Balija

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Balija is a trader community found in the state of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

Most of the Balijas refer to themselves as Kapu/Telaga in Andhra and as Munnuru Kapu in Telangana. In Rayalaseema area they call themselves Balija/Setty/Balija Naidu. Here Kapu refers to Kapu Reddy) community. They are primarily concentrated in the Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh. Balija is the only subcaste of Kapu (caste) which bears both the titles Setty and Naidu.

Contents

[edit] Sub Castes

The Geographical Names of Balija are

[edit] Origins

Primarily traders by occupation they seem to have been formed by a small social change that seem to have occurred among some sections of the Kapu community according to some historians. The Original Balijas seem to have migrated from the Balijipeta, Srikakulam District.

Veera Balaingyas were mentioned in Kakatiya dynasty inscriptions. They were powerful and wealthy merchants who were highly respected in Kakatiyan society. The Balijas were primarily tax collectors and merchants.

Thurston and Rangachari describe the Telugu trading classes as fire-born merchant and artisan castes: Balijas (with their offshoots Kavarais and Janappans) and Togatas (weaver caste who believe they originated when their God Chamundeshwari threw rice into the sacrificial fire from which a host of warriors sprang out).

Balija Branches

  • Setty Balija These were the rich and powerful traders and merchants of the Kakatiya Dynasty. There was mention of some very old trading guilds concentrated in Bellary in Karnataka.[1] In fact historians suggest this was the first branch in Balijas. They use the title Setty.
  • Balija Naidu Balija Naidu is followed with Naidu title. They seem to have formed during the Kakatiya dynasty times primarily to protect the Balija / Setty trading caravans from being attacked by bandits.
  • Odda (Vada) Balija a sub caste of the Balijas from the Visakhapatnam Srikakulam and East Godavari area who are Sea farers and were sea traders and merchants.
  • Kota Balijas The Madurai and Tanjavore Nayaks were from this line. Some sources argue that the Araveedu dynasty of Vijayanagar Empire was also from this line while others sources such as C.P. Brown state that they were of Yadava or Yadu origin.However there are multiple references available divulging the interrelationship of Madurai,Thanjavur and Vijayanagar kings of Balija caste. Apart from historians such as Thurston and Rangachri and R.V.Russel there are others that attest to the Balija caste affiliation with the kingdoms of Thanjavur,Madurai and Vijayanagar. According to the "Gazetteer of the Nellore district :Brought upto 1938 " by Government of Madras staff ,the Desa section of Balija caste comprises of the descendents of the Nayak kings of Madura,Thanjore and Vijayanagar.As per G.S.Ghurye in "Caste and Race in India" , the Nayak kings of Madura and Thanjavur were Balijas. According to "Questioning Ramayana: A South Asian Tradition" by Paula Richman,the famous Thanjavur king Raghunatha Nayudu belonged to Balija caste. King Sevappa Naidu, the founder of Thanjavur dynasty and the predecessor of king Raghunatha Naidu had married the sister-in-law of Vijaya nagar emperor Achyuthadevarayalu ( half-brother of the great emperor Sreekrishna Devarayalu).
  • Gajula Balija / Sugavansi (pure) Balija. Myth is that Siva’s wife Parvati did a severe penance in order to look beautiful for Shiva. A man sprung from the sacrificial fire leading a donkey laden with heaps of bangles, turmeric, sandal powder, perfumes, etc, and this person was the ancestor of the Gajula Balija [3].
  • Kavarai (Kavara Balija Naidu or Gavara Balija Naidu). As per Thurston of "Castes and Tribes of Southern India" Kavarai is the name for Balijas (Telugu trading caste), who have settled in the Tamil country. Kavarais call themselves Balijas (born from fire). They use the titles Naidu, Nayakkan, Chetti or Setti and Nayak. Gajula Balija is the largest sub -division of Kavarais. The equivalent name for Gajula Balija in Tamil is Valaiyal Chetti. Kavarai or Gavarai is said to be a corrupt form of Kauravar or Gauravar as descendants of Kuru of Mahabharata as Kauravas[3].
  • Rajamahendravaram Balija or Musukama Balija (traders named after a special ear ornament worn by women)
  • Gandavallu or Gundapodi Vandlu (supposed to have originally Komatis)
  • Anamala
  • Linga (Lingayat balijas)
  • Thota
  • Ralla
  • Pusa (traded in beads)
  • Andey
  • Racha
  • Vyasa
  • Gopati Balija
  • Mulaka
  • Miriyala (pepper traders)
  • Nemilli
  • Pagadala (coral traders)
  • Pakanati
  • Poludasu
  • Oppanakkaran (Trader)

