Maithil Brahmin

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Maithil Brahmins are a Hindu Brahmin community from the Mithila region of India and Nepal. They are one of the five Pancha-Gauda Brahmin communities of North India.[1] In India, the Maithil Brahmins reside mainly in Bihar and the neighbouring states of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and West Bengal. In Nepal, they mostly reside in the Terai region. They are noted for panjis, the extensive genealogical records maintained for the last twenty-four generations.

History

Like many other Indian castes, the Maithil Brahmins trace their origin in the legends of Ramayana. During the Mughal period, they migrated westwards to the Braj region.

In the 1960s and 1970s, the Maithil Brahmins became politically significant in Bihar. Binodanand Jha, Lalit Narayan Mishra, and Jagannath Mishra emerged as prominent political leaders of the community. Under the Chief Ministry of Jagannath Mishra, many Maithil Brahmins assumed important political positions in Bihar.[2]

Religious practices

The religious practices of the Maithil Brahmins are a mixture of orthodox Hinduism and animism.[3] They worship Shakti in various forms; some are also Shaivites and Vaishnavites.[4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Venkatesa Iyengar (1932). The Mysore. Mittal Publications. p. 301. GGKEY:XFC5XHQ9E3J. 
  2. ↑ Verma, Ravindra Kumar (May 1991). "Caste and Bihar Politics". Economic and Political Weekly (Sameeksha Trust) 26 (18): 1142–4. Retrieved 28 March 2013. 
  3. ↑ Gopal K. Bhargava; Shankarlal C. Bhatt (2005). Land and people of Indian states and union territories. 5. Bihar. Gyan Publishing House. pp. 37–. ISBN 978-81-7835-361-6. 
  4. ↑ Makhan Jha (1 January 1997). Anthropology of Ancient Hindu Kingdoms: A Study in Civilizational Prespective. M.D. Publications Pvt. Ltd. pp. 38–. ISBN 978-81-7533-034-4. 

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.