Sachin Soni at 03:06, 31 January 2026

2026-01-31T03:06:09Z

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{{short description|Indian historian (1940–2021)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}
{{Use Indian English|date=September 2017}}

{{Infobox person
| name = Dwijendra Narayan Jha
| image = Jha dn.jpg
| caption = Jha in November 2012
| birth_date = 1 July 1940<ref name="indianexpress.com">{{Cite web|date=6 February 2021|title=D N Jha was fearless in his evocation of pluralism, dissent and rationality|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/d-n-jha-historian-7176550/|access-date=6 February 2021|website=The Indian Express|language=en}}</ref>
| birth_place = Ganauli, [[Darbhanga district]], [[British India]]
| death_date = 4 February 2021 (aged 80)
| death_place = [[Delhi]], India
| occupation = Historian
| notable_works = ''The Myth of the Holy Cow'' (2001)
| alma_mater = {{ubl|[[Presidency College, Calcutta]]|[[Patna University]]}}
}}

'''Dwijendra Narayan Jha''' (1 July 1940<ref>[https://www.jstor.org/stable/27026932?seq=2 Biography], jstor.org. Accessed 19 May 2025.{{subscription required}}</ref>{{spnd}}4 February 2021) was an Indian [[historian]] who studied and wrote on [[Iron Age India|ancient]] and [[medieval India]].<ref name=":6">{{Cite news|last=Roychowdhury|first=Adrija|title=Why the cow is worshipped in Hindutva politics|work=[[The Indian Express]]|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/research/cow-protection-hindutva-politics-bjp-india-5227382/|access-date=6 February 2021}}</ref> He was a professor of history at [[Delhi University]] and a member of the [[Indian Council of Historical Research]]. Some of his books include ''Ancient India: In Historical Outline'' (1997), ''[[The Myth of the Holy Cow]]'' (2001), and ''Early India: A Concise History'' (2004). Through his works he argued against the [[Communalism (South Asia)|communal]] distortions of history including challenging popular beliefs of the sanctity of cow and Indian beef eating tradition.

==Education==
Jha completed his Senior Secondary Schooling from Board of Secondary Certification, West Bengal with First Division. He did Intermediate Examination of Arts with first division and [[Bachelor of Arts]] (honours) in History at [[Presidency College, Calcutta|University of Calcutta]] and then his MA in history at [[Patna University]] where he was a student of [[Professor]] [[Ram Sharan Sharma|R.S. Sharma]], who was amongst the first of modern Indian historians to study history through socio-economic analyses.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|date=5 February 2021|title=Prof D N Jha: Iconoclast scholar who made ancient history contemporary|author=Devyani Onial|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/d-n-jha-historian-7175160/|access-date=6 February 2021|website=The Indian Express|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web|title=D.N. Jha, a Doyen Among Indian Historians, Passes Away at 81|url=https://thewire.in/culture/historian-d-n-jha-passes-away-babri-ayodhya|access-date=6 February 2021|website=The Wire}}</ref>

==Career==
Jha was a professor at the history department of the [[Delhi University]] specializing in ancient and medieval history.<ref name=":0" /> In a career of over three decades, he spoke against communal distortions of history. Through his works, he studied the socio-economic structures of early India and used India's ancient texts to draw linkages between culture and technology and the resulting social and state setup.<ref name=":4" /> In some of his early works he studied revenue systems and linkages between economy and society in ancient India.<ref name=":6" /> His study was a breakaway from both imperialist historians who studied India from a colonial lens and nationalist historians who studied Indian history through folklore, wars, and royalties.<ref name=":4" /> In doing so, he was a group of historians who believed that post [[Indian independence movement|independence]] India's nation building efforts hinged on a professional attempt at writing history.<ref name=":4" /> Jha had repeatedly taken a position against [[Hindu nationalism|Hindu nationalist ideology]], arguing against what he claimed is [[Communalism (South Asia)|communalism]] and [[saffronisation]].<ref name="ach">{{cite journal|last1=Jha|first1=D. N.|title=Against Communalising History|journal=Social Scientist|date=September 1998|volume=26|issue=9/10|pages=52–62|jstor=3517941|doi=10.2307/3517941}}</ref> He was critical of the view that "''tolerance is the very essence of 'Hinduism qua Hinduism'''", and had claimed what he termed as Brahmanical intolerance since early India.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Jha|first=D.N.|date=2016|title=Brahmanical Intolerance in Early India|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24890281|journal=Social Scientist|volume=44|issue=5/6|pages=3–10|jstor=24890281|issn=0970-0293}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Reddy|first=Sheela|date=17 September 2001|title=A Brahmin's Cow Tales|work=[[Outlook (Indian magazine)|Outlook]]|url=https://magazine.outlookindia.com/story/a-brahmins-cow-tales/213159|access-date=6 February 2021|archive-date=25 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190425032141/https://www.outlookindia.com/magazine/story/a-brahmins-cow-tales/213159|url-status=dead}}</ref> He was credited with identifying inconsistencies in Indian history and his efforts to bring a contemporary relevance to ancient history.<ref name=":0" />

