Social Life of Rigvedic Aryans
Rigveda gives information about the then society according to which the basis of social structure was kinship. It is evident from the names of many Rigvedic kings that a person was identified by his clan or gotra. People gave utmost importance to the interests of the people (clan). The word Jana is mentioned 275 times in Rigveda but the word Janapada is not used even once.
The people were members of the Jana, because the state had not yet been established. Another important word used in the Rigveda in the sense of family or clan is Vish. The word is mentioned 170 times. Probably the world was divided into smaller units called gramas for the purpose of fighting. When these villages fought with each other, there was a war. Majority of Vaishya Varna originated from Vish itself.
(1.) Family Life: In Rigveda, the word Kul is used for family. The clan included not only mother, father, son, slave etc., but also many other people. It is estimated that in the pre-Vedic period, the word home was used for the family. In the oldest Indo-European languages, the same word has also been used for nephew, nephew, grandson etc. This means that the differentiation of family ties towards the establishment of separate families (i.e. clans) did not occur much, and the family was a large united unit.
Like Roman society, it was a patriarchal family, with the father as the head. He was called Grihapati. As grihapati, he had the right over all the property of the family. All the members of the family had to obey his orders. He could give severe punishment to the member who disobeyed the order.
It was his main duty to take care of the upbringing, marriage and progress of all the members of the family. Several generations of a family lived in one house. The foundation of social organization of this period was also family. The father was the head of the family. He was kind and sympathetic to the members of his family but used to treat unworthy children harshly.
The father had a lot of authority in the family. The role of father was important in the marriage of son and daughter. Even after marriage, the son had to live with his wife in his father's house. The bride had to live under the discipline of her father-in-law's house. Thus the joint family system was prevalent during this period. The emphasis was on hospitality and it was counted among the five great sacrifices. A kutcha building with thirteen rooms has been found in Bhagwanpura. From this it can be proved that either a big family lived in this building or the head of the family lived.
(2.) Status of the child: The main goal of marriage was to produce children. The Rigvedic Aryans used to pray to God for getting many brave sons to fight in wars. The birth of a son was considered a big festival. People did not aspire to a girl child, but sympathized with her when she was born and made proper arrangements for her education and initiation. Vishwavara, Ghosha, Apala The early women were given such high-quality education that they could compose Vedas and mantras. In the Rigveda, the desire has been expressed repeatedly for the attainment of a child and a cow, but in none of the hymns the desire has been expressed for the attainment of a daughter.
(3.) Arrangement of Marriage: Marriage was the most important of the various rituals of the Rigvedic period. Marriage was considered a high and sacred sacrament. Generally, the marriage relationship of their son and daughter was determined by the parents, but in some places there are instances of taking the prior approval of the boy and the girl. The practice of polygamy was not prevalent among the common people, but there was a practice of polygamy in the dynasties.
Although marriage between brother and sister and father and daughter was forbidden, symbols of primitive customs survived. Yum ki twin sister Yami had proposed love to Yama but Yama opposed it. There is also some information about polyandry. Maruts Rhodesi Enjoyed it together, and Ashwini Brother Surya-daughter Surya But such examples are rarely found. They were probably the remnants of the matriarchal stage. There are also some examples of giving mother's name to a son, such as Mamateya .
Some people used to donate daughters by giving dowry and some people by taking dowry. Dowry was given only by those people whose daughter had some error. Similarly, by giving money, only those people used to marry whose son had a fault. Marriage was considered a sacred bond and once it was tied, the bond could not be broken for life.
There is no indication of widow-marriage anywhere in the Rigveda. Marriage with Dasyus was prohibited. Information about the existence of Niyoga-practice and widow-marriage is also found in Rigveda. There is no example of the existence of child marriage.
It is estimated that in the Rigvedic period, marriages took place at the age of 16-17 years. Inter-caste marriages are also mentioned in Rigveda. There are examples of both Anuloma and Pratiloma marriages. Brahmin Vimad under Anulom marriage And Rajkanya Kamdyu and Brahmarshi Shyavash and Rajkanya Darbhya marriages are mentioned. devyani in pratiloma marriage The King of Yyati With and Brahmin girl eternal King of unsang There is mention of marriage with
(4.) Status of women: In the Rigvedic period, women held a high position in the society, despite the predominance of men. He was looked upon with respect. In Rigveda, woman is considered as the god of fire and in some mantras she is given the same glory as Usha Devi. Nevertheless, the desire for sons is found in many hymns of the Rigveda. Married women were considered householders and used to help their husbands in all religious works.
There was no purdah system. Women used to participate in all the festivals. In many mantras of Rigveda, wife is home, wife is householder, wife is happiness, where women are respected, where gods reside etc. She was considered the husband's half-wife and house-master.
Women used to participate freely in sacrifices and religious festivals, but women were not free, they had to be under the protection and control of their male relatives. Before marriage, girls had to be under the protection and control of their father. In the absence of her father, she lived under the protection of her brother. She lived under the protection of the husband after marriage and the son when she became a widow.
