Jainism and Karnataka Culture

SR No.: 011062
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: S R Sharma
Publisher: Karnataka Historical Research Society Dharwar
Publication Year: 1940
Total Pages: 263
Language: English
Classification: Book_English
File Size: 9 MB

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Jaina community follows the Aryan law of inheritance, whereas another, still adheres to a relique of the Dravidian matriarchate, viz., the Aliya Santana law according to which property devolves, not from father to son, but from maternal uncle to nephew.107 The tendency for the Aryan to drive the Dravidian underground is indeed still visible in the vigorous movement set afoot to have done with this anomalous anachronism by means of legislation, and thereby do away with one barrier which isolates the Jainas of South Kanara from the rest of their co-religionists in India. The priestly class among the South Kanara Jainas are divided into two sections Kannada Pūjāris and 'Tuļu Pūjāris' about whom Sturrock observes, "the latter are indigenous, while the former are descended from emigrants from above the ghauts." 108 Moreover, the priests, as a rule, have marriage relations only with their own class, although they dine with the remaining three namely, the Brāhmaṇa, Kṣatriya, Vaisya sections of the laity. When they marry at all outside their own class such relations are confined to these three classes alone.109 There are besides these, several osher classes of Jainas known as Setvals, Caturthas, Bogars, Pancamas, and Gaudas, all of whom might however be classed as Sūdras. Thurston observes there are as many as twenty-two sub-divisions among the Tamil Jainas.110
IDEALISM AND REALISM
The Setvals appear to have been originally a body of hundred families excommunicated for some unknown reason; The Caturthas or and now forming a sect by themselves. 11 'fourth class' are of course the Sudras; Buchanan speaks of them as the Sadru, (Woculigas or cultivators) and says, "They worship only the god Jina, but do not inter-marry with the true Jainaru." The reason for this was that 'formerly the Sadru were Jainaru, but his ancestors disliking that religion, betook
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107 Sturrock, op. cit., pp. 191, 158; Thurston, op. cit., pp. 426-27.
108 Sturrock, op. cit., pp. 190-91. 109 Dharwar, op. cit., pp. 116-17,
110 Thurston, op. cit., pp. 419-20. 111 Dharwar, op. cit., p. 117.