Remembering
The First Woman Educationist Of India on her 188th Jyanti falling on 3rd January 2018
Enlarged and updated Essay
Indian
culture may boast about having female goddesses, saints and poets. It may boast
about being the largest democracy in the world and likely hood of being a super
power in near future. But the truth is that female oppression is distinctively
visible in India till this day, more so in lower class than higher class. Women
belonging to the lower class face problems and discrimination due to high
percentage of illiteracy among the people and also due to the very orthodox
religion that they follow. The discrimination faced by these women is mainly
the effect of unjust ancient laws and customs passed down from generation to
generation. Due to the lack of education among the lower class, these unjust
laws and customs were/ are never challenged but widely accepted. One of the
evil practices that is very rarely followed nowadays is female infanticide.
Female infants killed in womb and not allowed to see sun light. Declining female population much below 900
per 1000men is now worrying government agencies. It is believed that girls are a
liability for the family. They would cost the family money in the end because
of dowry demands. Likewise, the family may feel that they are only rearing
girls for someone else, as the girls will eventually become part of the groom's
household.
Education to untouchables and all women in
Hindu religion were declared as unlawful in Manu Smiriti the Hindu Law Book. Lack
of education in women and untouchable( now called Dalits )made room to
other suppressive controls like
untouchability,ignoring right to own property, right to protect one’s property
,sati, Devdasse, dowery, infanticide, life of dignity, slavery, atrocities, and
such like inhuman treatment to majority of population by minority population of
upper caste Hindus. Only the caste and
caste supported rules roasted the cake. India lost its freedom for centuries as
only a microscopic minority male khashtriyas
were assigned the job of defense of the country. Only a hand full invaders came
looted India , killed many and ran away with heavy booty includinf our women. With
the establishment of the British East
India Company Rule, it paid no heed
towards education in India till 1813. In 1813, for the first time, the Company
arranged some funds for promoting education in India. The medium of education
was English. By the year 1855, there were only 1474 educational institutions
that were run or aided by the government for the population of 200 million.
Only 67,569 student were getting education from these intuitions. Since
majority teachers in these schools were Brahmins, they refused to educate the
Dalit students even in the govt. aided
schools .Even upper class students and their parents disallowed reading in the
classes having Dalit students. There were about 1628 Christian missionary
schools with about 64,000 students in them. Since the Wood’s Dispatch of 1854 by
1882, the government took some important steps for higher education, but
primary education was almost neglected. In the economical year of 1881-82, out
of 70,00, 000 rupees spent by government on education, only 16,77,000 were
spent on primary education. On this background, The first women known in the
Indian history which lived and died for the social upliftment of down trodden.
Her name was Savitribai who was born on 3rd of January 1831 in Naya Ganj , Tehsil
Khandala ,District Satara of Maharashtra. Her father’s name was Khado Ji Nevse
Patil . At the time of her birth, no body could realize that the small ray of
light which had descended on the earth in the form of Savitribai shall become a
torch bearer for many, who were suppressed, illiterate, ill fed , ill clothed
and a lightening for suppressors and oppressors inflicting tyranny in the name
of caste and sex, on millions belonging to their own country and religion . At the tender age of 9 years in 1840,
she was married to a great social revolutionary Jyotirao Phule, who was then 13
years old. The union of two small lights later emerged as a big Light House for
millions of their fellow countrymen and pulled them out of their ignorance,
illiteracy and ill treatment meted out to them by upper caste Hindus. They
jointly fought for the down trodden
people of India to live with dignity keeping spine erect. Jyotirao Phule, later
affectionately called Mahatma Jyotirao( Jyotiba) Phule proclaimed that
illiteracy the ill of all ills causes lack of intellect which in turn causes
lack of moral which results in stagnation, promoting further
loss of riches and fortune which
caused fall of Shudras. So ban of education to Shudras and women in Brahminical
literature caused their all round degradation, so he gave preference to impart
education to Shudras for their over all upliftment. The Education to
Savitribhai was imparted at home by her husband besides in their school and in
Christian Missionary school. Jyotirao Phuley had passed his Secondary Education
Examination in 1847 from Scottish Mission High School Poona and had decided not to accept any job under the
government. On reading Paine’s famous
book “The Rights of Man” revolutionized the young mind of Jyotirao Phule and he
in turn influenced the tender mind of Savitribhai, who also took oath to help
her husband for Social Revolution even at the cost of her life and comforts.
