The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India Volume IV of IV

R >> R.V. Russell >> The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India Volume IV of IV

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41. Caste-feasts

At the commencement of a marriage or other ceremonial feast the host
must wash the feet of all the guests himself. If he does not do this
they will be dissatisfied, and, though they will eat at his house,
will consider they have not been properly welcomed. He takes a large
brass plate and placing the feet of his guest on it, pours water
over them and then rubs and dries them; the water is thrown away
and fresh water poured out for the next guest unless they should be
brothers. Little flat stools about three inches high are provided for
the guests, and if there are not enough of them a carpet is spread;
or _baithkis_ or sitting-mats plaited from five or six large leaves
are set out. These serve as a mark of attention, as it would be
discourteous to make a man sit on the ground, and they also prevent
the body-cloth from getting wet. The guests sit in the _chauk_ or
yard of the house inside, or in the _angan_ or outside yard, either
in lines or in a circle; members of the same caste sit with their
crossed knees actually touching those of the man on either side of
them to emphasise their brotherhood; if a man sat even a few inches
apart from his fellows people would say he was out of caste--and
this is how a man who is put out of caste actually does sit. Before
each guest may be set two plates of leaves and eight _donas_ or
leaf-cups. On the plates are heaped rice, cakes of wheat fried in
butter, and of husked urad pulse cooked with tilli or sesamum oil,
and the pulse of gram and lentils. In the cups will be sugar, _ghi_,
_dahi_ or curded milk, various vegetables, pumpkins, and _besin_ or
ground gram cooked with buttermilk. All the male members of the host's
family serve the food and they take it round, heaping and pouring it
into each man's plates or cups until he says enough; and they continue
to give further helpings as required. All the food is served at once
in the different plates and cups, but owing to the number of guests
a considerable time elapses before all are fully served, and the
dinner lasts about two hours. The guests eat all the different dishes
together with their fingers, taking a little of each according to their
fancy. Each man has his _lota_ or vessel of water by him and drinks
as he eats. When the meal is finished large brass plates are brought
in, one being given to about ten guests, and they wash their hands
over these, pouring water on them from their vessels. A fresh carpet
is then spread in the yard and the guests sit on it, and betel-leaf
and tobacco are distributed. The huqqa is passed round, and _chilams_
and _chongis_ (clay pipe-bowls and leaf-pipes) are provided for those
who want them. The women do not appear at the feast but stay inside,
sitting in the _angan_ or inner court, which is behind the _purda_.

42. Hospitality

The people still show great hospitality, and it is the custom of
many malguzars, at least in Chhattisgarh, to afford food and a
night's rest to all travellers who may require it. When a Brahman
comes to the village such malguzars will give him one or two annas,
and to a Pandit or learned man as much as a rupee. Formerly it is
said that when any stranger came through the village he was at once
offered a cup of milk and told to drink it or throw it away. But
this custom has died out in Chhattisgarh, though one has met with
it once or twice in Sambalpur. When District Officers go on tour,
well-to-do landowners ask to be allowed to supply free provisions
for the whole camp at least for a day, and it is difficult to refuse
them gracefully. In Mandla, Banias and malguzars in villages near
the Nerbudda sometimes undertake to give a pound of grain to every
_parikramawasi_ or pilgrim perambulating the Nerbudda. And as the
number of these steadily increases in consequence, they often become
impoverished as a result of such indiscriminate charity.

43. Social customs. Tattooing

The Kurmis employ Brahmans for their ceremonies. They have _gurus_
or spiritual preceptors who may be Brahmans or Bairagis; the _guru_
is given from 8 annas to Rs. 5 when he initiates a neophyte, as
well as his food and a new white cloth. The _guru_ is occasionally
consulted on some religious question, but otherwise he does nothing
for his disciple except to pay him an occasional visit, when he is
hospitably entertained. The Kurmis of the northern Districts do not
as a rule eat meat and also abstain from alcohol, but in Chhattisgarh
they eat the flesh of clean animals and fish, and also of fowls,
and drink country liquor. Old men often give up flesh and wine as a
mark of piety, when they are known as Bhagat or holy. They will take
food cooked with water only from Brahmans, and that cooked without
water from Rajputs, Banias and Kayasths as well. Brahmans and Rajputs
will take water from Kurmis in the northern Districts though not in
Chhattisgarh. Here the Kurmis do not object to eating cooked food
which has been carried from the house to the fields. This is called
_rengai roti_, and castes which will eat it are considered inferior
to those who always take their food in the _chauka_ or purified
place in the house. They say 'Ram, Ram' to each other in greeting,
and the Raipur Kurmis swear by a dog or a pig. Generally they do not
plough on the new or full moon days. Their women are tattooed after
marriage with dots on the cheeks, marks of flies on the fingers,
scorpions on the arms, and other devices on the legs.

