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India as Known to Panini: A Study of the Cultural Material in the Ashtadhyayi c8.s4: Section 4. Women

India as Known to Pāṇini: A Study of the Cultural Material in the Ashṭādhyāyī c8.s4

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Section 4. Women

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Pāṇini refers to Woman in all the aspects of her life, as a girl, a maiden, a wife, a mother, a friend and a teacher. We obtain glimpses of her life inside the household as its virtual mistress in her capacity of *patnī*, and in the larger public sphere of education (*charaṇas*) and citizenship (*janapadas*, IV. 1.175). As examples may be cited (1) *Kaṭhī*, a female member of the Vedic Kaṭha *śākhā*, and (2) *Yaudheyī*, a female citizen of the Yaudheya republic (*saṅgha*). The woman also figures as an ascetic as indicated in the title *kumāra-śramaṇā* (II.1.70), *i.e.* an unmarried female mendicant, showing that women were also eligible for the ascetic order. It may be assumed that such women ascetics moved about freely in public as homeless wanderers (*prabrajitā*, *Gaṇa-pāṭha* II.1.70). A veil of privacy was, however, thrown on the ladies of the royal household who were described as *asūryaṁ-paśyā* (III.2.36), 'screened from the sun's gaze' and kept in their harems (*cf.* *Kāśikā*, *rāja-dārāḥ*).

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MAIDEN—In the first part of her life (*vayasi prathame* IV.1.20) she was called *kumārī*, *kiśorī* and *kanyā*. Some women remained unmarried through life (*kumāryāṁ vayasi*, VI.2.95) and were still called *kumārī* even in old age, *e.g.* *vṛiddha-kumārī*, *jarat-kumārī*.

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There were exceptional cases of unmarried girls becoming mothers whence their offspring was called *kānīna* (IV.1.116), 'issue of a *kanyā* not formally married.' Manu counts *kānīna* as one of the twelve kinds of sons (*Manu*, IX.172; cf. *Yāj.* II.129). Patañjali makes the objection that *kanyā*, a virgin, and *kānīna*, her son, cannot go together. He holds that the term *kanyā* continued to be applied to a girl before her *legal* marriage (*puṁs-ābhisambandha-pūrvaka saṁprayoga*, II. 257).

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A maiden of marriageable age was known as *varyā*, i.e. one to be wooed freely without restriction (*anirodha*, III.1.101). When she became engaged, she was called *vṛityā*. No doubt parents exercised their choice in fixing proper matches, but girls of mature age were free to choose their husbands and were described as *patiṃvarā* (III.2.46). *WIFE*—The bride is called *janī* and the maids in attendance who conducted her to the prospective husband *janyāḥ*. The newly wedded bride was called by the Vedic name *sumaṅgalī*, which Pāṇini cites as current in later Sanskrit also (*saṃjñā-chhandasoḥ*, IV.1.30). The term *Jāyā* was used for the wife with reference to the ideal of motherhood, whereas *Patnī* as stated above denoted her religious function (IV.1.33). She is also called *Jāni* in the examples *yuvajāni* and *vṛiddha-jāni* (V.4.134). The term *Palīvatnī* was used to indicate that so long as her husband lived she was the mistress of the household (IV.1.32). Reference to polygamy can be traced in the word *sapatnī* (IV.1.35).

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Pāṇini also refers to *mantras* repeated for captivating the hearts of lovers which were known as *hṛidya* (*hṛidaya-bandhana*, explained by *Kāśikā*, as *vaśīkaraṇa mantra*, IV.4.96).

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An elderly sister marrying later than her younger sister was called *didhishū* and her husband *didhishū-pati* (VI.2.19; cf. *Vedic Index*, I. 307).

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*MOTHER*—The practice of naming sons after their mothers found in the *Vaṃśa* lists was also known to Pāṇini. Sometimes the son is extolled for the virtues of his mother, *e.g.* *bhadramātura*, son of a noble mother (IV.1.115) and *kalyāṇineya*, son of a beautiful mother (IV.1.126). In cases of doubtful parentage the son was named according to the mother's *gotra*, *e.g.* *Gārgika*, son of Gārgī a female descendant of the Garga *gotra*; but such names after the mother involved social opprobrium (*kutsana*, IV.1.147).

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*CIVIC STATUS OF WOMEN*—Women were distinguished as members of larger associations than the family. They were known by the *gotras* and the *janapadas* or States to which they belonged, *e.g.* *Avantī* (the lady of Avanti *Janapada*), *Kuntī* (of Kunti), *Kurū* (of Kuru) (IV. 1. 176); *Bhārgī* (of Bharga *Janapada*, a part of the Trigarta country), *Yaudheyī* (a woman of the well-known Yaudheya republic); and similarly *Pāñchālī*, *Vaidehī*, *Āṅgī*, *Vāṅgī*, *Māgadhī*, hailing from those Eastern *janapadas* implied in the *sūtra* (IV.1.178). The *Gaṇapāṭha* adds other names, such as Kārūshī, Kaikeyī, Kaśmīrī, Sālvī, Śaubhreyī, Śaukreyī, Bhāratī, Auśīnari, etc. It is also laid down that female names in the plural derived from *gotra* and *janapada* should be distinguished in their formation from those of the male members, and this distinction was brought out by retaining the female-denoting suffix, *e.g.* a bevy of women of Yaska *gotra* was named as *Yāskyaḥ* (II.4.63) and Aṅga women as *Āṅgyaḥ* (II.4.62). A peculiarity in the names of women in the eastern country was the addition of the suffix *āyana* (IV.1.17), *e.g.* a female descendant of the Garga *gotra* was called *Gārgyāyaṇī* in the east corresponding to modern Gargāin, a feature preserved specially in the Bhojpuri dialect.

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Women also figured as students of Vedic schools (*charaṇas*, cf. *sūtra* IV.1.63 in which *jāti* includes both *gotra* and *charaṇa*), *e.g.* *Kaṭhī*, *Bahvṛichī*. Sometimes they were in-residents at the schools in what were called *chhāttrī-śālā* (VI.2.86).

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Women also occupied the exalted position of teachers and were called *āchāryā* (IV.1.49, a counter-example of *āchāryāṇī*).

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We have already seen that women sometimes devoted themselves totally to the pursuit of learning and religion as ascetics, and were called by the generic term *kumāra-śramaṇā*.

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Women also pursued other cultural occupations. They took part in the cultural sports of the times. Pāṇini refers to the games of Eastern India (*Prāchya-krīḍas*, VI.2.74), *e.g.*

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*Śālabhañjikā* (the game of plucking the flowers of the Śāla trees in blossom); *Aśoka-pushpa-prachāyikā* (gathering of the flowers of the Aśoka trees in blossom), etc. The *Jātakas* also mention these sports as *uyyāna-kīḍikam* (IV.376). Patañjali mentions *śāktikī*, a woman warrior who specialised in the wielding of lance (IV.4.59; *Bhāshya*, IV.1.15; II. 209).

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Women also paid attention to personal adornment and beauty (*bhūshaṇa* and *maṇḍana*, III.2.151). Mention is made of an ornament of the fore-head (*lalāṭikā*) and ear-rings (*karṇikā*, IV.3.65), and also to hair-dressing (*keśa-veśa*, IV.1.42). The *lalāṭikā* is seen as an ornament on the forehead of the earliest Indian women in the sculptures of Bharhut (Cunn. *Bharhut*, plate XXIII).

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