Journal of Interdisciplinary Cycle Research ISSN NO: 0022-1945

EXPLORING CHANGES IN WOMEN EMANCIPATION AND RIGHTS

DURING THE MEDIEVAL PERIOD

Author’s Name: Sanskriti Huckoo

PhD Research Scholar Affiliated to

School of Humanities and Social Sciences

G.D Goenka University, Gurugram, Haryana,

Abstract

The paper explores the changing world of the women during the 15th and the 16th century India.

Three very important women have been discussed in length that seems to have reorganized

Medieval discourse. Gulbadan Begum, the author of Nama and the daughter of

presents in front of us an example of domestic power within the Mughal court. The paper

presents the role of royal Mughal women in making the Mughal state structure. The social and

power relations that existed in the Mughal provided for the basis of policy making by the

Mughal Emperor. The second woman under my study would be the Rajput Queen Padmini. Her

study showcases alternative approaches. Her sacrifice is seen not only to be a protection of

Rajput honor. It also showcases how gender norms have power in them to construct heroic

memories from narratives. The third women is Mirabai. Though she too belonged to royalty just

like the above mentioned two, but was different. She had renounced the royal world and had

become a bhakti saint. Her bhakti contradicts patriarchal approaches within the Rajput. The

paper attempts to compare and contrast these three historic personalities to see how women

emancipation has been very fluid in nature.

Keywords: Gender Norms, Medieval Feminism Discourse, Patriarchal Approaches, Premakhyan

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Introduction

Women and gender studies have got a big boost in the recent years and an attempt to highlight

ways for women empowerment and enhancement has drawn many scholarly writings across

different disciplines. Cinema and media have played important roles and have contributed to a

newer world that does not buy masculine concepts. As a historian, I intend to trace this discourse

from a historical point of view. This paper provides a glimpse of the lives of some women during

the medieval period. I have focused on three important ladies during that time: Gulbadan Begum

(A.D 1523 –1603), the author of Humayun Nama, the Rajput Queen Padmini and Mirabai (A.D

1498-1546), the poet-saint of Rajasthan. Each one of them represented a different genre. What

relevance do these three historical ladies hold? They are often seen as protagonists in movies,

programmes and theater. They belong to different worlds and are yet bonded together in

memories for being strong, assertive and commanding.

Domestic Life of the Mughal Ladies

The story of Gulbadan Begum would be essential in trying to entangle the domestic life at the

Mughal court and her discourse will help us to understand how women in the past have been able

to reorganize political structures and institutions. Gulbadan Begum was the youngest daughter of

Babur and aunt of . She was born in 1523 in . At the age of six she travelled to .

She compiled the life of her brother Humayun in Humayun Nama on the request of her nephew,

Akbar. She wrote when she was more than 60 years old. Her book represents a different line of

history as it talks about the domestic life of the Mughal women1. The very fact that Gulbadan

Begum could write the book suggests that the Mughals got their daughters educated. Her

1 Begam, Gulbadan (2001). Humayun-Nama: The History Of Humayun (A S. Beveridge, Trans.) New Delhi: Goodword.

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influence was unparalleled in the royal household and she soon became an integral part of the

Mughal nobility2. Mughal women had become key players. During the reign of Babur (A.D

1483-1530), the first Mughal emperor, monarchy was still in its inception. The domestic world

of Babur and Humayun has been referred to as peripatetic. i.e there were no formal institutions

and the entire Mughal body was on a move3. There were no hierarchies in the domestic world.

The females travelled along with the Mughals as there were no permanent palaces. Gulbadan

begum writes how Humayun would often go and meet his female relatives and discuss with them

important issues. There was hardly any difference in the private and public life till then. But very

soon with the larger empires of Akbar and Jahangir being established, hierarchies developed and

the domestic world became more organized in the harem. We now see that an exclusive

socio-political domain of these women has been created and they are now living in a very strict

environment. They cannot connect to the outside world the way they used to in the earlier period.

But if Akbar tried to consolidate his power by disciplining his woman body it was same with his

body of nobles. The idea was respect. The kind of respect given to womenfolk can be ascertained

from the fact that they played an important role in negotiating peace, solving various challenges

and giving commendable advices to the emperor. All this shakes our belief that the Mughal

emperor was at the helm of affairs. One such instance was that of hajj. The absoluteness of

Akbar is questioned and this brings into light my key concern. Gender norms can empower when

they are broken and this was done by Gulbadan Begum when she vowed to visit holy places. For

a very long time the route from Gujarat to had been very dangerous. But as soon as things

became better, she requested Akbar. Akbar gave permission along with money and goods. She

lived there for almost four years.

