The recent rules framed by the University Grants Commission triggered widespread concern, compelling the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India to impose a stay on their implementation. The resulting divide between Savarna and SC, ST, and OBC students is deeply disturbing and unhealthy for a nation aspiring to become Viksit Bharat by 2047. These very students constitute the backbone of the country and will serve as flagbearers of its progress in the years leading up to 2047. Any attempt to further fracture society and misguide the youth is a dangerous proposition. This moment calls for serious reflection on the persistent spectre of the “caste-ghost” that has pervaded society for a few centuries, obstructing bonhomie and hindering a peaceful environment amongst students. Such barriers undermine and obstruct their potential as contributors to personal growth and meaningful nation-building.
Itihasa, History, Background
What do our ancient texts say about ‘caste’? Nothing. The word ‘caste’ is as alien to Sanatan Dharma as is the word ‘religion’. The word caste—a term derived from the Portuguese casta (meaning “race” or “lineage”, implying “by birth”)—which was used by colonial administrators to force a composite, indigenous system into a society where Varnas were not decided by birth. So, how do our texts explain the various types of characteristics and human resources in society? Our oldest text, the Rig Veda, provides the metaphor often misused by colonials to suggest hierarchy; whereas, when read as Vigyan(science), it describes a functional body.
ब्राह्मणोऽस्य मुखमासीद्, याद्रोष्णिः श्रोत्रम्।
ऊरू तदस्य यद्वा, पादो जातोऽस्य वा॥
This is the foundational hymn that establishes the four varnas as originating from the cosmic being (Purusha) and symbolises their interdependent roles rather than a hierarchy in spiritual terms. Symbolically, the individual represents the four varṇas. The repository of knowledge—the mind or brain—corresponds to the Brāhmaṇa; the arms symbolise the Kṣatriya, representing strength and action; the stomach and thighs signify the Vaiśya, which motivate and sustain productive work; and the legs and feet represent the Śūdra, associated with physical labour and support.
Bharat stands among the oldest custodians of civilizational memory. Itihasa—meaning “as it happened”—reaches back thousands of years, so vast that the seers structured it into Yugas. Sanatani tradition understands time as cyclical and is deeply familiar with the concepts of Satya Yuga, Treta Yuga, Dwapara Yuga, and Kalyuga. We know Satya Yuga as the age of eternal truth and righteousness; Treta Yuga as the era of Sri Ram and the ideal of Ramrajya; Dwapara Yuga as the age of Sri Krishna, marked by the waging of a Dharma Yuddha to uphold righteousness; and finally, Kalyuga, when the guardians of Dharma were outnumbered by forces eroding the moral, value-based social order. Yet Sri Krishna succeeded in restoring Dharma in society by re-anchoring it in righteousness and duty toward society and the nation.
While Kalyuga is traditionally believed to have begun with the departure of Sri Krishna from the earth, it is important to recognise that this phase effectively concluded in 1192 CE, giving way to a Ghor Kalyuga. This marked a qualitative shift in the nature of the age—an intensified and darker phase that reshaped the civilizational ethos of the Bharat subcontinent. This is a provocative and vital lens for viewing Bharat’s history. It is not inappropriate to use 1192 CE as the defining “structural break” in the Indian social fabric. By framing this as the transition from Kalyuga to Ghor Kalyuga (Extreme/ Dark Age of Kalyug), it should be understood that the challenges we face today regarding “Caste” and social fragmentation are not ancient Bharat problems, but the scars of a 1,000-year trauma.
What does the greatest and longest text, the Mahabharata, have to say about Varnas? As Pitamah Bhisma lay wounded on the Kurukshetra battlefield, Sri Krishna brought Yudhishtra to learn Raj Dharma, or the duties and responsibilities of a King in administering society and its people. During this sermon, explanations of the Four Varnas, or categories, emerge. The Shanti Parva of the Mahabharata emphasises that Varna is based on guṇa (attributes/capabilities/skills/behaviours) and karma (actions/duties) rather than solely on birth. Four varnas are mentioned, namely Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, and Shudra, explaining them through their attributes, personality characteristics and duties towards chosen work.
