Tag: Rama Gotra

Gotra is a system used in India to identify lineage.

This is of two kinds.

One identifying through parents/ancestors.

Another one is the system of classifying after the Preceptor,Guru.

Gotra has Pravaras,the identification of and naming of some ancestors.

They can be one,three,five Rishis,Seers .

Each of the three Varnas, loosely defined as Caste,has Gotra.

As I mentioned in my earlier articles,Caste is determined by Disposition, Character and not by Birth alone.

It is customary to name the first of the Gotra to name,there are also instances when important learned ancestors,Guru are mentioned in Pravaras,the order of these ancestors.

This system also takes into account instances when one has more than one wife.

To differentiate the ancestry of the different offsprings,name of the first male male child of the spouse is mentioned along with father,Guru.

The same principle is adopted when a Gotra is assigned after the Guru.

Guru’s name is mentioned in the Pravaras of the disciples.

Over a period of time name of the benefactor is also included as Gotra,as a mark of Respect.

This is very rare.

We find,under this category Rama And Ravana Gotra.

Brahmins after Rama Gotta.

‘

There is a group of Brahmins who accepted Dakshina from Lord Rama.

They were the priests who welcomed Lord Rama when he returned to Ayodhya after killing Ravana.’

Saryuparin Brahmins Rama

However Ravana belongs to Kasyspa Gotra.

‘there are also Brahmins that are associated in origin from Ravana, and these include the Daves (of Mudgal gotra) of Rajasthan, as well as Gujarat’s Sachoras, the Kanyakubjas of Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh, and the Brahmins of the Kaumara sub-gotra of the Vasistha gotra. Ravana himself is described in some Ramayanas to have been as Brahmin because he was the son of Rishi Vishrava and grandson of Pulastya. The Indonesian Ramabatara also described Ravana as having been a Brahmin. Ravana described himself to Sita as being of brahmin lineage.

The Dave Brahmins of Mudgal gotra and the Shrimali Brahmins, in Jodhpur/Mandor of Rajasthan state who were originally from Gujarat, India claim to be the descendants of Ravana. The say that since time immemorial they are performing the shraddha (death anniversary) of Ravana on Dashehra Day every year. They offer pind daan and take a bath after that ritual. They recently erected a Ravan temple in Jodhpur, India where daily puja is performed.

The Kanyakubja Brahmins of Vidisha district worship Ravana as he is personified as a symbol of prosperity and regarded as a saviour by them, and they claim that Ravana was also a Kanyakubja Brahmin. Thousands of Kanyakubja Brahmins of the village Ravangram of Netaran, in the Vidisha District of Madhya Pradesh, perform daily puja(worship) in the Ravan temple and offer naivedyam / bhog (a ritual of sacrifice to the Gods). Centuries ago King Shiv Shankar built a Ravana temple at Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. The Ravana temple is opened once in a year, on Dashehra Day, to perform puja for the welfare of Ravana.

The Sachora Brahmins of Gujarat also claim to descend from Ravana, and have “Ravan” as their surnames sometimes.

A Brahmin gotra descending from Rishi Kaumarayana, which is a sub-section of the Vasistha gotra is identified in lineage from Ravana (“kaumarah ravanah koksah krsnah.“)

Saraswat Brahmins from Mathura also claim to descend from Ravana. One lawyer from Mathura, Omveer Saraswat, had written to politicians to ban Ravan Dahan.

There is also reference to “Ravani“, lineage of Upadhyaya Yasastrata II, who was of the Gautama gotra and was a son of Acharya Vasudatta, and described as “born of Ravani

^{In the Valmiki Ramayana, Ravana mentions himself to be of the Kashyapa gotra, and the Lankavatara Sutra says Ravana is a worshiper of Kashyapa Buddha(a Brahmin.)}

The Gondi people of central India claim to be descendants of Ravana, and they also have temples set up for him, his wife Mandodari, and their son Meghnad.’

Reference and citation.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravana