Caste in India: The Facts and the System c7.s2.43

c7.s2.43

The propensity was so strong that it manifested itself in several ways. Is it not Manu himself¹ who represents as Kshatriyas reduced to the condition of Śūdras by diverse offences—omission of rites and contempt for Brahmans—the tribes of the Pauṇḍrakas, Choḍas, Drāviḍas, Kāmbojas, Yavanas, Śākas, Pāradas, Pahlavas, Cīnas, Kirātas, Daradas—that is to say, all the non-Hindu warrior populations of India or of foreign countries—Dravidians and Chinese, Persians and Greeks, Scythians and aborigines? They are, of course, bound by no tie of origin to the Brahmanic organization; but it was essential at all costs to fit them into the preconceived scheme!