Arya means a noble person/ gentleman.Arya means a noble person/gentleman. If in behavior, speech, actions, one adheres to principles of Vedas – is civilized, affectionate to fellow people, not tempted to commit sins, hygienic, promotes and propagates truth, etc. – he or she is an Arya. Again, it is not a binary logic, but a continuous function.
Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, and Shudra
English is a poor approximate of Vedic language. Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, Shudra are names of Varnas or classifications based on profession. They have nothing to do with birth. Shudra is someone who could not get adequately educated and hence incompetent to be in any of these professions.
People in knowledge-based matters are Brahmins, those in state/defense level matters are Kshatriyas, those in financial/ economic jobs are Vaishyas and rests are Shudras. In fact, the same person can be Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra at the same time.
These Varnas are nothing to do with presently used custom of surnames. In fact, if you read Ramayan, Mahabharat, or other texts of those times, you do not find this tradition of First Name-Middle Name-Surname as nomenclature of people.
‘Arya’ doesn’t denote parentage
I would refute the basis of the argument that Arya word denotes parentage in any manner.
Of course, family and parentage do have their role in determining Sanskaars of a person. However, that does not mean that someone from unidentified parentage cannot be Arya. This imaginary caste-system is one of the biggest reasons for our decadence. We foolishly expunged a large majority of our fellow brothers and sisters as Shudras and Achhoots on the basis of their unknown or questionable lineage or family.
The Arya has nothing to do with one’s Gotra. Hardly any surname today represents any Gotra. The Gotra classification was to do with preventing marriages between close relatives.
Arya is a noble person. The family is only one among many ways to ascertain if someone is noble. To say that Shudra cannot become Brahmin is again blatantly wrong. Brahmin is someone with knowledge. Shudra is someone who could not become Brahmin, Kshatriya or Vaishya due to lack of education or training. Even a Shudra, after having gained knowledge through efforts can become Brahmin.
Meaning of ‘Dwija.’
Dwija means twice born. At birth, everyone is Shudra, but after education, Brahmins, Kshatriya, and Vaishya take another birth as skilled humans. In other words, education gives them another birth as civilized people worthy of contributing to society. Thus, they become Dwija – twice born. Those who are unable to gain education lose this opportunity of new birth and hence remain Shudra.
Summary
An illiterate son of Brahmin is also Shudra and any Shudra, after having gained knowledge through his or her efforts can become a Brahmin, Vaishya or Kshatriya. Brahmin, Vaishya, Kshatriya or Shudra has nothing to do with biological birth.
This article is also available in Hindi at http://agniveer.com/5489/aryas-and-caste-hi/
As per your dwija theory more than 90 percent of the people in all varnas, including brahmnas, kshatriyas, vaisyas, need to reverted back to shudra status becouse they are engaged in shudra type jobs since centuries. Moreover, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas have not been provided the right to be born twise or dwija becoese shastras has told them to be unfit for educational purposes and bhakti.
1. As I said, regardless of their birth-history, those who could not take education are Shudras.
2. No Shastra prohibits any person from gaining education or having bhakti. Those who utilize education for commerce purpose are vaishyas. Those who do so for warfare are Kshatriyas.
3. Dwija simply means one who has completed education.
4. A son of a Shudra (uneducated), if completes education, becomes a Dwija. If he engages in knowledge activities, he is Brahmin.
Put simply, Varna are classification based on profession and have nothing to do with birth.
Dear Agniveerji,
Dr.Ambedkar has written a very nice book "Who were the Shudras". His theory regarding the nasty laws applied to Shudras is as follows:
Two questions are raised in this book: (1) Who were the Shudras? and (2) How they came to be the fourth Varna of the Indo-Aryan society? My answers to them are summarised below :
(1) The Shudras were one of the Aryan communities of the Solar race.
(2) There was a time when the Aryan society recognised only three Varnas, namely. Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas.
(3) The Shudras did not form a separate Varna. They ranked as part of the Kshatriya Varna in the Indo-Aryan society.
(4) There was a continuous feud between the Shudra kings and the Brahmins in which the Brahmins were subjected to many tyrannies and indignities.
(5) As a result of the hatred towards the Shudras generated by their tyrannies and oppressions, the Brahmins refused to perform the Upanayana of the Shudras.
(6) Owing to the denial of Upanayana, the Shudras who were Kshatriyas became socially degraded, fell below the rank of the Vaishyas and thus came to form the fourth Varna.
Dr. Ambedkar rejects the propoganda of white-skinned Aryans(invaders) enslaving dark-skinned Dravidians(local people). Hesays:
"(1) The Vedas do not know any such race as the Aryan race.
(2) There is no evidence in the Vedas of any invasion of India by the Aryan race and its having conquered the Dasas and Dasyus supposed to be natives of India.
