Kshatriya (from kshatra, "rule, authority") is one of the four varna (social orders) of the Hindu society. The Sanskrit term kshatriya is used in the context of Vedic society wherein members organised themselves into four classes: brahmin, kshatriya, vaishya and sudra. Traditionally, the kshatriya constituted the ruling and military elite. Their role was to protect society by fighting in wartime and governing in peacetime.