A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has died and has usually not remarried. The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed widowhood. An archaic term for a widow is "relict," literally "someone left over". This word can sometimes be found on older gravestones. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men.
Sati was a historical practice in Hindu communities in which a widow sacrifices herself by sitting atop her deceased husband's funeral pyre. Although it is debated whether it received scriptural mention in early Hinduism, it has been linked to related Hindu practices in regions of India. Greek sources from around 300 BCE make isolated mention of sati, but it probably developed into a real fire sacrifice in the medieval era within the northwestern Rajput clans to which it initially remained limited, to become more widespread during the late medieval era.
Jauhar, sometimes spelled Jowhar or Juhar, was a Hindu Rajput practice of mass self-immolation by females, both adults and children, in the Indian subcontinent to avoid capture, enslavement, and rape by Islamic invaders when facing certain defeat during a war. Some reports of jauhar mention women committing self-immolation along with their children. This practice was historically observed in the northwest regions of India, with most famous jauhars in recorded history occurring during wars between Hindu Rajput kingdoms in Rajasthan and the opposing Muslim armies. Jauhar was only performed during war, usually when there was no chance of victory. The term jauhar often connotes jauhar-immolation. Jauhar involved Hindu Rajput women committing suicide with their children and valuables in a massive fire, in order to avoid capture and abuse in the face of inescapable military defeat. At the same time or shortly thereafter, the men would ritualistically march to the battlefield expecting certain death, which in the regional tradition is called saka. This practice was intended to show that those committing it valued their honor more highly than their lives.
Bhairon Singh Shekhawat was an Indian politician who served as the 11th vice president of India. He served in that position from August 2002, when he was elected to a five-year term by the electoral college following the death of Krishan Kant, until he resigned on 21 July 2007, after losing the presidential election to Pratibha Patil. Bhairon Singh Shekhawat was a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He served as the Chief Minister of Rajasthan three times, from 1977 to 1980, 1990 to 1992 and 1993 to 1998. He represented several constituencies in Rajasthan Vidhan Sabha from 1952 to 2002. He was also awarded Padma Bhushan in the year 2003.
Hindu texts present diverse views on the position of women, ranging from feminine leadership as the highest goddess, to limiting gender roles. The Devi Sukta hymn of Rigveda, a scripture of Hinduism, declares the feminine energy as the essence of the universe, the one who creates all matter and consciousness, the eternal and infinite, the metaphysical and empirical reality (Brahman), the soul, of everything. The woman is celebrated as the most powerful and the empowering force in some Hindu Upanishads, Sastras and Puranas, particularly the Devi Upanishad, Devi Mahatmya and Devi-Bhagavata Purana.
Nawalgarh is a heritage city in Jhunjhunu district of Indian state of Rajasthan. It is part of the Shekhawati region and is midway between Jhunjhunu and Sikar. It is 31.5 km from Sikar and 39.2 km from Jhunjhunu. Nawalgarh is famous for its fresco and havelis and considered as Golden City of Rajasthan. It is also the motherland of some great business families of India.
Forced suicide is a method of execution where the victim is coerced into committing suicide to avoid facing an alternative option they perceive as much worse, such as being tortured to death, suffering public humiliation, or having friends or family members imprisoned, tortured or killed.
Pratibha Devisingh Patil, also known as Pratibha Patil Shekhawat, is an Indian politician and lawyer who served as the 12th president of India from 2007 to 2012. She was the first woman to become the president of India. A member of the Indian National Congress, she also served as the Governor of Rajasthan from 2004 to 2007, and was a member of the Lok Sabha from 1991 to 1996.
Roopkuvarba Kanwar was an Indian Rajput woman who was allegedly forced to immolate herself in an act of Sati at Deorala village of Sikar district in Rajasthan, India. At the time, she was 18 years old and had been married for eight months to Maal Singh Shekhawat, who had died a day earlier at age 24, and had no children.
Lanaja is a municipality located in the province of Huesca, Aragon, Spain. According to the 2011 census (INE), the municipality has a population of 1,381 inhabitants. The village has approximately 1,100 inhabitants; the neighbouring villages of Cantalobos and Orillena comprise an additional 400.
Jhajhar is a village, situated in the erstwhile province of Shekhawati of Rajasthan, India. It is located in the Jhunjhunu District, approximately 7 km from Nawalgarh. Formally it was the part of Pentalisa of Bhojyana.
Rani Bhatiyani sa is a Hindu goddess, worshipped in Western Rajasthan, India, the region Kashmir, and Sindh, Pakistan. Her major temples are in Jasol, Barmer District and JOGIDAS Jaisalmer, where she is called Bhuwasa. She is especially venerated by the Merasi Manganiyar community of bards. The women of the Dholi (singer) community sing the Ghoomar songs, in her honour, where she is praised as the princess of Jaisalmer. The goddess is said to have given her first vision to a dholi. The goddess is also called Majisa (Mother) and songs are sung in her honour by bards.
Mandela is a town in the Shekhawati region and Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan state in India.
Bhanwari Devi is an Indian social-worker from Bhateri, Rajasthan, who was gang raped in 1992 by men angered by her efforts to prevent a child marriage in their family. Her subsequent treatment by the police, and court acquittal of the accused, attracted widespread national and international media attention, and became a landmark episode in India's women's rights movement.
Mundru is an old historical village in Sri Madhopur tehsil of Neem ka thana district of Rajasthan, India.
Superstition refers to any belief or practice that is caused by supernatural causality, and which contradicts modern science. Superstitious beliefs and practices often vary from one person to another or from one culture to another.
Rani Sati, also identified as Narayani Devi and referred to as Dadiji (grandmother), is said to be a Rajasthani woman who lived sometime between the 13th and the 17th century and committed sati (self-immolation) on her husband's death. Various temples in Rajasthan and elsewhere are devoted to her worship and to commemorate her act.
Jhola is a 2013 Nepali film based on a story by writer Krishna Dharabasi. It is about Sati culture that was prevalent in the Nepalese society until the 1920s in which wife had to immolate herself upon her husband's death, typically on his funeral pyre. For her role, actress Garima Panta won Best Actress award at SAARC Film Festival held in Sri Lanka, 2014. The film was selected as the Nepali entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 87th Academy Awards, but was not nominated.
Father, Son, and Holy War is a 1995 film by Indian documentary filmmaker Anand Patwardhan. The film is shot in two parts, with the first examining the link between the violence of the Hindu nationalist movement, such as the demolition of the Babri Masjid, and sexual violence against women. The second part looks at the nature of masculinity in contemporary urban India, and its role in encouraging sexual violence. As with other films of his, Patwardhan had to fight multiple court battles in order to force the national carrier Doordarshan to screen the film, a screening which eventually occurred on the orders of the Supreme court. The film received numerous national and international awards, and was also seen positively by critics.
Rani Sati Temple is a temple located in Jhunjhunu, Jhunjhunu district, in the state of Rajasthan, India. It is the largest temple in India devoted to Rani Sati, a Rajasthani lady who lived sometime between the 13th and the 17th century and committed sati (self-immolation) on her husband's death. Various temples in Rajasthan and elsewhere are devoted to her worship and to commemorate her act. Rani Sati is also called Narayani Devi and referred to as Dadiji (grandmother).
India