Bryn Mawr College Scholarship, Research, and Creative Work at Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College Dissertations and Theses 1988 Ethnicity, Class and Caste: Categories of Group Relations and Personal Identities in Sunauli, A Village in Southern Nepal Premalata Ghimire Bryn Mawr College Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.brynmawr.edu/dissertations Part of the Philosophy Commons Custom Citation Ghimire, Premalata. "Ethnicity, Class and Caste: Categories of Group Relations and Personal Identities in Sunauli, A Village in Southern Nepal." PhD Diss., Bryn Mawr College, 1988. This paper is posted at Scholarship, Research, and Creative Work at Bryn Mawr College. https://repository.brynmawr.edu/dissertations/210 For more information, please contact [email protected]. Ethnicity, Class and Caste: Categories of Group Relations and Personal Identities in Sunauli, a village in southern Nepal by Premalata Ghimire March 1988 Submitted to the Faculty of Bryn Mawr College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy ©1989 PREMALATA GHIMIRE All Rights Reserved Ethnicity, Class and castes Categories of Group Relations and Personal Identities in Sunauli, a village in southern Nepal ABSTRACT The Satar of Sunauli are divided into three categories: the Sapha Hod, the Bidin Hod and the Christian Satar. This dissertation, based on two periods of field work in southern Nepal, focuses on the Sapha Hod category of the Satar ethnic group and examines the ethnicity of the Sapha Hod in a complex ethnic, caste and class system. The Sapha Hod incorporate certain culturally valued caste rituals in their daily behavior but deny the caste influence and view the borrowed elements as belonging to their own traditional socio-cultural system. Such practice of rituals, belonging to two different cultures, has affected the ethnicity of the Sapha Hod. Instead of defining themselves according to their own cultural norms, the Sapha Hod define themselves situâtionally, depending on their needs and life—strategies when participating in different contexts - secular and ritual; exclusive and inclusive. As such, ethnicity claimed by the Sapha Hod differs from the way members of their larger ethnic group define it. In this way, ethnicity becomes a device for the Sapha Hod to claim a higher ritual status within their larger egalitarian Satar group and, at the same time, it appears as a means to compete with their caste neighbors in order to obtain equal socio-political statuses and advantages within the nation. This thesis pays particular attention to the symbolic expressions of this ethnicity in various Satar rituals and festivals as well as in everyday behavior. It shows how these rituals, in turn, help maintain the multiple and overlapping identities of the Sapha Hod. Conclusions emerging from the discussion contribute to studies of normative versus contextual identities, culture change and Satar ethnography. TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE Table of Contents 1 Maps 5 List of Figures 6 Acknowledgments 8 PART ONEi. INTRODUCTION AND RESEARCH METHODOLOGY I. INTRODUCTION AND THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 1 Introd uct ion 1 Theoretical Background: Ethnicity and Ethnic Groups 5 Concept of Caste 8 Concept of Class 14 Complexity of the Social System 19 Process of Interaction 20 Ethnicity of the Satar and my Approach 23 Outline of Chapters 32 II. FIELD WORK AND METHODOLOGY 35 First Field Work: Getting Started 35 Adjusting to the New Place 40 My Informants 45 Methodology and Aim of the Research 56 Second Field Work: Significant Change in the Village 61 Villagers' Concern and Curiosity 65 Methodology 66 III. THE SATAR AND THE SANTAL PEOPLE 78 Santal of India 78 Survival Strategies: Hinduism versus Christianity 82 India — Nepal Migration 88 The Sapha Hod of Sunauli 91 2861 IWQl CULIURAL AND INDIVIDUAL IDENIIIIES OF THE SATAR IV. THE VILLAGE AND ITS PEOPLE 95 Location 95 Climate and the Lay-out 101 Ethnic Groups: Caste People 107 Satar 121 Ritual Categories 126 Economy and Class Categories 137 V. MARRIAGE AND THE CULTURAL IDENTITY OF THE SATAR 147 Clan Exogamy 148 Marriage forms and Ritual 152 Discussion 176 VI. INDIVIDUAL IDENTITY OF THE SAPHA HOD 186 Gods and Bonga 187 Religious Syncretism 194 Witchcraft and Shamanism 198 Hinduization of Rituals: Dharma and Karma 201 Jajmani System 208 Death and Mourning 209 Marriage 210 Conclusion 213 PART THREEi SYMBOLS AND CONTEXTS OF ETHNIC/CLASS/ CASTE DIFFERENTIATIONS VII. COMMUNICATION OF ETHNIC/CLASS/CASTE DIFFERENTIATION 219 Language 222 Household-Architecture 231 Commensality as a Key Symbol: Rice-beer 241 Hospitality 248 Conclusion 255 VIII. SECULAR CONTEXTS 260 Village 261 Tea-stall 262 Political Gatherings 265 Weekly Market 270 IX. RITUAL CONTEXT OF SOHARAI 275 Description of Festive Categories 276 Soharai 283 Scene Prior to Soharai 284 Celebration of Soharai 287 In Search of a Donguo 