Kshatriya
Encyclopedia : K : KS : KSH : Kshatriya
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Etymology
In Sanskrit it is derived from Kshatra, meaning “dominion, power, government" and ultimately from a root ‘‘kshi’’ “to rule, govern, possess".Given the similarities between Old Persian and Sanskrit and ethnic ties between the two peoples, Kshatriya is almost certainly related to the Old Persian word Xshayathiya, which means king.
Kshatra is God's energy which descends upon those who are righteous. As stated in the Ahuna Vairya prayer of the Zoroastrians:
...and the Kshatra of Ahura descends indeed upon him who becomes a shepherd to the meek.
In the early Vedic civilization, the warrior caste was called Rājanya rather then Kshatriya. The former was an adjectival form of Rājan "ruler, king" from a root Rāj "to rule", cognate to the Latin Rex "king" and the German Reich "empire".
Also related to this article on the Kshatriya are the Satraps.
Satrap: "governor of a province of ancient Persia," from L. satrapes, from Gk. satrapes, from Old Persian. Kshathrapavan, lit. "guardian of the realm," from kshathra- "realm, province" (related to kshayathiya- "king," khatri - "ruling & warrior caste", cognate with Skt. kshatra; cf. shah) + pavan- "guardian," from pa- "to protect." Indo-European dher ("hold firmly, support") ==> dharma, affirm, throne, Darius, jemadar. Indo-European ksei ("to rule") ==> kshatriya, Shah, satrap, Xerxes.
Holy warriors
The Kshatriyas were assigned to be protectors of Dharma (duty/justice), their subjects and livestock. They were sanctioned by God to serve humanity. The noble king is regarded as a Dharma Raja (Just Ruler)The Rig Veda states:
- praja arya jyotiragrah. RV, VII. 33.17
- arya sarva samascaiva sadaiva priyadarsanah
- Like the ancient monarch Manu, father of the human race,
- Dasaratha ruled his people with a father's loving grace,
Symbol of Kshatriya
In the initiation rituals, the nyagrodha (Ficus Indica or Sacred Fig tree) danda is assigned to the Kshatriya class.
- The nyagrodha or banyan tree, with its bending branches which take root in the ground, was regarded as a resembling form of the Kshatriya. The nyagrodha is the kshatra power of trees, and the Kshatriya is the kshatra power [among humans], for the Kshatriya dwells fastened to the kingdom, and is supported [by it]. And the nyagrodha is fastened to the ground by its downward growths, and supported [by it].
- (Aitereya Brahmana, 7.31; see also Satapatha Brahmana 5.3.5.13)
- (Reflections on Resemblance, Ritual, and Religion; Brian K. Smith)
Origin
Theology
- In Aryan Vedic theology, Manu is considered the law giver and progenitor of Humans. He had over 50 sons. Manu was both king and priest and his children (and thus all of humanity) are considered highborn. Due to the eventual differences in occupations, people ended up in different jatis and caste. Those who studied the Vedas became known as Brahmins, those who practiced trade became Vaishya, those who labored became Sudra and those who took up martial arts became Kshatriyas. The word Arya means "noble" and was initially only used for kings and kshatriyas, the word Arya is related to "Aristocracy".
- Kshatriyas were created from the arms of God and the priests were from his mouth and the merchants from his abdomen and the laborers from his legs. This was to be interpreted as meaning that no one caste is more important than the other and that society cannot survive without all parts working together.
Non-Puritan Kshatriyas
- The Ashtadhyayi of Panini (sutra 4.1.168-175) attests that the Kamboja and Gandhara were very important Kshatriya kingdoms of Uttarapatha during or prior to Paninian times (500 BCE). See more on ancient Kamboja Kshatriyas [link]
- The Manusmriti, written about 200 AD states that the Sakas (Scythians), Yavanas (Ionian, Indo-Greeks), Kambojas (Central Asians), Paradas (Sinkiang), Pahlavas (Persians), Kiratas (Nepal, Assam), Dravidas (Tamil), and Daradas were originally noble Kshatriyas but were relegated to the Barbaric (Vrishala) status due to their neglect of the Brahmanas as well as due to their non-observance of the sacred Brahmanical codes (X/43-44).
- Anushasanaparava of the Mahabharata also views the Sakas, Kambojas and the Yavanas etc. in the same light. Patanjali in his Mahabhasya regards the Sakas and Yavanas as pure Sudras (II.4.10).
- The Vartika of the Katyayana informs us that the kings of the Sakas and the Yavanas, like those of the Kambojas, may also be addressed by their respective tribal names.
- The Mahabharata also associates the Sakas, Yavanas, Gandharas (Northwest India), Kambojas (Pamir-Badakshan), Pahlavas, Tusharas, Sabaras, Barbaras, Dravidas, etc.. and addresses them all as the Barbaric tribes of Uttarapatha.
- In another verse the epic groups the Shakas, Kambojas and Khashas together and state them as the tribes from Udichya, i.e. north division (5/169/20).
- The Kishkindha Kanda of the Ramayana locates the Sakas, Kambojas, Yavanas and the Paradas in the extreme north-west beyond the Himavat (i.e. Hindukush) (43/12) in the Shakadvipa, adjoining the land of Uttarakurus.
- The Udyogaparava of the Mahabharata (5/19/21-23) tells us that the composite army of the Kambojas, Yavanas and Sakas had participated in the Mahabharata war under the supreme command of Sudakshina Kamboja. The epic repeatedly applauds this composite army as being very fierce and wrathful. Some verses of Mahabharata also attest that the Tusharas or Tukharas were also included in the Kamboja division (e.g.: MBH 6.66.17-21; MBH 8.88.17). See Tocharians
- Puranic accounts attest that the Dravidas are Kshatriyas and are said to be descendants of the sons of Vishwamitra. Like the Kambojas, Sakas, Yavanas, Daradas, Khashas etc, the Dravidas were recorded as Kshatriyas who no longer were initiated into the sacred thread due to their neglect of the Brahmanas as well as due to their non-observance of the sacred Brahmanical codes.
- Nairs of Kerala were ordered to remove their sacred thread by Parasurama as they were Nagavanshi Kshatriyas and ever since, in spite of their martial status, they were called Savarna (Non Sudra) Sudras. This was because they are said to be the progeny of Brahmin men through Rakshasa women.
Scientific
- Historians believe that the caste system became rigid around 1000 BC. Prior to this in ancient India the nomadic tribes did not have a fixed caste system. They initially assigned roles based on an individual’s merit. This was necessary in order to ensure the tribe's survival. The stronger members of the tribe became the warriors and were given a higher status in society as they were more important to the survival of the tribe at the time. As the tribes became more familiar with farming they built up surpluses and became more settled. This more sedentary and leisurely lifestyle shifted the people's focus to accumulating wealth and finding a meaning to life. Priests began to take the preeminent role in society as they ensured spiritual salvation. This led to society forming a more rigid social system where position was determined by birth rather than merit. Thereafter, those in the more powerful classes enforced this caste system to remain in power, a pattern also exhibited by the nobles of Europe. During the Epic Age people began to question these institutions.
- Many historical rulers came from other castes, or were descended from non-Hindu foreign conquerors, and were either granted de facto Kshatriya status by virtue of the power they held, or they created fictionalized family histories to connect themselves to past Kshatriya rulers. For instance, the Sakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Pahlavas, Paradas, Nairs (Nagas) etc were foreign invaders from north-west but were assimilated into the Indian community as Kshatriyas.
Vedic Origin
In modern India, caste is inherited. Most of the Kshatriya communities claim descent from Surya, Chandra, or Agni. The Surya descendants claim descent from Rama and the Chandra descendants claim Krishna as an ancestor. This is based on the writings of the Rig Veda and other Puranas.Two camps exist about the importance of these texts. One camp is similar to the literalists of the Christian faith who believe that their holy texts are verbatim documentation of real people, events and dates and that modern society is descended from them. The other camp believes that the holy texts are not meant to be taken literally and should be used symbolically as examples of the proper way to live.
Those who believe the Ramayana, Mahabharatha, and other Puranas were verbatim documents feel that modern Kshatriyas are descended from the Vedic Kshatriyas. The reason for the controversy is that we do not have any physical evidence of their existence. There are no bones, forts, weapons, coins, monuments, pictures etc. discovered to state unequivocally that they existed. This issue can be debated at length.
What historians generally agree on is Indian history from around 1000 BC onwards. From that point onwards we have archeological, literary, and artistic evidence of the communities that existed in India. Historians do not disagree over the existence of Buddha and Mahavir, two Kshatriya sages that made a lasting impression on the world.
