never for a moment lost sight of, was to afford the necessary information and training to "any one (in Islam) who wants to converse with the Hindus, and to discuss with them questions of religion, science, or literature, on the very basis of their own civilisation."
In general, it is the method of our author not to speak himself, but to let the Hindus speak, giving extensive quotations from their classical authors. He presents a picture of Indian civilisation as painted by the Hindus themselves. Many chapters, not all, open with a short characteristic introduction of a general nature. The body of most chapters consists of three parts. The first is a précis of the question, as the author understands it.
The second part brings forward the doctrines of the Hindus, quotations from Sanskrit books in the chapters on religion, philosophy, astronomy, and astrology, and other kinds of information which had been communicated to him by word of mouth, or things which he had himself observed in the chapters on literature, historic chronology, geography, law, manners, and customs. In the third part he does the same as Megasthenes had already done; he tries to bring the sometimes very exotic subject nearer to the understanding of his readers by comparing it with the theories of ancient Greece, and by other comparisons. In the disposition of every single chapter, as well as in the sequence of the chapters, a perspicuous, well-considered plan is apparent. There is no patchwork nor anything superfluous, and the words fit to the subject as close as possible.
He does not blindly accept the traditions of former ages; he wants to understand and to criticise them. He wants to sift the wheat from the chaff, and he will discard everything that militates against the laws of nature and of reason.
He criticises manuscript tradition like a modern philologist. He sometimes supposes the text to be corrupt, and inquires into the cause of the corruption; he discusses various readings, and proposes emendations. He guesses at lacunæ, criticises different translations, and complains of the carelessness and ignorance of the copyists.
This valuable and interesting work has been out of print for many years, and second-hand copies have been very difficult to obtain even at a high premium. At the urgent request of many scholars and students both in England and India, the publishers have decided to issue the present reprint at a cheaper price than the original edition.
Post 8vo, pp. viii. and 270, cloth, price 6s.
INDIAN POETRY:
Containing "The Indian Song of Songs."
From the Sanskrit of the "Gita Govinda" of Jayadeva; Two Books from "The Iliad of India" (Mahȧbhârata), "Proverbial Wisdom" from the Shlokas of the Hitopadesa, and other Oriental Poems.
By Sir EDWIN ARNOLD, M.A., K.C.I.E., C.S.I., &c., &c.
CONTENTS.
The Indian Song of Songs—
Introduction.
Hymn to Vishnu.
Sarga the First—The Sports of Krishna.
Sarga the Second—The Penitence of Krishna.
Sarga the Third—Krishna Troubled.
Sarga the Fourth—Krishna Cheered.
Sarga the Fifth—The Longings of Krishna.
Sarga the Sixth—Krishna made Bolder.
Sarga the Seventh—Krishna supposed False.
Sarga the Eighth—The Rebuking of Krishna.
Sarga the Ninth—The End of Krishna's Trial.
Sarga the Tenth—Krishna in Paradise.
Sarga the Eleventh—The Union of Radha and Krishna.
Miscellaneous Oriental Poems—
The Rajpoot Wife.
King Saladin.
The Caliph's Draught.
Hindoo Funeral Song.
Song of the Serpent Charmers.
Song of the Flour-Mill.
Taza ba Taza.
The Mussulman Paradise.
Dedication of a Poem from the Sanskrit.
The Rajah's Ride.
Two Books from "The Iliad of India."
The Great Journey.
The Entry into Heaven.
The Night of Slaughter.
The Morning Prayer.
Proverbial Wisdom from the Shlokas of the Hitopadesa.
OPINIONS OF THE PRESS.
"In this new volume Sir Edwin Arnold does good service by illustrating, through the medium of his musical English melodies, the power of Indian poetry to stir European emotions. 'The Indian Song of Songs' is not unknown to scholars. Sir Edwin Arnold will have introduced it among popular English poems."—Times.
"Complete mastery of the English language, combined with genuine poetic fervour, has enabled the translator of 'The Indian Song of Songs' to spread before his readers a feast of dulcet sounds and lyrical language. Music seems to flow from his pen as naturally as rain from the cloud or song from the throat of the thrush."—Morning Post.
"The poem abounds with imagery of Eastern luxuriousness and sensuousness; the air seems laden with the spicy odours of the tropics, and the verse has a richness and a melody sufficient to captivate the senses of the dullest."—Standard.
Third Edition. Post 8vo, pp. viii.-464, cloth, price 16s.
THE SANKHYA APHORISMS OF KAPILA,
With Illustrative Extracts from the Commentaries.
Translated by J. R. BALLANTYNE, LL.D., late Principal of the Benares College.
Edited by FITZEDWARD HALL.
"The work displays a vast expenditure of labour and scholarship, for which students of Hindoo philosophy have every reason to be grateful to Dr. Hall and the publishers."—Calcutta Review.
