600 bc to 600 ce

05 July 2025 10:19

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Understanding Social Changes and Historical Sources (c. 600

BCE - 600 CE)
• Significant transformations occurred in economic and political life between c. 600 BCE
and 600 CE.
• These changes also influenced societies:
○ Extension of agriculture into forested areas transformed lives of forest dwellers.
○ Craft specialists emerged as distinct social groups.
○ Unequal distribution of wealth sharpened social differences.
• Historians use textual traditions (texts laying down norms, describing social situations)
and inscriptions to understand these processes.
• Critical approach to sources is essential:
○ Consider who composed the text and for whom.
○ Analyze the language used and how the text circulated.
○ Texts, when used carefully, help reconstruct attitudes and practices that shaped
social histories.
The Mahabharata: A Colossal Epic Source
• The Mahabharata is a colossal epic of over 100,000 verses, depicting a wide range of social
categories and situations.
• It was composed over approximately 1,000 years (c. 500 BCE onwards).
• The central story is about two sets of warring cousins.
• The text includes sections that lay down norms of social behaviour for various groups, which
characters sometimes follow or deviate from.
The Critical Edition of the Mahabharata
• An ambitious scholarly project to create a critical edition began in 1919, led by V.S.
Sukthankar.
• Involved collecting Sanskrit manuscripts from various parts of the country, written in diverse
scripts.
• The team compared verses from each manuscript, selecting those common to most
versions.
• The project resulted in a 13,000+ page edition, completed in 47 years.
• Key findings of the project:
○ Presence of several common elements in Sanskrit versions across the entire
subcontinent (Kashmir to Kerala).
○ Enormous regional variations in the text's transmission over centuries, meticulously
documented in footnotes and appendices (over half the edition's pages).
• These variations reflect the complex processes that shaped social histories, showing
dialogues (both conflict and consensus) between dominant traditions and resilient local ideas.
Historians' Methods for Reconstructing Social Histories
• Earlier historians (19th and 20th centuries) often took normative Sanskrit texts (composed
by and for Brahmanas) at face value, assuming they reflected actual practices.
• Later scholarship expanded to include texts in Pali, Prakrit, and Tamil.
• This broadened study revealed that while ideas in normative Sanskrit texts were recognised
as authoritative, they were also questioned and occasionally rejected.
• It is crucial for historians to keep this in mind when reconstructing social histories,
emphasizing a critical and multi-faceted approach to sources.

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2. Kinship and Marriage: Many Rules and Varied Practices
2.1 Finding Out About Families
• Family Diversity: Families vary in member numbers, relationships, and shared
activities (food, resources, living, working, rituals).
• Kinship Networks: Families are part of larger networks called relatives or kinfolk.
• Defining Kinship: While often perceived as "natural" or "blood-based," familial ties
are socially defined (e.g., how cousins are considered relations varies by society).
• Historical Inquiry:
○ Easier for historians to reconstruct information about elite families than ordinary people.
○ Historians also analyze attitudes towards family and kinship to understand societal
thinking and actions.
2.2 The Ideal of Patriliny
• Mahabharata as an Example: Describes a feud over land and power between two cousin
groups, the Kauravas and Pandavas, belonging to the Kuru ruling family.
• Outcome: Pandavas victorious, leading to the proclamation of patrilineal succession.
• Patriliny Defined: A system where sons claimed their father's resources (including the
throne).
• Historical Prevalence: Most ruling dynasties (c. 6th century BCE onwards) claimed to follow
patriliny.
• Variations in Practice:
○ Sometimes no sons; brothers or other kinsmen succeeded.
○ In exceptional cases, women (e.g., Prabhavati Gupta) exercised power.
• Broader Significance: Concern for patriliny was not exclusive to rulers; it's evident in Rigveda
mantras and was likely shared by wealthy men and Brahmanas.
2.3 Rules of Marriage
• Daughters' Role in Patriliny:
○ Daughters had no claim to household resources.
○ Exogamy (marrying outside the kin group) was considered desirable.
○ Lives of high-status girls were carefully regulated for appropriate marriage.
○ Kanyadana (gift of a daughter in marriage) was an important religious duty for fathers.
• Emergence of Norms:
○ New towns led to more complex social life and questioning of old practices.
○ Brahmanas responded by detailing codes of social behavior.
○ These norms were compiled in Sanskrit texts like Dharmasutras and
Dharmashastras (from c. 500 BCE).
○ The Manusmriti (c. 200 BCE-200 CE) is a significant work.
• Reality vs. Ideal:
○ Brahmana claims of universal validity were likely more complicated in practice due to
regional diversity and communication difficulties.
○ These texts recognized eight forms of marriage: the first four were "good," the rest
condemned (possibly practiced by non-Brahmanical groups).
2.4 The Gotra of Women
• Gotra System: A Brahmanical practice (from c. 1000 BCE) to classify people, especially
Brahmanas.
○ Each gotra was named after a Vedic seer.
○ Members of the same gotra were considered descendants of that seer.
• Key Gotra Rules:
1. Women were expected to give up their father's gotra and adopt their
husband's upon marriage.
2. Members of the same gotra could not marry (reinforcing exogamy).
• Satavahana Rulers (c. 2nd C BCE - 2nd C CE) Example:
○ Inscriptions show Satavahana queens often retained their father's gotra names (e.g.,
Gotama, Vasistha) instead of adopting their husband's.
○ Some Satavahana queens even belonged to the same gotra, indicating endogamy
(marriage within the kin group), which countered the Brahmanical ideal of exogamy.
○ Endogamy was (and is) prevalent in several South Indian communities (e.g., cousin
marriage) to ensure close-knit communities.

