All the articles in this series:-
The current article can also be read here:-
and here:-
Oraons are an important Munda
speaking tribes. They claim their descent from the Vanaras of Ramayana. Perhaps the name Oraon was a corrupted form of
Vanara. Yet another group of Munda tribes, namely the Bhuiyas
also claim themselves as coming in the race of Hanuman. {1} It is easy to dismiss these claims as
myths or figments of imagination. But “Vanaras” of Ramayana fame were once in
the line of attack of Parashurama!
There does exist an inscription
saying that Vali and his clan were descendants of a race of Kshatriyas who
emerged in the aftermath of Parashurama’s hunt for kshatriyas. An inscription dated in “the 38th
regnal year of King Vikramadhitya VI (i.e., in
AD 1112) dealing with the origin of his feudatory of his Dadiga, son of king
Gunda, of the Bali race and of Bappura family, ruler over KisukAd, says the
following:- ‘When JAmadagnya came in the course of his wanderings in which
he destroyed the Ksatriya race, there were born from the caves of mount
KiskindhA certain heroes from whom sprang the members of Bali race, who were
the ornaments of Bappuras” {2}
This is a crucial piece of evidence that stems out some of
the mythical-parts of Ramayana. The Bali race mentioned here refers to the race
of Vaali, the valiant vanara king. This name should not be confused with Bali
(Mahabali), as Mahabali was a Daitya coming in the lineage of Prahlada and
Virochana and was vanquished by Vamana. This inscription talks about
Parashurama who came later to Vamana. So Bali mentioned here is not the Bali of
Vamana avatara.
The inscription also says that the members of this Bali race
sprang up at or after the time of Parashurama - from the people who had hidden
themselves. Kishkindha being the location where they sprang up is an additional
confirmation for this Bali as Vaali, the Vanara.
The members of Bali race are mentioned as Bappuras in the above inscription. In the 11- 12
century AD inscriptions of Kalyani Chalukyas, two females of Bappura family
have been mentioned. One was Durlabhadevi, who married
Pulikeshi –I and another one was Nagiyakka married
to Naga-Perggede. In the case of Durlabhadevi, the inscription gives a prefix
as “Adi Maha Bappura Vamsha”, indicating the
antiquity of her lineage. Nagiyakka of Bappura vamsha is mentioned as being
instrumental in getting carved the icon of Tara-Bhagawati, a Buddhist deity.
The foremost information we deduce from this is that the Bappuras or the people
of Vaali vamsha were not vanaras or monkeys! They were human beings like any
one of us.
The name Bappura came from Balipura (Vaali-pura), the place
ruled by Vaali. Balipura is the Sanskrit name for the place known as “Baligave”
or “Balligave” – perhaps a modification from
Vaali- Guhaa or Vali-guhe or Bali-guhe – the cave of Vaali which is mentioned
in the inscription. According to Valmiki Ramayana Sugreeva was living in a cave
when Rama went to meet him. It was perhaps the cave where his ancestors lived
in hiding when Parashurama was roaming in search of kshatriyas. The Vaali guha
could also refer to the cave where Vaali was trapped and sealed by Sugreeva
while he was fighting with Mayavi. The identity of this place was not forgotten
down the ages as there are inscriptions of the 11th and 12th
century AD saying that Pandavas had consecrated five Shiva lingas in this
place. {3}. What
was Balligave 1000 years ago is now known as Belagavi. It is in Shikaripur
Taluk of Shimoga district, Karnataka {4}
The following illustration shows the location of Balligave
and other places related to Ramayana in that region. Balligave was the Vaali guhe,
or Vaali’s cave. Gokarna and Murudeshwara are linked to events in Ravana’s life.
Hanuman was born when his father Kesri was in Gokarna.
