Tragedy... and Bravery

One of the regular readers/commentors on this blog, Rekha Haricharan(rekhs is the name she goes by in the comments), went through a great personal tragedy recently when her mother Viji Srinivasan passed away on June 13. Though I do not know either Rekha or her mother personally, the articles I've been reading on Viji Srinivasan's demise make it clear that this was a great woman who had dedicated her life to the betterment of the lives of those less privileged than her. May her soul rest in peace.

But I wish to highlight here the act by Rekha that highlights both society's neanderthal attitude when it comes to the equality of women and her courage in standing upto that attitude. A lifelong advocate of gender equality, Viji extracted a promise from her daughter that she would conduct her last rites upon her death. But Rekhs faced great obstacles in her wish to honor the promise she made to her mom. More than 25 priests refused to assist her in her act since only sons are supposed to perform the last rites and she was even threatened with excommunication from her own Brahmin community. Unfazed by all that and with moral support from her dad, her husband and her in-laws, she found a more liberal priest who helped her conduct the last rites and keep her promise to her mom.

My condolences to Rekha and her family in this time of great personal tragedy. At the same time, I greatly admire her resolution in keeping her word to her mom and fighting, in her own way, the bias against women that still rears its ugly head periodically. Twisting Neil Armstrong's words just a little, I feel that it was a small step for her but a giant leap for womankind. Her mom would've been proud.

Do let Rekha know what you feel through your comments... As I mentioned, she does read all comments. And anybody who wishes to convey their feelings more personally can email me at bbalaji [at] sbcglobal [dot] net and I will forward the same to Rekha.