<p>The second edition of this book tries to answer concerns about Maha­bharata as a source for history and about continued relevance of patriarchal construct in writing a new women’s history. While there is no need to interpret structures as monolithic or beyond changes of time the scale of that change cannot always be measured in terms of just technology and political formation of a given chronological span. Variations in women’s lives will have to be seen at the micro level such as the varieties of households and the domestic reproductive and sexual arrangements therein. In analysing the mechanism of patriarchal domination the structures of lineage residence forms of marriage property relations and sexuality are subjected to a critical analysis. A systematic attempt has also been made to use the theories and findings of social anthropology for this purpose. Apart from material existence the symbolic valuations given to women in andro­centric societies play a significant role in constructing their status as abala. The volume also juxtaposes these emasculated women with raksasi and svairini who inhabit a space that is spatially and ideologically freer of mas­culinist constructs. This volume will be invaluable to scholars of Gender Studies Culture Religion in South Asia and Ancient Indian History. About the Author Shalini Shah an alumnus of Delhi’s St. Stephen’s College has had a meritorious academic career throughout. After teaching undergraduate students first at her alma mater and then at Indraprastha College for two decades she joined as a Professor in the Department of History University of Delhi. She has been elected the Sectional President (Ancient India) for the 82nd session of the Indian History Congress 2023. Her area of specialization is ancient Indian social history and she has worked consistently for over three decades on gender relations. Her scholarly contri­butions have appeared in many prestigious journals both nationally and inter­nationally as well as in several edited books. She has authored several books: The Making of Womanhood: Gender Relations in the Mahabharata (Manohar 1995 2nd revised edition 2012); Mahabharata: A Book of Quotes (Aryan Books 2014); Naritva Ka Gathan (Granthshilpi 2016).</p>

<p>The colonial period saw important social movements in India. Among the strongest of these was non-Brahman movement in Maharashtra. Its founder was a remarkable intellectual and social activist from the gardener (Mali) caste Jotirao Phule (1827-90). His writings laid the foundations of the movement and the Satyashodhak Samaj (‘Truthseekers Society’) which he founded in 1873 became its primary radical organization lasting until the 1930s. Shahu Maharaj the Maratha maharaja of Kolhapur who turned against Brahmans because they considered him a shudra and became radicalized from this was a major patron. The heyday of the movement took place between 1910 and 1930 when the Satyashodhak Samaj carried the message of anti-caste anti-Brahmanism throughout Maharashtra; one of its offshoots was a strong peasant movement. In the 1920s a political party emerged as did Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s Dalit movement which drew sustenance also from support of the non-Brahmans and patrons such as Shahu Maharaj. Young radicals such as Keshavrao Jedhe and Dinkarrao Javalkar challenged Brahman cultural dominance in Pune and intervened in the Brahman-dominated Communist movement in Mumbai. By the 1930s however the movement died away as the majority of its activists joined Congress. It has left a strong heritage but the failure to really link nationalism with a strong anti-caste movement has left a heritage of continued and often unadmitted dominance of caste in Indian society today. This classic study on the non-Brahman movement in western India is invalu-able for scholars of sociology caste movements Dalit studies and colonialism. About the Author Gail Omvedt currently holds the Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Chair of Social Change and Development at IGNOU. She has over the years worked actively with social movements in India including the Dalit anti-caste environmental and farmers’ movements and especially with rural women. Among her numerous books focusing on social and economic issues are Understanding Caste: From Buddha to Ambedkar and Beyond (2011); Seeking Begumpura: The Social Vision of Anti-caste Intellectuals (2009); Ambedkar: Towards an Enlightened India (2005) and Buddhism in India: Challenging Brahmanism and Caste (2003). Recently she has worked on translations from Marathi into English in collaboration with Bharat Patankar including Vasant Moon’s Growing up Untouchable in India: A Dalit Autobiography (2000). Currently a selection of Tukaram’s work is due for publication.</p>