Jat Community
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Jat Community
Brave warriors.... Peaceful pastoralists
India Harmony VOLUME - 1 : ISSUE – 5 JULY-AUGUST, 2012
The Jats are a nomadic clan who occupy a preeminent position in Haryana, western Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Delhi and eastern Rajasthan. They are divided into 12 clans and about 300 gotras. Though the origin of the Jats is much debated, detailed research has shown that they are as old as time itself. Some legends speak of them originating from the locks of Lord Shiva and thence the name Jata. However, old texts refer to them as Indo-Scythian and English historians refer to them as Sarmatians who also are generally identified as Scythians. Sarmatian is an anglicisation of the Latin Sauro Matii which in turn is derived from the Prakrit Surya Madra which in English means Solar Medes or Sun worshippers, The Solar Medes are known to have existed in the Indo Iranian provinces and worshipped the Sun. They are believed to be an Indo-Aryan tribe connected to the Vedic civilization (4500 BC - 2500 BC) that existed along the Saraswati river. It is a debatable question whether they were born in Asia Minor, the cradle of civilization, traveling southwards towards Sindh and northwards to southern Europe. Whatever the case may be it is clear that there is a strong connection between Iran and the lands settled by the Iranic people that traces Punjab as the primary home of the Jats (known as Hapta-Hindawa or Sapta-Sindhu in Prakrit). This region is mentioned in the ancient scriptures of the Aryan Zoroastrians as Hapta-Hindawa in Persian or Sapta-Sindhu in Prakrit. Even today, the highest density of Jat population is along the dried bed of Saraswati called Harahvati in Persian. It is evident that the Jats being the present day inhabitants of the the lost Harahvati river are very closely linked to the earliest civilizations. On a stone inscription of the King Darius (522-486 B.C.) the nation of the Haravatis appears among the 23 subject nations. The Persian sacred books of the Avesti call that nation the Harahvaiti. The provinces settled by that nation encompassed in those times the southern half of modern south Afghanistan, the whole of Baluchistan and the eastern part of modern Iran. So that ancient province may be looked upon as the paleo-fatherland of the modern Jats of India. They can be found in the present day in Haryana, going on to Punjab and ending up in Rajasthan. They play a predominant role in this region. Agriculture, soldiering and cattle rearing have been the traditional occupation of the Jats, which they continue to follow to the present day. Their food habits also remain closely linked to the soil and comprise mostly of dairy products and grains.
The Jats are not a homogeneous ethnic group living in a particular area and speaking a single language. Rather, they are a people who live scattered around the world among several ethnic groups, yet retain their own identity. Their tall wellbuilt bodies, patrician features, straight black hair and immense strength give them a distinct identity in the diverse lands of India. This distinction is often based on occupation and heritage. The Jats are primarily located in north India and southern Pakistan, although there are said to be some communities in Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Russia, Iran and Ukraine. However, their origin, history, and current dispersion are spread much wider. History proves that they reached Egypt with the Muslim conquerors, lived in Afghanistan before the Muslims, and invaded China with the Mongol army. They also proved to be a threat to Tamar Lane in Persia and Uzbekistan.
Whatever their origin, in the eighteenth century, the Jats became a force that could not be ignored. Jats are a brave, hardworking and independent minded people. Primarily agriculturists, the Jats led a fairly autonomous political life. During the Mughal period, the role of the state was limited. With the exception of Bharatpur, no Jat kingdoms were founded. As per the Varna (Caste) system, the Jats are Kshatriyas or the warrior class. As they were outside the rigorous brahmanical social order, this position was not emphasized till the growth of the Arya Samaj among the Jats. Overall, the Jats have a very good self image and they are a proud people. 'Men may come and men may go, but I go on forever,' is a well known Jat proverb. It has been said that no Jat wants to be ruled. Rather, he desires to have power over a group, if not over an area.
The first opposition to Aurangzeb's rule came from the Jats of Mathura. In 1669, the sturdy and hard working peasantry of Jats under the leadership of Gokla, a zamindar of Tilpat, rose against and killed the Imperial Faujdar Abdul-Nabi. It took more than one year for the powerful Mogul forces to subdue the Jats. But this did not deter the Jats and they once again rose in rebellion under the leadership of Raja Ram in 1685. Akbar's tomb in Sikandra was plundered by them in 1688. Finally the Jats were defeated and Raja Ram slain in 1691. But the Jats reorganized themselves under the leadership of Churaman and revolted. They continued a strong armed resistance against the Mughals after Aurangzeb's death.
