Sati Pratha: Whose fault?

CAUTION - LONG POST

Hindu dharm has been tarnished, time and again, by vested interests with the accusation that Hindu religion has been unfair to its women due to the practice of 'Sati pratha' (सती प्रथा).

The aim of this post is to refute that this practice was a blot on Hindu religion. In this post, I am presenting some facts from the voluminous work by British historians Elliot and Dowson, titled 'History of India as told by its own Historians'. As the title indicates, they have compiled and translated the records of various historians and invaders. These works constitute the most authentic history of the medieval period or dark ages of our history. All these references have been taken from Muslim chroniclers, who have left these records for posterity.

First of all, no Hindu scripture i.e. Veds or Bhagwad Geeta prescribe sati. Therefore, if it was an evil (which we will find that it was not), then it was a social evil and not an evil sanctioned by Hindu religion.
Secondly, there is no indirect evidence of such practice. Remember the wives of Dashrath or Raavan in Ramaayan or Kunti, Amba, Ambika and Ambaalika in Mahabhaarat. Had 'sati' been a 'pratha' or practice, all these would have burnt themselves on the pyre. Thus using the word 'pratha' in itself is a misnomer.

So, neither the scriptures nor the sequence of events favors prevalence of this practice in ancient Hindu lands or societies. But then, we have so many temples throughout our great nation, built in reverence of some 'sati'. After all, there is no smoke without a fire.
These numerous temples or memorial sites bear testimony to the fact that indeed a large number of women were burnt on pyres with the dead bodies of their husbands or without their husbands. Almost all of these temples came up in the period after 712. This time period is called dark age in Europe and it coincides with the dark age in our history also. What forced these women on their pyres?

To find out the truth, let us look at another religion that started in seventh century. It was started by Mohammad (570 - 632).

During the life time of Mohammad, the founder of Islam, Islamic armies had not attacked Bhaaratvarsh. The six attacks by Arabs from 636 to 712, on Hindustan resulted in defeat of Islamic invaders with death of the commanders at the hands of Hindu warriors. The ethics of Hindu warriors forbade them to occupy the territories of the invaders. They were satisfied  by defending their kingdom. 

The first victory on the land of Hindustan, by Arabs was effected by Mohammad bin Qasim when he defeated King Dahir in Sind.

When these rabid Arab armies fanned in all the directions, they had very simple motive. Loot, plunder and rape. Unlike Hindu Kshatriyas, they had no ethics like not attacking the civilians, not molesting women and no attack after sunset.

Since the time of Mohammad the standard practice had been to kill menfolk, sell women and children as slaves. The Hindu women were not prepared to lead such wretched lives where strangers would touch them.

When the sister of King Dahir realized that their fort has been surrounded by Arabs, this is what she did.

The sister of King Dahir assembled all her women and said,

Jaisiya is separated from us and Mohammad Kasim has come. God forbid that we should owe our liberty to these outcast cow eaters (म्लेच्छ गोमांस भक्षक)! Our honor would be lost. Our respite is at end, and there is no hope of any escape.; let us collect wood, cotton and oil, for I think we should burn ourselves and go to meet our husbands. If any wish to save herself, she may.

So, they went into a house and set it on fire, and burnt themselves. Mohammad took the fort and stayed there for two or three days. He put six thousand fighting men, who were in the fort, to the sword, and shot some with arrows. The other dependents and servants were taken prisoners, with their wives and children.

When the number of prisoners was calculated, it was found to amount to thirty thousand persons, amongst whom thirty were the daughters of chiefs, and one of them was King Dahir's sister's daughter, whose name was Jaisiya.' They were sent to Hajjaj. The head of Dahir and the fifth part of the prisoners were forwarded in charge of K'ab, son of Maharat. When the head of Dahir, the women, and the property all reached Hajjaj, he prostrated himself before God, (read Allah) offered thanksgivings and praises, for, he said, he had in reality obtained all the wealth and treasures and dominions of the world.

