Introduction
There are many societies that employ a certain form of caste system. In the region of South Asia, these caste systems are usually in one way or the other, extensions of the Indian caste system. In India itself, the system is not restricted exclusively to the Hindu communities, though it is the most pervasive. The caste system is the fabric of the Hindu society, especially in the rural areas, namely the villages, yet to be touched by foreign influences. It is a hierarchical social system, which will be discussed in greater details. We will look at how this form of hierarchy, itself dictated by the concepts of soul transmigration, karma and dharma, dictates the daily life in a typical Indian village through purity and pollution. For the sake of discussion, this essay will look at some of the more important and apparent aspects of an otherwise elaborated system. Also worth noting is the difference between the caste system in theory and the caste system in practice. This will be explored further using the village of Korkkadu in South India as a case study. “Social hierarchy is most deeply rooted in Indic Civilisation and remains vital to India’s Hindu majority.”
The caste system
The caste system is a social system base on Hinduism. At the heart of this social system is the notion of purity and pollution, which governs the way that the Hindus behave. Other than this notion of purity and pollution, other important concepts of the caste system are that of transmigration of souls, karma and dharma . Together, these account for and direct the hierarchisation of the caste system. As we explore the system in depths, we will soon realise that many characteristics of the systems is in one way or another, a cause or result of these concepts.
The caste system is a hierarchical social system; that is to say, there are different levels or groups within the system that occupy different roles and importance. There is first and foremost, an Indian wide system known as the varna system which spells out the hierarchy and divides the Hindus into 4 varnas based traditionally on colour and occupation. The 4 varnas are, in descending order, Brahmins, traditionally priests and scholars; Kshatriyas, kings and warriors; Vaishyas, farmers and merchants; and Shudras, workers and servants. Outside of this system stands another group, the Untouchables, who are the outcastes associated with religiously polluting jobs, jobs dealing with the dead for example, and are generally despied by the rest of the varnas.
Within the varna system, there is a more region-base and specific jati system. The jati system is a system of sub-communities. The jatis are region based in a sense that each jati is quite different from another. The make up of one jati might not make sense to a person from another village. These jatis are also hierarchical in nature and they serve to define the varnas more specifically. Between the varna of Brahmins in a specific village, there could be an indefinite amount of jatis which ranks one above the other. One example of this is the Kanyabuja in south India. The Kanyabujas are assigned Biswas according to their ascribed attributes on a twenty-point scale. The higher the number of Biswas, the higher the rank of the segment possessing them.
Transmigration of souls, karma and dharma
The most important concept in the caste system is the concept of purity and pollution. But before we discuss the notion of purity and pollution and how it affects the caste system, which affects the daily life, we shall first discuss the three concepts of transmigration of souls, karma and dharma.
Transmigration of soul, in simple terms, means that the Hindus believe that one’s soul is an immortal being and the lives of the individual are but the physical manifestations. Just like the same person who changes his clothes from time to time but he himself remain unchanged, the Hindus believe that the same soul transmigrates from body to body through reincarnations without changing itself.
Karma is the cosmic law that governs the transmigration of souls. A person with good karma will be born into a better life in his next incarnation while a person who has bad karma will be relegated to a worse life in his next incarnation. Therefore karma is about retribution, and this is more apparent when we look at the word itself. The word karma is from the Sanskrit root kri, meaning ‘to do’. Literally, the word karma means ‘that which is done’ or ‘action’. The doctrine has for its basis the very popular notion that all action has its reaction, and that the type of reaction is causally connected to the type of actions.
Dharma is all that is good and righteous while conversely, a-dharma represents all that is bad and wrong. Dharma can be classified into three broad categories. One, positive rules and injunctions which should be followed in order to have a normal and healthy life in the community. Two, rules of behaviour and rites the aims of which is the acquisition of extra merit and moral advancement for the individual whose practises them. Three, rules that are considered essential for a person to follow.
Together, these 3 concepts combine to give the caste system its backbone and justification for its structure. In other words, an individual of a certain rank in a certain caste is there because of his soul transmigrated to this life and his position was determined by the karma that he accumulated in his previous life by doing either dharma or a-dharma. Therefore an individual, for example, a Brahmin was able to reincarnate into this life as a Brahmin probably because he had fulfilled his duties in his past life according to the dharma and accumulated enough good karma. “Different castes have different designated codes of proper conduct (dharma), according to their ranks on the hierarchy that they are obligated to perform to contribute to their society. For example, Brahman's proper behavior will be to be nonviolent, religious and have a vegetarian diet; Kshatriyas are expected to be aggressive warriors who fight and defend and consume meat and alcohol. The mass population believe that the suffering in their present life is a result of the bad deeds they committed in their past life. The karma that they accumulate is the deciding factor as to which position in the caste hierarchy they will belong to in their next lives. They believe that the faithful execution of the duties obligated in their position in life, thus good karma performed, will be a promise to raise them up through the different classes in reincarnation until they reach the top of the ranks and take the next proceeding step to liberation (moksha). The rigid caste system is justified by this belief and it is thus possible to see why the masses stay muted and accept their suffering in life.”
Purity and pollution
Purity and pollution is another important principle of the caste that explains why the various varnas and jatis interact in the way that they do. One point to note here is that the purity and pollution are not necessary in the physical sense but more of a ritual sense. The members of the higher varnas and jatis, such as the Brahmins, are considered purer than members of the lower caste, with the Untouchables, being at the bottom of the hierarchy, considered the least pure. The pollution occurs when a member of a higher interacts with a member of a lower caste. Hence, to prevent pollution, many stringent rules of conduct are put in place in everyday life. We will now examine these rules of conduct in a few selected aspects.
