Outskirts Press, INC.

The main motivation for this work on the position of the Hindu widow, as pointed out by the author in her introductory remarks, is that literature on the widow, who held a unique position in the Hindu society, is meager relative to the Hindu woman. Timewise, the coverage begins with the Vedas and ends in post-independent India, a period of about three and one-half millennia. The work relies on an extensive literature review and analysis of a field survey, for which the author chose to restrict the geographic scope to Gujarat State, extended to Mumbai and the vicinity in Maharashtra. The life of a woman, bereft of the man she was married to, is brought out with thought-provoking clarity. This presentation is based on the author’s 1956 MA thesis.