Brahmin

Examples of Brahmin in the following topics:

• The Sramana Movement

  • Sramana broke with Vedic Hinduism over the authority of the Brahmins and the need to follow ascetic lives.
  • The Sramanas rejected the authority of the Brahmins, who were considered the protectors of the sacred learning found in the Vedas.
  • Brahmin is a caste, or social group, in Vedic Hinduism consisting of priests and teachers who are held as intermediaries between deities and followers.
  • Brahmins are traditionally responsible for religious rituals in temples, and for reciting hymns and prayers during rite of passage rituals, such as weddings.
  • Sramana traditions drew upon established Brahmin concepts to formulate their own doctrines.

• Southern Style Temples in Southeast Asia

  • Ritual within these temples tends to be orthodox and elaborate, especially in the large vedic brahminical temples, which follow the pan-Indian Sanskrit agama scriptural traditions.
  • The large vedic brahminical temples of southern India follow the pan-Indian Sanskrit agama scriptural traditions.

• Temple Style of the South

  • Ritual within these temples tends to be orthodox and elaborate, especially in the large vedic brahminical temples, which follow the pan-Indian Sanskrit agama scriptural traditions .

• Buddhism

  • Sramana, meaning "seeker," was a tradition that began when new philosophical groups who believed in a more austere path to spiritual freedom rejected the authority of the Vedas and the Brahmins, the priests of Vedic Hinduism, around 800-600 BCE.
  • In addition to the Vedic Brahmins, the Buddha’s lifetime coincided with the flourishing of influential Sramana schools of thought, including Jainism.

• Caste Systems

  • Historically, the caste system in India consisted of four well known categories (Varnas): Brahmins (priests), Kshatriyas (warriors), Vaishyas (commerce), Shudras (workmen).

• The Vedas

  • The Brahmins, or priests, came from Purusha’s mouth; the Kshatriyas, or warrior rulers, came from Purusha’s arms; the Vaishyas, or commoners such as landowners and merchants, came from Purusha’s thighs; and the Shudras, or laborers and servants, came from Purusha’s feet.

• Decline of the Maurya Empire

  • The commander-in-chief of his guard, Brahmin General Pusyamitra Sunga, killed him during a military parade and ascended the throne, establishing the Sunga Dynasty, which prospered from approximately 187 to 78 BCE.

• Jainism

  • Sramana, meaning "seeker," was a tradition that began around 800-600 BCE, when new philosophical groups, who believed in a more austere path to spiritual freedom, rejected the authority of the Vedas and the Brahmins (the priests of Vedic Hinduism).

• The Southern Renaissance

  • Together they created the magazine, The Fugitive (1922–1925), so named because the editors announced they fled "from nothing faster than from the high-caste Brahmins of the Old South."

• Sanskrit

  • In the medieval era, Sanskrit continued to be spoken and written, particularly by Brahmins (the name for Hindu priests of the highest caste) for scholarly communication.