Raju (disambiguation)
Raju is the title used by members of the Hindu Kshatriya Caste in Andhra Pradesh, India. A book entitled Sri Andhra Kshatriya Ratnakaram elaborates on the traditional accounts and genealogy of the Raju Community and was written by Varahala Raju Buddharaju.
Origin
Legends
- Founders of the Ikshvaku Kingdom may have been migrants from Kosala, Uttar Pradesh. There is an old Ikshvaku dynasty which is believed to be ancestors of Lord Rama there.
- Another traditional account of Rajus mentions Madhav Varma of the Vishnukundina dynasty as an ancestor.
- There are traditions which claim descent from Varnataka, Parichedi, and Kota Vamsa.
- Varnataka is likely to be Karnataka, i.e. Chalukyas.
- Parichedi could be connected either to the Chedi Kingdom of Madhya Pradesh, Bundelkhand region or the Nagpur, Parchure area of Maharashtra.
- Kota Vamsa was an ancient family in Andhra.
- Officially the Vizianagaram Dynasty of the Pusapatis was founded by a revenue collector from Krishna District area who took the fiefdom during Qutb Shahi times in the 16th century. But closer examination indicates the clan is far older than 16th century and related to the Eastern Ganga Dynasty-Gajapati of Orissa.
Although traditional legends that have been told for centuries about the origins of the Raju community can be used as a symbolic start to understanding their history, a more realistic and accurate account of their origins would be that in ancient South and Eastern India there were no distinct castes, it was more of a fuedal society. Jain and Buddhist religions, which did not promote a caste based society were more prevelent than Hinduism. Based on the legends of various communities and interpretations of puranic texts, it is possible that the Madigas were the original inhabitants of Andhra. Scientist believe they were an aboriginal race that migrated out of Africa and eventually settled in India before 4000 BC. Being the first in India, this community can stake a claim to being the first rulers of the land.
The next tribe to settle in India were the Dravidians. Some anthropologist and linguists feel that the Dravidians were originally located in Elam, in modern day Iran. They were neighbors to the Sumarians and Akkadians. According to the Old Testament, Elamites were the descendents of Elam, one of the ten sons of Noah. They migrated to and spread throughout India and founded the Harappan civilization which was at its peak around 3000 BC.
According to Tamil Tradition, the Dravidians originally came from a submerged island Kumari Kandam in the south of India. The Epics Shilappadikaram and Manimekhalai describe the submerged city of Puhar (Poombuhar). Kumari Kandam has also been linked to Lemuria. At Mahabalipuram, near Chennai, submerged ruins have been found in the ocean, suggesting a possible historical basis to this myth.
According to the Puranas, the Dravidians are descendants of the Vedic Turvasha people. According to the Matsya Purana, Manu is considered as a south Indian king. In Hindu tradition the creation of the Tamil language is credited to the Rig Vedic sage Rishi Agastya, a view that secular linguists would interpret as a myth designed to link Dravidians to Vedic Indo-Aryan culture.
The subsequent history has become controversal amongst India historians but the commonly held notion is that after the Dravidians, around 1500 BC there was a migration of nomadic war like central Asian tribes into India that subjugated and merged with the Dravidians. These tribes may have adopted to the existing religious beliefs of the more advanced Dravidian civilisation and tweaked it to their advantage by introducing a caste system resulting in a new form of Hinduism.
This new Brahminical Hinduism first took root in northwest India and the first converts to this faith proclaimed themselves "Aryan" or "Noble". They regarded all communites that did not follow this belief system as "Mellechas" or "Nishada", which basically translates to "Heathen" (Non believer or non follower).
The far northwest, east and south of India was inhabited by indigenous and migratory communities that either were continuing to follow nature worship or were Buddhist and Jain. The early Vedic text referred to communites such as the Dravidas, Pallavas, Kambojas, Sakas, Yavanas, Hunas etc as Sudras due to this.
