Abstract
In 1964, ritual pollution and purity were the organizing principles of Totagadde life. Caste hierarchy defined the social order. Within the household, elder respect regulated behavior. Another facet to social behavior was ritual etiquette regarding body fluids. Life passages, such as childbirth, marriage, and finally death, traditionally brought together blood relatives (consanguines) and relatives by marriage (affines). In providing a guide for appropriate behavior in a highly stratified, rigid society, ritual etiquette codified the subordination of women.
As both men and women obtained employment, they selectively dispensed with behavior segregating social groups and subordinating women. With education, the Haviks of Totagadde are moving from a caste-based to a class-based society. To accommodate this, ritual etiquette has changed from controlling life to complementing life.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References Cited
Fuller, C.J., and Haripriya Narasimhan. 2014. Tamil Brahmins: The Making of a Middle-Class Caste. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Hancock, Mary. 1999. Womanhood in the Making: Domestic Ritual and Public Culture in Urban South India. Boulder: Westview Press.
Harper, Edward B. 1964. Ritual Pollution as an Integrator of Caste and Religion. The Journal of Asian Studies 23(June): 151–197.
Kittel, F. 1991. A Kannada-English Dictonary. Madras: Asian Educational Services.
Ramberg, Lucinda. 2014. Given to the Goddess: South Indian Devadasis and the Sexuality of Religion. Durham: Duke University Press.
Singer, Milton. 1972. When a Great Tradition Modernizes. New York: Praeger.
Sreenivas, Mytheli. 2008. Wives, Widows, Concubines: The Conjugal Family Ideal in Colonial India. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Srinivas, M.N. 1952. Religion and Society among the Coorgs of South India. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
———. 1989. The Cohesive Role of Sanskritization and Other Essays. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Ullrich, Helen E. 1992. Menstrual Taboos Among Havik Brahmin Women: A Study of Ritual Change. Sex Roles 26(1/2): 19–40.
———. 1997. Remembrances of Incarnations Past: A Hindu Case Study. The Journal of the American Academy of Psychoanalysis and Dynamic Psychiatry 25(3): 493–505.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2017 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Ullrich, H.E. (2017). Ritual Etiquette: From Controlling to Complementing Life. In: The Women of Totagadde. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59969-8_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59969-8_8
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, New York
Print ISBN: 978-1-137-59968-1
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-59969-8
eBook Packages: Behavioral Science and PsychologyBehavioral Science and Psychology (R0)