The Indian Journal of Social Work, Vol. XXV, No. 2 (July 1964). THE PROBLEM OF JOHN V FERREIRA MARATHA TOTEMISM In the Marathi-speaking areas of Western India, there are several castes and tribes which exhibit the phenomenon of the devak. Many interpreters of the phenomenon, which is found at its strongest among the Marathas and the occupational castes related to or influenced by them, and less strongly among the primitive tribes of the. region, have characterized it as a form of totemism. A few interpreters, however, have called the totemic" character of the devak into question. The object of this article is, therefore, to re-examine the factual evidence and the more prominent of its interpretations in order to arrive 'at the Origin, the true nature " and the significance of the phenomenon. - - "Mr. Ferreira is Reader in Sociology, University of Bombay. An early observer, James Campbell, noted The most detailed accounts of the that the Marathas of the Bombay Presidency Maratha devaks, however, have been given were divided into families, each with its to us by R. E. Enthoven. Referring to the devak or sacred symbol The devaks were Marathas. proper, to the Maratha Kunbis, patrilineally inherited, and worshipped at and to the Maratha occupational castes (the marriages and other important occassions. Bhandari, the Chitrakathi, the Gavandi,, the Persons with the same devak were not Kumbhar, the Lohar, the Mali, the Nhavi, permitted to marry. Of the devak listed, the Parit, the Sutar, the Taru., the Teli and 18 are trees and their products and 9 are so on), he says that their exogamous groups inanimate objects. One refers to a Brahminic have devaks or marriage guardians which in rishi or ancestral sage, and the meaning of their origin seem to have . been the, exact another is unknown. One of the devaks is equivalents of the Kanarese, balls or totems. the panchpalvi or leaves of five trees—the The devaks of the Marathas and related Ficus indica, the Ficus religiosa, the castes are not as highly revered as the balis; Cynodon dactylon, the Bauhinia racemosa but similarity of devaks is a bar to marriage, and the' Eugenia jambolana. Carhpbel and some of the Maratha kuls are named classed the Maratha devaks and the Kanarese after devaks (More after mor, Salunke after balls together, and regarded them as guardiari salunki). The devak is usually some spirits and ancestors and heads of house common tree like the bel (Aegle marmelos); (Fxazer 1910: II: 276-278; Enthoven the pipal (Ficus religiosa), the Vad (banyan); 1911 : 65). or the shami (Prosopis spicegera). In its commonest form it is the leaves of five trees, So far as the Marathas in the Central of which one is held specially sacred and Provinces (old provincial names have been was the original devak of the section. The retained here for the sake of convenience devak is worshipped at marriages, at the time are concerned, Russell and Hiralal (1916: of entering a new house, when the IV: l98-204) report that they have several threshing floor is prepared at harvest time; exogamous clans with Rajput names and during the thread ceremony. In (Chauhan, Panwar, Solanki, Suryavahsi), Maratha marriages the installation of the others named after animals and plants or devak is an important part of the marriage natural objects (iguana; date-palm), and still ceremony. The nature of the ritual, however, others of a titular nature, varies in details among the various castes 136 JOHN V. FERREIRA that practise it. In general it takes the Brahminic fashion. But the majority of the following form: The persons concerned go caste do not know to which gotra they to the woods, worship the tree involved and belong, and there is a great confusion in the cut a twig from it. A visit is then made assignment of kuls to gotras. Furthermore, with the twig to the temple of Maruti where the sameness of gotras is not necessarily a the devak is formally worshipped. In some bar to marriage, whereas the sameness of kuls instances a potter's house is visited also. The and devaks is. Therefore, Enthoven concludes twig is then brought to the marriage booth that the kuls and gotras were adopted after and tied to one of its posts or placed among the tribe rose in social status (Enthoven 1909; the household gods. Lights are waved before 1911; 1922: III: 3-40; 1924a; 1924b; 1924c: it, and a lamp is kept burning in front of 18-20, 208-221. For a variation in the form it for the entire period of the ceremony. No of devak worship, see Enthoven 1924b: 210- mourning is observed during this period. 