Families in India: Beliefs and Realities

Abstract

India is a land of diverse populace and geography. The Indian family is meant to fulfill religion obligation from birth to death. Religion is an all encompassing way of life. The guiding religious texts are the Purusharthas and Varnasrama Dharmas. Inequality of gender, occupation and lifecycle is inherent in Hinduism. There is a negative correlation between population growth and literacy rate. The Indian family is patriarchal. The family follows a joint-nuclear-joint cycle. Marriage is a union of two families arranged by elders. A modern scourge of Indian family is the dowry system and ‘dowry deaths’. Elders are respected even today divorce though having legal sanction has yet to get social ; sanction. Religion is an everyday part of a Hindu family and the family exists to fulfill religious obligation.