The Stigma of Untouchability as Depicted in Aravind Malagatti's Government Brahmana

 

     The profound issue of discrimination against harijans is rampant in India. Much of Dalit narratives are rich illustrations of Dalits’ anguish against caste discrimination and untouchability. Dalit literature often revolves around the question of phenomenology of the stigmatized body in a caste-ridden Indian society and therefore, the institution of untouchability is regarded as the central trope in Dalit writings. Having control over a subaltern’s physical body is in a way analogous to having mechanical power over the social institution he belongs to. The eminent Kannada Dalit writer Aravind Malagatti in Government Brahmana examines untouchability as a visible marker of oppression. This paper focuses on the reciprocal link between the stigmatized body and the social hierarchy portrayed in the novel. 

     Dalit literature is autobiographical in nature and essentially known as ‘testimonium’. Reality and liveliness are trademarks of Dalit writings. Dalit literature is thus a melting pot of two fictional genres: the Bildungsroman and the Picaresque. The sole aim of Dalit writers across languages is to liberate their own community from the clutches of India’s caste hierarchy and thereby to ensure an egalitarian Indian society ahead. Aravind Malgatti has been rightly recognized as the authentic voice of the voiceless community. Most of his contributions to Kannada literature ranging from When the Mute gets Speech (1982) to Silicon City and the Cuckoo (2003) is a testimony to it.  

     Although Maharashtra is considered as the hub of Dalit movements, the waves of the Movement hit the neighbouring state Karnataka in a short span of time. Over time, it led to the formation of Bandaya Literary Movement (protest literature) in Kannada Literature that subsequently advocated a cultural revolution against the stigma of untouchability. Devanooru Mahadeva, Siddalingaiah, P. Lankesh, U.R. Ananthamurthy and Aravind Malagatti are known as the pioneers of Kannada Dalit literature. Out of all; the second generation Kannada writer, Aravind Malagatti’s autobiography Government Brahmana is the first Dalit autobiography in Kannada Literature. Dalit subaltern consciousness and the process of dehumanization through the social evil untouchability are very much well-crafted in Government Brahmana. Hence, this autobiographical account is in a way akin to other Dalit autobiographical testimonies such as Sharankumar Limbale’s The Outcaste, Laxman Mane’s The Outsider, Siddalingaiah’s Ooru Keri and Omprakash Valmiki’s Joothan. 

     It has been rightly observed by the social reformer B.R. Ambedkar in The Untouchables that, 

“Untouchability is the notion of defilement, pollution, contamination and the ways and means of getting rid of that defilement. It is the case of permanent hereditary stain which nothing can cleanse” (5). 

In a broader sense, untouchability in India is essentially inferiorization of a definite sect of people based on colour, race, creed and above all; caste. 

     Government Brahmana is an account of caste discrimination confronted by the author and other avarnas in the author’s village: Malagatti. The geographical location Malagatti can thus be studied as microcosm within macrocosm of the caste system in Indian society. The author chose his own community -Maali community- of Malagatti to portray his bitter days so that he can relate himself to the place he belongs to and the space in the village he and his community was denied. To him, every Dalit living in Malagatti is as unique as an individual is and one’s experience will be totally different from that of other’s. It seems Malagatti has carefully observed things that occurred in and around his locale and took conscious effort to record every minute atrocity without losing the evilness involved in it. 

     The chapters particularly ‘My colony, my study’ and ‘And so I became an expert barber’ substantiate that “Dalitism of a Dalit could simply be caught and held by narrating experience” (XI). Like every Dalit colony, Malagatti’s village also lacks basic amenities such as proper roads, drainage system, electricity, water and other such infrastructural development. Malagatti shares an incident of studying “under the street lamps....when there was no power” (57) at home and upper class destroying the street lamps for their own convenience. He laments: “What harm had I done to these people for them to destroy the bulb? And ruin my studies?” (58). Another instance in the novel is barbers in the village not willing to lay their hands on untouchables’ hair and so cutting their hair becomes “out of question” (107) in Malagatti. Such mean acts are not isolated issues in Dalit colonies of India. G.S. Ghurye observes in Caste, Class and Occupation the rigid rules of defilement: 

“Generally the washerman and the barber that serve the general body of villagers will not render their services to the unclean and untouchable castes” (9). 

