deception, daughters of Sham and Hem." This morsel of wit is not true of
the women of Egypt in ancient days. The women of the Nile were, as a
rule, remarkably faithful to their obligations to their gods, as they
conceived them, and often to their households and to society. They were
limited, to be sure, in their outlook upon life and service, yet
religious to a fault, and sometimes moral. It has not been long since
there was exhumed in Egypt,--which has proved indeed the most fruitful
of all fields for the archaeologist,--a remarkable prayer engraved upon
the funeral shell of an Egyptian lady who lived in the age of the
Ptolemies. It is a prayer, the sentiments of which show how some of the
essential elements of a commonwealth life have been recognized by good
men and women of all lands and of all ages. The prayer is as follows:
"All my life since childhood I have walked in the path of God. I have
praised and adored Him, and ministered to the priests, His servants. My
heart was true. I have not thrust myself forward. I gave bread to the
hungry, drink to the thirsty, clothes to the naked. My hand was open to
all men. I honored my father, and loved my mother; and my heart was at
one with my townsmen. I kept the hungry alive when the Nile was low."
Here godliness, support of religious ideals and services, truthfulness,
humility, charity for the distressed, honor to parents, and good
citizenship, are recognized as the true conduct and held worthy of the
consideration and reward of the gods.
Among the Christian women of western Egypt of to-day are the Coptic
women. Christianity very early made wide conquests in Egypt, and while
the Christian religion has revolutionized ideals and modified customs,
it has never destroyed many of the social habits that have had racial
sanction for centuries. The Christian church of Egypt is the Coptic
Church, which has existed almost since the beginning of the Christian
era. The women of this fellowship are of course very different in many
respects from the other women of modern Egypt, notably the Mohammedans.
Close to Heliopolis is pointed out a sycamore fig tree called the _Tree
of the Virgin_. It is here, according to the Coptic legend, that Mary
and Joseph rested with their infant son when fleeing from Herod. Not far
away is a miraculous fountain, in which, as the story goes, Mary bathed
the feet of the child Jesus. Having once been salt, the spring now
became wholesome and sweet.
The Copts have preserved their early traditions, and their customs are
in many respects in contrast with those of other people around them. It
is the mother of the young man, not the father who usually makes the
arrangements for their son's marriage. "She goes among her friends to
find a wife for her son, and when after inquiry she discovers a girl
whom she thinks in every way suitable, she informs her son, who is
influenced by her opinion and commits the arrangements to her judgment.
Sometimes the choice of the bride is left to women whose profession it
is to select a fitting bride for the man who employs them, and to open
the preliminary negotiations. There is naturally a good deal of risk in
this; but as women are so entirely secluded in the East, as they are
shut out from their legitimate place in society, such an arrangement
becomes necessary, and so husband and wife are married without having
looked into one another's face." But when once a Copt has chosen a wife,
she is his forever. No divorce is permissible. They are one till death.
When the influences that had early gone out from Egypt and made for art
and learning in all the lands about the Mediterranean began to return
with compound interest from the shores of Greece to the land of the
Lotus, the women as well as the men were destined to feel their power.
Many a woman had her life lifted from the drudgery of the purely
physical life into the higher atmosphere of intellectual pursuits and
attainments. Especially marked was this in Alexandria where the great
library and university were exerting a powerful influence, and
Christianity was making its teachings felt in favor of equality of
opportunity. In that great university town, the first Christian
theological seminary was established, where both men and women might
study the teachings of the Nazarene. Theological discussions at length
became so general in Alexandria that some one has said that "Every
washer-woman in the city was arguing the merits of _homoousian_ and
_homoiousian_ in the streets."