Towards the end of Aurangzeb's reign, bands of Jats under individual leaders like Rajaram, Bhajja and Churaman carried out depredations around Delhi and Agra. They slowly increased their power. But whatever they had achieved was lost when Sawai Jai Singh II captured Churaman's stronghold of Thun in 1721. Till this time, the Jats were not a united force and followed their individual village headsmen. But this changed when Badan Singh, the son of Churaman's brother, Bhao Singh established his authority over almost all of Agra and Mathura by his wisdom, versatility and strategic marital alliances with powerful Jat families. Badan Singh died on 7th June, 1756. His adopted son and successor was Suraj Mal.
Suraj Mal, has been variously described as 'Plato of Jat tribes' and 'Jat Ulysses' because of his sagacity, steady intellect and clear vision. Suraj Mal extended his kingdom to Agra, Mathura, Dholpur, Mainpuri, Hathras, Aligarh, Etawah, Meerut, Rohtak, Farrukhnagar, Mewat, Rewari and Gurgaon. He was described as the greatest warrior and the ablest statesman that the Jats have produced. Suraj Mal died on 25th December, 1763. Such was the might of the Jats that Bharatpur came to be known as the impregnable city. The beautiful palace and gardens at Deeg and the Bharatpur fort, both built by Suraj Mal , symbolized the coming of age of the Jat state. Soon, nobody dared question the Jats' prowess in battle. The British general, Lord Lake, thought otherwise and paid dearly with his life for his decision to besiege the Lohagarh fort. At Deeg, the maharaja's men successfully took on the might of a combined Mughal and Maratha army of 80,000.
Renowned for their military prowess, many Jats were recruited into the British-India Army during World War I. Earlier, they served as fighters in the Persian army. A large number of Jats serve in the Indian Armed Forces today and form one of the largest ethnic groups in the army. They have produced the bravest of the brave officers and soldiers who have been decorated with the highest military honours, the Mahavir Chakra and Paramvir Chakra. The Green Revolution brought considerable prosperity to the Jats in the decades after independence especially after the division of Punjab and Haryana in 1966. The Jat regions in India especially Haryana are among the most prosperous on a per-capita basis. Today, many Jats are well educated occupying high positions in academic and technical arenas. Conservative by nature, the Jats rarely marry people from other ethnic groups. Great pride is placed in their ancestry. In fact, all the Jats in a particular village consider themselves to be the descendants of the man whom they believe founded the village. Most Jats in India are Hindus, the rest being Sikhs or Muslims. The Jats living in Pakistan are primarily Muslim. The most well known Jat Sikh family are the Maharajas of Patiala whose illustrious lineage and brave heroics still loom large over Punjab politics in present day India. Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who held sway over a large Sikh empire, is also believed to be a Jat Sikh.
The Hindu Jats' religious beliefs are usually nonorthodox. A large number came under the influence of Swami Dayanand and the Arya Samaj in the early part of the 20th century. The Arya Samaji influence played a significant role in shaping their socioreligious identity. The Muslim Jats are Sunnis of the Hanafi school, but are known to have a strong tradition of worshipping many local saints.
Sir Chhotu Ram and Chaudhary Devi Lal (former Deputy Prime Minister of India), are two well-known Jat leaders from Haryana. Seth Chhajju Ram was one of the most well-known business persons and philanthropists of the 20th century. Today, Shri K.P. Singh, promoter of the DLF Group is known throughout modern India as a visionary businessman who initiated the concept of fully integrated suburban townships to serve India's growing urban needs. Shri Bhupinder Singh Hooda is a highly celebrated Jat leader of today having steered Haryana successfully through difficult times into prosperity fueling Haryana's rapid modernisation .
Having descended from a lofty ancient linage the Jats have been protectors and providers of their community through the ages. They must remain conscious and vigilant of their role and contribution to meet the aspirations of the present generation in India's socio-economic order.
A backward community?
OBC panel opposed Jat inclusion in quota list
Dipak Kumar Dash TNN
In March 2014 The Union cabinet went ahead with its decision to include Jats in the central list of OBCs for nine states despite the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) rejecting the proposal. Just four days before the Cabinet’s nod on Sunday, NCBC said Jats “are not a socially and educationally backward community”.
