The myth of the "varna system"

If anyone has ever participated in a discussion related to the caste system and casteism in India, then they know what is meant by "varna system." The basic argument goes like this, the current caste system which is as disgusting as racism is not the original system, the original one, the Varna system was a much better and smart idea. Casteism, where one gets discriminated against just because of the family in which they are born is impossible to defend, but it still exists, people just label it as a derivation of the Varna system. The original system, the varna system divided society into four broad categories. Varna (वर्ण) was considered to be a noble, well-intended, flexible, efficient, and just system that was designed for the smooth functioning of a society. The blame for spoiling the original idea is put on the invaders by many supporters of the Varna system. It seems the invaders messed up that system which resulted in horrendous caste-based practices like untouchability. The argument is that the horrendous caste system is what's in practice, not the so-called original well-intended varna system, and that too even after India celebrated its 70th Independence Day a couple of years back. Some people blame it on the British, some on the Mughals, but I have not found a person who can accept that the original system itself was prone to exploitation and misuse, and it never worked as people claim it to work for any significant period of Indian history.

Now, why I am blaming the concept of the varna system for the current casteism in India? Aren't all societies have some social class or divisions based on economic status? Yes, they do, but none of them have resulted in something as ugly as the caste system in India and none of them justify such division as a well-intended and genius creation for the smooth functioning of a society. I always ask people who argue that the Varna system was a brilliant idea and it was a flexible arrangement that allowed people to move from one Varna to another based on their education and profession to give me a single example of a period of history when this system was functional like this in the real world. Even in mythological epics like Ramayana and Mahabharata, all we see is the rigid caste system, where people get a birthright to become a king or queen just based on the family in which they were born not by their virtues or education. The point to be noted is, that all these epics were written well before invaders even knew about India. So, tragically proponents of the varna system can't blame invaders for polluting or manipulating these books. People who really bothered to study or read about the varna system might cite some example of some Shudra king and claim that it was because of the varna system that a Shudra could become a king. Shudra was supposed to be the lowest strata of the four layers of the Varna-based society (Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and Shudras). Ironically they still address that king as a Shudra king and claim that his becoming a king shows that the system was flexible. If the system was flexible, there would have been many more examples of this, not just a few exceptions. There are always some exceptions in any society who break the conventional ranks and achieve something extraordinary, not because society encourages it, but because they achieve great things despite society being hostile towards them. If any reader knows about any time period from the ancient history of Indian civilization when this Varna system was at work as people claim it to be, I am interested to know about it, please share the factual data with references. It will give me another perspective to analyze what went wrong that the Varna system got converted into a caste system and if the original system was so great why people did not revert back to it.

According to me, the original system is as flawed as the caste system. As I said the division of society based on economic status and profession is not something new. It happens on its own and people do move from one economic layer to another based on their income, education, inheritance, and other things. This is not a system but just a way how people feel comfortable to associating with a group of people to whom they relate most. Rather, to make such an association into some kind of a system is a horrendous idea. It is like encouraging and legitimizing segregation, and this is why I feel the Varna system, like a caste system, was wrong. Once again, if anyone thinks I am wrong, please provide factual evidence so that I can correct myself. I hope the caste system goes away. It has been diluted in certain parts of India due to economic progress, but in general, it is still strong and very much present in most parts of India. The ways and methods that people use to discriminate based on caste have evolved, but sadly it still exists. I hope that defenders of the Varna system work to eradicate the caste system instead of wasting their energy to defend the system that never delivered its promise.

Thanks for reading and please share your opinion about this topic. 

Is casteism racism?

Casteism is a very sensitive topic in India. Many Indians claim that it doesn't exist in today's Indian society, but we still have cast caste-based reservation policy, inter-cast marriages are still not very well accepted, and many more things like this indicate that caste and caste discrimination still exists. I often wonder how it all started? Is casteism any different form of racism? Was there any need to divide society into different sections and label them? Should our profession decide our social status? If we say all humans are equal then why do we discriminate? I already discussed how religion divides us but within the same religion also we find many ways to discriminate against each other. Interesting, isn't it?

There are different theories for the origin of castes in India. There are religious, biological, and socio-historical theories about its origin. Religious theory is most popular and many people (who still practice casteism) like to believe that there is some religious significance attached to their superior or inferior social status based on their caste.

The social division of ancient Indian society into four sections can be traced back to Manusmriti. The book is in the form of a discourse given by Manu to a group of seers. Manu is considered as ‘progenitor of mankind’ (I think Moses is a similar character in Abrahamic religions). This text became the standard reference for all future related texts (or Dharmashastras). When the social division was originally created in four sections or varnas (Vaishya, Brahman, Kshudra, and Kshatriya) to run the society smoothly I believe there was no hierarchy or they were not ranked in any particular order. Every section’s work or job was equally important in the functioning of society. Varnas or these professions were not inherited but were acquired by merit. I think the original intention of this division might have been noble, but it allowed the division of society which resulted in different groups, that ultimately became casts that started caring for their own interests rather than caring for society and its welfare. It turned out that the side effect of medicine was more harmful than the benefit it offered.

I would like to believe that any religion in its original form doesn’t teach any type of discrimination within or outside that religion. So-called intellectuals got special status in society (because of their knowledge); this status also gave them some powers and privileges. They failed to realize the responsibility that came with that special status. Selfishness and greed prevented them from implementing the actual code of conduct which was recommended (selection by merit not by birth). They wanted to hold on to that power so that their future generations also enjoy the same status and privilege. The only way to stop others from getting empowered was to inhibit their ability to acquire knowledge. This was achieved by creating rigid boundaries between sections of societies (or varnas) that were difficult to cross. They manipulated the meaning of scriptures and misused their superior social status for this. As generations passed, they gradually started feeling more superior or privileged than others and eventually, they started believing that it’s their birthright to rule others and they started exploiting certain sections of society for their benefit. This resulted in the caste system, untouchability, social discrimination, and inhuman treatment of so-called lower cast people. According to me it's not in any way different than racism. This mentality hampered the human progress of Indian society for centuries. In similar manure, women from all casts were suppressed and forced to live a very restricted life, to me it looks like they created a separate caste named 'women' and no one even realized this. That is why I raised the question in the beginning, was it necessary to divide society like this based on professions? Today also we see this type of mentality in our society, even after achieving so much progress in all fields we are unable to get rid of this mentality totally.

Discrimination in some form exists even today in almost all societies or countries in the world, in some countries, it's based on caste or religion, and in some countries based on race, color, nationality, etc. Casteism or any sort of discrimination is against humanity. Nature doesn’t discriminate based on caste, color, or race. This monster of discrimination has survived too long and some elements of our society are still protecting it for some unknown reason. Any type of discrimination should not have any place in civilized society. Let's pledge not to discriminate against anyone based on color, religion, nationality, or anything else.

Thanks for reading. Your views and comments are welcome.

(Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing)