Hinduism in Five Minutes - Steven W Ramey
68. Why is there Discrimination Based on Caste?
Hinduism in Five Minutes - Steven W Ramey
Richard S. Weiss [+]
Victoria University of Wellington
Richard S. Weiss is Adjunct Professor of Religious Studies at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. His research focusses on modern Hinduism in Tamil South India. He is the author of two books: Recipes for Immortality: Medicine, Religion and Community in South India (Oxford, 2009) and The Emergence of Modern Hinduism: Religion on the Margins of Colonialism (California, 2019).
Description
This chapter examines two levels of caste discrimination. The first involves the differentiation of castes based on distinct vocations, dress, assigned moral virtues and vices, and other aesthetic and ethical characteristics. The second involves oppression, where some caste communities seek social and economic dominance over other caste communities.