CASTES AND TRIBES OF SOUTHERN INDIA
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VED from VICTORIA INSTITUTIONS
It is foretold! The torrential flow of inexorable destiny!
Annotating the textual matter 2
89. According to another version of the legend, during the reign of the Cholas, a water-pandal was erected by the Beris, and the Komatis claimed the right to use it. This was refused on the ground that they were not Vaisyas. The question at issue was referred to the king, who promised to enquire into it, but did not do so. A Viramushti (caste beggar of the Beri Chettis and Komatis) killed the king's horse and elephant. When questioned as to his reason for so doing, he explained that it was to call the king's attention to the dispute, and restored the animals to life.
COMMENT: No comment.
90. To secure the necessary money, they became slaves to a rich Beri woman. Ever since this incident, the Komatis have been the children of the Beris, and their descendants are called Pillaipuntha Komati, or Komati who became a son.
COMMENT: Enslaving the descendants.
91. But, as the fort (Kanda Kottai, or magnetic fort), in which the Camalar lived, was entirely constructed of loadstone, this attracted, and drew the weapons away from the hands of the assailants. The kings then promised a great reward to anyone who should burn down the fort. No one dared to do this. At length the courtesans of a temple engaged to effect it, and took the pledge of betel and areca, engaging thereby to do so. The kings, greatly rejoicing, built a fort opposite, filled with such kind of courtesans, who, by their singing, attracted the people from the fort, and led to intercourse.
One of these at length succeeded in extracting from a young man the secret, that, if the fort was surrounded with varacu straw, set on fire, it might be destroyed. The king accordingly had this done, and, in the burning down of the fort, many of the Camalar lost their lives.
COMMENT: Oriental cunning.
92. The Acharapakam Chettis are known as Malighe Chettis, and are connected with the Chettis of this legend. Even now, in the city of Madras, when the Beri Chettis assemble for the transaction of caste business, the notice summoning the meeting excludes the Malighe Chettis, who cannot, like other Beri Chettis, vote at elections, meetings, etc., of the Kandasami temple.
COMMENT: No comment
93. Besthas employ Brahmans and Satanis (or Jangams, if Saivites) for their domestic ceremonies, and imitate the Brahman customs, prohibiting widow remarriage, and worshipping Siva and Vishnu as well as the village deities.
COMMENT: Could be a desperate attempt at entering the Brahmanical heights, as slowly the social structure changed to one with the Brahmin at the top. A slow but steady shift from their own traditional deities to that of Brahmanical gods.
94. Some Besthas, when questioned as to the origin of their caste, said that they had no purandam to help them. The word used by them is a corruption of puranam.
COMMENT: Quite interesting in that they admitted that they were not connected to any puranam (epics). This is something which most of the newly entered into Hinduism, lower-castes will not admit. They all nowadays claim the same antiquity as that of the Brahmins.
95. “They employ Brahman priests for their marriages, but Jangams and Satanis for funerals, and in all these ceremonies they follow the lower or Puranic instead of the higher Vedic ritual.
COMMENT: The above lines do seem to hint that there is indeed some difference between the Vedic antiquity and that proposed by the puranic antiquity. However, as of now, everything is bundled together as Hinduism.
96. The following account of a criminal class, calling themselves Batturajas or Battu Turakas, was published in the Police Weekly Circular, Madras, in 1881.*
"They are known to the Cuddapah and North Arcot Police as criminals, and a note is made whenever an adult leaves his village; but, as they commit their depredations far from home, and convert their spoil into hard cash before they return, it is difficult to get evidence against them. Ten or twelve of these leave home at once ; they usually work in parties of three or four, and they are frequently absent for months together. They have methods of communicating intelligence to their associates when separated from them, but the only one of these methods that is known is by means of their leaf plates, which they sew in a peculiar manner, and leave after use in certain places previously agreed upon. These leaf plates can be recognised by experts, but all that these experts can learn from them is that Battu Turakas have been the neighbourhood recently.
