Panchal
Panchal or Panchal-Brahmin (
पांचाल | |
---|---|
Languages | |
Vishwabrahmin |
History and Origin
According to
The
Lord
He is the pioneer of the science of mechanics and architecture, which is known as
There are many Vedic references to the Panchal word in the
The references from Purans and Vedas are as follows:
- Varāha Purāṇa, Chapter 176, Stanza 16
किं करोषि दिवारात्रौ ब्रूहि त्वं पृच्छतो मम । पांचालो ब्राह्मणसुतो वाणिज्यं च समाश्रितः ।।
ie :- A man named Sumantu, who had come to take a pilgrimage, asks, who are you, what are you doing by staying here day and night? Then Panchal said, I am the son of Panchal Brahmin and I have come to do my business here."
- Harivaṃśapurāṇa, Chapter 058, Stanza 13
वास्तुदैवतकर्माणि विधिना कारयन्ति च । स्थपतीनथ गोविन्दस्तत्रोवाच महामतिः ।।
ie :- They (Vishwakarma Vaidic Brahmin) also perform worship rituals of Vaastu and deity as per prescribed rituals. Then the great intellectual Govind addressed Sthapati (Brahmashilpi Brahmin).
- Shivā Purāṇa, Chapter 06, Stanza 38
एष एव परो देवो विश्वकर्मा महेश्वरः। हृदये संनिविष्टं तं ज्ञात्वैवामृतमश्नुते ॥
ie :- Such Vishwakarma is the supreme deity, Maheshwar means great God. Knowing Him to reside in one's heart, one attains the essence of nectar.
Culture
Panchal are group of people, who took Engineering and Technology works as an occupation.[10] This community uses the surnames like: Panchal, Vishwakarma, Singh, Dhiman, Sharma, Vashista, etc. The Panchal-Brahmin[11] has many gotra and they maintain clan exogamy as a strict rule for marriage. The community is moving very highly in society in both business and education.
They worship Lord Vishwakarma as their clan deity and observe the Vishwakarma Day (a day after Diwali), Vishwakarma Jayanti (17 September) as a day which holds very high religious significance to their community and their deity.
On the day of Vishwakarma Day, all the Panchal people worship their working tools (like Saws, Hammers, Trowels, stethoscope and pens including other Modern Machines) in their homes, shops or offices and no work is done on this day. After this, everyone together performs a Havan and worships Lord Vishwakarma and on this day a huge Bhandara or Langar is organized by the Panchal Community in which Bhandara is served to all the people, irrespective of their religion or caste and without any discrimination. Then in the evening, everyone worships Vishwakarma Ji in their homes, performs Aarti and gives Prasad to the family. on this day, Govardhan Puja is also performed by everyone in same evening. Vishwakarma Day is celebrated not only by Panchal but by all hand working people with the same passion and all other people also.
Position in Society
They are Brahmins[3] and belong to Parusheya Brahmins[1] sect. They belong to Vishwakarma sect and are also known as Panchal-Brahmin.[5] They have high societal status[12] and maintain themselves as priests of several temples in the state of Kerala and Telangana.[13]
Major temples such as Sri Kalika Durga Parameshwari Temple and Vishwakarma Mandir, Guwahati have Vishwabrahmins or Panchal Brahmin as the main priest. According to the customs in Jagannath Puri Temple, the chief priest of the puri temple belongs to Vishwabrahmin community and the chief priest has been of vishwabrahmin community since the establishment of the temple.
They are General Category in states such as Kerala, Telangana and Tamil Nadu and are written as Panchal-Brahmin. Whereas in states such as Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, they also belong to OBC category due to financial restraints faced during colonial times.
Panchal-Brahmin Status
Panchal-Brahmin are Brahmins[2] and belong to Poursheya Brahmin sect of Bhagwan Vishwakarma. Panchal-Brahmin community's status as Brahmin was irrefutable[14] since the ancient vedic times. During the colonial times, their status has taken a hit due to financial restraints and oppression faced by them as weapons were made by them which was colonised and taken over earlier by the Mughals and then by the Britishers. They were offered State sponsored position if they supply weapons to the Britishers. But they refused to help the colonisers following which the traditional work of the community got dismantled by force and taken over by the Britishers and the whole community faced financial constraints for the successive generations to come. Even though the community is facing financial problems in some places, their status as Brahmin has been proven in several court judgements and ruling in India, as following:
- Haryana Government Notification[6]
According to the Notification of
"The
- Order of A.H. Mackenzie, Director of Public Instruction, United Provinces, British India on Feb.1.1934 at Allahabad
"I have the honor to say that the caste of any Student of the Lohar Community may be Shown in the School record as Panchal Brahman or Dhiman Brahman. If the parent or guardian of the students so desires."