Fourth Edition. Post 8vo, cloth, pp. xxiv.-310, price 16s.
THE RELIGIONS OF INDIA.
By A. BARTH,
Member of the Société Asiatique of Paris.
Authorised translation by Rev. J. Wood, Edin.
India has not only preserved for us in her Vedas the most ancient and complete documents for the study of the old religious beliefs founded on nature-worship, which, in an extremely remote past, were common to all the branches of the Indo-European family; she is also the only country where these beliefs, in spite of many changes both in form and fortune, continue to subsist up to the present time. Whilst everywhere else they have been either as good as extinguished by monotheistic religions of foreign origin, in some instances without leaving behind them a single direct and authentic trace of their presence, or abruptly cut short in their evolution and forced to survive within the barriers, henceforth immovable, of a petty Church, as in the case of Parseeism,—in India alone they present up to this time, as a rich and varied literature attests, a continuous, self-determined development, in the course of which, instead of contracting, they have continued to enlarge their borders. It is owing in a great measure to this extraordinary longevity that such an interest attaches to the separate and independent study of the Hindu religions, irrespective altogether of the estimate we may form of their dogmatic or practical worth. Nowhere else do we meet with circumstances, on the whole, so favourable for the study of the successive transformations and destiny, so to speak, of a polytheistic idea of the universe.
Post 8vo, cloth. pp. cviii.-242 and viii.-370. Two volumes, price 24s.
SI-YU-KI.
BUDDHIST RECORDS OF THE WESTERN WORLD.
Translated from the Chinese of Huien Tsiang (a.d. 629).
By SAMUEL BEAL, B.A. (Trin. Col., Camb.), R.N. (Retired Chaplain and N.I.), Professor of Chinese, University College, London; Rector of Wark, Northumberland, &c.
The progress which has been made in our knowledge of Northern Buddhism during the last few years is due very considerably to the discovery of the Buddhist literature of China. This literature (now well known to us through the catalogues already published) contains, amongst other valuable works, the records of the travels of various Chinese Buddhist pilgrims who visited India during the early centuries of our era. These records embody the testimony of independent eyewitnesses as to the facts related in them, and having been faithfully preserved and allotted a place in the collection of the sacred book of the country, their evidence is entirely trustworthy.
It would be impossible to mention seriatim the various points of interest in these works, as they refer to the geography, history, manners, and religion of the people of India. The reader who looks into the pages of this book will find ample material for study on all these questions. But there is one particular that gives a more than usual interest to the records under notice, and that is the evident sincerity and enthusiasm of the travellers themselves. Never did more devoted pilgrims leave their native country to encounter the perils of travel in foreign and distant lands; never did disciples more ardently desire to gaze on the sacred vestiges of their religion; never did men endure greater sufferings by desert, mountain, and sea than these simple-minded, earnest Buddhist priests. And that such courage, religious devotion, and power of endurance should be exhibited by men so sluggish, as we think, in their very nature as the Chinese, this is very surprising, and may perhaps arouse some consideration.
In Two Volumes, post 8vo, pp. xii.-336 and x.-352, cloth, price 21s.
MEDIÆVAL RESEARCHES FROM EASTERN ASIATIC SOURCES.
Fragments Towards the Knowledge of the Geography and History of Central and Western Asia from the Thirteenth to the Seventeenth Century.
By E. BRETSCHNEIDER, M.D.,
Formerly Physician of the Russian Legation at Pekin.
EXTRACT FROM PREFACE
The subjects dealt with in the two volumes form a carefully revised and improved edition of three essays gathered into one collection, viz.:—
1. Notes on Chinese Mediæval Travellers to the West, 1875.
2. Notices of the Mediæval Geography and History of Central and Western Asia, 1876.
3. Chinese Intercourse with the Countries of Central and Western Asia during the Fifteenth Century, 1877.
Since the first publication of these papers, large additions have been made to the stock of our knowledge regarding the regions of Central Asia which, previously to the Russian occupation of these tracts, had been inaccessible to scientific exploration. Thus new light has been thrown upon many interesting geographical questions suggested by the narratives of mediæval travellers, or hitherto based only upon more modern but vague and dubious Chinese accounts.
To bring the new edition of those former researches up to the present advanced state of knowledge on the subject, I had to study a vast amount of literature, written for the greater part in Russian, which has come to light, on Central Asia, and was obliged to read through a great number of works and papers, some of them published in Russian Turkestan, and, therefore, difficult to obtain. In general, all reading accessible to me bearing on the subject has been made use of for the elucidation of mediæval geographical questions arising out of my researches.
Post 8vo, pp. xii.-164, cloth, price 10s. 6d.
THE HISTORY OF ESARHADDON
(Son of Sennacherib),
KING OF ASSYRIA, B.C. 681-668.
