Civilization: Historicizing a Concept in the Indian Context

Abstract

The special issue on ‘Indian Civilization: Issues and Perspectives’ seeks to interrogate a concept that has often been loosely used by historians. Generally understood in terms of continuity from very early times, there has also been a tendency to read this concept in religio-cultural terms, with specific reference to the Sanskritic brahmanical traditions, as providing meaning to Indian civilization. The four essays in this issue engage with epistemological and contextual issues that both complicate as well as clarify the concept of civilization, and especially its usage in the Indian context.