Marriage (c): Polyandry

In this form of marriage, one woman can marry more than one husband at a time. Again brothers can share one wife in common. But the Brāhmaṇa literature denies the polyandry marriage system. In the Aitareyabrāhmaṇa it is quoted that one person may have many wives, but one wife should not have many husbands.^[1] The Mahābhārata also explains about the polyandry system. Here it is described that there is no offence of a person receiving many wives through marriage.^[2] But in the case of women it is not approved. The Mahābhārata and the Bhāgavatapurāṇa^[3] give example of Draupadī, who was the common wife of the five Pāṇḍavas. Here the father of Draupadī heared that the five Pāṇḍavas would marry his daughter Draupadī, he opposed this polyandry system.^[4] In the context of answering Jaimini’s question the Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa mentions about one wife having many husbands.^[5] There is another example of polyandry in the Mahābhārata where Jatilā was married by seven seers.^[6] The Bhāgavatapurāṇa^[7] and Viṣṇupurāṇa^[8] give examples of this marriage, where the Prācetas married Vārkṣī. In the Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa we find the reference of polyandry in the description on Draupadī’s marriage.^[9] It is observed that the Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa advocates monogamy marriage system and disapproves the polygamy and polyandry system.^[10]