Feminism is defined as ‘the advocacy of women’s rights on the ground of the equality of the sexes’. The simple logic behind it is that – women are equal to men, in all aspects, even physical strength. If for one minute, this patriarchal brain-washed society starts questioning that claim, they have the prime example of Goddess Durga in front of them. A female form they have been worshipping as a source of power for years, but never cared to pay enough attention to her counterparts on Earth.
There is no need to reiterate the might of Durga, but still, just to brush up, let’s look at how she came to be known as the all-powerful.
All the gods were defeated and driven out of heaven by the demon king Mahishasura. In desperate need of help, the gods went to the holy trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh. This is when Goddess Durga was created, as the supreme powerful being, capable of killing the treacherous Mahishasura.
She was an amalgamation of the powers of all the male gods and also the true source of their inner powers.
What happened with Mahishasura is a stark example of how men have discounted women since forever and it has had fatal consequences. Mahishasura, being vain, sought immunity only from men and Gods, never even considering anything about women.
Durga, the all-powerful battled him single-handedly for 10 days. On the 10th day, she slit his throat with her trident.
Such was the valour of the almighty Durga and this victory is celebrated all over the country. All the male power in the world couldn’t do what a single female entity accomplished.
The gods did not consider themselves small in seeking help from a female form or acknowledging her strength.
The point clearly is, when all the Gods combined could not defeat a demon, they had to resort to seeking help from a female deity. So when Gods were willing to accept the incredible strength that a female persona can hold, why can’t we? Why have women been labelled as the weaker sex? How exactly did the concept come into being? Why do we as a generation have so much trouble accepting the power a female could have?
The irony is, Durga is worshipped with pomp and splendour, but women are considered weak and incompetent.
Why indulge in the hypocrisy of worshipping the female form? Why does patriarchy live on this dichotomy? History stands testimony to the fact that a woman if challenged, can be the fiercest creature you will ever see. The creation of Durga and the purpose she served just goes on to show what every woman actually does in her life.
There are hundreds of times in a woman’s life when she has been the emblem of courage and determination, that ray of hope, the ultimate resolve when all seems lost.
If you talk about physical strength, childbirth and periods are the prime examples, but that is just one aspect. Women indulge in physical activities everywhere – be it established laborious tasks like farming, construction or the unrecognized strength needed in household chores.
Look around you, your mother, sister, maid, doctor, teacher and every single female you know has fought battles, and doesn’t even wear the scars.
Why do we ask for power from a female form but subjugate the females around us?
A woman faces way more hurdles in every aspect, be it science, technology or business. A working woman is considered less efficient than her male counterparts and the hard work of a home-maker goes unrecognized. Patriarchy has so successfully blinded its descendants that the same people who solicit Durga for power subjugate the women around them.
The practice of Kanya Puja is discriminatory, to say the least. How do women become impure on attaining puberty?
People pamper little girls on the pretext of calling them kanyas, this practice is a discrimination in itself, which, of course, my younger self could not identify. As soon as the girl starts menstruating, she becomes impure somehow and all the pampering stops! I have no clue where this idea was born.
The beauty of turning into a woman should be celebrated, but instead, it’s looked down upon. The reason given is that younger females are most in communion with God, but wouldn’t it be better if they actually understood why this practice is carried out?
Nine young girls representing the nine forms of Goddess Durga are worshiped. A girl-child is considered the symbol of the pure basic creative force. But according to tradition, women become weaker and impure after they start menstruating, I fail to understand how this custom is uplifting.
Even the little girls that are worshipped, the reverence lasts just for a day. No one actually believes they are as powerful as the goddess.
They do it because they believe the goddess will bless them for this.
How can a Goddess who was born a full-blown woman not be represented in the form of growing women? In fact, women are not allowed to enter temples of female goddesses on their bleeding days. Why doesn’t anybody question all this?
Feminism means that women are as strong as men and that when faced with adversities they can come to the rescue and take the challenge head-on.
Breaking the set rules of patriarchy, doing something unconventional is not an easy task which is exactly why this generation has to be the precursor to change. We all love celebrating Durga puja, asking for blessings from the mighty Goddess. But wouldn’t it be so much better if we cared more about the people actually living and breathing among us and not just an invisible power?
