Newar caste system

The Newar caste system is the system by which Newars, the indigenous people of Nepal's Kathmandu Valley, are divided into groups on the basis of their occupations.^[1]

Distinguishing features

The Newar system varies from the typical South Asian religious model in various aspects.

The Buddhist priestly class has been 'castified,' resulting in a 'double-headed' caste-system: the Hindu brahmins and the Buddhist bajracharyas at the top, each claiming equal stature in the hierarchy.^[2] Beneath them is the Newar nobility and vaishyas. The shudra grouping is the most differentiated, with specialized castes for métiers needed in the daily lives of the Newars or for their and cultural or ritual needs.

Another prominent feature of the system is the existence of caste blocks in the hierarchy. While the hierarchy of the blocks may not be disputed, the individual positions of the castes within each block is also disputed by the castes themselves. Since separate caste systems were in practice in the different Newar city-states (and their provinces), some researchers look at the Newars as having several caste systems, rather than one unified system.^{[citation needed]}

The Newar caste system may be called kshetriya-centric because the entire system exists around the personage of the king. The brahmins are higher in caste status than the king not because they are more powerful, but because of their superior ritual status. The brahmins are like all other specialized service providers, except that they are considered higher to others in ritual purity.^[3]

Unlike other contemporary South Asian class systems, the Newar system still features the king prominently in his ritual obligations in the various festivals and functions throughout the annual religious calendar. He still mediates between the gods and his subjects; in this respect, as the representative of divinity, he is considered divinity itself.

Marriage customs

Marriage is, as a rule, patrilocal and monogamous. The parents traditionally arrange marriages for their sons and daughters, although with the modernization of Nepali society, an increasing number of young people choose their own partners.

Partners must belong to different descent-group lineages within the same caste, living outside of the large urban areas. Among the Shresthas, since they are subdivided into three grades, one's marriage partner must be from the same grade as well.

Buddhist Newars living in a baha—a residential quadrangle around a central court with Buddhist shrines and temples—consider themselves to be of common descent, making intermarriage a taboo.

In some areas the rule of 'seven generations' of descent is also observed; members who fall within the common descent group of seven generations are restricted from intermarriage.

List of castes

References

1. ^ Genetti, Carol (2007). A grammar of Dolakha Newar. Walter de Gruyter. p. 9. ISBN 9783110193039. 
2. ^ Whelpton, John (2005). A history of Nepal. Cambridge University Press. p. 31. ISBN 9780521804707. 
3. ^ Fisher, James F. (1978). Himalayan anthropology: the Indo-Tibetan interface. Walter de Gruyter. p. 487. ISBN 9789027977007.