The World of Courtesans c4.13

c4.13

The *Rig Veda* mentions the present of slave girls to *rishis* by kings. Trasadasyu is said to have given to Sobhari-Kanva fifty such brides. Along with the gift of cattle, *vadhu* (bride) slaves were included, while chariots are described as full of slave girls. Their number did not decrease in the *Brahmana* and *Upanishadic* periods, for the *Shatapatha Brahmana* speaks of 400 maids (*anuchari*) and in the *Upanishads* the king is said to have been attended by five hundred women carrying perfumed powder, etc.