(3) There is no evidence to show that the distinction between Aryans, Dasas and Dasyus was a racial distinction.
(4) The Vedas do not support the contention that the Aryas were different in colour from the Dasas and Dasyus"
He quotes from the Shanti Parva of Mahabharata which points out that Shudras were well-represented in the cOUNCIL of Ministers:
"In the Shanti Parvan of the Mahabharata, Bhishma in his lessons on Politics to Yudhishthira says :
"I shall, however, tell thee what kinds of ministers should be appointed by thee. Four Brahmins learned in the Vedas, possessed of a sense of dignity, belonging to the Snataka order, and of pure behaviour, and eight Kshatriyas, all of whom should be possessed of physical strength and capable of weilding weapons, and one and twenty Vaishyas, all of whom should be possessed of wealth, and three Shudras, everyone of whom should be humble and of pure conduct and devoted to his daily duties, and one man of the Suta caste, possessed of a knowledge of the Puranas and the eight cardinal virtues should be thy ministers." SECTION LXXXV
This proves that the Shudras were ministers and that they were almost equal to the Brahmins in number ."
Dr.Ambedkar tears apart the Aryan Invasion theory ruthlessly. He says:
"So far the testimony of the Vedic literature is concerned, it is against the theory that the original home of the Aryans was outside India. The language in which reference to the seven rivers is made in the Rig. Veda (X.75.5) is very significant. As Prof. D. S. Triveda says —the rivers are addressed as 'my Ganges, my Yamuna, my Saraswati' and so on. No foreigner would ever address a river in such familiar and endearing terms unless by long association he had developed an emotion about it."
I find it very funny. Indians have opinions on everything-every book under the sun without reading it. Indians hold opinions on Vedas, Manu Smriti, Quran, Bible, Satanic Verses, Lajja, books written by Dr.Ambedkar, Delhi High Court judgement on gays-all these things without reading a single word of these books. It was amusing(and not amusing) to read Pt.M.P.Arya saying, "Behen Tavleen Singhji, you dont know the "k" of Quran and "a" of arabic".
Dear Agniveera,
I know the greatness of vedas, but as you maintained earlier why the people who tried to adulterate the vedas were not punished? there literature also is still respected and fallowed sincerely by almost all Hindus for eg Tulsidas in Ramcharitmanas ‘ Pashu Chor Khsudra aur Nari, Hai sabhi tanand ke adhikari’ , whole nonsense written in Manusmruti and so many like matsya puranas and all. Why you dont you write against those who created these type of literatures? Actually because of these so called saints our noble religion is getting defamed. I know whatever is written by you is 100% true but it is on paper only. What do you think the people who were not allowed to read and write, who were made to carry human excreta for generations, who were not allowed to gather money, only slavery was their work, were not allowed to enter any temple or school will believe these polished words. What do you think if you behave like this to your pet dog and your neighbour gives food and respect to him at the same time, will that dog stay with you? then how can you expect it from humans who are intelectually better animals? We are unaware of the sorrows of our own people. We belive in the religion where mostly gathering money in temples or donating it to Bramhins is considered as noble and others belive in helping poor then automatically there will be expansion of that religion. So you may turn a blind eye but everybody understands that real enemies of our religion are not other religions but our own religious policies towards so called kshudras. The story of saga of Aryans is also written by great bramhin Balgangadhar Tilak for the benifit of Bramhins in British era. So now why bramhins are going away from the same theory. If it is not true why you people don’t curse Tilak.
@Dr Avnihash : if you are talking about the book written by B.G.Tilak, that has nothing to do with the tenets of the Veda. it only his perspective on the analysis of the Veda, he has never mentioned anything on the division of people based on their birth or anything like that.
Namaste Dr Avinash
1. We are vehemently against caste-system by birth and consider it to be the root cause of all evils in Hindu society including bashing from hands of invaders. We can assert that without mincing a word. We have made our stand clear in our articles as well as http://agniveer.com/2415/agniveer-stand/
2. We have also made clear that we reject all those texts that smell of casteism, regardless of whosoever wrote it. Either they should be trashed or interpreted in lines of vedas.
3.Our allegiance is thus ONLY with Vedas that summarily reject any notion of birth-based discrimination.
4. Manusmriti is an adulterated text. The original Manusmriti was against caste system but later shlokas were inserted during the dark era of history. We shall review this in detail in future. The adulterated verses of Manusmriti are clear and obvious.
5. We are not in support of ritualistic worship in temples and consider Yogic method as the correct approach. So obviously disrcimination at temples on basis of birth is a matter of outright rejection from us.
