INTRODUCTION ON

CASTE SYSTEM
SUBMITTED BY: GIAN CARLO G. AGBULOS
CARBON-7
 WHAT IS CASTE SYSTEM?
 This is the Indian society developed into a complex system based on class and caste.

 Caste is based on the idea that there are separate kinds of humans.

 Higher-caste people consider themselves purer (closer to moksha) than lower-caste

people.

 There are five different levels in the Indian Caste system. (Brahman, Kshatriya,
Vaishya, Shrujra, and, Harijans.)
WHAT ARE THE FIVE DIFFERENT SOCIAL
CLASSES IN THE INDIAN CASTE SYSTEM?
• Brahmins- The highest caste within the General Category.
- Held the most power in Hindu society , they were priests, otherwise
known as the spiritual and intellectual leaders of the society.
• Kshatriyas- The second-highest of the four castes or varnas in traditional
Hindu society.
-They are the warrior or military caste, Rulers.
• Vaishya- The third Varna represented by agriculturalists, traders, money
lenders, and those involved in commerce.
• Shudra- The lowest rank varna. Traditionally includes artisans, laborers, and
servants.
• Harijians- An indian society, the former name for any member of a wide range
of low-caste Hindu groups and any person outside the caste system.
- They are also called the “Untouchable”
- Sweepers, washers of clothes, leatherworkers, and those whose
occupation it was to kill animals.
 WHEN DOES CASTE
SYSTEM BEGING IN INDIA?
 The caste system has existed in some
form in India for at least 3,000 years.
 It is a social hierarchy passed down
through families, and it can dictate
the professions a person can work in
as well as aspects of their social
lives, including whom they can
marry.
 HOW DOES CASTE WORK?

• 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.

• 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.
 CASTE SYSTEM IS A KINSHIP
• A caste (varna) is an intermarrying group
• Kinship; hereditary membership
• A caste eats together
• A high-caste Brahmin does not eat with someone of a lower caste; different diets for different
castes
• Divided by occupation: priest, warrior, merchant, peasant
• Legal status, rights based on caste membership
• Gandhi was refused permission to study in England
• Visible identifiers of caste
 WHERE DOES THIS SYSTEM COME
FROM?
• The earliest known mention of caste is found in the Aryan’s Vedic hymns,
perhaps dating from about 1000 B.C.E.
• In a famous passage, the metaphor of the human body was used to
describe Indian society.
• The brahman, or priestly, caste represents society's head; the kshatriya, or
warrior, caste are its arms; the vaishya caste—traders and landowners—
are the legs; and the sudra caste—the servants of the other three—are the
feet.
 WHERE DOES THIS SYSTEM COME
FROM?
• This metaphor stresses the idea of hierarchy as well as that of
interdependence.
• The word caste comes from the Portuguese word castas, meaning "pure."
This Portuguese word expresses one of the most central values of Indian
society: the idea of ritual purity. In India, however, the word varna, or
"color," denotes the fourfold division of Indian society. The word varna
may have been used because each of the four castes was assigned a
specific color as its emblem.