The Ritual Of Sati In Hindu Religioun

The Ritual Of Sati In Hindu Religioun The practice of sati, the immolation of widows, is the most tenacious example of religious customs. Many people often associate the concept of sati with just India; however, the practice of self-immolation has been widespread in world history. The article written by Jorg Fisch, claims that examples of sati can be traced to incidents of headhunting in Southeast Asia (Fisch 2001: 301) and the ritual murder of a kings cook, brewer, and shepherd in Baganda (Fisch 2001: 299). In order to understand the reasoning behind the ritual one must look into every aspect of it from the angles of different religious traditions. So, as one can see sati is not unique to India. However, the cases of sati, even though, rare, have still taken place since the proclamation of Indias independence in 1947. The most recent case that has sparked a heated debate is the sati of eighteen-year old widow, Roop Kanwar. The most surprising consequence of young womans death was the fact that women from different parts of the country rallied demanding to be permitted to commit sati (Kumar 1995: 76). The pro-sati lobbyists fought for their rights to commit, worship, and propagate sati; it got to the point where the Sati Dharma Raksha Samti (the Committee for the Defense of the Religion of Sati) was formed (Hawley 1994: 9). This group was run by educated Rajput men in their twenties and thirties who claimed that sati was a fundamental part of their traditions; a refusal to legitimize sati, they said, was a deliberate attempt to marginalize the Rajputs (Kumar 1995: 81). To fully grasp the concept of sati one must look into history of the ritual and not only in India but in other countries as well; search for examples and reasoning in sacred texts; and discover the attitudes both supporting and opposing sati that exist in modern day India. The rituals of sati exist throughout the world in documented cases that were reported in various countries. Jorg Fisch reports, in his paper, that human sacrifice was practiced frequently in China. He follows the pioneering scholar of Chinese religion J.J.M. de Groot in saying that Confucius and his followers opposed it, however de Groot disagrees that it was Confucian opposition that ended the practice in China (de Groot 1976: 300-301, 310, 320). The history reports that sometimes great numbers of ordinary people were lured to the mausoleum of an emperor only to be locked up to be buried alive (Fisch 2001:313). But it is not the brutal practice of massive murders of ordinary people that makes the ritual of sati come alive in Chinese history but rather the account of childless concubines being buried with the first emperor. Later, the custom of following emperors in death which was reserved for only those from the lower class was followed by the suicide of widows. It was considered t o be a form of faithfulness and a reflection of not only on the changing nature of Confucianism but also other religious traditions emerging in China. Regardless of the religious opposition the practice remained in place for a while. Just like in India, Chinese religious opposition failed to convince people that sati is inhumane and unnecessary. Just like in India, it was due to the fact that general population held strong beliefs in life after death and that by following their husbands the widows were fulfilling their dharma therefore it could not be wrong. The reasons that drove Chinese widows to commit sati included deep sorrow at the death of a beloved spouse; the anticipated difficulties of life as a widow, including the threat of forced remarriage; and, as for Indian sati widows, the possibility of honor, enshrinement, even deification (Fisch 2001:311, 316). But within the same faiths, as daughters and daughters-in-law with seniors to care for, as beneficiaries of their parent s gift of life and body, as mothers to their husbands heirs, as officiants in the ancestral cult, as lay Buddhist devotees, or as women tough enough to honor life-long vows of chastity, they might also choose to live an honorable life. They could do so while still believing in a life after death, or in repeated, rather than final, judgment of their sins and virtues, or they might believe in honor for its own sake and the immortality of their name. Just like India, China held belief that everyone holds a choice over their own destiny and are free to either follow the dead or remain alive. There is no stigma or shame attached to either. The ritual of sati has been in the lives of Hindus for many generations. There are accounts of sati or the refusal of thereof in the sacred texts of Hinduism. Sati is mentioned in both the Rig Veda and the Atharva Veda, two sacred texts in the Hindu tradition. The reason why it