Rape and Sexual Violence in Hinduism

 

Hindu law books place great emphasis upon protecting women to prevent atrocities against them. They recognize the role women play in the propagation and continuation of dharma and preservation of family traditions and lineages. They put women on a high pedestal, for they recognize their role in the order and regularity of the world. According to a Vedic belief, a married woman not only is the wife of her husband but also becomes his mother, as he is again born through her as her child. Thus, the wife is key to the continuation of a householder and his lineage in this world and in the next.

Therefore, the law books recognize the need for a happy family and a happy household, in which the parents live in harmony with each other and contribute to the promotion and preservation of dharma. They highlight the importance of treating women with respect and honor as a part of a householder’s obligatory duty. That duty begins from the very childhood, when one receives initiation and becomes a student, and continues until the end or until one takes up sanyasa or the vow of renunciation.

To honor, protect and respect the women of the household, this indeed is the onerous and obligatory duty of all men in each Hindu family. They shall never put them to unnecessary suffering or neglect or dishonor. The consequences of not doing it is fraught with terrible consequences for the reputation and continuation of all involved. It may be noted that in the very beginning of the Bhagavadgita, Arjuna expressed this concern to Krishna and used it to justify his refusal to fight.