The Manbhaos are now divided into three classes: the Brahmachari; the
Gharbari; and the Bhope. The Brahmachari are the ascetic members of
the sect who subsist by begging and devote their lives to meditation,
prayer and spiritual instruction. The Gharbari are those who, while
leading a mendicant life, wearing the distinctive black dress of the
order and having their heads shaved, are permitted to get married with
the permission of their Mahant or _guru_. The ceremony is performed in
strict privacy inside a temple. A man sometimes signifies his choice of
a spouse by putting his _jholi_ or beggar's wallet upon hers; if she
lets it remain there, the betrothal is complete. A woman may show her
preference for a man by bringing a pair of garlands and placing one on
his head and the other on that of the image of Krishna. The marriage
is celebrated according to the custom of the Kunbis, but without
feasting or music. Widows are permitted to marry again. Married women
do not wear bangles nor toe-rings nor the customary necklace of beads;
they put on no jewellery, and have no _choli_ or bodice. The Bhope
or Bhoall, the third division of the caste, are wholly secular and
wear no distinctive dress, except sometimes a black head-cloth. They
may engage in any occupation that pleases them, and sometimes act as
servants in the temples of the caste. In Berar they are divided into
thirteen _bas_ or orders, named after the disciples of Arjun Bhat, who
founded the various shrines. The Manbhaos are recruited by initiation
of both men and women from any except the impure castes. Young children
who have been vowed by their parents to a religious life or are left
without relations, are taken into the order. Women usually join it
either as children or late in life. The celibate members, male or
female, live separately in companies like monks and nuns. They do
not travel together, and hold services in their temples at different
times. A woman admitted into the order is henceforward the disciple of
the woman who initiated her by whispering the _guru mantra_ or sacred
verse into her ear. She addresses her preceptress as mother and the
other women as sisters. The Manbhaos are intelligent and generally
literate, and they lead a simple and pure life. They are respectable
and are respected by the people, and a _guru_ or spiritual teacher is
often taken from them in place of a Brahman or Gosain. They often act
as priests or _gurus_ to the Mahars, for whom Brahmans will not perform
these services. Their honesty and humility are proverbial among the
Kunbis, and are in pleasing contrast to the character of many of the
Hindu mendicant orders. They consider it essential that all their
converts should be able to read the Bhagavat-Gita or a commentary
on it, and for this purpose teach them to read and write during the
rainy season when they are assembled at one of their monasteries.