Harappa: The Lure of Soma

by Shankar N. Kashyap

At the zenith of its power and prosperity, Harappa is a highly refined urban conglomerate in the Indus Valley, visited by trade caravans and travellers from faraway lands. The city’s sense of organisation, its mastery of technology, economic wellbeing, and above all, its possession of Soma, inevitably bring enemy troops to its door. For the drought-stricken, impoverished neighbours, Harappa is the land of fulfilment. Indeed, Soma is the basis of life, a measure against which the power of a state could be judged.
Upaas, a young doctor working in the city hospital, recounts Harappa’s sudden plunge into the frenzy of war. The mellow evenings of the young lover’s rendezvous, soulful music floating out of the travellers’ camps and the deep resonance of the temple bells – this picture of bliss comes under the shadow of cancer with the arrival of a malevolent godman on the scene. Secret gatherings and sinister designs set the stage for a bloody, meaningless war. Power rivalry and territorial ambition were as much the undoing of a prosperous region at the dawn of civilization as today.

286 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 13, 2013

About the author

An orthopaedic surgeon by profession with deep interest in ancient Indian history. Extensive research into Harappan civilisation of Bronze Age India has led to the creation of the Harappa series.
The first three books of the series have been published and the fourth one is on its way. Archaeological evidence has been used along with litereary evidence mainly from the Vedic corpus.
The first book, A Kangaroo Court was the product of a deep trauma sustained during his career.

Blogs:
www.shankarkashyap.wordpress.com
www.harappaseries.wordpress.com

Reviews

[Vinita Dhawan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An intriguing storyline which the book hard to put down. It seemed that the end came too suddenly.