As Hinduism spread throughout the subcontinent the caste system began to be adopted by the converts. The fact that a mixing of "Races" and cultures was occuring is evident from many of the legends. The Aitreya Brahmana refers to the Andhras as descendents of the sons of sage Vishwamitra and local women. This myth was an attempt to acnowledge that the early Andhras were a mix of Aryan and Dravidian races. Since they followed Jainism and Buddhism instead of Brahminical Hinduism, they were labeled as Nishadas (Outcaste).
The next reference to Andhras comes with the advent of the Mauryan dynasty in Magadha around 300 BC. Ancient Greek (Yavana) texts refer to a powerful tribe called Andhras led by the Satavahanas that lived around the Vindhya Range and were subordinates of the Mauryas. The fact the Brahmanism or Sanskritization was begining to take root in Andhra is evidenced by ancient texts stating that the Satavahanas were of Brahman origin. Gauthamiputra Satakarni was refered to as "..a unique Brahman that stamped on the pride and conceit of his neighboring (Saka, Kushan) empires..." There was still no Kshatriya caste at that time, just local farmer-warrior communities.
It is believed that just as the Scythian and Huna tribes that invaded northwest India eventually got incorporated into the Kshatriya caste as Rajputs, some of the local warriors tribes that converted to Brahminical Hinduism were accepted into the Kshatriya caste by the Hindu priests. The warrior communities that did not patronize Hindu priests or continued to follow Jainism or Buddhism were labeled as Sudra warriors. It is evident from reading the ancient scripts that in the early days of Hinduism, a communities place in the caste hierarchy was dependent on their relationship with the Brahmans, who not only happened to be spiritual guides, but recorders of history as well. The caste system eventually became rigid and there was no opportunity to move up in the caste hierarchy afterwards.These Kshatriya clans began to marry amongst each other. In Andhra they called themselves Rajus (Kings).
Ethnicity
According to an essay originally published in 1910 by Edgar Thurston, Castes and Tribes of Southern India, Rajus may have been originally a group of local landowning warriors who followed Brahminical Hinduism and attained Kshatriyas status. Over the centuries they intermarried with other Kshatriya tribes of India and their modern ethnic stock is a result of this.
A recent genetic study was performed at Andhra University and the results were published by Jorde et. al. It found that upper caste Indians throughout India tended to be a genetic mix of people of central Asian, eastern European and Dravidian ancestry. The southern upper caste does tend to have more Indo-Aryan traits than their middle and lower caste neighbors but they still have more Dravidian traits than their northern counterparts. You will find the stereotypical “Aryan” tall, sharp featured, fair complexioned and a rare blue-green eye traits and the stereotypical “Dravidian” short, curly haired, dark eyed and dark complexioned traits within this community. Sometimes within siblings.
Edgar Thurston. Castes and Tribes of Southern India Vol. 6 pg. 247-256: ..."As a class they are the handsomest and best deveolped men in the country and differ so much in feature and build from other Hindus that they may usually be distinguished at a glance...In religion they are mostly Vaishnavites, and their priests are Brahmans...Claiming to be Kshatriyas, the Rajus of course assume the sacred thread, and are very proud and particular in their conduct, though meat eating is allowed. In all the more well-to-do families the females are kept in strict seclusion...The Brahmanical rites of Punya Havachanam (Purification), Jata Karma (Birth ceremony), Nama Karanam (Naming ceremony), Chaulam (Tonsure), and Upanayanam (Thread ceremony) are performed...At weddings the Kasi Yatra (Mock flight to Benares) or Snatha Kavritham is performed...In some villages, Rajus seem to object to the construction of a pial, or raised plateform, in front of their houses. The pial is the lounging place where visitors are recieved by day. The Rajus claim to be Kshatriyas so other castes should not sit in their presence. If pials were constructed, such people might sit thereon, and so commit a breach of etiquette."
Dynasties
There were very few Hindu empires or kingdoms in ancient Andhra. The Satavahana, Vijayanagar, Chalukya, and Chola empires can be correctly called empires in the sense that they encompassed multiple linguistic groups under their control. The Cholas and Pallavas were more of a Tamil dynasty than Telugu though.
