The article attempts to analyze concepts of economics as they apply to a group of people living in east Nepal and to synthesize the substantivist and formalist theories in order to perceive them as being complementary rather than in opposition. The article is based on a case study of the Athpahariya Rais in Nepal. The Athpahariyas are small group of Tibeto-Burman language speaking people living in the Dhankuta district, East Nepal. They practice a shamanistic tradition as their religion. The article discusses the subsistence economy and land tenure of the area along with the cash economy and market exchange. The article concludes that the economy of the Athpahariyas clearly fits Firth's definition of peasant economies. (Rajeev Ranjan Singh 2007-01-22)