In his message to the All India Women’s Conference in 1936, Gandhi’s views on the issue of women’s freedom and strength in the struggle to build a humane and exploitation-free society was reflected. He pronounced without any ambiguity that women are a self-conscious subject who can become arbiters of their own destiny. But then, how do we understand Gandhi on women?

Any approach that aims to evaluate Gandhi’s general understanding of the nature of women’s oppression in India and his views on the role of women in the society and on an ideal manwoman relationship may lay bare his ideas about women’s empowerment and their role in building a social order. This paper aims to unravel the ideologies underlying Gandhi’s perspective on women and then traces Gandhi’s views on, of and about women. Before we proceed further on the subject, a few issues need to be addressed. The first is the status of women and its change over the period. The second is a conceptual understanding about womanhood.

The third is women’s empowerment and the fourth is the Gandhian ideology of sexuality. Historically viewed, the status of women in India was fairly satisfactory during the Vedic period when there was equality between the sexes in the field of religious and other social activities. Girls were given education and married at about eighteen years of age. Love marriages were in vogue and widow marriage was allowed. During the last 2,000 years, the general condition of women has been deteriorating. The status of women in India has, however, varied in different periods and among different classes, religions and ethnic groups.

In fact, the deterioration of women’s status began during the age of Sutras, the Epics, and the early Smritis. The passion for all round reform arose at the beginning of the 19th century, mainly on account of the impact of Western culture. The pre-independence era witnessed the exploitation of women in and outside the home. The Gandhian period and even the prior period is marked by the philosophy of some of the brilliant social reformers and thinkers such as Raja Ram Mohan Roy and Swami Dayanand Sarawati who strived endlessly to bring about a change in the condition of Indian women so that they became ‘better wives’ and ‘better mothers’.

Gandhi observed that womanhood, as distinct from motherhood and wifehood, is linked with a few traits by virtue of which she would find a new dignity in public life, a new place in the national mainstream, a new confidence, a new self-view and a consciousness that she could fight against oppression. In short, she would become an active subject or agent of re form not only of her own predicament but of the whole society. Gandhi opined that empowerment is a process by which people get opportunities to realise the existence of infinite power within and with this power, they create a change in their lives, transform themselves on their own and then change the social structures. Once empowered, women would regain the spirit of strength and courage, the power of independent thinking and initiative by virtue of which they would be able to combat the forces of social tyranny. Sexuality, according to Gandhi, is about one’s sexual feelings, thoughts, attractions and behaviours towards other people.

It includes all aspects of sexual behaviour, including gender identity, orientation, attitudes and activity. On the basis of the concepts of these four important aspects, let us now elaborate. Gandhi was of the view that women had been suppressed under custom and law for which man was responsible and in the shaping of which she had no hand. He was opposed to the idea of inculcating the culture by which women regard themselves as slaves of men. He wanted women to realise their full status and play their roles as equals of men. He emphasised that the role of women in the political, economic and social emancipation of the country was of overriding importance. Gandhi had immense faith in the capability of women to carry on a non-violent crusade. Under his guidance and leadership, women shouldered critical responsibilities in India’s struggle for freedom. They bravely faced the batons of the police and even went behind bars.

Gandhi’s exhortation to women to join India’s struggle for independence was instrumental in transforming the outlook of women. Swaraj uprooted age-old taboos and restrictive customs. As regards the economic emancipation of women, Gandhi felt that women could take up economic activities to supplement the income of their families by using charkas for spinning. In the social realm, Gandhi envisaged a critical role for women in doing away with the force of communalism, caste system and untouchability. He realised that there were deep-rooted customs hampering the development of women, and women’s freedom from such shackles was necessary for the emancipation of the nation. Sita, Damyanti and Draupadi were the three ideals of Indian womanhood that Gandhi repeatedly invoked as inspirations for the downtrodden women of India.

He did not favour women asking for patronage. “If women were to be free they had to be fearless.” His constant message to them was that bravery and courage were not the monopoly of men. Even if all women could not become ‘Rani of Jhansi’, they could emulate the still better example of Sita whom even the mighty Ravana did not dare to touch. “The real strength of women is their purity, chastity and virtues. Women would be as self-reliant as Draupadi was,” said Gandhi. The oppressive custom of dowry too came under fire from Gandhi. According to him, the only honourable terms in marriage are mutual love and mutual consent. He preferred that women should rise above wifehood and become sisters. “Women must not feel that they are their husband’s absolute property”, opined Gandhi. He did not see marriage and motherhood as the only mission in life for every young woman. He encouraged those who wanted to live a socially useful life to remain unmarried.

(The writer is Director and CEO, Sayantan Consultants Pvt. Ltd.)