THE WOMEN OF INDIA

Te Ao Hou, September 1960, Page 25

THE WOMEN OF INDIA BY NARANJAN SINGH UPPAL (by courtesy of Unesco) The remarkable thing about the emancipation of women in India is that it has been a smooth, gradual process, unmarked by violence and hate. But perhaps that is not so very remarkable after all, since this smooth evolution is very much in keeping with the Indian tradition. Women have alreadys been held in high esteem in our country. During the Vedic period, about 1500 B.C., they occupied important positions in social and religious life. without women, a religious ceremony was considered invalid (and the Upanishads bear witness to the fact that this tradition was long maintained). Prayers and sacrifices were offered jointly by husband and wife, but this high privilege was allowed to the wife alone in her husband's absence; he, in her absence, could only perform a sacrifice by placing her image beside him. Women seers composed hymns in the Vedas. Buddhism established an order of nuns—Bhikshuni-Sangha—which opened to women opportunities for learning and social service. The Buddha made special mention in his sermons of thirteen of these nuns—theris—for their spiritual attaitnments and public service. “Where women are honoured, there the Gods are pleased. Where they are not honoured, all works are fruitless,” declared Manu about 300 B.C., though by his time the position of women had deteriorated. Already by 600 B.C. the marriageable age of girls has been lowered to fourteen and sixteen years, and they could no longer complete their Vedic studies, which lasted twelve years. They fell behind men in education and their status was impaired. By 300 B.C. the marirage age was again reduced, this time to twelve and fourteen years; marriage, moreover, became compulsory and spiritual initiation was more or less symbolic. Soon except in some leading families where girls still received a literary education, all spiritual initiation was suppressed and girls were no longer allowed to study the Vedas.