The essays in this volume explore the myriad ways in which caste (varna and jati) has been theorized and critiqued in multiple philosophical, religious, logical and narrative traditions in India. Spanning ancient, medieval and modern times, and in diverse classical and vernacular languages, the chapters show how the social fact of caste, and imaginations of kinship, community and humanity were historically subject to epistemological, spiritual, and existential debate in both elite and popular circles in India. Textual Lives of Caste Across the Ages seeks to bridge the interdisciplinary gap between historians and sociologists by focusing on texts that help us think across the sociological and philosophical, the political and the religious, the epistemological and the aesthetic, and indeed, the elite and the popular. The volume also sets up a conversation between scholars specializing in different regions, archives, and historical periods and demonstrates how caste imaginaries have been deeply diverse and contested in India's past. Reconstructing these diverse traditions of social and existential criticism helps us in our contemporary struggles against caste hierarchy and untouchability and enriches our contemporary critical repertoire.

The essays in this volume explore the myriad ways in which caste (varna and jati) has been theorized and critiqued in multiple philosophical, religious, logical and narrative traditions in India. Spanning ancient, medieval and modern times, and in diverse classical and vernacular languages, the chapters show how the social fact of caste, and imaginations of kinship, community and humanity were historically subject to epistemological, spiritual, and existential debate in both elite and popular circles in India. Textual Lives of Caste Across the Ages seeks to bridge the interdisciplinary gap between historians and sociologists by focusing on texts that help us think across the sociological and philosophical, the political and the religious, the epistemological and the aesthetic, and indeed, the elite and the popular. The volume also sets up a conversation between scholars specializing in different regions, archives, and historical periods and demonstrates how caste imaginaries have been deeply diverse and contested in India's past. Reconstructing these diverse traditions of social and existential criticism helps us in our contemporary struggles against caste hierarchy and untouchability and enriches our contemporary critical repertoire.

Narrating Love and Violence is an ethnographic exploration of women’s stories from the Himalayan valley of Lahaul, in the region of Himachal Pradesh, India, focusing on how both, love and violence emerge (or function) at the intersection of gender, tribe, caste, and the state in India. Himika Bhattacharya privileges the everyday lives of women marginalized by caste and tribe to show how state and community discourses about gendered violence serve as proxy for caste in India, thus not only upholding these social hierarchies, but also enabling violence. The women in this book tell their stories through love, articulated as rejection, redefinition and reproduction of notions of violence and solidarity. Himika Bhattacharya centers the women’s narratives as a site of knowledge—beyond love and beyond violence. This book shows how women on the margins of tribe and caste know both, love and violence, as agents wishing to re-shape discourses of caste, tribe and community.

Crossing the Lines of Caste offers a cultural-historical analysis of the legends of Visvamitra, a sage who is said to have used his ascetic power to change his caste and become a Brahmin. It reveals how and why mythological culture has played an active role in the construction of Brahmin social power for more than three thousand years.

In western countries, the rising tide of population aging took 100 years to alter the face of societies, but Asia is experiencing comparable changes in not much more than a quarter of a century. Contributors to "The Handbook of Aging" describe the magnitude of these changes and their effects on the aged and on societies attempting to adapt to the dramatic improvements in life expectancy brought on by rapid economic and social transformations. Asia encompasses a vast reach from Pakistan and India to Japan, the Philippines, and Indonesia, and in this book including Australia. "The Handbook of Aging" provides a framework for making sense of the meeting between reverential views of the elderly and contemporary priorities as Asia arrives at the crossroads. The need for innovative approaches to social policy and personal practices is nowhere more evident than in Asian countries, where modern marketing economies have forced hard political choices. The economic tigers of the Asian-Pacific region experienced the aging of their populations ahead of other Asian countries, but solutions reached during times of financial boom are being re-examined as economies come back to earth, with soft or hard landings. "The Handbook of Asian Aging" provides an atlas of the far-reaching changes that are afoot and that will become even more pronounced in the near future.

A lively and informative introduction to the peoples and cultures of South Asia

This Handbook provides an intellectually rigorous and accessible overview of the relationship between natural law and human rights. It fills a crucial gap in the literature with leading scholarship on the importance of natural law as a philosophical foundation for human rights and its significance for contemporary debates. The themes covered include: the role of natural law thought in the history of human rights; human rights scepticism; the different notions of 'subjective right'; the various foundations for human rights within natural law ethics; the relationship between natural law and human rights in religious traditions; the idea of human dignity; the relation between human rights, political community and law; human rights interpretation; and tensions between human rights law and natural law ethics. This Handbook is an ideal introduction to natural law perspectives on human rights, while also offering a concise summary of scholarly developments in the field.

With a focus on the world history and cultures, a guide to using leveled texts to differentiate instruction in social studies offers fifteen different topics with high-interest text written at four different reading levels, accompanied by matching visuals and comprehension questions.

Anthropological enquiry is best done by attending equally to both social and cultural material. This is the view propounded here by Marvin Davis, who uses such an holistic approach to develop an original perspective on hierarchy and politics in rural Bengal. In the first part of the book, Professor Davis describes the indigenous theory of rank held by Hindus in rural West Bengal and shows that the premise of inequality is a central organising principle of their entire society and cosmos. In the second part, he shows that the Bengali preoccupation with rank generates frequent political rivalries at each level of rural social organisation. His book will interest all anthropologists and other social scientists concerned with the social and political organization of rural India. In addition, his explication of the links between ideology and social structure, often viewed in isolation from each other, makes the book an important contribution to anthropological theory and method.

As members of the modern age, we sometimes feel disconnected from the world of the Bible. But if we look closely, we can see that although cultures change, our basic challenges stay the same. We still struggle with issues like community, justice, economic stress, political tensions, and cultural and ethnic differences. We still wonder who God is, how to discern His will, and how we fit into His plan. Using historical context and fresh insights backed by biblical scholars, The Modern Life Study Bible explores the timeless truths that connect the people and stories of the Bible to the opportunities and demands we face today. God is at work in our world, inviting us to experience His presence. With innovative, full-color illustrations, maps, and diagrams, along with special information on occupations of the Bible, profiles of people and places, theme indexes, and inspirational biographies of believers who put their faith to work, The Modern Life Study Bible will draw you in, helping you to know and embrace what it means to follow Christ in today’s world. Features include: More than 2,400 concise articles and book introductions More than 220 full-color maps Hundreds of diagrams, tables, and illustrations 66 inspirational biographies Indexes to aid navigation and study