SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITY IN WRITING (DYSGRAPHIA)

Written language is the highest and most complex type of communication. In the hierarchy of the development of language skills, it is the last to be learned.

The complexity of written expression can eb attributed to the various related abilities and skills it requires such as

-      Auditory – visual – motor coordination

-      Adequate oral language skills

-      Knowledge of rules of written usage

-      Ability to develop ideas, etc.

Despite its complexity, the importance of written expression cannot be denied for the following reasons:

-      Writings allow the relay of information and have given us links to the past.

-      Effective writings of great men and women have influenced society.

-      Writings of others help us to improve our own ability to express our thoughts.

-      Some people may express themselves better by writing. Writing can be therapeutic.

-      Writings leave lasting impressions.

-      For students, writing is indispensable for most subjects.

-      The need to write can only be reduced but not eliminated.

Components of writing

-      Handwriting

-      Spellings

-      Mechanics

-      Usage

-      Ideation

 

DSM 4 criteria for disorder of written expression

a.   Writing skills as measured by individually administered standardized tests (or functional assessments of writing skills), are substantially below those expected given the individual’s chronological age, measured intelligence and age-appropriate education (criterion A)

b.   The disturbance in criterial A significantly interferes with academic achievement or activities of daily living that require the composition of written texts (e.g., writing grammatically correct sentences and organized paragraphs).

c.   If a sensory deficit is present, the difficulties in writing skills are in excess of those usually associated with it.

 

Symptoms

Students who have difficulties in written expression usually show the following characteristics:

-      Discrepancy between verbal and writing skills.

-      Saying words out loud while writing.

-      Tend to dislike coloring, drawing, printing readiness activities.

-      Broad range of avoidance behaviors around paper-pencil activities.

-      Tendency to copy extremely slowly from the board.

-      Difficulty in improving their work.

-      Often labelled as ‘lazy’ with comments like ‘does not complete his work in class’.

-      Difficulty with syntax structure and grammar.

-      Illegible handwriting.

-      Unusual pencil grip.

-      Inconsistent positioning on page.

-      Inconsistent spaces between words and letters.

-      Slow or labored copying or writing – even if it is neat and legible.

-      Tiring quickly.

-      Inconsistencies in letters: mixtures of print and cursive, upper and lower case, or irregular sizes, shapes, or slant of letters.

-      Random or non-existent punctuation.

-      Difficulty in maths when it becomes written.

-      Occasionally have general organizational difficulties.

-      Spelling errors – same word spelled differently, reversals, phonic approximations, unfinished or omitted letters or syllables, difficulty with phone-grapheme correspondence, difficulty with sight words.

-      Reversals of numbers.

-      Confusion about similarly formed letters e.g., w and u or letters and numbers e.g., 2 and z.

-      Pain in hand and body while writing.

Often one parent has had similar difficulties.

Stress, frustration, action out behaviors and withdrawal are common problems often associated with dysgraphia.

 

Strategies to help a person with difficulties in written expression to achieve success:

-      Accommodations: providing alternatives to writing expression.

-      Modifications: changing expectations or tasks to minimize or avoid the area of weakness.

-      Remediation: providing instruction for improving handwriting and writing skills.

Strategies for graphomotor or handwriting difficulties:

-      Kinesthetic pattern or feel of letters.

-      Writing instrument that is most comfortable.

-      Typing (keyboarding) skills.

-      Use of cursive or manuscript, whichever is most legible.

-      Alphabet lines at corner of desk.

-      Paper with the raised lines for primary students.

-      Line width of students’ choice.

-      Graph paper for math, or lined paper turned sideways.

-      If a student becomes fatigued have them try the following:

Shake hands fast, but not violently.

Rub hands together and focus on the feeling of warmth.

Rub hands on some mild texture in circles.

Use the thumb of the dominant hand to click the top of a ballpoint pen while holding it in the hand. Repeat using the index finger.

Sitting position, paper placement, pencil grip.

Writing readiness activities such as scribbling, chalkboard activities. Variety of material for writing practice e.g., sand tray, finger painting.

Find motor activities e.g., picking tiny objects, molding play dough, stringing spools, finger Olympics, using tweezers, stencils, tracing with reducing cues, coloring and drawing within lines, verbal cues, letters to words to sentences.

 

Strategies for spelling difficulties

Phonological awareness (Consonants, vowels – including double vowels, blends, digraphs, position of phoneme in word, segmenting speech sounds, segmenting syllables)

Word families e.g., silent ‘e’ words

Spelling rules e.g., If a word ends in one vowel and one consonant, the last consonant should be doubled before adding ‘ed’, ‘ing’, e.g., hopped, hopping (double ‘p’) but rest – rested, resting, (no double ‘t’ because there are two consonants in the end).

Keywords to form a group e.g., ‘air’ (keyword) – pair, chair, airplane.

Sight words may be taught separately.

Multisensory methods

 

Fitzgerald (1955) – Meaning and pronunciation – imagery – recall – writing – mastery.

Fernald method – Students select word – teacher writes and says word – students trace saying it several times, write it while saying it – write from memory – if incorrect tracing repeated, if correct goes into box – later stages all steps not needed.

Personal spelling book

Spell check

‘Test – study – test; versus ‘study – test’

 

Strategies to improve written content

Abundant input – through reading, listening, discussions, observations, experiences.

Dictation of ideas into a tape recorder and listening and writing them down later.

Talking aloud while writing.

Topics of students’ choice.

Provision of written outlines,

Mind map

Graphic organizer.

Students may draw a picture of a thought for each paragraph.

Sense of audience.

Language for thinking – grammar, figures of speech, idioms, direct/indirect speech, active/passive voice, transformation of sentences, use of thesaurus.

Ideation e.g., continue a story, interpret a picture / sounds, providing alternatives.

 

Some more strategies:

Provision of information such as teacher prepared handouts or photocopies of other students’ notes.

Practice of writing.

Teaching of stages of the writing process – pre-writing, drafting, revising, and sharing with audience.

Imitation of students’ errors.

Identification and connection of own errors, reference to list of errors while self-correcting.

Removal of ‘neatness’ or ‘spelling’ (or both) as grading criteria for some assignments / designing of assignments to be evaluated on specific parts of the writing process.

Use of abbreviations

Extended time for written tasks.

Provision of extra structure and use of intermittent deadline for long term assignments.

Exemption from unnecessary copying.

Dictation to a writer and then changes made without assistance from the writer.

Tape recording of some assignments, oral answers to exercises / tests.

Modelling of the writing process and strategic thinking.

Reinforcement of the positive aspects of students’ efforts.

Be patient and encourage the student to be patient with him / herself.

A STEP BY STEP GUIDE TO PRACTICAL CRITICISM | POETRY | DO'S & DON'TS

 

Step 1 – Reading and thinking

Read the poem at least three times before you begin to write anything.

