TeachingRE Issue 4.pdf - the Second Level Support Service

explains this passage thus:‘The wife and husband, being the equal halves ofone substance, are equal in every respect; therefore both should join andtake equal parts in all work, religious and secular.’The Vedas of the Hindusclearly acknowledges the equality of women with men.When Sankaracharya, the great commentator of theVedanta, was discussingphilosophy with another philosopher, a Hindu lady, well versed in all theScriptures, she was requested to act as a judge.It is the special injunction of theVedas that no married man shall perform anyreligious rite, ceremony, or sacrifice without it being joined in by his wife; thewife is considered a partaker and partner in the spiritual life of her husband;she is called, in Sanskrit, Sahadharmini,‘spiritual helpmate.’As in religion, Hindu woman of ancient times enjoyed equal rights andprivileges with men, so in secular matters she had equal share and equalpower with them. From the Vedic age women in India have had the samerights as men and they could go to the courts of justice, plead their owncases, and ask for the protection of the law.Regarded as the highest dharma of all four castes husbands, though weak,must strive to protect their wives. The man protects his own offspring,character, family, self, and dharma when he protects his wife scrupulously.Thehusband should engage his wife in dharma, the collection and expenditure ofhis wealth, in cooking food for the family, and in looking after the necessitiesof the household.Motherhood is considered the greatest glory of Hindu women – ‘Let yourmother be the god to you.’The Hindu tradition recognises ‘mother’ and motherhood as even superiorto heaven. The epic Mahabharata says, ‘While a father is superior to tenlearned priests well-versed in the Vedas, a mother is superior to ten suchfathers.’Hinduism offers some intriguing and unique examples of strong women inthe form of Goddesses.Two thousand years ago SaintTiruvalluvar observed:“What does a man lack if his wife is worthy? And what does he possess if sheis lacking worth?”There is great respect in Hinduism for women and for theirrole in society.In many philosophical texts God is referred to as a Tat, meaning ‘it’ - and thatGod is beyond gender. One would find a comparable Goddess for each God.Further, we know for a fact that ancient India was permissive; women couldhave multiple husbands, widows could remarry, divorce was permitted forincompatibility or when estranged.Lord Siva appears united in a single body with Sakthi, his spouse; he at theright side and she at the left, in a manifestation known as Ardhanariswara, thehalf-man, half-woman incarnation of God. Each of the three principal Godsin the Hindu pantheon - Brahma the Creator,Vishnu the Protector and Sivathe destroyer, is accompanied by a Sakthi, which is both his female double andhis power of manifestation.The RigVeda too places woman on a high pedestal of sublimity: Yatr nariyastupoojayante ramante tatr devah - where woman is worshipped, Gods presidethere.Women must be honoured and adorned by their father, brothers, husbands,and brother-in-law who desire good fortune. Where women are trulyhonoured, there the gods rejoice.Where, however, they are not honoured -there all sacred rites prove fruitless.Where the female relations live in grief,that family soon perishes completely. Where, however, they do not sufferfrom any grievance, that family always prospers.Women enjoy an honoured position and are found in the Upanishadsconversing freely with men, contributing an active role in society.Young girlsled free lives and had a decisive voice in the selection of their husbands. Onfestive occasions and at tournaments (samana) girls appeared in all theirgaiety. In certain Hindu castes the line of inheritance is from mother to(eldest) daughter, and marriage is a ‘visiting’ relationship. Naturally, womenwere more independent and free in every respect.It is, therefore, no wonder that the wife enjoys with her husband full religiousrights and regularly participates in religious ceremonies with him. In fact, theperformance of such ceremonies would be invalid without the wife joiningher husband as his full partner. Some grammatical passages show that womenhad other careers open to them apart from a mere literary career.In Hinduism the fourVedas, the Bhagvad Gita and the two Puranas - Ramayanand Mahabharath are considered to be the supreme Scriptures.All others arejust commentaries, explanatory notes or stories written by individuals. Ascommentaries written on the Constitution of India cannot override thearticles of the Constitution of India, similarly, commentaries or explanationson Vedas by individuals cannot supersede the riches of the Vedas or theRamayana or Gita.In the Ramayana, everyone knows that after the death of King Dasharatha hiswives were never asked to step into the pyre of Dasharatha. Rather, theylived as a family with full honour and Rama always bowed his head before hiswidowed mothers with full respect. In the Mahabharata, Kunti, mother of thePandavas did not commit sati.Thus, there is no command in the Ramayana,Mahabharata or in Gita to commit sati.ConclusionIn ancient India, Hindu women enjoyed great respect and freedom in society.But repeated attacks on Hindus in India by Muslims and the British throughcenturies changed the situation. During such aggressions the honour andchastity of women often became the casualties.There have been numerouscases when Hindu women killed themselves rather than yield to theindignities inflicted by the aggressors. Political instability and successive foreigninvasions further made it difficult for women to take up formal learning, whichmade it impossible for them to undertake Vedic studies and conduct Vedicrites.As a result, Hindu society became more protective about its women. Thefreedom of women was restricted. To protect themselves, Hindu womenstarted to avoid public appearance and started to stay home. Theirparticipation in public life and their social contribution was greatly restricted.Now that we are no longer under aggression or invasion, we should allowwomen to regain their power, fame and name. Religion places the Motherbefore the Father in priority for reverence. Matr devo bhava was the firstUpanishad exhortation to the young. (Mother is a form of GOD). In Hindusymbolism the Feminine is placed on a par with the Masculine in theprofound concept of Siva-Sakthi culminating in the image of Ardharnari-Isvara.People have honoured India as Motherland - ‘Bharat Mata’, and nationalismhas grown up from the seed Mantra ‘Vande Mataram’. (Bharat Mata refers toIndia the Motherland and Vande Matram means ‘Salutation to Mother’.)Misconceptions have to be cleared. Deep religious knowledge, respect forother religions and tolerance are the tools. Spirituality is the theme and Ihave no doubts that the 21st century is the century of women.Temple Pooja16 TEACHING RELIGIOUS EDUCATION ISSUE FOUR SEPTEMBER 2009