Caste and Race in India c5.12.2

c5.12.2

(4) corporal punishment, and (5) sometimes religious expiation. The proceeds of the fines were generally spent on a common feast. Sometimes the perquisites of the Panchayat were bought out of them and sometimes again they were devoted to charitable purposes.⁴ This description of the activities of a caste-council will enable us to appreciate the remark, "The caste is its own ruler."⁵ The diversity in the administration of law necessarily led to differences in moral standards of the various castes. There was thus created a cultural gulf between the castes. We may note some of the items of cultural differences among the castes to bring out clearly the implications of this segmentation. Many of the castes have their special deities. Among such castes from Southern India* the following may be noted: Komati, Kamsala, Gamalla, Idiga, Mala, and Madiga¹; from the Central Provinces, Ahir²; and from the United Provinces, Aheriya, Bahaliya, Kharwar, Korwa, Chero, Bhuiyar, Dom, Musahar, and Nai.³ About the differences in religious outlook of the Madras castes it has been said: "Amongst the Brahmin community this one fact stands off clear and distinct, that they do not indulge in the worship of Grāma Devatā, the village gods, to which the aboriginal population almost exclusively bows down."⁴ The customs about marriage and death vary widely among the different castes. Brahmins did not permit widow-marriage nor tolerate concubinage as a caste-practice.