Translated from the Cuneiform Inscriptions upon Cylinders and Tablets in the British Museum Collection; together with a Grammatical Analysis of each Word, Explanations of the Ideographs by Extracts from the Bi-Lingual Syllabaries, and List of Eponyms, &c.
By E. A. WALLIS BUDGE, M.A., Litt.D., D.Lit.,
Keeper of the Egyptian and Assyrian Antiquities in the British Museum.
"Students of scriptural archæology will also appreciate the 'History of Esarhaddon.'"—Times.
"There is much to attract the scholar in this volume. It does not pretend to popularise studies which are yet in their infancy. Its primary object is to translate, but it does not assume to be more than tentative, and it offers both to the professed Assyriologist and to the ordinary non-Assyriological Semitic scholar the means of controlling its results."—Academy.
"Mr. Budge's book is, of course, mainly addressed to Assyrian scholars and students. They are not, it is to be feared, a very numerous class. But the more thanks are due to him on that account for the way in which he has acquitted himself in his laborious task."—Tablet.
Post 8vo, pp. xlviii.-398, cloth, price 12s.
THE ORDINANCES OF MANU.
Translated from the Sanskrit, with an Introduction.
By the late A. C. BURNELL, Ph.D., C.I.E.
Completed and Edited by E. W. HOPKINS, Ph.D., of Columbia College, N.Y.
"This work is full of interest; while for the student of sociology and the science of religion it is full of importance. It is a great boon to get so notable a work in so accessible a form, admirably edited, and completely translated."—Scotsman.
"Few men were more competent than Burnell to give us a really good translation of this well-known law book, first rendered into English by Sir William Jones. Burnell was not only an independent Sanskrit scholar, but an experienced lawyer, and he joined to these two important qualifications the rare faculty of being able to express his thoughts in clear and trenchant English.... We ought to feel very grateful to Dr. Hopkins for having given us all that could be published of the translation left by Burnell."—F. Max Müller in the Academy.
Third Edition. Post 8vo, cloth, pp. vi.-216, price 6s.
THE BHAGAVAD GITA; or, THE SACRED LAY.
A SANSKRIT PHILOSOPHICAL POEM.
Translated, with Notes,
By JOHN DAVIES, M.A. (Cantab.)
Member of the Royal Asiatic Society, of the Cambridge Philological
Society, &c., and (sometime) Rector of Walsoken, Norfolk.
I. Introduction.
II. Translation.
III. Appendix.
(i) On the date at which the Bhagavad Gītā was probably written, and on the theory that it was written under an influence derived from a knowledge of Christian doctrines.
(ii) The traditional line of descent of the Lunar Dynasty.
(iii) Collation of two MSS. with the Bonn edition of the Bhagavad Gītā, and the readings of other editions and MSS.
In preparing this translation of the Bhagavad Gītā, the author had before him the Greek translation of Galanos, and the Italian version of Stanislao Gatti, both supplied by Dr. Reinhold Rost. The author also consulted the French version of Burnouf, the Latin version of Lassen, and the English versions of Mr. Thomson and K. T. Telang. The notes of Lassen have given valuable aid, as well as a paper on the Bhagavad Gītā, read before the "Akademie der Weissenschaften" of Berlin in 1826 by W. van Humboldt, which contained a scholarly review of the doctrines contained in the poem. The author has also consulted a MS. copy of the Commentary on the Bhagavad Gītā, written by Śrīdhara, and, by the kindness of Dr. Rost, another commentary, attributed to Śankara, but written by Śankara Ananda Saraswati (quot. at Ananda), and called Tātparya Bodhinī.
Second Edition. Post 8vo, cloth, pp. viii.-152, price 6s.
HINDU PHILOSOPHY.
The SĀNKHYA KĀRIKĀ OF ĪŚWARA KRISHNA.
An Exposition of the System of Kapila, with an Appendix on the Nyāya and Vaiśeshika Systems.
By JOHN DAVIES, M.A. (Cantab.)
Member of the Royal Asiatic Society, of the Cambridge Philological
Society, &c., and (sometime) Rector of Walsoken, Norfolk.
EXTRACT FROM PREFACE.
I wish to present to my readers the philosophy of Kapila as it has been set forth by his Indian exponent, Īśwara Krishna. The system of Kapila, called the Sānkhya or Rationalistic, in its original form, and in its theistic development by Patarijali, contains nearly all that India has produced in the department of pure philosophy. Other systems, though classed as philosophic, are mainly devoted to logic and physical science, or to an exposition of the Vedas.
