Question

Even in the medieval period women were given much importance, Prove this statement with reference with Delhi Sultanate.​

Answer 1

Answer:

Explanation:

Razia Sultan was the first Muslim female ruler. She ruled in Delhi from 1236 to 1240 as the Sultan herself – it was a title never before bestowed on a woman, a position of power never before attained by a woman. She was the fifth Mamluk Sultan, one of the few female sovereigns ever in the entire history of Islamic civilizations across the world.

Razia it is believed had refused to be addressed as a Sultana (as per her gender) as that word meant “wife or mistress of a Sultan”, but claimed the title “Sultan”, as she herself was the premier.

Answer 2

Explanation:

Caste and the position of women in society are interrelated. To reproduce ‘caste’ one has to sexually subjugate the bodies of its women through endogamy and other social techniques. Consequently, when we find evidence suggesting a growing rigidity of caste system from early medieval times, we also find indications of a gradual lowering of women’s position in society. This point is well taken by BR Ambedkar when he says in his essay Castes in India (1916), “endogamy is the only characteristic that is peculiar to caste”. The practice of widow burning or sati became fairly common all over India by the eleventh century among the widows of rulers, nobles and warriors. Some evidence like the Lekhapaddhati — a collection of documents from Gujarat — also show that women could be bought and sold as slaves, and were made to do all kinds of work, including the dirtiest and toughest kinds. They were also subject to physical and sexual violence. On the other hand, women employed as professional dancers in royal courts and the deva-dasi or temple courtesans appear to have been another large class of women.

Habib cites AS Altekar’s work, The Position of Women in Hindu Civilisation as one of the references that he draws upon when discussing the history of women in Medieval India. Altekar focuses on the history of widows in particular, to understand the history of women as a class.

In Medieval India, a period that witnessed the spread of Hinduism and the caste system, one of the customs that historians like Habib and Altekar have looked at is that of Sati. “From about 700 AD, fiery advocates began to come forward to extol the custom of Sati in increasing numbers,” writes Altekar. As an example, he cites the Parasarasmriti, a post-Manu code of laws that lists out the governing principles for the Kaliyuga (the Age of Kali), compiled during this early medieval period. In addition, it contains humiliating dictates against the lower-caste Shudras.