44. Caste penalties

Permanent expulsion from caste is inflicted for a change of religion,
taking food or having sexual intercourse with a member of an impure
caste, and for eating beef. For killing a man, a cow, a buffalo,
an ass, a horse, a squirrel, a cat or a monkey a man must purify
himself by bathing in the Ganges at Allahabad or Benares and giving
a feast to the caste. It will be seen that all these are domestic
animals except the monkey, who is the god Hanuman. The squirrel is
counted as a domestic animal because it is always about the house,
and the souls of children are believed to go into squirrels. One
household animal, the dog, is omitted, and he appears to be less
sacred than the others. For getting maggots in a wound the offender
must bathe in a sacred river, such as the Nerbudda or Mahanadi, and
give a feast to the caste. For eating or having intercourse with a
member of any caste other than the impure ones, or for a _liaison_
within the caste, or for divorcing a wife or marrying a widow, or in
the case of a woman for breaking her bangles in a quarrel with her
husband, a penalty feast must be given. If a man omits to feast the
caste after a death in his family a second feast is imposed, and if
he insults the _panchayat_ he is fined.

45. The cultivating status

The social status of the Kurmi appears to be that of the cultivator. He
is above the menial and artisan castes of the village and the impure
weaving and labouring castes; he is theoretically equal to the
artisan castes of towns, but one or two of these, such as the Sunar
or goldsmith and Kasar or brass-worker, have risen in the world owing
to the prosperity or importance of their members, and now rank above
the Kurmi. The Kurmi's status appears to be that of the cultivator
and member of the village community, but a large proportion of the
Kurmis are recruited from the non-Aryan tribes, who have obtained
land and been admitted into the caste, and this tends to lower the
status of the caste as a whole. In the Punjab Kurmis apparently do
not hold land and are employed in grass-cutting, weaving, and tending
horses, and are even said to keep pigs. [83] Here their status is
necessarily very low as they follow the occupations of the impure
castes. The reason why the Kurmi as cultivator ranks above the village
handicraftsmen may perhaps be that industrial pursuits were despised
in early times and left to the impure Sudras and to the castes of
mixed descent; while agriculture and trade were the occupations of
the Vaishya. Further, the village artisans and menials were supported
before the general use of current coin by contributions of grain from
the cultivators and by presents of grain at seed-time and harvest;
and among the Hindus it is considered very derogatory to accept a
gift, a man who does so being held to admit his social inferiority to
the giver. Some exception to this is made in the case of Brahmans,
though even with them the rule partly applies. Of these two reasons
for the cultivator's superiority to the menial and artisan castes
the former has to a large extent lost its force. The handicrafts are
no longer considered despicable, and, as has been seen, some of the
urban tradesmen, as the Sunar and Kasar, now rank above the Kurmi, or
are at least equal to him. Perhaps even in ancient times these urban
artificers were not despised like the village menials, as their skill
was held in high repute. But the latter ground is still in full force
and effect in the Central Provinces at least: the village artisans are
still paid by contributions from the cultivator and receive presents
from him at seed-time and harvest. The remuneration of the village
menials, the blacksmith, carpenter, washerman, tanner, barber and
waterman is paid at the rate of so much grain per plough of land
according to the estimated value of the work done by them for the
cultivators during the year. Other village tradesmen, as the potter,
oilman and liquor-vendor, are no longer paid in grain, but since the
introduction of currency sell their wares for cash; but there seems
no reason to doubt that in former times when no money circulated
in villages they were remunerated in the same manner. They still
all receive presents, consisting of a sowing-basketful of grain at
seed-time and one or two sheaves at harvest. The former are known as
_Bijphuti_, or 'the breaking of the seed,' and the latter as _Khanvar_,
or 'that which is left.' In Bilaspur the Kamias or village menials also
receive as much grain as will fill a winnowing-fan when it has been
threshed. When the peasant has harvested his grain all come and beg
from him. The Dhimar brings waternut, the Kachhi or market-gardener
some chillies, the Teli oil and tobacco, the Kalar some liquor if he
drinks it, the Bania some sugar, and all receive grain in excess of
the value of their gifts. The village menials come for their customary
dues, and the Brahman, the Nat or acrobat, the Gosain or religious
mendicant, and the Fakir or Muhammadan beggar solicit alms. On that
day the cultivator is like a little king in his fields, and it is
said that sometimes a quarter of the crop may go in this way; but
the reference must be only to the spring crop and not to the whole
holding. In former times grain must have been the principal source
of wealth, and this old custom gives us a reason for the status of
the cultivator in Hindu society. There is also a saying:

Uttam kheti, madhyam ban,
Kanisht chakri, bhik nidan,

or 'Cultivation is the best calling, trade is respectable, service
is menial, and begging is degraded.'

46. Occupation

The Kurmi is the typical cultivator. He loves his land, and to lose
it is to break the mainspring of his life. His land gives him a
freedom and independence of character which is not found among the
English farm-labourers. He is industrious and plodding, and inured to
hardship. In some Districts the excellent tilth of the Kurmi's fields
well portrays the result of his persevering labour, which he does not
grudge to the land because it is his own. His wife is in no way behind
him; the proverb says, "Good is the caste of the Kurmin; with a hoe
in her hand she goes to the fields and works with her husband." The
Chandnahu Kurmi women are said to be more enterprising than the men,
keeping them up to their work, and managing the business of the farm
as well as the household.

Appendix

List of Exogamous Clans

Sections of the Chandnahu subcaste:

Chanwar bambar Fly fan.
Sandil Name of a Rishi.
Gaind Ball.
Sadaphal A fruit.
Sondeha Gold-bodied.
Sonkharchi Spender of gold.
Kathail Kath, wood, or kaththa, catechu.
Kashi enares. The Desha Kurmis are all of
this gotra. It may also be a
corruption of Kachhap, tortoise.
Dhorha Dhor, cattle.
Sumer A mountain.
Chatur Midalia Chatur, clever.
Bharadwaj After the Rishi of that name; also
a bird.
Kousil Name of a Rishi.
Ishwar God.
Samund Karkari A particle in an ocean.
Akalchuwa Akal, famine.
Padel Fallow.
Baghmar Tiger-slayer.
Harduba Green grass.
Kansia Kans, a kind of grass.
Ghiu Sagar Ocean of ghi
Dharam Dhurandar Most charitable.
Singnaha Singh, a lion.
Chimangarhia Belonging to Chimangarh.
Khairagarhia Belonging to Khairagarh.
Gotam A Rishi.
Kaskyap A Rishi.
Pandariha From Pandaria, a village.
Paipakhar One who washes feet.
Banhpakhar One who washes arms.
Chauria Chaurai, a vegetable.
Sand Sathi Sand, bullock.
Singhi Singh, lion or horn.
Agra--Chandan Sandalwood.
Tek Sanichar Saturday.
Karaiya Frying-pan.
Pukharia Pond.
Dhubinha Dhobi, a caste.
Pawanbare Pawan, air.
Modganga Ganges.

Sections of the Gabel subcaste:

Gangajal Ganges water.
Bimba Lohir Bearer of a lathi (stick).
Sarang Peacock.
Raja Rawat Royal prince.
Singur Beauty.
Bank pagar With a thread on the arm.
Samundha Ocean.
Parasram, Rishi
Katarmal Katar, dagger.
Chaultan Sept of Rajputs.
Patan Village.
Gajmani Elephant.
Deori Sumer Village.
Lahura Samudra Small sea.
Hansbimbraon Hans, goose.
Sunwani Purifier.

Sections of the Santora subcaste:

Narvaria Narwar, a town in Gwalior State.
Mundharia Mundhra, a village.
Naigaiyan Naogaon, a town in Bundelkhand.
Pipraiya Piparia, a village.
Dindoria Dindori, a village in Mandla District.
Baheria A village.
Bandha Bandh, embankment.
Ktmusar Wooden pestle.

