Anavil Brahmin is one of the sub-caste of Brahmin caste, and they get their name from a village called of Anaval.[1] Anavil Brahmins are from southern Gujarat,and the majority of them are still located in the area, including Valsad District, Navsari District and Surat District in India.[1]
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The origin of the Anavils is traced to the period of Rama. According to the Skanda Purana, when Rama was returning from Lanka with Sita after killing Ravana, he came to the hermitage of Agastya which was situated in a dense forest on the southern slopes of the Vindhya hills. At a great Rishi's bidding, Rama decided to perform a solemn act of expiation at Anadisidha, for the slaying of Ravana. But as there were no Brahmanas there (without whom he could not perform the yajna) some Ajachak Brahmanas were summoned from Gangakulgiri in the Himalayas. Rama offered them a handsome dakshina but they would not accept it and insisted that they had merely performed their duty. Displeased with their refusal, Rama deprived them of the privilege of teaching the Vedas and performing yajnas. Like the Vaisyans, their function in society became agricultural.
The word "Anavil" is a combination of two Sanskrit words: UN+AVIL; UN, a prefix, means NOT in Sanskrit and AVIL means "that which is dirty or impure". The combined word therefore means "free of impurity."
During early sixteenth century when the Mughals first came to the Surat district, the Anavils became tenacious soldier-farmers. Thereafter, the titular Desai surname became highly coveted. The community was split into two: the Desai or Mastans (Mahasthan's) and the Bhatella. They were popularly known as Desais and Bhatella rather than just Anavils. There are five interpretations of the root of the name 'Bhatella':
1. Bhatella is a combination of two Sanskrit words: (BHAT+EELA). BHAT means a soldier and EELA means earth. The word, therefore, means a soldier-farmer;
2. The word could also be a combination of BHAT+HATHILA. HATHILA means tenacious or obstinate and hence the word would be interpreted as a tenacious or obstinate soldier;
3. The word has also been interpreted as a degenerate or derogatory derivative of the word BRASHTILLA which means those Brahmins who had lost their purity;
4. The word could have some BHAT meaning RICE + EELA meaning EARTH thus being interpreted as RICE CULTIVATORS. It is also true that they were the very first rice farmers in southern Gujarat, and
5. The word could be a combination of BHAT meaning RIVER DELTA + EELA meaning EARTH and hence being interpreted as a people who farmed or lived in river deltas.
The first interpretation, that of the soldier-farmer, appears to be the most likely as it is a proper Sanskrit word. Other surnames (family names) that are common to the Anavil Brahmin caste confirm this: Naik, Vashi, and Mehta all denote professionals in the Army or Royal Administration. Naik means a platoon leader, e.g. Gananayak. The Sanskrit word "vash" means to control and Mehta was a title given to the prime ministers of the princely states in Saurashtra. Today, the meaning of the word Mehta has expanded to include accountants and teachers, which may be due to their history as advisors to the rulers of the princely states. Desai means 'Desh Sai' or lord of the land or even Desh Shahi 'King of the Earth' and accordingly the original true Desais ruled vast lands in Wesern India. Now it is not unknown nor uncommon for other members of the Anavil community and others to change their family name to Desai.
Taking the 1962 population census, the Anavils formed roughly 5% of Surat district's population. Assuming a density of 700 people per square mile, the Anavil population can be approximated as 200,000. Assuming that half as many now live in foreign lands and other large urban centers in India, the total can be estimated to be about 300,000.[2]
Anvil word is combination of two words; UN & Avil. UN means not and Avil means dirty or impure in Sanskrit. So two word together means 'Not Impure' thus very pure.
Anavils are further divided into four different surname groups
Anavil Brahmins not practising priests though they belong to Brahmin varna.They are mainly agriculturist and large number of them are landowners.[1] As per the old saids and carried forward since generations, Anavils belong to Ajachak Brahmin(non-fee taking ). During the days of Rama, the Ashwamegh yagna was held for the prosperity of the Ayodhya. The Horse of Ashwamegha Yagna roamed and reached somewhere near/in Valasad. To perform a Typical ritual of Ashwamegh Yagna, Some Brahmins were looked for in that area. It was all deserted land and Brahmins were hard to find. Ashwamegh Yagna can not be concluded without performing this ritual hence to complete the Ashwamegh Yagna, Lord RAma and Parshurama personally sent 7 respected individuals from the nearby area into South Gujarat Area. They performed the retuals of Ashwamegh Yagna and were asked to stay there. The breed of those 7 Brahmins are known as Anavils and as they were turned to Brahmins for Lord Rama, they never been practicing priests ever after. As they been to the Area first they and their family tree have been land owners since ages in these region.It is believed that, it is the only Brahmin Varna in India, which got education of Brahmanisam by Lord Rama and Parshurama them self. Although some Anavil families may have even older genealogies that go further back than the Ramayana period.
Kuldevi of Anavil Brahmin is "Garadi Mata". Temple of Gardi Mata is situated in village called Palsana, situated Near Surat City, in District Surat of State Gujarat.
Keldev of Anavil Brahmin is "Sukleshwar Mahadev". Temple of Sukleshwar Mahadev is situated in Village Called Anaval situated in Gujarat.
Himansu Desai mechanical Engineer from 1967 batch of M.S.University, Baoda, India.Was selected to play for Baroda in Ranjitrophy cricket tournament from 1963 till 1967. Also selected to play for Cricket Control Board of India's President XI in 1965 to play against Sri Lanka. Awarded honorary degree of 'Fellow' by Institute of Engineers, India.