“On their return to their village, an account of their proceedings is rendered, and their spoil is divided equally among the whole community, a double share being, however, given to the actual thief or thieves. They usually disguise themselves as Brahmans, and, in the search of some of their houses lately, silk cloths worn only by Brahmans were found together with other articles necessary for the purpose (rudraksha necklaces, salagrama stones, etc.).
“They are also instructed in Sanskrit, and in all the outward requisites of Brahmanism. A Telugu Brahman would soon find out that they are not Brahmans, and it is on this account that they confine their depredations to the Tamil country, where allowance is made for them as rude uncivilized Telugus. They frequent choultries (travellers' resting-places), where their very respectable appearance disarms suspicion, and watch for opportunities of committing thefts, substituting their own bags or bundles (filled with rubbish) for those they carry oft."
To this account Mr. M. Paupa Rao Naidu adds* that "it is during festivals and feasts that they very often commit thefts of the jewels and cloths of persons bathing in the tanks. They are thus known as Kolamchuthi Papar, meaning that they are Brahmins that live by stealing around the tanks. Before the introduction of railways, their depredations were mostly confined to the choultries and tanks."
COMMENT: The above lines are illustrative of how the English administrators set up the policing system in the subcontinent. It was a very glorious efforts. All led to waste by Clement Atlee.
97. Concerning the Bhattu Turakas of the North Arcot district, Mr. H. A. Stuart writes* that "a few of this very intelligent and educated criminal class arc found in the north-west of the Chendragiri taluk, and in the north of Punganur. They are really Muhammadans, but never worship according to the rules of that religion, and know little about its tenets. They have no employment save cheating, and in this they are incomparably clever. They speak several languages with perfect fluency, have often studied Sanskrit, and are able to personate any caste. Having marked down a well-to-do householder, they take an opportunity of entering his service, and succeed at last in gaining his confidence. They then abuse it by absconding with what they can lay hands upon. They often take to false coining and forgery, pretend to know medicine, to have the power of making gold or precious stones, or of turning currency notes into others of higher value."
COMMENT: Quite interesting. In fact, it is indeed a very fabulous description.
98. Lights may not be blown out with the breath, or otherwise extinguished by members of the Dhippo sept ; and they do not light their lamps unless they are madi, i.e., wearing silk cloths, or cloths washed and dried after bathing.
COMMENT: No comment.
99. Bilimagga.—The Bilimagga weavers of South Canara, who speak a very corrupt form of Tamil, must not be confused with the Bilimaggas of Mysore, whose mother-tongue is Canarese.
COMMENT: No comment.
100. In some places the Bilimaggas of South Canara call themselves Padma Sales, but they have no connection with the Padma Sale caste.
COMMENT: No comment.
101. Marriage of girls before puberty is the rule, and any girl who attains maturity without being married runs the risk of losing her caste.
COMMENT: No comment.
102. Billava.—The Billavas are the Tulu-speaking toddy-drawers of the South Canara district. It is noted, in the Manual, that they are "the numerically largest caste in the district, and form close upon one-fifth of the total population. The derivation of the word Billava, as commonly accepted in the district, is that it is a contraction of Billinavaru, bowmen, and that the name was given as the men of that caste were formerly largely employed as bowmen by the ancient native rulers of the district.
There is, however, no evidence whatever, direct or indirect, to show that the men of the toddy-drawing caste were in fact so employed. It is well known that, both before and after the Christian era, there were invasions and occupations of the northern part of Ceylon by the races then inhabiting Southern India, and Malabar tradition tells that some of these Dravidians migrated from I ram or Ceylon northwards to Travancore and other parts of the West Coast of India, bringing with them the cocoanut or southern tree (tenginamara), and being known as Tivars (islanders) or Iravars, which names have since been altered to Tiyars and Ilavars. This derivation would also explain the name Divaru or Halepaik Divaru borne by the same class of people in the northern part of the district, and in North Canara.
COMMENT: The above contention that Thiyyas are Ezhavas is highly suspect. It might be the writings of someone with some vested interest in establishing this erroneous information. As mentioned earlier, the Thiyyas are themselves two separate and disconnected castes. As to Ezhavas, they do not have any connection with Marumakkathaya Thiyyas.
It is simply political exigency to try to connect unconnected populations.
103. Baidya is said to be a form of Vaidya, meaning a physician. Some Billavas officiate as priests (pujaris) at bhutasthanas (devil shrines) and garidis.
COMMENT: It is simply illustrative that they had a spiritual system which was quite at variance from that of Hinduism.
104. Brimmeru has been transformed, by Brahman ingenuity, into Brahma, and all the bhuthas are converted into Gonas, or attendants on Siva.
COMMENT: Someone recently told me that in the Muthappan worship of the North Malabar Thiyyas, everything has been changed in meaning to accommodate Brahmanical gods. That the Thiyyas now have more reverence for Hindu gods, rather than for their own traditional deities.
105. "They consider themselves as a superior class, and, if a member of another section enters their mosque, they clean the spot occupied by him during his prayers.
COMMENT: No comment.
106. “Many of the Sudra Bondilis, however, improperly take the title Singh, and say they are Kshatriyas, that is, Rajputs.
COMMENT: Another instance of aspiration to attain social stature by caste jumping. Instead of that, there seems to be very rare history of any caste simply declaring that they are superior enough without any claim to any Brahmanical links.
107. All are very particular with respect to eating with another professed Bondili, and refuse to do so unless they are quite certain that he is of their class.
COMMENT: This is a real terror which the feudal languages impose on a person or a group of persons. That they are seen as equals to socially lower ranked persons. Word codes would swing down.
108. There is, at Venkatagiri, a street called Toli mitta, or Toli quarters, and, in former days, the inhabitants thereof were not allowed to enter the temples.
COMMENT: Non-Hindus caste.
109. The industry is a monopoly of the Hill Khonds, who, however, turn it to little advantage. They are ignorant of the great commercial value of the dye, and part with the powder to the low-country dealers settled among them for a few measures of rice or a yard or two of cloth.
COMMENT: There is nothing new in this. After the takeover of the location by India, most of the tribal areas have been encroached by very powerful commercial groups. They act in close collaboration with the officialdom, who connives at their exploitative tactics.
110. They also worship various Takuranis (village deities), such as Kotaru and Chondi.
COMMENT: Non-Hindu gods.
111. He adds that "it cannot be doubted that one great conservative element of Hinduism is the many sidedness of Vaishnavism. For Vaishnavism is, like Buddhism, the most tolerant of systems.
COMMENT: No comment.
112. The Garbhadhana, or impregnation ceremony, should, according to the Grihya Sutras, be performed on the fourth day of the marriage ceremonies. But, as the bride is a young girl, it is omitted, or Vedic texts are repeated. The Garbhadhana ceremony is performed, after the girl has attained puberty.
COMMENT: No comment.
113. According to the Grihya Sutras, a cow should be presented to the bridegroom, to be cooked or preserved.
COMMENT: No comment.
114. Some years ago, at a village near Chalakkudi in the Cochin State, a Nambutiri refused to accept a girl as his bride, because the purohit inadvertently grasped her fingers, to show how it ought to be done at the time of the marriage ceremony. The purohit had to marry the girl himself.
COMMENT: No comment.
115. In May, 1883, a salagrama was the ostensible cause of great popular excitement among the Hindus of Calcutta. During the proceedings in a family suit before the High Court, a question arose regarding the identity of a salagrama, regarded as a household god. Counsel on both sides suggested that the thing should be brought into court. Mr. Justice Morris hesitated to give this order till he had taken advice. The attorneys on both sides, Hindus, said there could be no objection; the Court interpreter, a high-caste Brahman, said it could not be brought into Court because of the coir matting, Hobson-Jobson, but it might with perfect propriety be brought into the corridor for inspection ; which was done. This took place during the excitement about the ' Ilbert Bill,' giving natives magisterial authority in the provinces over Europeans ; and there followed most violent and offensive articles in several native newspapers reviling Mr. Justice Morris, who was believed to be hostile to the Bill. The Editor of the Bengallee newspaper, an educated man, and formerly a member of the Covenanted Civil Service, the author of one of the most unscrupulous and violent articles, was summoned for contempt of court. He made an apology and complete retractation, but was sentenced to two months' imprisonment."
COMMENT: No comment.
116. At the time of worship, some Brahmans, called Adhyapakas, recite the Vedas.
COMMENT: No comment.
117. The Brahmans do not entirely ignore the worship of the lower deities, such as Mariamma, Muneswara, Kodamanitaya. etc.
COMMENT: This is possibly due to the feeling that these deities of other castes (possibly Shamanistic) are also powerful and capable of doing things in the supernatural arena.
118. At Udipi in South Canara, the centre of the Madhva cult, where Madhva preached his Dvaitic philosophy, and where there are several mutts presided over by celibate priests, the Brahmans often make a vow to the Bhuthas (devils) of the Paravas and Nalkes.
COMMENT: Brahmins, possibly praying to probably Shamanistic deities.
119. It is said that Brahacharnam women can be distinguished by the mode of tying the cloth, which is not worn so as to reach to the feet, but reaches only to just below the knees.
COMMENT: Dressing was a sort of uniform by which a person’s level in the feudal language codes could be easily identified.
120. Males marry very early in life, and it is very difficult to secure a girl for marriage above the age of five
COMMENT: No comment
121. "An interesting feature about the Chidambaram temple is its system of management. It has no landed or other endowments, nor any tasdik allowance, and is the property of a class of Brahmans peculiar to the town, who are held in far more respect than the generality of the temple-priest Brahmans, are called Dikshitars (those who make oblations), marry only among themselves, and in appearance somewhat resemble the Nayars or Tiyans of Malabar, bringing their topknot round to the front of their foreheads.
COMMENT: This is a statement with more than one debatable point. I have done it in the intro.
122. As a class the Dikshitars are haughty, and refuse to acknowledge any of the Sankarachariars as their priests, because they are almost equal to the god Siva, who is one of them. If a Sankarachariar comes to the temple, he is not allowed to take sacred ashes direct from the cup, as is done at other temples to show respect to the Sanyasi.
COMMENT: This is a real mood of nonchalant superiority, as if they are not bothered with what others think about them.
123. ' We do not want to meet with a Soliya even in a picture.'
COMMENT: No comment.
124. Their women adopt the Vyshnava women's style of wearing cloths, and to all appearance they would pass for Vyshnava women. The Vyshnava Brahmins would not allow them to mess in their houses, though they treat rice and cakes prepared by them in temples and offered to god as pure and holy, and partake of them."
COMMENT: It might be an attempt to copycat the people who they acknowledge as superior to them. However, despite their attempts at copying, they are not allowed to move forward.
125. The Kausika Sanketis occasionally take wives from the Bettadapura section, but, when the married girl joins her husband, her connection with her parents and relatives ceases altogether even in regard to meals.
COMMENT: It would be quite difficult to explain to the various codes in the feudal languages that enforce all this kind of repulsions, or maintaining of corridors.
126. “During the Coorg disturbances about the end of the last (eighteenth) century, many young women of the Sanketis were captured by the Kodagas (Coorgs), and some of the captives were subsequently recovered.
COMMENT: Before the setting up of the English rule, social security was not thing in existence of the lower castes. However, the higher castes also suffered from this during periods of enemy attacks and raids by marauding groups.
127. The Gurukkals are all followers of the Bodhayana Sutras. They are temple priests, and other Brahmans regard them as inferior, and will not eat with them
COMMENT: Another instance of caste based repulsion, which actually has its base in the feudal content in the local languages.
128. A good example of Smarthas becoming Vaishnavas is afforded by the Thummagunta Dravidas, some of whom have become Vaishnavas, but still take girls in marriage from Smartha families, but do not give their daughters in marriage to Smarthas.
COMMENT: The complications are connected to the complicated feudal word-codes.
129. Both Pattars and Embrandiris, but especially the latter, have adopted the custom of contracting sambandham (alliance) with Nayar women, but sambandham with the foreign Brahmans is not considered to be so respectable as with Nambudiris, and, except in the Palghat taluk (where the Nambudiri is rare), they are not allowed to consort with the women of aristocratic families."
COMMENT: It is like the current-day craving for government-employee bridegrooms. If not someone with some formal respect, then it is difficult to accept him as a husband!
130. “The Aryapattar has, in his turn, trespassed into the ranks of the Nayars, and has begun to undertake the religious rite of marriage, i.e., tali-tying, in aristocratic families among them.
COMMENT: An cunning entry.
131. In some places, e.g., the Nandigama taluk of the Kistna district, the Niyogis are not referred to by the name Brahman, Vaidikis being so called.
COMMENT: It may be understood that in feudal languages, a single word connecting to a honoured stature in society can change a huge series of verbal codes.
132. Velnadu, Murikinadu, and Veginadu seem to be territorial names, and they occur also among some of the non- Brahman castes.
COMMENT: No comment.
133. “Sankaracharya refused to give absolution, and cursed them as unfit to associate with the six sects of Brahmans. The caste is making a strong effort to be readmitted among Brahmans, and some have recently become disciples of Parakalaswami.
COMMENT: It is some kind of ‘racism’. It is akin to the whites having separate beaches in South Africa, and the blacks wanting to barge in. There are innumerable beach locations in South Africa where the blacks can go and swim in peace. However, the terror of the racism is that they do not want to go to any other beach other than where they are unwelcome. In the same manner, this ousting has no value so long as the ousted caste simply doesn’t care, and unilaterally mention themselves as superior. That acumen, they do not have. They simply want to barge into the Brahmin fold to get a share of the presumed Brahmanincal superiority.
134. “There is, however, no doubt that, in their habits, customs, religion and ceremonials, these people are wholly Brahmanical, but still they remain entirely detached from the main body of the Brahmans.
COMMENT: Yet, they desperately appealed to be recorded as Brahmins. In the case of Thiyyas, they appealed to be not categorised as Ezhavas. Isn’t there some revelation in the comparison?
135. And the Local Government directed, a little after the census of 1881, that they should be entered as Brahmans in the Government accounts."
COMMENT: No comment.
136. Mayur Varma and the Brahmins whom he had brought from Ahi-Kshetra were again driven out by Nanda, a Holeya chief, whose son Chandra Sayana had, however, learned respect for Brahmins from his mother, who had been a dancing-girl in a temple. His admiration for them became so great that he not only brought back the Brahmins, but actually made over all his authority to them, and reduced his people to the position of slaves
COMMENT: It is a highly illuminating bit of history. But then, he reduced his own people to the levels of slaves. Had he brought in the English people instead of the Brahmins, his own people would have improved under English administration. For English language has no enslaving codes in it. Even the erstwhile black slaves of the southern states of the USA improved fabulously under English systems. Elsewhere they still have the looks of emerging-from-barbarism.
137. and, though they now talk Canarese in common with the people of other parts to the north of the Sitanadi river, their religious works are still written in the old Tulu-Malayalam character
COMMENT: old Tulu-Malayalam character? What is that? Malayalam and Tulu locations were totally unconnected. Was this script actually a Tulu-Malabari script? Malabari and Tulu language locations were more or less adjacent.
138. Some families of Shivalli and Havika Brahmins in the southern or Malayalam portion of the district talk Malayalam, and follow many of the customs of the Malabar or Nambutiri Brahmins
COMMENT: It is quite curious that Thurston has not been informed about the existence of Malabari language. Could there be some kind of conspiracy in this regard? Actually, Malayalam spread into Malabar areas with the spread of the converted Christians into the Malabar region from the Travancore kingdom and later Travancore-Cochin state.
139. but they soon adopted the tenets of the great Malayalam Vedantic teacher Sankaracharya, who is ordinarily believed to have been born at Cranganore in Malabar in the last quarter of the eighth century, that is, soon after the arrival of the Brahmins on the west coast.
COMMENT: His birth place is mentioned as Kaladi. This place is not in Malabar, but in South-central Travancore. It is quite possible that at the time of his birth, there was no Malayalam in the location. For, it has been variously mentioned that Malayalam is new language that sprang up some four hundred years back. Moreover, in Travancore State Manual, there is ample mention that the local language was mostly Tamil.
However, I do not know much about these things, directly. There was indeed an ancient language in Malabar, which can be called Malabari, which has now more or less vanished. However, one can get to hear them in the Theyyam rituals of Malabar. It is possible that this ancient language was the platform on which modern Malayalam was built up in Travancore, superimposing it with Tamil and Sanskrit. However, the original Malabari seems to have remained un-altered till around the 20th century. As of now, it is slowly vanishing, with the modern generation of Malabar finding it too funny to hear and speak. They all claim Malayalam as their native-language, which is quite an absurd claim.
140. He denied that the spirits worshipped by the early Dravidians were manifestations of Siva's consort, but he accorded sanction to their worship as supernatural beings of a lower order.
COMMENT: May be this might be a sort of commencement of slow integration of non-Hindu (Shamanistic) deities into the Hindu/ Brahmanical religion as some kind of lower-caste gods. As for the non-Hindu castes, they were not able to display a stance of independence, being overwhelmed by the hammering tone of the local feudal language word-codes, they had to bear.
141. They have been backward in availing themselves of English education, and consequently not many of them are to be found holding important posts under Government or in the professions, but a few have come to the front in late years.
COMMENT: There is a slight similarity with the experience of the Nairs and Thiyyas in Tellicherry areas of North Malabar. The relatively higher placed Nairs found it quite difficult to allow their children to study in the newly founded English schools, where their lower caste Thiyya children were given the freedom to study. However, this later became a great folly in that the Thiyya children who received extremely good quality English education got into the higher echelons of the English administrative system, while many Nairs became totally unqualified for higher position government jobs.
142. The women, as is usually the case among all classes, are fairer than the men.
COMMENT: It is a curious fact. In fact, to think of it, there is no such ‘extra’ fairness in the females of England or Europe. But then, there are really two quite plausible reasons for this. One is the fact, that men do have to go more into the sun. The second item is a bit connected to the language codes, and cannot be mentioned here.
143. Their religious books are in Sanskrit, and, even north of the Sitanadi river, they are written in the old Tulu-Malayalam character.
COMMENT: It must have taken many most curious bits of historical incidences to bring out this bit of contradiction. Religious books in Sanskrit written in Tulu-Malayalam script!
144. The Havika Brahmins, perhaps owing to their residing for many generations in the comparatively cool shade of the areca nut gardens, are specially fair even for west coast Brahmins.
COMMENT: Skin complex fairness has some connection to language codes also. Can’t elaborate it here.
145. Some Havik Brahmins in the Malayalam portion of the Kasaragod taluk have, like the Shivallis in the same locality, adopted the language and customs of the Malayali Brahmins.
COMMENT: Malayali Brahmins or Malabari Brahmins?
146. :—"The sentimental objection to manual labour, which is so predominant in the East Coast Brahmin, and the odium attached to it in this country, which has crystallised into the religious belief that, if a Brahmin cultivates with his own hand, the fire of his hand would burn down all that he touches, have entirely disappeared in South Canara.
COMMENT: It is not so easy an understanding. There is a huge bit of code work in the feudal languages, which creates a repulsion for manual work under another feudal language speaker. However this does not preclude one from working for oneself, away from the prying eyes of presumed lower classes of the feudal language coding.
Native-English nation are being quite idiotic to allow feudal language speakers to set up commercial organisations inside their nations. Native-English people who work under feudal language speakers will get their souls and individuality scarred. For more on this, read the series of posts on:
147. Oriya Brahman women are kept gosha (in seclusion). Occasionally they go out to bring water, and, if on their way they come across any males, they go to the side of the road, and turn their backs to the passers-by.
COMMENT: What makes them go into seclusion has its basis in the feudal language codes.
