Resource Library

The metamorphosis of caste among Trinidad Hindus

Author : Jayaram, N.

Publisher: SAGE Publications

Place of Publish: United Kingdom, London

Year: 2006

Page Numbers: 32

Series: Vol 40

Acc. No: 15-S

Class No: 305.5

Category: Soft Documents

Subjects: Caste

Type of Resource: Pdf

Languages: English

ISBN: No

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The discussion on caste among diasporic Hindus is often phrased in terms of a ‘retention' versus ‘change' hypothesis. Based on a review of literature and field observations in Trinidad, this paper argues that such an antithesis distorts our understanding of caste as a diasporic reality and clouds many of its fascinating nuances. The analysis of change that caste as an integral institution of Hinduism has undergone in Trinidad shows the heuristic significance of the concept of metamorphosis as an analytical device for the study of the dynamics of social institutions.