CASTE SYSTEM

Hindus believe in reincarnation, and they believe that their behavior in life determines their future births. Hinduism is about living with karma, which is "what one does", a deed. And a person's karma is deposited within his or her soul, or "atman", leading to their future fruition. In other words good deeds lead to good, and bad deeds lead to bad. Human beings are thought to be the highest life form, and if they do bad, they can be reborn as something other than human.

The most notable example of karma fruition is in next life rebirth, which is where "caste" comes into play.  This spiritual understanding of soul, rebirth, retribution in karma formed the foundation of an justification for a hierarchical social order.  It is believed that an individual who does his/her proper duty creates the karma to move up in the caste system, and if everyone does what they need to do according to their duties, the world will be a peaceful place. "Samsara" is the world of rebirth, and by doing everything as it should be done, you can be reborn to a higher caste, or if you're female, be reborn as a male. Eventually, if you've done everything correctly in life, you can escape the cycle of rebirth and reach "moksha", or release.

This whole idea of karma and caste was created by the wealthy to keep the lower class people at the bottom. It’s an elite teaching.  Many untouchables in India have never even heard of the idea of Karma!

The hierarchical levels of the caste system are as follows in order of importance from top to bottom:
1. Brahmins: this caste included the priests, teachers, and judges.
2. Kshatriya (KUH SHAT REE YUHZ), the warrior caste.
3. The Vaisya caste (VEEZ YUHZ) were the farmers and merchants
4. Sudras were craftworkers and laborers.
5. Untouchables were the people who were outside the caste system, and were outcasts in society.

Untouchables did work that people within the caste system considered “dirty” or “impure”.  These jobs included any job that involved ending a life, such as being a butcher or fisherman, working with the hides of dead cattle, or those that included coming in contact with human emissions, such as sweat, urine, or feces.  These jobs included street sweepers and removal of sewage.  Untouchables also ate meat, which is considered impure in the caste system, as most Hindus are vegetarian.
 
Untouchables were not allowed to enter temples or attend school, and they were forbidden from collecting water from the town wells where higher-caste people collected water. There were some people in India who were employed to shield Brahmins from the sight of untouchables, because they believed that even looking at an untouchable would “pollute” them. 

Today the Caste System is “illegal” in India.  However, it still continues to play a large role in the lives of people in India and Nepal today.  People from lower castes, especially in rural villages have very little chance of ever escaping the stigma of the Caste System.  Although the Indian government has provided the untouchables with specific employment privileges, and granted them special representation in the Indian parliament, these people continue to face significant discrimination within society and have far fewer educational and employment opportunities than those from higher castes.  Many people attempt to compare the caste system with the poverty we see in the United States and other countries in rural areas or the cities.  It is however, very different, as in India and Nepal, caste is deeply integrated into society.  For example, people are expected to marry from within their own caste, and there is still deep stigma placed upon people who attempt to marry outside of their own caste.

Click HERE for a link to a more in-depth article about the Caste System for teacher background.

The following are some exellent links to YouTube video clips that show how the Caste System still plays a major role in India today. With the use of an LCD projector, these clips will be an excellent tool for helping students understand how the Caste System is embedded into the Indian and Nepali societies.

Ideology: Indian Caste System
Hinduism, the Caste System Misunderstood
India's Caste System
Hinduism: Racism in USA vs. Caste System in India, Part 2