The Kakatiya dynasty could be called a large kingdom since they controlled all of Andhra. The Ikshvaku, Brihatpalayana, Salankayanas, Reddy, Pallavas, Ananda Gotrikas and Vishnukundinas would be considered small kingdoms as they controlled large portions, but not all of Andhra. The Nayak dynasty was more of a Republic than a Kingdom. The rest of the Andhra dynasties were more like Zamindars that controlled a few districts, sometimes independently, but more often were feudatories of larger kingdoms and empires.
Sects
- There are two sects, Suryavanshi (Sun Dynasty) and Chandravanshi (Lunar Dynasty) subdivided into four clans named after Rishis called Gothrams. Each Gothram is further sub-divided into a number of exogamous sects that are named after villages etc.
- Suryavanshi include Ikshvaku, Vishnukundina, Vemulavada Chalukya, Kota Vamsa, and Ganga-Gajapati.
- Chandravanshi includes The Eastern Chalukyas and Kalachuris.
- The Gothrams are Dhananjaya, Kashyapa, Kaundinya and Vasishta.
- Dhanunjaya Gotrikas are from the Kota dynasty
- Kashyapa Gotrikas belongs to the Kalachuri dynasty. Trivia: Mahavira Jain happens to also belong to this Gotra.
- Kaundinya Gotrikas belongs to the Vishnukundina dynasty.
- Vasistha Gotrikas belong to the Eastern Ganga-Gajapati and Ikshvaku dynasty
Note: Sage Kaundinya was the son of Vasishtha and nephew of Agastya
While these divisions are used in modern times to help in arranging marriages and are entertaining topics of discussion at casual gatherings, taking these myths of celestial descend literally would seem illogical in our times. In Japan the Emperor was thought to have descend from the sun. The rational is that if a ruler is of divine origin, his actions cannot be questioned and his subjects should obey his commands. That is the basic motive of these types of myths, control. Around the 19th century the literacy rate of India was estimated to be 8%. So it would be easy to convince iliterate, isolated people that these storys were real. Even today the literacy rate of India is 52%, so it is still possible to convince some people that these are true stories. However for an educated person to believe that a human being could be born from fire, sun or the moon would take a great leap of faith or pure insanity.
Ikshvaku
(225-325 AD) Based on the similarity of the names, historians have tried to link the Ikshvaku of Andhra with the Ikshvaku dynasty of Ayodhya. They hypothesis that they may have been a distant branch of the main Ikshvaku family who migrated to the Deccan and established their own kingdom in the Krishna River-Guntur region. Ikshvaku means "Sea of sugarcane". Even today sugarcane is grown in abundance in the area. The founders of this dynasty may have simple named themselves lords of this land and historians are being over zealous in their interpretation of the name. They were succeeded by the Salankayanas
Vishnukundina
(425-624 AD) The Vishnukundina dynasty ruled over the eastern Deccan in South India comprising of the area covered by modern day Andhra Pradesh and Kalinga (Orissa). It played an important role in the history of the Deccan during the 5th and 6th centuries AD.
It is generally believed that the Vishnukundins were an Andhra clan and they hailed from Vinukond in the Guntur district. The early rulers of the dynasty migrated to the west in search of employment and under the Vakatakas they might have attained feudatory status. They had Indra Pala Nagara in the Nalgonda district as their capital.
During the reign of Madhava Varma they became independent and conquered coastal Andhra from the Salankayanas and shifted their capital to Amaravati. Madhava Varma is celebrated in Raju folklore as one of their ancestors.
Varnataka / Karnataka
- Chalukya
Most historians agree that the Chalukyas originated from Karnataka, however there are some fringe scholars who thought that the Chalukyas descended from Kandachaliki Remmanaka, a subordinate of the Ikshvakus in Andhra, thereby implying that they belonged to Andhra Pradesh.
