From Goddess to Victim - a history of the Devadasi system in India
Ok guys I’d researched about this last year as a side project, and after seeing how virtually nobody knows about this cruel system, I would like to wake everyone up (bangs cymbal on face).
Known as Devadasi and Krishnadasi in South India, Jogini in Maharashtra and Mukhie in North India, devadasi literally means “God’s servant”. Traditionally, a devadasi was a person (mostly women and trans people, but there are instances of male devadasis too) who were “married” to god. There was a proper procession, wherein the person was then married to the local deity. Such women were also called “Akhandasaubhagyavati” - or She who is eternally fortunate - for they could never be widowed (Indians believed a woman’s happiness is linked to her husband - they still believe this).
While we find the first mention of a devadasi in Buddhist scriptures as Buddha’s disciple Amrapali, there is no mention at all of this system in any Hindu scripture (this practice is followed in Hinduism) at all. Anyways, being a devadasi was a great honour, since you were actually god’s wife, and were treated as such. Nobody could dare even question a devadasi, for their word was above law (although this was on a local basis).
They were extremely skilled dancers, musicians and artists, and routinely danced in temples. They performed all religious duties in the village, and they were the only ones allowed to enter the garbhagriha (the place where the idol was stationed) in temples. Many of them are known to be lesbians and bisexuals, but they were allowed to practice their sexuality without any hindrance since ultimately their true soulmate was believed to be god. There are also instances of devadasis practising polyandry or remarrying! For example, the second wife of Krishnadevaraya (Emperor of Vijayanagar), called Chinnamma, was a devadasi, who later married him.
However, slowly this practice started taking the form of the cruel system it today is. The age for being a devadasi was removed (most women became devadasis at the age of sixteen), and it became common to see little girls performing devadasi duties. The final blow came from the British Empire. The British couldn’t stomach the thought of “married” women being sexually active, and hence termed all devadasis as prostitutes. They even encouraged them to be treated as such!
From the nineteenth century onwards, devadasis began losing their respect and honour, and were increasingly used for prostitution and slavery. The only way for a devadasi to improve their condition became marrying a rich, influential man, or being his mistress. However, the worst was yet to come.
Today, this system is mostly practiced in Karnataka by members of the Yellamma cult. Girls as young as 3 years are forced into the system, which had become a family bondage - from grandmother to mother to daughter - and become part of a brutal sex racketeering system. Devadasis are regularly tortured and raped, and the intergenerational trauma they go through is so severe that it takes years of rehabilitation and therapy just to get them to trust other people again. This practice has been banned by the Indian Supreme Court, but is still prevalent in South India.
There are many people who have helped devadasis, and forwarded their cause. The most popular example is Sudha Murthy, Indian author and co-founder of the India based IT company Infosys. She has been helping the devadasi community for the past 40 years now, rescuing them from the clutches of sex slavery and providing them with employment and education. Another example is Sitavva Joddati, a victim of this system. She joined MASS (Mahila Abhivrutti evam Samrakshana Sanstha - Institution for Empowerment and Security of Women) when she escaped at the age of 17, and has since then rescued over 50,000 devadasis and inculcated them into mainstream society, with over 4000 devadasis joining MASS in its initiative.
People today are split into two factions on devadasis. Many want this system to end for good, with devadasis being inculcated into society and provided with the necessary tools to start life anew; while some want it to be revived - they want devadasis to be skilled in dance and music again, participating in cultural and heritage programs, with the govt. supporting them. (i prefer the former)
I request you to please reblog this, so that other people too can know about this inhuman system, and help the devadasi community in any way they can.
