Women in Hindu Dharma

8/10/2019 Women in Hindu Dharma

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Women in Hindu Dharma- a Tribute


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Preface:Of all the organized religions of the world, women have perhaps the most prominent presence, both visible

as well as invisible, in Hinduism. As the Divine Mother, the Supreme Being affirms to Hindus that t has either has

no gender, or t has both. As Sages, women have borne the revealed word. As spiritual and religious teachers, Hinduwomen have sustained our Dharma in various wa!s down the ages. As noble "ueens and as warriors, Hindu women

have protected our faith from disintegrating into e#tinction. As musicians, dancers and artists, the! have been the

embodiment of all that is beautiful. As mothers, the! have been our first teachers. As wives, the! have provided the

locus around which famil! and social life revolves. As daughters, the! have taught us compassion. And as ourguides, the! have made man! men into great human beings. $his essa! is a celebration of the divinit!, power,

beaut!, wisdom, erudition and leadership of Hindu women down the ages. t highlights the central role that women

have alwa!s pla!ed in Hindu dharma, societ!, politics, humanities and other fields of scholarship, and in our

families.

Women and the Divine Word:-

Profound thought was the pillow of her couch,

Vision was the unguent for her eyes.

Her wealth was the earth and Heaven,When Surya (the sun-like resplendent ride! went to "eet her husand.#

Her "ind was the ridal chariot,

$nd sky was the canopy of that chariot.%rs of light were the two steers that pulled the chariot

When Surya proceeded to her husand&s ho"e')

$he close connection of women with the %edas&, the te#ts regarded as Divine 'evelation

(or )Divine *#halation+ in Hindu Dharma ma! be -udged from the fact that of the /0 Sages

associated with the revelation of 'igveda, twent!1oneare women. Man! of these mantras are

"uite significant, for instance the h!mn on the glorification of the Divine Speech. 2 $he ver!invocator! mantra3of the Atharvaveda0addresses divinit! as a )Devi+ 4 the 5oddess, who while

present in waters, fulfills all our desires and hopes. n the Atharvaveda, the entire 6 th boo7

dealing with marriage, domestic issues etc., is attributed to a woman sage. 8ortions 9of other 6:boo7s are also attributed to women sages:.

6'igveda 6/.92.0;'igveda 6/.92.6/&$he four %edas, namel! 'igveda, Samaveda,


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whom )His+ worshipper loves li7e a doting husband63. $he )Divine ?ord60+ itself is li7ened to a

beautiful maiden who manifests her beaut! to the husband69.

Devi Sarasvati, embodiment of the Divine ?ord, Deit! of ?isdom, 8atron of Art and iterature

As goddesses (devis, the! are worshipped as mothers of even the most powerful maledeities (devatas. Devi Aditi is thus the mother of all prominent devatassuch as %aruna, Mitra,

Ar!aman, 'udras, ndra, of 7ings and man! other e#cellent sons. She is invo7ed as the mistress

of the Eosmic Order, omnipotent, ever! !outhful, protector, mother of the devout worshipper and

a wise guide of all humans.6:

$he %edas hardl! ever conceive of devataswithout corresponding devis. Almost as a rule,

the Sage, the worshipper and the ritualist invo7e the devatasto manifest along with devisandparta7e of the sacred oblations poured into the sacred fire altar.

The Divine Mother: God as GoddessAround ;/// !ears ago, Elassical Hinduism, or Hindu Dharma as we 7now toda!, started

cr!stallizing. ?orship of the Supreme Being through icons and sacred s!mbols was aligned

among five Hindu traditions of worship 4 Saura;/, 5anapat!a, %aishnava, Shaiva and Shaa7ta.$he last three of these traditions encompass practicall! all Hindus toda!.

Significantl!, the Shaa7ta tradition specificall! worships the Divine as the Mother of the

niverse;6,to whom all the male deities also bow in reverence. Shrines of this tradition ;;haveperhaps a greater geographical spread than those of other traditions in the ndian subcontinent.

63)anavadyaa patiushteva naarii&4 'igveda 6.0&.&60)%a7+, the Sans7rit word denoting Divine Speech, is considered feminine according to grammatical rules.69'igveda 6/.06.6:Atharvaveda 0.3.; Madh!andina


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Durga, the Divine Mother

n this tradition, the Divine Mother is termed as )Shakti+ or )$he (Supreme 8ower+, as)ma+ or the Sacred ?isdom, as )Mahesvari+ or )$he Supreme 5oddess+ and so on. $he Shaa7ta

tradition has hundreds of te#ts

;&

(often termed genericall! as )$antras+ and traditions consideredauthoritative b! Hindus even outside that specific tradition.

Sha7ti, the Almight! Divine 8ower

$he Shaiva tradition is considered the )male+ counterpart of the Shaa7ta tradition and the

two share numerous te#ts, liturgies and other sacred traditions. n numerous iconic

representations, 5od is shown as )ardhanariishvara+ or )5od who is half woman+, to emphasizethat either 5od has no gender or he is both woman and man.

*ven male deities such as ord %ishnu sometimes incarnate as women to serve the causeof Dharma. $he Devi herself is often said to combine the powers of all male deities including

Brahma, %ishnu and Shiva.

;&*ven te#ts not specificall! belonging to the Shaa7ta tradition per se have sections that eulogize the Divine Mother.For instance, the famous )Devi Mahaatm!a+ (the glor! of Devi+ occurs in the Mar7ande!a 8urana which is not a

Shaa7ta te#t.

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Ardhanariishvara 4 5od who is half woman

n the %aishnava tradition, which is the most prevalent Hindu tradition toda!, 5od is

worshipped as )%ishnu+;

together with )Shri+, who is also addressed variousl! as )a7shmi+;2

.$he! incarnate together;3, and their incarnations, namel! that of 'ama and Sita respectivel!, andso on, are also worshipped as a couple. 8erhaps a good idea of the simultaneous and e"ual

reverence that Hindus have for the feminine and the masculine aspects of Divinit! ma! be

gauged from the following "uotation;04

Sage 8arashar saidG

% *aitreya' $lways a co"panion of Vishnu and the *other of this /niverse,

0evi 1aksh"i is eternal. Vishnu is o"nipresent, so is She.2f She is speech, Vishnu is the oect of description.

Vishnu is the 1aw, and She is the Policy.

1ord Vishnu is knowledge, she is intelligence.He is 0har"a, She is good kar"a.

2f Vishnu is the 3reator, She is the 3reation (that aides eternally with Hi"!.

He is the "ountain, She is arth.He is the virtue of content"ent, She is the all satisfying.

2f 1ord Vishnu is desire, She is the oect of desire.

He is the sacred Vedic ritual, she is the priestly fee4

ord 'ama is worshipped with his wife Devi Sita. ord Crishna is worshipped with

'adha or with Devi 'u7mini. n some sects of %aishnava Hindus, 'adha is actuall! accorded

more importance with ord Crishna. ndependent Hindu spiritual te#ts with names such as)Sitopanishad+, )'adhopanishad+ and so on e#ist, which e#tol the greatness of the Devis in the

divine pairs.

;)%ishnu+ = )all pervading+;2a7shmi is also worshipped independentl! as the deit! of wealth, splendor, prosperit! and fertilit!.;3%ishnu 8urana 6.:.6;163;0%ishnu 8urana 6.9.601;/ab

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5anesh is t!picall! worshipped as a child, and is often depicted along with his brother S7anda

together with their all1powerful mother.

5anesha and S7anda with mother 8arvati, flan7ed b! Devi Sarasvati and Devi a7shmi

$his we see that even in the male oriented traditions of classical Hinduism, the feminine

aspect of Divinit! occupies a ver! central position of significance.

n numerous Hindu communities of Bangladesh, @epal and ndia, the most prominent

festival in the !ear is dedicated to the Divine Mother. During Diwali, the most important festival

in northern ndia and amongst Hindu communities in the Earibbean, the main worship is offeredto Devi a7shmi. Diwali itself is often called )a7shmi 8u-an+.

Devi a7shmi, deit! of ?ealth and 8rosperit!

A period of : nights ever! !ear is devoted to the worship of numerous manifestations of

the Mother. t is celebrated as Durga 8u-a festival in eastern ndia and as @avaratri in 5u-arat as

the ma-or festivals of these regions.

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Dandi!a 4 a dance performed during @avaratri in 5u-arat

8opular Hinduism also e#hibits the concept of )gra"a-devata& in which a local

manifestation of the Divine is worshipped as the presiding deit! of that place. Man! ndian citiesand towns, including several important pilgrim centers, have various forms of the Divine Mother

as their )gra"a-devi&. As e#amples, we ma! cite Amba who is worshipped in Colhapur and

Ahmadabad (formerl! called Ambavad Meena7shi who is worshipped in the pilgrim town ofMadurai a form of Sati, the wife of Shiva, worshipped in alandhar and Dha7eshvari Devi of

Dha7a (capital of Bangladesh.

t is not surprising that words denoting the Feminine 8ower of 5od, such as Sha7ti, Caliand so on have become a part of the @ew Age vocabular! because there is a deficienc! of such

terms in other organized religions. $here is even a perfume launched b! the name )Cali+ in the

west.

Mother Earth, Mother Nature:For Hindus, 5od is not necessaril! a fatherl! figure. )He+ is Mother and Father combined.

n Hindu Eosmolog! and *colog!, @ature and *arth are uniforml! referred to as Mother @ature

(Prakriti and 7indl! Mother *arth&/(Prithvi *ata. n Hindu philosophies&6,5od and @ature are

sometimes depicted as Husband and ?ife who create the inanimate and animate niversetogether -ust as mother and father give birth to children&;. n a long h!mn e#tolling the earth, the

Sage concludes with the beautiful words 4

5% arth, "y *other'

stalish "e securely in spiritual and "aterial happiness,and in full accord with Heaven.

