I've been reading about the Caste system in India and I must say, I truly am impressed by it. I figure that there must be something appealing about it, if this system has managed to survive and endure for thousands of years on the Indian subcontinent. So with this in mind, I've now saw it fit to start a fun or interesting little discussion and survey thread about it, because I am genuinely curious as to where people would fit into the caste system if it were applied today.
Being that the rankings are so ancient however, there won't always be a direct modern equivalent, so I will make a best effort at including some of the modern social statuses or classes into their respective castes. As people should know, a caste isn't something that you obtain but rather, something that you're born into. So what your parent(s) do, will take precedence over whatever you currently do as your occupation or social class.
For the purposes of the survey: please do not include any activities of extended family, only take into consideration what you do for a living, or what your parent(s) have done for a career, your nuclear family's social class can be taken into consideration to help determine which caste you're apart of.
For anyone unfamiliar with India's caste system, the ranks are as follows:
1. Brahmins- If you're a priest (religious authority), a teacher (someone in the teaching profession) or are an academic (someone with a Masters degree or Doctorate degree or higher amount of education), then congratulations- you are a Brahmin! The highest, most respected status in all of Indian society. You're at the top of the caste system and are above all others who aren't Brahmins. You're an elite and have or should be afforded the most privileges.
2. Kshatriyas- If you're a warrior (someone who is police or military), or a King (someone who is royalty or is a politician). or are an administrator (someone who has a job in government and is in charge of people below them) then you belong in the second highest caste, you're above other people except for Brahmins.
3. Vaishyas- Traditionally this is the caste of Merchants and Landowners. If you own your own business, if you're an employer, if you're a skilled trades-person such as a carpenter, plumber, or electrician, or if you own real estate, this is the caste you're in. While people in this caste are outranked by the two higher castes, people who're Vaishyas still live relatively good lives and get due respect, being that they're the equivalent of a capitalist- the owner of capital who drives economic growth.
4. Shudras- This is the caste of servants. The lowest of the official caste ranks. If you're an unskilled laborer, if you're just an employee of a business, if you work minimum wage, or are poor to working poor, this is the caste for you. Most people who aren't apart of the two highest castes can be divided into either Vaishyas or Shudras, with the key distinction being that the "working class" are the Shudras while the "business/owner" class are the Vaishyas.
5. Dalits- Finally, there is one more caste that technically is "out of caste." A status so low as to be beneath every other caste within the Indian caste system. The so called "Untouchables." If you're a janitor or maid, if you clean toilets, if you do sewer work, or are homeless, then you're unfortunately in this bottom status. Traditionally, all other people in all of the higher castes are allowed to discriminate against Dalits. In India it is believed that (if reincarnation is true) if an Untouchable sufficiently "knows their place" that in the next life, they'll be born into a higher caste and won't have the misfortune of being a Dalit again, which was caused by "bad karma" from a previous life.
Which caste would you be and why? Do you think that anyone in your immediate family will moving up or down a caste soon? What are your views on the caste system, taking into account your place in relation to it? Is it a good or bad system in which to structure society under?
My father is a radar engineer, is solidly upper middle class, and now owns real estate because he has paid off a mortgage, so it looks like I'm a Vaishya. If it were determined by only my accomplishments however- I'd be either a Shudra (if employed) or a Dalit (if I stay unemployed from not getting hired). It would seem that I don't have what it takes to improve in status, I tend to go downwards instead, for whatever reason.
*Please vote your caste, in order to keep the poll truly representative- thank you.
