Social Differences: Within and Beyond the Framework of Caste

The idea of caste — varna — is a set of hierarchically ordered social categories. The Dharmasutras and Dharmashastras laid down the ideal order. Brahmanas claimed this order was divinely ordained, with themselves ranked first and groups classified as Shudras and “untouchables” at the very bottom. A person’s position within this order was supposedly determined by birth.

The “right” occupation

The Dharmasutras and Dharmashastras also prescribed the ideal occupations for each of the four varnas:

• Brahmanas: Study and teach the Vedas, perform sacrifices and get sacrifices performed, give and receive gifts.
• Kshatriyas: Engage in warfare, protect people and administer justice, study the Vedas, get sacrifices performed, and make gifts.
• Vaishyas: The same three “occupations” as Kshatriyas (study Vedas, get sacrifices performed, make gifts), plus agriculture, pastoralism and trade.
• Shudras: Only one occupation — serving the three “higher” varnas.

The Brahmanas used three strategies to enforce these norms. First, they asserted that the varna order was of divine origin. Second, they advised kings to ensure these norms were followed within their kingdoms. Third, they attempted to persuade people that their status was determined by birth. This was not always easy, so prescriptions were often reinforced by stories told in the Mahabharata and other texts.

To justify their claims, Brahmanas cited a verse from the Purusha sukta hymn in the Rigveda. This hymn describes the sacrifice of Purusha, the primeval man, from whose body all elements of the universe — including the four social categories — emanated: the Brahmana was his mouth, the Kshatriya his arms, the Vaishya his thighs, and the Shudra his feet.

A story from the Adi Parvan of the Mahabharata illustrates how these norms were enforced. Drona, a Brahmana who taught archery to the Kuru princes, refused to teach Ekalavya, a forest-dwelling nishada (a hunting community). Ekalavya practised on his own and became highly skilled. When Drona discovered this, he demanded Ekalavya’s right thumb as his fee. Ekalavya cut it off and offered it, ensuring that Drona’s favourite student Arjuna remained unrivalled.

Non-Kshatriya kings

According to the Shastras, only Kshatriyas could be kings. However, several important ruling lineages probably had different origins. The social background of the Mauryas has been hotly debated — later Buddhist texts suggested they were Kshatriyas, but Brahmanical texts described them as being of “low” origin. The Shungas and Kanvas, immediate successors of the Mauryas, were Brahmanas. Political power was effectively open to anyone who could muster support and resources, and rarely depended on birth as a Kshatriya.

Other rulers, such as the Shakas who came from Central Asia, were regarded as mlechchhas (barbarians or outsiders) by the Brahmanas. Yet one of the earliest inscriptions in Sanskrit describes how Rudradaman, the best-known Shaka ruler (c. second century CE), rebuilt the Sudarshana lake. This suggests that powerful mlechchhas were familiar with Sanskritic traditions.

The Satavahana ruler Gotami-puta Siri-Satakani claimed to be both a unique Brahmana (eka bamhana) and a destroyer of the pride of Kshatriyas. He also claimed to have ensured no intermarriage amongst members of the four varnas. Yet he entered into a marriage alliance with the kin of Rudradaman. Integration within the framework of caste was often a complicated process. The Satavahanas claimed to be Brahmanas, whereas according to the Brahmanas, kings ought to have been Kshatriyas. They claimed to uphold the fourfold varna order but entered into marriage alliances with people supposed to be excluded from the system, and they practised endogamy instead of the exogamous system recommended in Brahmanical texts.

Jatis and social mobility

Another term used in texts to refer to social categories is jati. In Brahmanical theory, jati, like varna, was based on birth. However, while the number of varnas was fixed at four, there was no restriction on the number of jatis. Whenever Brahmanical authorities encountered new groups — for instance, people living in forests such as the nishadas — or wanted to assign a name to occupational categories such as the goldsmith (suvarnakara), which did not easily fit into the fourfold varna system, they classified them as a jati.

Jatis which shared a common occupation or profession were sometimes organised into shrenis or guilds. One interesting stone inscription (c. fifth century CE) from Mandasor (Madhya Pradesh) records the history of a guild of silk weavers who originally lived in Lata (Gujarat). They migrated to Mandasor (then Dashapura) with their children and kinfolk because they had heard about the greatness of the local king. The inscription provides a fascinating glimpse of complex social processes. Although membership was based on a shared craft specialisation, some members adopted other occupations. The members shared more than a common profession — they collectively decided to invest their wealth to construct a splendid temple in honour of the sun god. The inscription also describes how some silk weavers were intensely attached to music, others were proud of writing biographies, some were absorbed in religious discourses, others excelled in their own religious rites, some mastered Vedic astronomy, and others were valorous in battle.

Beyond the four varnas: Integration

There were always populations whose social practices were not influenced by Brahmanical ideas. When they figure in Sanskrit texts, they are often described as odd, uncivilised, or even animal-like. These included forest-dwellers for whom hunting and gathering remained an important means of subsistence — categories such as the nishada, to which Ekalavya belonged. Others viewed with suspicion included nomadic pastoralists, who could not be easily accommodated within the framework of settled agriculturists. Sometimes those who spoke non-Sanskritic languages were labelled as mlechchhas and looked down upon.

There was nonetheless a sharing of ideas and beliefs between these people. A story from the Adi Parvan of the Mahabharata illustrates this. The Pandavas were fleeing through the forest when a man-eating rakshasa sent his sister Hidimba to capture them. She fell in love with Bhima and proposed to him. Bhima killed the rakshasa, and Yudhisthira agreed to the marriage on condition that Bhima would return every night. Hidimba gave birth to a rakshasa boy named Ghatotkacha, who promised to return to the Pandavas whenever they needed him. Some historians suggest that the term rakshasa is used to describe people whose practices differed from those laid down in Brahmanical texts.

Subordination and conflict

While the Brahmanas considered some people as being outside the system, they also developed a sharper social divide by classifying certain social categories as “untouchable”. This rested on a notion that certain activities, especially those connected with the performance of rituals, were sacred and by extension “pure”. Those who considered themselves pure avoided taking food from those they designated as “untouchable”. In sharp contrast, some activities were regarded as particularly “polluting”, including handling corpses and dead animals. Those who performed such tasks, designated as chandalas, were placed at the very bottom of the hierarchy. Their touch and, in some cases, even seeing them was regarded as “polluting” by those who claimed to be at the top of the social order.

The Manusmriti laid down the “duties” of the chandalas. They had to live outside the village, use discarded utensils, and wear clothes of the dead and ornaments of iron. They could not walk about in villages and cities at night. They had to dispose of the bodies of those who had no relatives and serve as executioners. Much later, the Chinese Buddhist monk Fa Xian (c. fifth century CE) wrote that “untouchables” had to sound a clapper in the streets so that people could avoid seeing them. Another Chinese pilgrim, Xuan Zang (c. seventh century), observed that executioners and scavengers were forced to live outside the city. …