What is the caste system BBC Bitesize?
Varna (or caste) A caste is a group within Hindu society. The group a Hindu is born into can decide what jobs they may get and what their duties are in life. Some aspects of this concept are controversial because they raise human rights issues about fairness and equality in Hindu societies today.
What is a caste system in sociology?
A caste system is one in which people are born into their social standing and will remain in it their whole lives. People are assigned occupations regardless of their talents, interests, or potential.
Who created the caste system?
According to this theory, the caste system began with the arrival of the Aryans in India. The Aryans arrived in India around 1500 BC. The fair skinned Aryans arrived in India from south Europe and north Asia. Before the Aryans there were other communities in India of other origins.
What are the basic elements of the caste system?
Caste is an elaborate and complex social system that combines some or all elements of endogamy, hereditary transmission of occupation, social class, social identity, hierarchy, exclusion, and power.
What does the caste system in India mean?
Many people believe that the caste system in India is based on the ancient Hindu varna system, and that this means that some people are better than others. Some Hindus believe that below the varna system is another category of people, called ‘the untouchables’ (known as dalit in India).
Where did the four castes of Hinduism come from?
The four castes were an ancient Hindu idea. Each caste was thought to originate from a part of Brahma’s body – Brahmins from his head, Kshatriyas from his arms, Vaishyas from his thighs and Shudras from his feet:
Which is the most authoritative book on Hindu caste system?
Manusmriti, widely regarded to be the most important and authoritative book on Hindu law and dating back to at least 1,000 years before Christ was born, “acknowledges and justifies the caste system as the basis of order and regularity of society”. The caste system divides Hindus into four main categories – Brahmins,…
Who are the Brahmins in the Indian caste system?
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.
