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The history of Sikh women
has to start with Guru Nanak, the founder
of the Sikh Religion. According to the
Bala Sakhis, Guru Nanak was very fond
of his maternal grandmother. They were
very close. Her name was Mata Bhirai,
she was married to Rama of the village
Chahal near Lahore. She was likely a
frequent visitor to the home of Mata
Banarasi, his paternal grandmother.
In the prevalent custom of a joint family
system, a woman always went to live
in her husband’s family household,
and because it was the custom for the
grandparents to raise the children,
one can assume that he would have been
brought up by Mata Banarasi, his paternal
grandmother. She was the mother of two
sons, Kalu and Lalu, and wife of Shiv
Ram, resident of Talvandi Rai Bhoi Ki,
now called Nankana Sahib.
Much of what we know about the women
of that era, has to be conjecture. One
must look at what is known about socio-political,
as well as the economic situation of
the era, before one can even begin to
guess what life must have been like
for any given woman. The oral history
or Janamsakhis give clues to events,
but cannot be taken too seriously, in
that they are coloured by the tellers’
own perception and background. As with
any oral history, the story changes
with time. Each story-teller tries to
put his personal stamp on the story,
as well as embellishment, so that it
is always told better than the time
it was told before. We do know that
at that time in Hindu society, woman,
at least in theory, controlled the family
finances. In fact, they probably controlled
only the portion of income that dealt
with the personal household; i.e., the
groceries and small household items.
In a joint family system, even that
would be limited to the "mother-in-law"
and not to all the women. Also, it would
be subject to the whi ms of the man
of the house. Nevertheless, this was
the situation at the time of the birth
of the first Guru.
The mother of Guru Nanak was Mata Tripta.
He was born on the third day of the
month of Vaisakh, Saturday April 15,
1469. A midwife assisted Tripta on the
occasion. Her name was Daulatan. MacAuliffe
narrates in the tradition of the Janamsakhis
that the midwife, when interrogated
the following morning by Hardial, the
astrologer, as to nature of the child’s
voice uttered at birth, said it was
"as the laughing voice of a wise
man when joining a social circle."
Mata Tripta was reputed to be a kind
lady. The young Nanak had a sociable
nature, and, therefore, had many friends.
He liked to treat them often. We know
from the oral history tradition that
Mata Tripta would sometimes slip him
a coin or two to spend on his friends.
She also often made sweets for him to
share with his friends. She loved her
son dearly, but his rejection of tradition
and custom was a source of constant
aggravation. Her son, Nanak, questioned
the authority of the Brahmin priests,
refused to wear the holy thread, and
rejected the validity of the caste system.
Mata Tripta did not understand the divine
mission of her rebellious son. This
is clear in the story of Nanak’s
return from his first travel. His parents
met him at the edge of town. Nanak was
overcome with emotion, and wept when
he met his mother. She offered him sweets
and asked him to remove the beggar’s
gown and put on the clothes she brought
him. She obviously worried abo ut the
friends and neighbours and what they
would say, should the y see him like
this. On the same occasion his parents
were much distressed. They believed
that his travels and the rejection of
present conventions were a sign of great
unhappiness. His father, Kalu, was greatly
disturbed when he exclaimed; "Only
if I knew what has disappointed you
in life, I would set things right. If
you want to marry another woman, I’d
get you one, if another house, I’d
provide you with it." This clearly
was a generation gap. His parents, who
were well-to-do and respected in their
community, were greatly disturbed, because
they did not understand why he would
not conform to social customs of the
day.
Source: allaboutsikhs.com
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