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SVASTI - Essays in Honour of Prof. Hampa Nagarajaiah
sociomatrix recording the internal transactions of all mendicants in selected media (name-recognition, communications, services, material transactions) within a defined time-frame, to collect data for the study the spatial dynamics, to measure group connectedness, to statistically correlate the results with the newly generated demographic data, and to analyse outcomes in the light of the rules and regulations of the order and ethnographic background information collected over more than fifteen years. The project specified three main objectives: • To produce reliable statistical information on the demographic and social
composition of the entire contemporary Terāpanth mendicant order, including psychological factors such as motivations for renunciation. To produce a systematic analysis of the network structure within the order and the patterns of transactions in key media such as information and material support. To learn more about the network analytic aspects of studying a trans
regionally organised group of itinerant mendicants. The research was conducted in form of a survey in 2003 amongst 785 Terāpanth monks (19.6%), nuns (68.5%) and male (0.5%) and female novices (11.3%) using a two-part questionnaire in Hindi.
Muni Sukhlāl in Pañcāvat
Data Collection The first round of data collection took place between 1.8.2001–1.8.2002. After pre-tests, the distribution of the questionnaire amongst an exceptionally large group of some 450 monks and nuns attending the annual assembly, maryādā mahotsava, of the Terāpanth mendicant order held in January 2002 in the town Pacapadarā in Rājasthān proved to be a great success. With the help of a leading monk, Muni Sukhlāl (born 1930), and the junior monks under his guidance, research assistant Harshita Jain of Bikaner managed to get most of the locally distributed questionnaires returned in February 2002. Because the response to the network analytical questions was insufficient for statistical investigation, additional questionnaires were distributed by mail with the help of Muni Sukhlāl and his associates. More than 100 questionnaires were returned in this way.
