The extent to which Hinduism and the caste system can be considered a European invention. It will be demonstrated that the content of Hinduism was in no way invented by Europeans but the religious category of Hinduism was. It will be shown that the caste system was part of Hinduisms social content and therefore not invented by Europeans, but simply adapted and utilised by British colonials. This essay will assess the nature of Hinduism and the caste system before, during and after the period of British colonialism in India, while assessing the changes that were brought about by colonialism. The colonial archive provides a very heterogeneous and at times contradictory representation of Indian society that stands in contrast to its homogeneous portrayal in colonial sociology. The field of postcolonial studies has relied heavily on colonial sociology (caste and tribe surveys and the census) to produce dominant representations of Indian society and history, especially related to caste.

Mathew Abraham was born in Kerala and he completed his education in Kerala. As a social activist, he was deeply involved in the Dalit movement and did a research study on the movement. He writes regularly both for national journals and magazine publications.