Thus the woman always had the protection of some man or the other. The main function of the woman in the family was to manage the household and to take care of the children. was. Women used to participate in the Sabha-Committee. She used to participate in yagyas along with daughters. Ghosha, Apala, Lopamudra, who composed the hymns, information is available about five women, but in later texts there are mentions of 20 such women. The hymns were composed in oral form. There is no written material of that period.
(5.) Negotiation: Some scholars have tried to prove on the basis of a part of Rigveda that the practice of Sati was prevalent in the society but there is no special force in their arguments. Most scholars believe that in the Rigvedic period, the practice of Sati was not prevalent among the Aryans, but instead the practice of niyoga was prevalent, under which the widow-woman was married with her brother-in-law or any other person of the family for the purpose of getting a son. was approved to live as.
The children born out of the practice of Niyoga were not considered disgusting in the society. Some scholars believe that in some special circumstances, even a virtuous woman was allowed to have a physical relationship with another person during the lifetime of her husband for the purpose of getting a son. There are no clear examples of widow-marriage in the Rigvedic period.
(6.) Costume: The Rigvedic Aryans used to wear beautiful clothes and ornaments. These people usually wore three clothes. Below the waist was a dhoti-like garment called 'Nevi' Used to say The second garment was called Kama and the third garment was called Adhiwas or 'Drapi' which was draped like a shawl. He also wore a turban on his head which was called 'Ushniya' Used to say These people used to wear colorful woolen and cotton clothes.
Gold was also worked on some of the garments which they wore on festive occasions. Men and women had long hair in which they put oil and comb. Women used to make braids and tie buns and men kept their hair in the shape of a coil.
Although it was customary to have a beard, some people also used to shave off the beard. The Rigvedic Aryans also used ornaments which were often made of gold. Both men and women used armbands, earrings, bracelets, nupur etc. Women used to wear a special type of ornament called Kumb on their head.
(7.) Food: Rice, barley, fruits, vegetables, ghee and milk and curd were the staple food of the Rigvedic Aryans. The grains were roasted or grinded and eaten with ghee and milk. These people used more fruits and vegetables. The flesh of some animals was eaten.
(8.) Beverages: The Rigvedic Aryans used two types of beverages. One was called Soma and the other was called Sura. Soma was made from the sap of a tree which did not have any intoxication. It was used on the occasions of Yagya. Sura was intoxicating and was made from grain. In the Rigveda, surapan has been condemned. The Brahmins used to look at it with disgust.
(9.) Entertainment: The main means of entertainment of the Rigvedic Aryans included chariot driving, recitation, dance and singing, playing musical instruments and hunting animals and birds. He used to try his best to make his life happy and joyful. It was his natural nature to spend life with gusto. They used to organize various festivals for fun, in which they entertained themselves with dance, singing and performance of instruments.
Men and women equally participated in these events. Veena and Kartal were used to accompany the dance. Various types of mantras and songs were used in singing and Veena, Dundubhi, Shankh, Cymbals and Mridang were used in instrumental music. Horse races, chariot races and mall-wars were organized on various occasions.
(10.) Writing Art: Although the Rigvedic Aryans had a great text like the Rigveda, most scholars believe that the Aryans of the Rigvedic period were unfamiliar with the art of writing and all the knowledge of that period was oral, but this view does not seem correct. The Sanskrit language of that period was very advanced, whose grammatical chic is made on seeing it. Every verb's ornaments, words, men etc. are fixed and the forms of factors and inflections are also fixed.
Even after this, if the Aryans of the Rigvedic period were unfamiliar with the art of writing, then it is no less than a surprise. Dr. Bhandarkar has tried to prove that the Aryans had knowledge of writing art from Rigvedic times and their Brahmi script evolved from the marks found on the pottery of prehistoric times but Dr. R. C. Mazumdar believes that this question will remain unanswered until definitive evidence is found.
(11.) Education: In the Rigvedic period, education was generally oral. The Guru used to teach the Vedas and Mantras to the disciples. The students used to memorize them. The aim of education was to increase the intellect and to make the conduct pure. Each Rishikul was like a Vedic school where sages and sages taught the Kumaras. Probably both boys and girls studied. That's why some women used to compose the mantras of Rigveda. Gayatri Mantra was considered the highest mantra of wisdom of that era. Seven types of pronunciation and four stages of speech are also mentioned.
(12.) Potion: The Rigvedic Aryans were health conscious. Ashwin was the god of medicine and was worshiped. Medicines were herbal. Medicine had become a profession during that period.
(13.) Ashram-Arrangement: The form of the ashram system did not come to the fore during the Rigvedic period. The people of this society used to do different types of deeds and all were called Aryans.
(14.) Housekeeping: The houses of the Rigvedic Aryans were made of bamboo, wood and sarpat. Every house had a fire house in which the fire was always burning. Each house had a separate living room for men and a separate room for women.
(15.) dead body: During this period, the Aryans used to either burn or bury the dead body, but the widows were not burnt but were buried.
