Week 13 & 14 - Gender, Religion and

Nation

Key Concepts

 Intersectionality: Gender intersects with religion and nation, highlighting the

interconnectedness of multiple forms of oppression and identity.
 Patriarchal structures: Gender intersects with religion and nation within patriarchal
systems that prioritize male dominance and control over women.
 Symbolic role of women's bodies: Women's bodies are often used as symbols and
markers of national identity, cultural purity, and reproduction.
 Policing women's behaviour: Women's behavior, dress, and sexuality are often
regulated and controlled within religious and national contexts, emphasizing notions
of modesty, morality, and virtue.
 Resistance and agency: Women challenge and resist gendered expectations,
asserting their agency and contributing to social and political movements for gender
equality and women's rights within religious and national contexts.

Essential Readings

1. Gupta, Charu The Icon of Mother in Late Colonial Northern India ‘Bharat

Mata’, ‘Matri Bhasha’ and “Gau Mata’
2. Ramaswamy, S The Goddess and the nation mapping Mother India
3. Khol Do: Sadat Hasan Manto

Audio Visual Material

1. Ravish Kumar's show on Nation and Mother

2. ‘Final Solution’ Documentary by Rakesh Sharma

 nation: social group linked through common descent, culture, language, or territorial
contiguity
 national identity: a fluid and dynamic form of collective identity; members believe
that they are different from other groups
 state: organizational structure outside other socioeconomic hierarchies with relatively
autonomous office-holders
 nation-state: integrates sub-groups that define themselves as a nation with the
organizational structure of the state
 sovereignty:
 o authority in a specified territory, with the right to use force both to maintain
internal order and defend its territory against aggression
o internal Locus of political and cultural authority, owing obedience to no power
outside itself

The Icon of Mother in Late Colonial Northern India ‘Bharat Mata’, ‘Matri Bhasha’
and “Gau Mata’ - Charu Gupta

Charu Gupta - The Icon of Mother.pdf

 The metaphor of the mother played a crucial role in representing nationalism.

 The symbol of motherhood encompassed various facets of the nation, such as the
motherland, mother tongue, and motherhood itself.
 The flexibility of the mother symbol allowed it to adapt and hold different meanings
in different contexts.
 Hindu publicists in UP strategically employed the mother symbol to shape narratives
of nation, language, and cow.
 The utilization of the mother symbol helped define and strengthen community
identities.

Bharat Mata

 The concept of 'Bharat Mata' (Mother India) emerged as a symbol of national identity
during the late colonial period.
 depicted as a Hindu goddess, embodying the collective identity of the Indian nation
 represents the motherland or the nation as a nurturing and protective figure
 used to mobilize nationalist sentiment and unite diverse communities in the struggle
for independence
 evokes feelings of devotion, sacrifice, and the willingness to fight for the welfare and
freedom of the country

Matri Bhasha

 'Matri Bhasha' (Mother Tongue) refers to the importance of regional languages in

Northern India.
 symbolizes the importance of linguistic heritage and mother tongue in shaping
individual and cultural identities
 represents the nurturing role of language in preserving cultural traditions, values, and
expressions
 emphasizes the bond between a language and its speakers, highlighting the
motherhood aspect of language as a means of communication and cultural
transmission
 The promotion of 'Matri Bhasha' aimed to counter the dominance of English and
create a sense of cultural pride and identity.

Gau Mata
  'Gau Mata' (Mother Cow) is a symbol of reverence and protection for cows in Hindu
culture.
 represents the motherhood aspect of cows in Hindu culture, highlighting their role as
providers of nourishment and sustenance
 symbolises the reverence and protection accorded to cows, considering them as sacred
and maternal figures in Hindu belief systems
 also represents the nurturing and caretaking aspect of motherhood, reflecting the
cultural significance and emotional connection between cows and their devotees
 The icon of 'Gau Mata' has been used by certain political groups to promote a specific
religious and cultural agenda.

These three icons - 'Bharat Mata', 'Matri Bhasha', and 'Gau Mata' - represent different aspects
of motherhood and have played significant roles in shaping the socio-political landscape of
late colonial Northern India.