He was an author of multiple history text books for India's [[National Council of Educational Research and Training]], the organization which developed the textbooks and course curricula for Indian schools.<ref name=":1" /> He also served as the secretary of the [[Indian History Congress]] and a member of the [[Indian Council of Historical Research]]<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite web|last=Salam|first=Ziya Us|title=Prof D.N. Jha (1940-2021), a rare historian who wore his knowledge with ease|url=https://frontline.thehindu.com/dispatches/prof-dn-jha-1940-2021-a-rare-historian-who-wore-his-knowledge-with-ease/article33757036.ece|access-date=6 February 2021|website=Frontline|date=5 February 2021 |language=en}}</ref> He was a member of visiting faculty at the Institute of Oriental Culture in the [[University of Tokyo]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Jha|first=Dwijendra Narayan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VQ046M8T7IkC&q=D+N+Jha+born|title=The Myth of the Holy Cow|date=2004|publisher=Verso|isbn=978-1-85984-424-3|pages=preface:xi|language=en}}</ref>

In 1991, he wrote a paper, with other historians [[Ram Sharan Sharma|R.S. Sharma]], [[Suraj Bhan (archaeologist)|Suraj Bhan]], and Athar Ali, making a case that there was no evidence to prove that the [[Babri Masjid]], a mosque in [[Ayodhya]], was built over a temple at the same site.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|author=Scroll Staff|title=Eminent ancient history scholar DN Jha dies at 81|url=https://scroll.in/latest/985992/eminent-ancient-history-scholar-dn-jha-dies-at-81|access-date=6 February 2021|website=Scroll.in|date=5 February 2021 |language=en-US}}</ref> The findings were documented in ''Ramjanmabhoomi-Baburi Masjid: A Historians’ Report to the Nation'' (1991) which he co-wrote with<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite book|last=Sharma|first=Ram Sharan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=369JAAAACAAJ|title=Ramjanmabhumi-Baburi Masjid: A Historians' Report to the Nation|date=1991|publisher=People's Publishing House|isbn=978-81-7007-138-9|language=en}}</ref> The mosque was [[Demolition of the Babri Masjid|demolished]] a year later by right wing activists.<ref name=":4"/> The paper diverged in its findings from the [[Archaeological Survey of India]]'s findings and was later dismissed by the [[Supreme Court of India]] in 2019 as an opinion.<ref name="ach" />

In his 2001 book, ''The Myth of the Holy Cow,'' he made a case that beef was part of the early Indian diet and used also for medicinal purposes.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|date=13 April 2017|title=Cow Vigilantism: Politics of the Sacred and the Profane|url=https://openthemagazine.com/features/politics-features/cow-vigilantism-politics-of-the-sacred-and-the-profane/|access-date=6 February 2021|website=Open The Magazine|language=en-GB}}</ref> He quoted religious and non-religious texts from ancient periods to dispel the prevailing belief that cow was holy and its meat not a part of historical Indian consumption.<ref name=":0" /> The book quoted [[Charaka Samhita]] to say that it was used in soups for intermittent fevers, [[emaciation]], and [[tuberculosis]], while the fat was used in the treatment of [[rheumatism]].<ref name=":3" /> He used text from the [[Vedas]] and [[Upanishads]] to argue that cattle were routinely offered in sacrifice to various ancient deities.<ref>{{Cite web|last=MAHAPRASHASTA|first=AJOY ASHIRWAD|title='The cow was neither unslayable nor sacred in the Vedic period'|url=https://frontline.thehindu.com/cover-story/the-cow-was-neither-unslayable-nor-sacred-in-the-vedic-period/article23593282.ece|access-date=6 February 2021|website=Frontline|date=14 October 2015 |language=en}}</ref> He then argued that the sacred status afforded to cows was a much more recent development.<ref name=":0" />

