Tuesday 9 November 2004

The highs and lows of Indian society.

One look at the subject, and probably every Indian worth his/her salt would have a fair idea of the topic being discussed in the following lines. Yes indeed, it is the caste system prevalent in the predominantly Hindu society, though I have come across numerous examples where this phenomenon pervades over other religious groups in the Indian society. There have been various arguments in favour or against this system, but nothing has been able to convince the other party entirely. I, in this piece, present no arguments either for or against this system and make no attempt to label this system either a "boon" or a "bane" for the society. I intend to explore the validity of this system in the current context and whether the society could live without such an outdated classification.

Before embarking upon this oft-trodden path, I would like to claim that classification of a group of humans by themselves can never be avoided. It is in nature of human beings to identify more and more reasons to divide his society in groups, more often to attain/maintain power than anything else. Every society, whether in the past or the present, has had a "class" system and it is only natural to expect more in the future. Therefore, the question pertinent to us here is whether we need to steadfastly stick to an outdated system of classification even though it (probably) holds no relevance in the existing society.

Let us, for the sake of an easy argument and for the sake of my personal opinion, assume that the answer to the above question is NO. The reasons for this are the following; 1. The classes are too few and we need more to accomodate many more professions like doctors, engineers, bus drivers, HR Managers, Stock broker, electrician, plumber etc.; 2. People from different castes are already performing jobs which are traditionally different from the ones defined by their caste profiles; 3. There can be no argument that justifies that a corrupt doctor is in any way superior to an honest sweeper.

Hindu Society probably could never been more divided on caste lines as it is today. The constant playing of the caste tune in the minds of people by media, politicians, blog writers like me etc. has made people more aware and fanatic about their caste status. This is detrimental to the Hindu society itself and probably a cause for greater concern in the overall religious context.

In most parts of Bihar, the caste-based clashes are so prevalent that people have dropped adding their surnames to their names. Surnames in our society, as we all know, perform the additional function of announcing one's caste to the addressee. The knowledge of one's surname directly purveys all information of one's status in the social structure to others. It is sometimes funny to see a Lieutenant Colonel in the armed forces carrying the surname of Sharma or Pandey even though the profession he is in is in no conformance with his caste status.

Why do we then still persist with the surnames? In Tamil Nadu and Kerala, there is this beautiful tradition of not attaching a surname of the name (I am, of course, an exception, and there are many more such exceptions!!). The name typically consists of one's father's name and optionally one's native place along with one's first name. Hence, no surnames, no castes. Though there are other ways of finding one's caste if one intends to do so, this method essentially eliminates entirely any bias that one may cultivate upon hearing one's name. This is useful when awarding jobs, during admissions in schools and colleges, during selection of cricket teams etc.

Gradually, the "Caste" would stop playing a role in one's mindset and gradually we may start looking at everyone as they are - human beings.

Well, there will be divide among the rich and the poor, the whites and the blacks, the communists and the capitalisits, but we can deal with them later. As of now, we must find a way to bridge the divide that plagues our society. Hinduism has been a religion of constant reforms, and I sincerely hope that this will only be yet another of those reforms that have enabled the relgion to sustain itself for centuries.

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