Mangaluru: “As there is a need to respect the belief of local people, one should not oppose the age-old systems in the pretext of equality“, opined Yogini Shambhavi, a spiritual guide and educator of ancient Vedic traditions, on Sunday, November 4.
She was expressing her views at a session on `women and religion- from triple talaq to Sabarimala, organised as part of `Mangaluru Lit Fest – 2018`.
Shambhavi said, “one should not think that objection on women to enter the Sabarimala temple between the age group of 10 and 50 is a barrier. As it is a law of land, one should follow it. Questioning the age-old customs and traditions would not help to bring equality between men and women“, she said.
When the moderator of the discussion actor and politician Malavika Avinash was keen to know whether the tradition of the temple should be changed Shambhavi said that there is nothing wrong in the tradition and it should be continued as it is.
“The tradition of the temple only says that the women between the age group of 10 and 50 should not enter into the temple as it is the reproductive age for women. Hence, the ones who want to go can wait until they have crossed the age limit,” she said.
Another resource person Padma Rani said that women should be left free to take their own decision, whether to follow the tradition or not. “As it is a personal issue, one should not impose the rule on women. Court should not interfere with this sensitive issue and women should be left free to take her own decision“, she said.
However, columnist Preethi Nagaraj expressed opposed the ban and said that if all men and women are the creations of God, why there should be gender-based discrimination? “There should not be any discrimination between men and women“, she stressed and added that even an argument that entry of women into the temple is banned because the God here is a celibate too falls flat. “I am too insignificant to cause any disturbance to the penance of my Lord by entering the temple” she said.