308 Donguo Case Continued 313 Conclusion 320 PARI FOUR: SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION X. CONCLUSIONS 326 BIBLIOGRAPHY 342 LIST OF MAPS PAGE Nepal (From Academic American Encyclopedia) 96 Morang District (Enlarged from the map of Indian Book Depot (Map House)) 96 Sunauli 100 LIST OF FIGURES PAGE I. Determinants of an individual’s ritual status 9 S. Household of Baba S in 1978 46 3. Household of Baba T in 1978 47 4. Ethnic population of the Satar villages 99 5. Distribution of the caste population by gender and household 108 6. The Mohali households in Sunauli 110 7. Caste groups (excluding the Mohali) ranking the caste groups as Achhoot/ non—Sapha/equal 120 8. Distribution of the Satar population by clan and gender 122 9. Sapha Hod households in Sunauli and other villages 125 10. Population of the Satar households of Sunauli 126 II. World—view of the Satar and the caste people 128 12. Satar ranking themselves within their ethnic group 131 13. Satar ranking the caste groups of Sunauli 134 14. Satar ranking themselves with the Diku 136 15. Land and cattle-holdings of the Satar and the caste people 138 16. Division of upper and lower class 140 17. Ethnic population of Sunauli by gender and class 142 18. Types of (marriage) ceremony for women 157 19. Types of (marriage) ceremony for men 158 20. Forms and number of marriage among women 168 21. Forms and number of marriage among men 168 22. Number of marriages among women (Satar and caste) 169 23. Number of marriages among men (Satar and caste) 169 24. Hypeargamy, upward mobility and ritual purity 180 25. Bride—price and dowry among the Satar and the caste people 212 26. Bride—price and dowry among the Sapha Hod 212 27. Literacy rate among the Satar and caste people 229 28. Calender of festivals 277 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION AND THEORETICAL BACKGROUND INIRODUÇTIQN: This dissertation is a study of the Satar of southern Nepal with the aim of presenting an indepth study of the processes of maintaining, creating and switching ethnic and other identities by a particular category of the Satar, the Sapha Hod, in a complex ethnic, caste and class system. The Satar of Sunauli are divided into three ritual categories: the Bidin Hod, the Sapha Hod and the Christian Satar. Bidin Hod literally means Hindu Satar. The Bidin Hod believe that there are only two Jaat (types/kinds of people) on this earth — Hindu and Muslim — and all those who are not Hindu are either Muslim or like Muslim. Accordingly, they think of the Christians and the Christian Satar as "like Muslim". And since the Bidin Hod do not view themselves as Muslim, they define themselves as Hindu. In spite of calling themselves Hindu, the Bidin Hod do not consider themselves as a part of the caste society. As such, they do not practise the Hindu rituals of the caste people. Instead they follow their traditional Satar rituals. They worship Bonga (deities/spirits) and make offerings to them. Here I shall call them Bidin Hod because this is the way my informants wish to be labeled. They prefer this particular category of the Hindu Satar especially to distinguish themselves from the Muslim. The second Satar category is that of the Sapha Hod. Literally it means "clean" or "pure" Satar. The Sapha Hod also, like the Bidin Hod, view themselves within the wide category of the Hindu and use this label to distinguish themselves from the Muslim. Further, they also do not consider themselves as a part of the caste society. But, unlike the Bidin Hod, the Sapha Hod combine and practise the rituals of both the Satar and the upper caste people. They incorporate Hindu ritual elements in their everyday behavior. They also think of these elements as traditionally belonging to their own ethnic group. And because of these, the Sapha Hod of Sunauli distinguish themselves from the Bidin Hod who claim to be Hindu but do not practise Hinduism as handed down to them by their ancestors. The third ritual category of the Satar consists of the Christian Satar. They do not agree with the Bidin Hod and Sapha Hod’s classification of people into two Jaat - Hindu and Muslim. They believe in many Jaat, Christian being one of them. Accordingly, they consider themselves as separate from Hindu and Muslim. The Christian Satar of Sunauli are Pentecostals. They meet every Sunday with the Satar of five or six villages for their church meetings. They also meet on Good Friday, Christmas day and New Year. The Christian Satar of Sunauli or other villages do not participate in any rituals of the Sapha Hod and the Bidin Hod. In spite of the religious differences, the Satar of Sunauli live together with different caste groups in and around Sunauli. They (Satar) also express their shared ethnicity by calling themselves Hod (human beings/Satar), claiming to be descended from a common male ancestor, speaking Satari language which they call Hod Rod, and by dressing similarly.