The Caste “Ghost” did not evolve naturally from within Sanatana Dharma; it was a sociological construct created by translating a fluid, multidimensional system into a rigid framework, to suit colonial strategy. Analysing the roles played by the four varnas in a socially knit, strong society, it is possible to understand the real terms of these four nomenclatures. In the Bhartiya philosophy, Brahmand is the word for the universe, and Brahman is one who knows the laws and functioning of the Brahmand. The Brahmans were focused on knowledge assimilation and dissemination. Kshatriyas were characterised by physical prowess and represented the warrior class. The Vaishyas were those with an aptitude for trade. The larger numbers were the wide variety of workmanship classes, nomenclature as Shudra. Our Shastras explain that in ancient times, not just the rulers could be from the Brahman or kshatriya varnas; equally important were the vaishyas and shudras; each varna had the freedom to develop traits and move to any varna. Valmiki, from the Sudra varna, later came to be revered as a Rishi due to his inspirational epic Ramayana. Likewise, ancient Itihāsa offers numerous such examples of individuals whose spiritual insight and purpose transformed their social identity and stature. The Sanatana social engineering ensured respectful interdependence of the four varnas. When shudras, the working class, cultivate, produce or manufacture, the traders can trade, generate revenue for themselves and rulers; this enables rulers for Rajya Suraksha (Kshatriya, army) and also for facilitating trade and ground-level workers. Students from all sections of society attended Gurukuls, and the Brahmacharya period of student life helped them understand and develop their capabilities. Nothing came by birth.
Roots of the Caste System
So, how and when did this ‘caste’ word creep into our social fabric? And what is the real meaning of the nomenclatures, schedule casts, schedule tribes, other backwards castes, etc.
During the Ghor Kalyug, invading uncivilised tribes came. They burnt, looted and destroyed. They siphoned texts to Arab lands. The material wealth of rich Bharat went to far-off lands or was used by looters for lavish, wasteful and lustful living. Their political ideology, in the garb of ‘religion’, was to subjugate and convert locals so as to continue to enjoy this loot and lifestyle. Their gory and gruesome deeds were documented by them in their tales of conquest and ransom. But Sanatan was too deeply rooted, and therein arose heroes who defied, defeated and halted the invading looters’ designs.
Then came another set of ‘sophisticated’, ‘educated’, though not learned, traders, with the intention of becoming owners of this still rich land of the Bharat subcontinent, popularly known as Jambu Dweep. The East India Company takes over Bharat with tact and force, making us a British colony. These were smarter looters. While the Islamic invaders sought to gain control over all the produce and human resources of Bharat, the colonials came with a plan to ‘mould’ them as their loyal servants at every level. Their strategy was simple. Entice the population with a regular monthly income. The colonials needed the vast population to extract resources as per their needs. Here comes the categories of white-collar jobs and blue-collar jobs. The challenge for the Colonials was selecting people from the wide variety who were adept at handling umpteen resources and types of work, ranging from education and administration to farmers, artisans, manufacturers, cobblers, carpenters, blacksmiths, and barbers. To harness this vast human resource, a large-scale exercise was initiated to document and systematically list the wide range of occupational groups across Bharat. This process led to the emergence of “scheduled” lists and categorisation, in which the working class were classified and recorded for administrative purposes. Such scheduling was primarily intended to aid strategic planning, enabling the effective utilisation—and control—of the local population to serve external objectives.
This colonial strategy not only weakened the entrepreneurial spirit of the population but also reduced many to loyal functionaries of colonial rule. Unaware of the deeper consequences, communities were divided and managed through the lure of regular income. It was from this framework that terms such as Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes emerged, later further fragmented by vote-bank politics into categories like Other Backwards Classes, Dalits, and Maha Dalits. Over time, the foundations of Bharatiya economic vitality, dharmic governance, and cultural cohesion were steadily eroded to serve ulterior interests.
It is time for the youth of today to shed the shackles of the colonial legacy of caste, creed, and tribe, and stand united as the Motherland’s proud inheritors of a civilisation that once made this land among the richest, most value-driven societies in the world, and one that has endured for thousands of years. The youth must remain sincere to the brahmacharya phase of life, focusing on the pursuit of knowledge, the building of capability, and the cultivation of skills, rather than viewing one another through the narrow lens of caste divisions.
Conclusion
Ancient Bharat was rooted in Vedic Gyan–Vigyan, a scientific and philosophical foundation of knowledge. Nearly five thousand years of recorded Itihasa reveal how the dharmic social vision of the ancient seers nurtured an intellectually, economically, and spiritually prosperous Bharatvarsha. This prosperity arose from deep civilizational and cultural cohesion, developed in harmony with universal principles of the Brahmand—a scientifically grounded philosophical understanding of the cosmos and man’s relation to it.
The Adi Parva of the Mahabharata tells us that this text is ‘Itihasa’, meaning narrating events ‘as it happened’.
जयॊ नामेतिहासॊ ऽयं शरॊतव्यॊ विजिगीषुणा
महीं विजयते सर्वां शत्रूंश चापि पराजयेत
This Itihāsa is called Jaya and is to be heard by those who aspire for victory. A king who listens to it is said to bring the whole world under a dharmic sway and overcome all foes. It should be heard by students to understand how a nation’s social fabric was fractured, so they can contribute to rebuilding an equitable, righteous society.
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