The Effects Of Caste System On Various Fields And Aspects Of One’s Life

Caste is a bane that has been a menace to the Indian society since ancient times. Its origin can be traced back to the ancient times. Its claws are so deep in our system that it has continued to flourish for centuries and holds prominence even in the 21st century. The origination of caste is believed to be through the Hindu god of creation, Brahma. It divides people into different classes, namely: Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, Shudras and the Dalits. Each were divided based on the hierarchy in society and the work that each of them was associated with. The caste divide is not restricted just to Hinduism but other religions as well. This stratification has continued since ancient times. Even though we have come a long way from those days, it still continues to be a major impediment in everyone being treated equally. Though the Constitution of India upholds equality and freedom of all, caste is still dividing us where people are subjected to discrimination. The effects of caste are so deep rooted in our system that even after so many years of its origin and the so-called advancement of society in today’s times we still live in its shadow. The implication of caste system can affect various fields and aspects of one’s life. On a very basic level it completely destroys the concept of equality. It directly attacks the very fabric on which our nation was built. Every person must have equal opportunities with her/his rights being respected. Caste warrants that certain sections are considered superior while the others inferior to them. Nothing could be more degrading and vile than dividing people from birth. This thought needs to be understood by everyone in our society. The main problem with caste is that everyone tends to accept it instead of challenging it barring very few in the society. People fail to understand it’s true nature and the implications it can have. Growing up in this system people think of it as a part of life something that they are just born into. But they forget the fact that castes didn’t exist since the advent of earth. This clearly shows that this was more of something that we humans did for our own selfish desires and propaganda. And this continues even today. I would like to associate the main reason for the sustenance of caste to how strongly people associate themselves to their surnames and in turn the caste that they belong to. The other consequences like nature of work, marriage etc. are derivates of this reason. The higher castes pride themselves for being superior. The lower castes continue to carry their surnames wanting justice for years of injustice. This in turn ensures that they still associate themselves to the caste they belong to.

While the lower castes can’t necessarily be held at fault, as they are rightful in asking to correct all the wrongs that has happened to them. But an ideal scenario would be where everyone let’s go of the attachment they have towards caste. This is easier said then done. First to completely abolish caste and establish equality of all, everyone deserves equal opportunities. But this isn’t possible due to the history of deprivation that the lower caste people have gone through and the lack of resources they have due to this. This is the reason why reservation on the basis of caste was introduced. Many people are quick to jump the gun and say that this is unfair. I find this to be highly hypocritical. For all the unfair conditions that the underprivileged were subjected to it’s only fair to give them a chance now to come up in life. Caste based reservation in the education and working sector has been a controversial topic. There are many who oppose this saying that these are just freebies that are given to the people and won’t essentially solve the problem. The problem lies in the fact that people who have the means and resources to get quality education are using reservation as a crutch to avail the benefits. The implication of this is that people who truly deserve this opportunity are left out of it and the problem continues to persist. As a result, caste-based divide and differentiation still continues. This needs to stop and people with resources must empathize and understand the reason for which caste-based reservation was introduced. Slowly and steadily this would ensure that everyone would have equal opportunities and the effects that the caste system had on our society would start to wane away. This would be ideal both from a humane perspective as well as a business/management perspective. The humane perspective is evident in the sense that everyone’s treated equally without any discrimination. From the management perspective this is would be ideal because talented people who were left out due to the old system would now have the resources to get what they deserve. I’d like to illustrate this point through an instance from my life that truly showed me the reality of the caste system. Five years ago, I was at a construction site with a friend. We had gone there to distribute food packets to all the laborer’s. I got talking to the watchman of that site. He told me he was a diploma holder and this shocked me. I asked him why was he doing this job when he had a diploma in hand. He told me that he is from a small village in Jharkhand. He comes from a lower caste and after many struggles he completed his diploma. But he couldn’t get a job that he wanted due to his caste.

So, he had to settle for this job and support his family. I was aghast when I heard this. With all the laws in place people are still discriminated against due to their caste. We lost a qualified person who could’ve worked and help drive the Indian economy upwards. The opportunity that people like him loose due to caste proves detrimental to the economy. If we overcome this and everyone gets equal opportunities the best talent gets in through this system. This would in turn increase productivity, and also due to employment there is an increase in the per capita income of the people. Thus, it would increase their spending power and companies could increase profits. This is a pretty cynical perspective to have. But even through this perspective it leads me to believe that getting rid of caste-based system would result in the overall development of humanity. Caste not only impacts a person socially but also affects them psychologically. The emotional scars that it inflicts could be deep and take time to heal. It can be associated to the practice of untouchability or certain other practices due to the caste system. This practice has psychological implications both to the lower and the upper caste. The upper caste grows up with a sense of superiority with absolute disdain towards the lower caste. This makes them averse to the idea of sharing the same roof, food or socializing with the lower caste. This bias towards the so called lower castes is embedded in them since birth and not something that can be easily overcome. In the case of the people who are classified as lower castes they grow up with this feeling of lack of entitlement. They are brought up in an atmosphere where they are made to feel inferior to the upper caste. This is so deep rooted that they themselves can’t think of them as equals. It’s sickening that people are oppressed to such a level that they grow up with this sense of being inferior. You can see this in daily life where they would be given separate utensils to eat from. They are not made to sit where everyone has their food instead they have a separate place. These differentiations would make you wonder that people definitely would protest against it. Some cases they do, but from what I’ve seen the vast majority grow up accepting it. They cannot fathom the thought of them as equals. You realize the catastrophic effects that caste has on their psychology. They would always grow up with this feeling of inferiority being deep rooted in their system and are surprised when someone treats them with respect. The fact that one can be surprised because she/he is treated respectfully shows the extent to which they have been deprived of all the privileges.

Being respectful of another person isn’t a courtesy that you extend to them rather one should be bound to respect another person. I say this because I remember an instance in my life where I really became aware of this fact. We had a lady who used to come to our house to help us in household chores. She was with us during my childhood and eventually she had to stop due to old age. She would visit us every year after that. On one of her visits after we had lunch I offered to clear her plate and put it for wash. She stood up in protest and would absolutely not allow me to do that. She told me that I cannot touch her plate. I was in disbelief. I grew up thinking of her as part of my family. We treated her as family with lots of love. But even after all the years that she has been with us and known us, she couldn’t think of us as equals on a human level. This was deeply disturbing and I actually realized the implications that a caste-based system can have. The psychological implications can be grave as this actually acts a barrier for people to finally come out of this caste-based system. Even though there are laws that protect everyone from discrimination it is this feeling of superiority and inferiority that people have grown up with that dictate their actions. It’s important that we sensitize people about the wide spread effect that the caste system can have. It’s detrimental to the whole of humanity. It discriminates and doesn’t give everyone an equal opportunity. This as we have seen earlier severely affects efficiency and productivity. Instead of accepting it as a doctrine that has been passed on from ancient times we need to progress in the right direction. Everyone should be given equal opportunities. For this to happen we need caste-based reservations for now. We have a vast majority of people who are still underprivileged and the effects of their deprivation from the past has trickled down to the current generation. This imbalance needs to be set right so that they have a level playing field. It’s also important that people who have the resources do not take undue advantage of this reservation. We need to empathize with people who are actually in need of this and give them an equal opportunity to come up in life. This will take time but slowly we can build a country which will finally be free of caste and any such differentiation.

Reference:

1. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-35650616.