Chitraguptavanshi Kayastha

Chitraguptavanshi Kayastha, also referred as North Indian Kayastha, denotes a subgroup of Hindus of the Kayastha community that are mainly concentrated in the Hindi Belt of North India. They claim to be Kayastha Brahmins.[1]

Chitraguptavanshi Kayastha
ReligionsHinduism
LanguagesHindi
Populated statesUttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Nepal
Subdivisions12 primary sub-clans

History

Early North India
Another Buddha statue from Mathura installed by Kayastha Bhattipriya

The Kayasthas are mentioned as an office (not a caste) as early as the first century C.E.[2][3] As evidenced by literary and epigraphical texts, they emerged in the period between late ancient and early medieval India. Their emergence is explained by modern scholars as a consequence of "growth of state machinery, complication of taxation system and fast-spreading land-grant practice that required professional documenting fixation". Initially, the term Kayastha seems to have referred to an occupational class[4] and not a distinct social group. Gradually, the North Indian branch of Kayasthas consolidated into a distinct caste-like community somewhere around the 11th- 12th centuries CE[5] maintaining Chitragupta - the divine scribe as their grand ancestor. [6]

Over the centuries, the occupational histories of Kayasthas largely revolved around scribal services. However, these scribes did not simply take dictation but acted in the range of capacities better indicated by the term “secretary”. They used their training in law, literature, court language, accounting, litigation and many other areas to fulfil responsibilities in all these venues. As indicated by various epigraphic evidences, they acted in the capacity of a medieval office combining duties of both a secretary of war and a secretary of state (Mahāsandhivigrahin).[7][8] Kayasthas were also responsible for writing Indic eulogies, known as prashastis for Hindu kings prior to Turkic invasions of North India.[9]

Apparently, the emergence of Kayasthas challenged the monopoly of Brahmins on intellectual occupations.[10][11]

According to Romila Thapar, Kayastha were a "powerful component of the upper bureaucracy and.... (though ranked lower than Brahmins) were on occasions highly respected as royal biographers and composers of lengthy inscriptions" and "inviting Kayasthas as professional scribes was (another) indicator of an established kingdom" in the early North India.[12] She also notes that "as recipients of office and holders of grants of land, brahmanas, kayasthas, and sreshtins (wealthy merchants) were moving into a cultural circle which attempted to diffuse a Sanskritic culture but not invariably with impressive results." [13]

According to Chitrarekha Gupta, Kayasthas were "highly educated and patronized art and culture" but at the same time "tax-paying common people were much suspicious of the Kayasthas because deceit lurked both in their tongues as well as in their documents". [14] Indeed, Kayasthas had earned some reputation for being deceitful and thus became a target of many works of medieval Indian satire. For example, Kshemendra's 11th century work Narmamālā narrates the adventures of an ambitious, greedy and ignorant Kayastha who manages to become a minister and as a result ruined the whole country.[15] Kshemendra argues in his work that Kayasthas' invention of a separate script was a method to defraud people so that good kings even though knowing their kayasthas to be "eager to kill, robbers of others' property, rogues and demons" had to befriend them in order to balance the treasury. [16]

According to K. Leonard, "Kayasthas are an example of the social mobility of a caste through association with a ruler, rather than through Sanskrtization (emulation of Brahmin culture) or through military conquest (like Rajputs)". [17] By the early-medieval era, various branches of Chitraguptavanshi Kayasthas had become highly influential in the administration of contemporary kingdoms and started asserting their identities.[18][19] The epigraphic sources reveal that some of these kayastha families even had the status of being feudatories (thakkura); some had earned the title of pandita for their extensive learning while others being financially sound commissioned construction of Hindu temples.[20][21][22] The author of the 11th century Sanskrit work Udayasundarī Kathā, Soḍḍhala describes himself as a Kayastha and at the same time claims to be Kshatriya. He claims to be Vālabha-Kayastha as he hailed from Vallabhi.[23] The earliest epigraphic mention of Chitragupta having any connection with the Kayasthas also appears around the same period from a royal charter (dated 1115 AD) of Govindachandra of Kannauj written by a Vāstavya-Kayastha Thakkura (i.e. Srivastava branch of Kayastha) named Jalhaṇa.[24] Similar epigraphic records mention Māthuranvaya-Kayastha (Mathur) and Naigama-Kayastha (Nigam) holding important administrative positions under the Chahamana and Paramara dynasties.[25][26][27]

Etymology

According to Merriam-Webster, the word Kāyastha is probably formed from the Sanskrit kāya (body), and the suffix -stha (standing, being in).[28] The suffix vanshi is derived from the Sanskrit word vansh (वंश) which translates to belonging to a particular family dynasty.[29] According to Brahmanical literature, Chitragupta had two wives- Shobhavati, who was daughter of a Brahmin Susharma, and Nandini, who was daughter of a Kshatriya Shradhadev Manu, respectively and the descendants of their 12 sons form the 12 sub-groups of this community.[30][31]

