Marathi Brahmin Explained

Marathi Brahmins (also known as Maharashtrian Brahmins) are communities native to the Indian state of Maharashtra. They are classified into mainly three sub-divisions based on their places of origin, "Desh", "Karad" and "Konkan". The Brahmin subcastes that come under Maharashtra Brahmins include Deshastha, Chitpavan (Konkanastha), Saraswat, Karhade, and Devrukhe.[1]

Geographical distribution

Maharashtrian Brahmins are native to the Indian state of Maharashtra. However, their training as priests, expertise in Hindu laws and scriptures, and administrative skills have historically led them to find employment in all corners of India. For example, in the 1700s, the court of Jaipur had Maharashtrian Brahmins recruited from Benares. This community had in turn migrated to Benares after the fall of Vijayanagar empire in southern India.[2] The greatest movement of the community took place when the Maratha Empire expanded across India. Peshwa, Holkars, Scindia, and Gaekwad dynastic leaders took with them a considerable population of priests, clerks, and army men when they established new seats of power. Most of these migrants were from the literate classes such as Deshasthas,Saraswats and non Bramante communities like CKP. These groups formed the backbone of administration in the new Maratha Empire states in many places such as Baroda, Indore, Gwalior, Bundelkhand, and Tanjore.[3] The Deshasthas in Tanjure in modern day Tamil Nadu state in southern India dates back to early 1700s.[4] In modern times the Maharashtrian brahmin and CKP communities of Indore dominated the RSS and Bharatiya Janasangh (the forerunner of the BJP).[5]

Brahmins are about 8-10% of the total population of Maharashtra.[6] Among Maharashtrian Brahmins, almost 60 per cent (three-fifth) are Deshastha Brahmins and 20 per cent (one-fifth) are Chitpavan Brahmins.[7] [8]

Occupation

Historical

In Maharashtra Brahmins have had a wider occupational basis, including as priests, vedic scholars, administrators, warriors, courtiers, business and politics.[9] [10] For decades together during the era of the Deccan sultanates Deshasthas and Saraswats were significant recruits to administrative roles and as tax collectors.[11] [12] [13] [14] [15] They were also administrators during the period of the Maratha Empire, spanning the 17th and 18th centuries, when some Chitpavans also emerged as peshwas and thus the de facto rulers.[16] [17] During the peshwa rule, Pune became the de facto financial capital of the empire with the bankers (sawakar in Marathi) being mainly Maharashtrian brahmins.[18] During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, many Marathi brahmins migrated north to Hindu holy city of Benaras on the Ganga River. During this period Benaras had become an important center of learning. Seven Marathi brahmin clans became the intellectual elites of the city with patronage from wealthy benefactors during the early Mughal era or even from an earlier period. The clans included Sesa, Bhat, Dharmadhikari, Bharadvaja, Payagunde, Puntambekar and Chowdhuri. These brahmins were collectively called dakshinatya brahmins. The clans dominated the study of Sanskrit scriptures and Hindu laws in the city for many centuries. Most them also mentioned maintained close connections to their original homes in the centers of learning on the Godavari River such as Paithan, Puntamba, and Trimbakeshwar.[19] All these clans had expertise in particular area of Sanskrit literature.[20] During this era, Benaras also became a base from which scholars could go to regional courts and display their learning. The Bhatta family, for example, had branches in Benaras, Amer and Mathura.[21] A number of Maharashtrian brahmins settled in the Kumaon and Garhwal region of present day Indian state of Uttarakhand in places such as Almora.[22] [23] These brahmins now form part of the Kumaoni brahmin community and the Garhwali Pandit Community.[24] [25]

John Roberts has argued that from the time of the Maratha Empire and into the period when the British East India Company was forming the administrative unit of the Bombay Presidency, they were mostly urban dwellers, along with other non-Brahmin clerical castes, and shunned trading roles.[26] This view appears to be distinct to that of Edmund Leech and S. N. Mukherjee, who note the Chitpavan incomers to the region as being involved also in trade and cultivation.[27]

