were aryans white?

First tell me what "white" means than I'll answer your question.

some have white traits though, like eye color

This question arises only if you consider the western Hypothesis of Arya migration, which is blatantly false. None of the people in the Indian subcontinent are White as in the europeans. Iraninas are also fair but not white.

Aryan is not a racial term. Only the Europeans propounded this hypothesis. None of our literature or tradition have any mention of a migration.

And most of the ruling dieties of aryans are black. Another proof.

And most of the ruling dieties of aryans are black. Another proof

If they were Black then why the discrimination against their own kind.

If you talk about the theoretical ethnic group that spoke an Aryan language that developed into various Indo-Iranian languages, that you can work it out yourself. This is the only possibly accepted but still not universally agreed use of the term "Aryan".

Aren't some hindu gods blue?

Originally posted by Komnenos If you talk about the theoretical ethnic group that spoke an Aryan language that developed into various Indo-Iranian languages, that you can work it out yourself. This is the only possibly accepted but still not universally agreed use of the term "Aryan".   If you talk about the mythical "Aryan" race, as propagated by white supremacists like the Nazis, it's entirely up to you what colour they were. They are the product of pure fantasy, and as such they could be white, black, blue and white striped or rainbow-coloured. Use your imagination.

Komenos, you expressed it perfectly. These divides are created by historians to explain some of their theories not without looking into the actual history.

Ancient Indian history records many races, all of whom are  Arya (if they are good / noble ) or Anarya (if they are bad, An means not Arya).they all existed together, simultaneously. This includes the Mongoloid race also.

Essentially the conflict between Aryas & Anaryas was a  matter of belief. The Aryas were Brahamic while the Anaryas  were abrahamic (not brahamic, a means not )

The caste system was based upon the organization of society into four distinct classes. The criteria for this classification was originally the color of the skin and later occupation. The four distinct castes were: 1. Brahmins (priests) who had the exclusive right to perform Vedic rituals and Vedic studies, 2. Kshatriyas (warriors), whose responsibility it was to protect the people, wage wars and rule the lands, 3. Vaishyas (traders), who had the right to engage in trade and commerce and own the agricultural lands and 4. Shudras (the unclean) who had the burden of serving the other three communities in discharging their respective duties. Apart from these, there were untouchables, who lived outside the communities and were not allowed to enter freely the towns and villages. They were assigned the menial jobs and kept out of sight an out of reach.

http://www.hinduwebsite.com/hinduism/h_caste.asp

An Indian can probably give you a better idea... Brahmin's do not look different from their surrounding populations as far as I have seen.

Edited by Zagros - 18-Oct-2006 at 12:27