The Caste System

What is the Caste System?• A process of placing people in

occupational groups

• Dictates the type of job a person can pursue and the social interactions that they may have

• Four main classes (also called varnas) based originally on personality, profession, and birth

• People in a caste were not allowed to climb “higher”

Brahmana (Brahmin)• Priests who study the Vedas

• Viewed as middle men between gods and men

• Expected to show exemplary behavior

• Spend life in the pursuit of divine knowledge

Kshatriya• Members of the warrior class

• Commanded to protect the people

• Able to dispense justice when needed

Vaisyas• Merchant and peasant class

• Expected to tend to the cattle and cultivate the land

• Had the right to participate in certain Vedic rituals

• Not allowed to marry anyone of a higher class

Shudras• Labor class

• Duty was to serve the needs of the higher three classes

• Not allowed to study the Vedas or even hear the sacred chants

• Could not eat food in the presence of a member of a higher caste

Untouchables• Lived mostly on the edges of

society

• Could not walk the street at the same time where someone of a higher caste walked

• Their shadows were thought to be “unpure” and site of them was considered a bad sign

• Worked in graveyards, butchers, hunters, or cleaners of “waste”.

Today• How does the caste system of India differ from our

society today?

• Are there any elements of a caste system in our society?

• How would things be different IF we had a caste society?