Letter form Savitriby Phule to Jotiba Phule

 The Second letter is about a great social taboo – a love affair between a Brahman boy and an Untouchable girl; the cruel behavior of the ‘enraged’ villagers and how Savitribai stepped in. This intervention saves the lives of the lovers and she sends them away to the safety and caring support of her husband, Jyotiba. With the malevolent reality of honour killings in the India of 2016 and the hate-driven propaganda around ‘love jehad’ this letter is ever so relevant today.

29 August 1868
Naigaon, Peta Khandala
Satara
The Embodiment of Truth, My Lord Jotiba,
c salutes you!

I received your letter. We are fine here. I will come by the fifth of next month. Do not worry on this count. Meanwhile, a strange thing happened here. The story goes like this. One Ganesh, a Brahman, would go around villages, performing religious rites and telling people their fortunes. This was his bread and butter. Ganesh and a teenage girl named Sharja who is from the Mahar (untouchable) community fell in love. She was six months pregnant when people came to know about this affair. The enraged people caught them, and paraded them through the village, threatening to bump them off.

 I came to know about their murderous plan. I rushed to the spot and scared them away, pointing out the grave consequences of killing the lovers under the British law. They changed their mind after listening to me.

Sadubhau angrily said that the wily Brahman boy and the untouchable girl should leave the village. Both the victims agreed to this. My intervention saved the couple who gratefully fell at my feet and started crying. Somehow I consoled and pacified them. Now I am sending both of them to you. What else to write?

Yours
Savitri


Comments

Post a Comment

Golwalkar Mission of Hindu Rashtra

Matadin Bhangi: A Dalit hero of 1857 Revolt

Image
  Matadin Bhangi was one of the Dalit heroes of 1857 Revolt who is seen as the one to have inspired the 1857 War of Independence and not Mangal Pandey that the elite history claims. The narrative for Matadin Bhangi published by D C Dinkar in “Swatantra Sangram Mein Achhuton Ka Yogdan” (1990) is given in the following words:  "There was a factory in Barrackpore where cartridges were manufactured. Many of the workers of this factory belonged to the untouchable communities. One day one of the workers felt thirsty. He asked a soldier for a mug of water. That soldier was Mangal Pandey. Mangal Pandey, a Brahmin, refused him water because the worker was an untouchable. This was very humiliating for the worker. He retaliated to the Brahmin soldier saying, “ Bara awa hai Brahaman ka beta. Jin kartuson ka tum upayog karat ho, unpar gaaye or suar ki charbi lagawal jaat hai, jinhe tum apan daatun se torkar banduk mein bharat ho. O samay tomhar jati aur dharam kahan jawat. Dhikkar tumhare is b
Read more

The Tara Sara Upanishad (The Supreme Goddess and Her Cosmic Essence)

Image
  The Tara Sara Upanishad  (The Supreme Goddess and Her Cosmic Essence) That which is Om is the indestructible, the supreme, and the Brahman. That alone should be worshipped. It is this that is of the eight subtle syllables. The Tara Sara Upanishad is classified as one of 14 Vaishnava Upanishads attached to the Shukla Yajurveda. This Upanishad delves into the worship, symbolism, and spiritual significance of Goddess Tara Sara, guiding seekers on the path of spiritual awakening and liberation. Rooted in the ancient Vedic tradition, this Upanishad continues to hold enduring significance as it unveils the divine mysteries of the cosmic feminine principle. Goddess Tara Sara is revered as the Supreme Goddess, transcending the dualities of existence and representing the ultimate reality. The origins of this Upanishad can be traced back to the ancient Vedic period which dates back to approximately 1500-500 BC. The text is notable for its discussion of Om for yogic meditation as Taraka or that
Read more