RIFLE RANGE BOY: revisit

CASTE IS NOT HINDU

'Caste is a Construct of the Colonial Invaders'

Authors: Guruji Sundara Raj Anatha, Aykshya Simrhen Raj, Pardip Kumar Kukreja.

If anything life has taught us, it is this. People are narcissistic and egoistic. People try to understand everything but are unwilling to accept that things are way more complicated than an average man can comprehend. We are all guilty of cognitive dissonance and suffer from the Duning-Kruger effect, overestimating our competence.

People always try to dominate each other and clamour for the joy and privileges of being in power and a leader. Those in the higher rung of the hierarchy are pretty comfortably perched high up, looking down at the mere mortals. Those stranded at the lower perch of the food chain are gaslighted to be convinced that they are there because of their own doing. Their leaders want to maintain the status quo to ensure their position and conserve their high status.

A house cat, quite comfortable not needing to hunt for its daily meal, will want to maintain its amount of pampering. No one in the correct state of mind, enjoying the fruits of affirmative action, will want to, surrender his privileges willingly.

With this background knowledge, one has to critically look at this book, 'Caste is Not Hindu'.

Before the 16th century, India/Bharat was a self-sustaining subcontinent. Its social architecture created a steady state where science prospered, societal order was maintained, and its cultural influences went beyond its shores. Monetary support for mega-projects was handled by trade guilds within the public domain.

Unbeknownst to India, the rest of the world, from the land of barbarians, was awakening from their deep slumbers. Their idea of civilisation was not mutual respect but mercantilism and exploitative colonisation. India mesmerised them with its mysticism, immense wealth and welcoming nature. India soon fell prey to their maverick Machiavellian tactics. The colonisers masterminded a devious plan to justify their takeover of the nation.

The contemporary world of Hindu scholars suggests that European conquerors extrapolated their society's 'Sistema de Casta' division to India. The Europeans had earlier subdivided their own people to put royalty, clergymen and aristocrats at the top of the pecking order. The rest of the people, the craftsman and labourers, were the low-ranking serfs. The conquerors felt they needed to understand the social structures of the natives. It was too complicated for these simpletons.

The Indians had a complex societal structure system. They had varnas and jatis. Varnas referred to an individual's innate aptitude - whether he was scholarly, one who exhibits and utilises his physical attributes, good with business skills or a doer, i.e. a worker. This is not determined by one's birth, and he does not have to stick to his family's profession. Hindu scriptures are abundant with tales of scholars from tribal groups and learned men from princely families. Vyasa, the author of Ramayana, was born to a fisherwoman, Satyavati. Siddartha Gautama, a prince, became a preacher. King Ravana was a Brahmin, even though he mastered martial arts, as well as art, music and culture. Of course, we all know of Ambedkar, a Dalit who masterminded the Indian Constitution after securing multiple degrees from premier universities in the UK and the USA. How do you classify a man born Brahmin (as per the British set caste system) who gets an MBA (scholar), and works as a CEO (a businessman) in a conglomerate that sells leather shoes, e.g. Bally? Traditionally in the British Raj, a casteless person works with carcasses and leather.

Even within a family, one can notice that children of the same parents have different interests. Some can be studious, athletic or boisterous, while others will do what they are told.

Book launch by
H.E. High Comm of India to Malaysia.

Jatis refer to a professional group. This guild of craftsmen, smiths and merchants identified themselves together for the betterment of their professions. It was a way to explore their little nuances in improving their trade. For example, there was a group called Parrayars, who specialised in playing the war drums. With modern warfare, their work became redundant. They became drum players at funerals.

Looking at such a complex societal admixture that was self-sustaining puzzled the visitors. They tried to make sense of the whole setup. Their first attempt at this was the 1872 Indian National Census. It became a social engineering tool highlighting caste, religion, profession and age. No matter how hard the British system tried to make sense of the arrangement, they became more confused and created more castes and sub-castes.

Many professionals of ancient India were out of work during British Raj. In other words, they became casteless. The British created a new caste called 'the untouchables'.

Another strategy is their plan to 'divide and rule' is the creation of enemies within the society. At the same time, the British had to justify their positions as conquerors. The Aryan Migration Theory just covered the grounds so fittingly.