was practiced for so many years was because of discussion in these texts. One of the sections of the Vedas in known as Samhitas, and it contains a section called the Rig Veda Samhita, which includes a passage defending sati as it states: Let these women, whose husbands are worthy and are living, enter the house with ghee (applied) as corrylium (to their eyes). Let these wives first step into the pyre, tearless without any affliction and well adorned. (Rig Veda 10.18.7) The verse encourages a widow to throw herself on her dead husbands pyre as a personal sacrifice to her husband. In the scripture, sati is a wife entering the funeral pyre, and the practice has started because it is a part of a sacred text. It is described with many other ritual practices prescribed to the followers of Hinduism. Another sacred text that defends the practice of sati is the Atharva Veda Samhita. It is from the same collection of Samhita as the Rig Veda and the funeral verse in the Atharva Veda in Kanda 18, Sukta 3 states: This woman, choosing her husbands world, lies down (nipad) by you that are departed, O mortal, continuing to keep [her] ancient duty (dharma); to her assign you here progeny and property. Sati is also mentioned in Mahabharata in the story of the pigeon and the hunter. Sati is described as a ritual suicide because after the passing of the husband the wife has to follow him too. Bhisma tells the story where the pigeons wife decides that no moral woman could still live if her husband was dead and so she decides to throw herself into her husbands funeral fire (Sutton 2000: 87). The result of her actions is that she is sent to svarga-loca (celestial world) alongside her husband in a celestial chariot (Sutton 2000: 87). The mention of the sati ritual on the pages of often read Mahabharata is regarded as another justification of the ritual. However, despite the fact that the ritual of sati is discussed in sacred texts for any Hindu, people started to seek another interpretation for the same verses. The understanding of the tradition is different now than it was at the beginning of the religion. The human rights activists and feminist lobbyists are fighting to liquidate the tradition completely. Those who oppose the ritual of sati claim that it is simply appalling and should be abolished forever. It seems like there shouldnt be a conflict as the practice became illegal many times. First, it was abolished by the British in 1829; and then again in late 1980s after the sati of Roop Kanwar. Indian feminists argue that the proclamation of Roop as an exemplary and chaste wife is revolting. The idea behind the ritual is the one of grave oppression of women and vivid representation of their secondary status and lack of choices. For centuries, the social status of women was closely related to the one of their fathers and later, t heir husbands. It was never an option for a female to be considered an equal in everything to her husband. After the independence of India was proclaimed women got their chance to build their lives the way they desire. But, sadly, many were clinging to the past, to something they have always known, the traditional way of life and thinking. The feminist leaders stepped up and encouraged the female population to take the reins of their destinies and think for themselves. It is unthinkable that in this day and age, anyone would consider a ritual suicide just because of the tradition that dates couple millennia back. In conclusion, the ritual of sati has rich and intriguing history. The account of sati examples were discovered in numerous documents all over the world. It can be determined to certain that India was not the only country that practiced ritual sacrifices of innocent women in order to fulfill their dharma and show off their chaste and pure nature. China had centuries of regular practice of sati, but unlike in India, the practice was long abolished. Concrete evidence that supports the ritual of sati is found in several sacred texts in Hinduism. It makes it harder to argue that sati is rather a choice a widow must make and not a predestined certainty. The evidence from the texts can be interpreted as a supporting ground for sati. It sounds noble, and pure, and chaste, to show the world the devotion the widow has for her deceased husband. In reality, it is just a tradition, a ritual like any other, that one can chose to forgo. In modern times there is no more stigma attached to being a w idow, no shame to carry with the title, no burden to lay on those who are still alive. Modern society is all about equality of rights for everyone. And Indian feminists argue just that, the tradition of sati had its place in history and lives of Hindus, but now, it is time to make wiser choices and live, instead of committing sacrificial suicide.

