Panjis

Panji System in Mithila
Genealogical Records in Mithila
Founded	1327 AD
Founder	King Harisimha Deva
Distributor(s)	Panjikar
Genre	Genealogical Records in Mithila
Country of origin	India
Location	Mithila region
Writing "Siddhanta"

Panjis or Panji Prabandh are extensive genealogical records maintained among the Maithili Kayasthas and Maithili Brahmins of the Mithila region similar to the Hindu genealogy registers at Haridwar.^[1]

It is said that the Panji system was not in use until the second decade of the 14th century CE. Those days people sporadically had lineage introductions. Therefore, marriage decisions were based on the remembrance or names of ancestors and Gotra, etc.^[2] According to Panjikar Vidyanand Jha alias Mohanji, the Panji system came into existence after a dispute in 1326 AD over the marriage of a minister of the King Harisimha Deva, to the sister of a distant relative. After that the King Harisimha Deva decided to make a genealogy of every person in Mithila so that such a situation does not arise. On the orders of the Maharaja, the Vishwachakra Sammelan was held at Jamsam of Pandaul in Madhubani district.^[3] The Panji System was introduced in 1327 AD by the King Harisimha Deva of Karnat Dynasty in Mithila. It was the system of registration of genealogical records of the family. The Panjikar (registrar) was responsible for collecting information about the genealogies of the people in the area and registering it in the register (Panji). It was helpful in identifying the clan or Gotra of a particular family for marriage purpose.^[4] The information recorded in the Panjis are Vamsha - Vriksha ( genealogical family tree ), Biji Purush (earliest known ancestor), mool (village of origin of the earliest ancestor), shakhas (village of the diversification of the descendants of the ancestor) and Gotra, etc.^[5] The first Panjikar was Gunakar Jha.^[3]

During the Darbhanga Raj period, there was a 10 years course of study at the court of Darbhanga Raj to become a Panjikar. A candidate who wished to become a Panjikar, had to enrolled in the course. Then the candidate had to appear in the Dhaut Pariksha. After successfully passing the examination of Dhaut Pariksha, the candidate was given the status of a Panjikar or registrar.^[2] It is said that after the end of Darbhanga Raj, the Dhaut Pariksha also ended and after that the selection process of the Panjikar become hereditary.^[2]

The Panjis have enormous value when arranging marriages, as they ensure that incestuous relationships do not occur, delineating the last 07 generations from the paternal side and 06 generations from the maternal side of the prospective bride and groom. When it is proved that there has been no relationship for seven generations, the Panjikar (registrar) grants the marriage. The horoscopes of the couples are also matched based on the Janmpatri (birth chart) and horoscope. This process of registration for the marriage of a couples is popularly called as Siddhanta in Mithila.^[4]

The Maithil Kayasthas and Maithil Brahmin delegates assembled in a conference to deliberate upon new marriage alliances duly checked with the respective panjikars at a place near Madhubani of India called as Saurath. the conference itself was called Saurath Sabha [1].

Due to progressive loss of Panjis, Panjikars taking up modern professions and increasing cosmopolitan behaviour, the practice of fixation of marriage by consulting Panjis is dying. There have been cases reported of sale of Panjis to foreign agencies [2]. The recent Saurath sabhas are all but deserted [3]. Increasingly, people are looking forward to more modern methods of match making like internet, rather than centuries old palm leaves.

Since in the modern era Saurath Sabha is losing the preferences for wedding negotiations place and the next generation of the families of the Panjikars are also not interested in the profession of Panjikars and they are shifting towards other jobs, there was threat to lose the handwritten genealogical records forever. It is said that Mithila region has more than four lakhs manuscripts of the genealogical records of the Maithil Brahmins and Karan Kayasthas. Therefore in 2017, the National Mission for Manuscripts initiated a mission for the digitisation of the handwritten manuscripts of the Panjis at Saurath Sabha in Mithila region. According to the National Mission for Manuscripts, the officers are facing many difficulties while convincing for digitisation of the handwritten genealogical records.^[6]

• Maithili Karna Kayasthak Panjik Sarvekshan, by Binod Bihari Verma
• Maithil Brāhamano ki Pañji Vyavasthā (Hindi), by Pt Ramānāth Jhā, published by Granthālaya, Darbhangā.
• Genome Mapping- 450 AD to 2009 AD- Mithilak Panji Prabandh, by Gajendra Thakur, published by Shruti Publication, 2009 Delhi ISBN No.978-81-907729-6-9
• Panji System in Maithil Karna Kayastha: A Sociological Evaluation, [By: Dr. Binod Kumar Karna.]

• Bihar government site about Mithila including Panjikars
• A history of Panji system in North India
• Times Of India article on Brahmins Panjis
• JSTOR article on the usage of Panjis on Mithila and Bengal
• Times of India article on Saurath Sabha in Madhubani
• Kinship ritual and visual imagery in Mithila
• Review of the book 'Panjik Sarvekshan'