Brahmin (/ˈbrɑːmɪn/;Sanskrit:ब्राह्मण,romanized: brāhmaṇa) is avarna (theoretical social classes) withinHindu society. The other three varnas are theKshatriya (rulers and warriors),Vaishya (traders, merchants, and farmers), andShudra (labourers).[1][2][3][4][5] The traditional occupation of Brahmins is that of priesthood (purohit,pandit, orpujari) at Hindu temples or at socio-religious ceremonies, and the performing ofrite of passage rituals, such as solemnising a wedding with hymns and prayers.[6][7]
Traditionally, Brahmins are accorded the supreme ritual status of the four social classes,[8] and they also served as spiritual teachers (guru oracharya). In practice, Indian texts suggest that some Brahmins historically also became agriculturalists, warriors, traders, and had also held other occupations in the Indian subcontinent.[7][8][9] Within thejati (caste) system, Brahmins similarly occupy the highest position, though that is complicated by strict stratification even among Brahmins and historical attempts by other castes and sub-castes to challenge Brahminical dominance.[10]
1915 depiction of ancient Indian economist and military strategistChanakya
It seems likely thatKannauj and Middle country was the place of origin of majority of migrating Brahmins throughout the medieval centuries.[11] Coming fromKannauj is a frequent claim among Brahmins in areas distant from Madhyadesha or Ganges heartland.[12]
Generic meaning of the term "Brahmin"
Buddhist painting of Brahmins from the 1800s, Thailand
The term Brahmin appears extensively in ancient and medievalSutras and commentary texts ofBuddhism andJainism.[13] Modern scholars state that such usage of the term Brahmin in ancient texts does not imply a caste, but simply "masters" (experts), guardian, recluse, preacher or guide of any tradition.[14][15][16] An alternate synonym for Brahmin in the Buddhist and other non-Hindu tradition isMahano.[14]
Strabo cites Megasthenes, highlighting two Indian philosophical schoolsSramana andBrahmana:
Megasthenes makes a different division of the philosophers, saying that they are of two kinds, one of which he calls theBrachmanes, and the other theSarmanes...
Patrick Olivelle states that both Buddhist and Brahmanical literature repeatedly define "Brahmin" not in terms of family of birth, but in terms of personal qualities.[18] These virtues and characteristics mirror the values cherished in Hinduism during theSannyasa stage of life, or the life of renunciation for spiritual pursuits. Brahmins, states Olivelle, were the social class from which most ascetics came.[18] The term Brahmin in Indian texts has also signified someone who is good and virtuous, not just someone of priestly class.[18]
Purusha sukta
The earliest inferred reference to "Brahmin" as a possible social class is in theRigveda, occurs once, and the hymn is calledPurusha Sukta.[19] According to a hymn inMandala 10, Rigveda 10.90.11-2, Brahmins are described as having emerged from the mouth ofPurusha, being that part of the body from which words emerge.[20]
The Purusha Sukta varna verse is now generally considered to have been inserted at a later date into the Vedic text, possibly as acharter myth.[21] Stephanie Jamison and Joel Brereton, a professor of Sanskrit and Religious studies, state, "there is no evidence in the Rigveda for an elaborate, much-subdivided and overarching caste system", and "the varna system seems to be embryonic in the Rigveda and, both then and later, a social ideal rather than a social reality".[21]
According to Vijay Nath, in theMarkandeya Purana (250 CE), there are references to Brahmins who were born into the families ofRaksasas. He posits that this is an indication that some Brahmins are immigrants and some are also mixed.[22]
Gupta era
Brahmins in North West London, joined by Brent and Harrow politicians, in white dress performing the Bhumi Puja ritualyajna around fireAn ascetic from renunciation tradition (1914)
According toAbraham Eraly, "Brahmin as a varna hardly had any presence in historical records before theGupta Empire era" (3rd century to 6th century CE), when Buddhism dominated the land. "No Brahmin, no sacrifice, no ritualistic act of any kind ever, even once, is referred to" in any Indian texts between third century BCE and the late first century CE. He also states that "The absence of literary and material evidence, however, does not mean that Brahmanical culture did not exist at that time, but only that it had no elite patronage and was largely confined to rural folk, and therefore went unrecorded in history".[23] Their role as priests and repository of sacred knowledge, as well as their importance in the practice of Vedic Shrauta rituals, grew during the Gupta Empire era and thereafter.[23]
However, the knowledge about actual history of Brahmins or other varnas of Hinduism in and after the first millennium is fragmentary and preliminary, with little that is from verifiable records or archaeological evidence, and much that is constructed from ahistorical Sanskrit works and fiction.Michael Witzel writes:
Current research in the area is fragmentary. The state of our knowledge of this fundamental subject is preliminary, at best. Most Sanskrit works are a-historic or, at least, not especially interested in presenting a chronological account of India's history. When we actually encounter history, such as inRajatarangini or in theGopalavamsavali of Nepal, the texts do not deal with brahmins in great detail.[24]
Role in the bhakti movement and involvement in social reform
Many of the prominent thinkers and earliest champions of theBhakti movement were Brahmins, a movement that encouraged a direct relationship of an individual with a personal god.[25][26] Among the many Brahmins who nurtured the Bhakti movement wereRamanuja,Nimbarka,Vallabha andMadhvacharya of Vaishnavism,[26]Ramananda, another devotional poetsant.[27][28] Born in a Brahmin family,[27][29] Ramananda welcomed everyone to spiritual pursuits without discriminating anyone by gender, class, caste or religion (such as Muslims).[29][30][31] He composed his spiritual message in poems, using widely spoken vernacular language rather than Sanskrit, to make it widely accessible. The Hindu tradition recognises him as the founder of the HinduRamanandi Sampradaya,[32] the largestmonastic renunciant community in Asia in modern times.[33][34]
Other medieval era Brahmins who led spiritual movements without social or gender discrimination includedAndal (9th-century female poet),Basava (12th-century Lingayatism),Dnyaneshwar (13th-century Bhakti poet),Vallabha Acharya (16th-century Vaishnava poet),Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (14th-century Vaishnava saint) were among others.[35][36][37]
TheDharmasutra andDharmashastra texts of Hinduism describe the expectations, duties and role of Brahmins.
According to Kulkarni, the Grhya-sutras state thatYajna, Adhyayana (studying the vedas and teaching), dana pratigraha (accepting and giving gifts) are the "peculiar duties and privileges of brahmins".[40] John Bussanich states that the ethical precepts set for Brahmins, in ancient Indian texts, are similar to Greek virtue-ethics, that "Manu's dharmic Brahmin can be compared to Aristotle's man of practical wisdom",[41] and that "the virtuous Brahmin is not unlike the Platonic-Aristotelian philosopher" with the difference that the latter was not sacerdotal.[42]
The Brahmins were expected to perform all six Vedic duties as opposed to othertwice-borns who performed three.
