Brahmin priests and teachers (acharya) were engaged in attaining the highest 'spiritual' knowledge (brahmavidya) of Brahman and adhered to different branches (shakhas) of the Vedas. The Brahmin priest is responsible for religious rituals in temples and homes of Hindus and is a person authorised after rigorous training in vedas and 'sacred' rituals, and as a liaison between humans and the God. In general, as family vocations and businesses are inherited, priesthood used to be inherited among Brahmin priestly families, as it requires years of practice of vedas from childhood after proper introduction to student life through a religious initiation called upanayana at the age of about five.[citation needed] Some Brahmins were also warriors.
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