“Your life is the message to the world. Make sure it’s inspiring.”
I am often asked what my caste is, a question that took me by surprise at first as I didn’t realize how prevalent the system of segregation still is. Though it is less predominate than in previously decades, it is still unfortunately a huge part of the Hindu society. When I went paragliding in Pokhara, the friend who took me pointed out how the lower caste folks had to carry their gliders as well as those of the higher caste folks up the hill. The higher caste people walked up with hill empty handed. It is still hard for people of a lower caste to get jobs, and even to this day, marrying into a lower caste is seem as shameful. One of the girls at Hopeful Home explained to me that not too long ago if a lower caste person touched water or food, the higher caste person wouldn’t dare to touch it as it was seen as contaminated. The higher caste folks wouldn’t even dream of touching a lower caste person either, and the lower caste folks were not given the opportunity of an education or a decent job. Though it is slowly changing, it is still an ever present part of this unequal society.
The Wandering Nomads 