Fantastic Mr Fox Essay

In times of immense strife, a child’s relationship with their parents becomes more important. As a child’s world is turned upside down, they cling to the familiar as means of self-identification and discovery in confusing circumstances. But when parent child relationships become unhealthy, a child’s sense of identity is damaged as they struggle to rectify their sense of self without clear role models to follow. In particular, relationships between parents and children of the same gender carry with them gendered ideals of self and identity that further strain the relationship between the parent and child. Both Fantastic Mr. Fox and Maus look at father son relationships that are under immense strain, and how the characters discover their identities through working their troubled relationships out. Throughout both of these works, there is a theme of self-discovery as the means of improving relationships and the moral of each story is that to understand truly each other, one must first understand oneself. The film adaptation/imagination of Roald Dahl’s Fantastic Mr.  Fox deviates from the source material in positive ways and introduces an interesting father-son subplot between the titular protagonist and his son(s). At the start of the film, Mr. Fox and his son Ash have difficulties communicating with each other. An ambitious and upward thinking individual, Mr. Fox is less than thrilled with his son’s wiry frame and lack of athletic ability. Ash falls short of the â€Å"ideal† athletic masculine archetype that Mr. Fox likes to think of himself as, so when the naturally athletic Kristofferson comes to stay with the Foxes, Mr.  Fox naturally gravitates towards a father-son relationship with Kristofferson. This causes Ash to feel tension and jealousy because he sees Kristofferson as a rival for his father’s attention. As the movie progresses and Mr. Fox’s schemes for advancement begin to take shape, he involves first Kristofferson, due to his natural athletic ability, further deepening the rift between Ash and his father. It gets to the point that Ash is willing to risk his life on his father’s heists just to earn his respect because he believes that his father values  Kristofferson more than his â€Å"different† son. This desire for his father’s attention is diminished considerably when Fox’s scheming and theft inevitably bring the farmer’s wrath down on the animals. The pedestal that Ash placed his father on is broken and Ash decides to stop trying to be his father and instead embrace the facets of his character that makes him† different†. This leads to greater self-actualization for Ash who utilizes his unconventional talents in time to save his father’s life and defeat the farmers. What is important to note here is that Ash’s self-discovery comes as a he breaks free of his father’s expectations and comes to accept himself as a unique and important individual in his own right. His father comes to accept Ash not for conforming to his own ideals but for embracing his individuality. Ash’s relationship with his father only strengthens and deepens when Ash comes into his own as a person. Ash’s development and self-discovery comes in spite of his interaction with his father and their relationship only matures as Ash develops his own persona. Both Mr.  Fox and Ash discover themselves through understanding one another; once Mr. Fox discards his mid-life crisis and Ash makes peace with his eccentricities, both are capable of having a healthy relationship with each other. The same father-son tension fuels character development in Maus, as the relationship between Art Spiegelman and his father, Vladek, develops over the course of this graphic novel. Though Maus is primarily focused on Vladek’s own Holocaust narrative, the interaction with his son Art does not occur until after the Holocaust has happened, thus coloring Vladek’s interpretation of the world. Art states, â€Å"In some ways, my father didn’t survive the Holocaust† . Vladek’s experiences affect his worldview to the point where he has difficulty relating to his son, who simply cannot imagine the things Vladek had to do to survive. This gap in understanding drives the conflict between the characters as Art struggles to get away from his father’s presence in order to establish an identity for himself as an artist. But however hard he tries, moving on with his life demands that he understands his father, something that Art has always found difficult. I mean, I can’t even make any sense out of my relationship with my father †¦ how am I supposed to make sense out of Auschwitz?†¦ 0f the Holocaust? † . While these questions linger with Art and the reader long after the final page (largely because such senseless tragedy defies comprehension), in working with his father to comprehend his story, Art begins to understand his father bet ter. In doing so, Art is able to make peace with his father and begin constructing his own identity as something other than a reaction to his father and the suffering he endured. Art moves past merely rejecting the pressure his father puts on him, accepting his father’s struggle and in the process their relationship is strengthened. Art and Vladek help each other to move on with their lives to differing degrees and in the process grow closer to one another as more complete individuals. Both Mr. Fox and Vladek care about their children and genuinely want to do right by them but both are grappling with their own issues of identity in the midst of personal crises way beyond the comprehension of their sons. Likewise, Ash and Art’s own sense of self-suffering, due to the strained relationships they had with their parents come into play. In order for any kind of healthy relationship to exist, meaningful self-discovery and self-actualization is necessary on the part of both individuals. The heartening message to take away from these stories is that a meaningful parent-child relationship cannot exist between individuals who themselves are incomplete. The parent and the child must first look to their â€Å"inner selves† to make themselves more personally complete before they can truly enjoy a meaningful and satisfying parent-child relationship.

The Bombing Of Japan During The World War II - 1572 Words

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The United States Criminal Justice System - 1670 Words

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