The UPA’s decision is being seen in the context of the impending parliamentary polls as these nine states have over 8 crore Jats and send 226 members to the Lok Sabha. It’s for the first time that the government has overruled an NCBC report as far as inclusion of communities in the central list of OBCs is concerned.
NCBC sources said inclusion of Jats in the OBC list would affect the existing backward communities.
The advice, which has now been uploaded on the NCBC website, says even in the absence of such reservation, Jats are adequately represented in central services, government jobs, educational institutions and their literacy rate is sound. The commission’s report also lists Jat chief ministers, governors, diplomats and even industrialists and businessmen.
The Indian Council of Social Science Research, which was engaged by NCBC for the survey, had submitted that Haryana, UP and Rajasthan have substantial number of IAS, IPS and IFS officers from the community. The NCBC report sent to the government ahead of the Cabinet meeting, opined that the Jat community had not fulfilled the criteria and methodology for inclusion in the central list of OBCs for social and educational backwardness.
A 'backwardness' timeline
QUOTA QUOTIENT
Nov 28, 1997 | National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) advises government of India to grant Jats of Rajasthan (except Bharatpur & Dhaulpur districts which were ruled by Jats) OBC status. It rejects demand for OBC status for Jats in MP, UP, Haryana
Nov 9, 2010 | NCBC rejects proposal to place Jats in the backward list in Delhi
May 3, 2011 | Ministry of Social Justice empowers the NCBC to review its advices to government even after submission of advice.
This is followed by a flurry of petitions to review the case of OBC status for Jats
July 19, 2011 | NCBC raises the need for a survey of Jats in UP, Haryana, MP, Rajasthan, Delhi, Himachal and Gujarat to see socio-economic status of Jats
Dec 19, 2013 | Min of Social Justice requests NCBC to review case of Jat reservation
Mar 3, 2014 | Nod for Jat quota in central list of OBCs in nine states despite opposition by NCBC. The states are Haryana, Gujarat, Delhi, UP, Himachal, Rajasthan (Bharatpur & Dhaulpur districts), Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand
Government over-rules NCBC’s reports on inclusion in OBC list for the first time
Jat community of Central India
This article was written in 1916 when conditions were different. Even in Readers will be able to edit existing articles and post new articles directly |
From The Tribes And Castes Of The Central Provinces Of India
By R. V. Russell
Of The Indian Civil Service
Superintendent Of Ethnography, Central Provinces
Assisted By Rai Bahadur Hira Lal, Extra Assistant Commissioner
Macmillan And Co., Limited, London, 1916.
NOTE 1: The 'Central Provinces' have since been renamed Madhya Pradesh.
NOTE 2: While reading please keep in mind that all articles in this series have been scanned from the original book. Therefore, footnotes have got inserted into the main text of the article, interrupting the flow. Readers who spot these footnotes gone astray might like to shift them to their correct place.
Jat
The representative cultivating caste of the Punjab, 1. Theories corresponding to the Kurmi of Hindustan, the Kunbi of the ° .* of Deccan, and the Kapu of Telingana. In the Central Pro- the caste, vinces 10,000 Jats were returned in 191 1, of whom 5000 belonged to Hoshangabad and the bulk of the remainder to Narsinghpur, Saugor and Jubbulpore. The origin of the Jat caste has been the subject of much discussion. Sir D. Ibbetson stated some of the theories as follows : 2 " Suffice it to say that both General Cunningham and Major Tod agree in considering the Jats to be of Indo-Scythian stock. The former identifies them with the Zanthii of Strabo and the Jatii of Pliny and Ptolemy ; and holds that they probably entered the Punjab from their home on the Oxus very shortly after the Meds or Mands, who also were I ndo- Scythians, and who moved into the Punjab about a century before Christ. . . . Major Tod classes the Jats as 1 This article is partly based on in- Office.
The correct pronunciation of formation contributed by Mr. Debendra the caste name is Jat, but in the Niith Dutt, Pleader, Narsinghpur ; Mr. Central Provinces it is always called Ganga Singh, Extra Assistant Com- Jat. missioner, Hoshangabad; and Mr. - J'unjabCensus Report (18S1), para. Aduram Chaudhri of the Gazetteer 421.
