[INDOLOGY] Manusmriti ... (Olivelle, J P)

[rajam]

Thank you very much for the explanation! 

Could you please also verify if these specific ślokas refer to “all women” in general or only certain women? 

Thanks again,
V.S. Rajam



> On Oct 29, 2020, at 10:21 AM, DIEGO LOUKOTA SANCLEMENTE via INDOLOGY <indology at list.indology.info> wrote:
> 
> 
>    Dear all,
> 
>    With regard to Manu and "women being prostitutes," and with respect and utter admiration for Prof. Olivelle, I would like to suggest that some ślokas of the passages already mentioned suggest something beyond a simple "need to guard [women] from even the slightest attachment to sensual pleasure":
> 
> naitā rūpaṃ parīkṣante nāsāṃ vayasi saṃsthitiḥ
> surūpaṃ vā virūpaṃ vā pumān ity eva bhuñjate 
> 
> pauṃścalyāc calacittāc ca naisnehyāc ca svabhāvataḥ 
> rakṣitā yatnato 'pīha bhartṛṣv etā vikurvate 
> 
>    In Prof. Olivelle's own translation ("they"=women, caps for emphasis mine):
> 
> "They pay no attention to beauty, they pay no heed to age; whether he is good looking or ugly, they make love to him with the single thought, "He's a man!" Because of the lechery, fickleness of mind, and hard-heartedness that are innate in them, EVEN WHEN THEY ARE CAREFULLY GUARDED IN THIS WORLD, they become hostile towards their husband"
> 
>    I would remark here that although "lechery" is of course entirely adequate, pauṃścalya>puṃś-calī is literally "one who runs after men," idiomatically and unequivocally a "prostitute," so perhaps something like "whorishness" or "sl at ttiness" may convey more directly the flavour of the Sanskrit word. 
> 
>    On a personal note, I feel the venerable Manu to be, without much exegesis or word-bending, pretty antagonistic to a modern feminist agenda, which I support.
> 
>    namaskaromi,
> 
>    Diego  
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