Ancient Indian Historical Tradition c31.6

c31.6

It thus appears that of the true brahman families the earliest began with the Mānvas, as the Vasiṣṭhas at Ayodhyā and Cyavana’s branch of the Bhārgavas in Ānarta; or began with Daityas and Dānavas,¹ as Uśanas-Śukra’s branch of the Bhārgavas. Those that arose later began either with the Mānvas, as the Āṅgirasas in the Ayodhyā and Vaiśālī kingdoms; or with the outermost Aila race in the west, as the Ātreyas with the Haihayas; or later in Madhyadeśa, as the Kāśyapas with the Bhārgava Rāma Jāmadagnya; or in the Dekhan, as the Agastyas probably. Not a single brahman was connected as priest with any of the early Aila kings; merely three intermarriages are alleged, namely, Apnavāna’s with Nahuṣa’s daughter Ruci (p. 197), Yayāti’s with Uśanas’s daughter Devayānī (p. 86) and Prabhākara’s mentioned above. Thus the earliest brahmans were priests to the Mānvas or to the Daityas and Dānavas, but never to the early Ailas. Bṛhaspati, the so-called Āṅgirasa priest of the devas, makes no exception, for he is not connected as priest with any Aila. No brahman then was priest to an Aila, that is Aryan, king in the very earliest times (except in a few late brahmanical fables). ‘Mānava brahmans’¹ and ‘Mānava rishis’² are alluded to, but never I believe ‘Aila brahmans or rishis’.