[Translator’s note: This essay was first published in 1933, and later included in Verma’s 1941 volume called Shrinkhala ki Kadiyan (Links in the Chain). War and Woman is perhaps one of the earliest extant texts in the intellectual tradition which later came to be termed as ecofeminism. Ecofeminism, if we were to define it crudely, assumes a gender binary, where women are perceived to be closer to nature, while men represent the invasive external or social force that is responsible for the degradation of the natural world. For a detailed treatment of the theme, see Salleh A., Shiva V., Mies M. Ecofeminism. London, Zed Books, 2014.
The essay aims to highlight the instrumental role of women in the progression of society from the state of barbarism to civilization, how femininity plays an essential role in the structuring of the family and the psyche of individuals. Verma considers war to be antithetical to femininity and highlights how women’s aversion to war and plea for peace has come to be interpreted as an indication of weakness and cowardice within the overarching patriarchal societal structure that aims to wage endless wars for its narrow self-interest.
Note that this translation project has been undertaken in an academic spirit—the translator does not express any bias for or conformity with the views expressed in Verma’s essay.]
War has been an accompaniment to the human race from the first rung of barbarism to the last rung of civilization. Man not only welcomed his narrow self-interest with war but is also about to offer his last prayer to public service consciousness with it. Over time, his heavy sword made out of stone, progressively transformed into one of wood, iron and steel, has ultimately mutated into a thousand times more formidable weapon. Soon, the less sharp arrows that were used to pierce enemies at a distance became the ancestors of machine guns. Over the ages, the human race has not only learned how to adorn itself with a myriad of clothes and jewels, dwell in tall skyscrapers, nourish its body with all sorts of artificially flavoured foods, build and live within the walls of race, colour, country and nation, rule and be ruled by various laws and bylaws, but has also discovered several ways and means of poisoning the breath of those who serve as an impediment in its path. Today, science has bestowed man’s every destructive fantasy with an earthly character, fastened his every single longing for a flight to the earth and has converted his every ruthless effort into a tangible accomplishment. The result was as expected.
Today every nation, like a predatory animal, is bent upon devouring another nation’s lifetime of accumulated cultural wealth in order to fulfil the first whim that occurs to it. When we listen to that clamour of selfishness echo from one corner of the world to another, it is impossible to not dwell upon the question of what mothers who hide their breastfed children away in a protective embrace and offer warm respect to the elders and affectionate wives languishing in fear at the signs of impending disaster, belonging to these different nations and races, are thinking.
Is war suited to the disposition of women or not, and if it is then what attempts have men made to enlist their support? These questions, even though they seem novel, are as old as life itself.
A man’s life begins with struggle, while a woman’s with surrender. The woman, however, was able to humble the man who emerged victorious in the harsh struggle of life by garlanding him with her tender hands, greeting him with an affectionate gaze, and with her affectionate submissiveness.
Man’s strengths and weaknesses could not have been kept hidden from the primeval woman, who defeated his barbarity and awakened the emotions dormant within him. The foundation of these sacred houses has been laid on the female intellect, not the male strength. Owing to their natural intellect, women never allowed their struggle to merge with that of men, for if they had, the story of the human race would have been quite different. Apart from physical strength, there were also differences in their temperaments. If we compare man to a tree that grows towards the sky by sucking away the sap from the surrounding smaller plants, then woman is that creeper which occupies very little space on the earth, but in whose dense foliage numerous seedlings are able to germinate, and which soon overshadows the grandeur of the tree. A lone tree can be kept alive, even after its branches and offshoots are cut down, but a creeper dies the moment its numerous tangled offshoots are destroyed.
This temperamental difference between men and women made it possible for them to become well acquainted with one another. Women’s submissiveness, which had been successful in humbling men, became stronger with the arrival of children. She realized that instead of ruling over a strong man, she had to help the weak ones become equally strong. With her realization of this responsibility, the foundation of a household was laid.
Keeping her child before the man, she told him that in order to make it as strong as him, she needed shelter from ceaseless rain and sunshine, a regular supply of food, and him as a sentinel, to provide permanent protection from wild animals and enemies. As a result, man built a hut out of leaves, arranged food via hunting and became engaged, with all his strength, in the protection of this new world. He now felt the need for support from the same enemies he earlier used to fearlessly clash with. The person who could earlier fend for himself in the face of struggle now found himself weak in the company of his tender partner and child. This was so because the enemies who were unsuccessful in defeating him could now destroy the beauty of his home instead. The strong, for their own safety and for the well-being of those they were protecting, allied with the weak. The weak reciprocated, for their own safety and that of their household. In this way, the warlike human race, comparable to a violent animal, began to slowly widen the circle of its welfare. Wars never ceased completely, but the man became more eager to protect his household, and the human race began to kill and die for the protection of specific communities. In spite of all this, the bloodthirst, for which wars are often fought just for the sake of it, was not seen in the woman.
