The most interesting spiritual connection I made was in the character, Kalyani. Kaylani is a younger widow who is caught between what she wants and what she feels spiritually inclined to do. A young man who practices Gandhism and follows Ghandi, Narayan, tries to convince Kaylani not to get mixed into what she thinks is her spiritual obligation as a widow and to marry him.
Kalyani and Narayan's story is interesting to me because it makes me wonder if some of the rules that have been set for the widow are actually connected to religion, or if it is what is pleasing to society. I think the two concepts are commonly connected when they should not be. Kalyani is sent off to be a prostitute to make an income for the widows, but that isn't spiritually acceptable so where is the line drawn and what rules have exceptions? The idea that Kalyani shouldn't be married because she will be reconnected with her deceased spouse in another life changes things because in theory she won't be alone forever. However, since Hinduism is a religion that is constantly evolving I did some further research to see if it is now acceptable for widows to remarry. In 1856, the Hindu Widows' Remarriage Act was created allowing widows to remarry with exceptions.
I think that the spiritual insights you have about this film are great! In my blog post I also talked about some of the widows trying to stay faithful to their religion, but still having desires that break the rules of their religion (like a widow wanting to marry again). I think that this film does a good job of showing us that there are exceptions to some of those harsh seeming rules. However, the rules do exist and peoples' lives are impacted in negative ways because of them.
ReplyDelete-Haley Williams
I think you bring up a good point, if it's okay for them to send her out to be a prostitute, why isn't it okay if she wants to remarry? Prostitution certainly isn't acceptable, so it's kind of like a double standard.
Delete-Amanda Roloff
I also wonder the same thing too about the remarrying for widows. I believe they should have the rights to remarry especially if their arranged husband dies and they're still young like little Chuyia.
Delete- Kia Lee
I also really enjoyed your discussion of the spiritual insights present in the film. It was a large element in the film so I was glad you discussed it. I too looked into the rules of widows in India now, and saw the law was passed. However, looking at many articles I saw treatment of widows in India is still a HUGE problem. It is really unfortunate that it still exists. Great post!
ReplyDelete-Christina Sieb
I think you made a really great point in asking the question about when and where to draw the line. This was also a thought in my mind. Good job!
ReplyDeleteAmy Wittlieff