Despite of humiliation and exploitation, Dalits like Ittappa and Malagatti moved on and brought fame to their Dalit colony.  

     Dalit subaltern consciousness is at its peak in Government Brahmana as the subalterns themselves sense a loss of self-respect and self-pride. This awareness is overtly depicted in all the twenty two chapters of the narrative. Malagatti does not seem to be propagating edifying messages through the text instead he is sharing with the reader the first-hand account experiences of being a ‘government brahmana.’ He boldly culls out a few selected “intimate instances” (118) from his life “as weapons” (118) to say things that must be said out. Also, Malagatti observes that “...one need to be bold enough to narrate the embarrassing instance of life as honestly and clearly as those events that make one proud” (118). Thus, he affirms that being a Dalit and subjected to humiliation is no longer a shame for him as it made him to be a man of sheer determination. It is this will power of people like Malagatti to withstand “the hegemony and validity of Hinduism” (Omvedt 5) that concretes “the very logic of Dalit politics” (Omvedt 5). 

     Malagatti takes both the Dalit reader and the non-dalit reader simultaneously to the realm of critical reasoning by putting forth certain open-ended questions in the process of reading. Malagatti does not seem to be bothered even when his family questions him on his choice of episodes in Government Brahmana. Instead reminds them the necessity of recording “...life’s strange twists” (XI) since he does not prefer “to let the reader go without thinking about these situations” (XIII). And, this deliberate attempt of him helps the reader to have a macro-level understanding of the notion of untouchability and the contempt towards untouchables. 

The chapters ‘The she-buffalo on heat and the he-buffalo after her’ and ‘When Handya’s hose was slashed’ in Government Brahmana expose the harsh reality that the permanent stain of untouchability demarcates not only Dalits and upper castes but also the domestic animals they have at their respective households. None of the upper caste people let the ‘he-buffalo’ in their households to mate with Malagatti’s aayi’s ‘she-buffalo.’ Malagatti ends this particular chapter posing a question to the reader to ponder over: “How can a society which does not let even the creations of Vishwamitra make love naturally, give a chance for human lovers to meet?” (25). Having said this, Malagatti brings in another instance where in a dog belonging to lower caste people is brutally castrated by an upper caste for attempting to mate with his dog: “Announcing that it is a dog belonging to the lower castes, he slashes its penis with a sickle” (53). That is, in a way Malagatti seconds Karl Marx’s statement that “religion is the opium of the people” (Marx and Engels 12). 

In another episode, he contempts the fatal outcome of social differentiation that even took away his upper caste lover from him. To be precise, untouchability equally confines both man and animal; according to Malagatti.  

     Malagatti in Government Brahmana demonstrates the misconceived belief in untouchability that divides the Hindu society into ‘Touchables’ and ‘Untouchables’. The seeds of casteism are thrown into the minds of both upper caste and lower caste children right from their childhood. Educational institutions -considered being the temples of wisdom and agents of social change- are the primary bodies vindicating untouchability. Malagatti’s school and college were no exceptions. Dalit students were forcefully made to clean the school and premises and were brutally treated in the classroom for no reason. Malgatti recollects his school memories: “The work of sweeping was always confined to us” (14). The Dalit students were accustomed to punishment for no valid reason. Malagatti sarcastically remarks that being untouchables he and his friends “never had the good fortune of receiving slaps from his (teacher’s) hands” (14). 

