Indian Report

India: The Dalits and Adivasis

Jessica, Frye

Soc/120

August, 2010

Gilda, Wilkinson

India: The Dalits and Adivasis

I chose to travel to India, but did not expect to be given the knowledge of the culture that had been given to me, by the people surrounded by me and the research I had done on my own time. It was brought to my knowledge of the Caste System. According to an ancient Hindu book, named the Rig Veda, the primal man –Purush- destroyed himself to create a human society. The Brahmans were created from his head; the kshatrias from his hands; the Vaishias from his thighs and the Sundras from his feet. This system was called the caste system which brought a lot of discrimination among individuals in different cultures and religions.

The Caste System was founded in 1498 when the Portuguese arrived in India. This system places all individuals into ranked hereditary groups. The original caste systems had four castes known as; Brahmins, the Brahmins were known as the priests and were ranked the highest in the caste system. Then there was Kshatriyas, which were known as the warriors and Vaishyas and Shudras which were known as tradesmen and servants. Then below these four castes, there is a caste known as a low caste; the “outcaste” of “untouchables.” To us also known as “Dalits” The following is a photo of a couple untouchables;

The abuse of the “untouchables” was far worse many years ago compared to what it is now. But even in today’s society it is still practiced in different parts of India and even other countries and some in the United States as well. Untouchability was practiced to such an extreme that even the shadow of an untouchable on a Brahmin would attract severe punishment, such as; a severe beating, or sometimes even your death. Furthermore, had a untouchable spoke in a manner that they were not supposed to speak to an upper-caste; they got a nail driven into their mouth as their punishment. The untouchables face over 140 forms of work and...