While reading try to detect a ‘tension’ or more simply a ‘contrast’ in the poem (by trying to see what is positive or negative in the poem. E.g., night and darkness vs light and day; mortality vs immortality; age vs youth, etc.).

Try to identify the general behind the particular – by asking yourself what could be the larger issue that underlies and informs the poem. For instance, ‘The Welsh Hill Country’ is not just a description of the countryside. It seems reasonable to suggest that the poet is dealing with the difference between the superficial appearance of things and the grim reality of life. The poet is talking about disease, waste and decay in life.

Step 2 – Starting an essay

Summarize the poem, establish your sense of the central opposition in the poem, set up the controlling idea for the essay as a whole.

Summarize the poem stanza by stanza (one line for each stanza) In the last line of your introductory paragraph merely touch upon the larger issue you have grasped in the poem – You have now got the content out of the way and can concentrate on pointing out the formal choices the poet has made.

Step 3 – The main body of your answer

After your general opening paragraph devote one paragraph to each stanza. The best approach is to pick out particular words and phrases for comment – not every word and detail but a few and really do justice to them.

Step 4 – Sum up your sense of the poem as a whole.

 

Taken from Practical Criticism by Peck and Coyle

SOME DO’S AND DON’TS OF APPLIED CRITICISM

Do:

Read the poem carefully and cautiously – at least three times before you begin to write anything.

Pay attention to how something is being said instead of only what is said – since it is the ‘how’ that conditions the ‘what’. In other words: the form shapes the content.

Be alert to unusual ways of putting things (language) and keep asking yourself the difficult yet rewarding question, why. Your job is to decide on the aptness of the choice that the writer has made.

Use a few technical terms now and then – it can add sophistication and precision to your writing.

Adopt a logical and argumentative style of writing.

Look for tension, conflict or opposition in the poem.

Look for positive images and impression that can be set against negative images and impressions.

Concentrate on the opening lines. You don’t need to sort out the poem as a whole at this stage. You are simply concerned with getting an initial confident hold on the poem.

Try to see the larger issue that lies behind the particular details of the poem; the tension you have spotted should help you identify a larger issue.

Don’ts:

Waste your precious time (and the examiner’s) with lame technical descriptions which fail to say anything about the effectiveness of the work form a critical or aesthetic point of view. E.g., this is a poem which contains fourteen lines.

Use vague emotive terms like ‘poignant’ – they betray a hollowness of response. Also avoid the use of empty superlatives and adjectives which say nothing about the text.

Praise a poem to the skies because you feel you have to. Merely saying fine things will not gain you extra marks. At the same time, shock dismissive tactics will be equally counterproductive.

Try to analyze the whole poem in advance. If you try to do this you are likely to tie yourself up in knots.

At the outset, worry about details you don’t understand in the poem. Such details can be dealt with later.

Don’t get sidetracked. You are analyzing a poem. Concentrate on the effects that are actually taking place in the poem rather than talking about your own life and experiences.

Get over-ingenious. You aren’t searching for hidden meanings in the poem. Stick to the plain sense of the poem and any larger issues that the plain sense suggests.

 

SOURCES OF ANCIENT INDIA | HISTORY OF ANCIENT INDIA

Archaeological Sources

Inscriptions – are writings / script which have been excavated and gives information about political, social, religious life of that particular period. The study of inscriptions is known as epigraphy. The materials used for recording inscriptions are iron, gold, silver, copper, bronze, clay, brick, crystal, wood, etc. The languages used are varied like Pali, Sanskrit, Prakrit, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam. Besides, the Bramhi and the Karoshti script were also used. Inscriptions are classified according to the material (information) they supply. Inscriptions can be classified as follows:

Seals of the Indus Valley Civilization

Asokan edicts

Eulogies (Prasastis)

Dedicative inscriptions

Donative inscriptions

Miscellaneous / Others

Seals of the Indus Valley Civilization – A large number of seals have been excavated made of clay, wax, and lead and they were used for the purpose of trading. A number of seals of Indus Valley Civilization are from different parts of India and Pakistan and also Sumeria, Egypt, anda Mesopotamia (Iraq). The study of seals provides information about religious practices, social system, habits, clothing about particular period Sindhu Valley seals have pictographic script.

Ashokan edicts – The inscriptions of Ashoka can be divided into Rock edicts – major and minor, cave inscriptions, pillar inscriptions.

Most of the edicts are in Bramhi script. They contained orders and rules ot be followed by the people and Ashoka appointed religious officers called ‘dharmamahamntras’ in order to enforce the orders. Ashokan inscriptions are very useful. They tell us the extent of his empire. They were found in Karnataka, Pesawar, Nepal which help us to know the geographical extent of his empire.

Eulogies (Prasastis) – are biologies of kings written by court poets. They contain the name, genealogy and an account of the career of the ruler, his achievements and his administrative system. Examples of eulogies are Hathigumpha inscription of King Kharavel of Kalinga, Allahabad Pillar Inscription which tells us about King Samudragupta, Aihole Inscriptions of Pulekesin II of the Chalukya dynasty.

Dedicated inscriptions – are dedicated to a memory of a particular person or ruler. They give us information about the political, religious and social life. Examples of dedicated inscriptions are the Garuda Pillar Inscription at Besnagar of the Indo-Greek King Helyadorus and the Mandasor Inscription of King Kumaragupta.

Donative inscriptions – refer to grants of land that were donated to Hindu Brahmans and Buddhist monasteries, educational institutions and temples. The inscriptions are on copper plates, stone pillars and also in temples. These inscriptions are very important because they give the description of the donors’ family for several generations and of the life and achievements of the ruler. Example of donative inscriptions are the Chola inscriptions – it is an official document.

Miscellaneous (Other records) – Inscriptions which belong to private parties, e.g., the Nanaghat inscription of Queen Nagarika mentions donations and the inscriptions of Brihadeshwara temple at Tanjore to Kuddavais family. The dates of the images and buildings can be fixed and development of language, evolution of art and religion can be traced with the help of these inscriptions. Many private inscriptions add to our knowledge about the ruler of that particular period.

Coins – The study of coins is called numismatics. We get important historical information form coins.

The earliest coins of India were the punch mark coins. The coins were used for trading purposes.

Greek Bactrian coins – another type of early coins are Greco Bactrian coins issued by Greek ruler of Bactria in 305 BC. These coins are a mixture of Greek and Eastern style showing the picture of the king and his name. the coins were of silver, gold and copper.

Scythian Parthian coins – were an imitation of the Greek coins but they were of inferior quality.

Kushana coins are found in large numbers and are useful for learning about the Kushana dynasty.

