3. What do you know of family and kinship in the Vedic Age
Answers
Answer:
The basic social unit was probably the patriarchal family/Kinship was the basis of social structure, and a man was identified by the clan to which he belonged. People gave their primary loyalty to the tribe, which was called Jana.
Explanation:
The Jana was split into Vish (clan) and is mentioned 170 times in the Rig-veda. Probably the Vis was divided into grama or smaller tribal units meant for fighting. When the gramas clashed with one another it caused samgram or war.
The term for family, kuia, is mentioned rarely in the Rig-veda. It seems that family in early Vedic phase was indicated by the term griha which frequently occurs in this text. The master of the house was called grihapati or dampati.
Because it was a patriarchal society, the birth of a son was desired again and again, and especially people prayed to the gods for brave sons to fight the wars. In the Rig-veda no desire is expressed for daughters, though the desire for children and cattle is a recurrent theme in the hymns. Great affection and respect was generally shown to a guest (athithi). It was elevated to the rank of a religious duty and included as one of the five great daily sacrifices (pancha- mahayajanas).
Answer:
The basic social unit was probably the patriarchal family/Kinship was the basis of social structure, and a man was identified by the clan to which he belonged. People gave their primary loyalty to the tribe, which was called