Sonar: Deccan
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Sonar
This article is an extract from THE CASTES AND TRIBES OF H. E. H. THE NIZAM'S DOMINIONS BY SYED SIRAJ UL HASSAN Of Merton College, Oxford, Trinity College, Dublin, and Middle Temple, London. One of the Judges of H. E. H. the Nizam's High Court of Judicature : Lately Director of Public Instruction. BOMBAY THE TlMES PRESS 1920 Indpaedia is an archive. It neither agrees nor disagrees |
Sonar, Potadar, Shet — a goldsnyth caste found scaKered all ovei the Dominions. Very little is known reg'arding thejr origin, nor do their traditions throw much light upon the question. The caste is clearly a functional group, formed from the members of respectable castes who, in different parts of the country, adopted the profession of working in gold and silver.
Internal Structure
Sonars are divided into the following subcastes : — Vaisya, Panchal, Lad, Malvi, Ahir and Kadu, the members of whom neither interdine nor intermarry. The name Vaisya suggests that they might be the modern representatives of the traditional Vaisya caste mentioned in 'Manu. The mem- bers of this subcaste claim to be of higher' rank than the others and support their claim by saying that they conform more to the Brahmanical usages than the others, viz : — wearing the sacred thread, not allowing widows to remarry and abstaining from flesh and strong drink. They observe all the sixteen sacraments of Brahmans and the fact that they perform Upana^ana, or invest theit boys with the sacred thread before they are nine years old, confirms the belief that they were originally Brahmans and were degraded because they adopted the profession of goldsmiths. The Panchals have been treated fully in a separate article. Lad Sonars, as their name denotes, have probably come from the country of Lat, the ancient name of Southern Gujarath. They claim to be Kshatriyas and say that they are descendants of the Lunar King Shantanu, who had nine sons by the river Ganges, out of whom two only survived, one being the celibate Bhisma and the other a mad one. The lattei was cured of his insanity by the grace of Jwala mukhi, the patron goddess of the subcaste. Out of gratitude, the goddess was presented with a variety of jewels and his descendants, the Sonars in question, took to their present occupation in honour of the event. The Malvi Sonars take their name from Malva, their original habitat, and aver that, they were originally Brahmans and were degraded for having
stolen gold. They have two sub-divisions, Bute Malvi and Shire
Malvi. Ahir Sonars are no doubt formed from the Ahir caste. Kadus, or bastards, are illegitimate descendants of Sonar men and w»men of other castes.
The character of the exagamous sub-divisions of Sonars differs in different sub-castes. The ^Vaisya Sonars recognise the Brahmanical systerij of gotras and forbii a man to marry a girl who belongs to the same gotra as himself. The section names of Lad and Malvis are mostly of the territorial type. The following will serve as speci- mens : —
Dahale. Moregaortkar.
Halikar. Patharkar.
Chilkharkar. Rajurkar.
Nagarkar. Ambegaonkar.
Pedgaonkar. Shahane.
Jinturkar. Ashtikar.
Lolage. Shingnapurkar.
Kulthe. Tak.
Tehare. Udawant.
Udekar.
With few exceptions they have reference to localities where the members of the sub-castes may have settled after their immigra- tion into these dominions. Lad and Malvi Sonars allege that they have also Brahmanical gotras, but these are only ornamental append- ages and have no part in the regulation of their marriages. A man may not marry a woman of his own section. No other section is a bar to marriage, provided that he does not marry his sister's daughter or any of his first cousins. -
Marriage
Except among Ahir Sonars, infant marriage is in full force and it would be deemed an indelible disgrace for a girl to be unprovided with a husband before she reaches the age of puberty. Polygamy is permitted so far that if a man's first wife is barren or incurably diseased or proves faithless he is allowed to take a second.
The marriage ceremony of Vaisya Sonars is 'of the Brahmanical type, the binding and essential portion being Satapffdi, the taking of seven steps by the bride along with the bridegroom. Lad and Malvi Sonars marry their girls by the rites in use among th<; Maratha Kunbis. Antarpat and the canying of the bridal pair round the sacred tire make the maniage binding and irrevocable. Some interesting usages in connection with the marriage ceremony among Malvis aSd Lads deserve mention.