Hajjaj then forwarded the head, the umbrellas, and wealth, and the prisoners to "Walid the Khalifa. When the Khalifa of the time had read the letter, he praised Almighty God. He sold some of those daughters of the chiefs, and some he granted as rewards. When he saw the daughter of Rai Dahir's sister, he was much struck with her beauty and charms, and began to bite his finger with astonishment. 'Abdu-Uah bin 'Abbas desired to take her, but the Khalifa said, " O my nephew ! I exceedingly admire this girl, and am so enamoured of her, that I wish to keep her for myself. Nevertheless, it is better that you should take her to be the mother of your children." By his permission, therefore, 'Abdu-Uah took her.
She lived a long time with him, but no child was born from her. Afterwards, another letter was received about the capture of the fort of Kawar. It is said that after the conquest was effected, and the affairs of the country were settled and the report of the conquest had reached Hajjaj, he sent a reply to the following effect. "O my cousin; I received your life-inspiring letter. I was much pleased and overjoyed when it reached me. The events were recounted in an excellent and beautiful style, and I learnt that the ways and rules you follow are conformable to the Law. Except that you give protection to all, great and small alike, and make no difference between enemy and friend. God says,—Give no quarter to Infidels, but cut their throats." " Then know that this is the command of the great God.

Chach-nama, Eliot and Dowson, Vol. 1, pp 152

So, the Hindu women killed themselves to save themselves from being paraded naked amongst the worst of scoundrels. The scoundrels who treated women as objects, slaves and properties. Try to imagine women captured after killing their menfolk, stripped naked and paraded in front of lecherous monsters. Monsters who would inspect them from every angle to evaluate their price. One has to use imagination to understand the kind of scrutiny these hapless women were subjected to in slave markets.

The victory of Mohammad bin Qasim did not last very long and we find that in the year 1000, very small portion of Sind was under Muslim rule. The five hundred years from 636 to 1206 saw one of the bloodiest and most inspired resistance to Islamic armies, in which millions of Hindu warriors perished but did not give in meekly to invaders. For the Heroic Hindu resistance, which has been wiped out of our history text books, read here.
The pride of Hindu men and women had not dented six centuries later when Khilji dynasty was calling the shots.

In 1301 july, Allauddin Khilji attacked the king of Ranthambor and surrounded his fort from all the sides. His actions have been recorded by Amir Khusro as recorded in Tarikh - e - Alai, also called Khazan ul fateh. It is pertinent to mention that Amir Khusro is considered to be a moderate and Hindi loving Muslim but his writings are full of bigotry.

"No provisions remained in the fort, and famine prevailed to such an extent, that a grain of rice was purchased for two grains of gold." One night the Rai lit a fire at the top of the hill, and threw his women and family into the flames, and rushing on the enemy with a few devoted adherents, they sacrificed their lives in despair. " On the fortunate date of the 3rd of Zi-1 ka'da a.h. 700 (July, 1301 a.d.), this strong fort was taken by the slaughter of the stinking Rai."

 Jhain was also captured, "an iron fort, an ancient abode of idolatry, and a new city of the people of the faith arose." The temple of Dahir Deo, and the temples of other gods, were all razed to the ground.

These were not ordinary raids or fights between warring kings. This was Islamic Jehad, the aim was to uproot idolatory and implant the 'true faith' of Islam. The women were to be captured, raped and sold as slaves.
The Tughlak dynasty was equally fanatical. During the reign of Sultan Tughlak, the incidence of Rai of Kambila (काम्पिल्य?) is recorded as:

This prince had territories situated among inaccessible mountains, and was one of the chief princes of the infidels. When Bahau-d din made his escape to this prince, he was pursued by the soldiers of the Sultan of India, who surrounded the Rai's territories. The infidel saw his danger, for his stores of grain were exhausted, and his great fear was that the enemy would carry off; his person by force; so he said to Bahau-d'din, "Thou seest how we are situated. I am resolved to die with my family, and with all

who will imitate me. Go to such and such a prince (naming a Hindu prince), and stay with him ; he will defend thee." He sent some one to conduct him thither. Then he commanded a great fire to be prepared and lighted. Then he burned his furniture, and said to his wives and daughters, " I am going to die, and such of you as prefer it, do the same." Then it was seen that each one of these women washed herself, rubbed her body with sandal-wood, kissed the ground before the rai of Kambila, and threw  herself upon the pile. All perished. The wives of his nobles, ministers, and chief men imitated them, and other women also did the same.

The Rai, in his turn, washed, rubbed himself with sandal, and took his arms, but did not put on his breastplate. Those of his men who resolved to die with him followed his example. They sallied forth to meet the troops of the Sultan, and fought till every one of them fell dead. The town was taken, its inhabitants were made prisoners, and eleven sons of the rai were made prisoners and carried to the Sultan, who made them all Musulmans.

