Tanti Tatwa (from Sanskrit tantu a fibre) caste is last name of many people in Indian subcontinent. Tanti Tatwa (from Sanskrit tantu a fibre) caste definition is The great weaver caste of Bengal and Bihar. A few Tantis were enumerated in Raipur District in 1911. Sir H. Risley is of opinion that the Tantis are probably a functional group developed under the pressure of the natural demand for fine woven cloth.100 One tradition of their origin is that the first ancestor of the caste was begotten by the celestial architect Viswakarma on a low Sudra woman. Viswakarma is regarded as the tutelary deity of the caste and is worshipped twice a year with offerings of flowers rice and sugar. Images are sometimes made of him but more commonly the weavers loom or some of the tools of the craft are regarded as the dwelling-place or symbol of the god. In past times the Tantis made the famous fine cotton cloth known as abrawan or running water which was supplied only to the imperial zenana at Delhi. Sir H. Risley relates the following stories illustrating its gossamer texture. On one occasion a daughter of Aurangzeb was reproached on entering the room for her immodest attire through which her limbs could be seen and excused herself by the plea that she had on seven folds of cloth over her body. Again in the reign of Alivardi Khan (174256) a Dacca Tanti was flogged and banished from the city for not preventing his cow from eating up a piece of abrawan cloth which had been laid out to bleach on the grass. The famous female spinners who used to wind the fine native thread were still to be found in 1873 but their art has now died out. In illustration of their delicate touch it is told that one of them wound 88 yards of thread on a reel and the whole weight of the thread was only one rati or two grains. Nowadays the finest thread spun weighs 70 yards to the rati. The best cloths were woven by the Dacca Tantis to whom the Koshtis of Burhanpur in the Central Provinces stood second. The Bamanmara tank in the old village of Dhanpur in Pendra zamindari of Bilaspur is so named from the fact that about a century ago some Brahman traders were murdered on its bank for the sake of the fine cloths they were carrying rolled up in hollow bamboo sticks. In Bengal the Tantis are included among the castes from whom a Brahman can take water. Sir H. Risley is of opinion that they have to some extent raised themselves to this position by their own influence their trade being prosperous and lucrative and having long ago attained to the development of an urban industry. The ordinary status of the weaving castes being at the bottom of the social scale the superior position of the Bengal Tantis is an interesting exception. It is analogous to that of the Koshtis in the Central Provinces also a class of urban weavers who rank above the impure castes though they have not attained to the position of the Tantis as Brahmans will not take water from them.. Tanti Tatwa (from Sanskrit tantu a fibre) caste is one of the many castes subcastes of India.
India has thousands of castes and subcastes, they are in existence and practice since the Vedic times. They were created to solve the problem of division of labor. Tanti Tatwa (from Sanskrit tantu a fibre) caste name could indicate the type of work people belonging to the Tanti Tatwa (from Sanskrit tantu a fibre) caste do or did in earlier times. Many last names in India indicate the place the person originally belongs to. All castes sub castes are primarily divided into 4 categories:
1.Brahmins – The learned or priestly class
2.Khastriyas – The warrior class or those with governing functions
3.Vaishyas – The trader, agriculturalists or cattle rearers class
4.Shudra – The class that serves other three categories
Tanti Tatwa (from Sanskrit tantu a fibre) caste belongs to one of the above 4 categories. Indian caste system is the best system to solve the problem of division of labor. In earlier times there was no rigidity in caste system. Indian caste system is still the best solution for the problem of division of labor, the only change that is needed as per changed times is that rather than having a vertical hierarchical system with Brahmins on top and Shudras at bottom, it would be good to have a horizontal socialist system with Brahmins, Khastriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras all at same level.
The caste system of India is in ruins at present. It is also cause of bloody quarrels in certain parts of the rural India. People of backward castes have reservations in government jobs, this facility is widely misused in India. Many of the backward caste people have become rich and still use the facility for their benefit. Many in India believe reservation in jobs should be given on the basis of poverty rather than caste because there are many poors in upper castes as well.
Many foreginers and followers of Abrahmic religions criticize the Indian caste system because of bad material condition of lower castes but if they observe in an unbiased way they would find that there are many in upper castes with bad material conditions. The problem lies in power not in castes, power can corrupt anyone be it from upper caste or lower caste.
Secondly I have seen Abrahmic religions especially Muslims and Christians claiming that they have no caste system – It is an utter lie. All cultures, all countries, all religions have caste system in one form or the other. Christians have different churches depending on the region or language or skin color of people. Muslims have a priestly class that tries to control everything. Arab Muslims before the oil boom were so much divided among tribes that if you drank water from a well of a different tribe you could be shot dead. Tribal divisions still exists among Muslims. You can also see the caste system in a different form in your corporate companies. I had seen different food and drinking facilities for people at different levels.
Tanti Tatwa (from Sanskrit tantu a fibre) caste is also known as Tanti Tatwa (from Sanskrit tantu a fibre) Gotra.
Caste situation is quiet different in urban India, people in urban areas especially youngsters don’t bother about castes. Inter caste, inter religious, inter lingual marriages are quiet common in urban India. Inter caste, inter religious and inter lingual marriages in rural areas attract severe criticism and many times people are expelled from community for not marrying as per religious and caste rules.
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