Includes bibliographical references and index.

The book is a narration of the cultural interflow between India and five countries of SE Asia: Thailand, Laos, Srilanka, Indonesia and Vietnam. From the pre-Thai Kingdom of Nanchao to Thailand, royal ceremonies by Brahmanas with Sanskrit and Tamil recitations, gorgeous monasteries all over, Sanskrit terms for modern expressions and the role of traditional cultures in technological progress in Thailand.
The Ramayana, Buddhist grottos, Sanskrit element in vocabulary, literature and inscriptions in Laos are detailed in the second part. Simhalese terms, the Swabhasha movement, to say goodbye to English, new interpretation of the Sigriya caves, worship of Hindu gods in devale, the colossus of Avukana recover an emerging world.
The fourth part on Indonesia essays the development of Old-Javanese studies in India, events that led to the restoration of Borobudur, First international Ramayana festival and seminar in Indonesia, the 140 metre high Visnu erected by the Government in 1997, voyage of friendship to Bali, identification of the syena-citi at Candi Sukuh, and Balinese intellectuals.
The book ends with a short account of the role of Champa on the coastline of Vietnam in taking Sanskrit manuscripts to China and Indian dannces to Japan, as a vibrant centre of dharma.