one of the great Rajput tribes, and extends his identification with the Getae to both races ; but here General Cunningham differs, holding the Rajputs to belong to the original Aryan stock, and the Jats to a later wave of immigrants from the north-west, probably of Scythian race." It is highly probable that the Jats may date their settlement in the Punjab from one of the three Scythian inroads mentioned by Mr. V. A. Smith,1 but I do not know that there is as yet considered to be adequate evidence to identify them with any particular one. The following curious passage from the Mahabharata would appear to refer to the Jats : 2 " An old and excellent Brahman reviling the countries Bahlka and Madra in the dwelling of Dhritarashtra, related facts long known, and thus described those nations. External to the Himavan, and beyond the Ganges, beyond the Sarasvati and Yamuna rivers and Kurukshetra, between five rivers, and the Sindhu as the sixth, are situated the Bahlkas, devoid of ritual or observance, and therefore to be shunned. Their figtree is named Govardhana {i.e. the place of cow-killing) ; their market-place is Subhadram (the place of vending liquor : at least so say the commentators), and these give titles to the doorway of the royal palace. A business of great importance compelled me to dwell amongst the Bahlkas, and their customs are therefore well known to me. The chief city is called Shakala, and the river Apaga. The people are also named Jarttikas ; and their customs are shameful.
They drink spirits made from sugar and grain, and eat meat seasoned with garlic ; and live on flesh and wine : their women intoxicated appear in public places, with no other garb than garlands and perfumes, dancing and singing, and vociferating indecencies in tones more harsh than those of the camel or the ass ; they indulge in promiscuous intercourse and are under no restraint. They clothe themselves in skins and blankets, and sound the cymbal and drum and conch, and cry aloud with hoarse voices : ' We will hasten to delight, in thick forests and in 1 Early History of India. translated by Professor H. H. Wilson, and quoted in vol. i. pp. 260, 262 of 2 Mahabharata, viii. 2026, et seq., Dr. J. Wilson's Indian Caste.
pleasant places ; we will feast and sport ; and gathering on the highways spring upon the travellers, and spoil and scourge them!' In Shakala, a female demon (a Rakshasi) on the fourteenth day of the dark fortnight sings aloud : ' I will feast on the flesh of kine, and quaff the inebriating spirit attended by fair and graceful females.' The Sudra-like Bahlkas have no institutes nor sacrifices ; and neither deities, manes, nor Brahmans accept their offerings.
They eat out of wooden or earthen plates, nor heed their being smeared with wine or viands, or licked by dogs, and they use equally in its various preparations the milk of ewes, of camels and of asses. Who that has drunk milk in the city Yugandhara can hope to enter Svarga ? Bahi and Hika were the names of two fiends in the Vipasha river ; the Bahlkas are their descendants and not of the creation of Brahma. Some say the Arattas are the name of the people and Bahlka of the waters.
The Vedas are not known there, nor oblation, nor sacrifice, and the gods will not partake of their food. The Prasthalas (perhaps borderers), Madras, Gandharas, Arattas, Khashas, Vasas, Atisindhus (or those beyond the Indus), Sauvlras, are all equally infamous. There one who is by birth a Brahman, becomes a Kshatriya, or a Vaishya, or a Sudra, or a Barber, and having been a barber becomes a Brahman again. A virtuous woman was once violated by Aratta ruffians, and she cursed the race, and their women have ever since been unchaste. On this account their heirs are their sisters' children, not their own.
All countries have their laws and gods : the Yavanas are wise, and pre- eminently brave ; the Mlechchas observe their own ritual, but the Madrakas are worthless. Madra is the ordure of the earth : it is the region of inebriety, unchastity, robbery, and murder : fie on the Panchanada people ! fie on the Aratta race ! " In the above account the country referred to is clearly the Punjab, from the mention of the five rivers and the Indus. The people are called Bahlka or Jarttika, and would therefore seem to be the Jats. And the account would appear to refer to a period when they were newly settled in the Punjab and had not come under Hindu influence. But at the same time the Aryans or Hindus had passed through
the Punjab and were settled in Hindustan. And it would therefore seem to be a necessary inference that the Jats were comparatively late immigrants, and were one of the tribes who invaded India between the second century B.C. and the fifth century A.D. as suggested above. 2 . Sir d. Sir D. Ibbetson held that the Jats and Rajputs must be, ibbetson's to some extent at least, of the same blood.
