The importance of women in the Vedas

Ancient Indian texts clearly show that women were always meant to be respected and valued within this culture.

The Vedas say that a man himself (atmanah) is only half, or incomplete (ardha), for as long as (yaavat) he has not obtained (vindate) a wife (jaayaa). According to the Vedic teachings and the ancient Aryan scriptures, women hold a higher status than men. Woman is given precedence over man in every sphere, to such an extent that when a boy is given a joint name of a god and a goddess, the goddess's name is always placed before the god's. For example: in the name "Sita Rama," Sita is the wife of Rama. In "Radhe Shyam," Radha is the beloved of Krishna. In "Gauri Shankar," Gauri is the wife of Shankar, or Lord Shiva. We call our homeland the motherland — the mother ranks higher than the father. We are taught to be more grateful to our mother than to our father — "Matru Devo Bhava" comes before "Pitru Devo Bhava."

MANUSMRITI — Manu refers to the rishi who wrote the Manusmriti, in which it is recorded how women must be respected, cared for and protected. In one of its verses he wrote: where women are honored, there the gods rejoice. According to Ayurveda, without a man a woman is incomplete, and without a woman a man is likewise incomplete.

In India, a festival honoring femininity is held already at the age of young girls, called "Kanya Poojan," celebrated on the eighth day of the lunar cycle, Ashtami. On this day, young boys invite their sisters, cousins, relatives and neighbors to their homes. The girls come to their brothers with great affection, properly dressed and adorned. The boys first wash the girls' feet, as a sign of deep respect and service. They feed them sweets and other dishes prepared by the mothers for the girls. In serving the girls, the boys feel a great honor. Mothers guide their sons in fulfilling this duty of serving their sisters, and also instill in them the duties they will carry toward sisters throughout their lives. Respect for femininity begins at this age.

Woman holds the highest importance in Vedic culture. We can even go so far as to say that, in order to understand the culture and civilization of a nation, it is enough to observe how that nation treats its women. She is the symbol of a culture.

In the field of education, women were given equal opportunities. They had their own gurukuls, where they studied and gained knowledge in the sciences and the arts. The Gita says that a woman should have a living desire and the capacity to offer shelter and support to others, good memory (smriti) to remember her duties, deep thinking and good intuition, courage and boldness to face unusual moments, and the kindness to forgive others.

In the Vedas, a bride-to-be is called Kanya, and it is she who has the right to choose her birth and to obtain her marriage partner. The word Kanya derives from the root "kan dīptau," meaning "to shine," to be radiant, or to illuminate.

Women in the home are mahaabhaagaah, that is, a source of great fortune. They are poojaarhaah, or worthy of reverence; they are lights whose conduct brightens the whole atmosphere of the family. It is they who, in their gracious goodness, give us our children. Within a family or household, there is no difference between (shree) the wealth and prosperity of the family and (striyah) the women of the house — meaning that they themselves are the symbol of prosperity and happiness. It is also said that if a husband protects and properly provides for his wife within his family, he is, in reality, protecting his family's prestige, its traditions, his descendants, and his standing in society; a great deal depends on the wife. According to the Vedas, a man cannot perform any ritual or ceremony at all without his wife.

Adapted from a lecture by Daksh Bharadwaj. Piyush Mittal — Nirmala Institute of Yoga and Ayurveda