It was in this later period of Egypt's history that there arose one of
the most unique of all female figures. For, of all women who ever lived
in Egypt probably none can be given so high a place for various
attainments and virile powers as must be accorded to Hypatia. She was
born of intellectual ancestry, her father being the mathematician and
philosopher Theon, who lived in the fourth century of our era. She was a
disciple of her father, and had probably been a student in the cultured
city of Athens. Returning to her native city she became a lecturer on
philosophical subjects, and was recognized as a leader in the
neo-Platonic school of her day. She is said to have attracted students
far and wide to her classroom, not by her rare intellectual gifts alone,
but by her charm of manner, her beauty of person, her modesty combined
with real eloquence. Not only in the classroom did she exhibit her power
of persuasion and forceful speech, but in courts of law she proved a
powerful advocate. Her very eloquence, however, was her undoing, for
because of the strife that arose in Alexandria between Christian sects
and aroused them to the white heat of controversy and hate, the gifted
Hypatia lost her life in a manner most horrible. Torn from the chariot
in which she was riding she was dragged to the Caesareum--which had been
converted into a Christian church--stripped naked in the presence of a
howling, fanatical mob, and then cut to pieces with oyster shells. A
horrible blot is this upon Alexandrian life and a fearful comment upon
the wild extravagances that were sometimes enacted while Christianity
was disentangling itself from paganism.
Truly wonderful has been the life history of this land of the lotus
flower. Once the seat of the highest learning, by its fertilizing Nile
the feeder of the bodies as well as the minds of men; later, the home of
Greek philosophy and of Christian theology--it is to-day little reckoned
with, except as a prize for stronger powers. Some day its natural wealth
may redeem it, and its women put off their rags, or their veil, and
exert new power in the march of progress.
VII
THE WOMEN OF THE HINDOOS
The mother of the primitive Aryan or Indo-European stock would surely
be an interesting character if we could with certainty reconstruct her
from her descendants of the several branches of that family which sent
out the Hindoo, the Persian, the Greek, the Roman, the Slav, the
Scandinavian, the Teuton, and the Celt. The part these races have played
in the world's drama would indicate that the womanhood of ancient Iran
could not have been lacking in qualities that made both for endurance
and for progress. The ancient Hebrew tradition that Japheth should be
enlarged even to dwelling in the tents of Shem seems realized in this
far-spreading Aryan family. It is interesting to note that the word for
"daughter" in all the branches of this family of languages is the same;
the two roots of which it is composed signify to draw milk, attesting
not only to the primitive pastoral condition of the peoples, but also to
the common occupation of the girl as milkmaid in the days before the
several migrations took place. India is a populous country, there being
two hundred and fifty million people living in Hindoostan. These consist
of Hindoos, Mohammedans, Eurasians, Europeans, and Jews. There is
considerable variety, therefore, of custom and condition among these
millions. Among those who prefer this or that particular form of
religion there is a sameness of social condition, though local
peculiarities may be discovered. There is probably no country where the
details of life are performed with such scrupulous regard for the
prescriptions of custom and religion. The great religions to-day differ
among themselves upon many points; but so far as their teachings
concerning women are concerned, they are in wonderful agreement. The
sacred books of India, the Vedas, and other writings, the code of Manu,
for example, were vested with an authority that had untold influences in
the shaping of woman's destiny in the land of the Hindoos. Originally,
that is, in the earliest Aryan civilization,--for non-Aryan people
preceded the coming of the people of western Asia,--women were held in
esteem and exerted unusual influence. Some of the most beautiful hymns
of this ancient period are products of women's genius. The great epics
of _Mahabharata_ and _Ramayana_, with their wealth of female character,
belong to this early Aryan period. Considering her place in later Hindoo
history, the great attention given to woman in the Hindoo literature is
noteworthy. No country of the Orient can furnish a literature in which
woman is given a larger place, or to which women have contributed more
frequently. The names of Ahulya, Tara, Mandadari, Lita, Kunti, and
Draupadi are familiar to students of this Indian literature. The
_Mahabharata_ and the _Ramayana_ are the two most important of the
ancient epics of India. Both give a considerable place to women. The
chivalry of man and the virtue of women furnish here as elsewhere the
base of legendary literature.
