1. Swami Dayanand was first revolutionary figure to start the crusade against castism by declaring that a person is Brahmin means learned not merely by taking birth to a Brahmin father but by gaining the knowledge of scriptures and a person is Shudra or backward not merely by taking birth to a Shudra father but when he is devoid of qualities.
2. Swami Dayanand was first to declare that son of a king as well as son of a poor dalit all must be provided with the compulsory education by the state king in Gurukula under the supervision of qualified teachers without any discrimination in food, clothing and other facilities.
3. Swami Dayanand was first to provide references from the Vedas that the God’s knowledge is not the monopoly of birth based Brahmins but for all including Shudras.
4. Swami Dayanand was first to declare that the basis of marriage must by education, qualities and actions of both partners rather than the caste.
5. Swami Dayanand was first to promote interdinning between different caste to eradicate the differences of castism.
6. Swami Dayanand was first to grant religious rights to the Shudras in form of right to wear Yagyopavit, Right to Perform Yajna, Right to Read Vedas, Right to Worship God to everyone irrespective of caste, creed and religion.
7. Swami Dayanand was first to reject those verses in Manu Smriti, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Puranas etc which supported Castism and create differences.
8. Swami Dayanand was first to create consciousness in the Hindu society to open orphanages and widow homes, to provide relief work during the natural calamities to help the needy especially the dalit class in grief. He even opposed the harvesting of poor souls in poverty by hook or crook by missionaries.
9. Swami Dayanand was first to openly declare that all are sons and daughters of almighty God and its utter foolishness to declare one as superior and other as inferior on basis of birth.
10. Swami Dayanand was first to declare that Humans must behave like true son of God by acting as Human.
Dr Vivek Arya
