Punjabis

The great central watershed which constitutes eastern parts of Punjab has ever been the battleground of India. The great Aryan and Scythian swarms which in successive waves of migration left their arid plateau for the fruitful plains of the land of the five rivers from which Punjab takes its name, the conquering armies of Alexander, the peaceful Chinese pilgrims in search of the sacred scriptures, the Mohammedan invaders who came, driven by the lust of territory, to found one of the greatest Mohammedan empires the world has ever seen, the devastating hordes led successively by Tughlak, Timur, Nadir Shah and Ahmad Shah, the armies of Babar and of Humayun all alike entered India across the wide plains of the Punjab.

The region witnessed in pre-historic times the scene of the conflict described in the oldest epic Mahabharata; while in later times the struggles which saw the transference of the empire of Hindustan from Lodi Afghans to the Mughal dynasty, from Mughals to Maratthas for a short period, and then finally to the British.

Within the limits of Punjab the Hindu religion had its birth and most ancient and sacred literature in the world was written; a vibrant new race – Sikhism was born, developed into a military and political organisation, and now flourishes in the province; and while there are not many followers of Buddha here it was from Punjab that sprang the founder of the Gupta dynasty, under whose grandson Asoka the Buddhist religion attained supremacy elsewhere.

And if Punjab is historically one of the most important parts of the Indian nation, so are its inhabitants who are no less diverse than its physical aspects. It does not contain any of the aboriginal tribes of India, at least in their primitive barbarism; and its people include the peaceful descendents of the old Rajput rulers of the country, the sturdy Jat peasantry, which forms the backbone of the village population, and various races that are allied to them. The complex social composition of the Punjabis makes for a delightful study for the ethnologists.

This unique and rare study of the Punjabis provides a wealth of material which includes their historical and cultural traditions, the customs, rituals and superstitions, their religion, cults and caste arrangement, festivals and social institutions.

The Punjabis is the first authoritative and responsible book on the Punjabi people, and as such fills a colossal gap in documenting this glorious race. It will be welcomed not only by the scholars but also lay readers interested in The Punjabis.