There lived a nishada king, Guha. He was the intimate friend of Rama and king Dasaratha. Here the question should not arise as to how the righteous king Dasaratha born in an illustrious family had friendship with a person of low caste. Nishadas originally belonged to the kshatriya caste. They sprang from the body of king Vena, father of king Prthu, when the brahmins churned it. Further, scriptures like the Mimamsa authorized the nishada king to perform vedic sacrifices.
However, the Dharmasastra texts condemned the friendship of a higher caste with a low-caste, considering it upapataka or secondary sin. While listing the low-caste persons, they mention nishada. Here, the word nishada refers to the one who is ‘born in reverse order’. That is, ‘the one born of a mother belonging to a higher caste than the father’s. Of course, the issue of an outcaste is irrelevant here.
Ancestors of the nishada king 2.50.33-34
There lived a nishada king, Guha. He was the intimate friend of Rama and king Dasaratha. Here the question should not arise as to how the righteous king Dasaratha born in an illustrious family had friendship with a person of low caste. Nishadas originally belonged to the kshatriya caste. They sprang from the body of king Vena, father of king Prthu, when the brahmins churned it. Further, scriptures like the Mimamsa authorized the nishada king to perform vedic sacrifices.
However, the Dharmasastra texts condemned the friendship of a higher caste with a low-caste, considering it upapataka or secondary sin. While listing the low-caste persons, they mention nishada. Here, the word nishada refers to the one who is ‘born in reverse order’. That is, ‘the one born of a mother belonging to a higher caste than the father’s. Of course, the issue of an outcaste is irrelevant here.