% Wise %ne' /phold "e in grace and splendor'66

?hile toda! we normall! assume that the )husband is the breadwinner of the household+,

traditional Hindus sa! that it is Devi Annapuurnaa who is the presiding deit! of Foodgrains.

i7ewise, forests that provide us with so man! resources are said to be presided over b! Devis

who are 7nown as Vanadevis (vana = forest.

$here are numerous Hindu rituals involving the veneration of trees, plants and forests intheir feminine form. An e#ample of such ritual is the Carama 8u-a done b! Bangladeshi Hindus.

&/*.g., Atharvaveda 6/.69.6/ 'igveda 6.62:.;&6Such as the theistic version of the Sam7h!a 8hilosoph!&;%ishnu 8urana 6.; Mats!a 8urana 6.;9.66169&&Atharvaveda 6;.6.3&

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Carama 8u-a b! Bangladeshi Hindu women near Dha7a

t is Mother 5anga, Mother


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conic representation of Mother ndia (Bharatmata

A popular Sans7rit verse attributed to ord 'ama sa!s that one+s mother as well as motherland

are more e#alted than Heaven. $he source of this verse however has not been traced and it is

presumed that an anon!mous poet coined it in the 6:thcentur!. @evertheless, the verse has sun7

deep into the contemporar! Hindu ps!che.

?hen a famil! entered their new home, the! invo7ed 5od and as7ed him to dwell therein in a

benevolent feminine form to ma7e it come alive 4

8ueen of the "ansion, our shelter,

9ind devi, you are indeed constructed y the devas.

*ay you, roed in grass, e gracious to us,

$nd give us rave children and wealth.6:

Household women pla! a leading role in this ceremon! and the wife is the first one to enter thenew home. $his is not surprising because the wife is regarded as )grhyalaksh"i+ or the

embodiment of Devi a7shmi, presiding over the house and its welfare and prosperit!.

Feminine Siritua!it", Feminine #itua!s:$he Brihadaran!a7a panishad, the longest te#t of Hindu spiritualit!, describes the

proceedings of a marvelous spiritual conference in which the great Sage


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women, as is clarified b! Shrautasutras/4 manuals of %edic rites. Since the wife is indeed the

pivot of the house, she was entitled to perform thesandhyaa, or the morning and evening ritualswith the sacred altar and %edic te#ts.6n the 'ama!ana, Iueen Causal!a performs;the dail!

fire sacrifice (agnihotra with %edic mantras as do $ara and Sita &etc. n the Mahabharata also,

ladies such as Savitri and Amba li7ewise perform %edic rituals with the recitation of %edic te#ts.

Some %edic te#ts actuall! cite women as authorities on minutiae of %edic rituals. $herefore,

though women were debarred from reciting %edic te#ts or from performing %edic rituals in latertimes2, their right to do so in ancient times is "uite well established from the e#tant ancient

Hindu literature. n fact, a lost %edic te#t named Saulabha Brahmana is attributed to Sulabha, awoman. $his te#t could have belonged to an e#tinct school of 'igveda which she must have

founded.

Although no sacred1thread ceremon! has been performed for women in recent centuries,

ancient te#ts affirm that women did undergo this ceremon! in the past, or wore the sacred thread

during various rituals. For instance, a te#t3sa!s that the bride should wear the sacred thread

during her wedding. $he Harita Dharmasutra, perhaps belonging to Maitra!ani!a school of


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manifestations in several verses. n these verses, we often see that the Sans7rit word for women

is given a graceful precedence over the word for men. 2;$he 'ama!ana, a Hindu epic, narratesthe stor! of Shabari, a tribal Hindu woman, who was ecstatic upon hearing that ord 'ama

would pass her hut during his forest so-ourn. She hastened to collect wild1berries to offer to him

$o ensure that the! were all sweet, she chewed half of each berr!, discarding the bad ones. ?hen

Shri 'ama arrived, he was so touched b! her pure devotion that he ate her half1chewed berries

without hesitation. $his stor! is often ta7en as an e#ample to illustrate the power of lovingdevotion to 5od in the Hindu doctrine ofhakti.

n the Hindu tradition, a pentad of five women )panchakanyaas+ is especiall! revered. $he

first two are from the Hindu epic Mahabharata, and the other three from the Hindu epic

'ama!ana. t is believed that a remembrance of these five women destro!s great sins. t is note#actl! clear wh! these five women were chosen, but their diverse bac7ground shows the

catholicit! of Hindu Dharma in venerating virtuous women disregarding their social and ethnic

bac7ground. $hese five women are 4

Cunti, the wife of Cing 8andu, and mother of the five 8andava princes. She was an

accomplished scholar of the Atharva %eda.

Draupadi, wife of the five 8andavas brothers, whose honor was preserved b! none otherthan ord Crishna

$ara, the wife of )vaanara&(tribal Cing %ali, and after his death, of his !ounger brother

Cing Sugreeva who assisted ord 'ama

Sage 5otama+s wife Ahal!a who was tric7ed into adulter! b! ndra, but had her honor

redeemed b! ord 'ama

Mandodari, the virtuous wife of evil incarnate 'avana, the Cing of an7a. She prevailed

upon him to spare Devi Sita of his lust.

Devi Sita, the @epalese 8rincess, with Shri 'ama and a7shmana

i7ewise, there is also a concept of five )Satis+ or virtuous women namel! 4

Sita, who was born of Mother *arth and the @epalese Cing Siradhva-a ana7a. She

married ord 'ama, the prince of A!odh!a, and is considered an incarnation of Devi

a7shmi.

2;*.g., )tva" strii tva" pu"aanasi& 1)$hou art the woman and the man+ (Atharvaveda Sauna7a Samhita 6/.9.;0

)strii pu"sau rah"ano atau striyah rah"a uta vavana&4 )?omen and Men are both born from Supreme Being,?omen are (manifestations of the Supreme Being and so are these men+ (Atharvaveda 8aippalada Samhita

9.:.66cd

6


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alleshvari (6th centur! E* is considered the greatest saint poet of Cashmir. Herdevotional verses highlight the divinit! within our own selves, and e#hort us to love the Shiva

who dwells in our heart. alleshvari wal7ed out of a traumatic marriage and roamed the Cashmir

valle! singing her m!stical songs, demonstrating


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compassion and spiritualit!, and was instrumental in the setting up of man! hospitals and other

charitable institutions.

Shree Shree Ma Anandamo!i

n our times, Mata Amritanandama!i and Mata @irmala Devi as Hindu women 5urus arewell 7nown toda! in the international spiritual circuit as teachers of Divine ove and of


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Foreign women who adopted Hindu spiritualit! also made a significant contribution to

our Dharma and societ!. For instance, Sister @ivedita3; (Margaret @oble born in 6930 in@orthern reland, met Swami %ive7ananda in ondon in 69:2 and became his disciple. She came

to ndia in 69:9. n ndia she engaged herself in running a school for girls and !oung women.

After Swami-iNs death she involved herself activel! in the ndian Freedom Movement. She wrote

several boo7s that present different aspects of Hinduism and Buddhism in a ver! lucid manner

for the la! readership. She died in 6:66.

Sister @ivedita

?omen have pla!ed an important role in other sacred traditions that have organic lin7s to

Hindu Dharma. For instance, one out of the twent!1four $irthan7aras (founding spiritual

teachers of the ains was a woman. $he heroine of a $amil ain didactic epic is a ain nunnamed @eela7eshi. 5uru Amar Das, the &rdSi7h 5uru, entrusted two of the ;3 regions mar7ed

out for his missionar! activit! to women spiritual leaders. 8rincess Bhri7uti, the daughter of

@epalese icchivi Cing Amshu %arma (0thcentur! E* married the $ibetan Cing $srong1tsong5ompo and influenced her husband to convert to Buddhism. She is also credited with the

construction of several prominent places of $ibetan Buddhism such as 8otala and o7hang, as

well as Buddhist shrines in Bhutan. $hus, she pla!ed a pivotal role in leading $ibetans to

Buddhism and is therefore worshipped as a manifestation of the $ibetan deit! $ara.3&

Often, when male saints have died, their widowed wives or women disciples have

assumed the spiritual leadership of his followers. As an e#ample we ma! cite )$he Mother+, whowas the spiritual companion or the first disciple of Shri Aurobindo, one of the most influential

Hindu Sage of our times. She had visions about him even before she met him and became Self1

realized5od1realized following the ntegral


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Meera, $he Mother Sharada Devi

Another e#ample is that of Sharada Devi (b. 692&, the wife of Shri 'ama7rishna

8aramahamsa, a Hindu Saint who lived in the 6:th centur!. After 'ama7rishna 8aramahamsapassed awa! in 6993, she continued to guide her husband+s followers till her own death in 6:;/.

8ortraits of the two are worshipped together b! followers of this Hindu saint even toda!.

n our own times, Bhagwati Devi Sharma (d. 6:: provided spiritual leadership to the

5a!atri 8arivar, after its founder 5uru Shri 'am Sharma Achar!a passed awa!.

t would be a fair statement to ma7e that of all the organized global religions in the world

toda!, women perhaps have the most visible and prominent presence in Hindu Dharma.

Feminine spiritualit! is not something that needs to be grafted onto Hindu Dharma. t has alwa!sbeen a part of the core of our faith.

Women Scho!ars and Poetesses


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E*, a lad! named Mahaashveta is described as adorned with a white sacred thread that shone

li7e pure moonlight.

