Śunahśepa Unbound

The myth of Śunahśepa ("Aitareya Brahmana", 7 .13-18) constitutes a primary acknowledgment by brahmanic tradition of the existence of peoples living outside of the "varna" system. The principal themes of this account served as the grounds for a socio-religious ideology that continued to develop throughout the history of brahmanic literature. This ideology established an opposition between the center - authority, sacrifice and cows of the brahmin Vasistha; and the periphery - antinomian power and asceticism of the non-brahmin Viśvāmitra, and haunt of marginals and their dogs. This ideology breaks down in late variants of this myth, in which the expanded universe of "bhakti" can even encompass the excluded

Asceticism · Ideology · Mythology · Opposition (politics) · Political science · Politics · Power (physics) · Sacrifice · Sociology · Theology · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Gender Studies · Indian and Buddhist Studies · Law · Philosophy · Religious studies · South Asian Studies and Conflicts