India is a country of religions and cultures. Though there are known to be several different religions in India, there are just 4 major religions in India.
Those 4 religions are Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and lastly, Jainism.
People following the Hinduism religion are known as Hindus, people following the Buddhism religion are known as Buddhists, people following the Sikhism religion are known as Sikhs, and lastly, people following Jainism religion are known as Jains.
Among all the 4 religions, Hinduism is the most followed religion in India. The religions are further divided into different classes and castes.
Maratha and Brahmin are two such further classifications of the religion, Hinduism.
Key Takeaways
- Marathas are a warrior caste originating from the western Indian state of Maharashtra. At the same time, Brahmins are the highest caste in the traditional Hindu caste system, known for their roles as priests, scholars, and teachers.
- Their military prowess and rule mark Maratha history during the Maratha Empire, whereas Brahmins have a long tradition of intellectual and spiritual leadership.
- Though both communities share some cultural similarities, their roles, status, and historical backgrounds differ significantly.
Maratha vs Brahmin
Marathas are an ethnic group that mostly hail from the western Indian state of Maharashtra. They play a role in the politics and military of the region. Brahmins, are a priestly class of people who traditionally performed religious rituals and were associated with learning and scholarship.
Maratha can be associated with a caste or with people as well. The people who are of the Maratha caste are also known as the Marathas.
The Maratha caste includes several different types of the Maratha groups such as peasants, who are known as kunbi, carpenters, known as Sutar, shepherds, and other such groups as well.
Brahmin is one of the major castes of Hinduism. Just like in the case of Maratha, the Brahmin caste also includes people of several different groups, majorly the intellectual groups.
Some of the groups included in Brahmin are priests, commonly known as pandits, teachers, known as gurus, and other such people.
Comparison Table
| Parameters of comparison | Brahmin | Maratha |
|---|---|---|
| Varna | Brahmin belong to the Brahman varna of Hinduism. | Maratha belongs to the Shudra varna of Hinduism. |
| Consists of | Brahmin people are majorly intellectual people such as priests. | Maratha people are majorly peasants. |
| Region | Brahmin people belong to almost all parts of India. | Maratha people majorly belongs to Maharashtra, India. |
| Language spoken | The major language spoken by Brahmins is Sanskrit and Hindi. | The major language spoken by Marathas is Marathi and Konkani. |
| Associated with | Brahmins are people who are associated with the Brahman group. | Marathas are people who are associated with the Maratha Empire. |
What is Maratha?
Marathas are people belonging to the Maratha Empire or commonly known as Maratha Samrajya. The Maratha empire began in 1646.
The people of the Maratha empire were majorly constituted of warrior people which belonged to the western part of the Deccan plateau.
Shivaji Maharaj was one of the most successful leaders of the Maratha empire. He made a Maratha kingdom whose capital was Raigad. In 1674, he was crowned with the title of Chhatrapati.
Today, it is believed that Shivaji Maharaj is the founder of the Maratha empire.
The Marathas were the people who played a significant role in ending the Mughal empire from several different parts of India.
However, the Maratha empire was taken over by the Britishers, specifically by the British East India company in 1818. The last king of the Maratha empire was Peshwa Bajirao II.
According to modern historians, it is believed that the Maratha caste belongs to the Shudra varna.
Marathas majorly belong to the state of Maharashtra in India, however, they can also belong to other parts of India such as Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and more. Their language is either Marathi or Konkani.
What is Brahmin?
The religion called Hinduism is divided into 4 different classes, majorly known as varnas.
These four varnas are Shudra varna, which includes people such as laborers, and workers, the second class is known as Vaishya varna, which includes groups of people such as businessmen, traders, etc, and the third group is known as Kshatriya varna, which includes warrior people who took part in wars.
The fourth group of the Hinduism social class is known as Brahman, which included intellectual people such as priests and teachers.
The Brahman Varna is considered as the most superior varna, then the Kshatriya varna, thirdly, Vaishya varna, and lastly, the Shudra varna.
The people who belong to the Brahman Varna are known as Brahmins. Brahmins are the people who are considered to be closest to the god, they are ritual, and perform religious tasks.
In the early times, the Brahman Varna was considered highly superior, they were given benefits from the kings, and they enjoyed several different advantages over the other 3 varnas.
The brahmins follow their religion strictly, they are purely vegetarian and they do not entertain any material which is termed to be impure, such as leather.
They also do not follow certain occupations which may hinder their religion.
Main Differences Between Maratha and Brahmin
- Maratha is a caste that followed the religion of Hinduism. On the other hand, Brahmin is one of the major castes among the 4 groups of Hinduism.
- Maratha is people who belonged to the Maratha Empire. Brahmins are people who belong to the Brahman class.
- The founder of the Maratha empire is known to be Shivaji Maharaj. Whereas, Pushyumita was the founder of the Brahmin kingdom.
- Raigad was the capital of the Maratha empire. On the other hand, Magadha was the capital of the Brahmin empire.
- Maratha is considered less superior as compared to Brahmin as per the religion of Hinduism. On the contrary, Brahmins are considered more superior as compared to the Maratha according to the religion of Hinduism.
- https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.4159/9780674973879/html
- http://129.199.194.17/files/Piketty2018.pdf
Last Updated : 18 July, 2023
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Chara Yadav holds MBA in Finance. Her goal is to simplify finance-related topics. She has worked in finance for about 25 years. She has held multiple finance and banking classes for business schools and communities. Read more at her bio page.
