Castes in India: Their Mechanism, Genesis and Development: Difference between revisions

Ambedkar views that definitions of castes given by Senart,{{who|date=July 2016}} [[John Nesfield]], [[Herbert Hope Risley|H. H. Risley]] and [[Dr Ketkar]] as incomplete or incorrect by itself and all have missed the central point in the mechanism of the caste system. Senart's "idea of pollution" is a characteristic of caste in so far as caste has a religious flavour. Nesfield states that 'absence of messing' with those outside the Caste is one of its characteristics, but Nesfield has mistaken the effect for the cause, as caste is a closed group that naturally limits all social intercourse outside of one's caste, including messing etc. Risley makes no new point that deserves special attention. Dr. Ambedkar elucidates that Ketkar's definition of "prohibition of intermarriage" and "membership by autogeny" as two characteristics of caste are two aspects of one and the same thing but not two different things. The prohibition of intermarriage means limiting membership to those born within the group.

Ambedkar has evaluated that the [[endogamy]] (absence of intermarriage) is the only one that can be called the essence of caste and only characteristic that is peculiar to caste. No civilized society of today presents more survivals of primitive times than does the Indian society like the custom of [[exogamy]]. The creed of exogamy, is not that ''sapindas'' (blood-kins) cannot marry, but a marriage between ''sagotras'' ([[gotra]]s or clans of the same class) is regarded as a sacrilege. In spite of the endogamy of the castes within them, exogamy is strictly observed and that there are more rigorous penalties for violating exogamy than there are for violating endogamy. Thus "the Superposition of endogamy on exogamy means the creation of caste."<ref>Manoranjan Mohanty (2004). p. 136.</ref><ref>Anupama Rao(2009), p. 125.</ref>