Guest guest Posted June 9, 2007 Report Share Posted June 9, 2007 Slaves to the goddess of fertility By Damian Grammaticas BBC News, Bagalkot, southern India Friday, 8 June 2007 In a village in southern India a child has just been born. A group of women gather round the cradle, wishing the baby a life full of riches, rubies and pearls. " You're lucky the child is a boy, " the women tell the mother. In this society girls are valued far less. The women are all devadasis, literally slaves of the goddess. As children their parents gave them to serve Yellama - the goddess of fertility. Her cult is thousands of years old, her followers spread across southern India. At the temple to Yellama in Saundatti women dance and praise the goddess. The practice of dedicating young girls as devadasis has been outlawed for over 50 years, but still it happens. Anti-slavery campaigners estimate that there are at least 25,000 devadasis in the state of Karnataka alone. Sexual slavery " Being devadasis means we are slaves of the goddess. We have to visit this temple. We wear necklaces of pearls to show we are bound to Yellama. We give blessings and perform her rituals, " says Imla, a devadasi in her 40s who is swathed in a pink and yellow sari. When girls dedicated to Yellama reach puberty they are forced to sacrifice their virginity to an older man. What follows is a life of sexual slavery, they become sanctified prostitutes. The money devadasis earn goes straight to their parents who often act as pimps for their daughters. " My parents didn't have any sons, so there was nobody to earn the family a living, " says Imla. " Instead they turned me into a whore. I don't even remember when I started because I was so young. My parents thought at least they'd get some money from me. " Once girls are dedicated the course of their lives is decided. They can never marry, never have a family life. In a town nearby we found Shoba who is just 20 and has been a devadasi prostitute for seven years. Shoba showed me her brothel, a single room she shares with her parents. She comes from a long line of devadasis. Her grandmother was one, her sister is too. Shoba remembers how, when she was 13 her parents dressed her as if for marriage. They auctioned her virginity to the highest bidder. Tough life " When the first man arrived I thought he was going to marry me, " Shoba recalls, " but he slept with me and then never came back. I realised this was now my trade. Every night I was sold to whoever paid the most. " Life here on the dry, harsh Deccan plateau has always been tough, especially for girls, who are often seen as a burden for poor families, expensive to marry off. Recent years have been marked by droughts and crop failures. Campaigners say there are 25,000 devadasis in Karnataka state alone The goddess of fertility is seen as a powerful force. Many believe that giving girls to Yellama will bring good fortune on a family. It also means they don't have to save for a dowry, and the daughter becomes a bread-winner. We found Shoba's mother Satyavati tending to her field of sunflowers. Sacrificing their daughter's life has enriched Shoba's parents. " Someone had to continue the tradition. It had to be my daughters, " she shrugs. " Because Shoba earns so much money she has been able to build us a house, and she bought these fields. So what's the big deal? " Secret ceremonies Despite campaigns by India's national and state governments, the system of devadasis endures. The number of young girls being dedicated is declining. But now the ceremonies happen in secret, so it is impossible to know exact numbers. I asked Shoba why she doesn't just give up being a devadasi, and leave it behind? " I can't get out of the system, even if I say I'm not a devadasi any more nobody will come forward to marry me, " she says. " I keep telling other people not to make their daughters devadasis, you are abused, it's a horrible life. " So it's a life that Shoba will never escape from. Women already dedicated cannot be freed. The power of belief is still so strong here that she will always be a devadasi, enslaved. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6729927.stm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 9, 2007 Report Share Posted June 9, 2007 , " jagbir singh " <adishakti_org wrote: Dear All, In their spiritual ignorance, human beings have formed lesser gods in their own image, which for instance, will allow a mother to sacrifice her daughter to sexual slavery. All who are involved in this practice, remain ignorant, not knowing that they insult the Divine within themselves. If they knew the Absolute Truth, they would quit this evil practice. As admirable as people are, who campaign against such a practice, it is not enough, as the problem is one of the human " heart " . The source of the problem is that people do not realise that they are the Spirit. Once people discover their Spirit, all such practices would cease immediately. The Spirit is all powerful, wise, and full of knowledge, and overcomes weakness, foolishness, and ignorance. All the ills of human beings can be resolved by a person turning to his Spirit Within, and this is what will slowly but surely transform the whole society, so that it will become a Satya Yuga Society. Both Shri Mataji and Christ Jesus taught the principle of seeking first His Kingdom and His righteousness, and that everything would then be taken care of: " Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. " (Christ Jesus - Matthew 6:33) That means if a person enters the Kingdom of God Within and lives a dharmic life, that everything will be taken care of. Our sojourn on this earth, however, is for the purpose of spiritual evolution, and not for the mere accumulation of material possessions. Our heart has to be with the Divine, and