There were several small kingdoms in Anantapur District owned by Balijas. [2]. [Ex: Kalyanadurgam Butna family. Rayadurgram, Linga Balija of Ande Prasannapaa palegar of Bukkarayapatnam, etc].

While the fact that they were prominent merchants who were actively involved in the political process of the empires is not in question, there are conflicting reports of their direct relationship of some ancient dynasties. Some sources including Vijaya Kumari and Sepuri and Bhaskar Kante Narayana Desayi in their books, Social Changes among Balijas and Balijakula Charithra think that the Madurai, Thanjavur, Khandi (Kandy), Thundeera (Gingee/Chenchi), Krishnadeva Raya and the Aravidu kings of Vijayanagar empire were interrelated and from the Balija/Kapu caste. Edgar Thurston's and R.V. Russell in their books Castes And Tribes of Southern India and The Tribes and Castes of Central Provinces of India, lists the oral traditions of Balijas claiming the dynasties of Vijayanagar, Madurai and Thanjavur belonging to their caste.

C.P. Brown and Colin McKenzie's translations of the ancient inscriptions differ from these accounts and implying that Krishna Deva Raya and the Aravidu Kings were Chandravanshi Yadavas. Other sources question weather they were even of Telugu extraction. Also conflicting is that the actual recognised descendants of Krishna Deva Raya and the Aravidu dynasty, who until the formation of independent India were Zamindars of the old capital of Anegondi, state they are of the Raju caste.[3]

While the majority of the modern day community does not fret over the Varna origin or status of their community, there are conflicting accounts to this. In the "Social Change Among Balijas: Majority Community of Andhra Pradesh" (page 3 & 4):

In a letter submitted from Coimbatore to Mr Francis in connection with the census of 1901, it was stated that Balijas are Kshatriyas of the Lunar race, as can be proved by a reference to the Bhagvatham, Vishupuranam and Brahmanda Puranam, etc. In this connection it will be seen that the Naidu rulers of Tanjore, Trichinapalli, and Modur Vijayanagaram were all relations of Narapathi samsthanam or Vijayanagar. That they are Narapathis or Kshatriyas of the Lunar race can be clearly seen by a reference to Manucharitra, Parijathapaharanam, Proudha Prabandha Kavi Charithra, etc, and that they were direct descendants of the great Andhra kings can be proved with equal satisfaction by referring to colonial Mackenzies manuscripts. In the introduction of A.D. Campbell's Telugu Grammar and James Prinsep's useful Tables of Andhra Kings, it has been shown that the Andhras were the immediate descendants of the well known Yayathi Raja of the Lunar race.

Thist conflicts with the The Encyclopedia of World History statement,

Balijas were originally part of the great Telugu migrations southward into the Tamil country in the 15th and 16th centuries, Balija merchant-warriors who claimed these Nayaka positions rose to political and cultural power and supported an ethos that emphasized non-ascriptive, heroic criteria in legitimizing political power. The Balijas were proud of their Sudra status, in a world previously dominated by a classical Sanskritic Varna scheme that insisted that kings had to be Kshatriya. The new egalitarian ethos made it easier for claimants from a variety of communities to succeed to political control.

Balija dynasties:

Note Perika Balija, Vaada Balija (Matsyakarlu), Ediga Balija (Goud)are not part of Balija or Balija Naidu Caste.

[edit] List of Balijas

See List of Balijas for more information on prominent Balijas/Kapus who have greatly contributed to the social,cultural and political fabric of South India.

[edit] See also

[edit] References & Sources

Important information about Kapu origins can be obtained from Balijapuranam in the Chennai library.