Kshatriya communities
The Kshatriya communities are generally very prominent in Indian history, having been major influences on Indian culture, politics, religion and economics for hundreds of years. The Kurus, Panchalas, Kosalas, Matsyas, Magadhas, Chedis, Yadus, Kambojas, Gandharas, Kekayas etc in epic times and Mauryas, Guptas, Chalukyas, Rajputs, Marathas, Dhangars, Nairs,Nambiars etc. in post-epic/medieval eras are considered to have been particularly influential.Sun and Fire Worshippers
- Sakas (Lohars, Tarkhans, Jats)
- Yavanas
- Kambojas
- Pahlavas
- Paradas
- Sisodias According to Col. James Tod (Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan), C. T. Metcalfe (The Rajpoot Tribes) and some other ethnographers, the ancestors of the Sisodias/Guhilots were Guebres i.e. Iranians and were sun & fire worshippers. There is powerful evidence to support this view. It is also interesting to notice that the Guhilots/Sisodias claim their ancestry from the Maitraka (q.v.) dynasty (475 AD-766 AD) of Saurashtra. "Maitraka, a Rajput dynasty, thought to be of the Bala tribe, whose capital was Vallabhi in the Saurashtra peninsula (now modern Gujarat). The final ruler was King Siladitya VI who perished when the city was destroyed by invaders from the west, possibly a Muslim force from Sind. His wife, Pushpavati, on a religious pilgrimage in Mewar at the time, gave birth to a son shortly after. This was GUHIL who founded the GUHILOT Dynasty (ca AD 569), forerunner of the Mewar Dynasty". See Maitraka in the The Mewar Encyclopaedia at [link]. See also: [link] Bappa Rawal also called Kalbhoj (b. Prince Kalbhoj, ca 713 – 753 AD, possibly at Eklingji), eighth ruler of the Guhilot Dynasty and founder of the Mewar Dynasty (ruled. 734AD - 753 AD). The name Kalbhoj, in all probability, seems connected with Sanskrit Kambhoj. Kambhoj is non-iranianised version of Kamboj which name carries Pisachi influence per Dr K. P. Jayswal. See link for more details: [link]. See also: Kamboi
Suryavanshis
Chandravanshi
Suryavanshi and Chandravanshi
- 60 clans (Suryavanshi)
- 36 clans (Chandravanshi)
Agnivanshi
Many of the Rajputs are known as Agnivanshi Kshatriyas. The Agni Purana contends that the Rajputs were born from the fire which resides in Mt. Abu in Northwestern India after the "destruction of ancient Kshatriyas". The extension of this theory states that Rajputs are the descendants of Indo-Scythian (Saka) tribes. Although the Rajputs are far from being a homogenous race, recent Genetic studies done in India have yielded evidence of the Scythian roots of Rajputs [link]. By the tenth century, Post-Gupta Kshatriya rulers of northern and central India also adopted the term Rajputs and were responsible for the continuity of administrative style and coinage of the preceding period[link]Nagavanshi
These are the Kshatriyas belonging to the Serpent dynasty called Nagavansham. They are the Kshatriyas of South India (in particular Kerala and Tamil Nadu)- Shinde (Scindia/Sindhia/Sindia)
Others
Non-Indian
Hindu
Bali Kshatriyas
About 40 percent of the total population of Bali comprises of Balinese Kshatriyas. Balinese Hinduism has a caste system and is heavily influenced by the Vedas. Balinese people are of mixed Mongoloid, Polynesian, Australoid, Aryan and Dravidian races.Cham Satrias
The Balamon Hindu Cham people of Vietnam consist of 70% Kshatriyas (pronounced in Vietnamese as "Satrias"). Although Balamon make up only 25% of the overall Cham population (the other 75% are Muslims or Cham Bani). These Balamon Kshatriyas claim to be the descendants of the Champa Empire.Non-Hindu
There are some tribes in the Middle East and the Near East, who are the descendants of the original Vedic Kshatriyas, but who traveled west and settled there.Middle eastern tribes
The Mitanni was a historic pre-Hindu empire in the Middle East, which preceded the Semitic Civilization. The descendants of the Empire have been Aramianized and now practice one of the Semitic religions.
Persian tribes
Some tribes of Persia are believed to be of mixed Indo-Iranian affinities. Examples - Roma people, Sinti people and of course the Kambojas (q.v.).
External links
References
Books, Megazines and Articles
- History and Culture of Indian People, The Vedic Age, p 313-314
- History of Gurjara Rajputs: [link]
See also
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