Social condition of the post-Vedic Aryans
Narada Samhita, Gargi Samhita and Brihat Samhita are such texts of astrology literature from which information about the social life of the time is obtained. In the Kalpasutra literature, various social and religious laws and regulations and rules and instructions are described. Although there were no significant changes in the house-building, dress, food, entertainment etc. of the Aryans of the post-Vedic period, but there were major changes in many areas of social life.
(1.) Increase in father's powers: In the post-Vedic period, the power of the father increased greatly in the family. Now the father could deprive his son of inheritance. Seniority was given more and more importance in royal families. Apart from the royal families, all the sons of the father had equal rights on the joint property of the family in other families.
Sometimes the father used to divide the joint property of the family among his sons during his lifetime and then allowed them to set up their own separate family. During this period the worship of ex-men started.
(2.) Gotra System: The gotra system was strengthened in the post-Vedic period. The word gotra means the house or the place where the cows of all the clans were kept together, but later this word came to mean - the descendants of an original man. The practice of Gotri exogamy started. Marriage between members of the same gotra or ancestral community was banned.
(3.) The emergence of cities: The Rigvedic Aryans lived in villages. The word city is not mentioned in the Rigveda, but when the post-Vedic Aryans came to the fertile plains of Ganga-Yamuna, they settled big cities and started living in cities.
Now these cities became the center of political and social life. The real beginning of the cities can be seen in the last phase of the post-Vedic period. Hastinapur and Kaushambi can be considered as primitive cities of the late post-Vedic period. These can be called pre-urban sites.
(4.) Diet: The food of the Aryans of the later Vedic period was similar to that of the Rigvedic period. There was not much difference in that. Food, milk, vegetable products and meat were the main parts of their diet. Wheat, barley, rice were the main cereals. Rice cultivation was started more. Curd, butter and ghee were prepared from milk. Many types of dishes were prepared by cooking other things in milk.
Odan, Kshirodana in Vedic literature andtilodan The words etc. have been mentioned many times. Cooking rice in milk 'Ksherodan' That is, cooking kheer and sesame seeds 'Tilodan' was made. Like the Rigvedic period, vegetables and fruits were consumed in abundance in this age also. Usually the meat of sheep, goats, oxen and sometimes horses were eaten. The meat of animals and birds killed in hunting was also eaten, but meat-eating was generally viewed with contempt, it was prohibited for Brahmins.
In a hymn of Atharvaveda, meat-eating and drinking are said to be sins. Therefore, it is clear that the idea of non-violence was considered superior. Now Mon In place of Masar, Pootika, Arjunani Other beverages were being used etc. Drunkenness was increasing among the lower classes of the society.
(5.) Changes in the condition of women: In the post-Vedic period, the condition of women deteriorated earlier. The practice of polygamy had become prevalent in dynasties and wealthy families. Therefore the life of women in the homes became discordant. Girls were thought to be the cause of sorrow. In the Atharvaveda, there is a mention of sadness at the birth of a daughter. 'Krishan' for daughter at one place in Aitareya brahmin The word is mentioned.
'Gomil-Griha Sutra' There is a mention of the wearing of Yajnopati by the girls. Yagyopaveet is a symbol of learning. It is clear that even in this era women used to get education. In the Upanishads, there are mentions of some virtuous women. In Janaka's court, Gargi had a debate with Yajnavalkya. A woman named Gandharva-Grihita was extremely learned and skilled in the art of oratory. A wise woman like Maitreyi also happened in this era. Women still participated in sacrifices, religious occasions and public meetings.
The practice of adoption had developed. Preference was given to the son of a brother for adoption. Some girls lived in their husband's family for life as unmarried. Sometimes girls were sold and the dowry system became prevalent. The practice of Niyoga for widowed women was still prevalent. Widow women had the right to marry. There is no mention of the practice of Sati even in this era. The practice of purdah was not practiced.
(6.) Complexity in a marital relationship: Even in the post-Vedic period, marriage was considered a sacred and necessary sacrament, but the rules regarding marriage had become strict. Unmarried men did not have the right to perform the Yagya. A son was necessary for the sacrifice and marriage was necessary for the birth of a son. 'Sagotri marriage' was not considered good. It was considered good to marry in a different gotra. It is known from the Atharvaveda that widow-marriage and polygamy were practiced.
Manu had ten wives. The sage Yajnavalkya had two wives named Maitreyi and Katyayani. The Aitareya Brahmana mentions 100 wives of a person named Harishchandra, but these examples of polygamy were confined to the wealthy and royal families. Ordinary people used to have only one marriage.
'One Man-One Wife', This was the general order. A woman did not have more than one husband. Marriage was done at a young age and child marriage was not in vogue. Sapind, Sagotra and Sapravar marriages were banned and by the time of Sutra period such marriages were explicitly prohibited.
Marriages were generally consanguineous. A girl of higher varna was not married to a lower varna. Mentions of inter-caste marriages are also found in the later Vedic literature. The Taittiriya Samhita mentions the marriage of an Aryan man and a Shudra girl. The Shatapatha Brahmana mentions the marriage of sage Chyavana and Rajkanya Sukanya. Scholars believe about such inter-caste marriages that generally men of superior caste could marry women of lower caste. That is, Anuloma marriages used to take place but Pratiloma marriages were forbidden.
The woman was the co-religion of the man and the woman was highly respected in the home and society. In the Shatapatha Brahmana, she is called the Ardhangini of a man. In the Dharma-sutras, a liberal attitude has been adopted towards women. For example, in the Vasistha Dharmasutra it is written that even if the wife is guilty, quarrelsome, has left home, she is raped, she will not be abandoned.
In the Dharmasutras, strict punishment has been arranged for the husband who abandons his wife. It is written in the Apastamba Sutra that a husband who has unjustly abandoned his wife, wearing a donkey's skin should ask for alms in seven houses every day saying that give alms to the man who has abandoned his wife.
In this age, the position of mother was considered very high and sacred. In the Vashistha Sutra, the place of mother is considered superior to Upadhyaya, Acharya and father. Thus the position of women in this era was respectable. But some scholars believe that in the last phase of the later Vedic age, the status of women had declined significantly. There are mentions of selling girls and taking dowry.
It is written in the Aitareya Brahmana that a good woman is one who does not answer. Shatapath Brahmin says that the wife should not eat before the husband. In the Aitareya Brahmana, the daughter is considered the cause of sorrow. In Maitrayani Samhita, woman is considered to be guilty of man like gambling and alcohol.
(7.) Complexity in alphabetical order: The Rathesthas and Rajanyas of the Rigvedic era came to be called Kshatriyas in the post-Vedic period. The sacrificers, brahmins and philosophers were called brahmins. The people who did agriculture, animal husbandry and commerce were called Vaishyas. The non-Aryans were called Shudras. In the post-Vedic-period texts, the first three varnas were considered high and Shudras were considered low.
Upanayana ceremony was performed for the three upper castes – Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas. Upanayana ceremony of the fourth Varna could not take place. The social prestige of Brahmins and Kshatriyas had increased. Brahmins came to be considered as the beloved of the gods. In this age there was competition between Brahmins and Kshatriyas for social dominance and prestige. Due to this some Kshatriyas acquired specialized knowledge.
Impressed by his scholarship, Brahmins also started going to those Kshatriyas to get knowledge. Shvetaketu Aruneya received education from a Kshatriya named Javali and a Brahmin named Gargya from King Ajatashutra.
The word Vaishya is not mentioned in the Rigvedic period, but it is known from the later Vedic literature that the social status of Vaishyas was lower than that of Brahmins and Kshatriyas. Since this varna was striving for the prosperity of the nation through various professions, it was not possible to ignore it. Therefore, the Vaishyas also had the right to acquire knowledge and to wear Yagyopaveet. Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas were called dvijas.
There were many restrictions on Shudras, but there were many public ceremonies related to coronation in which Shudras, probably as members of the original clan, participated. Certain classes of craftsmen, such as the Rathkars, held a high position in the society and were included in the list of officials of the Upanayana ceremony.
The varna system was taking the form of caste system. The basis of birth, caste had started to be based on the place of work or occupation. In the post-Vedic period, in addition to the four castes of the Rigvedic period, two more castes were formed. One of them was called Nishad and the other Vratya. The Nishads were non-Aryans. Probably these people belonged to Bhil caste. The Vratyas probably originated from a mixture of Aryan and non-Aryan blood. According to different occupations, carpenter, blacksmith, cobbler etc. sub-castes were formed and inter-caste marriage was seen with hatred.
(8.) Firmness of the Ashram-system: Information about the Ashram system is not found in the Rigveda. In the texts of the later Vedic period, information about only three ashrams- (1) Brahmacharya (2.) Grihastha (3.) Vanprastha ashram is found, the last or fourth ashram was not clearly established. The information about the four ashrams is found in the sutras - Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vanaprastha and Sanyas. The ashram system was only for the Dwij castes. The only householder was said to be the ashram for the Shudras.
(9.) Hereditary Industry: Now the occupation had become hereditary and the people of one family started doing the same occupation. This was the reason that the number of sub-castes started increasing gradually.
(10.) Increasing the importance of education: With the increase in Vedic sacrifices, the importance of education increased. Although the main subject of education was the study of Vedas, but along with Vedic mantras, science, mathematics, language, warfare etc. were also taught. The student used to take education by staying in the ashram of the guru and followed the dharma of celibacy. At the end of his education, he used to come home after giving dakshina to the guru and enter the householder.