Bhumihar

Bhumihar

Total population
6 % of Bihari population plus significant population in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, and West Bengal
Languages
Hindi, Bhojpuri, Magadhi, Maithili, Angika, Vajjika, Bundeli
Religion
Hinduism
Related ethnic groups
Kanyakubja Brahmins, Jujhautiya Brahmins, Saryupareen Brahmins
Commonly called Babhan

Bhumihar Brahmin or Babhan or Brahmarshis is a Hindu Brahmin community mainly found in the Indian states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bengal, Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh and Nepal. Mythology: In the context of mythological perspective, Bhumihar Brahmins identify themselves with Bhagwan Parashurama, who was a Brahmin and who is believed to have killed Kshatriyas 21 times who had failed or forgotten their Vedic duties and had become regressed into chaos. The descendants of Parashurama are called Bhumihar Brahmins in Eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, Tyagi Brahmins in Western Uttar Pradesh, Goud Brahmins in U.P. and Rajasthan, Chitpawan Brahmins in Maharashtra, Anavil Brahmins in Gujarat, Havyak Brahmins in Karnataka, Niyogi Brahmins in Andhra Pradesh, Iyer Brahmins of Tamil Nadu, Namboothiri Brahmins in Kerala, Bengali Brahmins in Eastern India and Mohyals in the Punjab region. Their variants are found with different names all across the Indian sub-continent. The records of Swami Sahajanand Saraswati in “Brahmarshi Vansha Vistar” and Acharya Chatursen Shastri in “Vayam Rakshamah” points towards the same origin by taking help of all ancient texts as well as prevailing customary practices and temperament of these illustrious Brahmins.The Namboothiris’ own mythology holds that Parashuraaman created the land (of Kerala) and bestowed it upon them. Thus their reverence of Parashuram shows that these two brahmin castes might be sharing the same lineage. The legend of Parasurama also exists amongst Brahmins of all India and he is worshipped in UP. Hence it has to be seen as a myth not exclusive to Namboothiris and Kerala alone. However, this myth also exist in an old Chera lore about King Velkezu Kuttavan. According to this myth, the king flings his spear into the sea to claim land from it. This lore must have modified later in Malayalam language by the Namboothiris as part of their campaign to establish themselves in Kerala. In the Namboothiri version, Parashuraaman uses his Parashu (Axe), to create new land for the Brahmins. In Bihar bhumihar known with their different surname as Sharma, tiwari,thakur, Pandey. Mishra. Mention by historians: Mr Crook in his book, The Tribes and castes of UP and Oudh: Part II, page 64, has written: Bhumihar (Sanskrit Bhumi, ‘land’ and Kara(har), ‘maker’): An important tribe and landowners and agriculturists in eastern districts. They are also known as Babhan, Zamindar Brahmin, Grihastha Brahman or Pachchima (Western) Brahmin.They are also called Magadhan brahmin because they have their largest number of presence in the old Magadh region of BiharAccording to Sir Elliot’s supplemental glossary, there are five divisions of the Kamkoobj Brahmins. They are Kamkoobj proper, Sunadh, Surwaria, Jijhotia and Bhoinhar. Mr William Oldham in his book North Western Provinces Historical And Statical Memoir, has categorically mentioned that Bhoinhars, both by themselves and by ethnologists, are believed to be the descendants of Brahmins, who on becoming cultivators and landholders gave up their priestly functions.

Pundit Yogendra Bhattacharya in his book Hindu Castes and Set, writes that Bhumihar Brahmin literally means landholder. The Bhumihar Brahmins are evidently those Brahmins who held grants of land for secular services. Any Brahmin who held a secular fief was a Bhumihar.

The East India Company for the Bengal presidency exclusively recruited soldiers from the Bhumihar Brahmin & Rajput communities. It is a fact that British established their British empire in India with the help of this Bengal regiment. Present: The Bhumihar Brahmins are predominantly farmers. Some are owners of vast quantities of land but many are small farmers too. Currently, most Bhumihars have been reduced to the status of small-scale farmers with the fall of the zamindari system. While most zamindars were Bhumihars, there was widespread discontent among the raiyyats (farmers who were lent land on lease and from whom tax was collected), regardless of their castes. Then, it was a class struggle rather than a caste struggle. And this struggle was led by none other than Swami Sahajanand Saraswati, a Bhumihar, who formed the first Kisan Sabha in India. Many other nationalists like Pandit Karyanand Sharma, Pandit Yadunandan Sharma and Pandit Jamuna Karjee joined Swamiji in the upliftment of the peasantry which included people of all castes and communities and for the freedom of India from colonial yoke.Marriage of people in this community, like most of other social groups of India, is restricted to their own subcaste. English education was adopted very late by Bhumihar Brahmins because they have been very orthodox Brahmins along with being well off from the rest. There had been some exceptions to this but nowadays they are doing very well in all walks of life. Bhumihar Brahmins were just 2.9% of Bihar population (before partition of Jharkhand) but had a control over 45% of agricultural land in bihar and wielded a great political strength in Pre-Mandal politics of Bihar as Brahmins all over the country. At one time this caste contributed 19 MPs out of total 54 Lok sabha seats in Bihar. It is a fact that Bhumihar Brahmin’s contribution to the freedom struggle of India and the upliftment of downtrodden in Bihar is unmatched by any other community in Bihar. Many think that Bihar was the best administered state in India under the tenure of Dr.Sri Krishna Sinha, who was a Bhumihar Brahmin and the state saw most of its development under his tenure only. This caste is vilified even though the first peasant struggle in India against zamindari was started by Swami Sahajanand Saraswati and the communities to benefit most from it were Yadav, Kurmi and Koeri (backward castes) who got the land ownership at the cost of Bhumihar Brahmin zamindars. He is still one of the most revered leaders of peasants. In 1990s the politics in Bihar was done with the sole basis of targeting the upper castes, more particularly the Bhumihar Brahmins. The per cent population of the Bhumihars in Bihar has also increased from a lowly 2.9% to 4.6% after Jharkhand was separated from it, making them politically significant. There is also a significant migrant population of Bhumihars in Mauritius, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana and others.