Yajana (performing sacrifice for one's own benefit)
Dāna (Giving Gifts)
Adhyāpana (Teaching Vedas)
Yājana (Acting as Priest for sacrifice)
Pratigraha (accepting gifts)
Brāhmaṇa
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
Kṣatriya
✓
✓
✓
No
No
No
Vaiśya
✓
✓
✓
No
No
No
Actual occupations
Gaudapadacharya, a proponent of Advaita Vedanta, was born into a Brahmin family. His disciple, Adi Shankara, is credited with unifying and establishing the main currents of thought in Hinduism.[43][44][45]
Historical records, state scholars, suggest that Brahmin varna was not limited to a particular status or priest and the teaching profession.[7][9][46]Chanakya, a Brahmin born in 375 BCE, was an ancient Indian polymath who was active as a teacher, author, strategist, philosopher, economist, jurist, and royal advisor, who assisted the first Mauryan emperorChandragupta Maurya in his rise to power and is widely credited for having played an important role in the establishment of theMaurya Empire.[47] Historical records from mid 1st millennium CE and later, suggest Brahmins were agriculturalists and warriors in medieval India, quite often instead of as exception.[7][9] Donkin and other scholars state thatHoysala Empire records frequently mention Brahmin merchants who "carried on trade in horses, elephants and pearls" and transported goods throughout medieval India before the 14th-century.[48][49]
ThePāli Canon depicts Brahmins as the most prestigious and elite non-Buddhist figures.[46] They mention them parading their learning. The Pali Canon and otherBuddhist texts such as theJataka Tales also record the livelihood of Brahmins to have included being farmers, handicraft workers and artisans such as carpentry and architecture.[46][50] Buddhist sources extensively attest, state Greg Bailey and Ian Mabbett, that Brahmins were "supporting themselves not by religious practice, but employment in all manner of secular occupations", in the classical period of India.[46] Some of the Brahmin occupations mentioned in the Buddhist texts such asJatakas andSutta Nipata are very lowly.[46] TheDharmasutras too mention Brahmin farmers.[46][51]
According to Haidar and Sardar, unlike the Mughal Empire in Northern India, Brahmins figured prominently in the administration ofDeccan sultanates. UnderGolconda Sultanate TeluguNiyogi Brahmins served in many different roles such as accountants, ministers, in the revenue administration, and in the judicial service.[52] The Deccan sultanates also heavily recruitedMarathi Brahmins at different levels of their administration.[53] During the days ofMaratha Empire in the 17th and 18th century, the occupation ofMarathi Brahmins ranged from being state administrators, being warriors to being de facto rulers asPeshwa.[54][55]After the collapse of Maratha empire, Brahmins in Maharashtra region were quick to take advantage of opportunities opened up by the new British rulers. They were the first community to take up Western education and therefore dominated lower level of British administration in the 19th century.[56] Similarly, the Tamil Brahmins were also quick to take up English education during British colonial rule and dominate government service and law.[57]
Eric Bellman states that during the Islamic Mughal Empire era Brahmins served as advisers to the Mughals, later to the British Raj.[58] TheEast India Company also recruitedsepoys (soldiers) from the Brahmin communities ofBihar andAwadh (in the present day Uttar Pradesh)[59] for theBengal army.[60][61] Many Brahmins, in other parts of South Asia lived like other varna, engaged in all sorts of professions. Among Nepalese Hindus, for example, Niels Gutschow and Axel Michaels report the actual observed professions of Brahmins from 18th- to early 20th-century included being temple priests, ministers, merchants, farmers, potters, masons, carpenters, coppersmiths, stone workers, barbers, and gardeners, among others.[62]
Other 20th-century surveys, such as in the state ofUttar Pradesh, recorded that the primary occupation of almost all Brahmin families surveyed was neither priestly nor Vedas-related, but like other varnas, ranged from crop farming (80 per cent of Brahmins), dairy, service, labour such as cooking, and other occupations.[63][64] The survey reported that the Brahmin families involved in agriculture as their primary occupation in modern times plough the land themselves, many supplementing their income by selling their labour services to other farmers.[63][65]
Stratification among Brahmins
According toKalhana'sRajatarangini (12th cent. CE) andSahyadrikhanda (5th–13th cent. CE) of Skandapurana, Brahmins are broadly classified into two groups based on geography.[66] The northernPancha Gauda group comprises five Brahmin communities, as mentioned in the text, residing north of theVindhya mountain range.[66][67] Historically, the Vindhya mountain range formed the southern boundary of theĀryāvarta, the territory of the ancientIndo-Aryan peoples, and Gauda has territorial, ethnographic and linguistic connotations.[68] Linguistically, the term "Gauda" refers to the Sanskrit-derived languages of northern India.[68] The Pancha Gauda Brahmins are:[66]
The PanchaDravida Brahmins reside to the south of the Vindhya mountain range.[66] The term "Dravida" too has territorial, linguistic and ethnological connotations, referring to southern India, the Dravidian people, and to the Dravidian languages of southern India.[68] The Pancha Dravida Brahmins are:
Among the Hindus ofBali, Indonesia, Brahmins are calledPedandas.[76] The role of Brahmin priests, calledSulinggih,[77] has been open to both genders since medieval times. A Hindu Brahmin priestess is shown above.
