Indian Caste System: An unwanted invention by Non-Hindus
By Samidha on July 2, 2021
The idea of a divine mandate dictating a select few to be superior or inferior to others is an inherent concept of Abrahamic religions. Those standards cannot be applied to a completely opposite Hindu philosophy. It is unethical to call the Hindu dharma (religion) discriminatory, when other religions are rooted in texts which endorse discrimination. The sacred texts of Hindus are actively anti-discriminatory, advocating for an egalitarian society based in mutual respect. None even mention a “caste” system.
It is important to remember roots of the “caste system” are actually in non-Hindu cultures. Invaders & colonizers with their supremacist philosophy, destroyed native cultures all over the world for political gains. When these invaders & colonizers came to Bharat (aka India), their inhuman behavior forced Hindus to make many changes in their dharmic ways just to survive. It also created many “missing links”. The Vedic Varna system also suffered. Vedic varna was simply a classification of aptitudes in four broad categories. It was a very fluid, horizontal system that gave everyone a chance to choose and change a career per their aptitudes. It was a wise system that created a symbiotic society, where every “varna” was equally important. We can see that this system actually encouraged everyone to follow their passion with assurance for success. Perhaps it is because of this reason that Bharat’s (India’s) contribution to world GDP was almost 25% in ancient times!
It is important to remember that when “caste” discrimination was relatively common, under colonial rule, most people lived in small villages and towns. Further, the “upper caste” members of the community were small in number; and while they had social status, they did not necessarily have money or power. Brahmins in particular were expected to lead humble lives, dependent on alms from the community. Kshatriya leaders, although wealthy, had their power checked by being accountable to both Brahmin priests and the community they served. It is difficult to be tyrannical when one does not have money, or when one’s power is decentralized and is closely monitored.
When colonizers realized that the aptitude and merit-based varna system was not favorable to their agenda, they attempted social engineering by profiling and segregation. This complimented the colonizers’ divide and rule policy. Through legislation, the British denied citizenship and basic rights to those who refused to accept their standards, thereby forcing Hindus to conform to colonizer’s rigid, hierarchical “caste system”. During British rule in India, various pieces of legislation were collectively used as the Criminal Tribes Act (CTA) of 1870. It criminalized entire communities by categorizing them as criminal-by-birth castes. In certain regions of British India, entire caste groups were presumed guilty by birth, arrested, children separated from their parents, and held in penal colonies or quarantined without conviction or due process. In due course of time, these indigenous people were labeled as “lower caste” or Dalits”, the words that have their origin in western philosophy and are nowhere to be found in Hindu religious texts.
Further damage was achieved by systematically targeting kshatriyas and Brahmins. Without any kind of armed resistance or guidance from traditional knowledge and wisdom, revival of Hindus through their self-corrective dharmic system became difficult. This complimented the colonizers’ divide and rule policy. More lasting destruction, however, occurred when colonizers left, leaving their legacy of divisive politics and corruption in their wake. Even though Indian constitution rejects “caste” system, some politicians started caste-based schemes to strengthen their own selfish goals. They have reduced the history and complexity of caste politics into an oversimplified statement: the upper caste discriminates against the lower caste. Even though discrimination occurred against “lower caste”, it did not happen across the board and certainly not against “lower caste” alone. Most importantly, the right to live like other citizens was never denied; caste has never been used as a reason to enslave people, deny them citizenship, nor deny them the right to vote in India.
If we truly want to recover, we cannot forget that unfortunately, invaders and colonizers are not done yet and maintaining a colonial mindset will only strengthen the oppressors. We should remind ourselves that the atrocities that happened were because of human nature and NOT because of our Dharma. Seventy plus years after becoming a democratic nation, common Hindus in India today are trying to abolish this forced practice, and only people with vested interests are trying to hold on to it. Let us say “NO” to the rigid social hierarchy of our Colonizers and invaders. It is time we beat their game!