2 Hanlon, Rosalind O’.(1999). Manliness And Imperial Service In Mughal North India, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, 42(1), 47-93.

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Authority In The Hands Of Mughal Womenfolk

For Akbar, ‘Manliness’ was only a virtue of discipline bringing about a harmony and balance in

the society. Akbar had ordered all his nobles to read Akhlaq-i-Nasiri of Nasirud-din Tusi. It

presented a model of masculine virtue that talked about morality not only in the administrative

work but also in their respective households. This meant self-control and purity of body. In this

context, homosexual love was a complete no-no. Also, it was necessary to limit him to one wife.

Importance was given to the education of children and daughters could acquire some

accomplishments. This equilibrium in the household was in a larger perspective epitomized by

sulh-i-kul (peace for all).4 So just like other religions in sulh-i-kul, womenfolk also earned

respect. We come to know that Akbar had so much reverence for his aunt Gulbadan Begum that

when she died at the age of 80 in 1603, Akbar carried her bier for some distance and mourned for

two years breathing his last breath in 1605. Akbar did honor women with titles and often kept

women superintendents over them thus making them dependent on him. They were given land

grants and cash allowances just like other nobles. In fact, as new territories came into the empire,

money flowed directly into the pockets of the women who would start their own business

ventures. We have heard of the Meena Baazar organized by the women where they would put up

stalls5. Their earnings would go for charity. Many Rajput princesses in the harem would go and

visit their own families. Some of them even maintained gardens. From being veiled to wielding

authority this was the social-political domain of the women during the Mughal times. It provided

them with a sense of security and self respect in resonance with the modern voices of

emancipation, financial independence, education, rights and above all empowerment. Gulbadan

3 Lal, Ruby. (2005). Domesticity And Power In The Early Mughal World. New York: Cambridge University Press. 4 Hanlon, Rosalind O’. (2007). Kingdom, Household And Body: History, Gender And Imperial Service Under Akbar, Modern Asian Studies, 41(5), 889-923. 5 Fazl, Abul. (1978). Ain-i-Akbari. (H. Blochmann, Trans. Vol. I; H.S Jarrett, Trans. Vols II and III).

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Begum wrote at a time when most of the authors were busy in eulogizing their patrons. The aura

with which she puts down every bit of her experience makes her account commendable.

The legendary Protagonist of Jayasi’s

If Gulbadan Begum’s influence was through her pen, Padmini’s attributes laid in the vivid

narrations in the aftermath of her life. Padmini, the Rajput Queen of Mewar who is the second

woman in my study is a familiar figure. She was contemporary to the Delhi Sultanate period of

the 13th and 14th century. Her legend has various versions6. The most earliest and popular one is

Sufi Malik Muhammad Jayasi’s Padmavat completed in 1540. It is in the form of mystical tale of

love in the genre of Premakhyan written in Avadhi. I am going to focus on this epic poem and try

to understand perceptions about her in the 16th century when it was written. So while my analysis

of Gulbadan Begum was from what she wrote in her account when she was alive, queen

Padmini’s overview would be from what the Sufi poet Jayasi’s Padmavat written two centuries

later. The time periods of both these are contemporary to each other. This will help us to

understand the two worlds- Mughal Women and Rajput Women in the same time zone in a better

manner. Padmini’s story goes like this. Ala-ud-Khalji wants Chittor and attacks it. He

announces that he will remove his troops only when he gets a glimpse of Padmini. Finally her

reflection is shown in the mirror. The Sultan is swayed by her beauty and wants her at any cost.

He tricks Padmini’s husband Ratansen into captivity. Padmini decides to fight and get him back.

When defeat becomes inevitable Rajput women led by Padmini organize and immolate

themselves. This Jauhar does not make the legend of Padmini exemplary. Rather it was the ideal

Rajput womanhood that perpetuated another medieval woman discourse different from that of

Mughal womanhood. This pavitra prototype was similar to what Akbar wanted his noble’s body

6 Sreenivasan, Ramya. (2007). The Many Lives Of A Rajput Queen: Heroic Pasts In India, c. 1500-1900. New Delhi: Permanent Black.

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to be-- as a symbol of purity. Supreme love for Jayasi was the sufi-mystical love to god. Thus the

triumph of mystical love over Ala-ud-din’s corporeal love suggests how Padmini gets the

attributes of a hero as she is the more courageous one7. Her courage to lead other Rajput women

to jauhar had two relevant propositions. First, it would avoid any chances of rape and son’s being

born of mixed blood, second, it would encourage the soldiers to fight zealously. Padmini

abandons the veil and leaves the female domain to protect the kingdom.8 Thus substituting her

husband was a heroic virtue in itself cutting across feminine and masculine boundaries. The way

the theme of Padmini was used by Jayasi as an allegory shows the relevant importance of

feminine attributes over muscular ones. Ratansena is in viraha (anguish due to separation of

love) from his heroine9. Viraha is a state of mind which has been mostly attributed to women. In

Jayasi’s narration the female showcases her supreme love, virtue and higher status by sacrificing

herself on the pyre. Padmini was authoritative in her decisions and stood apart from a typical

Rajput woman. The concept of viraha seems interesting and requires some examination. The

term Viraha is used with Barahmasa to mean the feminine longing of her beloved across 12

months. This concept is central to understanding of women in the medieval times because these

poems started proliferating from such times only. The virahini would connote human soul in

search of god. Thus women’s voices were heard through Barahmasa literature and were written

on different seasons of the year. It is surprising that history writing obsessed with men and their

yearnings have been dominated by feminine literature. The very fact that women have been key

7Harlan, Lindsay, (1994). Religion and Rajput Women: The Ethic of Protection in Contemporary Narratives. Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal. 8 Ibid 9 Jaisi, Malik Muhammad. (1994). Padmavat. ( A. G Shirreff, Trans.). Calcutta: Royal Asiatic Society of Bengal.

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protagonists or nayika 10 in many themes conforms to the emancipated women within the

socio-political domain of medieval India.

A Women’s Voice In The Spiritual World

One significant domain yet not discussed is the spiritual aspect wherein also women left their

imprints. The spiritual world dominated by male bhaktas was reshaped by Mirabai’s bhakti. A

female voice in this sphere redefined gender relations and broke the patriarchal norms of the

medieval Rajput State11. She defined society’s conception about where a woman should be and

how is she required to conduct herself. Mira was born in a village in Merta in Rajasthan in 1498.

In her childhood, she was given a doll of Shri Krishna by her father. She made this as her

lifelong husband. While some stories related to Mirabai certainly have a historicity what really

makes us to contemplate is that even male bhaktas would voice their songs through a woman

separated from her beloved. This holds true for Kabir and Surdas.12 This means that the driving

force behind the Bhakti movement that shook the Brahamanical dominance of Hinduism was a

feminine idiom. This gives immense superiority to the woman’s position which was changing.

Bhakti movement contradicts patriarchal approaches. Even when Mirabai got married into

Chittor she refused to discharge the duties of a wife and daughter in law. She broke norms and

through her personal struggle questioned the very basis of masculinity. She was disapproved,

disgraced, schemed against, disowned and tortured. After her husband’s death she was forced to

commit sati as per tradition. But she resisted all this as she was clear with her goals. She would

10 The Riti Literature of the 17th and 18th century is occupied with naiya-bhed descriptions from head to toe that pushes my stand on the importance of feminine attributes in vernacular sources. 11 Sangari, Kumkum. (1990). Mirabai and the Spiritual Economy of Bhakti, Economic And Political Weekly, 25(27), 1464-1475. 12 Hawley, John Stratton. (2005). Three Bhakti Voices: Mirabai, Surdas and Kabir in their Times and Ours. Delhi: Oxford University Press

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spend her time in discussing spiritual ideas with sadhus and sang bhajans in the name of her

beloved Krishna. Yet we do not see her as immoral or unethical. While Padmini’s strength lay in

the fact that she became a sati, Mirabai refused to do so making it clear that gender norms can

empower women when they are broken. One committed sati while the other did not. Both are

revered for their assertiveness. Padmini’s valor was that she worked as a virtuous wife while

Mirabai’s valor worked in the form of her love towards god. Mirabai’s popularity was

widespread. After many attempts on her life by her brother-in-law she decided to leave Chittor

and wandered as an ascetic. She very soon became a pan-Indian figure. In Vrindavan, we find a

temple devoted to her. Her bhajans brought fame to her. In fact her songs were used as a vehicle

for the expression of frustration by the subordinates like peasants or women constrained by

marital relationships13. There is also a story on how Akbar travelled with Tansen to visit this

woman saint and before leaving placed a necklace on her feet. Though this story does not have

validity in history but her hagiographers certainly raise her to the position of being divine. She

threw away all the traditional feminine signs of ornamentation, makeup and other

embellishments. The only way she wanted to beautify herself was through love of Krishna14.

This was the spiritual domain sprinkled with resentment, assertiveness, tranquility and above all

devotion. Renouncing life to become an ascetic had been the domain of the males as assigned by

the Varnashramas. The fourth one, Sanyas, a devotional life was a prerogative of masculinity in

Vedic Hinduism and for a woman to consume this meant that she had won the emancipated

spirit. The devotion of Mirabai’s self to the deity of Krishna was an attempt to appropriate a

13 Mukta, P. (1994). Upholding the Common Life: The Community of Mirabai. New York: Oxford University Press 14 Jain, P., & Sharma, S. (2002). Honour, Gender And The Legend Of Meera Bai. Economic and Political Weekly, 37, 4646-4650.

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harmonious living with her surroundings in a social milieu which was stressed. Her death

symbolized her soul’s union with the deity of Krishna:

Mira danced with bells on her ankles

People say Mira has gone mad

The mother-in-law says

She devoted the family honor

The king sent her a cup of poison

Mira drank it laughingly,

Offering body and soul at Hari’s feet

Mira drinks the sweetness of his vision

Girdhar is Mira’s Lord

She comes to take refuge in him15

Concluding Remarks

The three women- Gulbadan Begum, and Mirabai were similar in terms of being

born in the same social milieu of the medieval period. Yet they were different in the way they

exemplified themselves. Gulbadan Begum’s highlight came from her pen, Padmini’s relevance

emerged from self-immolation and Mirabai’s strength was justified from her devotion. This

entanglement of the three in a social-political-spiritual realm provides us the perfect recipe to

ascertain the fact that it was a multi-faceted medieval feminine discourse. Patriarchal approaches

were contradicted by intellect, valour and bhakti. Gender norms got broken and medieval

discourse enriched with gender studies.

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Bibliography

Begam, Gulbadan (2001). Humayun-Nama: The History Of Humayun (A S. Beveridge, Trans.)

New Delhi: Goodword.

Fazl, Abul. (1978). Ain-i-Akbari. (H. Blochmann, Trans. Vol. I; H.S Jarrett, Trans. Vols II and

III).

Hanlon, Rosalind O’. (2007). Kingdom, Household And Body: History, Gender And Imperial

Service Under Akbar, Modern Asian Studies, 41(5), 889-923.

____. (1999). Manliness And Imperial Service In Mughal North India, Journal of the Economic

and Social History of the Orient, 42(1), 47-93.

Harlan, Lindsay. (1994). Religion and Rajput Women: The Ethic of Protection in Contemporary

Narratives. Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal.

Hawley, John Stratton. (2005). Three Bhakti Voices: Mirabai, Surdas and Kabir in their Times

and Ours. Delhi: Oxford University Press.

Jain, P., & Sharma, S. (2002). Honour, Gender And The Legend Of Meera Bai. Economic and

Political Weekly, 37, 4646-4650.

Jaisi, Malik Muhammad. (1994). Padmavat. (A. G Shirreff, Trans.). Calcutta: Royal Asiatic

Society of Bengal.

Lal, Ruby. (2005). Domesticity And Power In The Early Mughal World. New York: Cambridge

University Press.

Mukta, P. (1994). Upholding The Common Life: The Community Of Mirabai. New York: Oxford

University Press

Nilsoon, Usha S. (1969). Mirabai- Makers of Indian Literature-. New Delhi: Sahitya Kala

Academy

15 Nilsoon, Usha S. (1969). Mirabai -Makers of Indian Literature. New Delhi: Sahitya Kala Academy

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Sangari, Kumkum. (1990). Mirabai and the Spiritual Economy of Bhakti, Economic and

Political Weekly, 25 (27), 1464-1475

Sreenivasan, Ramya. (2007). The Many Lives Of A Rajput Queen: Heroic Pasts In India, c.

1500-1900. New Delhi: Permanent Black.

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