India's Caste System

The caste, or class, system in India, is the organization of people via their class, that is, their standing in society based on how much money they have and how they are born. The people who are on or near the top of the, metaphorical, social pyramid are the Brahmins, who are priests and academics, and the Kshatriyas, who are the soldiers and military of the country. Down lower on the pyramid are the Vaisyas, made up of the business community, and the Kshudras, who are the working class, or servants. Then, below the pyramid are the Dalits, or the Untouchables. They are the lowest class of the system and never move up the scale. They do all of the dirty work, such as disposing of dead bodies. The justification for this discrimination by the Brahmins? The caste system has always been in place, and many believe that God has made the Dalits what they are, and they cannot be changed. This goes for the other classes as well, a servant cannot become more than a servant, no matter what. The truly terrifying part is, some Dalits were brought up with these laws, and so they say things like, "I will corrupt them," as if that were part of normal life.