Chandala

thumb|280px|A man belonging to Chandala or Namasudra caste in East Bengal in 1860. Chandala () is a Sanskrit word for someone who deals with the disposal of corpses, and is also the name of a Hindu lower caste, traditionally considered to be untouchable.

== History == Varṇa was a hierarchical social order in ancient India, based primarily on the Dharmashastras. However, since the Vedic corpus constitute the earliest literary source, it came to be seen as the origin of caste society. In this view of caste, varṇas were created on a particular occasion and have remained virtually unchanged. Historically this order of society, notions of purity and pollution were central, and activities were delineated in this context. Varṇa divides the society into four groups ordered in a hierarchy; beyond these, outside the system, lies a fifth group known as the untouchables, of which the Chandala became a constituent part.