READING #24: THE COHESIVE ROLE OF SANSKRITIZATIONM N SRINIVAS COINED THE TERM SANSKRITIZATION Sanskritization is an important cultural process. It can be defined as the process by which a ‘low’ caste or tribe or other group takes over the customs, rituals, beliefs, ideology and lifestyle of the high and ‘twice-born’ castes. This happens because; adoption of such practices (Sanskritization) can improve the position of the group as a whole in the caste hierarchy. Some groups are considered ‘high’ because of their contact with a ‘Great Tradition’ of Hinduism such as a pilgrim centre or monastery etc. Absorption of Sanskritization also led to increase in its prestige but also the absorption became easier. The British rule in India proved to be both a boon and a bane for Sanskritization. The systematized caste hierarchy favours Sanskritization because the ambitious lower castes aspire to rise up in the caste ladder by adoption of Sanskritization. At the same time, the hierarchy proves to be deterrence to Sanskritization as the higher castes attempt to retain their exclusivity and prevent lower castes from usurping their practices, customs etc. Despite this, Sanskritization grew. Sectarian movements are agents of Sanskritization because these movements attracted a lot of lower caste members and also, raised their status. However, outsiders tend to place the whole sect as a caste (which again falls into the hierarchy) and within the sect itself, there is a caste hierarchy. This is same as castes where outsiders ignore hierarchy within a same caste. The converts often retain their castes. (THE EXAMPLE GIVEN IN CLASS WAS THAT OF LINGAYATS OF KARNATAKA. This was started by Basaveshwara. Despite being a separate sect, the caste distinctions among Lingayats itself remain.) Sanskritization is not limited to Hindus but also to various sects and religious groups extends outside Hinduism too. It is seen sometimes in places like Ceylon. Tibet, Indonesia etc. The impact of Sanskritization within culture is seen in a multi-dimensional manner –art, music, dance, drama, literature, language, lifestyle and rituals. Hinduism is different from most other religions of the world because it does not have an overarching formal structure or no body of trained missionaries, no congregational religion or even a distinct code of belief. It is a loose congregation of many cults connected by means of Sanskritization. These cults of Hinduism are based on ancestors, caste, village, sectarian deities etc. Hinduism has many centres of pilgrimage, some centres are known to the whole of South Asia, while the others are known only to a few neighbouring villages. These pilgrimage centres cults etc. in henotheism it is believed that the God who is currently being worshipped is Supreme. (However. That particular God is elevated to the position of Great Power. plague etc. Lakshmi is worshipped for wealth and Saraswati for learning. This can be seen in the chanting of different names of the same deity. post World-War I. The literature of Hinduism is also varied but it is greatly inspired by Sanskrit. The institution of Harikathas (public reading of Puranas) has helped Sanskritic Hinduism reach the illiterate masses also. Pantheism is also practiced whereby. in the South. Kaveri River is called Ganga of the South. certain sects practice exclusivity by not worshipping one God. Ramayana. . Eg: ShriVaishnavas of South India will not worship Shiva. Any outsider observing Hinduism is bound to be confused by the variations within it. such as village Goddesses for the cure of various ailments and diseases like cholera.” Although this propagated monotheism. Similarly Rama and Buddha are seen as manifestations of Vishnu. Apart from these. the objects mythically associated with any Sanskritic deity is also worshipped Epics – Such as Ramayana and Mahabharata have been instrumental in transmitting certain basic theological idea and for spreading a common culture throughout the country. The Puranas unite by producing a common religious culture out of the vast and varied belief systems. It is also called ‘momentary monotheism’. Hinduism lacks form. However. it is complex and heterogeneous in modes of worship and the Gods. Same with festivals.) Many deities are seen as manifestation of another deities. tombs of saints etc. polytheism and henotheism were still prevalent. there has been a rejection of Ramayana as it was considered northern. For success in any enterprise – Vinayaka is worshipped. there are many local deities. there is only One God who is called by different names. Deities of low castes and tribal people were now being seen as manifestation of some other well-known deity. Rig Veda states that “God is one but sages call him by different names. Higher groups preferred monotheism and henotheism. Gods. Hindu monotheism is different from that of other religions because according to Hindus. There is a sort of ‘division of labour’ for Hindu Gods.are places associated with certain heroes. myths. These Puranas grew in acceptance as they provided a link between the learned scholars and the masses. However. Example: Village goddesses are often seen as Shakti/ Parvati. Rig Veda laid down the concept of ‘ONE GOD’ – a single Supreme Being. Although both polytheism and henotheism preach the existence of many Gods. The Hindu Calendar is also not fixed. Aryan and anti-Dravidian. Mahabharata and Puranas are the major works. or political/economic/social position or awareness of larger society of which the local group is a part of. Caste may be viewed as a series of local systems of interacting jatis linked in an all-India framework by means the idea of varna. and this gave scope for social mobility. This process is also termed as ‘universalization’. they needed the Brahmin support. . by performing the essential Vedic rites. the overall structure is pretty rigid. Sanskritic Hinduism has grown this way – by way of such additions of local customs and beliefs. Brahmins revered anyone with power --. There is a need to fit each of the jatis in a single India wide framework – i. the rulers patronized the Brahmins. it is uncertain the varna system is influential within a local system of jatis. Thus. This is seen more in urban areas wherethe people don’t give much importance to caste (compared to rural India) Urbanization. This resulted in the radical transformation of local culture and a simplified uniform culture has emerged. A chief (irrespective of origin) was linked to a well-known Kshatriya lineage or Sun or Moon. The popularity of this model has increased ever since the development of communication systems and Western education. Two models of caste – varna model and jati model. However. Brahmins were those who legitimized power into authority. It is seen as per the sacred Hindu literature and Dharmashastra and it is the literary model of caste system. the varna system. ‘de-Sanskritization’ or ‘Parochialization’ (an element of Sanskritic Hinduism gets localised) Sanskritization is closely related to social mobility. The Kshatriyas are the most open varna as they have accommodated outsiders as long as those outsiders had political power. For this again.Listed above are the characteristics of SanskriticHinduismwhich enable it to absorb local cultural beliefs. New agencies and development of communication such as All India Radio. They gave a particular Sanskritic life-style to these Brahmins. The chief had to adopt the lifestyle of classical Kshatriyas.this included Muslims and British rulers. Varna model is the conceptual division of society in 4 distinct hierarchical categories. education and geographical mobility of people is leading to the increasing adoption of the varna system. there is fluidity at the lower levels. Relationship between Sanskritization and caste. Secularization has resulted in the ideas of pollution and purity becoming weaker. school textbooks and films spread both Westernization and Sanskritization. But here too Sanskritization plays a role.e. In return. Although. The relation between Sanskritization and Westernization is multi-dimensional. The opposite of this is called. This may be related to their varying awareness of varna system. Where the rank of a caste was in dispute. Localization can also be attributed to the interdependence of castes because of each one’s specialized occupations. Two – Prefix Brahmin. Once that was acquired – Sanskritization also became easy. then Sanskritization will not take place. Many revivalist functions such as Vedic yajnyas are performed in recent times. Supposing the locally dominant caste was non-Sanskritized and the Sanskritized jatis of that region were not influential/dominant. Each local system has a unique hierarchy of jatis. Sanskrit schools. it gave Indians a boost to their self-esteem and now they could match up to their western counterparts as cultural and intellectual equals. there was slow but steady seepage of Sanskritization. Certain concepts of Sanskritic Hinduism such as ahimsa and vegetarianism began spreading. non-Brahmin castes or – to be Sanskritized in order to perform their roles.Caste is and was much localized. Despite this. printing presses for Sanskrit literature all exist here. Only the Brahmins could the role of ‘legitimization’ and thus. The aura around Brahmins and Brahmanism persists. The latter was easier. And a jati’s position within the local hierarchy is not clear. By the beginning of 20th century. their lifestyle is Sanskritized to a greater extent. de-Sanskritization will take place as the jatis lower in hierarchy would be influenced by the nonSanskritized dominant caste. there were obstacles to this also.However. Certain people believed that crossing the boundary would make them lose their caste. or ‘Kshatriya’ etc to their name and adopt certain changes in lifestyle etc. However. When the West discovered the richness and versatility of Indian Culture and Sanskritic literature. This helped in mobility. To what extent does Sanskritization take place largely depends on the character of the locally dominant caste. Dominant castes punished lower castes and prevented them from adopting rituals and practices that were exclusively for the high castes. many castes did not intermingle because of political boundaries. When peasants of lower castes want to pass of themselves as Kshatriya or Vaishyas. Thus a Brahmin sometimes had to face pulls in the opposite directions – to be de-Sanskritized and imitate the dominant . low caste members realised that education and political power were more important for upward mobility. Mobility can happen in 2 ways – one – a jati adopts name/attributes of a regionally prestigious and but not highly Sanskritized caste. . they had to seek the power of the priestly Brahmins to legitimize their claim. the whole region underwent Sanskritization. Instead. the king would settle it. Wherever Sanskritized groups were dominant. Indian Cities are becoming centres of Sanskritization apart from Westernisation. Big temples. it is important to recognise that it is not merely local factors that played a role in determining whether Sanskritization or de-Sanskritization would take place. In pre-British India. One of the most important tasks for independent India today is to draw all of the heterogeneous population into mainstream and at the same time retain what is valuable in Sanskrit thought and culture. Sanskrit began to be associated with Brahmins who were viewed as oppressive Aryan invaders. This is possible only if Hindus acknowledge the contribution of all sections of population to Indian Traditions and non-Hindus to accept the contribution of Sanskrit heritage. Gandhi and other freedom fighters used Hindu Symbolism to unite the masses. doctors. The author ends the essay by stating that intellectuals have not sufficiently studied the long term conflict between Sanskritization and Westernization.However. ultimately resulting in the partition of the country. There was a conscious move to discard Sanskrit words from vernacular languages.garlands. The beginning of the 19th century saw Hindu revivalism where reformers tried to re-interpret the religion to suit modern needs. Hindu communalism stimulated Muslim communalism and vice-versa. aartis were used. Industrialization and education will extend . The other important but indirect sources of Sanskritization are as follows: Economic opportunities brought by the British combined with the literary tradition of upper castes enabled them to become professionals like teachers. Satyagraha and ahimsa have their roots in Hindu and Jain customs. India is a secular country and there must exist tolerance and mutual appreciation of values.When the British began to give back power to Indians in instalments the leaders of the backward classes realised that capturing of political power is essential if there needs to be progress in education and employment. This increased the social distance between the ‘elite’ and the ‘backward’ classes. During the freedom movement. In Tamil Nadu. This can be done by cultural osmosis. Tilak. rise of Sanskritization has faced many backlashes especially due to the growth of regional self-consciousness. Western discovery of Sanskrit literature and systematic reconstruction of history aided in the development of Indian nationalism. This heightened the self-consciousness of the people resulting in increased communalism. DravidaKazhagam (DK) and DravidaMunnetraKazhagam (DMK) preached this and incited hatred towards Brahmins and advocated rationality. Gandhi proclaimed himself to be a Hindu. Gandhi also preached vegetarianism and teetotalism. The Backward Class Movement resulted in the downgrading of importance to Sanskritization. lawyers etc. .to all classes and we have not examined the conflict between religious and scientific worldview which will affect all religions—not just Hinduism.