Indian society has a rich diversity. Starting from the arrival of the Aryans, there was an interaction with conflict, cooperation and synthesis of different cultural/religious streams. While Brahminism imposed an exclusionist caste hierarchy on society, other streams like Jainism, Buddhism, Kabir, Nanak and multiple local sects like Jotiba, Khandoba, Tukaram, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Tantra, etc. contributed to the synthesizing of local cultures. While kings, zamindars and upper castes exploited, irrespective of their religion, the lower castes intermingled and led to the development of syncretic traditions. Indian culture is a plural one, encompassing the diversity of the country, incorporating and drawing heavily from all those people who came and settled here. Even amongst Hindus there are multiple sects and culture is not uniform. Only the culture of elite is being projected as ‘the’ Hindu culture to the exclusion of the culture of downtrodden. This book reflects the development of Indian society from the ancient to the modern period in polity, economy, the caste system and culture.