Malaggatti brings in another instance of gifting a painting of Lord Raghavendra drawn by him to a Brahmin temple built by an upper caste. The height of prejudice and apathy towards harijans is clearly evident once the painting seemed to be “vanished from the temple” (62) for having Malagatti’s Dalit identity being revealed on the picture. Malagatti also reminisces an incident of being bullied by Brahmins for entering Mantrayala temple. There have been many such overt and covert forms of behaviour and practices under untouchability since the Gupta period. Malagatti’s saga of unpleasant childhood memories “embodies haunting histories, philosophy of relationality and politics of agonies” (Vinayaraj 30).    

     Also, the multi-faceted phenomenon of untouchability becomes exploitative and oppressive at several times. In the words of Mahatma Gandhi, “Untouchability is a snake with a thousand mouths through each of which it shows its poisonous fangs” (19). The high caste keeps observing untouchability in many parts of India although it had been legally abolished under Article 17 of the Constitution of India. Many of the privileged classes still go on suppressing depressed classes as they are uncomfortable about the latters’ empowerment. This in turn leads the upper caste to go back to the Karma theory of Hinduism and justify the practice of untouchability. It is quite certain that plain greed for dominion over minority masses and to take advantage of them is the basic agenda behind untouchability. Hence, untouchability can be regarded as an offshoot of slavery. 

     Government Brahmana chronicles the dynamics of power suppressing the individual identity of a Dalit coming from not a prosperous class. Amartya Sen puts in Argumentative Indian, the dual barriers such as casteism and poverty faced by the Dalit community: 

“...the raw danger to which targeted communities are exposed is immensely magnified when the persons involved not only belong to those communities, but also come poorer and less privileged families” (208). 

Demarcating geographical territory for lower castes in Malagatti village, denying access to village lake, giving less undis to lower castes in exchange of cotton, forbidding Dalits from entering shops run by upper castes, refusing white collar job opportunities to Dalit’s like Malagatti’s father are a few means of tyrannical exploitation. Upper castes were even willing to go to any extent of oppressive forms like slashing, assaulting, emotionally abusing etc; if Dalits did not come into their terms. Malagatti observes the plight of Dalits who went through all terrorizing events and made it to their dreams in course of time: “They have earned their laurels by shedding their dignity and identity. This is the only way out” (91).The Brahmanic hegemony leading to social discrimination and degradation are thus neatly crafted in the autobiography.   

     The theory of pollution also restricted lower caste from having social intercourse with upper caste people. Yet, many Dalits preferred to be in the company of upper caste for higher social status and mobility. On the other hand, even educated upper caste people maintained a social distance from lower castes although a few “progressive intellectuals” (100) befriended panchamas. In the guise of bridging the gap between upper castes and lower castes, the former belittled the untouchables in public sphere. Government Brahmana brings to readers’ attention such attempts made by upper castes. For instance; Malagatti’s friend though acknowledged himself as “a progressive thinker” (100) deliberately avoided to keep inside his home, the plate in which Malagatti was served food. Malagatti further documents the procedures to be undergone by the utensils used by an untouchable to make an entry into an upper caste’s household:

“If a dalit happened to touch an upper caste person’s vessel, it had to be smeared with cow dung and burnt in fire. It would then be immersed in a solution of tamarind and salt. Afterwards, it would be immersed in cow’s urine, and only then would it be placed along with the other vessels of the house. How much more pleasant is the touch of cow’s urine than that of an untouchable human being!” (102). 

Another upper caste Marxist friend of Malaggatti invited him home for socializing but intentionally or unintentionally ended up in only discussing Malaggatti’s caste. Hence it is proven that no matter howevermuch a broad minded intellectual one is, unconsciously the issue of social stratification creeps in. 

     The thraldom of untouchability has been internalized by many Dalits. Since birth they have homogenized the brutal fact that they should be looked down by upper caste. This in a way makes them to continue observing certain weird superstitious customs and rituals for the sake of upper caste. Many a time Dalits fail to make out the hidden agenda of such misconstrued traditions in the name of religion. Government Brahmana enlists a number of insensible practices prevailed in Maali community. Dalits picking up money thrown on an upper caste “corpse during the funeral procession” (7) for salvation, the Okuli festival of Bidarakundi, the tradition of bettaleseve, ameedhya prashana, slaughtering of he-buffaloes to propitiate Goddess Maramma are only a few among such inhumane deeds. 