Some Brahmins formed an influential group in Burmese Buddhist kingdoms in 18th- and 19th-century. The court Brahmins were locally calledPunna.[78] During theKonbaung dynasty, Buddhist kings relied on their court Brahmins to consecrate them to kingship in elaborate ceremonies, and to help resolve political questions.[78] This role of Hindu Brahmins in a Buddhist kingdom, states Leider, may have been because Hindu texts provide guidelines for such social rituals and political ceremonies, while Buddhist texts do not.[78]
The Brahmins were also consulted in the transmission, development and maintenance of law and justice system outside India.[78] HinduDharmasastras, particularly Manusmriti written by the Prajapati Manu, states Anthony Reid,[79] were "greatly honored in Burma (Myanmar), Siam (Thailand), Cambodia and Java-Bali (Indonesia) as the defining documents of law and order, which kings were obliged to uphold. They were copied, translated and incorporated into local law code, with strict adherence to the original text in Burma and Siam, and a stronger tendency to adapt to local needs in Java (Indonesia)".[79][80][81]
The mythical origins ofCambodia are credited to a Brahmin prince named Kaundinya, who arrived by sea, married a Naga princess living in the flooded lands.[82][83] Kaudinya founded Kambuja-desa, or Kambuja (transliterated to Kampuchea or Cambodia). Kaundinya introduced Hinduism, particularly Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva and Harihara (half Vishnu, half Shiva), and these ideas grew in southeast Asia in the 1st millennium CE.[82]
TheChams Balamon (Hindu Brahmin Chams) form a majority of the Cham population inVietnam.[84]
Brahmins have been part of the Royal tradition ofThailand, particularly for the consecration and to mark annual land fertility rituals of Buddhist kings. A small Brahmanical templeDevasathan, established in 1784 by KingRama I of Thailand, has been managed by ethnically Thai Brahmins ever since.[85] The temple hostsPhra Phikhanesuan (Ganesha),Phra Narai (Narayana, Vishnu),Phra Itsuan (Shiva),Uma,Brahma,Indra (Sakka) and other Hindu deities.[85] The tradition asserts that the Thai Brahmins have roots in Hindu holy city of Varanasi and southern state of Tamil Nadu, go by the titlePandita, and the various annual rites and state ceremonies they conduct has been a blend of Buddhist and Hindu rituals. Thecoronation ceremony of theThai king is almost entirely conducted by the royal Brahmins.[85][86]
Demographics
Percentage of Brahmins in each state. Data is from recent caste censuses.
16–20%
12–16%
9–12%
4–8%
1–4%
0–1%
The last caste census, conducted by the government of British Raj, was in the year 1931.[87] Out of the total population 27 crores (270 millions) of the undivided India, Brahmins were over 1.5 crores (15 millions) in population.
