Understanding Caste: Common Misconceptions

• The purpose of the class is to learn about misconceptions about caste and reflect on an understanding of caste today.
• There are seven misconceptions about caste, each presented as a true or false statement.

Untrue Statements About Caste

• The caste into which one is born determines one's occupation.
• Caste designations are changeless.
• Everyone called by the same caste name is related to everyone else called by that same caste name.
• Castes are uniquely Hindu.
• Castes have been abolished.
• Statements with a cross next to them are completely false.

Caste & Occupation

• The varna system of ancient law books prescribe the occupations that each varna has to follow.
• People in the same caste engage in different occupations.
• Caste names not always correlate with the profession of the individual.
• The Dharmashastras divide society into four varnas and assert that everybody must follow the dharma of their varna
• During times of emergency or acute distress, people can follow the duties of other varnas.
• A Brahmana may receive Vedic instruction from a non-Brahmana, walk behind him, and obey him, but after the study is completed, the Brahmana becomes the more honourable of the two.
• One may teach and officiate at the sacrifices of, and receive gifts from people of all classes, with each preceding occupation being more honourable.
• When these occupations are unavailable, one may live by the occupations of a Kshatriya, and when even these are unavailable, by the occupations of a Vaishya.

Caste Designations

• Many instances of castes changing their caste names and behavior in order to receive advantageous treatment.
• Caste groups moving to a different area and being given a new caste name in that area, such as Chettiar (merchant) and Pahari (mountain people).
• The Chettiars originated from Chettinad in Tamil Nadu and are formally referred to as the Nattukottai Chettiars or Nagarathars.
• Nattukottai means “people with palatial houses in the countryside", while Nagarathars refer to "city dwellers, traders and temple-based people" in Tamil.
• The Chettiars were traditionally merchants and traders in precious stones but later became involved in banking and moneylending activities.
• They emigrated from India to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), Burma (now Myanmar), and Malaya (now Malaysia and Singapore).
• In 1999, at the age of 15, Siddhant Paswan, a Dalit, became Siddhant Kumar to avoid caste discrimination when it came to joining the job queue.

Hierarchical Patterns

• Castes relate to each other in mutually accepted hierarchical patterns.
• In any given locality some castes might differ from other castes in their opinion about what the "correct" local hierarchical patterns are.
• Disputes regarding the “correct" local hierarchy frequently occur and caste rankings can also change over time.

Caste Name & Family

• Everyone called by the same caste name is related to everyone else called by that same caste name.
• Some castes whose members make pots, that are called “potters" by those around them are not related to all other castes called "potters."
• Surnames, like "Ambani", are not an indication of family relation.

Caste & Religion

• Castes are uniquely Hindu.
• Castes exist among other faiths such as Jains and Sikhs.
• If meaning of caste is seen as regulations around marriage and interaction with other groups in society, then caste exists outside Hinduism.
• Marrying within one's caste and avoiding interaction with other castes are as strict among Jains and Christians as they are among Hindus.
• Hinduism legitimizes preferential treatment according to caste.
• The Bhakti movement is against such preferential treatment.
• Alternative religious and non-religious movements have criticized preferential treatment according to caste such as Buddhism and people like E. V. Ramamswamy Naicker.
• The Buddha maintained that all four castes are equal and described the brahmanas' claim to superiority as an empty boast.
• The Buddha described the goals in life of the three upper castes and made no mention of the goals of the sudras. In other words, the Buddha ignored the Sudras.

E.V. Ramaswamy Naicker

• E.V. Ramaswamy Naicker was born into a Hindu trading family.
• On a pilgrimage to Varanasi, in 1904, he observed certain rituals that made him say that Hinduism was Brahmanical exploitation.
• He was one of the leaders who took part in the Vaikom Satyagraha around Sree Mahadeva Temple in Kerala in 1924-1925.

Caste Abolishment

• Castes have been abolished.
• India's constitution declares that "untouchability" is abolished and anyone discriminating against "untouchables" can be prosecuted.
• India's constitution says nothing about abolishing castes.
• Similarly, in the United States discrimination on the grounds of race or gender has been declared illegal.
• The United States has no laws abolishing race or gender.