Vallālacarita and the Identity of the Bengali Nāths

Presenter:

---

Abstract

Vallālacarita is a Sanskrit text describing the reign of Vallālasena, ruler of Bengal in the 12th century. There are two versions of the text. The first one became immediately after its publication in 1890 the fundamental text for the identity of Bengali-speaking householder Nāths, because it contains the description of their alleged history. According to this work, the Nāths were originally high-caste Brahmins, but after some quarrel with the king, they were degraded and forced to hide their true identity. Consequently, they became a low-caste community. Since the end of the 19th century, the Nāths have used this text as the proof of their Brahmanical status. Today, every member of this caste knows this story and proudly proclaims that he or she is, in fact, a Brahmin. The second version of this work (published in 1904) does not mention the Nāths at all. The editor of this text believed that this version was authentic, whereas the earlier published edition was forged. However, neither the editor, nor any other scholar, ever analysed both versions to prove which one is authentic. In my presentation, I will first briefly introduce both versions of the Vallālacarita and I will highlight the main discrepancies between them. Then, I will outline the story of how the text formed the identity of the Nāths during the 20th century, and I will document how important the work is for the contemporary debate on their caste status. Finally, I will demonstrate that the version of the text used by the Nāths is indeed forged, and I will ask what consequences this fact could have for the community’s identity.