The Position of Women in Hindu Civilisation, from Prehistoric Times to the Present Day c8.22

c8.22

The normal relations between the husband and the wife were determined by the principle that there should be an absolute identity in their aesthetic, material and moral interests. This principle was recognised the Vedic age, and is approved by later Dharmaśāstra writers like Manu and Āpastamba². It is also emphasised in the marriage vow taken by the couple that they would invariably cooperate with each other in the realisation of their aims and ambitions in the spheres of love, wealth and spirituality. Social conscience was outraged if a couple did not honestly live up to its marriage vows.