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Unlock This CourseIn the lessons Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Disability: Rights, Opportunities and Bias you met equal rights (the same legal rights for everyone) and equal opportunities (the same chance to learn, work and succeed). Now we look at what Hinduism teaches. Two ideas matter most: the atman (see Body, Atman and the Three Gunas) and Brahman (see Brahman, Vishnu and Aum: The Hindu Universe).
Hindus believe the atman, the divine spark, is the same in every living being. A person's job, wealth or family does not change it. So every person has equal worth, and many Hindus say every person should have equal rights and equal opportunities.
Hindus believe Brahman, the ultimate reality, is present in all things. The Bhagavad Gita (5:18) says that wise people see the same in a learned priest, a cow, an elephant, a dog and an outcaste (a person outside the caste system). Many Hindus use this verse to argue that nobody should be treated as lower than anyone else.
Hindus have shown these beliefs in practice. Many Hindus welcomed the 1950 Indian constitution's ban on untouchability, and many Hindu temples, charities and communities today say that people of every background are welcome. The best-known example is Gandhi, who we meet below.
Key terms:
An early Hindu hymn, the Purusha Sukta in the Rig Veda, describes four varnas, and the Bhagavad Gita (4:13) also mentions them:
In everyday life, caste usually means jati. Over time many people were treated as being born into a fixed place. Some groups were pushed outside the system altogether and suffered untouchability. They were kept from temples, wells and many jobs. India's constitution outlawed untouchability in 1950, and later laws forbid caste discrimination.
Many Hindus say the varnas were about a person's qualities and work, not their birth. They point to the atman being equal in all, and say birth-based caste is a social custom that spoiled the religion.
Some Hindus see varna as part of the traditional order of society. Others disagree strongly. Hindus today do not all agree, and many Hindus say discrimination against Dalits is wrong.
Mahatma Gandhi believed in ahimsa, not harming, and in satyagraha, peaceful and truthful protest (see Pacifism, Satyagraha and Gandhi). In 1930 Britain ruled India, and British law taxed salt and stopped Indians from making their own. Salt is something everyone needs, so the tax hit poor families hardest.
Gandhi began walking on 12 March 1930 from his ashram (a simple community home for prayer and work) near Ahmedabad towards the sea at Dandi, about 240 miles away. Many people joined him on the way. At the coast he picked up natural salt, which broke the law. He did not fight anyone. Others also made salt, and many were arrested. The march showed that an unfair law could be challenged without violence, and it drew attention across the world.
Gandhi also worked for the people then called untouchables. He called them Harijans, meaning "children of God", and he campaigned for them to be allowed into temples. He saw untouchability as a stain on Hinduism, because the same atman is in everyone.
Not everyone agreed with him. Today many Dalits dislike the word Harijan, because it can sound as if they are being given a name by others. B. R. Ambedkar, a Dalit leader who led the writing of India's constitution, disagreed with Gandhi's approach and felt that it did not go far enough.
(a) Identify three of the four varnas. [3 marks]
(b) Choose one religion. Outline two teachings that support equal rights and equal opportunities in this religion. [4 marks]
(c) Explain why Hindus such as Gandhi support peaceful protest. [6 marks]
(d) "Caste has no place in religion today." Evaluate this statement, showing you have considered different points of view. In your answer you should refer to at least one religion. [12 marks]
(a) 1. Brahmins (1) 2. Kshatriyas (1) 3. Vaishyas (1) (Shudras would also score.)
(b) Hindus believe the atman is in every living being (1), so everyone has equal worth and should have equal rights (1). Hindus also believe Brahman is present in all things (1), and the Gita says the wise see the same in everyone, so nobody should be treated as lower (1).
(c) Gandhi was a Hindu who believed in ahimsa, not harming any living being. In 1930 he walked about 240 miles to the sea at Dandi to make salt, breaking the British law that taxed salt and stopped Indians making it. He broke the law openly but did not use violence, which is satyagraha, peaceful and truthful protest. Gandhi accepted arrest and suffering rather than hitting back, and others followed his example. This shows why Hindus such as Gandhi support peaceful protest, because he tried to change an unfair law without harming anyone, and he believed ahimsa should guide how Hindus fight injustice. (6)
(d) Plan. For: the atman is equal in all, so birth-based caste is wrong; untouchability is outlawed in India; many Hindus say caste distorted the religion; Gandhi campaigned for temple entry for all. Against: some Hindus see varna as part of the tradition; caste is part of the social life and identity of many communities, so removing it from religion may not remove it from society; Dalit leaders such as Ambedkar felt that Gandhi's approach did not go far enough. Possible conclusion: caste discrimination has no place, because it conflicts with the atman, but how far caste is part of Hinduism is still debated, so "no place" depends on what counts as religion.
In (c), do not just retell the march. Link each action (walking, breaking the law peacefully, accepting arrest) to ahimsa or satyagraha to show why it is a pacifist stance.