# Castes and Tribes of Southern India/Perike

​Perike.___This word is defined, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as meaning literally a gunny bag, and the Perikes are summed up as being a Telugu caste of gunny bag (goni) weavers, corresponding to the Janappans of the Tamil districts. Gunny bag is the popular and trading name of the coarse sacking and sacks made from the fibre of jute, much used in Indian trade. It is noted, in the Census Report, 1891, that ​"the Perikes claim to be a separate caste, but they seem to be in reality a sub-division, and not a very exalted sub-division, of Balijas, being in fact identical with the Uppu (salt) Balijas. Their hereditary occupation is carrying salt, grain, etc., on bullocks and donkeys in perikes or packs. Perike is found among the sub-divisions of both Kavarai and Balija. Some of them, however, have attained considerable wealth, and now claim to be Kshatriyas, saying that they are the descendants of the Kshatriyas who ran away (piriki, a coward) from the persecution of Parasurāma. Others again say they are Kshatriyas who went into retirement, and made hills (giri) their abode (puri)." These Perike 'Kshatriyas' are known as Puragiri Kshatriya and Giri Rāzu. The Periki Balijas are described, in the Vizagapatam Manual, as chiefly carrying on cultivation and trade, and some of them are said to hold a high position at 'the Presidency' (Madras) and in the Vizagapatam district.
Perike women appear to have frequently committed sati (or suttee) on the death of their husbands in former days, and the names of those who thus sacrificed their lives are still held in reverence. A peculiar custom among the Perikes is the erection of big square structures (brindāvanam), in which a tulsi (Ocimum sanctum) is planted, on the spot where the ashes of the dead are buried after cremation. I am informed that a fine series of these structures may be seen at Chīpurapalli, close to Vizianagram. As a mark of respect to the dead, passers-by usually place a lac bangle or flowers thereon. The usual titles of the Perikes are Anna and Ayya, but some style themselves Rao ( = Rāya, king) or Rāyadu, in reference to their alleged Kshatriya origin. ​For the following note on the Perikes of the Godāvari district, I am indebted to Mr. F. R. Hemingway. "Like some of the Kammas, they claim. to be of Kshatriya stock, and say they are of the lineage of Parasu Rāma, but were driven out by him for kidnapping his sister, while pretending to be gunny-bag weavers. They say that they were brought to this country by king Nala of the Mahābhārata, in gratitude for their having taken care of his wife Damayanti when he quitted her during his misfortunes. They support the begging caste of Varugu Bhattas, who, they say, supported them during their exile, and to whom they gave a sanad (deed of grant) authorising them to demand alms. These people go round the Perike houses for their dues every year. The Pīsu Perikes, who still weave gunny-bags, are said not to belong to the caste proper, members of which style themselves Rācha Perikes.
"The Perikes say that, like the Kōmatis, they have 101 gōtras. Their marriage ceremonies are peculiar. On the day of the wedding, the bride and bridegroom are made to fast, as also are three male relatives, whom they call suribhaktas. At the marriage, the couple sit on a gunny-bag, and another gunny, on which a representation of the god Mailar is drawn or painted, is spread between them. The same god is drawn on two pots, and these, and also a third pot, are filled with rice and dhāl (Cajanus indicus), which are cooked by two married women. The food is then offered to Mailar. Next, the three suribhaktas take 101 cotton threads, fasten them together, and tie seven knots in them. The bride and bridegroom are given cloths which have been partly immersed in water coloured with turmeric and chunam (lime), and the suribhaktas are fed with the rice and dhāl cooked in the pots. The couple are then taken round ​the village in procession, and, on their return, the knotted cotton threads are tied round the bride's neck instead of a tāli.
Some Perikes style themselves Sāthu vāndlu, meaning a company of merchants or travellers.
Perike Muggula is the name of a class of Telugu mendicants and exorcists.