VEDIC ECONOMY PASTORALISM THE RIG VEDIC PEOPLE WERE

VEDIC ECONOMY

PASTORALISM THE RIG VEDIC PEOPLE WERE PRIMARILY PASTORAL AND NATURALLY COWS AND BULLOCKS WERE THEIR MOST VALUED POSSESSION. THEY WERE EVIDENTLY VALUED FOR NON-VEGETARIAN FOOD AND DAIRY PRODUCTS. THESE CONSTITUTED THE CHIEF FORM OF THE WEALTH AND A WEALTHY PERSON WAS CALLED GOMAT. THEY SEEM TO DEVELOP THE NON-ARYAN PRACTISE OF TILLING THE SOIL, WHICH MEANT THE CUTTING OF FURROWS IN THE FIELD WITH WOODEN PLOUGHSHARES. IT IS DIFFICULT TO ASCERTAIN THE EXACT NUMBER OF GRAIN GROWN BY THE RIGVEDIC PEOPLE. THE GRAIN THAT IS FREQUENTLY MENTIONED IS YAVA OR BARLEY WHICH RIPENES IN SIXTY DAYS. THE VARIOUS OPERATIONS OF AGRICULTURE SUCH AS PLOUGHING, SEWING, REAPING AND THRASHING WERE DONE BY FAMILY LABOUR. IN THE PASTORAL ECONOMY, NO TERM OCCUR TO DENOTE LEASINGAND HIRING, LENDING AND BORROWING, SALE AND PURCHASE, TRADE AND COMMERCE. IN THE ABSENCE OF COINS IN THE VEDIC PERIOD, THERE WAS NO PRACTISE OF MONEY LENDING ON INTEREST AND THE LACK OF SURPLUS COULD NOT FOSTER COMMERCE. THE TRIBAL SOCIETY OF THE RIG-VEDIC PERIOD WAS MARKED BY THE UNEQUAL DISTRIBUTION OF WEALTH WHERE THE CHIEF’S CORNERED MORE SHARES THAN WERE DUE. POVERTY IS ECHOED AND THE DISPARITY BETWEEN THE RICH AND THE POOR INCREASED TOWARDS THE END OF THE RIG-VEDIC PERIOD.

THE VILLAGE IN THE RIG-VEDA GRAMA WAS RECOGNISED AS THE HABITATION OF THE COLLECTIVES OF VARIED INTERESTS COMING TOGETHER TO PLAY AN IMPORTANT PART IN THE ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES, BOTH OF THE EARNING OF SUBSISTENCE AND THE DISTRIBUTION OF RESOURCES. GRAMA CONSISTED OF THE GRIHAS AND THE GRIHA WAS THE LOWEST UNIT. GRIHA MEANT A LARGE FAMILY, WHICH CONSISTED MEMBERS OF FOUR GENERATIONS. GRIHA IS SOMETIMES IDENTIFIED WITH THE VIDATHA. THE MOST IMPORTANT ECONOMIC FUNCTION OF THE VILLAGERS WAS AGRICULTURE. IN A WAY , THE VILLAGES WERE SELF-CONTAINED , BUT THEY DEPENDED ON OTHERS FOR THEIR REQUIREMENT OF SALT AND METALS. IN THE BEGINNING THE PEASANTS HOLDINGS WERE SMALL THOUGH IN THE LATER PERIOD REFERENCE IS MADE TO A FEW LARGE FARMSTEADS. LANDLESS LABOURERS WHO WERE NOTICED BY THEIR ABSENCE IN THE RIGVEDIC PERIOD BEGIN TO SURFACE IN THE LATER VEDIC PERIOD.

PROPERTY R. S SHARMA SAID THAT THE ACQUISITION OF PROPERTY INVOLVES SERIOUS EFFORT INCLUDING WAR. LOOT OR THE SPOILS OF WAR FINDS CORRESPONDING WORDS IN ALL IMPORTANT INDO-ARYAN LANGUAGES. THIS SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN THE EARLIEST SOURCE OF PROPERTY FOR THE RIG-VEDIC PEOPLE. IN THE RIG-VEDIC PERIOD , ITEMS LIKE LIVESTOCK, SONS, CHARIOTS, PLANTS, FOOD GRAINS AND PERSONAL EFFECTS SUCH AS THE WEAPONS, POTS, VESSELS, CLOTHING AND OTHER HOUSEHOLD ARTICLES WERE CONSTITUTED THE PROPERTY. AMONG THE IMMOVABLE PROPERTY, LAND HOUSE WERE YET TO BE CONSDIDERED AS THE PRIVATE PROPERTY IN THE RIG-VEDIC PERIOD. THIS IS DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND BECAUSE THE RIG-VEDIC PERIOD WERE MIGRATORY IN NATURE AND NEITHER THEY HAD A PERMANENT DWELLING NOR CULTIVATED A PIECE OF LAND ON ANY PERMANENT BASIS HOWEVER IN THE POST-VEDIC TIMES THE GRIHAYASUTRAS, DEALING WITH THE DOMESTIC RITES, SUGGEST PERMANENT HOUSES. LAND WAS UNDER THE GENERAL CONTROL OF THE RULING TRIBE AND THE CHIEF COULD GRANT THE LAND WITH THE CONSENT OF THE KING.

GUILDS THE EARLIEST REFERENCE TO THE CORPORATION OF MERCHANTS IS FOUND IN THE RIGVEDA, WHERE THE GODS WERE ASKED TO ATTACK THE PANIS, WHO WERE ABORIGINAL TRADERS, WHO WENT OUT IN CARAVANS AND WHO WERE READY TO FIGHT AND RESIST THE ATTACK OF ARYAN INVADERS. IN ALL REFERENCES TO VEDIC LITERATURE THE MANNER OF ACCESSION TO THE HEAD OF THE GUILD AND HIS HIGH SOCIAL POSITION AND PREEMINENT INFLUENCE SEEM TO SUPPORT THE CONCLUSION EXPRESSED BY SOME VEDIC SCHOOLS THAT THE GUILD WAS THEN ALREADY A WELL-KNOWN AND FAMILIAR INSTITUTION.