More than a linear, chronological development, the reader will appreciate that this volume was built around an idea, or a set of ideas, about what India represents. It is, of course, a limited space, an invention, and for this reason the title itself shows a conscious effort, hopelessly incomplete, to organize a series of knowledge around a topic that overflows in all aspects: studies on India.

It is common that - from an academic point of view - modern India, classical India and all the other Indies are studied separately. There is usually little communication between the different types of specialists, some closer to social disciplines, others to the humanities and the arts.

However, this frequent disconnection exists only in the formal sphere, since a glance at any of the works that make up this book is enough to realize that there is a constant dialogue between them through which there is a kind of coming and going throughout history and academic disciplines.