Chalukyas were a royal dynasty that ruled large parts of southern and central India between 550 and 750, and again between 973 and 1190. As early as the 1st Century, they were mentioned as being the vassals and chieftains under the Satavahana rule. They succeeded the Vishnukundina. Their heartland was the area between the town of Ellora and the Godavari delta. The aggressive Chalukyas of Badami under Pulakesin expanded from Karnataka into Andhra, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.
Pulakesin I established the dynasty in 550 AD. by taking Vatapi (Badami) under his control. In the east, Pulakesin II overthrew the Vishnukundinas and appointed his younger brother Vishnu Vardhana, the Viceroy of Vengi. It is from Vishnu Vardhana's line that Raju's claim descent.
- Eastern Chalukya
Legend:
- Vikram Anka Deva Charitra: "Indra once requested Brahma to create a hero who would put an end to godlessness in the world and punish the wicked. Agreeing to his request, Brahma looked into his Chuluka (hollow of the hands) while performing the sandhya, and lo! From there sprang a mighty warrior. He was called Chalukya and he became the eponymous ancestor of the line. In it were born two great heroes, Harita and Manavya who raised the Chalukyas into distinct position." This story is repeated and elaborated in the Ramastipundi grant of Vimaladitya of the eastern Chalukya family.
The Eastern Chalukyas, also known as Vengi Chalukyas, ruled large parts of Andhra from 624-1190 AD. Most of the old temples and other buildings in the Godavari area have an Eastern Chalukya origin. Most Rajus of the Godavari have an Eastern Chalukya origin as well.
- Vemulavada Chalukya
Around 750 AD the Rashtrakuta king Dantidurga, overthrew the Chalukya king Kirti Varma II, and inherited the fortunes of the Chalukyas of Badami. When the Rastrakutas took over by the middle of the eighth century The Chalukyan family had already branched out into smaller kingdoms. Chief among them were those of Vemulavada Chalukyas and Vengi. Their rule extended over the present day Karimnagar and Nizamabad districts. As subordinate rulers loyal to the Rashtrakutas, they ruled with semi-independent status for about two centuries (755-968 AD.). Vemulavada Chalukyas were important patrons of Jainism in Andhra. Arikesari I patronized the poets Pampa and Ranna who composed Jain literature in Kannada. Certain historians believe that Pampa and Ranna rendered a few Jain works in Telugu which are not available today. Vishnu Vardhana III made donations to the Nadumbi Jain Vasati at Bejawada. One peculiarity with this family is that it traced its descent from the Sun, while many other Chalukya families considered themselves of lunar descent.
Parichedi
The Kalachuris were related to the early Chalukyas and the Rashtrakutas by matrimonial alliances. It is argued that they migrated to the south and made Magaliveda or Mangalavedhe (Mangalavada) in Tumkur District their headquarters. Their emblem was Suvarna Vrishabha or the golden bull. They started as feudatories of the Chalukyas of Kalyani. They were the principle players in the Battle of Palnadu.
Kota Vamsa
They were around during the 11th and 12th century AD. The Kota Vamsas ruled their section of Andhra with Dharanikota as their capital. They were fuedatories of the Kakatiyas.
Gajapati-Eastern Ganga
The region between Cuttack and Vijayawada was known as Kalinga, and was controlled often by the Oriya rulers, the Gangas (Gajapatis). The early Eastern Gangas ruled from Kalinganagara (Mukhalingam near Srikakulam Andhra Pradesh). They shifted their capital to Cuttack in the 12th century. The Bhoi Gajapatis, on the height of their power in the 15th century, ruled over a kingdom extending from the Ganga river in the north to the Kaveri in the south. But by the early 16th century, the Gajapatis lost great portions of their southern dominion to Vijayanagar and Golconda.
The religious leader Ramanujacharya had a great influence on the Raja Choda Ganga Deva who built the temple at Puri. Narasimha Deva built the Sun Temple at Konark. The Gangas were succeeded by the Surya Vansi Gajapati rulers. This period was marked by the influence of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and by the construction of Jaganatha temples across the length and breadth of the empire.
