Английская Википедия:Gaud Saraswat Brahmin

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Gaud Saraswat Brahmins (GSB) (also Goud or Gawd) are a Hindu Brahmin community, who are part of the larger Saraswat Brahmin community that migrated to Konkan from Gaud, as per the Skanda Purana in ancient India. They belong to the Pancha Gauda Brahmins group. They primarily speak Konkani and its various dialects as their mother tongue.

The Brahminhood claim of the Shenvi GSB was rejected by the Deshastha, Chitpavan and Karhade Brahmins and even the British did not include them in the category of Brahmins. The GSBs were traditionally traders and even as early as the 1400s they conducted commerce across the Indian Ocean. In the Maratha empire, they also served as adminstators.

Etymology

There are many interpretations on how the Gaud Saraswat Brahmins received the name "Gaud" and the information about it is scant.

Authors Jose Patrocinio De Souza and Alfred D'Cruz interpreters that the word Gauda or Goud may have been taken from Ghaggar, with Goud and Saraswat having the same meaning, that is an individual residing on the banks of river Saraswati.

ScholarsШаблон:Who write that "Shenvi" and "Gaud Saraswat Brahmin" are synonyms.

Historically, Jana Tschurenev states that the Shenvis were a community that claimed to be Brahmins. The name GSB is a modern construction based on newly curated caste history and origin legends.Шаблон:Citation needed

Classification

According to Ghurye, five hundred years ago Saraswats were mainly confined to the area around Goa.In the last three hundred years, they migrated south towards Mangalore and north towards Rajapur in present day Ratnagiri district, Alibag and further north.He identifies seven sub-castes among the Saraswats, namely Bardeshkar, Bhalawalikar, Kudaldeshkar, Lotlikar,Pednekar, Sashtikar and Shenvi-paiki. From early twentieth century there have been many initiatives by the different sub-castes to form a unified Saraswat caste but according to Frank O'Conlon (writing in 1974) these attempts failed. These initiatives however, did spur foundation of educational and commercial instituitions which have endured.

History

In Kalhana's Rajatarangini (twelfth century CE), the Saraswats are mentioned as one of the five Pancha Gauda Brahmin communities residing to the north of the Vindhyas.

References to Saraswat names are found in Shilaharas as well as Kadamba copper plate inscriptions. The inscriptions found in Goa bear testimony to the arrival of Brahmin families in the Konkan region.

The Shilahara kings seem to have invited supposedly pure Aryan Brahmins and Kshatriyas from the Indo-Gangetic plain to settle in Konkan. These castes are the Gaud Saraswat Brahmins and Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhus.

The GSB ancestors identified themselves as of the Saraswat section of the northern Gaud division, in contrast to their Maharashtra and Karnataka Brahman neighbours of the southern division. Many Saraswats left Goa after the invasion of Malik Kafur to the neighbouring regions and during the period of religious persecution of the Portuguese also Saraswats migrated to Uttar Kannada, Udupi, Dakshina Kannada, Kerala and South Konkan.

Historian Farias states that the Gaud Saraswats supposedly intermarried with women from other castes after their arrival in Goa.

Historical occupations

After commercial activities in the Indian Ocean increased after the 1400s, Pius Malekandathil states that "many Indians, particularly the banyas, the Gowda Saraswat Brahmins began to move to different parts of this maritime space to conduct trade, where they eventually set up nucleus for Indian diasporas"

Harald Tambs-Lyche notes that trading communities such as the GSB, when dominating the merchants of Cochin, received exterritorial rights granted by the Dutch.

South Kanara is part of the Kanara coast from Goa to Kerala. In the sixteenth century, the increase and export of rice production here was brought about by the GSB, the Bunts and Billava coconut growers. The Gaud Saraswat Brahmin – which Marine Carrin and Lidia Guzy describe as a "Konkani speaking community of traders [who were] already established along the coast" now became the major rice exporters. The Bunts controlled the land while the GSB controlled the rice trade in the markets. Thus in South Kanara, the GSB were merchants by occupation and not priests who served in temples. The priestly as well as clerical function was performed by Shivalli Brahmins. This remains the case even in modern times although other castes have entered the trading occupations now.

During the Portuguese rule and later, they were again one of the main trading communities. They also served as "village – Kulkarnis, financiers, tax-farmers in the intra-Asian trade, and diplomatic agents". Many sources of government income in Goa, Konkan and elsewhere, including taxes on cloth and tobacco, were controlled by them. Some engaged with Tobacco trade with Brazil in the early eighteenth century.

In the mid-nineteenth century, in Portuguese India, the trade in Goa changed focus from luxury items to essential items only. Coconut, salt, areca-nuts, fruits and poultry were exported, while rice and timber were imported. According to Borges, Pereira and Stubbe, of the trading communities, the Gaud Saraswat Brahmins and Gujarati Vania played the major role in this trade and Mormugao city became the major meeting place for the traders. British and Portuguese interests clashed during this time.

In Maharashtra, Saraswats had served as administrators under the Deccan Sultanates such as the Adil Shahi. In the eighteenth century during the Maratha empire era, the Shinde and the Holkar rulers of Ujjain and Indore recruited Saraswats to fill their administrative positions. R.C.Chaurasia says that Mahadji Shinde favoured the Shenvi Brahmins and Deshastha Brahmins. After Shinde's death, the widows favoured the Shevis to the Deshastha. Balloba Pagnis and Lakhwa Dada held high posts - Pagnis was a minister and Dada was a Viceroy.

A sample study in the 1970s in Kota, Karnataka found that the Gaud Saraswat Brahmins owned most of the grocery and general merchandise stores.

Origin myth per the Sahyadrikhanda

Файл:Parshuramsaraswats.jpg

Parshurama with Saraswat Brahmin settlers, commanding Varuna to make the seas recede in order to create the Konkan Region

As per Sahyadrikhanda, "Chitpavan and Karhade brahmins are "new creations of base-origins" and not a part of "established Gaud or Dravid groups". After Parashuram created the Chitpawans from fishermen who had assembled around some funeral pyre in Konkan, their later actions displeased him. As if to rectify his mistake, Parashuram brought ten sages from North India, specifically, Trihotra (Trihut, Bihar) and set them up in Goa for performing ancestral rites, fire sacrifice and dinner offerings. The fourth chapter of Sahyadrikhanda describes the Gotras of these Brahmins and praises them as "best brahmins, honored by the kings, good-looking, with righteous behavior, and expert in all rites".

The Gauḍa Sārasvat Brahmins from southern India, whose claim to Brahminhood was often not accepted by the surrounding Dravid Brahmins, could use this text from Sahyadrikhanda to address the conflict. Wagle makes no judgement on the validity of the claim of Northern origin and writes: Шаблон:Blockquote

In addition, as per some modern scholars like Hewitt, the Sahyadrikhanda is considered corrupted by many modifications and interpolations to the original. As an example, Madhav Deshpande cites the 4th verse from chapter-I which when translated is:Шаблон:Blockquote Deshpande considers this as a "sloppy interpolation" to get Trihotra in the list of Brahmin migrations as the Gaud Saraswats group has migrated from Trihotra in northern India as per the text. There is a reference to Kānyakubja in this verse and Kanoji in the previous although they are the same.

Scholars' opinions

Bambardekar, a scholar on Konkan History, does not accept the Gauda or Brahmin claim of the Gauda Saraswats. According to Bambardekar, the Pancha Dravid Brahmins are the original Gauda Brahmins and he cites a verse from the Skanda Puran to prove his assertion.

Alexander Henn says that "modern scholars have questioned the myth of the northern descent". According to modern scholars, arguing that their origins instead come from local priests who, at some point in history, gained Brahmanhood".

Varna dispute

Madhav Deshpande writes: Шаблон:Blockquote Bambardekar, a prominent researcher on Konkan's history, in his twentieth-century Bhaṭṭojidīkṣitajñātiviveka also rejects the Brahmin claim of the Shenvi GSB as well as their "gauda-ness". He argues that the Seṇavīs adopted the term Gauḍa-Sārasvata in the latter part of the nineteenth century. According to Bambardekar, the (Shenvi)GSBs have falsified the Kannada word gowḍa meaning 'village chief' as being identical with the Sanskrit word gauḍa and challenges their Brahmin status itself. Bambardekar cites a document from 1694 AD and another from 1863 AD in which the Brahmins and Shenvis are separately listed. University of Michigan scholar Madhav M. Deshpande cites R.V.Parulekar and states that " British administrative documents from the early nineteenth century Maharashtra always list brahmins and Shenvis as two separate castes".Шаблон:Clarify Irawati Karve and G. S. Ghurye consider GSB's as part of larger Saraswat Brahmins and overall Brahmin community. The Hindu scripture Sahayadhri Khanda provided support for the Brahmanical genealogy of the GSB. However, Sanskrit scholar Madhav Deshpande, Indologist and Sanskrit Scholar Stephan Hillyer Levitt and historian O'Hanlon consider the portion of the Sahyādrikhaṇḍa that describes Saraswats to be corrupted and recently interpolated by Saraswats themselves in order to improve their status.

