Womaniya

Mankind comprises of two components. They are man and woman. Neither is complete without the other. It is on these two components or wheels that the carriage of life runs. Had God deemed women unimportant, he wouldn’t have created them. Evidently, God has wished woman to be there and to walk shoulder to shoulder with man. Moreover, without the company of woman, man would have had to feel the pangs of loneliness and boredom.

All the charm of life would have not been there for man, had there been no woman. Woman runs the family, which is the main source of joy to mankind. Woman is the emblem of beauty and splendor. A cheerful woman is like a fresh rose in a garden. The most loving, kind, inspiring and giving face of mankind – mother, is the greatest treasure. She is the uncrowned queen.

In ancient India, women were held in high esteem. We must try to understand that suffering or sacrifice do not degrade a person. The very fact that Lord Rama fought a bloody battle, which otherwise he might have not done, to liberate Sita and to uphold her dignity, shows in what high respect woman was held. It is well known that no “yajna” is considered complete unless a woman is present.

In the modern age, whereas on the one hand we have termed ourselves as “intellect”, we have daily reports of molestation and rapes of women. Has the level gone up or down? There is necessity of sensitizing the male gender. There is a need to look at the power equation between men and women to address it. In India, the problem is more acute since violation seems framed within the value system. And changing the value system is a herculean task.

Some people complain that it is usually hard to understand a woman and hence it is difficult to deal. Let us for a moment admit that it is, while a man can burst out easily and quickly, a woman’s emotions are often subdued or they run underground , the conduit way. But there are certain things which are quite easily discernible and realizable.

The very temperament of woman makes bonding easy. Woman is socially oriented and more readily expresses social behaviors, social conditioning and to some extent the genetic factors are also responsible for making woman emotionally more responsive to each other. For instance, women are conditioned to share and give.

We tend to equate emancipation with the flouting of all social codes of conduct, but a look at the contribution of women of yore reflects how they contributed immensely to society and still retained their individuality. The basic difference between women of the years gone by and today lies in the attitude and approach of those who have become household names with respect to their profession. The older lot worked not so much to enhance their individuality or assert their gender in society. This is something contrast to women of today and all that they stand for.

Those ladies of eminence carried, rather gracefully the mantle of community progress and welfare.   

Vitasta