@umerous ancient Hindu temples (such as the ingara-a temple in Orissa or the

Cha-uraho temple in Madh!a 8radesh show women as teachers (with male as well as female

students and painters etc.

bha!a Bharati, the wife of ritualism scholar Mandana Mishra, presided as a -udge in a

debate between her husband and the spiritual philosopher Adi Shan7arachar!a. After the latterwon, she then challenged Adi Shan7arachar!a (9thcentur! E* to a debate. $he hagiograph!

Shan7aradigvi-a!a of Madhava states that she 7new the %edas, the si# %edangas (per"uisite

sciences for stud!ing %edas, poetics and several other branches of learning. ?hen she debatedwith Shan7arachar!a, the audience was dumbfounded with the erudition and s7ill with which she

marshaled %edic citations, logical arguments and profound thoughts30.

'ecentl!39, a commentar! on $iruvaa!amoli of Shudra saint @ammalvar authored b! awoman named $iru77oneri Das!ai (62thcentur! has been discovered. $he commentar! is an

e#"uisite wor7 and shows familiarit! with %edic te#ts, particularl! those of $aittiri!a


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$he lad! priest guides the couple in their wedding ceremon!

Eoming to the modern academic stud! of religion, several Hindu women have distinguished

themselves as scholars. $he first non udeo1Ehristian 8resident of the American Academ! of

'eligions (AA' has been a Hindu woman 8rofessor %asudha @ara!anan0/.

8rofessor %asudha @ara!anan

Besides writing %edic and other Hindu religious poetr! as noted above, man! women

also e#celled as authors of secular poetr!. Several authors of poetr! in the Sangam literature in$amil are women. $he Sans7rit epic )Madhuraavi-a!a+ is attributed to 5angadevi (6 thcent. E*.

$he epic celebrates the Hindu re1con"uest of an area in southern ndia from invading Muslims

who had indulged in large1scale massacres, cow1slaughter, desecration of temples andmolestation of women. Man! of the poems attributed to the famous medieval Bengali poet

Ehandidas were actuall! written b! his wife.

S&a"amsiddh'(): The man" achievements and ta!ents of $indu Women:Hindu societ! has produced numerous women who were able 'ulers, ?arriors,

8oetesses, scholars, mathematicians, freedom fighters, musicians, artists and so on.

Musicians and DancersG Hindu music and dance has alwa!s had a ver! strong connection withwomen. Devi Sarasvati is the patron deit! of all art, music, literature, drama and dance and her

blessings are invo7ed whenever artists commence their wor7 or performance. Most of theclassical dance forms of Hindus such as Balinese (in ndonesia, Cuchipudi, Odissi,

Bharatnat!am, Catha7 and 5arba are dominated b! women performers toda!. *ven in dance

forms where women do not participate, their status is "uite e#alted. For instance, Catha7alidance of Cerala is traditionall! performed b! men who wear mas7s of different colors to denote

0/Eurrentl! in the Department of 'eligion, niversit! of Florida at 5ainesville06 = the self1achieving woman

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@umerous traditional art1forms in 5u-arat, Orissa and other parts of ndia are still sustained b!

the efforts of women of these regions.

Dharmic QueensG

8ueen 9ulaprahavati of the Hindu Chmer Cingdom (in Campuchea was a pious

%aishnava "ueen who in the fifth centur! (c.02 made man! donations to a %aishnava ashrama.

And there were several other Hindu "ueens11Cambu-ara-ala7shmi, a!adevi in that d!nast! whoe#celled in charitable and social welfare wor7s.

n ndonesia, 7unapriya 0har"apatni (late 6/thcent. E*, the great1granddaughter of the

Hindu Cing of eastern ava, married the Balinese Hindu prince da!ana and was instrumental in

introducing avanese traditions such as $antric Hinduism into Bali. She was so influential thather name appears before that of da!ana in Balinese inscriptions. 5oa 5a-ah, the *lephant Eave,

near Bedulu, not far from bud, was built around this time, as a roc7 hermitage for Shaivite

priests.

Dozens of inscriptions from various parts of the ndian subcontinent also attest to pious

Hindu "ueens and lad! officials ma7ing endowments to temples, colleges, monasteries etc. $hesee#amples are too numerous to list here and onl! a few illustrations should suffice. An inscriptionin Afasarh states that the mother Shrimati Devi of Cing Adit!asen established a religious school,

whereas his wife Cona Devi had a pond dug up for the welfare of masses. From the Bheraghat

inscription, it is apparent that Iueen Alhanadevi, wife of a Calachuri ruler, got a Shiva templeconstructed. She also got a school and a garden constructed in the vicinit!. $he mos"ue at

Ba!ana in 'a-asthan occupies the site of a demolished %ishnu temple, which had been

constructed b! the daughter Ehitrale7ha of Cing Saurasena. i7ewise, the wife of Cing $e-palrepaired the sacred icons that were demolished or desecrated b! invading $ur7 Muslims and also

induced a Ehauhan feudator! of her husband to ma7e a donation for religious causes.0;

8ueen $halyaai Holkar(60;2160:2 of the princel! state of ndore in central ndia is often heldas an e#ample of an ideal Hindu sovereign. She inherited her 7ingdom from her father in law

since her husband and her son were alread! dead. Ahal!abai ruled her 7ingdom with great

abilit!, benevolence and compassion for &/ !ears. @umerous trusts and institutions founded inher memor! b! both her descendants as well as b! others attest to her e#alted status in the ndian

societ!.

Ahal!abai Hol7ar

She got numerous temples and other pilgrim sites constructed or repaired all over ndia even

though the! were outside her 7ingdom. Her reign saw increase in overall prosperit! of thepeople, and she also helped widows get their rightful inheritance from their husband+s wealth.

0;For an enumeration of man! more such instances, see pp. :21:0 in rmila 8ra7ash Mishra,Prachina harata

"ein =ari (in Hindi, Madh!apradesh Hindi 5ranth Academ!, Bhopal (6:90

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+ani +ash"oni 0evi(60:&16936 was the widow of a rich landowner (Qamindar and managed

his estate ver! efficientl! after his death. Once when the 'ani was on her wa! to a pilgrimage to%aranasi, 5oddess Cali appeared to her in a dream and as7ed the 'ani to return to Col7ata and

construct a temple in that town. $hus was built the famous Da7shineshvar temple (later

associated with Saint 'ama7rishna 8aramahamsa.

'ani 'ashmoni

She also repaired the sacred steps ()ghats+ on the ban7s of the Bhagarathi river (distributar! of

5anga flowing past Col7ata and made handsome endowments to the Hindu Eollege (now called

$he 8residenc! Eollege and the mperial ibrar! (now called $he @ational ibrar! inCol7ata.0&She also had a road constructed from the Subarnare7ha river (that flows past the town

of amshedpur to the Hindu pilgrim center of 8uri for the welfare of pilgrims.

>araai?:G After 'a-aram, Shiva-iNs brother, died 1 his wife too7 over and continued the Maratha

struggle. nder her leadership the capital was shifted to what is now 7nown as Colhapur. $he

struggle continued till Sambha-iNs son, Shahu was brought bac7 from the Mughals.

Warriors, Warrior Queens and Freedom FightersG ?omen warriors are mentioned in the

%edic te#ts. %ispala, the wife of chief Chela was an aggressive warrior who lost her leg in a

battle. $he Ashvins, celestial ph!sicians, gave her a metal prosthesis as a replacement for her lostleg.02Mudgalani drove the chariot of her husband in a battle.03n the Mahabharata, Ehitraangada,

the wife of Ar-una, was an accomplished warrior in her own right. 00Earvings and statues in

several ancient Hindu temples depict women warriors. As e#amples, one ma! cite the Cha-urahotemples in Ehattisgarh, or the remnants of the %ishvanath $emple embedded in Aurangzeb+s

mos"ue in %aranasi. ?hen ord 'ama was as7ed to proceed on fourteen !ears of banishment

from his 7ingdom, it was proposed that his wife, Devi Sita, could rule as the "ueen in hisabsence.09

8ueen +udra"aG She was the onl! daughter of the 3th Cing of the Ca7ati!a D!nast! of Andhra

8radesh (6&thcentur! E* and succeeded her father to his throne. Her father got her educatedfull! in the affairs of the state craft. She made a mar7 of braver! while accompan!ing her father

in the latterNs victor! tours. $hin7ing her to be a wea7 woman, the feudal lords and the area

commanders revolted and neighboring rulers also found an occasion to grab her territor!. But,'udramamba defeated them all. She married the Ehalu7!a 7ing %irabhadra and the! -ointl! ruled

over the Ca7ati!a 7ingdom ver! effectivel! for man! decades.

0&httpGwww.geocities.comda7shina7anpaart&6women;.htm0httpGwww.arecordofwomen.comotherwomen 02'igveda 6.663.6203'igveda 6/.6/;.;00Mahabharata .6.26 also mentions women warriors in a general wa!.09'ama!ana ;.&0.;9

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$he last Hindu ruler of Cashmir was a woman9ota +ani, who was the widow of Hindu 7ingdd!ana Deo. She pla!ed a crucial role in warding off the $artar invasion of Cashmir in the

earl! 6thcentur! E* but was finall! deposed b! Shahmir in 6&6 E*. Shahmir started the long

lasting slamic rule in the region that, with traumatic conse"uences on the Hindu population of

the region. Calhana+s 'a-atarangini mentions several other valiant Iueens in pre1Muslim

Cashmir.

?hen the ruler Dalpat 'ai of 5ondwana died in 629, +ani 0urgavatibecame the regent Iueenon behalf of her infant son Bir @ara!an and ruled her 7ingdom abl! for 63 !ears. $he Moghul

*mperor A7bar invaded her 7ingdom in 623. She fought bravel! and when defeat was

imminent, she chose to commit suicide b! plunging a dagger into herself. She ma! have lost herlife in the battlefield but A7bar could not sub-ugate her lo!al sub-ects completel!.

'ani Durgavati

$he legendar!+ani 1aksh"iaiof hansi fought bravel! against British invaders in 6920 and

died on the battlefield. She is considered the oan of Arc of ndia and is glorified in several Hindi

ballads and poems. $he words )9hoo ladi "ardaani, woh to @hansi wali +ani thi&from a poemin her honor written b! the poetess Subhadra Cumari Ehauhan are 7nown to ever! school1going

student in the Hindi spea7ing areas of northern ndia. An associate of hers named @alkari aialso distinguished herself in the war of 6920. She was credited with having 7illed a tiger herselfin her teenage !ears, and resembled 'ani a7shmibai ver! closel!. ?hen a7shmibai+s fort was

about to fall to the British troops, al7ari Bai dressed up as 'ani a7shmibai (allowing the latter

to escape and defended the fort for a long time before surrendering. mpressed b! her braver!,the British set her free.

'ani a7shmibai Cittur 'ani Ehennamma

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+ani 3henna""a of 9ittur0:(6009169;: received training in horse riding , sword fighting and

archer! in her !oung age. She was married to 'a-a Mullasar-a of Cittur, a princel! state inBelgaum in Carnata7a. Her husband died in 6963. Her onl! son died in 69;. Ehennamma

adopted Shivalingappa as her son and made him heir to the throne. $he British did not accept this

and ordered the e#pulsion of Shivalingappa. $he 'ani defied the order. A great battle ensued.

$he 'ani fought the British with great courage and s7ill. She could not, however, hold out for

long. She was ta7en captive and lodged in Bailhongal Fort where she died in earl! 69;:.

+ani $vantiai9/G ?hen %i7ramadit!a Singh, the ruler of 'amgarh State died leaving behind hiswife Avantibai and no heir to the throne, the British put the state under court administration.

Avantibai vowed to win bac7 her land from the British. She raised an arm! of four thousand men

and led it herself against the British in 6920. A fierce battle ensured and Avantibai fought mostvaliantl! but could not hold out for long against the superior strength of the British arm!. ?hen

her defeat become imminent she 7illed herself with her own sword and became a mart!r in

March 6929.

'ani Avantibai

Several Hindu women were also at the forefront of the ndian freedom struggle in earl!

;/

th

centur!. Of them, the most notable was Saro-ini @aidu, often called the )@ightingale ofndia+ because of her e#cellent poetr!.

Saro-ini @aidu, ndian woman freedom fighter

n the Si7h tradition too, women warriors and militar! generals pla!ed a crucial role in

their battles against Afghan and 8athan Muslim oppressors.

0:httpGwww.geocities.comda7shina7anpaart&6women6.htm9/iid.

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?omen also pla!ed the role of spies. Around &// BE, *mperor Ehandragupta Maur!a

used a woman sp! to assassinate his rival Cing 8arvata7a.

Several Hindu women avenged the dishonor to our Dharma and our countr! b!

emplo!ing clever strateg!, if not arms. n the !ear 06;, the Arab invader Muhammad bin Iasim

invaded the outl!ing ndian province of Sindh (now in 8a7istan, 7illed its last Hindu ruler 'a-a

Dahir, and sent Dahir+s daughters to Baghdad as a gift to the Ealiph. $he daughters told theEaliph that Iasim had alread! ravished them before sending them as a gift to him. nfuriated b!

this apparent insult, the Ealiph had Iasim put to death, onl! to learn that the 8rincesses of Sindhhad lied to him to avenge their father+s death. $he two 8rincesses were tortured to death.

n the earl! 6thcentur!, lugh Chan, a Muslim militar! general invaded the %aishnavahol! temple town of Shrirangam. He massacred several mon7s, desecrated the temple and looted

its treasur!. $he Muslim arm! occupied the temple precincts and put and an end to Hindu

worship. A temple courtesan, who fascinated the invading general, prevailed upon him not to

destro! the temple altogether, and restrict his vandalism to the destruction of a few cornices. $heBrahmins in the surrounding areas tried to perform the sacred rituals whenever the! could, but

were harassed b! the occup!ing Muslim forces constantl!. nable to bear the harassment of thedevotees b! the Muslims, she enticed the Muslim chief, too7 him up a temple tower in the east,and in the prete#t of showing him a famous icon from there, she pushed him down and 7illed

him. Scared that she will be tortured b! the Muslims as a result of her deed, she hurled herself

also down and died. According to tradition, to honor her memor!, the funeral p!res of templecourtesans were lit b! fire brought from the temple 7itchen.96

$o finance the defense of their motherland from the invasions of the $ur7 Muslim rulerMahmud 5haznavi, Hindu women in what is now 8a7istan willingl! donated all their -eweller!.

t is relevant here to recall some rules of Hindu warfare that are en-oined in te#ts such as

Manusmriti and Mahabharata. ?omen in general were considered inviolable, and were generall!e#empt from capital punishment. $he! could not be captured for use as concubines, and could

not be assaulted se#uall! b! soldiers.

oo7ing at the past achievements of Hindu women, it is not surprising that the largest

Hindu countr! namel! ndia has had a Hindu woman as its 8rime Minister for 60 long !ears, and

that women have presided over state governments in the largest 9;states of ndia. t ma! be notedthat the Eouncil and the Assembl! are called the )two daughters of 5od+ in Hindu te#ts.9&

Socia! Status of $indu Women:

However, it is fair to sa! that Hinduism has a mi#ed record when we deal with the socialstatus of women. t is e#tremel! important to ma7e this admission with out an! reservations,

96%. @. Hari 'ao.History of the Sriranga" >e"ple. Sri %en7areswara niversit!, $irupati (6:039;Both in terms of population (ttar 8radesh, governed b! Ehief Minister Ma!avati and area (Madh!a 8radesh,governed b! Ehief Minister ma Bharati, who has been a d!namic Hindu nun since her childhood. @ote that the

Meghawati Su7arnoputri, the former 8resident of Muslim dominated ndonesia was the daughter of a secular

Muslim father and a Hindu mother from Bali. Her name itself is Sans7rit derived. ndonesia still retains a lot of its

Hindu cultural heritage despite conversion of most of its people to slam. $he erstwhile ro!al famil! of Corea tracesits lineage to a Hindu princess from ndia who married a Corean chief.9&Atharvaveda 0.6;.6

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because we cannot solve problems unless we recognize them. $he revealed te#ts of Hindus do

not contain much that deals with socio1cultural codes in a concrete manner because social morescannot be eternall! and universall! valid or applicable. $he! must change from place to place,

and from time to time. $he main intent of Hindu 'evelator! te#ts is to serve as a guide in

e#pounding the more eternal principles and practices dealing with cosmolog!, theolog!, ritualism

(which too changes with time, spiritualit! and so on. n-unctions on moralit!, social codes,

political ma#ims etc., are rather e#plained in non1revealed te#ts of Hinduism, called the Smritis.Because of the temporal nature of social, political and moral codes, Hindu Sages have authored

their own Smritis from time to time, and from region to region to serve the respectivepopulations of their area. A perusal of these Smritis often reveals some teachings that are

demeaning to women in various wa!s. $hese Smritis have often been merel! )normative+ te#ts

and their views did not alwa!s reflect social realit!. n man! wa!s, the actual position of womenin the Hindu societ! has been better than what is en-oined b! these te#ts, and vice versa as well.

Woman as MotherG n Hindu Dharma, 5od is often compared to a mother, and is worshipped in

the form of the Divine Mother. n social conte#ts as well, no person is considered as e#alted andworth! of respect and service as one+s mother. $he tender love and care of a mother for her

children is the sub-ect of numerous %edic verses. n Hindu culture, the mother is the ver!embodiment of love, of sacrifice, or selfless service to her children and of forbearance. She isconsidered the first teacher of ever! child, and is regarded as the highest 5uru 9. Hindu te#ts

remind us that as long as we live, we must never forget the efforts and sacrifices our mothers

ma7e to bring us up in our childhood. n a recent ndian movie, a daughter ma7es a statementthat perhaps sums up the Hindu reverence for motherhood 4 KSince 5od could not appear

ever!where to ta7e care of us, He created mother.L

n a h!mn, Shri Shan7arachar!a (9thcentur! E* declares that while a son can be a bad

son, a mother can never be a bad mother. $he mother is considered a thousand times more

venerable than the father92. ?hen students graduate from their school, their teachers e#hort them

to consider first their mothers93,followed b! others, as embodiments of 5od. f a Hindu manbecomes a mon7, he is re"uired to sever all his biological relationships so that even his own

father is re"uired to salute to him. $he sole e#ception is made for his mother 4 a mon7 must

salute his own mother if he encounters her in the course of his itinerant lifest!le. Motherl! loveand affection are considered so e#alted and pure that the Hindu doctrine of vaatsalya-hakti

advocates loving 5od -ust as a mother loves her child. A recurring theme in Hindu devotional

literature is the childhood of Divine ncarnations in the loving care of their mothers. Forinstance, Mother


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Mother


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n the %edic verses, when both the parents are mentioned, the mother is t!picall!