Phuley
couple opened the very first Girl’s School on 1st January,1848
against the vicious campaign launched by orthodox upper caste Hindus for such
an act of the Phule couple, as education to girls was coded as unlawful in the
laws of orthodox Hindus, although they claimed to possess the most
knowledgeable books called “VEDAS” but practically treating Shudras & women
worse than animals. No upper caste Hindu teacher came forward to teach in this
newly opened Girl’s School in which untouchables girls , besides Hindu Girl’s
were admitted. Therefore, Savitribai was appointed as Headmistress of this
school on I st January 1848 by Jyotirao Phule. This school was run
from the house of a Brahmin in Budhwara Peth, with majority of Brahmin girl
students. The orthodox Brahmins raised a great hue & cry against carrying
on women education including those of Shudra girls, which stood banned by the
Hindu scripture. As soon as Savitribai came out from her house to go to school,
people would throw on her cow dung and mud spoiling here dress, which she
washed at the school and at her residence on return. However ill treatment
meted out to her by upper caste Hindus did not deter her from her strong
convictions and she carried on with the noble cause for the social change. She,
instead, opened another school on 15th May 1848 in untouchable’s
colony and it was run by her widowed sister –in-law Sagunabai (husband ‘s cousin sister) Smt. Suganabai. On this again the
reactionaries, raised objections and threatened Govinda Rao (Jyotirao ’s
father) with dire consequences, if, he failed to dissociate himself from the
activities of his son & daughter-in-law. So he asked the couple to leave
his home as both of them refused to give up their missionary endeavor. Both
shifted to a Muslim Mian Usman Sheikh’s
house. Smt. Fatima Sister of Mian Sheikh known as first Muslim women teacher of
19th century, started educating Dalit children in this school. This
was an extremely difficult task during those days of Brahmin domination in
government and social circles, but Savitribai did it by dint of her courage,
determination, intelligence and her commitment to the cause of Dalit and woman upliftment through spread of
Education She thought this to be
the only road to their empowerment. Yotirao Phule blamed the British
Government for spending profusely a large portion of the state revenue on the
education of the higher castes, which resulted in monopoly of all higher
offices under the Government by the Brahmins. The dedicated couple wanted to
break this monopoly so as to prepare the down trodden masses for struggle of
having equal rights as human beings in their own motherland. Jyotirao Phule for
loooooooooooooooooooooooooooooukthe
first time. Lord Rippon appointed an education commission under the
chairmanship of William Hunter. This commission reiterated the key points of
the Wood’s Dispatch, though it suggested paying more attention of primary
education and education to backward classes. The memorial to Hunter Commission
by Mahatma Phule is a document of immense importance to understand the
educational developments in Modern India. In this document, Phule argues that
the theory adopted by government that education should go down from the upper
classes of society to the masses is nothing but a “utopian” idea. He further
goes on to ask for a single example of the truth of this theory. To quote him,
the higher classes have “kept their knowledge to themselves, as a personal
gift, not be soiled by contact of the ignorant vulgar.” He claims that the
educational system has become a monopoly of the higher classes and “if the
welfare of the Ryot is at heart, if it is the duty of the Government to check a
host of abuses, it behooves them to narrow this monopoly day by day so as to
allow a sprinkling of the other castes to get into the public services.”
Mahatama Phuley made strong demand in memorandum submitted to Hunter Commission
in 1882 for free & compulsory education to all. This plea was later accepted
on the instance of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and he even incorporated the ideal in the
Constitution of Free India as the “The father of Indian Constitution”.
Widow re-marriage was banned
then and the child marriages were very common among the Hindus including
Brahmins. Many Hindu widows resorted to Sati (burning of the bride with the
dead body of their husbands) in full public view. In view of then prevailing of custom of Child
marriage, so many girls got widows in their childhood. Many women windowed in
their young age and not all of them could live in a manner in which orthodox
people expected them to live particularly when their male relatives exploited
helpless widows sexually. Some of the helpless widows resorted to abortion or
left their illegitimate children to their fate by leaving them on the streets.
Out of pity for them Jyotirao Phule established on orphanage, possibly first
such Institution founded and funded by a Hindu. The Phule couple gave
protection to pregnant widows and assured them that this orphanage would take
care of their children and Savitribai Phule Shouldered the responsibility of
managing the orphanage. It was in this orphanage where a Brahmin widow named
Kashibai gave birth to a boy in 1873 and the Phule couple adopted new born as
their son and heir giving him name as Yashuwant( Glory), who was imparted education to become a qualified doctor.
During 1876-77 famine she feed and cared about 2000 children with the help of
her doctor son free of cost. She was a great source of strength to her husband.
