Medieval Indian Women Medieval India was not women’s age it is supposed to be the ‘dark age’ for them. Medieval India saw many foreign conquests, which resulted in the decline in women’s status. When foreign conquerors like Muslims invaded India they brought with them their own culture. For them women was the sole property of her father, brother or husband and she does not have any will of her own. This type of thinking also crept into the minds of Indian people and they also began to treat their own women like this. One more reason for the decline in women’s status and freedom was that original Indians wanted to shield their women folk from the barbarous Muslim invaders. As polygamy was a norm for these invaders they picked up any women they wanted and kept her in their “harems”. In order to protect them Indian women started using ‘Purdah’, (a veil), which covers body.

Source:http://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/specials/tribune_125/indian%20women.jpg

Due to this reason their freedom also became affected. They were not allowed to move freely and this lead to the further deterioration of their status. These problems related with women resulted in changed mindset of people. Now they began to consider a girl as misery and a burden, which has to be shielded from the eyes of intruders and needs extra care. Whereas a boy child will not need such extra care and instead will be helpful as an earning hand. Thus a vicious circle started in which women was at the receiving end. All this gave rise to some new evils such as Child Marriage, Sati, Jauhar and restriction

on girl education

• Sati: The ritual of dying at the funeral pyre of the husband is known as “Sati” or “Sahagaman”. According to some of the Hindu scriptures women dying at the funeral pyre of her husband go straight to heaven so its good to practice this ritual. Initially it was not obligatory for the women but if she practiced such a custom she was highly respected by the society. Sati was considered to be the better option then living as a widow as the plight of widows in Hindu society was even worse. Some of the scriptures like ‘Medhatiti’ had different views it say that Sati is like committing suicide so one should avoid this.
• Jauhar: It is also more or less similar to Sati but it is a mass suicide. Jauhar was prevalent in the Rajput societies. In this custom wives immolated themselves while their husband were still alive. When people of Rajput clan became sure that they were going to die at the hands of their enemy then all the women arrange a large pyre and set themselves afire, while their husband used to fight the last decisive battle known as “Shaka”, with the enemy. Thus protecting the sanctity of the women and the whole clan.
• Child Marriage: It was a norm in medieval India. Girls were married off at theage of 8-10. They were not allowed access to education and were treated as the material being. The plight of women can be imagined by one of the shloka of Tulsidas where he writes [r1] “Dhol, gawar, shudra, pashu, nari, ye sab tadan ke adhikari”. Meaning that animals, illiterates, lower castes and women should be subjected to beating. Thus women were compared with animals and were married off at an early age. The child marriage along with it brought some more problems such as increased birth rate, poor health of women due to repeated child bearing and high mortality rate of women and children.
• Restriction on Widow Remarriage: The condition of widows in medieval India was very bad. They were not treated as human beings and were subjected to a lot of restrictions. They were supposed to live pious life after their husband died and were not allowed entry in any celebration. Their presence in any good work was considered to be a bad omen. Sometimes heads of widows were also shaved down. They were not allowed to remarry. Any woman remarrying was looked down by the society. This cruelty on widows was one of the main reasons for the large number of women committing Sati. In medieval India living as a Hindu widow was a sort of a curse.
• Purdah System: The veil or the ‘Purdah’ system was widely prevalent in medieval Indian society. It was used to protect the women folk from the eyes of foreign rulers who invaded India in medieval period. But this system curtailed the freedom of women.
• Girl Education: The girls of medieval India and especially Hindu society were not given formal education. They were given education related tohousehold chores. But a famous Indian philosopher ‘Vatsyayana’ wrote that women were supposed to be perfect in sixty four arts which included cooking, spinning, grinding, knowledge of medicine, recitation and many more.Though these evils were present in medieval Indian society but they were mainly confined to Hindu society. As compared to Hindu society other societies such as Buddhism,Jainism and Christians were a bit lenient. Women in those societies enjoyed far more freedom. They had easy access to education and were more liberal in their approach. According to these religions gender was not the issue in attaining salvation. Any person whether a man or a woman is entitled to get the grace of god. During the time of king Ashoka women took part in religious preaching. According to Hiuen Tsang, the famous traveler of that time, Rajyashri, the sister of Harshavardhana was a distinguished scholar of her time. Another such example is the daughter of king Ashoka, Sanghmitra. She along with her brother Mahendra went to Sri Lanka to preach Buddhism.The status of women in Southern India was better than the North India. While in Northern India there were not many women administrators, inSouthern India we can find some names that made women of that time proud. Priyaketaladevi, queen of Chalukya Vikramaditya ruled three villages. Another women named Jakkiabbe used to rule seventy villages. In South India women had representation in each and every field. Domingo Paes, famous Portuguese traveler testifies to it. He has written in his account that in Vijaynagar kingdom women were present in eachand every field. He says that women could wrestle, blow trumpet and handle sword with equal perfection. Nuniz, another famous traveler to the South also agrees to it and says that women were employed in writing accounts of expenses, recording the affairs of kingdom, which shows that they were educated. There is no evidence of any public school in northern India but according to famous historian Ibn Batuta there were 13 schools for girls and 24 for boys in Honavar.There was one major evil present in South India of medieval time. It was the custom of Devadasis.
• Devadasis: It was a custom prevalent in Southern India. In this system girlswere dedicated to temples in the name of gods and goddesses. The girls were then onwards known as ‘Devadasis’ meaning servant of god. These Devadasis were supposed to live the life of celibacy. All the requirements of Devadasis were fulfilled by the grants given to the temples. In temple they used to spend their time in worship of god and by singing and dancing for the god. Some kings used to invite temple dancers to perform at their court for the pleasure of courtiers and thus some Devadasis converted to Rajadasis (palace dancers)prevalent in some tribes of South India like Yellamma cult.

