Caste in India: The Facts and the System c7.s3.19

c7.s3.19

Taking certain passages literally, it would seem that the dignity of a Brahman was at that time the reward of knowledge and virtue rather than the privilege of birth.⁷ But experience, verified by all subsequent literature, teaches us the true significance of the language; it is nothing but a device to glorify the supposed virtue and knowledge of the priests, and in no way involves forgetfulness of the rights conferred by birth alone. In one sense it might find literal justification; neglect of religious obligations of which ignorance or vice may become the source is sufficient to bring about expulsion from the caste.