Religion. 6. The Bâris are Hindus. To the east of the Province they are seldom initiated into any recognised sect; if they are initiated they give the preference for the Saiva or Sâkta. They worship various local deities. Thus, in Jaunpur, they worship a form of the female energy known as Bibiha Devi, “Our Lady”; in South Mirzapur, Hardiha Deva or Hardaul Lâla, the cholera godling; and many of them worship Mahâbîr. Sacrifices of rams and goats are offered to Hardiha, with sweetmeats and a Brâhmanical thread (janeû). To Mahâbîr is offered a head-dress (muraith), a small loin cloth (langot), sweet bread (rot), and sweetmeats. Those only are allowed to worship Mahâbîr who do not eat the leavings of other people. Another local deity, Birtiya, receives a sacrifice of a young pig, once a year, in the month of Sâwan. The worship of all these clan deities is performed annually in the month of Sâwan (July–August) and Kuâr (September–October). Their family priests are Tiwâri Brâhmans, who are, as a rule, not received on equal terms by their brethren. In Mathura they worship Devi in the months of Chait and Kuâr with an offering of flowers and sweetmeats, the latter being consumed by the worshippers after dedication. They follow the tenets of the Vaishnava sect. In Unâo their clan deities are Bhitarihâi Devi, “the goddess of the inner house,” and Nara Sinh or [[204]]the man-lion incarnation of Vishnu. These deities are worshipped on the eighth day of the waxing moon in the months of Chait and Kuâr. The offering to Devi consists of the sacrifice of goats and the burning of incense. Nara Sinha prefers the offering of parched barley mixed with treacle. This worship is done by the eldest son of the family. Their priests are Brâhmans, who are received on terms of equality by their brethren.

Occupation. 7. Their primary occupation is the making and sale of leaf-cups (dauna, pattari, gadaura) used at Hindu feasts, and in which articles such as sweetmeats, curds, etc., are commonly sold in bâzârs. They serve respectable Hindus as domestic servants and hand round water. They light and carry torches at marriages, entertainments, and on journeys, and perform many of the functions discharged by our house bearers. Their occupation as domestic servants seems to be on the decline, and many are taking to cultivation. Their women act as maids to high caste Hindu ladies, and, as they are always about the zenâna, they bear a somewhat equivocal reputation. To the east of the Province they certainly eat the leavings of Brâhmans, Banyas, Râjputs and, it is said, now-a-days even of Kâyasths. In Mathura they seem to be abandoning the practice of eating the leavings of other castes. In Mirzapur all Hindus drink water touched by them, and all, except Sarwariya and Kanaujiya Brâhmans, eat food cooked by them in the form of pakki, i.e., cooked with butter. Kachchi roti or food cooked in water by them is eaten by Chamârs and other menial castes. In Unâo, it is said that they will eat kachchi and pakki from the hands of a barber, but that no high caste Hindu takes anything but water from their hands. In Mathura they will eat kachchi cooked by a Banya or Kâyasth. Their loyalty and fidelity to their master is proverbial, and they rank high among the classes of Hindus who devote themselves to domestic service. [[205]]

Distribution of the Bâris according to the Census of 1891.

