Mast of the Santa Anna, Rameshwar, Vijaydurg

Pujare, also known as Pujar, Pujara or Pujari, traditionally belonged to the priestly class of the

Maratha The Marathi people (Marathi: मराठी लोक) or Marathis are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are indigenous to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language. Maharashtra was formed as a M ...

community. They are the original inhabitants of Rameshwar in

Devgad Devgad is a taluka in Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra India consisting of 98 villages. It is located on the Arabian Sea in the coastal Konkan region of Maharashtra, south of Mumbai. Devgad is known globally for its exports of locally grown ...

Taluka of

Sindhudurg Sindhudurg Fort (Marathi pronunciation: in̪d̪ʱud̪uɾɡ is a historical fort that occupies an island in the Arabian Sea, just off the coast of Maharashtra in Western India. The fort was built by Shivaji Maharaj.The fortress lies on the sh ...

District in

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. Their oldest settlement is in Rameshwar also known as

Rameshwar Wadi Rameshwar also known as Rameshwar Wadi is a small town located on the coast of Sindhudurg District of Maharashtra on the west coast of India. A very old Shri Dev Rameshwar Temple is located in this town which is dedicated to the Hindu deity Shiv ...

which is a small village located on the coast of

District of

on the west coast of

. This settlement has been dated back to the 16th century or before. Within the boundaries of this village, a 16th-century

Shri Dev Rameshwar Temple Shri Dev Rameshwar Temple is located in village Rameshwar Wadi in Devgad taluka of Sindhudurg District, Maharashtra, India. This temple is dedicated to the Hindu deity Shiva. It is a historic temple built in 16th century. Its chief interest is ...

is located, which is dedicated to the

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

deity

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

. The temple rituals of

are performed by the Pujare. They are responsible for performing all the temple rituals, including Puja and

Aarti ''Arti'' (Sanskrit: Ārātrika, Hindi: Ārtī) is a Hindu ritual employed in worship, often part of '' puja'', in which light (usually from a flame) is offered to one or more deities. ''Arti(s)'' also refers to the songs sung in praise of the d ...

, as well as taking care of the shivling and

murti In the Hindu tradition, a ''murti'' ( sa, मूर्ति, mūrti, ) is a devotional image such as a statue, or "idol" (a common and non-pejorative term in Indian English), of a deity or saint. In Hindu temples, it is a symbolic icon. Thus ...

s. The Pujare act as counselors during Shri Dev Rameshwar festivities and festivals. They have a reputation for being learned and conduct prayer services for Lord Shiva. Rameshwar is also known for its Alphonso mangoes. Apart from being the priests of the temple, Pujare also own Alphonso mangoes plantation in and around the region. These are few of the age-old plantations in the

Konkan The Konkan ( kok, कोंकण) or Kokan () is a stretch of land by the western coast of India, running from Damaon in the north to Karwar in the south; with the Arabian Sea to the west and the Deccan plateau in the east. The hinterland ...

region that are being passed on from generations since the 17th century. As per historical records, as far as 9 generations have been known to be recorded in the region.

Other Settlements

is the central settlement for Pujare as

is located in this village. However, there are large Pujare population in settlements within the Rameshwar Region as well as the surrounding areas. Some of the settlements include Kolwadi, Katye, Hurshi, Padel,

Girye Girye is a town in Devgad Taluka in Sindhudurg district of the state of Maharashtra, India. It is a small village on the west coast of Maharashtra. Transport Girye is located on MH SH 115 which connects with NH 17 45 km away from the tow ...

Pural Pural is a town in Devgad Taluka in Sindhudurg district of the state of Maharashtra, India. It is a small village on the west coast of Maharashtra. Transport Pural is located 8 km off MH SH 115 which connects with NH 17 40 km away f ...

, Nadan and Tirlot.

Ancestry

The oldest records of the Pujare Clan shows Gond Pujara as the father of today's Pujare. the ancestry chart shows 15th Century records which continues right up to today's living Pujare clan members. This clan is not to be mistaken for Poojary of the Karnataka.

References

{{Ethnic and social groups of Goa and the Konkan Kshatriya communities Maratha clans Surnames