| Chandala | |
|---|---|
| Classification | Untouchables |
| Religions | Hinduism |
| Languages | Indo-Aryan languages |
| Populated States | Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar. |
Chandala (Devanagari: चंडाल) is a Sanskrit word for someone who deals with disposal of corpses, and is a Hindu lower caste, formerly considered untouchables. Currently it is a term used specifically in Indo-Aryan speaking regions of India. Sandala has become a swear word in the colloquial usage of the Tamil language. Chandal is a general derogatory slur used to refer to a filthy, mean or low person in North India.
Usage of the term is noted in ancient and medieval literature of Sri Lanka, South India, and in Indo-China. Chandala as a term of despised caste was used in Dravidian-speaking South India and among the Sinhala of Sri Lanka.
The Chandalas are not a single tribe with a common defining ancestry, and in fact many Dalit groups in north India are referred to as Chandalas, and the term is used in a general way to denote any similar caste as well. Chandalas reside in Maharashtra, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Bengal. Chandalas predate the final versions of the Mahabharata and the Manu Smriti, but there are groups with much more recent origin. For example, the Namashustras, a fishing and agricultural community in Bengal, and possibly of aboriginal Bihari origin, was made outcaste in the 11th or 12th century due to some conflict with the kings of the Sen dynasty, and the word 'Chandala' came to be applied to them. The word is now sometimes also applied to the Dom or Domba.
Contents |
According to the ancient law code, the Manu-smṛti, this class originated from the union of a Brahmin (the highest class within the varṇa, or four-class system) woman and a Śūdra (the lowest class) man. The term 'Chandala' was also used in the Mahabharata, the religious epic, as well as in the Chandogya Upanishad: "Now people here whose conduct is good can expect to quickly attain a pleasant birth, like that of a Brahmin, the Ksatriya, or the Vaisya. But people of evil conduct can expect to enter a foul womb, like that of a dog, a pig, or a Chandala".[1]
In the early Vedic literature such as the Smritis (ancient religious scriptures) the word Antyajas is used for the untouchable castes.
Fa Xian, a Chinese Buddhist pilgrim who recorded his visit to India in the early 4th century C.E., noted that Chandalas were segregated from the mainstream society. Traditionally, Chandalas were considered to be beyond the pale of the varna or caste system. They were considered as Panchama (the Fifth caste) and thus beyond the fourfold division of people, and outcastes. Their situation was similar to that of the Roma and Cagot people in Europe.
German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche described the Jewish and Christian religions with the term Chandala ("Tschandala") in his works The Antichrist and The Twilight of the Idols. Nietzsche's use of this term was influenced by the French writer Louis Jacolliot, and his work Les législateurs religieux, Manou, Moïse, Mahomet. Nietzsche also claimed that every great spirit has experienced, "as one stage in his development", the stigma of being a Chandala; not because others consider him this way, but because he feels and senses within himself a profound schism and alienation from the world.
Sydney Owenson, Lady Morgan misspells the word as "Chancalas" throughout the text in her 1811 sentimental novel The Missionary: An Indian Tale.[2]