The 'Prabhu caste' or Prabhu communities are a group of related

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 ...

castes A caste is a 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 (endogamy), foll ...

of Northern districts of Konkan region in

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. There are four such castes, all having different ritual and social status within the caste system of

, but all of them having traditions traced back to the 12th century. They are

Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu (CKP) or historically and commonly known as Chandraseniya Prabhu or just Prabhu is a caste mainly found in Gujarat and Maharashtra. Historically, they made equally good warriors, statesmen as well as writers. Th ...

, Pathare Prabhu, Kanchole Prabhus and the Davane Prabhu.

Subdivisions

(popularly known as CKP) * Pathare Prabhu * Drauv Prabhu also known as Kanchole Prabhus or Pathare Prabhu Kanchole

Details

Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu (CKP) & pathare prabhu

The CKPs and Pathare Prabhu are one of the subdivisions of Prabhu community along with Davane prabhus were later included in CKPs. Along with the Saraswat, Deshastha and Chitpawan they have been considered as an "advanced caste" due to similarities in education and occupational status. The

(CKP) and Pathare Prabhu are considered intellectual classes (other than Brahmins) and have been advanced in education. Both have vedic

upanayana ''Upanayana'' () is a Hindu educational sacrament, one of the traditional saṃskāras or rites of passage that marked the acceptance of a student by a preceptor, such as a ''guru'' or ''acharya'', and an individual's initiation into a school in ...

(thread ceremonies or 'munj' in marathi) and their 'vedokta' or rights to study of Vedas and perform Vedic rituals has been formally approved by the Brahmin councils and ratified by the

Shankaracharya Shankaracharya (, , " Shankara-''acharya''") is a religious title used by the heads of amnaya monasteries called mathas in the Advaita Vedanta tradition of Hinduism. The title derives from Adi Shankara; teachers from the successive line of te ...

s based on

shastras ''Śāstra'' ( ) is a Sanskrit word that means "precept, rules, manual, compendium, book or treatise" in a general sense.Monier Williams, Monier Williams' Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Article on 'zAstra'' The word is ge ...

. In case of Pathare Prabhus the formal approval was given by the Shankaracharya of Shingeri and in the case of CKPs by Brahmin councils of Pune, Banares, Bajirao II and the Shankaracharya of Karvir and Sanakareshwar Math (a

Deshastha Brahmin Deshastha Brahmin is a Hinduism, Hindu Brahmin caste, subcaste mainly from the Indian state of Maharashtra and North Karnataka. Other than these states, according to authors K. S. Singh, Gregory Naik and Pran Nath Chopra, Deshastha Brahmins a ...

Kanchole Prabhus

The Drauv (or Dhurus) are also known as Kanchole Prabhus. It is said that they were part of the Pathare Prabhu community but were excommunicated for disobeying caste rules. The Kacholes made several attempts and appeals to the Pathare Prabhu caste to accept them back. The first was made in 1836, the second and third in 1881. In November 1881, 38 gentlemen from the Pathare Prabhu community confirmed the Kanchole's "purity of blood", similar religious beliefs, similar gotras and characteristics and professions, similarity in writings, status etc. Despite these proofs they were not readmitted due to rigid 19th century rules regarding caste pollution.

Notes

References

{{Reflist Social groups of Maharashtra Ethnoreligious groups in Asia Marathi people Prabhu Communities of Maharashtra mos:LEAD