Today I completed reading the very famous book by a very renowned writer, Khaled Hosseini. He is not the one who wrote to be a best seller, but he wrote selfishly for himself. The name of the book is"A Thousand Splendid Suns". After I finished reading the book, the very first thought that came to my mind was
"It opened the closed doors"
I felt a very deep lingering pain that I had subsumed inside a part of my heart years ago.
Violence against women, when they were treated as animals, only used for having sex and bearing babies especially boys.We have come so far.
But while reading the novel, my heart cried for the pain and struggle women have been through even after India got freedom and the constitution came into being on 26th January 1950 (even though as per writer it was all happening in Afghanistan). The fight for freedom for women has still not finished but yes has enabled some bright stars to come out of hue and shine brightly.
I recall how Mariam was punished by her husband of 50 yrs for not bearing a baby at the age of fifteen.She went through several cycles of bearing a baby but was unable to have one.
One day Rasheed threw the food on the floor and stashed coal pieces into her mouth,
forcing her to eat them to tell her how the food tasted which led to her loss of teeth.
Me, being a women myself have personally witnessed such incidences when the women have cried for mercy from her husband when food was not cooked properly or not served on time, when she was not allowed to keep a mobile phone or even look at another man.When a girl is educated and
puts her views forward in society and hence called shameless and characterless by the so called judges of society.
A women who gives all her life for her family without questioning the work time, starting from early morning cup of tea to serving each and every member of her family.It brings me great pain today to know the real reality of women behind those close doors and superficial feminist talks of women being equal to men.
I feel the suffering of women who quietly every night go to bed and are sexually and emotionally assaulted by their husbands, just because it is their right to do so.
I know I might be sounding a feminist, but for the example sake we need not look farther, but in the other room of our house where our women are working day and night selflessly and being treated like an object that is good enough to take care of home and maintain gardens rather than raising her voice and putting their views forward.
I hope women in Afghanistan whose faces are covered with veil are well protected and have gained courage to accept the reality of life and tried to educate the coming generations cause the present is too good to be mended...
A women is like a flower which needs to be cared for,
her fragrance fills up the dark rooms and brightens the life cared for
for if not done she turns into a thorn
than can ruin the dynasties like draupadi
or bring heaven to earth like Mother Teresa.....
