गुजराती वैश्य - Gujrati Vaishya

Gujrat Vanis

Gujarat Vanis include the two divisions of Vadnagari and Visnagari Vanis, and claim descent from the Vaishyas, the third of the four traditional Hindu tribes. The names in common use among men arc Damodardas, Dwarkadas, Haridas, Krishnadas, Madhavdas, Prabhudas, Vallabhdas, Vishnudas, Vithaldas and Uttamdas; and among women Bhagirthibai, Jamnabai, Krishnabai, Kaveribai, Motibai, Rakhamabai, Sundarabai and Vithabai. They have no surnames. Their family-god is Vyankatesh or Balaji of Tirupati. Some are Vadnagars and others Visnagars from the towns of those names in north Gujarat. All in the district are said to belong to the Vishe division of these two classes. The two classes eat together but do not inter-marry. As a rule they are wheat-coloured, regular and delicate-featured and weak, the women being fairer than the men. Their home-tongue is Gujarati, but out-of-doors they speak Marathi. They are religious, worshipping all Brahmanic gods and keeping all Hindu fasts and feasts. Their family-gods are Balaji or Vyankoba of Tirupati in North Arkot and Vithoba of Pandharpur, and they make pilgrimages to the leading Hindu sacred places. Their priest is a Gujarati Brahman, and in his absence a Deshasth Brahman is asked to officiate at their marriage and death ceremonies. They belong to the Vallabhacharya sect. Every male and female should receive religious instruction from the teacher and repeat the verse or mantra which the teacher whispers into the ear of the initiated. They bow before him and offer him flowers and sandal paste. They believe in sooth-saying and astrology, but profess not to believe in witch-craft, omens or evil spirits. Of the sixteen Brahman ceremonies or sanskars they perform the naming, hair- clipping, marriage, puberty and death ceremonies. The details on each of these occasions differ little from those in use among local Brahmans. When a boy begins to learn to write, he is taken to school on a lucky day with music and a band of friends. In the name of Sarasvati, the goddess of learning, he lays before the slate, flowers, sandal paste, vermilion and turmeric powder, sweetmeats, with betel leaves and nuts and a coconut, and bows to the slate. Packets of sweetmeats are handed among the schoolboys. The teacher makes the boy write Om namas siddham, corrupted into O na ma si dham, that is, Bow to the perfect, and is presented with a roll of betel leaves, nuts and money, and the learning ceremony or Sarasvati pujan is over. Unlike local Brahmans, girls worship the goddess of fortune or mangalagauri before, and never after, they are married. Early marriage is allowed and practised, widow marriage and polygamy are forbidden on pain of loss of caste; polyandry is unknown. They have a caste council and settle social disputes at its meetings. Breaches of caste discipline are punished with fine and the decisions of the council are obeyed on pain of loss of caste. 

Gujarat Jains, also called Shravaks. According to their own account they formerly dwelt in Oudh and accepted Jainism along with Bharat, a Solar Kshatriya, the great disciple of Vardhamansvami. They are called Gujars because after leaving Oudh they settled in Gujarat. The names in common use among men and women are the same as those used by Vaishnav Gujars and the men add shetji or master and bhoyiji or brother to their names. Their surnames are Bhandari, Ganchi, Mulavera, Nanavati, Patu, Saraph, Shaha and Vakhariya. Persons bearing the same surnames may not inter-marry. Their home-tongue is Gujarati, and their family-god is Parasnath. They marry among themselves. In appearance and habits they do not differ from Gujar Vanis. They rank with Vaishnav Gujars though neither class eats from the other. They are religious, and they belong to the Digambar sect.