Works Cited-
The caste system in India is a fourfold division of people based on their birth, and is largely followed by people who follow the Hindu way of life. The four distinct groups of caste are Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and Shudras. The Shudras are further divided into Ati-Shudra. Those who exist outside this fourfold division are known as Dalits.
The Brahmins, Kshatriyas, and Vaishyas are categorized under the ‘pure caste’ group and are regarded as ‘upper caste’ whereas the Shudras and the Ati Shudras are considered to be a ‘low caste’ group and thus are deemed ‘polluted’. According to ancient scriptures, the low caste people have to serve the high caste people. Those existing outside of caste are commonly referred to as the ‘untouchables’.
When we read about Caste System, we assume that all upper caste people enjoyed the superior status and all lower caste men and women were severely victimized. Though the latter is true, the fact is, not all upper caste people enjoyed equality and superiority. It won’t be unjust if we simply mention that upper caste ‘men’ enjoyed all liberties.
The caste distinction doesn’t give any special privileges to the upper caste women. Though she has a somewhat higher authority over men and women of the lower caste groups, within her community and household she is dominated and discriminated against by men of her own caste. This article will focus on the upper caste woman and the discrimination that she faces.
When we talk of upper caste women, we cannot help but mention Sita and Panchali, the heroines of the Hindu epics ‘Ramayana’ and ‘Mahabharata’ respectively. Both the epics show fierce wars fought in the name of the injustice meted out to these two women. The Ramayana was Lord Rama’s fight against the Lanka King Ravana who had abducted his wife Sita. The entire theme seems so engrossing that we tend to ignore the fact that the same Lord Rama disowned Sita after winning her back, because her ‘purity’ was in question. Also, Rama and Lakshmana conveniently insulted Shurpnakha who was the sister of Ravana and cut her nose off, because she evidently showed her interest in courting Lakshmana, who was the brother of Rama. Thus, portraying that a woman who vocalizes her desires is witchy.
In Mahabharata, the kings could perform polygamy ‘legally’, but polyandry was a sin. So when Draupadi was married off to five men, the men were not regarded as being polluted, but she was considered sinful and unholy. The Mahabharata war was fought to provide justice to Draupadi (also known as Panchali) the wife of the Pandavas, who was insulted by the Kauravas when an attempt was conducted by the Kaurava Prince Dushashana to disrobe her in a public gathering. The Mahabharata War was to win back her ‘lost’ status and more so the ‘lost’ status of her husbands. But what one must also consider is that she would not have been insulted in a public gathering in the first place if her husband, Yudhisthira, didn’t trade her off in a game of dice, as if she were some object.
Objectification of women is quite common. The most common example of a woman being considered as an object is the practice of ‘kanyadaan’ in Hindu marriages. Fathers ‘donate’ their daughter away, as if she is just an object that he owns. Be it during the Mahabharata or now, women were and still are looked at as a man’s ‘property’ that could be taken or given away according to the man’s whims and fancies. The main theme of both the epics is to depict how good wins over evil and how women are to be respected, but the respect that they talk about is very patriarchal in nature.
The Hindu way of life is governed by the norms mentioned in the four Vedas (Rig, Sama, Yajur, and Atharva), the Dharmasastras, the Arthasastra, and the Manusmriti. These are ancient Sanskrit texts that lay down rules for people and how should they behave within their defined caste group. Hence, the discrimination of the upper caste woman within her household wasn’t necessarily because her gender was regarded as inferior by the male members. It was mostly men acting according to the writings sanctioned by these ancient scriptures and texts.
The discrimination starts with the fact that only Brahmin men could read the Vedas and nobody else. Very often people criticize and say that men of other castes should be allowed to read the Vedas too, and that the Brahmins are privileged. But the truth is only the Brahmin men are privileged, not even the Brahmin woman, as even she is not allowed to read the ancient texts. Even today we don’t even have a single woman priestess in any of the Shakti Peeths in India, even though all these temples are dedicated to Goddess Durga.
The privileges that an upper caste woman enjoys are also the ones that would at the end benefit her husband or the male members of her family. For instance, she being regarded as the ideal mother or ideal wife and thus gaining respect for it, is society’s way of letting her remain within the house and perform her duties as a mother or a wife or a daughter-in-law, saving the men the economic costs of keeping a nanny, a cleaner, a washerwoman, etc. or from doing those tasks themselves.
Brahmins are regarded as the ‘twice-born caste’, which is seen as a fortunate birth. But the ‘twice-born’ system is only applicable to the Brahmin men, who are given an even higher status by a ceremony known as the ‘Upanayan’ ceremony, wherein they are regarded almost next to God. The Brahmin women don’t enjoy a high status even though they’re born in the same ‘twice-born caste’. Their decisions hardly matter to the family.
