Brahmin (; ) is a varna (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the Kshatriya (rulers and warriors), Vaishya (traders, merchants, and farmers), and Shudra (labourers).[James Lochtefeld (2002), Brahmin, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 1: A–M, Rosen Publishing, , page 125][
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Traditionally, Brahmins are accorded the supreme ritual status of the four social classes,[ and they also served as spiritual teachers (guru or acharya). In practice, Indian texts suggest that some Brahmins historically also became agriculturalists, warriors, traders, and had also held other occupations in the Indian subcontinent.][GS Ghurye (1969), Caste and Race in India, Popular Prakashan, , pages 15–18][David Shulman (1989), The King and the Clown, Princeton University Press, , page 111] Within the jati (caste) system, Brahmins similarly occupy the highest position, though that is complicated by strict stratification even among Brahmins and historical attempts by other castes and sub-castes to challenge Brahminical dominance.
Origin and history
It seems likely that Kannauj and Middle country was the place of origin of majority of migrating Brahmins throughout the medieval centuries.
Generic meaning of the term "Brahmin"
The term Brahmin appears extensively in ancient and medieval and commentary texts of Buddhism and Jainism.
Strabo cites Megasthenes, highlighting two Indian philosophical schools Sramana and Brahmins:
Patrick Olivelle states that both Buddhist and Brahmanical literature repeatedly define "Brahmin" not in terms of family of birth, but in terms of personal qualities.[ These virtues and characteristics mirror the values cherished in Hinduism during the Sannyasa stage of life, or the life of renunciation for spiritual pursuits. Brahmins, states Olivelle, were the social class from which most ascetics came.][Patrick Olivelle (2011), Ascetics and Brahmins: Studies in Ideologies and Institutions, Anthem, , page 60] The term Brahmin in Indian texts has also signified someone who is good and virtuous, not just someone of priestly class.[
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Purusha sukta
The earliest inferred reference to "Brahmin" as a possible social class is in the Rigveda, occurs once, and the hymn is called Purusha Sukta.[Max Müller, A History of Ancient Sanskrit Literature, Oxford University Press, pages 570–571] According to a hymn in Mandala 10, Rigveda 10.90.11-2, Brahmins are described as having emerged from the mouth of Purusha, being that part of the body from which words emerge.
The Purusha Sukta varna verse is now generally considered to have been inserted at a later date into the Vedic text, possibly as a Origin myth.
According to Vijay Nath, in the Markandeya Purana (250 CE), there are references to Brahmins who were born into the families of Rakshasa. He posits that this is an indication that some Brahmins are immigrants and some are also mixed.
Gupta era
According to Abraham Eraly, "Brahmin as a varna hardly had any presence in historical records before the Gupta Empire era" (3rd century to 6th century CE), when Buddhism dominated the land. "No Brahmin, no sacrifice, no ritualistic act of any kind ever, even once, is referred to" in any Indian texts between third century BCE and the late first century CE. He also states that "The absence of literary and material evidence, however, does not mean that Brahmanical culture did not exist at that time, but only that it had no elite patronage and was largely confined to rural folk, and therefore went unrecorded in history".[Abraham Eraly (2011), The First Spring: The Golden Age of India, Penguin, , page 283] Their role as priests and repository of sacred knowledge, as well as their importance in the practice of Vedic Shrauta rituals, grew during the Gupta Empire era and thereafter.[
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However, the knowledge about actual history of Brahmins or other varnas of Hinduism in and after the first millennium is fragmentary and preliminary, with little that is from verifiable records or archaeological evidence, and much that is constructed from ahistorical Sanskrit works and fiction. Michael Witzel writes:
Role in the bhakti movement and involvement in social reform
Many of the prominent thinkers and earliest champions of the Bhakti movement were Brahmins, a movement that encouraged a direct relationship of an individual with a personal god.[Sheldon Pollock (2009), The Language of the Gods in the World of Men, University of California Press, , pages 423–431][ Among the many Brahmins who nurtured the Bhakti movement were Ramanuja, Nimbarka, Vallabha Acharya and Madhvacharya of Vaishnavism,][;]
Ramananda, another devotional poet sant.[Ronald McGregor (1984), Hindi literature from its beginnings to the nineteenth century, Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, , pages 42–44][William Pinch (1996), Peasants and Monks in British India, University of California Press, , pages 53–89] Born in a Brahmin family,[David Lorenzen, Who Invented Hinduism: Essays on Religion in History, , pages 104–106] Ramananda welcomed everyone to spiritual pursuits without discriminating anyone by gender, class, caste or religion (such as Muslims).[Gerald James Larson (1995), India's Agony Over Religion, State University of New York Press, , page 116][Julia Leslie (1996), Myth and Mythmaking: Continuous Evolution in Indian Tradition, Routledge, , pages 117–119] He composed his spiritual message in poems, using widely spoken vernacular language rather than Sanskrit, to make it widely accessible. The Hindu tradition recognises him as the founder of the Hindu Ramanandi Sampradaya,[Schomer and McLeod (1987), The Sants: Studies in a Devotional Tradition of India, Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 4–6] the largest Sannyasa renunciant community in Asia in modern times.[Selva Raj and William Harman (2007), Dealing with Deities: The Ritual Vow in South Asia, State University of New York Press, , pages 165–166][James G Lochtefeld (2002), The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N-Z, Rosen Publishing, , pages 553–554]
Other medieval era Brahmins who led spiritual movements without social or gender discrimination included Andal (9th-century female poet), Basava (12th-century Lingayatism), Dnyaneshwar (13th-century Bhakti poet), Vallabha Acharya (16th-century Vaishnava poet), Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (14th-century Vaishnava saint) were among others.[John Stratton Hawley (2015), A Storm of Songs: India and the Idea of the Bhakti Movement, Harvard University Press, , pages 304–310][Rachel McDermott (2001), Singing to the Goddess: Poems to Kālī and Umā from Bengal, Oxford University Press, , pages 8–9][ "Mahima Dharma, Bhima Bhoi and Biswanathbaba" , An Orissa movement by Brahmin Mukunda Das (2005)]
Many 18th and 19th century Brahmins are credited with religious movements that criticised idolatry. For example, the Brahmins Raja Ram Mohan Roy led Brahmo Samaj and Dayananda Saraswati led the Arya Samaj.[Noel Salmond (2004), Hindu iconoclasts: Rammohun Roy, Dayananda Sarasvati and nineteenth-century polemics against idolatry, Wilfrid Laurier Univ. Press, , pages 65–68][Dorothy Figueira (2002), Aryans, Jews, Brahmins: Theorizing Authority through Myths of Identity, State University of New York Press, , pages 90–117]
Role in the society
Vedic duties
The Dharmasutra and Dharmashastra texts of Hinduism describe the expectations, duties and role of Brahmins.
According to Kulkarni, the Grhya-sutras state that Yajna, Adhyayana (studying the vedas and teaching), dana pratigraha (accepting and giving gifts) are the "peculiar duties and privileges of brahmins".[John Bussanich (2014), Ancient Ethics (Editors: Jörg Hardy and George Rudebusch), Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, , pages 38, 33–52, Quote: "Affinities with Greek virtue ethics are also noteworthy. Manu's dharmic Brahmin can be compared to Aristotle's man of practical wisdom, who exercises moral authority because he feels the proper emotions and judges difficult situations correctly, when moral rules and maxims are unavailable".] and that "the virtuous Brahmin is not unlike the Platonic-Aristotelian philosopher" with the difference that the latter was not sacerdotal.[John Bussanich (2014), Ancient Ethics (Editors: Jörg Hardy and George Rudebusch), Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, , pages 44–45]
The Brahmins were expected to perform all six Vedic duties as opposed to other Dvija who performed three.
+ Vedic duties of twice-born Varnas |
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Actual occupations
Historical records, state scholars, suggest that Brahmin varna was not limited to a particular status or priest and the teaching profession.[ Chanakya, a Brahmin born in 375 BCE, was an ancient Indian polymath who was active as a teacher, author, strategist, philosopher, economist, jurist, and royal advisor, who assisted the first Mauryan emperor Chandragupta Maurya in his rise to power and is widely credited for having played an important role in the establishment of the Maurya Empire.][RA Donkin (1998), Beyond Price: Pearls and Pearl-fishing, American Philosophical Society, , page 166][SC Malik (1986), Determinants of Social Status in India, Indian Institute of Advanced Study, , page 121]
The Pāli Canon depicts Brahmins as the most prestigious and elite non-Buddhist figures.[Stella Kramrisch (1994), Exploring India's Sacred Art, Editor: Stella Miller, Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 60–64] Buddhist sources extensively attest, state Greg Bailey and Ian Mabbett, that Brahmins were "supporting themselves not by religious practice, but employment in all manner of secular occupations", in the classical period of India.[Greg Bailey and Ian Mabbett (2006), The Sociology of Early Buddhism, Cambridge University Press, , pages 113–115 with footnotes] Some of the Brahmin occupations mentioned in the Buddhist texts such as Jataka tales and Sutta Nipata are very lowly.[ The Dharmasutras too mention Brahmin farmers.]
According to Haidar and Sardar, unlike the Mughal Empire in Northern India, Brahmins figured prominently in the administration of Deccan sultanates. Under Golconda Sultanate Telugu Niyogi Brahmins served in many different roles such as accountants, ministers, in the revenue administration, and in the judicial service.
Eric Bellman states that during the Islamic Mughal Empire era Brahmins served as advisers to the Mughals, later to the British Raj.[ The East India Company also recruited (soldiers) from the Brahmin communities of Bihar and Awadh (in the present day Uttar Pradesh)][Niels Gutschow and Axel Michaels (2008), Bel-Frucht und Lendentuch: Mädchen und Jungen in Bhaktapur Nepal, Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, pages 23 (table), for context and details see 16–36]
Other 20th-century surveys, such as in the state of Uttar Pradesh, recorded that the primary occupation of almost all Brahmin families surveyed was neither priestly nor Vedas-related, but like other varnas, ranged from crop farming (80 per cent of Brahmins), dairy, service, labour such as cooking, and other occupations.[Ramesh Bairy (2010), Being Brahmin, Being Modern, Routledge, , pages 86–89] The survey reported that the Brahmin families involved in agriculture as their primary occupation in modern times plough the land themselves, many supplementing their income by selling their labour services to other farmers.[Noor Mohammad (1992), New Dimensions in Agricultural Geography, Volume 3, Concept Publishers, , pages 45, 42–48][G Shah (2004), Caste and Democratic Politics in India, Anthem, , page 40]
Stratification among Brahmins
According to Kalhana's Rajatarangini (12th cent. CE) and Sahyadrikhanda (5th–13th cent. CE) of Skandapurana, Brahmins are broadly classified into two groups based on geography.
Subcastes of Kanyakubja Brahmins are:
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Jujhatiya Brahmin
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Saryupareen Brahmin
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Bengali Kulin Brahmin
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Anavil
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Bahun – Nepali Bahuns
The Pancha Dravida Brahmins reside to the south of the Vindhya mountain range.
Outside the Indian subcontinent
Some Brahmins formed an influential group in Burmese Buddhist kingdoms in 18th- and 19th-century. The court Brahmins were locally called Punna.
