IS INDIA CIVILIZED ESSAYS ON INDIAN CULTURE BY SIR JOHN WOODROFFE MADRAS GANESB CO., PUBLISHERS 1922 Printed by J, B. Aria at the VawntS Press, Adyw, Madras, CONTENTS PAGE Preface to Third Edition vii Foreword ……. xli I. Civilization and Progress . . 1 IL East and West …. 27 III. What is Culture … .43 IV. Conflict of Cultures … 65 V. Competition, Concert, Sacrifice . 113 VL Cultural Attack on India, 122 VII. An Example . 130 VIII. A Reply 174 IX. Bharata Dharma, and The Common Principles of Indian Civilization. 226 X. Brahmanisni . 268 XI. Self-Expression …. 284 XII, The Root of Culture … 322 XIII, Some Conclusions …. 344 Appendix ….. 357 Index …… 393 First printed November, 19 W Second Edition May, tdW Third Edition My, mi Revised and Enlarged PREFACE TO THIRD EDITION I TAKE the opportunity of this new Edition to reply to some criticisms passed on the last. Prominent among these is an Article in the Calcutta Review in which the opinion is expressed that I have not held the balance fairly between Western and Eastern Civilisation and, in particular, bet ween Christianity and Brahmanism. As regards this particular complaint I have with the consent of the Calcutta Review reproduced the Article in the Appendix BO that the reader o n judge for himself I wish however to say that the object of my book is, m this criticism, misunderstood. Of course this book is a defence of the Indian case. It is a defence to a compre tiensive attack on every aspect of Indian culture. Naturally therefore I was con earned with what might be said in answer vii IS INDIA CIVILIZED to the attack, that Is in favour of Indian Civilisation. I ain not the Prosecution. At the same time where theattack could rely on any facts which appeared to justify condemnation, I did not deny them. I said then, as I have said over and over again, that I was not blind to what can be urged against the India of to-day. Some thing may be said against every man and every people. Some of the Indian people have been unfaithful to their Dharma, in various ways. Some who claim to be orthodox are degenerate. Some who reject the Brah manic Dharma have become our foster children as an English Missionary called them, whilst other are mere seat-arrang ers to use an expressive Sanskrit term socially, culturally, and politically of the Powers there be. These last two classes will suffer for their dissociation from their people. Round Dharma itself various kinds of Adharmik parasites have fastened during the course of the ages But all this is not the concern of this book which is a short and summary answer to Mr Arebers vni PREFACE TO THIED EDITION wholesale and uncritical charges. I ob serve in this connection that none of my adverse critics is willing to accept a brief for Mr. Archer, which is itself proof that his case is not a good one. What however they do not like are my criticisms on the Civilisation and the Religion u for India only, since he calls himself a Rationalist which he supports. If however what I have said is rightly understood I have nothing on this head to withdraw, but much if I had the space to add. The writer of that review thinks that I have not sufficiently appreciated the merits of Christianity. Its merits were no part of the scheme of this little book. The existing literature on the subject is over whelming-Millions of pounds have bean spent in propaganda with results which showthat in this, at least, money is not everything even in a Banya civilisation. Nor have I in claiming greatness for Indias teaching intended to deny that Christianity has also its own greatness All religions have certain fundamentals in W INDIA CIVILIZED common. I and those others who speak in any degree well of the Indian civilization are supposed, in the review cited, to claim an exclusive patent of merit for Vedantic religion. This position is characterised as absurd doubtless. But I have never adopted it…