The women have held different status and position at different times in India. She was regarded as mentally inferior to man. Manu was of the view that the females should not enjoy any freedom in any walk of life. They should ever remain under the strict control of their father during girlhood; of their husband during their married life and of their sons during widowhood.
The women could freely participate in the
religious and public life during the Vedic Period. The couple jointly performed
the sacrifices. A son’s birth always gave greater joy than daughter’s birth.
The brotherless married girls enjoyed the right of inheritance. The women could
attend the social gatherings and freely meet and converse with strangers. The
bride was most heartily welcomed. She reigned supreme over the household. The
could chant the Vedic Mantras. A window could remarry her own brother-in-law at
her sweet will. She stood high in the public. Even if she overstepped moral
laws she was judged mildly and with sympathy. She was her husband’s helpmate in
all the domestic affairs. The society was tolerant. Even the sons of a maiden
were accepted by the society. The son was known as the boat of salvation but
all the performances remained incomplete without the woman’s participation.
Later on she lost her place in the
religious sphere. The daughter’s birth was despised. Social laws and customs
stamped her with a sort of mental deficiency. The luckless girl was treated as
an intruder and was killed in certain tribes even in infancy. She was strictly
confined to home and domestic cares. She was not to be relied upon in matters
of serious concern. She had no free hand in expenditure.
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