District. Donwâr. Mathuriya. Pattariha. Râwat. Sundar. Others. Total.
Sahâranpur … … … … … 19 19
Meerut … … … … … 88 88
Bulandshahr … … … 43 … 61 104
Aligarh … … … 51 … 239 290
Mathura … … … 10 … 139 149
Agra … 2 … 123 2 828 955
Farrukhâbâd 7 15 … 119 125 705 971
Mainpuri 65 385 3 169 … 309 931
Etâwah 1 57 12 152 19 1,773 2,014
Etah 30 14 … 42 2 195 283
Bareilly … … … … … 450 450
Bijnor … … … … … 43 43
Budâun … 8 … 24 … 269 301
Morâdâbâd … … … … … 224 224
Shâhjahânpur 2 … … 35 182 279 498
Pilibhît … … … … 40 122 162
Cawnpur … 12 217 52 22 2,323 2,626
Fatehpur … … … … 83 599 682
Bânda … … 2 53 1 62 118
Hamîrpur … … … 28 … 87 115
Allahâbâd … … 26 7 393 1,024 1,450
Jhânsi … … … 37 … 84 121
Jâlaun … … … 185 2 578 765
Lalitpur … … … 4 … 45 49
Benares 174 … 10 175 … 1,971 2,330
Mirzapur … … … … 16 1,906 1,922[[206]]
Jaunpur 351 … 390 673 68 578 2,060
Ghâzipur 214 … … 73 127 1,577 1,991
Ballia 597 … … 38 10 1,457 2,102
Gorakhpur 3,280 4 21 … 205 4,454 7,964
Basti 379 … 3,612 … … 1,615 5,606
Azamgarh 418 … … … 59 2,992 3,469
Lucknow … … … … 918 382 1,300
Unâo 69 2 127 … 374 1,581 2,153
Râê Bareli … … 318 24 1,214 1,901 3,457
Sîtapur … … 26 … 921 601 1,548
Hardoi … … … … 211 299 510
Kheri … … … … 821 211 1,032
Faizâbâd 1,946 … 138 … … 165 2,249
Gonda 2,574 … 1,635 … … 2,138 6,347
Bahrâich 338 … 537 … 455 2,297 3,627
Sultânpur … … … 196 263 1,879 2,338
Partâbgarh … … … … 31 2,182 2,213
Bârabanki … … 362 22 471 1,219 2,074
Total 10,445 499 7,436 2,335 7,035 41,950 69,700

Barua, Barwa.—A tribe of mendicant Brâhmans who are found in Sahâranpur and the neighbourhood. They bear an indifferent reputation on account of the vileness of the abuse which they shower on people who refuse to give them alms.

Barwâr.[107]—A notorious criminal tribe found in Northern Oudh. There is much difference of opinion as to the meaning of the word. [[207]]According to one theory it means “a bearer of burdens” (bârwâla); according to others it comes from the Hindi Baryara in the sense of “violent.”

Traditional origin. 2. The story the Barwârs tell of themselves is as follows:—Some centuries ago the ancestor of the tribe, a Kurmi by caste, lived at the village of Yahyapur, which is said to be situated in the Sâran District, east of the river Nârâyani. One day he was ploughing his field near the river when the wife of a rich Mahâjan came down to bathe. She took off her pearl necklace and stepped into the water. A kite swooped down, and, carrying it off, dropped it in the field where the Kurmi was ploughing. When he saw the treasure he began to think that it was easier to live by thieving than by farming. From that time his prosperity increased, and his clan became known as Suvarna or golden. They began then to be known as Barwâr or men of violence. It happened one day that a Kingariya or Nat musician attended the death ceremony of a Barwâr at Yahyapur, and was given an empty purse as a present by the relatives of the deceased. By chance the Kingariya came to the village where the purse with two gold coins had been stolen. The owner recognized it; and enquiries proving that the theft had been committed by the Barwârs, they were expelled from Yahyapur. After this they divided into two sections. One went to Basti, in the North-Western Provinces, and settled at Barauli, which is four miles west of Basti. The other gang went to Hardoi, in Oudh, and settled there. After their arrival in Hardoi that section were given the name of Gânjar, which is said to mean “hoarders,” and by which they are still known. In Barauli the Barwârs lived for some two centuries, and supported themselves by thieving. At last, one day, they robbed the camp of the Râja of Basti, and he had them expelled from his territory. They then came to Gonda and settled at Dhanaipur, thirteen miles north of Gonda. They now occupy fifty-four villages in the Gonda District. They were again at one time forced to change their quarters by the influence of a money-lender named Sobha Sukl, whose name is still held in abhorrence among them. Another legend makes the Barwârs to be the descendants of a woman of low caste named Goli, by a Kurmi father. There seems nothing improbable in the story that they are a branch of the Kurmis, who separated from the parent stock owing to their bad character, or for some other reason. That the tribe is very [[208]]much mixed is admitted on all sides. The Barwârs, in former times, were certainly in the habit of recruiting their numbers by kidnapping young children of various castes. These became a separate class known either as Ghulâm, an Arabic term meaning “slave,” or Tahla, a Hindi word meaning “one who walks about in attendance,” “a follower.” In contradistinction to this servile class the pure Barwâr calls himself Swâng, which in their slang means “master.” It would appear that the recruitment of these Ghulâms has ceased in recent years, and that the pure Barwârs and the Ghulâms no longer intermarry. While the custom prevailed among the Gonda branch the other divisions of the tribe would not intermarry with them. At present it is said that they neither give their daughters in marriage nor take girls from the Ghulâms, who have become themselves an endogamous section. Below the Ghulâms again is another section known as Tilâms or Talâms, who are the descendants of children kidnapped by the Ghulâms. These ostracised Ghulâms and Tilâms are the only members who have been as yet allowed by the tribe to enlist in the Police. Ghulâms will eat food prepared by Barwârs, but the latter will not touch a dish prepared by the former. Male Ghulâms and Tilâms both get their equal share of plunder from the thieving gangs they join. A dowry is given with the Ghulâm bride, but not with the bridegroom. The Tilâms possess the same privileges in every way as their kidnappers, the Ghulâms. The Ghulâms are still believed occasionally to seduce girls of other castes, such as Brâhmans, Chhatris, Murâos, Kurmis, Ahîrs and Kahârs. These are received and adopted into the community. The more respectable Barwârs are also known as Thakuriya in Gonda.

