চরযপদ ও মঙগলকবয থক তরশঙকরর কথসহতয পরসঙগ: নমনবরগর জনজবন

Social class discrimination has long had a significant impact on the lives of the lower classes.The life of the lower classes is understood to include aspects such as society, culture, and livelihood.The lower class consists of those sections of society that are socially and economically backward.Illiteracy, blind faith, and superstitions have hindered their development.In Bengali literature, from the ancient period (The Charyapada) to the modern age, the position of the marginalized and untouchable classes can be observed in various literary works.The Charyapada, dating from the tenth to the twelfth centuries, is a realistic document of the social life of that time.Although it was composed by Buddhist practitioners, it vividly portrays the daily life of lower-class people, their poverty and hardships, their rituals and religious practices, as well as their forms of recreation.An examination of social stratification shows that these lower-class communities-such as the Dom, Chandal, Shabar, washerman, barber, weaver, fisherman, and potter-were kept away from mainstream society.They were neglected and treated as despised untouchables.Medieval literature was largely religion-centered, and the Mangalkavyas describe in detail the narratives of the lower classes.These texts mention various marginalized groups such as the Dom, Shabar, Bagdi, Bauri, Kaibarta, etc.The establishment of deities such as Goddess Chandi and Dharma Thakur is associated with lower-class communities like hunters and Doms.In the fiction of Tarashankar Bandopadhyay, many novels and short stories vividly depict the life and livelihood of lowerclass and tribal communities, their folk beliefs and culture, daily living practices, conflicts arising from social customs, primal instincts, love and affection, and the harsh realities of poverty and deprivation.