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Life in Ancient India as Depicted in the Jain Canons, with Commentaries: An Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey c12.s8: General Attitude Towards Women

Life in Ancient India as Depicted in the Jain Canons, with Commentaries: An Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey c12.s8

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English

General Attitude Towards Women

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It is said about the women that they are faithless, ungrateful, treacherous, untrustworthy and strict control must be kept over them It is said that a village or a town in which women are strong is sure to come to grief¹ In the voice of Manu the Jain texts state that a woman when a child must be kept under the control of her father, when married under her husband and when widow under her son, thus a woman is never allowed to live independently² It is stated that the daughter-in-law of a house if she had acquired the taste of witnessing procession or ran to see the commotion caused by a stray horse, or a chariot from the house window, was forbidden to do so If she did not desist she was abused, and if she persisted she was beaten, and even then if she did not stop, she was turned out of the house³

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¹ *Vya Bhā.* 1, p. 130.

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² *ibid* 3 233.

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³ *Brh Bhā* 1 1259 f

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Various fanciful etymologies are given to the various synonyms of "woman" in Prākrit She is called *nārī* because there is no worse enemy of man than her; she is termed *mahilā* because she charms by her wiles and graces; she is called *pamaḍā* because she accelerates a man's passion; she is called *mahilīyā* because she creates great dissension (*kalī*), she is called *vāmā* because she takes delight in men by means of her coquettish gestures; she is called *aṅganā* because she loves the body of men, she is called *lalanā* because she attracts a man even in domestic quarrels, and keeps company in pleasures and pains; she is called *josiyā* because by her tricks and devices she keeps men under her subjugation; she is called *vanitā* because she caters to the taste of man with various blandishments.⁴ It is said of women "the intelligent may know the sands of the Ganges, the waters in the sea, and the size of the Himavat, women's heart they may not know" "They weep and make you weep, they tell lies and make you believe them, and deceitfully they eat poison; they die, but they do not conceive a true affection." "Woman indeed, as soon as she has fallen in love is all sugar like a piece of sugarcane, the very same woman surpasses the bitter *nimba*, as soon as her love is gone"

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⁴ *Tandul* p 50

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"In a moment women fall in love, but in another moment their love grows cold Delighting in various lovesports and unstable in their affection, they are like the colour of turmeric"

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"Cruel in their hearts and charming in body, speech, and glance, girls resemble a knife inlaid with gold."⁵

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⁵ *Agadadatta*, Trans in *Hindu Tales* by Meyer, p. 286 f.

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We notice that both Jainism and Buddhism place nuns under a more rigorous discipline than monks. They are prohibited to study the chapters on Mahāparijñā and Aruṇopapāta and the Dṛṣṭivāda. It is stated that the Dṛṣṭivāda deals with the magical formulae and as women are not strong enough and are fickle-minded, hence they are not allowed to study the above-mentioned scripture⁶ The climax is reached in the rule which lays down that a monk of three years practice can become a teacher of a nun of thirty years practice; and a monk of five years practice can become an ācārya of a nun of sixty years practice.⁷

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⁶ Brh. Bhā Pi 146, also cf Vya Bhā 5 139

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⁷ Cf the position of the Bhikkhunīs in the Buddhist Sangha. The eight principle vows prior to admission, make a Bhikkhunī in every way subordinate to a Bhikkhu. The first rule is that a Bhikkhunī, even if of a hundred years standing, should make salutation to, should rise up in presence of, should bow down before a Bhikkhu, if only just initiated (Cullavagga, X, 1. 4).

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Jain texts mention a number of women of wicked nature, thereby preaching the ascetic ideal of renunciation. We hear of Mayanamañjarī, the wife of prince Agadadatta, who fell in love with another man and made an attempt on the life of her husband, which caused the prince to renounce the world and join the ascetic order.⁸ Then we are told of a banker's wife, who had illicit connections with some young man The father-in-law of the woman told his son about it but he would not believe that his wife had been of false faith. Later on she was put to an ordeal of entering into a Jakkha temple. The ordeal resulted in a guilty person remaining in the temple for ever, while the non-guilty came out free The banker's wife visited the Jakkha, who was her own paramour in the disguise of a Pisāca, and said "if I love any other person except the man to whom I had been given in wedlock by my parents, 'you, the Ghost', should know." The Jakkha got perplexed and began to think that even he had been cheated by her In the meantime she came out of the temple and her father-in-law was put to humiliation by the people.⁹

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⁸ Uttarā Ṭī, 4, pp 84-93

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⁹ Das cū pp. 89-91. This story is also found in the Suka Saptati, 15, p. 56, Ed. by Richard Schmidt, Leipzig, 1893.

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It should be noted, however, that the above remarks about women do not find general acceptance in society and they are made with a view to blacken the character of women in order to warn the lustful monks to keep aloof from feminine charms that might overcome their reason Judging from the contemporary writings of other faiths, it does not appear that women had suddenly clothed themselves in all sorts of vices specially in the Jain and Buddhist period Varahamihira has pointed out boldly that all the defects that have been attributed to women exist in man as well. Women, however, try to remove them, while men are supremely indifferent in the matter. Marriage vows are equally binding on the couple Men treat them lightly, while women act up to them Who suffer more from the sex urge? Men, who marry even in their old age, or women who lead a chaste life, even if widowed in the prime of their youth? Men no doubt go on talking of their love to their wives, while they are alive, but contract second marriages soon after their death. Women, on the other hand, feel grateful to their husbands and decide to follow them on the funeral pyre, urged by the promptings of their conjugal love. Who then are more sincere in their love, men or women? For men to say that women are fickle, frail and faithless is the height of impudence and ingratitude; it reminds one of the audacity of clever thieves who first send away their loot and then challenge innocent persons demanding from them the stolen articles.¹⁰

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¹⁰ *Br̥hatsaṃhitā*, ch. 76 6 12, 14, 16, 17, trans by A S Altekar, *The Position of Women in Hindu Civilization*, p 387

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