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राजस्थान की रजत बूँदे
If Rajasthan has always offered a very different picture from the classical one of a desert the explanation lies in the
way it manages the water it receives so parsimoniously , one can say , drop by drop. Anupam Mishra’s book tells us how , down the centuries, the ingenuity and patience of people made it possible for life to be maintained in the desert, by applying their technical knowledge to collect each and every drop. The drops become all the more precious given their scarcity , as suggested by the very title Rajasthan Ki Rajat Boonden, The Radiant Raindrops of Rajasthan. Rajat in Hindi means silver but it also means ivory; it therefore has the connotation of luminous whiteness, radiance and value.
It is to each precious drop that the local society dedicated its effort, its love, its intelligence, in fact all possible human means, so as to obtain the optimal advantages. The local society does not however, view itself as the sole agent in this endeavour of the desert’s humanisation. More specifically at the very start, it acknowledges a partnership; human intervention is always associated to supernatural forces with all the concomitant ethics deriving from such an interaction.
In fact the founding myth of the practice of water harvesting in Rajasthan grounds human action in that regard on a divine gift as is illustrated by the story of Rishi Uttung in Chapter one.
But as Anupam Mishra explains with so much sensitivity and discernment, the people of Rajasthan did not wait for
manna to drop from heaven. Instead, they evolved a whole
riti or voj around their shram in the field of water conservation. A Riti established on a deep partnership between nature (the environment), human action and its ethical as well as religious framework.
way it manages the water it receives so parsimoniously , one can say , drop by drop. Anupam Mishra’s book tells us how , down the centuries, the ingenuity and patience of people made it possible for life to be maintained in the desert, by applying their technical knowledge to collect each and every drop. The drops become all the more precious given their scarcity , as suggested by the very title Rajasthan Ki Rajat Boonden, The Radiant Raindrops of Rajasthan. Rajat in Hindi means silver but it also means ivory; it therefore has the connotation of luminous whiteness, radiance and value.
It is to each precious drop that the local society dedicated its effort, its love, its intelligence, in fact all possible human means, so as to obtain the optimal advantages. The local society does not however, view itself as the sole agent in this endeavour of the desert’s humanisation. More specifically at the very start, it acknowledges a partnership; human intervention is always associated to supernatural forces with all the concomitant ethics deriving from such an interaction.
In fact the founding myth of the practice of water harvesting in Rajasthan grounds human action in that regard on a divine gift as is illustrated by the story of Rishi Uttung in Chapter one.
But as Anupam Mishra explains with so much sensitivity and discernment, the people of Rajasthan did not wait for
manna to drop from heaven. Instead, they evolved a whole
riti or voj around their shram in the field of water conservation. A Riti established on a deep partnership between nature (the environment), human action and its ethical as well as religious framework.
120 pages, Paperback
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About the author
Anupam Mishra
20 books10 followersAnupam Mishra was an Indian Gandhian, author, journalist, environmentalist, and water conservationist who worked on promoting water conservation, water management and traditional rainwater harvesting techniques.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 2, 2019
A wonderful work on preservation of water in Rajasthan, perticularly in Thar desert by people with their own resources.
लेखक को साधुवाद ।
लेखक को साधुवाद ।
May 31, 2018
This book tells us how the people of Rajasthan have collected water drop by drop since a very long time. It also shows how the society of Rajasthan must have evolved. They have not only used various techniques to collect water but have evolved their social structure around it. For eg., if a family has built a well (saying so for simplicity) than another family maintains it, the wells are built for humans as well as for animals etc. These are very simple examples but the philosophy underlying it has a very long-term impact. It tells a lot about our society in general also.
July 16, 2019
"राजस्थान के मरुप्रदेश में दुनिया के अन्य ऐसे प्रदेशों की तुलना में न सिर्फ बसावट ज्यादा है, वह बसावट में जीवन की सुगंध भी है | यह इलाका दूसरे देशों के मरुस्थलों की तुलना में सबसे जीवंत माना गया है |"
लेकिन कैसे ? इस स्वाभाविक से प्रश्न का विस्तृत उत्तर है यह पुस्तक | अनुपमजी की विवरण शैली अत्यंत अनूठी, रोचक और काव्यात्मक है | जल के संगरक्षण, तकनीक और उसके इतिहास को लेकर एक आकर्षक दृष्टिकोण है उनका | अनुपमजी और उनकी इस रचना को प्रणाम _/\_
लेकिन कैसे ? इस स्वाभाविक से प्रश्न का विस्तृत उत्तर है यह पुस्तक | अनुपमजी की विवरण शैली अत्यंत अनूठी, रोचक और काव्यात्मक है | जल के संगरक्षण, तकनीक और उसके इतिहास को लेकर एक आकर्षक दृष्टिकोण है उनका | अनुपमजी और उनकी इस रचना को प्रणाम _/\_
April 17, 2021
An excellent work!
The lands of Rajasthan are dry and arid; then how does such a large population sustain itself there?
Deserts are present in other parts of the world, with lower temperatures, more rainfall, still Rajasthan sustains higher populations than these.
The book explores water as a giver of life; social & cultural practices around its conservation and distribution and the engineering techniques employed by the people for centuries.
One may describe the book as a cultural history of water in Rajasthan. .
Overall, a very insightful & pleasant read.
The lands of Rajasthan are dry and arid; then how does such a large population sustain itself there?
Deserts are present in other parts of the world, with lower temperatures, more rainfall, still Rajasthan sustains higher populations than these.
The book explores water as a giver of life; social & cultural practices around its conservation and distribution and the engineering techniques employed by the people for centuries.
One may describe the book as a cultural history of water in Rajasthan. .
Overall, a very insightful & pleasant read.
July 27, 2022
A very good book about various methods and traditions of water conservation in the desert of Rajasthan .
A good lesson for so called modern water managers.
A good lesson for so called modern water managers.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews