In ancient period, which Varna was also called as ‘Sarthavaha’?

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — C, Vaishya. In ancient India a 'sarthavaha' (सार्थवाह) was the leader of a merchant caravan — a wealthy trader who guided groups of merchants along the trade routes. Long-distance trade and commerce were the domain of the Vaishya varna, so the mercantile Vaishya, especially the prosperous caravan-merchant, was styled a sarthavaha. (The head of a craft or merchant guild was similarly called a shreshthi / setthi.)

Why the other options are wrong — (a) The priestly-scholarly varna, associated with ritual, teaching and learning — not with caravan trade.  (b) The warrior-ruler varna, associated with governance and defence, not with leading merchant caravans.  (d) The varna traditionally assigned service occupations, not the wealthy long-distance trade that 'sarthavaha' denotes.

Concept: The classical varna scheme divided society into four groups — Brahmana (priests/teachers), Kshatriya (rulers/warriors), Vaishya (traders, farmers, cattle-rearers) and Shudra (service occupations). Commerce and long-distance trade fell to the Vaishyas; their leading figures bore titles such as sarthavaha (caravan-merchant leader) and shreshthi (guild head).

State PCS 2018 Q20 — History PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2018 Q20 — History PYQ with Answer