148. Oriya Brahmans "eat many kinds of meat, as pea fowl, sambur (deer), barking deer, pigeons, wild pig, and fish."
COMMENT: No comment
149. Water touched by Dravida Brahmans is considered by them to be polluted
COMMENT: Even though this might seem a very irascible statement, there is really a lot of information to be added to this, from the realm of feudal language codes. The issue is the encoding of negative or positive codes on being touched or being seen or being mentioned, in feudal language ambience. Read my book: Software codes of mantra, tantra, witchcraft, black magic, evil eye, evil tongue &c
150. Marriage with a maternal uncle's daughter, which is common among the Dravida Brahmans, would be considered an act of sacrilege by Oriyas.
When an Oriya Brahman is charged with being a meat eater, he retorts that it is not nearly so bad as marrying a mathulakanya (maternal uncle's daughter).
COMMENT: What is reflected is the ambience of defending oneself by being offensive. This is a basic character of feudal language social ambience.
151. “The Saruas cultivate the ‘yam ' (Colocasia), and the Holuas go a step further, and engage in ordinary cultivation—actual participation in which is forbidden to Brahmans by Manu, as it involves taking the lives of worms and insects.
COMMENT: The actual reason for the prohibition may not be in the worms or in the insects. But in the feudal language codes. The illuminative illustration would be in IPS officers working along with police constables, wearing the same uniform, and the constables not being informed that these people are their superiors. Just one word for YOU, HE, HIM, HIS etc. would demean the IPS officers beyond redemption. These are thing about which the native-English have no information about.
152. A few of the Saruas are qualified to act as purohits, but the Holuas hardly ever are, and they were shown in the 1891 census to be the most illiterate of all the Brahmans of the Presidency.
COMMENT: It might just be a matter of perspective.
153. Bhodri means a barber, and the ancestor of the subdivision is said to have been the son of a barber who was brought up at Puri with some Santo boys, and so learned much of the Vedas and Shastras. He left Puri and went into Jeypore, wearing the thread and passing himself off as a Brahman, and eventually married a Brahman girl, by whom he got children who also married Brahmans. At last, however, he was found out, and taken back to Puri, where he committed suicide.
COMMENT: Once a person outgrows his traditional mental standards, it is difficult to fit into the subordinate levels of his own class. In modern times, this has happened in the case of lower class individuals who become well-versed in English. In the case of Indians who have gone to live for even a brief period in English nations, cannot even contemplate of coming back. Committing suicide is understood as better than such an eventuality. This is one of the reasons that people who arrive in nations like Great Britain, USA etc. will fight tooth and nail to hold on to their domicile in native-English nations. However, over there, they exist as the beachhead of a system that despoils the native-English citizens by means of the same feudal language codes of which they themselves are afraid of. However, in English nations, they are safe from its barbs, while the native-English citizens get to feel its thorns and get mentally distressed.
154. The last of the divisions, the Sodeibalyas, are menial servants to the zamindars, and work for daily hire."
COMMENT: It would indeed be a tragic level if they have to work alongside castes who are deemed lower castes, as their equals.
155. As they do not abstain from fish, the other Brahmans among whom they have settled regard them as low.
COMMENT: It would not matter to them if they do not care for the opinion of others. However, it is not easy, as they remain part of a social structure, in which so many freedoms are connected to their levels of ‘respect’. It is a situation not contemplate-able in pristine-English.
156. Other Brahmans do not go to the Konkani temples, though non-Brahmans do so.
COMMENT: No comments
157. The Darsana attached to the Mulki temple comes there daily about 11 A.M. After worship, he is given thirtham (holy water), which he drinks. Taking in his hands the prasadam (offering made to the god), he comes out, and commences to shiver all over his body for about ten minutes. The shivering then abates, and a cane and long strip of deer skin are placed in his hands, with which he lashes himself on the back, sides, and head. Holy water is given to him, and the shivering ceases. Those who have come to the temple put questions to the Darsana, which are answered in Konkani, and translated. He understands his business thoroughly, and usually recommends the people to make presents of money or jewels to Venkataramana, according to their means.
COMMENT: This type of events is more or less connected to Shamanistic traditions. There is a hint in the above writing that the whole action is a bit of cunning acting. However, from my own personal experience, I can mention that there are events that do connect to spheres of reality beyond anything mentioned in current day science books. Read my book: Software codes of mantra, tantra, witchcraft, black magic, evil eye, evil tongue &c.