The system of Kapila may be said to have only an historical value, but on this account alone it is interesting as a chapter in the history of the human mind. It is the earliest attempt on record to give an answer, from reason alone, to the mysterious questions which arise in every thoughtful mind about the origin of the world, the nature and relations of man, and his future destiny. It is interesting also and instructive to note how often the human mind moves in a circle. The latest German philosophy, the system of Schopenhauer and Von Hartmann, is mainly a reproduction of the philosophic system of Kapila in its materialistic part, presented in a more elaborate form, but on the same fundamental lines. In this respect the human intellect has gone over the same ground that it occupied more than two thousand years ago, but on a more important question it has taken a step in retreat. Kapila recognised fully the existence of a soul in man, forming indeed his proper nature—the absolute ego of Fichte—distinct from matter and immortal; but our latest philosophy, both here and in Germany, can see in man only a highly developed physical organisation. "All external things," says Kapila, "were formed that the soul might know itself and be free." "The study of psychology is vain," says Schopenhauer, "for there is no Psyche."
Post 8vo, pp. 432, cloth, price 16s.
A CLASSICAL DICTIONARY OF HINDU MYTHOLOGY AND RELIGION, GEOGRAPHY, HISTORY, AND LITERATURE.
By JOHN DOWSON, M.R.A.S., Late Professor of Hindustani, Staff College.
"This not only forms an indispensable book of reference to students of Indian literature, but is also of great general interest, as it gives in a concise and easily accessible form all that need be known about the personages of Hindu mythology whose names are so familiar, but of whom so little is known outside the limited circle of savants."—Times.
"It is no slight gain when such subjects are treated fairly and fully in a moderate space; and we need only add that the few wants which we may hope to see supplied in new editions detract but little from the general excellence of Mr. Dowson's work."—Saturday Review.
Revised Edition in Two Volumes, post 8vo, pp. xxx.-390; xiv.-364, cloth, price 21s.
A HISTORY OF CIVILISATION IN ANCIENT INDIA.
Based on Sanskrit Literature,
By ROMESH CHUNDER DUTT, C.I.E.
Of the Indian Civil Service, and of the Middle Temple, Barrister-at-Law, Member of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, and of the Asiatic Society of Bengal.
VOL. I.—B.C. 2000 TO 320; VOL. II.—B.C. 320—A.D. 1000.
EXTRACT FROM PREFACE.
The method on which this work has been written is very simple. My principal object has been to furnish the general reader with a practical and handy work on the Ancient History of India—not to compose an elaborate work of discussions on Indian Antiquities. To study clearness and conciseness on a subject like this was not, however, an easy task. Every chapter in the present work deals with matters about which long researches have been made, and various opinions have been recorded. It would have afforded some satisfaction to me to have given the reader the history of every controversy, the account of every antiquarian discovery, and the pros and cons of every opinion advanced. But I could not yield to this temptation without increasing the work to three or four times its present humble size, and thus sacrificing the very object with which it is written. To carry out my primary object I have avoided every needless discussion, and I have tried to explain as clearly, concisely, and distinctly as I was able each succeeding phase of Hindu civilisation and Hindu life in ancient times.
But, while conciseness has been the main object of the present work, I have also endeavoured to tell my story so that it may leave some distinct memories on my readers after they have closed the work. For this reason, I have avoided details as far as possible, and tried to develop, fully and clearly, the leading facts and features of each succeeding age. Repetition has not been avoided where such repetition seemed necessary to impress on my readers the cardinal facts—the salient features of the story of Hindu civilisation.
"Mr. Dutt has attempted to popularise learned researches, and has undertaken a patriotic work, and in many respects none could he better prepared for the task than he.... As far as possible he allows the original texts to speak for themselves; his book is thus filled with extracts selected and translated with care; and the extracts are connected together by analyses and résumés in which we always find what is necessary, and seldom what is superfluous. He has written with enthusiasm, in a language clear and correct, and without that needless display of erudition which tires more than it instructs. On the whole I know of no work which enables one better to enter into the spirit of ancient Indian thought, or which is more fascinating reading."—M. Barth, in Revue Critique, Paris. (Translated.)
In One Volume, post 8vo, cloth, pp. xvi.-224, price 7s. 6d.
LAYS OF ANCIENT INDIA.
Selections from Indian Poetry rendered into English Verse.
By ROMESH CHUNDER DUTT, C.I.E.
Barrister-at-Law, and of the Indian Civil Service; Member of the Royal Asiatic Society, and of the Asiatic Society of Bengal.
Author of "A History of Civilisation in Ancient India," &c.
EXTRACT FROM PREFACE.
The time has come for placing before English readers a carefully prepared book of selections from the entire range of Ancient Indian Poetry. Such a book of selections should convey something not only of the beauty of Indian poetry in general, but also of the distinctive features of the poetry of each special period—something of the freshness and simplicity of the Vedic Hymns, the sublime and lofty thought of the Upanishads, the unsurpassed beauty of Buddhist precepts, and the incomparable richness and imagery of the later or classical Sanscrit poetry. And it seems to me that such a book, comprising specimens from the literature of successive periods, is likely to give the English reader a general bird's-eye view of Indian poetry, Indian thought, and Indian religion.
Revised Edition. Post 8vo, pp. 276, cloth, price 7s. 6d.
RELIGION IN CHINA.
By JOSEPH EDKINS, D.D., Peking.
Containing a Brief Account of the Three Religions of the Chinese, with Observations on the Prospects of Christian Conversion amongst that People.
"Dr. Edkins has been most careful in noting the varied and often complex phases of opinion, so as to give an account of considerable value of the subject."—Scotsman.
"As a missionary, it has been part of Dr. Edkins' duty to study the existing religions in China, and his long residence in the country has enabled him to acquire an intimate knowledge of them as they at present exist."—Saturday Review.
"Dr. Edkins' valuable work, of which this is a second and revised edition, has, from the time that it was published, been the standard authority upon the subject of which it treats."—Nonconformist.
"Dr. Edkins ... may now be fairly regarded as among the first authorities on Chinese religion and language."—British Quarterly Review.
New and Revised Edition. Post 8vo, pp. xxiv.-420, cloth, price 18s.
CHINESE BUDDHISM.
A VOLUME OF SKETCHES, HISTORICAL AND CRITICAL.
By J. EDKINS, D.D.
Author of "China's Place in Philology," "Religion in China," &c., &c.
"It contains a vast deal of important information on the subject, such as is only to be gained by long-continued study on the spot."—Athenæum.
"Upon the whole, we know of no work comparable to it for the extent of its original research, and the simplicity with which this complicated system of philosophy, religion, literature, and ritual is set forth."—British Quarterly Review.
"The whole volume is replete with learning.... It deserves most careful study from all interested in the history of the religions of the world, and expressly of those who are concerned in the propagation of Christianity. Dr. Edkins notices in terms of just condemnation the exaggerated praise bestowed upon Buddhism by recent English writers."—Record.
Third Edition. Post 8vo, cloth, pp. xxiv.-268, price 9s.
THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE UPANISHADS AND ANCIENT INDIAN METAPHYSICS.
As exhibited in a series of Articles contributed to the Calcutta Review.
By ARCHIBALD EDWARD GOUGH, M.A., Lincoln College, Oxford; Principal of the Calcutta Madrasa.
EXTRACT FROM PREFACE.
Those interested in the general history of philosophy will find in it an account of a very early attempt, on the part of thinkers of a rude age and race, to form a cosmological theory. The real movement of philosophic thought begins, it is true, not in India, but in Ionia; but some degree of interest may still be expected to attach to the procedure of the ancient Indian cosmologists. The Upanishads are so many 'songs before sunrise'—spontaneous effusions of awakening reflection, half poetical, half metaphysical—that precede the conscious and methodical labour of the long succession of thinkers to construct a thoroughly intelligible conception of the sum of things. For the general reader, then, these pages may supply in detail, and in the terms of the Sanskrit texts themselves, a treatment of the topics slightly sketched in the third chapter of Archer Butler's first series of 'Lectures on the History of Ancient Philosophy.' The Upanishads exhibit the prehistoric view of things in a naīvely poetical expression, and, at the same time, in its coarsest form. Any translations will be found to include the whole of the Muṇḍaka, Kaṭha, Śvetāśvatara, and Māṇḍūkya Upanishads, the greater part of the Taittirīya and Bṛihadāroṇyaka, and portions of the Chhāndogya and Kena, together with extracts from the works of the Indian schoolmen.
Third Edition. Post 8vo, cloth, pp. xvi.-428, price 16s.
ESSAYS ON THE SACRED LANGUAGE, WRITINGS, AND RELIGION OF THE PARSIS.
By MARTIN HAUG, Ph.D.,
Late of the Universities of Tübingen, Göttingen, and Bonn; Superintendent of Sanskrit Studies, and Professor of Sanskrit in the Poona College.
Edited and Enlarged by Dr. E. W. WEST.
To which is added a Biographical Memoir of the late Dr. Haug
by Prof. E. P. Evans.
I. History of the Researches into the Sacred Writings and Religion of the Parsis, from the Earliest Times down to the Present.
II. Languages of the Parsi Scriptures.
III. The Zend-Avesta, or the Scripture of the Parsis.
IV. The Zoroastrian Religion, as to its Origin and Development.
"'Essays on the Sacred Language, Writings, and Religion of the Parsis,' by the late Dr. Martin Haug, edited by Dr. E. W. West. The author intended, on his return from India, to expand the materials contained in this work into a comprehensive account of the Zoroastrian religion, but the design was frustrated by his untimely death. We have, however, in a concise and readable form, a history of the researches into the sacred writings and religion of the Parsis from the earliest times down to the present—a dissertation on the languages of the Parsi Scriptures, a translation of the Zend-Avesta, or the Scripture of the Parsis, and a dissertation on the Zoroastrian religion, with especial reference to its origin and development."—Times.