Two centuries later, another Islamic bigot, Baabar witnesses the pride and bravery of Hindu warriors. In 1527-28, Baabar tells about his taking of the fort of Chanderi, which he had surrounded from all sides.

Though the Pagans exerted themselves to the utmost, hurling down stones from above, and throwing over flaming substances on their heads, the troops nevertheless persevered, and at length Shaham Nur Beg mounted, where the wall of the outer fort joined the wall of the projecting bastion. The troops, likewise, about the same time, scaled the walls in two or three other places. The Pagans, who were stationed in the covered way, took to flight, and that part of the works was taken. They did not defend the upper fort with so much obstinacy, and were quickly put to flight ; the assailants climbed up and entered the upper fort by storm. In a short time the Pagans, in a state of. complete nudity, rushed out to attack us, put numbers of my people to flight, and leaped over the ramparts. Some of our troops were attacked furiously, and put to the sword. The reason of this desperate sally from their works was, that, on giving up the place for lost, they had put to death the whole of their wives and women, and, having resolved to perish, had stripped themselves naked, in which condition they had rushed out to the fight ; and, engaging with ungovernable desperation, drove our people along the ramparts.Two or three hundred Pagans had entered Medini Rao's house, where numbers of them slew each other, in the following manner : One person took his stand with a sword in his hand, while the others, one by one, crowded inland stretched out their necks eager to die. In this way many went to hell

Elliot and Dowson - Vol.4, TUZAK I BABRI, pp 275- 277

In 1540, According to Tarikh -e - Sher Shahi written by Abbas Khan

Sher Shah ordered that at sunrise they should surround the tents of Bhaia Puran Mal. Puran Mal was told that they were surrounding his encampment, and going into the tent of his beloved wife Ratnavali,
who sang Hindi melodies very sweetly, he cut off her head, and coming out said to his companions : " I have done this do you also slay your wives and families." While the Hindus were employed in putting their women and families to death, the Afghans on all sides commenced the slaughter of the Hindus, Puran Mal and his companions, like hogs at bay, failed not to exhibit valour and gallantry, but in the twinkling of an eye all were slain. Such of their wives and families as were not slain were captured. One daughter of Puran Mai and three sons of his elder brother were taken alive, the rest were all killed. Sher Khan gave the daughter of Puran Mal to some itinerant minstrels (bazigaran), that they might make her dance in the bazars, and ordered the boys to be castrated, that the race of the oppressor might not increase.

Elliot and Dowson, Vol. 4, Tarikh-e-Sher Shahi, pp 403

Describing a war between Islam Khan and his generals with Rajputs, in which one Shujahat Khan was killed, it is recorded as:

The next day, the Hindus being defeated by the other two generals, performed the jauhar, when one thousand women became victims in that sacrifice.

Elliot and Dowson, Vol. 4, Appendix, pp534

In Badshahnama written by Abdul Hamid Lahori, the instance of a chase of Hindus by Muslims is given as:

At length the pursuers came in sight of the rebels. Khan dauran then sent his eldest son, Saiyid Muhammad, and some other officers with 500 horse, to advance with all speed against them. The hot pursuit allowed the rebels no time to perform the rite of Jauhar, which is one of the benighted practices of Hindustan. In their despair they inflicted two wounds with a dagger on Eani Parbati, the chief wife of Eija Nar Singh Deo, and having stabbed the other women and children with swords and daggers, they were about to make ofi", when the pursuers came up and put many of them to the sword. Khan-dauran then arrived, and slew many who were endeavouring to escape. Durgbahan, son of Jajhar, and Durjan Sal, son of Bikramajit, were made prisoners. Under the direction of Khan-dauran, Rani Parbati and the other wounded women were raised from the ground and carried to Firoz Jang.

Rani Parbati, being severely wounded, was passed over ; the other women were sent to attend upon the ladies of the Imperial palace.

Elliot & Dowson, Vol. 7, pp50

These examples, spread over different parts of our mother land and spanning more then ten centuries tell us about the gruesome circumstances which the Hindu women faced. If someone has to be blamed for suicides commited by these brave men and women, then it is the slave system which is ingrained in Islam. The precedent was set by Mohammad, the founder of Islam. One example would suffice; When he ordered slaughter of about 800 men of a jewish tribe on a single day, took a Jewish beauty Rehana as her concubine and sold women and children into slavery to build his own cavalry.
Unfortunately, the atrocities committed on Hindu women far exceed any other race or nation. According to historians, Akbar had 5000 women in his harem and his son Jehangeer, who is portrayed as a romantic by secularists had 6000 women in his harem. These women would not have come willingly.
The instances I have mentioned are the proverbial tip of the iceberg. These examples are related to the ruler class. The common women were far more susceptible to being kidnapped and raped, especially if she was a widow. The invaders had no qualms about this inhuman act because they were following the teachings of Quran.

