Shankar Kashyap

Dasharajna Shankar Kashyap

The seventh book of Rigveda describes how, the descendants of the four brothers of Puru join forces with several other kings to form a confederacy of ten kings against Sudas. Sage Vishwamitra falls out with Sudas and joins the confederacy of ten kings. They attack Sudas and a bitter battle ensues on the banks of river Parushni. It was a one sided battle on the face of it, with a massive army of ten kings attacking a smaller army of Sudas. The skill of Sudas with the help of sage Vasishta, and timely intervention of weather helps him to an unlikely victory. Astronomical references within the Rigveda place this battle around the middle of third millennium BCE"'Dasharajna - The Battle of Ten Kings' is a wonderful gift from the author to his readers. But let me warn you - its not a book for passing readers. If you adore ancient Indian history and have honest respect towards a writer's extensive background work, then this is a book you must not miss. One of the most difficult tasks in writing is to deep dive in the realms of history and recreate that in the form of fiction. Dr. Kashyap did exactly that in this book and I must appreciate the publisher for creating such a wonderful cover to match the standard of the contents. The holistic package of the book including cover, formatting, paper quality, fonts etc create a quick attraction to flip through the pages. The book is bound to be liked by avid readers of both fiction and non-fiction genres (esp mythology/ historic fiction). Very few books in the history of Indian literature present us with a thorough account of pre-Ramayana & Mahabharata saga. Dasharajna did it so keenly - It explores an unaccounted segment of ancient India, a result of 25 years of extensive research by the author. Hats off !!The other point that sets the book apart is the consistency of the characters. Most of the characters are relevant even in the modern world as well - Their conversations sound authentic; their reactions seem logical and most importantly their presentation is so flawless."Reetwika Banerjee, Goodreads Review