Page 37 - HIRS - Eng
P. 37

RESPECT AND PROTECTION                                3

               combinedly prosecute the affairs of family life without
               impediment. 1

            One of the important duties of women was to abide by
            scriptures, follow the religious tenets and teach the word of
            God to the children. Such pious ladies have been glorified
            throughout scriptures. Women were honored as upholders
            of moral standards and spiritual practices.

            Undeniably, women in traditional cultures were restricted (in
            order to offer them proper protection), and were expected
            to  be  reserved  and  submissive.  Nevertheless,  in  Vedic
            culture, dignified womanhood has always been revered as a
            manifestation of the divine feminine nature. Pristine Vedic
            society recognized that genuine civilization can exist only
            where chaste, dutiful women are protected, respected, and
            cared for well. Women are to be especially honored for their
            irreplaceable contribution as mothers.

            In Vedic culture one of the most oft-quoted sayings about
            women is mātṛ-devo bhava: “Be one for whom the mother is a
            god.”  Every woman except one’s own wife should be treated as
                 2
            one’s mother. As Śrīla Prabhupāda often quoted (from Cāṇakya
            Paṇḍita), mātṛvat para-dāreṣu: “One should consider another’s
            wife to be one’s mother.” 3
            Another famous maxim is:

                   yatra nāryas tu pūjyante  ramante tatra devatāḥ
                   yatraitās tu na pūjyante  sarvās tatrāphalāḥ kriyāḥ

            1. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 4.27.2, purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda.
            2. Taittirīya Upaniṣad 1.1.20.
            3. See e.g. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 8.9.4, purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda.
   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42