IntersectionalityReligion Manusmriti: The Ultimate Guide To Becoming A ‘Good Woman’

Manusmriti: The Ultimate Guide To Becoming A ‘Good Woman’

Manusmriti can serve as a guide in patriarchy's long struggle to make women prisoners of historically contrived shackles.

Posted by Sreyashi Ghosh

Every time, while writing commentaries on ancient Indian texts, especially Manusmriti, I am faced with a dilemma which in the words of Andy Williams, can be described as where do I begin? Indian literature is replete with texts listing the dos and don’ts with regard to every aspect of life. With 79.8% of the population following Hinduism (2011 Census), most texts are ‘Hindu’ texts, though texts belonging to various religions are found in our multi-religious Indian society.

Traditional Hindu texts can be classified into Srutis and Smritis. Prior to the arrival of the printing, lessons in Hinduism were verbally transmitted (learning by hearing or Sruti) by the sages to their disciples through an immaculately preserved system of Gurukul and these lessons were later recorded in the form of Vedas, Upanisads and others.

Smritis refer to something that is remembered or written like the Itihasas, Manusmriti, Puranas. Vedas are the earliest texts composed in Vedic Sanskrit. Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva are the four Vedas. Each of which is further subdivided into Samhitas (mantras and benedictions), the Aryanakas (text on rituals, ceremonies, sacrifices), the Brahmanas (commentaries on rituals, ceremonies and sacrifices) and Upanishads (text on meditation, philosophy and spiritual knowledge).

Vedas are the oldest, believed to be composed around 1000-500 B.C and transmitted orally. Vedanga marks the beginning of the post-Vedic literature. Manusmriti or Manava Dharmashastra, finds eminence as an ancient legal text, though there are disagreements among scholars and historians regarding the actual date of when Manusmriti surfaced.

According to some scholars, Manusmriti was established by the 5th Century C.E, but regardless of the time of its first appearance, Manusmriti has remained colossally influential in determining the structure and the function of Indian society. As a text, Manusmriti is divided into 12 adhyayas or lessons and the four broad themes that emerge from the text are – the creation of the world, sources of Dharma, the dharma of the four social classes and the law of Karma, rebirth and the final liberation.

Manusmriti has been upheld as the ultimate guide to lead a moral life, the digressing of which is to be treated with serious negative sanctions. So detailed is the text, that it covers all aspects of the lives of people belonging to all social strata. Many scholars are of the opinion that the text has been compiled by not one but many writers.

Manusmriti details the role to be performed by the four varnas – The Brahmins, The Kshatriyas, The Vaishyas and The Shudras, though he spends only 10 verses detailing the role of the last two. It lays down the behaviour and moral codes to be followed by the superordinate and the subordinate. It also details the duties to be performed by the women within the household (totally disregarding the possibility of women making a mark in the world outside the domain of the private sphere).

Manusmriti has been single-handedly responsible for the derogatory position accorded to women in the post-Vedic period. The watertight dichotomization of the public and private sphere and the confinement of the women in the former has found its requisite justification in a text like Manusmriti. The ubiquitous presence of women in Hindu texts can never be overlooked.

Manusmriti has been single-handedly responsible for the derogatory position accorded to women in the post-Vedic period.

Women have always been regarded as the guardians of dharma, custodian and transmitter of patriarchal values. The Vedas and Upanishads are replete with anecdotes of how gods and sages from time immemorial have created, used and controlled women for their own benefits and other’s destruction. Manusmriti imparts detailed knowledge of the rites and duties to be performed by married women and being subservient to her husband tops the list.

Vilification of women has been highlighted by portraying the woman as a dependent and vile creature requiring constant protection and guidance – initially by the father or brother and later by the husband and son. The unabashed elevation of the patriarchal values is shown in the fact that men (especially Brahmins) have been instructed not to accept food from women without a husband.

There is hardly any discourse noticeable on the unmarried women in the text as an unmarried menstruating woman is seen as a threat to the social equilibrium and a source of religious pollution. The verbatim translation of some of the passages in Manusmriti by Patrick Olivelle with regard to the duties of the married women towards her husband states-

The man to whom her father or, with her father’s consent, her brother gives her away- she should obey him when he is alive and not be unfaithful to him when he is dead. The invocation of blessings and the sacrifice to Prajapati are performed during marriage to procure her good fortune; the act of giving away is the reason for his lordship over her.

