Hindu Law and Custom (Recht und Sitte) c7.699

c7.699

If the widow preferred to live her life was in no way The life of the widow. enviable. Even the grass-widow (*proṣitabhartṛkā*) whose husband has gone abroad cannot wear ornaments, cannot show herself at the window, can use no ointment or any other beautifier, cannot loosen her tresses, can enjoy no sweet things, cannot go to anybody else's house or to any festivity, etc. The real widow (*mṛtabhartṛkā*) has to be even more austere. She should eat only once in a day, should not sleep in a bed, should use no scents, daily offer sacrifices to her husband and observe vows and fasts; she should go on pilgrimage to sacred places and should never pronounce the name of any other man than her husband. If she has grown-up sons she lives under their protection. If not, she comes under the protection of the near or the distant relations of her husband who have absolute authority over her. Only if there is absolutely no male relations of the husband's family should she come back to her father's house and eventually even come under the protection of the king (Nār. 13, 28—31). Of course Nār., who lays down this principle also says (1, 36 f.) that after the death of the father the guardianship of the sons devolves on the mother and Śaṅkha or Śaṅkhalikhita remarks that even after the death of the father the dependence of the children continues so long as the mother is alive; yet according to the commentaries these rules apply only to that case when the widow is capable of managing the family property; cf. also § 23 f.