Shailendra Kumar Singh 
Encyclopaedia Of Indian Marriage And Family [PDF ebook] 

In India, people learn the essential themes of cultural life within the bosom of a family. In most of the country, the basic units of society are the patrilineal family unit and wider kinship groupings. The most widely desired residential unit is the joint family, ideally consisting of three or four patrilineally related generations, all living under one roof, working, eating, worshipping, and cooperating together in mutually beneficial social and economic activities. Marriage is deemed essential for virtually everyone in India. For the individual, marriage is the great watershed in life, marking the transition to adulthood. Generally, This instead occurs as a result of the efforts of many people. Even as one is born into a particular family without the exercise of any personal choice, so is one given a spouse without any personal preference involved. The book is an asset for all scholars, researchers, teachers, students and of course, the general readers.