Preview

The Hindu Caste System In Ancient India

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1036 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
The Hindu Caste System In Ancient India
One big element of Hinduism is the Caste System, a system where each person is in a caste and is given a designated duty. Over time, the caste system has had a great impact on the history Ancient India. A lot of that impact was positive. It creates both Job Specialization and Social Class, two main elements of Civilization. It’s what makes Hinduism a religion by maintaining social order. The Hindu Caste System was the best way of maintaining social order in Ancient India.

The Caste System originated in Ancient India. It is a system in Hinduism where everyone is born into a caste, and that caste has a duty to fulfill. By either fulfilling your duty or not, you can be born into a higher caste or a lower caste in your next life, respectively.
…show more content…
According to the Rig Veda (an ancient Hindu scripture), the primal man had broken himself apart into four parts to create human society. His head was used to create Brahmins. The Kshatriya were made from his hands, Vaishya from his thighs, and the Sudras from his feet. Others believe that they were created from the body parts of Brahma, who created the world. It actually started when the Aryans came to Ancient India in 1500 B.C. from Southern Europe. The Aryans split into three groups Brahmins, Kshatriya, and Vaishya. The locals became artisans and laborers, later known as the Sudras. (Aharon …show more content…
A person and their caste had a real strong bond. In rural communities, people of the same caste would be together a most of the time, they would be like brothers. Sometimes they acted as social and labor unions. They would unite and fight for a common purpose by giving a social insurance from unjust exploitation of labor and unsafe competition. They made sure that people had an appropriate and fair wage, and they also helped unemployed people find work. (Hindu Website n.p.) A person’s caste system also promised Social Security to Ancient Indians. A person’s caste supplied them with an occupation, health insurance, and support for big religious traditions like a funeral. People of the same Caste promoted unity and fraternity themselves, and they strengthened their bonds through marriage, friendships, and professional interaction. This type of tradition helped build a strong community and love between people of different castes. (Preserve Articles n.p.) Therefore, everyone is happy and it promotes the maintaining of social

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    What were the advantages of the caste system to the development of Indian societies during this time period? Why do you believe this system managed to persist for millennia?…

    • 438 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    There were two parts to the caste system: The Caste as Varna and the Caste as Jati. The function of the Caste system was that it was very local and so it focused loyalties on a restricted territory. It made empire building very difficult and the caste was like a substitute for the state. The caste provided some social security and support for widows, orphans etc. The caste was a means to accommodate the migrants and invaders. Last but not least the caste made it easier for the wealthy and powerful to exploit the poor. The caste system which used birth to place people into their sectors of the sacred hierarchy was closely tied to the Hindu religion. This system remained an integral part of Indian society for…

    • 479 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mesopotamia Social System

    • 773 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The Caste system is a way to categorize people in society by their ethnicity and job status. This was also hereditary and would pass from generation to generation. The caste system, though it shares the classes that many ancient civilizations followed, did not necessarily influence them at all. Some theorize that if that were the case others would have a more defined class system rather than based on wealth and status, which most of them did. Rather some historians theorize these caste came from a war and fighting with the Dravidians, the dominate group in that area.(aqrobatiq, 2015) How ever the system formed it stuck, with almost impossible odds against someone to change their caste in life. The Caste system formed out of the natural self organization that humans do when lacking a bureaucratic system in place like Egypt and Mesopotamia, The levels of the Caste system from top to bottom…

    • 773 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Chapter 3 review

    • 341 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The Caste System developed in India by a separation of the people due to the social hierarchy and the economical differences between them. Depending on their caste, the people were treated differently even though they lived side by side each other. The Caste system being developed allowed the “conquers” and the “conquered” to live in harmony.…

    • 341 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Classical India had a very complex system of hierarchy known as the caste system. The caste system developed during the Vedic and Epic ages and became steadily more complex as a way of dividing people into social classes. The caste system was racially based, so a person was born into a caste, or jati, with no way of changing his or her status individually. Whole jatis could raise their social standing, but violating rules…

    • 691 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Hinduism Study Guide

    • 511 Words
    • 3 Pages

    * Caste system- divides people into separate social groups that have varying rights, responsibilities, professions, and statuses…