Dadiga mentioned in this
inscription refers to King Didiga known as Konganivarma or Konkani varma
of the 5th century AD. This name sounds like Dadhimukha, the
maternal uncle of Sugreeva and Vaali. Both Dadhiga and Dadhi in Dadhimukha
refer to dairy products. In Ramayana, Dadhimukha was the keeper of Madhuvana, the sacred grove of Vaali and Sugreeva!
The sacred grove culture that is supposed to be
uniquely found among Mundari speaking people is also found in the culture of
vanaras. The grove named Madhuvana is described in Valmiki Ramayana {5 }. Any sacred grove is
maintained for some purpose. The Madhuvana of Kishkindha was meant for growing
plants to extract honey. From one of Dadhimukha’s dialogues, we come to know
that this grove was maintained from the times of the grandfather of Vaali and
Sugreeva. After him, Riksharaja, the father of Vaali and Sugreeva maintained
it. After him Vaali and then Sugreeva had maintained it.
The name Riksharaja for the
father of Sugreeva is intriguing. Riksha means bear. But this Vanara had
been named as Rikshraja – the king of bears. It would have been more
appropriate to hear his name as Kapiraja – the king of monkeys, but why
Riskharaja? There is a popular riksha
character in Ramayana by name Jambavan. Jambavan
and vanaras were friends. At several places in Ramayana, Jambavan is
mentioned as “Kapi-shreshta” – as the best among the monkeys. Why this
inter-change between bears and monkeys is seen?
Probing deeply, we find that there was a mountain by name Rikshavaan
where the son of Viduratha of Puru vamsha grew
up under the protection of ‘bears’ (rikshas)
in secrecy to escape from the fury of Parashurama! {6}. Many kshatriyas were
on the run and many had hidden themselves in forests to escape from
Parashurama. This king of Puru vamsha too had taken shelter in the Rikshavan
mountain which is situated at a place where river Narmada divides as a
fork. He was given protection by the
bears of whom Jambavan was a descendant.
Jambavan had never been an ordinary bear but behaved like an
intelligent human being. Jambavati, who married
Krishna came in the lineage of Jambavan. She could not have been a bear. But
the bears and monkeys (vanaras) had existed at Rikshavan and Kishkindha
and had interchanged their identities. This
could be possible only if they were human beings in disguise as bears and
monkeys to escape the wrath of Parashurama. This means they were
originally kshatriyas who went into hiding – one group in Rikshavan in the
northern part of Dandaka forests and another in Kishkindha caves, south of
Dandaka forests.
The first generation person to go into hiding seems to be
the grandfather of Vaali as we find Dadhimukha
saying that Madhuvana was maintained by him (grandfather) {7}. He was a kshatriya
and had taken shelter in a cave in Kishkindha along with his clan when
Parashurama was wandering in that region. At the same time another group of
this clan had taken shelter in mount Rikshavan and camouflaged their appearance
as bears. Initially all of them in Rikshavan and Kishkindha had appeared as
bears. That could be the reason why the father of Vaali came to be called as
Riksharaja. But the next generation descendants could have started moving out
of the cave to test the outside conditions. There comes Vaali, the valiant son of Riksharaja.
The best way to roam around the forests swiftly without
being identified and harmed by forest animals is to jump from tree to tree.
Like the Tarzan of the apes, Vaali could have started moving around by tying a
tail-like rope made from forest products. The name “Vaali” sounds like a
Tamil word for tail called “Vaal”. Vaalin in Sanskrit means “haired or
tailed”. This appearance could have become a success and others of his clan too
had started sporting it. That could be reason why Jambavan is at times a bear
and described at other times as a monkey. The
advantages of this kind of artificial tail were used in full by Hanuman. He was
able to stretch it long or shrink short at his will. He did not get hurt when
his tail was set on fire.
This kind of changing the form done by vanaras is mentioned in Valmiki Ramayana. Kabhanda
refers to Sugreeva as one who can change his form at will {8}.This is not a special
attribute of Sugreeva but something which all the vanaras were capable of.
