Rajpurohit

Rajpurohit is a martial race of Brahmin origin residing in South Asia natively in western Rajasthan of India. Their ancestors belonged to the family line of SaptRishis. They maintain traditions that are similar to both Brahmins and Rajputs.

They have historically been involved in administration, trade, vassals, royal council members, as warriors, jagirdars and Feudal lords and are spread across the entire country. They were given control of villages at boundary of kingdom for the purpose of security of state. According to political analysts, the Rajput, Charan and Rajpurohit communities are considered to be identical in regards to their social customs and political ideologies.

Social structure
Rajpurohit is a Brahmin community, who as a rule, did not provide Brahminical services as expected with the caste duties of Brahmins. Their ancestors are Brahmins, mostly notable Rishis of different sub castes such as Gaur, Paliwal Gaur, Khandelwal, Pushkarna, Nagar, Pareek, Dadheech and Bias but majority of them has Gaur lineage. Though they have been described as a Brahmin group which mediates matrimonial alliances of Rajputs, they did not play any role in actual rituals of the wedding for which the services of a regular Brahmin were employed. They take part in battlefield, business, promoting culture through arts, educational services etc.

In the folk history of Marwar, Rajput, and Rajpurohit castes are said to have more numbers of folk deities and Kshetra Devtas. Even today the local people are deeply attached to their ancestors. There is concrete evidence in the history of Marwar that Rajpurohit was not just a religious title but was an important political post and according to their abilities, they occupied many political and strategic positions. Thakur GopalSingh ‘Rashtravar’ Kharwa has written in his historical research that

"In every war of Rajputs, the Rajpurohits has sacrificed everything without any greed."

Even today Damamis, Bhats and poets are found praising these local heroes in various areas, villages and hamlets. Soratha/Dohas are stilll popular by the Damamis of Tinwari:

चारण कर कवराज, रण खेती राजपूता री |

बहुविधा(शस्त्र) जुधबाज, राजनीत राज प्रौहिता ||

चारण देवी सुं छावा खत्रवट कवत बखाण |

सतिवत जूंझण रण सरैं, छत्रिय , प्रौहित राण ||

Mythological mention and legend
There is evidence in the Puranas that every state had a Rajpurohit, Rajguru or Kulguru, who were mostly famous Saptarishis or their descendants. Vashishtha was the Rajguru of the Ikshvaku clan in the Kosala kingdom. During the Mahabharata period, Kripacharya, Dronacharya for Kuruvansh, and later Dhaumya Rishi held this position for the Pandavas. In the mythologies, the character of Rajpurohit is said to be one of the major characters who used to express his opinion on every matter of the state and played an important role in the battlefield. According to folklore, there is mention of four Rajpurohit or Kulguru Purohit along with four Rajput branches by the Yajna of Guru Vashishtha.

In the Vedic period, the position of the Rajpurohit was also traditional in many groups of the Aryan clan. Being the guru (teacher) of the state, he was called Rajguru. The Rajpurohit was the guide of the king. He was a teacher, philosopher, warrior, and prominent representative of the state. The Rajpurohit was selected from among the descendants of great sages who were knowledgeable in state administration, politics, religion, business ethics, war, archery, weapons, etc. Since the Maurya period, Brahmins with high qualities and versatile talents were appointed for many political and civil administration works. Over time this position became hereditary.

Social Formation in medieval period
They attained the feudal status during the Rathore rule in the medieval period. They were as much into mentoring the royal house, educating princes, guiding the king, providing advice on the matters of welfare of the state, and performing religious duties as they were into helping maintain the security of the kingdom by being actively involved in battles. Rajpurohit as a community is a group of Brahmins who are/were royal caretakers and priests of a Hindu Kingdom in medieval times. Over the last few centuries, the Rajpurohits were incorporated into the feudal structure of Rajasthan, as they received grants of villages, called jagirs, from the rulers from time to time. Consequently, they came closer to Rajputs in terms of tradition and way of life. Though they retained the Brahminical customs of vegetarianism, wearing of Janeu, and others. By the medieval period, many societies under Rathore rule laid more emphasis on strategic power and political empowerment so that they could prove their worth and serve in the royal court. For the first time, during the time of Rao Maldev, Rajpurohits got the opportunity to get important positions in the feudal system. This was the time when Jats, Charans, and Kayasthas were being established in important positions in the feudal system. Akheraj Rajpurohit was one of the important confidants of Maharaj Jaswant Singh who later also served Prince Ajit Singh.

Indeed, the Rajpurohit consider themselves descendants of those great sages who belonged to the Brahmin caste and were chosen by the kings as chief priests. But in some areas of Rajasthan, they gathered, organized, and established themselves as a new caste, which also got recognition from the royal court, so that they could provide competent services in every field of the state, be it administrative, political, or strategic. However, this caste is formed of purohits from certain areas of Rajasthan such as Marwar and Mewar region only. Based on their services and merit, they were granted many jagirs, Thikana, and feudal lands. These villages or land were considered to be free from any ruler and were outside the ambit of any form of tax. That’s why there is a difference in traditions between the Rajpurohit and other Brahmin castes. There are many clans in the Rajpurohit caste but the most prominent among them are Sevad, Sodha, Rajguru, Manana, and Jagarwal. Much information about these clans comes from the ledgers of the jagirs and thikanas granted to them and some information from the historical sources of Raj Marwar.

Demography
Rajpurohit is a title bestowed upon those learned Brahmins, who were masters in 4 arts i.e mantras ( all rituals), economics, politics, and warfare. They looked after the administrative running of the kingdoms. In the course of their service to the kingdom, according to ancient traditions, the kings used to award a few non-taxable villages or land known as Sasan Jagir and donated called Doli Jagir within his kingdom to their Rajpurohits. These villages or land were considered to be free from any ruler and were outside the ambit of any form of tax. Since in India, the majority of Rathore raj was prevalent in Rajasthan before the independence of India, the Rajpurohit caste is prominently found in the Marwar & Godwad region of Rajasthan i.e. Jodhpur, Jalore, Pali, Nagaur, Barmer, Jaisalmer, Bikaner, Churu & Sirohi districts of Rajasthan. Apart from this, this community has spread all over the country. Most of the Rajpurohits who live in other parts of India can trace back their roots, up to one to two generations, back to some village in Rajasthan.

Status
Rajpurohit are counted among the forward class due to their social and culture values and they strictly follow their customs and traditions, which includes vegetarianism etc. Therefore, at present, they fall in the unreserved category. Most of the population is engaged in agriculture and business.

Political activities
The Rajpurohit community had previously been allied primarily with the Bharatiya Janata Party. In 2009, however, the community switched loyalties to the Indian National Congress, due to perceived neglect by the BJP.