True , Sati is an age old practice practiced in northern parts and down south there is no record of any such practice, although a lot of cruelty was inflicted on widows in the name of custom and tradition. Widows had no life except atoning for their sins which was the reason they lost their husbands ...honestly from where did our Hindu law makers get that from ? Also goes to show how little or almost no freedom a woman had then and it has always been a mans world.. 

usha manohar wrote:

True , Sati is an age old practice practiced in northern parts and down south there is no record of any such practice, although a lot of cruelty was inflicted on widows in the name of custom and tradition. Widows had no life except atoning for their sins which was the reason they lost their husbands ...honestly from where did our Hindu law makers get that from ? Also goes to show how little or almost no freedom a woman had then and it has always been a mans world.. 

If the Raj was not there, these practices would have continued.  What a shame, the 19th century when this practice was rampant in north and east india is not far behind. Not many know that Hindus appealed against the  Sati law and the case was heard in the Lords chamber and by a majority verdict the law was upheld. The second bug bear was caste.  Lower caste converted to Islam. that is one of the reasons that nearly 45% of the almost 100 percent Hindu population converted to Islam. 

Usha@. I am glad you have pinpointed an important issue and that is the status of women in Indian Hindu law. The laws of Manu which held sway for 4000 years greatly demeaned women. No point in discussing this now  as it can be accessed on the net. By the way the first man to translate the Laws of Manu was an English man Sir William Jones in 1794. They were in Sanskrit and even the common Indian didn't know what they contained, but thanks to Jones they came out and were superseded by the code of 1861.

Religion along with certain unwanted traditions and customs is a curse to humanity. We find all rigions have such practices and most of them inflicted on women. While the west has progressed inspite if it and Indian sub continent too has been progressing, it is Islam that has been growing backwards in many parts of the world . The world needs to focus on them rather than Sati , because it is condemned by all and is not practiced any more while Islamic tyranny and fanaticism is falling to new lows with time.

I agree as women suffer the greatest discrimination in Islam. Yet, I am surprised that even in the USA  as a percentage its the fastest growing religion. In the USA I have seen so many American women wearing the black hijab. I have no explanation for it. We in India must beware of the pitfalls of Islam and not pander to them. Islam must be conforming with Indian law, which is not the case. In India Muslim, personal law is accepted. This must be stopped. But who will stop it? Hinduism is still not without anachronism as we can see in the Sabarimala temple case, where despite an SC ruling many misguided people egged on by the BJP are stopping women from entering the temple. and needlessly agitating. BJP is fanning the flames of obscurantism and it makes a mockery of what Modi is saying . I do feel BJP is not the vehicle to lead India to the modern age. Look at Yogi having a Cow cess tax and the bJP has recorded lynchings of people under the pretext of Beef. Can BJP stop the world where Beef is eaten everywhere? When I had been to the USAF officers mess at their AD center, Beef was served with every dish. Lastly, the oath by the UP police to protect the cow is laughable but it's not funny and shows the BJP is not the party to lead India forward.

There does not seem to be much interest on this topic on Boddunan unlike some other sites which I write( not worth mentioning here) where it generated a lot of interest. I repeat in case Lord Canning had not passed the act of 1829 equating Sati with murder( it was going on for 4000 years) Sati would still be in practice today like obscurantist laws of Islam ( like stoning to death in Yemen and Afghanistan). I shudder to think if the Mughal rule had continued or teh British had not come. 

MG Singh wrote:

There does not seem to be much interest on this topic on Boddunan unlike some other sites which I write( not worth mentioning here) where it generated a lot of interest. I repeat in case Lord Canning had not passed the act of 1829 equating Sati with murder( it was going on for 4000 years) Sati would still be in practice today like obscurantist laws of Islam ( like stoning to death in Yemen and Afghanistan). I shudder to think if the Mughal rule had continued or teh British had not come. 

Stoning to death is a sati tradition. I am not agree with it. Stoning to death is punishment, but sati is not a punishment.

anil wrote:

MG Singh wrote:

There does not seem to be much interest on this topic on Boddunan unlike some other sites which I write( not worth mentioning here) where it generated a lot of interest. I repeat in case Lord Canning had not passed the act of 1829 equating Sati with murder( it was going on for 4000 years) Sati would still be in practice today like obscurantist laws of Islam ( like stoning to death in Yemen and Afghanistan). I shudder to think if the Mughal rule had continued or teh British had not come. 

Stoning to death is a sati tradition. I am not agree with it. Stoning to death is punishment, but sati is not a punishment.

Sati is as bad , young girls who lose their husbands were forcibly burnt with their husbands bodies , what kind of barbaric custom was that? 

anil wrote:

MG Singh wrote:

There does not seem to be much interest on this topic on Boddunan unlike some other sites which I write( not worth mentioning here) where it generated a lot of interest. I repeat in case Lord Canning had not passed the act of 1829 equating Sati with murder( it was going on for 4000 years) Sati would still be in practice today like obscurantist laws of Islam ( like stoning to death in Yemen and Afghanistan). I shudder to think if the Mughal rule had continued or teh British had not come. 

Stoning to death is a sati tradition. I am not agree with it. Stoning to death is punishment, but sati is not a punishment.

I am surprise that you don't consider it a punishment. Its worse than that. Can you imagine what the poor widow must be going through when others in the name of custom forces her into the pyre of her dead husband? When a woman loses her husband and she needs emotional supports from her near and dear ones, being forcefully burned alive along with the dead body of her husband is a very barbaric custom and should be condemn by one and all. 

anil wrote:

MG Singh wrote:

There does not seem to be much interest on this topic on Boddunan unlike some other sites which I write( not worth mentioning here) where it generated a lot of interest. I repeat in case Lord Canning had not passed the act of 1829 equating Sati with murder( it was going on for 4000 years) Sati would still be in practice today like obscurantist laws of Islam ( like stoning to death in Yemen and Afghanistan). I shudder to think if the Mughal rule had continued or teh British had not come. 

Stoning to death is a sati tradition. I am not agree with it. Stoning to death is punishment, but sati is not a punishment.

I am mesmerised with this comment. If sati was not a punishment then what was it?