Pax Indica - Revisiting the Tryst with Destiny

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Ophelia

Pax Indica by Shashi Tharoor examines India’s foreign policy and its evolution since independence. The text frames India’s “tryst with destiny” on 15 August 1947 as an international obligation rooted in ideals of peace, freedom, prosperity, and shared responsibility in an interconnected “One World.” It contrasts the moment’s hope with the violence of Partition, then situates Nehru’s outlook within long historical engagement with global trade, learning, and influence spanning North and South Asia and earlier civilizations.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLiterature

FormatPDF

Pages433

Reading Time11 h 7 min

AccessFree to download

Praise for the Book

Revisiting the Tryst with Destiny

India’s independence and Nehru’s speech

Partition’s violence and international obligations

India’s long engagement with the world

SHASHITHAROOR Engaging...andalso instructive'FINANCIAL TIMES PAXINDICA India and the World of the 21st Century Contents About the Author Praise for the Book 1 Revisiting the Tryst with Destiny 2 Brother Enemy 3 A Tough Neighbourhood 4 China and India:Competition,Cooperation or Conflict? 5 India's 'Near Abroad':The Arab World and the Rest of Asia 6 Red,White,Blue and Saffron:The United States and India 7 Familiar Lands and Uncharted Territories:Europe,Africa and Latin America 8 The Hard Challenge of Soft Power and Public Diplomacy 9 ‘Eternal Affairs':The Domestic Underpinnings of Foreign Policy 10 India,the UN and the ‘Global Commons':The Multilateral Imperative 11 'Multi-Alignment':Towards a ‘Grand Strategy'for India in the Twenty-firstCentury Footnote 10 India,the UN and the ‘Global Commons':The Multilateral ImperativeSelected Bibliography AcknowledgementsFollow PenguinCopyright Page PENGUIN BOOKS PAXINDICA An elected Member of Parliament,former minister of state for externalaffairs and former under-secretary-general of the United Nations,ShashiTharoor is the prize-winning author of twelve previous books,bothfiction and non-fiction.A widely published critic,commentator andcolumnist,he served the United Nations during a twenty-nine-year careerin refugee work and peacekeeping,at the Secretary-General's office andheading communications and public information.In 2006 he was India'scandidate to succeed Kofi Annan as UN Secretary-General,and emergeda strong second out of seven contenders.He has won India's highesthonour for overseas Indians,the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman,andnumerous literary awards,including a Commonwealth Writers'Prize. For more on Shashi Tharoor,please see www.tharoor.in. # Praise for the Book 'Pax Indica is a great introduction for those interested in reading aboutIndia's foreign policy and its evolution since independence'—DNA '[Tharoor's]view of the world and India's role in it is hearteningly sane;he has a diplomat's faith in dialogue and cooperation effectingincremental benefits'—Tehelka 'A remarkable survey of India's international interests,covering enormous ground...Whatever your own views,Pax Indica will enlargeyour understanding,and encourage more attention to our still hesitantand unsure engagement with the world’—K.S.Bajpai 'A comprehensive dissertation on the diverse fields of India's endeavourssince Independence...a timely book,very well written,a must-read forstudents and professionals alike’—Jaswant Singh 'This exceptionally lively and well-written survey of India's internationalrelations challenges preconceptions that foreign policy must be dull’—David Malone 'Those dreams are for India,but they are also for the world’—Jawaharlal Nehru,'Tryst with destiny'speech,15 August 1947 As a major power India can and must play a role in helping shape theglobal order.The international system of the twenty-first century,with itsnetworked partnerships,will need to renegotiate its rules of the road;India is well qualified to help write those rules and define the norms thatwill guide tomorrow's world.That is what I have called Pax Indica:notglobal or regional domination along the lines of a Pax Romana or a PaxBritannica but a 'Pax'for the twenty-first century,a peace system whichwill help promote and maintain a period of cooperative coexistence in itsregion and across the world. # C H A P T E R 0 N E Revisiting the Tryst with Destiny At midnight on 15 August 1947,independent India was born as its firstprime minister,Jawaharlal Nehru,proclaimed ‘a tryst with destiny—amoment which comes but rarely in history,when we pass from the old tothe new,when an age ends and when the soul of a nation,longsuppressed,finds utterance'.It was an hour of darkness,too,with theflames of Partition blazing across the land,hundreds of thousands beingbutchered in sectarian savagery and millions seeking refuge across thearbitrary lines that had vivisected their homelan

FAQs

What does Tharoor highlight about Nehru’s international perspective at independence?

He emphasizes that Nehru linked India’s dreams to the wider world, framing peace and freedom as indivisible and grounded in a shared “One World.”

How does the book connect the “tryst with destiny” moment to Partition’s realities?

It presents independence as a sublime beginning while noting that Partition’s violence brought massacres and mass displacement across newly drawn lines.

What historical basis does the chapter give for India’s engagement with the rest of the world?

It points to millennia of interactions through invasions, scholarly exchange, long-distance trade, and religious-cultural influence, reaching back to early civilizations such as Harappan links with Mesopotamia.

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Ophelia