In reality, she cannot perceive wars from a male perspective. Partly owing to his character and partly to his engagement in the struggle outside, man was never able to form an attachment with the household comparable to that of woman. For a man, destruction of the home may mean disruption of a source of happiness, but for a woman it is the destruction of life itself. She invested herself in the household to such an extent that there remained for her no difference between her home and her life. Her lack of inclination for war is possibly because wars have a cataclysmic effect on the household. On seeing brave soldiers marching off to war, a man would think about the immense national glory that lies ahead of them, while a woman would think about the homes full of anguished wails that lie behind them. One will say – they are going because it’s their country; the other will say – they are going, but their loving wives and children are staying back.
Not only are women unsuitable for war from a physical and mental perspective, but wars also serve as a major impediment to their growth and development. To a soldier who has no hope for tomorrow, in whose eyes dances the silhouette of death, a woman is simply an ordinary woman. What will he even do with her qualities of sacrifice, penance, meditation, love, etc? The development of these qualities is only possible in an environment of companionship. The brave heart who is ready to kill or die every morning would wish to savour woman’s intoxicating beauty for merely a moment. He cannot find time to evaluate the price of her divine qualities, and even if he does, how long can he really cherish them? This is why, earlier, during the time of war, a woman was never able to become a complete woman. The blood-soaked Draupadi of Kurukshetra was neither presented in the form of a glorious mother before us nor did she appear in the form of a proud wife. Like other objects of superfluous wealth, she was divided among the Pandavas, running around in fear of the enemy and forced to live with being a mere cause of war. In reality, the development of women’s qualities is only possible in the peaceful environment of society, even if we are reluctant to admit it in the present scenario.
Woman’s nature and the attraction of the home were instrumental in causing man to abstain from war to some extent, but this instinct could not be completely suppressed. It was also impossible to put an end to the struggle outside the household. With time, this selfishness proliferated and, as a result, man began to feign a sense of altruism, by linking his own self-interest with that of race, country or nation. With the means of happiness, the thirst for more also increased. With a sense of self, the desire to expand the scope of one’s authority also began to increase. In today’s atmosphere of materialism, man has become much more fearsome than the primitive cruel barbarian. Owing to the struggle outside and the monotony of the workplace, man does consider woman and home to be among the necessities of life. However, he cannot tolerate a woman becoming a hurdle in his lust for authority. Since there is no limit to his desire, there is no limit to the number of wars and none to atrocities and injustice either. If a woman were to soak his path with tears every step of the way, it would be a mockery of his courage; if she were to remind him of what’s duty and impropriety every moment, it would be a challenge to his intellect and if she were to renounce his companionship, his arid life would become unbearable.
Ultimately, in order to get rid of this impediment, man came up with a simple solution that freed him from all forms of anxiety. Like a new invention, he presented this argument before the woman: “Your aversion to war is rooted in your inherent weakness. You do not have strength, and this is where your empty sentimentality derives shelter from. Your submissiveness reveals your need for protection and this is a cause for shame, not for pride.”
Upon listening to this new description of her character, it was as if she saw a new reflection of herself, one that deemed her weak and contemptible. Her whole being burned with the desire of exacting revenge on the Creator. She vowed to become another version of the man next to her. The weapons that she had discarded as symbols of ruthless carnage now became her ornaments. In just a matter of seconds, she forgot the age-old lessons taught in the school of humanity, and man found his path clear and intact. The victory that today’s man has achieved over the woman may well not be useful for the human race, but is indeed essential for his narrow self-interest.
Man is assembling an army of women who, when the time comes, won’t put an end to the bloodshed by taking away the weapon from his tired hand, would bury compassion under the rock of pride whilst listening to the distressed cry of humanity, and would feel dutiful on having made affection a prisoner of material wealth. It is difficult to tell what lies in the belly of the far-off future. It won’t be possible to comment on that, but it won’t be a matter of surprise if the herald of a storm lies hidden in the present stagnation.
To say that women have taken up this disguise only in the present scenario would be to disregard history. Many a time, in cases of emergency, women have borne weapons, leaving the role of creator and doing the work of the destroyer. However, the only difference is that earlier this wrath was momentary, born out of apprehension rather than reasoning. The difference between the two is similar to that between attempt and accomplishment. The earlier sentiment had not become a sacrament because she took up the role of a destroyer only to protect a noble truth. Among the women of modern-day warlike nations, a belief is taking shape that if they are unable to acquire the male animalistic tendency to annihilate natural qualities like compassion, mercy, affection, etc, then their race does not deserve to live. As a result, they are sharpening their swords to slay the children born of their fellow mothers.
Lokayata 