Sirgapoor Sahil Reddy - Week 4


READING SUMMARY WEEK 4
INTERROGATING MY CHANDAL LIFE – A DALIT AUTOBIOGRAPHY
Name – Sirgapoor Sahil Reddy
JGU Id- 20161245

The autobiography of Byapari Manoranjana starts from the Barisal district of East Pakistan, which has become Bangladesh today. In the first chapter of the book, he mainly explains his family lineage and caste lineage of the Namashudras in order to establish the social setting in which he was born. One of the most striking aspects of the chapter is the ouster of the Namashudras, from the caste of Shudras into the Chandal caste, by the Sena ruler Bhallal Sena. The ouster implied that Namashudras would be treated as untouchables and not Shudras, even though they were originally amongst the Shudra caste, at the wish of one King. Thus, they were ousted from the villages, as the Chandals were supposed to reside outside the village areas, and were not permitted from being a part of Brahmanical activities. Thereby again showing that the Caste system and various caste hierarchies, have been propagated by Humans and has no basis in the ancient scriptures.
Another interesting point was that the condition of the Namashudras, did not improve even after the reign of the Sena dynasty ended. Bengal saw seven hundred and fifty years of Muslim rule followed by two hundred years of British rule, yet the lowly status that had been imparted to the Namashudras remained the same as under the Sena Dynasty. The author also points out that most of the proponents of Namashudra rights fought for the inclusion in Shudra caste under the varna system, but didn’t want to break out of this system. The author also talks of how being educated, or being financially stable did not take away the problems of a Namashudra, because they continued to face discrimination amongst their own peers. The author also points out the fact that most of the Muslims in the region of Bengal are Hindus, who have been alienated from their religion and caste owing to the rigid caste system prevalent in the territory. He gives one example of his father’s brother who lost his caste owing to accepting food from a Muslim.

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