In season and out of season, in this world and in the next, the husband who performed the marriage consecration with ritual formulas always gives happiness to his woman. Though he may be bereft of virtue, given to lust and totally devoid of good qualities, a good woman should always worship her husband like a god.

For a woman, there is no independent sacrifice, vow or fast; a woman will be exalted in heaven by the mere fact that she has obediently served her husband. A good woman, desiring to go to the same world as her husband, should never do anything displeasing to the man who took her hand, whether he is alive or dead.

After her husband is dead, she may voluntarily emaciate her body by eating pure flower, roots, and fruits; but she must never mention even the name of another man. Aspiring to that unsurpassed Law of women devoted to a single husband, she should remain patient, controlled, and celibate until her death.

Untold thousands of Brahmins who have remained celibate from their youth have gone to heaven without producing offspring to continue their family line. Just like these celibates, a good woman, though she be sonless, will go to heaven when she steadfastly adheres to the celibate life after her husband’s death.

When a woman is unfaithful to her husband because of her strong desire for children, she is disgraced in this world and excluded from the husband’s world. No recognition is given here to offspring fathered by another man or begotten on another’s wife; nor is it taught anywhere that a good woman should take a second husband.

When a woman abandons her own husband of lower rank and unites with a man of higher rank, she only brings disgrace upon herself in the world and is called ‘a woman who has had a man before’. By being unfaithful to her husband, a woman becomes disgraced in the world, takes birth in a jackal’s womb, and is afflicted with evil diseases.

A woman who controls her mind, speech, and body and is never unfaithful to her husband attains the world of her husband, and virtuous people call her a ‘good woman’. By following this conduct, a woman who controls her mind, speech and body obtains the highest fame in this world and the world of her husband in the next.

Also read: Durga Puja: Whose Destruction Are We Celebrating Exactly?

The injunctions above have shaped or deformed the status of women in Indian society to a great extent. The categorization of women as ‘good’ or ‘defiled’ have been established with unmistakable clarity in the passages like the one above.

Apart from the dependent status accorded to women, Manusmriti is also responsible for the commencement of the varna (later, the varnas got subdivided into castes which got further subdivided into jatis) system in India, with Brahmins elevated to the highest rank followed by Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Sudras.

The acute misogyny preached in every page of the text cannot be missed. Women have been projected as not only dependent but a major source of grief to the family if not controlled with proper stringency. The few ways of channelizing a woman’s energy so that she is not inclined to engage in adultery and any form of diatribe is to compel her to cook, clean and look after household goods.

Another verbatim, blood boiling translation of the text regarding women states-

They (women) pay no attention to beauty, they pay no heed to age; whether he is handsome or ugly, they make love to him with the single thought, ‘He’s a man!’ Lechery, fickleness of mind and hard-heartedness are innate in them; even when they are carefully guarded in this world, therefore, they become hostile towards their husbands.

Recognizing thus the nature produced in them at creation by Prajapati, a man should make the utmost effort at guarding them. Bed, seat, ornaments, lust, hatred, behavior unworthy of an Arya, malice, and bad conduct – Manu assigned these to women.

The social opprobrium of the women continued with Manusmriti suggesting that women should concentrate on the tasks they are good at i.e, bearing and rearing the progeny. Interestingly, Hinduism assigns four ashramas for the men to follow – Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vanaprastha and Sanyas, where the women’s inclusion and mention is seen only in the Grihastha ashrama.

The social status of woman – both in the present birth and beyond depends on the accurate and adroit fulfillment of the household tasks and duties towards her husband. With the derogatory portrayal of women, the demonising of people belonging to the non-dominant castes and establishing Brahmins as the highest authority deserving all the societal privileges, Manusmriti has explicitly promoted child marriage and dowry too – “A 30-year-old man should marry a charming girl of 12 years or any girl of 8 years – sooner, if his fulfilling the Law would suffer.”

Manusmriti has explicitly promoted child marriage and dowry too.

