Male Guardians of Women's Virtue
A Dharmaśāstric Theme and Its Jain Variations
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 5017603 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Mari Jyväsjärvi Stuart (corresponding author) |
| Year | 2021 |
| Volume | 133 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2021-12-16 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of the American Oriental Society (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0003-0279 • E-ISSN: 2169-2289 |
| Publisher | American Oriental Society (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.7817/jameroriesoci.133.1.0035 |
| OpenAlex | W2491744584 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 9 |
In studies on pre-modern South Asian religions, the Brāhmaṇical tradition is often singled out as being particularly restrictive of women's independent agency, as evidenced in epic and dharmaśāstric passages prescribing men's guardianship over women. Buddhism and Jainism are assumed to have offered women a greater degree of independence since they allowed women the option of pursuing monastic life. However, this article demonstrates that Jain texts, at least, share the ethos and sometimes even the language of the Brāhmaṇical guarding verses. Examining discussions of male guardianship of women in post-canonical Śvetāmbara Jain monastic commentaries in light of dharmaśāstric treatments of the same theme demonstrates that Jain authors were no less concerned with guarding and protecting women in their communities. In the context of monastic life, monks must fulfill the role of the male guardian and overseer for the female members of their order, even though the resulting close involvement with the nuns presents problems for a community of professedly celibate men. The concern with community honor, and the conviction that women's (sexual) honor is intimately interlinked with it, overrides all other concerns even for Jain monastic communities
Buddhism · Context (archaeology) · Ethos · Guardian · Honor · Independence (probability theory) · Legal guardian · Political science · Sociology · Theology · Virtue · Gender Studies · History · Indian and Buddhist Studies · Law · Philosophy · Psychology · Reformation and Early Modern Christianity · Religion and Society Interactions
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |