In traditional Hindu society, dogs are considered inauspicious. This is most evident in dharma shastras, which were put together about 2,000 years ago. Dogs were associated with death, as well as with pollution and, therefore, belonged to the periphery of society. Dog-eater was a common way of describing the Chandala community, who also lived on the periphery of villages and in crematoriums, and were seen as polluting by the rest of the village.