    However, Dalits are so resolute to climb the social ladder so that they can prove the whole world that they are not very different from others. Dalits to achieve their dream of an even Indian society and also out of sheer devotion began worshipping Gods and Goddesses supposed to be worshipped only by upper castes. Besides, Dalits practised a few Hindu Brahmanical customs and rituals that are meant to be done only by the upper castes. This process of social change among Dalits is known as ‘Sanskritization’. There is enough evidence in Government Brahmana to show that Dalits “longed to be called upper caste” (47) by converting into Veerashaivism and Lingayatism: “...they took the Deeksha, a procedure by which the religion is conferred on the converted. Along with the shivadaara, they began to hang the linga around their necks” (47). Malaggatti finds it difficult to accept forming identity simply by wearing a sacred thread to be considered a forward caste among Dalits. Also, many Dalits of Malagatti village out of their subaltern consciousness were forced to take up Lingayatism so that they could climb the social ladder: “...when they drank they would put the sacred thread on their ears and have a quick gulp, closing their eyes and nose” (47). Many Dalits imitated certain manners and traditions of Brahmanic groups as Brahmins were thought to be the semi-gods. Modern Indian history gives solid proof that Dalits did not gain anything out of Sankritisation and so “their social status remained unaltered” (Kshirsagar 409). 

     Government Brahmana is reminiscent of Maya Angelou’s autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings even though both are from different continents. Aravind Malagatti in Government Brahmana records his degraded identity as an Ati- Shudra quite similar to Black American writer Maya Angelou in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings illustrates her resistance against racial-apartheid. It is thus proven that social inequality is prevalent in every part of the world let alone in India. Dalits are looked down upon by Savarnas in our country so as Africans in European countries by Whites. Therefore, Dalit aesthetics evident in Dalit literature are on par with Black aesthetics of African literature. Dalits and Blacks share similar collective experiences of untouchability in terms of intolerable humiliations and customary oppression irrespective of the continents they belong to. 

     In a nutshell, Government Brahmana is a critique of institution of untouchability that exists even till date in a developing country like India. Although social reformers curbed this process of dehumanization to a certain extent, the phenomenon of globalization in a way has been bringing it back to the social fabric. It seems the market strategies of globalization curtails reservation policies proposed by the government and widens the gap between the haves and the have-nots. This in turn results in reducing the chances of upliftment of ‘government brahmanas’ and thus helps realize the upper castes’ dream of an unequal India.

Works Cited:

1. Ambedkar, B.R. The Untouchables. New Delhi: Ssoft Group, 2014. Print. 

2. Ghurye, G.S. Caste, Class and Occupation. Bombay: Popular Press, 1961. Print. 

3. Kshirsagar, R.K. Dalit Movement in India and its Leaders. New Delhi: MD Publications Pvt Ltd., 1994. Print.

4.Malagatti, Aravind. Government Brahmana. Trans. Dharani Devi Malagatti et al. Hyderabad: Orient Blackswan Pvt Ltd.,2007. Print. 

5. Marx, Karl and Engels, Friedrich. On Religion. USA: Dover Publications, 1957. Print. 

6. Omvedt, Gail. Dalit Visions. New Delhi: Orient Blackswan Pvt Ltd., 2006. Print.

7. Ram, Nandu. Beyond Ambedkar: Essays on Dalits in India. New Delhi: Har-Anand Publications Pvt Ltd., 2009. Print.

8. Sen, Amartya. The Argumentative Indian. London: Penguin, 2005. Print. 

9. Vinayaraj Y.T. “Dalit Body without God: Challenges for Epistemology and Theology.” Body, Emotion and Mind. Ed. Martin Tamcke and Gladson Jathanna. Germany: LIT Verlag, 2013. Print.