#KumariPuja : the photograph is used as an add on to my write up not supporting the custom
This post is just a sharing of my thoughts with offence to none . A #thinkingaloud . Me as a #woman whose seen amd worked intensively with #WomenInCrisis which more often than not trace back to social norms , rituals and customs that we ingrain in minds across gender and age .
Come "Ashtami" there's always a custom that has #irked me and kept me wondering on the need of rituals in every stead that need revisited as per the age we live in and the times that have changed: #KumariPuja
What are the examples , rules of #purity , #divinity and acceptable norms we set for women or even girls with rituals such?
Does it have whiffs of misogyny ? Does equating #virginity with #purity not create the misconceptions that permeate on silencing rape, of teenage pregnancies and sexual violence against women ? Of the loss of that purity and the dangerous ostracisation that many a times translates to death and silencing of girls and women ?
How do we balance the beauty of a myth and tradition that heals and renews an impoverished people with the future suffering of a human being who must learn that she is not divine?
This ritual of worshipping #virginity as purity brings also to mind Vestal Virgins of Rome, revered by the people but buried alive if, upon reaching puberty, they were caught pregnant.
The #historicalsignificance , the beginning of this ritual of #KumariPuja happened in a time and age when the concepts of feminity and respect to the same ,needed ingrained perhaps and were revolutionary to change mindsets beautifully by leaders of belief who have paved paths uncharted , unthinkable . In those days this in itself was a radical #progressive step ahead and education of masses , protection of girls and women needed an embedding in basic tradition and culture of the times . That was then.
But in today's time and space should we not revisit customs and modify them as per the day we live in , the ugly truths and the realities that are so in the face ?
My personal feeling on any religion, ritual or custom has been to see a need to evolve with time and the now and the messages we send out .
We cannot be driven into just a glitter and glory of age old norms without reading deep into the #pertinence of it in the time we live . In this case perhaps we focus on the "#cuteness" of dressing up little girls , how #pretty and #sweet they look ...but what are the underlying messages we #endorsing ?
Let's take a step back to think before we move forward or merely follow historical norms and traditions .
*Kumaripuja and concepts*
A girl aged between one to sixteen, symbolising the Kumari form of Devi is worshipped during Durga Puja. The Kumari form of the Goddess is emphasised as the most practical form by the devotees. Hindu scriptures have emphasised Kumari Puja particularly to evolve the purity and divinity of the women of the society.
It is believed that the universal creative force is the feminine gender. The very original force is Mahamaya whose inspiration created the gods and the rest of the cosmos. The inspiration is the life force of the entire creation. All the major and minor energies and forces are represented by various goddesses. Thus, a virgin girl is the symbol of the pure basic creative force according to this philosophy*
This post is just a sharing of my thoughts with offence to none . A #thinkingaloud . Me as a #woman whose seen amd worked intensively with #WomenInCrisis which more often than not trace back to social norms , rituals and customs that we ingrain in minds across gender and age .
Come "Ashtami" there's always a custom that has #irked me and kept me wondering on the need of rituals in every stead that need revisited as per the age we live in and the times that have changed: #KumariPuja
What are the examples , rules of #purity , #divinity and acceptable norms we set for women or even girls with rituals such?
Does it have whiffs of misogyny ? Does equating #virginity with #purity not create the misconceptions that permeate on silencing rape, of teenage pregnancies and sexual violence against women ? Of the loss of that purity and the dangerous ostracisation that many a times translates to death and silencing of girls and women ?
How do we balance the beauty of a myth and tradition that heals and renews an impoverished people with the future suffering of a human being who must learn that she is not divine?
This ritual of worshipping #virginity as purity brings also to mind Vestal Virgins of Rome, revered by the people but buried alive if, upon reaching puberty, they were caught pregnant.
The #historicalsignificance , the beginning of this ritual of #KumariPuja happened in a time and age when the concepts of feminity and respect to the same ,needed ingrained perhaps and were revolutionary to change mindsets beautifully by leaders of belief who have paved paths uncharted , unthinkable . In those days this in itself was a radical #progressive step ahead and education of masses , protection of girls and women needed an embedding in basic tradition and culture of the times . That was then.
But in today's time and space should we not revisit customs and modify them as per the day we live in , the ugly truths and the realities that are so in the face ?
My personal feeling on any religion, ritual or custom has been to see a need to evolve with time and the now and the messages we send out .
We cannot be driven into just a glitter and glory of age old norms without reading deep into the #pertinence of it in the time we live . In this case perhaps we focus on the "#cuteness" of dressing up little girls , how #pretty and #sweet they look ...but what are the underlying messages we #endorsing ?
Let's take a step back to think before we move forward or merely follow historical norms and traditions .
*Kumaripuja and concepts*
A girl aged between one to sixteen, symbolising the Kumari form of Devi is worshipped during Durga Puja. The Kumari form of the Goddess is emphasised as the most practical form by the devotees. Hindu scriptures have emphasised Kumari Puja particularly to evolve the purity and divinity of the women of the society.
It is believed that the universal creative force is the feminine gender. The very original force is Mahamaya whose inspiration created the gods and the rest of the cosmos. The inspiration is the life force of the entire creation. All the major and minor energies and forces are represented by various goddesses. Thus, a virgin girl is the symbol of the pure basic creative force according to this philosophy*
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