On the Edge of the Auspicious

On the Edge of the Auspicious Synopsis

      People of lower caste live throughout the villages of Nepal but have         been noticeably absent from ethnographic accounts of the Himalayan region.         Starting from the perspective of lower-caste Hindu women, Mary M. Cameron         offers a long-overdue study of artisans and farmers in western Nepal.       On the Edge of the Auspicious skillfully shows the connections         between caste hierarchy and gender relations leading to domestic, economic,         and religious power of lower-caste women. Situating her study in the history         of land ownership and contemporary family and work relations, Cameron         explains how and why patriarchal ideology associated with high-caste families         in Nepal does not apply to women of lower caste. Drawing on data from         work, family, and religious domains, this ethnography goes further than         other current studies of caste hierarchy in South Asia to show the everyday         material and ideological dimensions of domination and lower-caste people's         resistance to them..