Origins of the Saree

Origins of the Saree

By Margaret Pearce

The Saree is one of the worlds and perhaps the only surviving unstitched garment from the past – that over the millennia has not only become a sensuous and glamourous garment all time wear for women but also a “canvas” for weavers and printers to create artistic weaves, prints and jewelled embellishments.

Alexander the Great in India

Alexander the Great in India

by Des Derrien        January 2017

Alexander was in India only for nineteen months, 326-325 BC.

To put this era in context, in this century: Aristotle and Plato were active in Greece; Rome was still a small city state of no great significance, and the Hindu stories, the Ramayana and Mahabharata, were put into writing. 

It was a time of growing prosperity in India, with a rise in manufacturing, the growth of cities and an expansion of trade within the subcontinent and to other parts of Asia and the Middle East.

We are essentially talking about events that took place in modern day Pakistan, although Alexander may have reached the very western edge of modern day India.

Ashoka - Emperor of India c 272 – 232 BCE

Ashoka -  Emperor of India c 272 – 232 BCE

By Jenny Meader

Ashoka’s symbol, the Ahoka Chakra is in the middle of the Indian flag, so he is obviously considered very important in India.

He was the third of the rulers of the Mauryan dynasty, which rose to power shortly after Alexander the Great had conquered part of the north west of India, and some 200 years after the life of Buddha.  This is at the same time as the Roman Carthaginian wars in Europe. When he came to the throne in 272 BCE, the Mauryan empire already extended over most of the Indian subcontinent, with the exception of the southern tip and the Kalingas Ashoka extended into Kalinga during the Kalinga War c. 265 BCE, and established superiority over the southern kingdoms.

Ashoka ruled for an estimated 36 years.  As a young prince, Ashoka (r. 272 – 232 BCE) was a brilliant commander who crushed revolts in Ujjain and Takshashila. As monarch, he was ambitious and aggressive, re-asserting the Empire's superiority in southern and western India. But it was his conquest of Kalinga (262–261 BCE) which proved to be the pivotal event of his life. Although Ashoka's army succeeded in overwhelming Kalinga forces of royal soldiers and civilian units, an estimated 100,000 soldiers and civilians were killed in the furious warfare, including over 10,000 of Ashoka's own men. Hundreds of thousands of people were adversely affected by the destruction and fallout of war. When he personally witnessed the devastation, Ashoka began feeling remorse. Although the annexation of Kalinga was completed, Ashoka embraced the teachings of Buddhism, and renounced war and violence. He sent out missionaries to travel around Asia and spread Buddhism to other countries, including Sri Lanka, Cambodia and China.  It is entirely due to Ashoka that Buddhism is a world religion.