Introductory - Global Sikh Studies

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CHAPTER XIII
Armed Struggle — Its Development
The Sikh movement, as seen, had an egalitarian political mission.
In order to achieve this objective, the movement needed a plebian
base as well as a military organization of people politically motivated
by that mission. Both these tasks were of formidable dimensions,
because the caste ideology and the caste system had never allowed
the political aspirations of the masses to germinate. They never even
conceived the idea of capturing political power for their own interests
and at their own initiative. The caste ideology had indoctrinated them
to follow blindly the ruling castes. The reaction of the caste society
to Muslim political and religious domination makes it clear.
1. How the Caste Society Reacted
The growth of the caste system and the caste society was a gradual
process. This process of expansion was not done in one sweep.
Different tribes, clans and communities were assimilated in the caste
society at widely separated periods of history. It was not incumbent
on the affiliated groups to accept the caste ideology in its entirety. So
long as the affiliated group did not disturb the overall framework of
the caste order, and refrainded from a few of the acts absolutely
abhorrent to Hinduism, e.g. beef-eating, it could even retain its previous
customs and usages. Of course, the group or groups could be affiliated
only as a part of some old caste, or as a new caste. Individuals, as
individuals, found no place in that society. The more one conformed
to the established caste norms, the better the social position one got
in the caste hierarchy. All this led to the formation of a patchwork
type of society, with widely varying patterns of caste norms and usages.