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For the traditional Hindu this system is an expression of the ultimate truth:
The rebirth into one specific caste is determined by the sum of actions (karma), the individual performs in his
former life. The old scriptures (Vedas,
Puranas, Upanishads
) divide men into four categories. According to the Rigveda (10, 90) the
Brahmin (priests) arise from the face of the
purusha (the first man), the Kshatriya (the warriors) from his
arms, the Vaishya (the farmer) from his legs and the
Shudras (the lowest caste) from his feet. In the
Manusmriti each individual was provided by specific duties. On the level of
social reality this system was transferred into the division of Jati, signifying a cultural unit within society,
providing each individual with a significant identity. The most characteristic feature of the Jati is a hierarchy,
basing on the idea of purity, signifying not a natural, but a ritual purity. Besides this idea, this system fixes a mutual
dependence of the different castes, being characterized by mutual hierarchical relations, whereby the religious rights and
privileges were attached only to the three upper castes. The theory and practice of the holy law however was considered as
a privilege of the Brahmin.
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