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International Research Journal of Tamil

Vol. 3 No. 3 (2021): Volume 3, Issue 3, Year 2021
Articles

Devadasi System and its Caste Dynamics

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  • Jeevanandam S
Jeevanandam S
Department of History, Sikkim University (A Central University), Gangtok-737102, Sikkim, India.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.34256/irjt21312



Published 2021-07-26

Keywords

  • Devadasi,
  • Caste,
  • Temple,
  • Tamil culture

How to Cite

S, J. (2021). Devadasi System and its Caste Dynamics. International Research Journal of Tamil, 3(3), 89-96. https://doi.org/10.34256/irjt21312

Copyright (c) 2021

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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Abstract

Caste is an ‘integral component’ of Indian society.  Almost all the social groups in Indian subcontinent have their specific rites and rituals. It consolidated them within certain compartmentalized caste category. In this context, there was a custom where girl children were used to dedicate to the ‘Hindu’ temples for the religious service to the deity in the name of devadasi. The system became an important cultural element in the medieval Indian society. The system evolved with its unique functionality in the Indian tradition. The dedicated young girls came from different castes and assigned duties accordingly. However, it was not classified as a separate caste. It became an interesting historical question. This particular paper focused on the devadasi custom and its caste dynamics in the historical past.

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