beyond social hierarchies. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: “No Arab has superiority over a non-Arab—no black over white. All are from Adam (PBUH), and Adam (PBUH) was created from dust.”
Caste is a social identity; it doesn’t define the integrity of a man. However, it becomes a challenge when it is weaponised by people of higher castes to oppress the weak and underprivileged. Our society offers many factual examples where casteism has even led to gender-based violence. Women from lower castes face higher rates of domestic violence and other abuses.
The caste system is a social menace that has polluted our society very badly. It promotes inequality and injustice. The existence of caste-based discrimination is perilous to the social health of a society. It hinders the growth of brotherhood and impedes social unity, as warned by Dr B. R. Ambedkar in many of his books, especially in Annihilation of Caste.
Social reformers and many religious denominations have attempted to eradicate the caste system. Even the Constitution of India itself banned caste-based discrimination. But Islam provides both an intellectual and moral solution to this wretchedness. Islam says that all humans come from a single pair of male and female. There is no caste or class system in Islam. It treats human beings equally and justly. The only true criterion of distinction is Taqwa (piety) and justice.
The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) gave the ultimate verdict in his last sermon. He said that no Arab has superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab over an Arab; no white has superiority over a black, nor a black over a white. All human beings are from Adam (PBUH), and Adam (PBUH) was created from Turab (dust).
The scholars of Islam have always upheld this egalitarian value of Islam and rejected the caste system as a remnant of Jahiliyah. Habibur Rahman Azmi, a prominent scholar of the Deoband tradition, for example, wrote a whole treatise against the caste system. He debated issues like Kafa’a (compatibility in Nikah) and espoused the true message of Islam concerning caste and class. Maulana Abdul Hamid Nomani’s “Masla-i Kufu Aur Ishaat-i Islam” is also a strong critique of the dominant narrative of caste-based discrimination and matrimonial issues. Another scholar, Masud Alam Falahi, composed a conclusive argument in the form of his book “Hindustan Mai Zaat Paat Aur Musalman”, against the social hierarchy prevalent among some Muslims.
Lastly, from the Tauhidi worldview of Islam, the caste system is seen as a symbol of the Jahiliyah era. To cling to it is to betray the teachings of Islam and its Prophet (PBUH). Islamic brotherhood and equality demand that a Muslim must rise above this mayhem and menace, and believe that we must all return to the same dust from which we came.
—The writer is an Assistant Professor (Islamic Studies) at the Department of Higher Education, Jammu and Kashmir