Though the description . , ., of the Jats are represented in the Central Provinces only by a small body of immigrants it will be permissible to quote the follow- ing passages from his admirable and classical account of the caste : 1 " It may be that the original Rajput and the original Jiit entered India at different periods in its history, though to my mind the term Rajput is an occupational rather than an ethnological expression. But if they do originally re- present two separate waves of immigration, it is at least exceedingly probable, both from their almost identical phy- sique and facial character and from the close communion which has always existed between them, that they belong to one and the same ethnic stock ; while, whether this be so or not, it is almost certain that they have been for many centuries and still are so intermingled and so blended into one people that it is practically impossible to distinguish them as separate wholes. It is indeed more than probable that the process of fusion has not ended here, and that the people who thus in the main resulted from the blending of the Jat and the Rajput, if these two were ever distinct, is by no means free from foreign elements. . . . 3. Are the " But whether Jats and Rajputs were or were not Rajpats originally distinct, and whatever aboriginal elements may distinct? have been affiliated to their society, I think that the two now form a common stock, the distinction between Jat and Rajput being social rather than ethnic. I believe that those families of that common stock whom the tide of fortune has raised to political importance have become Rajputs almost by mere virtue of their rise ; and that their descendants have retained the title and its privileges on the condition, strictly enforced, of observing the rules by which the higher are distinguished from the lower castes in the Hindu scale of precedence ; of
preserving their purity of blood by refusing to marry with families of inferior social rank, of rigidly abstaining from widow-marriage, and of refraining from degrading occupa- tions.
Those who transgressed these rules have fallen from their high position and ceased to be Rajputs ; while such families as, attaining a dominant position in their territory, began to affect social exclusiveness and to observe the rules, have become not only Rajas but also Rajputs or sons of Rajas. For the last seven centuries at least the process of elevation has been almost at a standstill.
Under the Delhi Emperors king-making was practically impossible. Under the Sikhs the Rajput was overshadowed by the Jat, who resented his assumption of superiority and his refusal to join him on equal terms in the ranks of the Khalsa, deliberately persecuted him wherever and whenever he had the power, and preferred his title of Jat Sikh to that of the proudest Rajput. On the frontier the dominance of Pathans and Biloches and the general prevalence of Muhammadan feelings and ideas placed recent Indian origin at a discount, and led the leading families who belonged to neither of these two races to claim connection not with the Kshatriyas of the Sanskrit classics but with the Mughal conquerors of India or the Qureshi cousins of the Prophet ; in so much that even admittedly Rajput tribes of famous ancestry, such as the Khokha, have begun to follow the example.
But in the hills, where Rajput dynasties, with genealogies perhaps more ancient and unbroken than can be shown by any other royal families in the world, retained their independence till yesterday, and where many of them still enjoy as great social authority as ever, the twin processes of degradation from and elevation to Rajput rank are still to be seen in operation. The Raja is there the fountain not only of honour but also of caste, which is the same thing in India. . . . " The Jat is in every respect the most important of the 4- The Punjab peoples. In point of numbers he surpasses the EhTjSbi Rajput, who comes next to him, in the proportion of nearly the Punjab, three to one ; while the two together constitute twenty-seven per cent of the whole population of the Province. Politically he ruled the Punjab till the Khalsa yielded to our arms.
Ethnologically he is the peculiar and most prominent product of the plain of the five rivers. And from an economical and administrative point of view he is the husbandman, the peasant, the revenue -payer par excellence of the Province. His manners do not bear the impress of generations of wild freedom which marks the races of our frontier mountains. But he is more honest, more industrious, more sturdy, and no less manly than they.
Sturdy independence indeed and patient, vigorous labour are his strongest characteristics. The Jat is of all Punjab races the most impatient of tribal or communal control, and the one which asserts the freedom of the individual most strongly. In tracts where, as in Rohtak, the Jat tribes have the field to themselves, and are compelled, in default of rival castes as enemies, to fall back upon each other for somebody to quarrel with, the tribal ties are strong. But as a rule a Jat is a man who does what seems right in his own eyes and sometimes what seems wrong also, and will not be said nay by any man. I do not mean, however,
that he is turbulent ; as a rule he is very far from being so. He is independent and he is self-willed ; but he is reasonable, peaceably inclined if left alone, and not difficult to manage. He is usually content to cultivate his fields and pay his revenue in peace and quietness if people will let him do so ; though when he does go wrong he takes to anything from gambling to murder, with perhaps a preference for stealing other people's wives and cattle. As usual the proverbial wisdom of the villages describes him very fairly though perhaps somewhat too severely:
'The soil, fodder, clothes, hemp, grass-fibre, and silk, these six are best beaten ; and the seventh is the Jat' ' A Jat, a Bhat, a caterpillar, and a widow woman ; these four are best hungry. If they eat their fill they do harm.' ' The Jat, like a wound, is better when bound.' In agriculture the Jat is pre-eminent. The market-gardening castes, the Arain, the Mali, the Saini are perhaps more skilful cultivators on a small scale ; but they cannot rival the Jat as landowners and yeoman cultivators. The Jat calls himself zamindar or ' husbandman ' as often as Jat, and his women and children alike work with him in the fields : ' The Jat's baby has a plough-handle for a plaything.' ' The Jat stood on his corn heap and said to the king's
elephant - drivers, Will you sell those little donkeys ?
