166* S. C. Vidyabhusana— Vratya and Samkara Theories of Caste. [No. 2 
Vratya-stoma.— In the first paragraph of this section the distinc¬ 
tion between a pure caste and a Vratya caste has already been indicat¬ 
ed. It now remains to give a short account of the sacrifice by which a 
Vratya could be admitted into a pure caste. In the Tandya-panca- 
vim 9 a Brahmana of the Samaveda this sacrifice called Vratya-stoma 
has been described at length. It is of various kinds, of which two may 
be mentioned here. The first, called Hina-vrdti/a , was a sacrifice that 
was performed for the conversion of the unfranchised people, and the 
second, called Gara-gir , was that for the re-admission of the degraded 
ones. 
The people called Hina-vratyas* are thus described in the Tandya- 
Mahabrahmana: “Verily tlie Hina-vratyas are those who wander on 
earth as Vratyas do not practise Brahmacaryya, do not till land, nor 
carry on trade.” 
The Gara-girsf (lit. ‘swallowers of poison’) are thus described: 
“ Those are called Gara-gir who eat the food to be eaten by 
Brahmanas, who though not abused complain of being abused, who 
punish those not deserving punishment, and who though not initiated 
speak the language of the initiated.” 
In the Tandya-Mahabrahmana of the Samaveda and prauta-Sutra 
of Latyayana it is stated that the Vratya householder who wishes to 
perform the Vratya-stomaJ should secure a turban, a whip, a small 
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Vide in this connection Rajaram Ram Krishtia Bhagavat’s article named “ A 
chapter from the Tandya-Brahmana ” in the Journal of the Bombay Branch of the 
Royal Asiatic Society, Vol. XIX of 1895-97. 
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