While speaking to Sita, Hanuman describes the vanaras as those who can change
their forms at will {9}. Hanuman himself changed his form from a
vanara to an ascetic while going to meet Rama for the first time. He took up
vanara form after talking to Rama{10}.
That they were not monkeys is being made out from a verse in
Ramayana. While talking to Sugreeva, Hanuman ridiculed him “oh monkey, you
made a monkey of yourself” when Sugreeva was found confused {11} [अहो शाखा मृगत्वम् ते व्यक्तम् एव प्लवंगम |
लघु चित्ततया आत्मानम् न स्थापयसि यो मतौ]
लघु चित्ततया आत्मानम् न स्थापयसि यो मतौ]
If Sugreeva is already a monkey, how can he be told that he
made a monkey of himself?
Other clues come from expressions like Arya for the vanaras.
Tara addressed Vaali as Arya. {12} Vaali was praised by
Sugreeva as having “arya-bhaava” {13}. Even Valmiki characterises Tara as “Aryaa” the female of Arya. {14}. In Ramayana, the vanaras were not
shown as just monkeys but as elite human beings. Vaali
exhibited the greatest power of a kshatriya as one who defeated Ravana!
Wife swiping done by both Vaali and Sugreeva might perhaps
be to do with creating strong off-springs. It was an accepted practice among
kshatriyas and in times of distress when there was a decline in number of
valiant people. Sugreeva, the son of Riksharaja was the ‘aurasa putra’ (legitimate son) of Sun, according to Kabhanda {15}. Similarly Hanuman
was an aurasa putra of Vayu Deva and not Kesri. It was not looked down in those
days and in those circumstances. Even Pandava brothers were not aurasa putras
of Pandu. Exigencies of the situation allowed them to seek other ways to
produce strong kshatriya men. This feature found among vanaras can be treated
as a proof of their kshatriya roots and the need to hold on to kshatriya-hood.
Even the vulture brothers, Jatayu
and Sampati seemed to be kshatriyas in disguise. They along with bears
like Jambavan and vanaras were seen to meet often and in touch with each other
in Ramayana. Some kind of fraternity existed among them.
The vulture brothers stand a good chance to have become “Ganda-Berunda” in course of time in the depictions of
the kings of Karnataka and presently adopted as the state emblem of Karnataka.
A strong feature in support of this is that the earliest form of this mythical
bird is found in Balligave – the cave of Vaali.
Pic courtesy:- http://www.kamat.com/jyotsna/blog/blog.php?BlogID=1149
This name Ganda-Bherunda has a meaning in Tamil too.
Ganda(n) means a valiant person. In Kannada it means the same as “mighty”. The
Chola warriors came with a title Kanda (there is no ka-ga difference in Tamil).
Bherunda sounds like “PeraNda(m)” which refers to huge world. By this, the name
Ganda-Bherunda in Tamil refers to the vulture brothers who were valiant and
were capable of going round the world. Of them sampati lost his wings and could
not move around, but he kept himself informed of all the happenings in the
world. He was the one who told the vanaras the location of Sita. The might of
the other vulture namely Jatayu is well known to all as one fought with Ravana.
These two brothers of the same stock of the vanaras and
bears must have chosen to be disguised in the form of vultures perhaps due to
their swiftness, keen eye sight and short neck! Kantha (कण्ठ) means neck. Kantha could have corrupted
into Ganda. Greeva in Sugreeva also refers to neck. Dadhimukha refers to
Sugreeva as a thick necked one (vipula greevah) {16}. For one having a wide and think neck, taking
up the guise of a bird is not a good idea (Sugreeva). But a short and slender necked
one can take up that guise as he can stretch his head and watch the ground from
a tree branch (Jatayu- Sampati / Ganda Bherunda).