mentioned before the father.:/$he position of a mother in %edic rites is more e#alted than that ofthe father:6. @umerous childhood sacraments and rites are performed b! mothers. n the

pana!ana ceremon!, after which the child commences his %edic stud! and the period of

celibac!, there is no mention of the father but the child approaches his mother for alms. $his

indicates that the mother is considered a child+s best well1wisher in life, who would never refuse

him nourishment even though his father ma!. And when the period of stud! is over and thestudent returns home after his long absence, he first bows to his mother, and gives whatever he

ma! have ac"uired during that period to his mother. After one+s parents pass awa!, annualceremonies called the )shraaddha+ are performed b! Hindus. n these ceremonies as well, the

mother is remembered before the father, and special ceremonies are sometimes performed for the

mother (though there are none specificall! for the father. n fact, the 3handanadhenu Shraddha,the costliest and most ceremonial of all such ceremonies, is performed for one+s mother. f one+s

father had been e#communicated for misconduct, shraaddha ceremon! for him need not be

performed. A mother is never considered e#communicated b! her son however:;. $he son does

not have the option of not performing the ceremon! for her, and is responsible for atoning for hersins:&. $his is because whatever ma! be the crime of one+s mother, she is alwa!s one+s mother

and deserving of her children+s love and respect. How can we ever condemn her who nurtured usfor : months in her womb, and underwent great pains to give us birth, and to bring us up in ourchildhoodR

Woman as DaughterG As in all human cultures:, Hindu culture also unfortunatel! shows apreference for the male child. $here are pre1natal rites:2prescribed b! Hindu te#ts to ensure that

the fertilized embr!o is male and not female:3. n ancient times (and also in modern times, birth

of a son ensured financial and emotional securit! for parents when the! became too old to fendfor themselves because there was no organized social securit! infrastructure. ?hereas the

daughter was married off to another man and moved out, the devoted son was supposed to ta7e

personal care of his aged parents.

n addition, Hinduism advocates that ever! man is born with three (or four debts, of

which one was the debt to one+s ancestors who gave birth to us. $his debt can be redeemed

apparentl! onl! b! marr!ing and procreating children, or specificall! male children, because thefamil! lineage is said to perpetuate onl! through male issues. t was said that a person who did

not discharge his debt to his ancestors b! producing male issues was debarred from Heaven.

Finall!, after one+s parents die, the son (or some other male in the same )lineage+ or gotra wase#pected to perform worship and offerings to his departed ancestors (to three generations. $his

:/Ef. 'igveda .3.0:6. B. Ehaudhari. K$he 8osition of Mother in the %edic 'itualL, in 2ndian Historical 8uarterly, vol. J%, Dec.

6:&9, pp. 9;;19&/:;%asishtha Dharmasutra 6&.0 5autama Dharmasutra ;/.6 etc.:&Hiran!a7eshin 5rh!asutra ;..6/.0 Shan7ha!ana 5rh!asutra &.6&.2:$he preference for male children over female children manifests in man! wa!s. For instance, studies conducted in

the nited States show that couples with daughters are more li7el! to divorce than those with sons. And single

mothers with daughters are more li7el! to remarr! than those with sons.:2$his rite is called )Pu"savana+. Of course, it is useless from a scientific perspective because the se# of the child is

determined right at the moment of conception. $he rite has fallen into disuse for "uite sometime now and is not now

performed.:3However, traditional commentators do emphasize that the same rite ma! be performed for birth of daughters b!merel! changing the gender or other things through a standard ritual techni"ue called )uha+. See . B. Ehaudhari.

K$he Significance of the %edic 'ite 8umsavanaL, in2ndian Historical 8uarterly, vol. J%, Dec. 6:&9, pp. 9&619&2

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worship could not be performed b! daughters who technicall! belonged to the lineage of their

husbands after their marriage.:0

?hile such beliefs have been "uestioned sometimes within Hindu te#ts themselves, the

overall effect has been a ver! strong preference for male children within the Hindu communit!.

?hereas the birth of sons was accompanied with great merriment, birth of daughters was often

accompanied b! a sense of gloom or at best subdued celebrations. f a couple did not beget sons,the! often had several issues till one or more sons were born to them. $here was a constant

pressure on the wife to have a male child, despite no fault of hers. n ver! e#treme cases, if thewife bore onl! daughters, the husband was allowed to marr! a second time (while 7eeping his

first wife in the hope that the second wife will beget them a son. Hindu poets :9sa! that the birth

of a daughter made her parents weep, because as soon as the! saw her face for the first time, the!realized that their precious -ewel would eventuall! leave them and live with someone else.

Daughters were therefore traditionall! regarded as )paraayaa dhana&or )a treasure that reall!

belongs to someone else+. At the time of her wedding therefore, her father or her brother rituall!

)gifted+::their most precious diamond (i.e., their daughtersister to her husband, after e#tractingpromises that he would alwa!s ta7e good care of her even if he has to forsa7e his life, -ust as her

father and brother had done earlier. n fact, in Hindu families that are financiall! comfortable,daughters are literall! pampered (compared to sons because the! would have to manage a lot ofhousehold wor7 in their future husbands+ home an!wa!. At seeing their daughters leave their

homes and proceed to their husband+s abode, parents are filled with grief. 6//$hings are changing

rapidl! in the Hindu societ! however and it is often seen that a married daughter ta7es more careof her aged parents their son.

$he bride+s famil! grieves when their precious daughter leaves after her wedding

:0n case a couple had onl! daughters, the! were allowed to adopt their eldest material grandson as their own son

nominall! to discharge their debts to the ancestors, and to have their post1death ceremonies performed. $his status of

the grandson was called )8utri7a+ and has been sanctioned b! the %edas ('igveda &.&6.6. However, in actual

practice, birth of one+s own sons was alwa!s the preferable option. @umerous te#ts however allow daughters toperform the ceremon! directl! for their ancestors.:9For instance poet Bhavabhuti::$he ceremon! is called )kanyaadaana&or the )gift of one+s daughter+ and is regarded as the greatest of all acts of

)charit!+. However, Hindu scriptures are "uic7 to emphasize that the )gift+ of daughters is merel! a religiousformalit! and it does not impl! at all that women are commodities that can be sold and purchased (cf. 8urva

Mimamsa Sutras 3.6.62. Manusmriti :.:& e#plicitl! prohibits sale of a daughter. i7ewise, Manusmriti &.2&

promises hell for parents and other relatives who sell their daughter in e#change for commodities as if she were a

piece of propert!.6//*.g., Mats!a 8urana 62.:0 where Himaachala is filled with grief when his daughter Devi 8arvati leaves her

home after marr!ing Shiva.

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$he internal testimon! of %edic literature shows its close connection with women, but in

the te#ts of classical Hinduism, women were often debarred from stud!ing the revealedscriptures directl!. However, the! were allowed, at least in theor!, to stud! the te#ts of classical

Hinduism, such as the 'ama!ana, the Mahabharata and the 8uranas which supposedl! e#pound

the %edas in a more lucid manner. B! and large, daughters did not undergo the sacraments

preceding the formal initiation of stud!, and this contributed to large1scale illiterac! of Hindu

women in the recent centuries. $he situation has been remedied b! various Hindu reformmovements6/6, and Hindu women are catching up with men in education rapidl!.

Fortunatel! however, despite the overall preference for male issues, Hindu te#ts do

contain several teachings which e"uate a son with a daughter6/;. Brihadaran!a7a panishad

3..60 actuall! prescribes a ritual for parents who desire a scholarl! daughter to be born to them.During the marriage ceremon!, the husband touches all the fingers of his wife e#cept the thumb,

if the couple is desirous of a daughter.6/&After their marriage, the husband shows his wife the

8ole Star and other heavenl! bodies if he desires that a daughter be born to them. 6/ Several

kaa"yashraddhas (rites done to obtain a specific result are prescribed in ritual literature toensure the birth of a daughter6/2. A te#t as7s the father to greet both his son and his daughter upon

returning from a -ourne!.

6/3

A te#t states that the birth of a daughter is ver! meritorious. 6/0$here have been cases

where fathers are said to have been more fond of their daughters than their sons. For instance,

according to the Brahmavaivarta 8urana, Cing grasena was more fond of his daughter Deva7i(the mother of Crishna than his son Camsa. n another %aishnava 8urana, a childless Brahmin

pra!s to ord %ishnu for a child. ?hen the pleased ord as7s him whether he wants a daughter

or a son, he responds 4 K?hat difference would it ma7e, for a son would be !our li7eness while adaughter would be the li7eness of Devi a7shmi.L ord %ishnu blesses him with a daughter. $he

te#t sa!s that the Brahmin was over-o!ed with the birth of his daughter, and educates her to be a

great scholar.

n several 8urana te#ts, the niversal Divine Mother is born in the household of her

devotee Da7sha as his daughter Sati.6/9 ndeed, in man! Hindu households, daughters are

considered as manifestations of Devi. Man! rituals and pilgrimages (to Sha7ti shrines such as%aishno Devi are completed b! worshipping and offering food to eight !oung girls (which ma!

include one+s own daughters who are considered as forms of the Devi. A te#t sa!s that Devi

a7shmi alwa!s dwells within our good daughters6/:.

6/6For instance, the Ar!a Sama- founded b! Swami Da!anand Sarasvati in 6902 revived %edic and secular education

of women b! opening schools for girls. $oda!, we have several women who are scholars in %edic and other Hindu

te#ts.6/;*.g., Manusmriti :.6&/. A similar verse is also cited at @iru7ta &. and the accent mar7s indicates that it is "uoted

from a lost %edic te#t.6/&Ashvala!ana 5rh!asutra 6.0. Apastamba 5rh!asutra .6;6/Devapala+s commentar! on Catha7a 5rh!asutra ;2.26/2. B. Ehaudhari. K$he Significance of the %edic 'ite 8umsavanaL, in 2ndian Historical 8uarterly, vol. J%, Dec.

