Sabarimala: What is good for the man is good for the woman
By Dr Birbal Jha
To resolve the Sabarimala Temple issue, let’s take an English proverb – ‘what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.’ This saying of wisdom is used to emphasize that if one person is allowed to do something or to behave in a particular way, then another person must be permitted to carry out that thing or conduct himself or herself in that way too.
A goose is a female bird whereas a gander is male in the context. Notably, this proverb was first recorded in 1678 in the west where gender discrimination does not arise now. This adage paves the way for equality of rights in all aspects without any riders. Irrespective of gender, caste, creed or religion, equal opportunities of living, rituals and lifestyles must be ensured, it seeks.
In other words, we can say –what is good for the man is good for the woman. Hence, when a rule applies to one applies to both male and female in our society. Whether there is a temple or mosque or church or gurudwara, what matters most is a human being. It is 2019 now when India is still stuck with sex-determination and discrimination with respect to the entry of menstruating women to Ayyappa Temple at Sabarimala in Kerala.
The apex court is tasked with a review petition of a liberal verdict in favour of women against male chauvinism. Can’t we rise above all these and move on, taking lessons from birds and animals? The Sabarimala temple issue is more of a political tool than anything else.
It was 2018 when the Supreme Court ordered the unrestricted entry of women into the temple. The matter should have been settled and the court would have been engaged with other pending issues. But then the political tug of war is ostensible, with parties throwing their weight. On the one hand, we take resort to the Manusmriti, an ancient legal text among the many Dharmasatras of Hinduism wherein a verse goes like this -where women are worshipped, there lives God, wherever they are not worshipped, all actions fail.
On the other, a section of society petitions the court to restrict menstruating women’s entry into the temple. This is a paradoxical approach which needs revisiting. This holds true that the world has been a male chauvinistic society. But then, rectifications are continuously in progress. India is a very progressive society. It cannot afford to be entangled in such an issue. It needs to move on, correcting and junking trivial issues.
(Dr Birbal Jha is Managing Director of Lingua Multiservices Pvt Ltd)
