When Eastern Wisdom Degenerated into An Obdurate Hinduism, It Birthed Casteism
By
Sumit Paul, New Age Islam
18
September 2023
"Many Sanatanis face this “Euthyphro
Dilemma” on the question of the caste system because of its divine origin
tracing back to Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita, who informed Arjuna that the
Varnas were created by him."
Isn't it a
very intelligent, nay cunning, way to suggest that the reprehensible caste
system in Hinduism is god-ordained? And when something, even morally wrong, is
sanctioned by some god, humans have no right to question its validity and
veracity.
Hinduism or
Santan Dharma will never be able to cast away this obnoxious caste system. To
get rid of the caste system is tantamount to denying the very basis, axis and
existence of Hinduism.
Not just
Hinduism but all faiths are based on certain fundamental tenets. Hinduism is
based on caste. Since caste is 'divinely-stamped' -derogatorily termed by Dr
Bimal Krishna Matilal- it becomes necessary to think what one means by caste,
especially as adumbrated in the Gita because it is considered one of the holy
books in Hinduism, being part of the Prasthana Traya, the other two
texts being Upanishads and Brahma Sutras.
Caste, as
Krishna points out in Verse 13 of Chapter 4, is not based on birth: “The
fourfold caste has been created by Me according to the differentiation of Guna
and Karma…” Guna means one’s qualities and Karma means the “kind”
of work one does. And, it is clear from the discussion about epigenetics that Guna
and Karma are not fixed by birth. Hence, caste should not be assigned
based on heredity. Simple stratification of humans as per their works and
professions in ancient Hinduism degenerated into a caste system. Now it's not
work-based but birth-based.
Despite Dr
B R Ambedkar’s achievements and accomplishments, he still remains a Mahar (an
untouchable community in Maharashtra) to the upper caste Hindus, not just to
Brahmins. The problem arises when a mere idea swells into a (religious) tenet
and becomes the leitmotif of the whole system. This happened to labour
stratification of ancient India. It fell into the pit of caste in Hinduism.
Mind you,
the pristine Eastern consciousness and Upanishadic wisdom of the East never
talked about caste and social hierarchy. Once the Eastern thought process took
the shape of today's Sanatan Dharm or Hinduism, the caste system crept into it.
This also
underlines the fact that the idea of Sanatan (ever-evolving and without a
beginning) is an interpolated one just like certain Muslim 'scholars' still
trying to assert that Islam is a perennial faith.
Spalding
Professor of Eastern Religions and Ethics at Oxford R C Zaehner
(1952-1974), who succeeded Dr Radhkrishnan (1936-1952) and preceded Dr Bimal
Krishna Matilal (1976-1991) opined long ago that the Eastern
Consciousness/wisdom (Prachya Chetna/Pragya) took the form of Sanatan or
Hinduism with an inventory of gods and deities. He too opined that when the
Eastern Wisdom degenerated into an obdurate Hinduism or Sanatan, it engendered
a host of religio-social ills. Casteism is the offspring of a fixed and rigid
religious system called Hinduism.
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A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul
is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He
has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several
languages including Persian.
URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/eastern-wisdom-obdurate-hinduism-casteism/d/130698
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