The Bloodless Revolution: Radical Vegetarians and the Discovery of India

Nonfiction, History, British, Biography & Memoir
Cover of the book The Bloodless Revolution: Radical Vegetarians and the Discovery of India by Tristram Stuart, HarperCollins Publishers
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Tristram Stuart ISBN: 9780007404926
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Publication: October 18, 2012
Imprint: HarperPress Language: English
Author: Tristram Stuart
ISBN: 9780007404926
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Publication: October 18, 2012
Imprint: HarperPress
Language: English

In the 1600s, European travellers discovered Indian vegetarianism. Western culture was changed forever… When early travellers returned from India with news of the country’s vegetarians, they triggered a crisis in the European conscience. This panoramic tale recounts the explosive results of an enduring cultural exchange between East and West and tells of puritanical insurgents, Hinduphiles, scientists and philosophers who embraced a radical agenda of reform. These visionaries dissented from the entrenched custom of meat-eating, and sought to overthrow a rapacious consumer society. Their legacy is apparent even today. ‘The Bloodless Revolution’ is a grand history made up by interlocking biographies of extraordinary figures, from the English Civil War to the era of Romanticism and beyond. It is filled with stories of spectacular adventure in India and subversive scientific controversies carved out in a Europe at the dawn of the modern age. Accounts of Thomas Tryon's Hindu vegetarian society in 17th-century London are echoed by later ‘British Brahmins’ such as John Zephaniah Holwell, once Governor of Calcutta, who concocted his own half-Hindu, half-Christian religion. Whilst Revolution raged in France, East India Company men John Stewart and John Oswald returned home armed to the teeth with the animal-friendly tenets of Hinduism. Dr George Cheyne, situated at the heart of Enlightenment medicine, brought scientific clout to the movement, converting some of London’s leading lights to his ‘milk and seed’ diet. From divergent perspectives, Descartes, Rousseau, Voltaire and Shelley all questioned whether it was right to eat meat. Society’s foremost thinkers engaged in the debate and their challenge to mainstream assumptions sowed the seeds of modern ecological consciousness. This stunning debut is a rich cornucopia of 17th- and 18th-century travel, adventure, radical politics, literature and philosophy. Reaching forward into the 20th-century with the vegetarian ideologies of Hitler and Gandhi, it sheds surprising light on values still central to modern society.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

In the 1600s, European travellers discovered Indian vegetarianism. Western culture was changed forever… When early travellers returned from India with news of the country’s vegetarians, they triggered a crisis in the European conscience. This panoramic tale recounts the explosive results of an enduring cultural exchange between East and West and tells of puritanical insurgents, Hinduphiles, scientists and philosophers who embraced a radical agenda of reform. These visionaries dissented from the entrenched custom of meat-eating, and sought to overthrow a rapacious consumer society. Their legacy is apparent even today. ‘The Bloodless Revolution’ is a grand history made up by interlocking biographies of extraordinary figures, from the English Civil War to the era of Romanticism and beyond. It is filled with stories of spectacular adventure in India and subversive scientific controversies carved out in a Europe at the dawn of the modern age. Accounts of Thomas Tryon's Hindu vegetarian society in 17th-century London are echoed by later ‘British Brahmins’ such as John Zephaniah Holwell, once Governor of Calcutta, who concocted his own half-Hindu, half-Christian religion. Whilst Revolution raged in France, East India Company men John Stewart and John Oswald returned home armed to the teeth with the animal-friendly tenets of Hinduism. Dr George Cheyne, situated at the heart of Enlightenment medicine, brought scientific clout to the movement, converting some of London’s leading lights to his ‘milk and seed’ diet. From divergent perspectives, Descartes, Rousseau, Voltaire and Shelley all questioned whether it was right to eat meat. Society’s foremost thinkers engaged in the debate and their challenge to mainstream assumptions sowed the seeds of modern ecological consciousness. This stunning debut is a rich cornucopia of 17th- and 18th-century travel, adventure, radical politics, literature and philosophy. Reaching forward into the 20th-century with the vegetarian ideologies of Hitler and Gandhi, it sheds surprising light on values still central to modern society.

More books from HarperCollins Publishers

Cover of the book If You Love Me: Part 3 of 3: True love. True terror. True story. by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book One Night Only by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book Wrapped Up for Christmas by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book The Cinderella Moment by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book Leo 2017: Your Personal Horoscope by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book Too Fast For Love: Opportunist Encounters by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book The Last Days of the Spanish Republic by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book How To Bake The Perfect Pecan Pie (Home for the Holidays, Book 1) by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book Yoga (Collins Gem) by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book Let's Talk Money: You've Worked Hard for It, Now Make It Work for You by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book Sagittarius 2014: Your Personal Horoscope by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book Talking to Terrorists: A Personal Journey from the IRA to Al Qaeda by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book Easy Learning How to Use English (Collins Easy Learning English) by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book Nature in Towns and Cities (Collins New Naturalist Library, Book 127) by Tristram Stuart
Cover of the book The Colours of Desire on the Canvas of Restraint: The Jaina Way by Tristram Stuart
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy