Kayastha
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Castes of India | |
| Kayasthas | |
| Classification | Brahmin/Kshatriya |
| Subdivisions | 12 main clans |
| Significant populations in | Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Maharashtra, Assam and Nepal |
| Languages | Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Marathi, Oriya and Assamese |
| Religions | Hinduism |
Kāyastha or Kayasth (scribe / administrator) is an Indian caste (Maha-parivar).
Contents |
[edit] Vedic Origin
The Kayastha trace their genealogy from “Adi Purush” Shri Chitraguptaji Maharaj. It is said that after Lord Brahma had created the four Varnas (Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras), Yama requested Lord Brahma to help him record the deeds, good and evil, of men, and administer justice.
Lord Brahma went into meditation for 11, 000 years and when he opened his eyes he saw a man holding pen and ink-pot in his hands and a sword girdled to his waist. Lord Brahma spoke: “Thou hast been created from my body (Kaya), therefore shall thy progeny be known as the Kayasthas. Thou hast been conceived in my mind (Chitra) and in secrecy (gupta), thy name shall also be Chitragupta.” Brahma then enjoined him to dispense justice and punish those who violated the dharma (duties). Thus, the Kayasthas were accorded a dual caste, Brahmin (learned)/Kshatriya (warrior). See NOTES
In the legends of Shree Chitraguptaji Maharaj, he is referred to as the greatest King, while the rest are rajakas or little kings.
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- चित्र इद राजा राजका इदन्यके यके सरस्वतीमनु ।
- पर्जन्य इव ततनद धि वर्ष्ट्या सहस्रमयुता ददत ॥ RIG VEDA 8/21/18
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In the Garud Puran, Chitragupta is hailed as the first man to give the script.
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- "Chitragupta namastubhyam vedaksaradatre"
- (Obeisance to Chitragupta, the giver of letters)
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The Rig Veda mentions an invocation to be made to Chitragupta before offering sacrifice. There is also a special invocation to Chitragupta as Dharmraj (Lord of Justice) to be made at the performance of shradh ot other rituals.
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- "Om tat purushaya vidmahe Chitragupta dhimahi tena lekha prachodayata."
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The priests also pay reverence to Shri Chitragupta :
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- "Yamam Dharmarajya Chitraguptaya vain namah."'
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NOTES:
Vedah.net, which presents a list of the main sub-divisions of Brahmins, lists the Kayasthas as one of the 31 main sub-divisions of Brahmins. [1]
Kamat.com puts forward a comprehensive list of more than 50 Brahmin Communities in India, the Kayasthas are also listed. [2]
The Sanskrit dictionary at Hindunet.org defines ‘Kayastha’ as follows:
ka_yastha, ka_yata a man belonging to the writer-caste; a tribe of bra_hman.as whose employment is writing (Ka.)(Ka.lex.) [3]
[edit] Subcastes
- Mathur
- Goud
- Bhatnagar
- Saxena
- Ambashtha
- Nigam
- Karna
- Kulashreshtha
- Srivastava
- Surdhwaja
- Valmik
- Asthana
- Shree Charu (Mathur): Maharaj Chitraguptji sent Shree Charu to establish a Kingdom in the Mathura region. His descendants were known as the Mathurs. After defeating the demons, a term regularly used for the anti-Vedic tribes, they established the Kingdom of Mathura.This done, they also propagated to other part of Aryavartha. In the meanwhile they were further divided into 3 sub-divisiond 1.The Mathurs of Mathura, 2.The Pancholi or Panchali of Pnachal Kingdom, 3.The Kacchi of Gujraat. The Mathurs seem to enjoy a long history of Ruling many Kingdoms, to mention the most important, Ayodhya was ruled by them before the Raghuvanshis took the reign. They are divided into 84 Als.
- Shree Sucharu (Gaud): Maharaj Chitraguptji sent Shree Sucharu to establish a Kingdom in the Gaud region. Shree Sucharu married Devi Mandhiya, the daughter of Nagaraj Vasuki. The gauds are divided into five divisions: 1.Khare, 2.Doosre, 3.Bengali, 4.Dehlavi, 5.Vadanyuni. Gaud Kaystha have been further sub divided in 32 Als..
- Shree Chitraksh (Bhatnagar): Maharaj Chitraguptji sent Shree Chitraksh to establish a Kingdom in the region of Bhat river. He settled then there and his progeny came to be known as Bhatnagar. They are divided into 84 Als.
- Shree Matimaan (Saksena): Maharaj Chitraguptji sent Shree Matimaan to establish a Kingdom in the Shak region. His(Shree Matimaan’s) son was a great warrior and established His kingdom in the modern day Kabul-Kandhar region and his progeny were called Shaksena or Saksena, a part of modern Iran was under their rule. Today they are abundantly found in the regions of Pilibhit, Bareli, Shahjahanpur, Badayu, Fawrookhabad, Etta, Mainpuri, Aligarh. They are divided in 106 main Als at present.
