The Social and Military Position of the Ruling Caste in Ancient India, as Represented by the Sanskrit Epic c2.s6.52

c2.s6.52

* The Madrakāḥ, women of Çalya’s country: compare viii. 40. 17 ff. Compare the Bāhīkas in ib. 44. 1 ff.; 45. 19 ff.; v. 39. 80, ‘Bālhīkas are the refuse of earth.’ In B. (the same proverb) Bālhīka and Vāhīka, (sic). † Not alone in the Harivaṅça. In i. 222. 21, the women get drunk at a picnic. Compare above, p. 121. ‡ To see the city sights, processions, etc., the women sit on the roofs, away from the public (i. 69. 1 ff.). § ii. 31. 38; women in Mahiṣmatī by especial permission of Agni are ‘not guarded’ by their husbands and are dissolute (svāriṇyaḥ . . yatheṣṭhaṃ vicaranti). The expression rakṣ, usually used of keeping women secluded, may be used in an entirely unconventional sense, as yoṣit sadā rakṣyā, i. 111. 12, means that one ought never to injure a woman. For fuller treatment, see below.