Sections of the Tirole subcaste:

Baghele Bagh, tiger, or a sept of Rajputs.
Rathor Clan of Rajputs.
Panwar Clan of Rajputs.
Solanki Clan of Rajputs.
Aulia Aonla, a fruit-bearing tree.
Sindia Sindi, date-palm tree.
Khusia Khusi, happiness.
Sanoria San, hemp.
Gora Fair-coloured.
Bhakrya Bhakar, a thick bread.

Sections of the Gaur subcaste:

Bhandari Storekeeper.
Dudhua Dudh, milk.
Patele A headman.
Lonia Salt-maker.
Kumaria A potter.
Sionia Seoni town.
Chhaparia Chhapara, a town.
Bijoria A tree.
Simra A village.
Ketharia Keth, a fruit.
Usarguiyan Perhaps a village.
Bhadoria Village.
Rurgaiyan Village.
Musrele Musar, a pestle.

Sections of the Usrete subcaste:

Shikare Hunter.
Nahar Tiger.
Gursaraiyan Gursarai, a town.
Bardia A village.
Sandia Sand, a bull.
Sirwaiyan Sirwai, a village.
Itguhan A village.
Sengaiyan or Singaiyan Sengai, a village.
Harkotia Harkoti, a village.
Noria Norai, a village.
Larent Lareti, a village.
Rabia Rabai, a village.
Lakhauria (Lakori village. It is said that whoever
utters the name of this section early in
the morning is sure to remain hungry the
whole day, or at least will get into some
trouble that day.)
Dhandkonya Dhandakna, to roll.
Badgaiyan Badagaon, a large village.
Kotia Kot, a fort
Bilwar Billi, cat
Thutha Stump of a tree.

Sections of the Kanaujia subcaste:

Tidha.--From Tidha, a village. This section is subdivided into
(a) Ghureparke (of the cow-dung hill); (b) Dwarparke
(of the door); and (c) Jangi (warrior).

Chamania--From Chamyani (village). This is also subdivided into:

(a) Gomarkya
(b) Mathuria (Muttra town).

Chaudhri (caste headman). This is divided as follows:

(a) Majhgawan A village.
(b) Purva thok Eastern group.
(c) Pashchim thok Western group.
(d) Bamurya A village.

Rawat Title.
Malha Perhaps sailor or wrestler.
Chilolian Chiloli, a village.
Dhanuiyan Dhanu Kheda, a village.

Lakhera

List of Paragraphs

1. _General notice_.
2. _Social customs_.
3. _The lac industry_.
4. _Lac bangles_.
5. _Red, a lucky colour_.
6. _Vermilion and spangles_.
7. _Red dye on the feet_.
8. _Red threads_.
9. _Lac toys_.

1. General notice

_Lakhera, Laheri._--The small caste whose members make bangles and
other articles of lac. About 3000 persons were shown as belonging to
the caste in the Central Provinces in 1911, being most numerous in the
Jubbulpore, Chhindwara and Betul Districts. From Berar 150 persons were
returned, chiefly from Amraoti. The name is derived from the Sanskrit
_laksha-kara_, a worker in lac. The caste are a mixed functional
group closely connected with the Kacheras and Patwas; no distinction
being recognised between the Patwas and Lakheras in some localities
of the Central Provinces. Mr. Baillie gives the following notice of
them in the _Census Report of the North-Western Provinces_ (1891):
"The accounts given by members of the caste of their origin are very
various and sometimes ingenious. One story is that like the Patwas,
with whom they are connected, they were originally Kayasths. According
to another account they were made from the dirt washed from Parvati
before her marriage with Siva, being created by the god to make bangles
for his wife, and hence called Deobansi. Again, it is stated, they
were created by Krishna to make bangles for the Gopis or milkmaids. The
most elaborate account is that they were originally Yaduvansi Rajputs,
who assisted the Kurus to make a fort of lac, in which the Pandavas
were to be treacherously burned. For this traitorous conduct they
were degraded and compelled eternally to work in lac or glass."

