Mapara
Contents |
Mapara
This section has been extracted from THE TRIBES and CASTES of BENGAL. Ethnographic Glossary. Printed at the Bengal Secretariat Press. 1891. . |
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Origin and internal structure
Modak, Maini., Kuri, the confectioner caste of Bengal Proper, a heterogeneous functional group, to be distinguished functional group , to be distinguished from the Madhunapit, on whom popular usages sometimes confers the itle Modak and Kuri. Some, indeed, regard the Madhunapit as merly a sub caste of of Mayara, but it will be seen from the article on Madhunapit that there are grounds for believing that group to be a distinct homogeneous caste owing its origin to a schism among the Napits. In Oentral Bengal the Ma.yara caste is divided into four sub-castes-Rarh-asram, Mayur-asram, Aja-asram, and Dharm-asram or Dharm-sut. In Dacca, where there are comparatively few Mayaras and the occupation of sweetmeat-making is almost wholly in the hands of the Madhunapit, the former group 'has only two sub-castes-Ekpatia and Dopatia. The distinction between these is curious : the form'3r in their marriage ceremony simply carry the bride seven times round the bridegroom, while the latter carry both round in COil centric circles, the bridegroom followiug the inner and smaller circle of the two. The sections of the Mayara caste which are given in the Appendix show a singular mixture of elements derived from the Brahmanical gotras and survivals from the earlier totemistic sections which we find among the non-Aryan castes. It is impossible now to determine what tribes may have contributed to form the Mayara caste as we now find it, but the fact that distinct traces of totemism may be discerned will perhaps be held to justify the conjecture that the group is not wholly of Aryan extraction. As a rule marriage within the section is strictly prohibited, but in some parts of the country the law of exogamy is disregarded, and me,rriage is regulated solely by calculation of prohibited degrees. Ma.yar~s have not yet developed a full-blown system of hyp rgamy, but they appear to be on the road towards doing so, for the families who bear the titles JXsh, Bara t, Das, and Nand i are oalled Kulins. At present, however, the distinction is meaningless so far as marriage is concerned. Men belonging to MauEk families may marry Kulin women, and the only privilege attached to Kulinism is the right to receive presents of cloth, etc., at marriages and other domestic festivals.
Marriages
Mayaras profess to marry their daughters as infants, but they are not so particular in this matter as the higher castes, and instances of girls marrying after puberty, though rare, are said to occur occasionally without entailing any serious loss of reputation for the family concerned. The marriage ceremony is performed in accordance with orthodox usage; sa1'llpracian, or the giving and receiving of the bride, being the essential portion of the rite. A price, varying according to the social status of the parties, is paid for the bride. Polygamy is permitted, no limit being placed, in theory at least, on the number of wives a man may have. Widows may not marry again, and divorce is not recognized. A woman taken in adultery is turned out of the caste.
Religion
The caste profess to be orthodox Hindus, belonging for the most part to the Vaishnava sect. They regard Ganes as their special deity, and make images in his bonour. The special season for his worship is towfU'ds the end of the cold weather, before the sugarcane crop has been cut, and freshly-prepared molasses cannot be used in the manufaoture of sweetmeats until the god has been duly propitiated. Brahmans officiate as their priests, and are not looked down upon by other members of the sacred order. In Manbhum, Mohan Giri, Sahib Mia, Snshthi, and Bhadu are among their minor gods, whom the members of each household worship with sacrifice of goats and offerings of rice, fruit, and sweetmeats. In this domestic worship Brahmans take no part. The dead are burned and the ashes thrown into the Ganges or any river that may be conveniently situated for the purposes. Sraddh is performed on the thirty-first day after death.
Occupation
Mayaras believe the making of sweetmeats to be their original but many of them at the precent occupation day have entered Government service or taken to trade, while a few are engaged in agriculture as tenure-holders and occupancy raiyat. They will, however, on no account cultivate sugarcane themselves or take any part in the preparation of molasses. In a country where sweetmeats form a staple article of diet, and are often tbe only food that an orthodox Hindu can partake of on a journey, when he has no time to go through the elaborate process of preparing his own food, it is essential that there should be no doubt about the social status and ceremonial purity of the caste which supplies the community with sweetmeats. Mayaras therefore rank among the Navasakha, and Brahmans will take water from their hands. Their own rules regarding diet are those of most respectable Hindus. They will eat cooked food only with Brahmans, and will take water or sweetmeats from members of the Navasakha group.
The following statement shows the number and distribution of Mayaras in 1872 and 1881., te figmes for Halwals belDg llloluded in the former year for the dlStrlOts of Bengal Proper :¬