On the wedding morning the bric'o is smeared with turmeric and oil and bathed and, while she stands wet from head to* foot and surrounded by a number of married females, her maternal uncle. covers them ail with a sheet of cloth and walks five times round their encircling them, at the same time, with a cotton thread. The females, in the meanwhile, upbraid him violently calling him by the vile name of Takkpchya and repeating the abusive formula ' TaWar Makkar Kona fire, Mama Chhinal Ka fire.' After this the females withdraw leaving the bride alone under the cover. In this condition she is carried by her maternal uncle to ai seat under the wedding canopy and dressed in a boy's garmeiri with a turban on her head. A procession (Varat) of friends and relatives is formed conducting her, on horse-back and attired in a male garb, to the bridegroom's house. On arrival at the entrance she is taken down from the horse and carried back alone by her maternal uncle to her own house. The same procession, then joined by the bridegroom's pfarty, escorts him on the same horse to the bride's house. After the usual rites constituting the marriage have been performed, a fish is made of wheaten flour with its nose bored and a string passed through the nose. The bride holds the fish by the string and turns it round and round in water contained in a vessel while the bridegroom, taking a bow in his hand, hits it with -an arrow. A garland of jawa grains is put round the bride's neck and the bridal pair worship a mango tree, after v hich the garland and the fish are both buried under the tree.
Widow-Marriage
Among Vaishya Sonars widow marriage is strictly prohibited and divorce is unknown. If a woman commits adultery with a man of ihe sub-caste, or with one of a higher caste, the matter is generally hushed up. An intrigue with a low caste man is punished with instant expulsion from the caste.
Other sub-castes allow their widows to marry again by the meagre ritual known as Pat. New clothes and bangles are presented to the bride .and either the officiating Brahman or a widow ties the garments of the bridal pair in a knot and daubs the bride's forehead with kunkum (red aniline powder). This completes the ceremony. The widow must not marry any one belonging to the same section as her late husband. ,
The sub-castes, which' permit widow marriage, also allow divorce, when a woman i? suspected of unchastity, which is effected with the sanction of the elders of the caste.
Religion
The religious and ceremonial observances of the Sonar caste exhibit no features, of special interest, distinguishing them from castes of^the same social standing. Kali, in her various forms, is regarded with special reverence by all sub-castes as watching over their welfare. Vaishya Sonars pay respect to Gopal Krishna and observe the goknlashtami festival in his honour. Lad Sonars regard Ingala or Jwalamukhi as their tutelary deity, whom they worship on the eighth of, the light half of Asin (October) with offerings of goats. The animals are sacrificed on that day and eaten by the votaries themselves after the worship. Brahmans are employed for religious and ceremonial purposes. Tuhi and gonri are worshipped by the women of the caste. Among their minor gods may be' mentioned the goddess Bhavani of Tuljapur, Khandoba of Jejuri, and Vyankoba of Tirupati.
Disposal of the Dead
The dead are burned in a lying posture with the head pointing to the south. Bones are collected on the 3rd day after death, and thrown into the river Ganges or Godavar; Bodies of children under three years of age are buried. Sradha is performed onjhe 10th and 13th days after death, when caste brethren are entertained at a feast. It is also celebrated evsry year on the anniversary of the death. Libations for the benefit of the departed ^ ancestors are offered in the dark half of the month of Bhadrapad (September).
Social Status
The social status of the caste, on the whole, is respectable. Vaishya Sonars rank immediately below Brahmans, from whose hands alone they eat cooked food. La(f and Malvi Sonars occupy a lower position and are inferior not only to^ Brahmans but also to Vaishya Sonars and other castes of the same social stanciJiig. All the sub-castes rank socially above Maratha Kunbis, from whose hands; however, they accept water. All Sonars, except Vaishya and Panchal, drink wine and eat fish and fowl and the flesh of goats, hare, deer and sheep. Vaishyas and Panchals wear the sacisd thread and perform Upanayana, or thread investiture of their boys.
Occupation
The chief occupations of the caste are working in metal, mostly in gold and silver, and meney lending, or saraf. A few of them are land holders and cultivators. Some have, of late years, entered Government service. In the Maratha districts the Sonar is a member of the village system, claiming Baluti, or a share, in the com and garden produce of a village.
Among the natives the Sonar is proverbially considered untrust- worthy. He is suspected of substituting base metal for the gold or silver supplied to him to be made up into ornaments. As a money-lender he is charged with extorting money from his clients. A fair idea of the opinion held of him may be derived from the Marathi proverb : —
Sonar, Shimpi, Kulkami Appd, Hyanchi Sangat Nokore Bdppd.
O man, avoid, by all means, the company of a goldsmith, a tailor and the village clerk.