Gupta coins are very artistic and impressive coins. Kings Samudragupta and Chandragupta II issued different types of coins. The coins had picture like Ashvamedha type, Archer type (bow and arrow), tiger slayer type, beena type, etc. These coins give us cultural, religious and political boundaries of the Gupta Empire. The study of coins is helpful to know the technique of coins, information about artistic excellence, economic conditions of the country. For e.g., coins of Samudragupta and Chandragupta II were made of gold, but during Kumaragupta’s reign there were copper coins. Different metals that were used in different provinces give us an idea of mining resources. Coins which have geographical boundaries help us reconstruct the history of that particular dynasty.

The study of coins is used together with literary evidence in order to write factual history.

Monuments – are excavations dug out by archaeologists. They enable us to trace the history of art and styles of architecture.

After excavation of Sindhu Valley many large buildings have bee found. E.g., a swimming pool at Mohenjodaro and granary at Harappa, the Dockyard at Lothal in Gujarat throw light on the material civilization of the Indus Valley people. The excavation of ancient sites like Pataliputra, Sainath, Taxila, Raigir provide information on various aspects of monuments.

Pottery – is also an important archaeological source which throws light on the social, religious activities of the people. Harapan and Indus Valley seals show the economic and religious activities of the people. Harappa pottery had a red strip and black painted decoration of natural motifs like flowers.

The Greek and Roman pottery also excavated in South Deccan tell us that there were relations between these countries. Indian potters decorated their pots with flower motifs, geometric design, animals and birds. Indus valley people were also specialists in the art of glazing.

Artifacts – artifacts of semi-precious stones in silver and gold, relic caskets found in Buddhist sites in various parts of India, toys, tools, weapons, bows, ivory work, all artifacts tell us about the cultural and material life of the people of that time. these antiques can be dated by Radiocarbon method.

LITERARY SOURCES

Vedas – The Vedas are the oldest works. There are four Vedas: Rigveda, Samaveda, Yajurveda and Atharvaveda.

Rigveda – is the oldest and comprises of hymns dedicated to Gods and composed by families of priests. The Rigveda is a primary source of information for the study of the political, social, economic and religious life of the early Vedic people.

Samaveda – is a collection of melodies. It is important for the rituals. The text contains musical notes. Hence Samaveda is the earliest work in Indian music.

Yajurveda – comprises of the white Yajurveda and the black Yajurveda and was meant to be a guidebook for priests performing sacrifices.

Atharvaveda – is a collection of spells and magic charms and is a prayerbook of the common people meant for application at the humbler domestic sacrifices.

Brahamanas – are commentaries on the Vedas. They are ritual texts, whose author speculated on the minute details of the Brahmanical sacrifices. They are useful for political and geographical information e.g., Satapatha brahman and Aitareya Brahmans.

Upvedas – is a higher branch of learning. They contain detail knowledge and are four in number: Ayurveda (herbal medicine), Dhaveda (Military science), Gandawaveda (Music) and Shilpaveda (architecture).

Vidangas – means parts of the Vedas which called help in better understanding of Vedas. Subjects like Siksha (phonetics), kalpa (rituals), vyakarana (grammar), nirukta (etymology), chhandas (metrics) and jyothisha (astronomy).

Sutras – Along with the study of history of religion, there were speciality schools dealing with pure rituals such as Grihasutra (household rituals), Kalpasutras, Srautasutras, Dharmasutras.

Aryankas – was a forest text to be read by Sadhus and householders in the Vanaprasthashrama.

Upanishads – are called Vedanta. The word Upanishad means sitting at the feet of the teacher. The philosophical ideas that are contained in this book were explained by the guru to his people. Upanishads contain philosophy about Atman, Brahman and theory or resurrection of the soul.

Epics – are stories of the Aryans and they are of great value for history as they throw light on social, political, religious and cultural life of the Aryans. They also deal with human values, for e.g., the Aryans were destroyed and their thirst for power and wealth ultimately led to a great war which took place as described in the Mahabharata.

Dharmashastras – are smritis of different laws of ancient Indian society. Some important smritis are Manu, Yajnavalkya, Narad and Brihaspati. They give a great deal of information about Indian society. These smritis were laws made by man. They describe the social practices and code of conduct of members of the Hindu society. The most important is Manu smriti composed between 200BC to 200AD. This smriti favors the Brahmins against the lower caste. All the smritis give us useful information about Hindu society.

Puranas – give us a genealogical account of Hindu society. There are eighteen puranas. The most important are the Vishnu Purana, the Vayu Purana, Matsya, Brahma and Bhavishya. They are useful to history as they give information about religion, philosophy, mythology, ceremonies, customs of Hindus of ancient times.

Secular Hindu literature

Secular literary works give us valuable information about the economic conditions. The secular literary sources are divided into general sources, biographies and regional work.

General sources

Arthashastra written by Kautilya (Chanakya) during the period of Chandragupta. Kautilya was the prime minister of Chandragupta Maurya. This gives detail information about political, administrative set up, spy system, socio economic life, and religious life.

Mudrarakshasa – a Play of Vishakadatta written during the Gupta period deals with how Chanakya with the help of Chandragupta Maurya overthrew the Nanda dynasty of Magadha.

Patanjali’s Mahabhasya and Panini’s Astadhyayi – These are works in Sanskrit drama, but they contain political references of the times.

Prasastis – Harisena’s Prasastis on Samudragupta on the Allahabad Pillar inscription gives information about the works and conquest of Samudragupta

Bhara’s work – His drama such as Saphava, Vadutta and Pratgna, Gougandhara give information about the political condition in India in the age of King Padyota in Uillain.

Kalidas’works – such as Abhyyan, Shakuntala and Meghdoota discuss the social life of that period.

Post Harsha works – dramas Nagananda Rathavai Priyadarshini help us know the conditions of the politics and society in seventh century AD.

 

Biography

Banas Harshacharita – gives us detailed information of Harsha’s administration and religious policy. Biographies are important even though the information may be one sided because they help us to compare this information with archeological sources.

Vakpatas Gauduahe of Ulhanas Chilbran Deva Schima – deals with rulers Garhouarma and Vikramaditya of Kashmir.

 

Regional work

Kalhana’s Rajatarangini – Historian Kalhana has written Rajatarangini – a history of Kashmir after the death of Harsha. It was written around 1149-1150 AD.

Chronicles of Gujarat and Nepal – Chronicles of Gujarat such as Rasmala and Krisnakumudhi of Samervara and the Rajashekara and the Hamira Madmareluva of Ruhena are chronicles of Nepal which help us to write the history of this region.

Jain literature – The religious texts of the Jains are called Agama Siddharta. They are in Aradha Magadhi Prakrit Language and in Sutras style. Some literature also has commentaries on these texts. Jain literature is useful of social, political, economic, religious, historical information.