The plight of women in medieval India and at the starting of modern India can be summed up in the words of great poet Rabindranath Tagore:

“O Lord Why have you not given woman the right to conquer her destiny?
Why does she have to wait head bowed,
By the roadside, Waiting with tired patience,

Hoping for a miracle in the morrow?”

To read more on this article click here: http://www.mapsofindia.com/culture/indian-women.ht

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Please take a moment to watch this 6-minute video on child marriage, with arresting images from award-winning photojournalist Stephanie Sinclair that depict the lives of girls in Afghanistan, Ethiopia and Nepal who marry as children.

Child brides lack even the most fundamental human rights, and they remain largely invisible to development efforts. The girl at the age of her development is not even aware of her fundamental rights. Most of the girls when in some situations don’t even know how to handle, and can take any kind of steps.

Thanks to ICRW for taking efforts in highlighting this issue and working towards it. I hope, I can be of some help by spreading your voice to some more people.

See the original post from ICRW here: Child Marriages

Foot binding was a custom started in early 10th century in China with evidence still available in some villages. ( From wiki: As late as 2005, women with bound feet in one village in Yunnan Province formed an internationally known dancing troupe to perform for foreign tourists.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foot_binding) .

Process:

At the age from 3 to 11, when the young girls bones are not fully developed, foot binding process starts. Each foot would be soaked in a warm mixture of herbs and animal blood; this was intended to soften the foot and aid the binding. Then, the toenails were cut back as far as possible to prevent in growth and subsequent infections, since the toes were to be pressed tightly into the sole of the foot. To prepare her for what was to come next the girl’s feet were delicately massaged. Cotton bandages, ten feet long and two inches wide, were prepared by soaking them in the blood and herb mixture. The toes on each foot were curled under, then pressed with great force downwards and squeezed into the sole of the foot until the toes break. The broken toes were then held tightly against the sole of the foot. The foot was then drawn down straight with the leg and the arch forcibly broken. The bandages were repeatedly wound in a figure eight movement, starting at the inside of the foot at the instep, then carried over the toes, under the foot, and round the heel, the freshly broken toes being pressed tightly into the sole of the foot. At each pass the binding was tightened, pulling the ball of the foot and the heel ever close together, causing the broken foot to fold at the arch, and pressing the toes underneath, this would cause the young girl excruciating pain. When the binding was completed, the end of the binding cloth was sewn tightly to prevent the girl from loosening it. As the wet bandages dried they constricted, making the binding even tighter.( Read more details on: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foot_binding).