- Shree Himvaan (Ambashth): Shree Himvaan had five divine sons Shree Nagasen, Shree Gayasen, Shree Gayadatta, Shree Ratanmool and Shree Devdhar and they married Gandharvyakanyas. These five Sons settled at different locations and accordingly their lineage spread their rule over these and were further divided into : Nagasen: 24 Als, Gayasen: 35 Als , Gayadatta: 85 Als, Ratanmool: 25 Als, Devdhar: 21 Als.
- Shree Chitracharu (Nigam): Maharaj Chitraguptji sent Shree Chitracharu to establish a Kingdom in the Nigam region (on the bank of river Saryu). His progeny were very proficient in the Vedas and the Shastras. Today they live in Kanpur, Fatehpur, Hamirpur, Banda, Jalon, Mahoba. They are divided into 43 main Als.
- Shree Aruncharu (Karna): Maharaj Chitraguptji sent Shree Aruncharu to establish a Kingdom in the Karna region (modern day Karnataka). His progeny slowly migrated to the Northern Kingdoms and now live abundantly in the present day Nepal, Orissa and Bihar. The Bihar branch is further divided into two; namely the ‘Gayavals’ who settled in Gaya and the ‘Maithil’ who settled in the Mithila region. They are divided into an astounding 360 Als; this huge figure is attributed to the families who migrated in different phases from South.
- Shree Jitendra (Kulshreshtha): Maharaj Chitraguptji sent Shree Atiyendriya(also known as Jitendra) to establish a Kingdom in the Kannauj region. Shree Atiyendriya was one of the most religious and pious ascetic of the twelve Sons. He was known as ‘Dharmatama’ and ‘Pundit’ and was a master of His senses; His progeny came to be known as Kulshrestha. Today the Kulshresthas live abundantly in Mathura, Agra, Fawrookhabad, Etta, Etava and Mainpuri.
- Shree Shribhanu(Srivastava): Maharaj Chitraguptji sent Shree Shribhanu to establish a Kingdom in the Shrivaas(Srinagar)region in Kashmir. He was married to Nagaraj Vaasuki’s daughter Devi Padmini and two divine sons named Shree Devdatta and Shree Ghanshyam were born. Shree Devdatta got the rulership over Kashmir and Shree Ganshyam got the rulership over the banks of Sindhu river. They were called Srivastava ‘Khare’.Shree Bhanu was married a second time to Sindhuraaj Shyamghar’s daughter Devi Manumati and two divine sons named Shree Dhanvantari and Shree Sarvagya were born. They were called Srivastava ‘Doosre’.The Srivastavas are divided into 65 main Als.
- Shree Vibhanu (Suryadhwaj): Maharaj Chitraguptji sent Shree Vibhanu to establish the Kingdom in northern parts of the Kashmir region. Since Mother Dakshina was the daughter of Suryadev, the progeny of Shree Vibhanu carried the emblem of the Sun God on their flags and were called Suryadhwaj.
- Shree Vishwabhanu (Valmiki): Maharaj Chitraguptji sent Shree Vishwabhanu to establish a Kingdom in Valmiki region near Chirakoot. Shree Vishwabhanu was married to Nagakanya Devi Bimbvati. He’s known to have spend a great part of his life practicing intense meditation(Tapasya) on the banks of river Narmada. His son Shree Chandrakant settled in Gujarat while the other Sons migrated with their families to the North, near river Ganga and the Himalayas. His progeny were known as Valmiki. Today they live in Gujarat and Maharashtra. They are also known as ‘Vallabhi Kayastha’ in Gujarat.
- Shree Viryabhanu (Asthana): Maharaj Chitraguptji sent Shree Viryabhanu to establish a Kingdom in Ahisthana. His progeny came to be known as Asthana. Today the Asthanas live abundantly in various districts of U.P. In Bihar they live in Saran, Sivaan, Champaran, Mujjafarpur, Sitamadhi, Darbhanga, Bhagalpur regions. Their population is also notable in U.P.’s neighboring state M.P. They are divided into 5 main Als.
These twelve sub-castes are further divided into ALs. So, what are the Als? A Vansh originates from a King, a Rishi or a Deity and as it grows it divides itself in to several branches. The descendents start to build their own sub-Vansh depending upon the places and situations met, at the same time acknowledging their submission to the ‘MOOL’ Vansh. These sub-Vansh add specific nouns to their names which in case of the Chirtagupta Vansha(Chitranshi) are called the Als (Kindly be clear upon the point that the 12 main sub-castes are acknowledged divisions based on the family of the 12 Sons, they are not called Als, their further divisions are what Als are) One has to be careful to avoid confusing them with Gotra. Gotra goes after the name of a Vedic Rishi, who was either a Guru, RajGuru or Progenitor of that Vansh. The gotra for a MOOL Vansh is always the same. It is ‘Kashayap’ for the Kayasthas. Thus, a Vanshaz can be known from his Gotra and Al (The term Kul is often used for Al, though the former has a much broader meaning).The Als can be thousands in number and must be added to the name in conjunction with one of the 12 main sub-castes. The ignorance of this law is precisely the reason why so many can not find their surnames mentioned amongst the 12 main sub-castes.
