Seva Lamberdar wrote:The typically meager earnings of a brahmin long ago engaged in priestly work after learning Sanskrit and Veda -- an example:

"Harihar Roy’s household consisted of four people – his wife Sarvajaya, baby daughter Durga, 75-year-old Indir, a distant cousin, and himself. Tucked away in a corner of Nishchindipur, a tiny village in rural Bengal, his life was simple and uncomplicated, except for the usual ups and downs that go with lack of money. The traditional business of his family was to conduct religious rituals of different kinds. So there were regular “clients” at whose homes he performed them. This included people in his own village as well as a few others in nearby villages. It was not a profession where one made money. People usually gave him a few seasonal fruits, vegetables, sweets and a handful of grains and occasionally a rupee or two for conducting these rituals. But Harihar had a little piece of land and a roof of sorts over his head." ….  (an excerpt from Swapna Dutta's Sulekha blog / summary on B.B. Bandopadhyay's novel “Pather Panchali”)

Vakavaka Pakapaka wrote:

Seva Lamberdar wrote:The typically meager earnings of a brahmin long ago engaged in priestly work after learning Sanskrit and Veda -- an example:

"Harihar Roy’s household consisted of four people – his wife Sarvajaya, baby daughter Durga, 75-year-old Indir, a distant cousin, and himself. Tucked away in a corner of Nishchindipur, a tiny village in rural Bengal, his life was simple and uncomplicated, except for the usual ups and downs that go with lack of money. The traditional business of his family was to conduct religious rituals of different kinds. So there were regular “clients” at whose homes he performed them. This included people in his own village as well as a few others in nearby villages. It was not a profession where one made money. People usually gave him a few seasonal fruits, vegetables, sweets and a handful of grains and occasionally a rupee or two for conducting these rituals. But Harihar had a little piece of land and a roof of sorts over his head." ….  (an excerpt from Swapna Dutta's Sulekha blog / summary on B.B. Bandopadhyay's novel “Pather Panchali”)

In urban India, the situation is not as bad. In Hyderabad, for example, priests are in great demand and they make a lot of money (they now have fixed charges for different functions). The old system of society financially taking care of Brahmanas is no longer relevant in modern India. In my village, the priests prefer to go and do religious stuff in non-brahmin households (they are getting more money from them than brahmins who still give small amounts of money in the old fashioned way).

goodcitizn wrote:

Vakavaka Pakapaka wrote:

Seva Lamberdar wrote:The typically meager earnings of a brahmin long ago engaged in priestly work after learning Sanskrit and Veda -- an example:

"Harihar Roy’s household consisted of four people – his wife Sarvajaya, baby daughter Durga, 75-year-old Indir, a distant cousin, and himself. Tucked away in a corner of Nishchindipur, a tiny village in rural Bengal, his life was simple and uncomplicated, except for the usual ups and downs that go with lack of money. The traditional business of his family was to conduct religious rituals of different kinds. So there were regular “clients” at whose homes he performed them. This included people in his own village as well as a few others in nearby villages. It was not a profession where one made money. People usually gave him a few seasonal fruits, vegetables, sweets and a handful of grains and occasionally a rupee or two for conducting these rituals. But Harihar had a little piece of land and a roof of sorts over his head." ….  (an excerpt from Swapna Dutta's Sulekha blog / summary on B.B. Bandopadhyay's novel “Pather Panchali”)

In urban India, the situation is not as bad. In Hyderabad, for example, priests are in great demand and they make a lot of money (they now have fixed charges for different functions). The old system of society financially taking care of Brahmanas is no longer relevant in modern India. In my village, the priests prefer to go and do religious stuff in non-brahmin households (they are getting more money from them than brahmins who still give small amounts of money in the old fashioned way).

You talk about your village from time to time. How often do you visit?

Vakavaka Pakapaka wrote:

Seva Lamberdar wrote:The typically meager earnings of a brahmin long ago engaged in priestly work after learning Sanskrit and Veda -- an example:

"Harihar Roy’s household consisted of four people – his wife Sarvajaya, baby daughter Durga, 75-year-old Indir, a distant cousin, and himself. Tucked away in a corner of Nishchindipur, a tiny village in rural Bengal, his life was simple and uncomplicated, except for the usual ups and downs that go with lack of money. The traditional business of his family was to conduct religious rituals of different kinds. So there were regular “clients” at whose homes he performed them. This included people in his own village as well as a few others in nearby villages. It was not a profession where one made money. People usually gave him a few seasonal fruits, vegetables, sweets and a handful of grains and occasionally a rupee or two for conducting these rituals. But Harihar had a little piece of land and a roof of sorts over his head." ….  (an excerpt from Swapna Dutta's Sulekha blog / summary on B.B. Bandopadhyay's novel “Pather Panchali”)

In urban India, the situation is not as bad. In Hyderabad, for example, priests are in great demand and they make a lot of money (they now have fixed charges for different functions). The old system of society financially taking care of Brahmanas is no longer relevant in modern India. In my village, the priests prefer to go and do religious stuff in non-brahmin households (they are getting more money from them than brahmins who still give small amounts of money in the old fashioned way).