Duties

The duties of Bhumihar Brahmins are same as Brahmins expect for slight changes. For Brahmins it is teaching, learning, performing Yagya, make performing Yagya, accept Daana, and give Daana. Whereas for Bhumihars it is teaching, learning, performing Yagya, make performing Yagya, give Daana, learn to use weapons and use whenever necessary. Though Brahmins are also supposed to learn to use weapons but they can use them only to teach someone.

Political and social movements

Bhumihars are considered a politically volatile community. Sri Krishna Sinha, born into a Bhumihar Brahmin family is considered the architect of modern Bihar. Barring the war years, Sinha was Chief Minister of Bihar from the time of the first Congress Ministry in 1937 until his death in 1961. He led Dalit’s entry into the Baidyanath Dham temple (Vaidyanath Temple, Deoghar), reflecting his commitment to the upliftment and social empowerment of dalits. He was the first Chief Minister in the country to abolish the zamindari system.

See also

• Kingdom of Kashi- an independent Bhumihar Brahmin state until 1994.
• Royal House of Benares- was the ruling Bhumihar Brahmin family of Benares
• Jujhautiya Brahmins
• Sangli State
• Jhansi
• Iyers

References

Further reading

• Gupta, N. L. (1975). Transition from capitalism to socialism, and other essays. Kalamkar Prakashan. ASIN B0000E7XZP.
• Guha, Ranajit (2000). A Subaltern studies reader, 1986–1995 (2nd ed.). South Asia Books. ISBN 978-0-19-565230-7.
• Maitra, R. K. (1959). Indian Studies: past & present. ASIN B0000CRX5I.
• Sharma, R. S. (2009). Rethinking India's Past. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-569787-2.
• Ram, Bindeshwar (1998). Land and society in India: agrarian relations in colonial North Bihar. Orient Blackswan. ISBN 978-81-250-0643-5.
• Diwakar, Ranganath Ramachandra (1959). Bihar through the ages. Orient Longman.
• Saraswati, Swami Sahajanand (2003). Swami Sahajanand Saraswati Rachnawali in Six volumes. Vol. 1. Prakashan Sansthan. p. 518, Parishist by Acharya Tarineesh Jha, 515–519).
• Yang, Anand A. (1999). Bazaar India: Markets, Society, and the Colonial State in Bihar. University of California Press. p. 139. ISBN 978-0-520-21100-1.
• Bayly, Christopher Alan (2011). Recovering Liberties: Indian Thought in the Age of Liberalism and Empire (Ideas in Context). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-10-760147-5.
• Bhadra, Gautam (2008). Subaltern Studies: Writings on South Asian History and Society. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-565125-6.
• Sinha, Gopal Sharan; Ramesh Chandra Sinha (September 1967). "Exploration in Caste Stereotypes". Social Forces. 46 (1). University of North Carolina Press: 42–47. doi:10.1093/sf/46.1.42. JSTOR 2575319.
• Alavi, Seema (2007). The Eighteenth Century in India. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-569201-3.
• Chatterjee, Gautam (2003). Sacred Hindu Symbols. Abhinav Publications. ISBN 978-81-7017-397-7.
• Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli (2009). The Hindu View of Life. Harper Collins. p. 81. ISBN 978-81-7223-845-2.
• Brown, Judith Margaret (1972). Gandhi's Rise to Power, Indian Politics 1915–1922: Indian Politics 1915–1922. New Delhi: Cambridge University Press Archive. p. 384. ISBN 978-0-521-09873-1.
• Nicholas, Ralph W. (2003). Fruits of worship: practical religion in Bengal. Orient Blackswan. ISBN 978-81-8028-006-1.
• Bayly, Susan (2001). Caste, Society and Politics in India from the Eighteenth Century to the Modern Age. Cambridge University Press. p. 203. ISBN 978-0-521-79842-6.
• R. G. Tiedemann, Robert A. Bickers (2007). The Boxers, China, and the World. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 63. ISBN 978-0-7425-5395-8.
• Bayly, C. A. (1988). Rulers, Townsmen and Bazaars: North Indian Society in the Age of British Expansion, 1770–1870. Cambridge University Press. p. 18. ISBN 978-0-521-31054-3.

• Pandurang Vaman Kane, History of Dharmasastra (P.V. Kane)|History of Dharmasastra, Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute.
• Govind Prasad Upadhyay, Brahmanas in Ancient India: A Study in the Roles of the Brahmana Class from 200 BC to AD 500, Motilal Banarsidass, New Delhi (1979).
• Rajbali Pandey, Hindu Samskaras: Socio-Religious Study of the Hindu Sacraments, Motilal Banarsidass, New Delhi (2006).
• Radha Kumud Mukherjee, Ancient Indian Education: Brahmanical and Buddhist, Motilal Banarsidass, New Delhi (2011).
• M. N. Srinivas, Social Change in Modern India, Orient Longman, Delhi, 1995.
• http://www.bhumihar.co.in/about-bhumihar/