Opinions- Women In Manipur Carve Their Own Destiny

| Monday, November 10, 2002 |

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Women In Manipur Carve Their Own Destiny
By Th Santa
Through the centuries the Meitei woman has been based on the mythical models of our Manipuri folk tales. Still now we have our cultural belief that Leimaren Sidabi is the creator. Not only this, there are female deities who represent power, strength (Panthoibi), wealth (Emoinu) and sexual prowess (Khongjomnubi). All the above qualities are very much essential for a woman. Likewise the role of women and their contribution to our society is not less than a man. Going down memory lane, we will come across Nupi Lan, one of the greatest uprisings against an authority only by womenfolk. Then, there is the Ima Keithel (probably the only women market in the world). There are also many great Manipuri women who shoved the glorious name of Manipur to the limelight. From the beginning, we have our traditional custom of marriage in which a woman surrenders herself to a man to cultivate a life together till their time on earth is over. They allow themselves to be led by their men. And then they bear every pain, hardship, suffering that come along their way. Their patience, sincerity and sacrifice overwhelm their men's heart thereby pulling their men closer to them. Their softness and tenderness captures the hearts of their men. Such are the qualities endowed to them by Mother Nature. But in our society, the Meitei woman follows the footsteps of her husband like a goat to be slaughtered. We have seen many women doing hard work, earning money for their drunkard and merciless husbands. Most of our youngsters are drowned in the materialistic world instead of thinking for their own future. Drugs, trendy bikes and pre-marital sex have become the latest fashion of today's Manipur. This results in the ever increasing number of widows in our society which is the numero uno fear factor of our society. This has become the most weak point of Meitei women. As they have the habit of cabin dating in their genes, all the action and reaction after their marriage becomes their own. This clarifies that the status quo of women is woven by women themselves. So, they have to bear the pain as a silent sufferer. If they have their moral and educational background, they'll have a compulsory task of selecting a complete man. Then this will inspire the man for a perfect life and enlighten their minds. And there will be no lamentation of a widow and people living with HIV/AIDS from our society can be uprooted. In a woman's life, she encounters many stages right from her birth to death. From the different stages, motherhood is the most important stage. She is to bring up her child and under her teaching and guidance, her children learns love, fight and hatred, social etiquette, culture and tradition which is the main component for existence as a human being. As the mother is the closest company of her children, all the good and bad behaviors of the children are reflections of a mother. Because mother is the one who influences their children in any field of life. Thus, her notions are reflected to her children. As she grows older, the woman becomes mellowed and therefore, is regarded a little more in the household. Sometimes she is able to exercise her influence especially as she grows older, a kind of informal power by her keen sense of perception, by her ability to understand her husband's idiosyncrasies. By the time she becomes a grandmother, she wield more influence in bringing up of the children. She makes her grand children feel secure, fostering close attachment between siblings. But all her so called power resides within the confinement of the house. The role of woman is very much important for a good family and society. Woman must have educational background in average. They must have keen sense of humanity, sacrifice, sincerity and courage. Our present Manipuri woman must learn and compare their life with many great women in other parts of the world. They must also regard our mythical models of our ancestors so that they can bring out good children for a good and civilized society. This clarifies that their living in chaos and suppression of their status at the present is made by women themselves. It's time the Meitei women wake up from the slumber.
(Courtesy: The Sangai Express)

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