Camar

Camar

▪ Hindu caste
      widespread caste in northern India whose hereditary occupation is tanning leather; the name is derived from the Sanskrit word carmakara (“skin worker”). The Camars are divided into more than 150 subcastes, all of which are characterized by well-organized panchayats (governing councils). Members of the caste have been designated untouchables (now known as Harijans), because their hereditary work obliged them to handle dead animals. Their settlements have often been outside higher-caste Hindu (Hinduism) villages. Each settlement has its own headman (pradhan), and larger towns have more than one such community headed by a pradhan. The Camars allow widows to marry either their husband's younger brother or a widower of the same subcaste. A segment of the caste follows the teaching of Shiva Narayana, the 18th-century saint and ascetic of northern India, and aims at purifying its customs in order to raise its social prestige. Other Camars revere Ravidas, an influential 16th-century poet-saint of Banaras (Varanasi) who challenged the idea of pollution and its ritual manifestations. Still others have adopted Buddhism, following the lead of Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (Ambedkar, Bhimrao Ramji) (1891–1956). While many still practice their traditional craft, many more are part of the broader agricultural and urban labour force.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Camăr — is a commune located in Sălaj County, Romania …   Wikipedia

  • Camăr — Județ de Sălaj Camăr Statut : Commune L église en bois de Camăr …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Camar — Original name in latin Camr Name in other language Camar, Camr, Kemer State code RO Continent/City Europe/Bucharest longitude 47.3 latitude 22.61667 altitude 178 Population 1855 Date 2012 06 12 …   Cities with a population over 1000 database

  • cámar — ja m (ā) nar. ženinov, nevestin spremljevalec k poroki ali tudi organizator svatbe; drug: Karničniki so pripravljali velikansko svatbo .. camar je navabil skoraj sto parov svatov (Prežihov) …   Slovar slovenskega knjižnega jezika

  • Camăr River — Geobox River name = Camăr River native name = other name = other name1 = image size = image caption = country type = Countries state type = region type = district type = Counties city type = Villages country = Romania country1 = state = state1 =… …   Wikipedia

  • CAMAR — Common Aperture Malfunction Array Radar …   Acronyms

  • CAMAR — Common Aperture Malfunction Array Radar …   Acronyms von A bis Z

  • CAMAR —   Competition of Agriculture and Management of Agricultural Resources, a 1989 programme to assist farmers to cope with overproduction while still maintaining income levels …   Glossary of the European Union and European Communities

  • Manuel "Omar" Camar — Manuel Camar began his Aikido training in 1964 when he met Benjamin Galarpe, the Father of Aikido in the Philippines. He inherited the first and oldest Aikido school in the country, the Manila Aikido Club, and became its longest running chief… …   Wikipedia

  • Comuna Camar — Admin ASC 2 Code Orig. name Comuna Camăr Country and Admin Code RO.31.140440 RO …   World countries Adminstrative division ASC I-II

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”