Sabarimala is a Hindu temple located in the Indian state of Kerela; it is the largest pilgrimage site in the world with nearly 20 million visitors per year. The shrine is dedicated to the god Ayyappan, the god of growth. Ayyappan is the son lord Shiva and the female avatar of Vishnu, Mohini. Ayyappan is a brahmachari, meaning he leads a life of celibacy to devote his time to god and greater realization.
Because Ayyappan is a celibate, his temple in Kerela has traditionally been attended only by men and women of non-menstruating age; young girls and older women devotees may attend the temple. There are many temples in India devoted to many different gods. Most temples are open to all, but there are few temples where only men may go and yes there are temples where only women may go, this is just the nature of the worship of the particular deity housed in those particular shrines.
However, on the 28th of September 2018, the Supreme Court of India ruled that the ban on menstruating women was unconstitutional because it discriminated against women on religious grounds. Now most people assume that the state has no right to interfere with private religious practice, especially in a democracy like India, but in India religious freedom comes with a hitch. In India, Hindu temples and mostly only Hindu temples are state controlled, while Mosques and Churches are held in private hands. Donations, repairs, and obviously now internal Hindu temple rules are all regulated by the government, but the same is not true for Muslim and Christian houses of worship.
Hindus are not the only religious group which prohibit menstruating women to enter certain holy places, the Muslim shrine of Haji Ali in Mumbai does not allow menstruating women into its inner sanctum, but Haji Ali and other Muslim complexes are not included in the Supreme Court's ban on prohibiting women, only the Hindu temple of Sabarimala. I think most people who are democratically minded can see that government control of Hindu temples only has lead to a situation of inequality and perhaps even promoting or endorsing one religion over another.
But there is another issue, a more personal and human issue, and that is the fact that many of the people who are protesting the Supreme Court's decision are women themselves, why is this? The Supreme Court and many feminists have forgotten that this temple is a place of devotion, it is a shrine for both men and women who respect and revere the celibate god Ayyappan. It is Ayyappan's wish that women of menstruating age not enter his temple, and some say this is for health reasons. Women who wish to enter the temple must engage in a 40 day very rigorous fast, and some believe this fast is unhealthy for fertile women.
Hindus are not the only religious group which prohibit menstruating women to enter certain holy places, the Muslim shrine of Haji Ali in Mumbai does not allow menstruating women into its inner sanctum, but Haji Ali and other Muslim complexes are not included in the Supreme Court's ban on prohibiting women, only the Hindu temple of Sabarimala. I think most people who are democratically minded can see that government control of Hindu temples only has lead to a situation of inequality and perhaps even promoting or endorsing one religion over another.
But there is another issue, a more personal and human issue, and that is the fact that many of the people who are protesting the Supreme Court's decision are women themselves, why is this? The Supreme Court and many feminists have forgotten that this temple is a place of devotion, it is a shrine for both men and women who respect and revere the celibate god Ayyappan. It is Ayyappan's wish that women of menstruating age not enter his temple, and some say this is for health reasons. Women who wish to enter the temple must engage in a 40 day very rigorous fast, and some believe this fast is unhealthy for fertile women.
Whatever the reason maybe, devoted and sincere menstruating women stay away from the temple because they want to please their god, this is a decision they have made because they want to uphold and respect this tradition. It is women who have started the "Ready To Wait" movement, a large protest group of female devotees to the god Ayyappan who are willing to follow their god's directions because they love and revere him, not because they are downtrodden slaves. Most of the women who are now taking the initiative to enter the temple are non-devotees of Ayyappan, many of them are Atheist, Muslim and Christian feminists who are taking the journey to prove a point, that women can go anywhere.
But what these feminists are not seeing is that they are hurting the sentiments of other women, women who are true devotees of Ayyappan. I have spoken to women who do adhere to this sect and they have told me that they would never go to the temple as long as they are menstruating because they do not wish to displease their god. The women who are going to this temple now are showing their sisters they have no regard for their faith or traditions, the idea of non-Hindu and non-devotee women entering this temple is rather cynical and is disrespectful to those female devotees who are willing and have always been willing to wait.
Right now, in the streets near Sabarimala, women devotees are fighting with female journalists, feminists, Muslims, Christians and Leftist, trying to keep them out of a temple they themselves do not want to enter. Now police need to protect women from other women, this was never a man vs women issue, this is a women vs women issue. True feminists should stand with their sisters who are devotees of Ayyappan and who have chosen to follow his laws, they should allow other women to practice their religion as they see fit. They should also be concerned with the fact that the Supreme Court of India interferes in the rights of certain women more than others, it's just the right thing to do.
But what these feminists are not seeing is that they are hurting the sentiments of other women, women who are true devotees of Ayyappan. I have spoken to women who do adhere to this sect and they have told me that they would never go to the temple as long as they are menstruating because they do not wish to displease their god. The women who are going to this temple now are showing their sisters they have no regard for their faith or traditions, the idea of non-Hindu and non-devotee women entering this temple is rather cynical and is disrespectful to those female devotees who are willing and have always been willing to wait.
Right now, in the streets near Sabarimala, women devotees are fighting with female journalists, feminists, Muslims, Christians and Leftist, trying to keep them out of a temple they themselves do not want to enter. Now police need to protect women from other women, this was never a man vs women issue, this is a women vs women issue. True feminists should stand with their sisters who are devotees of Ayyappan and who have chosen to follow his laws, they should allow other women to practice their religion as they see fit. They should also be concerned with the fact that the Supreme Court of India interferes in the rights of certain women more than others, it's just the right thing to do.
No comments:
Post a Comment