Rajpurohit

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Rajpurohit[lower-alpha 1] is a community of people living in western Rajasthan, India. They maintain traditions that are similar to both Brahmins and Rajputs. According to community organizer Bhanwar Singh Rajpurohit, the community has low literacy rates, and is engaged primarily in agriculture, catering, and trading.[3]

Political activities

The Rajpurohit community had previously been allied primarily with the Bharatiya Janata Party. In 2009, however, the community switched loyalties to the Indian National Congress, due to perceived neglect by the BJP.[3]

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Aside from being a community, Rajpurohit is synonymous with Rajguru as an ancient term for a type of Brahmin. Hermann Kulke and Dietmar Rothermund note that "There is much evidence in ancient texts that there were two ideal types of Brahmins in those days, the royal priest or advisor (rajpurohit, rajguru) and the sage (rishi) who lived in the forest and shared his wisdom only with those who asked for it."[1] Its modern use in this sense has been described by Sumit Sarkar as a "self-conscious archaism".[2]

Citations

  1. ↑ Kulke, Hermann; Rothermund, Dietmar (2004) [1986]. A History of India (Fourth ed.). Routledge. p. 5. ISBN 9780415329194. Retrieved 25 December 2012. 
  2. ↑ Sarkar, Sumit (2002). Beyond Nationalist Frames: Postmodernism, Hindutva, History. Indiana University Press. p. 73. ISBN 9780253342034. Retrieved 25 December 2012. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Rajpurohits pitch in for Cong". Times of India. 14 April 2009. Retrieved 20 December 2012. 

Further reading

  • Chakraborty, Kakali (1998). "Rajpurohit". In Singh, Kumar Suresh. The People of India: Rajasthan. Popular Prakashan. pp. 781–784. ISBN 9788171547692. Retrieved 25 December 2012. 
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