By: Prof. Satyendra Kumar Singh, Editor-ICN
In Mahabharata times, the amount of fine varied according to the caste in which one belonged. A Shudra would pay eight times the amount of the damage, a Vaishya would pay sixteen times the amount, and a Kshatriya would pay thirty-two times the amount. A Brahmin would generally pay sixty-four times the amount; however, a Brahmin could be made to pay up to a hundred times the amount of damage. The multiplier was different for each caste, because the mental capacity of the offender and the offender’s ability to pay the fine were taken into consideration.
The law system was actually based on the intellectual ability and harsh punishment was defined for upper castes in particular. So, can we define it as anti-upper caste or pro-lower caste?
Vedvyas (Shudra), the son of a fisherwoman did write Mahabharata and Valmiki (Shudra) wrote Ramayana. We take these as our religious epics. Further, when we talk about Dronacharya (Brahmin) who had asked for the thumb of Eklavya (Shudra), do we portray it as Brahmin versus Shudra or it was just a ploy of a guru to make his disciple Arjuna the best archer of his time.
This time also witnessed the marriage of Bheem (Khashtriya) with Hidimba who belonged to Dimasha family. It means that there was no prohibition of inter-caste marriage. Khatu Shyam ji who is considered a reincarnation of Lord Krishna was the grandson of Hidimba itself. This again shows that we Indians didn’t restrict ourselves to worship the deities of any caste. Krishna was brought up in Yadava family, now under OBC category.
Who was Chandragupta Maurya and what was his caste? He was Shudra by caste but was mentored by Chanakya (Brahmin). Again, no caste based hassles.
Let us leave the past as many of us may term is as mythological or imaginary stories. Let us take into consideration the journey of one of the greatest personalities of modern times, Dr B.R. Ambedkar. Let us answer the following questions:
Who supported for the education of Bheem Rao and who gave him the surname Ambedkar? Yes, this was his teacher who was Brahmin by caste. When he lost the elections, who paved his way for Rajya Sabha? It means that people did support the less privileged ones at that time as well.
India is a country of different caste and culture. There may exist differences between various sects and some hardliners may exist who highlight certain stray events for their vested interests. Still, India is a country of all. Each and every caste has contributed for the sake of the country with their best possible might. Let us stand together not as a member of a caste or a religion but as Indian only. This is just because India has been a country of unity among diversity. India has never been a country of radical forces taking the charge.
We paid our tribute to the martyrs of Jaliawala Bagh yesterday i.e. 13th April. Were English bullets caste specific? Didn’t we have our freedom fighters from all the castes and beliefs? ‘Sarve-bhavantu sukhinah’ has been the mantra of Indian culture. Let us pledge on this day (14th April) which marks Baisakhi as well as the birthday of Dr BR Ambedkar to reunite with this mantra and re-establish the bond, the India bond.