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 marriage) to ensure close-knit communities.
○ This provides evidence of alternative practices differing from Brahmanical norms.
2.5 Were Mothers Important?
• Satavahana Metronymics: Satavahana rulers were identified through metronymics (names
derived from the mother).
• Interpretation Caution: While this may suggest the importance of mothers, succession to
the throne was generally patrilineal in the Satavahana context, indicating a complex
interplay of naming practices and inheritance patterns.

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Here are your notes, highlighting key points:

Notes: Family, Kinship, Marriage & Succession in Ancient India

I. Terms for Family and Kin
• Kula: Term used in Sanskrit texts to designate families.
• Jnati: Refers to the larger network of kinfolk.
• Vamsha: Signifies lineage.
II. Rigveda Marriage Mantra (c. 1000 BCE)
• A mantra from the Rigveda, likely inserted around 1000 BCE.
• Chanted by the priest during the marriage ritual.
• Still used in many Hindu weddings today.
• Purpose: To ensure the bride will have fine sons and be fortunate in her husband's love.
• Indra: Mentioned as a principal deity, god of valour, warfare, and rain.
• "Here": Refers to the father’s house.
• "There": Refers to the husband’s house.
III. Mahabharata: Conflict between Kauravas and Pandavas (Adi Parvan)
• Excerpt from the Adi Parvan (first section) of the Sanskrit Mahabharata.
• Kauravas: Sons of Dhritarashtra.
• Pandavas: Their cousins.
• Royal Succession Crisis in Hastinapura:
○ Dhritarashtra was blind, so his younger brother Pandu ascended the throne.
○ After Pandu's premature death, Dhritarashtra became king as the princes were young.
○ Citizens preferred the Pandavas due to their capabilities and virtue.
○ Duryodhana (eldest Kaurava) grew jealous, fearing exclusion from royal succession for
his lineage.
• Historical Interpretation: Such passages may not be literally true but reflect the ideas and
sometimes conflicting views of the text's writers.
IV. Eight Forms of Marriage (from Manusmriti)
• Descriptions of specific forms of marriage as per the Manusmriti:
○ First Form: Gift of a daughter (dressed, jeweled) to a Veda-learned man invited by
the father.
○ Fourth Form: Father addresses couple ("May both of you perform your duties together")
and honors groom before giving the daughter.
○ Fifth Form: Groom receives a maiden after giving wealth to kinsmen and the bride
herself.
○ Sixth Form: The voluntary union of a maiden and her lover, born from mutual desire.
V. Satavahana Rulers and Metronymics
• Information recovered from inscriptions.
• Uniform title: raja (king).
• puta: A Prakrit word meaning "son".
• Metronymics: Satavahana rulers often used names like Gotami-puta (son of Gotami) or Vasithi-
puta.
• Female names like Gotami, Vasithi, Madhari, Hariti are feminine forms of Vedic seers (e.g.,
Gotama, Vasistha) after whom gotras were named.
VI. Metronymics in the Upanishads
• The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad (one of the earliest Upanishads) lists generations of
teachers and students.

