The Meghaduta of Kalidasa, taken to be a lyrical gem on its discovery in the West, continues to be a classic. Contrary to the opinion in India which lauds this text as the culmination of a poetic use of words for their music in a conventional sense, the poem can now be taken to be a wonderful amalgamation of the use of the hard and the soft words in a use of diction and phraseology. It is, however, in the picturesque quality of his images apprehended in wonderful structural design that the poem comes to achieve its unequalled unity of effect. Born of the compelling impact of a single mood captured variously in both the sections of the poem, this work of art remains distinguished for ever for readers down the ages to the present. As simple prose translations of the poem fail to approximate its effect for obvious reasons, an attempt has been made here to apprehend something of the beauty of the poem in Sanskrit in a translation into English in vers libre. Such an attempt, it is hoped, comes half way to meet the expectations of the modern reader of poetry, who does not know Sanskrit in particular, to lead him to respond to one of the most beautiful poems ever written. It may augment further authentic response to a classic in our study of literature in the global context as well.

Solid-state reactions have been growing in importance in the preparation of solids, crystal growth, and single crystals of elements. In this new volume, the author discusses in depth recent advances in solid-state chemistry, the latest techniques of characterization of solids, and several new dimensions of solid-state problems. Solid-state reactions, their kinetics, phase transitions, and magnetic properties are discussed in detail, along with electrical properties, semiconductors, metals, and insulators, with examples and explanations. Dielectric, piezoelectric, and ferroelectric properties of solids have been considered as well. Different theories of catalysis and adsorption isotherms are covered, and the author includes several experimental findings as well. And of course, preparation of new solids by taking advantage of recent experimental techniques have also been included in this volume. This volume provides a complete description of solid-state reactions, electrical conductivity, characterization of solids, organic solids, and intercalation between layers of solids. The band theories of metals, semiconductors, and insulators are covered. In characterization of solids, TGA, DTA, DSC, FTIR and PXRD techniques have been described. Preparation and properties of organic solids are also explained. Dielectric properties, photovoltaic effects, piezo electricity, ferroelectricity, and antiferroelectricity have been dealt with, giving relatable examples. A number of excitation energy levels giving rise to luminescence and photoluminescence have been explained under the topic optical processes. Diamagnetic, paramagnetic, and ferromagnetic behaviors of solids are also explained.

The Meghaduta of Kalidasa, taken to be a lyrical gem on its discovery in the West, continues to be a classic. Contrary to the opinion in India which lauds this text as the culmination of a poetic use of words for their music in a conventional sense, the poem can now be taken to be a wonderful amalgamation of the use of the hard and the soft words in a use of diction and phraseology. It is, however, in the picturesque quality of his images apprehended in wonderful structural design that the poem comes to achieve its unequalled unity of effect. Born of the compelling impact of a single mood captured variously in both the sections of the poem, this work of art remains distinguished for ever for readers down the ages to the present. As simple prose translations of the poem fail to approximate its effect for obvious reasons, an attempt has been made here to apprehend something of the beauty of the poem in Sanskrit in a translation into English in vers libre. Such an attempt, it is hoped, comes half way to meet the expectations of the modern reader of poetry, who does not know Sanskrit in particular, to lead him to respond to one of the most beautiful poems ever written. It may augment further authentic response to a classic in our study of literature in the global context as well.