Emergence of a New Caste System
Caste is an integral part of identity for any regular Indian. While we are mostly aware about its present connotations, the origins of caste system is still shrouded in mystery. Most of us have been fed this theory that caste emerged from the varna system as mentioned in the Rigveda . We are also told how the original varna system was not based on birth, rather it was rooted in occupation i.e. the learned scholars became Brahmins , the warriors were the Kshatriyas , the businessmen became Vaishyas and the service class came to be called the Shudras . Later this system gradually transformed into one based on birth. However, any curious mind would wonder how exactly did this transformation take place? In course of reading some sociology I came across a very interesting explanation for this by an Indian sociologist Andre Beteille. In this blog I will write about how this transformation took place and how we may be witnessing the same phenomenon all over again with the evolution of new