Uppara or Gavandi: Deccan
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Uppara or Gavandi
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 |
Uppara, matadi, Memar, Chunnar, Beldar, Sagar, Sagarollu— a Telugu caste of earth-v;orkers, identical with Gavandi of the Maha- rashtra, and Uppara of the 'Carnatic. The name Uppara or Uppar comis from the Telugu 'word Uppu, salt, and was applied to these people with reference to their original occupation; but as this has been prohibited, the members of the caste have taken to earthwork, lime-burning and daily labour.
Origin
Several legends are current concerning the origin of the caste. According to one, they claim to be descended from the 60,000 sons of Raja Sagar, the son of Bahuka of the Solar dynasty. Another legend ascribes th^p creation of the first Uppara to the God Vishnu who, feelmg the want of salt in his meal, created a man from the sweat of his 3rm-pit and endowed him with the power of making salt from earth. Ancient authorities regard Upparas as a mixed caste, descended from an Ayogava father and a Kaivartaka mother.
Internal Structure
The internal structure of the caste is very complicated. The Telugu Upparas have two chief endogamous divi- sions, Matti Uppara and Telaga Uppara. Chetti Upparas and Telanga Upparas are also mentioned as two other sub-castes in Telangana, but nothing is definitely known regarding them. In the Carnatic the caste is divided into four sub-castes : (I) Uppar, (2) Katanewaru, (3) Lingayit Uppar and (4) Kadai Uppar. Two more sub-castes are found existing in the Carnatic (1) Pakutras and (2) Trinamdharis. Pakutras claim descent from a king named Tirmalroy. The Pakutras are further sub- divided into three curious groups. They are (1) Yedu Wannuwaraha, (2) Yantu Wannuwaraha and (3) Ayalu Wannuwaraha, the names being derived from the amount of the bride-price paid by the bride- groom to the bride's parents. With Ayalu Wannuwarahas {Ayah — even, Wannu — gold and Waraha — a coin worth Rs. 4) the bride-price claimed is seven gold coins, with Yantu Wannuwarahas (eight) it is eight gold coins, while Yedu Wannuwarahas p£^ only five gold coins as the price of the girl . These three sub-castes are said to^ eat together but not to intermarry. In Maharashtra the caste is divided into three endogamous divisions: (1) Gavandi, (2) Wad, (3) Sagar or Kamathi. The first two appear to be recruited from among the Maratha Kunbis and to be separated from the parent caste fcy adopting the profession of earth-workers. The Sagars, or' Kamathis, claim to be originally Kshtriyas and still w&ar the sagred thread and eat in silk clothes. The caste seems, on the whole, to ^e a heterogenous group formed by the members of different castes vv'ho took up the profession of manufacturing salt.
The exogamous system of the caste does not differ from that of other castes of the locality. The section names are shown at the end of this article. Marriages are forbidden within the same section. A man may marry two sisters. He may also marry the daughters of his maternal uncle, paternal aunt and elder sister.
Polygamy is permitted and in theory there fs no limit to the number of wives a man may have.
Marriage
Infant marriage is generally practised by the caste, the girl's age being between two and eleven years. But in the Camatic girls are sometimes married after they have attained the age of puberty. The marriage cerenjiony closely corresponds to that in practice among other castes of the same social standing. In Telangana it comprises several rites which have been described in the Kapu article and may be briefly stated to be, Tambul, Pagdimodpu, Myalapolu, Pidapolu, Ravireni, Lagnam, Kanyadan, Padghattan, Jiraguda, Pusti Mittal, Karikan, Talwal, Brahmamodi, Bashingam, Arundhatidarshan, Myalapolu, Nagoell's, Bhum. At the time of Polu, the bridegroom is presented with Kam Byaralu. In Maharashtra the marriage cere- mony is of the Kunbi type. An earthen platform is built and a marriage booth is erected, made of 5 posts, one of them being of the Umhar tree (wild fig). These posts are encircled with raw cotton thread. The posts are 6 feet high and on their tops 5 earthen pots are placed covered with lighted lamps. For the Haldi ceremony a leparate booth is erected and under it the bridal pair are smeared with turmeric paste and oil. The ceremony extends over five days. On the first morning the mazdap (booth) is erected and in the afternoon the bby and the gifl are smeared with turmeric and oil and bathed at their houses. On the second day 10 pots are ceremonially brought from a potter's house, five of which are kept on the five posts of the booth and the remaining five are arranged in a square in the mandapa and encircled with a raw cotton thread. On this day Mandapa Daivata aiyi the family gods are installed and worshipped and the caste people are feasted.- On the third day, the boy is first taken in procession to the Maruti's temple, where he is ceremonially received by the bride's party. This is called 'Simant Pujan,' after which he is conducted either on a bullock or a horse to the marriage mandap. The usual ceremonies of waving a lamp, breaking a cocoanut and throwing cooked food at the bridegroom having been performed, he is taken inside the booth and made to stand opposite the bride, a cloth being held between them. The Brahmin priest repeats mantras and benedictory verses and throws coloured rice over their heads. The cloth is then removed and cotton thread is wound five times round the pair. 'It is then made into two bracelets which are fastened to their wrists. The marriage string (mangalsutra) is handed over to ihe boy, who ties it round the neck of his wife. Their garments are knotted together and they bow before the family gods and the elders of the family. The fourth day is spent in feasting and merry-making. On the 5th day Sade is performed, by which the wedded pair are conducted in procession to the bridegroom's house.