    • 511 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Notes

    • 466 Words
    • 2 Pages

    ·Caste System- The Aryan system of social classes in India and one of the cornerstones of Hinduism in…

    • 466 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Classical India did not develop the solid political traditions and institutions of Chinese civilization, nor the high level of political interest that would characterize classical Greece and Rome. The most persistent political features of India in the classical period involved regionalism. Regionalism has been the most potent force in Indian politics since India’s Independence and remains the basis of regional political parties. Autocratic kings and emperors spotted the history of classical India, but there were also aristocratic assemblies in some regional states with the power to decide on major issues. The characteristic Indian caste system began to take shape during the Vedic and Epic ages. It became more complex after the Epic Age, as the five initial castes subdivided until almost 300 castes. The caste system was an important social bond across most of the subcontinent. The caste system consists of five levels. The Brahmins are the highest which consist of priests. The next level is Kshatriuas which are warriors and rulers. The middle of the caste system is the Vaisyas which are skilled traders, merchants, and minor officials. Then there are the Sudras which are the unskilled workers, and the lowest of all the Parian (Harijans) which are outcastes, or the untouchables. To a great extent, the caste system and religious encouragement to the faithful performance of caste duties did more for Indian life than more usual government structures did in other cultures. Unlike Greece and…

    • 687 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Thereafter a rigid social structure called the caste system was created; it included the Brahmins at the top as kings and priests, and The Untouchables at the bottom as poor, street cleaners. Within the system, there is no social mobility. The people couldn't move up a caste within their lifetime. A devoted follower was expected to marry, socialize, and work within their caste. The Brahmins were the most educated caste and typically held political positions. The caste system created an unequal society with a dominant hierarchy that benefitted the Brahmins and oppressed the Shudras and Untouchables. In Hinduism the only way to advance socially was through reincarnation; by following dharma Hindus with good karma could be reincarnated into a higher caste. The creation of the caste system created social order by encouraging people to follow the rules of their caste for fear of being reincarnated into a lower status. Therefore Hinduism’s belief impacted the social and political decisions made in…

    • 521 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    An hour passed. While trotting along, she crosses some worn and rusty train tracks. Weeds and grasses were sprouting between the spaces. It was obvious people weren't using them anymore. Faustina didn't even know they had trains running through this area. The railroads are on her map but her house is not.…

    • 601 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In caste systems people are placed into pre-determined situations such as work or marriage purely based on who they have been born to and what their families have done for a living.…

    • 444 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Hindu Caste System

    • 867 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Throughout thousands of years in the Hindu religion, a person’s social class was determined immediately after they are born. This organisation was then later known as the Caste System. Caste members lived, married, and worked within their selected group. A person born into one caste was not allowed to change castes or associate with other members of a different caste. Rules and expectations were set for each caste, each caste had a clear and distinct role within the community. It does not allow for upward mobility in society the Caste System is made up of four different castes; the highest among Hindu society were the Brahmins or priests, for the members of this caste it is essential that they keep themselves pure since they handle…

    • 867 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hinduism Paper

    • 768 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Hinduism does not have a set orthodoxy, but there are several main beliefs that share a commonality among the different sects. The caste system is one of the oldest principles of Hinduism, an aspect as much religious as it is social. According to Hindu teaching, there are four basic social classes, or castes. Each social order has its own rules and obligation for living. The select few are the Brahman, or priest caste. Second are the warriors and rulers, the Kshatriyas. Third are the Vaisyas, or merchants and farmers. Finally, the fourth caste is the Shudras, or laborers. Existing outside of the caste system are the untouchables, the outcasts of society. One does not get choose to enter his or her caste, rather, that is decided according to what family the person is born into.…

    • 768 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    This essay explores the origins and functions of the Hindu caste system, its correlation to the Hindu religion, and its impact on the Hindu society and culture. My research concludes with a progression of expanding world views, which are changing the way most Indians view themselves in relation to the world around them.…

    • 1821 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hinduism Impact On India

    • 659 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Hinduism impacted India greatly with the caste system and it's…

    • 659 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays