Himalayas

Following his trek along the length of the Nile River, explorer Levison Wood takes on his greatest challenge yet: navigating the treacherous foothills of the Himalayas, the world's highest mountain range. Praised by Bear Grylls, Levison Wood has been called "the toughest man on TV" (The Times UK). Now, following in the footsteps of the great explorers, Levison recounts the beauty and danger he found along the Silk Road route of Afghanistan, the Line of Control between Pakistan and India, the disputed territories of Kashmir and the earth-quake ravaged lands of Nepal. Over the course of six months, Wood and his trusted guides trek 1,700 gruelling miles across the roof of the world. Packed with action and emotion, Walking the Himalayas is the story of one intrepid man's travels in a world poised on the edge of tremendous change.

A magisterial history of the Himalaya: an epic story of peoples, cultures, and adventures among the world’s highest mountains. For centuries, the unique and astonishing geography of the Himalaya has attracted those in search of spiritual and literal elevation: pilgrims, adventurers, and mountaineers seeking to test themselves among the world’s most spectacular and challenging peaks. But far from being wild and barren, the Himalaya has been home to a diversity of indigenous and local cultures, a crucible of world religions, a crossroads for trade, and a meeting point and conflict zone for empires past and present. In this landmark work, nearly two decades in the making, Ed Douglas makes a thrilling case for the Himalaya’s importance in global history and offers a soaring account of life at the "roof of the world." Spanning millennia, from the earliest inhabitants to the present conflicts over Tibet and Everest, Himalaya explores history, culture, climate, geography, and politics. Douglas profiles the great kings of Kathmandu and Nepal; he describes the architects who built the towering white Stupas that distinguish Himalayan architecture; and he traces the flourishing evolution of Hinduism, Islam, and Buddhism that brought Himalayan spirituality to the world. He also depicts with great drama the story of how the East India Company grappled for dominance with China’s emperors, how India fought Mao’s Communists, and how mass tourism and ecological transformation are obscuring the bloody legacy of the Cold War. Himalaya is history written on the grandest yet also the most human scale—encompassing geology and genetics, botany and art, and bursting with stories of courage and resourcefulness.

In this book the Himalayas are treated as a whole: geography, geology, zoology, botany, ethnology and history as well as cultures, religions and art of the region.

A Journey of Healing and Transformation An enlightening memoir of a reluctant spiritual seeker who finds much more than she bargained for when she travels to India. Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati, from Hollywood, California, had a privileged upbringing that hid some dark secrets. She grappled with an eating disorder and trauma from her early childhood for years. But, as a Stanford grad getting her PhD in Psychology, she felt she was successfully navigating adulthood. After getting married, when she agreed to travel to India to appease her husband, little did Sadhviji know a journey of healing and awakening awaited her. She had everything the material world could offer. Soon, she would give it all up to follow the divine path. Hollywood to the Himalayas describes Sadhviji’s odyssey towards divine enlightenment and inspiration through her extraordinary connection with her guru and renewed confidence in the pleasure and joy that life can bring. Now one of the preeminent female spiritual teachers in the world, Sadhviji recounts her journey with wit, honesty, and clarity. Along the way, she offers teachings to help us all step onto our own path of awakening and discover the truth of who we really are—embodiments of the Divine. Americanborn Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati, PhD, moved to India in 1996. A graduate of Stanford University, she was ordained by Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati, president of one of the largest interfaith institutions in India, into the tradition of sanyas and lives at the Parmarth Niketan ashram in Rishikesh, where she leads a variety of humanitarian projects, teaches meditation, gives spiritual discourses, and counsels individuals and families. Americanborn Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati, PhD, moved to India in 1996. A graduate of Stanford University, she was ordained by Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati, president of one of the largest interfaith institutions in India, into the tradition of sanyas and lives at the Parmarth Niketan ashram in Rishikesh, where she leads a variety of humanitarian projects, teaches meditation, gives spiritual discourses, and counsels individuals and families.

Presents and describes 187 Hindu and Buddhist artworks of the Himalayas from the sixth through the nineteenth centuries; geographically themed essays; and translations and interpretations of several Nepali, Kashmiri, and Tibetan inscriptions.

This study is based upon the collections made over more than 30 years prior to 1943 by Ralph Steward at Rawalpindi in northwestern India. It was in 1911, as a young instructor there, that Steward commenced the gathering of specimens, & in 1912 that he made his first trip into Kashmir. Since then he had been repeatedly into the Himalayas, spending vacations in Kashmir & collecting in adjacent territory north to Baltistan & east to Ladakh; he traversed the mountains of Lahul & Kulu, & also summered at Landour above Dehra Dun. Author Pennell made Stewart¿s acquaintance in 1914 & 1915. Pennell asked that on his return to India he would pay particular attention to the Scrophulariaceae, a request that Stewart amply answered. 25 plates.

This book proposes a unique and comprehensive integrated synthesis of the current understanding of the science of Himalayan dynamics and its manifestations on physical systems and ecosystems at different spatial and temporal scales. In particular, this work covers relevant aspects of weather and climate, paleoclimate, snow, glacier and hydrology, ecology/forestry among other topics associated with the Himalayas. It highlights the role of the Himalayas in defining local to regional to global scale impact on weather and climate. It includes Himalayan impact on defining physical basis of changing glacier systems, permafrost melting/thawing, climate variability, and hydrological balances. As a result, this volume represents an important synthesized overview both for environmental and earth science researchers, and for policy makers and stakeholders interested in the physical and dynamical processes associated with the Himalayan massif.