Caste: Oxford India short introductions

International Journal of Novel Research and Development, 2018

This paper examines the complexity of the interconnection of varna and caste systems in Indian society. It reflects the complexities of the traditions of different caste groups and the system that regulates their relationship with each other. It will also reflect on the modes where they turn slightly flexible and become harshly rigid. The concept of community no longer exists. However, it is a stronger claim but is made while stressing the importance of the social Purushārtha Sādhana. Both terms (caste and varna) are used interchangeably. However, a question regarding their meaning would need an entire book to be written. Both words are too ambiguous, especially for non-Indians or non-Hindus, though everyone, including Hindus and Indians, may find it challenging to distinguish between them.

Bryan S. Turner (ed.) The Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Social Theory, New York: Wiley Blackwell, 2017

This entry discusses the transformation of caste in the Indian context. The entry starts with a discussion of the Indological and anthropological accounts of caste and then examines whether “caste” is essentially unique to Hinduism. Furthermore, the entry discusses the possibility of mobility within the ritual hierarchy of caste. In the final section, the entry shows how caste, once described by the Christian missionaries and the colonial state as an irrational traditional institution, has transformed into a modern entity and become a vital instrument of democratic mobilization in contemporary India.

International Journal of Research in Social Sciences, 2015

Hierarchy and inequality are deeply rooted in Indian tradition. They are found in practice in the form of unequal placement of caste and class groups in the civilizing system of Indian society. The notions of dharma (normative order), karma (personnel moral commitment) and jāti (caste) that constitute the basic principles of Indian culture, making the Indian cultural tradition a unique cultural tradition, are also the principles of hierarchy and social stratification. In this paper, an attempt has been made to present a comprehensive and investigative view of different scholars concerning the deep-rooted traditional characteristics of caste in Indian society.

PURVADEVA, Peer Revied Bilingual International Research Journal, 2022

The caste system categorizes people into various hierarchical levels, which determine and define their social, religious, and hegemonic standings within the society. The caste system has also maintained a nexus and a sense of community for caste members for more than 2,000 years. A classic example of the caste system is the one found in India, which has existed there for hundreds of years. The caste system in India was traditionally a graded hierarchy based on a purity-pollution scale; it has undergone many changes over the years. After India’s independence, there has been a de-ritualization of caste, and it has moved toward being a community based on affinity or kinship rather than representing a fixed hierarchy. The association of each caste with a distinct occupation has weakened considerably, and inter-caste marriages across different ritual strata, even crossing the Varna boundaries, are not uncommon. In present day society because of industrialization, urbanization, modern education system, modern means of transport and communication, remarkable changes have been experienced in features of caste system, such as occupation, marriage, food, drink, social intercourse etc. But at the same time there are some factors like emergence of political parties, method of election, constitutional provision for S.C., S.T. and other backward classes have gradually encouraged the problem of casteism in India. So, it is difficult to predict about the future of caste system in India. In this context, I am trying to find out the present position and future of Indian caste system. The aim of this paper is to understand the continuity and the changes in the caste system in India.

Dhaulagiri Journal of Sociology and Anthropology, 7: 51-86. , 2013

Isara solutions, 2023

Present paper highlights the very beginning of the caste system. It presents the caste system during pre independence Indian society as well as in the post independence Indian society. It also highlights the changes brought in caste and society from time to time. The transformation in society has been presented in the current paper making caste as the base. The four Varnas based on Hindu mythology are discussed in the paper. An attempt has been made to bring into light the origin and the starting of this caste system in society and transformation in it from time to time. Keywords: caste, society, social barrier, transformation in caste system, social change. Etc. In India, the caste system has existed from the beginning of time. The Indian caste system has historically been used to distinguish between members of various tribes. Given that the Indian Caste System is a closed system of stratification, a person's social standing is determined by the caste they were born into. Interaction and conduct with those of a lower social position are constrained. The caste system has been changed and varied over and again in the past. This study will highlight the role of patriarchy in caste and class distinction in India, as well as present the Indian caste system and its prevalence post-independence to the present. A caste is a group of families or a collection of families with the same name, who claim to be descended from a mythical ancestor (either human or divine), who claim to follow the same hereditary calling, and who are seen by those with the authority to form judgments as constituting a single homogeneous community. B.R. Ambadkar in his article endorses M. Senart's description of caste as "a close corporation in theory at any rate rigorously hereditary; equipped with a certain traditional and independent organization including a chief and a council, meeting on occasion in assemblies of more or less plenary authority and joining together at certain festivals: bound together by common occupations, which relate more particularly to marriage and to food and to question of ceremonial pollution, and ruling it member by the exercise of jurisdiction the extent of which varies, but which succeeds in making the authority of the community more felt by the sanction of certain penalties and above all by final irrevocable exclusion from the group." (The Surplus Man and Woman) He further says, "According to well-known ethnologists, the population of India is a mixture of Aryans, Dravidians, Mongolians and Scythians. All these stocks of people came into India from various directions and with various cultures, centuries ago, when they were in a tribal state. They all in turn elbowed their entry into the country by fighting with their predecessors, and after a stomachful of it settled down as peaceful neighbours. Through constant contact and mutual intercourse they evolved a common culture that superseded their distinctive cultures. It may be granted that there has not been a thorough amalgamation of the various stocks that make up the

The Caste System of India has played an integral role in the shaping of Indian Society. With time and under diverse circumstances, it has changed its form and role, fulfilling different functions while evolving. The aim of this paper is to briefly track the evolution of the Caste System within Indian society focusing on how its role has changed, especially in a contemporary Indian setting.

International Journal of Research and Analytical Reviews (IJRAR), 2020

The caste system is prevalent in India since time immemorial. The Indian caste system is historically seen as a method of differentiation between people from different groups. The Indian Caste System is considered a closed system of stratification, which means that a person's social status is obligated to which caste they were born into. There are limits on interaction and behaviour with people from another social status (Sekhon 39). The caste system has been changed and altered time and again in the past. This research would limit its scope on studying the history of the Indian caste system and the prevalence of caste system post-independence till date. We study the history of the Indian Caste system in the first half, followed by the research question-Has there been any significant change in the caste system of India after independence till today? If so, how? 1.INTRODUCTION. Risley defines caste as "a collection of families or group of families bearing a common name; claiming a common descent from a mythical ancestor, human or divine; professing to follow the same hereditary calling; and regarded by those who are competent to give an opinion as forming a single homogeneous community" (Hutton 47). The Indian caste system is divided into four varnas. The two upper castes dominate over the lower castes and are consider ed to be superior. The Brahmins are at the top, followed by the Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras. The Brahmin class is essentially defined by its supposed priority (as the class created first by the creator god), by knowledge of the Veda, and by the monopoly this class holds on the operation of sacrifice. These traits justify the social position of the class vis-à-vis others: they are predominant because they are prior, and they claim to stand outside of the power relations that govern social life for others because of their superior knowledge and sole possession of the ultimate "weapons," sacrificial techniques (Smith 48). There are certain characteristics of the Indian caste system with which discrimination and social stratification is fixed. Castes have other sub castes or jatis. People of these sub castes earned their livelihood from a particular occupation. For instance, Brahmins were the upper castes, but there were varying degrees of Brahmins such as Tamil Brahmins, Tanjore etc. "A society is characterized by such a system if it is divided into a large number of hereditarily specialized groups, which are hierarchically superposed and mutually opposed. It does not tolerate the principle of rising in the status of groups' mixture and of changing occupation". (Velassery 2) There are many rules and barriers a person needs to adhere to in order to breathe in the society. Not adhering to these rules and practices resulted in exclusion from the caste as well as from there own families. 2.HIERARCHY OF CASTE SYSTEM Hierarchy and occupational specialisation are one of the most important and major elements of the Indian caste system. Rules regarding endogamy and occupation were very strict. A person is not allowed to marry outside their own caste or sub caste. Every sub caste had an occupation and the person is bound to that particular occupation. A no tolerance policy was followed in mixing of higher castes with the lower castes. There were rules regarding the level of interaction between people of different castes. There was than the concept of purity and pollution. Mere touch of a Shudra or an untouchable to a person of a higher caste was termed as polluting the individual of the higher caste.