6. Tilak was a great freedom fighter and we respect him a lot for his nationalistic views. But in matters of casteism, we are at complete divergence. Savarkar is a better role model for us in this regard.
7. The goal of the site is not to simply condemn but bring changes. Thus we choose only those approaches and targets for questioning from whom we face gravest threat today. And we do it in a planned manner with goal of achieving results. But that does not mean we tacitly support social evils.
8. We conduct Shuddhi campaigns and create Brahmins from erstwhile Dalits or Muslims or Christians who then conduct religious rituals for others. We do this as a slap on faces of those who consider religion to be exclusive rights of those with births in particular families.
9. In future we intend to conduct such activities much more intensely to break the deepest foundations of birth based casteism. We would request your total support in this mission.
10. Be assured that we are here to combat both internal and external enemies – invading cults, superstitions, caste-system, gender discrimination, immorality etc etc. But you can appreciate that one has to start from scratch from somewhere and then expand. We look forward to your support in this expansion.
Finally, in 10 years from now, we dream of a completely casteless society. We are not sure if the dream would actually be fulfilled but it does give us a goal worth striving for. Your support would only help us accelerate faster towards it.
Please mail us with your views and how you can help us in this.
Dhanyavad
Admin
Dr. I. Avinash Tamil Brother has himself avoided some questions in his comments if CASTE SYSTEM IS ONLY IN HINDUISM THEN WHY ARE MUSLIMS, CHRISTIANS AND BUDDHISTS ARE TAKING THE BENEFITS OF QUOTAS BASED ON CASTE LIKE OBC, SC AND ST QUOTAS. On one hand they say there is no caste system in their religion but take Jobs and admission based on Caste System many lakhs of Muslim and Christians have got Jobs and seats in Engineering and Medical College based on Caste Quotas, Let Christians, and Muslims issue FATWAS AND DECREE that as there is no Caste System in Christianity and Islam the Muslims and Christians should not take Job and Admissions in educational institutions regarding caste quotas if they cannot this then they should admit they themselves are snatching the jobs of lower caste people and oppresing the lower caste people.
Avinashji even ANCIENT INDIA HISTORIANS have accepted that rigid caste system has come in later period and Even MAHABHARATA and ORIGINAL RAMAYANA prove that there is no caste system or Sati system in ancient India LORD KRISHNA WAS FROM LOWER CASTE YADAV FAMILY who later on became King so Mahabharata itself says Lower caste people can become King, Ramayan was created by DALIT VALMIKI and LORD RAM WAS CALLED A MARAYDA PURUSHOTAM BY A DALIT VALMIKI, AND IT IS SURPRISING THAT THOSE WHO CRITICIZED LORD RAM OVERLOOKED THIS FACT. PRIME MINISTER OF HASTINAPUR OR INDRAPRASTHA was DASI PUTRA VIDUR who pandavas also respected that itself says important posts were given based on merit. There is no mention of Sati in Ramayana or Mahabharata.
Caste system became rigid with advent of Islam because nobody can question Islamic religious scholar or Mullah so that vice crept into Hinduism also.
India is very modern now. And now since the science has evoluted much more in a better way, new theories are coming into light..
There was a theory which is still in being that north Indians (Aryans) were with the Haplogroup R1A1 were brought as tribes due to the last glacial incidents. But the new theory suggests that it wasn’t outsiders who came to India, but was Indians, who went up to the Eurasian steppes and the baltic belt. Then to the far europian countries..
New theory also suggests that Aryans are not an invader tribe but the insider tribe of India, the indigenious group of India, who in search of land went outskirts from Afganistan to far west via Eurasian plateaus. Namely the Turkistan nowdays. Because some many important rivers dried up. Thar desert was not in being when this happened. Thar was as prosperous as rest of Sindh and or Punjab, but it was because when the Indus river’s course became small and it was also changing its route from many areas..
Old veda tells that Manusya is born a sudra. Because he has no knowledge of his whereabouts and has no cultures and mannerisms. But when he attains it, he becomes a Brahmin, once again this shows that no mention of “Brahmin by Yoni/birth”.
Its the deeds of manusya to make himself choose between a Brahmin(Priest of lord), Ktshatriya (Warrior in service of lord), Vanik(Service to subjects of lord), Sudra(Learner of mannerism from the three above).
Caste by birth is a low ettiquette followed by recent kings from 800 A.D, before it Mallecha was a synonym for non-aryan or Arabia, particularly a semitic.
There were many Sudra kings in India(as told by the english historians).
Possibility is , that Indian history has been devastated by our invaders who in the namesake purpose of spreading their abramic religions over us, dreaded down the hypocracy of such invasion theories to black out their exposing truth.
