Toreya caste is surname of many people in southern India. Toreya caste meaning is The Toreyas are a Canarese class, living chiefly in the Tamil districts of Coimbatore and Salem. They are said to have been originally fishermen and palanquin bearers, and the name is derived from turai, a river ghat. Most of them are now cultivators, especially of the betel vine (Piper betle). Those whom I examined at Coimbatore were earning their living as betel and sugar-cane cultivators, vendors of tobacco, bakers, cloth merchants, contractors, petty traders, and police constables.
By the Coimbatore Toreyas, the following endogamous divisions were returned
Elai, leaf. Betel cultivators.
Chunam, lime. Lime burners.
Gazul, glass bangle. The Toreya caste is said to have originated from the bangles of Machyagandhi or Gandhavati, the daughter of a fisherman on the Jumna. She was married to king Shantanu of Hastinapur, who was one of the ancestors of the heroes of the Mahabharata.
Many exogamous septs exist among the Toreyas, of which the following are examples
Belli, silver. May not wear silver toe-rings.
Naga, snake. The members of the sept, at times of marriage, worship ant-hills, which are the home of snakes.
Alwar or Garuda.[177]
Chinnam, gold.
Kansugaje, small bronze bells, tied to the legs when dancing.
Urukathi, a kind of knife.
Vajjira, diamond.
Vasishta, a Hindu saint.
Mogila, clouds.
Onne (Pterocarpus Marsupium). Do not mark their foreheads with the juice from the trunk of this tree.
Kuzhal, the flute played by shepherd boys and snake charmers. If the sound thereof is heard during a meal, what remains of the food should be thrown away.
Rakshasa, a giant. Do not celebrate the Dipavali festival in honour of the victory over, and death of, a rakshasa.
Erumai, buffalo.
The headman of the caste is called Ejaman, who has under him an officer entitled Dalavayi. The caste messenger bears the name of Kondikar. These three offices are hereditary. The Ejaman presides at council meetings which are held at the temple of the caste. The eldest member of each family is entitled to a seat on the council. Those who come late to a meeting thereof prostrate themselves before the assembly. Witnesses before the council have to take an oath, which is administered by the Kondikar. He makes the witness stand within a circle drawn on the ground, and makes him repeat the formula Before God and the elders assembled, with the sky above and the earth beneath, I will state only the truth. The Kondikar then takes up a pinch of earth, and puts it on the head of the witness. For merely threatening to beat a person with shoes, the offender has to feed twenty-five castemen. If he takes the shoes in his hands he must feed fifty, and, if he [178]actually resorts to beating with them, he has to feed a hundred men. In addition, the culprit has to pay a small fine, and both parties have to be purified at the temple. A similar punishment is enforced for beating, or threatening to beat with a broom. For adultery the guilty person is excommunicated, and is admitted back into the caste only after the death of one of the parties concerned. He then has to feed a large number of castemen, or pay a money fine, and, prostrating himself before the assembly, he is beaten with a tamarind switch. He further makes obeisance to the Ejaman, and washes his feet. The Ejaman then purifies him by a small piece of burning camphor in his mouth.
When a married girl reaches puberty, she is taken to her fathers house, and her husband constructs a hut with branches of Ficus glomerata. On the last day of her confinement therein, the hut is pulled down, and the girl sets fire to it. The house is purified, and the female relations go to the houses of the Ejaman and caste people, and invite them to be present at a ceremonial. A small quantity of turmeric paste is stuck on the doors of the houses of all who are invited. The relations and members of the caste carry betel, and other articles, on trays in procession through the streets. The girl is seated on a plank, and the trays are placed in front of her. Rice flour, fruits, betel, etc, are tied in her cloth, and she is taken into the house. In the case of an unmarried girl, the hut is built by her maternal uncle.
Marriage is always celebrated at the house of the bridegroom, as there is a legend that a Rajah belonging to the Toreya caste had a son, who was taken to the house of his bride elect, and there murdered. The [179]bridegrooms father and relations go to the house of the bride, and make presents of money, cloths, ornaments, etc. They also have to make obeisance to, and feed five married women sumptuously. Pandals (booths) are constructed at the houses of both the bride and bridegroom. Five married women go, on behalf of each of the contracting parties, to their houses, and pound rice there. On the second day, five such women fetch water from a tank, and bathe the bride and bridegroom respectively. The ten women then go to the potters house, and bring five decorated pots. Three of these are taken to a tank, and filled with water. On the following day, the bridegroom and his sister take the two remaining pots to the tank, and fill them with water. The five pots are placed in the pandal, and represent the household gods. The relations of the bridegroom take twelve kinds of ornaments, a new cloth, flowers, etc, to the house of the Ejaman, and go with him to the brides house. She is then bathed, and decked with finery. A Brahman does puja (worship) and ties on her forehead a mandaikettu or bashingham (chaplet) made of gold leaf or tinsel. She is then carried in procession to the house of the bridegroom. Meanwhile, the Brahman ties a mandaikettu on the forehead of the bridegroom, who puts on the sacred thread, and sits within the pandal, holding a katar (dagger) in his hand, and closed in by a screen. The bride goes thrice round this screen, and the Brahman does puja and gives advice (upadesam) to the couple. The screen is then lowered slightly, and the bride and bridegroom garland each other. The brides parents place a few gingelly (Sesamum) seeds in the hand of the bridegroom, and pour water thereon, saying that their daughter belongs to him, and telling him to take care of her. The tali, after being blessed by those [180]assembled, is given by the Brahman to the bridegroom, who ties it on the brides neck. The screen is then removed, and the couple sit side by side. The sacred fire is lighted, their hands are linked together, and the ends of their cloths tied together. They then leave the pandal, and, placing their feet on a grindstone, look at the pole-star (Arundati). Entering the pandal once more, they sit therein, and the elders bless them by throwing rice coloured with turmeric over their heads. On the fourth day, they again sit within the pandal, and cooked rice, coloured white, red, yellow, green, and black, on five trays, and nine lighted wicks on a tray are waved before them. Five married men and women, holding a string, stand round them in a circle, within which is the brides brother with a twig of pipal (Ficus religiosa). The bridegroom places his hands together, and small rice cakes are placed on the head, shoulders, bend of the elbows and knees, and between the fingers of the couple. They are then bathed, and, taking betel in their hands, bow to the four corners of the earth. The bridegroom makes a namam (Vaishnavite sect mark), or places vibhuti (sacred ashes) on the twelve posts of the pandal, and the bride places a little cooked rice and water before each post, to which camphor is burnt, and puja done. They then start for the brides house, but the brides sister meets them at the entrance thereto, and will not allow them to go in until she has extracted a promise that their child shall marry hers. The bride proceeds to a tank, sowing some paddy (rice) on the way thither, and brings back a pot of water, with which she washes her husbands hands and feet. Husband and wife then feed each other with a small quantity of rice and milk. Their hands are then cleaned, and the brides brother puts a gold ring on the finger of the bridegroom. [181]A tray with betel leaves and areca nuts is brought, and the bridegroom ties three handfuls thereof in his cloth. The newly married couple then worship at the temple. On the fifth day, they carry the earthen pots to a river, and, on their return, five married women are worshipped and fed. Five men have to come forward as sureties for the good behaviour of the couple, and declare before those assembled that they will hold themselves responsible for it. In the evening the pair go to the brides house, and rub oil over each others head before bathing in turmeric water. On the following day they repair to the house of the bridegroom.
The corpse of a dead Toreya is placed in a pandal constructed of cocoanut leaves and stems of the milk-hedge (Euphorbia Tirucalli). Sect marks are placed on the foreheads of the corpse and the widow. The son of the deceased dons the sacred thread. The funeral ceremonies resemble, in many particulars, those of the Oddes. A mound is piled up over the grave. A Paraiyan places a small twig of the arka plant (Calotropis gigantea) in three corners of the grave, leaving out the north-east corner, and the son puts a small coin on each twig. As he goes round the grave with a water-pot and fire-brand, his maternal uncle, who stands at the head of the grave, makes holes in the pot. On the third, fifth, seventh, or ninth day, the widow, dressed in new cloths, and bedecked with ornaments and flowers, is taken to the burial-ground, with offerings of milk, ghi (clarified butter), tender cocoanut, sandal, camphor, etc. Five small stones, smeared with turmeric and lime, are set up at the head of the grave, and worshipped. The widow goes thrice round the grave, and seats herself near the head thereof. Her brother holds up her arms, and one of her husbands male [182]relations breaks her bangles. She breaks, and throws her tali on the grave, with the flowers which adorn her. Her ornaments are removed, and she is covered with a cloth, and taken to a river, where she is rubbed with cow-dung and bathed. The son and other relatives go to the temple with butter and other articles. A Brahman does puja, and shuts the doors of the temple. The son, with his back to the temple, throws a little butter on the doors, which are then opened by the Brahman. This is done thrice. On the seventh day, pollution is removed by sprinkling holy water, and the caste people are fed. A widow remains in seclusion (gosha) for three months. Sradh (memorial ceremony) is performed.
The Toreyas worship both Siva and Vishnu, but consider Ayodhya Raman as their special deity, and sacrifice sheep and fowls to Koriamma.
Toreya 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. Toreya caste name could indicate the type of work people belonging to the Toreya 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
Toreya 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 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.
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.
Toreya caste is also known as Toreya 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.