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R09 વણ અને જ્ઞાતિ Today however Varnashram is a lost treasure and there is utter confusion. Therefore so far as I can see there is only one Varna and that is Shudra. That there is confusion of Varnas is humiliating. That we should call ourselves Shudras is no humiliation, for in religion there is none high and none low. Profession of Shudra is just as honourable and necessary as that of Brahmana. Equally so of Kshatriya and Vaishya. But even if it should hurt our pride to consider ourselves as Shudra, there is no escape from it as a moment's reflection will show. This fortunate circumstance if it is generally accepted solves the difficulty of ranking the Harijans. To what Varna should they belong on admission? If we say, 'to the Shudra Varna we immediately accept the gradation in Varna Dharma and the Harijans will have every right to resent the lowest rank being given to them. If we are all Shudras there is no difficulty left. I remember a learned Shastri in 1915 suggesting at a Social Reform gathering in Nellore that there was confusion of Varnas and that as originally there was only one Varna viz. that of Brahmanas we should all now call ourselves Brahmanas. I could not reconcile myself to that proposition then and I could do so less now. Whilst we can all serve and hence be called Shudras, we do not all possess learning nor do we possess divine knowledge. Therefore it would be untruthful to regard ourselves as Brahmanas. If we rob interdining and intermarriage of religious significance in the manner it is understood, it becomes purely a matter of option, where we dine and where our children marry. And removal of untouchability would then have exactly the meaning I have always given it. This ought to be quite clear." “ છાપાંજોગા નિવેદનમાં રિથતિ સમજાવવાનો મેં પ્રયત્ન કર્યો છે. તમે નિવેદન જોયું હશે. તમને એથી સંતોષ થયો કે કેમ તે હું જાણવા ઈચ્છું છું. હું હંમેશાં કરતો આવ્યો છું તેમ, જ્ઞાતિ અને વર્ણ વચ્ચે હું ચાખે ભેદ પાડું છું. જ્ઞાતિઓ અસંખ્ય છે અને તેમની આજની સ્થિતિમાં હિંદુ સમાજ ઉપર તે બાજા સમાન છે. તેથી જ તમે અને હું જ્ઞાતિભેદ પાળતા નથી. વણું જુદા સિદ્ધાંત ઉપર રચાયેલ છે. વર્ણ નો અર્થ ધંધા થાય છે.
