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Kshatriya
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Kshatriya(fromSanskritkatra,"rule,authority")isoneofthefourvarna(socialorders)oftheHindusociety.
TheSanskrittermkatriyaisusedinthecontextofVedicsocietywhereinmembersorganisedthemselvesintofour
classes:brahmin,kshatriya,vaishyaandshudra.[1]Traditionally,thekshatriyaconstitutedtherulingandmilitary
elite.Theirrolewastoprotectsocietybyfightinginwartimeandgoverninginpeacetime.ThePrakritderivativeof
Kshatriyais"Khatri".[2]

Contents
1 Origins
1.1 EarlyRigvedictribalchiefdom
1.2 LaterVedicperiod
2 Historicalrole
3 Symbols
4 Lineage
5 Seealso
6 References
7 Furtherreading

Origins
EarlyRigvedictribalchiefdom

TheadministrativemachineryintheRigVedicperiodfunctionedwithatribalchiefcalledRajanwhoseposition
wasnothereditary.Thekingwaselectedinatribalassembly,whichincludedwomen,calledSamiti.TheRajan
protectedthetribeandcattlewasassistedbyapriestanddidnotmaintainastandingarmy,thoughinthelater
periodtherulershipappearstohaverisenasaclass.Theconceptoffourfoldvarnasystemwasnonexistent.[3]

LaterVedicperiod

ThehymnPurushaSuktatotheRigvedadescribesthemythicalhistoryofthefourvarna.Somescholarsconsider
thePurushaSuktatobealateinterpolationintotheRigvedabasedontheneologicalcharacterofthecomposition,
ascomparedtothemorearchaicstyleofthevedicliterature.SincenotalldarkskinnedIndianswasfullyregulated
underthevarnainthevedicsociety,[4]thePurushaSuktawassupposedlycomposedinordertosecurevedic
sanctionforthehereditycastescheme.Analternateexplanationisthattheword'Shudra'doesnotoccuranywhere
elseintheRigvedaexceptthePurushaSukta,leadingsomescholarstobelievethePurushaSuktawasa
compositionofthelaterRigvedicperioditselftodenote,legitimiseandsanctifyanoppressiveandexploitative
classstructurethathadalreadycomeintoexistencethen.[5]

AlthoughthePurushaSuktausesthetermrajanya,notkshatriya,itisconsideredthefirstinstanceintheVedic
textsthatnowremainedwherefoursocialclassesarementionedforthefirsttimetogether.[6]Usageoftheterm
Rajanyapossiblyindicatesthe'kinsmenoftherajan'(i.e.,kinsmenoftheruler)hademergedasadistinctsocial
groupthen,[6]suchthatbytheendofthevedicperiod,thetermrajanyawasreplacedbykshatriyawhererajanya

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stresseskinshipwiththerajanandkshatriyadenotespoweroveraspecificdomain.[6]Thetermrajanyaunlikethe
wordkshatriyaessentiallydenotedthestatuswithinalineage.Whereaskshatra,means"rulingoneoftheruling
order".[7]

JaiswalpointsoutthetermBrahmanrarelyoccursintheRigvedawiththe
exceptionofthePurushaSuktaandmaynothavebeenusedforthepriestly
class.[6]BasedontheauthorityofPanini,Patanjali,Katyayanaandthe
Mahabharata,JayaswalbelievesthatRajanyawasthenameofapolitical
peopleandthattheRajanyaswere,therefore,ademocracy(withanelected
ruler).[8]SomeexamplesweretheAndhakaandVrsniRajanyaswho
followedthesystemofelectedrulers.[6]RamSharanSharmadetailshow
thecentralchiefwaselectedbyvariousclanchiefsorlineagechiefswith
increasingpolarisationbetweentherajanya(aristocracyhelpingtheruler)
andthevis(peasants)leadingtoadistinctionbetweenthechiefsasa
separateclass(raja,rajanya,kshatra,kshatriya)ononehandandvis(clan
peasantry)ontheotherhand.[9]

Thetermkshatriyacomesfromkshatraandimpliestemporalauthorityand
powerwhichwasbasedlessonbeingasuccessfulleaderinbattleandmore
onthetangiblepoweroflayingclaimtosovereigntyoveraterritory,and
symbolisingownershipoverclanlands.Thislatergaverisetotheideaof
kingship.[10]

IntheperiodoftheBrahmanastherewasambiguityinthepositionofthe
varna.InthePanchavimshaBrahmana(13,4,7),theRajanyaareplaced GautamaBuddhawasbornintoa
first,followedbyBrahmanathenVaishya.InShatapathaBrahmana kshatriyafamily.
13.8.3.11,theKshatriyaareplacedsecond.InShatapathaBrahmana
1.1.4.12theorderisBrahmana,Vaishya,Rajanya,Shudra.Theorderof
thebrahmanicaltraditionBrahmana,Kshatriya,Vaishya,Shudrabecamefixedfromthetimeof
dharmasutras.[11]ThekshatriyawereoftenconsideredpreeminentinBuddhistcircles.[12]EvenamongHindu
societiestheyweresometimesatrivalrywiththeBrahmins,buttheygenerallyacknowledgedthesuperiorityofthe
priestlyclass.[12]

Historicalrole
Thekshatriyacasteconstitutedanaristocracybutwerenotalwaysnecessarilywealthy.Kingsusuallybelongedto
thiscasteanditwasconsideredtheirduty(dharma)toacquireaknowledgeofweaponsinadditiontocultivating
theiraptitudeforcommandandgoodgovernance.Thescienceofweaponry(dhanurveda)wasoneofthe13
branchesoflearningwhicheveryeducatedkshatriyamalewasexpectedtostudy.Boththeking'ssuiteandthe
armywerenaturallyrecruitedfromamongthiscastebutnoteverykshatriyaexercisedamilitarycalling.Many
kshatriyawereauthorisedtotakeupacraftortraderatherthangainingtheirlivingasprofessionalwarriors.These
familiesstillretainedtheprivilegesaccordedtotheircastehowever,whichincludedspecialformsofmarriage
whichweretheirprerogative.Inoneofthese,themanwasallowedtocarryoffthewomanforhisbride,andthe
otherconsistedofacompetitionforabrideinwhichthechiefeventwasanarcherycontest.Arjuna,Rama,and
SiddharthaGautamaallwontheirconsortsinsuchtournaments.[12]

Symbols

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Inrituals,thenyagrodha(FicusindicaorIndiafigorbanyantree)danda,orstaff,isassignedtothekshatriya
class,alongwithamantra,intendedtoimpartphysicalvitalityor'ojas'.[13]

Lineage
TheVedasdonotmentionkshatriya(orverma)ofanyvansha(lineage).ThelineagesoftheItihasaPurana
tradition[14]are:Suryavanshi(solarline)[14]andChandravanshi(lunarline).[14]

Thereareotherlineages,suchastheAgnivanshi,inwhichaneponymousancestorrisesoutofAgni(fire),[14]and
Nagavanshi(snakeborn),claimingdescentfromtheNgas.TheNagavanshi,notattestedintheItihasaPurana
tradition,wereNagatribeswhoseorigincanbefoundinscriptures.[15]ThereexistedNagavanshirulers,suchas
theChotanagpurMaharaja,originallysaidtobeofMundaorigin.Theclanholdssnakestobesacredandhad
maritalrelationswithGurjarsformanycenturies.[16]

Seealso
Indiancastesystem
Forwardcastes WikimediaCommonshas
mediarelatedtoKshatriya.
Sanskritisation

