10 Quotes by Romila Thapar

Epic literature is not history but is again a way of looking at the past.

The fundamental sanity of Indian civilization has been due to an absence of Satan.

Nations have to be built on an inclusive identity.

Democracy ceases to be so if it is governed by permanent majoritarian identities of any kind.

The occasional woman philosopher such as Gargi, who is often quoted to prove the high status of women in ancient times, is actually the proverbial swallow and does not make a summer.

Intensely devotional poetry was written by poets, some of whom were born Muslim but worshipped Hindu deities. One of the best known among them was Sayyad Ibrahim, popularly referred to as Raskhan, whose dohas and bhajans dedicated to the deity Krishna were widely recited in the sixteenth century and are still remembered by devotees of Krishna and others.

National-ism seeks legitimacy from the past and history therefore becomes a sensitive subject.

The eating of beef was reserved for specific occasions, such as rituals or when welcoming a guest or a person of high status. This is a common practice in other cattle-keeping cultures as well.

Nations are not easily forged since many identities have to be coalesced.