Ambedkar: An Overview

by B.R. Ambedkar

That there were from the very beginning four varnas in the Indo– Aryan society is a view which is universally accepted by all classes of Hindus, and also by European scholars. If the thesis advanced in the last chapter, namely, that the Shudras were Kshatriyas, is accepted, then it follows that this theory is wrong and that there was a time when there were only three varnas in the Indo–Aryan society, viz Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas. Thus, the thesis, while it solves one problem, at the same time creates another. Whether anybody else sees the importance of this problem or not, I do. Indeed, I am aware of the fact that unless I succeed in proving that there were originally only three varnas, my thesis that the Shudras were Kshatriyas may not be said to be proved beyond the shadow of a doubt. While it is unfortunate that I should have landed on a thesis, which, while holding out a promise of solving the problem, creates another, I feel fortunate in having strong and cogent evidence to show that there were originally only three varnas among the Indo–Aryans. The first piece of evidence I rely upon is that of the Rig Veda itself. There are some scholars who maintain that the varna system did not exist in the age of the Rig Veda.

Rig veda varnashrama