Discuss the evidence that suggests that Brahmanical prescriptions about kinship and marriage were not universally followed.

1. The family system: - The Sanskrit texts use the term “Kula” to designate a family and familial ties that were to be based on blood relations. However some societies regarded cousins also as blood relations where as others do not.

2. The System of Patriliny: - According to the Brahmanical system only sons could claim the resources of their fathers when the latter died. However sometimes Brothers succeeded each other- like Kaurav and Pandavas and in very exceptional circumstances women such as “Prabhavati Gupta” also exercised power.

3. Rules of Marriage:- According to Brahmanical system “Exogamy, which refers to marriage outside the unit was the ideal form of marriage. It was the religious duty of the father to marry his daughter outside the unit to the right person at the right time.

However, the Dharamsutras and Dharamshastras recognize “EIGHT” forms of marriage. Of these first four were considered “good” while the remaining were condemned. It is possible that these were practised by those who did not accept brahmanical norms.

4. The Gotra of Women: - There are two rules about the Gotra system:

Women were expected to give up their father’s Gotra and adopt that of their husband on marriage and, members of the same Gotras could not marry.

However some Satavahana rulers adopted the Gotra of their mother for example Raja GOTAMI-PUTA-SIRI-SATAKINI. Some of the Satvahanas rulers were polygynous (had more than one wife).

A careful examination of the names of women who married Satavahana rulers indicate that they belonged to the same Gotras. For example Raja Gotami-Puta Siri- Vijaya- Satakani

All these evidences suggest that the brahmanical prescription about marriage and kinship were not followed universally.