Mahar
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Mahars are an important social group within the Indian state of Maharashtra state and surrounding states. A grouping of related endogamous castes, the Mahar are the largest scheduled caste group in Maharashtra.[1] In the early 1980s, the Mahar community was estimated to make up about 9% of the population of the state of Maharashtra.[1] Mahars who have converted to Islam are also found in Pakistan. There is a theory that the name of the state of Maharashtra comes from their name: 'Mahar rashtra' (= "country of Mahars"), but this theory is not generally accepted.[citation needed]
The Mahars traditionally lived on the outskirts of villages and performed a number of tasks related to the boundaries of the community.[1] During the Gupta age they were classified as untouchables.[citation needed] In the 20th century significant numbers of Mahars began to leave their traditional villages and move into the urban centers of India in search of better employment and educational opportunities.[1]
The Mahars have excelled in military services for the last several centuries and Shivaji recruited a large number of Mahars into his army in the 17th century.[citation needed] During the colonial period, a large number of Mahars were recruited for military duties by the East India Company and the British Raj. This martial tradition has continued and has found expression in the organization of a Mahar Regiment by the Indian Army in 1941.[2]
The Imperial Gazetteer of India, writing about Nagpur district, India, described the social status of the Mahars in the early 1900s:
“Mahars form a sixth of the whole population, the great majority being cultivators and laborers. The rural Mahar is still considered impure, and is not allowed to drink from the village well, nor his children may sit in school with those of the Hindu castes. But there are traces of decay of this tendency, as many Mahars have become wealthy and risen in the world.”[3]
Traditionally considered lower in the Hindu caste system, during the 20th century a number of Mahars converted to Buddhism, including one of the most prominent Mahars Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. Ambedkar, the first individual from a traditionally untouchable caste to receive a university education, encouraged Mahars to leave Hinduism in protest of their caste status. Mahars who have converted to Buddhism are referred to as 'Navbuddha' (Neobuddhists). Some Buddhist leaders among the population have expressed a desire for the 'Mahar' label to no longer be applied to Buddhist converts.[4]
