Posted on: 08 Dec 2021
[Shri Anil asked: Padanamaskaram Swami, Swami, in Trailokya Gita Chapter-14, You described the original sense of caste system instituted by God which is purely based on ones qualities and deeds. Later on the middle age people corrupted this concept which led to many atrocities in the name of caste system in Hinduism. Swami, is the caste system mentioned in Veda also in addition to Gita? In other religions like Christianity, Islam, Judaism etc. there is no mention of the caste system; due to which people did not suffer in the name of twisted caste system in those religions. As per their scriptures; in the beginning God created human beings as men and women without attributing them to any caste. Is it the partiality of God to those religions that no caste system is mentioned in their scriptures which avoided splits and discriminations due to caste system? I request You to clarify this. At Your Lotus Feet-Anil]
Swami Replied: If you say that you are going to a shop to purchase groceries and then you are going to purchase vegetables from the market, it means that groceries are available in the shop only and that vegetables are available in the market only. Sometimes, the shop also contains vegetables and the market also contains groceries. Similarly, in ancient India a caste represents certain set of professional qualities (Guna karma) sincerely transferred from generation to generation because the elder generation sincerely used to train the younger generation in that specific set of professional qualities. Hence, the set of qualities were confined to a specific caste only. This is quite natural because the elder generation is interested in training its own younger generation only in that specific set of professional qualities. The word Guna Karma means not only a set of professional qualities or talents, but also can mean good qualities associated with good deeds or bad qualities associated with bad deeds. Since the younger generation of a family is closely and constantly associated with its own elder generation, there is always a likelihood of transfer of good or bad qualities in a specific caste only. This does not mean that the good or bad qualities and professional talents get transferred to the younger generation from elder generation through blood relationship since the genes have nothing to do with such transfer. Genes only carry on certain specific mannerisms.
People mistook the transfer of qualities through training to be transfer by blood. This misunderstanding developed the concept of a rigid caste system by birth. Had the transfer of qualities by blood been correct, truly the caste system by birth is perfectly correct. Since the reason is not by blood and the real reason is only training of younger generation by its elder generation, the transfer of qualities is not sure because the younger generation may or may not have the interest for a specific set of good or bad qualities and interest for a specific set of professional qualities. Due to this reason, the concept of caste system by birth is not basically correct. Regarding professional qualities, the caste system has no problems because there is no point of greatness and no point of good or bad as far as the caste by profession is concerned. For example, there is no split between the teaching community, the soldier community, the business community and agriculturist community. The split comes only when you say that a caste contains only good qualities or only bad qualities by which you decide a caste to be good and another caste to be bad. If shop contains only groceries and market contains only vegetables, we can say that shop is caste and market is another caste. The whole problem comes when the shop also contains vegetables and the market also contains groceries. In such case, you cannot say that you are going to shop for groceries and to market for vegetables. In olden days, the shop contained only groceries and the market contains only vegetables. In the present time, the shop also contains vegetables and the market also contains groceries. Hence, the caste system was successful in olden days without any split. In the present time, the caste system fails due to misunderstood splits. The present foolish system says that the shop shall contain only groceries and hence, the vegetables in the shop must be also treated as groceries.
Similarly, in the market, the groceries must be treated as vegetables. This means that a specific first caste must contain good qualities and another specific second caste must contain bad qualities only. Due to this, even the bad qualities in the first caste have to be treated as good qualities and even the good qualities in the second caste have to be treated as bad qualities! Foolish ignorant people are following this logic in the present caste system. This is the climax of injustice and foolishness! I am talking this based on fundamental logical justice only and not talking this like a politician aspiring for the votes of other castes! Hence, My advice is to follow the justified caste system based on the expressed and existing real qualities only without any bias or prejudice against another caste digging the past unfortunate misunderstandings occurred. Today, people (so called lower castes) lecture against the caste system and try to harm other castes (so called upper castes) feeling that their ancestors suppressed them in the past. Similarly, the so called upper castes still maintain the false upper status related to birth hurting the other so called lower castes. Every caste favours own caste doing injustice to the other caste not caring for the merit irrespective of caste system. The splits based on foolish ignorance are continuing in Hinduism resulting in splits and weakening of the religion. Every religion must be strong and united so that all the strong religions get united based on universal spirituality.