English historians claim that Sudra varna was a distinct varna in the Indian mythology, but the truth is that “Varna Vyavastha” was just by the showtime of Gazni came to India. Mahmud-al-Gazni was a tribesman of Afganistan alongwith the Gour tribe. These two tribes were the enemies of each other. Times were crucial for Gazni and Gour tribe, so they both wanted to annex Indian parts of Baloch and Sindh and north India if they could. In the north Mongol barbars were very ruthless, so they tried to annex through Gujarat. To keep it safe. So that the Mongol affect could be watched from a safe western India which was very prosperous because of its Cotton and Kutcch. Not to forget that there was a Hindu Shahi Kingdom in Afganistan. And Afganistan is also a Sanskrit name. A little Google will prove it.
So Gour tribe under the banner of Mohhammed-al-ghori won the battle after losing for the 17 times. How ??everyone knows about the Jaychand and his daughter’s affair with the Rajputana King Prithviraj or Pithu.
This gave a very positive signal to Ghori who came along with his barbaric tribals looted on way to Indraprastha. Meanwhile in Afganistan Gazni tribe came back after they came to know that Ghor has won in delhi, so they took over the place and it was like a silent placement of lands between the two rivals.. Again this shows that there was no unity in Muslims which was because they were under no mannerisms as Indians had, and that is why behind all the shackles of so called caste card myth propagated by non-hindu invaders over India Hindus are still one under the banner of Sanatan dharma.
Muslim history shows a lot of misery. The start point from Muhammed to the end point of Mughals or today’s Islamists, no unity is shown in any of the numerous Islamic banana republics. why?because there is no mannerism in Islamic culture which is basically nomadic. They eat cattle, they breed them for wools, thats their culture. Tribesmen cannot suffice in a battle with a properly manipulated and cultured society and thats why they kill each other and the religion teaches cruelity and bastility for humans and animals.
Namaste Sudipto Chakravorty
Very informative posts
Hi in complete agreement, and have stated this to a number of sites
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Believing Or not believing in caste-system is entirely different thing
arya is a sub caste of arain peoples
Agniveer ji,
Namaste,
What I can say to you is nothing rather than Thanking to God to have a brother like you in my Nation who do lots of hard work to give us facts about our vedic dharma.
From last 3 months I am following this website and I just love all your research.
I even wants to aware people about these facts too.
I am educating even my parents too.
But what happens with me if I tell to any other person about this they all think I am trying to fool them.
So now what I need to do….
But bro like you, Vjra and all are doing nice work and I do proud to have you all.
Even though I don’t agree with everything agniveer says, I do agree with you on this. They are doing a great service. Keep up the good work.
Agniveerji namaste.
Today itse I got to know your website and its content. I read your post on origin of caste system in our sanatan dharma. I want to add another fact to it, I don’t know if it is correct, my grandfather used to tell me a lot from Ramayana to jtak katha, panchatantra, etc. In between he had told me once which I still remember, he told that caste was no by birth but its like a grade or division which we get after a board exam and it decides our future career and life. In ancient days all was allowed to take education and after a specific period everyone had to go through the test, those who excelled were being awarded the title bramhana and were allowed to take teaching as profession, since these were the cream these were more intelligent and were looked for advice and suggestions by others. Those who came in second grade or so-called second division were given the title Kshatriya and entrusted to safeguard and govern the kshetra or area . those who pass in third division were entrusted with the job of trading and given the title vaisya. The remaining who fail in test were thought to be unfit for important works like guiding the society, protecting the society, or running the society. Thus they were given the title sudra and designated for other works of society that needs less knowledge and intelligence. This system was adopted to give everyone his/ her right place in society and to prevent incompetent person to practice important profession and to damage the society
Its just like modern education system, students securing higher grade get seat in better college and if they come out with flying colour they get offer for higher posts which takes important decisions, however those who pass with lower grade do job lower down and less important. Those who fail don’t get the degree and ultimately don’t get any job for that study and have to choose some less intellectual job. Thus initially caste was just a title to indicate intellectual level of…
person and to designate his rightful position in the society. Then caste was not by birth, but it had to be gained by ones knowledge and talent. Thus a sudra’ s son could be a bramhana if he proves himself in the gurukul and similarly the son of a bramhin could be sudra if he fails. As you haveentioned during dark period due to some reason the rule somehow changed and caste became an item of inheritance. The father’ s caste became caste of the offspring , and it doesn’t represent the intelligence level anymore and it had nothing to do with the profession. I think some bramhin looking at the level of respect and power they got ,might have thought to retain it for their son and daughter not knowing their capability to bear the glory, duty. and intellectual. Once caste or title became by birth many unworthy people got the title and it continued for generations we see the result. Those unsure of their capability brought in several things into the society which increased ritualism and complicacy in society.