According to 2007 reports, Brahmins in India are about 5% of its total population, and back then were numbering 56 million.[58][88]
The Himalayan states ofUttarakhand (20%) andHimachal Pradesh (14%) have the highest percentage of Brahmin population relative to respective state's total Hindus, followed byDelhi (12%),Jammu and Kashmir (11%),Uttar Pradesh (10%), in other states the Brahmins being less than 10% of the population, the lowest being in the southern states ofAndhra Pradesh,Tamil Nadu andKerala, where they form 1%.[88]
According to the Center for the Study of Developing Societies, in 2004 about 65% of Brahmin households in India earned less than $100 a month compared to 89% ofScheduled Tribes, 91% ofScheduled Castes and 86% of Muslims.[58]
^Benjamin Lee Wren (2004).Teaching World Civilization with Joy and Enthusiasm. University Press of America. pp. 77–.ISBN978-0-7618-2747-4.At the top were the Brahmins(priests), then the Kshatriyas(warriors), then the vaishya(the merchant class which only in India had a place of honor in Asia), next were the sudras(farmers), and finally the pariah(untouchables), or those who did the dirty defiling work
^Kenneth R. Valpey (2 November 2019).Cow Care in Hindu Animal Ethics. Springer Nature. pp. 169–.ISBN978-3-03-028408-4.The four varnas are the brahmins (brahmanas—priests, teachers); kshatriyas (ksatriyas—administrators, rulers); vaishyas (vaisyas—farmers, bankers, business people); and shudras(laborers, artisans)
^Richard Bulliet; Pamela Crossley; Daniel Headrick; Steven Hirsch; Lyman Johnson (11 October 2018).The Earth and Its Peoples: A Global History, Volume I. Cengage Learning. pp. 172–.ISBN978-0-357-15937-8.Varna are the four major social divisions: the Brahmin priest class, the Kshatriya warrior/ administrator class, the Vaishya merchant/farmer class, and the Shudra laborer class.
^Akira Iriye (1979).The World of Asia. Forum Press. p. 106.ISBN978-0-88273-500-9.The four varna groupings in descending order of their importance came to be Brahmin (priests), Kshatriya (warriors and administrators), Vaishya (cultivators and merchants), and Sudra (peasants and menial laborers)
^Gerald James Larson (1995), India's Agony Over Religion, State University of New York Press,ISBN978-0-7914-2412-4, page 116
^Julia Leslie (1996), Myth and Mythmaking: Continuous Evolution in Indian Tradition, Routledge,ISBN978-0-7007-0303-6, pages 117–119
^Schomer and McLeod (1987), The Sants: Studies in a Devotional Tradition of India, Motilal Banarsidass,ISBN978-81-208-0277-3, pages 4–6
^Selva Raj and William Harman (2007), Dealing with Deities: The Ritual Vow in South Asia, State University of New York Press,ISBN978-0-7914-6708-4, pages 165–166
^James G Lochtefeld (2002), The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N-Z, Rosen Publishing,ISBN978-0-8239-3180-4, pages 553–554
^John Stratton Hawley (2015), A Storm of Songs: India and the Idea of the Bhakti Movement, Harvard University Press,ISBN978-0-674-18746-7, pages 304–310
^Rachel McDermott (2001), Singing to the Goddess: Poems to Kālī and Umā from Bengal, Oxford University Press,ISBN978-0-19-513434-6, pages 8–9
^Noel Salmond (2004), Hindu iconoclasts: Rammohun Roy, Dayananda Sarasvati and nineteenth-century polemics against idolatry, Wilfrid Laurier Univ. Press,ISBN0-88920-419-5, pages 65–68
^Dorothy Figueira (2002), Aryans, Jews, Brahmins: Theorizing Authority through Myths of Identity, State University of New York Press,ISBN978-0-7914-5531-9, pages 90–117
^Kulkarni, A.R. (1964). "Social and Economic Position of Brahmins in Maharashtra in the Age of Shivaji".Proceedings of the Indian History Congress.26:66–67.JSTOR44140322.
^John Bussanich (2014), Ancient Ethics (Editors: Jörg Hardy and George Rudebusch), Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht,ISBN978-3-89971-629-0, pages 38, 33–52, Quote: "Affinities with Greek virtue ethics are also noteworthy. Manu's dharmic Brahmin can be compared to Aristotle's man of practical wisdom, who exercises moral authority because he feels the proper emotions and judges difficult situations correctly, when moral rules and maxims are unavailable".
^John Bussanich (2014), Ancient Ethics (Editors: Jörg Hardy and George Rudebusch), Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht,ISBN978-3-89971-629-0, pages 44–45
^Johannes de Kruijf and Ajaya Sahoo (2014), Indian Transnationalism Online: New Perspectives on Diaspora,ISBN978-1-4724-1913-2, page 105, Quote: "In other words, according to Adi Shankara's argument, the philosophy of Advaita Vedanta stood over and above all other forms of Hinduism and encapsulated them. This then united Hinduism; (...) Another of Adi Shankara's important undertakings which contributed to the unification of Hinduism was his founding of a number of monastic centers."
