Vaisya



ETHNONYM: Vaishya


The Vaisyas are the third-highest of the four varnas or categories into which Hindu society is traditionally divided, ranking above the Sudras. Vaisya includes a large number of distinct castes of similar ranking, traditionally traders, moneylenders, or farmers. They are entitled to wear a sacred thread. It is distinctly less common to encounter castes claiming Vaisya status in Sri Lanka and south India than in the north.

The category is certainly a very ancient one, for it is referred to in the Rig Veda (c. twelfth century B . C .). Vaisyas are clearly referred to in other early hymns as being Aryas, the Indo-European invaders, rather than Dasas, the Dravidian and other Aborigines of the subcontinent. According to the Zend Avesta, the Zoroastrian holy book, there was in ancient Persia a social category called "Vastrya," who ranked third in society below the Atharvas and Rethaesvas and bore a name that is cognate with the Sanskrit "Vaisya." The classical Indian lawgiver Manu (c. second century A . D .) spells out the duties of the Vaisya: "to keep herds of cattle, to bestow largesses, to sacrifice, to read the scripture, to carry on trade, to lend at interest, and to cultivate land." The economy depended on them, and the description of Manu still holds true

See also Bania ; Castes, Hindu


Bibliography

Hutton, John H. (1963). Caste In India. 4th ed. London: Oxford University Press.

PAUL HOCKINGS

User Contributions:

1
jack
Thanks for the info helped a lot
Will ace my test now LOL
2
cory
not enough information and not accurate i need to know about the responsibilities duh (boo)
3
maddie
this was very helpful for my writing due tomorrow thx
4
meyoung kid
THIS HELPED A LOT I GOT A LOT OF INFO THANKS A LOT WEB
5
Hannah Montana
I love the fact that the website has helped me get all I want
6
Cam
Thanks that was so helpful. This was the best information I could find on that caste.
7
David
This helped me a lot and help me past my test it was the best information I ever had seen on any website thanks
8
Trevor
This help me on my essay that i had to do and i did an A on my essay.
9
Will
Thanks for the info. Will get an A on presentation.
10
Jacob
Thank you. now I know what to write for my project :3
11
layla
it gives me a lot of info but I need to know what they eat and it didn't give me that
This web helped a lot in high school. Would definitely recommend
13
LydiBug
This helped with a lot of questions except, who did they trade with as well as what they traded
14
David
Good information and pretty accurate according to other sources that I have seen. If not more so. Also good field of information.
15
Mr.Soccer
The info was some what great for what I was supposed to be doing for class thank you you guys rock!

Comment about this article, ask questions, or add new information about this topic: