Religion and social status can be sources of power rivaling property

Evidence

That the social status of an individual by itself often becomes a source of power and authority is made clear by the sway which the Mahatmas have held over the common man. Why do millionaires in India obey penniless sadhus and fakirs? Why do millions of paupers in India sell their trifling trinkets which constitute their only wealth, and go to Benares and Mecca? That religion is the source of power is illustrated by the history of India, where the priest holds sway over the common man often greater than that of the magistrate, and where everything, even such things as strikes and elections, so easily takes a religious turn and can so easily be given a religious twist. — Ambedkar, B R, Annihilation of Caste_ The Annotated…, 846

Categorization

• XREF: Echoes the earlier chapters of this same book on religion as an instrument of social control; also connects to Weber’s status groups vs class. — connects to: Sedentary agriculture gives motherhood sacred status because property demands heirs — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 161; Claims of sacred land ownership secure one group’s dominance over others — Nadim N. Rouhana and Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, When Politics Are Sacralized:…, 120; Who controls land destiny is a live question about wealth versus prayer throughout society — Winona LaDuke, All Our Relations: Native Struggles for…, 68 (+1 more)