Why caste system in hinduism

At the top of the hierarchy were the Brahmins who were mainly teachers and intellectuals and are believed to have come from Brahma's head. Then came the Kshatriyas, or the warriors and rulers, supposedly from his arms. The third slot went to the Vaishyas, or the traders, who were created from his thighs.

At the bottom of the heap were the Shudras, who came from Brahma's feet and did all the menial jobs. The main castes were further divided into about 3, castes and 25, sub-castes, each based on their specific occupation. Outside of this Hindu caste system were the achhoots - the Dalits or the untouchables. For centuries, caste has dictated almost every aspect of Hindu religious and social life, with each group occupying a specific place in this complex hierarchy.

Rural communities have long been arranged on the basis of castes - the upper and lower castes almost always lived in segregated colonies, the water wells were not shared, Brahmins would not accept food or drink from the Shudras, and one could marry only within one's caste. The system bestowed many privileges on the upper castes while sanctioning repression of the lower castes by privileged groups.

Often criticised for being unjust and regressive, it remained virtually unchanged for centuries, trapping people into fixed social orders from which it was impossible to escape.

The Brahmins — the top caste — are to be the priests and academic leaders, and the Kshatriyas are assigned as warriors and politicians. The Vaishyas are to be merchants and farmers, and the Shudras are the servants and unskilled laborers. Below these four recognized castes, you can find the Dalits. The beliefs embedded in the caste system are powerful — if a Dalit is seen touching public drinking water, the water is immediately considered contaminated. Facing much discrimination and ostracisim, many Dalits live with great levels of fear and uncertainty.

The caste system has a tight grasp on social structure in India and Nepal. Jati: The Caste System in India. Authors: Donald Johnson, Jean Johnson. Additional Background Reading on Asia. Student Jerry Tian gives us his perspective. North Korea: Looking Beyond the Stereotypes.

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Yengde did not go to just any school. His parents enrolled him in a Christian school in Nanded, where caste mattered, but far less than it did in government institutions. His grades served as the gateway to higher education at the University of Mumbai, where he benefited from India's system of affirmative action in admissions for Dalits and other lower castes.

After a brief stay in Mumbai, Yengde received a scholarship to continue his education in England, where he received a master's of law degree from Birmingham City University in He earned his doctorate at the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa. He came to Harvard in to finish his dissertation. Look around," Yendge says. African American authors Michelle Alexander and Isabel Wilkerson have compared casteism to America's Jim Crow laws , the system of strict segregation that once reigned in the American South.

But caste is far more ancient — about 3, years old — and was enshrined in a religion from the start. In contrast, American supporters of slavery interpreted biblical texts to justify racism and slavery. Related: Does America have a caste system? Under India's constitution, caste discrimination is illegal. But Dalits in many towns and villages in India and Nepal are expected to drink from separate water holes and fountains, to eat at separate lunch and dinner tables away from upper caste Indians and are usually buried in separate graveyards, for fear they will pollute the air.

They also live in separate, deeply-segregated neighborhoods, like one in Nanded. Walking with local leaders through a neighborhood lined with corrugated tin roofed houses, barely standing up side by side, curious residents pour out of darkened alleyways to see what's going on. Dozens of attentive young men, identified as activists, students and local tough guys follow closely behind Yengde and Rahul Pradhan, the leader of the local chapter of the Young Panthers.

Open electric wires cross over clothes lines like pretzels, sparking when two touch. White, thin plastic tubing runs parallel on the surface of foul-smelling sewers clogged with human waste, paper and discarded bits of everything.