Sakaldwipiya - Origin Myth

Origin Myth

The Śākadvīpīya Brahman community of India identify themselves as having Iranian roots, and assert that they inherit their by-name mragha from a group of priests (cf. mobed) who established themselves in India as the Mragha-Dias or Mragha-Brahmanas.

Mahabharata describes fourfold varna system that was followed in Shakadwipa: Mragha, Mashaka, Manasa, Madanga.

The doctrinal basis for that assertion is Bhaviṣya Purāṇa 133, which may be summarized as follows:

Krishna's son Samba was afflicted with leprosy, which was cured after he worshiped ], Hinduism's god of the Sun. In response, he built a temple to Sūrya on the banks of the Chandrabhaga river, but no Brahman could be found willing to take up the role of a temple priest, as they could not accept offerings made to gods. So Samba sought help of Gauramukha ("white face"), the adviser of the Yadu chief, Ugrasena.:Gauramukha responded with a suggestion that Samba go to Shakdvipa (see note on Mahabharata 6:11, below) and invite their priests to worship Sūrya. Further, asked Samba, "tell me, oh Brahman, what are the antecedents of these worshipers of the Sun?" To which Gauramukha replied... "The first of the Brahmans amidst the Śakas was called 'Sujihva.' ("good tongue") He had a daughter of the name Nikshubha, who so enamored Sūrya that she was impregnated by him. Thus she gave birth to Jarashabda who was the founding father of all the Maga-Ācārya. They are distinguished by the sacred girdle called the Avyanga that they wear around their waist." And so Samba called on Krishna to send him Garuda, on whose back he then flew to Shakadwipa. He collected the Maga-Ācārya ("Maga teacher"), brought them back to India and installed them as priests of his Sūrya temple.

Of the pious representatives of 18 families Samba invited to resettle in the city of Sambapura, eight were Mandagas, and their descendants became Shudras. The other 10 were Maga Brahmans, who married Bhoja vamsa women and so their descendants came to be known as Bhojakas.

As such, the Śākadvīpīya are one of only two Brahman groups who are said to have originated outside India, even if about half their clan names (gotras) are the same as those of other Brahmans.

Whatever their original beliefs, by the time the Bhaviṣya Purāṇa 133 was composed the Śākadvīpīyas were identified as devotees of ], Hinduism's deity of the Sun (cf. Hvar). Subsequently, in Vrihata samhita 60.19, ] directs that the installation of the ] images should be made by the maga, as they were the first to worship the divinity. Other texts enjoin that the images of Sūrya should be dressed like a northerner with the legs covered, that he should wear a coat and a girdle. The early representations of the divinity actually follow these injunctions, and early iconography depicts the deity in central Asian dress, replete with boots. In time, the alien features by either discarded or stories were inventing to interpret the others. Nonetheless, the use of the word Mihir in India to refer to Hinduism's Sūrya is regarded to represent Śākadvīpīya influence, a derivation from Middle Iranian myhr, that is itself a post-4th century BCE development of another development of Avestan Mithra (< Indo-Iranian *mitra). But in Sanskrit, Mihir is derived from the root mih (cf. MW) which is also the root of Megha(cloud), and the chief meaning of this root is to cause rains. Since Sun also causes rains, Mihir came to mean 'Sun'. Mitra (cognate of Avestan Mithra ) was related to Sun, but only functionally, not structurally. And the Shakdwipi Brahamins do in fact appear to have been instrumental in the construction of Sun temples in different part of the country, to include Kashmir, Kathiawad and Somnath in Gujarat, Dholpur in Rajasthan, Hissar in Jodhpur, Bharatput and Khajuraho in Madhya pradesh, Konark in Orissa and Deo, Punyark, Devkund and Umga in Bihar.