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'''Shudra''' (]: ] and ]: शूद्र {{IAST|''Śūdra''}}, now normally spelled '''Sudra''' or ''Súdra'' in English, which has produced a ]<ref>''Oxford English Dictionary'', ''s. v.'' "Sudra" '']''</ref>) is the fourth ] in the traditional four-section division in the ]. Their assigned and expected role in post-] India was that of servants and laborers. The four Varnas are ], ], ], and Shudra. According to authors R. Chandra and K. L. Chanchreek, the Shudras form about 75 to 80 percent of the population of Hindus,<ref>http://www.scribd.com/doc/6237429/Who-Were-the-Shudras</ref> though for practical reasons the percentage cannot be ascertained with certainty. '''Shudra''' (]: ] and ]: शूद्र {{IAST|''Śūdra''}}, now normally spelled '''Sudra''' or ''Súdra'' in English, which has produced a ]<ref>''Oxford English Dictionary'', ''s. v.'' "Sudra" '']''</ref>) is the fourth ]. Their assigned and expected role in post-] India was that of servants and labourers. The four Varnas are ], ], ], and Shudra. According to authors R. Chandra and K. L. Chanchreek, the Shudras form about 75 to 80 percent of the population of Hindus,<ref>http://www.scribd.com/doc/6237429/Who-Were-the-Shudras</ref> though for practical reasons the percentage cannot be ascertained with certainty.


==Origins== ==Origins==
Whilst the origins of the other varnas can be traced to ] words, the word ''varna'' is translated as the ] word for color. In the '']'', it is said that there was only one Varna—Brahmana—in the beginning. The other varnas were formed depending on the dominance of the three ]s—], ], and ]—in one's self. The varnas were socio-economical roles that people take in a society. It is also mentioned in the '']'' of the '']'' that ''shudras'' are said to have emanated from the feet of the Virat Purush (पद्भ्याम् शूद्र् अजायत ''padbhyām śūdro ajāyata'').{{Citation needed|date=January 2010}} Whilst the origins of the other varnas can be traced to ] words, the word ''varna'' is translated as the ] word for colour. In the '']'', it is said that there was only one Varna—Brahmana—in the beginning. The other varnas were formed depending on the dominance of the three ]s—], ], and ]—in one's self. The varnas were socio-economical roles that people take in a society. It is also mentioned in the '']'' of the '']'' that ''shudras'' are said to have emanated from the feet of the Virat Purush (पद्भ्याम् शूद्र् अजायत ''padbhyām śūdro ajāyata'').{{Citation needed|date=January 2010}}

==Shudras and North Indian society==
It is commonly believed{{Who|date=February 2010}} that the caste division is more uniform{{Clarify|what is a uniform cast division?|date=February 2010}} in North India than in South India. Another feature of North Indian society is the presence of castes or ]s with conflicting Varna status. Some prominent rulers of North India were believed to have originated from the Shudra caste, for example, the ].


===Medieval royal dynasties=== ===Medieval royal dynasties===
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Another inscription relates how his relative ] "rescued the Andhra country from the ravages of the Mohammedans".<ref>{{cite book |last=Sastri |first=K. Rama |title="Akkalapundi grant of Singaya-Nayaka: Saka-Samvat 1290" Epigraphica Indica, vol. XIII |year=1982 |publisher=Archaeological Survey of India |location= India| page= 261}} </ref> Another inscription relates how his relative ] "rescued the Andhra country from the ravages of the Mohammedans".<ref>{{cite book |last=Sastri |first=K. Rama |title="Akkalapundi grant of Singaya-Nayaka: Saka-Samvat 1290" Epigraphica Indica, vol. XIII |year=1982 |publisher=Archaeological Survey of India |location= India| page= 261}} </ref>

==Shudras outside India==
{{See also|Balinese caste system}}
Shudra as a Varna is seen amongst the Hindus of ], ], and ] in ]. In Bali, they form 90% of the practicing Hindu population. During the historic period,{{When|date=February 2010}} many people in ], ], and ] (a region in ]) were considered to be Shudras{{Citation needed|date=February 2010}} prior to their conversion to ] or ] and ].


==See also== ==See also==

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Shudra (IAST: Sanskrit and Hindi: शूद्र Śūdra, now normally spelled Sudra or Súdra in English, which has produced a spelling pronunciation) is the fourth Varna. Their assigned and expected role in post-Vedic India was that of servants and labourers. The four Varnas are Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, and Shudra. According to authors R. Chandra and K. L. Chanchreek, the Shudras form about 75 to 80 percent of the population of Hindus, though for practical reasons the percentage cannot be ascertained with certainty.

Origins

Whilst the origins of the other varnas can be traced to Vedic words, the word varna is translated as the Sanskrit word for colour. In the Shanti Parva of Mahabharata, it is said that there was only one Varna—Brahmana—in the beginning. The other varnas were formed depending on the dominance of the three GuṇasSattva, Rajah, and Tamas—in one's self. The varnas were socio-economical roles that people take in a society. It is also mentioned in the Purusha sukta of the Rigveda that shudras are said to have emanated from the feet of the Virat Purush (पद्भ्याम् शूद्र् अजायत padbhyām śūdro ajāyata).

Medieval royal dynasties

Inscriptions of Shudra dynasties declare that belonging to the fourth varna was a matter of pride. An inscription of Singaya-Nayaka (1368 CE) says:

The three castes, Brahmanas and the next , were produced from the face, the arms and the thighs of the Lord; and for their support was born the fourth caste from His feet. River Ganges, the purifier of the three worlds also sprang from Lord's feet. The members of this caste are eagerly attentive to their duties, not wicked, pure-minded, and are devoid of passion and other such blemishes; they ably bear all the burdens of the earth by helping those born in the other caste.

Another inscription relates how his relative Kapaya-Nayaka "rescued the Andhra country from the ravages of the Mohammedans".

See also


Notes

  1. Oxford English Dictionary, s. v. "Sudra" sic
  2. http://www.scribd.com/doc/6237429/Who-Were-the-Shudras
  3. Sastri, K. Rama (1982). "Akkalapundi grant of Singaya-Nayaka: Saka-Samvat 1290" Epigraphica Indica, vol. XIII. India: Archaeological Survey of India. pp. 259ff., v.5–7.
  4. Sastri, K. Rama (1982). "Akkalapundi grant of Singaya-Nayaka: Saka-Samvat 1290" Epigraphica Indica, vol. XIII. India: Archaeological Survey of India. p. 261.

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