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Fifth Vow of Vardhamana Mahavira : Its Causes
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children 18 and had paramours. Unmarried girls were immoral and married women went astray.20 The maidens and the married women had their lovers but they were not looked askance by society.21
Incestucus intercourse between father and daughter has been recorded in Rigveda (10.61.5-7) but that appears to be the memory of a faded ancient social event. But sexual intercourse between brother and sister22 has not yet died out though it was in the state of fast decadence as is evidenced by Yama-Yami dialogue (Rigveda 1010).
Though the practice of promiscuous mass sexual intercourse in public was discontinued; its memory was still cherished in this period. After the slaying of Horse in Asvamedha; the chief queen had to lie down with the dead horse in a state of sexual intercourse. She was accompanied by three other queens and four hundred attendants including maidens (HRT), women discarded by their husbands (YRRYIT) and oversexed amazon type of women (arra)23. There may or may not have been mass sexual intercourse with them but at the least, this clearly establishes that the ancient practice was ritualised and still remembered with joy and felicity.
Women were fast losing their independence. They were reduced to the status of chattel and were owned and disposed of by man like chattel. They could be given away as sacrificial fees to the priests alongwith gold and cattle. Abhyarartin and Vasistha got two damsels each in Dana or gift.24 Risi Sobhari got 500 Vadhus in gift?". Word 'Vadhu' (TEL) has a significant pointer in this context. Vadhus are those women who are carried away by force or with consent and made wives or concubines. Vadhu in the sense of a married wife is a post-Mahậvîra growth. Anga gave 10,000 female-slaves to his preist Aitareya.26 Rsi Aruni27 possessed Dasis. Aswins presented fair-skinned women to black Kanva. 28 Risis and others guests could get the daughter and the wife of the host for their temporary sexual use. 29 Women were getting to be the victims of the best of the men in power, the kirgs, the priests and their henchmen. The moral decadence had set in and women were degraded to a worse position than they enjoyed
