Sacred Rivers and Groves of India

Central themes are India’s sacred rivers and forests, which have been both revered and feared. Its many religious faiths hold aspects of the natural world sacred. India’s succession of rulers (from Aryans through Mughals and the British), the agonies of its partition, internal displacement, emigration, and globalization brought different attitudes toward India as a place. Texts extend from the Vedas to current fiction. British imperial documents show policies designed to pattern civil society and development along British lines. Anglo-Indian novels include Rudyard Kipling’s Kim and E.M. Forster’s A Passage to India. Kim provides a child’s perspective on various Indians while pursuing a quest for a sacred river. Forster’s novel satirizes British notions of superiority and attempts spiritual connections between the two cultures. The destruction of Old Delhi to construct modern New Delhi is addressed in Ahmed Ali’s Twilight in Delhi. The stressful effects of partition are investigated via, Khushwant Singh’s Train to Pakistan and Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children. The chapter emphasizes female voices—many of their works only recently translated. Notable examples: Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain’s feminist utopia, “Sultana’s Dream” and short stories by Mahasweta Devi. Vandana Shiva and Arundhati Roy call for environmental justice for India.