Doctoral Dissertation Research: The Role of New Hindu Institutions in Mobilizing Caste Communities and Restructuring Modern Indian Society

这个项目将调查印度的学术、宗教和社会生活的机构中心。这些以种姓为基础、以社区为导向的机构致力于将种姓成员捆绑在一起，并赋予他们权力，以实现国家承诺的各种政治和经济权利。在卡纳塔克邦，最大和最强大的玛塔-S隶属于三个占主导地位的种姓，婆罗门族、林加特族和沃卡里加斯。这些S大师在政治上变得强大起来，同时也监督着他们的选民(学校、医院等)的社会福利。研究人员假设，玛塔-S正在围绕玛塔(跨地区的、基于种姓的)制度本身重新构建印度教等级社会，这是对城市化和不断扩大的市场经济的回应。该项目将集中于三个主要种姓群体中每一个人的活动、权威和动员努力。方法包括参与者观察、结构化访谈和视听记录。该项目将有助于我们了解这些印度教机构在构建当代印度社会结构和现代印度国家中所起的作用。

Abstract 0076067This project will investigate institutional centers of scholarly, religious and social life in India, the matha. These caste-based, community oriented institutions work to bind together and empower the members of their caste to achieve various political and economic rights promised by the state. In Karnataka, the largest and most powerful matha-s are affiliated with the three dominant castes, the Brahmans, Lingayats, and Vokkaligas. These matha-s have become politically powerful and also oversee the social welfare of their constituents (schools, hospitals, etc.). The researcher hypothesizes that the matha-s are reconfiguring hierarchical Hindu society around the matha (trans-regional, caste based) institution itself, and that this is a response to urbanization and the expanding market economy. The project will center on the activities, authority, and mobilization efforts of one matha from each of the three dominant caste groups. Methods include participant observation, structured interviews, and audio-visual documentation. The project will contribute to our understanding of the role of these Hindu institutions in constructing contemporary Indian social structure and the modern Indian State.