References
  1. Shukla, Indrajit (2016). Loka Shasak Maha Kal Chitragupta Tatha Cha Brahma Kayastha Gaud Brahmana. Gorakhpur: Sanatan Dharm Trust.
  2. Davidson, Ronald M (2005). Tibetan renaissance : Tantric Buddhism in the rebirth of Tibetan culture. New York: Columbia University Press. p. 178. ISBN 978-0-231-50889-6. OCLC 808346313.
  3. Visvanathan, Meera (2014). "From the "lekhaka" to the Kāyastha: Scribes in Early Historic Court and Society (200 BCE-200 CE)". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 75: 37. ISSN 2249-1937. JSTOR 44158358.
  4. Das, Sukla (1980). Socio-economic Life of Northern India. Abhinav Publications. p. 64. ISBN 9788170171164. Thus during the Gupta Period, the Kayasthas meant a scribal profession rather than separate caste
  5. SHAH, K.K. (1993). "SELF LEGITIMATION AND SOCIAL PRIMACY: A Case Study of Some Kayastha Inscriptions From Central India". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 54: 859. ISSN 2249-1937 – via JSTOR. By the 11th-12th centuries AD it appears various subcastes of the Kayasthas and consolidated because from contemporary inscriptions we learn of epithets such as Mathura, Saksena, Naigama Katariya qualifying their Kayastha identity in various parts of northern India.
  6. Vanina, Eugenia (2012). Medieval Indian mindscapes : space, time, society, man. New Delhi: Primus Books. p. 178. ISBN 978-93-80607-19-1. OCLC 794922930. Initially, these term referred only to the appointment of men from various castes, mainly Brahmans, into the Kayastha post. Gradually, the Kayasthas emerged as a caste-like...
    This group as demontrated by epigraphical....that required professional documenting fixation.
  7. Davidson, Ronald M. (2005). Tibetan renaissance : Tantric Buddhism in the rebirth of Tibetan culture. New York: Columbia University Press. p. 179. ISBN 978-0-231-50889-6. OCLC 808346313.CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  8. Carroll, Lucy (February 1978). "Colonial Perceptions of Indian Society and the Emergence of Caste(s) Associations". The Journal of Asian Studies. 37 (2): 233–250. doi:10.2307/2054164. JSTOR 2054164.
  9. Bellenoit, Hayden J. (January 2017). "The Formation of the Colonial State in India". Routledge Studies in South Asian History (1 ed.): 220. doi:10.4324/9780203762011. ISBN 9780203762011 – via Routledge - Taylor and Francis group.
  10. Vanina, Eugenia (2012). Medieval Indian mindscapes : space, time, society, man. New Delhi: Primus Books. p. 178. ISBN 978-93-80607-19-1. OCLC 794922930. The monopoly of Brahmanas on intellectual occupations began, since early medieval period, to be challenged by the scribal community of kayasthas....
  11. Thapar, Romila (2013). The Past Before Us : historical traditions of early north India. Cambridge, Massachusetts. ISBN 978-0-674-72651-2. OCLC 859536567. The imprint of Brahmanical learning influenced other contenders for the status of intellectuals. Foremost among these were the Kāyasthas. Even as a functional group, they had come to be associated with extensive learning.
  12. Thapar, Romila (2013). The Past Before Us : Historical traditions of early north India. Cambridge, Massachusetts. pp. 525, 539, 565. ISBN 978-0-674-72651-2. OCLC 859536567.
  13. Thapar, Romila (2013). The Past Before Us : Historical traditions of early north India. Cambridge, Massachusetts. p. 578. ISBN 978-0-674-72651-2. OCLC 859536567.
  14. Davidson, Ronald M (2008). Tibetan renaissance : Tantric Buddhism in the rebirth of Tibetan culture. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 179–180. ISBN 978-81-208-3278-7. OCLC 319585768.CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  15. Vanina, Eugenia (2012). Medieval Indian mindscapes : space, time, society, man. New Delhi: Primus Books. p. 179. ISBN 978-93-80607-19-1. OCLC 794922930.CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  16. Davidson, Ronald M (2008). Tibetan renaissance : Tantric Buddhism in the rebirth of Tibetan culture. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 179–180. ISBN 978-81-208-3278-7. OCLC 319585768.CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  17. Kolenda, Pauline M. (1980). "Social History of an Indian Caste: The Kayasths of Hyderabad. Karen I. Leonard". American Anthropologist. 82 (1): 218–218. doi:10.1525/aa.1980.82.1.02a00990. ISSN 1548-1433.
  18. Thapar, Romila (2013). The Past Before Us : Historical traditions of early north India. Cambridge, Massachusetts. p. 575. ISBN 978-0-674-72651-2. OCLC 859536567. Their ambiguous caste status in Brahmanical social codes may have encouraged them when acquiring office to insist on recording their origins and history as an assertion of identity. This may have been partly conditioned by the many branches of the kayastha caste that had become powerful in the administration of contemporary kingdoms.
  19. SHAH, K.K. (1993). "SELF LEGITIMATION AND SOCIAL PRIMACY: A Case Study of Some Kayastha Inscriptions From Central India". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 54: 859. ISSN 2249-1937 – via JSTOR. By the 11th-12th centuries AD it appears various subcastes of the Kayasthas and consolidated because from contemporary inscriptions we learn of epithets such as Mathura, Saksena, Naigama Katariya qualifying their Kayastha identity in various parts of northern India.
  20. Kumar, Saurabh (2015). "Rural Society and Rural Economy in the Ganga Valley during the Gahadavalas". Social Scientist. 43 (5/6): 29–45. ISSN 0970-0293 – via JSTOR. One thing is clear that by this time, kayasthas had come to acquire prominent places in the court and officialdom and some were financially well-off to commission the construction of temples, while others were well-versed in the requisite fields of Vedic lore to earn the title of pandita for themselves. In our study, the epigraphic sources do not indicate the oppressive nature of kayastha officials.

