The Origins of the Caste System

There was no caste [[discrimination]].

One belonged to a particular caste according to one’s livelihood.

Garga, the uncle of Krśńa, was a Vipra. Krśńa’s father, Vasudeva, was a warlike Kśatriya.

The guardians of Krśńa, Nanda, Upananda and others were Ábhiira Kśatriyas because they tamed cattle.

These Játrii Kśatriya and Ábhiira Kśatriya frequently fought each other.

• Both were good people, but because of some misunderstanding, they were fighting.

Krśńa thought, if He united these two, it would be very easy for Him to bring about Great India.

His elder sister, Subhadra, was an Ábhiira Kśatriya.

• He got her to marry Arjuna in order to make the Játrii and Ábhiira Kśatriyas stop fighting.

Krśńa asked Yudhisthira on the battlefield to say, “Ashvatthama hatah,” i.e., “Ashvatthama has been killed.”

The literal words were not correct, but the spirit was correct. Krśńa did it to save morality.

“Ashvatthama hatah” was uttered very loudly, and Dronacarya heard it, became senseless and was killed.

“Naro vá kuiṋjarah,” i.e., “this may be Ashvatthama the man or may be Ashvatthama the elephant” was uttered very softly, and at the same time people began to beat drums very loudly, due to which no one could hear it, and Drona was killed.

Lord Krśńa intented to kill Dronacarya. You may take this to be immoral. That is a fact.

But the main idea of Lord Krśńa was to save morality. He did all these things to fulfill His main moral objective.

If the soldiers of 2 countries fight, the civilian population will also be killed even if the intention is not to kill them.

This happens in the interest of the greater cause.

Here, also, the greater cause was a very proper approach by Lord Krśńa. *

He never went against the main principles of morality.

When at last the Yaduvaḿshii were destroyed in Prabhasa Tiirtha, Krśńa did not help them.

Rather, He said that they were immoral and He could not support them.

After the Yadavas, including Balarama, had finally been destroyed, Lord Krśńa sat quietly under a tree in Prabhasa Tiirtha in lalita mudrá.

He had become an octogenarian. He had grown old.

He was sitting in lalita mudrá on a stone just below a tree. The lower portion of His feet was reddish.

A vyádha (hunter) named Jara saw something reddish under the tree and took it to be a bird or the like.

He shot a poisonous arrow that struck Lord Krśńa’s feet.

He came in search of his prey and found Lord Krśńa instead. Lord Krśńa’s body was getting bluish because of the poison. The hunter confessed his serious mistake.

Lord Krśńa consoled him and said, “Such mistakes are committed by human beings. Had I been you, I might have committed the same mistake. You have not committed this mistake intentionally. Never mind it. In the world such mistakes are committed by people.

You did not know beforehand that I was here. You should not be punished either legally or morally, as such mistakes are committed by people. I forgive you.”

Saying this, Lord Krśńa left His body.

22 October 1967, Ranchi