About the Book

The analysis of social systems is important to understand how a society is ordered and how it changes. Societies and social systems cannot be understood simply as collectivities of people. They have to be examined in terms of relationships, boundaries and missions. Changes in society alter the systems’ conditions for survival. They must adjust or they will cease to exist.

Is Indian society moving towards anarchy and anomie? Inter-religious and inter-caste conflicts in our society have grown. The politics has been religionized and religion has been politicized. Secularism is on the run and communalism is triumphing. It appears today that the very basis of unity and integrity of the society has been threatened. But, in spite of these issues, our hopes of development and modernization are not belied. The traditional social systems are not in the process of disintegration. Finding it difficult to operate in old ways, they are adapting themselves to the changed environment.

The present book assesses the pattern of change and the nature of adjustment in sub-systems within Indian society. It also points out the emerging trends and identifies the unpredictable and inexplicable changes labelled as schismatic.

---

Contents

• Hindu Philosophy: Continuity and Change

• Unity in Diversity

• The Family System

• The Kinship System

• Status of Women

• The Hindu Marriage

• Muslim and Christian Marriages

• Age at Marriage

• Divorce

• Dowry

• Inter-Caste Marriage

• Caste: Concept, Origin and Structure

• Changing Structure of Caste and its Future

• Inter-Caste and Intra-Caste Relations and Caste Conflicts

• Jajmani System

• Caste and Politics

• Sanskritization and Westernization

• The Scheduled Castes

• Social Change and Development 

• Modernization

• Economic Development and Social Change 

---

About the Author / Editor

Ram Ahuja retired as Professor of Sociology from the University of Rajasthan in 1988 after teaching for more than three decades. He authored many books, including four translations into Hindi. Some of his books have been adopted as standard text in universities and training academies and for competitive examinations. For nearly two decades, he was guest faculty to several national and state academies and institutions for training IAS, IPS and state administrative officers.

---