The Hindu : Camp stresses women's role in preserving culture

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Oct 19, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Karnataka

Camp stresses women's role in preserving culture

By Our Staff Correspondent

UJIRE OCT. 18. Speakers at the three-day camp on "women and culture" organised by the Directorate of Kannada and Culture, State National Service Scheme Fund, and SDM College, which started here on Friday, stressed the need to preserve culture. They also recognised the important role women played in protecting and preserving culture.

Inaugurating the camp, the Dharmadhikari of Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala, D. Veerendra Heggade, said history proved the deep-rooted connection between women and culture. A nation flourished only if its cultural roots, though unseen, were strong, he said and added that "dharma" and culture were interlinked and one could not be viewed independently of the other.

Noting that "dharma" shaped the identity of a nation, he said culture should flourish on such a platform. There was no use fighting over "dharma" and mixing it with "religion", he said and added that one should understand the basis of "dharma" and act accordingly.

He said women were ideal for carrying out this task because of their understanding of the matter. Referring to the special status accorded to women in Indian society, Dr. Heggade said they played a vital role in fostering culture. He said the role of women in preserving culture became all the more important at a time when some influential countries were determined to "bulldoze and raze" other nations' cultures and foist their own culture on the rest of the world.

The flip side of the influence of Western culture on India was the projection of women as "items of pleasure". Describing this as an instance of the continued exploitation of women, he said despite advancements made by society, women continued to be exploited as before. Its intensity might have come down in certain cases, but it was carried out in different forms.

Dr. Heggade said it was necessary to keep foreign culture at bay, recognise our culture, and take all steps to promote it. Regretting that the youth had not been able to discharge their responsibilities in this regard, he urged everybody to inculcate in students the importance of upholding culture. He said only their involvement could hold some promise for the future.

Lauding the Directorate's move to involve NSS students in the preservation of restored temples under the aegis of the Sri Dharmasthala Trust and the department, Dr. Heggade said the trust had restored 22 temples last year.

He also said that the trust planned to restore 16 temples this year and advised NSS students to participate in the venture.

The Minister of State for Kannada and Culture, Rani Satish, said women were deemed to be closer to nature and their understanding of culture was better because of the variety of roles they played in life. Quoting Mahatma Gandhi's statement that culture was within one's own heart, Ms. Satish urged men to join hands with women in upholding culture and preserving it for posterity.

Noting that modern-day women were capable of utilising various opportunities that came their way, she said they must learn to live outside the shadow of their male counterparts.

Women had an inherent power to transform situations, she said and added that sometimes this task was beyond the collective will of the Executive, Legislature, and Judiciary.

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