Modern era

The British rulers of Maharashtra region during early years of colonial rule in the nineteenth century recruited for clerical and lower level administrative work mainly from castes such as brahmin and CKP whose traditional occupations involved scholarship, teaching, and record keeping. Incidentally, these castes had considerable experience in government administration during the Peshwa rule which preceded the British rule. Brahmins and CKP were also the first to take to western education. This was their gate way to rise to positions of dominance in many fields during the nineteenth century colonial era. These included positions in professions such as teaching, law, medicine, and engineering.[28] Maharashtrian brahmins also dominated lower level jobs in the colonial government. The 19th century social reformer, Jyotirao Phule lamented the brahmin domination in education and government jobs.[29] In the early 20th century, however, different governments in the region such as the Bombay Presidency or the princely state of Kolhapur started reservation policies in government jobs at lower levels that discriminated against the brahmins.[30]

Being the first to receive western education, Maharashtrian brahmins such as Justice Ranade, or Gopal Hari Deshmukh were at the forefront of social reform, female education, and participation in political process at the local level. They were also equally opposed by more orthodox members' of their own communities such as Lokmanya Tilak for advocating reforms.[31] In the twentieth century, Maharashtrian brahmins such as Savarkar formulated the Hindutva ideology, and Hedgewar, and his successor Golwalkar founded or led the Hindu nationalist organization, the RSS.

In the last one hundred years, many brahmin families such Kirloskar, Garware, Ogale,[32] and Mhaiskar have been successful in creating large manufacturing, and construction businesses.[33]

Society and culture

Religious customs

Sociologist S. D. Pillai states, basing on the studies by G. S. Ghurye, that claim of Brahminhood by communities such as some Saraswat subcastes of the Western Indian Konkan belt who historically had no knowledge of vedas, no priesthood, and even ate non-vegetarian food demonstrates that the Brahmin claim was available on other grounds and using legends to justify Brahmin origins. But the non-vegetarian tradition did not apply to Saraswats from the south of Western India.[34] [35]

Chitpavans from Konkan area acted as priests for religious rituals and also involved in farming.[36]

Among Karhades there are both Smarthas and Vaishnavites. Smarthas are followers of Adi Shankara and Vaishnavas are followers of Madhvacharya.[37] [38] [39]

The deshastha and the karhade historically allowed cross-cousin marriages but the chitpavan did not.[40] Historically, widow remarriage was uncommon among the ritually upper castes in Maharashtra i.e. Marathi speaking brahmins, CKPs and Saraswat unlike among some others castes.[41]

Like most other Hindu communities, Marathi brahmins have a shrine called a devghar in their house with idols, symbols, and pictures of various deities.[42]

Diet

See also: Maharashtrian cuisine and List of festivals of Maharashtrian Brahmins. Maharashtrian Brahmins, Deshasthas, Chitpavans and Karhades have historically been strict vegetarian. As per Singh, Saraswats eat only fish.[43] [44] [45] [46] Singh's claim is, however, contradicted by the Saraswat Mahila Samaj (Saraswat caste association of Women) of Mumbai that has published a book Rasachandrika in 1988 on Saraswat cuisine discussing egg, fish and even mutton recipes.[47]

During the Peshwa era, brahmins of Pune passed caste specific laws for alcohol - making the sale of liquor illegal to Brahmins, Shenvi(GSB)s, Prabhus and the officers working for the administration.[48]

Social and political issues

Sociologist Sharmila Rege writes that, as the demand of the British Raj for administrators increased and thus guided the direction of education policy, the "caste composition of the emerging intelligentsia" demonstrated how the upper castes were able to cement their socio-economic position by dominating recruitment to the available bureaucratic positions. They also dominated selection for the schools themselves, demanding that lower caste students be rejected. For example, from 1827 to 1848, in the Elphinstone institutes of Bombay, out of 152 matriculating students, 16 were Brahmins, 12 were Gaud Saraswat Brahmin(Shenvi), 71 were Prabhus, 28 were Parsis and 25 belonged to lower castes. In the New English school in Pune, in 1886, 911 out of 982 were Brahmins. In the employment of the "elite administrative hierarchy" in 1886, out of 384, 211 were Brahmins, 37 were Prabhus and there was only one Shudra.[49]

Gail Omvedt concludes that during the British era, the overall literacy of Brahmins and CKPs was overwhelmingly high as opposed to the literacy of others such as the Kunbis and Marathas. Specifically, the top three literate castes were Chitpavans, CKPs and Deshasthas. Men were more literate than the women from any caste. Female literacy as well as English literacy showed the same pattern among castes.[50]