One characteristic that was common in olden times is that they were regarded inferior to their husbands, who on the other hand, are termed as ‘Parmeshwaras’ or ‘Gods’. The women have to touch their feet and perform all activities that please the husband. Touching the feet of the husband during the marriage ceremony is still prevalent among many upper caste families. These rules are preached by Brahmin saints and sages and are considered the woman’s ‘Dharma’ or ‘Duty’!
When we talk about ancient Hindu scriptures, we cannot do away with the existence of the Manusmriti which is said to have been written by Manu (the first man on earth or progenitor of humanity). As mentioned above, the men did what was sanctioned by religious texts and most of their doings were prescribed in the Manusmriti (a text burnt down in several feminist movements). The Manusmriti describes several rules for women. For instance, it forces women to be dependent on their fathers, husbands, or sons, forever. Moreover, the norms for upper caste widows are very stringent. They can either perform Sati (burn themselves at the pyre of their husband) or marry the husband’s younger brother or live a life of austerity. Anything beyond this is not acceptable.
An instance could be my own house where my grandmother lives a life of austerity ever since my grandfather expired. Women are expected to stay at home and serve the husband and his family. When a girl is born, she is regarded as ‘Paraaya Dhan’(someone else’s property) by her own parents. This is because she is married off and then has to live with the husband and his family forever. ‘Property’ is the word used for her. Such is the status attributed to an upper caste woman but it’s the same with women across all caste groups.
Then there are highly austere rules for menstruating women as well. Brahmin women who menstruate are kept away from the kitchen and are made to sleep on the ground and aren’t allowed to enter the temple. Some argue that these rules exist so that the woman could rest, but the rules are highly biased and strict in nature. Even I am not allowed to visit temples or enter my grandmother’s kitchen during the first three days of menstruation. An even more embarrassing moment was when I hit puberty for the first time and guests were invited, and it was publicly announced that I had become a ‘woman’ irrespective of the fact that I was only 13.
The Manusmriti, commonly termed as Manav Dharam Shastra, is the earliest metrical work on Brahminical Dharma in Hinduism. According to Hindu mythology, the Manusmriti is the word of Brahma, and it is classified as the most authoritative statement on Dharma. The scripture consists of 2690 verses, divided into 12 chapters. Hindu apologists consider the Manusmriti as the divine code of conduct and, accordingly, the status of women as depicted in the text has been interpreted as Hindu divine law. fWhile defending Manusmriti as divine code of conduct for all including women, apologists often quote the verse: “yatr naryasto pojyantay, ramantay tatr devta (where women are provided place of honor, gods are pleased and reside there in that household)”, but they deliberately forget all those verses that are full of prejudice, hatred and discriminating against women and the lower caste people. Some of the most celebrated derogatory comments about women in the Manusmriti are-
These are just a few of the norms mentioned about women in the Manusmriti. These itself show how a woman belonging to the upper caste group is also subjected to discrimination just like the lower caste men or women. Though such strict rules are not followed anymore in most parts of the country yet they are still present in some parts. It is known how a few temples do not allow the entry of lower caste people. But there are temples, for example, the Shani Shingnapur temple in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra, where women are protesting against the temple’s order that states women cannot enter the temple.
Rama Lakshmi writes in the book ‘Caste in Life’, how she was expected to behave properly and not speak against men and perform rituals because she was born into a Tamil Brahmin family. Different authors in the book write about their relationship with caste and how it has been a part of their lives especially their mothers, sisters, wives and daughters. Because it is up to the woman to keep the family honour, because she is regarded as the family’s priced property that nobody should touch or make impure.
Belonging to a high or low caste has no significant difference for women, because overall women are mostly discriminated against. In reality, lower caste people and women, irrespective of their caste, are similar in the eyes of most high-caste men.
The birth of a girl child is still considered sinful. A very close friend of mine belongs to a Brahmin family from Darbangha, Bihar. On the birth of her younger sister, her grandmother refused to accept the child because she was considered to be the second unlucky birth in the family, after my friend. It is among the higher caste groups that dowry killing, female feticide, and infanticide are common norms. Inter-caste marriage is still a crime for women and in some states, she is killed in the name of honour killing if she dares to love or marry a lower caste man.
It is also seen that rules became stringent for women mostly during the nineteenth century, when India was colonized. Partha Chatterjee’s essay on ‘The Nationalist Resolution of the Women’s Question’ talks about how the concept of ‘Bhadramahila’ (respectable women) emerged. Women who attained cultural refinement through formal education were considered respectable. Otherwise, they were deemed westernized and seen as uncultured. Though being educated was a milestone step for women, not all women enjoyed the right to education, especially the ones belonging to the lower classes.
