Poverty and the Quest for Life
Spiritual and Material Striving in Rural India
- Contents
- Review Quotes
- Awards

1 First Impressions, and Further
2 The Headless Horseman of Central India: Sovereignty at Varying Thresholds of Life
3 Mitra Varuna: State Power and Powerlessness
a. Who Ate Up the Forests?
b. Mitra, the Caregiving State
4 The Coarse and the Fine: Contours of a Slow-Moving Crisis
5 Contracts, Bonds, and Bonded Labor
6 Erotics and Agonistics: Intensities Deeper Than Deep Play
7 Divine Migrations: Neighborliness between Humans, Animals, and Gods
8 The Waxing and Waning Life of Kalli
9 Bansi Mahatmaya (The Greatness of Bansi), an Erotic Ascetic
10 Departure, and Marriages and Deaths
11 The Quality of Life: A Daemonic View
Notes References Index
have one. . . The fact that Singh is willing to include himself and his own frailties in his narrative—something many researchers conspicuously try to avoid—is a welcome highlight of his writing. Whenever one spends time living with an individual or a group, one’s presence alters what occurs. Singh is not afraid to acknowledge himself as a part of the conversation. It helps to give perspective and flavor to his observations and interpretations."
American Academy of Religion: AAR Award for Excellence - Analytical-Descriptive Studies
Won
Society for the Anthropology of Religion: Clifford Geertz Prize
Finalist
American Institute of Indian Studies: Joseph W. Elder Prize in the Indian Social Sciences
Won
Anthropology: Cultural and Social Anthropology
Asian Studies: South Asia
You may purchase this title at these fine bookstores. Outside the USA, see our international sales information.