Also (forbidden are) women already married, except those (captives and slaves) whom your right hands possess.

 Chapter 4, verse 24. Hilali and Khan. This is the largest selling translation of Quran, also given to Haj travelers by Saudi Arabian Govt.

The 'sati mata' or 'sati mata mandir' that we encounter today tell us the tale of thousands of nameless women who preferred to die honorably instead of living with dishonor as the chattels of men who were devoid of any ethics or decency. For them, women is an object to be used as a sex toy and commanded.

I hope that those of you who still have an independent brain will be able to understand that a tradition, which was an interim solution against a far more organized and cruel enemy has been portrayed as an evil of Hindu dharm.

Still some of you might not be convinced. That is understandable. We as a nation have been brainwashed. Not only by the textbooks but also the overall environment, which includes media and movies.

Think of it from another angle. Let us for a moment accept that it was a practice and women were forced to burn on the pyre of their husbands, just as the secularists and missionary schools feed into us. Ask yourself a question.
Who benefits from this ritual?
Definitely, no Hindu benefits from it or would have benefited from it. Then why would someone insist on such a ritual which is not even sanctioned in religious texts? I hope you get the picture.

The only beneficiaries of the bogey of 'sati pratha' are the other predatory religions and communism. Ever since the introduction of the present Christian system of education on our nation, we have been systematically befooled into believing that Hindu religion is full of fallacies and one of them is 'sati pratha'.
Maybe some women did not want to burn themselves on the pyre. If they were forcibly led to do so, today, we can say that it was an inhuman act. In such cases, we can say that human rights of those women were violated. But. BUT  blaming the Hindu religion is the height of intellectual dishonesty, which comes naturally to marxists and other such secularists.

But then why is such perversion continuously being propagated in our country?
This brainwashing started in 1835, when a missionary named Thomas Babbington Macaulay devised an education system meant to produce clerks, or in Macaulay's words:

We must at present do our best to form a class who may be interpreters between us and the millions whom we govern; a class of persons, Indian in blood and colour, but English in taste, in opinions, in morals, and in intellect.

When the Christians (I am saying Christians and not British because these subtle deviations have resulted in the present morass) left our country, they had a lot at stake. They had a golden goose in the form of a vast market for their products. And more importantly, they had to wipe out paganism at the order of the Biblical God, so that souls may be harvested. Thus they planted a stooge on the pagans.

If the above pictures do not make you puke, then sample his views:

By education I am an Englishman, by views an internationalist, by culture a Muslim, and I am a Hindu only by accident of birth. The ideology of Hindu Dharma is completely out of tune with the present times and if it took root in India, it would smash the country to pieces.

Now, match the sentence of Macaulay and Nehru. You will know the efficiency of Missionary education system. It had and still is creating such specimen, who find everything wrong with Hindu dharm, in short, 'Indian in blood and color' but 'English in taste'. Most of them are not even aware that they are pawns in a plan implemented 176 years ago. They take pride in being internationalists or secularist but not in being Hindu.
'Sati pratha' is only one of the bogeys raised by Nehruvian liars. NCERT has been virtually under the control of Muslims or Hindu baiters. They have created other such hoaxes like 'Aryan Dravidian conflict', 'Bhagat Singh and his companions were terrorists', 'Shivaji and Maharana Pratap were misguided persons', 'Amir Khusro and Aurangzeb were secular', 'Islam and Christianity are the only egalitarian religions'.

 When Swami Vivekanand gave the call

गर्व से कहो हम हिन्दू हैं

perhaps he had underestimated the missionary propaganda.

I salute those brave men and women who had the courage to look at the death in its face and the conviction that their religion and way of life is the best.
Here, the disclaimer is needed thus; I do not endorse 'sati' in the present times because the social conditions have changed.

Today, if there is any religion in the world which gives respect to women, it is the Hindu dharm. It is the only religion which represents women as 'shakti', where as others either put her behind a shapeless garment or force her to keep quiet because she is labeled as the temptress.