[edit] Aspects of Kayastha culture
[edit] Endogamy
Kayasthas practice family exogamy and caste endogamy preferring to marry only within their sub-castes. The individuals of same Al can not intermarry, while those of same caste and different Als can. This is quite logical in light of the present studies on dominant and recessive genes and their ill effects if both the parents are too close in their gene differntiaiton. Thus an individual from Srivastava subcaste and Pandey Al should not marry another Pandey of the same subcaste but can marry an individaul belonging to another Al of the same subcaste.A look at the matrimonial column of your daily would suffice to be an undeniable proof of this fact. Though a numerical minority, you would find the maximum number of ads by Kayasthas looking for Kayastha brides or grooms (in some cases of the same sub-caste).
[edit] Worship
Kayasthas worship ShreeChitraguptaji and on Bhai-Dooj, they celebrate Kalam-Dawaat Pooja (pen, ink-pot and sword worship), a ritual in which pens, papers and books are worshipped. This is the day when Shree Chitraguptji was created by Lord Bramha and Yamaraj got relieved of His duties and used this leave to visit His sister Devi Yamuna; hence the whole world celebrates Bhaiya dooj on this day and the Kayastha celebrate ShreeChitraguptajayanti, i.e. the 'Birthday' of their progenitor.
[edit] Food
Among Hindus, Kayasthas have the most unique cuisine. Unlike most Baniya (Vaishya) or Brahmins, Kayasthas eat onions, garlic, meat(except beef), fish and eggs with gusto.Their methods of preparing curries are very refined and specific. Not to be unjust, a large number of Kayastha are vegetarians too.
[edit] History
Kayastha ministers find mention in Hindu mythology. Prior to the Raghuvanshis, Ayodhya was ruled by Mathur Rulers, progeny of Shree Chitraguptaji.
The Kayastha who are represented by the "Kayats" or the heriditary caste of the scribes of the present day, formed originally a sub-military class. [4] The Anthropological Survey of India conducted a survery during the British Raj which concluded that the Kayastha community were also influential during the Mauryan period as administrators.Also, many proof have been found that the Hindu Kings used to grant lands to the Kayasthas, a practise enjoyed only by a particular caste. Also, it is but logical to consider the status of the Kayasthas when Sanskrit was the state language under the Hindu Kings.
The Kayastha were one of the most influential Caste in Kashmiri politics around 7th century. The economic status of the Kayastha community bettered than that of other castes when the Muslims conquered India. Other Indian castes would typically not find employment under the Muslim rulers, as they could not learn the Muslim languages of Persian and Arabic. On the other hand, the Kayastha community as a whole traditionally put a lot of emphasis on education and prospered during the Islamic period of India.
[edit] Kayasthas down the ages
Kayasthas were valued in the second millennia by most kingdoms and princely states as desired citizens or immigrants within India. They were treated more as a race rather than a caste because they developed expertise in Persian (the state language in Islamic India), learnt Turkish and Arabic, economics, administration and taxation. This gave them an edge over the Brahmins (the priestly caste), who traditionally had reserved the study of Sanskrit shastras to themselves. They successfully adapted themselves as scribes and functionaries under Islamic rule and later on under the British. Their secular viewpoint to life, adaptability and lifestyle was an asset which allowed them to succeed. The Kayastha community also adapted to changes, such as the advent of the British rule in India. They learnt English, the more affluent ones sent their children to England, they became civil servants, tax officers, junior administrators, teachers, legal helpers and barristers. They rose to the highest positions accessible to natives in British India.
[edit] Kayasthas in modern India
Post independence Kayasthas rose to the highest positions including the first President of India, judges, top civil servants and high ranking officers in the Indian armed forces. Kayasthas also emigrated to the West in the 1970s and 80s, most of them as knowledge workers in medicine, academia, engineering, computing etc.
[edit] Geographic distribution
[edit] Prominent Kayasthas
[edit] See also
- Forward Castes
- Srivastava
- Kulshreshtha
- Brahma
- Chitragupta
- Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu
- Mathur, Kayastha
- Bhatnagar
- Kayastha castes
[edit] References
- Rig Veda
- Yama Samhita
- Garur Purana
- Yajur Veda
- Justice Jawala Prasad and Justice Buckmill: AIR 1927, Patna 145
[edit] Notes
- ^ Vedah.net
- ^ Kamat.com
- ^ Sanskrit Dictionary at Hindunet.org
- ^ Transactions of the Ethnological Society of London By the Ethnological Society of London (page 381)