Post 8vo, pp. viii. and 346, cloth, price 10s. 6d.
MANAVA-DHARMA-CASTRA:
THE CODE OF MANU.
Original Sanskrit Text, with Critical Notes.
By J. JOLLY, Ph.D.,
Professor of Sanskrit in the University of Wurzburg; late Tagore Professor of Law in the University of Calcutta.
The date assigned by Sir William Jones to this Code—the well-known Great Law Book of the Hindus—is 1250-500 B.C., although the rules and precepts contained in it had probably existed as tradition for countless ages before. There has been no reliable edition of the Text for Students for many years past, and it is believed, therefore, that Prof. Jolly's work will supply a want long felt.
Second Edition. Post 8vo, pp. xii.-512, cloth, price 16s.
FOLK-TALES OF KASHMIR.
By the Rev. J. HINTON KNOWLES, F.R.G.S., M.R.A.S., &c. (C.M.S.) Missionary to the Kashmirs.
EXTRACT FROM PREFACE.
Kashmir as a field of folk-lore literature is, perhaps, not surpassed in fertility by any other country in the world; and yet, while every year witnesses the publication of books on the subject from Bengal, Bombay, Madras, Porjáb, and other parts, this field, ripe for the harvest, has remained almost ungleaned. No doubt its isolated position and the difficulty of its language have had something to do with this apparent neglect.
No apology will be needed for the presentation of this book to the public. The great interest and importance attaching to the folk-tales of any people is manifest from the great attention devoted to them by many learned writers and others. Concerning the style and manner of the book, however, I would ask my readers to be lenient with me. I have sought not so much to present these tales in a purely literary form as to give them in a fair translation, and most of the work was done by lamp-light after an ordinary amount of missionary work during the day. However, such as it is, I sincerely hope it will prove a real contribution towards that increasing stock of folk-lore which is doing so much to clear away the clouds that envelop much of the practices, ideas, and beliefs which make up the daily life of the natives of our great dependencies, control their feelings, and underlie many of their actions.
Post 8vo, pp. ix.-281, cloth, price 10s. 6d.
THE SARVA-DARSANA-SAMGRAHA;
Or, REVIEW OF THE DIFFERENT SYSTEMS OF HINDU PHILOSOPHY.
By MADHAVA ACHARYA.
Translated by E. B. Cowell, M.A., Professor of Sanskrit in the University of Cambridge, and A. E. Gough, M.A., Professor of Philosophy in the Presidency College, Calcutta.
This work is an interesting specimen of Hindu critical ability. The author successively passes in review the sixteen philosophical systems current in the fourteenth century in the South of India; and he gives what appears to him to be their most important tenets.
"The translation is trustworthy throughout. A protracted sojourn in India, where there is a living tradition, has familiarised the translators with Indian thought."—Athenæum.
Five Volumes, post 8vo, cloth, price 21s. each.
ORIGINAL SANSKRIT TEXTS
On the Origin and History of the People of India: Their Religion and Institutions.
Collected, Translated, and Illustrated.
By J. MUIR, C.I.E., D.C.L., LL.D., Ph.D.
Third Edition, Re-written, and greatly Enlarged.
Vol. I.—Mythical and Legendary Accounts of the Origin of Caste, with an Inquiry into its Existence in the Vedic Age.
Vol. II.—Inquiry whether the Hindus are of Trans-Himalayan Origin, and akin to the Western Branches of the Indo-European Race.
Vol. III.—The Vedas: Opinions of their Authors and of later Indian Writers on their Origin, Inspiration, and Authority. (Out of print.)
Vol. IV.—Comparison of the Vedic with the later representations of the principal Indian Deities.
Vol. V.—Contributions to a knowledge of the Cosmogony, Mythology, Religious Ideas, Life, and Manners of the Indians in the Vedic Age.
Post 8vo, pp. xliv.-376, cloth, price 14s.
METRICAL TRANSLATIONS FROM SANSKRIT WRITERS.
With an Introduction, many Prose Versions, and Parallel Passages from Classical Authors.
By J. MUIR, C.I.E., D.C.L., LL.D., Ph.D.
"... An agreeable introduction to Hindu poetry."—Times.
"... A volume which maybe taken as a fair illustration alike of the religious and moral sentiments and of the legendary lore of the best Sanskrit writers."—Edinburgh Daily Review.
Post 8vo, pp. lxv.-368, cloth, price 14s.
TIBETAN TALES DERIVED FROM INDIAN SOURCES.
Translated from the Tibetan of the Kah-Gyur.
By F. ANTON VON SCHIEFNER.
Done into English from the German, with an Introduction,
By W. R. S. RALSTON, M.A.
"Mr. Ralston, whose name is so familiar to all lovers of Russian folk-lore, has supplied some interesting Western analogies and parallels, drawn, for the most part, from Slavonic sources, to the Eastern folk-tales, culled from the Kahgyur, one of the divisions of the Tibetan sacred books."—Academy.