Commensality
Commensality literally means eating together. However commensality in the Hindu caste system signifies a lot more. Not only are members of the higher caste not allowed to dine with members of the lower class, they are also not allow to receive food and water from the lower castes. Consuming such items would result in pollution, which would require purifying rituals to rectify. Even when circumstances require a higher caste member to receive food from a lower caste member, it can only be “cooked” (pukka) grain, well parched and thus perhaps cleansed enough by Agni’s fire to prove palatable. Never “raw” (kucha) food, however, nor water!
Restrictions in regard to eating are generally speaking more severe than those which govern drinking, but do not depend, as in that case, on who supplies the food but rather on who cooks it. The cooking is very important, and a stranger’s shadow, even the glance of a man of low caste, falling on the cooking pot may necessitate throwing away the contents. Members of the same exogamous unit can, of course, share each other’s food. Certain exceptions hold. For example, only members of the Waterbearer caste who are employed to supply water from wells to homes can offer water by hand to all castes without polluting them.
Marriage
Jatis are endogamous groups. That simply means that members of a jati can only marry within their own jati. Inter-caste marriages may result in the members of the caste being polluted. This especially true if the difference between the two parties involved are from very different jatis in the system, such as a Brahmin and an Untouchable in the most extreme of cases. Therefore in cases of inter-caste marriages, the parties involved are ostracised from the their jatis and become Untouchables. Given that even the issue of dining has so many regulations, marriage and consummation issues are under even heavier scrutiny. Marriages are traditionally arranged and within one's own caste. The background of each bride and groom are thoroughly studied to make sure they fit. Caste is the key qualification sought, and like how it affects basic socialisation of society, is a filter system when seeking potential life partners. Marriage within caste is such a strong factor that there are directories that publish a list of eligible Indians and what caste groups they belong to. An example is this web site: www.marriage.com.
There are however also cases of hypergamous unions, which are marriages between different castes. The point to note here is that hypergamous unions are almost always between a woman of a lower caste and a man of a higher caste. A man can marry a girl from an approved range of lower jatis. The progeny carries no stigma and is given full membership of the jati. The reason for this, according to M.N. Srinivas, could be an exchange; the man’s family increases its wealth from the receipt of dowry while the woman’s family increases its status through affiliation with an upper caste.
Division of labour
As mentioned in the earlier part of the essay, the various castes are based traditionally on occupations. Each caste is designated specific jobs and these jobs are usually related to the level of purity. Therefore in a village community, no caste is self-sufficient and all have to rely on each another for daily affairs. Given the strictures of his caste, a Brahmin cannot therefore, engage in activities that are polluting. Therefore he must depend on the members of Vaishyas for food and members of Kshatriyas for protection. In the same way, work such as sweeping and removal of carcass can only be handle by members of Untouchables as they are the only ones that will not be polluted as it is part of their duties. As such, the caste system provided a well-knitted system of division labour that ensures that the village functions like a well-oiled machine.
Looking at it from another point of view, it can be said that it is the “clean” and “noble” occupation that gives a jati its higher ritual and social status, and “unclean” and “polluting” occupation relegates it to a lower status. The acquisition of learning, imparting knowledge, and priestly functions are “pure” and “noble”; they are thus supposed to give the Brahmins the highest. And the converse holds true with regard to the lower castes. Therefore the notions of clean and unclean, purity and pollution enter into intra- and inter-caste behaviour and interaction.
The difference between theory and practice
Though the Indian wide varna system places the Brahmins at the top of the hierarchy and the subsequent varnas in the prescribed order, and ordained that the various varnas and jatis behave accordingly, it is worthy to note that it may not be the case in reality.
Using the village of Korkkadu in south India as a case study, we can see that in a non-Brahminical village, the Brahmins do not necessary occupy the highest position. In this case instead, it is the landowner caste of the Reddiyars that occupies the highest position. And because Korkkadu is an agricultural village, the practiced hierarchy in the village depends largely on the involvement of the agricultural activities.
One thing to note however, the main difference is present in the higher castes. Even in the village of Korkkadu, there remains the segregation of the Untouchables who are responsible still, for the polluting and unclean jobs. Even so, as industrialisation and outside influences, like the international effort to clean up the lake in Korkkadu, come into play, we begin to see the declining influence of the caste system. None is more significant in the working together of various castes, in a communal participation in the Lake-clearing Project, and the high reverence of the MLA by all castes, eventhough he was from the Untouchable caste.
Conclusion
The caste system is an old age system that holds high importance in the Hindu society. To this day it is still very pervasive in rural Indian. Its comprehensiveness can be felt in its influence in almost of parts of the village life, often the most important parts. We can however observe an increase in strength of the counter-forces. As more and more of rural Indian comes into contact with outside influences, more importantly concepts of modernity and equality, such as that of which Korkkadu experienced, it is almost certain that sooner or later the caste system will lose its place, as it already had in urban India.
References
Dube S.C.. Indian Society. (New Delhi: National Book Trust, India, 1996)
Hutton, J.H.. Caste in India: Its Nature, Function, and Origins. (Oxford University Press, 1963)
Mathur, K.S.. Hindu Values of Life: Karma and Dharma in Madan, T.N et als ed. Religion in India (New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2000)
Wolpert, Stanley. India. (University of California Press, 1999)
Dictionary.com <>. (accessed 7/11/05)
Srinivas, M.N.. Some Reflections on Dowry. (Havard School of Public Health).
The Caste System in India.
Lecture materials provided by Dr. Niklas in lectures.
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