Bride-Burning In Hindu Religion

In certain communities in South Asia, the low status of girls has to be compensated for by the payment of a dowry by the parents of the girl to the husband at the time of marriage. This has resulted in a number of dowry crimes, including mental and physical torture, starvation, rape, and even the burning alive of women by their husbands and/or in-laws in cases where dowry payments are not met.

Men and Women have always been described differently. While men are strong and independent, women are weak and dependent on a man. The tradition has been set for marriage to come after being with a significant other for more than a while. Women then take charge of providing food, child care, and housework. In “A Feminist Defense of Bridezillas,” by Kelsey McKinney, she defends the idea of marriage and how women react to wanting their big day to be special as well as perfect. In the article “Unpopular Opinion: Marriage Will Never Be a Feminist Choice,” by Meghan Murphy she argues if women are talking about embracing feminism all the time why even get married at all. While both authors are arguing different perspectives they still correlate with one another. A feminist defending marriage versus marriage won’t be a feminist choice.

The Hindu people who are pictured in the video segment, Budanilkantha: A Hindu Wedding, are practicing a custom of many Hindu people. A custom is the frequent repetition of an act, to the extent that it becomes a characteristic of the group of people performing the act. Although not all Hindus participate in arranged marriages, the acts that occur during the marriage are very similar. Before the wedding takes place, the bride receives a jewel that marks the central part in her hair which is a signal of her marriage.

Under Ottoman rule, women “faced legal and social disadvantages”, common to that of previous times. Certain restrictions often forced seclusion and viewing amongst women of all castes. Evidently, women were subordinated to their fathers and husbands in the household (AP world textbook). Likewise, throughout Mughal rule, the position of women, for the most part, faltered, subjecting them to many disadvantages in each sect of life. This came at the hands of patriarchy, polygamy, the practice of Sati (the burning of a widow on her husband’s grave), child marriages, and purdah (the physical seclusion of women in Muslim societies). (Somali, Religious and Social conditions of Society during Mughal Rule) Although low in status, many women in either society gained importance as the dynasty aged and under the rule of specific leaders. For example, this was evident in Akbar’s rule as he even went as far as to outlaw Sati. These contrasting social structures and gender roles all play into their individual history, as well as world history.

Human civilizations have always been accustomed to creating and accepting various traditions and rituals that provide a sense of predictability and comfort. These traditions are largely blindly followed with practically no opposition with fear of being singled out. Furthermore, gender roles and expectations have been a part of many traditions spanning many cultures throughout the course of history. The first and major theme that this work showcases is that traditions are adhered to by means of customs and rituals. The second encompassing theme will discuss gender roles and how it affects behaviors. Lastly, the third theme will outline how persecution is indiscriminate and unremorseful.

Besides continuing a history of physical violence against women to enforce gender expectations, witchcraft accusations also present men with opportunities for economic advancement through property acquisition. Unlike the spontaneity of witch huntings in response to ailments and misfortune, witchcraft accusations against widows are carefully calculated attacks with the intent of stripping women of land claims granted to them. “Along with a general ideological, religious, and political attack on women, there was also a specific attack on women’s land rights and the strengthening of men’s domination over land” (Kelkar, Nathan, & Satija, 2013, p. 61). Although women do have limited land rights as unmarried daughters, wives, and widows in these

The Islamic and Hindu religions have an array of similarities and differences regarding their customs and laws in relation to the ‘wedding ceremony’.

Monsoon wedding”(2007), an award winning movie, directed by mira nair. Features widely known Indian actors, such as Vasundhara Das, Naseeruddin Shah and Vijay Raaz.

