My grandmother’s favorite part of the afternoon is listening to a spiritual leader on television. Having nothing much to do in my summer vacation, I decided to join her once. Now I cannot say if that decision was a good or a bad one because it made me think and thus, I’ll leave it upon the readers to decide it upon themselves.
If I am being honest, there are a lot of topics that the Maharaj Ji spoke about that made me very uncomfortable. However, there was a particular discussion on rotis that made me think. He mentions four kinds of rotis, each different based on who makes them. The best one is the one made by a mother, that is made with nothing but pure love. The second on the list is the one prepared by wives, which is made with samarpan (dedication) followed by the ones made by a daughter or daughter-in-law because it is their duty, and last the ones prepared by a cook or a house help, who make those rotis only because they are paid for it. Maharaj Ji also adds that the rotis made by a cook or a housekeeper should never be consumed, explaining this with the story of some king who fell ill and was cured with rotis prepared by his wife.
At the outset, this all seems normal but let us also consider who the audience listening to Maharaj ji is. It comprises people belonging to the lower and middle classes as the majority, and that is important because in a place like mine (I was born and raised in Chhattisgarh) education and awareness have still not reached many but Maharaj ji has.
When we look at this concept of ‘type of rotis’, the idea that is embedded into people’s minds is that it is only women who belong in the kitchen, the task of cooking looks like something that only women do. While this limits the portrayal of women as only homemakers, it also attacks women who break these age-long stereotypes. A woman who chooses to prioritize her career over staying at home would be bashed because apparently, she is not fulfilling her ‘duty’ which is to feed rotis prepared with love or dedication.
Additionally, many women ensure that her family is cooked for and is well fed by employing cooks for the household, she does fulfil her ‘duty’ while doing so. But when you see it through the lenses of what Maharaj ji has said, there are going to be patriarchs, who ask the women in their household to do the cooking because of this concept proposed by Maharaj ji, which will either result in women struggling to balance household chores and work or simply, leave their job to give into this notion.
We cannot forget that crores are listening to this. At the same time, when it is not very likely to happen in every household, it is most likely to happen in many. I also do not criticize the spiritual leader here, rather I wish to point out how deeply embedded patriarchal notions are in our minds that is hard to acknowledge it. The only way to do so is through education and awareness, there are no other possible mediums to battle this.
This also is a reminder that we still have a long way to go in terms of dealing with patriarchy and the empowerment of women.
Comentários