Here, The Charge Is Neutral

The story of the sacred thread takes a twist in Karnataka, as Lingayat men and women sport it with a small Shivalinga

- K.S. Dakshina Murthy

UNLIKE in neighbouring Tamil Nadu, where the sacred thread and its association with the Brahmin community made it a target of the backward caste movement represented by the Dravida Kazhagam, in Karnataka the significance of the sacred thread is far more diffused.

The non-Brahmin communities, including Kshatriyas and Vaishyas in Karnataka, have had their own system of the sacred thread that more or less is Brahminical. Community insiders say the sacred thread, or the janwaara in Kannada, is a must if one has to marry. Typically, a traditional ceremony is conducted before the marriage rituals, at which point the groom wears the thread. Strictly speaking, the man is mandated to have it permanently across his chest for the rest of his life.