6:&9, pp. 9&619&26/3Apastamba 5rh!asutra 3.62.6;16&6/0Mats!a 8urana 62.61606/9cf. Devibhagavata 8urana 0.&/6/:Mahabharata J.66.6

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and Si7h religious leaders have openl! come out against this heinous practice, which has no

precedent and no sanction in Hindu Dharma. $here is no evidence that this selective abortion offemale fetuses is carried out b! Hindu communities outside ndia (or rather some parts of ndia

and public concern against this evil practice is steadil! mounting within the Hindu and Si7h

communities.

Woman as Sister:Hindu Dharma is perhaps uni"ue in having a )brother1sister+ festival, calledthe+akshaandhan. On this da! sisters come to visit their brothers and tie them a sacred thread

(called )+akhi+ on their wrist to s!mbolize that if ever some adversit! befalls upon them, theirbrothers will rise to the occasion. Sisters pra! for their brothers+ welfare, and brothers give gifts

to their sisters. n the Hindu tradition, a woman can ma7e someone else a )brother+ b! t!ing the

'a7hi to him. f that happens, the relationship becomes one of real brother and sister, and all there"uirements and duties of a brother towards his non1biological sister are then e#pected to be

fulfilled b! him. A brother is also obliged to present gifts to his married sister whenever she visits

him. n the absence of their father, it is the brother who too7 care of her and made gifts to her as

well as to his brother1in1law662. And -ust as it happens toda!, the protective brother 7ept a watchon his unmarried sister+s bo!friends.663

Woman as the BrideG t appears that women had considerable freedom in %edic times to choosetheir own husband.660Although there is no evidence in %edic literature for earl! marriage of

women, classical Hinduism te#ts advocate marr!ing off one+s daughter before she reaches

pubert! (although the marriage cannot be consummated till she attains pubert!. 8rematuremarriages has had a disastrous effect on the health of Hindu women, and laws have been enacted

in ndia to prevent marriage of women till the! turn 69 !ears of age.669

A Hindu bride (with @orth ndian costume

$he evil of dowr! which is so prevalent amongst certain Hindu communities toda! isconspicuous b! its absence in the entire range of authoritative religious literature of Hindus.

Scholars66:have shown that dowr! amongst Hindus started as a result of peculiar conditions

created during the British rule in ndia, and that this practice is actuall! attested "uiet well in

medieval *urope. n lieu of dowr! however, brides were gifted lavishl! b! her father andbrothers upon her wedding. $hese gifts constituted her personal propert! not sub-ect to use or

control b! her husband or her in1laws. pon her death, it passed onto her daughters. A bride+s or

662'igveda 6.6/:.;663'igveda .2.2660e.g., 'igveda 6/.;0.6;669ronicall!, while this seems to have solved the problem in ndia to a considerable e#tent, western countries suchas the nited States are currentl! beset with the problem of teenage pregnancies.66:Such as %eena $alwar Oldenburg

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a wife+s personal wealth was called )stridhana+ or the woman+s wealth. f the bride+s father was

no longer alive, her brothers were obliged to grant her a share of their own inheritance to createherstridhana and also for her marriage. 'elatives who usurped the bride+s personal propert!

were punishable under law.6;/

$he wedding ceremon! involves the bride and the groom wal7ing seven steps together.

At the seventh step, the groom is made to declare that he chooses his wife as his lifelong friend.Another custom is to tie the hems of their garments together in a 7not, and going around the

sacred fire altar four times. $he last of these four circumambulations, s!mbolizing salvation islead b! the bride. $his indicates that the salvation of the husband (and the wife is not possible

without her involvement in procreation of children and in religious observances.

Bride leads the final circumambulation of the sacred altar to conclude the ritual

n an interesting custom seen in some parts of ndia, the bride sa!s ) do+ after ma7ing the

groom concede seven demands. $hese include things li7e the groom promising that as her

husband, he will never interfere in her decisions relating to the management of their household,and that he will trust her discretion in the management of their household resources.

*ngagement Eeremon!G 5room+s famil! welcomes the bride

6;/Manusmriti 9.;:

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$he bride is considered an embodiment of good1luc7 and auspiciousness and is welcomed b! the

groom+s famil!. $he %edic verses e#press the hope that the bride will be regarded li7e an*mpress b! her in1laws.6;6

Woman as WifeG )>he wife indeed is the ho"e&6;;sa!s a Hindu te#t. $he wife was considered

one with her husband.6;&A good wife was considered a gift of gods, whom the husband could

never neglect or fail to support.

6;

For the happiness of the household, it was not sufficient for thehusband alone to be pleased with his wife. $he wife must also be pleased with her husband. 6;2A

law1giver actuall! states that a husband and wife who live together even though the! do not loveeach other commit a sin.6;3$he status of the wife and husband was not e#actl! e"ual however.

?hile a disobedient wife could be discarded6;0,the wife herself was e#horted to treat even a

husband destitute of virtues as her ord because such dedication itself could ta7e her toheaven.6;9However, she could abandon a husband who was impotent, mentall! deranged or who

suffered from other wasting diseases.6;:She was e#horted to consider her husband alone as her

honor and pride6&/and see7 her fulfillment within her home.6&6However, the te#ts also state that

women can never be controlled b! force, and onl! wives themselves can guard their ownvirtue.6&;

n the worldview of classical Hindu te#ts, the wife was not a producer of wealth. Hersphere of activit! was restricted to her home, and her famil! members. She did all the householdchores, managed her husband+s wealth, maintained her household possessions, brought up

children, coo7ed food for the famil!, served her husband and too7 a leading role in fulfilling

several domestic ritual observances. $his was true for all traditional societies, and things arechanging ver! fast in Hindu societies toda! with more and more women e#ploring opportunities

for self1fulfillment outside their homes with the support of their husbands and other famil!

members. n fact, it was never entirel! true that women do not produce wealth. Since timesimmemorial, Hindu women have wor7ed in the fields, as artisans and so on.

?omen planting padd!

6;6'igveda 6/.92.36;;'igveda &.2&.6;&Manusmriti :.26;Manusmriti :.:26;2Manusmriti &.3/6;3@arada Smriti 6;.:/6;0Manusmriti :.9&6;9Manusmriti 2.626;:Manusmriti :.60216036&/Shatapath Brahmana ;.3.;.66&6Shatapath Brahmana &.&.6.6/6&;Manusmriti :.6;

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SavitriG So esteemed was a devoted wife that she was considered to have the power to ensure her

husband+s welfare even after his death6&&. Hindu tradition reveres the stor! of 8rincess Savitriwho was so learned that her father was unable to find a match of her. She met a humble student

in a one of her so-ourns and e#pressed her desire to marr! him, against her parents+ wishes,

although it was prophesied to her that he would die within one !ear of their marriage. After their

marriage, when that da! came, she showed great courage and wit in snatching bac7 the soul of

her husband from the Messenger of Death, and the! lived a long life together happil! thereafter.Far from being a mee7, docile woman, Savitri was a strong1willed, educated and a powerful

woman who defied death, and who married the man she loved.

SukanyaaG n another tale, the beautiful 8rincess Su7an!a accidentall! blinds the old Sage

Eh!avan. $o ma7e amends, she marries him. $he handsome divine twins and celestial ph!siciansnamel! Ashwin Cumars approached her and as7ed her to forsa7e her husband and instead marr!

one of them. But Su7an!a remar7ed that she would never leave her husband as long as he

lives6&. 8leased with her love for her husband, the celestial ph!sicians restored Sage Eh!avan+s

sight and transformed him into a handsome !oung man.

>he loyal husandG i7ewise, Hindu scriptures also have several other sacred stories that showthe devotion of husbands towards their wives. ?hen due to some ob-ections from his sub-ectsCing 'ama had to forsa7e Devi Sita, his wife, he did not remarr!. $he deep affection and love

that ord Shiva has for his wife 8arvati is the sub-ect of numerous Sans7rit wor7s. *ven toda!,

Hindu maidens aspiring for a good husband fast for 63 consecutive Monda!s, the da! consideredhol! b! Shaivite Hindus.

Hindu te#ts sa! that the wife is prosperit! of the home personified 6&2 and is to beconsidered fit for worship.6&3$he %edas consider the wife as auspicious6&0, the most auspicious

one6&9. She is the light of the home, the harbinger of man! blessings, and worth! of great

honor.6&:$he Mahabharata sa!s the wife is her husband+s best friend. *ven in a deep forest, she

is li7e refreshment and solace to her husband. ?henever men are afflicted with sorrow or are inph!sical pain, the presence of wives serves to alleviate their suffering -ust as a perspiring person

feels refreshed after a cool bath. Dharma, ac"uisition of wealth and pleasure are all dependent on

one+s wife. $herefore, even in anger, husbands must never do an!thing that is disagreeable totheir wives.6/

A man becomes eligible to perform %edic rituals onl! after he marries66. $he husbandand wife are e#horted to perform their religious ceremonies as a pair.6;f the husband is married,

he cannot perform %edic ceremonies without his wife.6&During religious ceremonies, the wife

6&&Eonversel!, societ! also unfairl! blamed her if she became a widow due to her husband+s premature death.

nfortunatel!, women often turned out to be the worst oppressors of such grieving widows.6&Madh!andina Shatapath Brahmana .6.2.:6&2$aittiri!a Brahmana ;.:..0 Manusmriti :.;36&3Mahabharata %.&9.666&0'igveda &.2&.36&9'igveda 6/.92.&06&:Manusmriti :.;36/Mahabharata .066Maadhavi!a Shan7aradigvi-a!a ;.66; 'igveda 9.&6.21: See Shabarswami+s commentar! on 8urvamimamsa Sutra 3.:.60 Siddhanta7aumudi onAshtadh!a!i .6.&& etc.6&$aittiri!a Brahmana ;.;.;.3

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holds the hand of her husband whenever he pours the oblation into the sacred altar, signif!ing

that the ritual is performed -ointl! b! them.