"The ideas of the human family are few," says Mr. E. Wilson, in
_Literature of the Orient_, "when the world's great epics are compared,
the same old story of human struggles and achievements are sung, though
with variations. The same heroes and heroines occur again and again
through the world's history; and although in literary merit, in the
points of artistic proportions and movement, the great Epics of Greece
and Rome, the _Iliad_, the _Odyssey_, the _Aeneid_, are found to surpass
the _Ramayana_ and the _Mahabharata_, yet the ideals of love, marriage,
conjugal fidelity, are no stronger in the Western classics, and indeed
the moral tone of the Eastern masterpieces is more elevated than that of
the classic writings of Greece and Rome." Like characters appear in the
great works. Not the least interesting of those in the Eastern epos is
Krishna, the faithful wife of Arjuna, the Hindoo Hector, a heroine who
may readily be compared with the devoted Andromache. The story of Arjuna
bringing home Draupadi as a prize, and of his mother bidding him share
her charms with his brothers, seems to point to a time when polyandry
was practised in India. The method by which Draupadi chose her husband
from among her five suitors reveals also an early Hindoo custom known as
the _Svayamvara_. Those who seek the young girl's hand are invited to be
present in some public place where the ceremonies may readily be carried
out. The company forms itself into a ring; and the maiden, making the
round of the circle, tosses a garland of flowers upon the head of the
one whom she prefers. The marriage rite is then performed. Much
bloodshed was wont to occur on such occasions, because of the
disappointment of the unsuccessful suitors.
It is not to be supposed, however, that the choice was prompted by the
impulse of the moment or by some sudden fascination. The girl usually
knew the records of her suitors, and her selection was based upon
previous acquaintance and deliberate preference.
Indeed, in marked contrast with the present customs of India, it seems
clear that in early times brides, especially of the higher classes, not
uncommonly made choice of their own spouses. This may be seen in the
Hindoo story of the faithful wife. An early ruler of Madra, Ashvapati, a
pious and virtuous king, was much beloved by his people. He was
childless. Many years did he spend in prayer for offspring. The gods
gave him a daughter, who grew up to be a woman of surpassing beauty;
but, strangely enough, no prince sought her hand in marriage. Her
father, therefore, according to the ancient Hindoo law, sent her forth
to choose her own husband. At length she returned with the man of her
love, Savitri:
"Carried in a fair, soft litter mid the peoples' welcoming,
Came the queen and good Savitri to the city of the King."
Among the choicest women of early Hindoo epics is Sita, heroine of the
_Ramayana_. The famous poet Valmiki is supposed to have been the author;
but the poem in its present form is supposed to contain additions made
even as late as the Christian era, though its earliest portions probably
go back to a period as early as the third century before Christ. The
_Ramayana_ is accounted among the sacred books of India, and special
spiritual considerations, such as forgiveness of sin and prosperity, are
thought to be the reward of those who diligently study it. Sita, the
heroine, is the wife of Rama, the son of Dasharatha, who had long
mourned his childlessness. This Dasharatha, a descendant of the sun,
lives in the city of Ayodhya, the modern Oudh, a place of beauty and
splendor:
"In bygone ages built and planned
By sainted Manu's princely hand."
But the line of the prince is threatened with extinction. He decides to
lay his plea before the gods by the sacrifice known as the _Asva-Medha_,
in which the victim is a horse. After the offering has been made with
extraordinary magnificence, the high priest in charge makes known to the
king that he shall have four sons to uphold his royal prerogatives and
maintain Dasharatha's line. One of these is Rama, whose wife Sita was a
woman of extraordinary beauty:
"Rama's darling wife,
Loved was as he loved his life;
Whom happy marks combined to bless,
A miracle of loveliness."