Buddhist literature – is found in Pali and Sanskrit. It is divided into Triptakas, Vinaya Pitika, Sutta Pitika and Abhidhamma Pitika. It contains a summary of Buddhas teaching, rules for monastic life and principles of Buddhism.

Dhammapadas – are a collection of 423 sayings of Lord Buddha.

Theragatha – contains poems written by Buddhist monks.

Therigatha – are poems written by buddhist nuns.

Non-Canonical literature

Milinda Panha (Questions of King Milinda) – discusses problem of Buddhism and the answers are given by a very famous Buddhist teacher.

Dipallana and Mahavamsa – are chronicles of Ceylon and they contain important historical information.

Jataka Stories – written in Sanskrit are 549 in number. They deal with the previous births of Buddha. These stories give information about the social, religious, economic and political condition of the relevant period.

Lalitavistara and Vipulyasutra – Lalitavistara contains stories about the life of Buddha and Vipulyasutra explains principles of Lord Buddha.

 

Foreign accounts

Foreigners such as Greek, Persian, Chinese, and Muslim historians visited India from ancient times. Their historical accounts help us to write the history of India. Roman historians visited India in ancient times, together with the Greek and have left important documents which help us write history.

Greek accounts – Greek historians such as Herodotus and Certus have made reference to Indians in their writing of Greek Persian wars. Herodotus’ ‘Histories’ gives details of political conditions in northwest India.

Alexander’s Generals such as Arian, Skylax, Nearchus refer to details of Greek invasions of India.

Greek ambassador Megasthenes’ book Indica gives us details about social, political, economic details of Mauryan Empire.

Roman Historian Pliny wrote about Indian animals, plants and mineral in the 1^st century AD.

Egyptian historians – The geographer Ptolemy gives details of Indians during the 2^nd century AD. He gives geographical details.

Unknown authors – The anonymous authors’ ‘The Periplus of the Erytherian Sea’ – this unknown author had visited India in 80 AD and he records the port harbor and trade of India together with Maritime activities of Indians.

Chinese travelers – Three Chinese travelers Fa Hein, Huien T-Sang and It-Sing visited India from fifth to sixth century AD

Fa Hein (339-414 AD) – Visited India during the rule of Emperor Chandragupta II (Vikramaditya) and has recorded his experiences about India and Indian people in a large volume. It gives us details about the social, religious and political conditions of the Gupta Empire.

Huien T-Sang (626-645 AD) – is called the ‘Prince of Pilgrims’. He stayed in India, studied at Nalanda university and participated in religious assembly conducted by King Harsha at Kanauj. His book the ‘Record of Western World’ is very useful for writing of the history of the period.

It-Sing visited India in seventh century AD. He records social and religious conditions of India at that time.

Arab accounts

Al-Masudi the Arab historian has written about the hsiotry of Kanauj in 9^th century AD.

Alberuni – visited India along with Mahmud Ghazni and his book ‘Tehqiq – I – Hind’ (Tarikh I Hind) gives details of India in 1030 AD. He was a scholar and translated Sanskrit sources. Alberuni also wrote from what he read and not from what he saw. This is a drawback of his account as it can be bias, but his accounts are useful for knowing the general condition of the time.

Foreign accounts are useful as they can be verified with other archaeological sources. The only drawback which must be kept in mind is that the language, customs and traditions of Indian people could be presented in a bias manner.

 

GEOGRAPHICAL INFLUENCE ON HISTORY OF INDIA

Geography has played a great role in influencing the History of India. India by itself is a large country. India was two third the size of USA and 20 times the size of Great Britain. On the north, India is surrounded by the high Himalayan ranges separated from Central Asia and Eastern Asia main line. On the Western and Southern side India is enclosed by waters of the Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal.

Causes of geographical influence

The Renaissance was responsible for scientific inventions which encouraged new geographical discoveries. Foreigners came by land route to the East, for e.g., Maroc Polo. These Europeans found that there wee many luxury items like spices, silk, and precious stones. The Europeans especially the Portuguese wanted to have trade contact with the East. In order to have trade relations with the East, geographical discoveries were made.

The physical features of the country affected the lives and habits of the people and the richness of the soil made life easy. Agriculture and industry flourished especially in the plains of Punjab and Haryana, parts of Uttar Pradesh and Andra Pradesh. Ganga, Jamuna, Doab area in North, and Raichur Doab area in the South were noted for production of foodgrains. Besides the rivers of India have been useful for irrigation purposes and development of hydroelectric projects. Agriculture was the main occupation of the people and Indians were famous for producing commercial crops like cotton, silk, jute, etc. Indians supplied raw materials to small- and large-scale industries. The forest resources also supplied raw materials; Indian plains have been used to produce different kinds of medicine from ancient times. Trade was started by land and sea route. India traded with Rome and Middle Eastern countries since ancient times.

Geographical factors were responsible for cultural unity in diversity. The geography (rivers, plains and mountains) was responsible for creating common heroes and common sense of belonging which was responsible for nationalism. The different geographical zones and different climate were also responsible for developing a particular way of life. To suit the climate in the north, the north Indian people ate more wheat. The south Indians basic diet consisted of rice. The people in the coastal region eat fresh fish and rice. Thus, each region developed their own way of life.

Historians say that there is uniqueness in Indian culture because of geographical character. This is mainly because there are mountains, rivers, plains, forests which have encouraged cultural unity but at the same time each region maintains its own variety. E.g., coming from the north, crossing the Vindhya Mountain, one has a distinct change in culture, dress and habits of the people of India. This is because places in the north have a cooler climate that the south and vice versa.

Indian geographical features have encouraged aloofness and isolationism. India being surrounded by the high Himalayan ranges in the North and on three sides by oceans, India was cut off from the rest of Asia. So Indians developed their own habits of keeping aloof and were isolated from the outside world. Travelers and merchants from outside came to India, but Indians did not go outside, so much so that sea voyages were not encouraged. As a result, Indians remained aloof right up to the nineteenth century.

Geographical features encouraged centrifugal tendency. The natural regional boundaries created by mountains, plains, and rivers through the centuries have encouraged the rise of regional kingdoms and also the wars of conquest among the kingdoms to capture each other’s territories. For e.g., 6^th century BC there were 16 Mahajanapadas or monarchial states and few republics. Later on they were united under the Mauryan Emperor with Magadha being the most power state in the fifteenth century under Mughal rule and the rise of Bahamani kingdom in the Deccan. This Bahamani kingdom later split up into five independent kingdoms like Ahmednagar, Golkonda, Bijapur, Berar and Bidaar under separate Muslim dynasty. Such tendencies were responsible for disunity among ruling dynasties in India. This gave opportunities for foreign invaders to conquer India.

Geographical features make it difficult for political unity. The vastness of India with natural separation of different regions has been responsible for political divisions. Right from ancient and medieval times, India has never been bound under one Central Administration. It was only the British who brought India under Central rule.

India was a target for foreign invaders. The Geography of India shows that right from ancient times, Central Asian tribes and before that the Greeks, Persians, Saka-Parthian, Scythian, Kushans made their way into India. The Khyber and Bolan Pass provided easy access for invaders from Kandahar and Afghanistan. In the eleventh and twelfth centuries Mahmud of Ghazni and Mohammed Gauri invaded India several times. Later in 1526, the Mughal dynasty established their rule in India. With geographical discoveries, Europeans made their way to the East. The Portuguese, Dutch, French, English all came to India to trade and finally the British established their administration in the seventeenth century.

PORT LOTHAL | INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION

Trade in the Indus Valley Civilization was carried on by land routes and sea routes. There were a lot of maritime ports like Lothal and Rangpur in Surendranath district.

Lothal, an Indus site has revealed a brick build dockyard system which worked on tidal principle. Professor S. R. Rao has traced the history of Lothal on the Gulf of Cambay (Gujarat) as a port of the Indus Valley Civilization.

Lothal is located in the coastal flats of the Gulf of Cambay. This place seems to have been an outpost for sea trade with contemporary West Asian societies. Its excavator S. R. Rao claims to have discovered a dockyard there.

According to recent information at the Eastern flank of this Lothal site is a large basin approximately 214 X 37 meters in dimension which has been represented as a dock and further more the discovery of the Persian Gulf Seal at Lothal determines the fact to acknowledge Lothal as an important port for trade of the Indus Valley Civilization in the Arabian peninsular and the near East.

Some of the seals excavated at Lothal bear pictures of ships. Moreover, recent excavations at Lothal have brought out five terracotta models of ships both with and without mast indicating Lothal’s importance as a port.

According to Prof. Sadashiv Gorakshar and K. Desai, the exact site of Lothal is about 16 kms form the confluence of the Sabarmati and Bhogavo rivers.

AUTHENTICITY AND CREDIBILITY OF A HISTORICAL SOURCE

 Discuss the criteria by which authenticity and credibility of a historical source is established.

How are authenticity and credibility of a historical source established?

 

AUTHENTICITY

The collection and classification of sources is a laborious job as whatever data has been collected must be reliable. History deals with things and persons who are no longer in existence and the dead do not speak. It is therefore the duty of researchers to show them as they were in reality without altering their actual genuine original forms.

Meaning and features of authenticity of historical sources

Authenticity means truthfulness. The historical sources in any form, whether in written form or concrete relics must be true and original. Men cannot live beyond a certain age; they die but their actions and ideas survive. In most cases it lingers on in memory of the contemporaries who may record them in writing or commemorate them in art and architecture. These writings and monuments, either in good condition or bad, as a complete whole or fragments of the original come to light after a few generations. There is nobody of that period still alive to give an eye-witness account and so the problem whether what is recorded or formed in art or architecture is true and real or not. This has to be determined by several tests. The main features of authentic sources of history are:

The documents, records, manuscripts, inscriptions, etc., and the relics in concrete form must be true and original kept as treasured possessions.

The time, place and authorship of the documents must be mentioned in the text. In case of relics correct identification must be available. For e.g., coins of the Gupta period and Ashoka’s rock edicts.

The official documents if presented as source material must carry the stamp and the seal of government institutions or trade guilds.

A reference to the documents and structures which survive should be found in contemporary literature and records.

The evidence in the form of documents and articles should be a neutral character for furthering research. All parts of the document must be consistent and of uniform style.

Criticism of sources to detect deviations – When we use the term criticism of historical sources, it does not mean simply finding fault with the source material. It means examination, analysis, testing the validity and authenticity of the sources before accepting them as raw material for the construction of the past. This is external criticism.

In order to detect deviations from the norms we must fix our attention on the principles of validity. Some of the guiding principles are:

How did the source originate? The Researcher must know the history fo the source. For e.g., ‘Jedhe Shakavli’ – Chronology of events during Shivaji’s period. How did it originate? On what basis did Jedhe compile it? The answer to that would avoid irregularities.

Does the document tell the whole story? In many cases the dynastic histories suffer from suppression of unpleasant events and experiences. This is true of modern documents also.

Has the document shown the date, place and authorship of the same? This is an acid test especially while dealing with ancient and medieval periods of Indian History. Chronology is the biggest problem while dealing with manuscripts of medieval documents. In ancient records there is hardly a mention of the name of the place and author of the text. ‘Mahabharata’ is believed to have bee composed by ‘Vyasmuni’ but we do not get definite information about when and where he composed it. In the case of Mauryan and Gupta edicts and inscriptions we do not find the dates and names of the craftsmen but in the Chalukyan inscriptions and those of their feudatories.

Does the author of the document make a reference to the sources on which he basis his information? The answer if affirmative would of course enhance its value but if there is no mention of such source of information it is a deviation. Kautilya in his Arthashastra mentions the names and works of his predecessors.

How many editions and versions of the text are available? The answer to this question will provide some clues for determining additions and alternations. There are no different versions of the text as in the cases of many classical Sanskrit works, it is easy to determine authenticity and variations. Consistency of all parts of the narrative and uniformity of style helps to determine interpolation in the text.

Are translations of the documents available in English or the language of the researcher? The problem of sources which are in foreign languages have to be solved. We cannot depend on the English factory records of the East India Company alone. We should also study the French, Dutch and Portuguese records relating to the same period for a comparative picture.

Different ways of fabricating and cheating – The researcher must get a true, valid and fresh version of the document by the real author. This is difficult in the cases concerning ancient and medieval India. It is also not easy to have access to confidential state documents which contain the true picture of the diplomatic relations, military affairs, war-time activities, and other secrets of public interest. A couple of decades ago Congress Government in India had buried underground a capsule containing true history of India. The subsequent non-Congress government dug it out and found nothing special about it.

Governments of the world especially the government of socialist countries keep some documents as top secrets. We cannot say anything about secret transactions relating to finance, military affairs and treaties. There are however other kinds of documents, public and private, which are available in the archives and libraries.

While handling the available documents of important nature we should proceed very cautiously to ascertain that there are no fabrications or misrepresentation or cheating. Documents can be thus subjected to external criticism or evaluation.

There are many ways in which the original documents of financial or political importance can be changed or fabricated to mislead the rivals or contenders for gains and annihilate opposition and challenge to ones authority or interest.

Fabrications of records are done in many ways:

Forgery – This is a criminal act of changing title deeds and contracts, charters or such important agreements. The most famous case of forgery in Indian History is that of Robert Clive forging the signature of Admiral Watson. He not only forged Watson’s signature but gave a fake copy of the agreement to merchant Omnichand and cheated Siraj-ud-Daulah.