158. In 1907, a rich Guzerati merchant, who was doing business at Mangalore, visited the temple, and consulted the Darsana concerning the condition of his wife, who was pregnant. The Darsana assured him that she would be safely delivered of a male child, and made him promise to present to the temple silver equal in weight to that of his wife, should the prophecy be realised. The prediction proving true, the merchant gave silver, sugar -candy, and date fruits, to the required weight at a cost, it is said, of five thousand rupees.
COMMENT: These things do happen. There can be fraudsters also. It is not clear as to which kind of person was involved in the above incident. Usually nothing of the sort of huge financial benefits are expected or asked for, in return.
159. Receiving a cold reception at the hands of the Zamorin, they proceeded further south, and placed themselves under the protection of the Rulers of Cochin and Travancore, where they flourish at the present day.
COMMENT: A bit of history that might need noting down, and pondering upon. As to why the Zamorin gave them a cold shoulder, while what was offered in Cochin and Travancore were warm ones. It might have some link to other vested interests in Calicut become insecure due to the entry of an entirely new social entity. Nothing social about, but maybe it is a tension connected business monopoly.
160. They are never regarded as on a par with the other Brahmans of Southern India. There is no intermarriage or interdining between them and other Brahmans.
COMMENT: So many complications, insecurities, mutual jealousies, backstabbing, mutual repulsion &c. in the various locations in the subcontinent. It was this huge mess that was connected together by the people of England to create a grand Empire. All went to waste with the coming to power of an idiot called Clement Atlee. Hopefully he is still screaming out in Hell.
161. They are not allowed access to the inner structure surrounding the chief shrine of the Malayali Hindu temples ; nor do they in turn allow the Hindus of this coast to enter corresponding portions of their religious edifices.
COMMENT: This tit-for-tat is great. In fact, it does contain the greatest information on the so-called concept of ‘racism’. If the native-English do not allow many other populations inside their various private locations, all that the other sides have to do is to create their own private locations where the native-English are not allowed. However, in all possibility there would be no yearning from the native-English to enter into their exclusive locations.
In fact, the others themselves would not frequent their own private locations. All that they would crave for would be to barge into the private locations of the native-English. This is the actual core fact of the so-called English racism. The others include the Continental Europeans, the Celtic language speakers of Great Britain, the blacks, the Asians, the South Americans etc.
162. The Budubudike or Budubudukala are described in the Mysore Census Report as being "gipsy beggars and fortune-tellers from the Marata country, who pretend to consult birds and reptiles to predict future events.
COMMENT: The word ‘pretend’ has a bad taste. These kind of people have gone out of business in recent days. That is not because of them being caught at ‘pretending’, but because this ‘pretention’ has been taken over by the web-based astrology sites.
163. This is done in the mornings, when the charlatan soothsayer pretends to have divined the future fate of the householder by means of the chirping of birds, etc., in the early dawn. They are generally worshippers of Hanumantha."
COMMENT: Again the word ‘charlatan’ is too unilateral. For, persons who makes such definitions actually do not know much more about the Codes of reality, than others do. It is being judgemental without information.
164. He is regarded as able to predict the future of human beings by the flight and notes of birds.
COMMENT: Check my book: Software codes of mantra, tantra, witchcraft, black magic, evil eye, evil tongue &c.
165. Burmese.—A few Burmese are trained as medical students at Madras for subsequent employment in the Burmese Medical service.
COMMENT: If the British-Indian nation had retained Burma inside its boundary, when Clement Atlee gave up the British-Indian army to Jinnah and Nehru way back in 1947, both armies would have made a dash to capture the location. For the location have enough Muslims and non-Muslims. The non-Muslims would have been converted into Hindus, and all their gods connected to Hindu gods as their subordinates.
The place could have been another Kashmir, with two different Maps clamouring for international acceptance.
166. Since Burma became part of the British dominions in 1886, there has been emigration to that developing country from the Madras Presidency on a large scale.
COMMENT: No comment.