Rajopadhyaya also called Newari Brahmin (Nepali: राजोपाध्याय) is the main division of Newar Brahmins in Nepal.
The Rajopadhyayas claim to be originated in Kānyakubja or modern day Kannauj, in the north of India (Uttar Pradesh), a city with a prestigious history from where the Bahuns also claim to come. They along with Bahuns claim to be sub-division of Kānyakubja Brāhmins.[1]
In Sanskrit, Rājopādhyāya or Rāj-Upādhyāya literally means 'royal teacher' or 'guru' (Sanskrit: राज = royal + उपाध्याय = guru). Rajopadhyayas, also colloquially called Deva Brāhman or Dyabājyā (God-Grandfather) or Barmu (Brahmin) were the royal gurus and purohits of the Malla kings and their Hindu aristocracy (present day Chatharīyās). Today, the Rajopadhyaya Brahmans are the domestic priests of the high-caste Hindu Newars, principally the Chatharīyas and Śreşțhas, and also certain segments of clean-caste Hindu Newar groups (most notably Bhaktapur Jyapus) of the Kathmandu Valley. In theory, the Chatharīyas of the Kathmandu Valley do not call on other Brahmin group, as Rajopadhyayas alone serve as their historical purohits and perform all their life-cycle Sanskara rituals, including attaining their Gayatri Mantra verse and the sacred thread ('janai') in the Upanayana ceremony. This is opposed to all other clean-caste Newar groups who call upon a Buddhist Vajrāchārya as their family priest to conduct all life-cycle ceremonies.[2]
Rajopadhyayas are an endogamous Brahman group who are the descendants of Kānyakubja Brahmins of Kannauj who immigrated to Kathmandu Valley from 13th to 16th century CE. They are divided among the three cities of Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Lalitpur into strictly exogamous clans, having three gotras: Gārgya of Lalitpur, Bharadwaja of Bhaktapur, and Kaushik of Kathmandu, all belonging to the Mādhyamdina school of the Shukla Yajurveda, their holy language being Sanskrit, but all well-versed in Newar. As the chief Brahmin group among Newars and as the chief preceptor of the Vedic as well as Tantric knowledge, Rajopadhyayas were placed at top in Nepalese Caste System, and they possess immense social prestige and power, especially among the Hindu Newars.[3]
Priesthood
Rajopadhyayas also serve as the Vedic and Tantric temple priests of some of the most important temples of the Vaishnav and Shaivite sect, including Krishna Mandir and the four cardinal Vishnu temples of Kathmandu Valley; Changu Narayan, Sesh Narayan/Budhanilkantha, Bishankhu Narayan, and Ichanghu Narayana, as well as the Kumbheshwar Temple. In most other major temples with explicit Shakta and Tantra functions which require blood sacrifice and the use of alcohol, Rajopadhyayas are absent, and the priestly functions are performed by the Chatharīyā/Kşatrīya-status Karmāchāryas. Most of the other Shakta or Ganesh shrines are maintained by the farmer Jyapus or by unclean-castes like the Jogi/Kapali or the untouchable Chyāmaha/Déula. The lone exception to the rule of Rajopadhayayas not being part of the Shakta cult is Bhaktapur's Taleju Bhawani temple, the ista-devi of Malla kings, where they serve as the chief priests.[4] In addition to their duties as purohits to Chatharīyās and Śresțhas, Rajopadhyayas also serve as hereditary pujāris of the following temples:
Rajopadhyayas popularly use the following surnames: Rajopadhyaya, Sharma, Upadhyaya, Acharya, among others.
Some popular Rajopadhyaya names from history and popular culture include:
Newa Priest and scholar Basav Juju Rajopadhyaya from Kathmandu who is working to preserve and promote newa culture, ritual tradition around United States of America.
^Toffin, Gerard. (1995). 'The Social Organization of Rajopadhyaya Brahmans of Nepal'. In Gellner, David & Quigley, Declan. (eds). Contested Hierarchies: A Collaborative Ethnography of Caste Among the Newars of Kathmandu Valley. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
^Toffin, Gerard (2008). Newar Society: City, Village and Periphery. Himal Books. ISBN9789993343950.
^Toffin, Gerard (2008). Newar Society: City, Village and Periphery. Himal Books. ISBN9789993343950.
^Śarmā, Nutandhar. (1999). "The Legends of Gayaḥbājyā of Pāṭan in the Kāṭhmāṇḍu Valley". Contributions to Nepalese Studies. Vol. 26, No. 2. (July 1999). Kirtipur: CNAS/TU. pp. 239-256.
^Rajopadhyaya, Abhas D. (2017). 'Visvanath Upadhyay: Lalitpur ka Tantrik'. In Rajopadhyaya, Birajkaji. (ed.). Lumanti 1137. Lalitpur: Rajopadhyaya Samaj.