Socially the Jat occupies a position which is shared by the Ror, the Gujar, and the Ahlr, all four eating and smoking together. He is, of course, far below the Rajput, from the simple fact that he practises widow- marriage. The Jat father is made to say in the rhyming proverbs of the countryside, ' Come, my daughter, and be married ; if this husband dies there are plenty more.' But among the widow-marrying castes he stands first. The Bania with his sacred thread, his strict Hinduism, and his twice-born standing, looks down on the Jat as a Sudra. But the Jat looks down upon the Bania as a cowardly, spiritless money- grubber, and society in general agrees with the Jat.
The Khatri, who is far superior to the Bania in manliness and vigour, probably takes precedence of the Jat. But among the races or tribes of purely Hindu origin, I think that the Jat stands next after the Brahman, the Rajput, and the Khatri." The above account clearly indicates the social position 5. Social of the Jat. His is the highest caste except the aristocracy ^Tats' consisting of the Brahmans and Rajputs, the Khatris who are derived from the Rajputs, and the Banias who are recognised as ranking not much below the Rajputs. The derivation of some of the Rajput clans from the Jats seems highly probable, and is confirmed by other instances of aristocratic selection in such castes as the Marathas and Kunbis, the Raj-Gonds and Gonds, and so on.
If, how- ever, the Rajputs are a Jat aristocracy, it is clear that the Jats were not the Sudras, who are described as wholly debased and impure in the Hindu classics ; and the present application of the term Sudra to them is a misnomer arising from modern errors in classification by the Hindus them- selves. The Jats, if Sir D. Ibbetson's account be accepted, must have been the main body of the invading host, whether Aryan or Scythian, of whom the Rajputs were the leaders. They settled on the land and formed village communities, and the status of the Jat at present appears to be that of a member of the village community and part -holder of its land. A slightly undue importance may perhaps have been given in the above passage to the
practice of widow-marriage as determining the position of a great caste like the Jats. Some Rajputs, Kayasths and Banias permit widow-marriage, and considerable sections of all these castes, and Brahmans also, permit the practice of keeping widows, which, though not called a marriage, does not differ very widely from it.
The Jat probably finds his women too valuable as assistants in cultivation to make a pretence at the abolition of widow-marriage in order to improve his social status as some other castes do. The Jat, of course, ranks as what is commonly called a pure caste, in that Brahmans take water to drink from him. But his status does not depend on this, because Brahmans take water from such menials as barbers, Kahars or bearers, Baris or household servants, and so on, who rank far below the Jat, and also from the Malis and other gardening castes who are appreciably below him. The Jat is equal to the Gujar and Ahir so far as social purity is concerned, but still above them, because they are graziers and vagrants, while he is a settled cultivator. It is from this fact that his status is perhaps mainly derived ; and his leading characteristics, his independence, self-sufficiency, dogged- ness, and industry, are those generally recognised as typical of the peasant proprietor. But the Jat, in the Punjab at any rate, has also a higher status than the principal cultivating castes of other provinces, the Kurmi and the Kunbi.
And this may perhaps be explained by his purer foreign descent, and also by the fact that both as Jat and as Sikh his caste has been a military and dominant one in history and has furnished princes and heads of states. The Jats themselves relate the following Brahmanical legend of their origin. On one occasion when Himachal or Daksha Raja, the father-in-law of Mahadeo, was per- forming a great sacrifice, he invited all the gods to be present except his son-in-law Mahadeo (Siva).
The latter's wife Parvati was, however, very anxious to go, so she asked Mahadeo to let her attend, even though she had not been invited. Mahadeo was unwilling to do this, but finally consented. But Daksha treated Parvati with great want of respect at the sacrifice, so she came home and told Mahadeo about him. When Mahadeo heard this he was
filled with wrath, and untying his matted hair (jata) dashed it on the ground, when two powerful beings arose from it. He sent them to destroy Daksha's sacrifice and they went and destroyed it, and from these were descended the race of the Jats, and they take their name from the matted locks {jata) of the lord Mahadeo.
