Shudras in Ancient India: A Social History of the Lower Order down to circa A.D. 600 c14.17

c14.17

We may consider the position of the śūdras in the economic system on the one hand and their social and ritualistic status on the other. Religious disabilities imposed on them in *c.* 500-200 B.C. persisted mostly till *c.* A.D. 300, so long as this category consisted mainly of slaves, artisans, domestic servants and agricultural labourers. But when large numbers of aboriginal peasants began to multiply the śūdra ranks and when the slave element in agrarian production declined substantially, giving way to less servile workers, the social and ritualistic status of the śūdras, as laid down in the Dharmasūtras, became incongruous with their new role in production. This anachronism was gradually removed by enlarging the existing religious rights of the śūdras, by conferring on them more such rights in Gupta and post-Gupta times. At the same time the śūdra community was kept divided by throwing a good many tribal and artisans into the order of untouchables. Those who still continued in their old servile position and were further reinforced by the growing number of untouchables came to be known ritually *asat* or impure śūdras, and their religious conduct was accordingly laid down. Apparently peasant castes supplemented by some artisans accounted for the pure or *sat* śūdras, and the untouchables consisting of agricultural labourers and some low artisanal occupations stood for the impure śūdras or mixed (*miśra/saṃkara*) castes, which clearly marked the social configuration of Gupta and post-Gupta times. A late chapter of Manu mentions more than sixty mixed castes. They resulted from the process of consolidating continuous conquests through the mechanism of land grants by which numerous tribes annexed to the brāhmaṇical order were converted into śūdra castes. Tribals at lower stages of culture were made untouchables, whose number shot up suddenly and became considerable enough to attract the attention of the Chinese travellers. From towards the end of the Gupta period the decline of crafts and commerce added to the number of castes, for guilds lost mobility and tended to become rigid, hereditary organisations.