Badi () is a Hill
Dalit
Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
community in
Nepal
Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
. The
1854 Nepalese Muluki Ain (Legal Code) categorized Badi as "Impure and Untouchable (''Pani Na Chalne'')" category. Badi are categorized under "Hill
Dalit
Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
" among the 9 broad social groups, along with
Damai,
Sarki,
Kami
are the Deity, deities, Divinity, divinities, Spirit (supernatural entity), spirits, mythological, spiritual, or natural phenomena that are venerated in the traditional Shinto religion of Japan. ''Kami'' can be elements of the landscape, forc ...
and
Gaine by the Government of Nepal.
'Badi' means ''Vadyabadak'', one who plays musical instruments, in
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...
. They are Indigenous people of Western Nepal They celebrate their "bhad sakrati" their main festival. They support their impoverished families through daily wages and fishing, woodcutting and making musical instruments.
Due to many caste-based discriminations in
Nepal
Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
, the government of
Nepal
Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
legally abolished the caste-system and criminalized any caste-based discrimination, including "
untouchability" (the ostracism of a specific caste) - in the year 1963
A.D. With Nepal's step towards freedom and equality, Nepal, previously ruled by a
Hindu
Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
monarchy was a
Hindu
Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
nation which has now become a
secular state, and on 28 May 2008, it was declared a republic,
ending it as the
Hindu kingdom with its
caste-based discriminations and the
untouchability roots.
History
The Badi remain the lowest ranking
untouchable caste
A caste is a Essentialism, fixed social group into which an individual is born within a particular system of social stratification: a caste system. Within such a system, individuals are expected to marry exclusively within the same caste (en ...
in western Nepal. The rules of orthodox Hinduism dictate that members of the higher castes (Braham,
Chetri, or
Thakuri) cannot allow the Badi into their houses, accept water or food from them, use the same village pump, or even brush against them; although higher caste men are allowed to have sex with Badi prostitutes. "For many years, I thought it was my fate to be a prostitute," says a Badi prostitute. "Now I realize this system wasn't made by God. It was made by man."
Geographical distribution
At the time of the
2011 Nepal census, 38,603 people (0.1% of the population in Nepal) were Badi.
The frequency of Badi by province was as follows:
*
Sudurpashchim Province (0.4%)
*
Gandaki Province (0.3%)
*
Karnali Province (0.3%)
*
Bagmati Province (0.1%)
*
Koshi Province (0.1%)
*
Lumbini Province (0.1%)
*
Madhesh Province (0.0%)
The frequency of Badi was higher than national average in the following districts:
*
Bajura (1.4%)
*
Doti
Doti (), also known as Dotigarh (डोटीगढ़) or the Far-Western Development Region was a development region of Nepal situated between River Kali bordering Kumaon division of Uttarakhand, India in the west and the Karnali river on t ...
(1.4%)
*
Kaski (0.8%)
*
Jajarkot (0.7%)
*
Surkhet (0.5%)
*
Tanahun (0.5%)
*
Kailali (0.4%)
*
Achham (0.3%)
*
Dailekh (0.3%)
*
Eastern Rukum (0.3%)
*
Kanchanpur (0.3%)
*
Mustang (0.3%)
*
Salyan (0.3%)
*
Tehrathum (0.3%)
*
Western Rukum (0.3%)
*
Bajhang (0.2%)
*
Bardiya (0.2%)
*
Dadeldhura (0.2%)
*
Humla (0.2%)
*
Nawalpur (0.2%)
*
Pyuthan (0.2%)
Representation in Culture
The novel '
Nathiya(नथीया)', written by the author
Saraswati Pratikshya, is based on this community.
Notes
References
*
* Photos of badis at plates 38–30, 41, 48, 50, 51.
* {{Cite book , title = Fallen Angels: the Sex Workers of South Asia , last=Kelly , first=Thomas L. , year = 2000 , url = http://thomaslkelly.smugmug.com/Books-Published/FALLEN-ANGELS/7107725_MLYup#455732279_VT , publisher = Roli Books , location = New Delhi Photojournalism.
Ethnic groups in Nepal
Dalit communities