Town Planning in Ancient India c7.33

c7.33

It should be noted that the colours of the ground answer to the colours of the respective castes, the Sanskrit term for the caste being ‘varṇa’, literally colour. It is said that people were originally classified into castes according to their complexions. The complexion of the Brāhmaṇs was white, emblematic of purity and holiness; that of the Kshatriyas was red, colour of the blood, symbolic of battle and martial spirit; that of the Vaiśyas was yellow, the colour of gold, emblematic of commerce; that of the Śūdras was black, the colour of the non-Aryan low class people, signifying ignorance and dirty habits. The trees have also been allotted in order of their sanctity. The tastes of the respective grounds were also appropriate and significant. The Matsya Purāṇa suggests a mystic method of determining the best building sites for the four castes. “Let a pit be sunk one cubit deep and let it be carefully besmeared over. Let a ghee-lamp of unbaked earth be placed in it, with four wicks pointing to the four cardinal directions.