"There is only one known copy of the Sultan's Book of Delights in existence and it is held in the Oriental and India Office Collections of the British Library (BL. Persian 149). The manuscript is illustrated with fifty elegant miniature paintings, most of which show the Sultan, Ghiyath Shahi, observing the women of his court as they prepare and serve him various dishes. The book is fascinating in that the text documents a remarkable stage in the history of Indian cookery whilst the miniatures demonstrate the influence of imported Persian artists on the style of the Indian artists employed in Ghiyath Shahi's academy."--Jacket.
Description When Swadesh Deepak-celebrated Hindi playwright and short-story writer- arrives at PGI, Chandigarh, after having tried to set himself on fire, the doctors don't know if he belongs in the burns unit or in the psychiatric ward. He's living a 'curse'. A dangerous seductress-his Mayavini-is taking revenge for his insulting rebuff at her wish to visit with him the famous lovers' palace in Mandu. She comes to him at night, sometimes with three white leopards, and she leaves the smell of her body in his nostrils. When he tries to kill himself, she tells him he will not die. He is firmly in her clutches, but he will tolerate anything for her, from humiliation at the hands of acquaintances to carnivorous worms under his skin. This fractured, shattering narrative-among the most unusual books ever published in India-records Deepak's descent into madness and his brief, uncertain recovery. Shortly after it was published, he left home for a walk one morning and never returned. As the translator, Jerry Pinto, writes in his introduction: '[Deepak's] words carry all the scars of who he was and what his illness had made of him... His voice echoes from the bottom of a well.'
Set in 16th century India, this novel is inspired by the true story of the young sultan, Baz Bahadur, and the beautiful peasant girl, Roopmati, who come together over their common love for classical music. He is a man who can have any woman,and she a woman too proud to ever be part of his harem. But night after night, as they sing together in the enchanting world of Mandu, the fortress city lit up with lanterns and throbbing to the beat of ghungroos and tablas, a magic begins to happen. Baz and Roopmati fall in love. But, far away, in Agra, the Mughal Emperor, Akbar, is planning his campaigns and Mandu has been pinned on his map as a kingdom to be captured. Will Baz be able to protect his capital, and more importantly, the woman he loves, from the enemy forces?
From the moment we are born, we start our journey towards death. Some walk slowly, others run towards it, some skip and dance their way there, while others crawl. In his seventh book, author Manoj Jain dwells on the uncomfortable topic of death. Interspersed with stories from Indian mythology, Meeting Yama is set in the mystical city of Varanasi where all answers are given if one is willing to listen. Amrit, Rajat and Surya, three visitors meet each other in this city and find resolutions to the issues that they carry within them. If you are reading this, then there is probably something in the book that is meant for you.
An accessible and easy-to-follow comic book cookbook for bringing Asian dumplings into the home kitchen, with recipes for savory and sweet dumplings, dipping sauces, riffs, and more—from the authors of Let’s Make Ramen! ONE OF THE BEST COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR: Time Out, Glamour, Wired, Publishers Weekly, Booklist • “A fun-filled, information-packed romp through the magnificent world of Eastern dumplings, anchored by chef Hugh Amano’s rich Japanese heritage and artist Sarah Becan’s dynamic illustrations.”—Andrea Nguyen, James Beard Award–winning author of The Pho Cookbook and Asian Dumplings Chef Hugh Amano and comics artist Sarah Becan invite you to explore the big little world of Asian dumplings! Ideal for both newbies and seasoned cooks, this comic book cookbook takes a fun approach to a classic treat that is imbued with history across countless regions. From wontons to potstickers, buuz to momos, Amano’s expert guidance paired with Becan’s colorful and detailed artwork prove that intricate folding styles and flavorful fillings are achievable in the home kitchen. Let’s Make Dumplings! includes dumpling lore; a master folding guide that familiarizes readers with popular styles, like the pleated crescent of a potsticker or the 4-pointed star of a crab rangoon; and a series of cooking directions to choose from, such as steaming or pan-frying. The recipes range from savory Gyoza to sweet Cambodian Num Kom; from classic Baozi to riffs such as Sesame Chicken Dumplings. Whether it is the family-style eating experience of stacked steamer baskets filled with succulent shumai and plump xiaolongbao or the interactive process of working together to fold hundreds of jiaozi for a celebration, Let’s Make Dumplings! captures the deep level of connection that dumplings bring to any gathering and shows you how to re-create it in your own home.
Mysteries of the Jaguar Shamans of the Northwest Amazon tells the life story of Mandu da Silva, the last living jaguar shaman among the Baniwa people in the northwest Amazon. In this original and engaging work, Robin M. Wright, who has known and worked with da Silva for more than thirty years, weaves the story of da Silva’s life together with the Baniwas’ society, history, mythology, cosmology, and jaguar shaman traditions. The jaguar shamans are key players in what Wright calls “a nexus of religious power and knowledge” in which healers, sorcerers, priestly chanters, and dance-leaders exercise complementary functions that link living specialists with the deities and great spirits of the cosmos. By exploring in depth the apprenticeship of the shaman, Wright shows how jaguar shamans acquire the knowledge and power of the deities in several stages of instruction and practice. This volume is the first mapping of the sacred geography (“mythscape”) of the Northern Arawak–speaking people of the northwest Amazon, demonstrating direct connections between petroglyphs and other inscriptions and Baniwa sacred narratives as a whole. In eloquent and inviting analytic prose, Wright links biographic and ethnographic elements in elevating anthropological writing to a new standard of theoretically aware storytelling and analytic power.
Cooper James is not into tai chi, tarot or transactional analysis. She’s into traveling—or thought she was. On the final leg of an around-the-world trip, she finds herself on the island of Maui and nearly loses what she once thought of as her sanity. Her plans for staying in a cheap motel and lying on the beach are abruptly waylaid when she becomes nanny of three free-spirited kids, the guardian of an Esoteric Cat, and the target of new-age therapists who want to Shift her Energy. This was not what she had in mind for the grand finale of her years of independent travel. Determined to make her own way (it might look a lot like rebellion to the untrained eye), she changes her name to Kat Mandu and opens her own business—The Holistic Advertising Agency. She imparts otherworldly wisdom to her clients based on Coffee-Ground Readings, Uno Card Spreads, and the psychic channelings from the Queen of Cats, Cleopatra. Finally, she has found what she never knew she was looking for: a soapbox on which to stand, a mighty sword to release her from the bonds of mediocrity: Holistic Advertising (HA)—a recently made-up ancient tradition.
