Origins of caste system are not known for
sure, there are only proposed theories. There are religious-mystical theories.
There are biological theories. And there are socio-historical theories.
According to vedas the primal man - Purush -
destroyed himself to create a human society. The different “Varnas” were
created from different parts of his body.. The hierarchy of Varnas is
determined by the descending order of the different organs from. Other
religious theory claims that the Varnas were created from the body organs of
Brahma, who is the creator of the world. The religious theories explain how the
four Varnas were founded, but they do not explain how the Jatis in each Varna
or the untouchables were founded
According to biological theories all
creatures living or non-living will have inherent properties and people are
divided into castes based on it. For example Rajas include qualities like
passion, pride, valour and other passionate qualities. Like human beings, food
also inherents different dosage of these qualities and it affects its eater's
intelligence..
According to
socio-historic view the caste system began with the arrival of the Aryans in
India. When the Aryans arrived in India their main contact was with the
Dravidians. They began conquering and taking control over regions in north
India and at the same time pushed the local people southwards or towards the
jungles and mountains in north India. The Aryans organized among themselves in
three groups. The first group was of the warriors and they were called
Kshatriya. The second group was of the priests and they were called Brahmans.
The third group was of the farmers and craftsmen and they were called Vaisias.
The Aryans who conquered and took control over parts of north India subdued the
locals and made them their servants. In this process the Vaisias who were the
farmers and the craftsmen became the landlords and the businessmen of the
society and the locals became the peasants and the craftsmen of the society.
A 2001
genetic study, led by Michael Bamshad of University of Utah, found that the
genetic affinity of Indians to Europeans is proportionate to caste rank, the
upper castes being most similar to Europeans, whereas lower castes are more
like Asians. The researchers believe that the Indo-European speakers entered
India from the Northwest, admixing with or displacing the proto-Dravidian
speakers. Subsequently they may have established a caste system and placed
themselves primarily in higher castes. –Wikipedia.
According to Hindu
mythology, as mentioned in vedas, caste is not rigid.it does not come to by
birth but it is due to their duties and qualities (karma).It was even mentioned
in Bhagavad-Gita by lord Krishna
Lord
Krishna as saying, in response to the question— "How is Varna (social
order) determined? “
“Birth is
not the cause, my friend; it is virtues which are the cause of auspiciousness.
Even a chandala (lower caste) observing the vow is considered a Brahman by the
gods."
Rig Veda 9.112.3
—I am a bard, my father is a physician,
and my mother's job is to grind the corn
There was also no discriminations against
sudras in Vedic period. Over centuries caste became heredity and situation
became worse due to exploitation of this by some people and some socio-economic
elements.
In many historians
opinion Caste system has enabled Hindu civilization to survive all invasions
and made Indian society stronger. Caste system served a purpose, performed
certain functions, and met the needs appropriate to the times in history. It
ensured the continuity of the traditional social organization of India. It has
accommodated multiple communities including invading tribes in the Indian
society Cast system has undergone many changes in non-vedic period and the
worst part of all was the emergence of Discrimination and Untouchability of
some caste by others. . Caste system has been exploited against the Hindus, for
the last two centuries by the British government, Secular historians, Pre and
Post-Independence Indian politicians and Journalists for their own ends.
The word “CASTE”
itself is not indigenous to our country. The British who came to India from a
society divided by classes, tried to equate our caste system to their
class system.to understand Indian population and society census was their main
tool. In census they collected the information of caste, religion, race, tribe
etc. but it was not needed for their governance or policies. Caste was seen as
an indicator of occupation, social standing, and intellectual ability. British
conceptions of racial purity were interlinked with these census information of
people based on caste.
Caste system might have been found useful for division of labour
and specialization in the society once upon a time, when there were a number of
limitations in Knowledge Management. It was all right till the various
divisions were able to live harmoniously and specialize in the tasks allotted
to them.
In
this modern and scientific, more rationalised and modern world the present
caste system is not helping the survival of society but itself is problem for
survival our INDIAN society
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