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 teachers and students.
• Many were designated by using metronymics.
VII. Gandhari's Appeal to Duryodhana (Mahabharata)
• Occurred when war between Kauravas and Pandavas was almost inevitable.
• Gandhari's Plea to Duryodhana:
○ Advocated for peace to honor parents and well-wishers.
○ Emphasized that a wise man controls his senses and guards his kingdom.
○ Warned against greed and anger, which detract from profit.
○ Stated that there is "no good in a war": no law (dharma), profit (artha), happiness, or
guaranteed victory.
○ Urged him not to set his mind on war, suggesting he enjoy the earth along with the
Pandavas.
• Outcome: Duryodhana did not listen to her advice, fought, and lost the war.

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Here are notes on "Social Differences: Within and Beyond the Framework of Caste," highlighting key
points:

3. Social Differences: Within and Beyond the Framework of Caste

• Caste Definition: A set of hierarchically ordered social categories.
○ Ideal order laid down in Dharmasutras and Dharmashastras.
○ Brahmanas claimed this order was divinely ordained, ranking themselves first.
○ Shudras and "untouchables" were placed at the very bottom.
○ Positions were supposedly determined by birth.
3.1 The "Right" Occupation
• Varnas and their Ideal Occupations (as per Dharmasutras and Dharmashastras):
○ Brahmanas: Study/teach Vedas, perform/get sacrifices done, give/receive gifts.
○ Kshatriyas: Warfare, protect people, administer justice, study Vedas, get sacrifices
done, make gifts.
○ Vaishyas: Agriculture, pastoralism, trade (also study Vedas, sacrifices, gifts).
○ Shudras: Only one occupation – serving the three "higher" varnas.
• Brahmanas' Strategies for Enforcing Norms:
1. Asserted divine origin of the varna order.
2. Advised kings to ensure norms were followed.
3. Attempted to persuade people that status was determined by birth, often reinforced by
stories from texts like the Mahabharata.
3.2 Non-Kshatriya Kings
• Shastras Rule: Only Kshatriyas could be kings.
• Contradictions and Exceptions:
○ Mauryas: Their social background debated; Buddhist texts called them Kshatriyas,
Brahmanical texts described "low" origin.
○ Shungas and Kanvas: Immediate successors to Mauryas, were Brahmanas.
○ Reality: Political power was effectively open to anyone who could muster support and
resources, not solely dependent on Kshatriya birth.
○ Shakas (Central Asia): Regarded as mlechchhas (barbarians/outsiders) by
Brahmanas.
 However, ruler Rudradaman rebuilt Sudarshana lake (Sanskrit inscription),
showing familiarity with Sanskritic traditions.
○ Satavahanas (Gotami-puta Siri-Satakani):
 Claimed to be a "unique Brahmana" (eka bamhana) and "destroyer of the pride
of Kshatriyas."
 Stated he prevented intermarriage among varnas, yet entered a marriage alliance
with Rudradaman's kin (a Shaka/mlechchha).
 This shows complexity in caste integration: claiming Brahmana status while
ruling (Kshatriya role), upholding varna order but intermarrying with "outsiders,"
and practicing endogamy (vs. Brahmanical exogamy).
3.3 Jatis and Social Mobility
• Jati Definition: Social categories also based on birth, similar to varna.