In addition, Hindu Temples such as Malibu Hindu Temple has a correlation to the universe itself and to the body of divine beings. In the case of India, followers believe that a single glimpse of the temple tower is enough to destroy one’s sins (P 317). Apart from the practice of temple worship followers of Hinduism their devotion to spiritual teacher or to their deities through puja rituals that are performed at home. Followers of Hinduism set aside some spaces of a cabinet shelf at their home to act as a shrine to hold small images or pictures of their revered figures. In addition, family members engage themselves in daily puja whereby they recite prayers, they offer food to their deity, and they light oil lamps and incense sticks. Similarly, Hindus engage themselves in elaborate rituals such as giving an offering to the Satyanarayana on the days of the full-moon. Most of the domestic rituals are conducted by women, for example in the case of India, women come together on certain days of the year to celebrate the goddess by fasting, feasting, and engaging themselves in auspiciousness rituals for the happiness of their

This upheaval of identity can be seen in way the colonial trauma pervades the social, political, and cultural environment depicted in The God of Small Things. The social, political, and cultural environments in turn invade the lives of the characters of the novel. The Indian caste system and the love laws, for instance, are driving forces in one of the main conflicts of the novel. The caste system, which was existed in its present form in the novel due to the British colonists favoring certain castes above others, categorized groups of people within Indian society and classified some as superior to others, with the Untouchables being the lowest classification of the human. The love laws determined “who should be loved, and how. And how much” (Roy 33). These histories work in tandem to create the tragedy of Ammu, the twins’ mother, and Velutha’s, an Untouchable and friend to the twins, doomed relationship. Because of these socially constructed class structures, Ammu and Velutha’s relationship was forbidden and when Velutha’s father, Vellya, informs Mamacchi and Baby Kochamma of their relationship, they are completely horrified. Vellya’s relationship with the Ipe Family also somewhat parallels the colonized people’s relationship with the colonizer. Vellya, as an Untouchable, occupies a lower social position than the Ipe Family and sees them as superior. By informing the Mamacchi about her daughter and his son’s relationship, he maintains the social class structures and the

The amount of dowry can be a very substantial amount, even in dollar terms, depending upon the financial status of the parties involved. Sometimes greedy mother-in-laws and husbands subject the poor brides to innumerable hardships for not meeting their expectations in respect of the dowry. Cases of bride burning are not unknown. Indian penal code prescribes severe punishment for such acts. But the cases take years and decades before the courts deliver justice.

In American culture the view on arranged marriages are not looked at very favorably. This is because we have grown up with the knowledge that when it comes time to marry we will have chosen our spouse of our own free will. The match will be a love match and one that is chosen through our own needs. Young men and women in India grow up with an opposite view on marriage. They know that when it comes time to marry their parents will find them a suitable mate and it will be considered scared and a lifelong commitment (Agence France-Presse.) A total of 74 percent of respondents from across India voted in favour of traditional "arranged" marriages, according to the poll by private television channel NDTV. In the Hindu faith, marriage is

In the overall study of religious activity within world cultures, the Euro-American structure of religion and society often mirror that same androcentric values and hierarchy in findings around the world. Non-Western societies however, show a much more female-oriented religious practice. These non-Western cultures predominantly value women’s roles in keeping the balance within their community (Brettell and Sargent 319). Most focused research on women in religion sheds light on the many ways in which longstanding traditions differ greatly from ethnocentric patriarchal ideals. The purpose of this paper is to explore women’s roles in religious rituals among two indigenous non-western cultures, and offer a comprehensive explanation of those religious practices in both anthropological and psychological respects.

Monsoon Wedding, a Bollywood film directed by Mira Nair and released in 2001, earned just above $30 million at the box office [1]. The film brilliantly depicts romantic entanglements during a traditional Punjabi wedding in Delhi, while delicately handling sensitive issues such as child-abuse, pre-arranged marital infidelity, growing old and striving to be different as an upper middle class Indian boy, or being a flirtatious, bored but basically settled NRI (non-resident Indian) housewife. The film won the Golden Lion award and received a Golden Globe Award nomination, achieving a total of six wins and ten nominations [2].

Marriage is a significant social event in contemporary society. It is a means of building new bonds between two individuals and their subsequent families. The foundations of memorable weddings are built on those that bring often-distant family and friends together for the occasion, while dressed in their most sophisticated attire, surrounded by elegant flowers, a night of dancing, captured through the lens of an exceptional photographer. Although Hinduism and Islam are two extremely distinctive religions, their matrimonial customs do share some comparable elements, like most other cultural wedding ceremonies. In both religions, they are devotedly obedient concerning religious and cultural practices in their marital ceremonies.