The underlying feature in all these is that these people had gone into
hiding for fear of Parashurama. The appearance as Vanara was a convenient form of disguise. Ramavatara
overlaps with the time of Parashurama. Therefore the vanaras and bears had not
discarded their disguise at the time of Rama. But after Ramavatara, there is no
trace of vanaras. They had come back to normal life after the coronation of
Rama. The Bappura lineage of Dadiga having lived till 1000 years ago with the
memory of their beginnings is a proof of kshatriya
roots of vanaras and the havoc caused in their life by Parashurama.
The strange but probable connection between these vanaras
and Mundari speaking people can be established in the following ways:
{1} The appearance of Oraons: From the records of the
19th century, Oraons were described as a ‘small race, averaging 4
feet and 5 inches”. They had “projecting jaws and teeth, thick lips, low narrow
foreheads and broad flat noses” {17}. In the absence of cross-breeding with others down the ages,
the ancestors at the time of Parashurama or Rama could have looked the same as
described above. With an artificially appended tail, they could have been
accepted as vanaras.
{2} Migration of Oraons: The legends of Oraons indicate
movement from South India to Chota Nagpur. “The Oraons claim their descent from
the Vanaras of the Ramayana period...The Oraon legends suggest that the Oraons
took part in the Ram-Ravan yuddha. Later the Oraons appear to have proceeded
upto Narbada till they reached the Sone valley.” {18}
{3} Oraons as
Kurukhs: The Oraons are also called as Kurukhs. “Kurukku” is a Tamil word for ‘short’. Perhaps they were
called as Kurukh due to this reason. “Kurugu” is also a Tamil word that refers
to eagle or vulture. Eagle is the totem of the one of the septs of Oraons. The
vulture brothers (Jatayu and Sampati) being a part of the same vanara clan can
be related here.
{4} Kabiraj, the medicine man: The physician in the Munda clan is called as “Kabiraj”.
Kabiraj goes to the forests and collects herbs and roots to prepare the medicine.
“Kabi” resemble Kapi, the vanara. As dwellers of forests and contemporaries of
Hanuman who lifted the mountain to gather Sanjivani herb, the vanaras could
have possessed good knowledge of medicinal herbs. The continuing knowledge
among those vanaras or oraons could have given rise to a class of physicians
who came to be called as Kapi-raj which in course of time corrupted into
Kabi-raj.
{5} Phonetic similarity between Kisku and KisukAd: A clan of Santals is called as “Kisku”. It sounds similar to Kishku or Kishkindha. {The
Santals have 12 gotras namely Kisku, Hambrom, Murmu, Tudu, Baske, Sorain,
Besra, Pauria, Chore, Hansda, Bedia and Marandi}. Were they from Kishkindha which came to be called as KisukAd in later days?
There is yet another derivation of Oraon from “Uran” having
a connection to Parashurama. We will discuss it in the next article.
(continued in Part 7)
Related article:- Hanuman and Sita conversed in Madhura language (Spoken language of ancient India –part 3)
References:
{1} “The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India”,
Vol 3 by R. V. Russell
{2} Epigraphia Indica, XV., p 106. Quoted from “Ancient
Karnataka” Vol 1- ‘History of Tuluva’. P 17 & 18.
{5} Valmiki Ramayana 4-62
{6} Mahabharata 12-51
{7} Valmiki Ramayana 5-62-33
{8} Valmiki Ramayana
3-72- 18&19
{9} Valmiki Ramayana 5-31-13
{10} Valmiki Ramayana 4-3
{11} Valmiki Ramayana 4-2-17
{12} Valmiki Ramayana 4-20-13.
{13} Valmiki Ramayana 4-24-12
{14} Valmiki Ramayana 4-24-29
{15} Valmiki Ramayana 3-72-21
{16} Valmiki Ramayana 5-62-31
{17} ‘The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of
India’ - Volume IV of IV, by R.V. Russell.
{18} “The tribal culture of India” by Lalita Prasad
Vidyarthi and Binay Kumar Rai, p32
