The following account of the Konkanis is given in the Cochin Census Report, 1901:—“The Konkanis are a branch of the Sarasvat sub-division of the Pancha Gaudas. Judged from their well-built physique, handsome features and fair complexion, they appear to belong ethnically to the Aryan stock. The community take their name from their Guru Sarasvata. Trihotrapura, the modern Tirhut in Behar, is claimed as the original home of the community. According to their tradition, Parasu Rāma brought ten families, and settled them in villages in and around Gomantaka, the modern Goa, Panchrakosi, and Kusasthali. When Goa was conquered by Vijayanagar, they placed themselves under the protection of the kings of that country. For nearly a quarter of a century after the conquest of Goa by the Portuguese, they continued unmolested under the Portuguese Governors. During this period, they took to a lucrative trade in European goods. With the establishment of the Inquisition at Goa, and the religious persecution set on foot by the Portuguese, the community left Goa in voluntary exile. While some submitted to conversion, others fled to the north and south. Those that fled to the south settled themselves in Canara and at Calicut. Receiving a cold reception at the hands of the Zamorin, they proceeded further south, and placed themselves under the protection of the Rulers of Cochin and Travancore, where they flourish at the present day. The Christian converts, who followed in the wake of the first batch of exiles, have now settled themselves at the important centres of trade in the State as copper-smiths, and they are driving a very profitable trade in copper-wares. The Brāhman emigrants are called Konkanis from the fact of their having emigrated from Konkan. In the earliest times, they are supposed to have been Saivites, but at present they are staunch Vaishnavites, being followers of Mādhavāchārya. They are never regarded as on a par with the other Brāhmans of Southern India. There is no intermarriage or interdining between them and other Brāhmans. In Cochin they are mostly traders. Their occupation seems to have been at the bottom of their being regarded as degraded. They have their own temples, called Tirumala Dēvaswāms. They are not allowed access to the inner structure surrounding the chief shrine of the Malayāli Hindu temples; nor do they in turn allow the Hindus of this coast to enter corresponding portions of their religious edifices. The Nambūdris are, however, allowed access even to the interior of the sacred shrine. All caste disputes are referred to their high priest, the Swāmiyar of Kāsi Mutt, who resides at Mancheswaram or Basroor. He is held in great veneration by the community, and his decisions in matters religious and social are final. Some of their temples possess extensive landed estates. Their temple at Cochin is one of the richest in the whole State. The affairs of the temple are managed by Konkani Yogakkars, or an elected committee. Nāyars and castes above them do not touch them. Though their women use coloured cloths for their dress like the women of the East Coast, their mode of dress and ornaments at once distinguish them from other Brāhman women. Amongst them there are rich merchants and landholders. Prabhu, Pai, Shenai, Kini, Mallan, and Vadhyar, are some of the more common titles borne by them.”
In conclusion, brief mention may be made of several other immigrant classes. Of these, the Dēsasthas are Marāthi-speaking Brāhmans, who have adopted some of the customs of the Smartha and Mādhva Carnatakas, with whom intermarriage is permitted. A special feature of the marriage ceremonies of the Dēsasthas is the worship of Ambābhavāni or Tuljabhavāni, with the assistance of Gondala musicians, who sing songs in praise of the deity. The Chitpāvan Brāhmans speak Marāthi and Konkani. In South Canara they are, like the Havīks, owners of areca palm plantations. Karādi Brāhmans, who are also found in South Canara, are said to have come southward from Karhād in the Bombay Presidency. There is a tradition that Parasu Rāma created them from camel bones.
Brāhmani.—A class of Ambalavāsis. (See Unni.)
Brihaspati Vārada.—The name, indicating those who worship their god on Thursday, of a sub-division of Kurubas.
Brinjāri.—A synonym of Lambādi.
