Rshikās of the Rgveda

Rshikās of the Rgveda

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Dedication

to all those women in the past and present,
noted or forgotten,
who brought pride to
the species that is female,
who constitute half the human population of this planet,
who also can think, reflect, have their independent opinion,
and work through their limbs,
who refused to cow down,
if did not revolt, to sustain the family, the community,
the society, the nation, the planet,
those who spoke, and those who remained silent,
to all those, who showed their strength,
so that I could discover mine.

Synopsis
‘Rshikās of the Rgveda’ presents a study of the famous women Rshikas mentioned in the Vedic literature.

The book describes the great respect offered to seers in the Vedic literature and the equal importance given to Rshikās when compared to Rshis. Discussing how even women of the Vedic period were epitomes of spiritual attainment, the book admiringly points out that the gender discrimination seen in the Hindu traditional thought was a later phenomenon (such as that women are not eligible (adhikāris) for the study of the Vedas). It states that there are twenty-seven women Seers (mantra-drashtārah) in the Rgveda. It provides a list of these women Rshikās and deals with the mantras envisioned by them. The Rshikās are presented in the book on the basis of i) those who praised the deities, ii those who conversed with the seers and deities, iii) and those who praised the self. The Rshikās mentioned in the Yajurveda, Sāmaveda, and Atharvaveda are also mentioned. Rshikās whose individual contributions are taken up in detail include Vāgāmbhrni, Surya-Sāvitri, Shraddhā Kāmāyani, Daksinā Prājāpatyā, Aditi Dākshāyani, Rātri Bhāradvaji, and Urvashi, among others.

The volume is bound to be a handy reference book for all those interested in Indology, particularly students and scholars of Vedic and gender studies.