Manusmriti is known to be the one of the most controversial works of Hindu literature owing to its controversial discrimination of women and Shudras(the out casters). Many of the scholars have however argued that the relevance or awareness of the scripture was not considered much until the troops made it an important part of Hindu Dharmasastra (genre of Hindi text). Like this they could raise controversies against Hindus and humiliate them for their discriminating beliefs. It is however very much clear that the scripture doesn't authorize support for the outcastes such as Shudras. Some of the laws related to the discrimination amongst Shudras (the out casters) and the Brahmans (superior caste) present in Manusmriti are;
- Whatever exists in the world is the property of the Brahmana; on account of the excellence of his origin the Brahmana is indeed, entitled to it all.
- One occupation only the lord prescribed to the Shudra is to serve meekly even these other three castes.
- He (the twice born) must never read The Vedas (holy book) ----- in the presence of the shudras.
- A shudra who insults a twice born man with gross invective, shall have his tongue cut out; for he is of low origin.
- If he mentions names and castes of the (twice born) with contumely, an iron nail, ten fingers, shall be thrust red hot into his mouth.
- No collection of wealth must be made by a Shudra even though he’ll be able to do it; for a Shudra who has acquired wealth gives pain to Brahmana.
The laws are just an example to of the discrimination between the Shudras and the Brahmans. Hindu practiced this discrimination for a long period of time. Even touching a Shudra was believed to be a sin by Brahmans. This discrimination really suppressed the Shudras in the community. Though this is practiced by very less regions now, but this is a part of their culture and civilization. Some people are still considered to be out casters by Hindus. Unequal power amongst people is still an important part of their civilization.
Manu stated some other laws related to the status of women in their society. They are some of the important ones from the numerous laws. These laws are again very controversial and suppressed the female gender in the society.
- Even though the husband be of bad character and seeks pleasure elsewhere he must be of bad character and seeks pleasure elsewhere he must be constantly worshipped.
- A wife who has committed faults may be beaten with a rope or a split bamboo.
- Wife, son and slave, these three are said to be without property: whatever property they acquire is his to whom they belong.
- No act is to be done according to her own will by a young girl, a young woman, or even by an old woman, though in their own houses. In her childhood a girl should be under the will of her father; in her youth, of her husband; her husband being dead, of her sons; a woman should never enjoy her own will. She must never wish separation of her self from her father, husband, or sons, for by separation from them a woman would make both families contemptible. She must always be cheerful and clever in household business, with the furniture well cleaned, and with not a free hand in expenditure.
- Women do not care for beauty [in men], nor is their attention fixed on [a man's] age; thinking, it is enough that he is a man, they give themselves to the handsome and to the ugly [and to the old as well as to the young?].
- To a distinguished, handsome suitor of equal caste should a father give his daughter in accordance with the prescribed rule, though she have not attained the proper age; but a maiden, though marriageable, should rather stay in the father's house until death than that he should ever give her to a man destitute of good qualities.
- By a girl, by a young woman, or even by an aged one, nothing must be done independently, even in her own house.
- At her pleasure let her emaciate her body by living on pure flowers, roots, and fruit; but she must never even mention the name of another man after her husband has died.
- A twice-born man, versed in the sacred law, shall burn a wife of equal caste who conducts herself thus and dies before him with the sacred fires used for the Agnihotra and with the sacrificial implements. Having thus, at the funeral, given the sacred fires to his wife who dies before him, he may marry again and again kindle the fires.
By reading these laws we can easily analyze that women were not given any sort of power and liberty. They were believed to be the property of men. They didn’t have any sort of say in the family. Women were just an element used to reproduce and satisfy the physical needs of the men. This is why Hindu culture is male dominant and women hold less autonomy. Still today this male dominant feature is very common in their society. Men are given more independence than women and play a superior role in the society. It is hard for a woman to survive all alone in a typical Hindu culture. These laws are very important in the Hindu culture, because all the ancestors have been practicing the same laws in their society. Though laws are not that strictly practiced in present time, but they still have their mere existence in the societal customs and beliefs practiced today.
Comparison with Other Civilizations
All civilizations have their own myths about the great flood. Their theme of the story is almost the same such as;
- Humans are guilty of disobedience.
- God sends a great flood as their punishment.