Budubudikē.—The Budubudikē or Budubudukala are described in the Mysore Census Report as being “gipsy beggars and fortune-tellers from the Marāta country, who pretend to consult birds and reptiles to predict future events. They are found in every district of Mysore, but only in small numbers. They use a small kind of double-headed drum, which is sounded by means of the knotted ends of strings attached to each side of it. The operator turns it deftly and quickly from side to side, when a sharp and weird sound is emitted, having a rude resemblance to the warbling of birds. This is done in the mornings, when the charlatan soothsayer pretends to have divined the future fate of the householder by means of the chirping of birds, etc., in the early dawn. They are generally worshippers of Hanumantha.” The name Budubudikē is derived from the hour-glass shaped drum, or budbudki.
For the following account of the Budubudukalas, I am indebted to a recent article[113]:—“A huge parti-coloured turban, surmounted by a bunch of feathers, a pair of ragged trousers, a loose long coat, which is very often out at elbows, and a capacious wallet underneath his arm, ordinarily constitute the Budubudukala’s dress. Occasionally, if he can afford it, he indulges in the luxury of wearing a tiger or cheetah (leopard) skin, which hangs down his back, and contributes to the dignity of his calling. Add to this an odd assortment of clothes suspended on his left forearm, and the picture is as grotesque as it can be. He is regarded as able to predict the future of human beings by the flight and notes of birds. His predictions are couched in the chant which he recites. The burden of the chant is invariably stereotyped, and purports to have been gleaned from the warble of the feathered songsters of the forest. It prognosticates peace, plenty and prosperity to the house, the birth of a son to the fair, lotus-eyed house-wife, and worldly advancement to the master, whose virtues are as countless as the stars, and have the power to annihilate his enemies. It also holds out a tempting prospect of coming joy in an unknown shape from an unknown quarter, and concludes with an appeal for a cloth. If the appeal is successful, well and good. If not, the Budubudukala has the patience and perseverance to repeat his visit the next day, the day after that, and so on until, in sheer disgust, the householder parts with a cloth. The drum, which has been referred to above as having given the Budubudukala his name, is not devoid of interest. In appearance it is an instrument of diminutive size, and is shaped like an hour-glass, to the middle of which is attached a string with a knot at the end, which serves as the percutient. Its origin is enveloped in a myth of which the Budubudukala is naturally very proud, for it tells him of his divine descent, and invests his vocation with the halo of sanctity. According to the legend, the primitive Budubudukala who first adorned the face of the earth was a belated product of the world’s creation. When he was born or rather evolved, the rest of humankind was already in the field, struggling for existence. Practically the whole scheme was complete, and, in the economy of the universe, the Budubudukala found himself one too many. In this quandary, he appealed to his goddess mother Amba Bhavani, who took pity upon him, and presented him with her husband the god Parameswara’s drum with the blessing ‘My son, there is nothing else for you but this. Take it and beg, and you will prosper.’ Among beggars, the Budubudukala has constituted himself a superior beggar, to whom the handful of rice usually doled out is not acceptable. His demand, in which more often than not he succeeds, is for clothes of any description, good, bad or indifferent, new or old, torn or hole. For, in the plenitude of his wisdom, he has realised that a cloth is a marketable commodity, which, when exchanged for money, fetches more than the handful of rice. The Budubudukala is continually on the tramp, and regulates his movements according to the seasons of the year. As a rule, he pays his visit to the rural parts after the harvest is gathered, for it is then that the villagers are at their best, and in a position to handsomely remunerate him for his pains. But, in whatever corner of the province he may be, as the Dusserah approaches, he turns his face towards Vellore in the North Arcot district, where the annual festival in honour of the tribal deity Amba Bhavani is celebrated.”
The insigne of the Budubudikē, as recorded at Conjeeveram, is said[114] to be a pearl-oyster. The Oriya equivalent of Budubudikē is stated[115] to be Dubaduba.
Bujjinigiyōru (jewel-box).—A sub-division of Gangadikāra Vakkaliga.
Bukka.—Described, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a “sub-caste of Balija. They are sellers of saffron (turmeric), red powder, combs, etc., and are supposed to have been originally Kōmatis.” They are described by the Rev. J. Cain as travelling about selling turmeric, opium, and other goods. According to the legend, when Kanyakamma threw herself into the fire-pit (see Komāti), they, instead of following her example, presented to her bukka powder, turmeric, and kunkuma. She directed that they should live apart from the faithful Kōmatis, and live by the sale of the articles which they offered to her.