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Regimes Of Narcissism, Regimes of Despair takes a critical look at the current political and the social scenario in India and analyses the dual psychology of narcissism and despair revealed therewith. Summary Of The Book The current nation of India is one that is largely dominated by political developments. Regimes Of Narcissism, Regimes of Despair opens with a preface, which is followed by chapters like Regimes of Narcissism, Regimes of Despair, The Demonic and the Seductive in Religious Nationalism, Coming Home: Religion, Mass Violence and the Exiled and Secret Selves of a Citizen-Killer, and Return of the Sacred: Politics of Religion in a Post-Secular Age. In Regimes Of Narcissism, Regimes of Despair the author tries to take a closer look at the present political fabric of India and in the process brings to the fore the two prevailing trends. According to Nandy, the political culture is either tending towards narcissism or despair. A group of personalities like Mahatma Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore and Vinayak Savarkar are brought into the discussion in order to provide an in depth analysis of the various issues that the societies of Asia, Africa and South America face. These issues pertain to questions about nationalism, terrorism, and counter-terrorism. It discusses the aspects of identity of the self and its loss in present times. The book tries to find coherence in the demands that the current statecraft makes of the spheres of culture and religion. Regimes Of Narcissism, Regimes of Despair deals with ideas that are radical yet open to alterations. About Ashis Nandy Ashis Nandy is a noted political psychologist and social theorist of India. His written works cover an array of topics like public conscience, mass violence, and issues of civilizations. He has penned a number of noteworthy books which include titles like Exiled at Home: Comprising At the Edge of Psychology, The Intimate Enemy and Creating a Nationality, The Romance of the State: And the Fate of Dissent in the Tropics, Return from Exile: Alternative Sciences, Illegitimacy of Nationalism, The Savage Freud, An Ambiguous Journey to the City New, and Time Treks: The Uncertain Future of Old and New Despotisms. Nandy has served as Senior Fellow and Director of Centre for the Study of Developing Societies. Currently he is the Chairperson of the Committee for Cultural Choices and Global Futures, in New Delhi.