[Assam] caste system

[Manoj Das]

Santanu

The case of Srimanta Sankaradeva Sangha in Assam is an example of
people revolting against the old varna order and yet maintaining a
Hindu identity. Here Sankaradeva's teachings came handy to built a new
socio-religious system. The yuga dharma is 'naam' as per the tenets
followed by SSS, as well as neo vaishnavite; while the reigning
deities remain almost the same. The population of gods also maintained
at 33 crores, on an average of 1 per 5 Hindus.

Somewhere "shastra"s have mentioned - 'xatya yugot dhyan, tretat tapp,
dwaporot puja, kolit 'naam'. Buddhism, Islam and Christianity are
mostly 'naam' based. I think Assam's transition to Islam will be very
smooth.

manoj



On 3/27/06, Roy, Santanu <sroy at mail.smu.edu> wrote:
> Saurav,
>
> Thanks for your knowledgeable note.
>
> Two observations:
>
> 1. There are probably quite a few historical instances where castes have
> been fostered within a non-Aryan jati or community that has come into
> contact with mainstream Hinduism at a late stage. Indeed, the process by
> which an outside jati enters into mainstream Hindu society must logically
> consist of at least two social processes. First, the way the existing
> mainstream society - the upper castes - in particular, view the community in
> question - an exogenous aspect. Second, the way the jati views itself and
> reshapes & redefines its own social stratification using the adopted
> language and mirrors of mainstream Hindu society -an endogenous aspect.
> Indeed, these two processes need not be congruent. The relics of these
> processes are found in several low caste untouchable communities that have
> their own "Brahmins". To the mainstream outsider, they are all untouchable,
> but to the insider there is a caste system within - a microcosm of the
> society that lies above them. A similar structure is also observed with
> respect to many tribes prior to the importing of Brahmins from mainstream
> society.
>
> 2. The varna system, like many other aspects of Hindu society, is in
> fundamental contradiction with modern society. The question in my mind is
> not whether Hinduism can be reformed. The real question is how will Hindus
> resolve these contradictions between what they ought to hold sacred and the
> needs of actual material life in today's society.
>
> One option is to stand by the varna system and all other traditional mores,
> to oppose liberal western values and in effect, do a fundamentalist jig.
>
> The other option is to gloss over and plainly deny the existence of all
> these aspects (as many on this net do) and then to march forward with a very
> selective view of Hinduism that is in consonance with modern society and
> liberal values. The trouble with this approach is that in all honesty, you
> cannot be very sure of what it is you are clutching on to & therefore, in
> the long run, are bound to run into certain contradictions - perhaps as your
> children question you....
>
> A third option would be to abandon the grand tradition altogether and, in
> effect, convert to religious orders that have their own philosphical systems
> that, even though historically rooted in the grand narrative, actually offer
> a distinct axiomatic system (Buddhism and Jainism were among the many such
> early orders, as were some of the Vaishnava orders). The third option is
> essentially fractious and inimical to the cause of a grand Hindu identity.
> But it may well be the most honest and logical way out for those who seek a
> religion.
>
> Santanu-da.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: assam-bounces at assamnet.org on behalf of xourov pathok
> Sent: Mon 3/27/2006 4:37 AM
> To: assam at assamnet.org
> Subject: [Assam] caste system
>
> a short note on the caste system:
>
> the varna system, which found its first mention in the
> rig veda itself, has been the only unbroken tradition
> of hinduism.  gods have come and gone (from indra to
> rudra to krishna), forms of worship has changed (from
> yajnas to puja) but the varna system has persisted.
> there is an oft repeated dictum, that hinduism did not
> have a name for itself earlier.  this is not true.
> the name of the religion was varnashram dharma.  the
> varna system is the most defining aspect of hinduism.
>
> another dictum is that it divides.  this also is
> untrue.  in fact the varna system makes it possible
> for a jati to place itself in a readymade order.  this
> is important because there is no personal conversion
> system in hinduism.  instead entire jatis are
> converted (by placing them in the varna system), like
> the scythians and the koches were made hindus by
> placing them in the kshatriya varna.  this is
> important.  because it lets, say, a sarma or a barua
> from assam relate in a some meaningful way with a
> aiyar or an iyengar from tamil nadu.
>
> since the varna system is the most defining aspect of
> hinduism, how can you remove or reform it out of the religion?
>
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