Kinship, Caste and Class: Early Societies

In the context of the mantra, discuss the implications of marriage from the point of view of the bride and groom. Are the implications identical, or are there differences?

For each of the forms, discuss whether the decision about the marriage was taken by (a) the bride, (b) the bridegroom, (c) the father of the bride, (d) the father of the bridegroom, (e) any other person.

How many Gotami-putas and how many Vasithi (alternative spelling Vasathi)-putas are there?

The Mahabharata describes how, when war between the Kauravas and the Pandavas became almost inevitable, Gandhari made one last appeal to her eldest son Duryodhana:

"By making peace you honour your father and me, as well as your well-wishers ... it is the wise man in control of his senses who guards his kingdom. Greed and anger drag a man away from his profits; by defeating these two enemies a king conquers the earth ... You will happily enjoy the earth, my son, along with the wise and heroic Pandavas ... There is no good in a war, no law (dharma) and profit (artha), let alone happiness; nor is there (necessarily) victory in the end – don’t set your mind on war ..."

Does this passage give you an idea about the way in which mothers were viewed in early Indian societies?

How are children named today? Are these ways of naming similar to or different from those described in this section?

Why do you think the Brahmanas quoted this verse frequently?

Identify elements in the story that suggest that it was written from the perspective of Matanga.

What are the strategies which the bard uses to try and persuade the chief to be generous?

What is the chief expected to do to acquire wealth in order to give some to the bards?

Why do you think the author(s) offered three explanations for a single episode?

Read the excerpts from the Mahabharata included in this chapter once more. For each of these, discuss whether they could have been literally true. What do these excerpts tell us about those who composed the text? What do they tell us about those who must have read or heard the epic?

Explain why patriliny may have been particularly important among elite families.

Discuss whether kings in early states were invariably Kshatriyas.

Compare and contrast the dharma or norms mentioned in the stories of Drona, Hidimba and Matanga.

In what ways was the Buddhist theory of a social contract different from the Brahmanical view of society derived from the Purusha sukta?

This is what a famous historian of Indian literature, Maurice Winternitz, wrote about the Mahabharata: 'just because the Mahabharata represents more of an entire literature … and contains so much and so many kinds of things, … (it) gives(s) us an insight into the most profound depths of the soul of the Indian folk.' Discuss.

Discuss whether the Mahabharata could have been the work of a single author.

How important were gender differences in early societies? Give reasons for your answer.

Discuss the evidence that suggests that Brahmanical prescriptions about kinship and marriage were not universally followed.