49
RESEARCH Sociology
Family performs same functions every where. In the past joint family was a common pattern among Muslim Rajputs of Rajouri District. It consisted of father, mother and two or more married sons, their wives and children. They ate together at a common hearth and shared a single house, owned land in common and worked together in the fields. The young married sons continued to live with their parents and reared their children in common courtyards. The old women enjoyed the commanding charge of giving daily ration of food to daughters in law in extended family. The father runs the farms and remained active authoritative figure until they are very old. Among Muslim Rajputs generally after the death of the father the joint property was divided among his sons, but in some family's property was not divided, rather the eldest sons of the family took charge of the head of the family and all the younger extended full support, cooperation and respect to him. But with passage of time a major changes have taken place in the familial aspects of the Muslim Rajputs of Rajouri District. The first break in the joint family system usually comes when a man and his wife decide to have a separate hearth this step may be taken with overt good nature and willingness on both the sides and may be rationalized on the basis of convenience, some time it results from tensions and quarrels among the women of the family. Viewing the change in the family pattern, after 1989, the Data indicated that Majority of the respondents 63% observe nuclear family system and perceive that joint family system cannot justify the needs of all the members according to their income and some partial attitude of the parents
www.epilogue.in
creates long time strife among the brothers and sisters in the family. Considering the size of the family among (645) respondents 81% of the respondents are of the view that in the past family was comprised of 6 to 15 members, where as at present the size of the family is comprised of 3 to five members, because the community understudy was unaware of the importance of family planning and never adopted contraceptive measure to control the birth rate of the community, but at present the people are aware of the problems caused by large size of the family. While comparing past with the present significant change has been observed in the structure of the family of Muslim Rajputs of Rajouri District. In reference to the status of Women among Muslim Rajputs, majority of the respondents 89% have elicited that in the past the women of the community were ignored in various spheres of life and birth of female child is considered as bad omen and did not enjoy liberty in the general familial and matrimonial affairs, 98% of the respondents have expressed that parental property moveable and immoveable was inherited only to the male members of the family and females were ignored in property matters, Where as at present they are dealt with the same way, enjoy the same status with some social restrictions. Thus no change has taken place in the past and present attitude of community understudy related to the female members, as the civil laws and religious citation remain ineffective to change the attitude of the community. Marriage and Changing Pattern: Marriage among Muslim Rajputs is socially considered important, which is performed with certain social customs
Vol. 3, Issue 11
and rituals, the major objectives of the marriage is to perpetuate the lineage. The proposal of the marriage was initiated by the 'Barbers' who also performed allied rituals like calling the participants with the consent of the heads of the family of Brides or Bridegrooms. Hindu Rajput code dictates that Rajputs can only marry amongst other Rajputs. However, tradition of marriages into only one group or clan because of caste restrictions is not permitted in Islam theoretically, though this should lead to a great change in the traditional Rajput marital policy after conversion. But it is not so, as in the case of Muslim Rajputs of Rajouri District. The custom of Rajput endogamy is still persists among Muslim Rajputs. They took wives from other dominant Aristocratic Muslim clans except Sayyed. This was observed that some Rajput clans of Punjab intermarried into other clans of foreign descent. However, Muslim Rajputs of Rajouri District still follow endogamous pattern of Marriage, rarely they get wives from other castes but don't give daughters to them. In the past only 'NIKAHA' ceremony differentiates the marriage of Muslim Rajputs from Hindu Rajputs' Other customs and ritual were performed commonly by both the communities, such as 'Sehara Bandhi', 'Drum beating', keeping swords on the shoulder of Rajput Bridegroom by himself at the time of 'Baraat', wearing special dress of same colour by all the 'Baraties', taking services of Molvi and Pandits and some other customary mischief were made at the occasion of marriage. Traditionally among the Muslim Rajputs dates of marriage had to be communicated to the relatives and friends eight days before the actual date of marriage, otherwise the invitation was not acceptable to them.
Epilogue, November 2009