Bride and 5room light the sacred altar together

Men and women form complement each other, -ust li7e heaven and earth, l!ric and

melod!6. $he! are e"ual partners in married life. Sage Agast!a tells his wife opamudra 4 K2n

this world, we will overco"e all adversities if we two eBert ourselves together.L62Soon after her wedding, thewife is re"uested to address a religious gathering or assembl!.63For a husband, his wife is his

own half60 and is therefore called ardhaangini ()half of oneself+. She was a comrade in life

(sahachari, an e"ual participant in performance of and in reaping fruits of good deeds(sahadhar"ini.

Bride sa!s to 5roomG ) shall be !our comrade all m! life+

6Atharvaveda 6.;.0662'igveda 6.60:.&63'igveda 6/.92.;31;060$aittiri!a Brahmana &.&.&.2

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$here is no greater sorrow than to see the death of one+s sons and one+s wife. 69$he wife

is dearer than one+s own life, she is to be treasured li7e one+s mother, and respected as an eldersister.6:

5room sa!s to brideG ) unite m! heart with !ours+

$he ver! essence of married life is stated in the following words 4 K;aithfulness to each other"ust e oserved till death C this is the essence of the Supre"e 1aw that "ust e followed y the husand and wife.

$fter co"pleting the "arriage rites, they should eBert with all their "ight to avoid eing unfaithful to each other,

and to avoid splitting fro" each other.L62/

Woman as WidowG $he %edic te#ts626 indicate that widow remarriage was allowed. $he

Dharmasutras appended to various %edic schools also permit widow remarriage.62;$his generalpermission for remarriage of widows was maintained in some te#ts of classical Hinduism62&. n

certain cases, if the husband went abroad for longer than a particular period of time, the woman

was permitted to remarr! as well.62 n general however, the status of widows declined steepl!when the te#ts of classical Hinduism were formulated. As a result, remarriage of widows was

highl! frowned upon622and the ideal widow was e#pected to live a life of piet!, austerit! and

self1abnegation.623i7ewise, a widower was e#cluded from the sacred ritual but could remarr! inorder to enter normal life, or he could chose to live celibate. @o stigma was attached to the

remarriage of a widower.

Elearl! however, widow remarriages continued to occur in historic ndia, and arementioned in Dharmashastra te#ts themselves.620 One ma! cite several e#amples of widow

remarriages from ancient ndia. n the Harivamsha 8urana, gra!udha proposes to Sat!avati, the

widow of Shantanu, indicating that it was not taboo to marr! a widow. A-una married loopi, thewidowed daughter of the @aga 7ing, and even had a son b! her. $he ata7a tales narrate some

other instances of men marr!ing widows in the Hindu societ! in the pre1Buddhist period.

69Mahabharata .6:&.6:6:Mahabharata %.&.6&62/Manusmriti :.6/616/;626*.g., Atharavaveda :.2.;0 'igveda 6/./.;62;Baudha!ana Dharmasutra .6.63 %asishtha Dharmasutra 60.6:1;/ etc.62&8arashara Smriti .&/ 5aruda 8urana 6/0.;9 Agni 8urana 62.262Manusmriti :.03622Manusmriti 2.629 2.63; Apastamba Dharmasutra ;.3.6&16623Manusmriti 2.6231620620Manusmriti :.602

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*mperor Ehandragupta in the thcentur! E* married the Dhruvadevi, the widow of his elder

brother. %ira Hammira of Ehittor married the widowed daughter of Maldeo and their sonCshetrasimha succeeded him to the throne of daipur629.'emarriage of widow was generall!

recommended with her !ounger brother in law, though there does not seem to be an absolute

restriction in this regard. Such e#amples were not commonplace though and a life of celibac!

was generall! recommended for widows.

A widow performing worship

?idows were often considered useless members of the household, and too inauspicious

for invitation to celebrations. n some cases where the bride was widowed at a ver! !oung age,

she had to spend the long remainder of her life in miser! and sorrow 62:. n actual practicehowever, numerous Hindu communities such as ats practiced widow remarriage (the custom

was called )karewa+ down to modern times. Eurrentl!, the stigma against widow remarriages is

vanishing fast especiall! in large cities in ndia. t is preferred b! famil! members that the widowremarries a widower, though there is no such compulsion.

$here are mi#ed in-unctions on the inheritance rights for widows. Some Hindu te#ts

contain the world+s oldest in-unctions on the right of inheritance of a widow, while other Hindute#ts state that a widow with a grown up son will be provided for b! him from his father+s

inheritance.

Sati


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which seems to have remained largel! confined to the ver! elite sections of ruling Hindu classes

in ndia. $he 8eshwas, Hindu Maratha rulers, tried to ban it without success.

$he word )Sati+ literall! means a truthful woman. According to the Shiva 8urana, Sati,

herself an incarnation of Sha7ti, was the wife of ord Shiva. Anguished b! the insult of her

husband of her own father, she immolated her own bod! in full public view b! the strength of her

inner old y the *usli"s, 8rithivi 8ra7ashan, %aranasi (6:3:, pp. ;&&1;&63&t ma! be noted that upon the death of a Cing, several of his servants and retainers also sometimes committedsuicide. For the accounts of foreigners on this practice see 1 Asho7 Cumar Srivastava, 2ndia as 0escried y the

$ra >ravellers, Sahit!a Sansar 8ra7ashan, 5ora7hpur (6:30, pp. ;1&

6


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Hindu te#ts preach the performance of 7arma without motive of rewards such as Heaven. $his is

what social reformer 'a-a 'am Mohan 'o! did, in arguing with some 8andits who supported thepractice. $he British finall! banned it, without eliciting an! significant whimper of protest from

Hindus (showing that Hindus themselves were 7een to stop it and now it is a thing of the past.

An event or two of Sati still occurs in ndia once ever! ;/ !ears or so, and generates a slew of

)scholarl!+ publications written in -ournalistic and sensationalist tones, and reams of )research

papers+ b! arm1chair scholars. But the custom must be considered rare in the conte#t of pre1modern Hinduism (with ver! little scriptural bac7ing, and defunct in modern times.

The Woman as a Woman: Of Panegyrics and Caricatures

$he te#ts of all religions are largel! male oriented and so is the case with Hindu Dharma

although our Dharma does have a ver! strong feminine component as a part of its ver! core. t isnatural then that Hindu te#ts ma7e some -udgmental remar7s concerning women. $hese remar7s

are sometimes blan7et negative characterizations, or blan7et positive characterizations, or the!

are balanced and nuanced statements that do not stereot!pe women.

Man! of these negative statements are actuall! found in te#ts meant for celibate male

renunciates or mon7s for whom se#ual temptations are taboo and attraction towards women isconsidered a hindrance in their spiritual path. Eonversel!, the feminine spiritual traditions inHindu Dharma tend to sublimate se#ual desires b! perceiving the entire )man7ind+ as feminine.

For instance, it is said that once Sant Meerabai went to visit Sant $ulasidas (who had become a

celibate Hindu mon7 b! then but was stopped b! his disciples with the plea that their 5uru doesnot meet women. She replied 4 KHow can that be so because thought that all human beings are

women, and 5od is the onl! 8urusha (Male.L ?hen Sant $ulasidas heard her response, he

invited her himself with great respect, realizing that a great devotee of 5od was at his doorstep.Similar stories are narrated with regard to other lad! Sants such as alleshvari and others as well.

$he $antra te#ts often invert the patriarchal paradigm, and declare the woman to be superior to

men.

Some of these negative statements actuall! !ield a ver! different import when the! are

seen in their te#tual conte#t. For instance, the following verse is often cited to sa! that Hinduism

caricatures women 4KWith wo"en there can e no lasting friendship,

their hearts are like the hearts of hyenas.#D:

n realit!, this statement was made b! a woman herself, the celestial n!mph ruvashi, who

wanted to spurn the advances of Cing 8ururava. She tries all means to shoo him awa!, and it is in

this conte#t that she ma7es this statement about women, so as to dissuade him in his overtures

towards her. $he h!mn in "uestion is called an )aakhyaana+ h!mn or a h!mn that contains astor!1line with some dialogs and which was probabl! enacted in theatres in ancient ndia.

Obviousl!, one would see melodramatic and theatrical remar7s in these aakhyaanah!mns.

Several negative statements on women however are clearl! caricatures and negative

stereot!pes. For instance, some te#ts sa! that women li7e to indulge in meaningless

conversations, and han7er after singers and dancers632(interestingl! these stereot!pes e#ist eventoda!. Significantl!, most of such stereot!pical statements are often said to be the teachings of

63 'igveda 6/.:2.62632 Madh!andina Shatapath Brahmana &.;.&.3


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women themselves. For instance, 8anchachuda, a celestial n!mph tells @arada that women are

the worst possible sinners, 5od created them full of vices, the! are falsehood incarnates, the!cannot control their senses and are obsessed with food, dresses, ornaments and drin7s. $heir love

for their husbands is fic7le, the! han7er for other men and long for men who sing and dance 633.

One wonders how much credence should be paid to 8anchachuda, considering that she was a

divine courtesan.

Hindus toda! disregard such sill! remar7s against women and man! actuall! consider

them as interpolations in our te#ts630. t is li7el! that such caricatures promoted pre-udices againstwomen in real life, and the sooner we Hindus purge our te#ts of them, the better it will be.