Widow-Marriage
A widow is allowed to marry, but not her husband's brother. On the wedding day the widow is presented with a new sari and choli and one rupee for bangles. She is taken to the Maruti's temple by other widows and made to sit by a knife which represents the bridegroom. A man of the Golla Dasri caste ties a pusti round her neck. This ceremony completes her marriage. In Maharashtra, Brahmins are engaged to conduct the ceremony.
Divorce
Divorce is permitted and enforced by turning the woman out of the house in the presence of the caste Panchayat. The divorced woman is allowed to remarry by the same rite as widows. Adultery on the part of a woman, if with a member of higher caste, is condoned by a fine ranging from Rs. 5 to Rs. 25, but if with a member of a lower caste it is punished by expulsion from her caste.
The members of the ca»te follow the Hin«?u Law of Inheritance. Females inherit in default of males. In TelangJ&ja the eldest son gets an ox in addition to his share, while in thg, Carnatic he receives a few rupees more than his brothers. • *
Religion
The religion of the Upparas presents no features of special interest. They all belong to the Saiva sect. Spirits are appeased in sickness. They have strong belief in sorcery and evil spirits. Venkateshwar is specially worshipped on Saturdays and in the mo^th of Shravan with offerings of sweet meats, which are afterwards con- sumed by the votaries. All Hindu deities are honourgd by the caste. Among their minor deities are Pochamma and Ellamma, who are appeased with offerings of meat. Brahmans are employed in maniages and on ceremonial occasions and Satanis and Dasaris attend at the funeral ceremonies. The favourite deities of the Maratha Gavandis are Balaji and Bhavanai of Tuljapur.
Disposal of the Dead
The dead are usually burnt, but occa- sionally buried, specially in the case of persons who die unmarried or of cholera or smallpox. The Saivaits bury their dead with the face downwards. The ashes and bones are either thrown into a river or buried under a ' tarwad ' tree. Mourning is observed for I I'days. The chief mourner abstains from salt for the first five days; but those in the Carnatic eat meat on the 3rd and 9th days after death. On the fifth day a pot is placed on the spot where the person expired and worshipped by sacrificing a goat. On the third and fifth days cooked meat and wine are offered at the tomb for the benefit of the departed soul. No regular Sradha is performed by the members of the caste. On the Pitra Amawasy^a day rice and money are offered to the Brah- mins in the names of dead ancestors in general.
Occupation
The members of the caste are by profession salt workers. The salt manufactured by them is called 'Atupa.' It is bitter to the taste and generally used by the poorer classes. In the hot season they make salt-petre. Some of them are cultivators and hold lands on different tenures. Now that the manufacture of salt is for- bidden, they are engaged as masons and in hewing stones, building walls and houses and sinking wells and tanks. A few deal in images of Hindu gods and saints made of earth and lime. The poor Gavandis work as day laborers.
Social Status
The social status of the caste is immediately below the Kapus or kunbis and other castes occupying the sane sociaL rank. They eat the flesh of sheep, deer, hare, pigs, fowl and fish and drink spirituous and intoxicating liquors.
