E.V. Ramasamy also called as " Periyar " is remembered for the Self Respect Movement to redeem the identy and self-respect of Tamils. He launched a political party, திராவிடர் கழகம் ( Dravidar Kazhagam ).
One of his finest works " Why Were Women Enslaved? " has ten chapters which primarily expose the reasons through which women are enslaved and continue to be so. It further points out the ways in which they can be liberated from enslavement and lead an independent life equally.
CHASITY (கற்பு)
The chastity is defined as " living up to ones words " which includes other concepts such as integrity, truth and follow by an agreement. But defining chasity as a whole to indicate the virtues of women it actually defines indestructibility, firmness and chasity.
The indestrucctibility means not spoilt which is understood as " virginity " that has not been defined commonly for human race. So chasity could be common for both the sex irrespective of purity.
In Indo-Aryan chasity is defined as Pativradha where Pati means husband but also authority , master and leader. Though in Tamil a women is called Nayaki i.e, heroine which are used in epics but the state of chastity is linked only to women who are considered as slaves to husband.
The same case where purdah system exists in some societies where women aren't allowed to step out of their houses and cover their faces and has no freedom if she marries till her death. But her husband can marry several women and live with them in her presence and in case of misunderstandings a women can demand only food and not her sexual desires.
In 6th chapter of Thirukkural, வாழ்க்கை துணைநலம் (Value of a Life-Partner), in 91st chapter பெண்ணவழி சேரல் (being led by Women) has said that " It will ran instantly if a wife worships her husband instead of God; a women must take good care of her husband.
Cruel religions and laws, which dictate and discriminate women to bear with the husband's beastly action for the sake of chastity must be destroyed.
Valluvar and Chasity ( வள்ளுவர்மற்றும் கற்பு )
He asks " If Valluvar was a woman and had written the Thirukkural, (s)he would not have mentioned such ideas ". Our comrade says we have blamed women by the statement " Women have accepted such notions because of centuries old traditions " and our effort to compare this with Depressed Classes who were denied to develop their intelligence, this would never happen to women.
Further Thiruvallurvar has mentioned about men's chastity in Thirukkural. Some of the couplets as instances are:
" சிரைகாக்கும் காப்பெவன் செய்யும் மகளிர்
நிறைகாக்கும் காப்பே தலை "
What is the use of guarded imprisonment
Foremost is the self-guarded purity of women
" நிரைநெஞ்சம் இல்லாதவர் தோய்வார் பிரர்நெஞ்சிற்
பேணிப் புணர்பவர் தோள் "
How low hearts alone desire
The arms of whores with hearts elsewhere
LOVE (காதல்)
For the sake of love, people lead a troubled life lacking pleasure and satisfaction. We seek to destroy this. If we think deeply about love we can easily understand the love lacks substance, reality and certainness; and the person who blows it out of proportion is foolish by nature.
If one were to speak frankly, bravely and with human nature, freedom, tendency and experience, it has to be said that all these are similar to a man going to his favourite hotel and eating there, buying his favourite snack in a shop; that is, it is related to individual taste and satisfaction and other people’s interference is indicative of impertinence and unnecessary domineering behaviour.
A love arises for a man or women on the basis of which it came into being. It cannot be easily said that it occurs out of any means other than the man and the woman meeting each other, or coming to hear about the other through a third person, or hearing/seeing in some manner the physical appearance, or behaviour, or character of the other person.
Anybody can love anyone only because of finding the source that satisfies their need or nature through beauty or intelligence or wealth or education or music. But sometimes the quality might exist or might have been a mere perception. By the situation will the love remain constant? Trying to answer these questions will make understand how love arises, and how it is annulled.
Suppose both lovers turn ascetics and saints will it be against love for them to leave and dislike each other? If it is against love what is the scenario of love? Generally speaking it is natural for human beings to desire over a particular thing and gets frustrated with anything over a period of time.
He concludes this by saying love is a highlight that affection, desire and friendship and anything else exists only for mental pleasure and satisfaction, and not for displaying the existence of affection, desire and friendship when there is no mental satisfaction and pleasure.
THE RIGHT TO DIVORCE (விவாகரத்து உரிமை )
The cruelty of marriage leading to enslavement of women by men occurs all over the world but it can nowhere match our country. We can firmly say that if these atrocities are going to continue, the ritual of marriage and family kinship would disappear within a short time, say half a century. That is why the intellectuals of other countries are day-by-day diluting the difficulties that women have to undergo.
He says that men who live without harmony, satisfaction or pleasure with their wife should bravely come forward and marry the women by desire. Because only then, there will be an end to arranged marriages taking place in the name off divinity, where the man and women are married without their consent prior introduction. It would also put an end to the sorrow borne out of such arranged marriages.
It is the foremost duty of every human being endowed with six senses to throw it off. People who work for human compassion, satisfaction and happiness of humanity should first take this up.
In his opinion he thinks “Someone who is married does not feel the satisfaction and harmony in marriage there is nothing he could do but to move apart. It is the way of life devoid of human nature and self-respect and will be an act of intelligence.
REMARRIAGE IS NOT WRONG ( மறுமணம் தவறில்லை )
People have many misgivings on the issue: “Can a man remarry when he already has a wife? Even a vast majority of the people feel “that to remarry when one already has wife is against the reformist doctrine”.
Generally nobody blames a man’s remarriage when his first wife 1) has died 2) when it is known that she loves another man 3) she is suffering from an incurable, chronic disease 4) when she is mad or lost balance. So rationalists may not object these and accept remarriage in these circumstances.
Let us now look at this 5) Let us assume that out of ignorance or unreasonable attitude, the wife does not bother about husband and behaves in a inconsistent manner. 6) Let us assume that the husband doesn’t satisfy her heart 7) She holds totally the views against her husband 8) Arrogance by her wealth and not concerning about her husband. What is the plight of the person who is trapped in such a life? It is important to pay attention and ask questions in such situation.
It is the duty of one to seek freedom and liberation when they like or dislike. Moreover no one can live in a place where there is no love. People should come over the superstition and restrictions and should not blindly follow them. He feels the real freedom will come into existence for women only when women also possess what men possess, when they too behave like men, and when they too have the same rights and comforts as men in worldly life, society, laws, and religion. Only then they can attain real satisfaction, pleasure and love.
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