References

1.BujorAvari(2007).India:TheAncientPast:AHistoryoftheIndianSubContinentfromc.7000BCtoAD1200,p.74
(https://books.google.com/books?id=Y1e2V_4Um10C&pg=PA74&dq=indoaryan+society+kshatriya&hl=en&sa=X&ei=e
LhWUrnwLfGw4APh24CYAQ&ved=0CGAQ6AEwCTgK#v=onepage&q=indoaryan%20society%20kshatriya&f=false)
2.HariSinghNalwa,"championoftheKhalsaji"(17911837)(https://books.google.co.in/books?id=ULhgNexD92QC&pg=
PA21).2009.p.21.ISBN9788173047855.
3.Sharma,RamSharan(2005).India'sancientpast.theUniversityofMichigan:OxfordUniversityPress.pp.110112.
ISBN9780195667141.
4.DavidKean(2007).CastebasedDiscriminationinInternationalHumanRightsLaw(https://books.google.com/books?id=
beJP_BOIhEcC&pg=PA26),p.26.AshgatePublishingLtd.
5.JayantanujaBandyopadhyaya(2007).ClassandReligioninAncientIndia(https://books.google.com/books?id=gwUF11N
RyT4C&pg=PA37),pp.3747.AnthemPress.
6.KumkumRoy(2011).InsightsandInterventions:EssaysinHonourofUmaChakravarti(https://books.google.com/book
s?id=TGzbPNdtJGsC&pg=PA148),p.148.PrimusBooks.
7.Turner,SirRalphLilleyDorothyRiversTurner(January2006)[1962].AComparativeDictionaryoftheIndoAryan
Languages.(http://dsalsrv02.uchicago.edu/cgibin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.1:1:81.soas)(Accompaniedbythree
supplementaryvolumes:indexes,compiledbyDorothyRiversTurner:1969.Phoneticanalysis:1971.Addendaet
corrigenda:1985.ed.).London:OxfordUniversityPress,.pp.189190.Retrieved23October2011.
8.RadhakrishnaChoudhary(1964).TheVrtyasinAncientIndia,Volume38ofChowkhambaSanskritstudies,p.125.
SanskritSeriesOffice.
9.RamSharanSharma(1991).AspectsofPoliticalIdeasandInstitutionsinAncientIndia,p.172(https://books.google.co
m/books?id=9_E3K8fQoDgC&pg=PA172).MotilalBanarsidassPublications.
10.Reddy(2005).GeneralStudiesHistory4Upsc.TataMcGrawHillEducation,.pp.78,79,33,80,27,123.
ISBN9780070604476.
11.UpinderSingh(2008).AHistoryofAncientandEarlyMedievalIndia:FromtheStoneAgetothe12thCentury,p.202
(https://books.google.com/books?id=GW5Gx0HSXKUC&pg=PA202).PearsonEducationIndia.
12.JeanneAuboyer(1965).DailyLifeinAncientIndia.PhoenixPress.pp.2627.ISBN1842125915.
13.BrianK.Smith.ReflectionsonResemblance,Ritual,andReligion(https://books.google.com/books/about/Reflections_On
_Resemblance_Ritual_And_Re.html?id=nkruE6UCz54C),MotilalBanarsidassPublishe,1998

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14.IndianHistory:Ancientandmedieval,p.22.Volume1ofIndianHistory,EncyclopdiaBritannica(India)Pvt.Ltd,
2003.
15.OmacandaH.NagaCultsandTraditionsintheWesternHimalaya,p.251.[1](https://books.google.com/books?id=X
d50t19YpJEC&pg=PA251)
16.PranabChandraRoyChoudhury,(1968).FolkTalesofBihar,p.63(https://books.google.com/books?id=fNHfAAAAMA
AJ&q=nagavanshi&dq=nagavanshi&hl=en&sa=X&ei=FWClUo6DN67ksATY_YGACA&ved=0CEsQ6AEwCDgU).
SahityaAkademi

Furtherreading
RameshChandraMajumdar,BharatiyaVidyaBhavan.HistoryandCultureofIndianPeople,TheVedicAge.
BharatiyaVidyaBhavan,1996.pp.313314

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