Brahmanic & Shramanic

Brahmanic & Shramanic
Introduction
Pre-colonial Indian thought has multiple traditions. 3 most prominent traditions are
Brahminic, Shramanic, and Islamic. 4th tradition is Syncretic tradition. It is the synthesis of
these traditions.
Ancient Indian political thought, before Islam came into India, has two main traditions
Brahminic and Shramanic.
Brahminic tradition belongs to mainstream Hinduism. 4-fold Varna system

(VarnaVywastha), Veda as true, ultimate, and infallible knowledge, belief in God as primal
person and creator of the world, hierarchical social order based on ascriptive (birth based)
status, rights/entitlements, etc. are pillars of the Brahminic tradition.
Shramanic traditions (originating from Sanskrit word ‘Shram’- labour) include heterodox
(unorthodox) traditions such as Nath Panth, Yoga, Siddha, Tantric, Bhakti,Jainism,
Buddhism, Ajawika, Lokayata of Charvaka etc.
Shramanic traditions rejected the main pillars of Brahmanic tradition- caste

system,superiority of Brahman in caste hierarchy and birth-based rights/entitlements,
validity of Veda, and belief in God as primal person and world as his personal creation. It
stressed ‘Karma’ and individual effort- self illumination- for attaining salvation. Thus,
Shramanic traditions was reformative, humanistic, individualistic and inclusive. Hence, it
attracted lower Hindu castes, out castes (Dalit, tribal, and foreigners), and women.
Brahmanic tradition in india
religious supremacy
classic or orthodox
based on caste and gender
developed from vedas
vedas are vast body of literature
handed down through oral tradition (shruthi )
memory tradition
sources to study brahmanic tradition are :-

● shruti
● smrithi
● shastras
● puranas
three important features of brahmanic tradition :-
● continuity
● holism
● hierarchy
belief system and practices in brahmanism:-
caste system
product of varna system
it is on the idea of purity and impurity & hierarchy
humans are made from body part of God Brahma
Brahman - head
Kshatriya - arms
Vaishya - thighs
Shudras - foot
brahman hold the supreme authority and regulating system
anyone doesn’t belong to any of this caste they are not considered as a human
Sacrifice
core practice in brahmanical tradition
killings of animals for to get blessing from god and connect with divine power.
women
not considered equal
no responsibile duty or importance given to them.
● the central practice of brahmanism is sacrifice in order to attain moksha

● metaphysics is the core concept of the brahmanical belief system
● Reincaranation – rebirth and karma are the prominent beliefs based on Vedas. They
●
believe the soul would be reborn again in another body.
Shramanic tradition in india
sanskrit word ‘shram’ means labour
heterodox in nature
it includes budhism, jainism, tantra, nath, sidhartha, bhakti, lokayat,etc.
non vedik renouncers
practiced tapasyah to attain spiritual power
it is against oppressive brahmanic traditions.
caste system, oppression of women, rigidity, animal sacrifice, domination of brahmins,

untouchability and violence in the name of rituals are caused to rise shramanism
budhism also came up with idea of equality
attracted majority of low oppressed caste people
emphasized more on karma than rituals.
similarities between shramanic and brahmanic traditions :-
Danda & Dharma : this was the common point between two traditions, both believed in this.
dharama means righteousness, duty and moral obligation.
Danda means punishment by force to maintain harmony, peace and social order
difference between shramanic and brahmanic traditions :-
Caste system :
● shramanic tradition rejected caste system and questioned supremacy of brahmins.
● they did not believed in the universality of caste and critisized the inequality shrudras
faced
● caste system was a clear cut division of labour were brahmanis and kshatriya hold high
positions .
● they believed that one does not become brahmin by birth , it is by purity of heart , act ,
moral and wise
Authority of vedas :
Brahmanical tradition considers Veda as ultimate truth, knowledge and the most sacred gift of
the God Brahma. Vedas hold the supreme authority in Brahmanism and brahmans hold the
responsibility to spread its teachings among the society.
On the other hand Shramanic rejects the authority of Vedas as ultimate truth and knowledge.
Shramanic criticize Brahmans on the ground that they are unable to trace the author of Vedas.
Brahmans believe that the author of Vedas is God. But the shramanic tradition argues that the
brahmans are the author of Vedas and they have written it to establish their monopoly and
deviate the masses from the real question. They rejected Vedas as authoritative and eternal on
the grounds that as it is written by humans, not God it neither can be eternal nor divine.
belief in god :
Brahmanic tradition considered the world as the creation of God. They regarded God as the
savior of humankind. On the other hand Shramanic tradition rejected this idea, they didn’t
believe in the existence of God and argued that the world is created by natural powers and law of
nature and not by god. Shramans also believed the powerful human teacher is the savior of the
world. Such as Buddha, Mahavira, etc. Brahamans also believed that Pain and suffering is given
by God, Shramans rejected this idea as well and put forward the doctrine of Karma. Shramanic
tradition believed in Karma rather than God and rituals and argued that pain and suffering is due
their failure or karma and God has no role to play in it.
conclusion
One can conclude that Brahmanical and Shramanic traditions are key to understanding entire
political thinking in India as far as the ancient period is concerned. We can also find its impact
and influence on contemporary political thought. Brahmanic tradition has a rigid and exclusive
approach whereas Shramanic tradition has more of an egalitarian and inclusive approach.

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Brahmanic & Shramanic

Brahminic tradition belongs to mainstream Hinduism. 4-fold Varna system

Shramanic traditions rejected the main pillars of Brahmanic tradition- caste

Brahmanic tradition in india

based on caste and gender

developed from vedas

vedas are vast body of literature

handed down through oral tradition (shruthi )

sources to study brahmanic tradition are :-

belief system and practices in brahmanism:-

product of varna system

it is on the idea of purity and impurity & hierarchy

humans are made from body part of God Brahma

brahman hold the supreme authority and regulating system

core practice in brahmanical tradition

not considered equal

no responsibile duty or importance given to them.

● the central practice of brahmanism is sacrifice in order to attain moksha

Shramanic tradition in india

sanskrit word ‘shram’ means labour

it includes budhism, jainism, tantra, nath, sidhartha, bhakti, lokayat,etc.

non vedik renouncers

practiced tapasyah to attain spiritual power

it is against oppressive brahmanic traditions.

caste system, oppression of women, rigidity, animal sacrifice, domination of brahmins,

budhism also came up with idea of equality

attracted majority of low oppressed caste people

emphasized more on karma than rituals.

similarities between shramanic and brahmanic traditions :-

dharama means righteousness, duty and moral obligation.

difference between shramanic and brahmanic traditions :-

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