There are some cases of forging manuscripts to make it appear as if it belonged to remote past. The dates and the names contained in the document may be doctored to appropriate land grants. In the political chaos that prevailed during the early Middle Ages, such fabrications were made.

Plagiarism – There is a tendency among writers of history to steal thoughts and information from other writers. They copy the material but do not mention the source of their information. It is for this reason that researchers should mention the source of their information and should not pose as the original writer. Many historians of the Middle Ages borrowed information and at times wrote on the basis of what they heard. That was not plagiarism but a fanciful addition. Barani, Badauni or Firdausi might have added some episodes in the life of Mohammad Tughlaq to make it more vivid and spicy.

Interpolation – Interpolation means adding some spurious material to the original account. We come across this fault in almost all Puranic literature and even Rig Veda is not free from this fabrication. If it is a religious part which is added for more effect it may be overlooked but if it forms a part of an ideology it is objectionable. In the Skanda Puran (Shiva Puran) the addition of Sahyadri Khanda with a view to explaining the origin and multiplication of castes was not desirable.

Misrepresentation – This defect of giving a wrong account of the past is mischievous. James Mills ‘History of British India’ published in 1818 was acclaimed as a wonderful historical work in England but it was based on insufficient data. The author had not visited India and did not know any Indian language but had the audacity to condemn the Hindu race as devoid of manliness.

Suppression or omission of facts – Nations under single political party dictatorship did not allow only the bright side of their government and suppress information about the unpleasant aspects of their policies and activities. The documents or texts from such countries cannot be treated as telling the whole truth. The information may be inconvenient to the government or the society.

There are extreme cases and are an integral part of the policy of the government.

In open societies where democratic governments rule, there are no cases of suppression of important information, but omissions of such information. The documents may refer to such unwanted experiences in a cursory manner or gloss over the objectionable aspects of the issue.

The records of medieval period of Indian history are full of one-sided narratives. The scribes at the court exaggerate the exploits of their patrons and omit to refer to defeats in war and their failures and exploitation of the people. You can hardly know whether the King Harsh was defeated by Chalukya Pulkesin II unless you read the inscriptions of the Chalukya King. Even the records of feudatories and Kings of tiny states are made to appear as if they were world rulers and invincible. Khafi Khan a known opponent of Emperor Aurangzeb’s repressive measures might say a good word about Shivaji’s religious tolerance but would not utter a word of praise about Shivaji’s struggle for ‘Swarajya’. They would have been against the Imperial rule.

Quotations and translations – Historians give quotations from other authors who wrote on the same theme. Usually this is done to show support to the views of the writer concerned. The context in which the other writer has written those words or passages must be examined to know the true position. Secondly, the translated works should be such as are approved by the experts in the first language. In this respect, Elliot and Dawson had done a good service to Indian history. A wrong translation and a misleading quotation detract from the truth. Any comments based on such translations must be treated with caution.

Causes for doctoring documents:

The answer to the simple questions ‘who will gain?’ and ‘what and how will he gain?’ will give us a clue to detect the possible offender. The gains are various and range from personal benefit to national glory. Some of the causes are:

Financial gain – This is the most common cause for forgery of documents. The change of names in the will of a rich relative, the amounts due to creditors in business transaction or land grant gifts and donations from patrons etc.

Political gain – Title deeds and authority delegated to persons by the old regime or overthrown governments. When the East India Company appointed ‘Imam Commission’ only those who could produce title deeds could get continuation, others were eliminated. There is always scope of fabrication of documents.

Social gains – Biographies of saints and origins of caste as int eh case of ‘Sahyadri Khand’ of Skanda Puran give higher status in the society. The Rajput clans claimed ‘Kshatriya’ category in the Hindu Society by fabricating their genealogies. The Nand dynasty was condemned by Hindu, Jain and Buddhist writers and the Mauryan dynasty was elevated to a higher status.

Position and fame – Nationalist historians gain position and fame in presenting the national history as a story of unblemished heroes. They suppress unsavory facts and eulogize the exploits to block any dissent.

Truth is more powerful than a powerful autocrat. Records may be suppressed, and doctored documents may be produced in support of claims of multifarious kind. They are temporary gains. The methods to establish the validity and the true facts have been evolved by historians over many years of research and they have load down certain guidelines.

Methods of determining garbled documents: A student of history or a researcher in history is interested in authentic documents and relics of the past as evidence of the past age. He is chiefly interested in:

Authorship of the document

The date of the document

Place of the document

Corroboration of contemporary documents or books and other sources.

His question is ‘Is this document genuine?’ In order to ascertain the genuineness of that he has to adopt a method to determine the above mentioned four points as problems before him.

Problem of authorship – If the name of the author is mentioned in the beginning the problem is easy to tackle. The student researcher must see that his authorship is not contested by other writers of his times. Usually the diction and the style of the narrative helps to identify the author f the work under consideration when we talk about document it is not a piece of paper on which the author has expressed his thoughts or described a fact of his experience. It may be a full volume in manuscript or in print. We use it as an evidence to ascertain the happenings in the past. The authorship of the book or document when in doubt may be guessed by going through the works of the concerned author so that his language, style of presentation, his approach to problems can be judged.

In case the concerned author has a single book or treatise like Kautilya who is supposed to have written ‘Arthashastra’ or Vyasmuni the author of ‘Mahabharata’ or Valmiki the author of ‘Ramayana’ we have to depend on the evidence of the contemporary writers as we cannot compare other works of the same Kautilya, Vyasa, or Valmiki.

Problem of Chronology – In history, date – time of events is very important. Modern history is free from the defect of uncertainty of chronology of event whether it is French Revolution or World War II. The problem of fixing the date arises in the case of ancient and medieval period narratives. The narrative itself gives certain clues about the occurrences of the events. For e.g., Ashoka’s Kalinga War – We can easily guess the year of the war from Ashoka’s edict referring to that bloody war. Same is the case about the period of disturbed conditions after the fall of thee Mauryan and Gupta empires. Although the exact dates cannot be fixed the absence of contemporary records once the probable period is tentatively fixed the authorship of the document and also the place of the event can be determined easily.

Problem of the place of the event – The unpublished sources usually manuscripts referring to some important event, say the Koli and Ramoshi revolts in Maharashtra after the conquest of Maharashtra by the East India Company. The letter describing such events or notes relating got such anti-government documents may not deliberately mention the date and place of its origin. In such cases the events already known in connection with such rebellions provide a clue to ascertain the date and place if not the authorship.

Corroboration of contemporary documents – Authenticity of a document can be ascertained by consulting contemporary documents which have been accepted by scholars. The Peshwa records about the First Anglo Maratha War and the Treaty of Purandhar must be read with the factory records of the English Company. The account of the wars may be corroborated with French and the Portuguese records of those events.