The Brahmins were also consulted in the transmission, development and maintenance of law and justice system outside India.[ were "greatly honored in Burma (Myanmar), Siam (Thailand), Cambodia and Java-Bali (Indonesia) as the defining documents of law and order, which kings were obliged to uphold. They were copied, translated and incorporated into local law code, with strict adherence to the original text in Burma and Siam, and a stronger tendency to adapt to local needs in Java (Indonesia)".][Anthony Reid (1988), Southeast Asia in the Age of Commerce, 1450–1680: The lands below the winds, Yale University Press, , pages 137–138][Victor Lieberman (2014), Burmese Administrative Cycles, Princeton University Press, , pages 66–68; Also see discussion of 13th century Wagaru Dhamma-sattha / 11th century Manu Dhammathat manuscripts discussion][On Laws of Manu in 14th century Thailand's Ayuthia kingdom named after Ayodhya, see David Wyatt (2003), Thailand: A Short History, Yale University Press, , page 61;]
Robert Lingat (1973), The Classical Law of India, University of California Press, , pages 269–272
The mythical origins of Cambodia are credited to a Brahmin prince named Kaundinya, who arrived by sea, married a Naga princess living in the flooded lands.[Jonathan Lee and Kathleen Nadeau (2010), Encyclopedia of Asian American Folklore and Folklife, Volume 1, ABC, , page 1223] Kaudinya founded Kambuja-desa, or Kambuja (transliterated to Kampuchea or Cambodia). Kaundinya introduced Hinduism, particularly Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva and Harihara (half Vishnu, half Shiva), and these ideas grew in southeast Asia in the 1st millennium CE.[Trevor Ranges (2010), Cambodia, National Geographic, , page 48]
The Chams Balamon (Hindu Brahmin Chams) form a majority of the Cham population in Vietnam.[Champa and the archaeology of Mỹ Sơn (Vietnam) By Andrew Hardy, Mauro Cucarzi, Patrizia Zolese p.105]
Brahmins have been part of the Royal tradition of Thailand, particularly for the consecration and to mark annual land fertility rituals of Buddhist kings. A small Brahmanical temple Devasathan, established in 1784 by King Rama I of Thailand, has been managed by ethnically Thai Brahmins ever since.[ The temple hosts Phra Phikhanesuan (Ganesha), Phra Narai (Narayana, Vishnu), Phra Itsuan (Shiva), Parvati, Brahma, Indra ( Sakka) and other Hindu deities.][HG Quadritch Wales (1992), Siamese State Ceremonies, Curzon Press, , pages 54–63] The tradition asserts that the Thai Brahmins have roots in Hindu holy city of Varanasi and southern state of Tamil Nadu, go by the title Pandita, and the various annual rites and state ceremonies they conduct has been a blend of Buddhist and Hindu rituals. The coronation ceremony of the Thai king is almost entirely conducted by the royal Brahmins.[Boreth Ly (2011), Early Interactions Between South and Southeast Asia (Editors: Pierre-Yves Manguin, A. Mani, Geoff Wade), Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, , pages 461–475]
Demographics
The last caste census, conducted by the government of British Raj, was in the year 1931.
According to 2007 reports, Brahmins in India are about 5% of its total population, and back then were numbering 56 million.
The Himalayan states of Uttarakhand (20%) and Himachal Pradesh (14%) have the highest percentage of Brahmin population relative to respective state's total Hindus, followed by Delhi (12%), Jammu and Kashmir (11%), Uttar Pradesh (10%), in other states the Brahmins being less than 10% of the population, the lowest being in the southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, where they form 1%.
According to the Center for the Study of Developing Societies, in 2004 about 65% of Brahmin households in India earned less than $100 a month compared to 89% of Scheduled Tribes, 91% of Scheduled Castes and 86% of Muslims.
See also
Sources
Further reading
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Baldev Upadhyaya, Kashi Ki Panditya Parampara, Sharda Sansthan, Varanasi, 1985.
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Christopher Alan Bayly, Rulers, Townsmen, and Bazaars: North Indian Society in the Age of British Expansion, 1770–1870, Cambridge University Press, 1983.
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Anand A. Yang, Bazaar India: Markets, Society, and the Colonial State in Bihar, University of California Press, 1999.
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M. N. Srinivas, Social Change in Modern India, Orient Longman, Delhi, 1995.
External links