In Kerala, the Gaud Saraswat Brahmin claim to be Brahmins but this view is not necessarily supported by other communities. For example, the Namboodri Brahmins do not consider the GSB as Brahmin.

The GSB from Goa were considered to be non-Brahmin and the Pune Brahmins did not allow a GSB scholar to participate in a Brahmin only debate in the British era as he was a GSB and not a Brahmin. This caused GSB caste activists to claim the Brahmin status by using markers such as "gotra", "kuldeva", village, "allegiance to a lineage of spiritual descent" or "guru parampara" of preceptors (swamis). The movement was active from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. According the anthropologist Jason Keith Fernandes, the GSB from Goa are nowadays "generally" considered to be Brahmin.

M.R. Kantak does not consider the Saraswats in Maharashtra as part of Brahmin community and adds that they studied Portuguese unlike the Brahmins who studied Sanskrit during Shivaji's time.Шаблон:Ambiguous

In Bombay, the Prabhus and the GSB were both considered lower in ritual status in the varna system as compared to the Brahmins of Maharashtra although they had a high secular status. This ambiguous position caused the Prabhus and the GSBs to support Vishnubawa Brahmachari's Hindu revival in the 19th century.

Shivaji had asked Gaga Bhatt to resolve the issue regarding the Shenavis' ritual status when they met before his coronation. Fifteen pandits in Benares proclaimed that the Shenavis were Brahmins. This verdict was praised by both Shivaji and Shahaji.Шаблон:Citation needed

Culture

Classification and culture

Gaud Saraswat Brahmins have both Madhvas and Smarthas among them. The Gaud Saraswats following Dvaita Vedanta of Madhvacharya are followers of Kashi Math and Gokarna Math, while the followers of Advaita Vedanta of Adi Shankara are followers of Kavale Math and Chitrapur Math.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn Among Gaud Saraswat Brahmins the Madhvas are Vaishnavites, while the Smarthas are considered as Shivites and Shaktites. According to author A B de Bragnanca Pereira says, "The main deities worshipped by Shaivite are Mangesh, Shantadurga, and Saptakoteshwar, while the Vaishnavites deities are Nagesh, Ramnath, Mahalakshmi, Mahalasa, Lakshmi, Narasimha, Venkataramana, Kamaksha, Bhagwati and Damodar".Шаблон:Sfn Most of the GSB's in the Malabar Coast, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu regions are followers of Madhvacharya. In Goa, the GSB's who follow Madhvacharya and are mainly concentrated in the Bardez and Salcete regions.Шаблон:Sfn

Diet

Gaud Saraswat Brahmins are primarily fish and other seafood eaters but there are also vegetarians among them. Historian Kranti K Farias states that "Their main food is rice – called congi or Pej. Shaktas offer and then consume mutton, fowl and liquor during the worship of the female divine.

See also

• List of Saraswats
• Canara Konkani
• Saraswat cuisine
• Rajapur Saraswat Brahmins
• Chitrapur Saraswat Brahmin
• Kudaldeshkar Gaud Brahmins

References

Bibliography

• Шаблон:Citation
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Further reading

• Шаблон:Cite book
• Шаблон:Cite book
• Шаблон:Cite journal
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• Hock, Hans (1999) "Through a Glass Darkly: Modern "Racial" Interpretations vs. Textual and General Prehistoric Evidence on Arya and Dasa/Dasyu in Vedic Indo-Aryan Society." in Aryan and Non-Aryan in South Asia, ed. Bronkhorst & Deshpande, Ann Arbor.
• Шаблон:Cite book
• Шаблон:Cite journal

External links

• Temples of Gaud Saraswat Brahmins in Mumbai
• Temples of GSB's in Konkan coast
• GSB Temples uniqueness
• GSB Konkani Mathas and Swamiji's