Yatra Naryastu Pujyante Ramante Tatra Devta, Yatraitastu Na Pujyante Sarvastatraphala Kriyah
(Where Women are honored, divinity blossoms there, and where women are dishonored, all action no matter how noble remain unfruitful)
This shloka from our revered ancient text ‘Manusmriti’ tells us in detail the exalted status of women in ancient India. Not only this, there are numerous hymns and texts praising women, their prominent position in the society. Women were treated as equal as men. They were free to pursue education, free to think and free to choose husbands. Sages like Gargi and Maitreyi were proficient in Vedas and were extremely talented women. Everyone was taught to worship woman as a mother, as a sister and as a deity. A woman was the pivot of the entire society.
The problem started when we started confining them to homes, restricting their activities. The agility of the ancient texts started being distorted and rigidity swept the society. This attitudinal transformation diminished their chances of development. Once free birds, their wings were now clipped and their hopes curtailed to satisfy the Patriarchal society. Child marriage, Sati system, Dowry deaths, exploitation, female foeticide ; the list goes on and on. They suffered a lot in the name of tradition and principles and their status reduced to second grade citizens forced to live a life full of restrictions and depravity.
The shackles of subjugation were not that much easy to break. It took centuries and incessant efforts of philosophers like Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Mahatma Gandhi, Savitribai Phule etc.to give them a ray of hope. The hope dispelled the darkness and steered their lives to a brighter one. The mentality of society soon started to change and their importance and acceptance garnered momentum.
Today, we find women in almost all fields of life competing with men for their position in the society. In many fields, they are far superior to men. Today, they aren’t hesitant to speak, to raise their voices, to demand what is rightfully theirs. This welcome change is the result of inspiration drawn from the lives of role models like Kalpana Chawla, Indira Gandhi, Sarojini Naidu etc. who showed them new avenues in life and guided them like the ‘Pole Star’. These women stalwarts proved their mettle and paved way for many more to come.
The future is full of hope and promises. With confidence and courage lashed with compassion, women are bound to touch the zenith and create the unthinkable, the unimaginable. This advancement , this progress strongly relies on one belief ‘Yes, We Can’. This belief propels their flight to a scintillating future and converts their aims to achievements. We can’t fathom a world without women. They are the creators, the custodians of the society. It’s high time; we celebrated their fame to stardom and recognize their due status in our lives. So, come and do acknowledge their contributions in the building of a better society and in due course a better nation.
Mr. Arun K. Chowdhary
Assistant Professor
Applied Science ( English )