' PB February 2011274 Prabuddha Bharata54 discusses the original material available in the form of maps, documents, treaties, official correspondence, and detailed reports prepared by the foreign ministries of China and India. The defining features of the work is a systematic analysis of the nature of the evidence involved, the fundamental geographical factors, and the major historical events that shaped the evolution of the border relation between the two nations. It is foreworded by the eminent historian S Gopal, who headed the Historical Division of the Foreign Ministry, Government of India. There are detailed chapters on topics ranging from 'Nature of the Dispute' and 'Nature of Evidence' to the historical backdrop of 'Tibet and Sinkiang in British and Chinese Policies', which constitutes introductory sections of the book. The India-China border dispute involves three sectors. The western sector consists of the Ladakh region of the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir; the middle sector comprises the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh; and the eastern sector consists of the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. The author shows how the British were obsessed with Russia, which led them to be predisposed in China's favour and encouraged Chinese occupation of certain areas. Thus, the role of Britishers has to be understood in its correct historical background. The middle section of the book shows the evolution of India-China borders in modern colonial era. Three chapters are detailed studies of the 1864 Ladakh Eastern Boundary, the 1875 Aksai Chin Boundary, and the Kashmir-Sinkiang Boundary before 1947. The next two chapters provide extensive useful information on the eastern sector, the north-east frontier of India before 1914, and the administration of the north-east frontier from 1914 to 1947. It shows how the Chinese had revived their interest in the strategic area of Tibet since the late thirties. The last chapter concludes the discussions on the three sectors mentioned above. The author asserts that the claims advanced by China in the western sector had no historical basis. As regards the middle sector, there had been no boundary dispute between India and Tibet in the past. In the eastern sector it is recognized that the Chinese claims to the vast areas are without basis. The author further asserts that the objections of the Chinese to the agreement of 1914 have no validity. The final observation of the author is significant: 'The inevitable conclusion one reaches is that if the India-China border problem is still unresolved it is not because of any lack on the Indian side to settle it on a reasonable basis, but because of deeper and more complex factors underlying Chinese international policies' (103–4). In short, the book gives a good understanding of the evolution of India-China borders in a historical perspective from the beginning of the modern period. As the author was advisor to the Indian delegation that discussed the border issue with Chinese officials in the sixties, he has extensively used all the original sources. It is indeed a commendable research work undertaken by an expert back in the sixties and now republished at a time when the vexed issue is being discussed in the new mechanism of the Joint Working Group and Expert Group. The book should be of invaluable help to all those who are interested in India-China relations in particular and international relations in general. Keshav Mishra Reader, Dept of History FSS, Banaras Hindu University Encyclopedia of Kashmiri Pandit Culture and Heritage C L Kaul Ansh Publications and Distributors, 1253, Sector D, Pocket I, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi 110 070. Website: www.anshpublications.com. 2009. xx + 801 pp. ` 2,100. gar Firdaus bar ru-e-zamin ast, hami ast o' hami ast o' hami ast; if there is heaven on earth, it is here, it is here, it is here.' These immortal words of the Persian poet Firdaus give us some idea about the legendary beauty of Kashmir. The poet was so enthralled by the heavenly ambience of the valley that these words spontaneously issued from his lips. This beautiful environment and its equally hoary tradition have been enriched and safeguarded by the various local sects, of whom the Kashmiri pandits are predominant. This book brings out details of the history and traditions of Kashmiri pandits. A 275PB February 2011 Reviews 55 Meticulously	arranged	into	various	categories, this	encyclopaedia	provides	a	glimpse	of	the	history	of	Kashmiri	pandits,	the	land	and	the	landscape,	the	characteristics	of	the	community,	their traditions,	temples,	festivals,	and	rituals.	It	also enumerates	contributions	by	prominent	people of	this	community	to	Kashmir	in	varied	fields like	arts,	education,	law,	literature,	science,	spirituality,	and	politics.	Presenting	a	brief	sketch	of his	life,	the	author	tells	us	about	the	inspiration behind	his	work. Kashmiri	phrases	have	been	given	with	their meaning	at	the	appropriate	places.	This	enables the	reader	to	get	acquainted	with	popular	sayings and	words	of	the	language.	The	author	displays	a candid	style	when	he	dissects	the	psyche	of	the Kashmiri	pandits	and	unhesitatingly	brings	out the	follies	of	their	character. Unlike	many	similar	works,	this	volume	does not	stop	at	a	historical	description	but	mentions current	persons	and	places	with	intricate	details. The	exhaustive	nature	of	this	book	is	revealed by	the	section	on	the	identity	of	the	community, where the author thoroughly discusses castes, names,	occupations,	pastimes,	proverbs,	folklore, wit	and	humour,	dress,	ornaments,	cuisine,	and more.	We	are	also	supplied	with	a	number	of	recipes	to	try	for	ourselves! Throughout	the	text	adequate	references	to sourcebooks	are	given.	More	than	three	hundred photographs	and	illustrations	enhance	the	value of	the	text	matter.	Each	chapter	ends	with	a	quote in	Kashmiri	and	its	translation.	A	key	helps	us in	pronouncing	the	Kashmiri	words.	A	detailed glossary	elucidates	vernacular	terms.	There	are separate	indexes	for	different	topics.	A	list	of	materials	required	for	performing	various	rituals,	a list	of	selected	references,	and	a	key	for	abbreviations	are	also	provided. Coming	from	the	pen	of	an	engineer,	this	work displays	exquisite	craftsmanship.	Printed	on	excellent	paper,	it	would	be	a	good	reference	for Kashmiri	pandits	residing	outside	the	valley	for many	generations.	It	could	also	be	of	good	use to	students	of	Kashmir	or	anyone	interested	in knowing	about	this	'heaven	on	earth'. Swami Narasimhananda Advaita	Ashrama,	Kolkata The Secret of the Creative Vacuum John Davidson New Age Books, A-44 Naraina Phase-I,	New	Delhi	110	028.	Website: www.newagebooksindia.com. 2009. 426	pp.	`	425. he	human	quest	since	the	dawn	of	civilization has	been	for	reality.	This	quest in	the	external	world	became	science,	in	the	internal	world metaphysics,	philosophy,	and	meditation.	These two	parallel	paths	have	disregarded	each	other for	long,	but	the	situation	changed	in	the	beginning	of	the	last	century	with	two	new	scientific theories:	the	theory	of	relativity	and	quantum mechanics.	The	latter	especially	has	shaken	scientists	with	its	subatomic	wave-particle	duality,	the uncertainty	principle,	and	the	Einstein-PodolskyRosen	paradox.	The	whole	scientific	conception of	reality	is	now	being	questioned.	Some	scientists even	started	invoking	consciousness	to	explain theories	and	thus	try	to	bridge	the	gap	between science	and	spirituality. John Davidson proposes another possible linking:	the	vacuum	state.	It	has	been	known for	some	time,	due	to	Heisenberg's	uncertainty principle, that the vacuum state is not static, passive,	and	inert.	It	is	a	state	of	intense	activity with	energy	and	mass	transfers	constantly	occurring.	The	author	raises	the	question:	could the	vacuum	state	be	the	missing	factor	that	explains	the	apparent	dichotomies	in	Nature?	Is it	by	ignoring	it	that	physicists	find	themselves in	knots?	The	author	strongly	believes	it	so	and has	tried	to	justify	his	belief	through	logical	and cogent	arguments. The	book	has	two	parts:	the	first	shorter	one is	'Magician's	Dance',	which	contains	five	chapters, the	second	longer	part	is	'Unveiling	of	the	Dance' and	has	ten	chapters.	The	first	is	an	introduction to	the	principles	of	the	vacuum	state	and	its	relation	to	the	human	system.	The	author	describes how	human	psychology	can	be	better	understood with	the	help	of	the	vacuum	state.	It	also	introduces	the	concept	of	the	subtle	body.	Several	related	topics	like	environmental	pollution,	akashic records,	and	homeopathy	are	covered.	The	author's T -No bleed here-