In her essay ‘Whatever Happened to the Vedic Dasi?’ Uma Chakravarti writes about Kailashbhashini Devi, an educated woman, who had written about how most pitiable conditions of women caused by ‘purdah’ (female seclusion), child marriage, kulin polygamy, enforced widowhood were “unknown in ancient times”. According to her, women in those times acquired learning before marriage, and continued learning even afterwards without the superstitious fear of widowhood.
Independence for women belonging to the higher castes was very limited. Sarala Debi, who was born in the ‘privileged’ Tagore family, took up an appointment in a girl’s school in Mysore to earn her own living independently. A young man stole into her room one night and she had to return back to her home only to be taunted and told that there was no need for a woman belonging to a family like hers to go off to distant lands to seek employment. After the incident, Sarala said, “The whim to work is satisfied, but not the whim for independence.” Sarala Debi went ahead to become a ‘hero’ in the nationalist movement and her contribution is immense, yet not much was known about her life post marriage and she is said to have lived up to the conventional role of a wife.
It wouldn’t be wrong to state that since ancient times a woman is seen as a ‘child-bearing and rearing machine’. During the epics, or the ancient Vedic period, or the nationalist movement and even today, women have faced severe discrimination and upper caste women are not behind in suffering these injustices and inequality. She might be considered above Dalit men, but, as shown by Nivedita Menon in her book, “Seeing Like A Feminist”, she would experience her relative powerlessness as a woman if faced by a man in a position to attack her sexually, regardless of his caste or class; or when she compares her life choices and autonomy with those of a man of her class.
Works Cited-
Hari Prasad
A brilliant write up ?
Abhijeet Satsangi
If the “bullshits” mentioned above in the name of religious or moral conduct according to Some Great!!!!! Manu and his genius work “Manusmriti”.It’s worst than garbage and should be globally discarded as a senseless and illogical work ..
And The concept of Caste better say “Varna” was initially based on the basis of Profession and not birth..Neither this varna system was made to privilege or superiorize someone but to mark the basic difference among humans, to respect their individuality.
Substantially Every human is the manifestation of the same divinity and physically also they all are made up of same elements..
By birth none comes with any signs to be more pure or privileged than others..
So inequality based on merely birth is horribly stupendous and raises a question mark on human rationale!!!!
Balasubramaniam Murugesu
Very well written and articulated.
ravendra singh
On basis of one corrupted manusmriti you wrote one sided article which is not even main scripture , amazing
Why haven’t you take references from 4 vedas , 108 upnishads , mahabharat , 18 Puran , Ramayan why ???
Even in manusmriti you highligh only part that suited your agenda
Why haven’t you told that , manusmriti also tells ti Worship women , give them properly rights , give them right to choose husband , to remarry many other ????
“A woman can choose her own husband after attaining maturity. If her parents are unable to choose a deserving groom, she can herself choose her husband.” (Manu Smriti IX 90 – 91)
9.72-9.81 allow the man or the woman to get out of a fraudulent marriage or an abusive marriage, and remarry; the text also provides legal means for a woman to remarry when her husband has been missing or has abandoned her.
“women must be honored and adorned”, and “where women are revered, there the gods rejoice; but where they are not, no sacred rite bears any fruit3:55-3:56
leave texts , hinduism is only which worship women in form of knowledge (Saraswati) , prosperity (Lakshmi) , valour (Kali , furga)
Why haven’t you write about ancient hindu women gurus????
Like Maitreyi, Gārgī, Lopāmudrā, Haimavatī Uma and Ubhaya Bharati who debate great guru ADI Shankaracharya
I have never read such baised article in my whole life
Rupesh Raut
What you had written it’s completely biased and without any basic knowledge of Manusmriti. You had just keep writing with out giving any actual references with hymns of Manusmriti. You must had read the corrupt version of Manusmriti which actually uses Anti Hindu elements just for burning it publically. You are one of them too. So spare some time…just little time to read and understand actual “Manusmriti”. First educate yourself then preach others….Jay Hind
Prasoon Sharma
First off all its totally biased as well on the base of your half knowledge….
Manusmriti also tells tht one who is bramhan can become sudra or anyone of all remaining 3 category…. And it is for all of thm… According to manusmriti its all based on karma of the person… Nd the cast system was aggressively created by British to separate ppl on this basis…
Bcz in many books of those British authors they mansioned about it tht at tht Time most of the Indians were educated… Nd probably u hvnt heard about Taxsilla nd all…
Nd their is one more duryodhan was insulted by panchali ,saying “andhe ka beta andha hi hoga” . . For which he revenge… As he was antagonist character… Nd there r many more… So go recheck your sources nd thn write something…
Pawan Kumar
Her whole article is self contradictory
At one place she writes Manusmriti is believed to be written by Manu at the other place, she writes it’s words from Brahma. She doesn’t even know that Smritis were ancient law books written by Humans Manu was a Human, no where he has been referred to as God. There were other Smritis also, Narad Smrita, Parashar Smriti & Yajnvalkya Smriti. She says her puberty was declared, Goswami is north indian surname, whereas this is a South Indian tradition.
She has deliberately mentioned corrupted Manusmriti which was rewritten by Britishers to show Hindus in inferior light.
Yudhisthira was criticised in Mahabharata for putting her on stake whereas she writes as if the epic eulogizes this act .
In a nutshell, this article is a shit article.
Setu Srivatsa
Women In Sanatana Dharma
Women in the Mahābhārata (13-81-1 — 12)
Bhishma said, Respect, kind treatment, and everything else that is agreeable, should all be given unto the maiden whose hand is taken in marriage.
Her father and brothers and father-in-law and husband’s brothers should show her every respect and adorn her with ornaments, if they be desirous of reaping benefits, for such conduct on their part always leads to considerable happiness and advantage.
If the wife does not like her husband or fails to gladden him, from such dislike and absence of joy, the husband can never have issue for increasing his clan.
Women, O king, should always be worshiped and treated with affection. There where women are treated with respect, the very deities are said to be filled with joy.
There where women are not worshiped, all acts become fruitless. If the women of a family, in consequence of the treatment they receive, grieve and shed tears, that family soon becomes extinct.
Those houses that are cursed by women meet with destruction and ruin as if scorched by some Atharvan rite. Such houses lose their splendour. Their growth and prosperity cease. O king,
Manu, on the eve of his departure for Heaven, made over women to the care and protection of men, saying that they are weak, that they fall an easy prey to the seductive wiles of men[1], disposed to accept the love that is offered them, and devoted to truth.
There are others among them that are full of malice, covetous of honours, fierce in disposition, unlovable, and impervious to reason. Women, however, deserve to be honoured, so O men, show them honour.
The righteousness (Dharma) of men depends upon women. All pleasures and enjoyments also completely depend upon them. So serve them and worship them, bend your wills before them.
The begetting of offspring, the nursing of children already born, and the accomplishment of all acts necessary for the needs of society, all these are dependent upon women.
By honouring women, you are sure to attain success in all your projects. In this connection a princess of the house of Janaka the ruler of the Videhas, sang a verse.
It is this: “Women have no sacrifices ordained for them. There are no Sraddhas which they are called upon to perform. They are not required to observe any fasts. To perform their duty towards their husbands and in-laws is their only obligation. Through the discharge of that duty they succeed in conquering heaven”.
In childhood, the father protects her. The husband protects her in youth. When she becomes old, her sons, protect her. At no period of her life should a woman be left alone.
Women are goddesses of prosperity. The person that desires affluence should honour them. By cherishing women, O Bharata, one cherishes the goddess of prosperity herself.
Women in the Puranas
Glory of the Mother
O Brahmin, he who lives to see his mother so poor and wretched lives in vain. He who full of regard for his mother protects her with devotion, gets fully rewarded in this world and the next. (Nrsimha P. 13:45
In this world and the next, they are the best of people worthy of honour and adoration who obey their mothers. Nrsimha P. 13:46
The highest Dharma is maintenance of the mother (Nrsimha P. 13:63)
Status of Lakshmi
The inconceivable energy of the Godhead can be conceived as twofold – with a female form and with a male form. The two should not be regarded as separate entities, O Lord of Birds. Garuḍa Purāṇa 3.3.16
If the Lord did not have a female aspect, O Lord of birds, how could women be considered as His reflections. Garuḍa Purāṇa 3.3.17
Hence the female is inseparable from the male form. These two forms constitute the very nature of the Lord. This should not be taken otherwise there is no neutrality in the Lord. Garuḍa Purāṇa 3.3.18
The neutral form is alien to His nature. It is not present in Hari, O Lord of Birds. Know that women are the reflected form of Hari Garuḍa Purāṇa 3.3.19
Women in Pancharatra
A man of piety free from sin, consistently adhering to the precepts of the sacred scriptures, performs those deeds that are not condemned by women and that please them. Lakshmi Tantra 27.47
If he observes an excellent man and an excellent woman, he should worship (in them) the divine couple, thinking of me (Lakshmi) and without relinquishing thought of their separably coupled existence. Lakshmi Tantra 27.42
A yogin (dharma practitioner) should never abuse a woman, either in deed, speech or thought. Wherever I am the realities are, wherever I am the gods too are.
