Any of the four traditional social classes of Hindu India.
One of the hymns of the Rigveda declares that the Brahman , the Kshatriya , the Vaishya , and the Shudra issued forth at creation from the mouth, arms, thighs, and feet of Prajapati . Traditional lawmakers specified a set of obligations, observed mainly in theory only, to each varna: the Brahman, to study and advise; the Kshatriya, to protect; the Vaishya, to cultivate; and the Shudra, to serve. An unofficial fifth class, the pancama , was created to include certain untouchable s and tribal groups falling outside this system. The relationship of the caste system to the class system is complex; individual castes, of which there are dozens, have sought to raise their social rank by identifying with a particular varna, demanding the associated privileges of rank and honour.