form an entirely new caste, and how intertribal
marriages among the aborigines create new tribes.

4

Sect[424] must not be confounded with caste. Hindu sects are of many
kinds; some, if not militant, are at least exceedingly self-confident.
Others are so gentle in stating their views that they might be called
schools rather than sects, were the word not too intellectual. The
notion that any creed or code can be _quod semper, quod ubique, quod
ab omnibus_, is less prevalent than in Europe and even the Veda,
though it is the eternal word, is admitted to exist in several
recensions. Hinduism is possible as a creed only to those who select.
In its literal sense it means simply all the beliefs and rites
recognized in India, too multifarious and inconsistent for the most
hospitable and addled brain to hold. But the Hindus, who are as loth
to abolish queer beliefs and practices as they are to take animal
life, are also the most determined seekers after a satisfying form of
religion. Brahmanic ritual and Buddhist monasticism demand the
dedication of a life. Not everyone can afford that, but the sect is
open to all. It attempts to sort out of the chaos of mythology and
superstition something which all can understand and all may find
useful. It selects some aspect of Hinduism and makes the best of it.
Sects usually start by preaching theism and equality in the sight of
God, but in a few generations mythology and social distinctions creep
in. Hence though the prevalence of sect is undoubtedly a feature of
modern Hinduism it is also intelligible that some observers should
assert that most Hindus belong to the same general religion and that
only the minority are definitely sectarian. The sectarian tendency is
stronger in Vishnuism than in Sivaism. The latter has produced some
definite sects, as, for instance, Lingayats, but is not like Vishnuism
split up into a number of Churches each founded by a human teacher and
provided by him with a special creed.

Most Indian sects are in their origin theistic, that is to say, they
take a particular deity and identify him with the Supreme Being. But
the pantheistic tendency does not disappear. Popular religion
naturally desires a personal deity. But it is significant that the
personal deity frequently assumes pantheistic attributes and is
declared to be both the world and the human soul. The best known sects
arose after Islam had entered India and some of them, such as the
Sikhs, sho