India, Nov. 13 -- Mahendra Pallava, whose reign lasted for decades in the first half of the seventh century, was the third monarch of the great Pallava Dynasty, which ruled much of South India until the ninth century. He was arguably one of the most creative of the Pallava kings, and held several titles that translated into "curious-minded," "tiger among painters," and "charming offspring." He was eccentric and idiosyncratic, but a genius and true polymath. In his new book, The Golden Road, William Darlymple traces the history of the Indian seafarers, who spread the Indian thought, ethos, and religion across half the world, and most prominently in Southeast Asia.

The Pallava rulers, and later the Chola emperors, are famous during that er...