And Sita was deeply devoted to her lord. But the demon Ravana desires
ardently to possess the fair queen. He hits upon a plan to gain access
to her quarters. Assuming the form of a humble priest, an ascetic, he
gains possession of her by craft; and, taking her in his chariot, he
carries her away to Lanka, a "fair city built upon an island of the
sea." Thus Rama, like Menelaus of the classic myth, has lost the woman
of his love. Rama decides to make use of a large army of monkeys, with
which he will march against the city of Lanka. But the wide waters
stretch between him and the island where his fair Sita is in possession
of the vile Ravana. Rama invokes the goddess of the sea, and she comes
in radiant beauty, telling how a bridge may be built to cross the waters
that lie between the royal lovers. The monkeys--as busy as the little
imps that reared the temple of Solomon, according to the Mohammedan
legend--build a bridge of stones and timbers. Lanka is reached, and Rama
begins the fight for her possession. Indra looks down from heaven upon
the holy contest and decides to send his own chariot down, that Rama may
mount in it and ride to victory. In single combat, riding in Indra's
chariot, Rama vanquishes Ravana, and Sita, his wife, is restored to his
bosom.
As evidence of the exalted nature of the early ideals of womanhood and
of man's faithfulness to the dictates of true love, we may turn to the
words of Prince Nala, who even when about to ingloriously forsake his
unprotected wife, sleeping in a dangerous wood, spoke thus:
"Ah, sweetheart, whom not sun nor wind before,
Hath even rudely touched, thou to be couched
In this poor hut, its floor thy bed, and I,
Thy lord, deserting thee, stealing from thee
Thy last robe, O my love with bright smile,
My slender waisted queen. Will she not wake
To madness? Yea, and when she wanders lone
In the dark road, haunted with beasts and snakes,
How will it fare with Bhima's tender child--
The bright and peerless? O my life, my wife,
May the great sun, may the Eight Powers of air,
Guard thee thou true and dear one on thy way."
Woman occupies an interesting place in many of the early fables of
India. Sir Edwin Arnold has translated into English a number of the
stories from the _Hitopadesha_, which has been called "the father of all
fables," and may easily take rank with the illustrious Aesop. Stories
which present womanly traits, the tricks and wiles of love, are there,
and are graphically told. Such are the fables of _The Prince_ and the
_Wife of the Merchant's Son_, which illustrate how the darts of love,
even in ancient India, struck their mark without waiting upon reason or
social standing, as the handsome prince, son of Virasena, cries
concerning the beautiful Lavanyavati: "The god of the five shafts has
hit me; only her presence can cure my wound."
An account of woman in Hindoo literature would be incomplete without
some allusion to the drama. This was developed after the Alexandrian
conquest and shows marks of Greek influence. In the drama we may discern
woman of Brahmanic India from an interesting viewpoint. Of all the
dramatic productions of the Hindoo poets, there is none so famous as
that of Shakuntala, by Kalidasa, the great court poet of Vikramaditya.
As is true of many of the earlier Hindoo masterpieces the exact date of
its composition is not known. Some students place this work as early as
the first, some as late as the fifth century of the Christian era. The
drama of Shakuntala is of interest as illustrating the effect of caste.
It is a drama in seven acts, and, because of its importance, its story
may be recounted.