Another saying of the caste is that " The ancestor of the Rajputs was Kashyap 1 and of the Jats Siva. In the beginning these were the only two races of India." No detailed description of the Jats need be attempted 7- The here, but some information which has been obtained on central their customs in this Province may be recorded. They Provinces, entered the Hoshangabad District, Sir C. Elliot states, 2 in the eighteenth century, and came originally from Bharatpur (Bhurtpur), but halted in Marwar on the way. " They are the best cultivators in the District after the Pardeshi Kurmis, and though they confine themselves to ordinary crops they are very laborious, and the tilth of their fields is pleasant to look on.
" For the purposes of marriage the caste is divided into exogamous sections in the usual manner. The bulk of the section -names cannot be ex- plained, being probably corrupted forms of the names of villages, but it is noticeable that several pairs of them are considered to be related so that their members cannot intermarry.
Thus no marriages can take place between the Golia and Gwalwa, the Choyala and Sarana, the Bhukar and Bhari, and the Lathial and Lalar sections, as each pair is considered to be descended from a common ancestor. A man may not take a wife either from his own section 8. Mar- or that of his mother or his grandmother, nor from those "usfoms. of the husbands of his father's sisters. For a Jat wedding a square enclosure is marked out with pegs, and a thread is wound seven times round the pegs touching the ground, and covered over with rice or wheat so that it may not be burnt.
The enclosure is known as Chaonri, and inside it the Jwm or fire sacrifice is performed with butter, 1 Kashyap was a Rlshi or saint, but tortoise, he may probably have developed into 2 Hoshangabad Settlement Report, an eponymous hero from Kachhap, a p. 62.
barley, sesamum, sugar and saffron placed on the top of a heap of wheat -flour. After the sacrifice the bride and bridegroom walk seven times round the Chaonri with their right hands inwards. After this tufts of cotton are thrown over the bodies of the bridegroom and bride and they have to pick it off each other, the one who finishes first being considered the winner.
This is apparently a symbolical imitation of the agricultural operation of cotton -picking. The remarriage of widows is permitted, the ceremony being usually performed on a Saturday. A bachelor who is to marry a widow must first wall: seven times round a plpal tree. Contrary to the usual custom, a widow is forbidden to espouse her deceased husband's younger brother or any of his relations within three degrees of consanguinity. The dead are burnt, with the exception of children under seven whose bodies are buried.
After the death of a married man his widow walks round his body seven times with her left hand inwards, or in the reverse direction to the perambulation of the Chaonri at marriage. This ceremony is therefore, as it were, a sort of undoing of the marriage. The women wear lac or ivory bangles, and the widow breaks a few of these when the corpse of her husband is lifted up to be carried outside the house. She breaks the remaining ones on the twelfth day after the death and throws them on the chiilha or earthen hearth. An important occasion for display among the Jats is known as the Paida ceremony.
This is sometimes per- formed by wealthy families when the head of the household or his wife dies or a daughter is married. They get a long pole of teakwood and plant it in the ground so that it stands some forty feet high. Before being raised the pole is worshipped with offerings of milk ; a cart-wheel is tied to the upper end and it is then pulled erect with ropes, and if any difficulty is experienced the celebrant believes himself to be in fault and gives away some cows in charity. On the axle of the cart-wheel is secured a brass pot called kaseri, containing wheat and money, with a cloth tied over the mouth. The pole is left standing for three days, and during this time the celebrant feasts the Bhats or genealogists of the caste and all the caste-fellows from his own and
the surrounding villages. If the occasion of the ceremony be a death, male and female calves are taken and their marriage is performed ; oil and turmeric are rubbed on their bodies, and they are led seven times round the high pole. The heifer is then given to a Brahman, and the male, being first branded on one flank with a figure of a trident and on the other with a representation of the sun and moon, is set at liberty for life, and no Hindu will injure it. This last practice is, however, falling into desuetude, owing to the injury which such animals inflict on the crops.
A Jat who performs the Paida ceremony obtains great consideration in the community, and his opinion is given weight in caste disputes. A similar liberality is observed in other ways by wealthy men ; thus one rich proprietor in Hoshangabad, whose son was to be married, gave a feast to all the residents of every village through which the wedding procession passed on its way to the bride's house. Another presented each of his wedding guests with new cloth to the value of ten or twelve rupees, and as in the case of a prominent family the number of guests may be a thousand or more, the cost of such liberality can be easily realised.
