Rig Veda Dasa and related words such as
Dasyu are found in the Rig Veda. They have been variously translated, depending on the context. These words in some context represent "disorder, chaos and dark side of human nature", and the verses that use the word
dasa mostly contrast it with the concepts of "order, purity, goodness and light."
A. A. Macdonell and
A. B. Keith in 1912 remarked that, "The great difference between the Dasyus and the Aryans was their religion... It is significant that constant reference is made to difference in religion between Aryans and Dasa and Dasyu."
Dasa with the meaning of Barbarians Rig Veda 10.22.8 describes Dasyus as "savages" who have no laws, different observances, a-karman (who do not perform rites) and who act against a person without knowing the person. Around us is the
Dasyu, riteless, void of sense, inhuman, keeping alien laws. Baffle, thou Slayer of the foe, the weapon which this
Dasa wields. – Translated by Ralph Griffith The
Dasyu practising no religious rites, not knowing us thoroughly, following other observances, obeying no human laws, Baffle, destroyer of enemies [Indra], the weapon of that
Dasa. – Translated by
H. H. Wilson Dasa with the meaning of Demons Within the Vedic texts,
Dasa is the word used to describe supernatural demonic creatures with many eyes and many heads. This has led scholars to interpret that the word
Dasa in Vedic times meant evil, supernatural, destructive forces. For example, Rigveda in hymn 10.99.6 states, {{Blockquote| स इ
द्दासं तुवीरवं पतिर्दन्षळक्षं त्रिशीर्षाणं दमन्यत् । अस्य त्रितो न्वोजसा वृधानो विपा वराहमयोअग्रया हन् ॥६॥ The sovereign
Indra attacking him overcame the loud shouting, six eyed, three headed
Dasa, Trita invigorated by his strength, smote the cloud with his iron-tipped finger.
Dasa with the meaning of Servant Dasa is also used in Vedic literature, in some contexts, to refer to "servants", a few translate this as "slaves", but the verses do not describe how the Vedic society treats or mistreats the servants.
R. S. Sharma, in his 1958 book, states that the only word which could possibly mean slave in
Rigveda is
dāsa, and this sense of use is traceable to four verses out of 10,600 verses in Rigveda, namely 1.92.8, 1.158.5, 10.62.10 and 8.56.3. The translation of word
dasa to servant or slave varies by scholars. as in verse 10.62.10: {{Blockquote| उत
दासा परिविषे स्मद्दिष्टी गोपरीणसा । यदुस्तुर्वश्च मामहे ॥१०॥
Yadu and Indra speaking auspiciously, and possessed of numerous cattle, gave them like
servants, for the enjoyment. R. S. Sharma translates
dasi in a Vedic era
Upanishads as "maid-servant". Bridget Allchin and Raymond Allchin suggest
Indo-Aryans were not the only inhabitants of the region when they arrived to
Sapta-Sindhava or land of seven rivers and their encounter with Dasyu was not entirely peaceful.
Ram Sharan Sharma states that the
Rig-Vedic society was primarily organized on basis of tribe, kin and lineage. The "
Aryan" tribes mentioned by the
Rig Veda therefore may not have been of the same ethnicity, but may have been united by a common language and way of life. He states that while it has been argued that Dasyu and Dasa were not non-Aryans, it is more true in the case of the latter. Further the Dasas are said to be organized into tribes called
viś, a term used for Vedic people or tribes. The god
Indra is said to be the conqueror of Dasas, who appear mostly human. There are more references to the destruction of Dasyus by Indra instead of Dasas. He is said to have protected the Aryan varna by killing them. The Aryans also fought between themselves. The god
Manyu is invoked to overcome both Aryans and Dasyus. Indra is asked to fight against the godless Dasyus and Aryans, who are the enemies of his followers. (X, 88, 3 & XX, 36, 10). The fight between Aryans and their enemies consisted mostly of fortresses and walled settlements of the latter. Both Dasas and Dasyus were in the possession of them. Sharma states that this reminds us of the later discovery of fortifications of
Harappan settlements, though there is no clear archaeological evidence of mass-scale confrontation between Aryans and Harappans. He adds that the Aryans seemed to be attracted to their wealth over which regular warfare took place. The worshiper in the Rig Veda expects that those who offered no
oblation should be killed and their wealth be divided (I, 176, 4). However, it was the cattle which held the most importance to Aryans who were cattle-herders. For example, it is argued that
Kikatas didn't need cows because they made no use of milk products in sacrifice. Sacrifice played an important part in Aryan way of life, however the Dasyus or Dasas did not offer sacrifices. An entire passage in the seventh book of Rig Veda uses adjectives such as
akratün,
aśraddhān and
ayajñān applied to Dasyus emphasizes their non-sacrificing character.