A highly cultured band of fair-skinned erudite steppes men from Central Asia allegedly infiltrated the land beyond the Sindhu River, bringing Hinduism to send locals south. They also brought in the Sanskrit language and all the rituals associated with Hinduism.

Down south, a schism developed between the priestly caste and the ordinary people. The priests were viewed as invaders trying to control the locals. That, combined with politics, was a sure way to create unrest. It worked just well for the feranghis (foreigners). Feuding brothers are easier to control.

Akin to the fair skin foreigners bringing in culture and wisdom to Bharat, the British portray themselves as God-sent saviours to educate and civilise Indians from 'ignorance' and 'illiteracy' by the European-Christian standards.

The extensive kurukkal system of India that served the nation for ages was dismantled as they were deemed archaic. English was introduced as the medium of instruction, as suggested by MacCaulay's Indian Education Memorandum. The real reason for this move is for the colonised to view their own culture as inferior to that of Europeans. And the European languages were linked to Sanskrit, the foreign language that was brought into India.

Thomas Babington Macaulay

Besides controlling its economy, the other ulterior motive was to proselytise the whole nation to Christianity. They also viewed it as their service to mankind. After all, the Papal Law decreed by the Vatican states that to convert non-believers is a divine duty.

One can argue that this should not be an issue anymore; after all, the colonists left India 75 years ago. As an independent nation, they should be able to decide their own fate. Not quite.

200 years of subjugation and indoctrination by Europeans, many Indians who received the short of the stick from their masters are still reeling from a lack of confidence, an inferiority complex, with a tinge of Stockholm Syndrome and a constant seeking of validation from the West for existence. On top of that, there exists a group of locally bred phenotypically Indians who quickly shoot down anything Indian. Like the local soldiers during the 1857 First Independence War who did all the dirty jobs for the British, these sepoys view India and Hinduism as a lost cause.

The 200 years of 'divide and rule' of India must indeed have had a long-lasting effect on the psyche of all Indians, leaving many frustrated individuals who were at receiving end of the harsh, divisive effects of casteism. Perhaps, they benefitted from English education and foreign countries after being driven out of their own country. The need to defend the culture of their ancestors made no sense at all. On the contrary, they have every reason to shoot down some discriminatory practices they were subjected to. There is no love lost.

The Hindus themselves find it difficult to untangle themselves from this colonial legacy. If casteism is not Hindu, would it not be easy to go back to basics and put it back in order. Not so easy. People who have benefitted from reservations and affirmative action will not surrender what they deem is theirs so quickly. The politicians whose raison d'être is to grasp popularity and ensure that they continue to win elections will be comfortable continuing the Britishers' 'divide and rule' policy via caste separation. Even closet converts also benefit from reservation seats.

Perhaps India should learn from their other Asiatic cousins like China, Japan and South Korea. When Commodore Matthew C Perry arrived at Edo Bay in 1853, the Japanese, who had chosen to be under seclusion, were mesmerised by the appearance of Perry's armada. They thought the mythical ancient dragon had actually descended. They realised that the world had morphed in leaps and bounds while they were napping. The Japanese caught up with the rest of the world by 'copying and pasting' western technology. Their turning point was the 1905 Russo-Japanese war, where they surprised the modern world by defeating the Russians. The rest, as they say, is history - World War 2, the rape of Nanking and Chandra Bose and the Indian National Army.

Commodore Perry arriving in Japan

After being squeezed and torn apart from all sides between China, Japan and Russia for generations, the Koreans found relief after the Korean War. The South Koreans were happy being a vassal state of the USA but prospered because they were apt to adapt.

When Nixon landed in Beijing in 1972, after much water went under the bridge, the Americans thought they could play realpolitik again as they did in the post-WW2 era. The Chinese cleverly used the opportunity to watch, learn and absorb all the knowledge at their disposal and gave, and are still giving the American a good run for their money.

Wonder what happened to the wisdom of Panchatantra and Chanakya's political treatise, Arthashathra, that India introduced to the world way before the Machiavellian tactics that Europe so boasted about. Centuries of civilisation squashed by firepower.

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