Bal Gangadhar Tilak believed that the Deshastha, Chitpawan and Karhade should get united. He encouraged this by writing comprehensive discussions on the urgent need for these three sub-castes to intermarry and dine together.[51]

Politics

Maharashtrian Brahmins have played a significant role in the Hindu nationalist movement. Christophe Jaffrelot, a political scientist, states that even in Indore (a city in Madhya Pradesh), from 1950 to 1965, Maharashtrian Brahmins and CKP together accounted for two-third or three-fourth of the Hindu nationalist representation in the municipal councils.[52]

Jaffrelot thinks that Brahmins are still resented by the Marathas and Dalits of Maharashtra despite no longer having much political power.[53]

Anti-Brahmin violence

After Gandhi's murder by Nathuram Godse, himself a Brahmin, Brahmins in Maharashtra, in 1948, became targets of violence, mostly by some elements from the Maratha caste. V. M. Sirsikar, a political scientist at the University of Pune, noted that

Another political scientist, Donald B. Rosenthal, said that the motivation for the violence was the historical discrimination and humiliation faced by the Maratha community due to their caste status and "Even today, local Brahmins claim that the Marathas organized the riots to take political advantage of the situation".[54]

In Satara alone, about 1000 houses were burnt in about 300 villages. There were "cruel, cold-blooded killings" as well – for example, one family whose last name happened to be 'Godse' had three of its male members killed. Brahmins suffered from serious physical violence as well as economic violence in the form of looting. In Sangli, Jains and Lingayats joined the Marathas in their attacks against the Brahmins. Thousands of offices and homes were also set on fire. Molestation incidents were also reported during these attacks. On the first day alone, the number of deaths in Bombay were 15, and 50 in Pune. The total monetary loss has been estimated to Rs.100 million (or about 20 million in 1948 US dollars).[55]

Notable people

References

NotesCitations

Bibliography

Notes and References

  1. Book: Maharashtra, Land and Its People. 230. Gazetteers Department, Government of Maharashtra. 2009. In Maharashtra Brahmin caste has Karhade, Deshastha, Kokanastha, Devrukhas, Sarasvats, etc. as sub- castes . Further Deshastha Brahmin sub - caste has sub - sub - castes like Rigvedi and Yajurvedi which are also endogamous groups..
  2. Book: Heidi Pauwels. Mobilizing Krishna's World: The Writings of Prince Sāvant Singh of Kishangarh. 26 October 2017. University of Washington Press. 978-0-295-74224-3. 31.
  3. Roberts. John. The Movement of Elites in Western India under Early British Rule. The Historical Journal. 1971. 14. 2. 243–244. 2637955.
  4. Book: Jaishri P. Rao. Classic Cuisine and Celebrations of the Thanjavur Maharashtrians. 29 April 2019. Notion Press. 978-1-68466-649-2.
  5. Book: Christophe Jaffrelot. The Hindu Nationalist Movement and Indian Politics: 1925 to the 1990s : Strategies of Identity-building, Implantation and Mobilisation (with Special Reference to Central India). 1999. Penguin Books India. 978-0-14-024602-5. 147.
      1. Book: Subhash R. Walimbe . Anthropology for archaeology: proceedings of the Professor Irawati Karve Birth Centenary Seminar . P. P. Joglekar . Kishor Kumar Basa . Deccan College Post-Graduate and Research Institute . 2007 . 158 . While comprising only 9% of the Maharashtrian population, the eight endogamous Brahmin castes studied by Karve and Malhotra.
                  1. Book: Hazel D'Lima . Women in Local Government: A Study of Maharashtra . Concept Publishing Company . 1983 . 978-8170221418 . 170 . Brahmins do not have a numerical superiority as they account for only 8 per cent of the population..
  7. Book: The Myth of the Lokamanya: Tilak and Mass Politics in Maharashtra. registration. Richard I. Cashman. University of California Press. 1975. 19. The Deshasthas, who hailed from the Deccan plateau, the Desh, accounted for three-fifths of the Maratha Brahman population.. 9780520024076.
  8. Book: Elites in South Asia. 98. Edmund Leach. S. N. Mukherjee. Cambridge University Press. 1970. The Chitpavans account for one-fifth of all Maharashtrian Brahmins..
  9. Book: Gold, Daniel . Provincial Hinduism: Religion and Community in Gwalior City. Oxford University Press. 134. In Maharashtra, Brahmins have been known for traditional occupations of broader scope than those in most of the rest of India. Not just characteristically priests and scholars as elsewhere, Maharashtrian Brahmins were also recognized as men of action: administrators, businessmen and political leaders. 9780190266332. 2015.
  10. Book: Richard I. Cashman. The Myth of the Lokamanya: Tilak and Mass Politics in Maharashtra. registration. 1 January 1975. University of California Press. 978-0-520-02407-6. 8.
  11. Book: Gordon, Stewart. The Marathas 1600-1818 . 2. Cambridge University Press. 2017. 130–146. 9780521033169.
  12. Book: Art of the Court of Bijapur. Deborah S. Hutton. Indiana University Press. 2006. 17. Bijapur Sultanate certainly inherited patterns of cultural interaction from the Bahamani dynasty. One notable practice was the use of Maharashtrian Brahmins and Marathi-speaking soldiers in the kingdom's administration and army. Because the number of Muslims in Deccan was relatively small, the Deccan Islamic kingdoms depended on Brahmins, primarily from the Maharashtrian region, for administration and tax collection.. 9780253347848.
  13. Book: Expanding Frontiers in South Asian and World History: Essays in Honour of John F. Richards. 23. Richard M. . Eaton. Munis D. . Faruqui. David . Gilmartin. Sunil . Kumar. John F. . Richards. Cambridge University Press. 9781107034280. 2013.
  14. 1992. Deccan (Maharashtra) under the Muslim Rulers from Khaljis to Shivaji: A Study in Interaction. 42930434. Bulletin of the Deccan College Research Institute. 51/52. 501–510. Kulkarni. G. T..
  15. Book: Mohammad . T.A. . Nobility in the Bijapuri Kingdom . 2008 . Aligarh Muslim University . 61 . 25 November 2023.
  16. Book: Kulkarni, Sumitra . The Satara Raj, 1818–1848: A Study in History, Administration, and Culture . 978-81-7099-581-4 . 1995 . 129.
  17. Web site: India : Rise of the peshwas . Britannica.com . 2011-11-08 . 2013-03-23.
  18. Book: H. Damodaran. India's New Capitalists: Caste, Business, and Industry in a Modern Nation. 25 June 2008. Palgrave Macmillan UK. 978-0-230-59412-8. 50.
  19. Benke, T., 2010. THE ŚŪDRĀCĀRAŚIROMAN I OF KR S N A ŚES A: A 16th Century Manual of Dharma for Śūdras. Publicly accessible Penn Dissertations, p.159.https://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1133&context=edissertations
  20. Book: Rosalind O'Hanlon. David Washbrook. Religious Cultures in Early Modern India: New Perspectives. https://books.google.com/books?id=NTnJBQAAQBAJ&pg=PT274. 2 January 2014. Taylor & Francis. 978-1-317-98287-6. 274–. Speaking from Siva's temple:Banaras scholar households and the Brahmin ecumene of Mughal India.
  21. - Rosalind O'Hanlon. 10 Dec 2013, Scribal Migrations in Early Modern India from:Routledge Handbook of the South Asian Diaspora RoutledgeAccessed on: 25 Nov 2019 https://www.routledgehandbooks.com/doi/10.4324/9780203796528.ch3
  22. News: Koranne-Khandekar . Saee . A taste of home . 21 February 2020 . live Mint . 1 Dec 2017 . 2017.
  23. Book: Dr. R. K. Thukral. Uttarakhand District Factbook : Almora District: District level socio-economic data of Almora District, Uttarakhand. 1 January 2017. Datanet India Pvt. Ltd.. 978-93-86277-98-5. 4–.
  24. Book: Braj Bhushan. Eminent Indian Psychologists: 100 years of Psychology in India. 28 August 2017. SAGE Publishing India. 978-93-86446-43-5. 285–.
