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74 imprecatory saying usually appended to all grants, viz. கங்கைக்கரையில் காராம்பசுவைக் கொன்ற பாவத்தில் போவராகவும் (may he incur the sin of having slaughtered a black cow on the banks of the Ganges). The Dravidians, chiefly the fighting classes, indulged very freely in intoxicating drinks and the manufacture and sale of liquor was not considered a mean occupation by the ancient Tamils. The simple fact that the word 'toddy' has at least eighty equivalent words in the Tamil language proves the extensive use of that beverage throughout the Tamil land. It was only after the advent of the Jains and Brahmans that drinking was condemned, and its sellers and producers came to be shunned as polluting castes.

The five artizans, potters and weavers were much requisitioned by all castes high and low, and these industries consequently tended to bring them in closer contact with the Brahmans. And with the rise of temples and other religious institutions, the social status of these classes began to improve. The Brahmans conferred on them flattering distinctions, high titles, and fabricated for them divine origins, which, besides elevating their social status, humoured them and made them willing workers in the new social organisation. Thus, the seeds of all subsequent quarrels and dissensions were sown. All these Dravidian castes were granted the privilege of wearing the sacred thread.

The power of a religion to rend asunder large tribes and races is too well known. The want of easy