As King Dushyanta, King of India, is driving in his chariot through a
forest, armed with his bows and arrows, in hot pursuit of a black
antelope, a word forbids him to slay the innocent creature. It is the
word of a hermit and the antelope belongs to the hermitage. The king is
obedient to the request, and is conducted to the dwelling of the great
saint Kanva, who is absent upon a distant pilgrimage, and has left his
foster-daughter Shakuntala in charge of his companions. The king finds
himself in the midst of a secret grove. He stops his chariot and
alights. As he goes reverently through these holy woods "he feels a
sudden throb in his arm. This argues happy love and soon he sees the
maidens of the hermitage approaching to sprinkle the young shrubs with
watering pots suited to their strength." Among these beautiful maidens,
rare in form and grace, the king observes one especially; it is
Shakuntala, foster-daughter of the hermit, half concealed by the trees,
but standing "like a blooming bud enclosed within a sheath of yellow
leaves." A beautiful girl is she, but the king stands puzzled. For if she
be of purely Brahmanic birth, she is prohibited from marrying one of the
warrior class, even though he be the king. As Shakuntala moves about
watering the flowers of the wood, she starts a bee from one of the
jasmine flowers. The bee pursues her, as if to do her harm with its
sting, but Dushyanta comes to the rescue; and the fair girl of the
hermitage feels some strange thrill as she sees the king, an unusual
visitant in that hallowed neighborhood. Off she hurries with her two
companions, but a series of happy accidents enables her to cast side
glances at the king: a prickly Kusa-grass has stung her foot, she must
wait a moment, a bush has caught her robe, she must stop to disentangle
it. And love is born. In the second act, while Dushyanta is thinking of
his love, two hermits arrive who tell him that demons have taken
advantage of Kanva's absence from the sacred grove and are disturbing
the sacrifices, and requests that he come and defend the grove from
their intrusion. He consents with keen delight and he will not leave the
grove, even though his mother requests his presence at a sacrifice
offered in his own behalf. He sends his representative, but cautions him
to say nothing concerning his love for the fair Shakuntala. In the third
act, the king is discovered walking in the hermitage calling upon the
god of love "whose shafts are flowers, though the flowers' darts are
hard as steel." He tracks the object of his love by the broken stems of
the flowers she had plucked in her rambles, and at length finds her in
an arbor with her attendants. She reclines upon a stone bench strewn
with flowers, she looks pale and wasted. Her maidens seek to know the
cause of her sickness, and she tells her love in a poem, written on a
lotus leaf. Just here the king rushes in and avows his passion. He tries
to overcome her scruples against a marriage, so out of accord with the
regulations of caste. He hears a voice of ill omen telling of the demons
"swarming round the altar fires." He hastens to the rescue. In the
fourth act, Shakuntala is seen wearing the signet ring of the king,
which ring has the charm to restore the king's love, should it ever grow
cold. Kanva returns from his pilgrimage in time to see the preparations
being made for Shakuntala's departure. The old hermit submits resignedly
to her going and gives his blessing to the departing one. The fifth act
presents Dushyanta, like King Saul, overcome with a deep and stubborn
melancholy. He is under a curse of Durvasas, and this induces complete
forgetfulness of his wife Shakuntala. "Why has this strain," says the
king, "thrown over me so deep a melancholy, as though I am separated
from some loved one?" Here the hermit and Shakuntala, who is about to
become a mother, are ushered into the presence of the king. He does not
know her; denies he ever knew her. The Shakuntala is about to produce
from her finger the ring which should be proof of the marriage. But,
alas! she discovers it to be lost. "It must have slipped off, in the
holy lake when thou wast offering sacrifices," said Gantami, who had
accompanied her. The king laughs derisively. Despite her endeavors, the
king fails to recollect the marriage. The sad Shakuntala buries her
hands in her robes and sobs piteously. At length the ring is found by a
fisherman, in the belly of a carp. It is brought to the king, who places
it upon his finger, when he is overcome with a flood of recollections.
But his wife and little son have been carried away to a secret grove far
away from earth in the upper air. The king, conducted in the celestial
car Indra, at length joins them. There the royal pair are reconciled and
reunited, and the drama comes to a close with a prayer to Siva.
Many of the Hindoo lyrics breathe of love and woman's graces, showing
now a high respect for womanly charms, now indulging in humor at her
frailties. "The God of Love," says the poet Bhartrihari, "sits fishing
on the ocean of the world, and on the end of his hook he has hung a
woman. When the little human fishes come they are not on their guard,
quickly he catches them and broils them in love's fire." Again, the poet
sings: "She whom I love, loves another, while another is pleased with
me." A song from the famous Kalidasa will illustrate the poet's attitude
toward a woman of beauty.
"Thine eyes are blue like flowers; thy teeth
White jessamine; thy face is very like a lotus flower,
So thy body must be made of the leaves of
Most delicate flowers; how comes it then
That God hath given thee a heart of stone?"