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 • Jati Definition: Social categories also based on birth, similar to varna.
• Key Difference from Varna: Varnas were fixed at four, but no restriction on the number of
jatis.
• Formation of Jatis: Brahmanical authorities classified new groups (e.g., forest dwellers
like nishadas) or occupational categories (e.g., goldsmiths/suvarnakara) as jatis if they
didn't fit the fourfold varna system.
• Shrenis (Guilds): Jatis sharing a common occupation were sometimes organized into guilds.
• Example: Silk Weavers' Guild (Mandasor inscription, c. 5th century CE):
○ Recorded history of silk weavers migrating from Lata (Gujarat) to Mandasor.
○ Shows that while membership was based on shared craft, some members adopted other
occupations.
○ Members collectively invested wealth to construct a temple to the sun god, indicating
shared purpose beyond just profession.
3.4 Beyond the Four Varnas: Integration
• Diverse Populations: Many groups in the subcontinent had social practices not influenced
by Brahmanical ideas.
○ Often described as odd, uncivilized, or animal-like in Sanskrit texts.
○ Examples: Forest-dwellers (e.g., nishadas like Ekalavya) who relied on hunting and
gathering.
○ Nomadic pastoralists were viewed with suspicion as they didn't fit settled agricultural
framework.
○ Those speaking non-Sanskritic languages were labeled mlechchhas.
• Despite differences, there was sharing of ideas and beliefs between these groups and
Brahmanical society (evident in Mahabharata stories).
3.5 Beyond the Four Varnas: Subordination and Conflict
• "Untouchables": Brahmanas created a sharper social divide by classifying certain categories
as "untouchable."
• Basis: Notion of purity vs. pollution. Rituals were pure; certain activities (e.g., handling
corpses, dead animals) were particularly "polluting."
• Chandalas: Placed at the very bottom of the hierarchy, performed "polluting" tasks.
○ Their touch, and in some cases, even seeing them, was considered "polluting" by those
at the top.
• Duties of Chandalas (Manusmriti):
○ Live outside the village.
○ Use discarded utensils.
○ Wear clothes of the dead and iron ornaments.
○ Could not walk in villages/cities at night.
○ Dispose of bodies of kinless, serve as executioners.
• External Observations:
○ Fa Xian (Chinese Buddhist monk, c. 5th CE): "Untouchables" had to sound a
clapper in streets to warn others to avoid them.
○ Xuan Zang (Chinese pilgrim, c. 7th CE): Executioners and scavengers were forced
to live outside the city.
• Historians examine non-Brahmanical texts to see if Chandalas accepted this degradation,
finding both correspondence and hints of different social realities.

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Notes on Beyond Birth: Resources and Status

Key Points:
1. Access to resources shaped social positions: Economic relations and access to resources
played a significant role in shaping social positions in ancient India.
2. Gendered access to property: Women had limited access to property, and their rights were
restricted by the Manusmriti, which allowed them to retain only their stridhana (a woman's
wealth).
3. Varna and access to property: The Brahmanical texts regulated access to wealth based on
varna, with the wealthiest men being Brahmanas and Kshatriyas.
4. Alternative social scenarios: There were alternative social scenarios, such as in ancient
Tamilakam, where generosity and sharing of wealth were valued.

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 Tamilakam, where generosity and sharing of wealth were valued.
5. Social contract: The Buddhists developed an alternative understanding of social inequalities,
suggesting that social institutions were created by human choice and could be changed.
Detailed Notes:
4.1 Gendered Access to Property
• The Mahabharata story of Yudhisthira and Draupadi highlights issues of ownership and access
to property.
• The Manusmriti restricted women's access to property, allowing them to retain only their
stridhana.
• Women from upper-class families, such as the Vakataka queen Prabhavati Gupta, may have
had access to resources, but land, cattle, and money were generally controlled by men.
4.2 Varna and Access to Property
• The Brahmanical texts regulated access to wealth based on varna, with the wealthiest men
being Brahmanas and Kshatriyas.
• The only occupation prescribed for Shudras was servitude, while men of the first three varnas
had a variety of occupations.
• Kings and priests were often depicted as wealthy in textual traditions.
4.3 An Alternative Social Scenario: Sharing Wealth
• In ancient Tamilakam, generosity and sharing of wealth were valued, and the chiefs were
patrons of bards and poets.
• The Tamil Sangam anthologies suggest that while there were differences between rich and
poor, those who controlled resources were expected to share them.
5. Explaining Social Differences: A Social Contract
• The Buddhists developed an alternative understanding of social inequalities, suggesting that
social institutions were created by human choice and could be changed.
• The myth of the Sutta Pitaka suggests that the institution of kingship was based on human
choice, with taxes as a form of payment for services rendered by the king.
• This recognition of human agency in creating and institutionalizing economic and social
relations implies that humans can also change the system in the future.