It is also instructive to compare the accounts of the same event from opposite points of view. Lord Robert’s book ‘An eyewitness account fo the Indian Mutiny’ may be compared with Veer Savarkar’s ‘War of Independence’ (1857). The truth lies somewhere in between.

John C. B. Webster in his book ‘An Introduction to History’ has suggested that while dealing with manuscripts researchers should focus attention on the handwriting, pages numbered, and the ink used. The change in handwriting or in the ink may suggest change in authorship. As regards published works it is advisable to go to the root of the source or to study how the account of the events originated. The root of the source material leads to a better view of the document.

Remedial Measures

While handing the evidence the research students should move cautiously. One should always entertain a healthy doubt of all the accounts about sensitive and controversial events. This is the first remedial measure. The question to be asked is ‘what part of this document may be a garbled one?’ For e.g., When we select a topic like ‘Quit India Movement’ for study, the conflicting views have to be considerable and the account before us in the document has to be critically examined.

Secondly source material on the topic prior to the one before us should be consulted. Just as we should know the latest work on the subject the previous works should be gone through to find the addition etc. A student of history should adopt the approach to know the history of the documents.

Thirdly, we have to make an intelligent guess who would be benefited by distortion of facts or advocating a particular point of view based on the garbled facts. If the subject chosen is of a neutral nature say ‘The history of sea fortresses on the western coast of India’ even here one can find a lurking interest of some communities and politicians. All subjects in this way be loaded with some interest or the other. It is therefore necessary to get hold of ‘hard and irreducible facts’ as we know, the Positivist approach advocated by Ranke, Acton and others is only a dream.

Finally, it is better to have a commonsense approach to all documents, physical relics of the old times can be tested by carbon-14 method, the ink and other material used can be analyzed or preserved by chemical treatment, but the written records have to be evaluated by men who aspire to know the truth. Like the judge in the court of law we must allow the case to be pleaded by lawyers and cross examine the witnesses. The judgment must be clear and convincing.

External criticism to establish authenticity of sources is an important step int eh reconstruction of the past. When we study one or more events for research, we should know the exact features of authentic documents i.e., the mention of author, date and place of the event and the available sources, old and new on the subject. With these features in mind, we should think about the deviations and the causes for such doctoring of documents. We should follow the correct method to eliminate such anomalies and restore the true and original source of information.

CREDIBILITY

An authentic document cannot be an absolutely reliable one. The witness giving the evidence might commit error deliberately or by oversight or in a way not be easily intelligible. Thus, we need to known more about the credibility of the source.

Meaning of credibility of sources – Credibility is trustworthiness. It is a guarantee that something presented to us for inspection is true and real. You trust you eyes and so you believe what you see. When it is a historical source you may regard it as true at the first sight. But all historical documents simply because they are kept in archives, libraries or in temples and churches cannot be regarded as credible unless you go through the relevant records concerning your subject under study.

What is credible in poetry or art may not be credible in practical life and so as historical knowledge. Platonic love may be trusted as true and real by a poet or a philosopher but historian will ask if such a love is actually experience by anybody at a place and time that can be determined.

Credibility of historical sources springs out of the contents of the evidence in written form or relics of the past. The outward or external features of the documents may be subjected to some tests as described in the previous lesson. The historicity of a document has to be established by proper method and sound reason. The researcher has to weed out the unwanted part and accept the genuine and the trustworthy part of the document. It is a common experience that everything submitted may not be entirely believable or it may not be entirely believable, or it may not be entirely unworthy of belief. The researcher has to apply certain tests to get a complete view of the truth. Such critical examination ensures credibility of documents. There are two types of criticisms – positive and negative.

Positive criticism – emphasizes the correct understanding of the document or an evidence in material form. A piece of an ancient tool tested by carbon -14 method will provide the age of the artefact. However, to understand the full size, shape, color and the use of such a tool, it should be examined by experts. Similarly, the documents before the researchers have to be analyzed and tested by experienced and skilled men in the field.

First thing in positive criticism is to see that the document is being referred to as a complete document not torn, smudged, illegible or stained etc. This is especially so in the case of manuscripts and inscriptions. The full impact of the document can be understood when it is in good condition. It is difficult in the case of old ‘Sanads’ (charters) grants, gifts, and donation deeds, or even official correspondence in the archives. The first requirement is therefore to see that the document is in its original form.

The internal criticism for credibility is concerned with the full contents of the document. Every event whether a war, a treaty or a policy or public activity that is under review must be studied in entirety. The evidence contained in the document must be as far as possible sequential and complete. Suppose we are studying the formation of the states of Maharashtra and Gujarat we have to collect documents from the time the linguistic commission was appointed to the actual reconstruction of states. The official documents as well as the reports of the recommendations and responses of the people during the six years (1955-61) must be scrutinized. The terms of reference of all commission and the recommendations have to be studied comprehensively. The background of the states reorganization and the debates in the parliament and the Bombay Provincial Assembly must also form a part of the evidence.

The second point in positive criticism is the mastery over the language in which the documents are issued. The language of the original document must be known to the researcher. The translation of documents is another impediment in the path of the student. Even if the translation is available as a standard and approved on the researcher has to consult the original text at least for those parts which are very crucial to the understanding of the main theme. There are certain sentences which may be open to different interpretation. The documents should be understood correctly.

Negative criticism – The next stage of critical examination is to look at the evidence with a sort of learned doubt to avoid sources of error. G. B. Vico has pointed five sources of error:

Magnificent opinion concerning antiquity i.e., the prejudice in favor of exaggerating the wealth, power, grandeur, etc., of the period the historian is studying.

The conceit of nations – Every nation in dealing with its own past history has a prejudice in favor of painting it in the most favorable colors.

The conceit of the learned – Some historians show a tendency to expect the in the past about whom he is doing research were academic men like themselves. Thus, when we examine the eye-witness account of the past age should eb objective as far as possible.

The fallacy that when tow nations have a similar idea or institution, one must have learnt it from the other.

The prejudice of thinking that ancients were better informed than us.

With these suggestion in mind the researcher must study the contents of the documents before him.

 

Principles and methods of Internal criticism

The following are the four main principles and methods to test the credibility of the documents.

Ability to tell the truth about the source.

Willingness to tell the truth.

Corroboration of evidence by contemporaries.

Accuracy and reality of the source.

These principles are based on reason and experience.

Ability to tell the truth about the source – The ability of the source material or the author presenting the evidence depends upon the possibility of producing factual evidence of the event. The method to test such a possibility rests on the following factors:

Nearness of the eyewitness or the writer of the event both in terms of place and time. In every case eyewitness account is very valuable. We have to ensure that he was present at the time of the event. If he was not present the account need not be dismissed as unreliable. We have to tke it in the absence of true evidence.

Keen observation and sharp memory of the writer of the account. The evidence that the author offers will depend upon the power of his observation and strong memory. This can be made out from the details that he provides and the way he records his information. When two authors write about the same event the difference of observation can be made out.

Alertness and dexterity of attention – The scholar who goes through the document must be alert and ready to grasp the essential and the relevant. His mind must be fixed on the aim of the topic that he is studying, and it should not wander merely in search of information. He should perceive the relevant facts and focus attention on them and reject what is unnecessary for his objective. Students will come across a lot of unnecessary and irrelevant information. The authors delighted in quoting anecdotes and hearsays to add some color to their narrative.

Aptitude for conducting enquiry – The most important method of establishing credibility of documents is by asking questions of the right type. The answers to such intelligent questions must be found in the documents concerned. For e.g., Kautilya’s Arthashastra is a treatise on political economy of the Mauryan Empire. If you ask the question ‘Is Kautilya describing the actual political structure and economy of the Mauryan Emperor or merely theorizing?’ The answer is the mixture of theory and practice. Dr. R. P. Kangle’s study of Kautilya’s Arthashastra published by the university of Bombay in 1968 provides many interesting details.

We can also ask such questions to find out whether treaties like Arthashastra gives you a credible evidence about a certain period and important events. The material relics of proved antiquity may be similarly questioned to elicit required information relevant to the subject that is being handled by the researcher.

Rational approach – When studying any document, a book, a manuscript or an inscription, we must take a rational view of the evidence. In the case of a book, we ask the question about its authorship, date, place, and the bibliography. In the case of manuscripts, the handwriting, ink, page numbers, and the place of its origin and the name of the writer if so mentioned. In the case of an inscription of grants and donation deeds the inscription is done by a craftsman and the format is more or less conventionally fixed. However, in all these cases we may argue about the inclusion of certain portions and questions, the omission of usual detail necessary in such cases. Suppose in a land grant deed if the portion relating to the reason why the grant was made is not mentioned, the researcher has to say that the credibility of the grant is questionable. He has to carry out further investigation of the point till he gets satisfactory explanation.

Willingness to tell the truth – The discerning eye of the researcher many a times finds that an author of a book or a document providing evidence of an event try to conceal truth or diverts attention to some other aspect. For e.g., Queen Victoria’s Declaration of 1858 does not mention ‘self-government’ and Cabinet Mission Plan did not mention the date when they would quit. There are many reasons why authors do not come out with the complete truth. Even in our daily transactions truth in its entirety is hardly possible. It comes out in small parts at times to avoid possible unhappy consequences.

Prejudice – Prejudices are of many kinds. Personal likes and dislikes, political ideology, economic interest, religious prejudices and prejudices about castes, colors and creeds. There are many other factors that give rise to prejudices, the most famous prejudice in the world is that of the white mans supremacy and in India prejudice arising out of ethnic identity and religious differences.

An author who writes about the people he despises is not willing to find any virtue among them. The ancient Aryans were prejudiced against the original natives, and they called them ‘Dasyus’. They were not willing to give a factual account of the ‘Dasyus’. Similarly, Alexander the Great and his Greek soldiers were not willing to tell the truth about their encounters with the Indian defenders. Even the Greek intellectuals were not willing to praise the achievements of the Taxila university. All English historians hardly show willingness to admit that the administration of the British was patterned on the Mauryan Mughal model.

The prejudice of such kind produces many evil trends in historical thinking. The documents concerning unfavorable evidence are either suppressed or condemned. On the contrary a bias in favor of some person, ideology or policy may thrive on half-truths. There are many cases when the author of the biography of a popular hero writes in praise of the person and glosses over his defects and weaknesses. Truth is thus a casualty both in the case of prejudice against an event, oral, individual or a bias in favor.

There are pressures which force the author to hide the reality as it would harm the interest of some important group of persons. The interests may be political, social, military, or diplomatic. Communist writers writing about capitalist countries or the democrats from the free countries writing about communist can hardly be realistic. In short, the credibility of documents must be judged in view of the mental framework of the writer. Willingness of the author is to be judged on the basis of the contents of his works not on our supposed impression about him.

Corroboration of Evidence by contemporaries – As in the cases of civils and criminal offences a corroboration and conformation by an independent evidence is desirable. The claims of gains and successes during war period cannot be accepted as counter – claims are made by the opposite side. There is no source to know the exact position as it changes every time. The correct position of gains and loses can be made after the war when treaties would be signed. The British claim to the good governance of the Indian people was contested by Dadabhai Naoroi in his famous book ‘Poverty in India’ which became an embodiment of ‘Drain Theory’ and exposed the claims of the British Government.

Accuracy and reality of the source – contemporary and corroborating evidence cannot be taken as foolproof evidence. Both types might have originated or copied from the same source. Many medieval historians copied information from Ain-e-Akbari of Abdul Fazl their corroboration has no reality. To know the truth, we must look for sources contemporary to Abdul Fazl.

The scientific tests of material relics and the critical method of history can ensure the accuracy and certainty of the event. In the case of biography and memoirs emphasis on fact and not feelings of the individual are to be given credence while looking out for factual history of the time.

Commonsense approach – There are different approaches to arrive at the truth. A sceptic approach shows us what we should not believe. A scholastic or ‘pundit’ type of approach will flatter the ego in compiling more and more source material even repetitive and unnecessary. A positivistic approach keeps us busy with minute details. But the commonsense approach keeps us on the right track while determining credibility of evidence in material or literary forms.

The first question to be solved is ‘what type of source are we handling? If it is an article, structure, coins or material type of source, the tests are to be conducted on scientific lines and the writings about them should be compared.

The second question is who is writing about any selected subject? For e.g., ‘History of Europe’ – the American – G. A. Craig, the Englishman – David Thompson and the French – Alfred Cobban have more or less the same material but will emphasize different aspects. A comparative view leads to real facts.

Thirdly the possibility of the event or experience contained in the document is to be examined. If it is a miracle, we have nothing to do with it. In the case of communal riots, revolts, rebellions, revolutions, and wars it is not possible to get a trustworthy account. Thus, who writes? What does he write? When and from where does he write? – are relevant questions. We should proceed with caution.

Lastly, we should adopt a rational attitude towards the sources. Historians have to depend on the relics, surviving portions and to writings and artefacts. The event and the actors in the event are no more existing. We have to depend on logical process. When we come across an evidence in any form, we must try to discern the aim and the purpose of the activity rather than the activity itself.

The critical examination of the source either to establish authenticity or credibility are necessary for ensuring that true facts regarding the subject under study are made available. The external criticism enables us to ascertain the true facts and internal criticism the reliability of the facts. Both processes are interlinked.