Читать книгу Book of Indian Beauty - Mulk Raj Anand - Страница 9

THIS BOOK has been a joy to write, for the hours which we have sat through eliciting information from our friends about the potions and perfumes and necklaces and stones which decked them from the tips of their heads to their painted feet are fresh in our minds. We recall the jokes and the pleasantries which greeted our first inquiries about the formulas of beauty, and the amazement which lit up the atmosphere when we pressed for details of closely guarded secrets.

If, then, this book gives the reader any of the joy we have had in writing it, our gratitude must go to the various Indian women who have helped in its making. For, without the great pains they took to be helpful by collecting recipes and dictating them to us, this book could never have been composed, as in our country the knowledge of sringar, the laws of health, and the rules of personal hygiene, have been handed down verbally from generation to generation and have been adopted as customs and conventions, and very seldom written about since our ancient culture fell into decay. We feel that the appreciation of the well-being of the body is integral to any conception of civilization. True that sometimes the emphasis on mere adornment and delectable food has been the sign of the decadence of a society, but this has only happened when a society has become obsessed with fine living for its own sake. We, therefore, offer no apologies for bringing philosophy from the study to the woman's boudoir, as to the kitchen in Mulk Raj Anand's Indian cookery book, for the concept of beauty and the good life is essential to the very idea of human dignity.

We are indebted to Lt. Col, Hem Raj Anand, I.M.S., and Mr. Homi Cooper for advice on the Latin names of various Indian medicinal plants, and to the various art collectors who have allowed us to reproduce plates in their possession.

Most of the prescriptions in this book can be dispensed at any chemist or herbalist. It may be advisable, in the case of the ancient Indian recipes, to consult a qualified doctor or chemist before making up a prescription.

MULK RAJ ANAND

KRISHNA NEHRU HUTHEESING

Bombay

December 1946