He also challenged the notion that the age of the [[Gupta Empire]] (320 CE to 550 CE) was the "golden age" of Indian history.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|last=SALAM|first=ZIYA US|title='India never had a golden age'|url=https://frontline.thehindu.com/arts-and-culture/literature/india-never-had-a-golden-age/article23968771.ece|access-date=6 February 2021|website=Frontline|date=23 May 2018 |language=en}}</ref> He argued that the notion of a gilded age before the [[Mughal Empire]] was a creation of historians during the [[Indian freedom movement]] and provided an ideological support to participants of the movement, but, served no purpose after.<ref name=":5" />

Jha was accused by BJP politician, [[Arun Shourie]] of distorting the history of the destruction of [[Nalanda|Nalanda University]] in 12th century AD.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Shourie |first1=Arun |title=How history was made up at Nalanda |url=http://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/how-history-was-made-up-at-nalanda/ |access-date=11 April 2022 |work=The Indian Express |date=28 June 2014 |language=en}}</ref> In an article in the ''[[The Indian Express|Indian Express]]'', Jha responded that Shourie was distorting what he had said, and that Shourie's allegations of plagiarism are baseless. Jha also criticized Shourie's book ''Eminent Historians'', saying that it contains "slander" and "has nothing to do with history."<ref>{{cite web|title=Grist to the reactionary mill|url=http://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/grist-to-the-reactionary-mill/|work = Indian Express|date=9 July 2014|access-date=9 July 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Votes do not guide intellectuals: D N Jha|url=http://www.business-standard.com/article/opinion/votes-do-not-guide-intellectuals-d-n-jha-114112900682_1.html|work = Business Standard|date=9 November 2014|access-date=9 July 2015|last1=Sreedathan |first1=G. }}</ref>

His last published book, ''Drink of Immortality'' (2020) studied alcohol distillation and consumption in ancient India.<ref>{{Cite book|last=edited by D.N. Jha|title=Drink of immortality : essays on distillation and alcohol use in ancient India|year=2020|isbn=978-93-90035-21-2|location=New Delhi|oclc=1224158962}}</ref><ref name="indianexpress.com">{{Cite web|date=6 February 2021|title=D N Jha was fearless in his evocation of pluralism, dissent and rationality|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/d-n-jha-historian-7176550/|access-date=6 February 2021|website=The Indian Express|language=en}}</ref> He argued that there were more than 50 varieties of alcohol that were available and consumed by men and women of ancient India. He further quoted religious texts including the epics like [[Ramayana]] and [[Mahabharata]] as well as the [[Vedas]] mentioning of alcohol consumption.<ref>{{Cite web|date=29 July 2017|title=What the gods drank|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/what-the-gods-drank-hinduism-vedic-texts-alcohol-rajya-sabha-4772004/|access-date=6 February 2021|website=The Indian Express|language=en}}</ref>

==Works==
===''The Myth of the Holy Cow''===
{{Further|Cattle in religion and mythology}}
In his book ''[[The Myth of the Holy Cow]]'', he alleged that cow formed part of the diet in ancient India. Cattle, including cows, were neither inviolable nor as revered in ancient times as they were later. Quoting from the Vedas and the Upanishads, he alleged that cattle were offered in sacrifice to various deities and that hardly any prayer was complete without animal sacrifice.<ref>Jha, Dwijendra Narayan. ''The Myth of the Holy Cow''. London/New York: Verso 2002</ref> He pointed out that during Ram's exile, Sita asked her husband for meat. And Ram obliged by getting her deer meat.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://frontline.thehindu.com/dispatches/prof-dn-jha-1940-2021-a-rare-historian-who-wore-his-knowledge-with-ease/article33757036.ece/|title=Prof D.N. Jha (1940-2021), a rare historian who wore his knowledge with ease|date=5 February 2021 }}</ref><ref name="New York Times">{{cite news |last1=Eakin |first1=Emily |title=Holy Cow a Myth? An Indian Finds The Kick Is Real |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/08/17/books/holy-cow-a-myth-an-indian-finds-the-kick-is-real.html |access-date=11 April 2022 |work=The New York Times |date=17 August 2002}}</ref>

Jha has received death threats over his book ''The Myth of the Holy Cow'' in which he outlined the practice of eating beef in ancient India as documented in [[Vedas|Vedic]] and Post-Vedic texts. Since Hindus consider the cow holy and deny the claims of beef consumption during Vedic period, the Hindu activist groups created controversy over his book.<ref>[[Cattle in religion and mythology#Hinduism|Sacred status of cows in Hinduism]]</ref><ref name="reddy">{{cite news | url=http://www.outlookindia.com/article/A-Brahmins-Cow-Tales/213159 | title=A Brahmin's Cow Tales | date=17 September 2001 | agency=Outlook | access-date=18 October 2014 | author=Reddy, Sheela |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140718044352/http://www.outlookindia.com/article/A-Brahmins-Cow-Tales/213159|archive-date= 18 July 2014 }}</ref><ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/Archive/Article/0,4273,4459689,00.html The Guardian] (13 July 2002)</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20151017114253/http://www.thehindu.com/2001/08/14/stories/13140833.htm The Hindu] (15 August 2003)</ref>

