The Devadasi system is not meant for prostitution.In Hinduism God is easily accessible and one can worship Him/Her in any form or have relation ship with him in any capacity,Supreme Being,Teacher,friend ,Lover,Guide ,mother,father or in any way the human mind can conceive, depending individual’s comfort level for communion with the Supreme Being.The Devadasi system was evolved taking into consideration this fact and women who wish to serve God by dedicating themselves to the service God, shunning all worldly desires, including marriage and the society took care of their needs.Unfortunately this system got corrupted by people who do not know/understand the background of the system and it has become an out let for prostitution.The Devadasis are dedicated to any God , not to Goddesses, (as mentioned in the article)It is easy for people to misunderstand Hinduism if they do not study deeply Hinduism .This applies in equal measure to people who call themselves Hindus as well as those who do are not familiar with Hinduism.Let me record my appreciation of the author for her objective reporting.For details of Hinduism and Hindu customs please follow the link.
Also read my Blogs under Hinduism/Indian Philosophy.
Story.
On my very first day there I stumbled into a meeting of Devadasi prostitutes. I was told that they were temple prostitutes, but didn’t have any understanding of what that meant. It sounded absolutely barmy!
I began to research it and in February 2008 was invited to northern Karnatakar, which is the centre of the tradition in India. I interviewed a few of the women and wrote an article about it for Vice magazine. But visiting them stayed with me, and I wanted to find out more.
When you approach a Devadasi girl for interview the response varies hugely. There’s a huge spectrum of women. A really wealthy brothel madam in Mumbai would be quite proud to talk about what she does. But in very poor rural communities, like in Karnatakar, they’re much more difficult to talk to. These young women are ostracised and exploited and they’re ashamed of what they do. They wish they could get married, but they can’t and are in this dreadful prison.
The only thing that has changed since the Devadasi practise was made illegal in 1988 is that the ceremonies have been driven underground. It’s still very common in some parts of India. A Westerner wouldn’t know to look at the girls that they are Devadasi, but Indians know on sight who they are and what they do. Really it comes down to caste.
Caste is a massively complicated issue still in India. My understanding of it is that originally when the Devadasi tradition first came about, the women dedicated were from high caste families, even royalty. They held a very special place in the Indian culture: were incredible dancers, poets, artisans. They had specific religious roles to play within the temple performing various sacred religious rites. They were almost like nuns and it had nothing to do with sex. It was more like being a priestess.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/prostitutes-of-god-2082290.html
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