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I didn't say division of labour should be hereditary. I said India had division of labour but people were allowed to move up and down as per their skill and ab

I didn't say division of labour should be hereditary. I said India had division of labour but people were allowed to move up and down as per their skill and abilities. The hard caste boundaries were enforced by British colonial rule. My other comment quotes shloka from Hindu text clearly saying everyone is born lower class unless they earn their place. How is that unfair?

creata 6y ago
Sorry, I totally misinterpreted your comment before you edited it. I still don't understand a few things though. > Profession like engineering, arts, temple building, city planning were all done by the 4th class. What's the use of this "class system" if one class covers such a broad area? Isn't it so broad as to be useless? > clearly saying everyone is born lower class unless they earn their place. Was this ever true in practice? It's definitely not true in the present, and I find it hard to believe that parents were ever so enlightened as to compel their children to "earn their place" through such struggle.
- drieddust 6y ago
  > What's the use of this "class system" if one class covers such a broad area? Isn't it so broad as to be useless? Hinduism is evolutionary in nature. It anticipated emergence of new profession as society progressed ahead with time . Having said that first three classes were fixed in terms of duties of education, defence , and business. They were responsible for providing stable environment for rest of the professions to bloom and evolve. That why last class wasn't fixed. It is impossible to predict emerging professions anyways. Moreover The Varna system was merely a loose way of classifying the society. These weren't categories you have to live your entire life. Many people moved up and down. Vishwamitra was a king who turned into a sage as an example. There is a long list of such cases.[1] > Was this ever true in practice? Yes to a large extent. Please read comment of dilippkumar quoting from the books describing practices of pre-conial India. If you have time please read Bhagwad Gita for an introduction to Hindu philosophical system. Many Westerns like Bethovan, Robert Oppenheimer, Thoreau have drawn inspiration from it. Remember this book was written 5000 or perhaps before that. Only a stable and developed society would've thought about these ideas in such details I would argue. [1] http://www.hindupedia.com/en/%C5%9Audra_Hindu_saints http://www.hindupedia.com/en/%C5%9Audra_Hindu_saints

creata 6y ago

Sorry, I totally misinterpreted your comment before you edited it. I still don't understand a few things though. > Profession like engineering, arts, temple building, city planning were all done by the 4th class. What's the use of this "class system" if one class covers such a broad area? Isn't it so broad as to be useless? > clearly saying everyone is born lower class unless they earn their place. Was this ever true in practice? It's definitely not true in the present, and I find it hard to believe that parents were ever so enlightened as to compel their children to "earn their place" through such struggle.

drieddust 6y ago
> What's the use of this "class system" if one class covers such a broad area? Isn't it so broad as to be useless? Hinduism is evolutionary in nature. It anticipated emergence of new profession as society progressed ahead with time . Having said that first three classes were fixed in terms of duties of education, defence , and business. They were responsible for providing stable environment for rest of the professions to bloom and evolve. That why last class wasn't fixed. It is impossible to predict emerging professions anyways. Moreover The Varna system was merely a loose way of classifying the society. These weren't categories you have to live your entire life. Many people moved up and down. Vishwamitra was a king who turned into a sage as an example. There is a long list of such cases.[1] > Was this ever true in practice? Yes to a large extent. Please read comment of dilippkumar quoting from the books describing practices of pre-conial India. If you have time please read Bhagwad Gita for an introduction to Hindu philosophical system. Many Westerns like Bethovan, Robert Oppenheimer, Thoreau have drawn inspiration from it. Remember this book was written 5000 or perhaps before that. Only a stable and developed society would've thought about these ideas in such details I would argue. [1] http://www.hindupedia.com/en/%C5%9Audra_Hindu_saints http://www.hindupedia.com/en/%C5%9Audra_Hindu_saints