  25. Book: Namita Gokhale. Mountains Echoes: Reminiscences of Kumaoni Women. 17 August 2015. Roli Books Private Limited. 978-93-5194-180-4.
  26. Roberts. John. The Movement of Elites in Western India under Early British Rule. The Historical Journal. 1971. 14. 2. 241–262. 2637955.
  27. Book: Elites in South Asia. 99. Edmund . Leach . S. N. . Mukherjee . Cambridge University Press. 1970.
  28. Patterson, M.L., 1954. Caste and political leadership in Maharashtra. The Economic Weekly, pp.1066-7.https://www.epw.in/system/files/pdf/1954_6/39/caste_and_political_leadership_in_maharashtraa_review_and_current_appraisal.pdf
  29. Book: Dhananjay Keer. Mahatma Jotirao Phooley: Father of the Indian Social Revolution. 1997. Popular Prakashan. 978-81-7154-066-2. 99.
  30. Book: Manoranjan Mohanty. M.N. Srinivas. Class, Caste, Gender. https://books.google.com/books?id=msyGAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA207. 6 May 2004. SAGE Publications. 978-81-321-0369-1. 161–165. Caste in modern India.
  31. Book: Sabyasachi Bhattacharya. Education and the Disprivileged: Nineteenth and Twentieth Century India. 2002. Orient Blackswan. 978-81-250-2192-6. 238.
  32. Damodaran, H., 2008. Brahmins, Khatris, and Babus. In India’s New Capitalists (pp. 48-91). Palgrave Macmillan, London.
  33. Book: Harish Damodaran. INDIA'S NEW CAPITALISTS: Caste, Business, and Industry in a Modern Nation. 25 November 2018. Hachette India. 978-93-5195-280-0. 50–57.
  34. Book: Dennis Kurzon. Where East Looks West: Success in English in Goa and on the Konkan Coast. 2004. Multilingual Matters. 978-1-85359-673-5. 74–. Saraswatis claim that they come from the Brahmin caste – hence their name - but others believe that they are usurpers using some fake brahmin ancestry to maintain their superiority..
  35. Book: Ramesh Bairy. Being Brahmin, Being Modern: Exploring the Lives of Caste Today. 11 January 2013. Routledge. 978-1-136-19820-5. 193–. Saraswat claim to Brahminhood is still strongly under dispute, particularly in the coastal districts of Karnataka..
  36. Book: Encyclopedia of world cultures: South Asia - Volume 2. 69. The occupation of the Chitpavans in their original territory of the Konkan was farming, with some income from performing rituals among their own caste.. Macmillan Reference USA. Paul Hockings. 1992.
  37. Book: Understanding Our Fellow Pilgrims. 65. Gregory Naik. Gujarat Sahitya Prakash. 2000. The Karhada Brahmins: The Brahmins lived in southern parts of modern Maharashtra, between Konkan and Desh, in a province, then called Karathak, comprising Satara, Sangli, and Kolhapur, with Karad as capital. Hence the name of Karhada Brahmins. Among them too there are Smartas and Madhvas or Bhagwats (Vaishnavites).. 9788187886105.
  38. Book: The Castes and Tribes of H.E.H. the Nizam's Dominions, Volume 1. 113. Asian Educational Services. Syed Siraj ul Hassan. 1989. 9788120604889. The Karhades are all Rigvedis of the Shakala Shaka, who respect the sutra, or aphorism, of Ashwalayana. They belong to both the Smartha, and the Vaishnava sects, and in religious and spiritual matters follow the guidance of Sri Shankaracharya, and Madhwacharya, respectively..
  39. Book: States, Citizens and Outsiders: The Uprooted Peoples of South Asia . 25. Tapan K. Bose. Rita Manchanda. South Asia Forum for Human Rights. 1997. The Brahmins, who found very few jobs in the arid hills of the western ghats, since one subcaste, the Chitpawan brahmins, dominated that region, felt the Chitpawan competition very unfair in Maharashtra. Most notably, these were Deshastha and Karhade Brahmans many of whom migrated across Deccan into the East Godavari basin. This was administered through the 19th century by Deshastha Brahmins who used the Maharashtrian surname, Rao..
  40. Karve, I., 1958. What is caste. Economic Weekly, 10(4), p.153.https://www.epw.in/system/files/pdf/1959_11/4-5-6/what_is_casteiv_castesociety_and_vedantic_thought.pdf
  41. Book: women in distress. Neela Dabir. 97,98,99. Rawat Publishers. 2000.
  42. Chavan, C. Y., & Chandar, S. (2022). The Relationships Between Socio-Economic, Political and Cultural Profiles of the People and House-Forms: Sawantwadi, Maharashtra, India.Journal of the International Society for the Study of Vernacular Settlementsal, Vol. 9, no.3,https://isvshome.com/pdf/ISVS_9-3/ISVS_EJ_9.3.9.pdf
  43. Book: S. Devadas Pillai. Indian Sociology Through Ghurye, a Dictionary. 1997. Popular Prakashan. 978-81-7154-807-1. 30–.
  44. Book: India's Communities, Volume 5. Oxford University Press. 1998. 2079. Among them the Chitpavan, Desastha, Karhade and Devdny Brahman are pure vegetarian.. 9780195633542.
  45. Book: India's Communities, Volume 5. K. S. Singh. Oxford University Press. 1998. 2082. The Saraswat Brahman eat only fish while other Brahmans like Deshastha, Karhade and Konkanastha take a vegetarian diet.. 9780195633542.
  46. Book: Nita Kumar. Usha Sanyal. Food, Faith and Gender in South Asia: The Cultural Politics of Women's Food Practices. 20 February 2020. Bloomsbury Publishing. 978-1-350-13708-0. 120–.
  47. Book: Rasachandrika: Saraswat Cookery Book with Notes and Home Remedies, Useful Hints and Hindu Festivals. 1991. Popular Prakashan. 978-81-7154-290-1. 199–. Saraswat Mahila Samaj.
  48. Book: Caste and Race in India. 5. Govind Sadashiv Ghurye. Popular Prakashan . 1969. Thus the Brahmin government of Poona, while passing some legislation prohibiting the manufacture and sale of liquors, excluded the bhandaris kolis and similar other castes from the operation thereof but strictly forbade the sale of drinks to Brahmins, Shenvis, Prabhus and Government officers. registration. 9788171542055.
  49. Book: Rege, Sharmila . Sharmila Rege