- The history of Aryan Rule in India, from earliest times to the death of Akbar by E.B. Havell (Part 1, Chapter 1, Page No: 19-20) [15]
"The
- Chittoor district court judgement, 15th December 1818
"In the above mentioned case, the petitioner M.S. Achary had filed a petition regarding the status quo of Vishwakarma as Brahmins, which was refuted by the defendant Gundappa. Daker Dosa, the presiding judge in this matter, considering all the forwarded facts and evidences in this matter, held that, by taking into consideration the cited verses from Vedas (as referred by the petioner) and from the Puranas (as referred by the defendant), Vishwakarma Brahmins are on par with Brahmins and no societal discrimination can take this away as Vedas are considered superior to that of Puranas which is held utmost authority in Sanatana Dharma by both Vishwakarma Brahmins and Brahmins."[9][16]
- Panchal-Brahmins and Brahmins
"Panchal-Brahmin are on-par with the Brahmins in the current time, whereas until the early 1500s they were above the rest of Brahmins in the social hierarchy."[17] They belong to the General Category in India due to their high social hierarchy and Financial Status.
Prominent Temples
There are many prominent temples maintained by Panchal-Brahmin community as the chief priest. Panchal-Brahmins are chief priests in the temples as follows:
- Maa Tripura Sundari Temple, which is in Umrai (Talwara), District-Banswara (Rajasthan). It is a well-known temple in Banswara. Lakhs of devotees daily come to worship in the temple
- Sri Kalika Durga Parameshwari Temple, Bengaluru, which has Panchal Brahmin as the main priest and has been maintained as such since several generations.
- Jagannath Temple, Puri, which is one of the most major temples in hinduism
- Vishwakarma Mandir, Guwahati
- Brihadeeswarar Temple, Thanjavur
See also
- Lord Vishwakarma
- Maharaj Jassa Singh Ramgarhia
- Panchal-Brahmin
- Lohar
- Vishwakarma Caste
- List of Vishwakarmas
References
- ^ a b c Reddy, Sudarshan (1935). "THE CASTE SYSTEM, THE COLONIAL JUDICIARY, AND THE STRUGGLE FOR RITUAL STATUS IN 19TH-CENTURY ANDHRA". Indian History Congress Journal.
- ^ a b Shastri, Hari Krishna. Brahmin Utapatti Maratanda (in Hindi). KhemrajShrikrishnadass. pp. 564–565.
- ^ ISBN 978-1245682923.
- ^ Robert A.E: Vishwakarma and His Descendents, Jnanananda Ashram, Nandi, Karnataka, p, 28, 33, 51-53, 93
- ^ ISSN 0028-0836.
- ^ a b c d "Panchal is Panchal-Brahmin" (PDF). www.haryanascbc.gov.in. 10 October 2013.
- ^ Balashastri R.S – Vishwa Brahma Kulotsava,RVS Mangalore 1973 p.25-27
- ^ Roy, Pratap. The Mahabharata of Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa (PDF). BhrataPress. pp. 228–232.
- ^ a b "Vishwakarma". vishwakarma.
- ^ Sharma, K.S: Visvakarma Samaria sankshipta Itihas(Short history of Vishwakarma Society). New Delhi: Visvakarma Institute of Research and Education. (1989)
- ISBN 978-1-85065-091-1.
- ISBN 978-81-8028-014-6.
- ^ Jnanananda G: Sanskritization and Vishwa Brahmins Sanskrit Sahitya Pratishtana, Bangalore, 2005 p, 235-23
- ^ "Panchal treated as Upper Caste" (PDF).
- ^ Havell, E.B. (1918). The history of Aryan rule in India, from earliest times to the death of Akbar. pp. 19–20.
- ^ Muttacharya.T.V: Vishwakarma Vamsha. Vikas, Tumkur, 1968
- ISBN 978-0-86132-067-7.