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• Shiva in Art, Literature and Thought
• The Abode of Mahashiva: Cults and Symbology in Jaunsar-Bawar in the Mid-Himalayas
• Manimahesh Chamba Kailash
• Kailash-Mansarovar: A Day-to-Day Account of the Journey to Eternity

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There already exists considerable literature, produced by eminent scholars, on various aspects of Miniature Painting, most of it written with a distinct bias for the political history of the erstwhile princely states. But the aesthetic aspects of that art-tradition have somehow remained side-tracked notwithstanding the fact that Miniature Painting has been called as the ‘music in lines’. There is, thus, always a need to reorient the approach about the appreciation of that glorious art-heritage.
This book is, therefore, a step in that direction. Attempt has been made here to explore linear, tonal and compositional qualities of a selection of the traditional miniature paintings on the Saiva theme, and to evaluate and correlate each of them with its respective subject without going into needless historical narratives and topical literary references. How far the treatment of the subject in the painting conforms to the canonic stipulation, has also been thoroughly probed into so that the book can emerge out as a critical study of the miniature paintings on the Saiva theme.
The book is planned in two parts, each dealing with different topic: in the exhaustive INTRODUCTION, the Saiva pantheology has been discussed with reference to the scriptural iconographic details of Siva and his numerous manifestations. In the second part, the miniature paintings, classified in characteristic groups, have been evaluated for their aesthetic treatment with due reference to the canonic iconographical stipulations to ensure their critical appreciation.
This critical study is, therefore, an effort to set a new trend about the appreciation of the Miniature Painting and other traditional arts.

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Dr. O.C. Handa is a well-known connoisseur of art and culture, and an outstanding scholar in history and archaeology, especially of the Himalayan region, having been in the field for almost half a century. In his pursuits, he has been undertaking several exploratory visits to the farflung nooks and corners of the Western and Central Himalayan regions. That would underscore his zeal to explore the antique but extant material evidences of history, art and culture of the Himalayan region, and his commitment to acquire first-hand and authentic knowledge of various interesting and important aspects of this region. This quality is well reflected in his writings. He did his post-graduation in History from University of Mysore, Ph.D. from Meerut University and D.Lit. form Agra Univ. Having come from civil engineering background, he remained in-charge of the Department of Museum & Archaeology, Himachal Pradesh for several years.
Dr. Handa has sixteen books on art, history, archaeology and culture of the Himalayan region to his credit. Besides, he has been writing articles and research papers for various national and international research journals. He has, thus, more than 500 papers and articles to his credit. He has also been performing for the radio and TV. He has participated and delivered lectures in several regional, national and international seminars and workshops.
He remained a member of different expert committees of Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi and the Ministry of Tourism & Culture, Govt. of India. Dr. Handa remained a fellow of Himachal Academy of Art, Language and Culture, Shimla; Indian Council of Historical Research, New Delhi; and Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla at different periods. He was a Senior Fellow of the Indian Council of Historical Research, New Delhi from 2001 to 2003.