What theories says:Various theories are given for this foot binding custom like:

• The oldest one goes till Southern Tang dynasty in Nanjing, which celebrated fame of their dancing girls, renowned for their tiny feet and bowed shoes
• People say that for wealthy women feet binding was a status symbol which indicated that they don’t need to work in fields or their men are wealthy so they don’t need to work.

Whatever the reason may be, but  the process is so inhuman and painful… and when the traces of these customs are seen in 21st century is really sad. Again time to rethink, are these women tourist attraction or they need our help…

See where she is good and where she is still waiting to react:

Good:

Facing media for her book signing she is doing a good job handling her fans…

See her details on Sarah’s next ? http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/11/19/palin.image/

Bad or still waiting her reply:

1. What will be her next step on newsweek showing her on cover page?

But what to do with scenarios like Newsweek using her picture without proper  approval. Se below a quote from sfgate

On the cover of this week’s issue of Newsweek is a photo that was shot exclusively for the August 2009 issue of Runner’s World, in which Sarah Palin was featured on the monthly “I’m a Runner” back page. The photos from that shoot are still under a one-year embargo, and Runner’s World did not provide Newsweek with its cover image. It was provided to Newsweek by the photographer’s stock agency, without Runner;s World’s knowledge or permission.

I think the case like above are the litmus test for Palin, and her reaction to these situation will prove how much she is really prepared to meet with media now. So her preparation should not be only for predicted media touchpoints but also for unpredicted touch points like these.

Good luck Sarah!

I recently posted this article 15 Quick stats on women workers http://wewomen.wordpress.com/2009/11/11/15-quick-stats-on-us-women-workers/ and got a request in comment to provide comparative data on men/women weekly wages in various occupations. I started looking for that information. I expected the similar quick stats on men workers, unfortunately didn’t find anything which clearly stated. But found a report from Bureau of Labor Statistics for USUAL WEEKLY EARNINGS OF WAGE AND SALARY WORKERS THIRD QUARTER 2009.( See complete Report :http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/wkyeng.pdf), which compares the weekly wages among men and women in US on some professions. Please see below a table summarizing the same:

Men weekly wages 2009. SRC: Bureaue of Labor Statistics

The key highlights of the BLS report are:

• Among the major occupational groups, persons employed full time in management, professional,and related occupations had the highest median weekly earnings—$1,259 for men and $913 for women. Persons in service jobs earned the least.
• Women who usually worked full time had median earnings of $657 per week, or 80.9 percent of the $812 median for men. The female-to-male earnings ratios were higher among blacks (95.3 percent) and Hispanics (95.2 percent) than among whites (80.0 percent) or Asians (82.6  percent).

Looks a dissappointing facts buts that’s what stats say… So next all girls whenever you try to negotiate for your salary , ask for salary in par with men for that position. Dont be afraid to ask for that, as internally you know, if both men and women are doing the same job , women can do equally well:-)…

Thai long neck women

History of the winding coil tradition?

The Kayan tribal community of northern Myanmar has this tradition winding coil around the neck of a girl till the adulthood, and this age-old tradition has  now become a tourist attraction. Several conflicting theories are around for defining the reason of winding coils but no historic evidence has been proven yet. Some of theories are:

• The coil prevents the women from tiger bites on neck.
• Some people say the  girls who are born on full moon day can wear these coils.
• Other school of thoughts  consider winding coil as symbol of wealth and status, and coil is an ornament of these women.
• The coil is also considered as a symbol of slavery in the male chauvinist society. And women who betray their men are not allowed to wear the coil. This coil makes them marry within their tribe.

Whatever the reason may be, but  this tradition has turned the Kayan women as an item of tourist attraction.

Does Myanmar see “giraffe women ” as tourism wealth?

The Kayan tribe are considered to be refugees entered to the Myanmar from neighboring countries. Several times the United Nations High Commission for Refugees and other foreign governments have put pressure on Myanmar government to let these tribes resettle but no visible success has been seen. Moreover the country government do not want to lose their tourism heritage. Following is quite : ”Long-necked Padaung are the star attraction to draw tourists to visit our province,” said Poolsak Sunthornpanit, chairman of Mae Hong Son’s provincial chamber of commerce, recently. Without them, he said, ”all tourism-related businesses, such as hotels, restaurants and transportation services would be badly hit.”

