Role of Woman as Mother

Besides performing religious and domestic duties as wife, women have to role as a mother of her children. The pride and reputation of a family is by and large depends upon the role played by a mother in the family. In the Ṛgveda the words Jani, Janī and Jāni were used to denote a mother. Their motherhood supersedes wifehood. She reached the zenith of her power when she became a mother. She was auspicious (kalyāṇi).^[1] According to Manusmṛti, one ācārya excels ten upādhyāyas in glory, a father excels a hundred ācāryas in glory, but a mother excels even a thousand fathers in glory.^[2]

According to Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa, the wives of a good man bear fruit in their sons.^[3] A mother is as always considered to be the well wisher of her children. She does not curse her children very easily. Generally she excuses the faults of her children. But in exceptional cases it is seen that the mother may curse her child out of extreme anger for him or her. In this case the curse of the mother cannot be averted. This view has been proved in the Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa, when Yama, cursed by his mother Chāyāsaṃjñā. Yama went to his father for the removal of the curse. Then he was told by his father that all curses could be averted but not that of a mother.^[4] However, the curse was averted by his father, because Chāyāsaṃjñā was not yama’s real mother, she was the substitute of his mother Saṃjñā.^[5]

In the Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa we find the evidence of desire of mother to have a son, who is well-disposed towards the friend, who is able to face the foes i.e. like a hero. A mother is considered as a hero when her son conquers the enemies or even dies in the battle field facing the enemies with his great valour.^[6] Otherwise, her pain of conception is regarded not to be success.

Thus it is seen that the mother expects good behaviour from his son and the son who is kind enough, well disposed and able to face the enemy is considered as real son, otherwise the son, which is devoid of any courageous act, is not to be praised after his death and his mother’s act of giving his birth to his son is considered to be in vain.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Ṛgveda, 4.58.8; 3.53.6

[2]:

Manusmṛti, 2.145

[3]:

rājan jātamapatyaṃ me satāṃ putraphalāḥ striyaḥ /
sa maṃ pradāya vittena dehi viprāya dakṣiṇām // Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa, 8.24

[4]:

Ibid., 103.28

[5]:

viguṇeṣvapi putreṣu na mātā viguṇā bhavet/ Ibid., 74.32 b; 103.25

[6]:

Ibid., 20.43-46