THE CASTE SYSTEM OF INDIA – SATHYA SAI BABA, GANDHI, AMBEDKAR
One of Sathya Sai Baba’s most bandied aphorisms stated: “There’s one caste, the caste of humanity“. That is fine, but why therefore does he support the Indian caste system?
He says he “must condemn the hatred between castes and religions” (Sathya Sai Speaks Vol. 4, p.84).
“Varna or what we call caste, is a convenient arrangement for the conduct of worldly affairs… The four varnas are universal; they can be found in any country. The leaders of thought are the Brahmins; the fighters carrying arms are the Kshatriyas; the entrepreneurs and the business executives are the Vaisyas; the busy producers and the labourers are the Sudras.Each varna and asrama has its own rules, regulations and restrictions.”(Sathya Sai Speaks Vol. 4, p.230-1)
Sathya Sai Baba stated, however, “The system of Varnas is ordained by the Vedas and so there can be no injustice in it; it is not an artifice invented by man.” (Sathya Sai Baba in Geetha Vahini, Ch. IX, p. 46 ) Then, in his feckless attempts to appear to ‘unify’ the castes and made them acceptable as such, he spoke much resounding nonsense, such as: “Caste is the Cosmic Person Himself manifesting as Human Society. It is the visible form of the Lord, charming in every limb. It is a great pity that this truth is not widely recognised. It is the good fortune of this land, Bharath, that in this Vision, the Lord, as the physical integration of the “caste limbs” is promoting peace and harmony, prosperity and well-being for all mankind.” and “Judging from mere appearance, one cannot declare that all men are one. We have to distinguish and discriminate and group those with Sathwic, Rajasic, Thamasic or combinations of one or more of those natures, separately. No one can say this is wrong.” (Sathya Sai Vahini, p. 216)
What kind of a ‘boon’ is it that almost the entire world holds this to be wrong, a denial of human rights and – of course – anything like social equality? It is one of India’s many great calamities to suffer from its deep-rooted caste divisions – originally based on a fictitious idea of how ‘spiritual’ or ‘unspiritual’ people are (i.e. Sattwic, Rajasic or Thamasic)! Sai Baba lived in a long-abandoned past where theocratic divisions ruled the populace and princes ruled according to religious scriptures. He wanted to apply such notions to the present-day world which by great good fortune has defeated just those oppressive and most often despotic systems of government. The common understanding of caste among Hindus is that one is born into the caste one deserves and it is for life. In the next (supposed) reincarnation you may rise to a higher caste, or sink to a lower one!
The world in general condemns any such caste distinctions as being, divisive, discriminatory, unjust and oppressive. As Sai Baba described the castes, their members are not even equal before the same law. It is most noticeable that he omits mention of the Dalits and casteless groups which are still the victim of major social suppression. Such a divided and extreme caste system as India’s has not been common to other than despotic states. It is a far more rigid and unfair class system than has existed in European countries for centuries.
The caste system in India was made illegal decades ago The strongest, most systematic attack on the caste system has come in the twentieth century through the Constitution of India, adopted on November 26, 1949. India’s constitution guarantees the right of all its citizens to justice, liberty, equality, and dignity. Sathya Sai Baba nevertheless tried to sell the idea that caste as very proper for society and thus mendaciously claimed to be loving towards all and against all forms of discrimination. Indeed, intensely discriminatory practices continue throughout most of the population and, as we see. Though the grip of caste has weakened in some respects for a minority among the lower castes in recent times. Major local clashes and killings, rapes and burning out homes between castes are still widespread and extremely vicious, where the lower castes and the casteless are overwhelmingly the chief victims. Despite the law, caste is invariably also mentioned in the countless daily classified matrimonial ads in the newspapers, which shows how deeply it permeates the society and personal relations. The several thousands of years old caste system in India is a gross – if inexplicable – aberration from Hindu religious values (Sanathana Dharma). Sai Baba is scripturally correct when he states that the Vedic religion clearly lays down that “birth into a family alone cannot decide caste; it has to be determined on the bases of character and occupation.” (Sathya Sai Vahini, p. 217)
The Indian system of castes is certainly very complex, the four main castes are each subdivided into numerous sub-castes. The four traditional Varnas – which figured in the ancient the ancient epics of Ramayana and Mahabharata – are the Brahmins or Hindu priesthood, the warrior castes (Kshtryas), the traders and farmers (Vaisyas) and the workers (Sudras). Formerly seen as having no caste at all are the Dalits (formerly openly called untouchables). Foreigners were once all considered untouchables and were utterly disdained by many, not least the Brahmin caste, as mlechchhas.
While Sai Baba defended the basic system of class differentiation as unavoidable, it is frequently argued there that castes and especially sub-castes provide a haven for those born into them since it is a social network which can help its members and defend them within the wider community. To this it must be said that those low castes with little or nothing cannot help their own kind much at all, while defense is necessary only against the warring by members of other castes. The casteless have had to struggle enormously with very little improvement of their status and opportunities so far. To see the nature of the caste system as it pertained in the 19th century, one can see the illustrated ‘Seventy two specimens of castes in India’ by T. Vardapillay in 1837.
“Indians who use lofty rhetoric about progress, characterizing their society as “united in diversity,” seem to be simply perpetuating the system of social gradation that has blighted so many lives.” (Dr. J. S. Murthy). “The British government of India had a considerable, transforming impact on the country’s Hindu social structure. The British brought change by passing many important laws designed to aid the marginalized lower castes–laws such as the Hindu Act, the Caste Disabilities Act, and the Widow Remarriage Act. But the British could not find a lasting solution to the problem of castes, particularly since the British saw themselves as a privileged ruling class.”
Sathya Sai Baba saw caste as a model for all! This is illustrated well by the following words of his: “I am making a promise today that the people of all the countries, viz. Pakistan, China, Germany, Russia will be united. That should be our goal. The goodness of Bharat will lead to this unity.” (Sanathana Sarathi Sept. 2002,p. 267). While India still has an extremely divisive caste system which, though considered illegal, flourishes throughout the land, how can India be an example of any kind of unity whatever? The megalomaniac ‘promise’ that he will bring about unification of the above countries surely robs Sathya Sai Baba’s revanchist Hindu teaching of all credibility, quite apart from all the other ancient and discredited views he held.
A full account of the caste system is found in the Manusmriti (Ordinances of Manu), which dates from A.D. 700, is the most authoritative work on Hindu law. Centuries later, it was adopted by British rulers in India.
See also Dalit request to Indian government to abolish caste-based discrimination – P.L- Mimroth and others.
Sathya Sai Baba Deceptions Exposed 