| India's Major Geographical Features | p. xi |
| India from 2500 BCE to 600 CE | p. xii |
| India from 600 CE to 1600 CE | p. xiii |
| India from 1600 CE to the Present | p. xiv |
| List of Illustrations | p. xv |
| Preface: The Man or the Rabbit in the Moon | p. 1 |
| Introduction: Working with Available Light | p. 17 |
| Time and Space in India: 50 Million to 50,000 BCE | p. 50 |
| Civilization in the Indus Valley: 50,000 to 1500 BCE | p. 65 |
| Between the Ruins and the Text: 2000 to 1500 BCE | p. 85 |
| Humans, Animals, and Gods in the Rig Veda: 1500 to 1000 BCE | p. 103 |
| Sacrifice in the Brahmanas: 800 to 500 BCE | p. 135 |
| Renunciation in the Upanishads: 600 to 200 BCE | p. 164 |
| The Three (or Is It Four?) Aims of Life in the Hindu Imaginary | p. 199 |
| Women and Ogresses in the Ramayana: 400 BCE to 200 CE | p. 212 |
| Violence in the Mahabharata: 300 BCE to 300 CE | p. 252 |
| Dharma in the Mahabharata: 300 BCE to 300 CE | p. 277 |
| Escape Clauses in the Shastras: 100 BCE to 400 CE | p. 304 |
| Bhakti in South India: 100 BCE to 900 CE | p. 338 |
| Goddesses and Gods in the Early Puranas: 300 to 600 CE | p. 370 |
| Sects and Sex in the Tantric Puranas and the Tantras: 600 to 900 CE | p. 406 |
| Fusion and Rivalry Under the Delhi Sultanate: 650 to 1500 CE | p. 445 |
| Avatar and Accidental Grace in the Later Puranas: 800 to 1500 CE | p. 473 |
| Philosophical Feuds in South India and Kashmir: 800 to 1300 CE | p. 503 |
| Dialogue and Tolerance Under the Mughals: 1500 to 1700 CE | p. 527 |
| Hinduism Under the Mughals: 1500 to 1700 CE | p. 551 |
| Caste, Class, and Conversion Under the British Raj: 1600 to 1900 CE | p. 574 |
| Suttee and Reform in the Twilight of the Raj: 1800 to 1947 CE | p. 610 |
| Hindus in America: 1900- | p. 636 |
| The Past in the Present: 1950- | p. 654 |
| Inconclusion, or, the Abuse of History | p. 687 |
| Acknowledgments | p. 691 |
| Chronology | p. 693 |
| Guide to Pronunciation and Spelling of Words in Sanskrit and Other Indian Languages | p. 695 |
| Abbreviations | p. 696 |
| Glossary of Terms in Indian Languages and Names of Key Figures | p. 697 |
| Notes | p. 704 |
| Bibliography: Works Cited and Consulted | p. 729 |
| Photo Credits | p. 754 |
| Index | p. 755 |
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