By A Staff Writer
Bengaluru: The book titled Water and Scriptures: Ancient Roots for Sustainable Development published by Springer, New York, was released last month. The important work carries research articles on water and its importance as a critical resource in three principal faiths, Hinduism, Islam and Christianity. The research project was undertaken by the Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bengaluru, in 2014. The book has been edited by Dr. K. V. Raju, then Director of the Institute and Dr. Manasi, an economist in the Institute. The largest chapter is ‘Water in Hinduism’ written by Dr. Sudhakar Sharma and Dr. Shruthi. It takes a detailed look at how Hinduism entwines the human life with nature and significance of water in the Vedas, Puranas, Bhagavad Gita and other scriptures. The chapter on “Water in Islam” is the outcome of a study undertaken by Bengaluru-based journalist Mr. M. A. Siraj, and retired IAS officer Mr. M. A. K. Tayyab (who passed away in 2015), both members of the Centre for Contemporary Studies, Koramangala. The chapter, running into 45 pages, looks at the description of water in Quran and Hadith, various hydraulic devices developed in Muslim countries and the devices borrowed by Muslims and popularized elsewhere, laws regarding water distribution, irrigation, navigation etc developed during important Muslim empires such as Ottoman, Safvid and Mughal. The chapter “Perspectives on Water and Bible” has been done by Dr. Y. Moses. Dr. M. S. Sunder Raj has written the chapter “Legal Lore of Water Ecology and Scriptures”. The final chapter, ‘A Comparative Overview’ has been contributed by the editor together with economist Dr. Abdul Aziz. The book (hardcover) is priced at $119 and is available on all prominent online portals. n
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