2 SOCIAL SCIENTIST Hinduism is a concept that eludes easy definition. To say that it is characterized by the fact that all Hindus call upon the authority of the Vedas to legitimise their doctrines and practices is untenable; indeed as Suvira Jaiswal argues in her paper, such a definition amounts to an illegitimate semitisation of Hinduism, to treating it as being isomorphic with the Semitic religions, with the Vedas being the counterpart of the Quran or the Bible. She prefers instead to take the Hindu social system, characterised above all by the caste-structure, as being an important constitutive element of Hinduism. Hinduism can tolerate any kind of theology, can display any amount of religious pluralism, provided the upholders of such divergent beliefs remain assimilated within the social hierarchy of the caste-system. The caste-system to be sure is not exclusive to the Hindus; followers of other religions in India such as the Buddhists, Jains, Muslims and Christians also have caste divisions among them; but while in their case it is a carry-over by the converts, in Hinduism caste is central. This centrality is demonstrated by the fact that even movements, such as the Arya Samaj movement, which had the professed objective of establishing a casteless society, could not break out of the endogamous caste-structure and ended up having an attitude to the low castes which was paternalist rather then egalitarian. It is significant that the votaries of Hindutva today whose professed aim is to ensure a 'proper place* for the Hindus in the public realm are deafeningly silent on the question of caste. Finally we publish as a note an analysis of Amitava Ghosh's The Shadow Lines which underscores the failure of the book to offer 'a liberating and radical redescription of the post-colonial context' in India. P.S. While this issue was in press, we got news of the sad and untimely demise of Professor Krishna Bharadwaj, the eminent economist from Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi, who was a contributor to Social Scientist and one of its ardent well-wishers. We deeply grieve the loss of Professor Bharadwaj and offer our condolences to the bereaved family. One of her colleagues, Utsa Patnaik, has written a brief obituary piece on her for this number.