    . Writing Caste/Writing Gender: Narrating Dalit Women's Testimonies. 32. Sharmila Rege . Zubaan . 9789383074679. 2014 . 1999.

  50. Omvedt . Gail. Development of the Maharashtrian Class Structure, 1818 to 1931. . 8 . 31/33 . 1418–1419 . August 1973.
  51. Book: The Chitpavans: social ascendancy of a creative minority. Sandhya Gokhale. 2008. 147. As early as 1881, in a few articles Bal Gangadhar Tilak, the resolute thinker and the enfant terrible of Indian politics, wrote comprehensive discourses on the need for united front by the Chitpavans, Deshasthas and the Karhades. Invoking the urgent necessity of this remarkable Brahmans combination, Tilak urged sincerely that these three groups of Brahmans should give up caste exclusiveness by encouraging inter sub-caste marriages and community dining.".
  52. Book: Hindu Nationalist Movement and Indian Politics, 1925 to the 1990s. Christophe Jaffrelot. Columbia University Press. October 15, 1998. 147,148. 9780231103350. (pg 147)Members of the Maharashtrian high castes were particularly numerous, whether Brahmins or - like Thakre[Kushabhau, pg 133] - CKPs.(pg 148) In Indore, the Maharashtrian upper castes were particularly over-represented within the RSS and the Jana Sangh. In the municipal councils, from 1950-65, the Maharashtrian Brahmins and CKP accounted for two-thirds or three-fourth of the Hindu Nationalist representation..
  53. Web site: A war of labels. 9 January 2018.
  54. Book: The Untold Vajpayee: Politician and Paradox. 39. Ullekh N P. Random House India. 2018. 9789385990816.
  55. Book: Donald W. Attwood. Milton Israel. Narendra K. Wagle. Maureen Patterson. City, countryside and society in Maharashtra. October 1988. University of Toronto, Centre for South Asian Studies. 978-0-9692907-2-8. 35–58. Such resistance was to no avail, and the Brahmans' fears and troubles were realized in February 1948 when they were set upon by recently politicized communities - Marathas, as well as Jains and Lingayats - who unhesitatingly took advantage of the opportunity provided by assassin Godse's shots.[page 50]; This is no doubt low since about 1000 houses were officially reported to have been burnt down in some 300 villages spread across all thirteen talukas of the district and Aundh State.[page 40].

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