Despite the incessant lambasting of women and people belonging to non-dominant castes, Manusmriti has always remained the backbone of Indian patriarchal and caste structure. Situating the gender problem within the caste structure, the way Manava Dharmashastra has done, resulted in the rise of the discourse on intersectionality which states that gender discrimination is not a unilinear phenomenon that the occidental gender theories have promulgated.

Patriarchy in India is a problem adulterated by the caste-class nexus to a great extent, making the production of a metanarrative a difficult and convoluted task. Critical appraisal of ancient texts like Manusmriti is an imperative to make women realize that they are the prisoners of historically contrived shackles.

That makes me end this with two questions – why is there no such categorization applicable to men and even if there is how come ‘bad boys’  tag is not socially stigmatized the way ‘defiled women’ is? And how is there a complete invisibility of the male counterpart of ‘seductress’ and ‘temptress’ in the ancient texts and portrayal of men as the unsuspected victim of feminine charm? Will the defenders of the traditional Indian texts and scriptures please step up and answer? 

References:

  1. Buhler, G. (1886). Manusmriti: The Laws of Manu. Trans. G. Buhler25.
  2. Chakravarti, U. (1993). Conceptualising brahmanical patriarchy in early India: Gender, caste, class and state. Economic and Political Weekly, 579-585.
  3. Chakravarti, U. (1995). Gender, caste and labour: Ideological and material structure of widowhood. Economic and Political Weekly, 2248-2256.
  4. Olivelle, P. (Ed.). (2004). The law code of Manu. Oxford University Press, USA.
  5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manusmriti.

Also read: Indian Hindu Festivals: No-Win Situation For Women


Sreyashi Ghosh is a senior research fellow at Indian Statistical Institute Kolkata. Her hobbies include travelling, reading and dissecting patriarchy either through speech or writing. Her talents include calling a spade a spade. She can be followed on Facebook.

Featured Image Credit: Raja Ravi Varma

Comments:

  1. Nothing says:

    Ummmm, excuse me, please quote the verses in order to be easy to refer later.
    It might do good.

  2. Ibnsuleman says:

    Commentary is okay but verses of Manu Smriti as regards women will give a solid punch.

  3. Seema says:

    Two things are important here:

    Unlike other hindu texts, the manushitty is not the word of God. It is created by a vile beast.

    Secondly, all translations may not be correct.

  4. nitin says:

    I agree with previous comments. Could you please add the Sanskrit verses against each point made in the article? It will help really understand are we are really calling spade a spade?
    Secondly…most of the references are translations. Translations depend on translators level of understanding of the topic. In hindi, translation means bhashantar..it could really mean bhasha antar.

  5. Ambalika (Pamela Scott) says:

    The reference list that has been shared in the article are all biased and are written to show Manu Smriti in bad light but one should know Manu Smriti has been grossly interpolated by today’s so called intellect. If you review the original Manu Smriti, one can assert that there is perhaps no other text in world that accords so much of respect and rights to women.
    Some example:

    3.57. A family where women remain unhappy due to misdeeds of their men is bound to be destroyed. And a family where women are always happy is bound to prosper forever.

    9.26. Women give birth to next generation. They enlighten the home. They bring fortune and bliss. Hence women are synonymous to Prosperity.

    9.96. Man and Woman are incomplete without each other. Hence the most ordinary religious duty would demand participation of both.

    9.89. It is better to keep the daughter unmarried than force her to marry an undeserving person.

    9.130. A daughter is equivalent to a son. In her presence, how can any one snatch away her right over the property.

    Thare are many many verses…And also
    यत्र नार्यस्तु पूज्यन्ते रमन्ते तत्र देवताः।
    Where women are worshiped, there lives the Gods.

    You can do more research if u want. If you need to do a commentary on an ancient book. First find the original text. Read it in its original language or get the help of someone who knows sanskrit. Do not refer to interpretations and make an opinion.

  6. Knet says:

    Manu full of full again women
    Script 5.147 By a girl, by a young woman, or even by an aged one, nothing must be done independently, even in her own house.