(16.) Ethics: Moral values were given great importance in the life of Aryans. It was considered best to respect the guests, elders and teachers and to have affection for the younger ones. चोरी, लूट-पाट, व्यभिचार आदि अनैतिक कार्यों को पाप की दृष्टि से देखा जाता था। आर्यों के जीवन में समाज सेवा की भावना का विशेष महत्त्व था।
सामाजिक वर्गीकरण
(1.) वर्ण-व्यवस्था: ऋग्वैदिक-काल में व्यवसाय पर आधारित विभाजन प्रारंभ हो चुका था परन्तु यह विभाजन अभी सुस्पष्ट नहीं था। ऋग्वेद के प्रारम्भिक मण्डलों में वर्ण-व्यवस्था सम्बन्धी उल्लेख नहीं मिलता। वैश्य और शूद्र शब्दों का उल्लेख दसवें मण्डल के पुरुष सूक्त में ही मिलता है।
वर्ण-व्यवस्था का प्रारम्भिक स्वरूप कर्म और श्रम के सिद्धान्त पर आधारित था। कर्म से कोई भी व्यक्ति ब्राह्मण, क्षत्रिय या वैश्व हो सकता था। आवश्यकतानुसार लोग अपना वर्ण बदल भी सकते थे क्योंकि वर्ण-विभाजन जन्मजात नहीं था। इस सम्बन्ध में कठोर नियमों का अभाव था। वर्णों में परस्पर खान-पान तथा वैवाहिक सम्बन्ध पर किसी प्रकार का प्रतिबन्ध नहीं था।
शूद्र द्वारा बनाए गए भोजन को करने पर किसी प्रकार का प्रतिबन्ध नहीं था और उनके सम्पर्क में आने अथवा उनका स्पर्श करने को अपवित्रता नहीं माना जाता था। ऋग्वेद में एक परिवार के सदस्य का कथन है- ‘मैं कवि हूँ, मेरा पिता वैद्य है, और मेरी माँ पत्थर की चक्की चलाती है। धन की कामना करने वाले नाना कर्मों वाले हम एक साथ रहते हैं…।’ इसी प्रकार, देवापि और शान्तनु नामक दो भाइयों का उल्लेख मिलता है। देवापि पुरोहित थे और शान्तनु राजा। इससे स्पष्ट है कि ऋग्वैदिक-काल में वर्ण-व्यवस्था कर्म प्रधान थी, न कि जन्म प्रधान।
(2.) आर्य-अनार्य का विभेद: ऋग्वेद में लगभग ई.पू.1500-1000 के पश्चिमोत्तर भारत के लोगों के शारीरिक रूप-रंग के बारे में जानकारी मिलती है। रंग के लिए वर्ण शब्द का उपयोग हुआ है। आर्य गौर वर्ण के थे जबकि भारत के मूल निवासी काले वर्ण के थे। रंग-भेद ने सामाजिक वर्गीकरण में आंशिक योग दिया होगा किंतु सामाजिक विभेद का सबसे बड़ा कारण, आर्यों की स्थानीय निवासियों पर विजय प्राप्त करना था।
आर्यों ने काले वर्ण के स्थानीय निवासियों को अनार्य कहा। आर्यों एवं अनार्यों की शारीरिक रचना में भी भेद था। आर्यों की नाक ऊँची होती थी जबकि इसके विरुद्ध अनार्यों की नाक बैठी हुई आर्य लोग यज्ञ-अनुष्ठान, व्रतों का पालन करने वाले थे। आर्यों में अपने रक्त की विशुद्धता को कायम रखने की कामना थी। इस प्रकार समाज में दो वर्ग बन गए। दोनों वर्ग रंग, शरीर रचना, संस्कृति, जाति और भाषा की दृष्टि से नितान्त भिन्न थे। ऋग्वेद में उल्लेख है कि- ‘उग्र प्रकृति के ऋषि ने दोनों वर्णों का पोषण किया’।
(3) आर्यों में विभेद: आर्य कबीलों के मुखिया और पुरोहित, शत्रु राजा की पराजय के बाद मिले धन को परस्पर बांट लेते थे। विजय से प्राप्त धन पर असामान अधिकार के कारण सामाजिक एवं आर्थिक असमानताएं उत्पन्न हुईं। वैश्यों एवं शूद्रों की तुलना में राजा और पुरोहित अधिक ऊंचे उठ गए। सामान्य जन बचा-खुचा धन प्राप्त करते थे। धीरे-धीरे ऋग्वैदिक समाज तीन समूहों में बंट गया- योद्धा, पुरोहित और सामान्य जन।
(4) दास व्यवस्था: ऋग्वेद के चौथे एवं दसवें मंडल में पहली बार शूद्रों का उल्लेख मिलता है। आर्यों ने दासों और दस्युओं को जीतकर अधीन बनाया तथा उन्हें शूद्र कहा। ऋग्वेद में पुरोहितों को दास सौंपने के उल्लेख बार-बार मिलते हैं। घर का काम करने वाली मुख्यतः दासियां थीं। घरेलू दासों के तो उल्लेख मिलते हैं किंतु श्रमिकों के नहीं। अतः अनुमान होता है कि ऋग्वैदिक-काल के दासों को कृषि अथवा अन्य उत्पादन कार्यां में नहीं लगाया जाता था।