The Jajmani System
The jajmani system was a very important rural social institution in traditional India. It grew up during the ancient phase of Indian history when occupational differentiation and specialisation of various arts, crafts and menial services developed and owners and non-owners of land emerged in villages. It maintained its vitality in the medieval period. But it started declining during the colonial period and now it is very weak in villages. It is known as baluta, aya, and miland in different regions of India.
The jajmani is a system of economic, social and ritual bond between different castes in villages. Landowning upper and intermediate castes are patrons and others belonging to poor lower castes serve the patrons. The patrons are known as jajman and the service castes are called Kam Karnewale or Kamin or Purjan. The service castes like carpenter, blacksmith, potter, barber, leather-worker and water-carrier offer their services to the landowning upper and intermediate castes, e.g. Rajput, Bhumihar and Jat etc. in the North and Kamma, Reddi and Lingayat etc. in the South. The service castes are usually paid in kind. They are also entitled to other considerations like free house site in addition to free food, clothing etc. on certain occasions e.g. festivals, birth, death and marriage.
The jajmani relations also extend to neighbouring villages. The service castes have their jajmans (clients) outside the village where they live. Wherever problems regarding rights and obligations or other matters related to the jajmani system develop, they are settled by the caste panchayats and village panchayats.
However, the jajmani relations primarily operate at family level. Each family in the village maintain an enduring (hereditary), exclusive (family to family) and multiple (economic, social and ritual) bond with other families belonging to different castes and occupations and thus continue with the patron-client relationship.
In his study of the jajmani system, Wiser (1969: xxiii) emphasised the element of reciprocity and defined the system as, “... the various castes of a Hindu village in north India are interrelated in a service capacity. Each serves the others. Each in turn is master. Each in turn is servant. Each has his own clientele comprising members of different castes, which is his jajmani or birt”.
But the elements of domination and exploitation also are very much there in the jajmani system which have been studied by Beidelman (1959), Oscar Lewis (1956) and others. The landowning powerful patron castes dominate and exploit the poor artisans and menial castes who serve them.
Still a significant number of families are found in villages continuing with the jajmani relations. But the system has become very weak over the years in the modern period. This has happened due to various changes taking place in the rural areas, such as, increasing commercialisation of agriculture and growth of capitalist farming, increasing circulation of money, wage labour, urban migration, education and dissociation of caste and occupation.
The jajmani system was a very important rural social institution in traditional India. It grew up during the ancient phase of Indian history when occupational differentiation and specialisation of various arts, crafts and menial services developed and owners and non-owners of land emerged in villages. It maintained its vitality in the medieval period. But it started declining during the colonial period and now it is very weak in villages. It is known as baluta, aya, and miland in different regions of India.
The jajmani is a system of economic, social and ritual bond between different castes in villages. Landowning upper and intermediate castes are patrons and others belonging to poor lower castes serve the patrons. The patrons are known as jajman and the service castes are called Kam Karnewale or Kamin or Purjan. The service castes like carpenter, blacksmith, potter, barber, leather-worker and water-carrier offer their services to the landowning upper and intermediate castes, e.g. Rajput, Bhumihar and Jat etc. in the North and Kamma, Reddi and Lingayat etc. in the South. The service castes are usually paid in kind. They are also entitled to other considerations like free house site in addition to free food, clothing etc. on certain occasions e.g. festivals, birth, death and marriage.
The jajmani relations also extend to neighbouring villages. The service castes have their jajmans (clients) outside the village where they live. Wherever problems regarding rights and obligations or other matters related to the jajmani system develop, they are settled by the caste panchayats and village panchayats.
However, the jajmani relations primarily operate at family level. Each family in the village maintain an enduring (hereditary), exclusive (family to family) and multiple (economic, social and ritual) bond with other families belonging to different castes and occupations and thus continue with the patron-client relationship.
In his study of the jajmani system, Wiser (1969: xxiii) emphasised the element of reciprocity and defined the system as, “... the various castes of a Hindu village in north India are interrelated in a service capacity. Each serves the others. Each in turn is master. Each in turn is servant. Each has his own clientele comprising members of different castes, which is his jajmani or birt”.
But the elements of domination and exploitation also are very much there in the jajmani system which have been studied by Beidelman (1959), Oscar Lewis (1956) and others. The landowning powerful patron castes dominate and exploit the poor artisans and menial castes who serve them.
Still a significant number of families are found in villages continuing with the jajmani relations. But the system has become very weak over the years in the modern period. This has happened due to various changes taking place in the rural areas, such as, increasing commercialisation of agriculture and growth of capitalist farming, increasing circulation of money, wage labour, urban migration, education and dissociation of caste and occupation.
No comments:
Post a Comment