The Position of Women in Hindu Civilisation, from Prehistoric Times to the Present Day c12.10

c12.10

Some women, especially unmarried ones, are seen offering Vedic sacrifices all by themselves. In one place we find a maiden finding a shoot of the Soma shrub while returning from her bath, and straightway offering it in sacrifice to Indra, when she reached home¹. In another place we find a lady, named Viśvavārā, getting up early in the morning and starting the sacrifice all by herself². In the Vedic age there were no images to worship or temples to visit. The Bhakti school, advocating simple prayer to God by mere songs of devotion, was yet to come into prominence, as also the Jñāna theory recommending merely the contemplation of Brahman or Ātman. So the offering of sacrifice was the only popular and well-established method of worshipping divine powers. Naturally therefore it could not be interdicted to women, especially because they were all initiated into Vedic studies after their *upanayana*. All of them therefore could offer sacrifices after their initiation.