The Rashtrakutas and their Times c21.32

c21.32

Let us now discuss the position of the higher castes. Ibn Khurdadba and Al Idrisi, who were acquainted with the conditions prevailing on the western coast, observe that the members of the remaining six castes, Brahmanas included, paid homage to the members of the Sābfukrīya caste from among whom kings were selected.¹⁸ This would support the contention of the Jains and the Buddhists that the Kshatriyas were superior to the Brahmanas and not vice versa. It must be, however, noted that the Sābkufrīa caste is distinguished by these Muslim writers from the Katarīya or the Kshatriya caste and that their testimony would, therefore, show that not all the Kshatriyas but only the Sat-Kshatriyas, *i. e.* the actual princes and their descendants, were held superior to the Brahmanas and reverenced by them. And this is quite natural; for, the actual rulers and their descendants, who in many cases in our period were not even Kshatriyas, must have been obviously treated with respect by the Brahmanas. The average Kshatriya, however, did not enjoy a status superior to that of an average Brahmana, for from the *Chachanāmā*¹⁹ we learn that the principal inhabitants of Brahmanabad supported the contention of the Brahmanas that they were superior to the rest of the population. Kassim accordingly maintained their dignity and passed orders confirming their preeminence.