Flight of Deities and Rebirth of Temples is a dispassionate, unbiased, and critical retelling of the history of India focusing on the countless incidents of destruction of temples and temple structures by Muslim invaders. It provides an expansive account from primary and secondary sources and covers the length and breadth of the country in its scope, thus providing a truly comprehensive insight into these incidents. Kudos to the author Meenakshi Jain for this mammoth effort!

The author challenges three dominant prevailing notions - that Hindu kings destroyed temples during their battles with each other and that Muslim kings merely followed that tradition; that the role of the deity in the past was as a political powerplay for the rule and had little to do with the common man and, that Muslim kings built their mosques on top of existing Hindu temple structures, indicating co-existence between the two.

The author surgically dissects each of these arguments by recounting a multitude of events and instances to the contrary. She proves that the temples were establishments which were collectively nurtured by the society at large, with thousands of common men throwing their lives to protect, hide, and preserve them.

The book goes into great detail on various kings across the country who built historic and grand temples and the continuing service by conquering Hindu kings and the local populace in respecting this tradition. We get a reality check on the efforts that went into preserving these structures and of their everyday importance in the functioning of society. It gives a sense of why the memory of these events continues to live among people centuries after they happened, as for Hindus the “sthala” is more important than the actual object.

I particularly enjoyed the coverage on southern India, something which is usually not available in school history textbooks. Temples from Sharada Peetha in Kashmir, to ones in Ayodhya, Somnath, Kashi, eastern India, and in the south from Vijayanagara to Kerala and Tamil Nadu temples and their origins are analyzed. An eye-opening book and a comprehensive look into our past.

Originally published here.