Describe the similarities and differences between the way women are treated with

Question

Describe the similarities and differences between the way women are treated within Jainism and the way they are treated in Sikhism. Provide specific examples from each religion to support your claims. Consider the overall attitude toward women - is it due to the religion or to wider cultural practices? In other words, do Jains (or Sikhs) have the attitude toward women because of the religion or is the attitude part of the prevailing attitude toward women? Is it possible that one or both of these religions actually improve the status of women?

Explanation / Answer

The religion Sikhism is the 5th most followed religion in the world. The religion originated in India in 1469. The creator of Sikhism is Guru Granth Sahib, he began teaching these practices that were different from Buddhism and Hinduism. Nine Guru’s followed after him and begun to teach Sikhism in their community for century.

The religion Jainism is a very caring community. They believe and care for the universes health, and that animals and plants are living souls and should be treated equally. They are vegetarians and believe in reincarnation.

Similarities.

Sikhs and Jains celebrate holy days just as Hindus and Buddhists do
Sikhs and Jains have sacred texts and holy books just as Hindus and Buddhists do
Jains and Buddhists do not believe in a personal god
Sikhs and Hindus believe there is a god. Hindus believe in more then one
Sikhs and Jains believe in reincarnation just as Hindus and Buddists do
Sikhs, Jains, Hindus, and Buddhists all believe in worshiping daily.
The four religions all have the goal of becoming enlightened or reaching liberation which means becoming one with the universe and eliminating all karma from the soul.

Differences:

Sikhs and Jains have a strong belief that everyone and everything is equal and should be treated with compassion. Buddhists and Hindus belief in compassion but they do not treat everyone the same way. The Women may be treated differently then the men and some people are treated better because of there social status.
Sikhs do not believe in fasting while Buddhists and Hindus do.
The four religions are all different because they each have different routines they must follow along with the rules of there religion.
Jains follow a strict vegetarian diet while Hindus and Buddhists do not.
Sikhism and Jainism have a single founder while Hinduism does not.
The four religions all have different religious leaders ( Ex. Jainism- Monks and Nuns).
The four religions all have different ways of reaching enlightenment.

The image of woman depicted in the scriptures of the predominant Indian religions does not form a consistent picture. Women’s image in both social and religious fields is glorified in several passages of the scriptures. On the other hand, some other passages portray women as spiritually inadequate and a secondary cause of spreading evils in the society. Woman is found to be liberating as well as enslaving in different contexts in the scriptures. One way woman’s theological equality is proclaimed by texts of most of the religions. On the other hand her secondary status is also equally spread over in the texts. Generally, every creation theory in religion reveals an egalitarian attitude. This is especially true when a religion talks about the creation of man and woman by God. According to the cosmology and Genesis (creation) theory of different religions man and woman are created as equal beings by God, i.e., essentially they are of equal status. This is reflected in the Genesis theories of Islam, Christianity and Sikhism, which give descriptions of creation. The other theist religions also preach that men and women are equal in the eyes of God in their basic essence. The basic ideal of Hinduism preaches that women should be adorned and worshipped. Moreover, many of the deities worshipped are women. Woman was depicted in high esteem not only in the Vedas. Manusmriti, which is infamous for gender biasness on its social law, also subscribes that “woman is the source of all good, worthy of adoration. Where women are honoured and adorned by all other family members, there the God is pleased. For the prosperity and welfare of the family the women should be respected whereas the grief of a woman may bring harm to the prosperity of the family”. Thus, in certain counts, Hinduism gives woman high esteem.

In Hinduism, religious activities such as initiation, performance of sacrifice at official religious ceremonies are believed to be the privilege, responsibility and mandate of men. The discriminative attitude of the society towards a girl child is reflected quite prominently in Hindu birth rituals. The desirability of a male child manifests in the rituals garvdhna, pumsavana, etc., which are observed after the conception but before the birth of the child to secure the birth of a son. That some of the chanted prayers in these rituals are aimed to prevent the birth of a daughter shows the very attitude towards girl child. The injunction of Dharmastra scholars including Manu and Yjñavalkya, on performance of the ritual of upanayana (initiation) of a girl was clearly aimed at depriving her from Vedic education, and thereby enforcing exclusive domination of males in religion and over all intellectual quests. By the imposition of the rituals of marriage of a girl as equivalent to initiation of a boy14, the Dharmastras pushed women to the confinement of household activities rather than academic pursuits. The rituals observed in many parts of the country at the time of attaining puberty by a girl are aimed at making her conscious about her fertility and preparedness for marriage. This helps in convincing her of the prevailing social attitude that wifehood is the essence of woman’s existence.

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