Caste in India: The Facts and the System c8.s3.36

c8.s3.36

As the outcome of speciality of occupation, it would be no more than a guild like those of the Middle Ages or of the Roman world. Who could confuse the two institutions? The one is confined solely to artisans, enclosed within regular limits and confined in its action to the economic functions for which it was created by necessity or interest; the other permeates the whole social state, regulating the duties of all and governing private life down to its most intimate functions. There is nothing more simple and natural than that castes and guilds should meet at certain points, for both are corporations. No one denies that community of occupation has contributed to bring together or limit certain castes of workmen or artisans. We may sometimes see individuals drawn into the orbit of a new caste, and new sections evolving under the influence of occupation.¹ How many other factors have exercised a parallel and analogous influence!