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Here are notes on "Handling Texts: Historians and the Mahabharata," highlighting key points:

Notes: 6. Handling Texts – Historians and the Mahabharata

I. Historians' Approach to Analyzing Texts (General Principles) Historians consider several
elements when analyzing texts:
• Language:
○ Prakrit, Pali, or Tamil: Likely used by ordinary people.
○ Sanskrit: Meant almost exclusively for priests and elites.
• Type of Text:
○ Mantras: Learnt and chanted by ritual specialists.
○ Stories: Read, heard, and retold.
• Author(s) & Intended Audience: Understand their perspectives, ideas, and audience
interests.
• Date & Place of Composition/Compilation: Crucial for historical context.
• Purpose: These assessments help understand the historical significance of the text.
• Challenge: Analyzing a complex text like the Mahabharata is particularly difficult.
II. 6.1 Language and Content of the Mahabharata
• Language:
○ The version studied is in Sanskrit, but it's simpler than Vedic Sanskrit, suggesting
wider understanding.
• Content Classification: Usually classified into two broad categories:
○ Narrative: Sections containing stories.
○ Didactic: Sections containing prescriptions about social norms.
○ Note: This division is not rigid; didactic sections include stories, and narrative has social
messages.

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 messages.
○ Historians' View: The Mahabharata was primarily meant to be a dramatic
story; didactic portions were probably added later.
• "Itihasa": The text is described as an "itihasa" in early Sanskrit tradition, literally
meaning "thus it was," translated as "history."
• Historical Reality of the War:
○ Uncertain: Historians are not sure if there was a real war.
○ Some believe the narrative preserves the memory of an actual conflict amongst
kinfolk.
○ Others note no other corroborative evidence exists for the battle.
III. 6.2 Author(s) and Dates of the Mahabharata
• Original Composers:
○ Probably charioteer-bards known as sutas, who orally composed poems celebrating
Kshatriya victories.
• Subsequent Phases of Composition:
○ From 5th Century BCE: Brahmanas took over the story and began to commit it to
writing. This period coincides with chiefdoms becoming kingdoms (e.g., Kurus,
Panchalas).
○ c. 200 BCE - 200 CE: Vishnu worship grew, and Krishna (a key epic figure) began to
be identified with Vishnu, influencing the text.
○ c. 200 - 400 CE: Large didactic sections (resembling Manusmriti) were added.
• Growth in Size: The text grew from less than 10,000 verses to about 100,000 verses due to
these additions.
• Traditional Attribution: This enormous composition is traditionally attributed to Sage Vyasa.
IV. 6.3 The Search for Convergence (Archaeological & Social Evidence)
• Hastinapura Excavation (B.B. Lal, 1951-52):
○ Site: Village in Meerut (Uttar Pradesh), located in the Upper Ganga doab, the region of
the Kuru kingdom, suggesting it might be the epic's Hastinapura.
○ Occupational Levels:
 Second Phase (c. 12th-7th centuries BCE): Evidence of mud and mud-brick
houses, some with reed walls plastered with mud.
 Third Phase (c. 6th-3rd centuries BCE): Houses made of mud-brick and burnt
bricks, with soakage jars, brick drains, and terracotta ring-wells.
○ Question: Was the detailed urban description in the epic added after the rise of urban
centers (post-6th BCE), or was it poetic embellishment not directly verifiable?
• Draupadi's Polyandry:
○ A central and challenging episode in the Mahabharata, as the author(s) provide various
explanations for it.
○ Historians' Interpretations:
 Suggests polyandry may have been prevalent among ruling elites at some
point (indicated by its inclusion).
 The many explanations imply polyandry gradually fell out of favour amongst
Brahmanas, who reworked the text.
 Polyandry was (and is) prevalent in the Himalayan region.
 Could be attributed to a shortage of women during warfare.
○ Caution: Creative literature has its own narrative requirements and does not always
literally reflect social realities.
V. 7. A Dynamic Text
• Continued Evolution: The Mahabharata's growth did not stop with the Sanskrit version.
• Regional Versions: Over centuries, versions were written in various languages, emerging
from a dialogue between communities.
• Incorporation of Stories: Several regional stories found their way into the epic.
• Retelling & Artistic Depiction: The central story was often retold in different ways, and
episodes were depicted in sculpture, painting, and performing arts (plays, dance).

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