Max I. Dimont, Jews, God, and History (Revised and Updated Edition), Penguin Books, [1964] 1994.
I have never read a book like Jews, God, and History in my life—not just for its content but for the sheer brilliance of its expression. Dimont’s narrative style is extraordinary. The way he weaves Jewish history, moving back and forth across time, is truly masterful. His research left me astounded. After reading this book, I seriously questioned my own writing efforts—perhaps it’s better to sit in silence and contemplate what writing really means.
There are many books on Jewish history, but I doubt any of them are quite like this. While tracing Jewish history, Dimont also opens windows into the histories of other civilizations influencing the Jews and influenced by them thought and presence. If you love reading and haven’t read this book, your reading journey is incomplete. Since the book is now freely available online, I urge you to download it—not just to learn, but to relish the joy of reading itself. Once you start, you won’t want to stop until you finish.
One chapter in particular—“Twenty-Eight: The Brown-Shirted Christ Killers”—helped me understand the Holocaust in a more vivid and emotionally resonant way than ever before. I had heard of the Holocaust, of course, but never read such a deeply informed and moving account. After reading this, I began to grasp why the longing for a homeland became so central to Jewish identity.
Though I don’t fully understand the present-day political complexities of the Arab-Jewish conflict in Palestine—especially after the 2023 Hamas attack—I empathize deeply with the pain of innocent Jewish lives lost to terrorism. At the same time, I cannot support the targeting of civilians in Gaza in the name of eradicating terror. The recent Pahalgam attack in Kashmir (April 22, 2025) brought this pain even closer to home. I understand, at least emotionally, what it means to grieve, to rage, and yet to hope for peace.
Unless we learn from history, we cannot hope to handle the present wisely. This book is essential reading for anyone who wishes to understand the Jewish people—not just in the past, but in their living, evolving story.
Appendix: A Brief Note on the Brahmin–Jew Comparison
Though it may seem like a stretch, a parallel is sometimes drawn between Jews and Brahmins, especially in terms of cultural continuity and identity across centuries. Both groups, despite historical upheavals, have managed to retain a distinct sense of self through tradition, memory, and ritual. However, they remain fundamentally different.
For instance, Brahmins—though never a homogenous or original group—have managed to preserve lineage markers like gotra, pravara, sutra, and veda affiliations. These are still cited during key life rituals such as upanayana. For example, my own lineage is@:
Pravara: Bhargava, Vaidakavya, Savesuda;
Gotra: Vadula;
Sutra: Apastamba;
Veda: Yajur.
In contrast, modern Jews, though bound by shared memory and faith, can rarely trace their tribal lineage (e.g., from the original Twelve Tribes), especially after the diasporas and the Holocaust. In a way, they share the name “Jew,” but their tribal identities have largely been lost.
This contrast shows how two different peoples—one rooted in place and theology, the other in ritual and social continuity—navigate the challenges of historical survival in different ways.
Ashram, 25-4-2025
Notes
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…In the brahman’s daily worship he mentioned not only the name of the founder of his gotra, but also the names of certain other sages who were believed to be the remote ancestors of his family. The formula generally contained three or five anems, and set up a further bar to marriage, for the same names would occur in the pravaras of families of other gotras….— A. L. Basham, The Wonder that was India, Delhi, Rupa & Co., (1954) 1990, p.155. One can now obtain all detailed information on this specific topic of tracing the ancestors of a Brahmins in Website.
An interesting fact about the Jaina teachers and the priestly group is provided by an inscription from Amarapuram in thirteenth century Andhra. This record refers to a Jina brahmana, of Yajur Veda, Aitareya Sakha, Vasistha gotra and pravara Kaundinya (Maitravaruna Vasistha), who hailed from Bhuvalokanathanallur in the southern Pandya country and who was appointed as the priest (Urella Pille) in the Parsvanatha temple at Amarapuram…..— Champakalakshmi, Religion, Tradition, and Ideology: Pre-colonial South India, Oxford, New Delhi (2011), 2012, p. 427
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