After the decline of the Gajapatis, the kingdom began to disintegrate and was taken over by the Mughals, the Marathas and then the British. Two kingdoms emerged from this. Peddapuram of the Vatsavai dynasty and the Vizianagaram (not Vijayanagara) dynasty, who belong to the Pusapati clan.
Vijayanagar Empire
The Vijayanagar rulers were not Rajus. They were actually from the Kuruba caste of Karnataka, although there may have been marital alliances between some of the Vijayanagar rulers based on the inscriptions found in temples. During Vijayanagar rule Raju chieftains controlled parts of Andhra as feudatories or Nayaks while others, like the Orissa Gajapati dynasty, were in constant conflict with them.
After the brothers Harihara and Bukka reconverted to Hinduism under the influence of sage Vidyaranya, The Vijayanagara Empire (1336-1646) was founded as the last bastion of Hinduism against Islamic oppression from Tughlaq rule in the Deccan. It lasted for more than two centuries as the dominant power in South India.
The capital Vijayanagar was built in an easily defensible position south of the Tungabhadra River. The city was a royal ceremonial and administrative center and the nexus of trade routes. Foreign travelers and visitors were impressed by the variety and quality of commodities that reached the city, the architectural grandeur of the palace complex and temples, and by the ceremonial significance of the annual Mahanavami celebrations, at which the Nayakas and other chiefs assembled to pay tributes. The kingdom's expansion in the first century of its existence made it the first South Indian state to incorporate different linguistic and cultural regions under a single regime, albeit with sub regional and local chiefly powers exercising authority as its agents and subordinates.
The Empire was divided for the purposes of administration into a number of provinces called Rajas. They were also known as Mandalams. A governor was appointed over each province by the central government at Vijayanagar. They enjoyed a good measure of local autonomy within their jurisdiction without interference from the central government as long as they discharged their obligation to it regularly. They held their own courts and maintained their own armies. There were also areas which were administered through feudal vassals who claimed to enjoy a semi-independent status. They had the status and powers of Governors. These high officers were known by different names like Samanta Raju, Nayaka, Dandanayaka, and Mandaleswara etc.
Under Vijayanagar rule, temples emerged as major political arenas. Monastic organizations (Mathas) representing various religious traditions also became focal points of local authority, often closely linked with the Nayak chieftains. A fairly elaborate and specialized administrative infrastructure underlay these diverse local and regional religio-political forms.
After The Fall of Vijayanagar
Vijayanagar had consisted of several kingdoms and provinces. Governors and feudatory Kings called Nayaks ruled the provinces under the direct control of central government and would pay a tribute to the Emperor. After Vijayanagar was destroyed in the Battle of Tallikota in 1565 AD from the combined forces of the Muslim states of Golconda, Bijapur, Ahmednagar, and Bidar, the tributary kingdoms that were under Vijayanagar fell under the control of the Sultans of Golconda and Bijapur. Golconda and Bijapur Sultans employed Velamas, Kammas, Reddys and Telagas as the governors of estates and had them collect taxes and pay tribute. This is how many Samsthanams or Zamindars came into existence.
Between 1650 and 1750 A.D. with collapse of the Vijayanagar Empire a few Andhra Kshatriyas migrated towards the south to Madurai region as Commanders and administrators. They named their settlement Rajapalayam (Land of Kings).
The Golconda Empire came under the control of The Mughal Dynasty in 1686 and became known as Deccan Subah. Mughal rule didn’t last long however. Nizamul Ul Mulk Asaf Jah controlled Andhra Pradesh and parts of Tamil Nadu and Orissa as the governor of the Deccan.
In the beginning the French had influence over Hyderabad but when Salabat Jang came to power, he realized that the French were losing ground to British and realigned himself with them. In 1761, the British East India Company helped Nizam Ali Khan depose his brother Salabat Jang and occupy the Deccan Subah. The East India Company initially leased the coastal regions of Andhra from the Nizam. However the accords of 1768 and 1779 gave the East India Company complete control of these regions and were named Circars. Telangana remained under the Nizam.
In 1802 the British government restored the rights and powers of the Kings of Andhra under a revenue settlement agreement. The estates were however rapidly broken up. In 1857 the British decided to realign the bigger brigands into "Princely states" and the lesser ones as "Zamindars" or "Jagirdars". Since the British had no caste bias, some individuals with cash and influence were able to buy large temple estates and the title that came with them. This allowed locally prominent tax collectors to become Rajas. In the Andhra context, Raju is also a title and did not necessarily refer to the specific Kshatriya community. These Zamindars were abolished after the formation of the Indian Union.
Zamindaris
- Vijayanagaram Rulers of this kingdom belong to the Pusapati family. The village Pooshpadu in Nandigama Taluq was built by Amala Raju. The village later came to be known as Pusapadu. Therefore, the Kshatriyas living there came to be known as Pusapati. These Rajus are linked to the Orissa rule.
Vijay Rama Gajapati Raju Pusapati, the last crown prince of Vizianagaram, popularly known as P.V.G. and reverentially called "Raja Saheb". [1]
- Peddapuram is part of East Godavari district in Andhra Pradesh and was ruled by the Vatsavai dynasty that supported Telugu literature and were themselves poets and writers. Famous poets in the court of Vatsavai dynasty belonged to the Enugu family.
- Kurupam Also called Chamudu Zamindari. It was founded in 1450 AD and ruled by the Vyricharla family. [2]
- Chinna Merangi Ruled by the Satrucharla family. [3]
- Salur Ruled by the Bhanj Deo family.
- Mogaltur Ruled by the Uppalapati family. [4]
- Karvetnagar Found in Chittoor District near Tirupati. The last Raja of Karvetnagar, Raja Sahib Kumar Swamy Raja Bahadur.
Modern Community
Kshatriyas make up about 0.5-1% of the population of Andhra Pradesh. They are mainly concentrated in the West Godavari, East Godavari, Krishna District, Vizianagaram District, Vishakapatnam District and Chittoor District where they have been mainly landlords. While a significant number continue along this line, many have turned to Education, Finance, Industry, InfoTech, Medical, Health sciences, Pharmaceuticals, Law, Engineering, and Entertainment fields. There have been prominent freedom fighters and Politicians from the community.
There are some subdivisions of the Kshatriya community found in Rayalseema, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. In the past marriages did not occur between these communities mainly due to geographical distances that kept the communities ignorant of each others existence. But now they are occurring.
Rayalseema:
- Bhatrajus: They were the soldiers for the Rajus. They are regarded as fellow Kshatriyas by the Raju community. The most famous member of this community is Satya Sai Baba of Puttaparthi.
Tamil Nadu:
- Rajapalayam Rajus. They have a direct relationship with the Andhra Rajus. They migrated to Tamil Nadu during the Vijayanagar rule and settled in Rajapalayam, Virudhunagar district Tamil Nadu. The most famous one being former TN chief minister S. Kumar Swamy Raja Poosapadi
Karnataka
- Raju-Raju
Mainly in Bellary District. Rajus regard them as their Karnataka cousins and may have a relationship with the Vijayanagar Empire.
References
History
Kingdoms
- History of the Andhras [9]
- Andhra Kingdoms (Vepachedu) [10]
- Hindu Kingdoms [11]
- Monuments of India [12]
Zamindars
- Vizianagaram [13]
- Chamudu (Kurupam) [14]
- Rani Chandramani Devi[15]
- Daspalla [16]
- Gagpur [17]
- Baudh [18]
- Karvetnagar [19]
Political History
- Caste Transformation (Winners and Losers) [20]
- Caste politics in the North, West and South India before Mandal[21]
Genetics
- Caste Genetics [22]
- Genetics and Archaeogenetics of South Asia
- Bioline [23]
- Blood Group [24]