"The translation ... could scarcely have fallen into better hands. An Introduction ... gives the leading facts in the lives of those scholars who have given their attention to gaining a knowledge of the Tibetan literature and language."—Calcutta Review.
"Ought to interest all who care for the East, for amusing stories, or for comparative folk-lore."—Pall Mall Gazette.
Post 8vo, pp. xvi.-224, cloth, price 9s.
UDÂNAVARGA.
A Collection of Verses from the Buddhist Canon.
Compiled by DHARMATRÂTA.
Being the NORTHERN BUDDHIST VERSION of DHAMMAPADA.
Translated from the Tibetan of Bkah-hgyur, with Notes, and Extracts from the Commentary of Pradjnavarman,
By W. WOODVILLE ROCKHILL.
"Mr. Rockhill's present work is the first from which assistance will be gained for a more accurate understanding of the Pali text; it is, in fact, as yet the only term of comparison available to us. The 'Udauavarga,' the Thibetan version, was originally discovered by the late M. Schiefner, who published the Tibetan text, and had intended adding a translation, an intention frustrated by his death, but which has been carried out by Mr. Rockhill.... Mr. Rockhill may be congratulated for having well accomplished a difficult task."—Saturday Review.
Fifth Edition. Post 8vo, pp. xv.-250, cloth, price 7s. 6d.
OUTLINES OF THE HISTORY OF RELIGION TO THE SPREAD OF THE UNIVERSAL RELIGIONS.
By C. P. TIELE,
Doctor of Theology, Professor of the History of Religions in the University of Leyden.
Translated from the Dutch by J. Estlin Carpenter, M.A.
"Few books of its size contain the result of so much wide thinking, able and laborious study, or enable the reader to gain a better bird's-eye view of the latest results of investigations into the religious history of nations. As Professor Tiele modestly says, 'In this little book are outlines—pencil sketches, I might say—nothing more.' But there are some men whose sketches from a thumb-nail are of far more worth than an enormous canvas covered with the crude painting of others, and it is easy to see that these pages, full of information, these sentences, cut and perhaps also dry, short and clear, condense the fruits of long and thorough research."—Scotsman.
Four Volumes Ready. Volume V. in the Press. Post 8vo, cloth, price 10s. 6d. each.
THE SHÁHNÁMA OF FIRDAUSÍ.
Done into English by
ARTHUR GEORGE WARNER, M.A.,
and
EDMOND WARNER, B.A.
February 25th of the present year (1910) is the nine hundredth anniversary of the completion of the Sháhnamá. Its author, the Persian poet Firdausí, spent over thirty laborious years in its composition, only to experience, when the task had been achieved, a heart-breaking disappointment well worthy of inclusion in any record of the calamities of authors. His work has survived the test of time, and by general consent is accounted to be one of the few great epics of the world. Geographically and in some other respects it may be said to stand half-way between the Epics of Europe and those of India. In its own land it has no peer, while in construction and subject-matter it is unique. Other Epics centre round some heroic character or incident to which all else is subservient. In the Sháhnamá there is no lack either of heroes or of incidents, but its real hero is the ancient Persian people, and its theme their whole surviving legendary history from the days of the First Man to the death of the last Sháh in the middle of the seventeenth century of our Era. It is the glory of the Persian race that they alone among all nations possess such a record, based as it is on their own traditions and set forth in the words of their greatest poet. In another sense, too, the Sháhnamá is unique. The author of the other great Epics tell us little or nothing of their own personalities or of their sources of information. Their works are fairy palaces suspended in mid air; we see the result, but know not how it was achieved. The author of the Sháhnamá takes us into his confidence from the first, so that in reading it we are let into the secret of epic-making, and can apply the knowledge thus gained to solve the problem of the construction of its great congeners. To the student of comparative mythology and folk-lore, to the lover of historic romance or romantic history, and to all that are fond of tales of high achievements and the gests of heroes, the Sháhnamá is a storehouse of rich and abundant material. To set forth a complete presentment of it with the needful notes and elucidations is the object of the present translation, made from two of the best printed texts of the original—that of Vullers and Landauer, and that of Turner Macan.
Third Edition. Post 8vo, cloth, pp. xxiv.-360, price 10s. 6d.
THE HISTORY OF INDIAN LITERATURE.
By ALBRECHT WEBER.
Translated from the Second German Edition by John Mann, M.A., and Théodor Zachariae, Ph.D., with the sanction of the Author.
Dr. Buhler, Inspector of Schools in India, writes:—"When I was Professor of Oriental Languages in Elphinstone College, I frequently felt the want of such a work to which I could refer the students."
