Which hymn of the Rigveda, describing the creation of society from the body of a cosmic being, was later used to justify the varna system?

The "Purusha Sukta", hymn 90 of the tenth mandala of the Rigveda, describes the creation of the world and of society from the body of a cosmic being called "Purusha", and was later used to justify the varna system.

What the Purusha Sukta says:

• The gods performed a sacrifice in which the Purusha (the primeval man) was the offering.
• From the parts of his body came the universe: the moon from his mind, the sun from his eyes, Indra and Agni from his mouth, Vayu from his breath, the sky from his head, and the earth from his feet.

It also says that the four varnas came from his body:

• The Brahmana from his mouth.
• The Rajanya (Kshatriya) from his arms.
• The Vaishya from his thighs.
• The Shudra from his feet.

How it was used:

• This is the earliest reference to the four varnas, and the word "Shudra" appears for the first time in this hymn.
• Later, the Brahmanas used this hymn to argue that the varna order was divinely created, and that the Brahmanas were the highest because they came from the mouth.
• NCERT notes that the Dharmasutras and Dharmashastras drew on this idea to lay down rules for the varnas.

Date:

The tenth mandala is considered one of the latest parts of the Rigveda, so the hymn reflects the beginning of social divisions at the end of the early Vedic period.

Challenges to the varna system:

The Buddha, Mahavira and many later Bhakti saints rejected the idea that birth determined a person's worth.

Dr. B. R. Ambedkar criticised the Purusha Sukta in his book "Who Were the Shudras?" (1946).

Why not the other options?

• ✗The "Nasadiya Sukta" is the Hymn of Creation, which asks how the universe began.
• ✗The "Nadistuti Sukta" praises rivers.
• ✗The "Vak Sukta" praises speech.