day (ekadashi) of each half of the lunar
month is sacred to the god Vishnu; the
eighth day (ashtami) is devoted to the
Goddess, particularly in her form as
Durga; the evening of the thirteenth day
(trayodashi) and the fourteenth day
(chaturdashi) are sacred to the god
Shiva; and the fourth day (chaturthi) is
dedicated to the god Ganesh. The time
for celebrating annual religious festivals
is set according to the lunar month, the
half of the moon, and the particular
lunar day. For example, the god
Krishna’s birthday is celebrated on
BhadrapadaKrishna eight, the eighth
day of the dark (waning) half of the lunar
month of Bhadrapada. The birthdays of
many important historical religious fig-
ures such as Guru Nanak, the founder of
the Sikh community; the Buddha, and
the devotional poet-saints are also cele-
brated according to the lunar calendar.
These overlapping calendars mean
that any particular day can be designat-
ed by several different markers: the day
of the week and the day in the common
era (as in many societies), the day
according to the traditional solar calen-
dar, and the day according to the lunar
calendar. Depending on the context—
business, astrological, or festival—any
one of these may be given preference.
See also auspiciousness, inauspicious-
ness, and Tamil months.
Campantar
Tamil form of the name for the poet-
saintSambandar. See Sambandar.
Caste
The best-known term to denote the tra-
ditional Hindu social structure in which
groups are arranged in a hierarchy of
status, usually based on the perceived
purityof each group’s traditional occu-
pation. The word “caste” is actually
derived from the Portuguese word for
“chaste.” The Portuguese observed that
different groups in Indian society kept
themselves separate from each other, par-
ticularly when eatingand in marriage.
They used the term “caste” to describe
this social phenomenon.
Among Hindus themselves the most
important concept for social ordering is
known as the jati (“birth”). One
becomes a member of a jati by being
born into it. The jatis were usually divided
according to traditional occupation,
which (in theory) would be performed
by that jati alone. A jati’s social status
generally stemmed from the status of its
occupation, and jatis such as latrine
cleaners and tanners were thought to be
defiled by their trade. Society as a whole
was conceived on the model of the body,
with the different jatis comparable to
different body parts. While each part
had a differing status and role, every one
was necessary for the whole to function
smoothly. These differences in status
were marked and reinforced by strict
rules to keep each group distinct from
the others. The strictest regulations were
in regard to marriage, and in earlier
times members of a jati would marry
only within that group. It was almost as
if the jatis were seen as separate
“species” of human beings that had to
be kept apart. Marrying within one’s jati
is still the ideal, although there is now
considerably more intermarriage than
in the past.
The best-known model for ordering
Indian society is that of the four major
social groups (varna) described in the
dharma literature: brahmin (priest),
kshatriya(warrior-king), vaishya(mer-
chant), and shudra(servant). However,
the number of different jati groups
makes the social hierarchy far more
complex. A small village might have
dozens of jatis, all performing certain
tasks, whereas a city might have hun-
dreds of jatis, some highly specialized.
Even within the brahmin varna, there
are different brahmin jatis (for example,
Saraswat, Chitpavan, Kanyakubja, and
Kanaujia). For other varnas the picture
is even more complex. For instance,
some jati groups fall between the
vaishya and shudra varnas, and jati
groups of humble status who have
achieved political success may claimCaste