Elven City - Delhi One Year

Author: (English) William Dalrymple
Translator: Huang Fangtian
Country: United Kingdom
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-08-01
Features: The author, who moved from the UK to New Delhi, discards ideology and racial superiority, recording the scenes and anecdotes of New Delhi he witnessed with his own eyes. He weaves between history and reality, narrating the "city of spirits" as seen by Indians, the past and present of New Delhi, and the legacy of British colonialism. India, a country familiar yet unfamiliar to the masses. Delhi, the capital of India, has been a city of constant conflict yet filled with mischievous and playful spirits throughout history. Though Delhi has been repeatedly destroyed by invaders over millennia, it has been reborn time and again like the phoenix, thanks to the guardianship of spirits. The author begins with the peculiarities of the Puri family, his landlords, and weaves in the stories of his Sikh friend, taxi drivers, and various characters from all walks of life, such as Sufi mystics, Unani doctors, pigeon racers, and eunuchs. Ultimately, the content of the Indian epic Mahabharata and the archaeological sites unearthed by archaeologists resonate, guiding us through the old and new Delhi to glimpse the spirit of the true "city of spirits."