The untouchable caste in India is a phenomenon that cannot be found in any other country in the world. Originating in antiquity, the caste division of society exists in the country at the present time. The lowest level in the hierarchy is occupied by the untouchable caste, which has absorbed 16-17% of the country's population. Its representatives make up the "bottom" of Indian society. The caste structure is a complex issue, but still try to shed light on its individual aspects.
The caste structure of Indian society
Despite the difficulty of recreating the full structural picture of castes in the distant past, one can still distinguish the historically formed groups in India. There are five of them.
The highest group (varna) of brahmanas includes civil servants, large and small landowners, priests.
Next comes the Varna of the Kshatriyas, which included the castes of the military and farmers - the Rajaput, Jata, Maratha, Kunbi, Reddy, Kapu, etc. Some of them form a feudal layer, representatives of which further replenish the lower and middle links of the feudal class.
The following two groups (vaisyas and sudras) include middle and lower castes of farmers, officials, artisans, and community servants.
And finally, the fifth group. It includes castes of servants of the community and farmers, deprived of all rights to own and use land. They are called untouchables.
"India", "untouchable caste" - concepts inextricably linked to each other in the view of the world community. Meanwhile, in the country with ancient culture, the customs and traditions of the ancestors continue to be honored according to the division of people according to their origin and belonging to some caste.
The history of the untouchables
The lower caste in India - the untouchables - owes its appearance to the historical process that took place in the Middle Ages in the region. In those days, India was conquered by more powerful and civilized tribes. Naturally, the invaders came to the country with the goal of enslaving its indigenous population, having prepared for him the role of a servant.
To isolate the Indians, they settled in special settlements built separately as modern ghettos. Civilized strangers did not allow Aboriginal people into their community.
It is assumed that it was the descendants of these tribes who subsequently formed the untouchable caste. It included farmers and servants of the community.
True, today the word "untouchables" is replaced by another - "Dalits", which means "oppressed." It is believed that the “untouchables” sounds insulting.
Since Indians often use the word “jati” rather than “caste,” their number is difficult to determine. But still Dalits can be divided by occupation and place of residence.
What untouchables live
The most common castes of Dalits are considered chamars (tanners), dhobis (laundresses) and pariahs. If the first two castes have a profession in some way, then pariahs live only due to unskilled labor - removal of household waste, cleaning and washing toilets.
Hard and dirty work - such is the fate of the untouchables. The lack of any qualifications brings them scanty income, allowing only to make ends meet.
However, among the untouchables, there are groups that are at the top of the caste, for example, hijra.
These are representatives of all kinds of sex minorities who are engaged in prostitution and begging. They are also often invited to all kinds of religious rituals, weddings, birthdays. Of course, this group has a lot more to live than an untouchable tanner or laundress.
But such an existence could not but arouse protest among the Dalits.
The untouchables fight
Surprisingly, the untouchables did not resist the tradition of division into castes imposed by the invaders. However, in the last century the situation has changed: the untouchables led by Gandhi made the first attempts to destroy the stereotype that has developed over the centuries.
The essence of these speeches was to draw public attention to caste inequality in India.
Interestingly, the case of Gandhi was picked up by a certain Ambedkar from the Brahmin caste. Thanks to him, the untouchables became Dalits. Ambedkar ensured that they receive quotas for all types of professional activities. That is, an attempt was made to integrate these people into society.
Today's controversial policies of the Indian government often cause conflicts involving the untouchables.
However, it doesn’t reach rebellion, because the untouchable caste in India is the most submissive part of the Indian community. The centuries-old timidity before other castes, ingrained in the consciousness of people, blocks all sorts of thoughts about rebellion.
Government Policy of India and Dalits
The untouchables ... The life of the most severe caste in India provokes a cautious and even contradictory reaction from the side of the Indian government , since it is a question of centuries-old traditions of Indians.
But nevertheless, caste discrimination is prohibited at the state level in the country. Actions that offend representatives of any varna are considered a crime.
At the same time, the caste hierarchy is legalized by the country's constitution. That is, the untouchable caste in India is recognized by the state, which looks like a serious contradiction in government policy. As a result, the country's modern history has many serious conflicts between individual castes and even within them.
Interesting facts from the life of the Dalits
The Untouchables are the most despised estate in India. However, other citizens are still madly afraid of the Dalits.
It is believed that a representative of the untouchable caste in India is able to defile a person from another varna by his presence alone. If the delite touches the clothes of a brahmana, then the latter will need more than one year to cleanse his karma from contamination.
But the untouchable (the caste of South India includes both men and women) may well become an object of sexual violence. And no desecration of karma happens at the same time, since this is not prohibited by Indian customs.
An example is the recent incident in New Delhi, where a 14-year-old untouchable girl was held as a sex slave for a month. The unfortunate died in the hospital, and the detained offender was released by the court on bail.
At the same time, if the untouchable violates the traditions of their ancestors, for example, dares to publicly take advantage of a public well, then an impoverished local massacre awaits the poor.
Dalit is not a sentence of fate
The untouchable caste in India, despite government policies, remains the poorest and most disadvantaged part of the population. The average literacy rate among them is just over 30.
The situation is explained by the humiliation suffered by children of this caste in educational institutions. As a result, illiterate Dalits are the main part of the unemployed in the country.
However, there are exceptions to the rules: in the country about 30 millionaires are dalits. Of course, this is a minuscule in comparison with 170 million untouchables. But this fact says that Dalit is not a sentence of fate.
An example would be the life of Ashok Khada, who belonged to the tanners' caste. The guy worked as a docker during the day, and studied textbooks at night to become an engineer. His company is currently concluding deals worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
And there is also the opportunity to leave the Dalit caste - this is a change of religion.
Buddhism, Christianity, Islam - any faith technically leads a person out of the untouchables. This was first used at the end of the 19th century, and in 2007 at once 50 thousand people adopted Buddhism.