Women’s empowerment is a pressing issue in the 21st century. It’s heartening to note that women’s participation has been increasing in every field in the past few decades, but it still doesn’t seem fair to say that women and men are at completely equal levels today.
India is one of the world’s oldest civilizations. Was the status of women in India secondary from the very beginning, or was the situation different in ancient times? Indian society has practices like Sati, the ghunghat, etc. Were these evils prevalent in India since the ancient times? It is essential to understand the truth about both aspects.
India’s earliest civilization flourished 5,000 years ago on the banks of the Saraswati and Indus rivers. The archaeological remains from this civilization indicate that women were held in a respectable position during that period. Among the human terracotta figurines found at various sites of this civilization, the largest number are of women. These figurines have been unanimously identified as Mother Goddesses. Many scholars even believe that the society was matriarchal. These figurines of Mother Goddess depict both gentle and fierce forms. Their large number indicates that women enjoyed a prominent presence in society.
It is also worth noting that India’s oldest text, the Rigveda, describes the creation of Vedic hymns by a woman named Ghosha. This indicates that women were also learned. Chariots and swords were found alongside women’s burials at the Sinauli archaeological site, which came to light a few years ago. This proves that 4,000 years ago, Indian women were likely participating in warfare alongside men.
After the second urbanization of India (600 BCE), various dynasties ruled the subcontinent. One of the most famous was the Satavahana dynasty. Satavahana rulers used their mothers’ names before their names, such as Gautamiputra Satakarni, Vasishthiputra Pulumavi, etc. Furthermore, a queen from this dynasty, Naganika, built a cave temple at Naneghat, which is mentioned in the inscriptions. All this evidence points to the prestige of women during the Satavahana period. The world-famous Sanchi Stupa also mentions 350 female donors. Most of these women came from ordinary families. This clearly indicates that women in that era possessed their own property and were decision makers.
There is also evidence of women engaging in trade in the Deccan region in the first century BCE. A seal bearing the name of a woman has been recovered from this region, indicating that women engaged in trade during this period. An inscription has been found at Kolar in Karnataka, inscribed in memory of a highly educated woman named Savinirmadhi. At the top of the inscription, Savinirmadhi is depicted holding a manuscript. Both these archaeological evidences indicate the active participation of women in trade and education in ancient India.
Even during the Chola dynasty, women held respectable positions in South India. They held administrative positions. During the reign of the Chola ruler Aditya I, there is archival evidence of 500 students studying at a gurukul located at Vedal under the guidance of a female teacher named Kanakavira.
Indian society is often alleged of having practiced Sati since the Vedic period. It is noteworthy that the first mention of Sati in India dates back to 510 AD. The wife of a general named Goparaj committed Sati after his martyrdom. This proves that Sati did not exist in India before the sixth century CE. The idea that Sati existed in the Vedic period is a mere fantasy. Women were held in a respectable position during the Vedic period.
As for the issue of veiling, neither the terracotta sculptures of the Saraswati civilization nor the female statues in Khajuraho and other Hindu temples show women wearing veils anywhere. This is clear evidence that the practice of veiling was not a part of Indian culture until the 12th and 13th centuries; it was the influence of medieval invasions. The above archaeological evidence indicates that women enjoyed respect in ancient Indian society. To say that Indian society has discriminated against women since its inception is unfair. The growing gender discrimination in India is the result of external aggression. This Women’s Day let us all try and remove every facet of inequality present in and around us and bring in the glorious period which existed in Ancient India.
