The Position of Women in Hindu Civilisation, from Prehistoric Times to the Present Day c16.22

c16.22

Down to the 9th century, however, Hindu society was keeping its door open to women taken prisoners in war. They had always the hope that they would be taken back in their families, if they escaped from their captivity ; so they would usually try to effect their escape or wreak their vengeance on their captors. Well known is the strategem by which princesses Sūryadevī and Pramalādevī, daughters of king Dahir of Sindh, took their revenge upon General Kasim for the miserable plight to which he had reduced them and their mother, along with thousands of their sisters in Sindh. They were sent by the general to Baghdad for being presented to the Khalifa. The princesses were very young, for they had not yet reached their teens ; but the fortitude and ingenuity which they showed in very trying circumstances were very remarkable. When eventually produced before the Khalifa, they declared that though intended for him, Kasim had kept them with him for three days. This enraged the Khalifa, who immediately sent orders to Kasim to put himself, wherever he may be, in raw leather immediately and come back to him. When as a result of the execution of this order, the corpse of Kasim reached Baghdad, it was proudly shown to the princesses by the Khalifa. When they found that their plan to wreak vengeance had succeeded, they declared that they had not been even touched by Kasim and that they had told a lie in order to encompass the ruin of one, who had brought slavery and dishonour to thousands of their sisters in their kingdom. The Khalifa was exasperated and he ordered them to be immured in a wall. The princesses gladly welcomed this escape from life and dishonour¹. It is to be noted that in later times no princesses even of the Rajput stock sought to wreak vengeance on their captors. They knew that they had no place in their society, even if they escaped back after wreaking their vengeance. They had to reconcile themselves to the inevitable. Had the views of Atri and Devala ultimately prevailed, were the doors always kept open for women overtaken by misfortune to return to their families and society, the present day Muslim population would not have risen to eight crores. Hindu society has paid heavily for its narrow 'orthodoxy; it is high time that we should now take a rational view of the whole situation and cease to penalise women for their misfortune. After all honour or virtue can be lost only by a distinct act of volition, and not by an accident or misfortune. There is a distinct tendency at present to accept this rational view; it must be strengthened and made quite universal.