Unveiling the Image of Women from the Waves of the “Rivers of Kings”
Author Affiliations
- 1 Centre for Historical Studies, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi-110067, INDIA
Int. Res. J. Social Sci., Volume 4, Issue (2), Pages 1-3, February,14 (2015)
Abstract
As much as to the importance of men recounted in the historical narratives, the significance of women cannot be ignored. This is vividly reflected in one of India’s well known historical text of Kashmir called Kalhaa’s Rjataragi or the “Rivers of Kings”. Despite the fact that the text allocate marginal space to women and suggest their peripheral existence; what is interesting is the recognition of women as a ruler and important agents in the decision making process of the realm. Moreover, apart from being a male oriented account, the important role of women could also be seen in terms of social and cultural activities. This in a way suggests that besides men, women in ancient Kashmir also took active part in shaping the affairs of the state. Therefore, focussing on the representation of women both royal and non-royal in Kalhaa’s jataragi, this paper attempts to unfold as to how women were represented in the early Indian textual traditions.
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