ABSTRACT
In the last few chapters discussion has focused primarily on aspects of elite religion, including the part the higher castes played in the functioning and development of temples and maths and on high-caste leadership and activities in sectarian disputes. But what of those who appear to have had little voice in these affairs? What of the religion of ordinary people and those at the bottom of the social scale? Is their religion (referred to briefly in chapter 1) best described as popular religion? What was popular Hinduism and how far can it be identified or separated from the religious views and practices of the dominant classes?