- God instructs a pious man to build a craft.
- The instructions ensure the survival of all species on the ark.
- The flood destroys the whole civilization.
- After the flood, a new and less sinful race emerges to repopulate the earth.
Islamic
Their God Allah sent his prophet Noah to warn the people to serve none but Allah, but most of them did not listen. They challenged Noah so under Allah's inspiration, he built a ship. Allah strictly told Noah not to apologize Him on the behalf of wrongdoers and sinful people; they would definitely be drowned. In time, water gushed from underground and fell in large quantity from the sky. Noah loaded his ship with pairs of all kinds, his household, and those few who believed in him. One of Noah's own sons didn't believe his father and said he would seek safety in the mountains once flood comes. Even he was among the drowned. Allah commanded the earth to fade the water and the sky to clear, and the ship came to rest on Al-Judi. Finally Noah complained to Allah for taking his son. Allah admonished that his own son was an wrongdoer and not of Noah's household. Noah kept praying for forgiveness. Allah told Noah that he has His blessings and he must carry on with His words.
Persian
In the early times, the earth was full of malign creatures who were the followers of the evil Ahriman. The angel Tistar (the star Sirius) descended three times, in the form of man, horse, and bull respectively, causing ten days and ten nights of rain each time. Each rain drop falling on the land became as big as a bowl, and the water rose till the height of a man over the whole earth. The first flood drowned all the creatures, but the dead noxious creatures went into holes inside the earth. Before returning to produce the second flood, Tistar, in the form of a white horse, battled the demon Apaosha, who took the form of a black horse. Ormuzd killed the demon with lightning and thunder, making the demon cry which can still be heard in thunderstorms, and Tistar prevailed and caused rivers to flow. The poison washed away from the land in the second flood that acctually made the seas salty. The waters were driven to the ends of the earth by a great wind and became the sea Vourukasha.
Sumerian
According to the Semitic Babylonian epic of Gilagamesh there is a flood story which is similar to the Noah story. The Gods determined to cleanse the earth of an overpopulated humanity, but Utnapishtim their hero was warned by the God Ea in a dream. He along with some craftsmen built a huge, seven decks encompassing one acre in area ark. Utnapishtim then loaded the ark with his family, his men and "some other living creatures." The flood waters rose up along with the storm continued for six days and six nights. The Gods felt sorrow and wept upon the destruction of world and other living beings and stopped the flood on the seventh day. The waters covered everything instead of the mountain named Nisur, where his boat landed. On his way a dove was loosed, but it returned when he found no place to rest. After seven days, having loosed a raven that did not return to the ark, the people began to emerge on the land. Utnapishtim finally made a sacrifice to the Gods. In reward He and his wife were given immortality and lived till the end of the earth.
Babylonian
Three times (every 1200 years), the Gods became upset by the trouble created from human overpopulation on the land. Firstly God decided to deal with the problem by plague, then by famine. Both the times, the god Enki advised humans to bribe the god causing the trouble. The third time, Enlil recommend the Gods to destroy all humans with a great flood, but Enki had Atrahasis quickly build an ark to escape. On the boat there were cattles, wild animals, birds and their own families. Soon after seeing the suffering caused by the great flood, the gods intensely regretted their action.
Hebrew
Their story is also based on the Babylonian story with the only difference that the flood was a unsympathetic punishment for humanity's sinfulness. Noah was aged 600 years when it began to rain for what ended up being 40 days and 40 nights. After the end of 150 days, the waters started fading away. Finally ark rested in the seventh month upon the mountains of Ararat. Waters kept decreasing till the 10th month, on the first day of the 10th month; tops of mountains could also be seen. Soon after the end of 40 days, Noah opened the windows of his ark. First, he sent a raven, which went to and fro. He then sent a dove, which returned because it couldn’t see the land. After seven more days, another dove was loosed; it returned that evening with an olive leaf. After a year and 10 days from the flood, many creatures emerged from the ark. During the journey Noah sacrificed some of its clean animals and birds to God. In return God was pleased with this and promised him that He will never destroy all living creatures ever again.
Zoroastrian
Their god Ahura Mazda warned Yima (their hero) that destruction in the form of floods will take place very soon due to subsequent to the melting of the snow. It was a threat to the sinful world and gave him instructions fto build a Vara. He was ordered to take along some specimens of small and large cattle, humans, dogs, birds, fires, plants and foods.
Greco-Roman
Zeus the roman god decided to punish humanity for its evil deeds. Many other gods grieved at the destruction because there would be noone left to worship them. Zeus promised them a new stock. With another god Poseidon's help, he produced storm and earthquake to flood every part of the land except the summit of Mount Parnassus. The rivers began rushing to the sea. Sea and land could no longer be distinguished; all was sea without any shores, covering every living being except for one fortunate couple, Deucalion and Pyrrha. Earlier they had consulted Themis at her oracular shrine. She was warned of a future flood, and they prepared by acquiring a boat. In time, their boat ran aground on the summit of Mount Parnassus.
Recognizing their piety, Zeus allowed them to live and withdrew the waters. Later the couple tried to repopulate the world from the start.
Jicarilla (Apache)
Before their own civilization appeared on the world, there were other people living on the earth. Dios their god told an old man and old woman that it would rain forty days and nights. People were warned to go to the tops of four mountains (Tsisnatcin, Tsabidzilhi, Becdilhgai, and another whose identity isn't known) and were strictly warned to not to look at the flood or sky. The people didn't believe this old couple. When the rains started, only a few people made it to the mountain tops and shut their eyes. Those who looked at the flood turned into fish or frogs; if they looked at the sky, they turned into birds. After eighty days, Dios the god told the remaining 24 people to open their eyes and come down. Eight other people survived the floods, who were able to travel by looking where they wanted to go, and they were there. The saviors told the Apaches about the great flood. They told them that around the turn of the millennium, the earth will again be destroyed and this time it was fire.
Mayan
Their God sent the flood because his people were made from wood (an early version of humans). They had no souls, minds or hearts and had forgotten how they were produced. They wanted to escape the flood, but even their animals starved and beaten, their pots were even burnt, and the trees they had even stripped. Nothing could help them now. Only a few were saved, and their descendants are believed to be monkeys.
Aztec
A pious man named Tapi once lived in the Valley of Mexico. His god told him to build a boat to survive, take his wife and a pair of every animal that existed on the land. He told his neighbors about it, they thought he was crazy. As soon as he completed, it began to rain. The whole valley flooded; men and animals ran to the mountains, but they were of no help as they got destroyed too. Finally the rain ended and waters receded. Tapi beleived that the flood waters receded after he sent a dove that never returned.
Squamish
When the old Squamish people saw the great flood coming, they made a giant canoe and a long rope of cedar fibers to fasten it with a giant rock. They filled the canoe with every baby, a young man and woman to be their guardians, and food and plenty of water. The flood waters rose tremendously and drowned everyone else on the land. After several days of flooding, the man saw Mount Baker in the near distance. He quickly cut the rope and paddled the canoe to the land. Soon they made a new home there.
Skagit
Their god created the earth and gave four names for it -- for the sun, waters, soil and forests. He said only a few people with lots of knowledge should know all four names, or the world would change too suddenly. Soon everyone learned the four names. Soon when people started talking to the trees the change came in the form of a flood. When the people saw the flood coming, they produced a giant canoe and filled it with five people and a male and female of all plants and animals. Water covered everything on the land but the summit of Kobah and Takobah (Mts. Baker and Ranier). The canoe landed on the plain. Doquebuth, the new Creator, was born of a couple from the canoe. He delayed in getting his spirit powers, but finally got soon after his family deserted him. At the direction of the Old Creator, he made people again from the soil and from the bones of the people who lived before the great flood began.
Mandingo
A very generous man gave away everything he had. His god Ouende rewarded him with riches and advised him to leave the area. He told that there will be six months of rain that will also destroy his selfish neighbors. The descendants of the rich man became the present human race.
Yakima
In early times, many of their people had gone to war with other tribes, but there were still some good people left with them. One of the good men heard from the skies that a big water flood was coming. He told the other good people and decided they would make a hollow boat from the largest cedar they could find. Soon after the canoe was finished, the flood water came, filling the valleys and even covered the mountains. All the bad people were drowned and the good people were safe in the boat. We still don't know how long the flood continued.
Holy Book; Satapatha Brahmana
