The Assembly of Listeners : Jains in Society

The Jains have exerted an influence on Indian society and religion out of proportion with their relatively small numbers. The Assembly of Listeners: The Jains in Society is the first book to address the sociology of the Jains and to discuss the notion of the "community" based on religious affiliation in India. Topics covered include Jain ideals and identity; women in the Jains community; popular Jainism; Jain reform and Jain identity in the UK. This collection is an important theoretical addition to the studies of Indian society, which has previously focused mainly on caste and class politics as the fundamental social units. With much recent fieldwork providing unique information on the ethnography of the Jains, this study will prove indispensable to any scholar interested in this little known but highly influential social group. 1. frontmatter 2. contents 3. list_of_illustrations 4. list_of_contributors 5. acknowledgements 6. introduction 6. map_south_asia 7. jains_as_a_community_a_position_paper 8. jain_ideals_and_jain_identity 9. jain_ideals_and_jain_identity(1) 10. somadeva_suri_and_the_question_of_jain_identity 11. role_of_the_layman_according_to_the_jain_canon 12. women_and_the_reproduction_of_the_jain_community 13. local_jain_communities 14. local_jain_communities(1) 15. jain_merchant_castes_of_rajasthan_some_aspects_of_the_management_of_social_identity_in_a_market_town 16. jain_shopkeepers_and_moneylenders_rural_informal_credit_networks_in_south_rajasthan 17. study_of_jains_in_a_rajasthan_town 18. jains_in_the_indian_world 19. jains_in_the_indian_world(1) 20. digambara_jain_warrior 21. fairs_and_miracles_at_the_boundaries_of_the_jain_community_in_rajasthan 21. is_there_a_popular_jainism 22. new_jain_institutions_in_india_and_beyond 23. new_jain_institutions_in_india_and_beyond(1) 24. reform_movements_among_jains_in_modern_india 25. orthodoxy_and_dissent_varieties_of_religious_belief_among_immigrant_gujarati_jains_in_britain 26. foundations_of_community_among_southern_digambar_jains_an_essay_on_rhetoric_and_experience 27. conclusion 28. glossary_and_pronunciation The Jains have exerted an influence on Indian Society and religion out of proportion with their relatively small numbers. The Assembly of Listeners: Jains in Society addresses the sociology of the Jains and discusses the notion of the 'community' based on religious affiliation in India. Topics covered include Jain ideals and identity; women in the Jains community; popular Jainism; Jain reform and Jain identity in the UK. This collection is an important theoretical addition to the study of Indian society, which has previously focused mainly on caste and class politics as the fundamental social units. With much recent fieldwork providing unique information on the ethnography of the Jains, this study will prove indispensable to any scholar interested in this little-known but highly influential social group Although Jains have exerted an influence on Indian society and religion out of proportion to their relatively small numbers, they have received very little attention from scholars until the last few years.

The Jains have exerted an influence on Indian Society and religion out of proportion with their relatively small numbers.