Wherever I exist , merits too exist, wherever I exist Krsna too exists.
I am the womanhood pervading the entire universe and inherent in all women. He who abuses women, abuses lakshmi herself, he who abuses lakshmi abuses the entire three worlds.
He who bears ill-will against any woman, is ill-disposed towards Laksmi herself. He who is ill-disposed towards Lakshmi is ill-disposed towards the entire universe.
He whose heart is gladdened by the sight of women – like moonlight, and who never entertains evil thoughts about them, he is most dear to me.
Just as there is no sin whatsoever in Narayana or myself , O Indra, Neither in a cow, a brahmin nor a scholar of Vedanta.
In the same manner no evil whatsoever exists in women O Indra. Just as the Ganga and Sarasvati (rivers) are free of impurity & sin. As also the Aruna river, so too are all women revered as being sinless.
The fact that I, the Mother of the three Worlds, am the basis of womanhood, makes my power manifest in women. Thus a woman is the mother of the three worlds, a goddess full of abundance.
Knowing women as my direct manifestation, how can a yogi refrain from revering them? One should never hurt women, and should never even think of wronging women.
A yogin who wishes to attain the fulfillment of yoga, should always act to please women. He should regard all women as mothers, as goddesses as my very self.
Lakshmī Tantra Chap 43. 62 — 72
Equality with men
Yea many a woman is more steady and better than the man who turns away from the Gods, and serves not. She who assists the weak and the worn, the person who thirsts and is in want; she sets her mind upon the gods. Rig Veda 5;61;6— 8:
Sayana Comments — The wife and the husband being equal halves of one substance are equal in every respect, both should join and take equal part in all work – religious or secular.
Purity of Women
The Moon god has blessed women with purity; the Gandharva has blessed them with sweet speech. Fire is always pure and women are always pure. (G.P.95;19 Yajñavalkya 3:19)
The husband should be loyal to his wife. Since women are to be well protected the husband, his brothers, father, mother or kinsmen should honour her with ornaments, clothing and food. (G.P. 95:27 Yajñavalkya 3:27)
Only the father may be considered as fallen but never the mother. (Narada Purana 14:18)
A woman is not defiled by a lover, (na stri dusyati jarena) nor a Brahmin by Vedic rites, nor water by urine and faeces nor fire by consuming [impure substances]. 1. (Vasistha 28:1)
Whether she has strayed on her own or been expelled, or have suffered rape, or have fallen into the hands of robber, a woman must not be abandoned; to forsake her is not prescribed [by the sacred law]. Let him [her husband] wait until the time of her menstruation, by her temporary impurity she becomes pure. (2-3 Vasistha 28:1-3)
Women are enjoyed first by the gods: the Moon, Gandharva and Agni and only after they go to men in accordance with the law. Therefore they cannot ever be defiled. Vasiṣṭha 28:5
Soma granted them purity, Gandharva a sweet voice, Fire the capacity to eat anything; women there are free from all taints. (Baudhayana 2:45 Vasiṣṭha 28:6)
Menstruation
Women [posses] an unequalled means of purification; they never become entirely tainted. For month by month their temporary uncleanliness removes their sins. (Vasistha 28:4, Baudhāyana 2:4:4)
Mahanirvana tantra
The householder should never punish his wife, but should cherish her like a mother M.N.T 8:39
By riches, clothes, love, respect and pleasing words should one’s wife be satisfied. The husband should never do anything displeasing to her. M.N.T. 8:42
In the same manner (as a son) a daughter should be cherished and educated with great care, and then given away with money and jewels to a wise husband. M.N.T. 8:47
O Kuleshani, a wife should not be burnt with her dead husband. Every woman is your image – you reside concealed in the forms of all women in this world. That woman who, in delusion ascends her husband’s funeral pyre shall go to hell. M.N.T. 10:79-80
A man who rapes a woman, even if she be the wife of an outcaste (candala) should be punished with death and should never be pardoned M.N.T. 11:45
The man who uses offensive language towards a woman, who sees the private parts of a woman who is not his wife, and laughs derisively at her, should fast for two days to purify himself. M.N.T. 11;49
If a man speaks rudely to his wife he must fast for one day, if he beats her he must go without food for three days, and if he cause bloodshed then he must fast for seven days. M.N.T. 11:64