211). After the marriage ceremony the devak is once again worshipped. Two or four days To turn lastly to an Indian investigator later it is requested to depart; and then of kinship organisations in India: In her book together with the marriage coronet is taken on that subject, Irawati Karve points out to a distant place and left there. Often the that some clan names of the Marathas are devak is also installed at the bride's house of Rajput origin, others are names of animals, with a similar ceremony; and sometimes an qualities or artefacts (the tiger, the peacock, image of it takes its place. Of the 80 devaks black, white, the pick, the axe and so first listed, 60 are trees, plants, fruits and on), and still others of other types. A totemic flowers, 11 are animals, and the rest of other connection between the clan and the animal kinds, many being instruments of industry. name it bears does not always seem to be In a later article the number is put down present, although sometimes the flesh of the at 120, of which 80 are trees and the like, animal is not eaten by the clan concerned. 24 animals and the rest other objects. The rule of exogamy, however, depends not on the clan name, but on the symbol or There is also evidence of totem taboos. devaks connected with the clan. A The predominance of trees among the devaks devaka may be a living thing or an inanimate may be due to the belief that the ancestral object like a kind of grass, a javelin or the spirits live in trees, and thus the trees leaves of five particular trees. Worshipped become guardians or devaks. The Kanarese at the time of marriage, the devaks have an castes do not have the composite totem or exogamous force, but are borne as family panchpalvi, a combination of separate devaks. names only by a few. Nor do many people In their attempts to rise in the social scale know what their devaka is, the elders in the the tribes and castes manifest a common main being repositories of this knowledge. process of evolution by discarding their The Maratha system of exogamous, totemic totemic divisions for kuls or family stocks, clans is analogous with that of the south and which in turn are replaced by Brahminic might have been derived from there. On the gotras. The devaks which possess or once other hand, like the Rajputs and the Khatris possessed all the attributes of real totems are, of northern India, the Marathas also have therefore, survivals, and are hence a a hypergamous arrangement of clans. valuable indication of racial origin. In While the family in Maharashtra is patri- addition to their kuls or surnames, the local and inheritance is in the male line, there Marathas also claim gotras named in the are many customs in the area which are THE PROBLEM OF MARATHA TOTEMISM 137 unknown in the north of India, but are their wood. Like the other Marathi-speaking found universally in the south (Karve 1953: castes, they are patrilineal and profess 156-163). Hinduism (Enthoven 1920: I: 347-350). There are several occupational castes in the The Gavadas a caste of salt-makers in Marathi-speaking area, which are related to Kanara and Ratnagiri, are, says Enthoven, or influenced by the Marathas, and which in the course of passing from "a primitive display the devak phenomenon with varia­ totemistic organisation by devaks into the tions. We shall describe the evidence among Brahminical one of gotras through the a number of them as illustrative material. Maratha system of kuls". Some families still show reverence towards the trees representing The Bhandaris are found everywhere in their devaks by not cutting them or touching the Bombay Presidency, have eight endo­ them or dining on their leaves. But devak gamous divisions and several exogamous exogamy is fast dying out, its place being- kulas. Some kula names are shared with the taken by kul exogamy. The kuls are identical Marathas. Members of the kulas show with the surnames. Most reports state that reverence towards the devaks—the banyan Kashyap is the gotra of the entire caste; but tree, the pipal tree, the kadamba tree, the another gives the gotras Vatsa and Bharad- umbar tree and the mango tree. The kulas waja in addition, and adds that marriages are referred to by the names of such trees. are prohibited between members of the same The devaks are reverenced by not being cut, kul and also of the same gotra. Members of burnt, or injured, and by being worshipped the Kashyap gotra, however, are allowed to at marriages. In some places, however, inter-marry. One account states that the persons with the same devak nevertheless entire caste has the same devak—the kalamb marry. Some Bhandaris have now begun to (Anthocephalus cadumba) tree; others, on claim Brahminic gotras.