Jha discussed the events surrounding the publication in the introduction of the book ''The Myth of the Holy Cow''.<ref name="Obituary">{{cite web |title=Tribute: Professor DN Jha |url=https://www.cpiml.net/liberation/2021/02/professor-dn-jha |access-date=11 April 2022 |language=en}}</ref>

<blockquote>"Shortly afterwards, I began to get threats from unidentified callers asking me not to go ahead with the publication. Undeterred by all this Matrix Books, a new enterprising publishing house based in Delhi, mustered enough courage to publish the book promptly in the first week of August 2001. But some right-wing politicians and groups of religious fanatics, without reading a single page, termed it ‘blasphemous’, demanded my arrest and succeeded in obtaining a court order restraining the circulation of the book, and a self-appointed custodian of ‘Hinduism’ even sentenced me to death. The book was therefore published abroad by [[Verso Books|Verso]] (London)."</blockquote>

==Personal life==
Jha had two brothers and one sister. Jha died on 4 February 2021 in [[Delhi]], at age 80 (often misreported as 81);<ref name=":1">{{cite news |last=Mahaprashta |first=Ajoy Ashirwad |date=4 February 2021 |title=Eminent Historian D.N. Jha passes away at 81 |url=https://thewire.in/culture/historian-d-n-jha-passes-away-babri-ayodhya |access-date=4 February 2021 |work=[[The Wire (India)|The Wire]]}}</ref> he had suffered a paralytic attack a few years earlier and had lost much of his hearing.<ref name=":4" />

==Publications==
As author:
*1980, ''Studies in early Indian economic history'', Anupama Publications, ASIN: B0006E16DA.
*1993, ''Economy and Society in Early India: Issues and Paradigms'', {{ISBN|81-215-0552-6}}.
*1997, ''Society and Ideology in India'', {{ISBN|81-215-0639-5}}.
*1997, ''Ancient India: In Historical Outline'', {{ISBN|81-7304-285-3}}.
*2002, {{cite book |title=Holy cow: beef in Indian dietary traditions |date=2002 |publisher=Matrix Books |oclc=988874461 }}; paperback (2004) {{ISBN|1-85984-424-3}}
*2004, ''Early India: A Concise History'', {{ISBN|81-7304-587-9}}
*2009, ''Myth of the Holy Cow'', {{ISBN|81-8905-916-5}}
*2009, ''Rethinking Hindu Identity'', Routledge, {{ISBN|978-1-84553-459-2}}
*2016, ''Brahmanical Intolerance in Early India'', {{ISSN|0970-0293}}<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Jha|first=D.N.|date=2016|title=Brahmanical Intolerance in Early India|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24890281|journal=Social Scientist|volume=44|issue=5/6|pages=3–10|jstor=24890281 |issn=0970-0293}}</ref>
*2018, ''Against The Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History'', {{ISBN|978-9350981689}}
*2020, ''Drink of Immortality: Essays on Distillation and Alcohol Use in Ancient India'', {{ISBN|978-9390035212}}

As editor:
*1988, ''Feudal Social Formation in Early India'', {{ISBN|81-7001-024-1}}
*1996, ''Society and Ideology in India: Essays in Honour of Professor [[Ram Sharan Sharma|R.S. Sharma]]'' (Munshiram Manoharlal, Delhi, 1996).
*2000, ''The Feudal Order: State, Society, and Ideology in Early Medieval India'', {{ISBN|81-7304-473-2}}; a collection of critical essays by 20 specialists on medieval Indian society, politics, ideology and religion.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Wikiquote}}
*[http://www.ichrindia.org/ Indian Council of Historical Research]
*[http://www.du.ac.in/du/index.php?page=history History Department, Delhi University]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jha, D. N.}}
[[Category:2021 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian historians]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian historians]]
[[Category:Historians of India]]
[[Category:Patna University alumni]]
[[Category:People from Bihar]]
[[Category:Place of death missing]]
[[Category:Presidency University, Kolkata alumni]]
[[Category:University of Calcutta alumni]]
[[Category:1940 births]]

[[Category:Indian Marxist historians]]

D. N. Jha - Revision history

Sachin Soni at 03:06, 31 January 2026