    Like the contemporary brahmanas and ksatriyas, some kayasthas and karanikas enjoyed the status of thakkura.
  21. Mazumdar, Bhakat Prasad (1960). "Castes and Professions". Socio-economic History of Northern India: (1030 - 1194 A.D.). Mukhopadhyay. pp. 103–104. Another sub-caste of the Kayasthas was the Mathur-anvaya Kayasthas, who probably...as a feudal vassal, with the title of Thakkura, the name of one Udayasiha is mentioned in the...
  22. Mazumdar, Bhakat Prasad (1960). "Castes and Professions". Socio-economic History of Northern India: (1030 - 1194 A.D.). Mukhopadhyay. pp. 101–103. Members of Vastavya community rose to very high positions. They enjoyed the feudatory status of Thakkura under the Gahadavala Kings under Govindachandra and Jayachandra, and the Chandela King Bhojavarman...
  23. Ghosh, Jogendra Chandra; Ghosh, Jogesh Chandra (1931). "GLEANINGS FROM THE UDAYASUNDARĪ-KATHĀ". Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute. 13 (3/4): 198, 201. ISSN 0378-1143 – via JSTOR. They spread themselves to metropolitan towns for the triumph of the Kshatriyas and as supporters of the creeper of royal prosperity. They came to be known as Vãlabha Kãyasthas as they hailed from Valabh. (198)
    Soddhala calls himself a Käyastha and at the same time claims to be a Ksatriya. There can be no doubt as to his claim to the Ksatriyahood, as his book containing the...(201)
  24. Ghosh, Jogendra Chandra; Ghosh, Jogesh Chandra (1931). "GLEANINGS FROM THE UDAYASUNDARĪ-KATHĀ". Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute. 13 (3/4): 202. ISSN 0378-1143 – via JSTOR.
  25. Asopa, Jai Narayan (1990). A Socio-political and Economic Study, Northern India. Prateeksha Publications. p. 318. Similarly, the Mathuranvaya and Vallabyha wrote the charters of the Chahamana and Paramara Kings.
  26. SHARMA, KRISHNA GOPAL (1991). "LIGHT ON SOCIAL SET-UP AND SOCIAL LIFE FROM THE EARLY JAINA INSCRIPTIONS FROM RAJASTHAN (UPTO 1200 A.D.): SUMMARY". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 52: 199. ISSN 2249-1937 – via JSTOR. Our inscriptions mention Kayasthas as a separate caste, though they are seen associated with their hereditary profession. Two families of the Kayasthas emerge prominently, the family of the Naigamas and the Valabha family. One Kayastha is shown as holding the coveted position of a Sandhivigrahi.
  27. Mazumdar, Bhakat Prasad (1960). "Castes and Professions". Socio-economic History of Northern India: (1030 - 1194 A.D.). Mukhopadhyay. pp. 103–104. Another sub-caste of the Kayasthas was the Mathuranvaya Kayasthas, who probably...as a feudal vassal, with the title of Thakkura, the name of one Udayasiha is mentioned in the...
  28. "Kayastha". Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
  29. "vaMza". Spokensanskrit.org.
  30. Rajnī Kānt Śāstrī (1949). Hindū jati kā utthān aur patan. Kitab Mahal. अब चित्रगुप्त के विवाह संबंध की वार्ता सुनिए। इनकी दो स्त्रियां थीं-(१)सुशर्मा ब्राह्मण की कन्या शुभावती (ब्राह्मणी) जिसके आठ पुत्र हुए श्रौर (२)श्राद्धदेव मनु की पुत्री नन्दिनी (चत्रिया) जिसके चार पुत्र हुए।
  31. Hayden J. Bellenoit (17 February 2017). The Formation of the Colonial State in India: Scribes, Paper and Taxes, 1760–1860. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-134-49429-3. The north Indian Kayasthas are divided into 12 subgroups, reflecting King Chitragupta's marriage to Devi Nandini and Devi Shobhavati

Bibliography
  1. Sinha, Ranjit K. (2014). The Kayastha Caste of India: Antiquity, Tradition and Modernity. Patna, Bihar: Indo books. ISBN 9789350741139.
  2. Prasad, K.; LLC, Books (2018). The Kayastha Ethnology, an Enquiry Into the Origin of the Chitraguptavansi and Chandrasenavansi Kayasthas. Creative Media Partners. pp. 34–69, 75–78. ISBN 9780343919894.

See also
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