The Goddess and the Nation Mapping Mother India - Sumathi Ramaswamy

Sumathi Ramaswamy - The Goddess and the Nation Mapping Mother India.pdf

 "The Goddess and the Nation: Mapping Mother India" by Sumathi Ramaswamy
explores the symbolism and imagery of Mother India in Indian nationalist discourse.
 The book examines the ways in which the figure of Mother India became a powerful
symbol of the nation during the colonial period.
 Ramaswamy traces the evolution of the iconography of Mother India, from early
depictions of Hindu goddesses to the emergence of the Bharat Mata (Mother India)
image.
 The author analyzes the political and cultural significance of Mother India,
highlighting how she was used to promote ideas of national identity, unity, and
sacrifice.
 Ramaswamy discusses the contested nature of Mother India's representation, with
different groups interpreting and reimagining her in various ways.
 The book also explores the gendered aspects of Mother India, examining how her
image reinforced traditional gender roles and notions of femininity.
 Ramaswamy investigates the visual and textual representations of Mother India in art,
literature, and popular culture, emphasizing their role in shaping public perceptions
and mobilizing nationalist sentiment.
 The author challenges the idea of a singular, static Mother India, arguing that her
imagery was diverse and constantly evolving, reflecting the complex and diverse
nature of the nation itself.
 Ramaswamy concludes by reflecting on the continued relevance and transformations
of Mother India as a symbol in contemporary India.
 "The Goddess and the Nation" provides a comprehensive analysis of the multifaceted
role of Mother India in Indian nationalist discourse, shedding light on the
intersections of religion, gender, and politics in shaping national identity.

Important Quotes
 1. "Mother India's ubiquity in India's public domain is a measure of her importance as a
national icon, her visual omnipresence an index of the strength of the nation's
imaginary community."
o highlights the significance of Mother India as a national icon and her
widespread presence symbolizes the strength of the collective imagination of
the nation
2. "Mother India was 'mapped' onto India, each constituting the other, a process that was
at once imaginative and cartographic, iconic and textural."
o Mother India and India are intertwined, with the process of mapping
representing both imaginative and physical aspects, creating an iconic and
textual connection
3. "Mother India's body is always invoked as a battleground, her gendered body-as-
territory fought over by competing communities."
4. "The icon of Mother India was not just a personification of a nation imagined as
female, but more specifically an idealized image of a traditional woman fulfilling her
gendered roles as nurturer, provider, and moral beacon."
5. "To 'map' Mother India onto India in such a way that she could serve as a symbol for
a diverse nation, [nationalist leaders] sought to divest her of her many regional and
sectarian attributes in favor of an image of the nation as a whole."
o Nationalist leaders aimed to detach Mother India from regional and sectarian
attributes to create a unified symbol representing the entire nation
6. "The political allure of Mother India lay not just in her ability to 'represent' a diverse
and populous nation but also in her power to symbolically 'bind' it together, to
'embrace' its diverse communities and efface their differences."

The Icon of Mother in Late Colonial Northern India ‘Bharat Mata’, ‘Matri Bhasha’
and “Gau Mata’ - Sadat Hasan Manto

Sadat Hasan Manto - Khol Do.pdf

 The story revolves around Sirajuddin, a man who loses his daughter Sakina during the
chaos of partition in India.
 Sirajuddin searches for Sakina in refugee camps and describes her to a group of young
men who help reunite families separated by the partition.
 The young men eventually find a girl matching Sakina's description, but she is
frightened and runs away from them.
 They catch up with her, and she admits to being Sakina, Sirajuddin's daughter.
 Sakina is taken care of by the young men, but Sirajuddin is still searching for her and
praying for their success.
 One day, the young men bring an unconscious girl with a mole on her left cheek to the
camp hospital.
 Sirajuddin enters the hospital and recognizes the girl as Sakina, his daughter.
 The doctor confirms that she is alive, and Sirajuddin rejoices.
 The story ends on a hopeful note with Sakina being reunited with her father after a
period of uncertainty and despair.
 The violence and trauma of the Partition of India in 1947 were not widely discussed
or included in national historiography until later decades.
 Saadat Hasan Manto was one of the few writers who portrayed the pain and societal
breakdown of the Partition through powerful narratives.
 Manto's works highlighted the violence experienced by women, including sexual
assault, and the societal pressure of preserving "honour" that led to suicides.
 The short story "Khol Do" focuses on the perspective of Sirajuddin, whose daughter
Sakina goes missing during the Partition.
 The story explores the depths of human depravity and the traumatic experiences of the
victims, including rape.
 Manto challenges the linear narratives of interfaith violence and questions the
institution of social work and nationalist ideology.
 Historical structures of patriarchy and violence were manifested during the Partition,
with perpetrators coming from within their own communities as well as others.
 The metaphor of community and nation is often inscribed on the South Asian female
body, which is already marked with patriarchal notions of shame and honour.
 Narratives of trauma and marginalization in Partition literature often exclude
subaltern groups, such as lower caste women and trans communities.
 The historical narrative of trauma and marginalization during the Partition remains
incomplete and requires broader representation.