All Brahmin men were allowed to marry women of the first three Varnas, whereas marrying a Shudra woman would, marginally, bereft the Brahmin of his priestly status. The ones bestowed with the titles of Brahma Rishi or Maha Rishi were requested to counsel kings and their kingdoms’ administration. Normally, Brahmins were the personification of contentment and dispellers of ignorance, leading all seekers to the zenith of supreme knowledge, however, under exceptions they lived as warriors, traders, or agriculturists in severe adversity.
This way, since the ancestral wisdom is sustained through guru-disciple practice, all citizens born in each Varna would remain rooted to the requirements of their lives. However, anyone from other Varnas could also become a Brahmin after extensive acquisition of knowledge and cultivation of one’s intellect.īrahmins were the foremost choice as tutors for the newborn because they represent the link between sublime knowledge of the gods and the four Varnas. Even married Brahmins were called Brahmachari (celibate) by virtue of having intercourse only for reproducing and remaining mentally detached from the act. They would always live through the Brahmacharya (celibacy) vow ordained for them.
Priests, gurus, rishis, teachers, and scholars constituted the Brahmin community. They were not just revered because of their Brahmin birth but also their renunciation of worldly life and cultivation of divine qualities, assumed to be always engrossed in the contemplation of Brahman, hence called Brahmins. (5) Varna System: Brahminsīrahmins were revered as an incarnation of knowledge itself, endowed with the precepts and sermons to be discharged to all Varnas of society. The Varna system is seemingly embryonic in the Vedas, later elaborated and amended in the Upanishads and Dharma Shastras. Men of the first three hierarchical castes are called the twice-born first, born of their parents, and second, of their guru after the sacred thread initiation they wear over their shoulders. Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and Shudras form the fourfold nature of society, each assigned appropriate life duties and ideal disposition. According to the Vedas, consistent encroachment on others’ life responsibilities engenders an unstable society. As per the Vedas, it is the ideal duty of a human to seek freedom from subsequent birth and death and rid oneself of the transmigration of the soul, and this is possible when one follows the duties and principles of one’s respective Varna. Belief in the concept of Karma reinforces the belief in the Varna life principles. The underlying reason for adhering to Varna duties is the belief in the attainment of moksha on being dutiful. The segregation of people based on their Varna was intended to decongest the responsibilities of one’s life, preserve the purity of a caste, and establish eternal order. The caste system in ancient India had been executed and acknowledged during, and ever since, the Vedic period that thrived around 1500-1000 BCE. This understanding was a reflection of the belief in an eternal order to human life dictated by a supreme deity. At first, it seems this caste system was merely a reflection of one’s occupation but, in time, it became more rigidly interpreted to be determined by one’s birth and one was not allowed to change castes nor to marry into a caste other than one’s own. The lowest caste was the Dalits, the untouchables, who handled meat and waste, though there is some debate over whether this class existed in antiquity.
‘Varna’ defines the hereditary roots of a newborn it indicates the color, type, order or class of people. 1500-1000 BCE) did not have social stratification based on socio-economic indicators rather, citizens were classified according to their Varna or castes. 9 Caste System in Ancient India Caste System in Ancient IndiaĪncient India in the Vedic Period (c.