The widows had to get their heads
tonsured for life. Phuley couple while opposing it organized the barbers to stop shaving of
heads of widows. The barbers agreed and stopped this inhuman practice. They even when on strike to press their resolve and oppose
those who threatened them with dir consequences.
Phuley couple supported widow remarriage and
arranged on 8th March,1860 in
Gokhale garden widow re-marriage.
The copule belonged to Saini caste. This
act of Phuley’s was also opposed
by orthodox caste Hindus.
Savitribai
was not only an educationist but a great philanthropist, social revolutionary,
writer and poet. Perhaps she was the first Indian woman revolutionary who
worked against all odds for the emancipation of Dalits, week and downtrodden
women & children. Her poetry book
first published in 1854 was titled as “KABYE PHULE” had 41 peoms . She used to
recite her peoms to heIp illiterate
women to grasp the theme of her preaching. In one of her poems she makes out
that the British succeeded in establishing their rule in India due to denial of
Educational opportunities by the Aryans to the original inhabitants of India.
During various invasions the 85% of the population were made mute spectators. When
their motherland was occupied forcibly by the foreign invaders, for which
nobody else but Brahmins and caste system were responsible. When she was told
by her brother to follow the path shown by Bhats (Brahmins) she rebuked him by
telling that she was following the just path being followed by her husband and
she could not be blind follower of Brahmins like her brother. She also
tauntingly said to him, “Go and love the cow and the goat and offer milk to
snakes on Nagpanchmi,, even then the Brahmins shall turn you out of Puja Sathal
branding you as untouchables. This shows her strong conviction and will power,
when actually she was very poised lady having her heart filled with love for
all.After the death of her husband in November 1890, she successfully managed
for seven years the affairs of “SATYA SHODAK-SAMAJ”( Society for the Search of Truth) established
by her husband to spraed the message of oneness and unity while following
righteous path. It decried the supremacy
of the Hindu Religion Prohits and falsehood of religious dogmas and
rituals. Marriages were arranged with
out any Prohit services. Brahmins opposed it and lodged a law suit against
Jyotirao Phuley in Poona court spleading
it effected their livelihood. This case was won by Jyotirao Phuley from higher
court at Bombay( Now Mumbai) Also the services of prohits were proposed to
be dispensed with during last rites of
dead.
During the spread of
Cholera in Maharashtra in 1897 she opened a number of helping centers for all
sufferers in rural and urban areas. She used to carry patients personally to
the clinic of her son Yashuwant, who cured hundreds of them free of cost. While carrying personally a cholera ridden
Mahar boy to the clinic of her son and to get him admitted there, she got
infected from the Mahar boy and she died of cholera on the 10th of March 1897.
We salute the iron lady who
struck hard to break the shackles of religious progeny, caste and dynasty to
establish social order of Universal Brotherhood. She was first Indian women
leader, who worked for the upliftment & dignity of women & children and
was a staunch opponent of orthodox laws including Untouchability. She was
mother to helpless orphans, a teacher to illiterates and solace to ill and
suffering masses. She deserved to be honored as “Mother of Women Education in
India” other women who lent helping hand to
savitribai Phuley were Pandita Ramabai, a Brahmin woman. Panditia Ramabai
who was leading advocate for the rights and welfare for the women in India; Tarabai Shinde, the non-Brahmin author of a fiery
tract on gender inequality which was largely ignored at the time but has
recently become well-known; and Muktabai, a fourteen-year-old pupil in Phule's
school, whose essay on the social oppression of the Mang and Mahar castes is also now famous.
She is even now a
source of inspiration for establishing a rule based on equality, justice and
fraternity. Let us draw inspiration from her life& works and re-dedicate
ourselves for the service of down trodden and Dalits besides those sections of
society who are deprived of equal opportunities of life. Words:-2322
Er. HEM RAJ PHONSA
Retd. Executive Engineer (from California)
References:- (I) The Nagmay Sanskriti Ujjain (MP) Dated 8-7-1997.
(II)
Slavery By Mahatma Jotirao Phule (Vol I) Translated by Prof.P.G. Patil
Education Deptt. Govt of Maharastra Bombay 1991
Jotibha
Phule (Hindi) By Durga Prasad Shukal NCERT April 1991
Dr Ambedkar & His Mission
v) Shoshit Samaj Ke Krantikari
Pravertak ( Hindi) by C.S. Bhandari Publishars: Samyak Prakashan 32/3 Club Road Pashim Puri N Delhi
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