2. Social customs

The bulk of these artisan and manufacturing castes tell stories showing
that their ancestors were Kayasths and Rajputs, but no importance
can be attached to such legends, which are obviously manufactured
by the family priests to minister to the harmless vanity of their
clients. To support their claim the Lakheras have divided themselves
like the Rajputs into the Surajvansi and Somvansi subcastes or those
who belong to the Solar and Lunar races. Other subdivisions are the
Marwari or those coming from Marwar in Rajputana, and the Tarkhera
or makers of the large earrings which low-caste women wear. These
consist of a circular piece of wood or fibre, nearly an inch across,
which is worked through a large hole in the lobe of the ear. It
is often the stalk of the _ambari_ fibre, and on the outer end is
fixed a slab decorated with little pieces of glass. The exogamous
sections of the Lakheras are generally named after animals, plants
and natural objects, and indicate that the caste is recruited from the
lower classes of the population. Their social customs resemble those
of the middle and lower Hindustani castes. Girls are married at an
early age when the parents can afford the expense of the ceremony,
but no penalty is incurred if the wedding is postponed for want of
means. The remarriage of widows and divorce are permitted. They eat
flesh, but not fowls or pork, and some of them drink liquor, while
others abstain. Rajputs and Banias will take water from them, but not
Brahmans. In Bombay, however, they are considered to rank above Kunbis.

3. The lac industry

The traditional occupation of the Lakheras is to make and sell bangles
and other articles of lac. Lac is regarded with a certain degree
of superstitious repugnance by the Hindus because of its red colour,
resembling blood. On this account and also because of the sin committed
in killing them, no Hindu caste will propagate the lac insect, and
the calling is practised only by Gonds, Korkus and other primitive
tribes. Even Gonds will often refuse employment in growing lac if
they can make their living by cultivation. Various superstitions
attach to the propagation of the insects to a fresh tree. This is
done in Kunwar (September) and always by men, the insects being
carried in a leaf-cup and placed on a branch of an uninfected tree,
usually the _kusum_. [84] It is said that the work should be done
at night and the man should be naked when he places the insects on
the tree. The tree is fenced round and nobody is allowed to touch
it, as it is considered that the crop would thus be spoiled. If a
woman has lost her husband and has to sow lac, she takes her son
in her arms and places the cup containing the insects on his head;
on arriving at the tree she manages to apply the insects by means of
a stick, not touching the cup with her own hands. All this ritual
attaches simply to the infection of the first tree, and afterwards
in January or February the insects are propagated on to other trees
without ceremony. The juice of onions is dropped on to them to make
them healthy. The stick-lac is collected by the Gonds and Korkus
and sold to the Lakheras; they clear it of wood as far as possible
and then place the incrusted twigs and bark in long cotton bags and
heat them before a fire, squeezing out the gum, which is spread out
on flat plates so as to congeal into the shape of a pancake. This is
again heated and mixed with white clay and forms the material for the
bangles. They are coloured with _chapra_, the pure gum prepared like
sealing-wax, which is mixed with vermilion, or arsenic and turmeric
for a yellow colour. In some localities at least only the Lakheras
and Patwas and no higher caste will sell articles made of lac.

4. Lac bangles

The trade in lac bangles has now greatly declined, as they have been
supplanted by the more ornamental glass bangles. They are thick and
clumsy and five of them will cover a large part of the space between
the elbow and the wrist. They may be observed on Banjara women. Lac
bangles are also still used by the Hindus, generally on ceremonial
occasions, as at a marriage, when they are presented to and worn by the
bride, and during the month of Shrawan (July), when the Hindus observe
a fast on behalf of the growing crops and the women wear bangles of
lac. For these customs Mr. Hira Lal suggests the explanation that lac
bangles were at one time generally worn by the Hindus, while glass ones
are a comparatively recent fashion introduced by the Muhammadans. In
support of this it may be urged that glass bangles are largely made by
the Muhammadan Turkari or Sisgar, and also that lac bangles must have
been worn prior to glass ones, because if the latter had been known the
clumsy and unornamental bracelet made of lac and clay could never have
come into existence. The wearing of lac bangles on the above occasions
would therefore be explained according to the common usage of adhering
on religious and ceremonial occasions to the more ancient methods and
accessories, which are sanctified by association and custom. Similarly
the Holi pyre is often kindled with fire produced by the friction of
wood, and temples are lighted with vegetable instead of mineral oil.