Rethinking is required to consider human as an item to be showcased as tourism material or some people have rightly criticized this tradition by calling the village as “Human Zoo” .The basic dignity of these people is question marked by making this village a tourist destination…

Be that woman video is done by RP3 Agency for Washington Area Women Foundation.The organization has actively worked since 1998 (  foundation year) to improve the lives of 300,000 women and girls in the region with a  mission to to foster a powerful wave of philanthropy to improve the lives of women and girls through:

• Expanding and leveraging women’s philanthropy;
• Increasing social change philanthropy in our community;
• Providing grants, operational resources and technical assistance to local organizations; and,
• Serving as a regional voice for women and girls.

To view more about the organization click here.

Be that woman/challenge video features how the a woman can help someone who is need. The creative agency has RP3 has done a amazing job in conveying the message of woman with kid who is seeking some help. The help is depicted really nicely with a changed color in the animation. The work is really appreciable.

My message to those who are reading this post or have seen the video is that , we can really “that woman” by providing little help to women in need and accept the challenge. The organization support the women in the Washington area by providing necessary education, job training or by simply helping out local organizations in the Washington region. As mentioned above they have already reached a count of helping 300,000. By accepting this challenge we would probably make the count higher.

Please share this video with others if you like it.

Details of the Organization:

Washington Area Women’s Foundation

Address:

1411 K Street, NW, Suite 800 Washington, DC 20005
t:202.347.7737 | f:202.347.7739

Website:  http://thewomensfoundation.org/

The department of labor Women’s Bureau publishes the economic statstics of women in USA. Following are the stats on US women worker from the last published data:

1. Of the 121 million women age 16 years and over in the U.S., 72 million, or 59.5 percent, were labor force participants—working or looking for work.
2. Women comprised 46.5 percent of the total U.S. labor force and are projected to account for 47 percent of the labor force in 2016.
3. Women are projected to account for 49 percent of the increase in total labor force growth between 2006 and 2016.
4. 68 million women were employed in the U.S.—75 percent of employed women worked on full-time jobs, while 25 percent worked on a part-time basis.
5. The largest percentage of employed women (39 percent) worked in management, professional, and related occupations; 33 percent worked in sales and office occupations; 21 percent in service occupations; 6 percent in production, transportation, and material moving occupations; and 1 percent in natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations.
6. The largest percentage of employed Asian and white women (46 and 41 percent, respectively) worked in management, professional, and related occupations. For both black and Hispanic women, it was sales and office occupations—32 and 33 percent, respectively.
7. The 10 most prevalent occupations for employed women in 2008 were—
   1. Secretaries and administrative assistants, 3,168,000
   2. Registered nurses, 2,548,000
   3. Elementary and middle school teachers, 2,403,000
   4. Cashiers, 2,287,000
   5. Retail salespersons, 1,783,000
   6. Nursing, psychiatric, and home health aides, 1,675,000
   7. First-line supervisors/managers of retail sales workers, 1,505,000
   8. Waiters and waitresses, 1,471,000
   9. Receptionists and information clerks, 1,323,000
   10. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks, 1,311,0
8. The unemployment rate for women was 5.4 percent and for men it was 6.1 percent in 2008. For Asian women, it was 3.7 percent; white women, 4.9 percent; Hispanic women, 7.7 percent; and black women, 8.9 percent.
9. The median weekly earnings of women who were full-time wage and salary workers was $638, or 80 percent of men’s $798. When comparing the median weekly earnings of persons aged 16 to 24, young women earned 91 percent of what young men earned ($420 and $461, respectively).
10. The ten occupations with the highest median weekly earnings among women who were full-time wage and salary workers were–
    1. Pharmacists, $1,647
    2. Chief executives, $1,603
    3. Lawyers, $1,509
    4. Computer software engineers, $1,351
    5. Computer and information systems managers, $1,260
    6. Physicians and surgeons, $1,230
    7. Management analysts, $1,139
    8. Human resource managers, $1,137
    9. Speech-language pathologists, $1.124
    10. Computer scientists and systems analysts, $1,082

Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment and Earnings, 2008 Annual Averages and the Monthly Labor Review, November 2007.

To read complete statistical report from department of labor click here: http://www.dol.gov/wb/stats/main.htm