not with material possessions: " Do not lay up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there will be your heart be also. " (Christ Jesus - Matthew 6:19-21) With these two Scriptures, Christ revealed the basic Law of Dharma, which is built into the psychosomatic system of human beings. That is why human beings cannot help but feel a natural guilt, when they break this inbuilt Dharma. (Btw. there is a difference between 'natural guilt' and 'artificial guilt'. Natural guilt arises from within the person. Artificial guilt is the type that is instilled by figures of authority, such as religious leaders.) It says in the Bible that " in later times " (which is the present day Kali Yuga) that some people will abandon their faith in the Divine and follow deceiving spirits. Such an abandonment of their Spirit, ceases that still small voice within, which is then no longer heard, and it is said that their consciences have become seared, as with a hot iron: " The Spirit clearly says that in later times, some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. " (1 Timothy 4:1-2 - NIV) However, Dharma is the Law of Love that enables the Kingdom of God to come into a person's consciousness, and Self Realisation is the seed that actually sprouts the Kingdom of God within a person, which can then grow into a Tree of Life. love to all, violet > Slaves to the goddess of fertility > By Damian Grammaticas > BBC News, Bagalkot, southern India > Friday, 8 June 2007 > > In a village in southern India a child has just been born. A group of > women gather round the cradle, wishing the baby a life full of > riches, rubies and pearls. > > " You're lucky the child is a boy, " the women tell the mother. In this > society girls are valued far less. > > The women are all devadasis, literally slaves of the goddess. > > As children their parents gave them to serve Yellama - the goddess of > fertility. Her cult is thousands of years old, her followers spread > across southern India. > > At the temple to Yellama in Saundatti women dance and praise the > goddess. > > The practice of dedicating young girls as devadasis has been outlawed > for over 50 years, but still it happens. > > Anti-slavery campaigners estimate that there are at least 25,000 > devadasis in the state of Karnataka alone. > > Sexual slavery > > " Being devadasis means we are slaves of the goddess. We have to visit > this temple. We wear necklaces of pearls to show we are bound to > Yellama. We give blessings and perform her rituals, " says Imla, a > devadasi in her 40s who is swathed in a pink and yellow sari. > > When girls dedicated to Yellama reach puberty they are forced to > sacrifice their virginity to an older man. What follows is a life of > sexual slavery, they become sanctified prostitutes. > > The money devadasis earn goes straight to their parents who often act > as pimps for their daughters. > > " My parents didn't have any sons, so there was nobody to earn the > family a living, " says Imla. > > " Instead they turned me into a whore. I don't even remember when I > started because I was so young. My parents thought at least they'd > get some money from me. " > > Once girls are dedicated the course of their lives is decided. They > can never marry, never have a family life. > > In a town nearby we found Shoba who is just 20 and has been a > devadasi prostitute for seven years. > > Shoba showed me her brothel, a single room she shares with her > parents. > > She comes from a long line of devadasis. Her grandmother was one, her > sister is too. > > Shoba remembers how, when she was 13 her parents dressed her as if > for marriage. They auctioned her virginity to the highest bidder. > > Tough life > > " When the first man arrived I thought he was going to marry me, " > Shoba recalls, " but he slept with me and then never came back. I > realised this was now my trade. Every night I was sold to whoever > paid the most. " > > Life here on the dry, harsh Deccan plateau has always been tough, > especially for girls, who are often seen as a burden for poor > families, expensive to marry off. > > Recent years have been marked by droughts and crop failures. > > Campaigners say there are 25,000 devadasis in Karnataka state alone > > The goddess of fertility is seen as a powerful force. Many believe > that giving girls to Yellama will bring good fortune on a family. > > It also means they don't have to save for a dowry, and the daughter > becomes a bread-winner. > > We found Shoba's mother Satyavati tending to her field of sunflowers. > Sacrificing their daughter's life has enriched Shoba's parents. > > " Someone had to continue the tradition. It had to be my daughters, " > she shrugs. > > " Because Shoba earns so much money she has been able to build us a > house, and she bought these fields. So what's the big deal? " > > Secret ceremonies > > Despite campaigns by India's national and state governments, the > system of devadasis endures. > > The number of young girls being dedicated is declining. But now the > ceremonies happen in secret, so it is impossible to know exact > numbers. > > I asked Shoba why she doesn't just give up being a devadasi, and > leave it behind? > > " I can't get out of the system, even if I say I'm not a devadasi any > more nobody will come forward to marry me, " she says. > > " I keep telling other people not to make their daughters devadasis, > you are abused, it's a horrible life. " > > So it's a life that Shoba will never escape from. Women already > dedicated cannot be freed. > > The power of belief is still so strong here that she will always be a > devadasi, enslaved. > > http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6729927.stm > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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