^Shankara, Student's Encyclopædia Britannica – India (2000), Volume 4, Encyclopædia Britannica (UK) Publishing,ISBN978-0-85229-760-5, page 379, Quote: "Shankaracharya, philosopher and theologian, most renowned exponent of the Advaita Vedanta school of philosophy, from whose doctrines the main currents of modern Indian thought are derived." David Crystal (2004), The Penguin Encyclopedia, Penguin Books, page 1353, Quote: "[Shankara] is the most famous exponent of Advaita Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy and the source of the main currents of modern Hindu thought."
^Christophe Jaffrelot (1998), The Hindu Nationalist Movement in India, Columbia University Press,ISBN978-0-231-10335-0, page 2, Quote: "The main current of Hinduism – if not the only one – which became formalized in a way that approximates to an ecclesiastical structure was that of Shankara".
^abcdefGreg Bailey and Ian Mabbett (2006), The Sociology of Early Buddhism, Cambridge University Press,ISBN978-0-521-02521-8, pages 113–115 with footnotes
^RITSCHL, Eva (1980). "Brahmanische Bauern. Zur Theorie und Praxis der brahmanischen Ständeordnung im alten Indien".Altorientalische Forschungen (in German).7 (JG). Walter de Gruyter GmbH:177–187.doi:10.1524/aofo.1980.7.jg.177.ISSN0232-8461.S2CID201725661.
^Niels Gutschow and Axel Michaels (2008), Bel-Frucht und Lendentuch: Mädchen und Jungen in Bhaktapur Nepal, Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, pages 23 (table), for context and details see 16–36
^abNoor Mohammad (1992), New Dimensions in Agricultural Geography, Volume 3, Concept Publishers,ISBN81-7022-403-9, pages 45, 42–48
^Ramesh Bairy (2010), Being Brahmin, Being Modern, Routledge,ISBN978-0-415-58576-7, pages 86–89
^G Shah (2004), Caste and Democratic Politics in India, Anthem,ISBN978-1-84331-085-3, page 40
^Pandya, A V (1952).Abu in Bombay State: A Scientific Study of the Problem. Charutar Vidya Mandal. p. 29.It is interesting to note here that the Brahmin groups of Marwar and Mewar belong to the Gurjara group of the Pancha Dravida division
^Martin Ramstedt (2003), Hinduism in Modern Indonesia, Routledge,ISBN978-0-7007-1533-6, page 256
^Martin Ramstedt (2003), Hinduism in Modern Indonesia, Routledge,ISBN978-0-7007-1533-6, page 80
^abcdLeider, Jacques P. (2005). "Specialists for Ritual, Magic and Devotion: The Court Brahmins of the Konbaung Kings".The Journal of Burma Studies.10:159–180.doi:10.1353/jbs.2005.0004.S2CID162305789.
^abAnthony Reid (1988), Southeast Asia in the Age of Commerce, 1450–1680: The lands below the winds, Yale University Press,ISBN978-0-300-04750-9, pages 137–138
^Victor Lieberman (2014), Burmese Administrative Cycles, Princeton University Press,ISBN978-0-691-61281-2, pages 66–68; Also see discussion of 13th century Wagaru Dhamma-sattha / 11th century Manu Dhammathat manuscripts discussion
^On Laws of Manu in 14th century Thailand'sAyuthia kingdom named afterAyodhya, see David Wyatt (2003), Thailand: A Short History, Yale University Press,ISBN978-0-300-08475-7, page 61; Robert Lingat (1973), The Classical Law of India, University of California Press,ISBN978-0-520-01898-3, pages 269–272
^Boreth Ly (2011), Early Interactions Between South and Southeast Asia (Editors: Pierre-Yves Manguin, A. Mani, Geoff Wade), Institute of Southeast Asian Studies,ISBN978-981-4311-16-8, pages 461–475
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