Women In Medieval India

The Vedic Era (1500BCE - 600BCE)

The zenith of female power in India came during the Vedic Era.

During this epoch, the migration of the Central Asian Aryan tribes to the Indus Valley that may have begun around 2000 BCE profoundly impacted the role of women in society. The Aryans brought Indo-European languages and their customs. Women were often warriors and had an array of avenues open to them including:

The activity which demonstrated the power they wielded most keenly was their autonomy in choosing a male partner, referred to as Swayamvara.

After a woman had selected their spouse, he would be given a garland and a ceremony would immediately take place. This all came during a period when a single religion did not have a hold over the population.

The role of the scholarly woman cannot be underestimated during this period, perhaps best illustrated by the philosopher Gargi Vachaknavi.

Gargi's challenging of the male discourse was symptomatic of the elevated female role within the Vedic Era.

The arrival of Jainism and Buddhism (600 BCE - 200 BCE)

Towards the end of the Vedic Era, the disparate beliefs of the Indus Valley tribes crystallized into Hinduism.

Fig. 1 - Hindu manuscript in Sanskrit

Alongside this new religion, other movements such as Jainism and Buddhism, each of which promoted non-violence, sprang up. These faiths helped change the general attitudes toward women in the region. Now, the female role in society came under scrutiny.

Women still had a role in warfare and could lead a monastic life. However, they began to suffer economically and monks received greater payment than nuns. Also, political involvement was prohibited.

Women's Role in Medieval India

Before and during the medieval period (from about 500CE to 1500CE) conditions for women would continue to worsen.

The Age of Dharmaśāstras, Mánusmṛiti (200 BCE - 647 CE)

Hindu doctrine began to gain an even greater influence over the role of women during this epoch.

For the first time, women's educational opportunities became endangered. A girl's role now was largely predetermined as child marriage became commonplace, a far cry from the husband-choosing ceremonies of ancient India.

The following traditions exemplified just how marginalized women were becoming.

As women's sole purpose became child-rearing, men continued to have as many mistresses as they desired.

Women's Education in Medieval Times in India

Much of the seed change during this time came from the sacred Veda texts, which moved to block female access to literature. Contemporary texts went as far as to explicitly prohibit women from access to primary religious material.

As we can see, the opportunities for women greatly diminished during the Vedic Era and even the period of Jainism and Buddhism. Now the role of women was to be subjugated, as the Hindus believed their intellectual contribution to be worthless.

Illiteracy rates only served to reinforce these narratives during the Age of Dharmaśāstras, Mánusmṛiti and in medieval India, only the noble women, high in the caste system had access to education.

Muslim Invasions

With the rapid Spread of Islam taking hold during the 7th and 8th centuries from the Arabian Peninsula, it would be a matter of time before this new faith began to influence women in India.

The first Islamic foray into Indian territory was in 711 in the kingdom of Sind. However, it wasn't until the Delhi Sultanate that the Muslims truly exerted control.

The Delhi Sultanate (1206 - 1526)

The Delhi Sultanate lasted over 300 years and stretched across much of northern India. It followed the Muslim playbook for maintaining power and allowed peaceful co-existence with other faiths and laws as long as the observation of "jizya" continued. The Delhi Sultanate also appointed Hindus and Buddhists to key administrative positions.

During this period a lack of female autonomy continued. The tradition of purdah became increasingly usual and a culture of harem compounded existing problems for women. It was also likely that in such quarters, the many wives of a wealthy man would be confined together.

The caste system meant that women of lower societal rank should not be under the same roof as wealthier men. Women in harems often functioned as slaves as well as concubines.

Mughal Empire (1526 - 1857)

Another Muslim dynasty that ruled much of India with longevity was the Mughal Empire. Descendents of the Central Asian Timurids, the Mughal Empire continued many of the traditions that were prevalent under the Delhi Sultanate.

Although this was significant, women remained largely confined to their harems.

Fig. 2 - Drawing of Akbar the Great

Important Women Rulers of Medieval India

Despite all of their struggles, some women ruled over India! Let's examine a couple of significant female royals in medieval India.

Razia Sultana (1236 - 1240)

Daughter of the Emperor of the Delhi Sultanate, Razia was trained alongside her brothers in military combat and leadership. With the throne vacant, her father appointed her as his successor. However, this led to a struggle and her brother took control. Razia conspired to kill her brother, seizing royal power in the process and becoming the only female ruler of Delhi.

Changing her name to remove connotations of a queen, she wore gender-neutral clothing during her reign but only ruled for only four years after a smear campaign about sexual infidelity left her imprisoned.

Rudrama Devi (1262 - 1289)

Rudrama Devi enjoyed a longer period of rule, leading the Hindu Kakatiya dynasty. There are many parallels to draw with Razia Sultana, including the fact that she altered her name and attire to fit a masculine role. Rudrama proved an excellent queen who kept hostile invaders at bay and built the important Warangal Fort. She also allowed common men to be military commanders for the first time. Such was her prowess that famous traveler Marco Polo, who encountered her on his travels, testified that

Fig. 3 - Statue of Rudrama Devi

Status of Women in Medieval India

To sum up, the conditions for women worsened during medieval times. Their multi-faceted role in society gradually diminished as religion gained a clearer jurisdiction over people's lives. The creation of sati and purdah exemplify this and Muslim traditions followed these trends, with the harem an emblem of women's marginalized position.

Women's Rights in Medieval India

We have demonstrated the limited rights of women during medieval India, despite the intentions of Muslim ruler Akbar the Great. Perhaps the biggest issue facing women was that of property. By the late Vedic Era, women no longer had property rights and this continued for the medieval period, only changing in 1937, with the Hindu Women's Right to Property Act.

Because of such an entrenched system, centuries of oppression that can never simply vanish and many issues facing women remain, most of all, the "primitive overtones facing women's status."⁴