Similarly Colonel Tod states that on the occasion of their weddings the Jats of Bikaner even blocked up the highways to obtain visitors, whose numbers formed the measure of the liberality and munificence of the donor of the fete. Indeed, the desire for the social distinction which accrues to generous hosts on such occasions has proved to be the undoing of many a once notable family.
If a woman is barren, she is taken to the meeting of the n. Cus- boundaries of three villages and bathed there. On the birth ! on ' R at ° birth. of a boy a brass dish is hammered to announce the event, but on that of a girl only a winnowing-fan. The navel- string is buried in the lying-in room. When the newborn child is a few days old, it is taken out of doors and made to bow to the sun. When a man proposes to adopt a son the caste-fellows are invited, and in their presence the boy is seated in his lap, while music is played and songs are sun- by the women. Each of the guests then comes up and pre- sents the boy with a cocoanut, while sugar is distributed and a feast is afterwards given. customs.
12. Reii- The favourite deity of the caste is Siva or Mahadeo, whom they consider to be their ultimate ancestor. On the festival of Shivratri (Siva's night) they observe a total fast, and pass the whole day and night singing songs in hon- our of the god, while offerings of del 1 leaves, flowers, rice and sandalwood are made on the following morning.
In Hoshangabad the caste have two minor deities, Ramji Deo and Bairam Deo, who are presumably the spirits of defunct warriors. These are worshipped on the eleventh day of every month, and many Jats wear an impression of their images on a piece of gold or silver round the neck. On the Dasahra festival the caste worship their swords and horses in memory of their soldier ancestors, and they revere their implements of husbandry on the Akshaya Tritiya of Baisakh (June), the commencement of the agricultural year, while each cultivator does the same on the days that he completes the sowing of his rain crops and winter crops. 13. Social The caste employ Brahmans for the performance of their ceremonies, and also as their gurus or spiritual preceptors.
They eat flesh and drink liquor in the Central Provinces, but in Hoshangabad they do not consume either birds or fish ; and when they eat mutton or the flesh of the wild pig, they do this only outside the house, in order not to offend their women, who will not eat flesh. In Hoshangabad the Jats, like other immigrants from Marwar, commonly wear their hair long and keep the face unshaven, and this gives them rather a wild and farouche appearance among the neatly shorn Hindus of the Nerbudda Valley.2 They are of light complexion, the difference in shade between the Jats and ordinary residents in the locality being apparent to the casual observer.
Their women are fond of the hollow anklets known as bora, which contain small balls or pebbles, and tinkle as they walk. Girls are tattooed before marriage, and while the operation is being carried out the women of the caste collect and sing songs to divert the sufferer's attention from the pain. The men have pagris or turbans made of many little strings of twisted cloth, which come down over the ears. If a man kills a cow or a squirrel, he must stay out- side the village for five weeks and nobody looks upon his 1 Aegle marmelos. 2 Hoshangabad Settlement Report, loc. cit.
face.
After this he should go and bathe in the Ganges, but if he is too poor the Nerbudda may be substituted for it with the permission of the caste committee. The penalty for killing a cat is almost as severe, but to slay a dog involves no sin. If a man who has committed a murder escapes con- viction but his guilt is known to the caste, it is absolutely incumbent on him to go and bathe in the Ganges and be purified there, having his head and face shaved.
After this he may be readmitted to caste intercourse. The caste observe some curious rules or taboos : they never drink the milk of a black cow ; their women do not have their noses bored for nose-rings, but if a woman loses several children she will have the nose bored of the next one which is born ; women never wear glass bangles, but have them made of ivory or lac and clay ; they never wear the bdzuband or armlet with bars crossed on hinges which can be pulled in or out, but instead of it the kara or rigid bangle ; and the caste never keep a basil plant in the house for worship, though they may revere it outside the house.
As the basil is the emblem of Vishnu, and the Jats consider themselves to be descended from Siva, they would naturally not be in- clined to pay any special respect to the plant. The Jats are good cultivators, and at the thirty years' 14. Occu- settlement (1865) several members of the caste held con- Patlon - 'siderable estates ; but a number of these have now been lost, owing probably to extravagance of living. In Saugor the Jats are commonly employed as masons or navvies.
