Brahmins

Priests who, in Jiang's model, gatekeep spiritual knowledge and access to the proper Dharma.

Jiang says Brahmins gatekeep Hindu spiritual progress because only they understand Dharma, so being good is not enough without priestly mediation.

Jiang describes the Hindu hierarchy as priests/Brahmins at the top, warriors and kings below them, farmers and merchants below that, and servants and laborers at the bottom, with skin color also differentiating the system.

Jiang says Proto-Indo-Iranians centralized power through Hinduism by placing themselves in the priest class.

Jiang argues that in the Hindu hierarchy, kings are lower nobility under the Brahmins, so rulers become the group most likely to want revolutionary change.

Jiang links Buddhism's rise to ruler conflict with Brahmin power, noting that the first Buddha was a prince and that a king/emperor institutionalized Buddhism and sponsored missions abroad.

Jiang defines Buddhism's major difference from Hinduism as removing the Brahmin gatekeeper: a person can access Nirvana or enlightenment through guidance by monks.

Jiang calls Buddhism revolutionary because it seeks to overthrow the power of the Brahmin class.

Jiang says Brahmins responded to Buddhism by creating or implementing the caste system, separating classes so they could not intermingle or touch.