Indra is asked to discriminate between them and the sacrificing Aryas. Sharma states that the word
anindra (without Indra) may refer to Dasyus, Dasa and Aryan dissenters. Per the Aryan view, the Dasyus practiced black magic and
Atharva Veda refers to them as evil spirits to be scared away from the sacrifice. The Atharva Veda states that the god-blaspheming Dasyus are to be offered as victims. The Dasyus are believed to be treacherous, not practicing Aryan observances, and are hardly human.
Tony Ballantyne states that
Rig Veda depicts the cultural differences between the Aryan invaders and non-Aryans of Indus valley. He states that although the inter-Aryan conflict is prominent in its hymns, a cultural opposition is drawn between Aryans and the indigenous people of North India. According to him, it depicts the indigenous tribes such as the
Pani and
Dasas as godless, savage and untrustworthy. Panis are cattle thieves who seek to deprive Aryans of them. He states Dasas were savages, whose godless society, darker complexion and different language were culturally different from Aryans. They are called barbarians (
rakshas), those without fire (
anagnitra) and flesh-eaters (
kravyad). The Aryas were on the other hand presented as noble people protected by their gods
Agni and
Indra. He adds that their names were extended beyond them to denote savage and barbarian people in general. He concurs that this continued into later Sanskritic tradition where
dasa came to mean a slave while
Arya meant noble.
Asko Parpola identifies the Dasyus with the
Bactria–Margiana Archaeological Complex (BMAC) and states that term
Dasyu might originate from the word
Daha which was originally a noun meaning a "male person, man or a hero", and is connected to the
Old Iranian language word
dahyu. He identifies
Tripura with the BMAC settlements like Dashly-3 in northern Afghanistan which had forts with three concentric walls, a tradition which survived in
Bactria until
Achaemenid times. In addition, he states that the description of Rig Veda about the Aryans always losing to the Asuras who had forts in the earlier part of the text was due to them encountering the forts of the BMAC. The Rig Veda also describes the opulence and power of the Dasyus, who defend their cattle with sharp weapons, horses and chariots. Parpola identifies with the riches of the BMAC and their finely decorated weapons. In addition, the statement of Rig Veda about Dasas worshipping Asuras who were later worshipped in
Zorastarianism, with the foremost being
Varuna who had a counterpart in
Ahura Mazda, and
Mitra-Varuna corresponding to
Mithra-Ahura. Based on Rig Vedic hymns, Parpola states that Aryans adopted some of the Asuras as gods to please their new Dasyu subjects, and the attestation of both Indra and Varuna in the Mitanni oath of 1380 BCE shows that amalgamation of Aryans and Dasas happened before the former migrated to South Asia.
Later Vedic texts The three words Dasa, Dasyu and Asura are used interchangeably in almost identical verses that are repeated in different Vedic texts, such as the Rig Veda, the Saunaka recension of
Atharva Veda, the
Paippalada Samhita of the
Atharva Veda and the
Brahmanas text in various Vedas. Such comparative study has led scholars to interpret
Dasa and
Dasyu may have been a synonym of
Asura (demons or evil forces, sometimes simply lords with special knowledge and magical powers) of later Vedic texts. Sharma states that the word
dasa occurs in
Aitareya and
Gopatha Brahmanas, but not in the sense of a slave.
Arthashastra Kautilya's
Arthashastra dedicates the thirteenth chapter on
dasas, in his third book on law. This Sanskrit document from the
Maurya Empire period (4th century BCE), has been translated by several authors. Shamasastry's translation in 1915, and Rangarajan's translation in 1987 all map
dasa as slave. However, Kangle suggests that the context and rights granted to
dasa by
Kautilya, such as the right to the same wage as a free labourer and the right to freedom on payment of an amount, distinguish this form of slavery from that of contemporary
Greece.
Edmund Leach points out that the
Dasa was the antithesis of the concept of
Arya. As the latter term evolved through successive meanings, so did
Dasa: from "indigenous inhabitant" to "serf," "tied servant," and finally "
chattel slave." He suggests the term "unfreedom" to cover all these meanings. According to
Arthashastra, anyone who had been found guilty of
nishpatitah (Sanskrit: निष्पातित, ruined, bankrupt, a minor crime) may mortgage oneself to become
dasa for someone willing to pay his or her bail and employ the
dasa for money and privileges. According to Arthashastra, it was illegal to force a
dasa (slave) to do certain types of work, to hurt or abuse him, or to force sex on a female
dasa. == Buddhist texts ==