Professor Cowell, of Cambridge, writes:—"It will be especially useful to the students in our Indian colleges and universities. I used to long for such a book when I was teaching in Calcutta. Hindu students are intensely interested in the history of Sanskrit literature, and this volume will supply them with all they want on the subject."
Professor Whitney, Yale College, Newhaven, Conn., U.S.A., writes:—"I was one of the class to whom the work was originally given in the form of academic lectures. At their first appearance they were by far the most learned and able treatment of their subject; and with their recent additions they still maintain decidedly the same rank."
"Is perhaps the most comprehensive and lucid survey of Sanskrit literature extant. The essays contained in the volume were originally delivered as academic lectures, and at the time of their first publication were acknowledged to be by far the most learned and able treatment of the subject. They have now been brought up to date by the addition of all the most important results of recent research."—Times.
Second Edition. Post 8vo, pp. xxxii. and 330, cloth, price 7s. 6d.
MASNAVI I MA'NAVI:
THE SPIRITUAL COUPLETS OF MAULÁNA JALÁLU-'D-DIN MUHAMMAD I RU'MI.
Translated and Abridged by E. H. WHINFIELD, M.A.,
Late of H.M. Bengal Civil Service.
EXTRACT FROM AUTHOR'S PREFACE.
This is the book of the Masnavi. It contains the roots of the roots of the roots of the Faith, and treats of the mysteries of "Union" and "Certitude." Thus saith the feeble slave, in need of the mercy of God, whose name be praised, Muhammad, son of Muhammad, son of Husain, of Balkh, of whom may God accept it,—"I have exerted myself to enlarge this book of poetry in rhymed couplets, which contains strange and rare narratives, beautiful sayings and recondite indications; a path for the devout, and a garden for the pious; short in its expressions, but having numerous applications." The author goes on to state that he wrote his book at the instance of Shaikh Hasan, son of Muhammad, "a Chief of the Gnostics ('Arifīn) and a leader of right direction and of sure knowledge;" and concludes with a prayer that it may prove "a blessing to those who are possessed of insight, the godly, the spiritual, and the heavenly-minded, the men of light who keep silence and observe, who are absent in spirit though present in the body, very kings though clothed in rags, true nobles among the people, endued with virtues, the lights of guidance."
Post 8vo, cloth, pp. xxxii.-336, price 10s. 6d.
THE QUATRAINS OF OMAR KHAYYÁM.
The Persian Text with an English Verse Translation.
By E. H. WHINFIELD, M.A.,
Late of the Bengal Civil Service.
EXTRACT FROM THE INTRODUCTION.
Ghiás uddin Abul Fath Omar bin Ibrahim al Khayyám was a native of Nishapúr, one of the principal cities of Khorásan. According to the Preface of the Calcutta MS., he died in 517 a.h., during the reign of Sultan Sarjar. The date of his birth is nowhere mentioned, but he was contemporary with Nizám ul Mulk, the celebrated Wazir of the Seljuk kings, Alp Arslan and Malik Shah.
This edition contains the Persian test of 500 quatrains based on a collation of eight authorities, together with English verse translations.
Second Edition, Revised. Post 8vo, cloth, pp. viii.-124, price 5s.
THE QUATRAINS OF OMAR KHAYYÁM.
Translated into English verse,
By E. H. WHINFIELD, M.A.,
Late of the Bengal Civil Service.
This edition contains 267 of the best quatrains in the larger edition, carefully revised.
Post 8vo, pp. vi.-368, cloth, price 14s.
MODERN INDIA AND THE INDIANS.
BEING A SERIES OF IMPRESSIONS, NOTES, AND ESSAYS.
By Sir MONIER WILLIAMS, D.C.L.,
Hon. LL.D. of the University of Calcutta, Hon. Member of the Bombay Asiatic Society, Boden Professor of Sanskrit in the University of Oxford.
Fifth Edition, revised and augmented by considerable Additions, with Illustrations and a Map.
"In this volume we have the thoughtful impressions of a thoughtful man on some of the most important questions connected with our Indian Empire.... An enlightened observant man, travelling among an enlightened observant people, Professor Monier Williams has brought before the public in a pleasant form more of the manners and customs of the Queen's Indian subjects than we ever remember to have seen in any one work. He not only deserves the thanks of every Englishman for this able contribution to the study of Modern India—a subject with which we should be specially familiar—but he deserves the thanks of every Indian, Parsee or Hindu, Buddhist and Moslem, for his clear exposition of their manners, their creeds, and their necessities."—Times.
Post 8vo, pp. xii.-72, cloth, price 5s.
THE SATAKAS OF BHARTRIHARI.
Translated from the Sanskrit
By the Rev. B. HALE WORTHAM, M.R.A.S.,
Rector of Eggesford, North Devon.
"A very interesting addition to Trübner's Oriental Series."—Saturday Review.
"Many of the Maxims in the book have a Biblical ring and beauty of expression."—St. James' Gazette.