Marriage rules. 3. The marriage of two sisters is permitted, provided the elder sister is married before the younger. The custom of exchanging girls in marriage does not prevail among them. The bride is admitted into the family of her husband without any special ceremony; but it is significant that every Barwâr, on marrying, is obliged to give to the landlord four hundred betel leaves or the equivalent value in money, which looks as if it were a commutation of the jus primæ noctis, if it be not one of the ordinary dues levied by a landlord on his tenants. They may take two wives at one time. The favourite wife for the time being rules the household. Concubinage with women of the tribe is allowed; polyandry is prohibited. [[209]]Marriage is both adult and infant. Divorce is permitted in case of infidelity on the part of the woman. The husband merely assembles the clansmen, and announces to them the fact of the divorce. Divorced wives cannot be re-married; but they may be kept as concubines by other men in the caste. They have a peculiar rule of inheritance by which the property is divided, half going to the children of the regularly married wife or wives, and the other half to the children of the concubines, provided they belong to the Barwâr caste. The offspring of a woman of a strange tribe have no rights of inheritance. When a pure Barwâr marries or keeps a woman of another caste he is excommunicated and sinks to the rank of a Ghulâm. Illicit intrigues within the caste are also punished by expulsion; but the offending parties can be restored on giving a tribal feast. Widow marriage is allowed. The only ceremony is that the man puts a set of bangles (chûri) on the woman and feeds the community. The levirate is permitted, not enforced, and the widow may, if she pleases, accept an outsider. In such cases she loses the right of guardianship over the children of the first marriage, and has no rights of succession to the estate of her first husband.

Birth ceremonies. 4. The mother is attended by a woman of the Kori caste, who acts as midwife. She attends for five days and then the barber’s wife acts as nurse for eight days. On the twelfth day after a birth the father purchases spirits and treats the brotherhood, and puts silver and gold ornaments on the child. This is supposed to bring luck in thieving. If a Barwâr fails to bring home plunder he is taunted by his comrades that his father did not perform the twelfth-day ceremony. If a child is thus initiated, he gets his share of the spoil; but if born after the Dasahra of Jeth he does not share till the next Dasahra of Kuâr. Similarly, during the rainy season, each man keeps his own plunder and has to share only with those who are incapacitated from thieving by blindness, old age, or some physical defect. But, as a rule, they seldom thieve in the rains from the Dasahra of Jeth to the Dasahra of Kuâr; and after the latter date the partnership of the whole community is revived, and every soul becomes entitled to a share in the spoil, whether he goes on a thieving excursion or remains at home. Widows and women who live in retirement get no share; but if a Barwâr is in prison his share goes to his wife. [[210]]

Betrothal. 5. The girl’s father with some friends goes to the house of the boy, and pays his father a couple of rupees. He entertains his guests and sends to the bride, in return, some curds, fish, sweetmeats and a bottle of liquor. This settles the betrothal. This generally takes place when the girl is between three and seven.