
An Unholy Brew
Alcohol in Indian History and Religions
James Mchugh(Author)
Oxford University Press Inc
Published on 9. November 2021
Book
Hardback
416 pages
978-0-19-937593-6 (ISBN)
Description
The first comprehensive book on alcohol in pre-modern India, An Unholy Brew: Alcohol in Indian History and Religions uses a wide range of sources from the Vedas to the Kamasutra to explore drinks and styles of drinking, as well as rationales for abstinence from the earliest Sanskrit written records through the second millennium CE.
Books about the global history of alcohol almost never give attention to India. But a wide range of texts provide plenty of evidence that there was a thriving culture of drinking in ancient and medieval India, from public carousing at the brewery and drinking house to imbibing at festivals and weddings. There was also an elite drinking culture depicted in poetic texts (often in an erotic mode), and medical texts explain how to balance drink and health. By no means everyone drank, however, and there were many sophisticated religious arguments for abstinence.
McHugh begins by surveying the intoxicating drinks that were available, including grain beers, palm toddy, and imported wine, detailing the ways people used grains, sugars, fruits, and herbs over the centuries to produce an impressive array of liquors. He presents myths that explain how drink came into being and how it was assigned the ritual and legal status it has in our time. The book also explores Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain moral and legal texts on drink and abstinence, as well as how drink is used in some Tantric rituals, and translates in full a detailed description of the goddess Liquor, Suradevi. Cannabis, betel, soma, and opium are also considered. Finally, McHugh investigates what has happened to these drinks, stories, and theories in the last few centuries.
An Unholy Brew brings to life the overlooked, complex world of brewing, drinking, and abstaining in pre-modern India, and offers illuminating case studies on topics such as law and medicine, even providing recipes for some drinks.
Books about the global history of alcohol almost never give attention to India. But a wide range of texts provide plenty of evidence that there was a thriving culture of drinking in ancient and medieval India, from public carousing at the brewery and drinking house to imbibing at festivals and weddings. There was also an elite drinking culture depicted in poetic texts (often in an erotic mode), and medical texts explain how to balance drink and health. By no means everyone drank, however, and there were many sophisticated religious arguments for abstinence.
McHugh begins by surveying the intoxicating drinks that were available, including grain beers, palm toddy, and imported wine, detailing the ways people used grains, sugars, fruits, and herbs over the centuries to produce an impressive array of liquors. He presents myths that explain how drink came into being and how it was assigned the ritual and legal status it has in our time. The book also explores Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain moral and legal texts on drink and abstinence, as well as how drink is used in some Tantric rituals, and translates in full a detailed description of the goddess Liquor, Suradevi. Cannabis, betel, soma, and opium are also considered. Finally, McHugh investigates what has happened to these drinks, stories, and theories in the last few centuries.
An Unholy Brew brings to life the overlooked, complex world of brewing, drinking, and abstaining in pre-modern India, and offers illuminating case studies on topics such as law and medicine, even providing recipes for some drinks.
Reviews / Votes
What McHugh presents is not just a survey, but an animated adventure into the celestial realms and abysmal netherworlds of a little-known aspect of India's cultural history, with celestial dancers (apsarasas) and celestial musicians (gandharvas) partaking in divine spirits (sura), and a variety of demons (rak?asas) in their natural drunken habitats. * Frederick M. Smith, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA, Asian Medicine 17 * This is a bold effort to capture in one volume an unstudied field, and make it accessible and enjoyable for readers of all levels of Indic education. * Frederick M. Smith, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA, Asian Medicine 17 * James McHugh has done it again. After his widely acclaimed book on smell, Sandalwood and Carrion, he has now given us another gem. In An Unholy Brew, McHugh provides a thematically and chronologically comprehensive account of alcohol in Indian history: technologies of production, cultural appropriations and attitudes, and religious uses and censures. A book for both the ale lover and the teetotaler. * Patrick Olivelle, Professor Emeritus, The University of Texas at Austin * This is a thoughtfully written book by an author who is passionate about his topic and has given a good deal of consideration about how to communicate his knowledge and ideas. It is carefully organized and well referenced. Specialist and general readers alike will derive a good deal of pleasure from spending time with it. McHugh's book is a welcome addition to the growing literature on the history of food and drink in Asia. It is also a valuable contribution to the study of the religions of South Asia, as it sheds light on an important yet neglected aspect of religious doctrine and practice. * James A. Benn, JAOS 144.3 *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
Yes
Dimensions
Height: 240 mm
Width: 161 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
787 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-937593-6 (9780199375936)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Book
11/2021
Oxford University Press Inc
€55.00
Shipment within 15-20 days

E-Book
09/2021
OUP eBook
€22.99
Available for download

E-Book
09/2021
OUP eBook
€22.99
Available for download
Person
James McHugh studies the history and religions of early India, working with texts in Sanskrit and related languages. He completed his Ph.D. at Harvard University in 2008, and is now Associate Professor at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. His book Sandalwood and Carrion: Smell in Indian Religion and Culture explored the significance of odors, perfumes, and aromatics in India.
Content
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Aperitif - Sura, the Prototypical Liquor of India
ROUND ONE: DRINKS AND DRINKING
Cup One: Sura Made From Grains
Cup Two: Sugarcane, Wine, Toddy, and Other Drinks
Cup Three: Sura Brewing and Public Drinking
Cup Four: Luxurious, Erotic Drinking in Literary Texts
Cup Five: Drink, Health, and Disease in Ayurvedic Texts
ROUND TWO: DRINK AND RELIGION
Cup Six: Drink in Ritual, Myths, and Epic
Cup Seven: The Filth of Grain and the Pain of Drink: Morality, Vice, and Law
Cup Eight: Sura Regained: Drink in Tantra
Cup Nine: Firewater and Corpse-Reviver: Alcohol in Later Sanskrit Sources
Digestif: What Do We Do About This Stuff That Makes Everything Go Awry?
Appendix: Soma, Ancient Drugs, and Modern Scholars
Bibliography
Introduction
Aperitif - Sura, the Prototypical Liquor of India
ROUND ONE: DRINKS AND DRINKING
Cup One: Sura Made From Grains
Cup Two: Sugarcane, Wine, Toddy, and Other Drinks
Cup Three: Sura Brewing and Public Drinking
Cup Four: Luxurious, Erotic Drinking in Literary Texts
Cup Five: Drink, Health, and Disease in Ayurvedic Texts
ROUND TWO: DRINK AND RELIGION
Cup Six: Drink in Ritual, Myths, and Epic
Cup Seven: The Filth of Grain and the Pain of Drink: Morality, Vice, and Law
Cup Eight: Sura Regained: Drink in Tantra
Cup Nine: Firewater and Corpse-Reviver: Alcohol in Later Sanskrit Sources
Digestif: What Do We Do About This Stuff That Makes Everything Go Awry?
Appendix: Soma, Ancient Drugs, and Modern Scholars
Bibliography