  7. victim of Gender biased laws in India says:

    Manusmriti is not shit. It is written by Manu. not some wild beast, what do you exactly want to achieve??
    This is going to break more and more families and destroy family culture in India.

    why not socially stigmatised ?? it is and if you dont see it enough there are lot of women filing fake rape and dowry harrassment cases and fake molestation cases. Just dont try to show women is opressed and depressed in every nook and corner. men are simply called rapists. women also now should be called fake case filers and cheaters then/

    and what do you want to acheive by having a male counterpart for the terms that you have used ??
    you want to say women are affected by the masculine charm ?? or is it this way, if affected and it works out their way, well and good,keep exploiting that man if it does not work the way they want, put fake cases??
    its always a win win situation, read and understand vedic literature thoroughly first through a bonafide person and then ask questions. not by superficially reading someones commentary or translation who has not learned it from a bonafide person

    Women have extremely high regard in vedic culture and lot of families who follow traditional vedic culture have women leading very very happy lives, they dont waste time questioning science behind the traditional activities , because they are scientific,
    simply questioning and showing vedic culture as a bad culture will slowly make Bharat into a single mom and dad culture nonsense society .. Keep up the destruction.

  8. Anamika_Bhat says:

    You got the title wrong. It should be “Door mat” instead of “woman”

    Those who are protesting this article, remember this: There are a lot of great things about Hinduism. Sadly, there’s a lot of bad things also. The biggest example of this is the Manu Smriti, written by a misogynist.

    • bhupesh says:

      manusmiriti is a best book ever written
      it’s not agianst any gender
      every verses speaks truth for a better society
      and she mentioned more than 10 article about manusmiriti not one among them are indian, why?
      more than 17 version of manusmiriti and all are written in sanskrit, british have no clue about sanskrit bcoz one word have different meaning and different representations.
      this is the agenda of feminism
      they are part of communist gang which hate everyjthing which is indian.
      every scripture of hindu religion is divine and based on truth.

  9. ola-uber says:

    Two important pieces of information in this hadith of #Islam.
    1. Rightly guided caliph umar used to beat his wife in front of guests.
    2. Prophet said “A man should not be asked why he beats his wife” ?
    #Feminism at its peak!
    Hadith Link : https://sunnah.com/urn/1263050

  10. V@V says:

    Great work by Dr. Surendra Kumar, by identifying the adulterated Shloks and also stating the process of recognition of adulterated texts. The Enemies of Bharatvarsh had left no stone unturned to malign the Sanatan dharm and pollute the minds of Bharatiyas with perverted Christian and Islamic ideas. They heavily edited the Manusmriti, but as usual they were outwitted by Manu Maharaj himself. They inserted shloks which are self contradictory to the original shloks and its meanings, hence they are caught red handed by Dr. Surendra Kumar in this work. Manusmriti had been the constitution of aryavart and it would still continue to be a Margdarshak to those who are fortunate to go through its pages.

  11. Vaibhav says:

    This excerpts are from adulterated/edited version of manusmriti it’s misleading..history is proof and there are so many proofs and vitnesses who stand still in the face of us..no hindu scripture defames or demoralize women..for eg
    > There were women scholars of ancient India they were called as RISHIKAS
    Some famous RISHIKAS of vedic tradition are Yami,saraswati,gargi,maitreyi,lopamudra,madalsa,urvashi,anusaya,kaushitaki,paulomi,indrani,visvabhara,gosha,sikata,sulabha,apala,angirasi…and so on
    >there are temples dedicated to motherhood the carvings idols are proof of significance of women,she is also known as Janani (mother-giver of birth) for instance kamakhya temple of Assam..
    >Our kings maharajas always respected women especially shivaji maharaj who himself tought and practice respect to women,he worshiped bhavani..
    This means he knew manusmriti,the real manusmriti, unadulterated one..
    The ghuspets like Britishers and mughals left no stone unturned to destroy us and our economy..please don’t be misleaded or misguided?

  12. Ashutosh says:

    The name of women you mentioned are all vedic time women,you won’t see any women orator after vedas, everything that doesn’t suit you doesn’t mean it is false.

  13. Ashutosh says:

    All those who are saying that all this is false,manusmriti is greatest book,you need correct intetpretetion etc. There is hindi translation available on google,you can read it,
    You can youself check it. There are good things also and there are very terrible things also in our religion and culture,it’s idiotic to defend them unless you yourself believe in those things.eg.casteism,sati,widow’s plights,child marriage

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