On the other e#treme, Hindu scriptures contain numerous eulogistic remar7s on women.A passage in a te#t argues that )given the dependence of women on men for all deeds, the! can

never be blamed for an! fault because it is men who force them to commit sin. t is men who

seduce them and cause them to commit adulter!. t is men who though married, commit adulter!

with other women. ?omen must not be blamed for adulter!, onl! men should be blamed for thissin. A man who neither ta7es care of his wife nor provides for her does not deserve to be called

her husband or her provider+.

639

t is stated that unli7e men, women never 7ill.

63:

n his enc!clopedia (of Hindu branches of learning named Brihatsamhita, %arahamihira

devotes the 0;ndchapter to the praise of women. He sa!s that women are superior to men because

all men are born from women, because women are more faithful to their spouses than men, andbecause women are more faithful in following Dharma. On the whole, if we ignore passages that

eulogize women in their roles of mother and wife, passages caricaturing women predominate

over eulogistic passages. And man! passages in the latter categor! actuall! deal with unchastewives and do not pertain to women in general.

And finall!, as stated above, man! passages e#hort us to ta7e a balanced view and

distinguish between different t!pes of women. $he chaste women are worth! or praise, whilethose who are not chaste are worth! of condemnation.60/

The Stren*th and +nsiration of Great Men:t is said that the behind ever! successful man, there is a powerful woman. $his seems to

be "uite well1e#emplified in the Hindu tradition. @umerous te#ts within the Hindu tradition have

been named b! male authors lovingl! after their women famil! members. For instance,%achaspati Mishra, a celebrated Hindu philosopher, named his magnum opus on Hindu

spiritualit! (%edanta after his wife )Bhaamati+. An ancient mathematician named his wor7 on

arithmetic and algebra after his daughter ilavati. n this wa!, grateful Hindu scholars haveperpetuated the memories of their loving wives, mothers, daughters and so on down the ages.

633Mahabharata J.&/630Such issues e#ist even in related traditions such as Si7hism. A part of the Dasham 5ranth, considered the

composition of 5uru 5obind Singh (the 6/ thspiritual master of Si7hs is the Eharitropaa7h!aana which describes

the various vices of women. Man! Si7hs toda! consider this portion of the Dasham 5ranth as apocr!phal.639Mahabharata J.;3363:Shatapath Brahman 3.&.6.&:60/Brahmavaivarta 8urana, 8ra7riti Chanda 63.36130

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n the Mahabharata606, Iueen Cunti (she belongs to the pentad of )panchakanyaa+

narrates the soul1stirring ancient sermon of Iueen %idula to her son, in order to boost the moraleof her sons, the distraught 8andava brothers who had been deprived of their 7ingdom and

livelihood b! their cousins. $he sermon contains memorable passages e#horting men to shun

self1pit! and a sense of defeat and instead rise to ta7e charge of their own destin!. $he narration

obviousl! had its effect because the 8andava brothers soon prepare for the war.

t is said that 5oswami $ulsidas (63 th160thcentur! E*, one of the most prominent saint

poets of Hindi, was ver! infatuated with his newl! wedded wife. One da!, she reminded him thatif he were infatuated with ord 'am in the same wa!, he would have attained salvation. $he

words transformed $ulsidas into a great saint and a devotee and he went on to author 6; beautiful

devotional wor7s in Hindi.

i-aamata, the mother of Shiva-i, inspired her son from his childhood with stories of great

Hindu heroes, and motivated him to become a noble Hindu 7ing who liberated parts of ndia

from the t!rannical rule of the bigoted Moghul *mperor Aurangzeb in the late 60 th centur!.$oda!, she is revered as an inspirational figure in large parts of ndia along with her illustrious

son.

i-abai, the mother of Shiva-i

A particularl! touching instance in Hindu tradition is that of Haadi 'ani. @ewl! married,

her husband did not heed the call to arms against the enemies of his countr!. She had her headsevered and sent to him on a platter, motivating him to forsa7e all fear of death and plunge

headlong into battle.

Amongst some Hindu communities, notabl! the 'a-puts, when the fall of their citadel or

cit! to slamic invaders became imminent, the Hindu women of the area committed suicide b!

mass immolation. $his act of sacrifice was termed as @auhar. As a result, shorn of all love ties to

their families, the Hindu men1fol7 of area would rush out of their forts and attac7 the invaderswith their full might and motivation without an! fear of death. Such instances of @auhar

happened because the Muslim invaders would molest and rape captured Hindu women aftervictor!60; and therefore Hindu women often preferred death to dishonor and indignit! ofconcubinage. One such instance of auhar b! 'ani 8admini and 0// other maidens of the fort of

606Mahabharata, %.6&&16&360;n a particularl! large1scale instance, some ;,/// women of the Hindu 7ingdom of aisalmer committed mass1

suicide -ust before it was sac7ed b! Muslims in 6;:2 E*, to avoid falling into their hands. See 4 *nrica 5arzilli,KFirst 5ree7 and atin Documents on Sahagamana and Some Eonnected 8roblems (8art L, in 2ndo-2ranian

@ournal, vol. /G ;/21;& (6::0, endnote no. ;


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Ehittor before its imminent fall to the invading Muslim *mperor Allauddin Chil-i is the sub-ect

of a Hindi epic named 8admaavat authored b! a Muslim poet Mali7 Muhammad aa!asi.

Sultan Allauddin lusting for 'ani 8admavati 8admavati leads auhar of ro!al women

More than a thousand !ears ago, the Buddhist "ueen of a Hindu 8and!an 'uler of

southern ndia was so disturbed b! reports of massacres committed b! the arm! of her husband

in a neighboring enem! 7ingdom that she committed suicide as a wa! to protest and to impel herhusband to shun the path of bloodshed.

t is said that it was the mother of the famous mon7


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Manusmriti &.2312960&

Five centuries ago, 5uru @ana7, the first Si7h 5uru60proclaimed 4

*an takes irth fro" wo"an. Within wo"an does the creature&s ody grow.

>o a wo"an does a "an get engaged and "arried. >hrough her are estalished lood relations.

>he cycle of irths in this world is sustained y wo"en.

When a wife dies, the desolate husand seeks another.2ndeed, through wo"en alone are all social connections "aintained.

>herefore, why call that wo"an inferior, fro" who" great e"perors are ornE

$ wo"an is orn only fro" another wo"an (and never fro" a "an!.=one in this /niverse can take irth without a wo"an.

=anak says C %nly the ternal 1ord is never orn fro" a wo"an.

$hese words above are of eternal relevance. ?henever given a chance, Hindu women

have shown their mettle in all arenas of life, overcoming numerous social stigmas and religious

pre-udices b! their internal and innate Divine Sha7ti.

?e cannot ma7e the Divine Mother into a Male 5od, because no man or woman can

change the eternal nature of the Supreme Being. But we can surel! be more truthful to the DivineMother b! ta7ing steps to ensure that our women, who are Her earthl! manifestations, becomeHer reflections in the true sense 4 in all Her Beaut!, 8ower, ?isdom, Spiritualit!, earning and

Freedom. $he beatific smile that graces the face of Devi, must adorn the faces of all our women.

Otherwise our pra!ers to the Devi will remain mere lip1movement.

Brahman, the Supreme Being, has alread! shown us the wa! b! manifesting as the Divine

Mother on numerous occasions. )He+ has often b!passed men to honor his women devotees.Hindu revelations, theolog!, ritual and philosoph! have b! and large created and protected

ade"uate )feminine space+. All women and men are manifestations of 5od, and all are born from

5od602. @ot -ust men, but women as well were created in the image of Supreme Being.

$rdhnaariishvara, our ord or ad! is half feminine. $herefore, how can we Hindus venerateHer one half and bear contempt towards His other halfR ?e pra! to Devi that the social status of

Hindu women will continue to improve in future through internal reforms in the Hindu societ!.

Ma! the Divine Mother guide us in the right direction

m at"aa"aanaa"a vidmahe an"aumaari dhiimahi .

tanno dur*ih rachoda"aat ..)(/

0000000000000000000

!ns"irations:@umerous websites and boo7s have been consulted for this brief compilation, but the followingdeserve a special mentionG

6. $ >riute to Hinduis"G A beautiful website set up b! Sushama ondhe, a Hindu woman, as a labor of love.

%isithttpGwww.atributetohinduism.com . @umerous pictures and a lot of material from this website hasbeen used in this compilation.

60&cf. Mahabharata J.360$oda!, Si7hism is considered a separate religion although Hindus consider the Si7h 5urus ver! much a part of

our Dharmic tradition.602Atharvaveda (8aippalada Samhita 9.:.66603Durga 5a!atri mantra, $aittiri!a Aran!a7a 6.&&

3
http://www.atributetohinduism.com/http://www.atributetohinduism.com/http://www.atributetohinduism.com/


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;. $he following website of 0akshina 9annada Philately and =u"is"atic $ssociation provided several

pictures of postage stamps used in this compilationG

httpGwww.geocities.comda7shina7anpaart&6women6.htm

8rofessor %asudha @ara!anan provided information on illustrious Hindu Iueens in South *ast Asia whereasDasharath ohar pointed out the role of 8rincess Bhri7uti of @epal and also supplied a useful boo7.

A brief compilation done b! %ishal Agarwal for the Hindu Students Societ! of the niversit! of Minnesota. For

further information, write tovishalsagarwalT!ahoo.com+evision $G ;9 Februar! ;//2 Eop!rightG %ishal Agarwal (httpGwww.vishalagarwal.voiceofdharma.org
http://www.geocities.com/dakshina_kan_pa/art31/women1.htmhttp://www.geocities.com/dakshina_kan_pa/art31/women1.htmmailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.vishalagarwal.voiceofdharma.org/http://www.geocities.com/dakshina_kan_pa/art31/women1.htmmailto:[email protected]://www.vishalagarwal.voiceofdharma.org/