Birth Based Identity
Is it necessary for a person to have a religious identity? Some of the prisons of history are still alive and religious identity is also one of those prisons, others are national , racial , ethnic, gender and identities . Identities that are based on the event of birth affect the individual's freedom, individuality, and social acceptance. You are forced to bear the burden of that event throughout your life, in the occurrence of which you have neither contributed nor agreed or disagreed. Why are you forced to face the consequences of something you are not responsible for? In such a system there is always inequality and this inequality is there at every step, at every level. And the person is not able to get rid of birth based inequality and inequality of opportunities and consequences. In Indian philosophy, Shri Krishna, while highlighting the futility of the occasion of birth, has rejected the concept of Kuldharma. Along with this, Shri Krishna propounded the system of four varnas and entering into a particular varna and attainment of a particular Varna status was based upon the person's actions and his spiritual qualities and not upon the event of birth. But in this story of the Mahabharata, even though the importance of birth has been rejected at the level of theory, in practice, birth-based results have been given prominent place in the whole story, such as the story of Karna and Eklavya, while the women of the royal family got immunity from it.
Thus we see that the opposition to birth-based identity at the level of theory has been there since the very beginning of human civilization. Today, in the 21st century, when technological achievements are having a significant impact on the social structure, religion, race , gender and caste are trying to interfere more into political and economic realms than their actual respective domains. It is time to again decisively challenge birth-based identities. As a result of birth-based identities, the era of economic inequality is not ending and most intellectual efforts in favour of this inequality are made by those economists and politicians who are associated with the institutions of the affluent class because they have class interests at the same time. This class keeps on abstaining from taking any decisive action on the rising and growing inequality in education, health, employment, income, and ill effects of this birth-based inequality, urban and rural inequality are also being be maintained. In this way a large section of the society is confined in the prison of birth-based identity and is deprived of the secular advancements being made on the fronts of politics, health, education, employment,and income.
So we must work for freeing human beings from their birth based identities if we wish to make this place a better place.