That a host of attendants, male and female, of different designations, jurisdictions, powers, duties, rights and privileges, constantly hovered around the kings (whether in India or any where else in the world) all through known human history is a matter of common knowledge. If the kings and the noblemen needed the services of the attendants for facilitating their luxurious and aristocratic way of life, the servants, the poor people from the common folk, needed the patronage of the kings and the nobility even more for earning their very livelihood. It was a two-way traffic governed by the reciprocity of two extremely unequal sides. On the one side were the privi leged masters and on the other side were their menials and yet, rarely do we meet with the one without the other. This has been an age-old phenomenon which has been universal ly noticed and also expressed through all the media of human expression. The two most enduring media of such expression, viz, literature and the visual arts abound in the depiction of this curious social amalgamation in which, strange as it may seem, the two sides stand together in separation. This rel tionship (vyava hara) between the king and his nobility on the one hand and their servants on the other, has been described by the ancient Indian thinkers as a sort of reciprocal binding (nibandhana).
The fact that, in India, the king always made his appearance attended by his retinue or suite, either in real life or in literary and art delineations, has resulted in making available copious information for a study, in contrast, of the life-style and lot of numerous attendants who were all drawn from among the common folk. The irony of the situation is that though these ordinary mortals have received suffi cient attention from writers and artists of yore, they have been sadly ignored by historians and commentators of our own times.
It is to remove this lacuna that attempt is made here, possibly for the first time, to study the life style, the service conditions and all tit-bits, directly or indirectly related to the royal attendants. To put it in modern parlance, the present study deals with group D (or class IV) employees of the royal establishments of Ancient India, irrespective of their caste or creed.
Dr. S. P. Tewari (b. 1944) obtained his Master's Degree in Ancient Indian History and Archaeology with merit from the Lucknow University (1969). He joined the National Museum, New Delhi in 1971 and worked there till 1976. Presently he is with the Epigra phy Branch of the Archaeological Survey of India at Mysore, in the capacity of Deputy Superintending Epigraphist specializing in the Sans kritic and North Indian inscriptions.
A recipient of the Netherlands Govern ment Reciprocal Fellowship (1973-76) Tewari has pursued advanced studies in the field of South East Asian Art and Archaeology at the University of Amsterdam, During his long stay in Europe he has visited almost all the Museums of repute and studied the collection of Indian Art there. In Europe he has lectured on Hindu Iconography, Epigraphy, Culture and Numismatics at several Universities such as Lille (France), Brussels (Belgium) and Amsterdam (Nether lands). For his erudition in Sanskrit he has earned the admiration of scho lars and the students alike.
Dr. Tewari has been closely associated with the International Council of Museums (ICOM), Museums Associa tion of India, Archaeological Society of India, Epigraphical Society of India, The Place Names Society of India and many other academic bodies. Apart from a good number of research papers published in the journals of repute, Tewari has also three other monographs to his credit. These are 'Hindu Iconogaphy' (based on Litera ture, anthological verses and epigra phs), 'Cultural Heritage of Personal Names and Sanskrit Literature' and 'Nupura the anklet in Indian Literature and Art'. Besides, his forthcoming book on the Contributions of Sanskrit Inscriptions to Lexicography, is already in the press. With first hand know ledge of the original sources from Sanskrit literature Tewari's writings present deep insight and erudition.
That a host of attendants, male and female, of different designations, jurisdictions, powers, duties, rights and privileges, constantly hovered around the kings (whether in India or anywhere else in the world) all through known human history is a matter of common knowledge. If the kings and the noblemen needed the services of the attendants for facilitating their luxurious and aristocratic way of life, the servants, the poor people from the common folk. needed the patronage of the kings and the nobility even more for earning their very livelihood. It was a two-way traffic governed by the reciprocity of two extremely unequal sides. On the one side were the privileged masters and on the other side were their menials and yet, rarely do we meet with the one without the other. This has been an age-old phenomenon which has been universally noticed and also expressed through all the media of human expression. The two most enduring media of such expression, viz., literature and the visual arts abound in the depiction of this curious social amalgamation in which, strange as it may seem, the two sides stand together in separation. This relationship (vyavahara) between the king and his nobility on the one hand and their servants on the other, has been described by the ancient Indian thinkers as a sort of reciprocal binding (nibandhana).
The degree of the proximity of this relationship between the two has differed from nation to nation and also from time to time depending on the concept of and the belief in kingship. In countries like India, where, from very early times, the king had always been regarded not only as superior to the common man but as a living representative of the gods on earth, this concept has had its own unique feature. Its shades can be seen, realized and witnessed in almost every sphere of life. Ample evidences in support of the kingship and its impact on the lives of the people, all over the world, may be gathered. There is hardly a walk of life which is devoid of the stamps of the kings.
The fact that, in India, the king always made his appearance attended by his retinue or suite, either in real life or in literary and art delineations, has resulted in making available copious information for a study, in contrast, of the life-style and lot of numerous attendants who were all drawn from among the common folk. The irony of the situation is that though thes: ordinary mortals have received sufficient attention from writers and artists of yore, they have been sadly ignored by historians and commentators of our own times.
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